The Sanctuary Side-Story (3/17)

"I understand, but he's just trying to be helpful. If you want, I can tell him to relax. Even I can see that he's overstepping his bounds... are you sure you don't need anything else?" I asked Nova.

"Huh? Y-Yeah, I'll be alright. I'm just going to sit around until we're ready to go. Hey, Kire, can I ask you something?" Nova leaned back in her chair and her stare looked blank as she gazed at the floor.

"Of course, you can. The least I owe you are answers to questions you might have." I told her.

"When I think about the people on the beach, I think of ruthless, bloodthirsty killers that don't care about anybody but themselves. You guys weren't like that before I got here, but I got here only a few months ago. You guys have been here for a long time. Were you guys terrible people before I got here? Or, at all in the beginning?" Nova asked me.

"We had some fights over food in the beginning. Although, we had somebody to guide us in the right direction, and we never fought again after that. I'll never forget that man. He never told us his name, but he had a look to him that just can't be forgotten. Anyway, all it took was a sliver of order that he initiated for us to be the good people we all knew we could be. It might not be instant, but if you can convince that group of new people to work with us, they could be useful allies, just like us." I explained to Nova.

"I see. That's all I had. Thank you Kire. I'll see you in a couple of hours." She said.

Nova walked out of the tent, leaving her staff behind, with a scroll attached to the top with a piece of twine.

"Oh, Nova! You forgot your staff!" I shouted out to her.

I placed my hand on the tape that acted as the gripping point for the handle, and as soon as I touched it, it sparked and shot me back in pain.

She pushed back the deer-hide curtains and quickly grabbed the staff, trying to run away without explaining. I called out her name again, but she only turned around, and rose a finger to her lips, telling me to keep quiet.

That wasn't any static electricity build-up. That actually hurt... it seemed that she was aware of it...

No matter, I just have to trust her.

…

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"Now that we're in the forest outside of their base, I'll go over this again. I want Kire and you to stay in the forest. I'll take these two near those rocks that are by the beach, and I'll go in alone with my staff. Until I scream out, do not, and I mean absolutely not, interfere at all. Even if a fight breaks out, stay hidden. I will be fine." Nova told us.

"Understood. Ready to go?" I asked her.

Nova nodded, grabbing her staff, and putting it onto the small clip on her back that kept it sheathed, yet ready for use at any time.

I peered in from the tree trunks that were hiding me to watch the group she was walking up to all initiate defense with sticks, rocks, and anything they could manage.

"Um, can any of you speak my language?" Nova asked.

The group was silent. Their body language was alarming, as they looked like they were communicating with each other, but they weren't speaking a word. Simple nods and head tilt in whatever direction were enough to get some of them moving.

"If you can't speak my language, I'm sure you know what this means," Nova said. She unsheathed her staff off of the clip on her back and slammed it into the sand. It packed quite the punch, pushing sand up out of the beach, and frightening some of the nearby people.

"We understand you. What do you want? Are you here to hurt us?" One of the guys said.

"Absolutely not! Um, my name is Nova! I come from a neighboring settlement... and I just wanted to see if you guys were friendly. I'm going to be honest, I was watching you for a bit to see if you were all violent people, but instead of getting my answer, I saw that you were all hungry." She said.

Nova threw one of our backpacks into the sand by the feet of the person speaking to her, and then Nova slowly backed up with her hands raised, and her staff sheathed once again.

"It's full of food and water, for everybody. To prove that I'm not trying to hurt you." She said.

"How do we know it's not poisoned?" The speaker asked her.

"I guess you'll have to trust me, just like I'm trusting you not to rush me and try to beat me down. All we have together right now is trust. I ask that we build upon that foundation as we continue forth. I will bring you guys food for a week, and if that's how long it takes for you to trust me, then so be it. I'm not looking for a fight, I'm only looking to grow the city I'm a part of. But, to do that, I need to know that you aren't malicious." Nova explained.

She was going about this perfectly. She wasn't acting like she was more powerful than them, and was only trying to see what kind of people they were, rather than forcing them to join our ranks. She was the perfect persuader.

"So... this food really isn't poisoned? I'll eat it first, just to make sure, and if I feel ill, then my people will attack you." The man explained.

I heard laughing behind me and was confused at first, but when I turned around to see the weird guy waiting in anticipation as the speaker began to take a bite, I understood what he had planned.

That weird man, who was obsessed with Nova, had done something to that food, hadn't he?