The Cure - II [Exemplary]

[Proto Man]

The hinterland that surrounded Darkshire was surprisingly tame. Once out of the city through an old mine that extended half a mile toward a depleted iron supply, the pair made their way to surface and onward toward the desolate extremes of the Moors. By the time the sun started to peak over the horizon, they had left the city far behind them, with nothing but memories of it to occupy their thoughts as they crossed through a lightly forested landscape.

It wasn’t until the sun started to fall again that a conversation began between the two.

“So you and Whirda fought against elves?” Mireya asked softly as the two slipped out through a copse and found themselves staring out across a mostly empty expanse of rolling hills.

“Evil elves, yea,” Proto Man replied as he paused to scope out the area. A glance up showed him that more time had passed than he thought, and for a moment, he felt terrible that he hadn’t spoken earlier. It wasn’t that he didn’t enjoy talking with Mireya (she was far more approachable than Whirda), but he had become so utterly lost amidst the changing landscape that he forgot she was even there. “They called themselves Drow… have you heard of them?”

His companion shook her head. “No,” she replied as she mulled a thought over in her head for a few moments. “Just night elves and non-night elves… I didn’t think there’d be a whole collection of them out there.”

“Well the Omniverse is essentially a cosmic dumpster,” the android shot back as the two continued their trek. “I’m somewhat surprised there isn’t more overlap amongst inhabitants.”

“I guess it was a good idea to leave the Moors,” Mireya mused as the two faded back into silence. A glimpse back at the horizon showed that nighttime would be fast at hand soon, and with Darkshire nearly two days behind them, they would have to rest and play defense for a few hours.

Fortunately for the android and the half-night elf, they weren’t disturbed during their ‘sleep.’ When the sun started to peak up behind the cloudy sky, Proto Man gave his friend a tap on the shoulder to pull her out of whatever state elves went into when they ‘slept.’ Just as she had watched over him while he powered down to give his system time to renew itself and his firmware time to update, he had guarded her over the last few hours.

Feeling ‘fresh’ and rejuvenated, the twosome continued into the Pale Moors.

***

Informational Observation Log 003 – Day 7

Mireya and I have been marching for nearly a week straight. It is very fortunate that neither of us requires the full sleep regimen of a human, and her elven constitution means she can get by on very little food. I think we might be beyond the point that Whirda and I reached on our first journey out into the Moors, because things no longer look familiar. My topography app shares the same thoughts as I do, as it has no more matches as we press forward into terrain that is new to us.

We’ve yet to encounter any substantial opposition.

After our first ‘break,’ we didn’t encounter any other living organisms for nearly three additional days. Fortunately, they were not drow or sentient undead. Most of them were beasts—some posed threats to our safety, but for the most part, we were able to avoid confrontation with the ‘wildlife’ (if such a term is even applicable). On the afternoon of the fourth day, we took a ‘siesta,’ as Mireya calls it, but we were interrupted by some sort of mob of skeletal snakes. We managed to quickly disperse the horde before it overwhelmed us. Although we suffered no long-lasting injuries, we were reminded of Snake Man, and though neither Mireya nor I wanted to mention it, I’m sure we wore the sadness on our faces for the remainder of the day.

The fifth day was marked by a strange occurrence—a river. I’ve become so accustomed to the rolling hills and blotches of forest, and Mireya must have felt the same way when we stumbled across the winding stream. Although the water was a dull shade of green and there seemed to be no aquatic life, we took a short break to, for all intents and purposes, play around in the water. Despite its appearance, the water wasn’t toxic (see the attached files for toxicology reports), and based on its temperature, I’m sure it would have been quite refreshing to have splashed on one’s face.

Mireya promised me that she’ll take me fishing once we ‘take care of business.’ For whatever reason, she doesn’t seem to want to verbalize our intention to go storming into the bastion of a powerful hellion that’s probably filled with minions and other sorts of hazards to our health. Although I suppose the former provides us with more benefit of the doubt. The funny part? I’ve already been fishing pre-Omniverse, but I didn’t want to spoil my friend’s aspirations. I believe she’s just trying to think ahead to rosier times, because it helps her to come to terms with the high probability that she will die and I’ll be tortured for a few years (this immortality thing is unpleasant).

Ah well, the sun appears to be attempting to once again pierce the clouds as it floats up from the mountains in the east. With any luck, we’ll reach our destination in one piece, although part of me is beginning to believe there is a reason why our journey has been rather tame so far…

I can only hope I’m being ‘paranoid.’

-end entry-