
All the recent weeks and months passed before Aira's eyes in a single moment. How much Lila helped her to get to terms with her new state and begin her path of exploration in this new world. And now, she only had skills that wouldn't change anything in that dire situation! Energy Manipulation allowed her to follow Lila's movement and track her. Still, it wasn't enough to get her out of the water. And Two is a Crowd was absolutely useless.
That feeling followed her all the time after the transition and transformation to an undead with just limited access to magic. But then…
She had that new skill. And its use wasn't limited to just sensing that mysterious undead who was leading them towards the ancient city. Could she…?
Not stopping even for a moment, Aira probed her surroundings once again and sensed where Lila was and where that animal's presence was under the ice. Targeting her Necrocommunion skill with as much precision as she could and making corrections for the constant movement of all three participants of the pursuit, Aira unleashed her magic.
For a heartbeat, nothing happened. But then the animal started slowing down, losing its interest in Lila.
"No, no, no!" Aira growled. "That's not what I want of you!"
She probed with her skill once again, looking for any levers, any ways to impress her will upon the creature. And there it was, a new connection. Now, Aira had a way to command and direct it.
Aira transferred some of her energy into the animal, boosting its base stats. At the same exact moment, she felt the ice cold was also getting to her. Her energy reserves were draining fast.
As soon as Aira gave her mental command, the animal, boosted by Aira's magic, bolted forward towards Lila, who was still propelled by the stream under the ice with an astonishing speed. Aira didn't know much about the workings of the rivers, but she never expected the water to flow so fast in a river that wide. Was it the influence of the mountains? Or did this world have some other peculiarities that affected that? It wasn't a good moment to explore this topic, though. That could be done after Lila was safe.
When this moment of contemplation passed, Aira realized with surprise that the yet-to-be-identified animal had caught up with Lila and was seemingly hauling the woman's body against the stream, following Aira's commands.
"What should I do?" thought Aira. "It would take to much time to get to the open water upstream!"
She drained the last reserves from the batteries they packed in the ancient facility, boosted both her and the animal's stats, and, with a roar that rumbled over the ice, hit the surface with her hammer.
Again and again, she did that, sensing that the animal was dragging Lila closer and closer under the ice.
Finally, the surface began to crack under Aira's assault. Soon, she created a clearing wide enough to bring a body out of the water. A moment later, a beaver-like creature the size of a human child appeared, bringing in its claws unresponsive Lila.
"Ah, it seems that it's my turn to care for an unconscious friend," thought Aira, helping the animal to get out of the water on the icy surface.
It looked around, assessed Aira, and then sat a few meters away staring blankly in the distance.
Lila's body was cold, but there was still a very slow heartbeat and Aira could sense faint energy within her. The air wasn't freezing, the spring weather taking hold of the valley. But the ice still emanated the coldness, which didn't help bring Lila back.
Aira searched for a solution, but nothing came to mind. They were still a fair distance away from the shore, and there was no way she could arrange a fire right here. Moreover, the time needed to bring Lila to the shore would probably kill the human woman. Aira had to act now.
What complicated the situation even more was that she sensed her energy reserves getting dangerously low.
"Damned System!" Aira thought. "Why can't I see the exact number as it was with mana?"
In desperation, she checked the batteries she had in her backpack. Lila's pack was washed away by the stream. So, that part of their belongings was lost.
No, nothing. The batteries were completely drained.
And then her gaze fell on that beaver-like created. Its energy signature was powerful. Much more intense than Lila's. Without expecting anything to happen, Aira scanned it with her Necrocommunion skill.
========== Character Status and Skill Overview ==========
Name: Adult Gnarlfang
Race: Undead Gnarlfang
Class: Gnarlfang
Level: 1
Strength: ???
Agility: ???
Intelligence: ???
Endurance: ???
"Whoa!" thought Aira. "Is it capable of magic?"
Still, it looked like the creature was Aira's only source of energy at the time. And it was already… dead. At least from a certain point of view. Killing it twice seemed both unnatural in some way and reasonable. It wouldn't be able to return to its everyday routines. It looked like the poor creature was tethered to Aira and wasn't going anywhere.
"It seems that I have to get used to sucking energy from all sorts of creatures," thought Aira and sighed. "What am I now? A vampire?"
With a sad glance at the animal, Aira targeted it with her arcane powers, feeling the vital energy leaving the furry body and entering her core. When she gathered everything she could, Aira sent a jolt in Lila's direction.
The woman's body shuddered; she shook and then began coughing out water.
Moments later, Lila opened her eyes and looked before her with an unfocused gaze. Slowly and gently, Aira helped her to sit down. Lila put her hands down in a daze and snatched the back abruptly as soon as she touched the ice with her bare skin.
"What… By the twisted branches, what just happened?" Lila asked. "I remember us dodging the cracks, that… that stone-dumb fool what did he do to the ice…? Then what? What in the thorny thicket came next?"
Aira almost began answering as was habitual for them by sending energy impulses toward Lila's headphones when she realized that those miniature pieces of ancient tech were now also lost in the river. She took her portable radio from her belt and put it in Lila's hands.
"You went under," transmitted Aira to the device, stroking Lila on her wet hair. "And then the stream dragged you away. I didn't expect the flow to be so fast over here!"
"Spirits in the shadows… Did you really… How in the cliffs did you pull me out?" Lila asked, her eyes wide.
"That's a long story," answered Aira. "What's important now, is that I need to bring you to the shore and make you warm. We need to build a camp and start a fire. I need to do that."
Aira stood up, still helping Lila to sit.
"I know it's a lot to ask, but are you ready to move?" she asked.
Lila made a feeble attempt to stand up but succeeded only with Aira's help.
"Yeah… sure as sap flows, I'm with ya," Lila muttered, wobbling as she stood. "Not exactly steady as a forest path, but let's fox-tail it before the ice gets any more ideas."
***
It took them almost half an hour to get to the shore. Much longer than they expected to spend crossing the entire distance from one side of the river to another.
They were now a fair distance away from the place where the unknown person confronted them from the shore. But that also meant they were closer to the place from where that person came from.
Aira's energy reserves were replenished, but she wasn't sure how much she should keep for unexpected dangers. So, she only probed the surroundings once. She sensed a feeble signature of that incapacitated person. Remembering their last actions before Aira's attack, she could expect that person to be in relative safety on the shore. Their transport contraption also giving away feeble traces of energy.
That was a problem for the future. Now, Aira had to make sure Lila survived.
Setting up a camp right on the shore wasn't the safest thing to do in a place with human patrols. But going further inland was also not an option. So, Aira found a shallow ravine that hid them at least a little bit from prying eyes. Promptly, she lit a fire and put a kettle with tea to warm up.
Planning their journey carefully, they split their belongings between their backpacks. And while everything Lila had was lost, Aira had some spares. She promptly unclothed Lila, who was already starting to shiver from cold wetness. Aira rubbed her dry with a spare shirt and gave her some new clothes.
"By the roots, Aira, thank you," said Lila. "Sharing your stuff like this—solid as oak, you are."
"Well, this is all thanks to you as well," said Aira. "We planned our gear together! And it was your idea to split it in even parts between us."
"Ah, alrighty," said Lila. "But what about that bastard?"
"We don't know if it's a bastard or a bastarda yet," said Aira with a small smile. "My senses do not give out this information. At least yet. But jokes aside, that person still seems to be unconscious. They haven't moved yet. But they are alive. I'm not sure what to do with that. I can't leave you alone. But we can't leave them unchecked either."
"Any other humans creeping around out there?" asked Lila, glancing along the shore.
"I don't want to use too much energy," said Aira. "So, I don't check constantly. But the last time I checked, there was no one beside us and some animals in the forest."
Aira's thoughts trailed away to the animal that helped her to save Lila. "That poor thing…" she said.
"What was that?" asked Lila.
"Just… I had some help in rescuing you," said Aira. "In a very unexpected way. But, again, we'll discuss that later."
***
In the end, Lila persuaded Aira to leave her in the warmth of the fire and make a fast run to the place where the person who caused them so much grief was left on the shore.
It felt like hours have passed. But in reality, the whole pursuit on the river lasted just a few minutes. It took Aira and Lila some time to get to the shore and build up a camp. But still, the sun was high in the sky, and a fair part of the day was ahead of them.
When Aira reached the man, and, yes, it was a man, he was still unconscious as she expected. The vehicle he used looked quite peculiar to Aira. It used only two wheels, and Aira sensed a powerful energy source within it. However, there was no way she would figure out how to use it without any guidance from that ranger or probably Lila if she ever used something similar.
"Eh… It's a pity I have to leave that thing behind," thought Aira. "It could probably save us some time."
Then, without any second thoughts, swhe boosted her stats a bit more, put the man on her shoulder, and, at a brisk pace, began her journey back to their temporary camp. There still were no other human energy signatures in the area.
By the time she returned, Lila seemed in much better condition than earlier. Having dry clothes and being warmed by the fire was definitely helping. However, Aira felt they may have to reconsider their plans for the upcoming days.
"How are you doing?" she sent to Lila. "I wouldn't want to be in your place when the ice broke under your feet."
"Roots and rivers, I'm happy to be breathing—and dry," said Lila. "But, storm-watching here, Aira—I feel stuck in sap. Haven't budged a twig since you left, and if trouble came knocking, I'd be about as useful as moss on a stone."
"Well, you were safe," said Aira with a reassuring smile. "I checked the area a few times. There's no one there besides this guy," she touched the unconscious body with the tip of her boot. "So, what do we do about him?"