[00:00:38] Speaker A: Hello, hello, hello and welcome to a .5 episode.
I know I don't normally do intros.
[00:00:49] Speaker B: For our little mini sodes that we've.
[00:00:51] Speaker A: Been putting up, but I wanted to pop in before we get into it to let you know that this is.
[00:00:57] Speaker B: Our last minisode for a while, so.
[00:01:00] Speaker A: We'Ll be going back to full length episodes for the foreseeable future.
We have gotten some episodes in the can and edited, so we're all ready to go. I want to thank everyone who's joined our Patreon over the past couple weeks. It's been popping off and I'm very excited about it. Also, if you are a patron of our show, you should now have access to our discord. So that's exciting. You could come hang out, chat with us, tell us what we're doing good, what we're doing bad.
Share pictures of your pets. That's really the most popular channel right now. But anything you want to say or talk to us about, within reason, of course, you can more than happily join us there. So go to our Patreon, join there and then come join and chat with us on Discord. All right, I've rambled enough like normal, so let's get to the minisode.
[00:02:00] Speaker B: Struggling under the extreme heat, pondwatcher struggles in the thick, dense foliage. The smell of animals and humidity hang heavy in the air. It has only been a few days since his decision to leave his friends, but he knows that this was the right choice.
He knows that this is what his mother would have wanted. She always told him that his friends are the most important and, well, he left three to fend for themselves. Three is better than one. And one is how many Silver was is. He forces himself to stop thinking about Silver in the past tense. He is alive. He knows this. He's not sure how he knows, but he does. Leaving the others was not a simple decision, but he knew he must. They were going too slowly, not moving with any haste towards Silver. He knew he was Silver's only chance at survival from whatever those creatures were that took him. He takes a moment to wipe his brow. Despite not wearing much, the humidity oppressed him to no end. Where to now? He thought as he looked around. Green. So much green. But thankfully his trek had been uneventful up to this point. He took out his wayfinder and looked at it next. Catapash or the mana waste. Those were his choices. What one to head to.
Silver had ties to the wastes, he knew, but that wouldn't make sense to take him there. That left Catepesh or Nex.
Catepesh had markets in his slave trade. Possible that if Silver were abducted he may be sold off. However, it seemed like a targeted attack.
Next is the home of arcane wonders. The creatures did demonstrate some type of magix to disappear without a trace.
[00:03:51] Speaker C: He places the wayfinder back into his armor.
[00:03:54] Speaker B: Nex. It has to be Nex. There's no other place it could be. Nex is magical. They were magical. Silver was is magical. He shoulders his backpack that has some rations and his sleeping gear. Hopefully he will be out of this dreaded jungle soon.
As day turns to night, some relief from the heat comes. Pondwatcher manages to find a place where he can rest. He lays down, clutching his halberd close to him like a teddy bear. As he sleeps his mind drifts off to silver, mentally reaching out to find his friend, to let him know that he is coming to find him. He knows that it's a futile effort, but he's still going to try. As he drifts off to sleep he feels as if silver were there with him. He swears that he can almost hear a lonely guitar twang in the distance.
North. That is the path that he needs to go. Just straight north to the water. Then a boat. Then two answers. They have to be in the city at the center of the world. Where else could they be? That must be it. Two days.
That's how long it's been since he's seen anyone or talked to anyone. The ambient cicada is the only sound that he has heard since splitting up with Pondwatcher. Two days since Temed's last drink.
He wonders why he left his mug with his friends.
He knows why he did it. But the combination of not having a drink in 48 hours and the unbearable heat of the forced and he is sweating and shaking. Is he having withdrawals? His hands are shaking still. He presses on, the sound of cicadas buzzing louder and louder in his ears.
[00:05:43] Speaker C: Their sound becoming a drum beat in his head.
[00:05:46] Speaker B: Or is that a headache from the hangover?
Maybe they are one of the same at this point.
Just keep moving, he tells himself. There must be something somewhere nearby.
Pulling out a wayfinder, Temid looks and sees that he is indeed still heading north. As he continues his trek through the dense forest, his muscles scream for some water.
Why didn't he bring his mug again? The thoughts of the cool, clean, crisp cider come back to his memory, but the thought of it makes his muscles scream more and his pounding head scream out for some type of liquid.
[00:06:22] Speaker C: Temid stops for a moment, the cicadas.
[00:06:25] Speaker B: Seem to have stopped in their unending drone. Heaving a sigh, he looks around at the sudden silence. There's nothing around him. As he starts to move again. He trips on the ground. As he stands up, cursing his tired limbs, he looks at the ground and sees a giant footprint. His heart sinks a bit. He must move carefully, silently. If there's something this large in the area, he doesn't want to meet it. A few hours later, after moving at a slower, more cautious pace, he decides to make camp for the night. As he hides himself under some underbrush, he pulls out his only set of rations. He slowly nibbles at it, savoring it, knowing that if he stops to hunt, it will slow him down and perhaps attract whatever left that massive footprint. He slowly opens his quarter filled canteen, slowly savoring and drinking the last of his water reserves. The cool water quiets his screaming muscles and head. Water. He needs to find water soon.
As Temmin lays under the underbrush, shivering and sweating from lack of alcohol in his system, his thoughts swim back to his friends that he left behind and wonders if this was the right decision.
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