Ch 71

  Matt awoke the morning after the last of those waiting to be healed had been cared for and sighed as he surveyed the room around him. Although it lacked any furniture, it was an actual room constructed from wood, presumably intended for an officer. This impression stemmed from the building's resemblance to the bay barracks he had lived in during his brief stint in the Army. The sense of comfort and safety that came from simply being in a structure like it exceeded Matt's expectations after arriving in the strange world he found himself in. Yet, he knew that the moment he stepped out of the building, it would likely be the last time he would ever be inside it.

  Despite this knowledge, Matt didn’t linger as he made his way outside, where he noticed that the moment he came into view, everyone paused what they were doing. This pause persisted only until Greg instructed everyone to get back to work. A few moments later, Matt was standing atop the walls, observing that the section which had been damaged was still only half-built. However, all that was needed to complete it was stone, as the iron he had brought back from the manor had sufficed once it was pounded into clumps of metal. In total, the fort was 93% complete and would continue to restore itself as more stone was procured. Even with the gap in the wall being only seven feet tall, Matt felt it was far safer than anywhere else he had seen.

  "I'm going to miss this place," commented Greg wistfully. "Even if I can't stand most of the people here, it was home for quite a while, and I feel like I actually made a few friends for the first time in forever."

  "I don't know if I would call us friends," retorted Matt with a teasing smile. "More like two guys who overlook each other's shortcomings as we compensate for them."

  "Ha, fair enough," agreed Greg with a chuckle. "Just don't get in the way when I start building my harem."

  "As long as you don't expect me to deal with them all hanging around," Matt replied, rolling his eyes.

  "What, I thought all that time with the women you were with when this all started was getting you ready for that," Greg teased.

  "Right, let's get to it then. Who is coming with us?" Matt asked, shifting to a more serious tone.

  "Not sure," answered Greg, frowning slightly. "I simply told them that if they wish to risk everything with us, they should come when we step out of the fort. I figured you'd prefer that over pushing them to make a decision one way or another."

  "Is it only the five women who were even offered the choice?" Matt inquired, his curiosity piqued.

  "No, I extended the offer to those we've been leveling with while you healed, but I expect most of them won't even consider it," Greg replied, shrugging.

  "Any of you reach level 5 yet?" Matt asked, hopeful.

  "No, I'm only 51 points off," Greg admitted, shaking his head. "But that's more than a full day with how large the groups we've been going out with have been."

  "I take it that's to make the other group think we only leave the fort in force," Matt observed, nodding in understanding.

  "Yeah, even if they came at us with 200, they have to fear what a group of 20 can do to them. Plus, it makes it more likely that we'll be able to successfully move to a hidden location to hold out against their attacks as well," Greg explained, a hint of strategy in his voice.

  "Alright, by now they should all know that I'm out, and I don't feel like standing here until they think twice about whatever path they choose to walk," Matt concluded, ready to take action.

  With that, Matt made his way down and through the newly constructed gates, which served as a stark reminder of how vulnerable the fort had once been. Along the way, Greg directed Matt towards a pile of goods he assured had been set aside for their group. Among the supplies were rough pieces of leather, clearly needing more curing time, but they would still be better than nothing for repairing their armor and clothing. Additionally, there were bundles of dried meat, lengths of cordage, and crude arrows with wooden tips, suitable for at least a single use, among other essentials.

  As Matt approached, he saw Yumiko, Zara, and Emily waiting for him. He smiled, appreciating that they hadn’t hesitated to risk themselves for him. However, the absence of Rose and Eleanor made him think it might just be the five of them. Just then, he heard a woman clear her throat behind him.

  "Is it fine if the four of us join your group for a few weeks to focus on leveling before returning to the fort?" Tana stood there with four men, all of whom looked both worried and hopeful that Matt would allow them to join. Although he hesitated for a moment, he eventually smiled and responded.

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  "If it’s just the four of you planning to join, then yes. Even though I’m leaving this group, I still feel responsible for its existence. Just don’t expect me to take it easy on you, and I can’t promise you’ll come back alive."

  "We know, and thank you."

  With that, Tana and the four men joined the others. Soon after, Eleanor emerged from the crowd with Rose by her side. Matt could sense her uncertainty as she stopped before him and spoke.

  "What would you do if you reached a point where people started to praise you so much that it felt like they were worshiping you?"

  Matt felt a shiver run down his spine at the question, which he initially thought was ridiculous. However, knowing Tempormr's status—and the fact that even he admitted some considered those at his level to be akin to gods—gave Matt pause. In the end, he responded to Eleanor's question with another question of his own.

  "Are they doing anything that would upset me?" he asked, his curiosity piqued.

  "No," Eleanor replied, reassuringly. "They are just worshiping you and trying to emulate your way of life, I guess."

  Matt chuckled softly. "That's going to be one dysfunctional religion, then. I mean, how are they going to spread the word when it involves living an isolated life?"

  At that, Eleanor actually smiled, and a palpable tension seemed to dissipate from her demeanor as she responded. "Good, but we should still be vigilant for any radical ideas that might emerge from such groups. So, with that in mind, I'm going to stick with you and hope you'll trust me to act as a spokesperson for you when that day comes."

  "Let's hope it doesn't come to that," Matt said with a wry grin. "That would be more than a little awkward."

  As Eleanor moved to join the others, Rose was left standing alone. She gave Matt a penetrating look before speaking to him.

  "Do you want me?"

  This simple question caught Matt completely off guard. He looked at Rose, who seemed ready to bolt, and carefully considered his response.

  "It's not about wanting; it's about trusting. I trust you to have my back when it counts."

  Rose seemed to deflate slightly at his response, but a small smile appeared on her lips as she spoke.

  "Darn, and here I thought I could twist things to make it sound like a love confession. Still, will you promise me one thing before I join the others?"

  "If it is within my power and not something I'm against."

  "If you can take more than one of us, you won’t unless you can take all of us with you."

  "I can promise that, but only if you can get the others to all agree to the same thing. The last thing those five left behind need is for someone to feel like they lost out because you made me promise something before you'd join us. If I know anything about emotions and how annoying people can be, both of us would get blamed and become the targets for their anger."

  "Something tells me that you learned that lesson the hard way."

  With that comment, Rose joined the others, and Matt looked at the eleven people who were leaving with him as Greg gave Tana’s group a glance and merely shrugged. It seemed to imply that he hadn’t expected them to join only for part of the time, but Matt was sure that all those he had anticipated might join them were in that group. They were just about to depart when Steve and Jaelyn approached, and Matt turned to smile, though both were clearly unhappy as Jaelyn spoke.

  “Thank you for everything you’ve done, and we hope that you will at least spend some time over the next month or so sending more people to join us. I am sure that the twelve of you will travel safely, and you'll see Tana and her team make it back to us safely.”

  “I will do what can be done while focusing on what needs to be done,” replied Matt. “Just make sure that when the other group starts to crumble, this group doesn’t.”

  “You don’t need to worry about that,” replied Steve. “We will manage somehow, but you need to do something before leaving to make all those here feel as if you’re not abandoning them, even if that is exactly what you’re doing.”

  “You can’t mean that I should give a speech,” stated Matt, dread in his voice. “Come on, that would just be awkward and make them all realize how terrible of a leader I am.”

  “Either way, as you can tell by the fact that the walls have started to fill up with those who wish to see you off or if you’re really abandoning us. So, leaving without addressing them isn’t going to fly.”

  Matt wanted to curse Steve as he glanced at the faces of those on the wall. Even the groups that had gathered outside had given up arguing about it. He understood he was going to lose, and that realization only made things worse. So, considering what he himself would want to hear, he raised his voice and addressed those present.

  "We all know how to live alone; I suspect it's how most of us prefer things to be. Yet, now we can't do so, regardless of our wishes, and thus we must learn to deal with one another. I won’t lie and say I was thrilled to work with all of you. In fact, I've avoided getting to know most of you, as I'd rather face down a hundred goblins on my own than undertake such a task. It's not that I don’t care, but it's simply part of who I am, and I suspect many of you can relate to that feeling. So, don’t think that just because you don’t know the name of the person next to you, and they don’t know yours, it makes you any less of comrades when things get tough.

  “So, find the path that suits you, work with those who can help, and help those you can. This world isn’t our end but a new beginning, and I expect each of you to find me back on Earth and tell me about the path you discovered for yourself. Sure, I may be asking for the impossible, but I think we all would have considered many things we've witnessed since arriving in this world as impossible. So, as I bid you all farewell, I say, who are we to declare what can and cannot be? Instead, I urge you all to manifest what you wish to become!"

  There was an awkward cheer and applause as the group seemed unsure how to interpret his speech. Regardless, Matt had accomplished what he needed, and he was ready to leave as Jaelyn cleared her throat once more. Turning to look at her, Matt was surprised to see her mouth a single line to him, "You must survive."