Quest Completed

The silver sun rose in the sky, emitting its warmth across the land. With it, the nocturnal monsters retreated to their shadowy lairs; they would only return once the sun had set. The abnormal silence of the night prior began to fade as the creatures of the day resurfaced from the safety of their camps. Once more, the ruins of Vegas became filled with the echoes of limitless roars as the monsters began to expand their kingdoms.

As the light shone through the blinds onto Alex's rugged face, his eyes slowly started opening. Revealing the azure gems that were his pupils. A brief smile spread across his lips as he stared silently at the sleeping beauty of Emily's visage. Her hand still tightly grip his own as she lay upon the mattress in comfort.

Alex's gaze shifted to the message which appeared in his peripheral vision as he noticed it for the first time.

[Quest Completed: Damsel in Distress]

Accept Rewards Yes/No?

His eyes flickered with excitement as this was the first time he had gotten a quest. Though he did not fulfill the bonus objective, he still managed to succeed in the overall quest. Without hesitation, he accepted the rewards. Instantly his XP bar filled up nearly all the way. He also noticed a separate tab for the first time, which he quickly opened.

Favor:

Greek Pantheon:

Ares: 10

Philotes: 10

Soteria: 100

Though Alex was uncertain, he could estimate that Favor was reputation with various deities, though he was unsure what he could do with it. The fact that he kept getting messages related to the gods deeply confused him. He also began to wonder with the favor tab whether or not other pantheons existed since it clearly listed the Greek Pantheon and the gods under it from which he had gained some favor.

Eventually, Alex's stomach growled impatiently; it had been a long while since he last had a decent meal. He began to ponder as to whether or not the condo had any supplies stashed away. After all, from the appearance of things, it would appear that whoever lived here had abandoned their home in a hurry.

Alex cautiously released his grip from Emily's delicate hand and silently left the room, carefully closing the door in his absence. As if feeling his absence, Emily's eyes unfurled and immediately searched for Alex's presence. Noticing his absence the girl began to pout as she curled up under her covers and attempted to sleep.

Alex had gone down the stairs and into the kitchen area, where he searched desperately for anything edible. Eventually, he came across canned ravioli, which sparked a grin across his face. However, much to his chagrin, he seemed to lack the ability to cook it.

He released a heavy sigh as he leaned his head back and spoke to himself

"Well, food is still food."

With this, he observed his surroundings, inquiring about the whereabouts of a can opener. After opening the canned ravioli, he decided it would be best to share the spoils and filled five bowls with equal portions. He then used a fork he had found in a drawer to gobble down the food. The ravioli was room temperature, though Alex would have preferred it if it had been cooked. Nevertheless, he had not eaten in some time and had no complaints.

By the time he had finished his meal, he could hear footsteps rushing down the stairs. Within moments his party members had all appeared before him. They seemed to be well-rested, and their minor injuries had been partially recovered with a good night's sleep. They gazed longingly at the bowls filled with ravioli and practically began to drool at the sight of it.

Alex smiled at his compatriots and motioned towards the bowls

"Help yourself"

with the clear invitation, the party each took a bowl and began to feast upon the canned ravioli as if it were the most extravagant dish. It had practically been an entire day since they last ate something, and as such, they were famished. Even something as simple as canned ravioli tasted great under the circumstances.

While the party was devouring the food, Alex took the opportunity to broach the subject they were all thinking about.

"So, what are we going to do now?"

Nearly everyone had stopped eating and shifted their gazes towards Alex with complicated expressions. Chief among them was Cassie; she appeared to be deeply troubled by the question. She placed her bowl down, half-eaten, and wiped her mouth before she elected to say her piece.

"We can't go back to the compound; Captain Hunter has turned into a tyrant and will make an example of us for leaving during a time of crisis to rescue Emily by ourselves."

Everyone in the group nodded in agreement, going back to Captain Hunter, and the rest of the slayers was no longer an option. Alex had his own opinions on the direction they should head. As such, he declared his objective.

"For now, this location appears to be safe. In my opinion, we should scavenge supplies and level up against nearby mobs. Only after we are strong enough to survive on our own should we think about what to do with Captain Hunter and the Brigands."

The others looked at Alex with complicated gazes and then at each other. They knew surviving without a large group, and an easily defendable position would be difficult; even with their experience, going from shelter to shelter, scavenging supplies to survive, and killing off mobs to advance in level would not be an easy task.

However, after some debate, it became evident that what Alex had proposed was their best option; as such, they agreed to act upon it. With their way forward thoroughly discussed and agreed upon, there was just one other question on everyone's mind. Surprisingly Emily was the first one to voice their concerns.

"Who will be our leader?"

Obviously, the meek girl had no capacity to be the leader; she was the lowest and had no leadership capabilities whatsoever. Derek pushed his glasses into position with his index finger before speaking up.

"We should have a vote; whoever gets the most votes wins."

Alex nodded in agreement and, without hesitation cast his vote

"I vote Cassie."

Everyone looked at him with shock; they did not expect he would vote for someone other than himself. Clearly, he was the most capable in a fight and had on numerous occasions taken the lead when things were in dire straits. Alex noticed the way they gazed upon him and immediately felt uncomfortable.

"What? Do I have something on my face?"

Brandon shook his head and chuckled lightly as he explained the situation to an ignorant Alex

"No, we just thought you would want to be the leader."

Alex scoffed at the remark, almost as if he was offended by the insinuation

"Why? I know my strengths and weaknesses. I'm a capable fighter, but that's the extent of my abilities. I'm not bright, nor am I good at thinking of the big picture. I'm a weapon to be used, that's it."

Alex continued his rant as he gestured towards Cassie

"Cassie, on the other hand, is intelligent, wise, and is always thinking ahead. She's also a good fighter. I think out of all of us here; she's our best option."

After saying his piece, Alex remained silent and allowed the group to debate among themselves. Initially, several wanted to vote for Alex; however, after he basically declined the position, the vote was unanimous for Cassie.

Truthfully, Alex did not want to be responsible for more lives aside from himself and Emily. Whether or not he would be a good leader is undetermined. After they all agreed on Cassie being the leader, the young woman spoke up and made her first decree.

"We should split up into two groups and scour the nearby area for supplies. We will meet back at this condo before dusk; any questions?"

Numerous voices could be heard as the group simultaneously responded, replying in the negative towards her question. With that being said, Cassie spoke in a weak attempt at an authoritative voice.

"Move out!"

With that, Alex and Emily formed a group, while the other three party members formed one. Though they were in a single party within the system, they diverged in locations and began to search the area for any supplies that could be of use to them.