Chapter 7: Iridescent Shard
Despite his archaic and candid demeanor, Lucas faced no challenge to his leadership role — none contested his orders nor the assignment of groups.
As for Axel and his savior...
Despite wishing to stay with his savior, he’d been assigned to a scouting group.
They had neither the time nor the luxury to care for the injured, so only one person was chosen to stay behind and guard Axel’s savior: Maks.
’I...’
Axel hadn’t wished to follow, but the human instinct to conform led him to do just that. He wasn’t going to be the one to destroy the budding order — not even if it served his interests.
As crazy as he was, Lucas was something for those horrified to grasp onto. He was someone who invented himself as hope — a hope that this perilous situation might be overcome.
A concept most of the summoned desperately needed at the moment.
After he finished assigning the groups, four of them — two of eight and two of nine — Lucas reiterated his orders.
"You’ve been given your directions. Don’t forget: unless instructed otherwise, scout only. Do not gather. Any extra gathering can be done once we know the lay of the land. And avoid combat at all costs — fighting should be beyond a last resort. Know that even if you fight and win, you will not be praised upon your return. Now that that’s over with..."
Lucas tossed the stone high in the air and caught it.
"...Any ideas on what this could be?"
After a long silence, a man with shaggy blond hair awkwardly raised his hand, then spoke with a deep, Slavic accent:
"A power stone...?"
Lucas’ eye twitched as he asked:
"A... power stone? Care to expand on your theory? And, introduce yourself."
"Oh, right... I’m Mikhail. And, uh, I don’t know... it looks like something you’d see in some gacha phone game you use to power your champions."
Lucas tilted his head.
"I’m sorry, but what’s a gacha?"
Mikhail’s eyes went wide, perhaps wondering where he had gone wrong in life to now be standing before forty-nine strangers and being asked to explain such a thing.
"It’s, uh..."
Another man stepped forward, dreads swaying in front of his eyes.
’He looks no older than sixteen...’
How horrible...
What basis of selection did that entity use to justify snatching a child and putting him in this situation?!
The boy said:
"I don’t think that’s important, man. I think what matters is that we could grow stronger from it. Cory, by the way."
"Hmm," Lucas said, picking up the stone and holding it to a ray of light that fought its way through the thick canopy of black leaves. "I don’t exactly understand what ’growing stronger’ means in this context... but if what you surmise is true, then how do you reckon we access that power?"
Mikhail scratched his cheek.
"Uh... crush it? Eat it, maybe?"
Lucas brought the iridescent stone back down. Then, without hesitation, he began trying to snap it in half, to no avail. After that failed attempt, he placed it on the ground, atop a rock, and stomped on it. Still, nothing happened.
Picking it back up, Lucas looked at the crowd.
"Would any of you like to attempt to... eat it?"
Mikhail awkwardly raised his hand.
To that gesture, Lucas flicked the iridescent shard over.
’Seriously...? How nasty.’
Mikhail caught it. In one fluid motion, he closed his eyes, brought the gleaming stone coated in goblin blood to the edge of his mouth, and dropped it in.
Not even a second later, he dropped to his knees in a fit of coughs and spat it back out.
"What the hell! It felt like an arrow just shot through my chest or something!"
"Are you alright?"
Through bouts of coughs, the Slavic man replied:
"Y-yeah... just hurts."
Lucas, showing little emotion, bent over and picked up the now saliva-coated shard, flipped it a few times, then placed it in his pocket.
"I guess that will remain a mystery for now..."
After Mikhail’s fit slowed, Lucas stood and said:
"Disperse into your groups and get to know one another. We will head out in thirty minutes. Use the task timer as a benchmark."
Lucas swiped at the air, then turned, kicked the goblin corpse, and walked over into an open space.