Pestilence: Rise Of The Pure Undead

"You got shot over such a great distance? Was it obvious that this corpse in particular was more powerful than the rest? Any ideas why they were hauling around the corpses of beasts they had killed? Did you manage to get any of the knives thrown at you? How did it feel to be struck by that attack? Any discomfort? Do you feel watched? Are you feeling weak or otherwise sick? Can you properly channel your abilities right now? Does it hurt when I press here-"

"My friend, do calm down, she can't answer your questions if you keep firing them at her"

"-Right, but we need to know more about them, Watchful Undeviginti has not expressed such curiosity for a long time, he, our lord, is the hunting sun, new prey is a big event" settled in the middle of the empty desert, with the dismantled carcass of one of those mantis-clawed insect lying just nearby, its meat being cooked over a campfire.

Such a thing seemed out of place in the desert, but under the dominion Watchful Undeviginti, warmth was absent, and the warriors hunting the pale blue sun's name had since grown used to it, for their continued existence only occurred during the time the desert turned pure white.

The archer was looking too good, her darkly tanned face was looking a bit ashen, the burns she had earned during the time she had lived under the scorching heat paling in comparison to the sheer agony of getting shredded by that invisible force of sorts, not only did it just hurt to get hit by it, but having ruined ribs as it went, some of her internal organs had been moving out of their normal spots.

Not to mention that breathing induced pain as well, so she would rather save her breath and not have to answer endless questions, but there was no escaping the interrogation.

Around the campfire, there were tree figures, all bearing the pale blue eyes and dark sclera of the sun they had sworn allegiance to, they had left everything behind and become hunters, reviled butchers whose mission was to slaughter when their master took over the desert, and no mercy was allowed, whatever, or whoever they encountered, unless their lord ordered otherwise, had to be hunted.

And right now, for the first time in countless cycles, Watchful Undeviginti was experiencing a dire sensation of curiosity, mysterious beings had suddenly appeared, seemingly during Prime Undeviginti's time as overlord of the desert, they looked like corpses, and seemed to possess wondrous physiques as never did they seem to grow tired or hungry.

It brought in question, whether the hunters could call them prey, or predator- Whether or not something would be figured out or if things shall remain as they currently were.

The archer would like to say that they definitely shouldn't consider them as potential prey, but refrained from voicing out her vision aloud, or at least, not so directly.

"Indeed… That hooded one was able to precisely aim for me over such a great distance, I am only alive because I reflexively defended myself with my bow, otherwise, that unseen attack would have punched right through my chest and destroyed my heart…" she recounted, taking pauses every five words or so as the pain radiating from the injury was seriously debilitating "...I was shot was also done whilst I was still somewhat in movement, they clearly have both skill and power"

"And no, it isn't immediately obvious which of them are more powerful, I could only tell that the one who hit me and another with a sword on their back were seemingly in charge, but even that appears dubious, they are all dressed differently and seem to communicate in their own manner, recognising any particular important one can't be done with a glance"

"I see…" urging her to continue, the one who had fired all of the questions back to back was listening attentively, unlike the other four hunters who had been deployed, he did not appear much like a combatant, the decorated item he carried wasn't even a weapon but a pendant hanging from his neck.

Although not powerful, he was the one that should not be pissed off, especially in the archer's current situation, as he was a healer, all wounds wouldn't worsen, but they wouldn't get any better either when they were returned to the side of their lord, so it was up to him to get her patched up before then.

"As for the purpose of taking the corpses… Your guesses are as good as mine, I suppose that it could be chalked to them multiplying, they are cadavers as well, after all…"

"Maybe that's what they feed upon? Or they can nourish themselves from something they take from corpses?" the third hunter around the campfire spoke up, another knight, only that his weapon was a two-handed warpick instead of a huge hammer.

"Did you say the same thing twice?"

"No, I mean… Either they eat the corpses directly, or they harvest something special from it"

"Huh… Keep going, Miss Archer" spoke the healer, addressing her in such a way since none of them had names, or rather, they had given them up when coming into service of Watchful Undeviginti.

"As for the knives, I did not get any of them, I was too busy dodging and then retreating with grievous injury to pay attention to that- As for the attack I was hit by, it felt like a short of shard, something solid like a rock, but that's it"

"As for the rest, being in intense pain every time I do as much as inhaling or exhaling is a pretty uncomfortable feeling, also, I sleep on that side normally, so there's that too… But apart from the expected stuff from such a wound, I am fine and I certainly don't feel watched…" then, she grabbed her bow and channeled the pale blue vapour without problem.

"And yes, it hurts when you press on my injury, obviously, would you mind stopping that?"

"Ah, my bad, it's just not everyday that I get to see this sort of wound… Although we should strive to know more about these dead creatures, it is clear that we can't just do it willy-nilly, our assassin had to use his trump card to escape and our hammer-enthusiast knight was killed, there are only three of us left, and Watchful Undeviginti won't get another chance to sate his curiosity until the next cycle once this one is over, so we ought to discover something at least…"

"But how? If Miss Archer was spotted and struck, as well as Mister Assassin, then I doubt either you and I would fare any better in collecting intel… And although your healing is miraculous, she won't be back into action for a while, unlikely that she will be back in top condition before the end of Watchful Undeviginti's time as sovereign" the knight spoke up.

"I am certain that she could do some reconnaissance at least…"

"Sending anyone who isn't at their best is just asking for trouble, and hunters are not pawns to be wasted, we are few already, the loss we suffered is already bad enough- Miss Archer shall not get anywhere close to danger until recovery, and we shall guard her until then" the knight's words made the healer frown.

"Fine" but he relented, it was hard to argue against someone wielding facts and logic against you without appearing demented.