OBS Chapter Two-Hundred Sixty-Two
Chapter Two-Hundred Sixty-Two
Chapter Two-Hundred Sixty-Two
Things go orange and go even more orange, quickly intensifying to a blinding white. I try to blink it away, hoping to clear my vision, before I remember that’s not how my sight works anymore. I’m... in some kind of white void. It’s weird how a white void can feel even emptier than a black one like space. It also feels more inviting, like a blank canvas just waiting for a painter’s brush.
I look around in confusion, before a thought hits me: Did I get isekai’d in my isekai?! Thankfully, it only takes a moment to reaffirm my connection to my scions, my territory, and even a thinner connection to... well, my followers, I guess. Outside of this white void, time seems to be slowed to a crawl... or time is weird inside here.
However wibbly-wobbly the time is acting, the connection to my dwellers and the few outside followers helps remind me what the Raven said about afterlifes. Looking around, I don’t think it’ll be a bad one, as it is, but it’s definitely boring. So... what should I do?
When all you have is a hammer, your problems tend to look like nails, and when you’ve been a dungeon for almost a year now, empty spaces demand to be filled with interesting things. Should I just make a dungeon to adventure in for their afterlife? It’ll be more interesting than this void, but that doesn’t feel right. I want my followers to have a more peaceful afterlife than that.
I look around for a while, the endless possibilities making it difficult for me to even get started. I mentally shake my head and latch onto a simple idea I’ve seen work out countless times: rolling grassy hills. Will I keep the entire void like this? Probably not, but maybe so. Either way, it gives me something to work from. Blue sky, yellow sun, a few drifting clouds, a river there...
Before I know it, I have an area that looks like the starting area in every survival crafting game ever. That realization also gives me a good idea for what to make this afterlife be, and the goal for it. I start sprinkling around nodes for all sorts of resources, from things like stone, clay, or metals, to organics like fibers and wood, and more besides.
The placements are a bit all over the place, but from what the Raven was saying, it sounded like people need to put in a bit of effort to be properly prepared for what lies beyond. I start poking around, looking for animal nodes, when I hear a collective gasp and realize my fallen dwellers are here now.
At the moment, they’re all just gazing around, eyes wide at the peaceful scenery around them. It doesn’t take them long to notice me, and they start falling to their knees (or closest approximation), looks of reverence on their faces.
“Woah, easy there. You don’t need to do that!”
They don’t really listen, so I reach out with... I’m not sure what, actually, and help them to their feet. “Come on, you guys know I’m not looking for that sort of thing.”
The ratkin and spiderkin slowly rise, all still looking a bit overwhelmed by everything, many with tears of joy wetting their cheeks. A ratkin steps forward, and I know his name is Emarlo before he opens his mouth. He dips like he intends to take a knee, before remembering I just said I didn’t want that sort of thing.
“L-Lord Thedeim. It’s...” He struggles to find the words, so I pat him on the shoulder to try to help comfort him. In fact, I pat everyone, they all look like they could use a bit of guidance right now.
“Hello everyone. I... well, let me first apologize for...” I trail off and mentally shake my head, chuckling. “No, I can’t really apologize, can I? You all knew the risks of joining this battle. I won’t downplay your struggles by trying to take credit with an apology. We all did our best, and we all knew some might not make it back home. So instead, let me say thank you. Thank you all for fighting for what you believe in, and for being willing to pay the price for it.”
I smile at them before speaking. “Anything,” I speak, leaving it hanging in the air for a few moments, before continuing. “I know, it can be difficult to pick something with so many possibilities around. When you have everything to choose from, it’s almost impossible to choose anything. I’m not going to make you make anything specific, that goes against the whole point. You can change your mind and make something else later, too, if you get a good idea. But if you want a suggestion...”
I gesture at the peaceful surroundings. “I would note a distinct lack of chairs around here.”
“Chairs?” echoes Emarlo, looking confused.
I nod. “Chairs. While there’s also a lack of rooms to put them in, everyone appreciates having a comfortable place to sit. Grass and rocks can only get so comfortable.”
Emarlo still looks a bit confused, but the dwellers around him start talking about what to make, soon drawing him in. I listen to them discuss as I watch the others explore and poke at the nodes, unsurprised as most seem to want to make something other than a chair. While I wasn’t joking about the lack of places to sit, I’m hardly upset about most of them wanting to make something else. There’s a lot of things that could make the afterlife a bit better, chairs are not specifically the point. It just helps ground their ideas, gives them a point to start from, a way to look around for something to change for the better.
I pull my attention back to the world in time to see the wave of orange wash out from my core and through my territory. It also spreads out from Teemo over the hospital, and I know it’s going to continue until it washes over probably all of Silvervein. I can feel my followers as the wave passes over and through them, bolstering them a little and reaffirming our victory.
Aranya feels like a beacon when the wave reaches her, and I can feel our connection strengthen considerably. I try to gently point her attention back to the kobolds around her, since they’re probably going to need as much help as they can get. Their world has been pretty thoroughly turned upside-down, and they’ll need her to help right it once more.
In the hospital, everyone not one of my denizens is staring at Teemo, even the people from Silvervein. I guess the kobolds aren’t the only ones who might appreciate a hand and an explanation. The building realization of what happened is soon shattered as Teemo waves a hand in front of his nose.
“Whew, Boss! Really? Right in the hospital? You find some magic beans or something?”
I stare for a few moments before laughing. Magic beans make beanstalks, not orange waves!
“If you say so, Boss. Anyway, everyone,” Teemo pauses to look over everyone in the hospital. “Yeah, jokes aside, you all know what happened. For the people from Silvervein, the Boss isn’t big on ceremony. Besides, there’s a big mess to clean up, so let's focus on that, yeah? So if you’re in bed, focus on recovering. If you’re walking around, focus on helping. That’s what the Boss and I are gonna do.”
I smile as Teemo slips into a shortcut, and watch through the eyes of my scions as they help put back together the mess we made of Silvervein. It’s going to be a lot different from how we found it, but that was kinda the point. Different doesn’t always mean better, but I’m going to give it my best shot. When I look at my territory, and even peek into the little slice of afterlife I control, and see how things are going, I can’t help but feel confident that better isn’t beyond reach.