Olek's heart raced from fright whilst Marcus let out a hearty laugh. "Don't worry, Olek - she's jumped everyone so far."
The small girl barely moved, still half hiding her face in the fold of her black hoodie, her eyes skittishly flicking back from Olek to the floor. There wasn't much light, but Olek noticed a slight red hue dance across the pale skin beneath her fringe.
Carla blinked, bending down a little, "She's so quiet... I didn't notice her there at all."
"Yeah..." Marcus sighs, "That's her thing. Probably a good thing though, she's our rogue Zara - and don't let her size fool you!"
"She's probably the most dangerous person here." He said.
Zara's tiny voice came muffled through her hoodie. "That's a bit much..."
The redhead giggled from her spot on the sand, "Oh, don't be daft, girl. Both me and Marcus saw what you did to those men earlier. Quick and clean - we wouldn't have noticed if it weren't for the racket beforehand."
Olek's eyebrow rose, "She what now?"
Marcus folded his arms, proud of his find. "As soon as she arrived, two men tried to jostle her water off of her - probably emboldened by her size - didn't go well for them. Both woke up with a concussion but all their supplies intact, even put in some shade so they didn't burn up."
Fidgeting with the drawstrings of her hood, Zara's eyes drooped to the sand, "W-well- I didn't want them to die." She muttered.
Carla smiled sweetly, "Aw~ That's actually kind of sweet. I certainly wouldn't have been that kind with my harassers."
Marcus turned his head, "You were harassed too?"
She sighed, "Yeah, don't worry bout it, Olek dealt with it. Just a bit peeved I couldn't deal with it myself."
"Dealt with it?" Marcus asked.
"I used words this time, not to worry." Olek chuckled.
All this hype around Zara made him look at her a little differently. Olek was studying her closer now, he noticed that what appeared on the surface; shy twitches of the finger, jolting back at noises, weren't so much her personality but her honed body movements - it was less like she was scared but more that she was acutely aware of every movement her body made trying to make it seem normal. She was timid socially no doubt, but not afraid.
'She's kind of like... a cat, or a kitten, I don't know.'
He forced a slight, reassuring smile for her. "I am sorry for being a bit... jumpy. I should introduce myself."
Her eyes flicked to him, avoiding direct eye contact however. "You... don't need to - I uh," she swallowed, "Already know you f-from before."
Olek froze, "Y-you do huh?"
Zara then noticed what she'd said, and tugged her hood down in embarrassment. "I-I mean, like, I recognized you from the lecture hall... I was always watch-" She stumbles over the words, "I, uh, w-was always aware of you."
Olek's face blanked, "Huh?"
Her voice was as quiet as a mouse, "And well... we lived together, in the same dorm."
Carla looked between them, surprised. "Seriously? You two were roommates?" She wacked Olek over the back of the head, "You dolt! How do you not recognize someone who lives with you!"
Olek held his head, his face aggrieved and mouth dry, "...I- I'm sorry? I've never saw her before okay?"
Zara nodded once, "Mn. You didn't notice, that's normal, nobody ever does. T-that's not your fault though." She said, her voice a bit distant.
'Shit, now I feel bad.'
He wasn't lying though, he has never seen her before in his life. Although he'd always wondered why there were 6 rooms but only 5 residents...
Eilidh whistled under her breath. "That's some way to make an impression, little Zara. Jump scare the man, then tell him you've been silently stalking him for years."
Zara's pasty cheeks blushed, "I didn't mean to... jump him."
Leif chortled in the back, "She didn't deny stalking him though."
Marcus was sat back and amused watching them, but it was time to get to business, "Alright, enough teasing the both of them. Zara's been a great addition to this little band. But it's time to get to the meat of why I've gathered you."
The joking stopped and everyone's attention was fixed on Marcus.
Olek saw him as the leader of the caravan and until the caravan is safe he'd be willing to listen, so far Marcus has been a charismatic and likeminded guy.
"Now then." he began, his tone much more serious than before, "Let's talk about this system that's been placed on our laps."
"Earlier today the first death of the caravan occurred at the hands of our friend Olek here." He puts a hand on his shoulder. "This was the first time anyone had killed as you can see by the candidate count."
[ Candidates Remaining: 999/1000 ]
Everyone nodded, they already knew this. "And?" Leif asked, wanting him to get to the point.
"Now back in the old world, him killing someone would be looked at as heinous, even in times of accident in some cases. He would be punished, reprimanded, and it certainly wouldn't be glorified, unless of course it was well deserved."
"In this instance, it was self-defense. Everybody saw that it was my life or his, I would've preferred to keep him alive but needs must."
"Anyway, that's besides the point, what I want to talk about is what the System did once Olek had killed the unnamed man."
Marcus gestured to Olek who explained that despite killing a human, someone with a life, family, and past. It treated them as just another animal. What's crazy, is that it encouraged the kill by rewarding Olek with experience, a level and an achievement of being the first to kill another being in the Tutorial.
Olek sighed, "Not even a hint of remorse built into it. Just plain text of his death and a reward for his killer."
Leif let out a grunt, "Of course it didn't care. It's a System, a machine. It doesn't see humans as a higher species, it sees data. Numbers. Inputs and outcomes."
Olek narrowed his eyes at Leif, "We don't know what the System is, Leif." He clarified firmly, "Technically, it's name is the Mana Accord, and I doubt it's as simple as you say."
"But, you are right in how it sees us. Data to oversee." he sighed. "What we can gather for certain is that killing is a currency for power, the System rewards strength and initiative it seems."
"Mm." Marcus nodded, "And... I have an admission. Due to my now leadership presence among the caravan, I have similarly received credits, experience, a level, and an achievement titled First Leader. And like Olek, I received a substantial boost in power. There's more for both us to go over in our spare time."
Olek was a bit surprised, but it wasn't like the system didn't tell them at the start.
[ Acquire credits through multiple methods such as leading, diplomacy, securing resources, and killing desert beasts or participants, whilst gaining strength along the way. ]
Carla frowned, "So... what's this all implying? Is it trying to motivate us to kill to get stronger?"
"Maybe." Isaac added, arms folded. "But I have a feeling it's trying to sort us, so to speak. To push people to step outside our basic understanding of the world and adapt to the universe."
Eilidh tapped her finger against her staff, "And whoever adapts quickly and effectively will be better off in the new world."
Marcus snapped his fingers and pointed at her. "Exactly. That right there is what I wanted to discuss." He stood up, brushing sand from his cargos. "This isn't just about survival. Not really. Survival is the test for those less malleable. I reckon, now this is still speculation, that this is about something bigger - a reshaping of how people see strength, worth, and power."
Isaac's calm voice cut in. "You're implying there's needs change in how hierarchy is established."
"There already has been," Marcus said simply. "That reward from the system is the start of it."
That earned him a few curious gazes.
Olek rubbed his chin. "I'd already figured something similar, but is it a good thing?"
Marcus met his eyes, "Maybe not, but it's inevitable. If what the Envoy said is true, and Humanity's been wiped of power, stripped of cities and thrown naked onto a world with a scoreboard. The one's who adapt - us - are going to become the upper rung whether the others want us or not. Because that's how humans work."
"Hierarchies always form in any society. Take any system. Communism, socialism, capitalism, fascism, etc - no matter what societal structure you choose, there is one thing that I've learned as a politics major and as an instructor in the army."
"There are always, always, people in power."