The drums were gone by morning, but the silence they left behind was louder. Draven stood on the watchtower, the new Territory Mapping Interface overlaying the real world with a cold, blue digital sheen. The valley was a topographical map, resource nodes were marked, and a faint yellow question mark pulsed over a plume of smoke to the east. People. A new variable.
Below, Kara was coaxing the fire back to life. The kiss, her warmth in the night—he filed it under 'morale.' A high-value asset, but an asset nonetheless. Emotions were a system to be managed, just like any other.
"Drums are quiet," she said as he came down, her voice practical, but her eyes held the memory of the night before.
"Doesn't mean they're gone," he replied.
Jaxon was already up, stretching the sleep from his massive frame. "So we go say hello?"
"We go look," Draven corrected. "Intel first. Always."
The plan was simple: scout light, scout fast. They moved out under the cover of the morning mist, the Territory Mapping Interface guiding them along a hidden game trail, a blue line of optimal travel painted over the forest floor. The drums started again, a slow, steady heartbeat that vibrated in Draven bones.
"Signal," Kara whispered.
"Or a warning," Draven countered.
They crested a hill and saw it: a rough camp of patched hides and wary survivors. No warlord banners, just the glint of scavenged weapons and the smell of roasting meat. The UI tagged them as a small, nomadic group. Manageable.
Then Grayfang growled, a low vibration of warning. The UI flashed red. CONTACT IMMINENT.
"Ambush," Draven hissed. "Three of them. Flanking us."
There was no time for a clever plan. Just brutal efficiency. "Kara, left. Jaxon, right. Grayfang, center."
An arrow was a whisper, followed by a grunt of pain. Jaxon was a blur of motion, his sword a wall of steel against a rusty axe. Grayfang's Spectral Charge turned the center scout's world inside out, and Draven was there a second later, his dagger's pommel cracking against the man's temple. Disable. Don't kill. A live enemy is a source of intel; a dead one is just a body.
The camp exploded like an anthill. Ten more charged up the hill, a wave of desperate fury.
"Hold this ground," Draven commanded. Grayfang's howl summoned spectral wolves that tore into their formation, turning their charge into a confused brawl. It wasn't a battle; it was a controlled demolition.
A big man with a scarred face and a massive axe was the last one up. "Who the hell are you?" he roared.
Draven raised a hand, his voice cutting through the chaos. "The guys who killed the Thornbeast in the valley. We can talk, or we can continue this. Your call."
The man, Torres, hesitated. He saw his best men on the ground, breathing but beaten. He saw the spectral wolves. He saw the cold calculation in Draven eyes. He made the smart choice.
The negotiation was tense, a high-stakes trade on a blood-soaked hill. Draven offered intel on the valley in exchange for maps and a cut of their scavenged iron ore. He learned they were running from a warlord to the south named Malik Voss. Another name on the threat list.
[Negotiation Success: Truce with Torres' Nomads]
[Resource Gained: Eastern Trail Map, Iron Ore x10]
They returned with their loot, the new map already integrated into Draven UI. That afternoon, while Jaxon smelted the ore and Kara worked on the garden, Draven went to check on the Thornbeast eggs. The forge's whispers guided him. Bind with essence. Claim the kin.
A single drop of his blood on the largest egg, a surge of energy from the anvil, and a crack spiderwebbed across the shell. A small, scaled creature with blinking eyes and thorn-like spines tumbled out, chirping at him.
[Quest Complete: Incubate the Clutch]
[New Summon: Thornling – Tier 1 Guardian Hatchling]
He brought it upstairs. Kara's tough scout facade melted instantly. "It's like a spiky, murderous puppy," she cooed.
Jaxon just grunted. "Another mouth to feed."
That night, the drums from the nomad camp were a celebration. Torres was a new piece on the board, a temporary ally, or a future rival. As Kara leaned her head on his shoulder, the warmth of their new, unspoken reality settling around them, Draven looked at his UI. Alliances were just another system to optimize.
[Milestone Achieved: First Alliance Formed]
[Unlock: Diplomacy Interface]