Cave Dweller

You go quiet, a little anxious to be so close to the surface, but allow yourself to relax. It’s comfortable even being a few feet underground, and having another cavedweller around is nice. Especially one that you actually feel a little safe around. Leaning against her when she picks you up, you try not to put all your weight on her. You’re not the lightest guy out there, even if she is strong.

"Lake? You mean water and shit?" 

Perking up a bit at hearing that, you can just tell how dehydrated you are. It doesn’t help that you’re infected, too. Getting some small amount of food and water in your system is probably good, and you don’t really have any choice but to go with her right now. You’re too hurt to make any choices.

"I won't tell if you don't want me to, Mogar. And I told you, it's Roc. You don't need to call me Miss Cavedweller."

You chuckle and help him down a few of the sharper ledges that you had carved away. You had been feeling very industrious, but with the cave in, a lot of your work was lost. That wasn't good- you needed a bit more ore to make taking a trip to the foothills worth your while. You'd have to come back here and clear out some of the deeper veins later. Maybe you could scrounge up a diamond or two, you could have sworn you saw some on your way here. Those surface people loved their diamond, although you mostly wanted the tools rather than the jewelry.

"Eh, no stupider than some of the stuff I've done. Just need to be a bit more careful there, Mogar. Yes it's a lake, and yes with water, albeit a lot less shit. I try to keep the lake clean for the most part. I do drink from there, you know!"

Your face falls before you realise it, not intending to have a visual reaction. You thought you actually found another of your kind, another person stuck in caves their entire life, but no. She’s just one of the villagers, wandered down here and stumbling upon you. Great. Once she picks up on the fact that you’re not normal she’ll probably leave you to die, and that one won’t be that difficult. 

"I… I’d prefer to say down here. It’s all I know."

Shaking your head when she offers her hand, you give her a small smile. You don’t want to go back to the surface, it’s not safe for you there, at all. You’d rather die than be where it’s light. And, honestly, that’s kind of your choices right now.

His voice and face had fallen in such a way that convinces you he is one as well. You hope so, at least. Maybe there is someone else down here who can understand why you hate the sunlight. Someone else who knows why the rocks are more comforting than the fields. You narrow your eyes at him and shake your head, gently reaching an arm underneath his good side to start pulling him up.

"I built a little shack down by an underground lake. The cavern's huge but I've lit the whole place up. The monsters leave me alone, and the villagers don't come to me. We won't leave the caves; they're pretty much all I know too."

His words about fate make you a little uneasy- has he gone mad from infection?- but you also feel... right hearing it. It's the same kind of feeling that drew you to here, and maybe it's the same thing that tells you to trust him. So you shake your head a little to try and clear up your thoughts and then start to lift him up.

You give her a grin, waiting for your eyes to adjust that little bit to the darkness. It isn’t much, but it lets you actually see her. She doesn’t seem like she’s from the surface, thankfully; not that she’d know you’re a cavedweller anyway. There’s something that doesn’t seem all that bad about her, though, oddly enough. Sitting up, you look her over quietly. She may have just helped you, but there’s no reason to let your guard down. You already did something stupid because of this.

It was just a simple thing to feel at least a little trust for this stranger. Unlike the villagers, he didn't seem to think of you as odd for being in a cave. You're still guarded- no need to be entirely open with him, even if he isn't exactly threatening right now- but no reason to be rude, either. With his wounds the way they are, gritty and discolored from infection, he won't be getting far without help. You rise to your feet with a small grunt and hold a hand out to support him to do the same.

Just laying there, though, thinking this has to be a hallucination, you close your eyes. It’s comforting if there’s another person here, especially since she doesn’t seem to be from above ground. Something in the back of your mind says that this is meant to happen, a sign that you’re taking to mean that this is where you actually get better; but it’s possibly more than that.

"You got a name or something? Mine’s uhh… Mogar."

He's hurt, that's the first thing you notice. Pale. Sweating. You stare curiously for a few seconds before easily making your way over to where he's hidden himself. Something is there, something saying this is important, a sort of tingling in the back of your throat. But you swallow it back. He needs help right now. You have a few spare bandages with you, in case of getting attacked by spiders or zombies. Now you pull them free and start treating his wounds.

But of course, survival is second to having fun. She should focus on gathering more materials to maybe set up an establishment outside, but she wanders too often to even think that plan into its basic steps. She’s happy to be close to what appears to be a cave mouth, with a forest surrounding it in an almost ominous way.

Pretty forest though, and— oh wait, isn’t that a person? Hmm. Should she talk to the person and not stand there, staring like a weirdo?

There isn't any food here. That much you can tell pretty easily. No people either, right-- Wrong. Someone off in the distance seems to be looking your way. She seems like she might have something on her, maybe some food she'd be willing to trade? Glancing down, you look at the sack of rocks and ores you've been saving up. You even have a few chunks of coal. That should be enough for some food, right?