Between The Crystals

Ch 52 Morning Search

Grant was halfway done giving out assignments when Mitch returned.

"Hey, Grant," Mitch called out, leaning against the crystal wearily. "I tried four spots, and they were full. Can Natalie do some solo ports and find an empty location?"

With a nod, Grant turned to me. "Mind trying spots near fields that aren't near the harvesting stage? Anything else will either have nothing or already be occupied. If you can find a few unoccupied spots, that would be great."

I jogged over, already in favor of this task. "Sure. Three Stone Forest."

With this crystal being a ten-minute walk from a field, it was remote enough to be a prime location and was likely claimed, but I had chosen that place to prove I was trying safer spots first.

When I arrived, I was proven correct. I nodded a greeting to the group and silently ported away. To get an understanding of exactly which areas might be available, I quickly ported to a dozen similar locations, most of which were occupied. Over half were from our allied villages. Some groups I didn't recognize at all.

The whirlwind of rapid porting left my head spinning, but as I had suspected, our long waits at the Guard Station let other villages see how much could be collected closer to fields and that people were left unharmed if they avoided the crops. Finding empty locations would get harder once word spread to other scanning locations and villages. Oasis Springs was always a gossip mill, and details like that rarely remained a secret for long.

I returned to Vermilion Village, where several groups were waiting for my report. "Apart from Dragonfly Marsh, there's nothing semi-remote. Everything else is a stone's throw away from a field, and most of the ones I tried are already claimed." I listed the four locations that had been open.

Grant sighed. "We knew it would become inevitable. Porters, stay close to the crystals and be ready to bounce. I might send other groups to join you if they come back empty-handed." After telling each group which location to try, he turned to me. "Were those all the open spots?"

"Yes, and I tried a dozen. I can check more if you want."

"None of those four spots are good for the hunters ranging farther out. Can you find a better place for your group? You can take two hunters with you to claim a crystal and return for the others." As I turned to the crystal, he cleared his throat and added, "If you just ported a dozen times in less than five minutes, I believe a ten-minute rest is advisable."

With a sheepish grin, I walked over to the resting hides and asked my group, "What kind of terrain or climate do you want to try first? Temperate forest? Tropical jungle? Plains? Swamps? Savannah?"

"Not as many animals on the plains," a hunter commented. "And swamps are about the only place where mosquitoes swarm us."

Cruz said, "The jungle would have the most to collect, but we'd have to be careful not to get lost."

Another hunter added, "If Natalie comes back here, she won't have to worry about a Saursune sneaking up on her like last time."

The group went round and round, swiftly dismissing the easy visibility on the plains in favor of the higher yields in a forest or jungle. They just didn't want to be near a field close to harvest.

I stood up. "Nominate two people with good judgment and strong stomachs. The longer we wait, the fewer places will be unclaimed. I'll bounce between several locations and let them decide which was the best."

Murmurs of confusion hummed around me. The judgment call was easy for them, but the strong stomach requirement wasn't something they expected. By the time I finished stretching, they had picked their two representatives.