Hexbound Apocalypse [LitRPG Apocalypse] (Book 3 Finished!)

"...What?" Astrid said in disbelief, unsure of what she had just heard.

Hazel hesitated to repeat what she told her, knowing what was going to happen once the information finally settled in.

"Tine and Runa just told me that...your brother had taken control of the Greyvolk tribe...and that tribe was currently working under the High Elves as well."

Before approaching Astrid during her interrogation with Dolk and the other dark elves, Hazel was just informed about the current state of her tribe. And it was the worst kind of news she had heard, which made it even more difficult for her to tell her partner about it.

And she was right.

Astrid remained still, processing Hazel's words. Despite not being able to read minds, Hazel knew her partner's mind was spiraling with questions. Questions she couldn't get any answers to at the moment, which only plunged her deeper into the pit of anxiety and dread over the fate of her tribe and people.

Then, as if snapping out of the trance, Astrid blurred over to Tine and Runa. She grabbed Tine by the shoulder while intently staring at her.

"W-what about my people? W-what's happened to them?!"

Tine faltered as Astrid invaded her personal space, intensely bombarding the elf with questions.

"W-we don't know much..." Tine stated cautiously, not wanting to alarm Astrid further. "But from what we heard, any residents that returned to the tribe and resisted against your brother and the High Elves were imprisoned until they were properly punished. What those punishments would be, we have no clue. All we know is that a lot of people stood against Kollr and his leadership, which resulted in many members of your tribe being imprisoned."

Astrid released the elf while abruptly stepping away. Her breathing became irregular and quickened, giving the impression that she was having an anxiety attack. Hazel took a step forward to try and comfort her partner, but Astrid jerked her body away, not wanting to be near anyone at the moment.

She managed to calm her breathing for a moment and focus. "I-is there any word regarding my parents or other siblings? Have they escaped Kollr's regime or..." She choked on her words, unable to finish her sentence.

But Hazel and the others knew what she was trying to ask. She wanted to know if Kollr killed their family members for defying him.

Tine shook her head. "We're not sure. There has been no such news regarding the death of the former chief or your siblings. Of course, there were also no rumors regarding any of your family members escaping from him as well."

"So what you're saying is that you don't know whether they're dead or alive."

"I'm afraid so," she said grimly. "We only recently discovered your brother becoming the new chief of the Greyvolk tribe. We learned about this right before my sister and I left. So this was all we knew at the moment."

Astrid's face tensed while she clenched and unclenched her hands repeatedly. She then started to pace back and forth, mumbling under her breath.

"W-were any of my people able to escape?"

"As a matter of fact, yes," Runa answered. "Several of the dark elves from your tribe and others had taken refuge with other tribes that were against the High Elves. The Mapleash tribe has several of your members under their care."

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Hearing this, Astrid let out a sigh of relief. "I'm glad that some of my people managed to escape."

"Indeed," Tine said. "It was thanks to them that we were able to learn about the current state of the Greyvolk tribe. Once we return to Meir, we'll gather all of the members of your tribe so you can learn more about what happened. Will that be alright?"

Astrid nodded. "Yes. I would like that very much." She turned to Hazel. "By the way, since these two elves are already heading back to Meir, I guess that means you no longer have to escort me back."

Hearing this, Hazel calmly shook her head. "That would be the case if I didn't have another reason to go there."

The dark elf tilted her head to the side. "What do you mean?"

"My brother is currently in the Great Forest of Meir. In fact, he was currently helping the residents who were rebelling against the High Elves."

Astrid's eyes widened. "What?! Why am I hearing about this now?!"

"I mean, you were more focused on...bigger priorities, you know?"

The dark elf hunter's knifed ears twitched in response as she cast her head down in shame. "Yeah, that's right..."

Seeing her mood growing sour, Hazel tried to lift her spirits a bit. "L-look on the bright side! Because of our current circumstances, we have an even better reason to leave as soon as possible. What with the growing problem with the High Elves and my brother being there, staying in Portland any longer is not an option anymore."

Since Hazel figured out where her brother was, she planned to head to his current location as fast as possible. Just to make sure that he was okay. There was also the fact that he was apparently participating in a civil war, which wasn't something she expected to happen either. All she knew, though, was that he likely needed all the help he could get, and his big sister planned to provide that for him.

Due to these factors, neither Hazel nor Astrid could afford to remain in Portland anymore. Which was why they needed to leave as soon as possible.

Before that...

"Also, what do you plan to do with Dolk and the others?" Hazel asked. "Are we taking them prisoner or..." She then slid her thumb across her neck, gesturing as if she planned to kill the traitors instead.

Astrid contemplated it for a moment. "I'd rather take them back so they could face proper judgment, but I doubt we'll be able to bring all of them back to Meir."

That was true. If Astrid decided to bring them to Meir, then they would have a bit of trouble transporting everyone since they planned to fly. Even with Tine and Runa's griffins, they weren't going to have enough room to get everyone back.

They also couldn't use any planes from Hazel's world. Not only was everything technological no longer functional because of the system, but Hazel had no clue how to operate a plane in the first place. The same went for a Helicopter, so even attempting to fly in one of them was too risky.

"I'll figure out what to do about them once I make them pay for betraying my people," Astrid said coldly before looking at Astrid. "Also, when I'm done, I need to talk to you about what Dolk said."

Hazel raised an eyebrow curiously. "What did he say?"

"Something about the High Elves knowing about the existence of the System before it even appeared. That and their plan to take over the Great Forest of Meir could be related to their knowledge of this."

Hazel's eyes widened in alarm. "Yeah, that's definitely something I need to know more about."

Astrid nodded. "I'll explain more once I'm done with Dolk and the other treacherous bastards. It'll likely take some time, especially since I need more information regarding what I told you, so you'll have to wait for a while."

"It's fine. Take your time with your revenge. After everything you went through, you need this to move on."

While Hazel couldn't relate to Astrid's thirst for revenge, she at least needed to be understanding of her partner's circumstances and allow her to do this on her own. Besides, she could do other important things in the meantime, like working on her runecrafting skills. After her success with the Strengthening Stones, she was eager to test her skills further and go to the next level.

"Alright, I'll get back to it then. I'll see you guys later so we can continue this talk."

Hazel, Tine, and Runa nodded while watching Astrid stroll back over to the interrogation room to continue her business. The moment she made it to the door, her face shifted into a grim expression as she opened the door and entered the room, closing it behind her.

Once Astrid was gone, the remaining trio were left alone until she was done.