Chapter 605

Chapter 605: It’s Settled

After wrapping Dethmoora’s heart, the group left the magically sealed underground palace and went back to the hall with the pool.

Mosa lay quietly asleep on a mat of vines. Greed shushed the three who had just returned, and Jesse nodded. He sat carefully on the broken stone pillar, leaning against the wall to rest.

Vereesa frowned at the demon blood on her hands and body. She glanced at the water in the middle and reached to wash, but Greed and Jesse quickly moved to stop her.

"Don’t…" "Why?"

"This water isn’t polluted yet," Greed whispered. "We need it to live for a while. If you wash, it’ll all be ruined."

Jesse nodded. "We must wait for Mosa to heal, then she’ll lead us out. Remember the garden outside, Vereesa." Vereesa pulled her hands back. "Sorry."

Jesse stared at the pool. Even without the drinking problem, if demon blood polluted it, the water element that saved the Tauren might jump out and fight them.

"Then what do we eat?" Vereesa asked.

Jesse shook his head. "I don’t know what this mage ate while hiding here."

"Can’t elves live on magic alone?" Greed looked at Vereesa. "Why can’t you?"

"There’s no Sunwell here," Vereesa said. "The Arcane magic feels bad. Isn’t it from that Void Demon Immol’thar? Just thinking of it makes me shiver."

"There might be things upstairs," Jesse said, eyeing the passage. "I’ll look later, but don’t expect much."

"I’ll go too," Greed said.

"I’ll stay and care for Mosa. You two go," Vereesa said. "We can eat that." Molofeel pointed at the nearby Kaldorei corpse.

"We’re not demons!" Greed glared at the succubus. "And you shouldn’t eat it either. No matter how many you’ve eaten before, change your ways in our team."

Molofeel said, "Just a suggestion."

"Gross," Vereesa muttered.

"You haven’t seen the real nasty side of Sayaad, Quel’dorai!" Saenor teased. "Get back in the bag," Jesse ordered. "No Soul Shards until Stormwind."

The imp’s face paled. "No, master! I didn’t mean that! I meant the basement—" "Quiet."

Saenor covered its mouth and slipped into the bag. Jesse glanced at the smiling succubus, then at Vereesa with her head down, and Greed picking his nails while staring up. He rubbed his stubble helplessly.

Just then, he saw Mosa awake and watching. "Sorry, were we too loud?"

Mosa coughed softly and shook her head. Greed noticed she was up. "Mosa? How do you feel?"

"Good," Mosa said. "In a few days… I can heal myself."

"Great!" Greed held her shoulder. "I want out of this awful place fast. It’s unbearable."

"Don’t rush Mosa, Greed," Vereesa said. "We’re not in a hurry. Even if upstairs has nothing, there’s the garden. I bet it has food—insects or small animals."

"Vereesa’s right," Jesse said. "I can use these days to sort our finds with these demons. We’ve been rushing, facing surprises like sentries and that Halforcen—no time to rest."

"What next?" Greed asked. "After we leave, do we go back to Gadgetzan? That long way around?"

"Damn," Jesse said, rubbing his face. "I forgot the Centaur in Thousand Needles."

He looked at silent Mosa. She probably had no ideas or was too weak to think.

"Maybe we can ask the Kaldorei for help," Jesse said. "I want to hunt for insect nests in southern Feralas Jungle. If we find them, we can trade that info for their aid."

"How? Help us attack the Centaur Tribe?" Greed questioned.

“Hippogryph,” Vereesa said. “Do you remember those blue bird-headed beasts that look a bit like gryphons? The sentries at Feathermoon Stronghold keep them as mounts. They can carry Kaldorei, so they should carry us too.”

“But they can’t carry Mosa,” Greed Thunderfist said.

“Well, that is a bit hard,” Vereesa said.

“You come from another world,” Mosa suddenly spoke.

“Uh.” Jesse looked at the Tauren and asked, “Yes, what is it, Mosa? Why say this now?”

“I cannot leave Kalimdor, my people,” Mosa said as she thought. “I must protect my tribe… until, until we find a new home.”

“Traveling with you makes me happy. Killing demons and cleaning Kalimdor brings me joy. Traveling with you taught me much I didn’t know. Outsiders are kind; they even help with demons. I was surprised—I never knew that before.”

Mosa wiped her eyes and said, “But I must stay. I don’t want to leave you, not you, Greed Thunderfist from Aerie Peak, but I have to stay.”

“Of course, Mosa.” Greed sat beside her and patted her belly gently, saying, “You are a responsible fighter. Now, the Tauren need brave warriors like you.”

“I am a hunter,” Mosa corrected him.

“Warrior means you are a fighter, a champion, not that you must hold an axe…” Greed paused, then sighed and said, “Forget it. You are a brave hunter.”

“I am a brave hunter,” Mosa said as she fell asleep. She was too weak; just saying those words took all her strength.

“Let’s go up and look, Jesse,” Greed said as he stood up. “First, find her some food. I’m not hungry anyway.” “How’s your wound?” Jesse asked.

Greed laughed and patted the bug-shell armor nearby. “With this armor, what hurt could I get? And you don’t think I’d turn useless again without my avatar, do you?”

“Okay, okay, don’t talk about that armor,” Jesse said quickly.

Vereesa looked at the dwarf, then at Jesse. Jesse met her eyes, and Vereesa glanced at the dark doorway. Jesse nodded.

Greed picked up his axe and went through the door, with Jesse behind him. They walked up the deep, narrow passage, the silence feeling bad.

“You don’t plan to take Mosa back with us?” Jesse asked.

“There are no Tauren where we are. You wouldn’t want Mosa living in Booty Bay, would you? She doesn’t fit that messy place,” Greed said.

He looked at Jesse and said, “Not everyone is as careless as me. Damn it, just leaving my tribe and running off to nowhere, no guilt, no word for years.”

Jesse didn’t speak. Greed asked, “Tell me, Jesse, am I a coward who ran from battle?”

“What?!” Jesse said, shocked. “What rubbish? Didn’t they stop you from being a Gryphon Rider?”

“I don’t know.” Greed stopped and turned. “Maybe I could have done other things at Aerie Peak, like being a sentry watching for trolls or leftover Orcs. But I left…”

“A one-eyed sentry?” Jesse asked.

“Fine.” Greed waved a hand. “Not right, but Mosa makes me feel low—she’s like a real guardian. Next to her, I… you know.”

“I see, but Aerie Peak wasn’t like the Tauren. Greed, it’s not the same,” Jesse said. “And when you left, the war was over. How is that running?”

Greed nodded and kept walking.

“You feel bad just for that?” Jesse asked. “What else?”

“When Mosa got hurt, you cried like a fool.”

“Shut up,” the dwarf said. “Didn’t you learn better words in the Mage Quarter?”

“I mean,” Jesse grabbed the dwarf. “Do you love Mosa Woodmane?”

“She’s a Tauren!” Greed yelled.

Jesse stayed quiet. They stared at each other. Greed bit his teeth, his eyes flickered, and he leaned on the wall with a sigh.

“No one ever cared for me like this,” he muttered. Jesse frowned and asked, “Haven’t I treated you well?”

“You’re not a woman,” Greed said. “Your kindness means nothing.”

“You damn…” Jesse kicked Greed, and the sturdy dwarf stumbled and fell against the wall, groaning.

Jesse paused and asked, “Hey, didn’t you say you were fine?”

Greed got up, holding his waist, wincing. “You damned demon-worshipper…”

“Stop dodging,” Jesse said.

Greed took deep breaths and said, “Yes, I love her. So what?”

“Tell her,” Jesse said. “Like she did when we met—she told you straight she liked you. Want to take this regret to Stormwind?”

“She could find a fellow Tauren, live better, not always thinking of me,” the dwarf said. “But there’s no fellow Tauren now,” Jesse replied.

Greed thought, then stared at Jesse. “You haven’t fixed your own problems, and you preach to me?”

“What problems?” Jesse asked.

Greed looked at him, raised an eyebrow, and slowly asked, “You know?” Jesse understood.

“Fine,” he nodded. “You’re right, Greed. If I live to go back to Stormwind, buy a house, settle my parents, I’ll face my problems. I said that before.”

Greed nodded. “Okay, since you said it, when Mosa recovers, I’ll tell her.” “Deal.”

“Deal.”

They stayed silent in the passage a while. Greed looked up high and said, “Go.”

“Go,” Jesse replied.