121 Chapter 121 - On the Road to Valkland (1/2)
Gren was smart enough to bring Georgia up to the front seat before taking off so that she could guide him through the tunnels.What he wasn't smart enough to do was check what kind of transmission was in the truck before trying to drive it.The grinding noise that came from the clutch when he tried to switch into first gear was horrifying and he didn't realize that the parking brake was on so he over revved the engine.Thankfully, only he knew that the truck was not supposed to be making those noises so he was spared from the others' judgement.
The tunnels were wide but Gren traveled down them at a crawling speed so that he could get used to controlling the truck.It was completely different from any vehicle he had operated before but the basic principles on how to control a car were common knowledge on Earth.When the tunnel reached the gate leading out through the Church's not-so-secret secret exit, Gren brought the hulk of a machine to a halt and reengaged the parking brake.”How do you open the gate?”
Gren called out to Georgia but the noise of the truck and her earmuffs made it difficult for her to hear him.”What!?”Gren quickly realized the problem and shut the engine off.
”I was asking you how to open the gate.”This time, Gren's words were understandable by Georgia.
”Give me a moment and I'll go open it up.I forgot that the gatekeepers were recalled to the headquarters last week.Most of my knights were recalled which is why it's only the four of us.”Georgia was annoyed at the headquarters and wanted to complain about it to someone.For her, Gren was the perfect person to complain to at the moment since he wasn't part of the Church.
Georgia and a couple of the other knights opened up the gate and waved Gren through.After the truck cleared the gate they closed it and locked it back up before getting back into their positions.”Just go left and we'll reach the road to Valkland.”Gren knew the way to the road but wasn't going to tell Georgia to stop telling him where to go.It was better to have her confirming the way he needed to travel.
The perfect thing for a road trip like this was music but there were no radio stations and Gren was driving so he couldn't play the guitar.Even singing would split his attention which wouldn't be a smart idea since he was still new to driving.As Gren became a bit more comfortable with the truck he started to accelerate, causing the engine to over rev once again.The over revving was a sign that Gren needed to shift gears which was accompanied by yet another series of grinding the clutch until the truck was in second gear.This process would repeat itself for a while until the truck was in the fourth gear and Gren didn't dare speed up anymore.The roads only had gentle bends with the exception of the intersection that they hadn't reached yet so Gren was able to learn how to control the vehicle without worrying about turning too much.
”It might be too late to ask you this but are you sure that this truck of yours will be able to make it there?I don't know if I trust this thing.”Gren wasn't always reliable according to the reports that Georgia had received from the knights that were watching over him so she was understandably nervous.
”It should make it but I might need to stop in the middle of the trip to refill it.I've got more fuel for it and it's brand new so there are no mechanical issues yet.”Gren didn't know how far the tank would take it or how far away Valkland was so it was pointless to even begin trying to calculate if they'd make it there on one tank.”As long as you point me in the right direction then we'll get there just fine.”They were currently traveling at around 40 miles per hour which was faster than the speed of the horses and they wouldn't need to stop in the middle of the trip to let the truck rest like they would with horses.There was a good reason that the industrial revolution made draft horses and pack animals obsolete; they were better in almost every way.
”I'll take your word for it for now but I hope that you don't let us down.The lives of many people are counting on us.”Gren knew that more than anybody else.Back on Earth he had learned about epidemics while in school and, with them not knowing anything about germ theory, the problem would just be repeated in this world.
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The first obstacle that they faced on the road was a trading caravan headed to Adierton from Fort Togo.Gren's truck was a terrifying thing to encounter for those that weren't familiar with it.Its noise and size caused a small panic with the merchants until he waved out and let them know that he was friendly.It was a short encounter but Gren was able to talk with them a bit and ask what they thought of the truck.The merchants liked the capacity and protection of the truck but they lost interest when they found out that it'd need a special fuel that only Gren could supply them with.There was one merchant that wanted to purchase the recipe for the fuel but even Gren wasn't quite sure how to make it.
The encounter with the merchants allowed the mages to take a much-needed break.The constant motion of the vehicle had left many of them feeling ill with the healers working overtime to prevent each other from throwing up and passing out.After they got started again, Gren could only pray that they didn't get too sick in the back since slowing down wasn't an option.
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A couple of hours and several wasted meals later, Gren came across a second caravan.However, this one had to be coming from Valkland since they had already passed the major intersection.There were many people that needed to walk since they couldn't all fit in the wagons they had and Gren was worried that they might be carrying the disease with them.After coming to a stop, Gren quickly shut down the vehicle and gave directions to Georgia.”There's a chance that some of the people in that group are infected.Tell the others to keep away while I go check on the situation.”
The people from Valkland were less worried about the truck and instead were glad to see other people.An older woman that was at the driver's seat of a wagon called out to Gren as he approached them.”Fellow traveler, do you have any food or water to spare!?”
Gren had been stockpiling food so sharing some wouldn't be a problem but he needed to contain the situation.He couldn't get too close to them so he brought out his megaphone.”I am with the Church of Healing Light and I'm here to help the people of Valkland.Please allow me to check you for any signs of the disease and in exchange you will be given food, water, and our healing services for free.”
Mentioning the disease didn't seem to be a smart move since the people became defensive.There were many variations of them saying ”None of us are diseased!” instead of any signs of them beginning to cooperate.Gren was confused by this since the Church's services were usually expensive and this was going to be free.
Instead of trying to figure it out on his own, Gren decided to head back to the truck and ask the others what might be wrong with what he said.There were two possibilities that the others in his group came up with; the Valkland group might not believe Gren about it being free or they might not believe that he's from the Church.They decided to have one of the healers and Georgia go with him to talk to the travelers from Valkland and help clear up the misunderstandings.
The travelers had large numbers but Georgia approached them with no fear.”Greetings.I'm the commander of the Hildr's Grace order of knights, Georgia de la Rosa.I am accompanied by many healers on a humanitarian mission to help assist the people of Valkland by the order of Adierton's high priestess, Gabriella de la Rosa.”This was the first time that Gren had seen Georgia take a diplomatic approach.”Food and water can be supplied to those that need them but we need to make sure that the disease doesn't spread to the other cities.”
”You'll find no ally here.You and your fellow worshippers of that false goddess have caused enough harm.”The outburst from one of the travelers revealed an issue that Gren hadn't considered.The people didn't like the Church of Healing Light.