Into the base part 3

Kuro had bit into the arm of the man tugging at him and Mark felt satisfied to see the man cradle his arm as he let the kitten go. The kitten settled back into his arms, her body proud and content at her victory.

Mark felt pride swell inside him which he knew was not his own but the kittens.

He gave her a head pat which made her purr in satisfaction. Liam just looked at them with a thoughtful look on his face and his eyes narrowed.

"You bonded her? This just went from bad to worse but what's done is done. I'll look for another pet for Maya in the meantime. Anyway, it's best I brief you about the ongoings of this base" Liam's voice was still cold but it was getting to normal.

Mark noted his earlier worlds and locked them for further inspection later when he got time. First, he was really interested in the ongoing development of the base which was to become his home.

"Something is going on with Luna, he seemed different. Also, shouldn't En be here?" Mark asked, his tone curious.

"En was out looking for this beast of yours but I'll inform you that there is no need anymore. And about Luna, you're right about him too.

Since the present person had no chance of survival because of your intervention, he decided to call the one from the game's future database. He's the survivor so he's the best candidate for the 'protagonist'" Liam sounded detached and Mark wondered how he did that at all.

Didn't he feel emotions at all? He made it all sound like it was not related to him at all and Mark did not know if he felt envious or creeped out.

Maybe a mixture of both.

"Right. And that's why he is weirded out by everything?" Mark asked, a question evident in his voice.

"You changed enough with your presence for everything to be way different from his own reality. He'll adjust to it all and even be grateful to you because you saved his brother" Mark did not tell him that it had been for personal reasons.

He just hummed as a response and the silence that descended at the place was stiffening. The silence was not toxic, just uncomfortable between two parties who didn't exactly see eye to eye on the matter.

"We need to look for accommodation since we only have enough room to house the current members and those who eventually join. I reckon that Luna will take Alan under his wing as soon as possible so you just need to worry about yourself" Mark knew this was a possibility.

Liam's words said one thing but his actions executed another thing. He had saved him for his own purpose but when that did not work out, he was more than willing to throw him out to the wolves. How treacherous of him to place Mark in such a position.

But Mark had no other option but to comply with this behaviour because he had nowhere else to go. Every breathing second converted the world into a more dangerous place than before and it would continue.

If survival of the ones he cared for meant that he had to lay under an external command then he was more than willing to for the time being.

"I understand. So, where should I go for now?" Mark asked as he held Kuro tighter in his arms. He did not mind that he would not be comfortable but Kuro not being comfortable did worry him. She deserved the best.

"For now, make yourself home back here. The side office is empty so it's yours but we don't have extra bedding so you'll have to arrange it yourself. Keep your presence low in the base and once you get settled, come meet me upstairs. I need you to do something" Liam's voice was commanding.

Mark saw the room he was being given and felt somewhat reassured by that. It was a decent sized room with white walls and adequate space. There was a window near the top which actually showed the open sky making him realise that this part was actually constructed out of the cave.

The room was bare, containing nothing more than the walls and a few buckets inside. No doubt it had been intended to be used as a storage room before it had been given to him but he was not complaining at all.

It worked out great for him overall. The room was spacious as well as secure enough. And it was big enough to accommodate Kuro when she grew. Jaguars were massive cats and Kuro would require a lot of space for herself.

But he could not put the kitten down because the floor was full of dust and other particles of similar nature. He took out a clean cloth from his inventory and the kitten was put down.

The buckets needed to be filled but the washroom was close enough to him to not make it a problem. It was a laborious day filled with cleaning and making arrangements. He had beddings with him in the form of a sleeping bag but he was not sure how long he would be able to cope up with just that.

He would definitely get more when he gets a chance.

When the cleaning was finished, he felt himself wilt due to the effort he had expanded. His body felt tired and yet it had been less labrous than crossing the forest.

Kuro curled around him, her small body providing him with comfort and he let her do so. She was warm and soft and comfortable. Not to mention that her concern for him was overflowing.

Mark felt as if he could touch it physically if he tried hard enough but that was just wishful thinking on his part. She was an animal and no matter how much he tried, her behaviour would always be foreign to him.

His mind took time to catch up with him but by the time it did, he had already floated down into a dreamless sleep. When he woke up he realised that he missed a crucial thing throughout the day.

He needed to meet Liam but it did not cause him panic like it might have caused at one time. His time in such a world had changed him tremendously for him to feel much of anything.

Getting up was a task in itself, his body refusing to cooperate with his senses and every time he tried, he just wanted to collapse again. That was a struggle but finally, he did get up and refreshed himself.

What he wanted to do was to have a look at him Alan was adjusting first. The teen had been taken away by his brother and that had been it. Mark had been responsible for the kid for a week straight and it had built up a bond of some kind between them.

He felt responsible for the teen's safety.

He saw him in the cafeteria or somewhat similar area sitting content and happy with his brother, a small smile on his face and all the intentions Mark had built up till this moment faded away and weariness took its place.

Of course, the teen was happier with his brother than Mark because that was family and family was something you could not replace. The teen was radiating unlike before with him.

So he walked past the place without a look back at all and not noticing the eyes that looked at his back. He kept walking till he reached the door of Liam's office and pushed past the last barrier that stopped him outside.

The inside looked far too familiar to him - the room Mark had been in the day of the video call. It looked too much like a bedroom but was actually an office on one side with high tech technology he could not understand.

A system window was opened at his side and he observed it. It looked far too different than his own and dare he says it, a little older than his own model. It missed too many features and didn't even have a shop option.

It looked similar to Liam's original and even En's system.

Why was his different from their own? Why was he different? What did that even mean for everything that was going on here?

"Come here, can you understand this map?" Liam waved him inside as he focused on his own map. Mark entertained the idea of not obeying Liam just for fun but then stopped and decided to comply.

The map was really similar to his own but it lacked too many details his own possessed but Mark did not say anything about it at all. He nodded his agreement to the original question being asked as he looked at the map.

"Good. See this area here? It's the site for the first retrieval mission which we would be undertaking. However, that is not the problem here. There is another mission that takes place simultaneously during this time and now you can see the problem?" Liam's voice was unnaturally grave and Mark understood what the other was saying.

"You want me to take the other mission and complete it for you?" Mark asked as he looked at the point on the map.

"Since we can't be two places at the same time, it's impossible for our team to do both. You are the only one who has experience with this sort of thing so we can only count on you" Liam sounded stressed and Mark thought upon his words.

Should he take it? Or should he not?

Did he even have a choice in all this?