《Micro Evolution》 Chapter 01 I ran across the deserted street, my head tucked down and collar flipped up against the rain. I don''t know why I bothered. Fat drops of the acidic water still found a way to slide down the back of my neck leaving little wet trails that slowly grew hot as the chemicals tried to eat my skin. I jumped over a puddle with all my usual grace, swore when my foot came down on something slippery that I couldn''t see in the dark, and dove under the rickety awning hanging over an old rusted door. I wasn¡¯t too worried about the rain, it couldn¡¯t do any damage to me. I just hated being wet. My skin was as artificial as everything it hid, but Sanderson had tried making it as real as possible and that meant sensory feedback. That meant that the rain still felt wet and the chemicals still burnt, there was just no damage. Didn¡¯t stop me from shaking like a dog to get dry though. I knocked on the door, my knuckles ringing out loudly on the metal, and cast a look down both ends of the street in concern. This was not the sort of neighborhood you wanted to draw attention in. The street lights lining the road struggled to cast their glow through the murky downpour. Across the road from me, a bright green neon sign for a pawn shop glowed like a beacon. It would have looked inviting if it didn¡¯t help illuminate the piles of garbage littering the streets and clogging the drains. Dockside was like that. Bright and glaring and right in your face; all so you wouldn¡¯t notice the run-down buildings and worn roads. Look too close and you would notice the refuse that lay everywhere and the people that were barely better eyeing you up and down with hunger in their dark eyes. I don''t even know why this place was called Dockside. How does a cluster of old squat buildings built on the dried-out bed of a once-famous old-world river get the name Dockside? I heard movement behind the door before the click of a lock being turned reached my ears. The click was followed by the thump of a deadbolt being thrown, then another bolt, then another...and another. Crap on a cracker I forgot how paranoid Sanderson was. Although come to think of it, he did have a small fortune in tech stashed away in the basement so maybe it was understandable. Finally, the handle twisted and the door swung open an inch to reveal a bloodshot eye staring back at me before the security chain grew taut. ¡°Who-who-who you?¡± Came a harsh whisper from the dark interior. ¡°It¡¯s Haha,¡± I said, trying not to roll my eyes in exasperation. ¡°You called. Remember?¡± The eye continued to blink at me. ¡°...you do remember, don¡¯t you?¡± I pressed the bit of skin between my thumb and pointer finger on my left hand and held my palm up so he could see the blue and green holoscreen that rested an inch above my skin. I slid through the different tabs by flicking the pinky finger of my left hand under the screen and stopped on the message tab. ¡°Yes-yes-yes! Haha, come in! Come in!¡± The door closed, the security chain removed, and then it was opened again to reveal the complete form of my closest and oldest friend. An argument could be made that he was my only friend, but I counted old man stumpy down at the bar that paid for half my booze as a friend as well, so the argument would be lost. Ushered into the room I looked around as my eyes adjusted to the low light. Pushing a little energy into the augments in my eyes the gloom turned bright enough to make out the peeling wallpaper and battered furniture that cluttered the little space. The room, so full, still looked empty, cold. Like a prop. Maybe because it was. This was all just a mask that Sanderson used to hide his real place. That was downstairs. Turning my attention away from the farce I looked at the man himself. Sanderson, once tall and broad at the shoulder, was now frail and hunched over. His youthful vigor had long since been devoured by the polluted nature of Dockside. He should have been in his late twenties, same as me but he looked much, much older. To make matters worse, he was completely unaugmented. A natural jacket, as they say. Which was rare as hell in this day and age. Even the old Chinese lady that lived in front of my apartment building in a plastic tent and cooked footwear for food had at least three augments that I knew of. His dark grey eyes were bloodshot but still bright with intelligence as they stared at me intently from under a mop of unruly black hair. I wondered if he saw what I saw in the mirror every morning. A man that looked in the prime of his life, tall and athletic, with strong features and a square jaw dotted with stubble. Long hair, now wet with rain, plastered to a face that could have been handsome if the nose was a little straighter, the mouth a little less full and eyes that weren¡¯t as hard as they were. Or did he see the perfect, highly illegal, blend of man and machine that he had made to save the life of a street rat that had played with him as a kid. ¡°You-you look good. How are yo-yo-your energy levels?¡± ¡°Fine. The little beasties in my stomach are doing an admirable job. Yesterday, I ate my kitchen... well almost.¡± I laughed at the memory of sitting on my couch with my feet up on the coffee table as I ate the cutlery and watched some HVids. ¡°Ate a whole bunch of spoons and stuff. Didn¡¯t do shit for my energy levels but I think I may have gained a little mass.¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°Interesting,¡± Sanderson said, stepping closer to me. A sure sign of his interest was the sudden loss of his stutter. ¡°Did you excrete afterward? Was it metallic? Did it float?¡± ¡°Sandy, you¡¯re doing it again,¡± I warned. His eyes shot wide as he realized what he was saying and how he was treating me. We had a deal: While he could poke and prod at me as much as he wanted while I was on his operating table, he couldn¡¯t treat me like a test subject during normal conversation. ¡°Fo-Forgive me, old friend.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, it¡¯s cool. So what was so urgent you had to call me over during a downpour. You know the chemicals wear out my clothes.¡± Gesturing at me to follow, Sanderson navigated his way through the clutter in the living room with ease. That should have been impossible since he didn¡¯t have augmented vision like me. He stopped at the old painted wooden door, nondescript in every way, that was tucked under the stairs and pushed against the faded surface. A soft glow of white light surrounded his palm where it rested flush against the wood and with a hydraulic assisted hiss the whole door slid into the floor. The space beyond differed from the building we stood in like night and day. Or at least night and day from before the pollution cloud hung heavy in the sky and turned day and night into one gloomy mess. Large tiles covered the floor, each segment glowing a soft white. The light bounced off the metal walls and the shiny silver railing that traced the steps leading down. I would have been impressed if I hadn¡¯t seen it all before. Hell, I had been reborn in this place, this womb of metal and light and technology. I followed Sanderson down the stairs and the door closed quietly behind us. Down, down, down we went into the bunker of a mad scientist. I call Sanderson a mad scientist because he is and his lab reflects that insanity. The room was massive in scale, much larger than the house upstairs, and much better cared for. Just as cluttered though. The metal walls had most of its surface covered in old school touch screens. Various schematics and plans covered the screens, proof that my friend¡¯s brain never turned off. Wiring could be seen snaking around behind the screens like veins of some hideous technological beast. Thick arms of twisted metal and tubing hung from the ceiling between stacks of objects I couldn¡¯t even begin to describe. I knew from experience that if Sandy so desired the arms would spring to life and do whatever he told them to with surprising dexterity. A crescent-shaped desk dominated most of the available floor space at the front of the room. A holocube the size of my head rested on its surface. The rest of the space was taken up with various piles of crap and machines with exposed wires that boggled my mind and stretched the imagination. I¡¯m pretty sure I saw a sex swing stashed away in the corner but I may have been wrong and I sure as shit wasn¡¯t about to ask. I moved towards the medical bed stationed near the desk out of reflex and actually had to stop myself before I hopped up on it. Sanderson took his customary place behind his desk and slapped (spanked?) the side of the holocube. Screens of various sizes sprung up around him. I tried to look through them at his face but so much data was present on each screen that all I could make out through the glowing letters and random sketches were a few blurry features of his face. Resigned to the long wait, I shrugged off my wet jacket and let it fall to the floor before sliding my butt onto the bed and leaning back on my arms. My legs swung back and forth as I waited patiently for Sandy to get to it. His hands, or at least the blurry outlines I could make out, flitted from screen to screen and his voice reached me as a low rumble as he talked to himself. See! I told you. Nutty professor. ¡°Sandy!¡± I barked, finally tired of waiting. ¡°Minute.¡± came the muffled reply. It was three minutes later when the screens vanished as suddenly as they had appeared and Sanderson looked at me from across his table. His eyes turned hard. He was serious about something, which was rare enough that I sat up straight and gave him my full attention. ¡°What do you know about Project: Sidestep?¡± He asked. His voice was strong and steady. Seeing my confusion he went on. His speech rapid and his hands dancing about in excitement. ¡°Of course you wouldn¡¯t know anything. Sorry! It was a Government project. It started eighteen years ago and was led by my father. Their goal was simple: find the solution to our dwindling resources...off-world.¡± ¡°Off-world?¡± I scoffed at the idea. Space had stopped being some great unknown years ago. It had been one of the first places humans had spread to once they accepted they had fucked the planet beyond all repair. Rumors had been circulating lately that the richy-riches living up on the moon were running out of food though. It looked like humanity had spread itself too far. ¡°That''s stupid. Everyone knows there isn¡¯t anything out there. Space is just endless nothing wrapped up in dark-cold-pretty to look at-nothing.¡± ¡°No. Not out in space. Through space!¡± Sanderson said, his eyes getting that crazy gleam in them that I hated so much. The last time I saw that look he was pumping a billion little robots into my stomach. His hands danced about as he continued. ¡°Imagine there was another world, that mirrored ours in size, and it had enough gravity to hold an atmosphere. It¡¯s Earth, but not Earth. It¡¯s what Earth could have been, or will be, or has long since evolved from. All those resources in the same location in space as we are now, just at a different time! Moving at a different speed! The government was looking at a way to break through the fabric of space. To find this Earth-not-Earth, this world full of the same resources but none of the same problems. Imagine it Haha! A planet with a blue sky! Like the ones we¡¯ve seen in the historical data uploads!¡± I shrugged my shoulders at his excitement. I didn¡¯t dream of green grass and blue skies. The gloom and grime of this world was all I knew and while it may not be much and certainly wasn¡¯t pretty, it was mine, and fuck anyone who thought it wasn¡¯t good enough. ¡°The project was eventually labeled as a failure and stopped, but my father kept records. All these years I¡¯ve been tinkering with it, working on it in my spare time...and guess what! It works! It actually works!¡± Sandy finished with a triumphant shout and slammed his hands down on the table hard enough to make the cube bounce. Well, shit, I couldn¡¯t help but think, there goes the neighborhood. Chapter 02 But on a serious note. SHIT! Though I shouldn''t be surprised, If there was one person stubborn enough to punch through space, it was Sandy. I tried sorting out my feelings. I mean, sure I was excited for my friend, it was great that he had accomplished something so amazing...but it was also kinda a distant excitement. Five minutes ago I didn''t even know he had been working on it and now it was done? That¡¯s sorta like someone telling you they made a sandwich and had eaten it already, which reminds me: I¡¯m hungry. ¡°Congrats man! your dad would be proud.¡± I said. It was the best I could do. ¡°I know, Thanks!¡± His cheery mood quickly turned sour as he wrapped his knuckles on his table and sucked at his lower lip. ¡°...but that¡¯s not all. I wasn¡¯t the first to discover it.¡± ¡°What?¡± I said, maybe a tad loud. ¡°When you do something like tear a hole in space-time you leave a mark. A scar. That¡¯s how I got mine to work. I found an old scar and picked at it.¡± ¡°I appreciate you dumbing down the science, I really do, but what does that mean?¡± I asked, enunciating the last word. ¡°I think it means the Government is already there. In this other world they...we...found.¡± ¡°Doing what?¡± My voice rose in indignation, popping and cracking as my old burnt vocal cords protested at the range. It was followed by an itchy sensation as the nanobots in me swarmed over them trying to repair any damage. ¡°I would presume they are gathering resources as they first planned eighteen years ago. I sent a surveillance bug through when I found out how to stabilize the tear and I messaged you once I reviewed the information. Do you want to see it?¡± I pushed my annoyance of the governing powers aside. They hadn¡¯t done shit to help the people. Hadn¡¯t in years, and If I''m being honest I can''t remember the last time there was an election. Come to think of it, it could have just degraded into a band of rich bastards that only looked out for their own interests. I shouldn¡¯t have been surprised that they chose to keep something like this a secret. ¡°Let''s see what you got,¡± I said, hopping off the bed and making my way around the curvature of Sandy¡¯s desk to stand beside him. He slapped his cube again and started pulling the resulting cascade of screens together. I watched in amusement as he struggled through it. The result, once he had finished huffing and puffing and the frames for each individual screen blurred together before disappearing, was an 85¡± holographic screen. Pulling up the file, he tapped it and stepped back so we stood shoulder to shoulder. A thick forest appeared on the screen and I gasped. It was beautiful, all those colors. The vibrant greens of the leaves and mottled browns of their trunks. Sunlight, so bright and clear, seemed to reflect and bounce off every surface. The sky was a deep light blue so beautiful I almost cried as it destroyed the archived images I used to have stored in my brain of old Earth¡¯s sky. Sue me! I know I said I didn¡¯t care about that shit, but you try seeing something that beautiful and not give a damn. ¡°Beautiful isn¡¯t it.¡± Sandy murmured quietly beside me. The video must have been taken from one of the flying surveillance drones that Sandy liked to tinker with because the forest on the screen dipped alarmingly as if it fell out of the sky. The screen shook and stabilized and a sea of green grass filled it, stretching off into the distance to meet the beginning of the forest. ¡°Sorry about that. There''s a gravitational fluctuation around the gate. Nothing major but it takes a second for the drone to adjust. The good news is readings suggestthe gravity and atmosphere of this planet are almost identical to Earth''s.¡± Sandy commented. I rolled my eyes, more than happy to watch without the director''s commentary. The image once more changed as the bot flew up and banked towards the tree line. Flashes of color and life whipped past the screen as it dodged between tree trunks as thick as buildings and traveled further into the strange world. I stayed glued to the screen as something I hadn¡¯t expected appeared in the distance before rapidly expanding as the drone flew closer. A bridge, made of thick white rope. It hung between the upper branches of the massive trees. I could make out something that may have been a platform surrounding the trunk when the screen suddenly went dead. ¡°What the fu-!¡± I stepped forward to smack the cube when the screen wavered with lines of static. Which was stupid because...well holoscreen, duh. ¡°Just watch,¡± Sandy said so I did. Black swirled in from the sides of the screen like ink from an old Earth pen. In seconds all that remained was an 85¡± pure black square that I couldn¡¯t even see-through. White text appeared on the screen, the words forming in fits and starts as if the writer was unsure of what he was trying to say.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.
Attempting evaluation of foreign contaminant¡­. ERROR **$%## Evaluation halted. Attempting Integration with foreign contaminant¡­ ERROR **$%##! Integration halted.
The screen once more turned black as the message faded away only to be replaced by more.
Foreign contaminant classified: non-lethal surveillance device. Foreign contaminant evaluated as default. Evaluation: INVASIVE. ---- Subversion of foreign contaminant¡­. Subversion successful. Processing data logs... Success
PRIVATE MESSAGE
  • Primary world, designation: Aeris, greets foreign contaminant owner Sanderson O¡¯mally.
  • Loss of central life core threatens fragmentation of primary world, designation: Aeris, as well as connecting branches.
  • Primary world, Designation: Aeris, requests aid.
¡°Okay, what the hell is that?¡± I asked as casually as possible. My finger only shook a little as I pointed at the screen. ¡°Contact,¡± Sanderson said. ¡°It talked to us.¡± ¡°And when you say it you¡¯re meaning...?¡± ¡°The planet,¡± Sanderson replied like it was the most obvious thing in the world. ¡°The planet talked to us. I don¡¯t know how yet, but I know it did! And it requested aid-¡± I had a horrible sinking feeling and prayed it was the nanobots moving about in my stomach and not the sixth sense of dread. ¡°-that¡¯s where you come in!¡± Sandy finished happily. ¡°Goddamit!¡± I swore explosively. I knew it wasn¡¯t the stupid nanobots. I just knew it! ¡°What?¡± Sanderson asked, blinking his bloodshot eyes at me. ¡°You once told me that if I ever needed your help all I had to do was ask. Well, this is me asking.¡± ¡°What happened to your stutter?!¡± I said, pointing at him. If I had hoped to distract him it didn¡¯t work. He knew he was right. I had said that and he knew I never go back on my word. It¡¯s a whole thing with me; I¡¯ll happily lie, cheat, steal, bamboozle, trick, swindle and/or otherwise mislead an idiot but I¡¯ll never go back on my word once given. It doesn¡¯t mean I had to be happy about it. ¡°Dammit, fine! You¡¯re right. I owe you my life. I owe you more than that, actually...but Sandy, it''s a freaking talking planet, what aid does it need? English lessons? And you just want to send me off to help? Just like that?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Fine!¡± You may think I folded like a cheap suit awfully quick and you would be right. More often than not if Sanderson says jump I say how high. You would have to understand our history for it to make sense and I would love to tell you more about it...but later okay? I¡¯m about to travel to a new world. Clapping his hands like a little child Sandy grabbed my shoulder and started to half push half pull me away from his desk and towards the far wall. ¡°I need you to go to this planet, Primary world: Aeris, now! Gather data, touch everything, taste it, eat it, remember it! Also, find out what this central life core it mentioned is and what it meant by connecting branches. Oh, this isso exciting!¡± He stopped next to a raised platform I had never noticed before. ¡°And remember, the Government may have already sent people through, and knowing them they didn¡¯t make friends.¡± ¡°How do I get back?¡± ¡°W-W-Well,¡± Sandy suddenly looked nervous, or was that guilt? ¡°Y-You see...I haven¡¯t f-f-figured out how to keep the gate open. It¡¯s a-a-a one-way trip.¡± ¡°What!¡± ¡°B-but t-the government will need to keep their gate open. T-to transfer resources and such, I would imagine. St-stop them and you can come home using theirs!¡± ¡°Uhhh¡­Why are you backing away?¡± I asked as he left me standing on the platform and moved away. There was a little oblong box that came up to his waist and he pressed his palm above it before twisting his whole hand, like he was turning a doorknob. ¡°Sandy, what¡¯s happening? Sandy!¡± ¡°You can¡¯t take anything with you. My gate only allows one item through, I haven''t figured out how to get it to read more than that. So there¡¯s no reason to wait!¡± He shouted at me ¡°Remember, the video showed signs of life!¡± He twisted his hand back the other way and suddenly I couldn''t move. My body, so ridiculously powerful it could squat a ton if I was willing to burn through my energy levels, refused to budge. Sandy gave me a sympathetic look and twisted his hand again. Glowing blue veins ran down the sides of the box from where Sanderson''s hand contacted it before spilling across the floor in straight lines that crept closer and closer to me. A roaring noise filled my head and I adjusted my hearing so I wouldn¡¯t go deaf, but that didn''t help, which meant the noise was in my head. ¡°The video showed signs of life,¡± Sanderson continued to shout at me. His voice barely audible over the noise in my head. ¡°Help them if you can! Don''t let our people hurt them like they¡¯ve done us. I''ll stay and work on things from this side. Help them and help the planet. For me. Please! Don''t let them use my father''s research to further their own evil agenda!¡± ¡°I can''t believe you just said evil agenda you assh-" I started to roar but then everything went black and the last thing I felt was my body falling...but up. Da faq? Chapter 03 I would love to say I entered the new world with dignity. Maybe with a little bit of style and panache. Who am I kidding, I fell screaming from the sky naked as the day I was born with my butt cheeks clenched and my eyes screwed shut. It wasn¡¯t a long fall but I weigh a lot and the ground was hard. I may have bounced painfully once or twice before coming to rest. I spat a clump of soil out of my mouth. The loamy mud was surprisingly rich, not that I¡¯m a connoisseur of such things, I¡¯ve just tasted the ground back home a fair bit, normally with the assistance of someone''s right cross. Sitting up I whistled softly to myself as I took in the view. Nothing I had seen on the Drone feedback with Sandy could prepare me for what I saw now. I don¡¯t care how awesome the camera quality, nothing could have caught the vibrancy of this place. I had entered (fallen into?) this world on a grass-covered hill. I ran fingers that were used to feeling metal and concrete over the sea of green and laughed as the individual blades of grass tickled my false skin. My tactile feedback sensors more than up to the delicate task. Surrounding the hill were dense woods. Trees that were unbelievable huge with thick bushy canopies stretched up, up, up into the sky that was so pure and blue I gaped like an idiot. I searched the data chips of old earth and realized that whatever these trees were, they were indigenous to this world and dwarfed the ones of my homeworld. The smallest of them was as tall as a four-story apartment building back home. Sunlight streamed down on me, the rays providing a warmth I didn¡¯t know I needed until I felt it. Glancing up at the sun I tried to filter the rays out but my augments weren¡¯t up to the task and the fiery ball of heat seemed to float there gloatingly. I stood up, my body barely noticing the change of gravity, and holding my hands out I spun in a slow circle. It was beautiful. Amazing. Breathtaking. Stunning. ...and my brain short-circuited. There was a high pitched beep that came and went so fast I only had time to flinch before my vision went black and I lost control of my body. Slumping to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut I tried desperately to blink the blackness away. For a second I thought it was working as a spot of light appeared before slowly growing larger. I was reminded of those old stories about the light at the end of the tunnel and wondered if I should start praying.
Unauthorized entry detected. Primary world, Designated: Aeris, initiating analysis.
The pain came back with a vengeance. A white-hot stabbing throb that started at the base of my skull and radiated upwards.
Analysis complete. Attempting Subversion of unauthorized threat.
I gritted my teeth as the pain changed. Not the intensity but the feel...if that makes sense? Like how a burn and a cut both hurt but they feel different. It felt like someone had put a balloon in my skull and was slowly blowing it up and it was only a matter of time till all that pressure was too much. My hands gripped and pulled up clumps of grass as my body fought against the invisible assault. It was almost as bad as being burnt alive but if I could survive that then I could survive this. Sanderson wasn¡¯t here to put me back together again though which was a little worrying. As suddenly as it had all started the pain stopped. The pressure vanished and I let out a long contented sigh. Still couldn¡¯t see shit though, except for blackness and that damn text box floating in front of me.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
ERROR: *&$$*#012 - Partial Subversion successful Attempting Integration.
This time I felt my muscles twitch and writhe uncontrollably under my skin. Which was strange because it wasn¡¯t technically muscle. It was the all synthetic muscle fibers, each strand made from some fancy pants living alloy Sanderson had created. I was his pride and joy after all.
Integration successful. Running internal scan.
With my vision still dark I did what I always do when I don''t understand a situation and can''t hit it in the face. I waited. The dampness from the ground seeped into my back muscles as I lay immobile on the ground. A gentle breeze tickled my skin while the sun warmed my naked flesh. I marveled at the smells. So clean and pure and fresh and I relaxed for the first time in a long time. Truly, honestly relaxed.
Internal scan complete. Internal material commandeered. Assigning Designation: Champion. Complete. Designation duration: Pending Gift of Initiation: Gift of tongues
The darkness faded away to be replaced by the clear blue skies above me. A fluffy white cloud drifted past. Shaking my head and wondering what the hell was going on I sat up and scratched my back. The screens reminded me of what happened to the drone and I wondered if I was going to be kicked off the planet as a Foreign contaminant although the other messages suggested not. The fact that I had been partially subverted was worrying and might cause issues down the line but I would take it over total subversion. I was a stubborn bastard by nature and the thought of servitude pissed me off. The message about a successful integration was the most concerning. What had integrated with what? The planet to me? Me to the planet? The hill I was one with my butt cheeks? After five minutes of sitting there bare ass to the grass watching the scenery with nothing much else happening I figured I was safe...for now and stood up. Sanderson had said that there were civilizations here right? The rope bridge on the video feed was also a good indication of life. I figured my best bet at finding the pesky humans as Sanderson wanted was to find some village or town or whatever around here and get the lay of the land, so to speak. Knowledge not my own, downloaded from data chips long ago, said that most villages and towns were built around water, so all I had to do is find a river or lake and follow it upstream. The knowledge from the data chip did not say what to do when surrounded by trees as tall as skyscrapers and thick as thieves. I¡¯d be lucky if my city boy swagger didn¡¯t get me lost three steps in. I poured more power into my eyes, the augments kicking to life thanks to the energy boost and enlarging the trees in my vision. That didn¡¯t do much for me, even with enhanced eyesight the forest eventually just got too thick to see through. That was fine though, I wasn¡¯t expecting much from that. Next, I redirected the energy to my ears and nearly fell over as the sound of so much life nearly overwhelmed me. Chirps and growls and the pitter-patter of feet mixed with the rustle and crack of foliage. The wind set of a cacophony of forest sounds as it moaned through branches too high to see, leaves shaking and falling only to be stopped by the lower branches before the whole process repeated. I was about to direct the energy to my nose in the hopes of smelling fire or ...I dunno, body odor of village folk? When a sound so out of place tore through the air. The feminine scream of a woman. Mud and grass flew through the air as I sprinted down the slope towards the tree line. My body moved with the same effortless ease it had back on old earth and made short work of the distance. I also found out why underwear and the support it provided was such a good idea. Not used to running at such high speeds over mud I had trouble making a last-second change in direction and ended up clipping the side of a tree trunk that was wider than I was. Wood chips and splinters sprayed through the air. Twisting with the impact and grunting low in my throat at the flare of pain in my shoulder I continued on my way. My hearing turned up to the max I tried desperately to keep track of the direction the scream had come from as the woods seemed to press in on me. I could get lost in here. I hopped over a fallen tree, enhanced muscles propelling me safely over the eight-foot obstacle. I landed with a roll and stopped in a crouch to listen. If there was one sound Dockside could familiarise you with, it¡¯s the sound of a struggle. In some ways, it¡¯s a lot like sex. Grunting, gasping, the meaty smack of flesh on flesh. It differs in pitch though. The grunts are more guttural, the gasping more desperate, the meaty smacks more vicious. That¡¯s what I heard. Along with the snapping of wood and the crunch of dry leaves. Looks like I found my fight! Chapter 04 Branches broke against my skin as I hurtled through the forest. My flesh dimpled under the blows in passing but that was the extent of the damage and the marks faded in seconds. Shrubs, bushes, and roots were stomped down or pulled up as I plowed along. I came upon the fight a lot faster than I expected. One second I was surrounded by trees, the next second the broad back of something large and hairy was blocking my way. It should be known that I am a student in the art of the blind side so needless to say I hit that hairy fucker from the blindest side possible. The back. The creature was a hell of a lot denser than I expected and instead of bowling it over to get steamrolled under me, I went down with it. There was a muffled canine yelp followed by the feminine yell again and then I was surrounded by fur. Whatever was under me wasn¡¯t happy. It bucked and heaved and tried to get massively muscular arms under itself as I tried desperately to get my knees around it so it couldn¡¯t knock me off. Shrugging mentally and only slightly concerned at the implications of such an act I started slapping it. Yes. Slapping. I didn¡¯t know if the hairy thing was good or bad. It could be some innocent native out for a walk and the woman doing all the yelling could be the vicious attacker. I only came here because the scream I heard meant there was someone here I could grill for answers and I only knocked over the hairy creature because it was in my way and I preferred to hit first. It doesn¡¯t mean I was going to start offing the creature just cause it was hairy. I may have said hair a bit too much aye? That¡¯s when another arm, equally thick and matted in fur, wrapped around my waist. I had enough time to cuss at myself for not looking around sooner before I went airborne. Wood cracked and splintered under my weight as I crashed into the thick trunk of a tree. A rain of leaves fell about me as I fell five feet down to land on the ground. Sagging slightly as I tried to adjust to the sudden trauma, I took stock of the situation. Two creatures, I could best describe as werewolves were helping up a third from the forest floor. Thick black hair, matted and clumped with forest debris-covered muscular humanoid bodies. They stood between seven to eight feet on legs that bent the wrong way with a barrel-like chest, thick with muscles and bare of hair. The visible skin was a shade of grey often found on a dead body. The one I had knocked down shook its lupine head and glared at me with eyes the color of piss. Teeth as long as my fingers poked out from dark black lips that were pulled back in a vicious scowl. It growled and I watched a glob of saliva drip from its chin. ¡°Run! Foolish Human!¡± A feminine voice called from the foliage above us all. Two of the werewolves growled up at the voice, their pointed ears swiveling about as they cast hate-filled stares towards the thick branches and the canopy above us. My buddy, the one I had given a quick hug and slap, just kept right on glaring at me. ¡°I will hold them off!¡± The woman called out again. I took my eyes off the wolves long enough to catch a flash of red on one of the branches above. ¡°You need to getaway! The Forgotten will focus on me!¡± I opened my mouth to object. But then she sprang through the air over our heads and I may have forgotten my argument. She was beautiful, her dark skin shone as she flipped through the air. Her toned arms extended out as she threw a wooden spear at one of the wolves. Her hair, lustrous and black, whipped around her face as she continued her flip. The red I had seen earlier was her clothes, a long flowing skirt, and top that left her midriff bare. I guess she needed a bare midriff to accommodate the six, black, chitinous spider legs that sprung out of her back mid-leap and allowed her to grasp onto the trunk of a tree. The spear missed the now howling wolves but I couldn¡¯t care less. I was too busy staring in fascination at the spider woman clinging to the tree. That was when a palm as big as my head came whistling towards me. The wolf was fast. Incredibly so. Even augmented as I was, I barely ducked the swipe. Each of the werewolf¡¯s fingers ended in an inch long claw, the nail thick and black and crusted with dirt. If I could get infected, getting scratched by it would have been a serious issue. Stepping back to avoid another wild swing I felt the tree press against my back, the bark rough to my naked skin. I jumped up and kicked back, using the trunk as a springboard to launch myself forward. The right cross I delivered to the wolf was clean. I felt as much as heard the crack of bone as his jaw pulverized under the blow. Flying past him/it I tucked and rolled on landing before springing back to my feet. Sliding on the leaf-strewn forest floor I spun back around, dirt spraying out behind me as I turned to keep my opponent in sight. I saw a brief glimpse of the other two wolves climbing the tree after the woman, their clawed limbs not nearly as effective as her spider limbs....spider legs? My big beasty was staggering towards me, It¡¯s jaw hanging loose from its face. The drool that now flowed freely was tinged pink with blood. I felt a feral smile grace my face. I loved a good fight and no matter what world I was in, that would always remain the same. Violence is simple and easy and when it¡¯s the answer, it¡¯s the answer. I slid forward making sure to keep my feet grounded and I closed the gap between us rapidly before the wolf could get the momentum needed to bring his greater bulk into play. Like a Gatling gun going off I rained quick, sharp, blows into its stomach and ribs. Rocking the beast. I stepped sideways to avoid its downwards slash and threw a haymaker into its unprotected kidney. The wolf twisted at the last microsecond and I clipped its hip instead. The crack of bone was drowned out as it let out an ear-splitting howl. I hissed at the auditory assault and fell back covering my ears. A claw dug into my chest, and much to my surprise (and deep concern), parted the thick synthetic skin and muscle beneath with ease. The blow was deep enough that the shiny metal framework of my skeletal structure peeked out. A dribble of dark red blood leaked out of the wound, the liquid viscous and metallic from the nanobots that ran rampant in my body. The wound stretched from my right shoulder down to my left ribs.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it I growled in pain. Though muted by the artificial cocktail of endorphins and adrenaline flooding my system, the wound still stung something fierce. I wanted to check my power levels. I should be ok, I wasn¡¯t doing anything too crazy with my body yet, but there were still three wolves to deal with and for some reason, my one was looking better and better by the second. His jaw wasn¡¯t even hanging at an odd angle anymore. ¡°The fuck?¡± I muttered before calling out. ¡°Hey! Woman in the tree! Is it just me or are they healing?¡± ¡°Foolish Human! You should have run! Of course, they are healing. They are the Forgotten. Thrice cursed. Shunned. Given over to the Chaos.¡± She yelled back at me as she hopped from tree trunk to tree trunk, her multiple legs flashing as they carried her about the wooden terrain with ease. The werewolves following her had to resort to flinging themselves bodily from one tree to the next, their massive muscles bunching at the strain. I¡¯m really glad she cleared it up, otherwise, I wouldn¡¯t have a clue what was happening. In case you didn¡¯t pick up on it, that was sarcasm. So still without a clue as to why the bloody things were healing, I did what I always do. I just hit a lot harder. The wolf charged at me on all fours. Its long arms working in tandem to throw itself through the air in large arcing bounds. Flooding my system with energy I entered battle mode. Technically it¡¯s overclocking my system or at least that''s what Sandy says and that it isn¡¯t necessarily a ¡®battle mode¡¯ but screw it! The world slowed down around me as I became hyper-aware of my surroundings, the augmentation in all my senses kicking into overdrive to feed my brain more data even as my brain sped up to process the extra data. I could see the clumps of dirt kicked up by each bound of the wolf¡¯s loping run. I could see the hair along its back and between its ears flatten as the wind whipped at its coat. I estimated four bounds for it to reach me. I shifted my stance, sliding my right leg back and bending the knee of my left. My body turned a little so my shoulder was leading. Three. I directed a little extra energy to my legs and back to support the sudden stress they were about to be put under. Two. Glowing orange lines appeared all over my body like veins as the supercharged nanobots that moved through my body like blood raced about under my synthetic skin. One. I tucked my chin and raised my fists. Time to fuck shit up. The charging werewolf hit me with the speed and force of a runaway grav-truck. I slid back under the force, my feet digging twin furrows in the loamy soil, before stopping. I strained against the sudden force as I jammed my left forearm under the creature''s chin and twisted its snapping jaws away from my face. Saliva splattered against my collar bone and dripped down my bicep. I growled right back at it before jamming my right hand into its sternum and by that, I mean into its sternum. Nails as hard and as sharp as the blades of a knife and mechanics that could drive my arm forward with enough force to punch through half a foot of steel made short work of the skin, muscle and fibers in its way. The wolf howled with pain even as it continued to pound my back and sides with wild slashes of its clawed hands. I felt the tugging and slicing as it tore apart my skin. Its claws weren¡¯t sharp enough nor strong enough to get at my bones but that didn¡¯t seem to limit the amount of damage I was taking. I could feel my own blood as it poured down my back and butt. The wolves waving arms sent my blood in splattering arcs across the forest, staining the ground around us. Oversaturated as I was with energy, I didn¡¯t feel any pain. I felt amazing! It was addictive, and therein lay the problem. I needed to end this. Quick! Before I ran out of power and keeled over. With a bestial roar of my own, I used the hand buried to the wrist in the wolf''s body as a handhold and twisted my left arm away and behind the creature''s head with unnatural speed at the same time. Free at last, the wolf bore down on me, its maw opened wide to swallow my head whole. Using its forward momentum against it, I added to it with my left hand. Pushing its head down with my left I stepped sideways and lifted with my right. The handhold was slippery and skin can stretch and tear so it wasn¡¯t the best but it got some of the results I was looking for. Mr. Wolfy went ass overhead and slammed down on its back. A trail of dark red, almost black blood, flew through the air as my hand was torn from its body. The drops seemed to move in slow motion to my increased perception. Not sure how fast the stunned wolf would heal I lifted a foot and with a grunt of effort dropped it down on its skull before it could recover. I may have put a bit too much effort into it. Like a burst mellon, its head went pop and my foot drove through its cranium and into the ground a good couple of inches. Twin howls of anguish sounded from the side and I turned in time to see the other two wolves drop to the ground from the tree they were climbing and run towards me. One on all fours and the other on its hind legs like some pro-athlete. Shaking brain matter off my foot I reached down with one hand and got a good grip on the dead wolf¡¯s foot. Torquing at the waist I whipped my improvised projectile at the duo. The one running on all fours moved a tad too slow and got clipped in the shoulder by its buddies corpse. It fell back in a tangle of limbs. The woman in the trees took advantage and dropped from somewhere above onto the convulsing mass of hair. Her six legs flashed out as support, bracing and anchoring her in place, while she stabbed down at them with her spear. Leaving her to it I juked to the side as the last wolf reached me. It¡¯s wild swing waved over my head as I ducked but I didn¡¯t dodge the follow up kick-stomp afterward and hobbled back as its foot made contact with my knee. Never knew a fucking animal could fight like a brawler! The beast grabbed either side of my head and squeezed. A throb of pain pulsed behind my eye, and the beast pulled me towards its open mouth. My toes left the ground as it lifted me closer and I got a real good look at a Dentist''s worst nightmare. Bits of meat and other...stuff...were stuck between its teeth. Bad dental hygiene helped explain the over-pouring stench of its breath as my eyes watered. No way was I going out like that! Breaking the hold by slamming my hands down on the inside of its elbow joints I dropped a foot to the ground. On the way down I tangled my hands it the thick hair matting its shoulders and pulled. If it wanted to eat me it was going to get a mouthful. I landed the mother of all head butts on the fuckers snout as he leaned forward. He yelped. I cussed and rubbed my forehead. Then I socked him once in the stomach for being an asshole. My veins still glowed and I still felt great, but I just knew I was running through my energy like crazy. My punch doubled the beast over and broke something or a lot of somethings if the popping cracks were any indication. Gripping its head, which was now at a convenient height, I slammed it down on my rising knee. Once, Twice, thrice! The sound of cracking and splattering ended quickly and I let the body fall limp to the forest floor. Blood leaked from the mush that used to be its head to run between the fallen leaves that covered the ground. I looked for the last wolf only to stop short. The spiderwoman. Arachnachick? Whatever. Stood on the tangled corpses, her wooden spear shoved through an eye socket. Her spider legs wrapped around her waist making it look like she wore some type of armored black skirt. As far as fashion statements go, it wasn''t so bad. Chapter 05 ¡°Come here often?¡± I asked her flippantly. Trying to calm the blood lust that still coursed through me. Letting the energy go helped. I felt my body sort of ...deflate...as limbs that only seconds before had felt light as air seemed to weigh me down once more. Red eyes glared at me from under sharp eyebrows. I was right, she was beautiful. Her long dark hair was plaited along each temple with the rest let loose to tumble about her sharp cheekbones . She had a straight nose above full, bow shaped lips. She caught me gawking at her (Dunno how, I was being totally subtle about it) and jutted out her sharp chin in challenge. The red top she wore wrapped around a modest bust, completely covering the upper swells, before looping around to tie behind her neck. Her bare midriff showed off an impressive set of abs. She was no wallflower that was for sure. Those spider legs though! I kept looking back at them and coincidentally her hips, which were full and flared and almost as distracting. Sandy¡¯s old man used to enjoy watching these holovids of these women from some long forgotten era that flipped and jumped and twirled around on a piece of wood. I have no clue why they did it, but I loved watching them with him...cause those girls had it going on! Spiderchick reminded me of them. Curved and toned. To be fair Dockside was full of the hungry and the desperate so any woman that didn¡¯t look anorexic and malnourished was instantly attractive to me and dare I say it...exotic. I would have kept gawking like a little kid at the circus but the same black screen from up on the hill covered my vision and I panicked a little. Being blind while standing in the sun surrounded by nothing but swaying grass was one thing. Being blind after a fight and standing in front of a spiderwoman with a spear in a werewolf¡¯s skull was another. I heard stories about spiders that used to lay eggs in their victim. My butt cheeks clenched reflexively.
Primary World, Designated: Aeris, Bears witness to the Champions first act of Valour. Act of Valour witnessed: Contaminated being, Designation: Champion, has taken the first step along the path of the Champion. Defending the denizens and citizens of Primary World, Designated: Aeris, takes precedence over all but primary goal. Error: **&%12(*89) - Primary Goal locked.
Primary World, Designated: Aeris, Honors the Champion. Gift of Valour - Gift of Transmutation. ERROR:&&$*# Transmutation (Controlled) Compensation: Integrated Statistics and Communication are now active.
Would Contaminated being, Designation: Champion, like to implement changes? - Y/N
I was desperate enough to get my sight back that I just thought Y! Fucking Y!!!! The joy I felt when the black faded to reveal the webette still standing on her pile of bodies was almost overwhelming! She hadn¡¯t laid eggs in me! I bet my ass cheeks were too tightly clenched. She was looking at me funny though. I looked down at myself and let out a manly squawk of shock as I tried covering up as best I could with just my hands. I¡¯d forgotten I was naked. As far as first impressions go it left a lot to be desired. At least the woman could see I wasn¡¯t armed...except for the club betwee- okay! okay I¡¯ll stop! I soft ting sounded in my ear. It was so similar to my text tone that I automatically pressed the skin between my thumb and pointer finger on my left hand (The movement so automatic that I forgot I was meant to be covering up my bits) before shaking my head. Of course it wouldn¡¯t work. Imagine my surprise when instead of the blank holoscreen appearing above my hand like I imagined, a small palm sized table appeared instead. It was blue and white now instead of the original blue and green.
Name: Haha October Class: Champion Race: Biotic humanoid. Evolution: I Stored Mass: 19.95kg Total Mass: 322.535kg
Integrity : 82.9% 302.585kg MCR (Mass Conversion Rate): 0.88/sec Physical Mass:365kg
Power levels: 93.12% ARR (Ambiant Recharge Rate): 0.026/sec
Micro-Evolution: 0/4 terms met Unlocked Evolutionary Skills: - Human (Augmented)
Primary Skills:
  • Hand-to-hand Combat (A)
  • Small arms (Un)
  • Negotiation (A)
Talent:
  • Iron bones (You remain unbroken under even the strongest of blows.)
  • Iron skin (You remain unscathed under all but the sharpest of blades)
  • Iron Stomach (You remain undaunted by all but the strangest of meals)
  • Iron Will (You remain unbent under the power of others)
  • Artificial Being. (Not of flesh and blood you are immune to diseases and poisons)
  • Fighter. (You have struggled since the day you were born. Only through blood sweat and tears have you achieved all that you have and all that you are!)
AlignmentSupport creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. Neutral - Primary World Aeris views you with Neutrality. Aeris awaits the need to aid or destroy you
Gifts - Gift of Tongues - Gift of Transmutation
Spiderwoman was moving!I tried reading through it all quickly while keeping one eye on the woman. She hadn¡¯t moved and still remained motionless, a gentle breeze playing with her hair. I looked back down at my palm only to look back up at the sound of movement. Supported by her extra legs so she seemed to float above the forest floor she approached slowly. Her spear hung at her side, an occasional drop of blood falling from its tip. Forgetting about the holoscreen table for a second I crouched down a little in preparation for an attack. Just because I had helped her didn¡¯t mean she would return the favour. She stopped just out of striking range and cocked her head to the side. Her spider legs let her down before curling back around her waist. I noticed she was barefoot. ¡°Nelzarastorama.¡± She said, tapping her free hand against her chest where her heart would be. Her voice was surprisingly soft when she wasn¡¯t yelling at me. ¡°I thank you for your aid human.¡± I slowly uncoiled from my crouch and went back to covering myself up. Mimicking her movement I tapped my own chest. ¡°Haha.¡± ¡°Haha,¡± she echoed. Her head bobbing as she mulled over the information. A strand of hair fell into her eye and she used the forearm of the hand holding the spear to brush it away. A trail of blood followed the movement. ¡°A strange name for a warrior but I who am I to judge the ways of humans. Saza says judgement limits the horizons of education.¡± Yea...I dunno what to say to that. ¡°You may look at your status screen if you wish. I noticed your reluctance earlier. Do not fear human Haha, I will not attack.¡± To support her words she took two deliberate steps back and planted her spear head first in the ground. ¡°Status screen?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes. I saw it briefly upon your palm. Blue and White, the colour of those accepted by Aeris. It is the reason I have not attacked you,¡± Her full lips pulled up into a cheeky smile. ¡°That and I will not kill an unarmed man.¡± She looked pointedly at my nethers. I looked pointedly at my hand. Something had changed in the table. It took me a moment to figure out what and when I did I scrunched up my face in thought. The percentage of my integrity had risen to 83% along with the weight under it but Stored Mass seemed to have dropped. It wasn¡¯t until I saw a small scratch along my palm under the holoscreen heal that it all clicked. If I looked at it like one of those old games Sandy had enjoyed playing as a kid then Integrity was my health. My guess was since my race was Biotic humanoid (low blow! True, but still low blow) the system in charge of my stats figured it was more accurate this way. So following that logic...Instead of hit points or whatever I had mass and the mass conversion rate would be my regen. What was it converting to mass though? My eyes flickered to the stored mass tab that was plummeting even further. So it was converting my stored mass to the materials needed to repair me. Neat! I started laughing when the implication hit me. I think the stored mass was the bunch of kitchen stuff I¡¯d eaten back on earth...and it may have been more than just the forks and spoons I told Sandy about. Wish I could have eaten the kitchen sink. Would have made a good punchline. What happens if my stomach is empty and I needed to heal? The thought stopped me dead. What happens if I eat something wooden? Do I heal with wood? Dont spiral Haha. Do not spiral. Focus. Breathing through the bout of uncertainty that nearly left me immobilized I focused back on my stats. If the recharge rate of my power levels were correct then it would take me about forty minutes to reach a full charge. Holy Crap! That was awesome!..although I had burnt through it really fast in a really short fight. I¡¯d worry about that later. Along with the fact that I now (Likely) had a planet integrated into my subsystems and it monitored me like a stalker ex with military grade spy gear. Sandy had asked me to help the planet so I guess a little violation was acceptable...and a little handy, I¡¯ll admit. ¡°Are you done, human Haha?¡± the spider woman with the long ass name asked, breaking me out of my thoughts. ¡°Uhh, yeah, sure.¡± I closed my fist, dissolving the table and muttered under my breath. ¡°Not like I can understand most of it anyway.¡± Which was true enough. There was a whole bunch of shit I didn¡¯t even know how to go about understanding. Like the micro-evolution thing for one. ¡°Good. Now tell me human Haha-¡± ¡°Just Haha.¡± ¡°Very well. Tell me human Just Haha, why have you come to these woods. Has your kind finally turned their sights this way?¡± ¡°Ok, first off...what was your name again?¡± ¡°Nelzarastorama.¡± ¡°Nelzrastrama.¡± ¡°Nelzarastorama.¡± She corrected patiently. ¡°Can I just call you Nel?¡± At her slow nod I continued. ¡°Ok, listen...Nel, I may be Human...mostly...a little...but I¡¯m not from here. This world. Aeris. I¡¯m from this place called Earth. It¡¯s in the same location in space but the time is different or the time is the same but the space is different? I think I remember Sandy saying something about space-time and a scar...Okay, I suck at science and I¡¯m not even sure if you would understand my explanation, but let''s just say I¡¯m from another world and I¡¯m here to help.¡± Nel¡¯s spider legs propped her up once more and her very shapely, very human legs crossed as she rose into the air. She tapped her thigh slowly and I noticed nails that were just on this side of being considered talons. Her red eyes, dark and hooded with thought, stared into mine. She must have reached some decision because she nodded slowly. ¡°You are from a branch world. I understand this. It explains...much.¡± once more her eyes seemed to dip below my waist line. ¡°Though the ones that have come before you often come dressed. Does your world not have clothes? Nevermind, It matters little. You are strong. We can use your help.¡± ¡°That¡¯s great! Point me in the right direction and I¡¯ll kick some Earth human butt...do you have..uhh..Aeris humans? Or can I just say human? I don¡¯t wanna be racist and lump them all together. You know what? Don¡¯t worry about it! Just point me to the humans and I¡¯ll kick their collective asses then I¡¯ll have a snack and go find this Central Life Core thing that¡¯s missing and-¡± ¡°What!¡± Nel practically screamed. Her spider feet beat at the ground in agitation as she leant forward, bringing her face close to mine. ¡°What did you just say, human?¡± ¡°I said,¡± I over-enunciated everything. Not altogether pleased to have an unknown woman so close to me yelling. ¡°I will kick human ass!¡± I mimed a kick (Still covering my man bits) ¡°and then I¡¯ll have a snack,¡± I rubbed my tummy. ¡°And then I¡¯ll go find the Central Life Core that''s missing.¡± I didn¡¯t know how to mime that so I just pointed in a random direction. The spiderwoman¡¯s eyes grew wide and she dropped to the ground heavily. Her body seeming to sag under some invisible weight. I heard her muttering and me being me I channelled a little energy into my hearing so I could do a little eavesdropping. ¡°It would explain much. The forest yield has withered. The forgotten growing bold. The contamination spreading from the North. Saza must hear of this, but to bring this...human...to the brood...No I can¡¯t! It is not our way!¡± It started to sound less and less like she was actually going to help me. Which wouldn¡¯t do. Not at all! ¡°I don''t know what you¡¯re mumbling there but Aeris asked for my help and I intend to give it.¡± I considered puffing out my chest heroically but again...naked. ¡°What?¡± Nel scuttled sideways towards me looking more like a crab than a spider. I smiled at the thought. ¡°Aeris spoke to you?¡± ¡°Yea. How do you think I know about the Central Life Core.¡± Whaddaya know, name dropping works on any world. ¡°You will come with me!¡± Nel said and was suddenly way too close. She towered over me thanks to the extra height granted by her hind legs. (Yea, saying spider legs constantly seems weird. That does beg the question: Do spiders have hind legs?) I let her grab the hand that wasn¡¯t protecting the family jewels and let her pull me along. Guess it¡¯s time to meet the family. Chapter 06 As it turns out I was wrong. It wasn¡¯t time to meet the family. It was time to go grocery shopping. Nel told me she was apprenticed to the local wise-woman which I think may have also been the local healer. Not sure. But anyway, Nel had been out and about collecting ingredients for her master when she was attacked. In her haste to fight/flee, she had left her bag hanging from a convenient branch. I¡¯ve got to give it to the woman; she knew her trees. I followed behind her as she navigated surely between the tree trunks and around brushes that ranged from thorny and thick to colorful and small. I kept sneaking glances at her legs (Spider and human). They were chitinous like you would expect but hairless and a deep dark matte black. She kept them tight around her lower body so they wouldn¡¯t drag on the ground but if needed, one would flash our to support her or to lift her. It let her move about with an astonishing amount of grace. I, by comparison, was a two-legged bison trying to drag itself around with its tongue. I tripped on roots and cussed as branches smacked me in the face. I got distracted by an insect that looked like a purple glowing teardrop that flew by my nose and walked into a tree. I got distracted by the sway of Nel''s hip and ended up in a thorn bush, (Not recommended at the best of times. Less so when naked.) and had to overclock just to dampen my pain receptors enough to get out. All in all, I was an embarrassed, scratched, tired mess when we finally reached the right tree. ¡°Damn! You were really moving, huh?¡± I said, leaning back so I could stare up in awe. The tree towered over us, like all the others, but the bark was a paler color. I reached out and rubbed my hand along its rough white trunk feeling very small and insignificant in comparison. ¡°The Forgotten were...enthusiastic in their attempts. That is true.¡± Nel¡¯s legs flexed for a moment before catapulting her straight up fifteen feet where they flashed out to anchor her to the tree. I watched with equal parts envy and fear as she scurried up the tree like..well, like a spider, and disappeared into the foliage. For a second I thought that maybe she had dumped my toned metal ass but common sense won out. She didn¡¯t need to drag me around for ages just to climb a tree. I was considering trying to make the climb myself (My ego said I could do it. My common sense said I¡¯d fall and break my fool neck.) when Nel landed beside me with a soft thump, her legs bent to soften her landing and a bag gripped in one hand hand, her spear slung across her shoulders, and a bunch of leaves in the other. ¡°Why the leaves?¡± ¡°These are for you. The brood should not be subjected to your...everything.¡± She said as she set the leaves on the ground along with the bag and started rummaging around in it. ¡°I should be able to make you something simple. If I remember correctly Saza packed a spool of thre-yes!¡± I looked up at the thin, almost translucent, thread in her hand then down at the leaves. Well, it beat what I had on at the moment. My palm. ¡°So, you call those werewolves Forgotten, right?¡± I grilled her as she set to work. Her long thin fingers moving with quick economic movements. ¡°Why is that?¡± ¡°We are the Denvii, to forget that is to lose our way. We become little more than what we feel in here,¡± her hand stropped threading to pat her chest softly before she resumed. ¡°And the balance is lost. We stop being the Denvii and become the Forgotten. Thrice cursed. So-called because they are cursed by their clan, their Denvii, and finally by Aeris.¡± ¡°And the ¡®Denvii¡¯ is?¡± She stopped, pulling what looked like a leaf skirt off the ground and examined it before scoffing and getting back to work. Aligning something only she saw as crooked she looked back up at me, her red eyes met mine and she smiled. Sharp canines dimpled her full lips. ¡°You do not have the Denvii on your world? Ahhh,¡± she said in sudden understanding. Her smile grew, becoming almost predatory. ¡°So it is the legs you look at and not my ass, that is why you ended up in the Thristlebre bush back there.¡± ¡°No. It was your ass.¡± Two can play that game! Nel¡¯s smile didn¡¯t fade as she looked back down at my clothes (skirt?). ¡°To answer your question Human Just Haha, the Denvii is me. It is Saza. It is my father and my mother. My brother. My cousins, my neighbors, my clan. The Denvii is the people and Denvii is the...soul? The humans call it a soul. Yes!. A Denvii that forgets it is Denvii is no longer in balance and becomes a Forgotten.¡± She must have seen the look of confusion on my face because she laughed, low and throaty, before standing up and holding out the leaf dress to me. It was far too late to be embarrassed and it seemed kind of silly to go behind a tree to change into clothes so I just put it on in front of her. The leaves were shaped like spearheads, broad in the middle before tapering off towards the bottom, and as long as my forearms. Using the thread she had woven through it I tied it on my hip and adjusted it a little so it hung low. The end result wasn¡¯t that bad actually. It reached just above my knee and the shape overlapped enough to cover all the good bits. Pleased with it I thanked the webspitter. (Totally going on the list of things to ask her later. Can you imagine it? *Hawktewy* and web shoots out! Kinda awesome) ¡°You are welcome. Many of our clothes are made from Elderspring leaves. Though we prefer drying it and beating it into a fibrous material first. Come let us go.¡± It was only once we had left the tree behind that Nel resumed our conversation. ¡°I saw your confusion earlier when I said the Denvii is our soul but our soul in balance. I would like to explain this to you better but I do not know how. If you are willing to wait, Saza will have the answers.¡± ¡°And Saza is your master, right? The witch doctor, lady?¡± ¡°The brood healer, storyteller, wise one, and elder. Yes¡± ¡°That¡¯s a lot of hats to wear.¡± I whistled in appreciation. ¡°She has a full head of hair. I see no reason she would wear many hats.¡± Nel said, so deadpan I wasn¡¯t even sure if she was fucking with me. I decided she wasn¡¯t. ¡°Oookay. Moving right on. What can you tell me about the status screen?¡± Nel¡¯s legs unfolded to push her off the ground and over a tree trunk in the way before letting her down gently on the other side and folding back up. I don¡¯t think it took any conscious thought on her part. I followed easily enough with a jump and a scramble.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. ¡°What do you wish to know?¡± ¡°Does everyone have one?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes. Though the source may vary and each is different. Status granted by Aeris is blue and white. Black and grey for the followers of Hale. and White and gold to the children of light, granted by Lumia.¡± ¡°So those are like factions or something?¡± I asked, scratching my head. Nel turned to consider me, her dark hair flashing in the sunlight that streamed down from above and she see-sawed her hand back and forth. ¡°In a way. Aeris is this world and his wish is to protect all life on him and to keep the balance. Hale is chaos and seeks to contaminate and destroy all. Lumia is an idea that all must be perfect and right. Keep in mind, this does not mean that agents of Hale are evil, though admittedly most are, chaos is not all evil. Chaos can lead to destruction which leads to change which leads to growth. In much the same way, Lumia is not all good, for there is much lost in the pursuit of perfection. Flaws are what separate us, are they not?¡± So to sum it up I had just joined some weird shit. Okay, cool. Nel''s smile was warm as she said. ¡°Your screen of blue and white shows that you are an agent of balance. I also have Aeris blessing. As does Saza.¡± ¡°So what is the use of the status screen then?¡± ¡°Growth,¡± Nel said. I¡¯m sure she was going to say more but a spiderdude fell from above us, riding a giant lizard which he promptly jumped off of to shove a spear through my stomach. The force of the blow was such that it went right through me and impaled itself in the ground at a seventy-five-degree angle. I swatted him away, or at least I tried to, but his legs got in the way. They were much like Nel¡¯s except thicker and a mottled brown. His were ugly and creepy. Borrowing the force of my blow, he pushed himself clear of me and landed next to a wide-eyed Nel. His spear was still in my stomach, which kinda ticked me off. At no time today had I planned to imitate a shish kebab. The fact that he could drive anything, let alone a wooden stick, through my enhanced skin and muscle was a little disturbing and the implication was not lost on me. Dude was strong. I wish I could say that he was as ugly as his legs but it wasn¡¯t true. His skin was lighter in tone than Nel¡¯s, more of a milky tea rather than a rich coffee. He was bare-chested (because why the fuck not, right?), showing off an impressive amount of muscles. He wore his hair short on the sides and long in the middle, his handsome mug was set in a victorious grin as he held one arm protectively in front of Nel. His giant lizard mount circled behind them, its tail dragging along the ground. ¡°Nelzarastorama, are you hurt? Did this human touch you?¡± His voice was rich and smooth. ¡°Rimatras-¡± She started to say. Her tone was tight with anger. ¡°Oh, you cock sucking mother fucker!¡± I growled cutting off Nell. I tried ignoring the pain radiating out from around the shaft as I pulled at the spear. The angle made it a little awkward. The man¡¯s legs thumped against the ground as he stepped forward. ¡°You still live! How? Has the Chaos granted you a gift of regeneration?¡± Nel made to rush forward, but the man pushed her back and I shook my head at her. The spear slid out with a wet sucking sound that was not conducive to digestion. I dabbed at the open wound in dismay. I didn¡¯t have anymore stored mass to heal. I hadn¡¯t even completely healed from my first fight. ¡°My abs!¡± I said in dismay, poking a finger into the hole running through my body. I growled low in my throat, the sound promising violence, and took a look at the spear, now coated in my thick blood, before twirling it around in my hand. It wasn¡¯t simple wood as I had first thought. It was brown and rough along the shaft with little veins of amber crystal running along the grains. Like tree sap had been preserved in the wood and even as I watched little sparks of light seemed to burst and move in them. The tip was made of black rock. Obsidian maybe? But one edge was serrated, like a saw, the teeth set apart for tearing. It wasn¡¯t a simple weapon that was for sure. This guy meant business. Orange veins starting to creep along my body as I continued to twirl the spear around, getting a feel for the weapon. Well balanced, I nodded my approval. I wonder how it flies? So I tried it out. Stomping forward with my left foot I let my right arm hang back, the spear running parallel to my forearm and bicep. Torquing at the waist and throwing my arm forward I let the spear fly. It let out a vicious crack as air displaced around its flight path. It crossed the distance in a blink of an eye. That was still enough time for the fucker to catch it. Or at least try to... I had aimed for his stomach, tit for tat as it were when he caught it. Spiderguy screamed as the spear tore up his hands. There was still enough unstopped force to drive the tip into the guy (hehe) but he stopped it going further. Though his hands were fucked. Dark greenish blue blood dripped from between his fingers and he must have bitten his tongue or something cause when he bared his perfect white teeth in a scowl they were stained the same color. He let out a heavy gasp as he managed to pull the spear out. The lizard hissed and barrelled towards me in defense of its master and I, weaponless and in a skirt, ran to meet it. My leaves may have parted as I ran and Haha junior may have flashed at the lizard, but that was part of my battle plan. Distract and destroy. ¡°Enough!¡± Nel roared with more volume and command in her tone than I would ever have believed her body of producing. The lizard dropped to its ass, bracing with its front legs, and slid across the dead leaves and brush in its haste to obey. I tried to do the same but I only have two legs and ended up falling over as I unbalanced. I slid to a stop between the lizard''s legs and got a good look at its brown and white mottled belly. This was super awkward because that meant that my waist was under its head and my skirt may have been...parted. I miss my clothes! ¡°Are you all completely insane?¡± Nel continued to scream. My face was full of lizard so I couldn¡¯t see her but I could hear her feet (all of them) stomping around as she yelled. ¡°You, Rimatrastorama, you see me walking with a human peacefully and attack first! Is this the way of the Brood, is this the way of our people? No! and you, Tima!" The lizard shuffled about above me, looking like a pet dog getting told off, and slunk away from me. I blinked and sat up, adjusting my leaves as I went, and looked over at the trio. The guy, Rima-rat-stromi or whatever, was standing cowed. His wound had healed, his stomach was once more unblemished except for the blood that trailed down his navel and stained his white pants. His hind legs splayed out behind him seemed to droop right along with him. The lizard, Tima? Was standing behind him, she was trying to use him as a shield. Her reptilian face looked over his shoulder, her tongue flicking in and out, and her tail swishing slowly against the ground. ¡°You should not leap blindly into battle, girl! Rimatrastorama has obviously not trained you enough. You could have died!" Tima¡¯s head dipped down, her snout nearly sniffing dirt. I have a certain weakness for animals so maybe that''s why I spoke out. I also enjoy exacerbating a situation, so that could be another reason. ¡°Nah,¡± I called out, standing up and dusting myself off. ¡°Tima, the names Tima isn¡¯t it love?¡± The reptiles head jerked up to glare at me, the scales along its cheek and neck seemed to ripple. Spider dude stared death at me. I wanted to dance and jeer. ¡°Tima was perfectly safe,¡± I continued lightly. ¡°She hadn¡¯t hurt me and was only doing what she thought was right. I wasn¡¯t going to hurt her for that. Cock sucker over there, though.¡± Nel reached up and rubbed at her nose before pinching the bridge and growling low in her throat. I smiled evilly to myself. It was kinda fun pissing her off. ¡°Human Just Haha, Please! Please, stop talking! You have attacked a member of the brood - it was in self-defense - I know! You do not need to say it. But you did do it. Rimatrastorama is the guardian apprentice-¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to add the apprentice!¡± the guy whined before Nel flashed him a scowl and he went back to studying his feet. ¡°I do! You have not acted as a true Guardian!¡± She turned her glare back on me but it bounced right off. ¡°Rimatrastorama is the guardian apprentice and also my brother. In the brood attacking him is the same as attacking me, for we are all of the same strand. Our webs are connected. What shakes one, shakes all. In the eyes of the brood, he defended me and you attacked him and I.¡± ¡°Oh come on! I mean just¡­Come on!¡± I am ashamed to admit it now, but at that moment the only thing I truly wished for was a jumbo-sized can of bug spray! Chapter 07 Since I wasn¡¯t quite ready to go all chemical warfare on their bug asses, I had to endure a very embarrassing perp walk into Brood central. Rima, my nickname for Nels brother, since I couldn¡¯t be bothered learning the rest, walked behind me, a smug smile on his face, and his spear tip poking into my back. At least I hope it was his spear tip, the dude was a little too happy to have captured a human if you ask me. Maybe apprenticeship worked on a points system? Like, catch a rabbit +1, catch a bear +4, catch a human +100. Brood central, or just the Brood as Nel kept reminding me, was a five-minute walk from where Rima stuck me like a pig. One minute we¡¯re walking along, me in front with the rest following behind to make it look like they were escorting the prisoner, and then the next minute Rima tells me to stop. I bit back a growl when he poked me in the back again and only stopped from turning around to punch him in the face because I heard a loud smack, a yelp of pain, and Nel hissing at him. ¡°We are here,¡± she said, her voice a lot calmer when she addressed me. ¡°Please, Human Just Haha, think before you speak and do not talk out of turn. If the Brood mother takes offense the rest will kill you without question and there is little I can do about it.¡± I glanced around in confusion. This spot of the forest looked much like the rest. Trees everywhere, leaves and shit on the ground, a bush here and there. Nel must have seen my confusion because she walked up to stand beside me and tapped my shoulder. Once I looked at her she pointed straight up and following her direction, I tilted my head back. My mouth dropped open in shock. Rope bridges, like the one I saw on the video back at Sanderson¡¯s lab, crisscrossed above my head. They stretched from one tree trunk to the next starting twenty feet off the ground before fading from view amongst the dense green canopy. Occasionally a face would peek over the side of the bridge and flashback into hiding. Wooden ledges had been built into the side of the trees and along the thicker branches. I could make out the slated roofs here and there almost completely camouflaged in the foliage. ¡°The Brood watches. You should step away from the human, sister.¡± Rima cautioned from behind me. ¡°No, brother, it is you who should step forward. Stand beside him so the Brood will know our guardian apprentice has brought him here and will protect them.¡± With a lot of grumbling and a few hisses from Tima, I ended up being boxed in from three sides. I felt my metaphorical hackles raise but smothered the feeling. If worse came to worse I was pretty sure I could make a run for it. I think. ¡°Now we wait,¡± Nel said to me, her gaze also locked on the colony above our heads. ¡°Wait for wh-holy crap!¡± I yelled in shock as something came hurtling down from above like a white meteor. It hit the ground in an explosion of leaves and a muted thump. I prayed the spider had just gone splat because if he hadn¡¯t then that was one bad mofo and I wanted nothing to do with him. He hadn¡¯t. Uncurling from a crouch was the single most terrifying thing I have ever seen in my relatively long life. The spiderguy, or Denvii or whatever, that stood before me was tall, a good head taller than me which would put him at seven feet something. His broad, powerful frame was covered in intricate metal plating, thick overlapping slabs of the shiny metal covered his shoulders and chest before shrinking in size to look like little fish scales around his ribs and abdomen. His spider legs were as white as his skin, which is to say bone-white, and armor covered the top of each one, a blade running along the metal covering the lower segments. Essentially each of his legs was swords. But because that wasn¡¯t enough he had a sword that may have been better described as a meat cleaver strapped to his back and a spear in one massive fist. That didn¡¯t scare me though, I¡¯ve faced a lot of thugs bigger and broader than me, what scared me was his face. It was a lot more..uhh...spidery. Twin mandibles poked out of his cheeks, looking uncomfortably sharp as they click-clacked in front of his mouth. His two human eyes were a pale red, almost pink, but the other four that were spread across his forehead were beady little brown things that shone with a wet sheen. His equally pale hair was done up in dreads and tied above his head in a bun. I almost went cross-eyed staring at all his eyes. ¡°What is this?¡± He asked. His voice reminded me of two boulders smashing together as his mandibles clicked irritably. I opened my mouth to say ¡°Web Head Robiticus, a rock band for the ages.¡± but thought better of it when Nel elbowed me in the side. I¡¯m a smart ass and if someone asks a question, I don¡¯t care how scary he is, I¡¯m going to answer. ¡°This human threatened-¡± Rima started to say before Nel cut him off. ¡°This human saved my life while I was out gathering, Guardian.¡± I did a double-take when I saw a blush darkening Nel¡¯s cheek as she looked at the rather large spiderguy. Her voice was softer than I had heard it. The man¡¯s eyes all blinked in rapid succession as he stared at me. It made his forehead look like it was doing the wave and it was all I could do not to blink back. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Or was he coming onto me with a not so subtle wink? I was half-naked, and I am quite sexy after all. ¡°You will explain.¡± He said to Nel before turning to Rima, completely ignoring me in the middle. ¡°And you will skewer him if he so much as moves.¡± Guess he wasn¡¯t hitting on me. Phew! ¡°So, Rima, what¡¯s his deal?¡± I asked, jerking my chin in the direction Nel and the Guardian had walked off in. They stood next to a tree some distance away, their heads bowed close together. Nel¡¯s hands were waving about in explanation, occasionally accompanied by one of her rear legs. ¡°Do not call me Rima. My name is Rimatrastorama!¡± he hissed before his face morphed into a puppy dog smile. ¡®That is Zavanrosiphra, the Great Guardian of the Brood and my master.¡± ¡°You might wanna wipe the drool off your chin there buddy.¡± He actually did it! Haha! Something solid and meaty smacked into the back of my head and I staggered forward. Twirling around I saw the lizard reposition itself and trying to look up at the trees above, all innocent-like. I eyed it¡¯s tail and considered having a quick tussle but just shrugged instead. ¡°Apprentice!¡± The Guardian barked from the distance, his voice unbelievably loud. ¡°Control your mount!¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± Rima yelled back, coming to attention. His spider legs folded up to neat triangles behind his back. A spider salute I guess? The next five minutes passed slowly. Tima curled up around Rima and I, her head near his feet and her tail circled near mine. Nel and the Guardian, Zavan, continued to talk. It looked like it was going okay. Her hands weren¡¯t waving around as much and he would nod occasionally before looking back at me. I had tried eavesdropping on the conversation but grew bored rather quickly. She was just telling him how I had been awe-inspiring in my rescue of her. Okay, she hadn¡¯t said awe-inspiring, but she meant it. Rima had just let out a jaw cracking yawn when the other two came back. Quick as a whip Rima went ramrod straight, his previous slumped form looking awake and ready. I hid a smirk behind my hand. ¡°Human Just Haha,¡± Great! Now she had him calling me that. ¡°Is what Nelzarastorama told me correct?¡± ¡°I have no clue what she said to you so how could I know what is correct or not,¡± I said with a shrug. Thin lips pulled back over teeth a tad too sharp as he smiled at me. ¡°Oh, I think you were listening. You have a habit of cocking your head to the side when you focus on a sound. If I am not mistaken, and judging by the fact that you are still standing even with a hole through your stomach, you are more than just human...¡± I just blinked back at him slowly, neither confirming nor denying anything and eventually, he nodded to himself. ¡°It looks like Nelzarastorama was wrong: you are capable of thinking before you speak.¡± Nel blushed in embarrassment when I cocked an eyebrow at her. Rima was smiling. Even the damn lizard was making a weird sound, a mix between a hiccup and a cough, that I think was meant to be laughter. ¡°I will escort you to the Brood Mother, Nelzarastorama and my apprentice will follow. You attacked one and through those actions, the other. This, you will answer for.¡± His eyes turned hard as he finished speaking, his body almost vibrating with violence. I met his gaze and felt the corners of my mouth quirk up in an easy smile. I don¡¯t intimidate. ¡°Bring him!¡± He barked at Rima before turning and springing from the forest floor to latch onto the tree next to us. Nel cast one last glance at me before turning to follow and Rima reached out for me. ¡°You ain¡¯t carrying me, bitch,¡± I growled before flooding myself with energy and following the other two. I may have overcompensated as I flew past Nel, giving her a wink as I went, and landed hot on the heels of Zava. My hands crushed the wood effortlessly to get a grip and my feet dug into the bark. The Guardian looked back and I got the pleasure of seeing his eyes widen in shock before it went back to an emotionless mask. His speed increased but I kept pace. My limbs blurring as I scrambled and hopped my way up after him. I wasn¡¯t pulling as much energy as I had during the fight, but I was still worried I might run out before reaching our destination and just fall off the tree like some dead bug. To get my mind off that I started to hum incy wincy spider under my breath. My humming stopped though when we passed the lowest bridge and I caught my first sight of The Brood. As a group, they had skin tones ranging from Nel¡¯s warm chocolate to Zava¡¯s corpse white. Hairstyles and body shapes were just as varied as where the spider part of them that I could see. I nearly fell off the tree when I saw a human with a spider''s head. I shit you not! No spider legs and anything, just a spider''s head. BAM! Right on top of a human body. I¡¯m going to have nightmares about that for weeks. One little kid sat on the shoulders of its father with its spider legs draped down the man''s back and watched me climb past. A pair of weird pincer-like things on either side of its mouth clicked at me. I wondered if heritage helped decide what part of them changed or if it was completely random. I looked down, ignoring the dizzying heights, and met Nel¡¯s eyes. Thank god it had been her I met in the forest. I may have accidentally killed the one with the bug head. Nel matched my smile before she laughed and looked away, a blush creeping across her face again. It took me a second to figure out what was so funny. I was still wearing my leaf skirt. Poor woman. The further up we traveled the less Denvii I saw though the buildings were larger, making use of the thicker foliage. Rope I know thought of as webs connected branches and trunks in dizzying, and very complicated, patterns. Some of the clusters were so thick It was almost a wall of white. Zava jumped from one trunk to the next, his body flying through the air in a graceful arc. I flared power and followed, wood splintered under my feet as I shoved off and I flew through the air like a fucking missile before smacking into the other tree hard enough to make the whole thing shake. Which is saying something, considering the size of it. The canopy was deserted of structures and webs though I saw shadowy figures flicker amongst the thick leaf cover around us and knew we were being followed. Zava stepped onto a branch as wide as a hover-car and made space for me to follow. ¡°This is known as the Monarch Tree. Above us lies the Brood Mother¡¯s nest. You will not speak unless spoken to. You will not move unless given permission. You will not draw upon your power for I now know what it looks like. Hear me and hear me well Human Just Haha, you are about to do what no human has ever done before. Talk to the leader of a Denvii clan.¡± He stopped to see if I understood the situation. I did and nodded with all the gravity it deserved. ¡°Good. Nelzarastorama has vouched for you as she believes Aeris has a plan for you. If the Brood mother allows it then you may visit with Saza and she will guide you.¡± ¡°If she doesn¡¯t¡± ¡°Then we will descend on you in a wave, for when one shakes we all shake. We are of one strand.¡± He said the last like it was some sort of mantra or code or something. I guess maybe it was. Chapter 08 The Brood Mother¡¯s nest, all things considered, was remarkably nice. It was located near the very top of the tallest tree in the forest. A ledge ran around the whole tree like a veranda, jutting out from the tree trunk by several feet. Webs connected it to the central trunk at set intervals to keep it steady and to support any extra weight. The building itself was made from wood and the web and looked like a treehouse. A very nice, very large treehouse. There were no doors or windows, just breaks in the walls and I wondered what they did when it rained. ¡°This is beautiful.¡± I murmured as I stood near the edge and looked out over the sea of treetops. No matter which direction I turned all I could see were more trees and sprawling hills. Squinting against the bright sunlight and trying to filter some of the glare with my augments I could just make out a range of Mountains not too far from our location, The peaks standing proudly out amongst the trees. To my right and far far away I could see a large pool of water, the sun bouncing off its surface to attract attention. ¡°Do you have many views like this in your world?¡± Nel asked from her place next to me. I cast one more look out at the expense of green that swayed gently in the breeze and tried to shake the sadness it conjured. Part of me wished Sanderson was here to see it. I was just a thug, I shouldn¡¯t get to see something so beautiful while he was stuck in a cold metal room looking at holo-vids all day, but Sandy wouldn¡¯t leave his lab. Not for anything, so I¡¯d do what I promised him. Help the people, help the planet, and stop the pesky humans. I¡¯m practically a saint! ¡°No. There are no views like this in my world.¡± I murmured quietly. I think I¡¯ve had a lot of character growth in the last day. I went from not caring about the green of a tree to almost shedding a tear when I saw a bit of beautiful scenery. Give me a week and I¡¯d be writing poetry about flowers and sing sonnets about the wonders of grass. I needed something to punch¡­ ¡°Human!¡± Ah, perfect! Just what the doctor ordered. A punchable Rima. ¡°My Master calls for you. The Brood Mother will see you now.¡± Rima said, his chest puffed out in pride. ¡°Alright Rimmy, just give me a sec.¡± I smiled as his face turned red and his spider feet beat against the wooden floor in agitation. His human feet looked like they were about to follow suit. I cast one last glance at the world around me and took a deep steadying breath. I could get used to the air up here, it was thin but clean. As prepared as I could be I motioned at Rima to lead the way. Nel fell into step beside me. As soon I passed the threshold I acquired three new companions. I call them companions but in reality, I think they may have been escorts/guards. Each was massively muscular and had the same metal armor that, while not nearly as impressive as Zava¡¯s, were probably just as effective at turning a blade. Each carried a spear, which I was starting to realize was the preferred weapon of the Denvii, as well as short swords at their waists. Full metal helms hid their faces from view. What I found interesting was that one of the guards didn¡¯t have the additional spider legs jutting out of his lower back and it made him look surprisingly human. Though, knowing my luck, he¡¯d remove the helm and have a spider head or something. The inside of the house...nest?...was an intricate series of hallways and rooms that twisted and turned in on itself. Web dividers, too thick to see through, acted in place of the interior walls and made me feel like I was walking through a house of mirrors...except with webs...house of webs? Not for the first time, I wondered if the webs were made by them shooting it out of their ass or something but I didn¡¯t think this was the place to ask. When we finally made it to the throne room I stopped to gawk. It was the hollowed-out trunk of the tree. Crystals of light, bracketed by metal, were pegged to the wall, the soft warm glow filling the room and bouncing off the polished throne. I¡¯ll describe the rest of the room real quick and the throne before getting to the Brood Mother cause...Woah boy! Circular and bare of any furnishings, except for a row of chairs lining the walls, the main part of the room was bare. On cloves were positioned at intervals around the room with fully armored and armed Denvii standing at attention in them. The throne sat in the middle of the room on a raised dais that was four steps high and was made of wood that looked to be carved from the floor. The seat, with all its cushions and cloth, was backless. And for good bloody reason. I had expected her to come down from the ceiling on a web string or something more...well, spider-ish. I got the ¡®more spider-ish¡¯ part right, everything else up to and including her entrance was wrong. The Brood Mother was unlike any of the other Denvii I had seen so far. For one she was larger, much larger. Her skin was a blend of obsidian and ivory. I say obsidian because that¡¯s what it was, not ebony which is just dark brown, but black. A pitch-black that seemed to absorb light with the ivory coloring acting as highlights. For a second I didn¡¯t even think the ivory was a color, I thought it was just a reflection of the light along the ridges and contours of a black stone statue but then the Brood Mother stood up and moved and the highlights moved with her. She was a woman from the waist up, beautiful and sensuous with wide curved hips and a bare toned midriff. Ivory lines curved around the hard ridges of her hips and swirled in a gentle slope along the dip in her navel, before traveling up to her breasts. The pure white highlights swept down the outer swell of each full breasts and across each of her fat nipples before sweeping sideways across her ribs. From the waist down she was all spider. But the biggest fucking spider you¡¯ve ever seen. The coloring was the same deep black but the white highlights were restricted to the segments and joints of each leg and the underside of her large swollen spider abdomen. The spider part of her swayed as she stepped across the throne room towards me. Looking into her face I would have said she was beautiful. If she weren¡¯t so terrifyingly alien. Dark hair fell like a waterfall of shadows around her face, an occasional white strand mixed within the lot. It was hard to make out features on the darker parts of her face, the black tending to blend together, but the ivory streaks along her nose and over her full lips helped a little. Eyes that were like twin drops of blood stared into my own as she towered over me. Her sclera (the usual white part of the eye) was almost as black as her body. I saw no hate in her gaze. No animosity. No love. No compassion. No warmth. She would just as soon see me dead as she would let me live. To her, my existence was insignificant. And suddenly I hated her. I hated her and what she made me feel with a bone-deep loathing that made my teeth grind together and my fist clench. I hated feeling insignificant. I had been that already and I had fought to make sure I never went back to it. I had fought to make myself more. I had been born in a gutter and spent my earlier years rolling around in polluted mud like a pig. Forgotten. Unwanted. Invisible. Sanderson¡¯s father had been the first person not to spit on me in passing. Sanderson himself the second. They taught me that I could be more and I raged. Raged against the injustice of my insignificant birth to a woman who had probably overdosed as soon as I fell out of her. Raged against a society that saw me as trash to be disposed of. I had been an animal before they found me, willing to bite the hand that fed me and take the arm for good measure. I had worked hard to improve myself. The work wasn¡¯t always clean and it sure as shit wasn¡¯t pleasant but over time I had made a name for myself in Dockside. Made a rep. Haha won¡¯t go back on his word they would say. Hire Haha, if he accepts he won¡¯t betray us. In Dockside, loyalty was worth more than the money people thought you could buy with it and I was known for being loyal. I had worth. One look from the Brood Mother and I felt like that little wild animal in the mud again, ready to bite and snap and tear at anything just to prove I was tough. ¡°Bow¡± Nel hissed urgently at me and I turned a little, keeping the Brood Mother in my sights, and out of my peripherals, I saw Nel and Rima kneeling on their human legs, their spider ones laid out flat behind them. Ignoring her I turned back to face the Brood Mother. I had to crane my head back to look her in the eyes and her head tipped to the side as she observed me. ¡°You will kneel!¡± The low growl of Zava reached me from behind before the scrape of metal, signaling he had drawn his sword. ¡°Or I will make you kneel.¡± ¡°No.¡± I didn¡¯t growl. I didn¡¯t whisper. I didn¡¯t mumble. I didn¡¯t shout. My answer was calm and level and as unyielding as steel. Beat me, break me, destroy me, I will never kneel unless it''s to someone deserving. I heard the soft pad of his feet as he approached and readied myself for the fight of a lifetime. I would need to overclock like never before. First would be Zava behind me, I needed to end that quick so that meant disable or kill. Next would be Rima, no doubt he would jump up to defend his master and he had something to prove. His arrogance and pride would leave him open as he tried a flashy move to draw attention. Nel...well I didn¡¯t want to hurt her, she had been kind to me so far...but if she got in the way then I would remove her. I just met her like a couple of hours ago after all and had no reason to expect loyalty from her. Next would be the guards that followed me in, they were the closest. Then the ones in the onclove. Then the rest of the nest. Sorry Sandy, looks like I can¡¯t help all the people like you wanted. ¡°Enough.¡± The Brood Mother hissed. She didn¡¯t raise her voice. If anything, she whispered, but the sound traveled around the throne room the same as if she had shouted. The sound of Zava advancing stopped instantly. ¡°He is not of the Brood,¡± she continued in the same whisper that slithered into my ear. ¡°He is not one of my children. I would no more bow to a human than he would to me. I find no offense in his actions.¡± She took a step back so she wasn¡¯t looming over me and the spider half of her body sunk low to the floor, her six multi-segmented legs bending to accommodate the move. This brought her human half almost level with me. If I looked straight ahead I could see her tits, and aroused is not the state I needed to be in right now so I dragged my lecherous eyes back to her face. Yup, that''s a lot more effective than a cold shower! ¡°Why have you come to my Brood, Human?¡± I opened my mouth to answer but Nel beat me to it. She didn¡¯t rise from her position on the floor and when she spoke it was muffled since she kept her head bowed but it was still enough to get the Brood Mother''s attention. For the second time that day I got to listen to Nel describe her gathering trip and the sudden attack of the Forgotten. The Brood Mother moved over to her and in a move that was surprisingly gentle and affectionate, she cupped Nel¡¯s face and pulled her to a standing position. When Nel started to describe my dashing rescue the Brood Mother once more turned to regard me, her face and eyes still expressionless. Guess she was a little racist. I was expecting the news of the missing Central Life Core to get some reaction from the large spider woman but her face remained as emotionless and cold as ever. Her eyes did widen when Nel explained that I was from a different world and Aeris had requested aid. ¡°Is this true Human, are you from a branch world.¡± ¡°Yes, Brood Mother.¡± I know it sounds sappy but she had shown concern for Nel, one of her own, and that I could understand. It earned her a little respect. Not a lot, but enough to address her by title instead of ¡®Your Broody-ness¡¯. I tried not to look at the pendulous sway of her large bare breasts as she turned to me and moved closer. Honest. ¡°Show me your screen.¡± It was not a request and I felt my hackles raise at the tone of her voice, my natural stubbornness coming into play, but I pressed the skin between my thumb and pointer on my left hand and swallowed a little of my pride. I couldn¡¯t very well argue at every turn or I¡¯d never get anything done. I heard a soft Ting just like earlier and a small transparent screen flashed across my vision before disappearing a second later.
Skill Activated: Negotiation (A)
  • The Champion has put aside his own feelings in an attempt to reach a mutual understanding with a possible ally.
  • Aeris bears witness and approves. Assistance granted.
What the fuck was that? I shook aside the thought and brought my palm up to have a quick look at my screen before I shared it with the Brood Mother. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.
Name: Haha October Class: Champion Race: Biotic humanoid. Evolution: I Stored Mass: 0.00 kg Total Mass: 322.535
Integrity : 93.83% 342.485kg MCR (Mass Conversion Rate): .88/sec Physical Mass:365kg
Power levels: 93.12% ARR (Ambiant Recharge Rate): 0.026/sec
Micro-Evolution: 0/4 terms met Unlocked Evolutionary Skills: - Human (Augmented)
Primary Skills:
  • Hand-to-hand Combat (A)
  • Small arms (Un)
  • Negotiation (A)
Talent:
  • Iron bones (You remain unbroken under even the strongest of blows.)
  • Iron skin (You remain unscathed under all but the sharpest of blades)
  • Iron Stomach (You remain undaunted by all but the strangest of meals)
  • Iron Will (You remain unbent under the power of others)
  • Artificial Being. (Not of flesh and blood you are immune to diseases and poisons)
  • Fighter. (You have struggled since the day you were born. Only through blood sweat and tears have you achieved all that you have and all that you are!)
Alignment Neutral - Primary World Aeris views you with Neutrality. Aeris awaits the need to aid or destroy you
Gifts - Gift of Tongues - Gift of Transmutation
I did some quick math in my head, trying to figure out what my damage was like, and figured I should be at 365kg but I didn¡¯t have the stored mass to finish healing and bring me up to scratch. Part of me balked at the idea of sharing the information with the Brood Mother but that vanished when I looked in her eyes. I could see past the cold, emotionless exterior to the mother beneath. She cared about her children, and she considered every one of the Brood to be her child, even those that were rightly her grandchildren. Wrapped around that care was an iron will and tireless dedication to the growth of her people. She would do anything to ensure their safety. She would kill me, yes, but only if I proved to be a threat to her children. I shook my head a little dizzy at the sudden insight.
Skill deactivated: Negotiation (A)
Ohh, that explains it. I blinked the pop-up screen from my eye and held out my palm to the Brood Mother. She shuffled forward, her human body bending at the waist so she could better look at my hand. If I wasn¡¯t so distracted by the thought of a planet helping me out I would have been staring at the large black breasts hanging in my face. ¡°You were right, dear child.¡± She said to Nel as she straightened up. ¡°He is indeed from a branch world and Aeris has even granted him the class of Champion.¡± All of my companions gasped in shock. I wanted to strut my stuff at their obvious awe, but I wasn¡¯t sure what stuff I had to strut so I just nodded along like I knew what she was talking about. ¡°I will grant you permission to see Saza, though what she shares with you is her own choice.¡± I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. Finally, I was going to get some answers. I turned and smiled at Nel, her smile a mirror image to mine. I noticed that Rima was looking at me a little differently. I wouldn¡¯t say it was worship, but it sure as hell wasn¡¯t animosity. ¡°Child, though it now dries upon your naval, your blood has been spilled. What has harmed you?¡± Everyone froze as she asked Rima the question. I half expected him to point his finger at me and taddle like the little baby he was but he surprised me by hesitating. I gave him a little respect for that. He still told her eventually. I didn¡¯t blame him. The Brood Mother had perfected the art of the stare. An art she turned on me once the short, bloody story was finished. ¡°There will be reparation.¡± The Brood Mother whispered. Her red eyes boring into me. I considered pointing out that I had only retaliated and was, in fact, the wronged party. One look around the throne room proved how very stupid that thought was. Like a mother would take the side of a stranger over her son..grandson...broodson? Man, I do not understand spider relations. ¡°I demand reparation through combat,¡± Nel said and nodded to me encouragingly when I looked at her. Meh, I could do with another fight. ¡°I accept!¡± I declared happily. ¡°It would be dishonorable,¡± Zava spoke up from behind me quickly. I didn¡¯t bother looking back. ¡°He is not of the Brood. He is not even of the Denvii!¡± Rima was looking between his master and his Brood Mother, his mouth opening and closing like a fish. For someone who had stuck a spear through my artificial guts, he certainly didn¡¯t look that interested in trying it again. The Brood Mother turned and walked back towards her throne, her insect abdomen bobbing with the movement and settled herself down on the cushioned seat. One slim arm rose to tap her sharp chin as she looked at me, some unknown emotion burning in the pits of her eyes. ¡°You are wrong Guardian. He is Denvii.¡± She said it with a little smile like she enjoyed telling a joke only she understood. ¡°What!¡± I said. ¡°What?¡± Zava said ¡°Wha¡­.¡± Ok, you get the idea. We all said ¡®What¡¯, each as shocked as the other, blah blah blah. Moving on. ¡°Aeris has seen fit to classify him as a biotic humanoid. Not completely human and not completely...biotic? Which I believe is some strange term from his homeworld, correct Champion? Regardless, It matters little.¡± The Brood Mother''s eyes turned to regard Zava. ¡°Denvii are those who have found a balance between the two halves of themselves. Not quite one, not quite the other. Does he not qualify?¡± There was a stunned silence as everyone tried to process this bit of news. I was right along with them. If I was following it all correctly then the Denvii was not a single race of people but any person who was a mix of two races. The Brood: Spider and Human. Me: Bio-robotics and Human. The werewolves we had fought earlier, the forgotten, had lost their human side and become animals and so were no longer Denvii. Huh, who knew? ¡°It¡¯s that easy?¡± I asked. ¡°I see you as Denvii and so my Brood sees you as Denvii.¡± The Brood Mother stated with finality. There was a throb. It came from inside me, from my core, the very center of my being, but at the same time, it shook the world around me. Or seemed like it to me.
Primary World, Designated: Aeris, bears witness to the first acknowledgment of it¡¯s Champion.
  • A denizen of high standing and holding significant sway on the side of Aeris, the side of balance, has acknowledged you as one of the people. You are further welcomed by Primary World, Designated: Aeris.
Reward: Your relation with Aeris has improved. Integration progressed. Gift of further Integration: Advanced Mass Conversion.
I read through the popup box quickly and it faded from view. I looked around, expecting to see people watching me, but most of them excluding the Brood Mother seemed to be looking off into space. ¡°Are they all seeing the same notification I did?¡± I asked the spider woman on the throne. ¡°A variant.¡± She said. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Why do they see it? Cause Aeris wishes it so.¡± She shrugged her shoulders. ¡°No. Why did you acknowledge me as a Denvii and make me a person of this world?¡± ¡°Ahh,¡± she adjusted her bulk till she was more comfortable and tapped rhythmically on the hand rest, her taloned fingertips tap-tapping out some unknown beat as she studied me. ¡°I acknowledged you for the very reason I will make Rima fight you tomorrow. Growth. You and he and all my children must grow and evolve and be better than you are right now. That is a mother¡¯s truest wish is it not? Furthermore, Aeris calls you Champion and I call Aeris, Master. Who then am I to question his choice? Instead, I will do what is in my power to help him and push you along.¡± Aww shucks, she may be bi-polar but the Brood Mother was a big ol¡¯ softy. ¡°But remember this well Champion; if you bring harm upon any of my children I will tear you limb from limb and suck the juices from your body. On Aeris I swear this.¡± Fuck pissing off a mamma bear. Don¡¯t piss off a mamma spider. One by one the rest of the group finished reading their screens, I could tell cause they stopped staring into space like a bunch of idiots, and once more turned their focus on the Brood Mother and my gorgeous self. ¡°Rimatrastorama,¡± She said addressing the still kneeling young man. ¡°You will face off against the Champion tomorrow at dawn. Zavanrosiphra, you will oversee the duel and ensure they do not kill one another.¡± ¡°Br-Brood Mother,¡± Rima said quickly. ¡°I do not seek reparation. The Champion was only acting in sel-¡± ¡°Silence!¡± Zavan barked, cutting off his apprentice mid-sentence. ¡°The Brood Mother has spoken. Do not shame yourself further!¡± ¡°Yes, master. I thank you, Brood Mother.¡± The Brood Mother dismissed us after that. She kept Zava with her though. I think she wanted to discuss everything I had just told her but she didn¡¯t want to do it in front of me. I didn¡¯t care. She and I may have reached an understanding but her final warning still rang in my ear. As we left the throne room and once more started navigating the web maze back to the outside I noticed only one guard following us. I took it as a sign of the growing trust they were showing me, or as more rope to hang myself. ¡°So, where to now?¡± I whispered to Nel. Rima walked ahead of us. ¡°I will take you to see Saza who you will tell your story to. I have no doubt the Brood Mother will call upon her for advice and my Master prefers to hear information from the source. She will also be able to answer any questions you may have. She is very knowledgeable.¡± There was deep affectionate pride in Nel''s tone and when she brushed a strand of hair from her face I caught a small smile pulling up the corners of her full lips. Her red eyes turned to me and crinkled around the edges as her smile widened. ¡°But first I am sure she will wish to clothe you. She is well past her mating years and may not like the temptation.¡± Once out of the treehouse/ nest or whatever they called the Brood Mothers building, our security shadow disappeared, leaving just the three of us standing in the fading afternoon light. ¡°I will leave you now, sister¡­¡±There was a slight pause as Rima struggled to say something to me, his eyes bouncing all over the place and his spider feet seemed to shiver in agitation. ¡°Champion, I...I will see you tomorrow at dawn for our duel.¡± I watched his retreating form as he walked to the edge of the platform and jumped off, his spider legs spreading out behind him. I looked at Nel and cocked an eyebrow. ¡°What¡¯s with the change of attitude?¡± ¡°Come, I will explain on the way to Saza¡¯s nest.¡± She grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the tree trunk. Her hand was surprisingly warm and I could feel the light calluses under my grip. I looked down, which of course drew her attention down to our joined hands, and she let go quickly. I pretended not to notice the blush that crept across her cheeks, turning her tanned cheeks just a shade darker. ¡°Lead the way,¡± I said, smiling a little too wide. Oh, I¡¯mma get her. Not looking at me, Nel scurried down the tree with ease. It was a lot harder for me to go down then it was for me to get up (oh, I¡¯m sure there''s a dirty innuendo in there somewhere if you want to look for it.) but it took less energy so there is that. I managed to use a series of controlled slides with my direction being controlled by my feet and my speed by my grip. I left grooves all over the tree trunk and saw Nel glance up and wince more than once. Or maybe she was wincing because she kept getting a peek up my skirt. Nel waited for me on a thick branch, still high above the rest of the Brood, and started running along it when I joined her. It was so thick I could actually run beside her and not even worry about falling off. She reached a fork in the branch and jumped off, whooping in joy as the wind tugged at her hair and pulled it out to stream behind her. Hardly fazed I followed without a second thought. It was a twelve-foot drop to the next branch and her spider legs caught her without a hitch before folding back up against her back and letting her run on her toned human legs. I hit the branch a little harder and had to roll. ¡°I love this!¡± She called back to me as she raced along the branch. ¡°The freedom, the risk!¡± She wasn¡¯t wrong. There was a certain...exhilaration to it, running hundreds of feet off the ground at such speeds. Although I was a bit busy perving on her ass in front of me to really appreciate it. What! It¡¯s so round and jiggly and the way it bunched as she moved. I¡¯m only human...ish. ¡°So back to your brother.¡± ¡°Right, my brother,¡± I could hear her roll her eyes. ¡°I know he may seem a bit...dim...and a little battle crazy, but he has always dreamed of being a warrior.¡± She paused to hop off the side of the branch and fall the two feet to the one below. ¡°Perhaps it would be more accurate to say he has always dreamed of being The warrior.¡± She spun gracefully on her heels, barely losing speed or balance as her spider legs flashed out to support the move. She looked me in the eye. ¡°The Champion.¡± I nearly stumbled but caught myself. ¡°What!¡± ¡°It is not that strange. Many of the young boys on Aeris dream of being the Champion...some of the young girls to,¡± The way she said it made me think she might have been one. ¡°Every child dreams of being the one chosen by Aeris. You must understand, the Champion is the pinnacle of what a warrior is: strong, proud, brave, loyal, honest, a shining light to those trapped in the dark. All sides, even those who are loyal to Hale, respect and fear the Champion.¡± I almost laughed out loud at her description of the Champion. I was one of those things, loyal, and I guess if someone gave me a flashlight I could find someone trapped in the dark, but other than that? I wasn¡¯t even a real warrior. I was a brawler. Something I took great pride in thank you very much. Nel crawled around the trunk of the tree, her figure disappearing from view, and I had to slow down as I tried climbing around. It took me a bit longer and when I reached the far side I saw Nel standing on another branch and smirking at me, her left foot tapping the ground in mock impatience. ¡°When Rimatrastorama was not chosen as Champion he turned his sight to the next best thing. Still determined to protect, but now unable to protect the world, he settled for his clan: The Brood. That is why he is apprenticed to Zavanrosiphra.¡± Wait, she made it sound like the Champion was meant to protect the world...that can¡¯t be right...can it? ¡°I imagine finding out you were the Champion then realizing that he had stabbed his childhood idol in the stomach may have come as a shock to him. To all of us.¡± ¡°So...our duel or whatever tomorrow...he doesn¡¯t want to do it?¡± ¡°No. If anything, he is worried he will disappoint you and will fight all the harder to prove his worth.¡± ¡°Her Holy Broodness said something about pushing her children to be better.¡± ¡°She is indeed wise. Rimatrastorama will do all he can to impress you, the Champion, and it may indeed push him to be better. Also, I suggest you do not call her that name again or Zava will spring from the bushes like some great serpent and strike at your head.¡± She laughed at her own joke, the sound rich and throaty and it made me smile. She stopped so suddenly at the edge of our current branch I almost went shooting past. ¡°Saza¡¯s nest is just up ahead. Through those branches." Time to go get some answers. Finally! Chapter 09 I followed close behind Nel as she pushed through the leaves. What waited on the other side was a smaller version of the Brood Mothers nest with a few minor differences. Instead of being at the top of the tree this one was situated in the middle, at the junction between two thick branches. A half veranda made of wood wrapped around the front, and making a conventiant landing pad for Nel and I as we jumped. I hung back, letting Nel approach first. Instead of a door a curtain of dark red material hung down, fluttering gently in the breeze. I looked around in interest. There was a rope ladder hanging discreetly from the side and my natural cat like curiosity made me want to go climbing down. ¡°Saza, I¡¯m back!¡± Nel called out, her voice all sing-song and cheerful as she stuck her head through the curtain. There was the sound of movement from inside along with an indistinct drone of a voice but I couldn¡¯t hear what was said and honestly, I didn¡¯t really care. I just wanted to meet this Saza and get some answers then go looking for the humans. ¡°It¡¯s a long story...and uhh...I¡¯m not alone.¡± I heard Nel reply, her head still stuck through the curtain door. I admired the view as her butt swayed back and forth. ¡°No...it¡¯s a¡­uh¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s a human!¡± I called out loudly. Nel jumped, her head reappearing to glare at me. I shrugged. ¡°Well come in then.¡± The voice was thin and reedy and sounded old as dirt, but was still loud enough that I felt impressed. Old bird had a pair of lungs. I pushed aside the curtain and walked into the circular tree trunk room. Sunlight filtered through a large round window on the back wall, the rays of light illuminating the cluttered interior. Bookshelves lined the walls, their contents almost overflowing to spill onto the floor. Stacks of books and scrolls were stacked in haphazard piles and mixed with odds and ends that made Sandy¡¯s lab look well organised. I stared in awe at the tapestries that hung between the shelves. One, the closest on my left, hung from the ceiling to the floor and depicted a scene of battle. Figures of black, humanoid in shape but stretched oddly with long arms and legs, swarmed from the top of the piece only to be met by a group rising from the floor. The second group was a mixture of several races. I caught sight of the Brood, their many legged warriors were mixed among creatures that looked like the forgotten and some that I swear were Elves. Standing between the two forces was the figure of a woman, her armour stitched out in silver thread, and she shone with a brilliant radiance. The scene was so vivid and detailed and I was so absorbed by it, that I didn¡¯t head Saza approach me until she said. ¡°That is the last of my sisters work.¡± I spun around and looked down into the dark red eyes of a dried out raisin in a flower dress. Okay, it wasn¡¯t a raisin, it was a spiderwoman. But she was so old and wrinkled she looked like a dried up raisin. Her hair, still thick but shockingly white, was tied in a messy bun, a few strands hung loose about her face. She smiled up at me, one of her thin arms raising so she could point past me to the tapestry. ¡°My sister.¡± she said by way of explanation. ¡°She always did have a flair for the dramatic. Come. Sit.¡± I followed her directions and took a seat near the middle of the room. I had to move some sort of dried flower from the cushion before I sat. Nel gave her master a kiss on the cheek before settling down to my right. I noticed she was now between me and the door and wondered if that was intentional. As Saza shuffled around us to sit opposite me I took one last glance around the room. A rope hammock hung in the corner, anchored to the two walls, and I noticed a pile of folded bedding draped over its side. Holding onto the corners of her dress, Saza, let out a groan as she settled onto the floor. I noticed a distinct lack of spider legs or any other feature besides the red eyes and wondered at it before setting the question aside for later. A smile pulled at her lips as the old bat looked me before she turned to Nel, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes (or it was cataracts. I¡¯m not an expert), and said ¡°Apprentice, I must thank you for the present but I would have preferred to remove the wrapping myself.¡± Nel smacked a hand over her mouth, a giggle still escaping, as I looked at her in horror. I was totally not cool with getting ogled by some old woman. I mean it was a little flattering...but still! ¡°Nel said you would give me some clothes.¡± ¡°Did you really apprentice?¡± She said, sounding a little too put out. ¡°I believe I said, you may wish to dress him. Not that you would, master.¡± ¡°Well, perhaps I should, it is rather distracting afterall. What say you human, do you wish to be clothed?¡± ¡°Good God yes!¡± Nel, under instructions from Saza, opened a trunk hidden under a pile of knick-knacks and retrieved a pair of brown pants made of some thick rough material that were about my size and a loose fitting white shirt. I slid the pants on under my leaf skirt, ignoring the suggestive eye wiggles from the old lady and the blushing Nel. Needless to say the skirt went flying out the window to decompose on the forest floor. The shirt was surprisingly comfortable. The material seemed to be made from the same fabric as Nel¡¯s chest wrap and Saza¡¯s dress. A slit ran halfway down the back and Nell explained that it allowed for a Denvii with spider legs to have free movement of the limbs. Fully clothes, sans underwear, I sat back down and faced the smiling Saza. I wasn¡¯t really sure how to act around her, there weren¡¯t a lot of old people in Dockside as you can imagine. I had known one old lady though, she was the mother of a mob boss and I had been hired to guard/mind her. She had been nice; told me a whole bunch of stories that made me laugh. Her son had died shortly after I took the position. Shot through the head in a dark alley. She lost the will to live after that. Just sort of...withered away. Shaking the morbid thoughts from my head I tuned back in to catch the tail end of Nel¡¯s sentence. ¡°...so he has to fight him tomorrow.¡± ¡°Ahh,¡± Saza murmured quietly as she shuffled closer to me. ¡°A Champion, chosen but not yet accepted it would seem. These are interesting times apprentice.¡± ¡°What are you-¡± ¡°Show me your screen.¡± She interrupted me. Her tone startled me a little. What was once reedy and thin was now as firm and unbending as rebar. I went through the process of bringing up my status screen and held my palm out to her. She hmmed and hawed over it as her beady eyes stared intently at it. I noticed Nel leaning forward, trying to get a peek. ¡°What did you mean by chosen but not accepted?¡± I asked. ¡°Hmm?¡± she barely seemed to hear me, she was concentrating so hard and when she did reply it was in a distracted voice. ¡°Oh, just that Aeris has bestowed you with the class of Champion but he is not sure how much assistance and power to grant you. I expect he was pressed for ...oh this is interesting!...sorry, your status screen is very different from ours. As I was saying, he was possibly backed into a corner and had no choice but to pick you.¡± I wasn¡¯t sure about how that made me feel. Being Champion made absolutely no real impact on my mission, which was kick earth man butt, but I didn¡¯t like the thought that I was chosen just because¡­ Saza must have sensed my irritation for she looked up and smiled reassuringly. ¡°It is not as bad as I make it sound. I believe without the Central Life Core, Aeris could not call assistance from one of the branch worlds in the form of a Champion, as he once might have but that does not mean that he had to choose you.¡± ¡°And by branch world you mean¡­¡± ¡°Think of Aeris as the trunk of this tree. Large, firm, unyielding. Other worlds, smaller and weaker, sprout off of him like branches. These worlds rely on Aeris for protection, resources, trade, and to hold them all together. In return they offer up a Champion, a great warrior, when he has need.¡± ¡°What the fu¡­¡± I muttered. My mind blown. Sanderson said this was just like Earth, but in another time and place in space. Well he was wrong! This was nothing like Earth. This was some straight up fantasy shit! ¡°Judging by your reaction, this is all new to you?¡± Saza said. Bless the woman, she actually sounded concerned. ¡°Very, very new.¡± I said, my voice a little shaky. I wanted to tuck my head down between my knees and maybe do a good bit of rocking, I hear that helps with shock. ¡°All this is new! My world doesn¡¯t even have these status screen things!¡± I felt a soothing pair of hands on my back and looked into the warm red eyes (that were starting to look less and less creepy as time went on) of Nel. I managed a smile, controlling my heart beat at the same time. ¡®Relax Nel, I¡¯m just a little shook.¡± I shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s not like anything has really changed. In the big picture I mean. I still made a promise and I still plan on keeping it.¡± ¡°A wise move,¡± Saza said. ¡°It is always best to keep your goal in mind. If you don¡¯t mind, I want you to tell me about this world of yours. Not only does it slack the thirst for knowledge that is my curse but also it will give me an idea of what you do not understand.¡± So I told her about Earth and Dockside. She sat next to me, one withered hand cupping her wrinkled cheek, as her eyes remained strong and steady on me throughout the story. I idly noted that Nel didn¡¯t remove her hand from my back but I chose not to comment on it. The story I told was a bare bones version of my life and a brief overview of the world. To sum it up: I grew up, Earth is fucked. Okay, it was a little more informative than that but not much. I wasn¡¯t about to tell two women I had only just met my whole life story and there''s only so many ways to say, dead and barran, to describe a world. ¡°Now, it¡¯s your turn.¡± I said after five minutes of silence as they digested my story. Saza sat up straight and nodded firmly, more strands of white hair came loose from her bun but I don¡¯t think she noticed. ¡°We will start with the status screen.¡± She paused, her eyes going distant as she tried to gather her thoughts. ¡°Each sentient species on Aeris and its branch worlds has a little piece of him in them. These pieces, these sparks, are his right to give. We each start in balance. Neither good nor evil, dark nor light. Only as we grow and our decisions affect ourselves and the world around us do we gravitate towards an ideal. Hale, for those of darker thoughts and vicious deeds. Lumia, those of righteous thoughts and prideful actions. Finally, Aeris, for those who sleep in the dark and make merry in the light.¡± She stopped to see if I followed along, which I did. Mostly. So I nodded and she continued. ¡°Now, turning back to your status screen. It keeps track of things such as your name...is it really Haha October? Is that normal for your world?¡±Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. I winced, a little self consciously. ¡°Well, I told you how I was homeless and didn¡¯t know my parents? Well I also didn¡¯t have a name and when Mr. O¡¯mally found me and asked what my name was...well, I laughed in his face. I thought he was kidding, you know? Pick on the stupid homeless boy? Turns out I was wrong, but he called me Haha from then on and I kept it. October was just because it was October and I thought it sounded bad ass.¡± I laughed. ¡°I was, like, ten at the time.¡± Rolling her eyes Saza continued. ¡°That is ridiculous. I am sure this man, this Mr. O¡¯mally, did not mean for you to keep that name forever. Is there no other name you prefer?¡± I thought about her question. Part of me rebelled at the thought of changing my name from the one Sandy¡¯s dad gave me, another part was fascinated by the thought of remaking myself. New world, new life. ¡°Well...there is one, though it sounds really old and I haven¡¯t heard anyone from Earth called it in a long time.¡± Saza and Nel looked at me expectantly. I sighed. ¡°Alexander.¡± At their blank looks I felt the need to explain. ¡°Mr. O¡¯mally had a massive library. Like truly massive, and all of it filled with real books. Made of paper...guess that¡¯s common here,¡± I looked around at all the stuffed shelves around me, shrugged, and continued. ¡°Anyway, he taught me to read and allowed me to pick books from there. There was one that caught my attention, The life and History of Alexander the Great.¡± In all honesty I thought it was a children''s book about a superhero called Alexander and kept waiting for the king to shoot lasers out of his eyes. He never did, but I admired the man''s brilliance at warfare so I finished the book. ¡°You wish us to call you Alexander the Great?¡± Saza said, a peculiar tilt to her mouth that made me think she was making fun of me. ¡°No! Alexander, or just Alex, but whatever...I¡¯ll stick with Haha. Forget I said anything.¡± ¡°What made this Alexander of yours so great?¡± Nel asked. Turning a little so I could look at her I told her what I remembered about the dude. King of Macedon. Started young, went to war, kicked ass and took some names for the better part of ten years, had made a massive empire for himself. Undefeated in battle, got all the ladies, threw the best parties. May have drunk too much and got poisoned. ¡°A great warrior and leader.¡± Saza nodded her head now and when she looked at me her dark red eyes flashed in the fading light. ¡°For a Champion, I can think of no better name.¡± If my blood wasn¡¯t a thick robot soup I may have blushed. Instead I ducked my head in acknowledgement. ¡°Now, beneath your name, Alexander, is your Class. Think of it as your profession. Mine is Viziera, which is like a royal advisor or wise-woman. Now remember, your Class determines what primary skills you obtain and can change as you grow, though it always stays on the same branch.¡± I frowned at her. ¡°I cannot show you my status screen, want that I could, but ours can only be seen by us. I do not know why you have yours on your palm, perhaps it is an Earth-man quirk? I will give you an example instead. My starting class was apprentice soothseer, then it became seer, then advisor, then Viziera.¡± ¡°So my Champion class can change?¡± ¡°Yes. If I remember the old records correctly the Champion class will change from Champion to...Champion Juggernaut. Champion Colossal and finally Champion Titan. What that means, only you will know, as it is different for every Champion.¡± I tried absorbing all of that and she gave me time. ¡°Now we get to your race, which is self explanatory and the evolution under it which is...unique.¡± ¡°Meaning?¡± I asked. Even Nel seemed absorbed by the lecture. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know. If I had to guess, I would say it is similar to our promotion system. If we meet a certain amount of terms, that can range from mindset to location, Aeris grants us a promotion. I am on my fourth,¡± she said this with great pride. ¡°Each promotion comes with a promotion skill. An example would be the Brood Mother who has the promotion skill: Mothers Aura. It¡¯s what allows the women in her Brood to bear children, though the children will never be as strong as her own.¡± ¡°Okay I think I¡¯m following.¡± ¡°Now, instead of health and stamina you have integrity and power levels, I must admit this confuses me.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. I figured those out myself. It¡¯s based on my race.¡± I admitted. ¡°What I don¡¯t get is what does health mean to you?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the amount of damage a person may take. A blow to the head can still kill even if the health is at one hundred percent but a sword through the gut may take longer as the person bleeds out and they may continue to fight on until that happens.¡± Well that was good to know. I may have freaked out a little if I stabbed someone and they kept right on coming, like a zombie. ¡°But the Forgotten, they healed.¡± I said, remembered the wolf and his jaw. ¡°Yes, that is the power of a gift. Each of the ideals, be it Hela or Lumia or even Aeris, each awards their own with gifts whenever their own passes a milestone. One of the most common is the gift of regeneration. They want their followers to stay alive as long as possible, obviously.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Was my smart reply. Nel laughed quietly from beside me and Saza¡¯s face folded in on itself as her creases and wrinkles overlapped when she smiled. ¡°Huh, indeed. To simplify: You do something, Aeris approves, Aeris gives you a personal power in the form of a gift.¡± ¡°Thanks.¡± I said with a soft scowl. The old woman just smiled more. ¡°So gifts can be, like anything?¡± ¡°Yes. They can be anything and are for anything. I once knew a Dryd that got the gift of strength because she watered a flower everyday for two months.¡± ¡°Is that why Springflower is so strong?¡± Nel asked her master. Shock making her a little loud. Saza laughed at the look on Nels face. ¡°Yes. Yes it is! Has she bee-¡± ¡°Okay so what¡¯s the purpose of the skills and talent.¡± I said, pulling the conversation back to me. ¡°Talent is what you natural have, they provide a basic blueprint for your growth. With fighter and the whole bunch of physical talents, you are the perfect candidate for a Champion. As you promote...or in your case evolve, they will change also.¡± ¡°And skills?¡± ¡°Skills relate to actions that you will need to do in relation to your class. Let¡¯s take your hand-to-hand combat skill, it¡¯s a warriors skill so also a Champions and with it as one of your primary skills Aeris will help you learn it faster as well as influence you through it. It can be something as simple as making your hands faster or something as complex as seeing through your enemies moves.¡± I thought back to the moment that my negotiation skill had activated and how I suddenly understood the Brood Mothers motives. If the little note that came along with the pop up screen was anything to go on, it wasn¡¯t as simple as train and hope Aeris helped out. I needed to do something to activate it. ¡°Remember, you can only have a certain amount of skills for each stage of growth to your class. The Champion has seven starting slots and gains one with each level of growth. Most other classes only start with three to four. As you pick up more skills Aeris will ask if you wish for them to be added to your primary skill list.¡± ¡°So I can only be good at so much? That sucks!¡± ¡°If you are smart, and I hope that you are, then you can merge your skills into more advanced skills. Maybe even legendary...those are the levels by the way. Common, rare, legendary those type of things, though there are more.¡± ¡°And what does that do?¡± Saza looked at me like I was an idiot. ¡°The greater the skill the greater the help Aeris can offer through it.¡± I sat back. My mind was full of swirling thoughts and half baked ideas. Saza seemed content to let me think though she did murmur something to Nel about food. I watched my companion disappear outside and turned to see Saza watching me intently. ¡°She is a good girl.¡± she said. Her voice incredibly soft. I had to lean forward to hear her. I hummed agreement. I didn¡¯t know Nel all that well to be honest, other than what I could glean from a days conversation, but what I did know I liked. Smacking her thigh to pull herself from her mood she asked if I had anymore questions. I asked the first thing that came to mind. ¡°Why do you look like spiders!¡± She laughed at me then. Long and hard, and had to wipe a tear from her eye before she could continue. ¡°I forget, this must all be so new and strange to you.¡± She calmed down a little. ¡°There are many races on Aeris, some like the Elves have come from a branch world and settled here, others like us, the Denvii were created by Aeris as a species of balance. There are many clans of Denvii, the Brood is but one, but each clan has a spark of human in them as well as the spark of a creature.¡± ¡°So you just happen to be part spider?¡± When she nodded I continued. ¡°So then why is it that some, like Nel have the spider legs coming out of her lower back but other than that looks completely human but then I saw this kid, he had a spider¡¯s head. A whole spiders head!¡± She shrugged. Like it was the most natural answer. Just a shrug. ¡°Why should they all be the same? That sounds suspiciously like something Lumia encourages. Uniformity. Perfection.¡± Saza scoffed. ¡°Sounds dull.¡± ¡°Well, thanks for an answer that isn¡¯t an answer.¡± ¡°Or it is an answer but not the answer that you wanted. Does that make it any less of an answer?¡± She was smiling again. ¡°I bet Nel gets some of the worst headaches talking to you.¡± ¡°I do! Thank you, someone finally understands my plight!¡± Nel said, walking backwards into the room so the curtain parted over her back. Once inside she turned around and drew attention to the tray she carried by lifting it up a little. Something smelled good! ¡°Oh shush girl, you are just as fond of our arguments as I am.¡± I watched the two bicker with a familiarity born of repetition and familiarity and smiled. In some ways it reminded me a lot of how Sanderson and I could argue. And just like that I started to miss the smart idiot, which was strange since I had just seen him a couple of hours ago. Damn it had been a long day! Nel placed the tray on the ground between us all and removed the cloth covering. Beneath lay three bowls, full to the brim with some thick brown stew. I could see pieces of vegetables and meat floating around in there and my mouth started to water. Real vegetables and meat! Holy crap! On a wooden board was a large loaf of bread. Flecks of some green herb visible on its golden crust. Passing out the bowls and breaking the bread into three parts Nel settled down to join us for lunch...or was it an early dinner? The sky outside was starting to darken ever so slowly. I may have inhaled my food a good deal faster than was polite but it was so...real. The flavour substitutes you could sprinkle on anything back on Earth couldn¡¯t compare. The thought of eating another protein cube sprinkled with BBQ flavour nearly made me hurl. Saza and Nel watched my feeding frenzy with morbid astonishment. The old ladies hand was stuck halfway to her mouth, the bread in her grip dripping stew. ¡°Ish gooood!¡± I managed around my last mouthful. Shrugging to myself, I started licking the bowl. I got a little stew on my nose but that was fine. ¡°Big day tomorrow, you stocking up energy?¡± Saza asked after she took a delicate bite of bread. I raised an eyebrow in question while eyeing the little morsel of bread still on the tray. Nel nudged it towards me and I pounced. ¡°Your duel with Rimatrastorama at Dawn. Unless having that hole in your stomach I saw earlier is natural then I would think you need the food to restore your health, do you not?¡± Crap. I forgot about that. I pulled up my stat menu and had a look at stored mass, total mass, and integrity. There was no difference and I gnawed on my lip in thought. ¡°Food doesn¡¯t really do anything for me, or at least this little amount. It just gets broken down by the nanobots in my stomach.¡± I waved away the questioning looks from the new terms. ¡°I¡¯ll need metal...about twenty-nine pounds to reach full health and maybe another seventy to eighty for future healing. The extra mass wouldn''t hurt in a fight.¡± I wondered if there was a limit to how much mass I could store. Could I reach like one ton without looking like a ball with legs? And if I could, what were the side effects? Did my energy levels drop faster? I think they might. Saza mopped up the last of her stew with her bread and popped the whole thing in her mouth, chewing slowly as she tapped her chin. I noticed her fingers weren¡¯t the sharp talons like Nel¡¯s or the Brood Mothers and wondered again at why she looked so human. ¡°We can¡¯t have you entering a duel unprepared. Nel, go to the smith later tonight and see if he has scrap metal that can be spared. I take it the type of metal doesn¡¯t matter?¡± ¡°No clue. We¡¯ll have to go with trial and error.¡± I admitted. ¡°Excellent. An experiment!¡± Saza actually looked excited with the prospect. ¡°Needless to say, you will remain here until dawn. I doubt the rest of the Brood needs to see a human...I know the Brood Mother has named you Denvii and they will follow her lead, but they will still need time¡± I agreed. After that Nel stacked the plates and left with the dirty dishes, promising to find me some metal. Saza moved over to the corner, blowing softly on a rock that blossomed into light. She placed the light on a metal bracket I hadn¡¯t seen hanging from the ceiling and picked up a book before settling down on top of the chest my clothes had come from to read. With nothing better to do, I went outside and settled onto the deck. My back up against the trunk of the tree...wall of the house? The forest slowly grew dark around me. The noises changed as the nocturnal animals and insects took their turn to command the vast forest. I looked up, wondering what the stars would look like. I¡¯ve never seen them. Couldn¡¯t through the pollution. Mr. O¡¯mally said they were like crystals floating up there in the dark. Here the sky was blocked out by the thick canopy of leaves. I considered climbing up the tree for a better view but decided against it. ¡°Alexander¡± I muttered under my breath, trying it out, and seeing how it felt. It felt a little weird to be honest. I had been Haha October for so long. Perhaps it was time for a change though. Sandy always wanted me to be more responsible. I fell asleep there. Leaning against the tree and surrounded by a strange forest on a new world, dreaming of war and forging an empire. Chapter 10 Dawn came late to the Brood. The first rays of the sun struggling to make it through the thick canopy and past the massive trees. None of that seemed to matter in regards to the duel though. I was hardly surprised to find out we would fight in the trees. Rima stood on a thick branch opposite me, Zava stood beside him muttering in his ear. Probably something along the lines of ¡®kick him in the balls¡¯. I¡¯ll admit, if he really was whispering that it would piss me off. I don''t like people stealing my strategies. We weren¡¯t allowed to wear any armour and the chill morning air brushed against my bare chest. I silently cursed Sandy for being so bloody attentive when he was working on my sensors. ¡°Cold?¡± Nel asked from her place beside me. She held a simple wooden spear, much like the one she had when I first met her, and past it from hand to hand nervously. I wondered why she was next to me and not her brother but one look at the intensity of Zava''s gestures and body language and I had my answer. The Brood Guatdian didn''t want anyone interferring with his apprentice''s concentration. Other than him that is. ¡°Nah, I don''t really get cold. Just mildly uncomfortable. So tell me again, why are we only wearing pants?¡± It was Saza who answered. She stood on my other side, her dress swaying about her frail form. ¡°This is a duel of reparation, not blood, so you are limited to one weapon and the use of your body. It used to be that a duel such as this was performed naked. Now that is a duel I''d be excited to see!¡± ¡°The Brood Mother is wise.¡± Nel said, completely ignoring her mentors leecherous remark. She tilted her head back to look at all the faces that peeked at us from the branches and ledges surrounding Rima and I. A few of the Brood even had their heads stuck through the leaves like some creepy ass fruit. ¡°The fact that she has allowed this duel to take place shows the Brood that she truly views you as Denvii and it will put to rest any doubts they may have. More so if you win.¡± ¡°And If I weren¡¯t Denvii?¡± ¡°She would likely have killed you for harming one of her children.¡± Nel said nonchalantly. The Brood Mothers warning of sucking me dry echoed in my ear again and I suppressed a shiver. And it wasn¡¯t a shiver of arousal, let me tell you that! ¡°So what¡¯s the deal with Rima¡¯s spear?¡± ¡°It is made from the branch of a Living Willow and is tipped with a Bores tusk. Zavanrosiphra gifted it to Rimatrastorama when he chose him as an apprentice.¡± ¡°Okay. Now tell me that again, but this time act like I have no idea what any of that means.¡± Nel smiled at me, her sharp canines flashing against her full lips. ¡°The shaft of his spear will regrow, even if shattered or broken. The tip of his spear is made from the tusk of a Bores...a wild beast the Denvii Pack hunts. The bones of a Bores are very hard and when filed down, very sharp. The tusks are naturally sharp on one side, and serrated on the other, and make valuable weapons. We often trade silk and threads with the Pack for it.¡± She said, adding the last part when I looked at her funny. Done with Rima, Zava sprung across the distance separating Rima¡¯s branch and mine. He was heavy enough that his landing shook the branch. ¡°You are prepared?¡± he asked me. Last night, after I had fallen asleep on the veranda, Nel had appeared and woken me up. She had a basket full of metal scraps and shavings that she offered as a peace offering and I¡¯d let her sit next to me while I munched on the scraps like popcorn. Conversation between us was surprisingly easy. She was funny and interesting and full of questions about Earth and I didn¡¯t mind the company. By the time I hit the bottom of the basket I was back to full integrity and had a tiny bit left over under my stored mass tab. Nel had left then but not before asking me quietly if I would try not to hurt her brother. I had agreed. Kinda hard not to when she was being really nice to me and just being a good sister. Still gonna kick his ass though. I took the spear off Nel, testing its heft, and nodded as a smile pulled my lips up. ¡°The rules are simple,¡± Zava said, his pale pink eyes locked with mine. ¡°You will both fight until unconscious, disabled, or until one surrenders. At no time are you to seek outside help nor will any be provided to you. Fatal blows will be limited to such a time as both combatants are still able to regenerate, after which if the presiding judge, me, believes that any action taken against one by the other is intentionally fatal I will retaliate with full force. Is this understood?¡± ¡°Fight till you can¡¯t. Don¡¯t be a bitch and ask for help. Don¡¯t aim to kill. Got it!¡± This wasn¡¯t the first time I was fighting in front of a crowd and lets be honest, knowing me, it''s not going to be the last. Any nerves I may have felt slid off me as an icy calm settled over my limbs. ¡°Nelzarastorama, Saza, I will need you both to move away.¡± The two women left my side. Saza without a word, Nel whispering "good luck and don¡¯t kill my brother" in my ear. I took stock of the situation as quickly as I could. Twelve feet of open space separated my branch from Rima¡¯s and it was a straight drop of about twenty feet to the forest floor. The branch I was standing on was roughly five feet across. I bounced a little to see if it would sway but the wood surprised me with its stability. Rima was dressed in a pair of pants and was bare chested just like me. I saw more than a few of the female brood swoon a little as he flexed and stretched. My body was always ready to fight so I just stood still, the spear held loosely in my right hand. I needed the element of surprise. ¡°Begin!¡± Zava roared. Quick as thought I overclocked, not taking any chances. Energy flooded my limbs in lines of orange. I braced with my lead foot and twisting at the waist I launched my spear at Rima. He was running before the wood had crossed half the distance, his spider legs stretching out to help pull him along. My spear thunked into the tree trunk and shattered, splinters flying everywhere like shrapnel. The crowd roared their approval. I didn¡¯t moan the loss of the spear. I didn¡¯t know how to use it in close quarters and at a distance I doubted I could hit him. I just wanted to distract him and gain momentum for myself. Which I did. Rima was still focused on avoiding me when I crouched down, pushed energy into my legs, and jumped across the distance. Bark sprayed out behind me like a small explosion as I rocketed away. My biggest fear was that Rima would turn around and throw his spear at me while I was in mid-air and couldn¡¯t dodge but instead he turned and ran back towards me, planning to intercept me when I landed. I occured to me that this was the point of starting so far apart. It forced us to think carefully about what we wanted to do. I chose to sacrifice my spear and face him weaponless, he chose to retain his weapon rather than risk a throw that might not connect. I hit the branch hard, all my weight transferring to my feet which dug into the soft bark like soil. The tip of that fucking spear came whistling through the air at me and I had to let my legs fall out from under me so it went over my head instead of into my eye. Not the most graceful of movements but it worked. Now we were in close quarters and that¡¯s my domain. Rima twisted his back to me so his spider feet could try and curb stomp me. All six of the limbs flashed towards me in dark brown blurs as I twisted and turned as best I could while still on my back. One hit my stomach hard enough that air exploded out of my mouth. I was just happy it wasn¡¯t out my ass. Another clipped the side of my head. Fuck! It was like fighting three dudes all at once. As soon as you go down it¡¯s just a hail of feet and all you can do is cover up. I growled, my anger and frustration building. Rima stopped beating at me and turned so he could jab with his spear. The split second pause gave me the much needed break I was looking for. It¡¯s a lot easier to drag someone down then it is to get yourself up so twisting around the flashing blade of his spear I rolled right up against his human legs. Laying down on his feet I smiled as his eyes widened when he figured out what I was doing. Hooking both my hands behind his knees I pulled. It looked like my evil plan was going to work. He folded at the knee and started to fall back but then just...stopped. I keep forgetting the spider legs. Those fuckers are going to take some getting used to. They braced him perfectly. Three to a side and all bent and balanced. Fuck it. I punched him in the balls. I was starting to lose my temper and those feet were irritating me and I was stuck on my back so I just went with a low blow. He folded up with a satisfying groan of pain and I shot to my feet like a fucking champion. It took all my self control not to throw both arms in the air. And because I was still pissed off I wrapped Rima up in a bear hug and head butted him. I got him right on the bridge of his nose and the whole thing just went crack. Greenish/blue blood shot out like a hose, coating his face and mine. Baring my teeth in a false smile I hugged him tighter, flaring more power into my arms and back. He was trying to stab me with the spear he still had but couldn''t get the right angle. ¡°Shit¡¯s too small.¡± I growled in his ear, meaning the branch we were on. I don¡¯t know if he got what I was saying but it didn¡¯t matter. I threw us both over the edge. He was screaming, I was screaming, the wind was screaming, then we hit the ground. There were all sorts of weird crunching sounds that may have indicated I just broke half of Rima, and I sort of bounced/rolled/flopped off him. I winced at the thought of Nel berating me. I think I was fine. I wasn¡¯t overlocking that hard so I hoped my energy was ok and I was running enough power to dull my nerves so I wasn¡¯t in any pain. Okay, there was minor pain but for the most part I was fine so I just lay there, getting my breath back. I could feel the moist soil at my back and when I opened my eyes all I saw was the tree trunks stretching up, up, up into the sky. Heads were popping out here and there as the Brood tried to look down at us. I raised a hand and waved because I¡¯m a bit of an asshole like that. With grace not befitting his large size Zava slid down a nearby trunk to land on the ground. I expected him to call the match but he just stood there, watching us. Did I need to pin Rima to the ground? I turned to Rima to do just that and swore. He was sitting up, his handsome face twisted into a scowl. The depression that I had left in his chest slowly inflated back to its original shape with a sickening popping grinding noise that made even me wince. His spider legs twitched behind him, two of them hung down useless, the joints twisted at strange angles and rivers of blue/green blood ran down the carapace. He looked all kinds of fucked up, but he was healing. Holy crap was he healing! He had regeneration on steroids! ¡°Champion-Thank-You!¡± He gasped out between gritted teeth. ¡°You do realise I just fucked your shit up, right?¡± I asked, completely confused. ¡°Yes, That is why. Even my Master is not as ruthless as you in combat and my training has begun to stagnate. This is the first real fight I have experienced and already I am learning so much. I need to experience real battles to grow. To have learnt this lesson from the chosen of Aeris...Thank you!¡±Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Well, creepy hero worship aside I guess I kind of understood the guy. You could study fighting all your life, dedicate yourself to the forms, the techniques, the ideas, but as soon as the first fist was thrown it all changes. I was great at fighting because I was doing it before I could even walk. Seriously. I fought a puppy once for some scraps. I lost but I learnt a lesson. Thats what was happening to Rima now. ¡°You bout done with your regen?¡± I asked. ¡°I will be completely healed in two minutes, Champion. The third gift I received from Aeris was that of Transference. I am transferring my mana to health, as I have very little talent in magic and have no use for it.¡± Oh for fuck sake. Now there¡¯s magic?! What next? A pixie riding a unicorn farting rainbows? The unicorn farts the rainbows, FYI, not the pixie...You know what?Fuck it, the pixie can fart rainbows to. Why didn¡¯t I have magic? I wanted magic. I decided to think about it later. There was too much talking going on in the duel for my taste. I got to my feet, dusting leaves and twigs and mud off me in the process. Rima¡¯s spear was lying between us and he watched me walk over to it. I saw him tense as I picked the weapon up. ¡°What say you and I have a good ol¡¯ fashion brawl?¡± I asked. A tad bit eager. Rima nodded slowly, his eyes never leaving the weapon in my hand. ¡°Cool.¡± I threw the spear away so he wouldn¡¯t be able to pick it up mid fight. Surprisingly (and by complete coincidance) the projectile narrowly missed Zava¡¯s head. Squaring my stance and raising my arms I tucked my chin down and looked at Rima from between my forearms. He got to his feet, fully healed but a little slow, and took a stance of his own. His spider feet fanned out behind him and waved slowly in the air. I had to remind myself to keep an eye on them. ¡°Come on then.¡± I growled. Rima was fast. Really fast. His footsteps were quick and light as he sprung towards me, his spider legs helping to pull him along. I overlocked like a beast and ground the balls of my feet into the ground, leaning forward slightly to better receive his charge. His lashed out, a quick hook aimed at my jaw. I slipped it, letting the blow slide over my shoulder as I stepped inside. Using his forward momentum against him, I drilled a sharp clean jab straight to his sternum. He took it surprisingly well, only coughing lightly. He retaliated by stepping back and stomping at my knee with his foot. I let the blow land, trusting my bones of iron to hold together, but the force behind the kick still pushed my foot back and out, throwing my lower body back and my upper body forward. That was fine, I wanted to go forward anyway. I just used the movement to propel my fist all the harder as it swung down from over my head. There was a crack as my fist came down on Rima¡¯s clavicle and he sagged under the weight of the blow, one of his arms dropping limp to his side. I righted myself and grabbed at his head only to stagger as his spider legs came into play. They made wild swinging arcs that resembled haymakers and came at me from both sides and several different angles. I was stronger and faster. He had more limbs to attack and defend with. I slid punches and spider legs. I dodged and ducked and weaved between limbs. I laughed like a madman when I was forced to punch his fist head on. He hissed with pain, his fist crumpling up like a tin can under the strength of my blow. I just used the recoil from the shot to spin me around, my footwork light like a dancers as I torqued at the waist to drive more power into my next blow: a backhand that shattered his jaw. Before I could complete my twirl and capitalise on the moment I had to jump over another spider leg. He hit me in the nose. The cartilage was a lot weaker than my bones and snapped. Blood flowed sluggishly over my lips to stain my lower face and cover my teeth. I grinned in exhilaration. I was used to the metallic taste of blood in my mouth. This is what I love.This is what I live for. I grew stronger by the second, more deadly. My blows began blending together in intricate patterns as I started to figure out Rima¡¯s movements. Even as I burnt through my energy supply at what I¡¯m sure was a scary rate I moved faster, my hands blurring, by body swaying between blows with an almost unnatural grace. Rima on the other hand was slowing down, his movements turning sluggish as the constant abuse to his body wore on him. I broke him and he healed and I broke him again. When he broke me I laughed in his face and hit back all the harder. I caught a spider leg and rammed a fist straight into the knee joint. The shell like exterior broke and fresh blood spilled out. He staggered back, the limb hanging useless behind him. I noticed he wasn¡¯t healing aymore. Kid had a lot of heart though. His hands never dropped and he didn¡¯t call it quits. I could respect that. I smiled blood stained teeth at him then spat my own blood in his eyes. He was blinded for a second and I fell on him like a fucking avalanche. The orange lines glowing along my body seemed to streak through the air as I moved fast enough that had I been human my body would have fallen apart. I threw punches that were all power and no finesse. Wild, clumsy things that were devastatingly effective. All I knew was I had to end this now. My energy was fading and he was exhausted. Still wiping at his eyes, Rima¡¯s spider feet smacked against my side and back as he tried to push me off. I let them land, much as I had with the Forgotten, I took the abuse and dealt back more. His body shook and he fell back step by step as I worked him over in an unrelenting barrage. I ducked under a spider¡¯s leg and since I was down there I punched out with my right fist at the side of his right knee. The limb buckled and he fell forward to kneel. I stood, my left hand dragging behind me, till it connected with his jaw and his head snapped back. Suddenly there was a spear held across my chest. Zava pushed me back from Rima. I didn¡¯t fight it, instead letting the energy go and sighing as the usual euphoric rush disappeared. Rima slowly toppled forward, unconscious. ¡°The Victor. Denvii Alexander of Earth. Champion of Aeris!¡± Zava roared out to the branches above us. He had my hand in his and raised it above our heads. I looked up and nearly pulled power again at the sight. The Brood crowded the branches. There must have been hundreds, all as different as the last, and all of them cheering. Nel slid down a tree trunk like it was a a gentle slope, her spider legs doing all the work as she held Saza to her. Once on the ground they seperated. Saza made her way towards me while Nel rushed over to check on her brother. He didn¡¯t look great. The blueish green blood covered most of his body and a few cuts still bled slowly. For the most part though, he would be fine. Especially considering the way I saw him heal earlier. ¡°I will check on my apprentice now. Champion...good fight.¡± Zava said, looking like he was eating a lemon. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Champion. Rimatrastorama has a remarkable gift that will allow him to heal rapidly. His sister will look after him till then. She is a good healer.¡± Saza said. ¡°Nel is a healer?¡± I asked, surprised. ¡°She¡¯s never mentioned it.¡± ¡°She is many things. She is my apprentice after all.¡± Saza said with pride. I watched the group clustered around Rima for a second before turning back to Saza. ¡°So what now?¡± ¡°Now,¡± Saza¡¯s smile grew. ¡°Well, now I have a request." ¡°But food first.¡± I added. ¡°But food first.¡± she agreed. Suddenly her face twisted into a scowl and she yelled out "Zavanrosiphra! you stop poking your apprentice right this instant! He needs to heal, not have your trunk like finger in his face." I tried containing a laugh as Saza huffed in annoyance and went to join the group. Curious I opened up my stats and overlaying the table was a whole bunch of boxes. I read through them quickly, using my pinky finger to flick between them when I was done.
Champion has been recognised by the masses as Alexander. Does Champion accept this designation?
I thought yes and when nothing happened I pressed the box feeling foolish. The box disappeared, which was awesome, but I was still left with quite a few. Oh well, lets see whats up.
Champion associated skill learnt: Dodge.
Champion associated skill learnt: Deflect.
Champion associated skill learnt: Rapid Movement.
Aeris has detected one or more skills that may be consolidated. Does Champion wish to proceed?
Sure, why the fuck not.
Champion associated skills: Hand-to-Hand Combat, Dodge, Deflect, Rapid Movement have been consolidated. New skill processing¡­. ¡­. Skill: Bloodied Brawler. (U)
With that done, whatever it did, my stat table opened back up and I had a quick look see and groaned. I was never going to stay at 100% integrity at this rate.
Name: Alexander Haha October Class: Champion Race: Biotic humanoid. Evolution: I Stored Mass: 0.00 kg Total Mass: 130.79222951 lbs
Integrity : 76.87% 280.57kg MCR (Mass Conversion Rate): 2.01/sec MCR In combat: .88/sec Physical Mass:365kg
Power levels: 24.61% ARR (Ambiant Recharge Rate): 0.026/sec
Micro-Evolution: 1/4 terms met Unlocked Evolutionary Skills: - Human (Augmented)
Primary Skills:
  • Bloodied Brawler (U)
  • Small arms (Un)
  • Negotiation (A)
Talent:
  • Iron bones (You remain unbroken under even the strongest of blows.)
  • Iron skin (You remain unscathed under all but the sharpest of blades)
  • Iron Stomach (You remain undaunted by all but the strangest of meals)
  • Iron Will (You remain unbent under the power of others)
  • Artificial Being. (Not of flesh and blood you are immune to diseases and poisons)
  • Fighter. (You have struggled since the day you were born. Only through blood sweat and tears have you achieved all that you have and all that you are!)
Allignment Interest - Primary World Aeris views you with interest. Aeris awaits the need to aid or destroy you
Gifts - Gift of Tongues - Gift of Transmutation - Gift of Advanced Mass Conversion
So looks like I now regenerate or convert mass or whatever during combat, though it was slower than normal. I wondered if it was a byproduct of my standard MCR increasing or if it was part of the Gift of Advanced Mass Conversion. Saza did say regeneration gifts were the most common. I also noticed I had met a term for Micro-Evolution. Though I think that had more to do with the Brood Mother¡¯s recognition of me than punching Rima in the face. The last change was my Hand-to-Hand skill becoming Bloodied Brawler. I made a note to ask Saza or Nel what the letters next to the skill meant. ¡°Alexander...Alexander! Alex!¡± It took me a second to respond. It¡¯s one thing to say your names Alexander, it¡¯s another one completely to react when someone calls you that. Nel was hopping up and down in front of me, Impatient for me to finish with my stat screen, so I closed my fist, cancelling the screen, and turned my attention to her. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Saza said for you to make your way to her nest. She needs to speak with Zavanrosiphra but will meet you there.¡± She looked around at the rest of the Brood that was slowly making their way down to the forest floor. ¡°It would be wise for you to leave or you may get swarmed.¡± I looked at the onrushing crowd and nodded. I did not want to get mixed up in that mess. Not only did the sheer number freak me out a little...I had no clue how to interact with someone with a spiders head. Did they even speak? Could they? And what about the one with th...holy shit! One spider chick just flashed me I think! Maybe I could stay a bit, they did come out to see me after all. The Brood, not the chicks tits. Nel slapped the back of my head and scowled at me. She obviously knew where I was looking. ¡°Sharmavastroma is the Brood blanket,¡± Nel blushed when I asked what that was. ¡°It means she will lay on top of any man at night. Do not get any ideas Alexander, you will catch a disease.¡± I decided not to point out the fact that I couldn¡¯t. I didn¡¯t have enough of a biological system for it and if the parts of me that were still human did get infected or damaged, the nanobots running through me normally fixed it using compounds and shit they collected when I ate. Sanderson explained it to me once but I was too busy freaking out to make sense of it. As I turned to go Nel reached out, her talon tipped fingers circling around my bicep gently. ¡°And thank you for not killing my brother. I know, if you wished, you could have driven your hand through his body like you did the Forgotten.¡± I smiled down at her. When she stood on her human legs she only reached my chin. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. I think the idiot¡¯s growing on me. Now, if I don¡¯t make a hasty retreat now, I may get swarmed. Are you willing to save me then?¡± ¡°I may just join the swarm.¡± She said playfully before blushing and looking away. ¡°Fuck it. I¡¯m staying right here then. Come at me women. Swarm me!¡± I had to duck her slap but she didn¡¯t put much power in the blow anyway. ¡°Fine! I¡¯m going.¡± ¡°Alexander!¡± She called as I started to run away from the Brood. ¡°What?¡± I called over my shoulder. ¡°That¡¯s the wrong direction.¡± Well, fuck. Chapter 11 Saza watched me over the lip of her earthenware mug. Her dark eyes crinkled at the edges as she smiled and inhaled the steam rising from the hot liquid. I think it was tea, or some herbal drink. I would occasionally catch a whiff of peppermint. She hadn¡¯t offered me any and I hadn¡¯t asked. I was too busy munching on an old dented chest plate. After having run from the Brood/mob I¡¯d gotten a little lost. It¡¯s not my fault one tree looks exactly like the other. Saza had found me walking in circles muttering to myself and scowling at the greenery. By the time we got back to her little nest Nel was already there, a soot stained sack at her feet and a tray with the steaming mug in her hand. I¡¯d almost cried when she pulled out the old metal armour and now both her and her master watched in amusement as I treated it like a giant cracker. Trickling power to my jaw and teeth so they wouldn¡¯t shatter I took another mouthful of the cold metal. It wasn¡¯t appetizing and tasted exactly how you would expect, but I was already healing and pretty soon would be good as new, there even looked like there would be enough to store a little. ¡°I have a favour to ask of you Alexander.¡± Saza said after she took a sip. ¡°Grot grawling me chagrigan?¡± I asked around a mouthful of metal and had to swallow before trying again. ¡°Not calling me Champion?¡± ¡°No, this is more of a...personal favour.¡± I don¡¯t know what it was, maybe the way she had looked at me the first time we met, or the perverted comments she had made since then, but as soon as I heard her say those words I tried to stealthy cover my junk. I think Nel knew what I was thinking because she started laughing. I just scowled at her before taking another mouthful of metal. ¡°The Brood Mother has requested Nelzarastorama head to the Denvii Pack and explain the attack on her yesterday to their Alpha. It is their responsibility to police their own Forgotten, just as we do ours. Her position as my apprentice will lend credence to her words and with a Champion backing her word, not to mention the first hand account you can also give, old Blackpelt will have to take responsibility.¡± ¡°Blackpelt?¡± I asked, trying not to laugh. Of course that meant that I instead started choking on my meal and Nel had to pound on my back. The pounding didn¡¯t do shit to help but she was going at it with so much enthusiasm I didn¡¯t have the heart to stop her. Ignoring us, Saza took another sip of her tea and set the mug aside. It balanced on a stack of books she was using as a table. ¡°He has been the Alpha for the better part of a century and his position is not that different to the Brood Mothers. Though you would do well to remember that the Pack is more militant and not so...cultured as the Brood.¡± ¡°Savages.¡± Nel whispered in my ear. She stopped patting my back and returned to her seat. ¡°So where is the Pack?¡± It was Nel who answered. She pointed to the far wall. ¡°That way about two days on foot. The Pack territory runs from the edge of the Elder Woods to the Citrus Pools. If we leave now we can reach them the day after tomorrow, mid day would be my guess...then it will be a day before Blackpelt will see us, and another two days back. So six to seven days...maybe longer if we stop at the Citrus Pools.¡± She added the last with a blush. I wasn¡¯t too eager about going for a swim. I...well, to be blunt, I sink like a metal robot. But the thought of Nel in something skimpy was definitely appealing and I could stand on the shore and ogle with the best of them so I nodded my head. ¡°Ahhh, the Citrus Pools,¡± Saza lamented, her eyes going distant as she remembered the past. ¡°I met a cute little Faun there once. He took my virginity and disappeared that same night. I didn¡¯t mind. Though the walk back to the Brood was a little slow...I was all sorts of sore, if you know what I mean.¡± ¡°Okay. Eww!¡± I said, pointing at the old wrinkled perv. ¡°No more stories from you please! Nel, how long will it take you to pack? I¡¯m ready to go when you are.¡± Nel stopped staring at Saza and blushing long enough to say an hour before she scampered out of the nest, her spider legs spurring her along. ¡°Now that Nelzarastorama is gone, tell me your plans to get the Central Life Core and to stop your fellow Earth Humans.¡± Saza said, her frail voice turning serious. I shrugged, placing the gnawed on chest plate to the side so I could lean back, braced by one arm and rub my stomach with the other. ¡°Honestly, I kind of thought I¡¯d pop through the gate and be in human central and just start bashing heads. Sandy pushed me through with very little explanation. I think he was worried the Government could track the energy signature of the gate, from when he sent the drone through first, and just wanted me to get through as quickly as possible...that or he noticed me noticing his sex swing and wanted me gone before I asked awkward questions.¡± The first was the explanation that made the most sense to me. It would explain his nerves when he answered the door and his rushed behaviour. A sudden pang of concern went through me. He should have let me stay behind to deal with anyone who came! Now I was stuck worlds away if he needed my help. He better be okay, or so help me God I was going to crack apart the desiccated husk of Earth and bath those fuckers in molten lava. ¡°Have you heard anything suspicious, with the humans or...I dunno, maybe about a group calling themselves the children of Earth or something pretentious?¡± Saza cupped her chin and rocked gently back and forth. ¡°Gallad, that¡¯s the Kingdom of Man, has been pushing at its borders of late. The King seems hungry for land.¡± ¡°And that''s suspicious?¡± ¡°No. The humans are always hungry. So short lived, they want to obtain everything and do everything before their ends. What is suspicious is that the armies are led by the new minister of War...I forget his name...Edmund..Edward? Something very bland and human. He came out of nowhere and is now responsible for the control of the entire kingdoms armies. I hear that many of the noble houses are not happy.¡± ¡°You sure it''s not Bob?¡± I suggested. "Bob''s a real common name and it''s not exactly exciting." She shook her head, her lips turned up slightly in amusement. It made a sick sort of sense. Come to a foreign world and take over the human population and march them to war. Why march your own men to their deaths when you could borrow someone elses. ¡°So how do you know so much about what''s going on outside of this forest. The Brood doesn¡¯t really seem the type to travel.¡± A sly glint entered the old bats eye. ¡°You are correct. The Brood does not travel. But its webs reach far and wide and when one thread is pulled, we all hear.¡± ¡°Oooh-kay, creepiness aside, I guess I¡¯ll head to Gallad. Maybe see what this Bob dude has to say for himself.¡± ¡°That is a long way to travel...especially for a quick promise to a friend who is not here.¡± ¡°Here, there, quick or slow. It makes no difference. Sandy asked me to do and I said yes. That means I do it. And I see it through to the very end.¡± My voice was steel. Saza¡¯s nodded, a proud little smile on her face. ¡°You are a strange one, Champion Alexander. You fight and behave like a savage at times, yet you show remarkable loyalty and concern for those you care about. Aeris chose well. Yes, I think I like you.¡± ¡°I¡¯d be flattered if you were two hundred years younger and a thousand wrinkles smoother.¡± I said back with a wide grin, using humour to get over my embarrassment at the praise. She cackled like an old villain. ¡°As for the Central Life Core. Not a clue. I don¡¯t know what it is, what it does, where it was or is now, or even what it looks like.¡± I admitted. ¡°The Central Life Core is, in essence, Aeris¡¯s heart. It powers his system and controls the gateways to the branch worlds.¡± ¡°What does that mean, exactly?¡± Saza sighed, her frail form seeming to fold in on itself and for the first time I actually noticed how exhausted she looked. Not tired and needing to rest but exhausted, as in, with life. ¡°You must first understand what Aeris truly means to this world. This, all of it,¡± she waved a shaking hand around her little room and the world outside. ¡°This is all Aeris. From the nutrients in the soil to the clouds above the trees. He provides life and is life, and at the core of it all, keeping it all turning and living is the Central Life Core. Before long he will run out of power. It will affect the newly born babes first. They will be without status, or worse, skewed towards Hale or Lumin from the beginning. Next will be the land, slowly but surely it will rot and darkness will creep in or light will scorch all as the two once more resume their perpetual war unchecked. The balance broken. All on this world will die before the sickness and death spread to the other worlds.¡± That sounded bad. Very, very bad. ¡°So...no pressure?¡± I joked, hoping to lighten the mood. ¡°Perhaps. You can just return home if you must. No one would blame you.¡± She looked out the window, the sunlight streaming through and bleaching what little colour her aged skin had. She closed her eyelids, savouring the warmth. ¡°If the core truely is stolen...I give it two years before all is lost.¡± ¡°Well, Sanderson told me I would need to use the gate the Earth Humans are using from this side if I wanted to get home so it¡¯s not like I¡¯m just going to turn around and leave...besides, I made a promise, remember? Protect the planet, help the people. And I just know those dumb fucks from the Government stole the Core. Somehow.¡± ¡°It would be ridiculously difficult. The Temple of Balance is a fortress designed by the famous Juann De¡¯Cashilla to be a sanctuary during the first three way war.¡± ¡°...Yeah, I don¡¯t even know what to make of that. So much shit is just flying right past my head. Temple and Jean Cash whats-his-face and the threesome war. Let¡¯s just keep it simple. I¡¯m going to go talk to the Pack Alpha, make him understand that he needs to watch his people. After that, Nel and I will stop at the Citrus Pools and I¡¯ll perv...Paddle! I¡¯ll paddle around for a bit...and then I¡¯m going to come back here and you are going to load me up with so much gear I¡¯ll be a fucking traveling warehouse. Maps, Compass, Rope, tasty metal...maybe a telescope or something nice and shiny...then you¡¯ll show me on a map where to go and I¡¯ll handle the rest.¡± Saza nodded happily. The way she seemed to perk right up when I said I would stay to help was a little worrying. I wondered briefly if it was because she wanted my help or the Champions help. I decided it didn¡¯t matter. I was the Champion. Alexander Haha October...great I¡¯m A-HO. ...I also may have the inklings of a plan. It had crept into the back of my mind when Saza had said the Core powered the gate to the branch worlds. I¡¯d need to think on it. After that a much happier and carefree Saza directed me to the trunk, the same one from before, and told me to have a look inside. For the next five minutes I went clothes shopping at the bottom of an old, dusty, trunk. ¡°Take whatever you want from there. It all belonged to my brother and we can¡¯t have our Champion walking around with only one pair of pants, can we?¡± ¡°So the other Champions, the ones before me, they all came through fully dressed?¡± I asked, holding up a light green shirt and giving it a sniff. A little dusty but not too bad and it looked about my size. I added it to a small pile of stuff I¡¯d keep. ¡°Aye. Dressed and armoured, and ready for battle. Each as strong and dashing as the last. There¡¯s a reason all the children want to be Champions.¡± ¡°Well at least I¡¯ve got the strong and dashing part down.¡±This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. ¡°Strong-yes. Dashing-no. Oh, don¡¯t look at me like that! You must know that you are not the paramount of male beauty...though that body¡­¡± Ew-ew-ew! ¡°Best wipe that drool away before it stains your pretty dress...besides I should hope this body is good. It¡¯s custom made.¡± Saza struggled a little to stand up but finally managed it and tottered over to the pile of clothes I was planning to keep. Only after she had folded the two shirts and pants and curled up the old leather belt did she look at me. ¡°I have been meaning to ask...this body of yours...is it normal on Earth?¡± ¡°Not even close. If my own people knew what I was they¡¯d stick me in some lab underground and pull me apart to see how I tick. Sandy made me, then broke the mold,¡± I gave my best roguish grin. ¡°The face and height are all me, or modelled after my original features but with a little more meat on the bones. Everyone is malnourished in Dockside. I still have a few organs that are still mine and for the most part their real and functioning, though they¡¯re floating around in a cocktail soup of nanobots and chemicals to preserve them.¡± ¡°Is this necessary? The keeping of these organs?¡± ¡°Sanderson said yeah,¡± I shrugged and rubbed at my chest unconsciously. ¡°It was all part of his plan to make me more grounded. Psychologically speaking. This up here, my brain...it¡¯s all me, just with a little extra. But that extra wouldn¡¯t help me adjust to a body my brain knew wasn¡¯t mine so he compromised. My nervous system is still mostly me with a little controlling influence from the micro bot overlords, that means there¡¯s no disconnect between the old thinker up top and the body it¡¯s attached to.¡± ¡°But you still sleep and eat.¡± ¡°I can go without most human attributes, actually. Eating is more for pleasure, though it¡¯s advised I do it every now and again as the bots will break down the food for my human parts. Protein and all that crap. Oxygen is the same, I can hold my breath for ages but it¡¯s unnatural and I start to panic. It¡¯s like that with everything controlled by my Medulla.¡± I pulled out a worn cloak and held it up. It had a giant hole through it so I chucked it to the ¡®dispose of¡¯ pile. ¡°As for sleep. Brain is still mostly human and needs the rest, even if my body never really gets tired. If I don¡¯t sleep it¡¯s bad for my mental health. I start hallucinating and getting paranoid. It was not fun testing that one, Sanderson had to stop the trial early for fear of his health.¡± ¡°I must admit, most of the terms you use are beyond me. Your people¡¯s technological advancements are nothing short of incredible. But I believe I get the gist. You are human where it counts and artificial everywhere else.¡± Saza said, patting me on the shoulder in a gesture that reminded me of Mr. O¡¯mally. ¡°Sure. That works, I guess.¡± The old crones smile turned creepy and when she leant forward to whisper something at me, I just knew what she was going to ask. ¡°So, are you still all you below the belt? Hmm? Perhaps I should find out.¡± I knew it! Viziera my ass! She was nothing but a pervert...but then again so am I. ¡°You would break in the finding.¡± ¡°What would break when finding what?¡± Nel asked sticking her head through the doorway, the curtain parting around her pretty face. Saza and I both jumped like a couple of guilty kids with our hand in the cookie jar. Saza, being the more experienced pervert, recovered first and waved a hand casually through the air. ¡°Nothing of importance, apprentice. I was just getting to know our Champion. Are you packed?¡± ¡°Yeah...but...uhh..Champion...Alexander...There was something I wanted to, that is to say there¡¯s a favour, I mean not for me but,¡± Her eyes darted around the room as she mumbled something I couldn¡¯t hear. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Could you just come outside?¡± She asked, suddenly forceful. Sharing a shrug with Saza, I did as requested. Saza stopped me before I could leave though and passed over a simple sack with my new clothes in it. Nodding my thanks I threw it over my shoulder and went out. Nel stood on the porch berating her brother. Rima looked alot better than the last time I saw him, you know, not covered in blood and all that. He was still a little pale and there were circles under his eyes but he stood straight as his sister growled up at him. I took in his freshly armoured form, much like his masters but not as elaborate, and the spear slung across his back, the sword at his waist, and made a quick deduction. Listening to what Nel was saying may have helped a little. ¡°Why do I have to ask?¡± She hissed at him, one pointed finger jabbing at his metal chest plate with a soft ping. ¡°It is your request, Rimatrastorama. Do you not think it shows more backbone if the words come from your mouth and are not just repeated from mine.¡± ¡°I have seen the way he looks at you. He will agree if you ask,¡± her brother whispered back. To my augmented hearing he may have well have been shouting. ¡°And I do not know if he will allow me the same courtesy. Please, sister, this is important to me. Master has given his approval...though grudgingly.¡± ¡°He¡¯s standing right there! Just go and ask him!¡± ¡°Yo, Rima!¡± I called out loudly. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± Rima turned and shocked me with a low bow. Talk about a one-eighty in the attitude department! ¡°Champion, I am well. Thank you for asking.¡± I nodded. He didn¡¯t say anything more and Nel and Saza just stood there. The awkward silence stretched on and he started to fidget, his fingers drumming a beat against his thighs and his spider legs rubbed together behind him, the soft scraping noise coming from them sounded like a long constant sigh. ¡°I also wanted to say,¡± Rima coughed lightly. ¡°That... I am very sorry for my earlier actions. When we first met. You wore nothing but leaves and mud and my sister carried a bloodied spear. I believed the worst and thought you had attacked her and she was bringing you back as a prisoner. In my anger I acted rashly. I seek your forgiveness.¡± ¡°Yeah, sure. I mean, I¡¯m not thrilled, you drove a spear through me but I¡¯m okay and it¡¯s not like I didn¡¯t already get you back for it.¡± I gave an evil smile. ¡°And then some.¡± He bowed again. ¡°I take it you want to come along?¡± I asked, figuring I may as well move the conversation along if we were going to leave anytime today. ¡°Yes, Champion, if you will have me.¡± He stood straight, puffing out his chest. ¡°I can provide an extra layer of protection for my sister if the need arises.¡± Nel scowled and stomped her foot at the thought of needing protection. Oblivious, Rima continued. ¡°The Pack is not always understanding and they may turn aggressive, as is their way.. I also have Tima, who will be able to carry our packs, though I fear she cannot carry the three of us so we will have to walk, unless you wish to ride her.¡± He added the last part quickly. I just shook my head. I wasn¡¯t too keen on letting the giant lizard between my legs. ¡°also...I believe spending time with you will further my education. I received a gift from Aeris after our duel, among other things, and I can only imagine what more I could learn if given the chance.¡± I considered it for about a second. The only real downside I could see was that I wouldn¡¯t be able to ogle Nel quite so openly at the Citrus Pools but the extra protection balanced that out. Also I wouldn¡¯t mind borrowing his sword to see how it handled. ...Yes, I am aware of how that sounds. No, I¡¯m not talking about that sword. Moving on! ¡®You¡¯re in! Lets go.¡± I made an ushering motion towards the edge of the veranda while moving towards the rope ladder hanging from the side. Saza, being spider-limbless, needed another way to get to and from her nest. Thus, the ladder. Without thinking about it I dropped a light kiss on the top of Saza¡¯s head, like I imagine one does to a relative, and swung myself over the edge. My sack bounced between my shoulder blades as I ambled down to the forest floor. It¡¯s a lot harder going down a ladder with one hand than you would think. But I made it. Tima blew warm lizard breath in my face by way of greeting. Her thin, scale covered lips pulling back slightly to show dagger like teeth. "Aren¡¯t you just the prettiest girl in the whole wide world!¡± I cooed, scratching her under the chin. She tried to hiss at me threateningly, but with her eyes hooded in pleasure and the way her tail was thumping against the ground I didn¡¯t believe it for a second. A saddle was strapped to her back, leather thongs holding it in place between the raised bumps along her spine. I could make our three large packs, bulging at the seams, tied together near the centre and with an effortless heave, chucked my sack to join them. ¡°Shall we?¡± Nel said, sidling up to me. She was wearing a forest green cloak, the hood bunched up behind her head. Her dark curls were in a plait and she tucked it under her collar as I watched. The front of her cloak seperated with the movement revealing a tight fitting top, much like the one she had worn the first time I saw her, and a loose pair of pants that were cinched at the ankles. A small dagger hung at her waist on a thick belt made from plaited strips of leather, the silver hilt nestled among an assortment of little bags and pouches. ¡°What?¡± She asked, reaching under her cloak and adjusting a small satchel so it fit more snuggling against the gentle swell of her hip. I just smiled in reply. She looked like a sexy-ass rogue. My type of woman. We left the Brood with much less fanfare than I had expected, especially considering the...lets say, aggressive, introduction I had had. Saza waved at us from her perch, her body looking small and delicate so far away. I waved back, startled to realise that I would miss the old witch. Members of the Brood flickered above us as they hopped from tree to tree or ran across rope bridges. The gentle hum of their voices slowly fading as we got further and further away until all there was to hear were the sounds of the forest. Tima ambled along behind us, her serpentine form slithering through the underbrush silently. Occasionally she would turn and flick her tongue at me and I would smile and wink back. I think she liked me, and a part of me enjoyed a difficult pet. ¡°Look! There, you see that shrub with the dark blue bell shaped flowers? That¡¯s Umbrafell. They often grow in the darkest parts of the shadows. Saza uses the roots to boil a tea that helps with joint aches and fevers.¡± I nodded along, half listening and half watching. Nel would point excitedly at something or other that would catch her attention and then tell me all about it. In her excitement she often forgot to watch where she was walking and her spider legs were in constant motion, keeping her balanced so she didn¡¯t fall flat on her face. I was watching to see if she actually focused on where they went or if it was unconscious. So far it seemed unconscious. ¡°Oh! Oh! Alexander, Look!¡± She squealed excitedly, pointing at a butterfly the size of my head as it fluttered between two trunks. The large segmented wings were a deep rich red with purple highlights. I stared in wonder. There was nothing like that on Earth. Nel¡¯s finger jabbed at the air as she said ¡°And look, you see how it has the golden markings running along its body? That means its a fully matured Monarch. During mating season, he will be swarmed with female butterflies vying for his attention.¡± ¡°Lucky bastard.¡± Rima muttered from behind me and I smothered a laugh. The rest of the day continued in much the same way. Tima, burdened with our gear moved along without complaint as Nel flittered here and there, her body in constant motion and her rich voice echoing through the forest as she laughed and called out at some new and amazing wonder. Her simple joy was infectious and on more than one occasion I found myself smiling at her exuberance. Rima followed behind us silently, his head swiveling about like some bodyguard on duty. The dark circles under his eyes had faded and his colour was returning as his regeneration finished off healing him. Every now and again he would shadow box and I would try to watch out of the corner of my eye. As far as travel companions go, they weren¡¯t so bad and walking through a lush green forest wasn¡¯t nearly as dangerous as walking down central Dockside at night so I let myself relax. Oh yeah, I did nearly get eaten by a plant so there is that. Honest. Here¡¯s what happened. It was near dusk when Nel suggested we set up camp before it got too dark to see. Tima flopped to her stomach right there and then. The rest of us went about setting up our hammocks, made from the same white thread as everything else in the Brood, and collecting wood for a fire. Nel had suggested we go hunting because...well fresh meat. I agreed because...well fresh meat. What the two of them hadn¡¯t realised was that I had next to no hunting experience and even less wilderness training. So of course they slipped away with all the stealth of ninjas, and I went lumbering off in one direction like a drunken elephant. I was a fair hand at throwing, so a rock became my weapon of choice. I figured I would just brain whatever I found and that would be that. Biotic arm and augmented eye for the win! Now, as I have said, I have never actually hunted before and you have to keep in mind that this is an alien planet. So when I lifted a bush expecting to find a tasty rabbit and instead came face to face with a grasshopper the size of a large dog, it¡¯s understandable and completely manly of me to scream like a little school girl. When said grasshopper launched itself through the air and fastened it¡¯s creepy insect body to my face...it is also understandable that I freaked THE FUCK out. I got over it quickly though and I don¡¯t think that bug has ever flown so far, so fast, in its life before. By this point in my hunt I was convinced that heading back to camp was the smart option and turned to do just that. Little problem. Trees all look the same and I don¡¯t know where the hell the camp is. Now, do I scream for the others, possibly scaring away any game they may catch along with losing all self respect for myself, or do I blunder around like an idiot until I either get really lucky and stumble upon the camp, or get so lost I end up back on Earth. I picked the second option. That¡¯s how I walked into the venus fly trap to end all venus fly traps. The first clue I had that something wasn¡¯t right was when I stepped on a root that was a little too squishy to be a root. Thinking I had just put my foot in something rotten I pulled my leg straight up and the root came with it, the limp green thing now glued to my foot. It looked like some sick tentacle. Then it moved and I nearly lost my shit again. The vine or root or whatever it was twitched then shivered as black veins crept along its surface. With a tug it pulled me off my feet and started to drag me across the forest floor. Not only was that creepy as hell, it was a little embarrassing. I spat a clump of leaves out of my mouth then cussed when my skull bounced off a root. Sitting up while in motion was a little tricky and I kept tipping over sideways but I finally managed it. ¡°Fuck you!¡± I said to mother nature and tore the vine apart. I slid to a stop and sighed in relief before the bushes around me started to shake even more and I bowed my head in irritation. More vines, each thicker and longer than the last, slithered or sprung towards me. The black veins pulsed angrily just below the surface but that was okay my veins were pulsing as well. Only mine were orange and I was pissed. The first vegetable tentacle to reach me was crushed in my fist. The green sap bubbled and hissed as it dripped from between my fingers and I gagged at the smell. Which is saying something; garbage being a big part of my early years meant I was used to bad smells. One vine wrapped around my ankle and I reached down and tore it away. No sooner had I done that then another was creeping up my other leg. I hissed in annoyance and made to stand only to stagger back as another ropey green mass, this one as thick as my thigh, wrapped around my waist and pulled me down. This was just getting ridiculous. There were too many to squash and I don¡¯t think damaging it hurt whatever the hell it was. ¡°Fuck it,¡± I muttered to myself before going limp and letting the vines pull me away. ¡°Take me to your leader.¡± Hopefully I could punch that. Chapter 12 It was not pretty. In fact, when I finally got to see what the tentacle like vines were attached to I could safely say it was downright fugly. Twin rows of overlapping petals coloured in the brown and greens of rotting vegetation fanned out around the hole like mouth two feet off the forest floor. Thick viscous fluids looking black in the fading light dribbled out of the hole to coat each petal and dripped down to the forest floor in a steady stream. The horrid stench was coming from the drool or saliva or sap or whatever. The vines, including the ones pulling me ever closer, sprung out of the ground surrounding the mouth. It looked so out of place, surrounded by all the vibrant greens and browns of the forest, with its mottled green and brown flesh and dark pulsing veins. Although size wise, it fit right in. I could be swallowed whole. Well, almost. I¡¯m a big fucker. Overclocking to about 50% I got my feet under me and braced. Twin rows of mud were dug up as my heels dragged and I leant back to counterbalance the pulling vines. The light given off from my veins dyed the area in a warm glow as I pushed my overlocking to 60%. I just couldn¡¯t get the right leverage or friction needed to halt my forward momentum and the cannibalistic plant just kept right on reeling me in. I was close enough that I could see down its throat now. The mottled green and brown faded to a bruised purple further down its throat before being swallowed by darkness. The smell coming from in there was more than enough to make me want to upchuck the chestplate I¡¯d had for breakfast. It smelt like bile and infection and rotting meat. I stopped overclocking, best to save my energy. The tentacles lifted me off the ground, keeping me upright through sheer luck. There were now so many of them squirming all over me I was feeling a tad violated. I doubted the digestive juices of the...whatever it was, could truly hurt me, but I wasn¡¯t willing to go diving down its gullet head first to prove myself right. I considered my options quickly as the green peace enforcer moved me slowly towards its mouth. I could thrash around like mad, hope I got all the vines surrounding me, and then dig through the ground until I found the things main body and start with the beating. I could let it swallow me and then just burrow down through its body until it died or I got digested. I could yell for help, get found in an embarrassing situation, and never live it down. Not the greatest of options. I wasn¡¯t willing to go with the last because...well, It would be embarrassing if I kicked werewolf and arachnid ass only to be found struggling with a pot plant. The second option, while doable, wasn¡¯t great because I did not want to smell like the inside of that thing. So looks like I was going with the first option. I was just about to flood myself with energy when there was a hiss so loud and sudden that I got a shock and looked up in time to see a brown blur fall from the branches above and dive bomb the cluster of vines surrounding me. Tima, god bless her scaly ass, slashed with those long wicked talons of hers, severing the vines with ease. She hit the ground with a solid thump, throwing up leaves and dust. Still hissing like a demon and with her long serpentine tail lashing the air behind her she skipped back and forth from vine to vine her forelegs a blur. I sagged in the air as the tentacles around me loosened now that they were separated from their body. Each long limb sliding off me to fall to the forest floor. ¡°Yeah! Go Tima! Scratch that plant! Bite th-oh crap!¡± The last tentacle was severed and I feel the short distance to the ground, my knees buckling slightly on landing. Tima gave one last hiss to the monster plant before turning around and coming to stand behind me, her tail and head encircling my body protectively. The venus fly traps great grand father''s petals rose off the ground, each large petal seemed to flutter in the breeze, fresh mucus dropping from the edges in long viscous strands. ¡°You know, I really think It wants to eat me.¡± I said conversationally to Time. She just flicked her tongue out, her eyes slitted with anger. With Tima here a new plan started to form. If she could keep the vines off me long enough to approach the main body, maybe I could do some damage, especially now that it was pulling itself free from the soil. Mud rained down around the plant as it pushed through the dark soil, vines thicker than I had seen so far twined around each other to form octopus like legs that braced against the ground and heaved. A bell shaped underbelly was releaved, coated in mud. Tima and I both leant back so we could watch the stupid thing grow. On second thought, maybe Tima and I should just leave. It only tried to eat me. I can understand the urge to break of a little piece of Haha...Alexander...I am tasty afterall. I opened my mouth to tell Tima just that when a whooping battle cry filled the forest. Nel rushed towards us, her dark hair and cloak streaming behind her as she jumped over a bush, her spider legs flashing out when she hit the ground to launch her through the air again. Her hands fumbled around inside the satchel at her waist as she sped past the giant lizard and I. I overlocked, preparing to race after her and dive head first into that things mouth if I had to when I saw her pull a cloth pouch from her satchel and pull at the string holding it closed. With one fluid motion she stopped, all her legs bracing to stop her forward momentum, and she twisted slightly, lobbing the pouch through the air. Overlocking as I was everything moved in slow motion. I saw the pouch open as it twisted through the air, a fine black powder spilling from it in a fine cloud. I saw Nel open her mouth and shout ¡°NOW!¡± even as a vine came lashing towards her from the side. Rima entered my field of vision as he twisted through the air high above us. A torch was held in his hands, the flames dragging out behind him as he turned upside down. His body twisting around more vines that snaked through the air towards him. I flared more power and pushed off. Dirty exploded behind me and Tima hissed as the force made her fall sideways. I rocketed through the air as the cloud of black dust fell into the gaping maw of the plant and Rima threw his torch down its throat. I intercepted the vine before it could take Nel¡¯s head off. My body smacked into it hard enough that the appendage just exploded and I went right on flying. The ground was soft though and I bounced and rolled for a good ten feet, twigs and rocks poking into me. Using the momentum from the roll I twisted back onto my feet and turned back towards the very hungry vegetable only to pause in confusion. ¡°Uhh..what the fuck?¡± I asked. The plant was frozen. Literally. Its rotten looking flesh now had a sheen of fine ice covering it and gentle wisps of vapour wafted through the air. I gazed around at the dozens of vines still sticking out of the soil and shook my head in wonder. Each had the same frosted look. Rima slid down the trunk of the tree and rushed over to Nel who stood in front of the main body of the plant, her hands on her hips. Tima slunk over and curled up around them. I made my way over, feeling one of the vines as I stepped around it. It even felt cold. ¡°This is wrong.¡± I heard Nel mutter as I drew close. ¡°But it looks so right.¡± I said, stopping next to her and dusting myself off. She turned and her look of concern melted for a moment as she reached out to touch my arm. ¡°Thank you for stopping the root.¡± ¡°Root? I thought it was like a vine or something. You actually know what this is? Is it common around here?¡± I started looking around just in case more green tentacles sprung from the bushes. ¡°If I¡¯m right it¡¯s a Grove messenger, and those are indeed roots though they may seem like vines. The whole plant travels underground and the dozens of roots pull it through the soil with ease.¡± ¡°Sister, I have seen a Grove messenger and this is not one.¡± Rima scoffed. ¡°What makes you say that?¡± I looked around Nel at him but it was the woman herself that answered. ¡°The size.¡± She stepped forward and ran her hand along the bottom curve of the frozen creatures bell like body. Its mouth still towered above us. ¡°A normal Grove messenger is no bigger than your palm. The dryads take a seed and sing to it in the old tongue, their words wrapping power and life around the little pod until it grows big enough to burrow. They then whisper into her mouth and the petals close and the newly born messenger digs its way down deep using its roots and travels to wherever it is meant to. Once they have reached their destination the petals unfurl and the words echo back out.¡± ¡°A very effective way of communication.¡± Rima grunted as he folded his arms across his chest. ¡°Hard to intercept.¡± I¡¯d say. ¡°Do they normally have those black veins?¡± I pointed to one of the tree trunk like mass of vines. The black veins, now a dark frosted blue, were still clearly visible, though once the sun set completely in a few more minutes they wouldn¡¯t be. ¡°I have no clue what those are,¡± Nel said, her voice shaking a little with worry. ¡°But I fear for the Grove. The Dryads are a private, secluded race, but they are peaceful and have never been enemies of the Brood. If this messenger was meant to reach us but succumbed to some dark infection I can only imagine it originated in the Grove.¡±This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it ¡°Or is was created by the Dryads and they sent it to attack the Brood.¡± Rima growled. His hand falling to the pommel of his sword. I wondered where his spear was. ¡°I doubt it,¡± I said, adding my two cents. ¡°Or they would be more. You guys handled this one pretty easily...I had it all under control by the way.¡± Nel gave me a look that said she wasn¡¯t buying what I was selling and grinned when I winked at her. Rima bowed his head and said with so much sincerity I thought he might have been joking. ¡°Forgive our intrusion Champion, we were only hoping to be of some assistance. If we had known it was an official challenge I would have insisted we allow you to test your prowers of combat against this abomination, and I would have been the first to raise a tankard of ale at your inevitable victory.¡± ¡°Kiss-ass¡± Nel coughed into her hand. I just rolled my eyes. ¡°Talking about assistance, what did you do to it? What was that powder?¡± ¡°Saza calls it Mimic Powder,¡± Nel shrugged selconciously at the name before explaining quickly. ¡°She says it¡¯s a compound that tries to take on the property of an added stimulant. When Rimatrastorama threw his torch into its throat the powder tried to mimic a fire and pulled heat from the only place it could.¡± ¡°The plant!¡± I said, catching on. I was impressed. Saza would get on well with Sandy. ¡°Yes. The plant. Saza is the only one who knows how to make it and only ever has a small batch. What you just saw was all I had.¡± ¡°So, what do we do with it?¡± Rima asked. Tima hissed from behind us. ¡°Smash it.¡± I said. They all turned to look at me. ¡°What! Don¡¯t tell me I''m the only one thats thinking it?¡± ¡°You are indeed wise.¡± Rima said, bowing his head. ¡°You have a very one track mind don¡¯t you Alexander?¡± Nel smiled fondly when she said it though so I didn¡¯t take offence. Okay, I took a little offence, no one likes being called simple. Tima gave a hiss and stuck her head in the air. Back to acting like she didn¡¯t like me. Sassy old girl. In the end we went with my suggestion and smashed the fucking thing. I thought it was going to be fun, like in the funny holovids where you punch something frozen and it just shatters. Turns out ice is hard and the sheer size of the thing made it a long exhausting process. By the end of it my power levels were dangerously low, Rima was panting like an old Earth steam engine and Nel was looking gorgeously disheveled. The sun had set some time ago and Nel had used a tinderbox from her satchel to light another torch made from a nearby branch and some weird jelly like substance she had scooped out of a jar. The Jelly burnt slow and bright. The bits and pieces of the mutated messenger were starting to thaw and the horrid smell was back. I pressed the back of my arm against my nose to try and filter it out but it still made my eyes water. Rima wasn¡¯t faring much better and Tima had disappeared. Tip toeing through the semi-frozen mush Nel made her way to all that remained of the main body. A chunk of the bottom that now looked like a giant bowl. She peered over the edge, one hand pinching her nose shut while the other reached inside. She pulled out a little green gem, about the size of a pea, and held it up for us to see. ¡°The original seed.¡± She told us. Prize in hand and carnivorous plant defeated we made a hasty retreat back to camp. I was not the one leading of course. Turns out I hadn¡¯t actually gone that far, that''s how they had gotten to me so quickly. Tima was already waiting when we broke through the last bush and walked into the small clearing. Her large body was curled up around our packs and she barely raised her head. I gave her head a quick stroke of thanks for her help earlier and she hummed deep in her throat before she remembered that she didn¡¯t like me and turned away. Nel got the fire going while Rima showed off his catch. Surprise, surprise, it was the giant cricket thing that had jumped on my face. I even think it was the same one. Needless to say, I found a great deal of satisfaction in eating it. It tasted a little like processed soy-chicken...but juicier. Rima had pierced it with a stick and held it over the fire until its green shell had turned a soft brown colour. Cracking it open was a bit of a chore but other than that...yum yum. ¡°Should we head back and tell the Brood?¡± Rima asked as he gnawed on a leg. Juices smeared his face and covered his chin. Nel considered it as she picked daintily at her food, the shelled abdomen balanced on her knees like a plate as we all sat around the fire. I, having a fear of fire, sat a little further back but I don¡¯t think they noticed. ¡°The Grove is not that far from the Pack. We could check on them once we are finished with Blackpelt.¡± She looked at Rima and I, expecting an argument, but we just nodded along. It didn¡¯t make much difference to me. I was eager to go human hunting but a day either way didn¡¯t make much difference. ¡°I doubt the messenger was meant as an attack on the Brood, it was never meant for battle afterall.¡± ¡°Could have fooled me. Those vines..sorry, roots...were annoying to deal with.¡± I said, picking at a bit of meat stuck in my back molar. ¡°The messenger used it to catch bugs and worms and other small lifeforms when not travelling. I I imagine its dietary intake once it became so large changed to larger mammals and you were just unlucky enough to become a replacement.¡± ¡°Great. I¡¯ve been relegated to be an Earthworm replacement...though I guess it¡¯s an Aerisworm here.¡± ¡°And that was the last mistake it ever made Champion.¡± Rima said, holding up a fist and shaking it. ¡°Thanks buddy.¡± I said. It was nice of him to say, considering I hadn¡¯t done anything in the brief fight. Nel rolled her eyes at our weird bonding moment and continued. ¡°Even if it were not, the Brood is more than capable of defending itself without us. I¡¯m sure Zavanrosiphra can handle any threat they may face.¡± Rima nodded vigorously at the mention of his mentor. ¡°You¡¯re thinking Saza would want more information don¡¯t you?¡± I asked Nel. She nodded, a dark lock of hair bouncing at the movement and her red eyes flashed in the firelight as she leant forward. ¡°Something strange is going on. First the Forgotten and now this. Saza will want all the information we can gather and it makes more sense for us to gather it all now rather than make trips back and forth to the Brood whenever something comes up.¡± ¡®Works for me. Rima?¡± ¡°My sister is wise and I will follow your lead Champion.¡± ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll take first watch, then Nel, then Rima?¡± Getting nods all around we finished our meal in companionable silence and the two Denvii curled up in their hammocks to get some rest. Tima remained curled around the fire for warmth, snoring softly. Feeling strangely at peace for someone who was almost eaten by a plant a few hours ago I settled down with my back to the fire and powered up my vision and hearing augments. The forest around me brightened and new sounds drifted around me. - Our second day of travel started a lot more sober than our first. We broke camp early, the first weak rays of sunlight barely making it through the thick tree cover, and set off at a steady pace. Each lost in their own thoughts. I shook off my morose mood the quickest and worked at the other two. Rima was easiest. I just had to mention how impressed I was with his quick actions in the fight and he just about glowed under the praise. Tima¡¯s scales ruffled as I heaped praise on her also. The same strategy didn¡¯t work on Nel though but I found what did. I just had to point at something and say ¡°Wow! What¡¯s that?¡± and off she went from there. I think by the time we bedded down for the night I knew more about the local flora and fauna than Rima who showed absolutely no interest in our conversation. He did stop to mention that throwing a rock was not the best way to hunt an Akripa (the cricket thing.) ¡°Break shell and spoil meat.¡± was his reason. None of us were particularly interested in hunting fresh game that night and instead had a simple meal of some seedy bread roll (Actual seed. I don¡¯t mean that the bread roll looked seedy) and dried meat that Nel had packed for us. True to Nels estimate, on the early morning of the third day we reached the border dividing the territory between the Brood and the Pack. The trees just stopped. That was the border. One second I¡¯m walking along, hopping over Tima¡¯s tail as she kept trying to trip me, surrounded by the skyscraper sized trees and the next second I was blinded by sunlight. I hadn¡¯t realised how truly gloomy it was inside the forest until I was out and under direct sunlight. A gentle breeze tickled my skin and I squinted out over a sea of rolling green grass that led to a river far off in the distance. Sunlight bounced of the waters surface in crystal like sparks. Trees, normal sized and more bushy than any I had seen so far, dotted the field. ¡°The Pack¡¯s lair is across the river.¡± Nel said, an arm raised to cover her eyes. After a quick break so the other two could rest and drink some water we set off again. The grass came up to my waist and I ran my palm along the pointy tips, smiling as they tickled and ran along underneath my touch. ¡°Don¡¯t really have grass back home.¡± I muttered to Nel as she looked at me quizickly. It was a lovely day and I spent as much time looking up at the blue sky watching the clouds float past as I did admiring the carpet of grass. The long stalks were pressed aside as Tima slithered through it and I laughed at her unintentional imitation of a shark in deep water. The day turned hot as the sun settled overhead and Rima removed his shirt. I was not impressed. When Nel removed her cloak and loosened the straps of her top around her neck so the neckline dipped low I nearly swallowed my tongue. More than once I found my eyes tracking a bead of sweat as it ran down her neck and over the upper swell of her full breasts. Her darkly tanned skin glowed in the sunlight and her eyes sparkled mischievously when she caught me looking. The river once we reached it was a slow moving affair. It was roughly fifty feet from bank to bank. I was impressed with the crystal clear clarity of the water; a far cry from the dirty grey liquid of Earth. I could see the multicolored river stones and the occasional bright flash as the sun reflected off fish scales as they swam by. Tima eyes the water suspiciously from the bank, her eyes slitted against the reflected glare. With a whoop of joy Rima ran and jumped off the bank. His body seemed to float in a beautiful curving arc through the air as he twisted about and dived head first into the water. ¡°Rima!¡± Nel called out before letting out a sigh of relief as her brothers head broke the surface and he wiped water out of his eyes. Then his shoulder emerged and then his stomach, until he was standing up to his waist. ¡°Champion,¡± he called out, rubbing his head. ¡°The water is shallow around these parts and are suitable for you to cross.¡± ¡°That had to hurt.¡± I muttered to Nel, not taking my eyes off her brother. ¡°Luckily he has always had a hard head.¡± She muttered back and I laughed. Sliding down the river bank she pushed aside the reeds the ran along the edge and ended up in water up to her navel, the slowly running current sent little waves against the bottom curve of her breasts and she hissed, her arms raising out of the water. I could see her flesh goosepimple. ¡°Cold. Cold. Cold!¡± I could tell. Her nipples, hardened into twin nubs from the cold, pressed against the fabric of her top and I tried not to stare to openly. Theres'' a difference between appreciating and creeping. Tima let out another hiss and started to back away slowly and I just about followed her. The temperature wasn¡¯t my problem. The water was. Let¡¯s just say I¡¯m not a big fan of drowning. ¡°Alexander! Tima! Come on.¡± Nel called over her shoulder as she started to wade across. One day a pretty woman was going to tell me to jump in lava and my stupid hormones were going to kill me. I guess I should be happy I still had them though. Thank you Sanderson! Chapter 13 ¡°Your head still hurting?¡± I asked Rima as we approached a small cluster of trees. He looked at me, his shirt hanging around his neck to dry. ¡°No Champion. My gift has long since healed it,¡± he smiled tentatively. ¡°Though the sting of embaressent remains.¡± ¡°Meh, you have the same problem I do: You jump without looking.¡± I patted my chest proudly. ¡°The woman dig it.¡± ¡°We do not!¡± Nel called over her shoulder from her place at the head of the line. I heard Tima hiss from somewhere to my left but didn''t bother looking. We ignored them both. ¡°Hey, Rima, you know how you said your gift heals you...well, is there some way to tell what each gift does?¡± I brought up my screen and looked at it with a frown. ¡°Because mine only says the gift name.¡±
Name: Alexander Haha October Class: Champion Race: Biotic humanoid. Evolution: I Stored Mass: 21.75963kg Total Mass: 386.75963kg
Integrity : 100% 365kg MCR (Mass Conversion Rate): 2.01/sec MCR In combat: .88/sec Physical Mass:365kg
Power levels: 99.99% ARR (Ambiant Recharge Rate): 0.026/sec
Micro-Evolution: 1/4 terms met Unlocked Evolutionary Skills: - Human (Augmented)
Primary Skills:
  • Bloodied Brawler (U)
  • Small arms (Un)
  • Negotiation (A)
Talent:
  • Iron bones (You remain unbroken under even the strongest of blows.)
  • Iron skin (You remain unscathed under all but the sharpest of blades)
  • Iron Stomach (You remain undaunted by all but the strangest of meals)
  • Iron Will (You remain unbent under the power of others)
  • Artificial Being. (Not of flesh and blood you are immune to diseases and poisons)
  • Fighter. (You have struggled since the day you were born. Only through blood sweat and tears have you achieved all that you have and all that you are!)
Allignment Interest - Primary World Aeris views you with interest. Aeris awaits the need to aid or destroy you
Gifts - Gift of Tongues - Gift of Transmutation - Gift of Advanced Mass Conversion
Rima tilted his head to the side in thought, his top knot bobbing with the movement. ¡°When we access our stat screen we simply will it to be and it appears before our eyes and if we require more information we simply focus on that part of the table.¡± With nothing better to do as we trudged along I looked down at my palm and focused on the gifts tab. Nothing happened except I went a little cross eyed. Annoyed, I jabbed at it with a finger but that had much the same effect. It wasn¡¯t until I pressed and held my finger on it that the tab expanded and I whooped triumphantly.
Gift of Tongues
  • Recipient has been gifted with the ability to speak and understand any language.
  • Does NOT give recipient ability to read or write any language.
Well I kinda figured that out by myself, cause I¡¯m smart.
Gift of Transmutation (LOCKED)
  • Recipient has been gifted with the ability to alter the state of being of base metals and elements.
  • Known transmutations include Iron > Steel, Nickel > Platinum, Lead > Gold.
  • Power consumption may vary for each transmutation.
I don¡¯t know what that hell that even meant. Could I swallow a ball of Iron and upchuck some Steel? Every time I got injured I lost a bit more of my original nanobots and synthetic skin. So far, the existing nanobots had been using the iron and scrap metal I¡¯d been eating to build new ones, so does that mean that the new nanobots were made from cheap iron and I was actually making myself weaker every time I fought? What happens if something actually broke my bones and it got repaired with subpar metal? Crap!! I heard Rima say something to me but I just shushed him. My brain deep in thought. If I could get this transmutation gift working and found out how to alter the makeup of metal as I digested it...I could get a serious upgrade...once I found a blacksmith that could explain metals to me since I know jack shit about that.
Gift of Advanced Mass Conversion
  • Recipient has been gifted with the ability to convert stored mass to integrity at an advanced rate.
  • Current rate out of combat: 2.01 lbs/sec
  • Current rate during combat: 0.88 lbs/sec
Current rate...so I could increase that. Interesting. ¡°Alexander!¡± Nel barked, pulling me from my thoughts. I looked up to see we were at the tree line. According to Nel, the Pack lived somewhere in that area, their huts built among the trees. Normal sized trees. I feel I need to just point that out. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. I closed my fist, dissolving my screen and nodded at Nel. Seeing she had my attention she motioned us to follow her. It wasn¡¯t so much a forest as a cluster. The trees were spaced well enough apart that sunlight could stream down from above unfettered. The branches swayed gently in the breeze, their shadows dancing along the ground. More sun meant more small plants though and I found myself constantly pushing through a bush or stepping around a small tree. Ferns clustered against tree trunks, their bright green leaves unfurled in the midday heat. ¡°The Pack isn¡¯t too far in. They use these woods to train their young before allowing them to travel further away. The forests near the Citrus Pools are often full of game and a favourite of theirs.¡± Nel told us, stepping over a cluster of red topped mushrooms the size of my hand. Her spider legs were held tight against her back, two of them though wrapped around her hips and hung against her thighs. It reminded me of the first time we had met and I thought it was leg armour. ¡°Feels wrong.¡± Rima muttered from behind me as he pulled his shirt back on. Tima hissed quietly in support. ¡°Too quiet.¡± We all stopped. The two Denvii cocked their heads to listen and I boosted my hearing augments. Rima was right, it was too quiet. I wasn¡¯t an expert on forest sounds but dead silence didn¡¯t seem like the appropriate answer. The sun suddenly didn¡¯t seem bright enough. The shadows around us turned dark and menacing, stretching out obscenely to cover us. Or at least that¡¯s what it seemed like to me. Nothing had changed but my unease mounted as I looked around. Nel moved closer to me, whether conscious or not the movement had a cascading effect and all of a sudden Rima and Tima were joining in on the group huddle. There is something naturally creepy in silence. ¡°Let¡¯s keep moving.¡± I whispered before pushing to the front of the group. ¡°I¡¯ll take point. Tima and Nel in the middle. Rima, I want you to stay in the back. Call out if you see anything.¡± We all fell into place and with a whispered word of direction from Nel we moved on. I wasn¡¯t nearly as stealthy as I would have liked, being much too heavy and much to city for it, and I could just feel the group flinch whenever a stick snapped under my tread or leaves crunched. ¡°It¡¯s close!¡± Nel¡¯s breath was warm against my skin as she leant forward to whisper in my ear. I could feel the gentle brush of her hair against my neck and fought down a shiver. I crouched down behind a tree, the other three dropping low and moving closer. Pushing more power to my hearing I turned my head and focused. ¡°I don¡¯t hear anything...no birds...no insects...no voices...it¡¯s just silent.¡± I slowed down my breathing then cut it off completely. My body becoming stiff as a statue as I filtered out everything but sound. ¡°I hear...a droning noise...or a buzzing...I know that sound.¡± I whispered. ¡°Flies. Lots and lots of flies.¡± I had a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. The last time I had heard that noise was when I¡¯d walked down an alley and found a pack of flies feasting on a dead cat. This was a lot like that, only louder. A lot louder. ¡°Nelzarastorama, perhaps you should wait here.¡± Rima told his sister. It looked like he knew what to expect as well. Nel was having none of it. She pushed me gently towards the source of the noise, her pretty features set in firm unyielding lines. The trees gave way to a small glade surrounded by little wooden huts. It was beautiful with its green meadow of short rippling grass. Wildflowers bloomed around the structures, the reds and pinks and oranges bright and vibrant. Fruit trees stood next to small vegetable plots fenced in with small wooden fences. It was beautiful. It was horrifying. Bodies lay everywhere covered in flies and crawling insects. We took a step forward and with a horrid dronning buzz the flies on the closest corpse took flight. Nel gasped and Rima cursed. I felt the muscles in my jaw bunch as I grit my teeth at the sight of the body lying on its stomach. It must have been a woman at one point, the frame was too slight to be a man. Fur, matted with dry blood squirmed as insects burrowed through it. A breeze brought the smell of decay and rot to us and I spat. I crouched down for a better look at the body, the rest of the group hanging back. The fur ran along her back before growing shaggy and wild around her head. Sharp, wolfen ears poked out of the tangled mess. Gripping one cold, hairy shoulder I gently rolled her over. The fur wrapped around her ribs before thinning out over her chest and navel and leaving her face bare. Her throat was torn out, flaps of skin and gristle surrounding a gaping hole. Four long slashes ran parallel down her chest, from the left shoulder down over her breasts and ending by her right hip. Another set of similar claw marks bisected her stomach. The skin I could see under the fur was pale and bloated, decay already setting in. I let the body roll back and stood, dusting at my hands reflexively. ¡°A-Alex,¡± Nel whispered from behind me, her voice wobbling. ¡°What happened here?¡± I don¡¯t think she was expecting an answer and I had none to give her. A wild animal attacked a pack of werewolf creatures and slaughtered them? It was ridiculous. I moved further into the glade, the rest following along. I swatted at random flies that got in my way and looked around for clues. ¡°Do all these bodies belong to the Pack?¡± I asked over my shoulder. ¡°Are there any that don¡¯t look like they belong?¡± ¡°No, Champion. Not from what I can see.¡± Rima¡¯s voice was thin and I gave him a nod of encouragement. Nel just shook her head, her hands covering her mouth against the sight and smell. A male Pack member was laying half in and half out of his cabin, dried blood staining the wood a rusty red. We walked past and I saw that he was actually all out. The part of him that was meant to be in, the part from the waist down, was missing. ¡°Thats the Alpha¡¯s Cabin!¡± Nel said, pointing at the largest building. I walked around a mother daughter pair holding hands and scowled when the flies went right back to the bodies after we passed. ¡°They aren¡¯t eaten.¡± Rima growled. Anger was good. Anger pushed you to action and I didn¡¯t want him freezing up. ¡°No, they aren¡¯t.¡± I agreed. Nel caught on a second later, her dark red eyes going wide. ¡°You¡¯re saying they were just...killed! For no reason. Just slaughtered! Woman! Children! Men! Boys! They were a family and...and...and something just killed them!¡± I was used to senseless violence. Seen it enough times to know that it was just that, sensless. What concerned me was the claw marks found on the first victim. It hinted at a clawed animal, but an animal capable of this level of violence had to be a predator and what predator attacks the camp of larger, multiple predators. and there was no other body other than Pack! Rima pulled his spear off Tima, his knuckles going white as he gripped the shaft and looked around. He was a warrior and hunter, he knew how prey and predator acted. He was thinking the exact same thing I was. Three wooden steps led up to the door into the Alpha¡¯s longhouse and I cast one last look over my shoulder. My gaze settled on Tima. ¡°Sorry girl, but your too big to fit inside.¡± I said. Tima hissed, her tongue flicking across scaly lips as her tail thrashed at the air. She wasn¡¯t happy and I was about to give her company. ¡°I also think you two should stay here.¡± I said to Rima and Nel. They opened their mouth to argue but I just talked over them. ¡°How likely is it that Blackpelt is inside, alive and well and waiting for a meeting? It¡¯s more than likely he¡¯s in there dead or out there dead.¡± I pointed out over the glade. ¡°And all of us stomping in there will just make it crowded. I¡¯ll go have a quick look see and you lot can keep watch out here. Yell if you see something.¡± I leapt up the stairs before they could complain and entered the building. Windows high up on the wall let a little light in and I could see a fire pit taking up the centre of the room, the stones and ash were cold. The little stack of firewood had toppled over and pieces of timber about as long as my forearm and as thick as my thigh lay scattered about the room. I stepped over them quietly, boosting my visual augments so I could see better. There were signs of a struggle. A tapestry hung askew on one wall, the edge torn. A chair was laying on its side. A table was flipped upside down, a bowl scattered and broken around it. Blood splatter covered one wall, the drops a dark shadow against the light wood. There was a door leading to the rest of the house on the far wall and as I picked my way through the clutter I heard the creak of wood. I bent my knees, expecting something to come charging out of the back room and felt foolish when nothing happened. This whole place had me on edge. The door was laying on the floor and I crouched down to run my fingers along the inch deep grooves dug in the wood. That was weird. I looked at the doorway then back down to the door. If I was looking at this right and assuming the door was meant to open to my right, like a normal door, then the scratches were on the inside of the door. The Alpha had trapped the creature in his own house? I walked into the back room, ready to overclock at a moments notice. It was a study, I think. Bookshelves lined the walls around a small fireplace with a stuffed deer head over it. Soft cushioned seats were situated around the room with small coffee tables. It was small and homey and nothing like I expected a werewolf home to look like. Denvii, I remembered, were a balance between man and beast. Guess this was more a man pad than a beast pad. The damage in the room was limited to the chairs and a few books but as I turned I saw more scratches marring the wall surrounding the doorway. I looked to the next doorway, this one open and it¡¯s door still attached. I was starting to think that maybe the Alpha hadn¡¯t trapped the beast in here. I was starting to think the Alpha was the beast in here. I heard the creak again. This time it morphed into a groan, as if something big and very very heavy was moving. The sound was coming from the next room. The creak came again and a hand gripped the edge of the door frame. A hand with thick hairy fingers tipped with claws that dug into the wood. I saw the tendons stand out in sharp relief as the hand pulled at the wood, dragging whatever bulk it owned towards the doorway. ¡°Fuck.¡± I muttered as I caught sight of the black veins creeping up each finger like rotten worms. Chapter 14 ¡°Well shit.¡± I muttered, watching the monster try to fold himself through the doorway. With one final heave of his large muscular shoulders and a growl so low and deep I felt it in my toes the giant wolf pulled itself free. He had to be standing near ten feet, his long pointed ears brushing the rafters even as he hunched over. Fur, blacker than night and streaked with white covered him from head to toe in a thick coat, fading out around his chest and abs. He took a step forward and the floor groaned. One long clawed hand reached out, the muscles flexing and bunching as he moved, and he casually ran his nails over the spines of the books. The other hand held a massive battle axe in an almost casual grip. I took a step back, my head craned back so I could stare up into those dark melavent eyes. I noticed the black veins also ran along his scellera and when he pulled his lips apart to snarl his gums looked rotten, the stench of decay wafted over me. ¡°Uhh...Blackpelt?¡± I asked because who else could it be. The Alpha growled again, spittle flying from his lips as they vibrated and he took one step forward, the floorboard actually breaking. He opened his maw wide and howled. The books shook in the shelves and I nearly dropped to my knees at the auditory onslaught. I reached up to cover my ears. It was so loud my balance was actually affected and I wobbled. With an almost contemptuous movement Blackpelt backhanded me. I flew across the room and smacked into the wall hard enough to splinter the wood and cracks spreading out from my point of impact. I hung there for a moment, my vision bouncing all over the place, before I fell to the floor with a soft thump. My brain is still human and given enough of a thump I can still get knocked out, it¡¯s just really hard. Blackpelt almost did it with a simple backhand. I let out a growl of my own, pushing against the floor as I tried to level myself to my feet. I had to hold onto the wall for support. I don¡¯t think anything was broken though so thank god for small favours. Balckpelt looked confused to see me alive. His great big head twisted to the side as he observed my hunched form. A tongue, mottled black and pink, snaked out to lick his dry and cracked lips. One of his ears swiveled to the side and I could hear the others outside calling my name. Fuck! ¡°You don¡¯t look so good,¡± I said, trying to draw his attention back to me. It sort of worked, his eyes stayed locked on me but his ear kept twitching. ¡°Looks like you got the same weird disease as this plant that tried to eat me earlier. Ugly fucking thing. You don¡¯t look much better, If I¡¯m being honest.¡± I pushed off the wall and straightened to my full height, which was woefully unimpressive when compared to the towering slab of muscle that was the Alpha. Orange lines started to streak across my body as I overclocked and my fists clenched. I tucked my chin down and raised my arms, a feral grin every bit as toothy as Balckpelts stretching my mouth wide. ¡°Come on big boy, show me what an Alpha¡¯s got.¡± Wood broke with a resounding crack as he pushed off the floor and swung with his axe. His arms were so long and the weapon so huge that it actually plowed through the books on one bookcase, sending the contents everywhere. I ducked through the shower of paper and wood, hearing the whistle of the axe blade as it flew over my head. I stepped forward in a low lunge. I needed to get inside his reach and neutralize the threat of that weapon. The Alpha twisted back around at the waist, trying to control the momentum of his swing and I took the opportunity offered. I drilled a straight left into the side of his knee, hoping to buckle it enough that, once added to his twisting momentum, he would fall to the side. No luck. He brought his arms around and dropped the butt of his axe between my shoulder blades and I let out a weeze. The blow driving me to the floor. Blackpelt didn¡¯t wait for me to recover and instead pulled his foot back before punting me like a ball. There was a crack, loud as a gunshot, and I felt a part of my rib break as I went airborne. I hit the same wall as before but this time I went through. Dust, wood chips, and splinters blew out around me as I went flying into the next room and hit the ground in a ragged roll. I fetched up against the fire pit I¡¯d admired when I first entered the house. ¡°Alex!¡± ¡°Champion!¡± Shaking the stars from my vision I looked up at the concerned faces of Nel and Rima. What were they doing here? I coughed out a glob of shiny metallic blood and sat up. Dust rained from my hair and got in my eyes. ¡°What are you doing in here?¡± I growled at them. ¡°Get out! RUN!¡± I screamed the last part, pushing Rima away from me as I heard the familiar creak and groan of the Alpha approaching. I got to my feet and tore my shirt from my chest. Using it as a rag I wiped the dust and crap from my face and out of my eyes. Rima and Nel stood frozen, their eyes round as saucers as they looked at the hulking behemoth trying to squeeze through the door and into the main room. I grabbed them both by the shoulder, none to gently, and started pushing them towards the exit. ¡°You guys need to get gone! He¡¯s been infected just like with the messenger plant thing...only worse.¡± There was the splintering crack of wood and Blackpelt, obviously tired of trying to squeeze through, just broke the door frame. ¡°He¡¯s forgotten!¡± Nel hissed before raising her voice and calling out. ¡°Alpha Blackpelt! My name is Nelzarastorama, I¡¯m apprenticed to Saza of the Brood! You are out of balance with your human side and are suffering from some type of infection. Please let us help you!¡± Blackpelt didn¡¯t reply. He just lifted the axe and tested its weight by giving it a few practice swings. ¡°Out! Out! OUT!¡± I pushed them through the door and turned in time to see the Alpha lunge across the fire pit, his legs pushing the firewood and furniture aside with complete disregard. Flaring as much power as I dared I threw myself forward in a shallow spear tackle. A shudder went through me as I made contact with one shin. Like I¡¯ve said before, I¡¯m a heavy fucker and no matter how strong Blackpelt was, I still took his leg out from under him. The whole building shook, dust raining down from the rafters, as the Alpha went sprawling. Not wasting the opportunity I rolled over, not even getting to my feet, and threw myself onto his back. Grabbing handfuls of the thick matted hair covering his body I climbed up his back towards his head even as he slowly pushed himself upright. I straightened out one hand, aiming my sharpened nails at the spot between his ribs and drove my hand forward with all the power of a piston. The Alpha made a noise other than a growl or howl for the first time since the beginning of the fight. A low coughing bark. My hand sunk into his back up to my second knuckle before stopping and I frowned. How dense was this fucker! Black blood bubbled out from between my fingers and I smelled the same disgusting stench as the messenger. With a growl I felt through his body Blackpelt finally gained his feet, my own dangling down near his butt and the free clawed hand rached round and grabbed me by the ankle. With one great heave of his shoulders I went sailing through the air again, a clump of his fur still in my fist. I clipped my hip on the doorframe as I flew through it and spun awkwardly through the air before landing hard enough to dig a furrow in the earth with my elbow. I stopped with my back propped against Tima¡¯s forelegs and the two Denvii rushed forward to help me up. I felt something warm and sticky run over my upper lip and brushed it away with the back of my arm. I looked down at the telltale red smear of blood and tried to get a good look at my own nose. ¡°Champion, are you okay?¡± Rima asked, his eyes full of concern.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Nel looked like she was about to cry as she patted me down for injuries. I took stock: Broken nose. Broken ribs. Possible punctured lung. Thrown around like a rag doll. Bruised and battered. I spat blood to the side and bared my teeth in a grin, my eyes locked on the door to the longhouse. I¡¯d never felt so alive. Sanderson had done a bit too good of a job with my new body and it had been a long time since I¡¯d had a challenging fight. I let go of my energy, the orange glow fading from my skin, and pushed both Nel and Rima away. With slow deliberate movements I stomped on the ground, testing my footing. Next I ground my heel into the soil. It was soft and malleable, so bracing against a blow would be hard, I¡¯d just slide everywhere and dig up clumps of dirt. Next I twisted my torso and was pleased to see I still had a full range of motion, even with the fucked up ribs, there was a slight twinge of pain but nothing too severe. I saw a shadow moving in the depths of the house but ignored it. Taking a deep breath I concluded my lung wasn¡¯t punctured which was good, I didn¡¯t want to be coughing up blood for the whole fight. Next and I ran a finger along my nose to see if it was broken and was surprised to feel it wasn¡¯t. Oh, right. Healing mass conversion. Oops. The shadow moved into the light streaming through the doorway and I saw the Alpha peer outside at me. I gave him the finger and laughed low in my throat. ¡°You three need to move away. I can¡¯t guarantee your safety.¡± I told them. They didn¡¯t move and I rolled my eyes before pushing them from my thoughts. It was fight time and if they got in the way...well I had warned them so I was no longer responsible. I quickly checked my stats. My integrity was inching up towards 100% and I still have roughly 17 lbs of stored mass left. My bones are dense and healing the rib must have taken quite a bit of material. Probably had to repair some broken muscle strands and crap too. My power levels were at 83%, which was better than I had expected. All in all, I was ready to get to it! Blackpelt struggled with the door again and I took the time to slowly start walking towards him. I¡¯d have to stay close to him and move fast if I was planning on walking away from this. I didn¡¯t know how well he healed, but if it was anything like the previous Forgotten then I needed to pile on the damage until it outstripped his regen or destroy the brain, zombie style. The Alpha popped from the doorway and stumbled down the steps. I overclocked as I sprung forward to meet him. The first swing of his axe sailed over my head and I dropped to a knee, my speed dragging me under the blow and I slid in the mud to stop a little behind him. I twisted at the waist, driving a closed fist into the back of his right knee, the joint buckled forward but he didn¡¯t fall. Blackpelt twisted around and I twisted with him, rolling sideways from my kneeling position, so I once more came up behind him. I threw the same punch to the same knee. He stumbled again and then, with an angry growl, he twisted twisted around faster this time with his axe leading. The blade came down in a diagonal slash but I wasn¡¯t there. I had already rolled to the right and ended up in front of him. Pushing power to my legs, I jumped up and hammered an uppercut into his chin even as his body was brought down with the movement of his own swing. There was a sound like cannon fire and the Alpha staggered back.. So did I. I glanced down and frowned. The skin along my knuckles were split, my own red blood coating the fist, and two of my fingers were bent more than they should have been. I wasn¡¯t sure if I had damaged myself or him more. Blackpelt was being careful now. He circled me, the axe held loosely at his side. I turned, keeping him in my field of vision. Something flew over my shoulder and suddenly a spear was impaled in his chest. The piece of wood vibrated as it stuck out of the Alpha and the giant wolf yelped in pain, one large hand curling around the shaft to pull it out. Its beady eyes were fastened over my shoulder. He had just managed to remove the spear when something else flew over my shoulder and a pouch exploded in the things face. Red powder coated Blackbelts face and the werewolf howled in pain, dropping his axe and forgetting about the spear wound in its chest as it pawed at its eyes. ¡°Its blind!¡± Nel called out. That was all I needed. Still overclocking I sprinted across the distance separating us and launched myself into the air. Twisting at the waist and torquing my whole body to get behind the movement I superman punched the alpha in the snout. It stumbled back with a whimper and I landed on the ground in a roll before springing to my feet and twisting around. I lashed out at the blinded, injured wolf, my straight stomp connecting with its knee. The power and strength of my legs worked together to do what my fist couldn¡¯t. There was a crack, like a twig breaking, and suddenly the limb was facing the wrong way. Once more the Alpha toppled over. Tit for tat motherfucker! I ran forward and dropped a kick into its side, my body vibrating with the amount of power I was using. The massive body actually lifted off the ground by a few feet. ¡°Wooo! High five!¡± I said, holding up my palm for Rima to slap it. He looked at me funny. Guess they don¡¯t have that here. ¡®Nevermind. Wanna pass your sword so I can kill this thing before it regenerates?¡± Rima pulled his sword from its sheath and threw it through the air. I caught it by the handle and spun it around, feeling the heft. It was a solid practical weapon and the rough leather grip felt good in my hands. Lifting the blade over my head with both hands I aimed for the Alpha¡¯s neck and swung. The blade barely did more damage than my hand knife had done. The keen metal edge made it¡¯s way through the thick matted fur but got stuck an inch in. Blackpelt sprung to his feet, madness in his eyes as he reached out for me. I skipped out of reach, thinking furiously for some way to kill the fucker. My eyes landed on the axe in the grass. My momentary lapse of focus cost me. I was too late to dodge the clawed hand that cleaved into my chest and stomach. I tried to move with the blow to limit the damage but all it did was let me get thrown like a bitch. I hit the ground flat on my back and rolled to my feet, hands coming up to defend against another attack. Blackpelt wasn¡¯t coming for me though. Apparently he didn¡¯t like the blinding powder because he was bearing down on Nel. I felt panic well up in me. I was too far away to help. She was going to get hurt! Then Tima was there. The giant lizard threw herself bodily into the rampaging Alpha and he actually stopped. She was bigger and heavier than him. The Alpha raised an arm and brought it down with a crunch. Tima slumped to the side and I had to choke back a scream of rage. Before Blackpelt could do anything more Rima jumped over the still form of his mount. I hoped Tima was okay, She had stopped the charge and given me the time I needed to get what I wanted. The axe. I struggled to lift it, even overclocking as I was, but I had it and the blade was the same black Bores bone thing as Rima¡¯s spear and that was sharp as hell. ¡°Rima! Brace!¡± I yelled, hoping he would understand. He did. I saw his spider legs widen their stanch and quiver as he hugged Blackpelt and held back the bulk of the Alpha. The spider guardian¡¯s human body was wrapped tightly around the wolf, his face buried in Blackpelts navel. The Alpha tore up his back, green blood splattering through the air in great wide arcs to blend in with the grass, but Rima didn¡¯t let go and the Alpha couldn¡¯t reach Nel. ¡°Nel! Blind him!¡± I yelled, stooping low to pick up Rima¡¯s spear with my other hand. Nel pulled another pouch from her satchel and threw it in the Alpha¡¯s face. This time the powder was black but the wolf still roared with rage. Crouching low, her spider legs unfurling, Nel pulled the knife from her belt and sprung forward. She climbed over her brothers body and twisting around Blackpelts flailing arms, she anchored herself near his head with her multiple legs hooked around his torso and shoulders for stability. With a ferocity that was almost arousing she drew her dagger up before driving it towards the Alpha¡¯s head. Through sheer luck, the blinded wolf twisted his head at the last millisecond and the blade sunk into the meat of his shoulder and not his skull. Blackpelt howled again, not with the same pitch as before, but still loud enough that I winced, and he started to thrash about. ¡°Nel!¡± I yelled out and threw the spear. In a move so smooth and graceful it seemed choreographed she flung herself off the wolfs head, twisted in the air to catch the spear, twirled it around and drove it through his other shoulder as she fell. All in one fluid movement. Held in place by Rima, injured by Nel and blinded by powder the Alpha was losing energy and that''s when I stopped my run, planted my foot, and twisted. The blade of the axe slid along the ground behind me, following a rising arc from near my left foot all the way round till it dug deep into the Alpha¡¯s back, severing his spine. He crumpled and with him went Rima, the Denvii was breathing hard through his nose, his eyes wide and distant. His fair skin was covered in his own blood. I took a quick second to give him a pat on the shoulder and mutter ¡°Good work¡±. His red eyes focused on me long enough for him to nod. I looked at the Alpha as it clawed at the ground, a long rasping growl bubbled up from its throat as black blood stained the ground around its lower half and filled the air with the smell of decay. ¡°End it!¡± Nel said from her place near Tima. She had the lizards head in her lap and was stroking her scaled nose. I hoped that meant she was okay. Hefting the axe up to rest on my shoulder I stared the Alpha in the eye as I sauntered close. ¡°You loose.¡± I whispered, swinging the axe up and around before driving it down, not on the wolfs throat but midway through his face. Less muscle and it was thinner. I had to swing twice before the top of Blackpelts head popped off and his brains slipped out but it got done. I looked back at the group. Rima had dragged himself over to sit beside Nel and they had their arms around each other. He was looking better already and Tima had her eyes open, her slitted pupil watching me. Hefting the axe back onto my shoulder I put a foot up on the slain beasts chest and said. ¡°I had it handled.¡± Chapter 15
Skill Activated: Bloodied Brawler. (U)
  • The Champion raises his bloodied fists and smiles at his opponent.
  • Aeris bears witness and grants assistance.
I wondered if that was when I faced the Alpha outside. He¡¯d had a lot more trouble hitting me then and I could almost predict his moves. Or I am just that awesome. Yeah, I¡¯m that awesome! I flicked to the next notification.
Skill Deactivated: Bloodied Brawler. (U)
Champion associated skill learned: Two-Handed Weapon. ?
Well, that was handy, I guess. Next!
Gift of Leadership: Gift of Unity.
I pressed on the table and opened up the description.
Gift of Unity.
  • Recipient has been gifted with the ability to unite those he considers colleagues under the same banner of war.
  • Current limit 0/4
Huh, that sounded pretty cool. I looked over at Rima and Nel, about to ask them if it was possible to activate a gift like you do a promotional skill but they were still arguing some distance away and I wasn¡¯t interested in interrupting. Shrugging I got back down to my table management.
Primary World, Designated: Aeris, bears witness to the struggles of its Champion.
  • A denizen of high standing and holding significant sway on the side of Aeris has been corrupted and turned against the side of balance . Primary World, Designated: Aeris, requests resolution and gives the following message to its Champion.
Stand Strong
¡°Yeah, yeah. Stand strong, I get it.¡± I muttered to my hand. ¡°It¡¯s not like I was planning to see a whole village of people murders and be all ¡®Oh well, I¡¯m out.¡¯¡± Tima hiss from behind me and I turned on the tree stump to face her. She hummed as I rubbed at her snout. She pushed her scaly nose harder into my palm, her eyes heavy with pleasure then sneezed and stepped away from me, trying to look indifferent to the attention. ¡°Wonder what they¡¯re arguing about,¡± I asked her, indicating the siblings with my chin. Tima let out a sigh and flopped down near my feet but far enough away that she could pretend she wasn¡¯t close. ¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t care either.¡±
Name: Alexander Haha October Class: Champion Race: Biotic humanoid. Evolution: I Stored Mass: 01.75963kg Total Mass: 366.75963kg
Integrity: 100% 365kg MCR (Mass Conversion Rate): 2.01/sec MCR In combat: .88/sec Physical Mass:365kg
Power levels: 99.99% ARR (Ambiant Recharge Rate): 0.026/sec
Micro-Evolution: 2/4 terms met Unlocked Evolutionary Skills: - Human (Augmented)
Primary Skills:
  • Bloodied Brawler (U)
  • Small arms (Un)
  • Negotiation (A)
  • Two-Handed Weapon. ?
Talent:
  • Iron bones (You remain unbroken under even the strongest of blows.)
  • Iron skin (You remain unscathed under all but the sharpest of blades)
  • Iron Stomach (You remain undaunted by all but the strangest of meals)
  • Iron Will (You remain unbent under the power of others)
  • Artificial Being. (Not of flesh and blood you are immune to diseases and poisons)
  • Fighter. (You have struggled since the day you were born. Only through blood sweat and tears have you achieved all that you have and all that you are!)
Alignment Interest - Primary World Aeris views you with interest. Aeris awaits the need to aid or destroy you
Gifts - Gift of Tongues - Gift of Transmutation - Gift of Advanced Mass Conversion - Gift of Unity
I laughed at my stored mass before standing up and dusting off the seat of my pants. After the fight, we had moved away from the village, partly because of the smell and partly because the constant drone of all the flies had been driving me crazy. Nel had found a small clearing not too far away and after I¡¯d splashed water all over myself in a quick bath she had handed me a shirt from my sack. The midday sun had done a good enough job of drying me off. Rima had muttered something to Nel and she had muttered something back and then they were arguing. Something about Nel being stupid and Rima being right. I dunno. Nel had dragged Rima out of earshot and I couldn¡¯t be bothered listening even when she kept pointing at me. But that was then and this is now. The sun wasn¡¯t going to float up there forever and we had some planning to do. ¡°Oi!¡± I yelled, interrupting them. ¡°It¡¯s going to get dark soon. I think we should head back to the village, bury the bodies and see if we can find any clues as to what the fuck is going on.¡± Nel said something quickly to Rima who scowled before she walked over to me, her brother following slowly behind. ¡®You are correct Alexander. That was the same thing Rimatrastorama and I were just discussing. He believes it is best to head back and warn the Brood now, rather than continuing to the Grove as we had first intended. I think it is all related and we must find the cause. What if it has spread further than just the single Messenger we saw and the Pack?¡± Nel looked at me for support but I shrugged. ¡°He isn¡¯t wrong, Nel. I think this,¡± I waved behind me in the direction of the village. ¡°Is something Saza and the Brood Mother need to know, as soon as possible.¡± ¡°Zavanrosiphra, also, he will want to know of any possible threats to the Brood.¡± Rima added while Nel scowled at me. ¡°Yeah, him too.¡± I conceded with an eye roll before continuing. ¡°But I think Nel is also correct. If this is like a disease or something then that means it¡¯s going to spread...and Aeris has requested I resolve the problem.¡± ¡°Aha! See,¡± Nel smiled victoriously at her brother, one sharp finger pointing at him. As if that wasn¡¯t enough, a few of her spider legs joined in. ¡°Aeris himself has approved this mission. That¡¯s why I think it¡¯s best if we follow my plan.¡± ¡°No!¡± Rima said at the same time I said: ¡°Which is?¡± Ignoring her brother Nel sidled closer to me. ¡°You and I continue on to the Grove at least, further if need be. Rima will head back to the Brood with the news of the Packs massacre. He can cover much more ground than either of us, especially if he rides Tima.¡± ¡°And if we¡¯re attacked by some mutant sunflower or something at the Grove? You think you and I can handle it?¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°Exactly!¡± Rima exclaimed. ¡°The Champion is wise, sister, and knows that if there is a fight he cannot guarantee your safety. Saza would not want you to risk yourself for something that may yield little information.¡± ¡°Saza will understand more than anyone. She has made similar decisions many times.¡± ¡°And she has paid for them with sorrow and pain!¡± Rima said, his voice dropping low as he implored his sister. ¡°Please don¡¯t do this. I promised father I would protect you, always. I cannot protect you if I cannot reach you.¡± Nel turned away from me so she could face her brother head-on. She was the shorter of the two but right now she loomed over him. With deliberate slowness, she raised a hand and pointed behind me. ¡°You saw the same thing I did. The Brood and Pack have not always seen eye to eye but we were neighbours and they were fellow Denvii. The Champion does not know this land nor the people but is willing to help. You expect me to come back to safety when I know I can help him? You expect me to let something like that,¡± she jabbed the air again. ¡°happen again. Innocents killed for what! No! I will help Alexander find the root of this problem and I will end it!¡± Even with her slitted eyes and furrowed brows. and flaring nostrils, Nel was hot. Her chest heaved as she took great deep breaths of air, the upper swell of each breast pushed against the fabric of her top and the toned planes of her stomach flexed. I would have to get her angry again sometime. Rima couldn¡¯t come up with a suitable rebuttal so the four of us trudged back to the glade. Even expecting the sight, it was still a jarring contrast between the beautiful scenery and the morbid additions. We broke up into two groups to search for some tools. Nel and Rima went off one way, still scowling at each other but refusing to let the other walk off alone. Tima followed behind me slowly, out packs still swaying gently on her back. The first few houses were simple in design and decoration. Single or double rooms with wooden furniture in various states of disarray. I tried to ignore the little children''s beds with the neatly folded sheets and small toys all over the place. It was so very...human, and I had to remind myself that though they looked part animal they still had emotions and families. That made it harder when I entered a house full of bloodstains and body parts. Tima kept watch outside as I entered one house, glanced around, came out and shook my head at her before moving on to the next. I did notice that the buildings got bigger and better furnished the closer we got to the Alpha¡¯s house and figured it was a sign of stature amongst the Pack. Data from Old Earth said it was similar to wolf packs. A shout went up from across the glade and I glanced over to see Nel holding up a spade and waving it at me. I waved back, trying to indicate they should start digging while I continued looking for one for me. She must have got the message because a second later she walked off towards the edge of the forest accompanied by Rima. I found my spade in a toolshed I mistook for an outhouse at first. It was wooden, which threw me for a loop, and resembled a massive spoon but after giving the ground nearby a few test digs I was satisfied and went to join the others. It took us most of the afternoon and was horrible work. Rima and Nel retched more than once, and I would have been right there with them if I had a gag reflex. Tima was a huge help. Once Rima had removed our packs and her saddle she found a spot, turned, and using her forelegs started to tear up massive clumps of soil before flinging them between her hind legs. Of course, that meant that it fell to the rest of us to collect the bodies. Thus the retching. I regretted wasting water earlier, I¡¯d need it when we were done before we were done. I was holding the legs of a particularly large male specimen of the Wolfen species while Rima had his arms hooked under the individual''s armpits when I asked him. ¡°Hey, Rima, I got this gift...from Aeris...it says something about uniting people under the same banner or something and a limit of four. Any idea what that means?¡± Huffing and puffing under the load, Rima paused to adjust the dead weight and a bit of intestine slipped out to pool on the ground between us. He gagged before answering. ¡°It sounds like an active effect gift, probably some variation of a party creation skill that can grow with you. Aeris is wise in providing you with gifts that will further your development as Champion.¡± ¡®Yeah, Aeris is just swell...but how do I use it?¡± ¡°I would imagine you ask someone if they would like to join you, or unite, as may be the case given the name of the gift, Champion.¡± ¡°Okay, Cool.¡± We reached the pit Tima had dug and threw the body in. Nel started to throw dirt on top using one of the spades and I grabbed the other so I could help. Stopping with the spade in hand I looked over at the male Denvii. ¡°Yo, Rima. Unite with me?¡±...that sounded strangely sexual. ¡°I will, Champion.¡± He said with all seriousness. It was a strange feeling. Nothing amazing happened, but it was like my view shifted slightly so I became more aware of him. I turned around so my back was to him but I still knew where he was and how he was moving. ¡°Well, that¡¯s awesome!¡± I exclaimed happily. Nel stopped what she was doing, planted the spade head first in the soil and leaned against the handle before wiping sweat from her brow. Rima took the time to explain things to her while I finished covering the hole and patted it down. ¡°Convenient.¡± She agreed. ¡°It would be perfect for team combat; knowing where your teammates are, that is.¡± ¡°Yeah, but how does it work?¡± ¡°What do you mean, Champion?¡± Rima asked. ¡°Well, how do I suddenly know where you are? If I focus hard enough I can even tell what you''re doing.¡± ¡°Magic,¡± Rima said with a shrug. Nel nodded along. ¡°Serious?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Nel nodded. ¡°You are in a different world than your own, surrounded by creatures and races you have never seen before, and you doubt the use of magic? How do you explain your stats and skills?¡± I gave it some thought, trying to figure out why the thought of magic was so foreign in a world where technically, everything was foreign. ¡°Everything else makes sense. A different world means different races so I accept that without issue...my stats and skills...well, so far they¡¯re all the things I can do normally. Magic...its..unexplainable.¡± ¡°You are weird, Champion,¡± Rima said, before realizing he may have just insulted his idol and said quickly. ¡°But very strong!¡± Yeah, that fixes it¡­ ¡°Nel, Unite with me?¡± ¡°All you had to do was ask Alexander,¡± Nel said with a warm dimpled smile and a twinkle in her eyes that made me think I wasn¡¯t the only one that found that a little sexual. The heightened sense of Nel was much more pleasant than it was of Rima and we all spent the next few minutes playing around with my new gift and learning a few things about it. For one, Tima couldn¡¯t join and hissed in annoyance before stomping off into the forest. Rima found it odd since, as far as he could tell, she also received gifts from Aeris and in my mind, she was as human as the rest of us. Oh well. Another thing we found out was that the connection ran strongest through me. I had an almost perfect sense of where Nel and Rima were but their sense of each other was limited to general direction and distance. Speaking of distance, it didn¡¯t seem to be a problem, though after about 200 yards it became a sense of general direction though that sense still felt as strong. If that makes sense. I freaked out then got over-excited when we found out we could now communicate with our minds. Yeah, that¡¯s right, our minds! It wasn¡¯t perfect and you had to focus really hard and it wasn¡¯t so much words as it was a series of impressions and feelings so we were never going to have deep conversations with it but stuff like Attack! Or Stop! Or Yuck! Were easy. Also, Rima and Nel couldn¡¯t do it with each other so I was stuck as the middleman. Rima was overjoyed with the thought that he could still check up on us once he went back to the Brood. I had my doubts, what with the greater distance and all, but he said that Aeris was wise and powerful and I should have faith. My eyeball nearly got stuck looking up, I rolled it so hard. Eventually, all the bodies were buried in one massive grave and the three of us stood over the heap of mud. Nel wiped a tear from her cheek, smearing mud across her pretty face in the process. ¡°Should we say something?¡± I asked, not sure. ¡°Find balance.¡± Nel murmured, a hand over her heart. Rima followed her lead so I went along with it. I asked Rima as we turned away. ¡°So, was this the only Pack?¡± It was Nel who answered as she came up behind us. Her voice subdued. ¡°No, there are many Packs, as there are many Broods, and many Groves, and many...well, you get the idea. But they are across the sea in the Wilds. Here, look.¡± I knelt next to her as she used one sharp talon to draw in the dirt. She drew a rectangle box first and looked up at me. ¡°Everything within this box is the known lands, the rest...it is best if you forget them for now.¡± She filled the rectangle with squiggles that slowly started to form into landmasses. One large mass crept down from the top left-hand side and swept down and across to two-thirds of the bottom right-hand side. ¡°That is the Wild¡¯s on to top left-hand side, full of forests and mountains. Many of our less civilized kin live there. Below that are the lands of the Denarii.¡± ¡°Denarii?¡± I asked. ¡°They are like the Denvii, only instead of being part monster and part human, they are all...something else.¡± ¡°Sirens,¡± Rema said from over my shoulder before bending down and drawing a small island off the shores of the Wilds. After that he jabbed at the center of the Wilds and growled. ¡°Fox spirits and demons and dragons.¡± Nel looked at me and rolled her eyes. ¡°Zavanrosiphra has been telling you tales again, hasn¡¯t he?¡± Rima went red with embarrassment and left us alone to go explore. Nel watched him go before turning back to me and whispering ¡°He isn¡¯t wrong though. The Wilds are full of creatures, many who look human enough, like the wild woman who are said to be beautiful but vicious and are willing to rip a man limb from limb as soon as look at him¡­¡± ¡®Why are you looking at me like that?¡± I asked as she squinted at me. "On second thought, you would fit right in there.¡± ¡°Gee, thanks. So what you mean is these Denarii can be agents for Hela or Lumin but still look human whereas the Denvii who choose one of those sides become monsters because they are no longer in balance?¡± ¡°You are learning!¡± Nel said with a happy clap. ¡°Now, ignoring the rest which is the human kingdom and a few islands that are home to the dwarves and the like, this is us down here. This island near the bottom right.¡± She filled in the landmass with trees and marked some rivers. I looked up at her and smiled, she stuck her tongue out while she drew and her eyebrows were furrowed in concentration. She drew a rough mountain range and then a dotted line that bisected the land from the top corner down, across the middle of the mountains, and down to the lower end near the sea. ¡°This whole island is considered a neutral ground for all races. You see here, close to the sea, are human cities and trading ports where the Denvii may trade their native wears such as the Brood silk or the Pack¡¯s Bores bones in exchange for items our human halves need. We are here, the patch of woods near the fork in this river.¡± I looked at where she pointed and nodded along. ¡°If we continue North-West, we will come to the Citrus Pools and just beyond that the Grove.¡± ¡°Alright.¡¯ I tilted my head, trying to better make out her dirt map. ¡°So how long does it take us to get from here, these woods, to here..the Grove? And what''s that ¡®x¡¯?¡± ¡°No more than a day and a half. That ¡®x¡¯ is the first trading town. Little more than a village if you ask me. I figured you may wish to shop for some personal items there if we have time.¡± She gave a self-conscious shrug and toyed with the dirt. ¡°I have some coins I can lend you¡­.¡± Yes! Just what I wanted! I could buy some clothes that fit me properly, maybe a propper pack instead of lugging around that sack. Nel, still looking down, continued to mumble. ¡°...and it¡¯s not as if I was thinking of you specifically or planning some way to get you alone. I just thought since the grove is so near and we are heading that way anyway you may like..because you look homeless...not that you don¡¯t look good homeless...I mean, not that you should look homeless to look good...I just thought¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s very sweet of you,¡± I said, interrupting her. I coughed awkwardly, not sure how to handle a very attractive woman thinking about me. Okay, wait a moment. I¡¯m not some blushing virgin, let''s just throw that out there. What I mean is, Dockside doesn¡¯t cater to the nice nor the beautiful. I¡¯ve experienced nice, Sanderson and his father are examples, and I¡¯ve seen the beautiful; mainly looking out of tinted windows of a hovercar as they sped through the slums and saw how the other half lived. But together? Never...and never with a woman I wanted to...Oh my god! what happens if it ends up as a relationship? How the hell do you do one of those? I hear romance is needed...I think I¡¯m going to be sick¡­ ¡°I¡¯m going to go look for metal!¡± I almost shouted, shooting to my feet and backing away from the shocked arachnachick. ¡°Need them gains!¡± Crap! Now I wasn¡¯t sure what I wanted. I mean I know I wanted her, naked and moaning, but did I want the rest? Would she expect the rest? Fuck it, ignore it for now, emotions are confusing. Chapter 16 ¡°I will leave at first light,¡± Rima said as he tied up his hammock. I noticed he kept looking off into the distance in the direction of the village. ¡°Uncomfortable being so close?¡± I asked. He turned quickly to look at me, his warriors knot wobbling on his head. ¡°Of course not Champion.¡± ¡°Well, I am,¡± Nel said as she poked at the fire with a stick. The orange tongues of flame shed their warm light around our little clearing, beating back the darkness of night. ¡°I feel uneasy being close to so much death.¡± If I was being honest, I wasn¡¯t too fond of it either. But if I said that then the others would have all the reason they needed to pack up and move further away and they needed their rest. Even I was feeling a bit worn out from the long day of travel and fighting and then digging the mass grave. It was a dark, heavy weight that settled at the back of my mind and pushed down on my thoughts. I squirmed around on the ground, trying to get more comfortable and ended up with my head propped on my sack of clothes and my feet facing the fire. It wasn¡¯t ideal but I was too lazy to do much else. Nel, once she was finished with the fire, settled back down cross-legged and looked over the flickering flames at me. She smiled in a way that brought back all my uncertainties and I hide a scowl. I don¡¯t like being uncertain...its...bothersome. ¡°Alexander, would you care to hear a story?¡± She asked, her voice light. I wondered if it was a dirty story but remembered that Rima was present and she wasn¡¯t likely to tell me one when he was nearby. Tima was off somewhere hunting down her dinner. ¡°Sure.¡± Rima tied off the final knot with a strong tug before joining us. He pulled out a bundle of thick green leaves from his pack and unwrapped it to reveal more of the seedy bread from earlier. I declined and he broke it in half and passed a piece to his sister. She nodded her thanks, took a bite, and swallowed. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you about the creation of this world. At least, the story I¡¯ve been told of the creation of this world.¡± She took another bite and looked deep into the flames as she chewed. Once she had swallowed she started. - They say this world started as an afterthought. A product of the child of gods who thought of nothing more than a distraction from the bickering of his siblings. I know not if this is the truth, that is for you to decide, but listen close and I will tell you how such thoughts came to be. Before time was known and life was given there were but two figures standing together in the expanse of nothing. Itra, Goddess of Life and her partner Xavhra, God of Death. They did not have their titles then, but we do not say their names alone for fear of the retribution such disrespect would bring. - The fire popped and cracked as a log shifted in the heart of the flames. - Itra, Goddess of Life loved Xavhra, God of Death and accompanied him across time and space, but if the stories are true, she grew bored and distant the more they traveled. All was nothing, and nothing never changed. She wished for more, she yearned for it. The more the Goddess thought of it, the more distant she became and her husband grew enraged for he did not understand the concept of change. Death is final and unforgiving and that¡­that will never change. Wary of her husbands anger Itra, Goddess of Life, worked in secret. She created a spark, the first of its kind to ever be seen in the great expanse. Around that spark, she wrapped more and more of her power and with it went her love, her joy, her pride, her will, and her unshakable confidence. But her emotions and ideas were twisted by anger at Xavhra and much too pure for what she was creating. What is love if it brings you to ruin and what is joy if it takes you to addiction, or pride if it corrupts, will if it never bends and confidence if it never learns? The expanse had known nothing but the two¡­but now there was a third. Itra, Goddess of Life, looked upon her creation and whispered. ¡°Lumin.¡± for her daughter had been born and she was everything she wanted. - I shifted a little, a twig snapping under my back sounded like a gunshot in the silent night. Nel looked up at the stars before turning her large red eyes on me, the firelight reflected and made them shine with an orange tint. - Light cannot hide in darkness though and Xavhra, God of Death, felt the new life. His rage shook the expanse and in his anger he ripped it apart, searching for his wife¡¯s daughter. But Itra, Goddess of Life, had expected it and she hid her child¡¯s light by filling the expanse with little pockets of lights she called stars, so bright they drew Xavhra, God of Death¡¯s eyes like a beacon. For untold eons, Lumin hid among the stars as her father''s anger cooled. Unable to find the child, Xavhra, God of Death turned his mind to revenge. What she could do, so could he. The spark he created was dark and twisted from anger but around it, he wrapped his power and with it went his strength and determination, his devotion and his unyielding stubbornness, his wrath and his spite. But a tree with rotted roots will fall and so his ideas and power got twisted by that spark of anger and rage at its center.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. The expanse, now used to three¡­was introduced to a fourth and Xavhra, God of Death smiled as he beheld the face of his daughter. ¡°Hela¡± he murmured, her name echoing out into the expanse. Itra, Goddess of Life, came to her husband then, interested to see what Death could make with life. As she beheld her new daughter she smiled and whispered: ¡°Come, Lumin, come meet your sibling.¡± Xavhra, God of Death¡¯s anger eased with one look upon his wife¡¯s face. She had achieved that which she had longed for: change. So it was that the family of immortals toiled together through the expanse in peace and joy¡­but joy is fleeting and peace rarely lasts. - I found myself nodding along, those were two concepts I was all too familiar with. Nel must have known what I was thinking because her smile was warm when she continued. - Lumin, in her pride as eldest, would often attempt to best Hela in whichever form she could. When Hela created the moon and smiled, Lumin created the sun and boasted of its warmth. Twisted by the dark seed of hate deep in her core Hela created shadows to scare and torment her older sibling but Lumin lashed out with twisted joy and conjured light to banish them away. Tired of their children bickering the Goddess of Life, went to her husband with a proposal. A child, made from their combined efforts. A child to tamper Lumin¡¯s dark pride and Hela¡¯s bright anger. A spark was formed, not twisted and dark or bright and blinding, but something in between. From it''s mother the child received love of family, pride of place, joy of life, and an unyielding will to do what it must whatever the cost. From its father it received the strength to protect, the devotion to duty, the stubbornness to persevere and the wrath to carry it when all else failed. Together the couple looked upon the little boy and whispered. ¡°Aeris.¡± Lumin as the eldest felt it her place to keep Aeris under her wing and her pride dictated she be the one to teach her brother their games. Hela viewed him with jealousy and distrust for upon him lay the blessing of both parents. Aeris, youngest but brave, refused to bow to either sibling and removed himself from their games. Looking out at the sun and moon and stars he held his palms together and made a planet. It was not blinding in its brightness, nor cold and silent in the dark. It was blue and green and brown and with a breath of life he populated it. Itra, Goddess of Life, watched on. Xavhra, God of Death at her shoulder. - I could picture it, two shadowy figures standing side by side, as a third crouched figure cupped a world in his palms. - Finished with one planet Aeris built another, then another, each as different and strange as the last. When finally he was done he settled back and watched the little lifeforms he had created play. He did not interfere for that was never his purpose, he simply watched and learned. When the creatures evolved and attacked the others only then did he whisper words of assurance and gifted both sides'' strength so they may better protect that which they loved, as his father Xavhra, God of Death, had taught him at birth. When the life forms died and grieved he reminded them that life and death are part of the same idea and that one without the other is unbalanced and unjust. Lumin, believing she could do better, whispered words all her own to the creatures and when they listened she swelled with pride and offered them power, not unlike Aeris, but hers she called blessings and she demanded devotion in return. Angered at being left out, Hela joined her siblings and her words fell upon the world in a dark shadowy cloud. Her¡¯s were more forceful than her siblings and the power she gave was simple but powerful. Aeris stood back and joined his parents to watch the now, finally silent siblings, continue their warfare by proxy. ¡°Mother. Father. It is done. You may rest.¡± ¡°You have done well, youngest. Though can you leave your creations to suffer so?¡± Xavhra, God of Death asked. ¡°I have given them life and death, this is balance. I have given them the freedom to choose what they wish and the means to get there and in return, I will not catch them should they fall, this is balance.¡± Aeris looked to his parents before turning to walk away into the expanse. As his form dissapeared his final words reached them in a whisper. ¡°In return for the pain and grief, joy and love my siblings will subject them to, I have sacrificed my heart. This is balance.¡± And so Aeris has become a world of war and a world of peace and though the ideas of each sibling have shifted and blurred with the passage of time, each faction remembers that at their cores is a little bit of balance. - Done with the story Nel took a final bite of her bread and dusted off her palms. Gentle snoring could be heard coming from Rima and I had to fight back a laugh at what I saw. He still sat cross-legged but his upper body had fallen back, if his spider legs hadn¡¯t been there to support him he would be laying flat in the dirt. ¡°Whenever he had trouble sleeping our father would tell that story.¡± She whispered, still watching her brother with an indulgent smile. ¡°I didn¡¯t meet him or your mother, are they back at the Brood?¡± ¡°No,¡± Nel turned from the dozing Rima and pulled her knees up to her chin, before wrapping her arms around her shins and hugging herself. ¡°They died. Our mother during Rima¡¯s birth and our father some years later from the Riddling Flu. It is fine though, I have my memories and one of the gifts Aeris has given me is the gift of replay. I can remember anything I have seen with perfect clarity. Saza is quite jealous of it.¡± ¡°I¡¯d imagine,¡± I laughed quietly. ¡°So are you related to Saza? You two seem close.¡± ¡°I had only seen twelve summers when my father succumbed; too young to look after Rima and I. The Brood Mother adopted us and Saza offered to educate me. Once it became apparent what my gift of replay could do and how much I enjoyed the work, she took me as an apprentice and somewhere along the way she became a grandmother I hadn¡¯t known I wanted. I love her dearly...perverted nature aside.¡± I had to laugh at that. There was something about the old hag that drew you to her. ¡°And Rima? How did he become the Guardian Apprentice?¡± ¡°By being the most stubborn candidate Zavanrosiphra has ever seen.¡± Nel laughed. ¡°I may joke, but it is also true. Being raised in the Brood Mothers nest meant that we saw a lot of him. As a child he was easily distracted and I think the shinyness of Zavanrosiphra¡¯s armour was a little too dazzling. Rima being Rima was determined to be the Champion or the Guardian. I actually think he only became Zavanrosiphra¡¯s apprentice at first so he had something to do whilst he waited to become Champion, it was only once he had grown up enough that he realized that was impossible.¡± ¡°I would expect him to hate me...or at least resent me.¡± ¡°Why, Alexander?¡± Nel cocked her head, not understanding. ¡°Well, you know, I¡¯m the Champion...so he¡¯s looking at me and is reminded that he isn¡¯t it...but...fuck, it¡¯s hard to explain. Back on Earth, a lot of people hated others for having more than them or for being more important...just expected the same here.¡± ¡°Perhaps that is why Aeris gave us the stat system as well as classes and promotions. You have proof of how far you have come and how far you can go...it breeds determination. Though some still wish to achieve it easily.¡± I shrugged, my eyelids heavy, I could feel sleep coming for me and drawled out one more sentence. ¡°Sh¡¯all like a game. Stats and levels. No respawn though. That wouldn¡¯t be balanced.¡± Chapter 17 True to his word Rima set off at first light, his broad-shouldered figure settled comfortably on Tima¡¯s back as she slunk through the forest. Truth be told, I think I was going to miss the sassy lizard more than the kiss-ass Guardian but I didn¡¯t mention it out loud for fear of a swat from Nel. Speaking of Nel, the generously curved woman nearly bounced in place with excitement as her brother disappeared from view and I was momentarily distracted by the¡­bouncing. When I asked why she was so happy she explained that it was her first time to truly be away from the rest of the Brood. The few times she had made the trip to the Grove and even a little further, to the trade town, she had been accompanied by Saza or Rima. Her first taste of freedom suited her and helped brush off the dark mood that had hung over her since the mass funeral. Part of me, the newly awakened hormonal side, was twisted into little knots of anxiety at the thought of being alone with the gorgeous woman. The other part of me, you know, the horrible pervert part, was ecstatic at being able to ogle her without fear of brotherly eyes seeing me. If you have ever been in this situation you know the tightrope of emotion I walked. If I looked at her ass too much, in the tight black pants that stretched ever so invitingly over each firm round mound as her full hips swayed¡­.okay, I did look at her ass too much and I admit, I felt a little creepy but she was also incredibly interesting and a fount of useful information. When she wasn¡¯t telling me about a certain plant or flower she was telling me about the world and how it all fit together or laughing at some stupid joke I made. For the first time in a long time, I found myself relaxing and getting along with someone other than Sanderson. I stopped looking at her like a horny teenager who had never seen a pair of tits larger than a B cup and looked at her like an actual friend¡­ Needless to say, I was not sure how I felt about this growing maturity. By midday, we had left the dead village and the surrounding woods behind us and were once more crossing over a grassy field. Nel pointed at a hawk as it rode the thermals and lamented her loss at not being born a Fury, which was some type of flying woman thing found in Denarii. I watched the bird of prey and lamented my loss of a projectile weapon. I image hawk taste much like chicken. I briefly considered throwing my new shiny axe (recently purchased from one headless Alpha) at it but changed my mind. It was bloody heavy for one. It was new and shiny (to me) for another. I did share a loaf of seedy bread with Nel and she even let me eat half her peach. No, that wasn¡¯t anything sexual. She had hidden a little cache of fruits away from Tima and only felt safe pulling them out now. Once I got a taste of real fruit though, let me tell you, she learnt to fear me. I walked behind her then and spent most of my time checking her out or trying to get into her bag. She stopped walking and I almost bumped into her, my arm up to the elbow in her pack. She turned to glare at me and I overclocked to jerk my hand away in time. ¡°I swear! You¡¯re worse than that damn lizard!¡± She growled though she smiled at me when she said it. ¡°Take that back!¡± I said clutching my heart in mock pain. ¡°Take it back right now! Tima is the worst!¡± Nel just sighed before turning back around to pointing off to our left. ¡°You see those small trees, the ones with the low hanging branches? Yea, those are known as the Citrus Nut trees. Twice a year at random they¡¯ll grow little clusters of nuts, as big as your knuckles, and as brown as dirty. If you crack open the shell though the insides are soft and juicy and smell like Oranges or Lemons but taste like the little candy sweets Saza likes to buy from the trade town.¡± ¡°I take it that means the Citrus Pools are close by?¡± I asked, shading my eyes against the sun so I could see the small cluster of trees. ¡°They start around there,¡± Nel admitted before turning more to our right and pointed off into the distance. ¡°But we can head that way. It¡¯s closer to the Grove and there¡¯s a pool I like, it¡¯s deep enough to dive in.¡± ¡°Lead the way, oh awesome leader!¡± I said. Nel blushed a little. I think she liked being called awesome leader. ¡°So are the trees the reason they call the pools Citrus Pools?¡± ¡°In part. These trees only grow along this river. Also when the nuts fall into the water they sink to the bottom and the hard shell softens overtime before dissolving completely in the water. The smell from the flesh inside saturates the pools and makes the water smell like fruit.¡± ¡°So you go skinny dipping and come out smelling like an orange?¡± I nodded my head thoughtfully. ¡°Sounds cool.¡± ¡°Skinny dipping?¡± Nel asked, confused. ¡°Naked. You swim naked.¡± She blinked her long lashes at me and laughed as I wiggled my eyebrows suggestively. I don¡¯t think she really believed me and continued to laugh as we turned to the right and set off at a casual pace. I smelt it first, the cloying sickly sweet smell of decomposition. Nel blanched when I mentioned it to her, the image of the village still fresh in her mind, and we picked up the pace, almost jogging as we neared another cluster of the Citrus Nut trees. Pushing Nel aside so I could take the lead I ducked under the branches and gagged as a mixture of sweet-smelling fruit and rot and ruin assaulted my nose. Nel retched behind me. I moved past the last tree, expecting to find a scene of murder just like the village and blinked in confusion when what I saw instead was an idealistic little pool glittering in the sunlight and surrounded by a small pebble bank a soft breeze drifted through and made the branches sway peacefully. The trees hanging over the water were alive and well, the leaves bright green. Clusters of nuts hung from the junction between the branches, the nuts large and brown. A creek burbled quietly as it snaked through the trees to feed into the pool. The water was crystal clear and I could see all the way to the bottom and the seed that had fallen and mixed with the stones there. ¡°Something isn¡¯t right.¡± Nel said, a hand covering her mouth and nose as she looked out across the water. ¡°No shit,¡± I said back, my hand in the exact same place as hers as I pinched my nose shut. ¡°Oranges must smell like crap in your world.¡± ¡°The pools should not smell like this.¡± I watched her walk closer to the water, her spider legs splaying out wide to help her balance as the pebbles moved under her feet. I switched my attention to the surrounding trees, my body taut, expecting trouble.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Alexander, come here,¡± Nel called. Mumbling to myself I made my way over, with a great deal less finesse, and crouched down next to her. From the new angle, I could make out a thin layer of what looked like oil floating on the surface of the water. The rainbow hue of colours was only visible in certain spots as the sunlight reflected off it. Nel fumbled in her satchel for a moment before pulling out a strip of cloth and a small wooden box. Dragging the cloth over the surface of the water she coated the material with the oily residue before putting it to her nose to sniff. She coughed and spat in a very unladylike manner before putting the cloth safely away in the box. It all disappeared into her satchel. ¡°The smells coming from whatever that is.¡± She got up, dusting her hands off on the thigh of her pants and made her way back up to the grass. I followed behind her. ¡°I think it may be related to what happened at the Pack¡¯s Village. The black veins and the unbalanced change to Forgotten. It¡¯s like something is poisoning the land¡­some disease or infection. It¡¯s like nothing I¡¯ve ever heard of¡± I watched her bite her bottom lip, her sharp canines dimpling the soft plump surface. Her eyes darted away from the pools, back the way we had come, and I took a stab at what she was thinking. ¡°Worried about the Brood?¡± I asked. ¡°My brother will warn them and Saza will know what to do. The Brood Mother is wise and will do what she must to protect them all. I know all of this and yet I still worry about them. I thought being out here away from it all would mean having a great big adventure with excitement and yet now all I can think about is going back to ensure their safety.¡± I put an arm around her shoulder in support and pulled her against me, her toned form-fitting beneath my arm with startling ease. ¡°I understand what you mean,¡± I admitted as Nel snuggled a little closer to me and I pretended not to notice. ¡°I keep thinking of Sandy being trapped back on Earth and being hunted by the Government¡­and I want nothing more than to go back and make sure he¡¯s safe, you know?¡± She looked up at me, her dark hair falling around her face to frame her sharp cheekbones and the warmth in her tone when she spoke matched the softness in her dark red eyes. ¡°And yet you are willing to help us, delaying your return to your friend?¡± She was so close I could feel her breath tickle my neck and I unconsciously pulled her tighter to me, her pert breasts pressing into my ribs. ¡°It¡¯s more complicated than that,¡± I admitted, looking down into her eyes. ¡°and even if I left instantly I would still need to find where the humans from Earth have their gate and borrow it, and that would take time. Whatever is happening back on Earth¡­I have to trust Sandy to deal with it¡­just as you need to trust your brother and master.¡± ¡°You are right. I told Rimatrastorama that we would continue on and find what clues we could, so that is what we will do.¡± She smiled, her cheeks dimpling. ¡°You are being remarkably sensitive at the moment, Alexander.¡± ¡°I can see down your top!¡± I said, sticking out my tongue and dancing back as she tried to swat me playfully. The fact that Nel didn¡¯t seem to mind me being a little soft was¡­nice. In Dockside you have to be all sharp angles and hard edges, you show weakness and be nice?¡­fuck, you a dead man or worse¡­someone¡¯s bitch. ¡°So what do you wanna do now, mighty leader?¡± Nel considered it for a moment, her eyes darting around the clearing as she thought. I wondered if she noticed the lack of animals but didn¡¯t mention it, not yet at least. I didn¡¯t want to spook her any more than she already was. ¡°We¡¯re making good time. If we follow that creek through the trees it¡¯ll lead us straight to the Grove. We could be there early tomorrow morning I think.¡± ¡°You realise that fucked up smelling oily crap is probably coming from upstream right?¡± I asked. ¡°All the more reason to follow the stream. Perhaps the Dryads will have answers, or perhaps¡­perhaps they will not be there.¡± Her voice got thick near the end and I remembered that she had friends there. What''s her face, the one who had the gift of strength. Named after a flower or a season or something hippy-dippy. Once more pushing Nel aside so I could take the lead I led us through the Citrus Nut trees and the regular trees that followed. Calling over my shoulder I interrogated Nel as we went. ¡°So Dryads are considered Denvii too, correct?¡± ¡°Yes. They balance their human halves with their nature spirit halves. The Grove is governed by an elder, though perhaps govern is a strong term. They mainly do what they want: farming, planting, animal husbandry¡­Oh, you have to try their honey. They get the bees to produce the very best honey to be found in all the lands. ¡± ¡°What happens when they become Forgotten?¡± ¡°They devolve into nature spirits,¡± Nel¡¯s voice dropped into a quiet murmur. ¡°And will roam the forests attacking anyone who enters what they perceive as their territory.¡± ¡°Are they strong?¡± I was thinking about what I would do if a whole Grove had turned into a cluster of Forgotten, I doubted I could kill them all and the thought of Nel getting hurt was making me¡­.very uncomfortable. ¡°Stronger than humans, certainly, as are all Denvii, but weaker than the Pack and the Brood. They are pacifists, their Guardian is an overweight old man who carries around a sickle.¡± I looked back to see her smiling. She caught my eye and said. ¡°His name is Glen, and he¡¯s a sweetie.¡± I stepped over a root, slipped a little in the soft mud, righted myself, and went right on walking. Nel snickered behind me. The smell wasn¡¯t as bad here, with the flowing water, but I would occasional catch a whiff of rot and if I looked at the creek beside us I could see the telltale oil rings of rainbow colours swirling around the banks or between the reeds that dotted the shallows. ¡°No fish.¡± ¡°What was that, Alexander?¡± Nel asked. ¡°I said: No fish.¡± I indicated the stream with my hand. ¡°That is not strange. There have never been fish in these waters. The water is too acidic from the nuts. The brook does gradually widen before becoming a river up near the trade town and there are fish there, where the water is fresh.¡± ¡°How far up does this river go?¡± ¡°All the way to Champions fall.¡± Nel said. I did a double-take at the name. ¡°Come again? I thought for a second you said Champions fall?¡± ¡°I did.¡± ¡°And?¡± I said, waving my hand for her to go on and share more information. The Blasted woman just blinked at me. Letting out a long-suffering sigh I said. ¡°And why is it called that?¡± ¡°Oh, I thought you were trying to swat a fly that had flown too close to you. To answer your question, it¡¯s called Champions fall because a Champion fell there.¡± ¡°No shit!¡± I growled, starting to get a little fed up. ¡°But seeing as I am a Champion, don¡¯t you think I deserve to know a little bit more about HOW a Champion fell there?¡± ¡°Many, many years ago The Champion of Aeris and the Champion of Hela stood together to bring about the fall of the Champion of Lumin. It is said that the battle lasted for days and changed the shape of the land. Mountains crumbled to dust and rivers of liquid fire covered the ground. They say that the Champion of Aeris used all his mana to smite his foe and as he and the Champion of Lumin lay there weakened the Champion of Hela slayed they both. Aeris rose a mountain to act as the monument to his Champions sacrifice but such was his grief that he wept, his tears wetting the ground before overflowing from the sides and spilling out in a stream that moved across the land.¡± ¡°Is it true?¡± I asked, making a mental note to not trust any Champions¡­ever¡­ ¡°Who knows¡­Saza has been there and says that near the peak is a stone pyramid, as tall as a man can stand, and though worn and weathered it is seamless and perfect still. I asked to see it but she says the air is thin and the taint of betrayal and hate still lingers there.¡± ¡°Saza is one weird cookie,¡± I muttered. ¡°Weird cookie?¡± Nel asked. ¡°On Earth, it means that someone is weird, but we add ''cookie'' to take most of the sting out of if¡­make it a gentle tease...¡± ¡°Ahh...I see,¡± Nel ducked under a branch, pushed another aside and looked at me. ¡°So you are also this weird cookie.¡± I couldn¡¯t argue with that. We continued on, the light fading slowly as it sunk behind the horizon and Nel suggested we move away from the stream to where the smell wasn¡¯t so bad to make camp quickly before it got too dark. It was simple with just the two of us; she tied up a hammock while I went looking for wood for the fire and she got it all ready while I watched. I admit, It was a little strange not having Rima and Tima here and I wondered at my sudden need to have company. The firelight reflected off Nel¡¯s skin, turning it a rich orange-gold colour. She looked beautiful. Tonight''s the night, I told myself, tonight''s the night I make my move. Chapter 18 Now, having made up my mind, the real question was...how does one go about approached a spider-woman. I chose the casual ¡®check this out¡¯ approach. That meant that I fished around on the ground for something of interest and took it over to her like some strange mating offering. I wish I was still back home. There, all I had to say was ¡°hey, wanna count my augments?¡±. ¡°Hey Nel, check this out,¡± I called as I approached her from around the fire. She looked up from the flames and squinted to see what I held in my hand. The firelight cast deep shadows across my palm and she had to come real close (see my genius plan at work?) to see. ¡°Uhh, that is a very nice twig.¡± She said, trying to sound amazed and failing miserably. ¡°Thanks!¡± My acting skills are awesome and my amazement sounded real. ¡°I found it on the ground over there.¡± Nel nodded slowly as if suddenly understanding something. She started to gently push me towards the hammock she had hung and I thought my plan was working even better than I had anticipated but then she opened her mouth and I realized how very wrong I was. ¡°I understand. That is an amazing twig. Perhaps you should rest, you¡¯ve had a long day and must be having trouble understanding everything that is going on around you. Saza told me some people cannot handle such sudden change and that their minds can snap from the strain.¡± ¡°Yea-Wait! What?¡± Nel continued to push me towards the hammock as she spoke in that slow soothing tone you use on wild animals. (I¡¯m a little ashamed to admit it but it was working and I was feeling remarkably calm). ¡°There is no shame in it, Champion. It has happened to more men than you. Perhaps rest and a good warm meal in the morning will help you feel better. I will take the watch tonight, have no fear, you are safe here.¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m fine. Nel...Nel! I¡¯m fine!¡± I had to dig my heels in but finally, she stopped. She could have also stopped because I was at the hammock and she was trying to figure out how to manipulate my rather large frame up and into it. ¡°Nel, I haven¡¯t gone insane from the stress,¡± I explained quickly, my plans falling apart around me. ¡°Who even does that? Snaps and starts to marvel at a twig he found on the ground¡­¡± Nel looked pointedly at the twig I still held. ¡°Oh for fuck''s sake,¡± I growled, dropping the stupid thing and putting both hands on Nel¡¯s shoulders. ¡°Listen, forget the twig, I was just looking for an excuse to get close to you.¡± Nel looked up at me, the fire behind her illuminating the loose strands of hair and turned them into golden threads while casting her face and front into dark shadows. Only her eyes shined and I watched her blink as she asked quietly. ¡°And why would you need to do that?¡± Was it my imagination or was she leaning against my grip trying to get closer to me? ¡°I wanted to get closer to you because...well...uhh...you see you¡¯re very attractive...that is to say¡­¡± Oh my god! I can hear myself. What the hell is wrong with me? ¡°Fuck it!¡± I growled releasing my grip on her shoulders and instead wrapped my arms around her and pulled her close. Her gasp of shock was silenced as I leaned down to kiss her. Her lips were soft and warm beneath my own and I unconsciously pulled her tighter to me. What shocked me was the intensity of her response. She moaned a low throaty sound that curled my toes as she grabbed my shirt, fisting the material, and pulled me tighter against her. She kissed back with a ferocious passion that drove any other thought from my head but the sensation of her mouth on mine, her tongue darting out to tease mine before retreating. One of my hands ran down her spine, playing across the fabric of her top before finding the smooth satin warmth of her skin. My other hand moved up her neck, sliding through the silky strands of her hair, to stop at the back of her head and hold her in place as our kiss depend. She tasted of spice and life and her body radiated heat under my frenzied touch. I ran a hand over the swell of her hips, my rough fingers dimpling the naked flesh at her waist. Nel moaned again and pressed herself tighter against me, her own hands moving under my shirt to run along my abs and up to my chest. I followed her example, my own hand moving back up her body, tracing the contours of her stomach muscles before brushed against the bottom swell of her breasts. The fabric of her top was rough under my hands and I wanted to tear it off, with my teeth if I had to, and I must have growled because Nel pulled away from me slightly. I caught the flash of teeth as she smiled at me, her forehead pressed against mine. ¡°Finally!¡± She hissed at me. ¡°Do you know how long I¡¯ve been waiting for you to do that Alexander?¡± I responded by kissing the side of her neck and she let out a low gentle sigh, her hand running through my short hair before pushing against my chest. Reluctant but accepting I stepped back, the night suddenly feeling cold without her body warmth. My hands still rested on the swell of her hips and It took all my self-control not to pull her back to me. ¡°I do not think my first time should be in a quick tumble in the woods while we hunt down a strange disease that turns Denvii into forgotten,¡± She whispered, though she didn¡¯t sound certain. I knew, just knew, that if I kept trying she wouldn¡¯t stop me. She wanted it as much as I did. ¡°Alexander,¡± I muttered. ¡°No. Nel.¡± She said, laughing as she pointed at herself. ¡°Are you sure you haven¡¯t gone insane?¡± ¡°I was just reminding myself that I wanted to be different. Thus the name change.¡± Nel stepped forward, tiptoeing a little, her hands flat against my chest as she kissed me lightly on the lips. ¡°You don¡¯t mind waiting,¡± She asked. ¡°At least until all of this is over?¡± Be different. Be better. ¡°I¡¯ll wait.¡± I stepped back. ¡°In more ways than one. There aren¡¯t any cold showers in the middle of the forest after all.¡± - Against my protests, Nel took the first watch so I settled down in the hammock and thought about what had just happened as my bed swayed back and forth gently. There wasn¡¯t much to think about though. We had kissed, a very sexually charged kiss but what happens from here? I have not a clue. Crap, was I meant to kiss her goodnight? Kiss her good morning? Not touch her till she wanted me to? Were we in a relationship? I doubted the last one. It was just a kiss. - There had been a fundamental shift in our relationship. That much was obvious now that we walked together in the light of day. It hadn¡¯t started like that this morning when I woke her up after my watch and we broke camp. Other than a few smiles and a brief contact of her hands on my jaw we had acted much the same as we had the previous day. That is to say that Nel broke camp while I tried, and failed, to help. The longer we traveled though the more apparent the change. It was subtle at first, barely noticeable, even on my end, but when I did notice them they stuck out like a sore thumb. Nel touched me more. It was casual: a light brush against my arm as she moved past me, a light grip on my shoulder as she used me for balance, a light hand running along the small of my back as she slid around me. Each touch felt like an electric spike to the brain and left tingling trails of fire along my skin. I thought it was just her until I did my usual ogle and had to fight back the urge to pounce on her like a hungry animal. The sway of her hips, and the tightness of her pants, the shape of her legs, all of seemed so much more¡­inviting now that a part of me knew I could get it and would get it. Needless to say, I spent most of the morning walking through the forest in a near-constant state of arousal. That meant that I tripped on just about everything and stubbed my toe on everything else. It was almost to the stage where I was tempted to jump into the creek, bad smell be damned, just to cool off. ¡°We¡¯re getting close,¡± Nel said as we followed a bend in the brook. ¡°The Grove is just up ahead.¡± I boosted my hearing, shifting my sack and axe on my back at the same time, and stopped walking so I could hear better.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°I don¡¯t hear anything,¡± I said. Nel sighed in relief and I felt like a dick for saying the next part but she needed to know. ¡°I mean I hear nothing. There¡¯s no sound other than the water flowing and the trees moving.¡± ¡°Oh Aeris,¡± Nel said, her hand clenching as she tried to keep the tremor from her voice. ¡°please don¡¯t let them be dead.¡± ¡°You wanna wait here?¡± She took a deep breath, straightened her spine, and shook her head. ¡°No. We¡¯ve come all this way to get answers, I won¡¯t shy away now.¡± ¡°That¡¯s my girl!¡± I said before realizing what I said and what it could mean. I opened my mouth to utter some nonsense but Nel gave me a pleased smile so I shut my mouth. ¡°Just let me go first, okay?¡± I shrugged the axe from its sheath on my back, it had a loop of leather around the handle and a sort of pocket for one of the blades that rested near my left hip. I¡¯d found it in the Alpha¡¯s room while looking for metal and Rima had shown me how to wear it. To remove the axe I just had to grip it near the head and pull sideways, the head coming out of the pocket and the handle sliding down and out of the loop. It was heavy enough that I had to lean it on my shoulder and I worried about cutting off an ear but the fact that I looked totally badass outweighed my fear of disfiguration and I dropped my sack on the ground. I¡¯d come get it later. Nel shrugged off her pack, setting it down next to my gear, and placed a hand on the pommel of her dagger. After adjusting her satchel so it rested more snuggly against her side she nodded at me and I continued on. No way was I not expecting trouble and I eyed the trees with all the trepidation they deserved. I was fairly confident that armed with the cutting edge of the axe I could take down a mutated Messenger if I had to. I caught a stronger whiff of rot, which was saying something since I¡¯d pretty much gotten used to it, having traveled next to the waterway all day. I caught sight of thatched roofs through the trees as we made our way forward. The Grove was exactly what I had imagined. Okay, maybe not exactly, but it was close. It was much larger than the Pack¡¯s village with at least twenty buildings smattered around a very large clearing. Plots of vegetable farms and neat lines of fruit trees filled most of the available space, broken up only by wooden fences painted bright colors and covered with creepers that looked heavy with some pod-like vegetable. A small winding dirt road made its way around to each home and through the gardens. Where it crossed the brook that ran through the middle of it all, a small stone bridge could be seen. The Grove was also completely and utterly silent. Nothing moved in the whole village. Nel walked passed me, her head turning from side to side as she tried to look at everything at once. I nearly jumped out of my skin when she yelled ¡°Glen!¡± Her voice echoed across the clearing before silence once more reigned. ¡°What are you doing?¡± I hissed. Looking around for the onslaught of vines I was sure was coming. ¡°Trying to get a reaction,¡± Nel said at a more reasonable volume. ¡°If we¡¯re going to get attacked I¡¯d prefer it to be here then when we¡¯re stuck in the middle of the Grove.¡± She had a good point. That still didn¡¯t stop me from jumping when she yelled out again. ¡°Springflower!¡± That was the name I had been trying to remember yesterday! Springflower. See, hippy-dippy. We both stood there waiting for something, anything, to happen and when it didn¡¯t I turned to Nel and gave her a shrug. ¡°I suppose we head in?¡± ¡°Keep an eye out for anything strange.¡± She reminded me. I nodded my understanding. I led the way through a tomato garden to the home behind. The plants came up to my chest with fruits the size of my fist and colored a deep, rich red. Using a boot I pushed at the base of the door, expecting the slab of wood to open with a creak like in some creepy holovid horror flick but it remained motionless. ¡°Perhaps you should try the doorknob?¡± Nel suggested from behind me. I took the time to look back and scowl at her. The woman had the cheek to smile. The door was unlocked and opened soundlessly under my touch. The interior was lit by the sunlight coming through the windows. A simple large room that doubled as both a living room and kitchen, if my guess was correct. A plain wooden table with four seats took up most of the space, thick woven mats of reed covered the floor. Herbs rested on the window sills in clay pots, and more hung from ropes and baskets in the exposed rafters. ¡°You take that room, I¡¯ll take the other,¡± I said. ¡°Scream if you need help,¡± Nel said before I could. She went towards one of the doors. I went to the other one. ¡°Empty,¡± Nel said. I looked at the empty bedroom, taking note of the furniture and knick-knacks around the room before turning away. ¡°Mine''s empty as well.¡± Nel let out a sigh of relief. ¡°You¡¯re happy no one is here?¡± I asked, confused. ¡°No bodies.¡± Nel shrugged and led the way out of the house and back through the garden. ¡°It could mean no one died.¡± We stood on the dirt road and I looked around. ¡°Strange though.¡± I thought I saw movement in the window of a house just down the road but it was a curtain swaying gently in the breeze. ¡°The Messenger was all mutated. The Pack was massacred and their Alpha along with most of the others were changed into Forgotten¡­and now this¡­a Grove of Dryads all gone. No signs of a struggle or foul play.¡± A thought struck me and I hung my head, praying Nel would have an answer that would satisfy me. ¡°Hey Nel, I¡¯m going to ask you a question. Feel free to say ¡®Alexander, don¡¯t be silly. You¡¯re wrong¡¯ okay?¡± ¡°Alexander, you silly little thing, you¡¯re wrong,¡± Nel said, a naughty little twinkle in her eye that made me want to pull her close and kiss her. ¡°Would you say we buried the whole Pack?¡± ¡°Of course, Rima and you helped drag the last body back yourself remember?¡± ¡°No, I mean, do you think the whole Pack was slaughtered and we buried them or is it possible that a few may have¡­left?¡± I saw Nel¡¯s eyes widen at the implication. ¡°Fuck,¡± she said. The first time I¡¯ve ever heard her swear. If I didn¡¯t feel like little icy fingers were running down my spine I would have laughed. ¡°Give me a moment.¡± She closed her eyes, her brows scrunched up with concern. Her lips parted as she muttered to herself and I leaned forward to hear. She was counting. The longer she was at it the deeper her frown got. ¡°Fuck,¡± she said again after five tense minutes. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I could be wrong, I hardly interacted with the Pack so I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve seen all of them, and some were too mutated to match with previous memories but,¡± she hesitated, looking up at me with concern. ¡°I think you¡¯re right. I don¡¯t think we buried all of them.¡± ¡°Did you just go through the memory of burying them and compare each body with that of the Pack from a previous time you¡¯d seen them?¡± I asked, thoroughly impressed. ¡°Gift of replay, remember?¡± ¡°Still¡­very impressive. And not a little sexy.¡± ¡°You choose to flirt at the most inopportune times,¡± Nel said, motioning around us at the Ghost Grove. I waved away her concerns before moving to resume our search. The next two homes were just as empty and cold as the first. ¡®So, we¡¯re going to work under the assumption that part of the Pack and possibly the whole Grove of Dryads are still alive, they¡¯re just¡­.what, abducted? running from the disease?¡± ¡°I prefer to think of it that way than to believe they are all dead.¡± I could see Nel¡¯s point of view so I didn¡¯t argue. No one just ups and leaves their life behind, at least not without a good reason. But she didn¡¯t want to believe her friends were dead and who was I to rain on her parade. One way or the other we were going to get to the bottom of this and she¡¯d have her answers then. The next house was half-hidden by apple trees, each tree overburdened with fruit. I jumped straight up and snagged one. With a smile at Nel that was all teeth, I took a bite, expecting the sweet juices to explode in my mouth. Instead, I gagged and coughed, spitting out the foul-tasting flesh of the apple. Nel was right there, pounding on my back as I spat some more and coughed up an artificial lung. ¡°Oh fuck!¡± I said between coughs. ¡°That''s fucking nasty!¡± Nel picked up the apple from where I had dropped it and turned it over to look at the bite mark. It¡¯s bright red skin that looked so delicious and sweet hid flesh that was black and rotten. Her eyes went wide and she dropped the fruit before dashing over to me, both her hands rooting around inside her satchel. ¡°Give me a torch,¡± I growled. ¡°I¡¯m going to burn that whole fucking tree down!¡± ¡°Here!¡± She said, shoving a leather flask of water into my hands. ¡°Rinse your mouth out, Quick!¡± Ahhh, she was so kind. I took a swig, swirling the warm water around my mouth before spitting it off to the side. ¡°Again!¡± She said, forcing my hand up towards my mouth. ¡°Make sure you don¡¯t swallow any of it.¡± ¡°Okay, Okay. Jeez!¡± I did it all again then smiled at her. ¡°Is my breath really that bad?¡± ¡°I think I know what happened and if my theory is correct I don''t want you getting infected!¡± Nel said, her eyes darting over my face as she turned my head this way and that. ¡°The fruit! The water! The Messenger! It all makes sense!¡± ¡°Explain, please.¡± She was practically bouncing in place, her hands moving in agitated flicks as she thought through her theory. ¡°The disease is spreading through the water and contaminating the ground. These trees, all of them, draw the water up through the ground and it must be infecting the fruits. When the Dryads eat it they get infected.¡± ¡°Sure, but I don¡¯t see how they wouldn¡¯t notice. That stuff is nasty.¡± ¡°Because what you ate was concentrated. What happens if only a little of the disease is present in the fruit at a time, or if it takes time to grow and manifest itself? The whole village would be consuming it without even knowing.¡± ¡°Okay, but how does that explain the Messenger?¡± ¡°Think about what I told you, the Messenger waits in the ground until it is needed, hunting worms and insects and other things. If the ground and water are contaminated then it stands to reason that the Messenger would also get contaminated.¡± I nodded along, it was making sense but there were still holes in her logic. ¡°But then why was it near the Brood?¡± Nel gnawed on her lip in that adorable way she does before smiling. ¡°The Dryads needed to send a message to us, perhaps they began to show symptoms of the disease¡­the Messenger¡¯s infection grew to maturity as it traveled until it forgot what it was meant to do. Instead of reaching the Brood it stopped short and only focused on food.¡± ¡°Okay, you''re making sense.¡± I thought about it for a second then sighed. ¡°But then what about the Pack? The infection can¡¯t have spread all the way there, or we would have seen more signs along the way.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve told you this as well, the Pack hunts in the woods surrounding the Citrus Pools, and we¡¯ve already seen¡­and smelt¡­it there. Their hunts can last for days and they would drink from the water and eat the Citrus Nuts.¡± ¡°Ahhh, but they would smell it,¡± I said. I was enjoying playing the devil''s advocate. ¡°Wolves have a great sense of smell after all.¡± ¡°During the earliest stages, if this¡­disease¡­stays dormant, it could be present in the water and the smell of the Citrus Nuts would mask it until it was too late.¡± ¡°Would the Alpha be in the hunting party?¡± Nel scoffed. ¡°Of course. He has to be, he also has to catch the most and eat the most and work the most.¡± ¡°Meaning he would get hot the most and probably drink the most.¡± I finished for her. She nodded and I sighed. ¡°So if the whole Grove has been infected that means they¡¯re all Forgotten¡­which means we are fucked.¡± ¡°No. If that was the case then we would have been attacked by now. As Nature Spirits they would view this all as their territory and we would have been dealt with most viciously.¡± ¡°But you just said the whole village could be infected and the infection or disease or whatever makes the Denvii into Forgotten¡­so if we''re saying that half the Pack and the whole Grove left, while being infected...then what does that mean?¡± Nel looked at me and shrugged. ¡°How should I know? You''re the Champion.¡± Great. It''s the blind leading the blind. Chapter 19 ¡°Alexander!¡± Nel¡¯s annoyed voice said inches from my face. I blinked and focused on her just in time to swat the finger she was about to jab at my forehead. ¡®What?¡± ¡°Glen¡¯s house was empty. Even his Bees are gone and when I came back I saw you standing there staring off into the distance, drooling. I¡¯ve been calling your name for the last minute.¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t drooling,¡± I said, wiping at my chin just in case. ¡°And I was trying to contact your idiot brother if you must know. Using the gift of Unity.¡± Her eyes lit up then and she leaned forward, a strand of black hair falling across her face. ¡°Did it work?¡± ¡°I doubt it. I tried thinking at him really hard, but I¡¯m not sure how much got through¡­if that makes sense?¡± ¡°Yes, that explains the drooling. Continue.¡± I narrowed my eyes at her in mock anger and she smiled. Giving up on intimidating the short woman I went back to explaining my failure. ¡°It¡¯s really hard. Like trying to describe color to a man born blind...I¡¯m going to blame the distance and say that I was doing everything perfectly.¡± ¡°But you can still sense him?¡± ¡°Yup. General direction and health, at least. He¡¯s fine, by the way.¡± I focused on the extra sense I had that was like an itch at the back of my mind. ¡°A little tired. But fine.¡± I opened my mouth to ask what she wanted to do next. We had spent most of the day looking through the homes and come up with zip other than the rotting fruits and vegetables. Glen¡¯s house had been the last on the dirt road, closest to the forest and furthest from where we had entered. It was a modest log building with a neat front yard. Instead of fruits and vegetables, he had planted flowers, large yellow things with bright white centers that spilled out of the beds and across the grass lawn. Outback was the beehives and the famous honey. I¡¯d taken a quick peek, out of curiosity more than anything, and thought the rows of wooden boxes looked like elaborate birdhouses. I never got to ask the question. I saw movement through the trees behind Nel¡¯s shoulder and focused on it as my body tensed. The figure stepped out from the shade and into the sun and I frowned as more joined the first. ¡°I¡¯m going to guess that those aren''t Dryads?¡± I asked Nel, indicating the group of men behind her with my eyes. She spun around and took a step back at the same time I took one forward. It brought me between her and the men and I stopped my advance to study them. There were four of them, dressed in a range of wools, hemp, and leathers. For the most part, they had tanned skin that spoke of long hours in the sun and bushy beards that spoke of no mirrors. One man near the back drew my attention and not just because he was holding a bow and had an arrow knocked and aimed at Nel but also because he looked on edge. Dark circles ringed his eyes, the pupils were red and bloodshot. The hand holding the bow was shaking slightly. He also looked the most dangerous. The leather he wore was form-fitting and looked padded across the chest and shoulders. His belt had several loops that carried an assortment of knives and pieces of metal I couldn¡¯t even begin to identify. Slung across his back was a quiver of arrows, the grey fletching poking out by his right ear. Sensing my eyes on him he looked at me before his dark pupils sprung back to Nel. That was a mistake, I was the much larger threat. While I studied the men they had studied us in turn. A man in the middle, dressed in dark browns and with a shaven head stepped forward, not much, but just enough to put him ahead of the group and I marked him as the leader. He carried a spear in his hand, the shaft was thicker than Rima¡¯s (ew ew ew) and there was a metal cross guard near the spearhead. He wore a simple pair of leather pants and a white shirt, the sleeves rolled up to show off impressively muscled forearms and stretching tight across a rotund middle. ¡°Greetings. Who might ya be?¡± He called out, his voice even faint due to the distance was rough, his accent strong. ¡°Rima,¡± I called back, pointing at myself before pointing at Nel. ¡°Kitty.¡± ¡°What are you doing?¡± Nel hissed from behind me. I shrugged back. ¡°Relax, I know what I¡¯m doing.¡± And surprisingly I did. I had been off my game from the beginning since coming to this planet, surrounded by strange new¡­everythings. But this, talking to other humans under a stressful situation with weapons drawn? This was a regular Monday in Dockside. ¡°Where are ya from, Rima?¡± The man called out. ¡°Ya¡¯s is a face I ain''t seen round these parts before. ¡°Dockside.¡± I replied with a small smile. There was muttering amongst the men, I noticed the twitchy bowman wasn¡¯t getting involved, he kept right on staring at Nel. I could understand, she was beautiful, but his wasn¡¯t that sort of look. He looked¡­angry¡­and lost. ¡°That that little fishing village down south, trades with all them Denvii?¡± The man yelled again, sounding uncertain. ¡°That''s the one!¡± I smiled wide so he could see. ¡°What are you doing here, friend?¡± He came towards me but one of the group pulled him back, muttering and pointing around at the deserted village. I was just about to boost my hearing and evesdrop when the leader waved the other¡¯s concern away and walked towards me. ¡°Stay close,¡± I muttered to Nel. ¡°And keep me between you and the man near the back with the bow.¡± ¡°We ain¡¯t friends,¡± The man said at a more reasonable volume once we stood facing each other. His spear was pointing straight up and the knife on his thick leather belt was sheathed so I left the axe on my back. ¡®Not yet at least.¡± I nodded, slipping back into Dockside slang easily enough. ¡°Aye, ya can say that again. I don¡¯t know ya from the next bloke but I ain¡¯t looking for no enemies and we ain¡¯t family so for now¡­I¡¯ll call ya friend.¡± Bushy eyebrows rose as the man thought over my words before his beard twitched, the corners of his mouth lifting as he smiled. The smile turned into a full belly laugh. Still chuckling to himself the man leaned forward, his arm outstretched and we clasped forearms. ¡°Ain¡¯t never heard a man have such a good reasons to call another friend so quick. Ya can call me Tam.¡± ¡°So whatcha doing round these parts, Tam?¡± I asked.Stolen novel; please report. ¡°Could ask ya the same, ya being from further off than us,¡± He pointed over his shoulder with a thumb. ¡°We out of Trade Town.¡± ¡°Truth in that,¡± I let my shoulders slump and graced him with an easy smile. The very appearance of indifference. ¡°I¡¯m up from Dockside, sent by the family to check to these folk bout some honey they promised us. Might quiet though, ya ask me. They move on?¡± I asked the last innocently, indicating the ghost Grove. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the other men slowly drift towards us as well, one of them sheathed the knife he held and the other slung the bow he had been carrying. The twitchy one, he didn¡¯t drop his weapon but he did move closer. I was pleased to notice that Nel shifted subtly to put me between them. ¡°Oi! Tam!¡± One of the men called, the one that had the dagger. ¡°Everything okay?¡± ¡°Aye, come over and introduce ya¡¯self.¡± The man with the dagger was called Niel, the one who had lowered the bow introduced himself as Brin in a high, light voice that didn¡¯t suit the burly woodsman vibe he gave off. ¡°That there¡¯s Titus,¡± Tam said, indicating the last man. The twitchy one who, I noticed, still hadn¡¯t dropped his bow and was now trying to get an unobstructed view of Nel. It was pissing me off a little. ¡°Titus! Put ya bow down will ya! they aint no threat to us. Rima here is up from Dockside looking to purchase some honey.¡± ¡°Already purchased,¡± I interjected. ¡°That''s why I¡¯m here, these folk aint delivered to me what''s mine and I came to collect, maybe work out a better deal for the future, ya catch my drift.¡± ¡°Where¡¯s their stuff!¡± Titus barked, his eyes darting around, his hand shaking like crazy. He had the arrow at half draw and I had no clue how much longer he could keep aiming but the second he went to pull that string I was going to put my fist through his face. ¡°Watcha talking bout?¡± Tam said in exasperation. ¡°Their stuff is¡­where is ya stuff?¡± Under his suspicious gaze, I simply looked him in the eye and raised an eyebrow. ¡°Removed it when we came into the Grove, didn¡¯t know what ta expect. I could ask ya the same question, I ain¡¯t seeing no packs on no backs nor any sacks.¡± Tam smiled again, showing teeth that weren¡¯t quite straight. ¡°See, Titus. They just traveling folk, put ya bow away.¡± He turned back to me and gave a small shrug, his eyes drifting to Nel for a moment before dismissing her. ¡°Sorry bout him, he¡¯s a little on edge. All are, ta be honest.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡®Ya don¡¯t know?¡± He shook his head. ¡°Of course ya don¡¯t. Don¡¯t suppose ya would have the problem, what with them all coming up our way.¡± ¡®Them who?¡± ¡°The Dryads and the Pack o¡¯course.¡± Tam¡¯s face darkened and he spat off to the side. ¡°Aint never seen something so wrong ¡®fore. Ain¡¯t never had a problem with them Denvii till now. Now they be all twisted and dark, kidnapping our peoples and raiding our lands.¡± ¡°They wouldn¡¯t do that!¡± Nel said, pushing me aside at the same time the nervous archer yelled. ¡°Where¡¯s my son!¡± Titus roared, spittle flying from his lips as he jabbed his bow towards me. The only thing that kept him alive was the fact that he hadn¡¯t pulled the string back. ¡°They took Titus¡¯s boy,¡± Tam whispered to Nel and I as he tried to get between the crazed bowman and us. ¡°He was out hunting, wanting to make his pa proud, ¡¯n¡¯ just never came back.¡± ¡°Tell me where my boy is!¡± Titus yelled again, but his voice broke into a sob at the end. ¡°They don¡¯t know!¡± Tam roared back. ¡°They just got here, ya fucking crazed idiot! We promised ta help ya look for him, didn¡¯t promise to attack no folk! Put ya weapon down ¡®fore ya go doin something ya can¡¯t take back!¡± ¡°She knows!¡± Titus whispered before growling ¡°She knows! Look at her legs, she ain''t human! She¡¯s a Denvii! Same as them others that took my boy!¡± Tam looked back at us, taking in the extra legs Nel was sporting. She looked back wide-eyed, I thought I saw tears in her eyes and I just knew they were for the idiot waving the bow in her face. She probably wanted to help him and all he was thinking about was hurting her. That pissed me off. A lot. ¡°I suggest you get your man to put down his bow before I do something he¡¯ll regret,¡± I growled. Tam took a step back at the change in tone, his spear drifted low. That was the last straw apparently. Titus¡¯s hand blurred as he lifted, pulled and released the arrow aimed at Nel. I was overclocking before he moved though and to my sped up processors the arrow floated through the air and it was easy enough for me to match its speed and pluck the projectile from the air. What I wasn¡¯t prepared for was the second arrow, fired so quickly after the first that it was inhumane. Right, skills and gifts. Duh. The second arrow was aimed at me, center mass. I let it hit. The head was simple steel, not that Bores tusk crap, and only penetrated about two centimeters. Breaking off the tip from the arrow in my hand I turned, fully intending to throw it through Titus¡¯s eye, when Nel¡¯s touch on my bicep stopped me. That''s when Tam lunged forward with his spear. He was strong and had solid footing and the blade pushed through my abdomen slowly, my synthetic skin and muscle putting up an admiral fight but failing in the end. Nel was looking into my eyes and saw what was coming before anyone else. Her eyes widened as she saw the simmering rage break free and all she could do was watch as I tossed the arrowhead in my hand to the side, the movement almost casual and would have been if I hadn¡¯t been overclocking. There was a whistling shriek of wind as the metal head passed through space and tore through the shoulder of Titus in an explosion of blood and bone. He screamed and fell back, the bow dropping to the ground beside him. Tam¡¯s yell mixed with the other men¡¯s as he pushed on the spear, trying to force me off balance and the men behind him drew weapons. They had tried to hurt Nel and they had hurt me. I was too pissed off to go easy on them. Reaching down I placed one hand beneath the spear shaft and the other a little further down and on top. The thick wooden shaft cracked and broke as I pushed up and down simultaneously. Tam staggered forward, off-balance, and I used his momentum along with the shaft still in his hand to help him along. One vicious tug and he stood in front of me, almost nose to nose, and I realized I was slightly taller. Perfect. His eyes widened as he figured out what I was going to do but that didn¡¯t mean he could stop it. I snapped my head forward, driving my forehead into his nose. There was the snap of breaking cartilage followed by the sharper crack of bone and I wondered briefly if I had broken his cheekbone. Probably. He opened his mouth to yowl in pain but his blood was getting everywhere and he choked on it. Over his shoulder I could see the guy with the dagger, Niel I think it was, moving around us while Brin took aim with his bow, the only reason he hadn¡¯t shot me yet was that Tam was in the way. That wasn¡¯t very sporing so I pushed Tams head to the side, his body going with it to crumple on the ground. I kept hold of the spear shaft and used it to swat the arrow out of the air. Brin¡¯s eyes went wide when he saw that and he reached for the quiver at his back. I threw the shaft through the air in a lazy arc where it hit the dude on the forehead and he dropped to the ground with the rest. Niel was looking very unsure of himself by now and I bared my teeth in a smile, pulling the spearhead from my guts and gripping it like a dagger. I didn¡¯t even need my axe, which was a shame¡­I wanted to try it out. A soft hand on my bicep brought me back and I glanced down into the soft red eyes of Nel. ¡°Enough, Alexander.¡± She said quietly, her voice barely above a whisper. I looked at Niel, shaking in fear. Brin sprawled out on the ground, a welt already forming on his forehead. Tam, curled up at my feet, his face ruined. And Titus, looking pale as he held onto his mangled shoulder. ¡°That one tried to kill you,¡± I growled, my voice low and cold. ¡°He is grieving and lost and looking for someone to blame. I do not hold that against him and as you can see I am fine. The others only acted to help their friends. They are good men and do not deserve your wrath. Come back to me, Champion.¡± She placed a warm palm against my jaw and I felt the old rage slowly ebb away. ¡°Come back to me and leave them be. We fight the same enemy I think.¡± Not quite ready to let it all go I stomped over to Titus and crouched down next to him. His bloodshot eyes watched me and he flinched when I reached out to grip his chin. ¡°You are alive only because the woman you tried to kill just saved you,¡± I whispered so only he could hear. ¡°You attacked her out of fear for your son. I attacked you out of fear for her. The difference between us is that I won.¡± I leaned forward and held his gaze with my own, my face settled into the hard angles and sharp planes that marked my street face back in Dockside. ¡°She will want to help you. I cannot stop that. But if you try anything like this again¡­I will tear you apart slowly. That I promise.¡± Chapter 20 Do you have any idea how embarrassing it is to apologize to a person after you¡¯ve kicked their ass (and may have intended to put them to sleep¡­permanently)? It¡¯s so freaking awkward. I¡¯ve never had to do it before and I was having a lot of trouble doing it now. If their faces were anything to go by, it was just as awkward getting apologized to by the person who kicked your ass as it is to do the apologizing. What I found amusing (and no one else did) was that the only one of the four who had a regenerative gift was Brin, the one with the least serious injury (besides Niel who got away unscathed.). So that meant the rest of them had to wait to get treated back in Trade Town. Nel wanted to go back with them, more so she could pump them for information than anything else I think. I agreed, somewhat reluctantly and we went to get our packs, or in my case: sack. I wasn¡¯t about to go get our stuff by myself. I wasn¡¯t leaving Nel alone with them for fear of them hurting her, and she wasn¡¯t leaving me alone with them for fear of me hurting them. ¡°You should have let me kill them,¡± I said once we were out of earshot and making our way back through the Grove. ¡°You are the Champion of Aeris, these are the people you are meant to help.¡± ¡°And now we are going to travel with a group of men that are scared and resentful of us. That is not a good mix, Nel.¡± I growled, a little pissed off at her. ¡°Men like that would stab us in the back at a moment''s notice and consider themselves smart.¡± ¡°They are scared.¡± She insisted. ¡°They are stupid!¡± I snapped. I stopped and had to reach out and grab her shoulder so I could turn her to face me. ¡°They attacked you, based solely on the fact that you¡¯re a Denvii, where I come from that''s racist and pretty fucking disgusting¡­though not uncommon, but that''s not even the point! The point is, if they can attack you for so simple a reason as that, you can¡¯t trust them!¡± Nel met my eye¡¯s, her own were cold. ¡°And if they had all tried to kill me I would have let you destroy them, but they did not. That man, Titus, attacked and the rest were simply supporting him. Tam even tried to stop him at first, remember?¡± ¡°He stabbed me in the stomach! With a spear! A fucking spear!¡± ¡°Yes, but in defense of his friend, much the same way you were going to kill them to defend me.¡± ¡°Well then by your logic I should get to at least kill Titus. He was the instigator and was the first to resort to killing.¡± Nel rolled her eyes and turned away so she could continue on. I was so annoyed I didn¡¯t even look at her ass. Yeah, amazing. I know! ¡°Why are you so eager to kill them?¡± She asked as I caught up to her and we walked shoulder to shoulder. ¡°Cause it¡¯s just plain smart. You leave someone alive and that''s an opportunity for them to get even¡­and they sure as shit won¡¯t be giving you the same opportunity. In Dockside everyone understood that. Is it different here?¡± ¡°Not so much,¡± Nel admitted with a sigh. ¡°just try to remember that as the Champion of Aeris, it¡¯s your job to help all the People, not just those you care about.¡± Honestly, I doubt that was ever going to happen. If something happened in front of me I¡¯d help out a stranger¡­probably, and only if it didn¡¯t inconvenience me¡­but to help everyone? Fuck, that sounded exhausting. No thanks. Our gear was where we left it and I slung my sack over my shoulder with a casual shrug. Nel slipped her pack on and adjusted the straps so they fit more comfortably. Once ready we both turned back the way we had just come. ¡°Is helping them really that important to you?¡± I asked, at last, ducking under a branch before stepping back into the Grove. ¡°It is if it means we may find the Dryads and the rest of the Pack based on their information,¡± She looked back at me, her pretty face lined with worry and she gnawed on her lip. ¡°And I¡¯m thinking long term. I doubt Titus is the only human from Trade Town who has lost someone. His anger could be mirrored by others, and what happens if they decide all Denvii are to blame, not just the ones who have been twisted.¡± ¡­she kind of had a point. A civil war was not something this place needed right now, what with the Government and the missing Centre Life Core¡­crap! ¡°Nel, do you think it would come to war?¡± I asked, needing to confirm my suspicions. ¡°Not at first, but eventually? Yes. And it would start with something like this. Picture it, these men have come out here looking for the child and in their hatred and fear they lash out at a Denvii, me. You respond with violence and this time I don¡¯t stop you. The men are dead and their families will ask questions and who will be blamed? The Denvii, for its the simple answer. More anger is added and more fear and they decide that something must be done. They retaliate at the Denvii, to show they won''t be cowed and the Denvii, unsure of what is happening and why, view the attack as an act of aggression rather than revenge and they retaliate¡­on and on until it grows into all-out war.¡± ¡°and who prospers?¡± Nel shrugged her shoulders. ¡°It is war. No one prospers.¡± ¡°A third party does if the other two destroy each other.¡± Nel stopped so suddenly I walked a further two steps before realizing she wasn¡¯t beside me anymore. ¡°The humans from your world?¡± She asked. She sounded¡­angry. I can''t say I blamed her. ¡°I think. We have no proof and for all we know, we¡¯re both wrong¡­and it doesn¡¯t make much of a difference since I¡¯m still going to kick their teeth in when I find them.¡± I nodded towards the group of injured men in the distance. ¡°And for what it¡¯s worth, I guess you kind of had a good reason to stop me from killing them. But I still don¡¯t have to like it.¡± Nel beamed at me. She was a little too happy to be right if you asked me, and the fact that I had even admitted it may have set a bad precedent but I¡¯d handle that when it came to it. ¡°I¡¯m still going to kill them if they try anything else,¡± I held up a hand to forestall any arguments. ¡°And just so the Denvii won¡¯t get blamed I¡¯ll drag the bodies to Trade Town and wave them about whilst yelling out my name. Happy?¡± Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°That¡¯s a little dark¡­¡± Nel muttered before perking back up. ¡°But that works for me.¡± So, of course, the first thing I said to the damaged group when Nel and I rejoined them was¡­ ¡°Look at her wrong and I end you. Understand?¡± Nel swatted my arm, scowling. ¡°Sorry¡­One wrong move and I end you. Understand?¡± Nel swatted me again. ¡°Okay, Okay! Relax woman, jeez.¡± I turned to regard the four men sitting on the ground. I tried to get a read on them, seeing if any were feeling particularly rebellious or angry and might cause a problem later. For the most part, they just looked sullen, except Tam. Tam just looked fucked up. His face was all lumpy and swollen and turning some weird purple color that did not go with his blood-encrusted beard. Problem numero uno, Titus, was sitting down crossed legged, his head bowed and his arm hanging limp at his side. One of the others must have dressed the wound while we were gone because I could see a white wrap under his torn shirt. ¡°I think we can all agree that this was one massive fuck up. We aren¡¯t the ones that took your child and you thinking we were, was just stupid.¡± I took the time to glare at Titus, but he was looking down so I got to examine the top of his head instead. ¡°Attacking us was just as stupid and if it wasn¡¯t for Nel you would all be dead and gone.¡± Niel, the scaredy-cat, was shaking a little. Brin, looking healthy and fresh thanks to his gift, had the guts to look me in the eye and nod. I think he was just happy I hadn¡¯t killed him instantly. Tam¡­Tam continued to look fucked up. I went on to explain why Nel and I were out there and what we thought might be happening. I kept a lot secret though, like being the Champion as my understanding was a Champion was someone from another world and I didn¡¯t want that getting back to the wrong people, surprise and all that stuff. I also kept the theory of it being humans from my world responsible from them and instead said we thought it was a water-based disease that was turning the Denvii feral. Brin raised his hand when I said that and I pointed at him. ¡°I¡¯ve seen a Forgotten an¡¯ these ones were too smart fo that.¡± He ducked his head, probably expecting to be rebuked after contradicting us but Nel sprung forward, her eyes intense. ¡°What do you mean?¡± She said. ¡°Uhh,¡± He looked between her and me, fidgeting terribly as he remembered my words. To help him out I mouthed ¡®look at her funny and I end you.¡¯ over Nel¡¯s shoulder. Brin went bone white and studied the grass. Okay, I admit it. I¡¯m an asshole. Still fun though. ¡°Ya¡­ya see, they moved in a pack, they did,¡± he said, still looking down. ¡°And they were all twisted up, like Forgotten, I¡¯ll give ya that¡­but they were aware of what they were doin¡¯, right-enough.¡± So Forgotten but not Forgotten. I thought back to the first ones I¡¯d fought. There was that last one, that had fought less like a wild animal and more like¡­well, me. Then there was the Alpha who had held on to his weapon. Hadn¡¯t used it, but he¡¯d still kept it¡­as if he knew it could help in a fight. If the Government was responsible like I thought, I wouldn¡¯t put it passed them to come up with a way to control the Denvii once infected. Some drugs made you susceptible to suggestion¡­maybe it was like that, but juiced up by a thousand? They were running on basic instinct by then and I guess that would make them easier to control. Nel was looking at me thoughtfully but we didn¡¯t say anything in front of the men. ¡°Did you see where they went? Did they come this way?¡± She asked. Brin shook his head. ¡°The first ones were taken from surrounding farms an¡¯ homesteads. Few days gone by, that was when we saw them twisted things, was just outside the walls, raided the ol¡¯ Dime Inn.¡± Brin gulped hard at the memory and Niel shook some more. Tam tried saying something but was too fucked up for it to make sense. ¡°Some of the men wanted ta give chase but the Mayor¡­he pulled the town-folk behind the walls. Ain¡¯t no one allowed out now. We only found out later that Titus¡¯s boy had been heading back from these woods, he came here ta hunt.¡± ¡°No one allowed out...except you.¡± I cocked an eyebrow and stared the man down. He gulped and surprisingly it was Niel that answered. ¡°Ran away.¡± ¡°Come again?¡± I asked. ¡°We ran away. We wasn¡¯t needed and wasn¡¯t watched. Knew Titus and Milik, his boy¡­when he told us he thought his boy was taken we figured we could help. Figured we could be heroes.¡± He looked away, embarrassed. Underneath the overgrown facial hair and weathered skin, he was surprisingly young. So was Brin. Tam looked the oldest, with more wrinkles around the eyes and forehead. ¡°So you traveled to the closest Denvii settlement and figured you would what? Take on the whole Grove?¡± Nel asked, her voice conveying what she thought of that. She said it anyway, in case they couldn¡¯t tell. ¡°What are you? Idiots?¡± I couldn¡¯t help it. I started laughing. Great big belly-aching laughs that shook my body and had me doubled over. Nel jumped at the sound before turning to look at me, a small unsure smile on her lips like she wasn¡¯t sure if what she had said was that funny or if I was laughing at something else. I¡¯d figured them out, the four men, and that made me laugh all the more because I¡¯ve known dozens of men like them. ¡°Let me guess,¡± I said, still laughing a little. ¡°You three were sitting down, probably drinking or already drunk, bemoaning the state of the world, the cowardly mayor, and probably the taste of the drink. In stumbles Titus, wrecked with grief and beside himself with worry. Drunk and full of false bravado you lot decide that you can do more than a town and it¡¯s time to step up.¡± The men were all looking away again and that only made me break into more fits of laughter. Once I¡¯d subsided I continued. ¡°I bet you pledged to get him back, This Milik kid, and went and got what you could as weapons. None of you are actually warriors or guards so my guess is you picked whatever you had laying around. Titus, well Titus doesn¡¯t look like the most reputable sort, so I¡¯m gonna go out on a limb and say he knows the secret ways in and out of the town. How am I doing, am I close? I¡¯m close aren¡¯t I?¡± I had to break to wipe a tear from my eye. ¡°So off you four trot, head held high and something solid in your hand. Probably figured you¡¯d have it done in an hour and be back for the next pint, but that''s where you fucked up¡­because your guide was sober and he kept you moving and before you knew it, its dark and your bedding down outside the safe little walls of your town and the courage from too much drink is fading fast. What do you do then? Tell these other men, who haven¡¯t complained yet, that you¡¯re scared and you wanna go back¡­or do you shut up and hope for the best?¡± Brin opened his mouth to object and I waved a hand to stop him. ¡°No, no, no. That''s wrong. You do speak up, right? You speak up but Titus doesn¡¯t let you go back, he urges you on¡­maybe you don¡¯t know how to get back into the town? Either way, you¡¯re out in the middle of nowhere with hardly any belongings and being led by a man mad with grief. Did I get that right.¡± There was a long stretched out silence as the men looked everywhere but at each other. Nel looked impressed. ¡°So what are you?¡± I asked before remembering the term. ¡°What¡¯s your class?¡± ¡°Tanner,¡± Niel said, his voice barely above a whisper. ¡°Merchant. My father owns the grocer and I¡¯ll follow in his steps.¡± That was Brin. Tam gurgled out something but between the swelling, the blocked nose, and the fact that if he moved his mouth too much his whole face ached, I couldn¡¯t understand shit. ¡°He¡¯s a butcher,¡± Brin said. ¡°Of course he is,¡± I muttered before nodding towards Titus. ¡°He¡¯s what? A Hunter?¡± ¡°Poacher.¡± Came the muffled response from Titus. He still didn¡¯t look up and I don¡¯t know what made him answer but I nodded anyway. ¡°Well, you nearly got the only fools willing to help you killed and then you tried to kill the only Denvii that probably wants to help you.¡± I crouched down and whispered so the others wouldn¡¯t hear. ¡°I know a little something about grief and I know it doesn¡¯t matter how you handle it, but if it puts me or mine at risk then I end you. Understand? Control yourself.¡± ¡°Now, are you lot ready to go? Your buddy Titus is going to show us the secret way into Town¡± I moved up to Nel and shook my head sadly. ¡°Their just a bunch of idiots in over their heads. They don¡¯t know shit but their own blind hate and foolish dreams. We did get lucky though, I doubt the Town¡¯s people would have let you in, with all the tension right now, but now we get to be all sneaky.¡± The men staggered to their feet. I almost felt sorry for beating them but then I remembered what they had done and I stopped feeling that way. Chapter 21 That night when we finally made camp it was¡­awkward. Yeah, awkward sums it up about right. We had reached the edge of the woods surrounding the Grove by late evening. The dirt path used by traders that we had followed led down a gently sloping hill of grass and wildflowers before twisting out of sight in the rapidly growing gloom. The gentle burble of the creek had faded as it traveled away from us but Nel said it moved pretty much parallel with the road we were going to follow. I wasn¡¯t too keen on camping out in an open field and the others were too tired to continue on so we stopped at the tree line and the four men fell over. Well, some of them. Niel and Tam. Titus held himself away from the group, a distant shadow, and as they settled themselves out in a loose circle he walked off. Nel, showing that she didn¡¯t trust the humans (even if she wasn¡¯t willing to let me kill them) had moved back into the woods and climbed up one of the trees, her spider legs making it effortless, and settled into the crook made by the branch and trunk. I followed her up with just as much ease, if not as much finesse, and there may have been a trail of scraped bark and bare wood left behind me. Turning around was a little awkward on the branch and I worried for a second that it wouldn¡¯t hold my weight, but I managed to adjust myself and finally sat facing the spider-woman, my legs hanging off either side of the branch as I straddled it. ¡°You look like you want to laugh,¡± I said, scowling. Nel¡¯s eyes twinkled in the dying light as she watched me. She wore her cloak and had pulled it tight around her like a blanket. ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever seen someone that doesn¡¯t belong in a tree more than you.¡± I had to raise an eyebrow at that. ¡°And just how many people have you seen in trees?¡± She laughed then, her cloak falling open. Her spider legs slid out to grip the sides of the branch and she moved towards me, her human legs trailing lightly against the rough bark. With a small smile, she settled down near me, her legs still out for support, and leaned forward so her forehead pressed against mine. It was oddly intimate and I would have loved it except for my growing fear of the branch breaking. ¡°You are the only person I¡¯ve seen in a tree¡­but Denvii? Most take to nature with ease¡­but do you really want to talk about other people right now?¡± She asked, bringing her face even closer to mine. I could feel the barest whisper of her lips on mine as she talked and her warm breath washed over me. Fuck the branch! I wrapped one arm around her waist and pulled her to me. She giggled, her hands bracing themselves on my shoulder, as she went with the movement. She ended up straddling my waist, her toned legs wrapped around my hips. She kissed me then and it was different from the first time. There was no burning hunger in this one, only a slow-building lust. Nel moaned as the kiss deepened, her tongue darting into my mouth. She ground herself against me and I pulled her tight, her breasts pressing into my chest, her hands trailing down my back. I had one hand on her back, between her shoulder blades. The other was on her meaty ass, gripping and squeezing and helping her grind down on me. I hissed as she broke our kiss and nipped at my neck, her sharp canines scraping against the skin before she planted a gentle sucking kiss in the same location. That¡¯s when I heard the sound of a struggle and someone screamed like a stuck pig. Nel jumped out of my embrace, her spider legs scuttling about as she spun towards the noise. I, in all my awesomeness, fell out of the tree thanks to all the sudden movements. ¡°Alexander, what was that?¡± I heard Nel hiss from above. From my place, laying on the ground, I could make out her figure on the branch, a dark silhouette against the lighter black canopy, and watched the blob that was her head move about. ¡°Alexander? Champion! Where are you?¡± ¡°Down here,¡± I growled, loud enough for her to hear. The fall hadn¡¯t hurt me. The ground was surprisingly soft with the fallen leaves surrounding the trunk and the mud beneath that. ¡°Oh, good! Wait, why are you laying dow¡­did you fall off the branch?¡± ¡°No. I took the fastest route to the ground. I am a man of action after all.¡± I got to my feet, brushing myself off, and turned to glare in the direction of the cockblocking noise. It had come from the four men¡¯s camp and I wondered briefly if I should just let them kill each other while I went back to necking with Nel. There was a soft thump as Nel jumped off the branch to join me and I turned to her in time to see her extra legs fold back up under her cloak. She was flushed and breathing heavy and looked about as pissed off as I felt. ¡°We could just let them kill each other,¡± I suggested. Hoping she would agree. ¡°No,¡± She finally said, but it came slow and reluctant. ¡°We need them to sneak me into the town and I want to try and help them if I can.¡± There were more yelling and screaming and the sounds of forceful movements. ¡°I¡¯m going to go break that up, then you and I are going to continue doing what we were doing.¡± ¡°You do know we aren¡¯t going any further tonight don¡¯t you,¡± Nel said with a cheeky smile. ¡°I don''t think you have the necessary dexterity to complete such an act in the tree and I am not doing it in the dirt like some wild animal.¡± She tiptoed and kissed my nose before stepping back with a wink. ¡°at least not yet.¡± ¡°Tease,¡± I growled but I was smiling. There was no rush to take things further and now that I was starting to think with my real brain, this wasn¡¯t the best place for Nel¡¯s first time. I¡¯d probably fall out of the tree at the worst possible moment, and knowing my luck, land on my erection. Also, I didn¡¯t trust those men, they might peek¡­you know, after they¡¯ve killed each other. I was not a happy individual when I made it to the camp but the sight that greeted me cheered me right up. Tam was laying on the ground comatose, fresh blood stained his face and shirt. He must have been the one that squealed like a pig, which was funny because he was a butcher¡­ Niel was fighting with Brin, his knife out and waving in the air, but not aimed at the other man so I guess it was meant to intimidate. Brin, I noticed in the light from their small fire, had blood on his knuckles. The shadowy form of Titus sat unmoving just outside the firelight. See, I told you, a bunch of idiots. They weren¡¯t going to kill each other or if they were at least Titus wouldn¡¯t be involved and he was the only one we really needed. I left them to it. I spent the rest of the night in the tree with Nel, I sat in the junction this time and she curled up against me, her head on my chest and her arm around my stomach. Her spider legs wrapped around me and anchored us both in place. Under the cover of darkness and with her snoring quietly I studied the legs as the distant sounds of the three men fighting wound down. Nel¡¯s spider legs were hard like bone, but warm to the touch, and smooth like glass. It was interesting. I¡¯ve never been a big fan of spiders, never had a problem with them, but never really thought about them either, you know? So I thought it might freak me out more, having a spider woman snuggled up against me and these whopping big spider legs wrapped around me¡­but I was fine. Nel murmured something in her sleep and burrowed tighter against me and I kissed the top of her head gently. What the fuck was I doing? Being tender? That thought almost made me throw up. I was never tender¡­or romantic¡­ I looked up at the dark leaves above us as they swayed gently in the breeze, the quiet rustle they made acting like background noise to calm my mind. Was this world changing me? Was being Aeris¡¯s champion doing something to me? I knew the system (I doubted it was the god himself) had tried to assimilate me and failing that it had tried to integrate with me. Which was where my fear lay. My brain was my own, my thoughts mine, but there was this little chip, microscopic really, nestled amongst my grey matter that was responsible for controlling the nanobots and my more¡­robotic parts. It held a whole bunch of codes and preset functions, the major one being maintenance and care of my body. It should just try and stop bleeding, clog cuts, reinforce damaged tissue, all that jazz until I could reach Sandy for repairs, but the fact that Aeris had given me a gift that let my nanobots use material stored in me to completely repair any damage done¡­it spoke of something a little worrying. The damn planet was capable of reprogramming me, at a literal microscopic level. I finally fell asleep, my arms around the warm form of the curvaceous woman, and my mind full of the horrors of being a planet and or god''s bitch. By some unspoken agreement, we didn¡¯t discuss anything of importance the next morning. I didn¡¯t ask the men about the fight and they didn¡¯t share any details, though from the few snippets of conversation I caught between them, Tam had grown angry with Titus after asking some unanswered questions, in the heat of the moment Brin had punched his already broken nose, Niel had gotten involved and waved his knife around to feel important and Titus had remained seated. They must have settled their differences though since the three men walked a couple of dozen meters in front of us. Titus now had his arm in a sling and Tam looked horribly uncomfortable. Brin, surprisingly, would talk with Nel and me on occasion. We didn¡¯t stop for lunch, the men not having much in the way of supplies and Nel and I did not have much left since we had never planned on being away for this long. The pastures around us slowly turned into farmlands. The fields of wheat and barley came right up to the dirt road we traveled, the crops fenced in by large fences worn by the elements. I caught sight of the occasional scarecrow poking out from between the stalks and thatched roofs could be seen off in the distances.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. ¡°That there are the outer farmlands. They were the first ta fall victim ta the Denv- the attacks.¡± Brin said, falling back to talk with Nel and me. ¡°Are there signs of a struggle?¡± She asked and he shook his head in the negative. ¡°Was like the Grove. Quite as the grave and still as a dead mouse.¡± Jeez, talk about morbid imagery. ¡°How far¡¯s the river?¡± I asked. ¡°A ways that way.¡± Brin pointed off in the distance to the right of us. ¡°an the farmers get their water from the ground, not the Broken River.¡± ¡°Broken River?¡± ¡°Aye, the name o¡¯ the river coming down from Champions Fall. Same one running over yonder.¡± He went back to pointing to our right. ¡°I would have expected it to be called Champions River or something,¡± I muttered, loud enough for him to hear apparently because he answered. ¡°See no reason to call it that. It¡¯s water¡¯s don''t always reach the bank and ya can never tell when it¡¯s gonna dry up. It''s broken.¡± He shrugged as if it were the most natural thing in the world. ¡°I¡¯m sure their well water was fed in part by the river,¡± Nel said quietly to me. ¡°Even their crops may be poisoned.¡± I considered it as I looked out across the farmland. It made as much sense as everything else. ¡°But would it affect humans the same as the Denvii?¡± I asked. ¡°That is a good question,¡± Nel said before going quiet, her eyebrows scrunching up in the way they did when she was deep in thought. I left her to it. Another two hours of mostly silent travel and the road we followed started to slope up ever so slightly. ¡°Trade Town¡¯s coming up,¡± Brin said. ¡°I better go see what Titus wants to do. He may wish to wait till night to sneak in.¡± He hurried forward to speak in hushed tones with the hunched and hooded form of his comrade. There was a lot of hand movements and pointing. Part of me, the logical side, said that if Titus was smart he would let us get caught sneaking into the town. Another part of me, the one that wanted nothing but good things to happen to me, said that Titus was an upstanding individual and that he would keep his word. Sometimes I wish I believed that little optimistic bastard that resided in me. The Town when we came to it was¡­unimpressive. No, that''s not completely right. I¡¯m sure it was impressive in its own right, built on the top of a hill and spilling its way down. We stopped on the road, a good distance off so as not to be noticed and I studied its tall imposing walls of thick logs that could probably be burnt down in a couple of hours. The buildings near the top of the hill were easiest to see, both because they rose above the other structures thanks to the elevation of the terrain and also because they were just plain large. ¡°Trade Town started with that single building, the one right at the top o¡¯ the hill. It belonged ta a Farmer named Barlas Hoe who didn¡¯t mind trading with the Denvii. He got the idea ta build a little store ta sell ta those folk not wanting ta travel far from the main port cities. Didn¡¯t take him very long ta turn inta a merchant,¡± Brin laughed. ¡°more an more folk came round here an he sold off his land, ta rich ta work, and now his family runs the place. His great great grandson is the mayor.¡± ¡°That''s great and all,¡± I said, rolling my eyes. ¡°but I asked if Titus had a plan for getting us in.¡± ¡°He says ta wait for shift change.¡± Brin pointed towards the city gates. ¡°Can¡¯t see from here but there be guards walking the wall. Mayor ain¡¯t taking no chances. Titus has a few connections with a guard captain and can bring us through the fish gate without much hassle.¡± ¡°What the hell is a fish gate?¡± I asked, picturing a gate shaped like a fish that would swallow you up and shit you out the other side. What? This was a great new world. Anything was possible. ¡°A small gate round the riverside. It¡¯s used by the fishermen.¡± Well, that was¡­anticlimactic. ¡°Come on. We better get in position.¡± Titus led us through the grain field in a large arcing circle to the right. He was trying to get us as close as possible to the wall while using what little there was for cover so as not to be seen. That meant crouching in the crops for the most part. ¡®Why don¡¯t we just wait till night?¡± I hissed. It was Neil who answered me. We hadn¡¯t talked much and his eyes kept darting around whenever I looked at him and when he talked to me his voice shook. ¡°The Captain works the afternoon shift, and the guard is doubled during the night.¡± ¡°How did you get out then?¡± ¡°Through the side gate when no one was watching. They weren¡¯t expecting no one ta be stupid enough ta leave.¡± I just shook my head at their combined idiocy. I could hear a bell toll from the town and counted four chimes. ¡°Change of shift! We can use the confusion ta get as close ta the wall as possible.¡± Came the message, passed up the line. I repeated it to Nel as we all crouched lower as Titus picked up the pace. The good news was we made it through the field and to the wall undetected. The bad news was I had lost all hope in the town''s defenses. The walls were pretty impressive when seen up close, but I knew that Nel or any Denvii could scale it in seconds if they needed to and that made them useless in my eyes. Also, the guards were pathetic, though I guess half of them weren¡¯t even really guards. They were volunteers who wanted to put on a fancy uniform and parade around the woman after shift. Brin¡¯s words, not mine. Trade Town had never had to close it¡¯s gates since it¡¯s founding and other than a few minor roving bandits and the occasional mob, the guards were there to watch for petty thieves and angry drunks. They had never had to actually guard, and it showed. The fishgate was made of wood bracketed in iron and stood just a little taller than me and barely as wide. Obviously it had been added as an afterthought by someone too lazy to walk around the wall every day and agreed to by a mayor who was tired of listening to that person complain about it. We all huddled against the wall, almost hugging the wood, and praying the sole guard that walked along the top didn¡¯t look down. There was a shout from above and for a second I thought we had been found out but when there were no further noises I relaxed. Titus sidled up to the gate and knocked lightly. A few moments later it swung inwards and his form disappeared. My nerves were on edge, the little voice in my head that had kept me alive in Dockside was yelling at me that this was a mistake. Not to trust a man who had tried to kill you just a day ago. The rest of the men moved through and I motioned Nel to stay close to me before following. I caught the tail end of a conversation between Titus and the Captain, who was short and stocky, his broad frame covered in a basic chainmail shirt that ended at his knees with a yellow tabard over it. The whole thing was cinched at the waist by a thick leather belt laden with a dagger on one hip and a sword on the other. ¡°¡­but I already sent him away to check the northern wall. We¡¯ll have to do.¡± The Captain said and he turned to watch the rest of us file in. His eyes were hidden in the shade of his helm but I could see the lower half of his face and his mouth tightened into a thin line when he saw Nel and me. My unease grew. This whole situation was wrong. It was stupid. Of course the Captain would know something was wrong. Titus was wounded and Tam was all fucked up, and what did he mean about ¡®we¡¯ll have to do.¡¯? I looked around. We were in a narrow alleyway between two tall stone buildings, the wall behind us blocked out the sun and the buildings to the side deepened the shadows further. I could hear the bustling movement of a town alive with people but it was far off and distant as it filtered through the narrow entrance to the ally. ¡°As promised,¡± Titus growled, gesturing towards the square of light that marked the exit. ¡°You¡¯re in Trade Town.¡± I nodded my head, keeping track of everyone out of the corners of my eyes. The Captain was standing next to Titus watching us. Neil had drifted to the side to let us pass and Tam was leaning against the other wall, dabbing at his nose. Brin was next to me. I motioned Nel forward and fell in behind her as she made her way towards the alley. I sensed as much as saw the others fan out behind us and I let a little energy trickle through me. I pulled level with Titus and the Captain and said quietly ¡°Nel said we would help find your son. She meant it.¡± He flinched at the mention of his boy and his dark eyes watered. I continued walking. That was the only warning he would get. Because I had let the energy trickle through me my senses were sharp enough to pick up the almost silent hiss of metal sliding against leather and I sighed. ¡°You should have just let us find your son,¡± I muttered, dropping my sack on the ground. I overclocked even as I turned. I had been expecting the attack. I¡¯d hurt them, almost killed them, instilled fear in them, and given Titus nothing but an empty promise. Of course he would retaliate when he had the support of a man who actually knew how to handle a weapon as well as the home-field advantage. And of course the others would help. Wounded pride and smarting injuries bred anger and anger lead to stupidity. I tilted my head to the side, the sword blade that would have gone through my head slipped harmlessly passed and I stepped forward into the captains reach and swung a closed fist at his throat. I was surprised when he ducked his head down but my knuckles still slammed into his chin and he staggered back. Titus moved towards me, slower than the Captain, and I realized that was the difference between a combat class and a normal one. It was almost comical when I had both side by side to compare. The Captain was already recovering from my blow before Titus had finished his swing. I reached out and grabbed the poacher''s wrist and squeezed. Bones ground together under my grip and Titus screamed, dropping his dagger, to punch at me with his free hand. I lashed out with a kick to push the Captain back and give myself space and tucked my chin down so Titus¡¯s fist landed on my forehead where it broke with a sickening crack. I pushed up with an open palm against the joint of his elbow and Titus¡¯s scream turned shrill as the joint splintered, shards of bones tearing out from his skin and sending drops of blood splattering everywhere. I used the same hand to swing him around and into the way of Neil. The two hit the wall of the ally and crumpled down. I had to jump back to avoid the captain''s sword as he stabbed at me. Lightening quick his stab turned into a slash and I was forced to duck under the swing. My sack was near my feet and I grabbed it and threw. The stupid thing opened and my clothes flew out, blinding the Captain for a second. That''s all I needed to launch into a forward roll, picking up Titus¡¯s dagger from the ground at the same time. I finished the roll right next to the Captain''s legs. He was already swinging the sword back around when I stabbed him in the thigh, missing his artery by sheer bad luck, and then rolled around behind him. My hands seemed to move by themselves as I punched out with the dagger in two quick moves that hit the Captain on each Kidney. Bloodied brawler must have activated. The Chainmail saved the Captain¡¯s life and he staggered forward, pain shooting through him, but the wounds were shallow and broken links of the mail rained to the ground. I heard a whistle from behind me and dropped flat to the ground in time for the arrow to fly over my head and skid off the ally wall in a shower of sparks. I rolled over onto my back and looked into the wide eyes of Brin, he opened his mouth to say something, I¡¯m not sure what he wanted to say and I¡¯ll never find out because a knife appeared in his throat. Nel jumped off the side of the alley wall from a story up, her spider legs spread out behind her like wings, and rocketed to the ground. She hit hard, her legs curling around her for protection and she leaped back to her feet in time to grab and pull the knife from Brin¡¯s throat. Blood bubbled out and ran down the man''s body, staining his shirt. Nel shook her head sadly as he tried to stop the flow with one hand and reached out to her with the other. His gift of regeneration wasn¡¯t going to help him in time and he crumpled to the ground, his finger snagging Nel¡¯s cloak, before going slack. I let her advance towards Tam who was backing away from her, shaking his head in fear. She could handle that. I turned to see the Captain raising a whistle to his mouth and threw the dagger to distract him from calling help. He cussed and ducked under the wild throw. I was already running towards him when Niel tried to be brave, he dove at me from the side, his nose busted from contact with the wall. I was done being nice. My hand plucked him out of the air by the face, my palm smooshing his nose flat while my fingers dug into his scalp and ears. I stopped my run, using the momentum to tip me forward and I twisted at the hips to drive more force into the swing as I slammed the body in my hand into the ground. The was a wet smacking sound, loud enough to smother out the crack of breaking bones and the scream of anguish that was cut short as Niel¡¯s head burst like a balloon under my hand. Bits and pieces of his head splattered everywhere. I got a little brain on my shin and what looked like an eyelash was stuck to my boots. I looked up, my teeth bared in a snarl and met the wide eyes of the Captain. Titus was retching on the side. Gripping the corpse by the collar of its shirt I took another step forward, anchored my left foot and torqued at the waist as I slid the dead body across the alley floor, the blood pumping from the neck stump helped lubricate the way, to bowl the Captain off his feet. I stood up, blood dripping from my hand, and turned to look at Titus. ¡°I¡¯ll be right back.¡± I snarled, stalking towards the downed captain as I pulled the axe from the sheath on my back. Chapter 22 The axe was an unfamiliar weight in my hand the wooden handle felt a little big. But I guess it was made for a giant wolf so there is that. I was more used to a bat or metal pipe, the odd firearm if it was available. An axe was new to me but it looked bitching and I figured I couldn¡¯t walk around punching everything forever and so¡­the axe. The Captain was still trying to disentangle himself from the corpse that was once Niel. His movements grew more panicked the closer I got until he was almost thrashing about, his hands clawing at the dirty ground to pull him away. I hooked my foot beneath the body and flipped it over and off of the man, not because I was overly worried about him but because I had no idea how to swing an axe correctly and didn¡¯t want to get it stuck in the dead body instead of the live one. ¡°W-we¡¯re sorry!¡± The Captain begged, his helm slipping further down his face and he pushed it back with one shaking, gore covered hand. A smear of blood trailed along his cheek from the action, like some morbid war paint. ¡°But you started it..you hu-¡± The axe passed through his face with so much ease that I lost balance. The blade bounced off ground in an explosion of sparks, as I staggered forward. The feedback sending vibrations through my hand and up to my shoulder. Damn, I¡¯m a strong fucker. That swing was a thing of art! The two halves of the Captain''s face created a ¡®V¡¯ shape that stretched down to near his neck and all sorts of weird shit were spilling out to pool on the ground. ¡°Gaah! Fuck!¡± I yelled in shock as the eyes blinked at me. One from each side. I panicked and kicked the body away and it twitched again before going still. ¡°Fucking regeneration crap!¡± There was a whimper from behind me and I turned back around, the axe still hanging at my side with little bits of the Captain dripping off it. Titus hadn¡¯t moved from his place against the wall. He was slumped in on himself, a broken twisted shell of a man. He wasn¡¯t causing any problems. I took one last look back down the alley at Nel. She was wiping the blade of her dagger clean on Tam¡¯s shirt, his body lay unmoving. ¡°I can¡¯t let you live,¡± I said quietly to Titus as I walked towards him. ¡°it¡¯s not in my nature to leave a threat behind me and the one time I did¡­look around. This is a fucking mess.¡± Titus watched my advance, his mouth shaking as snot ran from his nose. His eyes were empty even as tears rolled down his cheeks to disappear in his beard. The odd whimper escaped him. ¡°I¡¯ve decided to find the cause of the infection that''s turning the Denvii batshit crazy and I¡¯ll probably come across your boy if they have him. I can¡¯t promise I¡¯ll save him, that was the one she made,¡± I pointed at Nel before crouching in front of him and placing the axe blade against his throat. He didn¡¯t fight or push me away, he just kept staring at me with those empty dark eyes. ¡°but if she tries then I¡¯ll try and who knows¡­maybe we¡¯ll succeed and your boy will be free.¡± There was a spark of hope, somewhere deep in those dark orbs, and that''s when I overclocked enough to push the axe completely through his neck and sever his head from his shoulders. No man should die so devoid of hope. I stood up and jerked the axe from the wound before jumping back as the blood vessels and arteries the axe blade had been blocking were free and their ruby red contents went spraying everywhere. Even with my precautions I still got some on me. ¡°God, I hope the kid''s mother is alive,¡± I muttered to myself, shaking my head. I looked around the alleyway, now littered with bodies and dripping with blood. This was not good! Someone was bound to walk past and look down the alley, or the guard the Captain had sent off would come back. We needed to move. Fast. Nel was bent over, her arms up to the elbows in her pack. She looked up when I approached and pulled something out before throwing it at me. I caught the soft bundle and held it out. It was a cloak, much like hers but a darker shade of green, almost black, and the edges were worn and frayed in places. ¡°It¡¯s a little short but will have to do,¡± She said, her attention already back on her pack. I picked up one of the shirts that had flown out of my sack during the start of the fight and used the now dirty cloth to wipe the blood off my axe head and my hands. That done, I sheathed the weapon and threw the cloak around my shoulders. It stopped halfway down my calf and forearms and was tight across the shoulders. I ended up hunched in on myself but it hid most of the bloodstains so I put up with it. Nel hadn¡¯t been idle. She¡¯d pulled out a wide range of items and they now littered the ground. The pack, deflated and empty, was slung across her front and she started adding things back into it, stopping now and again to adjust something. ¡°What are you doing?¡± I hissed, looking back over my shoulder at the mouth of the alley. ¡°We need to move! If someone comes by and sees this, we¡¯re fucked. I can¡¯t take on the whole garrison.¡± I think. I mean, I am pretty awesome, so it could happen but I¡¯d rather not find out. ¡°And what do you think would happen if someone saw these?¡± Nel hissed back, her spider legs waving around. ¡°I thought this was a trade town? Wouldn¡¯t there be other Denvii around?¡± ¡°Not judging by the way those idiots were acting!¡± Nel¡¯s legs stabbed out at all the dead bodies. I watched two of the legs curl around across her torso in an X shape, another two wrapped around her waist and the last two hung down, hugging her human feet. The pack nestled over her stomach and with a grunt of effort, she threw her cloak back around her and pulled the hood up, covering everything. She affected a stooped posture, the pack hanging heavy at her stomach as the legs made her hips look large and a little deformed. Looking down so the lip of her hood hid her face she walked with a limp towards me, her body shaking and shuddering. Honestly, she looked like some overweight hag with a gimpy foot if you didn¡¯t look too close. ¡°You really think that''s going to work?¡± I asked, cocking an eyebrow. She lifted her head, her eyes glaring at me from the shadow of her hood. ¡°It¡¯s the best we have! I wasn¡¯t expecting to have to hide so I left my leg hiding spell back at home.¡± ¡°Holy shit! There¡¯s a leg hiding spell?¡± ¡°No!¡± Nel let out an exasperated sigh ¡°I was being sarcastic. Now pass me your hand, and stop walking so straight.¡± We walked out of the alley at a calm pace. As if nothing were wrong in the world. I looked like a guard or concerned son helping his fuck ugly, deformed, lumpy mother go about her daily walk. The alley exited onto an old cobblestone street lined with buildings in various shades of cream. Wooden shutters covered most of the windows and the doors were closed. The place looked deserted and I wondered if that was some security thing? No one wanted to be right next to the wall if it were attacked. I glanced back over my shoulder and looked at the wooden ledge that ran along the top of the wall. I couldn¡¯t see the guard that was meant to be on patrol which was good. Masters of disguise that we were, we still stuck out like a sore thumb simply by being the only people out and about. ¡°We need to find a crowd and blend in,¡± I said to Nel, looking around at the buildings and street. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°And then what?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I admitted, making for an adjacent street. ¡°Find a way to talk to the mayor? He might be the best source of information. There¡¯s just so much that¡¯s not adding up.¡± ¡°You do realize that he¡¯s probably the most well-protected individual in this town at the moment right?¡± Nel said, shuffling along next to me. ¡°Probably,¡± I admitted, glancing around as we moved passed more buildings, I could hear more noise from up ahead but for the moment we were still alone and obvious.¡°Where the fuck is everyone when you need them!¡± That¡¯s when the shrill sound of a whistle tore through the air from behind us. Cussing, I kept my head down and pulled Nel along as the road slowly sloped upwards. More whistles rang out, three sharp blasts that tore through the air and set me nerves on edge. ¡°Easy,¡± I said to Nel. ¡°Remember, you¡¯re an old lady. Don¡¯t walk too fast. Guilty people run. Innocent people walk around like chickens with their heads cut off wondering what''s happening.¡± I pushed a trickle of energy into my hearing augments and focused on the sounds around us. I could make out the jumbled hubbub of noise from above that spoke of a town not completely in lockdown. The sharp rap of boots on stone reached me seconds before a man dressed in the same yellow tabard as the Captain came hurtling around the corner of a building ahead of us. He was without chainmail and the sword at his waist flapped about as he ran down the slope. I continued moving slowly, my head down and my ears following his movements. Nel shrunk in on herself more, her arm still wrapped around my elbow for ¡®support¡¯. The hurried footsteps slowed down and I fought back a cuss. Thinking fast I looked up, furrowing my brows into a scowl, and locked eyes with the guard. He was young and freshly shaved. His hair was little more than stubble. His eyes, clear and blue, eyed me with suspicion. ¡°Ya there! Guard!¡± I snapped, falling back into Dockside slang and trying to emulate the same accent Tam and them had had. ¡°What¡¯s going on? Is it those Denvii? Are we ta be attacked?¡± I saw most of his suspicions vanish when I spoke directly to him and even questioned him. ¡°Head back to your home and bar the doors!¡± He barked, jogging passed us as more whistles rent the air. ¡°But is it them Denvii?¡± I yelled after his back. He didn¡¯t respond and we were already moving. The buildings around us changed as the slop evened out. They were more colorful and the streets marginally cleaner. Windows were thrown open and voices drifted out of them. Also, there were people. A lot of people. One second there was no one, then there was an onslaught of people as they went about their days. Adults stood in pairs or groups, talking and laughing as children ran between their legs. It looked cheerful. The women were dressed in colorful but simple clothing and carrying baskets and bags, the men laughed and joked, some had pipes hanging from their lips. It was cheerful and it was wrong. I noticed it as Nel and I slipped into the press of bodies almost unnoticed. Everyone was too happy. The laughs were loud, too loud, and they came too often. The smiles were stuck in place and showed too much teeth. Eyes were too wide, the whites too obvious and occasionally they would flicker towards the wall and the sound of the whistles. The people were afraid and they had been for some time. So long in fact that they had to leave their homes and go back about their business, so they acted as if everything was alright once in public and hoped it would be. ¡°Are you still determined to meet the mayor?¡± Nel asked. ¡°It¡¯s the quickest way to finding out what¡¯s going on with the Denvii and the abductions. I don¡¯t want to use the Champion card unless I have to but I will if it gets me what I want...That is unless you have a contact here?¡± I maneuvered us around a cluster and men and women talking about the rising price of goods in the market. ¡°No. I only came here irregularly and the Brood traders never stayed here long. Perhaps if we can find out what happened to the other Denvii who lived here, I think a few lived near the market but I¡¯m not certain¡­I know the Dryads kept a permanent stall along with the Harpies. Maybe we can check there.¡± ¡°The Dryads have herpes?¡± ¡°Harpies.¡± Nel corrected. ¡°They send their young down from the mountains to practice their arts among the masses.¡± ¡°Okay, whatever. Is the market on the way to the Mayor''s house?¡± ¡°Seeing as the Mayor''s house is at the very top of the hill and everything is on the way there, yes.¡± ¡°We head to the market and have a quick snoop around,¡± I said, the plan formulating in my mind. ¡°if we can find a Dryad or Harpie to question then great. The longer we¡¯re just walking around the more likely it¡¯ll be someone will get curious and I doubt the Guards are just going to ignore the bodies so we can¡¯t spend too long on the street. I say thirty minutes to snoop around, if we don¡¯t find a Denvii by then we continue to the Mayor.¡± Arm in arm and as fast as we dared but as slow as was natural we made our way around the people and along the streets. I had no idea about the layout of the town but that was the beauty of its design. I knew I needed to go up if I wanted to get to the market and eventually the Mayor¡¯s so all I had to do was pick a street with an upward slope. Impossible to get lost. The buildings grew in height as we walked up and the change to the people and what they wore were more subtle. It was the small changes that stood out though. The woman wore jewelry and the precious stones and metals sparkled in the sunlight. The men were more often clean shaved than bearded. The coat of paint on the buildings was more fresh, less faded and chipped. The windows had wrought iron bars in fancy designs. ¡°These are the merchant houses,¡± Nel informed me. ¡°Above them are the markets and above that the most successful traders and those belong to the House of Hoe.¡± House of Hoe...hehe...my mind went to a dirty place. The market was crowded with people and the noise almost deafening. Stalls lined the sidewalk and spilled onto the roads. Carts took up space in the alleyways and corners as people hawked their goods from the driver''s seat. The buildings were more open with wider doors and windows and cloth awnings provided shade across the front. ¡°This is insane!¡± I almost had to shout to be heard and Nel pulled her cloak tighter around her. Masses of people moved about in a chaotic blur of haste and greed. One lady stood near us, her hands on her plump waistline, as she yelled at a small withered man behind a counter. The man was giving as good as he got and was waving a carrot in her face. She tossed a bunch of coins at him and scooped up a bundle of some leafy green vegetables before tossing them into the wicker basket at her foot, picking it up, and stomping off. ¡°Most work for the larger houses,¡± Nel explained. ¡°And I doubt they care about the missing people or the Denvii.¡± ¡°Too distant and too early.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Nel¡¯s hood twitched towards me and I knew she was fighting back the urge to look up at me. ¡°Well think about it, the way this town is set up with the rich overlooking the rest, the market in the middle to cater to both sides,¡± I shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s all about the money. The big houses probably don¡¯t care about what¡¯s happening until it directly affects their way of life and it¡¯s too early for that.¡± ¡°It¡¯s disgusting,¡± Nel said. ¡°The Brood watch their own and if one falls on hard times, we all fall on hard times.¡± ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ve been meaning to tell you: that whole one for all and all for one crap, it creeps me out. This,¡± I waved at the people around us. ¡°This I understand. It¡¯s like Dockside, Money talks. Now come on, we need to go look for the Denvii before guards start swarming this place looking for suspicious individuals.¡± I followed Nel as she led me down the street and around a few bends. ¡°It¡¯s gone.¡± She said, looking at a man selling rolls of brightly colored cloth from a stall. ¡°They¡¯re stall used to be right here.¡± ¡°Hold a moment,¡± I said, releasing her hand. The man looked up as my shadow fell across him. ¡°Hello good sir, come to see my wares? Pick out something for the wife? A brightly colored outfit for a special dress, perhaps? Important man like yourself no doubt attends all sorts of functions. Come closer.¡± I got to give him credit. He almost sounded like he believed I was important even though I looked homeless in my too-small cloak ¡°Ain¡¯t here for no cloth,¡± I growled, slipping into character. ¡°Looking for those thrice blasted Vegetable heads, used to run this stall for¡¯ you came long.¡± The man blinked at my rough tone but then a smile turned his frown upside down when he realized I wasn¡¯t angry with him but with the Denvii, just like everyone else. Common enemies make everyone think their friends. ¡°Oh, they got run off by the guard after the last raid by their people, hmmm,¡± The man tapped his chin in thought. ¡°That would be two days ago. The Mayor hasn¡¯t actively hunted them down but I think it¡¯s only a matter of time before he does. The people aren¡¯t too happy with them.¡± ¡°I ain''t too happy with them!¡± ¡°I understand your sentiments, good sir. Yes indeed! But you aren¡¯t going to find them out here. They¡¯ve left the city or all in hiding.¡± The man smiled. ¡°Now, would you like to buy some of the finest Sandashi Silk this side of the Great Sea?¡± ¡°Do I look like I wanna buy ya silk?¡± I scoffed before turning around and making my way to the waiting hunched form of Nel. ¡°They went into hiding two days ago, or they left town. He didn¡¯t know and I don¡¯t think he cared.¡± I told her. ¡°Do you still want to look for them?¡± ¡°No,¡± she said sadly. ¡°I have no idea where to look next and you¡¯re right. We need to keep moving.¡± ¡°Might be a little late for that,¡± I growled as I heard a whistle blowing in short, sharp tones. Looking over Nel¡¯s shoulder I caught sight of a group of Guards as they pushed through the crowd, their yellow tabards flashing as they walked. Occasionally one of them would step out of the group to roust someone. Normally this involved pushing them against a building and holding onto their collar while yelling questions in their faces. I knew the type. Thugs more than guards. ¡°Fuck,¡± I growled. Looked like I might be taking on a whole garrison. Chapter 23 ¡°We need to move,¡± I muttered to Nel as I tried turning her around and shepherding her away as unobtrusively as possible. ¡°Try not to draw attention.¡± The stall owner I¡¯d been hassling looked at me funny but didn¡¯t comment. I think he thought I was some street thug in trouble with the law. If only he knew. Nel and I slipped through the crowd, the voices of the guards behind us didn¡¯t fade which worried me. There was another short blast of the whistle followed by someone bellowing out. ¡°Move to the side of the street and remain quite! Weapons should remain sheathed and if you have a hood remove it! Now!¡± Fuck! Nel¡¯s eyes were bound to attract attention, not to mention the fact she didn¡¯t look old. If only Saza was here. There was general confusion as the people around us tried to sort themselves out. Parents calling to their children so they wouldn¡¯t be separated, husbands prodding along their wives while making sure no one bumped into them. That kinda thing. I took advantage of it. Stealth be damned. Taking a firm grip on Nel''s elbow I pulled her through the crowd, anyone that got in my way was knocked aside or trampled over. Several angry voices followed me, but amongst the confusion of it all, I managed to get us to a small alley between two buildings. An old woman had set up her stall near the entrance and was selling some type of fruit cake thing, though she had stopped selling to crane her old withered head down the street and see what was happening. I slipped around the nosy woman and pulled Nel further down the alley. We exited out the other end onto another street, this one just as full as the last and I looked around, my height putting me above most of these people''s heads. I swore when I saw more guards walking up the street and the people moving to the sides. ¡°What do we do?¡± Nel asked me. I pulled her back into the alley and leaned against the cool stone wall, my brow furrowed as I rapidly thought through all our options. Nel stood opposite me, her large round eyes staring at me intently. I was not the greatest strategist and most of my plans revolved around ''punch it'' or ''punch it harder'', so of course I was thinking along the lines of: how many guards could I punch and how much harder would I need to punch them. I am also not a complete idiot so I knew that was a stupid plan. It was just the only one I had. If this was Dockside I¡¯d just knock on a door, tell the occupant I was willing to pay for sanctuary and that would be that. People always needed the money and no one liked the law back home. I spied an open window on the wall opposite us and up on the top floor. The wooden shutters were wide open, the interior gloomy. Well, my new plan was only marginally less stupid and probably more dangerous than the previous one. ¡°Can you get up there?¡± I asked Nel, pointing to the open window. She scoffed, almost insulted. ¡°Of course I can...oh, I see where this is going. Smart. Can you jump it?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not coming with you.¡± ¡°What!¡± Great. Now she looked angry. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to go lead the guards on a merry chase around the town. They need to have a target for the murder or they won''t stop looking for days, and that means days of trying to hide and I don''t like our odds. Add to that the fact that you can¡¯t be found. If they can link a Denvii to the scene... as you said earlier, it could be war. The only choice I see is to give them a target.¡± I smiled at my awesome plan. Not only was it awesome because I had come up with it, but it also made me look heroic and dashing, both things that make a man look even more awesome. Nel looked at me like I was not awesome. ¡°That¡¯s the stupidest thing I¡¯ve ever heard.¡± She said, stepping close so she could jab a finger in my chest. I could hear the whistles getting closer on the streets. We were almost out of time. ¡°It¡¯s not stupid and we are out of options. Get up that window. Hide. I¡¯m going to run around for a while, then let them catch me. I presume I would have to be judged by the mayor? Well once I¡¯m in front of him I can show him my stat screen with the Champion Class and that should let me explain whats going on. This is a trade town. He doesn¡¯t want war with his neighbor¡¯s slash trade partners... it''s bad for business.¡± ¡°And what happens if they decide to just slit your throat in some dark alley!¡± Nel hissed. ¡°Ha! Like they could! Now go!¡± Looking frustrated and a little adorable because of it she took a quick step forward and planted a hard forceful kiss on my lips and then she was gone, scampering up the wall like a..well like a spider. ¡°Okay,¡± I muttered to myself. ¡°Time to go cause trouble.¡± I boosted a little, just enough to increase my speed and quicken my perception and ran out of the alley. My timing couldn¡¯t have been more perfect. A guardsman was questioning a man, his hand on his chest to hold the civilian in place when I blew past. I turned right, my feet sliding a little on the stone street before I righted myself and took off. There was a moment of silence before all hell broke loose. Whistles went off like automatic gunfire as the rapid slap slap slap of feet on stone came from behind me. Voices called out for me to halt in the name of justice, the mayor, god, and king. Honestly, I think they were just name dropping in the hope I¡¯d fall to my knees in awe. Which I didn¡¯t. I spun around a startled man and juked to the right to avoid his wife, her scream echoing in my ear as I continued on my way. I chose alleys and streets at random but always kept a generally upward direction. My reasoning was the closer to the mayor I got the more likely it was the guards couldn¡¯t just try and kill me.Stolen novel; please report. Shops blurred by as my pursuers fell away, but they were replaced by new ones that sprung from side streets and buildings in response to the whistles. I hurtled over a stall selling fruit juice in large pitchers with the grace of a gazelle and was just patting myself on the back for being cool when there was the hiss of displaced air and something punching my right shoulder hard enough to make me stumble. I tipped forward, almost sprawling across the street but righted myself at the last second. Picking up speed again I looked down and frowned. There was an arrowhead sticking out from just below my right clavicle. An arrow bounced off the street in front of me, sparks flying as the metal screeched against stone, and I dived sideways into an alley to avoid further shots. It was awkward running with the arrow in me. I could feel the shaft grating against bone, but overclocking as I was the pain was just above a dull ache and easily managed. I exited the alley and had to dive into a roll as that same hissing noise was the only warning I got before an arrow nearly clipped my foot. A second projectile missed my head by a millimeter, the tip got stuck in the gap between the stones. I jerked away in shock before growling low in my throat. Running was one thing, getting shot was another. I turned around, my eyes scanning the streets for my attacker. There was a flicker of movement from a roof down the street before another arrow came hurtling towards me. Feeling like an animal being hunted pissed me off. I overclocked enough to watch the arrow approach and reached out, grabbing the shaft out of the air. The force of the shot split the skin on my palm and the shaft slid another inch before finally stopping. I was about to drop my energy usage to conserve power when I saw another arrow already on the way. Fuck, talk about determined, and just a little skilled. I grabbed it out of the air with my other hand and had to duck the third that was fired so close behind the second and followed the exact same flight path that I hadn¡¯t even seen it. Okay, very skilled. I turned and ran down another alley, putting a building between me and the sniper. And that¡¯s where I met the giant. He was dressed in mail over thick leather and had a steel plate pauldron covering his left chest and shoulder. There was a crest of some sort stamped into the metal there. He was clean-shaven and bushy eyebrowed. He towered over me, his dark green eyes bore into mine as he hefted a massive war hammer up and over to rest on his shoulder. I tried to ignore the way his sleeves strained to contain his biceps or the fact that his neck was as thick as my thigh. Those would have intimidated me and I didn¡¯t need to be intimated anymore. His height did that. He stood a head and a half taller than me. ¡°You stand down, small man.¡± He said, his voice sounding like gravel going through a blender. I had been more than willing to surrender to the guard when they finally caught me, and I¡¯d been leading them on a merry chase for long enough, so the thought of standing down was appealing. There were just two problems. One, he didn¡¯t look like a guard; he didn''t have the tabard for starters and also he looked like he would eat the guards like skittles if left alone with them. Secondly, I think he called me a small man. Granted, compared to his rather large frame I was...smaller...but I wasn¡¯t a small man and that meant that I instantly got combative. ¡°Why don¡¯t you stand down, small man.¡± I retorted. The Giant blinked at me, his bald head bobbing to the side as he considered my words. ¡°You small man.¡± He said eventually before smiling as if he had won the argument. The bastard! ¡°Fuck you. You the small man!¡± I said back, getting angry. I was running from the law for crying out loud. I was getting sniped! ¡°Move small man!¡± I said to the giant. He bounced the hammer on his shoulder, his hairy eyebrows pulling together in a frown as he thought through my words. ¡°Okay,¡± He said at last ¡°I move small man.¡± Oh, bugger. He moved incredibly fast for someone so large and that hammer moved faster. I ducked under the swing and nearly went blind as the hammer smashed into the alley wall and broke apart the stone in a shower of dust and stone chips. I felt the little fragments pepper the side of my face and rethought my life choices. I lunged forward, drawing close to the giant''s midriff and planted my left foot, my right falling behind me to push off the ground and add more force to the movement. I torqued at the waist, my fist dragging behind my body as I twisted, before snapping forward like a bolt, to hammer into the giant''s gut. He let out a huff and took a step back. A huff! I looked at my fist like it wasn¡¯t working. The giant was smiling now. It wasn¡¯t those angry, I¡¯m going to kill you, smiles. It was genuine joy and I realized that he hadn¡¯t even swung his hammer at me out of anger. He had just misunderstood the conversation. He lifted his hammer, his meaty hands turning on the handle for a better grip. I raised my fists, planted my feet, tucked my chin, and overclocked. Even as lines of orange started to glow along my skin a nagging voice in my head was saying I needed to watch my energy levels and that I had forgotten something else. That''s when an arrow pierced me from above. The tip drove down through the muscle of my right shoulder and stopped with just the grey goose feather fletching sticking out to tickle my ear. My right arm dropped useless to my side, much to my shock. A shadow passed over me and I looked up in time to see a hooded shape fall from the building above to land beside the hulking behemoth. The new stranger was covered in a black cloak with its hood up. The material, loose and billowing, pooled around his/her feet and hide everything but one thin pale hand that held a bow made of...bone? Staring death at the pair I reached up and gripped the fletching near my ear in my left hand and pulled. It was hard, and the angle was all wrong, but I managed to pull the arrow out, though my arm still wouldn¡¯t move, which was concerning. ¡°I take it you aren¡¯t guards,¡± I said, trying to buy time to see if I would get movement back. The voice that answered was high and feminine and came from the hooded figure. ¡°We are not, and if you are trying to buy for time till your hand starts working again you can give that up. It was my promotional skill: crippling shot, that hit you. Even if you regenerate instantly you can''t use that limb for the next twenty seconds. More than enough time for Pruda here to smack you with his hammer.¡± I remember Saza saying that the promotional skills were awesomely awesome but I had no idea they were this...awesome. And if she had a promotional skill that meant that the big dude probably had one too. Crap. Pura took a step forward and I raised my one arm. I go out swinging! ¡°Hold!¡± Roared a voice that bounced off the alley wall and made me flinch. I wasn¡¯t the only one. Pura took a step back, his hammer falling to his side so the head rested on the ground. The hooded chick slipped her bow back into the folds of her cloak and the hood dipped lower. I turned to study the third stranger that had come to fuck me up. He was thin, almost unhealthily so, with pale skin and short greying hair. Eye¡¯s like twin chips of ice stared at me from under thin sharp brows as he stalked forward. I¡¯ve spent my life fighting and with that comes a certain...sixth sense. You can sense a threat. I don¡¯t know if its the confidence in the walk, or the way the person holds themselves. All I know is the skinny man was making me feel all kinds of nervous. I eyed the rapier, almost as thin as a needle, that was held in his fist. Well crap. Chapter 24 ¡°Hold.¡± The man repeated at a lower volume as he walked passed me. That freaked me out and pissed me off in equal measures. I was dismissed as a threat almost instantly. I studied him as he moved away from me. Tall and slim, he wore a dark brown leather cuirass over a white shirt with billowing sleeves and a pair of leather pants with soft, comfortable-looking shoes adorned with gold buckles. He looked like a cross between an old fashioned swordsman and a pirate. ¡°What the fuck is going on?¡± I asked eloquently. The man stood facing the giant and the sniper before nodding his head and turning around so he could look me in the eye. I matched him stare for stare. I may have an arrow sticking out of my shoulder and be down to one hand, but I¡¯d be damned if I was going to show weakness. I bared my teeth in the facsimile of a smile. I noticed there was the same crest on his chest as the one on the giant¡¯s pauldron. ¡°I could ask you the same question, lad.¡± The old man said. His voice was barely above a whisper, now that he wasn¡¯t yelling and I leaned forward unconsciously to hear better. ¡°Running around the city, causing havoc, with half the city guard on your tail shouting about murder. Tell me¡­are you a murderer, lad?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± I answered, my eyes never leaving his. ¡°You do not wish to lie and say you are innocent?¡± ¡°You asked if I was a murderer, not if I had committed whatever murder the guards are shouting about,¡± I said, playing coy. I didn¡¯t trust these three, they had me on edge. If I admitted my guilt they may just kill me on the spot and I was starting to doubt whether or not I could stop them. The man¡¯s smile didn¡¯t reach his eyes. ¡°Very well. Are you guilty of the murder the guards are yammering on about? Three men, I believe it was¡­¡± I almost corrected him, maybe he expected me to, but I didn¡¯t and the silence grew awkward as I tried to figure out the appropriate response. Something told me he would know if I was lying and he wouldn¡¯t like it. So instead I said ¡°What¡¯s it to you? Your little arrow happy sidekick over there already said you aren¡¯t with the guards.¡± ¡°Little!¡± Hissed the soft female voice but the old man raised his hand and she said no more. Those cold blue eyes studied me, taking in the arrow in my shoulder and the one still in my hand along with the glowing orange lines that covered all my visible skin. He must have reached a decision because the tension in the air suddenly eased off and he gave a small bow, a hand over his heart. It was the same one Nel had given me when she introduced herself in the woods. ¡°I am Trinadelle De¡¯Vraga. The large one is Pruda of the Hammer and the hooded one¡­you may call her Twix.¡± He tapped the crest on his chest. ¡°We are hunters dispatched from the Guild at Kings Landing.¡± I didn¡¯t know what half of that meant but I nodded like it cleared everything up before returning his bow. No need to be an asshole if I didn¡¯t have to be¡­right? Besides, feeling was starting to return to my arm. ¡°Alexander Haha October,¡± I said. I almost finished with ¡®Champion¡¯ but stopped and instead said ¡°So now what? You kill me?¡± Trinadelle shook his head and sheathed his rapier. ¡°No. I will hold you here till the guards come. I have no quarrel with you but it is not in my nature to let a wanted man walk free.¡± ¡°And if I insisted on leaving?¡± I asked, more to see what the reaction would be. ¡°I will stop you.¡± He said, with complete conviction. ¡°So how far out are the guards?¡± He titled his hand this way and that and shrugged. ¡°Who can tell. You are fast and they are slow, they fell quite a ways behind you.¡± ¡°Fast,¡± Pruda grunted, looking at me and then at the hole in the wall his hammer had made. ¡°So what are you hunting, if you don¡¯t mind me asking?¡± I said, changing the topic and letting my energy go so I could recharge. ¡°The hunt is over, in fact. There was a slew of wild beasts acting aggressively near the foothills of Champions Fall, to the North-East of here. It was affecting the quarry workers or so we were told in the messages sent to the guild.¡± ¡°So you were told?¡± I asked, leaning against the alley wall with my shoulder to try and push the arrow all the way through. ¡°It turned out to be a false report. The workers themselves declined out help. We camped there for several nights and met with no beasts other than those we could eat.¡± ¡°Eat all beasts.¡± Pruda corrected. ¡°Small game.¡± Trinadelle corrected. ¡°And you got stuck here when the city gates closed?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The old man nodded with a slight tilt of his head towards Pruda. ¡°He was sampling the alehouses.¡± The arrow was most of the way through now, the head and about three inches of the blood-stained shaft was visible in front of me. I gripped the wood, only half-listening to the old man. He wasn¡¯t attacking and I was done running so it was just a waiting game now. With a wet sucking sound, the arrow slid free. A slow trickle of blood seeped out of the open wound, staining my shirt. ¡°Thought you would want to help chase down the Denvii, being hunters and all that,¡± I mumbled, prodding at my new hole. There was an awkward silence and I looked up to see the old man and the giant watching me. I mumbled an apology and stopped playing with myself. ¡°You think, as the rest do of this town does, that the Denvii are responsible?¡± Trinadelle asked. Was it just me or did he sound skeptical? I gave a noncommittal shrug and we descended into silence once more. This time the silence stretched on and on until Trinadelle cursed under his breath and turned to the hooded woman. ¡°The guards have obviously gotten lost. If you would be so kind as to go and get them, my dear?¡± In a movement so smooth it had to have been done a hundred times the cloaked figure sprung into the air, her hands finding purchase on the giant''s shoulder as she used it to springboard herself onto his broad back. The giant lifted one hand, his palm facing up. The sniper jumped from his back onto his hand and the giant¡¯s hand sunk under the weight before he grunted, the veins all along his bicep and forearm popping out, and with a heave of effort, he threw her into the air. I stood there slack-jawed as the woman sailed over the lip of the roof, two stories up, her cloak flapping in the breeze before she disappeared. ¡°Pruda has the promotional skill: Overpower. He can double the force applied by any single movement of his.¡± Trinadelle told me. Oh, so he could normally only throw a woman, like, a story in the air. Okay. The silence grew awkward again and I started humming tunelessly, waiting for the stupid guards to come to get me. The old man stood there motionless in the shadow of the hammer-wielding hulk and watched me with those cold blue eyes. ¡°You do not seem concerned.¡± It wasn¡¯t a question but I answered anyway. ¡°As long as they put me in front of the mayor, I don¡¯t really care.¡±The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. ¡°And why do you want to be taken before the mayor?¡± His eyes narrowed. ¡°Best way to talk to him,¡± I said with a shrug, not seeing the harm in telling him that much. ¡°Explain things.¡± ¡°You killed a group of men simply to get an audience with the mayor?¡± Trinadelle sounded sickened and impressed. ¡°No, I needed to meet the mayor and the men got killed along the way. I¡¯m simply using their deaths to expedite the process.¡± I didn¡¯t mind admitting to the killings now. If they wanted to kill me they would have. ¡°Perhaps I will stand in on this meeting with the mayor.¡± ¡°You can do that?¡± I asked, suddenly uncertain of my plans. I didn¡¯t want the whole town knowing what I had to say. ¡°I thought it would be a closed hearing sort of thing, you know? I get dragged in front of him by a guard and he says ¡®kill him¡¯ or whatever and no one else had to be there¡­¡± ¡°Ahh, so you have news that you do not wish to share with the masses¡­interesting.¡± Trinadelle¡¯s lips turned up in a smile, this one actually warmed his eyes minutely. ¡°and I do indeed have the power to stand in on such a meeting. I can even request the meeting be private if you so wish.¡± I looked at him, weighing my options. ¡°What would it cost me?¡± ¡°A simple hint of what it is you are going to say. I do not need to hear everything now as there is little need for you to go over it twice if once with the both of us would suffice.¡± ¡°Uhh¡­Okay? It¡¯s to do with the Denvii attacks.¡± There was a long cold moment as the old man weighed me with his eyes, searching my face for more information while processing my words. At last, he nodded, the movement slow and thoughtful, as he said: ¡°You will have your private meeting, though the shackles will have to stay on.¡± ¡°Wait-What! Shackles?¡± He was saved from answering by the arrival of a whole platoon of guards. I say platoon because that¡¯s what they were, about twenty-five maybe thirty of them. Some more out of breath than the others, but all furious. One of them, dressed similar to the captain I had killed, so presumably another captain? Or lieutenant? I don¡¯t know the ranks of guardsmen. Well whoever he was, he looked really spiffy, with his shiny mail and tight leather belt. He also clocked me one, right across the jaw. Too bad for him even when I¡¯m not boosting my bones are still metal and my skin still synthetic. He hurt his hand more than he hurt me. Should have kept his glove on. Furious at my lack of response and the pain radiating up his arm the man reached for the sword at his waist only for Trinadelle to appear as if by magic between the two of us. I hadn¡¯t even seen the old man move. ¡°You will find, Captain, that your prisoner is quite willing to go with you. Force will not be necessary.¡± ¡°Prisoner?¡± The Captain sneered, his bushy mustache quivering with rage. ¡°Ya mean murderer! He killed Billy, and them other folks! He¡¯s lucky I don¡¯t gut him right here.¡± There were sounds of agreement from the rest of the guards. Though I noted some weren¡¯t as eager as the others. Peer pressure at work, I guess. The complaints died down real fast though when a hand landed on my shoulder, covering the whole thing, and made my knees buckle under the weight. Pruda stood behind me and glared over my head at the guards. I scowled at him before stepping out of his shadow to do my own glaring. I preferred to do my own intimidation, thank you very much! ¡°You may honor your friend¡¯s death by arresting the prisoner, but I will insist that Pruda and I accompany you.¡± He smiled as the bowwoman landed beside him in a mass of cloth. ¡°I believe Twix will also be coming along.¡± ¡°Ya see here, old man!¡± The guard stepped forward, his finger held out to point at Trinadelle. He didn¡¯t get far before an arrow tickled his nostrils. Twix had pulled her bow out from under her cloak and knocked an arrow and pulled it back to full draw, all before I could blink. Trinadelle¡¯s face was carved from stone and his voice had turned to flint when he said in a whisper that was all the more intimidating for it, even to me ¡°You had best remember your place, Captain. I do not use De¡¯ simply for fun.¡± The man nodded slowly, the broad arrowhead brushing against his nose hair. I¡¯d get rid of that arrow if I was Twix. Boogers could have attached themselves to the metal. Also, Trinadelle was more awesome than I thought. I nodded my head in appreciation of the badassery he seemed capable of. Things went smoothly from there. I was burdened with the promised shackles. Cold metal bands linked by thick chains that went around my hands and feet and restricted my movements. I could snap them in an instant if I overclocked. Hell, I could eat them and repair my shoulder if I wanted to¡­but I don¡¯t know where the metal had been so¡­eww. Surrounded by angry, surly men who glared at me and shoved me when the hunters weren¡¯t looking we all made our way towards the Mayor''s house at the top of the hill. The citizens oohed and ahhed as I walked past. Some even pointed. My guards thought the attention was for them and puffed out their chests and sucked in their guts. I spent the walk thinking about what I would say to the mayor to get him to believe him other than showing him my stat sheet. I also wondered if Nel had managed to stay hidden. I had this horrible image in my head of some old lady walking into her room and finding a spider woman hiding in the corner. Okay, it was more funny than horrible but once the old lady got a pot in her hand¡­she was deadly. Once out of the market district the buildings changed again. They became squat sprawling structures with large lawns and gates made of stone and iron. There was a lot of gold gilding on display and I wondered how much profit the merchants made in this small town to be able to live so luxuriously. Maybe they were part of larger trading houses that had branches in other towns? The Mayor''s house was a thing of beauty. Surrounded on all sides by a green lawn spotted here and there with perfectly trimmed trees shaped like animals (I spied a giant cat and a dolphin..but the dolphin had two tails so make of that what you will). A pebble walkway led from the front gates to the house, which was built of black marble with the wooden fixtures painted a dark green. We walked right past the front gate and I turned around to ask Trinadelle what was happening but it was the captain who answered and he did so with a certain amount of glee. ¡°Criminals don¡¯t walk through the front door. Ya ain¡¯t a welcomed guest, prisoner. No. Ya get to go round the back.¡± ¡°Lucky me!¡± I drawled. ¡°Indeed. Only the worst of the worse get ta meet the mayor. I think he¡¯ll want to hang ya in front of the masses. They been needing a good show to pick up their spirits.¡± ¡°You, sir, are a walking clich¨¦,¡± I said with a large smile. ¡°Whaddaya mean, clich¨¦?¡± ¡°Well, you don¡¯t speak properly,¡± I held up a hand so he could see me counting it off with my fingers. The chains jangled like metal bangles. ¡°You¡¯re overly fond of taunting prisoners, you got on the wrong side of someone important¡­I think¡­Trinadelle, you¡¯re important right? doesn''t matter. Oh, and you¡¯re ugly.¡± The Captain''s face, what little I could see between the helmet and the beard, turned red then purple and I swear a blood vessel popped in his eye. I may have just killed a man without even touching him. The Captain took a great shuddering breath and growled in his throat. Okay, it looks like he¡¯s going to make it. Too bad, that would have been incredible for my rep. ¡°That means you¡¯re probably going to die some meaningless death,¡± I added, hoping to push him over the edge. No dice. He stomped away, cussing up a storm, but very much alive. Crap. The back entrance to the manor was a lot more simplistic than the front. The lawn was as well cared for, it was just smaller, and the trees were groomed into simple shapes. I walked past one that was shaped like a ball and marveled at the perfectly curved edges. I wonder if there¡¯s a class called landscaping or something. Probably. The Captain led us up a stone path that curved gently to the side of the building. A few of the guards surrounding me dropped back to stand outside the property while the rest vied for the honor of standing next to me. I guess there was a position for Captain open now that one had been knocked off. Those ungrateful bastards should be thanking me. A small wooden door barred with studded metal was recessed into the marble slabs and the Captain pushed it open to reveal a small room, barely large enough for all of us to fit inside. ¡°Tony, ya with me. The rest of ya lot stay out here,¡± The Captain told the other guards before turning to the three hunters. ¡°I suppose ya¡¯ll be wanting to come in?¡± Trinadelle nodded in agreement while I eyed the small door and his large companion. I was about to say something but I was getting bored of being chained up and maybe watching the giant try and squeeze his way through the tiny opening would give me a bit of entertainment so I kept my mouth shut. The Captain entered first, the Trinadelle, then me, with Tony and Twix bring up the rear. Sadly Pruda chose to stay outside amongst the suddenly nervous guardsmen. ¡°Tony, ya watch the prisoner. I¡¯ll go let the steward know we have a special prisoner for the Mayor to sentence.¡± The Captain left me there and walked through a different door, I caught a peek of a brightly lit hallway before Trinadelle blocked my view. ¡°I will advise him that this will be a private meeting. Stay here!¡± ¡°Yes, because I was planning on going outside and having a picnic.¡± I deadpanned, shaking my cuffed wrists in his face. The old man just turned and walked away. Smooth. Twix stood motionless in the corner, her ever-present hood up, and looked like a shadow. Tony eyed me up and down with the attitude of a man confident in his own strength, I had to resist the urge to take a nibble on my cuffs just to freak him out. ¡°Ya know, we only ever bring the serious defenders before the mayor,¡± he said, walking around me. ¡°And the last time that happened was three years ago. A merchant killed a pickpocket.¡± ¡°And how did that go?¡± I asked, curious despite myself. The answer may tell me a little about the Mayor. ¡°The merchant paid a fine to the boy¡¯s family and was imprisoned for the number of years the boy had been alive. His trading house was allowed to remain here though. Many called it a fair ruling.¡± That was a lot fairer than Dockside rules. Dockside rules were if you had the strength to do the crime, more often than not, the others didn¡¯t have the strength to stop you and they got away with it¡­unless you hire someone like me to break a few bones. The Captain came back first. His face twisted in anger that only got worse when he saw me. ¡°We are ta leave.¡± The Captain growled at Tony. ¡°The sentencing will be private.¡± He glared at me again and this time Tony was doing it too. ¡°But Captain, he killed one of ours! The mayor ha-¡± ¡°The Mayor is the one who says it¡¯s private!¡± No amount of arguing on Tony¡¯s part could change that and I think the younger guard knew. Instead, he joined his Captain in stomping out of the room and shutting the door with a loud bang. ¡°Alexander, come with me. Twix you to.¡± Trinadelle said as he stuck his head back through the door. ¡°The Mayor will meet you now.¡± Chapter 25 The interior of the manor was done up in wood paneling and marble stonework. Pictures in frames of gold hung from the walls and I was treated to the family tree as I followed Trinadelle down the hallway. Twix brought up the rear, a silent shadow. ¡°The Mayor is willing to hear you out and will meet us in the library. I will warn you now though, if you attempt to hurt him in any way whatsoever or if you attempt to remove your shackles, I will kill you.¡± I didn¡¯t answer and he stopped and turned to face me fully. ¡°I am going out on a limb here, lad. I could have chosen to let the Captain kill you in that alleyway but I want to believe you have information on the recent attacks and I want to help if I can.¡± He turned back around. ¡°I want to trust you.¡± He was right. He¡¯d shown me a good turn and I could respect that. ¡°I won¡¯t try anything and I think I can help,¡± I said. Trinadelle nodded and we continued. He led me through a large, high ceilinged room with a massive table taking up most of the space. A dining room I presume, but one suited for over a dozen guests. Our destination was through a small door, tucked discretely away in the corner. ¡°I expected more house staff,¡± I muttered to Trinadelle He looked around the empty room frowning, before turning back to turn the doorknob. ¡°You are correct. I haven¡¯t seen any and a man in his position should have quite a few.¡± ¡°Perhaps that¡¯s a sign of how good at their jobs they are?¡± The old man hummed in acknowledgment even if he didn¡¯t look convinced. With a wave of his hand, he ushered me into the room and I squeezed past him. The Library was lit by the fire, which crackled and popped in the grate, and sunlight streaming down from windows high up on the walls. The bookshelves dominated most of the wall space. Chairs, overstuffed and soft looking, sat in a semi-circle around the fire. All were empty except one. A man sat facing the fire, only his arm and a foot were visible from my angle and as I walked forward the arm twitched slightly. ¡°That is close enough, prisoner.¡± The voice was smooth and deep, accustomed to giving orders and only having to say things once. I stopped, my shackles jangling at the movement, and I affected a humble expression. Or I think it was humble. I don¡¯t do that emotion very well, but I didn¡¯t want to get off on the wrong foot and in this little corner of the world in this town on a hill, this man was king. The chair creaked as the arm shifted, bracing against the armrest, and the mayor heaved himself to his feet. I was expecting him to be fat and dressed expensively. Maybe to be decked out in jewelry. Instead, I was faced with a man in his late thirties, a neatly trimmed beard lined his jaw. White hair mixed with his long curly hair and beard to give him a salt and pepper look that went well with the grey eyes. He was broad at the shoulders and trim at the waist, it was a body shape that made me think fighter, but there were signs that he had left his best days behind him. His shoulders were drooped and his posture more hunched. His clothes were simple but well made of fine silk and thick cotton. I dipped my head in acknowledgment and he watched me without comment, those grey eyes not missing a thing. ¡°De¡¯Vraga says you have something you wish to tell me, something you do not want to spread to the rest of my people. In the interest of my town and out of respect for him and his family I have agreed to this meeting. Tell me what is so important that I should forget you have murdered my people within my own gates.¡± I took a breath, suddenly nervous and feeling small. This was all too much for me. I was just a thug from the slums, I shouldn¡¯t be here sharing information that could prevent a war. I shouldn¡¯t be here talking to someone of stature while hoping to save a world. I wasn¡¯t the good guy. I wasn¡¯t the bad guy. I was just Haha. No, that isn¡¯t right. I¡¯m Alexander. I let the breath out and with it all the negative emotions that could hamper my actions. I had never doubted myself before and I wasn¡¯t about to start now. ¡°The Denvii are not behind the attacks on you and your people. I believe it may be orchestrated by someone completely different.¡± I noticed Trinadelle straighten out of the corner of my eye as he focused all of his attention on me. The Mayor waved me over to stand before the fire so he could resume his seat. I noticed the barest trace of a tremor in his hands when he placed them back onto the armrests. In for a penny, in for a pound. I told him everything. From landing in the forest to meeting the Brood to the massacre of the Pack to the prejudice of Titus and his men. I could see Trinadelle open his mouth to ask me a question more than once but he would close it again, his cold blue eyes remained on me throughout the story though and I even caught Twix drift closer.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. The Mayor sat through the story in silence, his eyes drifting to the fire as one finger tapped at the armrest. Once I was finished silence stretched out, the only sound the occasional pop and crack from the wood being burnt. It was the mayor who finally broke it. His grey eyes moved from the dancing flames to land on my face, his expression almost bored. ¡°You expect me to believe all of this? It sounds like nothing more than a rambling excuse from a man fearing death. We know of the branch worlds and not one of them is called Earth.¡± I didn¡¯t know what to say. I¡¯d told them the truth. All of it¡­well almost all of it. I hadn¡¯t said I was the Champion. It felt a little too personal to reveal but I had come here accepting that I may have to show it to help form some sort of credibility. ¡°It answers many questions though,¡± Trinadelle said before I could tell them my final secret. ¡°Does it?¡± The mayor scoffed, his tone almost dismissive. ¡°An organization here to steal our resources and are doing it by trying to incite a war to weaken us is more plausible than the Denvii deciding they are tired of us and doing somethi-¡± The Mayor broke into a coughing fit. His body shook as he held a forearm against his mouth and hunched in on himself. It was a good long while before he stopped and when he did he shuffled his chair a little closer to the fire. Trinadelle had stepped forward to offer support but stepped back when he saw the man was okay. ¡°As I said,¡± The mayor continued, his face a little pale and his grey eyes a little unfocused. ¡°you think that makes more sense De¡¯Vraga.¡± Trinadelle stepped around the chair to come and stand beside me. ¡°I did not say it made more sense. I simply said it answered questions.¡± ¡°Such as?¡± The Mayor drawled. I already had that sinking feeling in my stomach. He didn¡¯t believe me, and I wasn¡¯t sure if that was because he didn¡¯t want to or if he simply wanted me to provide evidence. ¡°I¡¯m the Champion.¡± I blurted out before Trinadelle could continue. The old man blinked at my remark before stepping back, his gaze suddenly flicking over me uncertainly. ¡°The Champion? Of what?¡± The Mayor asked. ¡°The Champion of Aeris!¡± I growled back, getting a little pissed at his condescending tone. Trinadelle shook at the news before stepping forward and getting in my face. ¡°Is this true? If I get a stat stone right now will you bleed for it?¡± He asked me. ¡°A what? Bleed for what? Fuck¡­move back old man so I can show you my screen. Jeez!¡± I pushed him back gently. He was freaking solid and hard to move for someone so skinny. I pressed the skin between my thumb and pointer and raised my palm so he could see my screen. There was a moment as he studied it, his eyes flicking back and forth. I felt like I had just pulled my junk out for everyone to see and wanted to close my hand but he grabbed my wrist and held it out towards the Mayor. ¡°Look! See! He does not lie!¡± Trinadelle sounded happy. I don¡¯t know what his deal was with the Denvii and I intended to find out later, but he seemed thrilled that they weren¡¯t to blame. The Mayor''s eyes scanned my palm, an almost hungry look on his face that I didn¡¯t like for a second. He coughed again but didn¡¯t bother to cover his mouth and dark blood stained his lip but he continued to stare at my hand, his smile almost splitting his face. ¡°I¡¯ve found you.¡± The mayor said, his voice no longer smooth but a light tilting tone that sent a shiver up my spine. ¡°It was too easy.¡± The voice sounded sad now and the mayor looked up at me, his grey eyes welling with tears, but the smile on his face grew till it stretched from ear to ear and I could see all his teeth. The blood on his lip dribbled over and slid down his chin into his beard. The trail it left wasn¡¯t red though. It was black. ¡°Fuck!¡± I yelled and then I overclocked. The chains snapped with ease, the little rings of metal flew through the air as I turned to push Trinadelle out of the way. I stumbled as the old man blurred, his body slipping around my hands with complete grace before I could even touch him. The rapier was in his hand before I could think, the point aimed at the ground as he tucked one hand behind his back. ¡°Hoe,¡± He said, and I was immensely pleased to see that he wasn¡¯t looking at me like an enemy but was facing the mayor. ¡°Mayor Hoe, what is the meaning of this?¡± ¡°Meaning?¡± The mayor slowly stood from the chair, his body moving in quick jerky frames. ¡°Oops. Finer control goes out the window when I get over-excited.¡± The mayor threw back his head and cackled. It sounded wrong; sick and twisted and perverse, it rolled from the Mayor''s throat in great peals and went on and on, bouncing off the walls and scratching at my ears. Twix appeared on my other side, her bow made of bone out, an arrow knocked. She wasn¡¯t aiming at the mayor though, not yet. ¡°It¡¯s like the Alpha,¡± I told Trinadelle. ¡°He¡¯s sick.¡± ¡°He¡¯s nothing like the Alpha,¡± The mayor contradicted me, his grey eyes rolling around before focusing on me. ¡°And he isn¡¯t sick¡­you can say he¡¯s just seen the light!¡± There was that laugh again. ¡°Why is he referring to himself in the third person?¡± Twix asked. I almost jumped in fright. I forgot she talked. ¡°Maybe he¡¯s gone bonkers!¡± The Mayor answered her, before laughing again. ¡°Gone what?¡± Twix asked, her hood turning to look at Trinadelle. The old man shrugged his shoulders. ¡°I don¡¯t understand any more than you do, my dear.¡± That sinking feeling was back. It was eating away at my stomach and I wanted to throw up. I had fucked up. Big time. This whole time trying to be all secretive and shit so the other people from Earth wouldn¡¯t be able to track me down and I had just fucked it all up. ¡°You aren¡¯t the mayor are you?¡± I said though it was more of a statement. More black blood dribbled from the corner of the Mayor''s mouth and he swiped at it with a forearm, smearing it along his cheek like a bruise. Those grey eyes were lined with black veins that were slowly creeping across the whites like a fungus. ¡°You¡¯ve got it!¡± Cackled the mayor, one finger tapping the side of his nose. ¡°Aren¡¯t you the clever little one! Clever little Champion. Little Champion. Dead little Champion. My little Champion. Mine. Mine. Mine.¡± ¡°He¡¯s insane!¡± Trinadelle said, his rapier rising to point at the Mayor''s heart. ¡°Worse.¡± I said, ¡°He¡¯s from Earth¡­aren''t you?¡± ¡°Me?¡± The mayor said in his original smooth voice. ¡°Or me?¡± The mayor said in the titling joyful cackle. Chapter 26 The mayor took an unsteady step towards me, his facial muscles flicking between emotions so fast it looked like he¡¯d developed a twitch. Much to my surprise, Trinadelle placed himself between me and the freak show. His rapier was held aloft, the tip steady as he moved it in a slow figure eight in the air. ¡°Mayor Hoe, I ask that you stand down. Do not approach the Champion. I think you are sick and may need a healer.¡± ¡°Yeah, Trinadelle, that ain¡¯t the mayor,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure someone¡¯s controlling the mayor. Like a puppet.¡± ¡°Be that as it may, I ask the person in front of me to stand down! Now!¡± The mayor stopped so suddenly his body swayed like a drunken sailor. One arm rose slowly to point at Trinadelle, the other matched its movement but pointed at Twix. The mayor''s grey eyes went wide as the black veins seemed to explode, filling the eyes with inky blackness. Then he fell backward, his head hitting the armrest of his chair with a solid thunk. Trinadelle made to run forward but I reached out and pulled him back. The older man glared at me for a second before nodding and standing at my side. ¡°I think I broke him.¡± Said the same tilting voice but it came from the corner of the room and not from the mayor. The three of us spun around in shock. Standing there, with his back against a bookshelf as if he had been there all along, was a man. A very freaky looking man. He was tall and incredibly thin. The three-piece suit he wore hung from his frame, baggy and loose. Hair so blonde it was almost white was combed neatly to the side and he looked at us with one brown eye and one green out of a face that was gaunt with sharp cheekbones and sunken cheeks. ¡°It turns out you can¡¯t channel a gift through a third person. Too bad, it would have been so much more fun to watch you all try and kill that¡­sack of meat.¡± The man flicked a finger at the mayor''s unmoving form. He pushed off the shelf and walked across the room towards us. His arms were too long, his hands rested down near his knees and the sleeves of his coat only came up to the forearm, exposing the white cuffs of his shirt. Trinadelle moved forward to intercept the man. ¡°Oh do sit down Vraga!¡± The man snapped and I blinked in surprise when Trinadelle dropped to his rump, his rapier falling to the ground beside him. Twix raised her bow, the movement was so smooth and practiced it took a fraction of a fraction of a second. She crumpled to the ground in a pool of black cloth, the arrow slipping from the string. The man clapped his hands'', his thin fingers coming together in a quick tap tap tap. ¡°Now that that''s dealt with. Sit down my Champion. My dead dead Champion.¡± I remained standing, my body tense. I wondered if I could hit him before he dropped me in the same way he had Trinadelle and Twix. However, he did that. ¡°I said¡­sit down!¡± The man''s voice turned hard at the end, the sound reverberating through my head and sinking into my brain. I almost did it too, my body was already turning towards one of the seats so I could follow his instructions before I stopped myself. The man¡¯s mismatched eyes got all watery as he continued to stare at me. ¡°Why aren¡¯t you sitting down? I just told you to sit down. Sit down. Sit down. Sit down!¡± ¡°Fuck no. Fuck no. Fuck no!¡± I said back, mimicking his little tantrum. ¡°Why won''t it work! It should be working. It always works!¡± The man was almost wailing now, his voice turning shrill as great fat tears trickled down his cheeks. Suddenly he stopped, his smile coming back and splitting his face in half. ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll sit and you may stand.¡± He eased himself down with a content little sigh, his smile still present. The firelight dyed his exposed teeth a sickly yellow and the flames danced in his eyes. He turned them to me, an occasional tear still trickling from the corner, and blinked slowly. ¡°I had big plans for this place.¡± He said, his voice light and conversational. ¡°They gave it to me you know, as a reward for my hard work. I thought it was a punishment at first, being out here with these¡­beasts and these¡­humans that treated them as equals¡­that was until I started my little game. They said I could do whatever I wanted, that this little corner of the world didn¡¯t matter, but I did such a good job that they want me back.¡± The man wasn¡¯t making any sense and was clearly insane, but I listened anyway. ¡°Why aren¡¯t you sitting?¡± The smile was back, pulling the man''s face in half as his lips thinned out to lines and his teeth flashed in the firelight. I sat. ¡°Good. Good. You may call me Smith. Yes, just Smith. They don¡¯t like us having names so we are all Smith.¡± ¡°Who''s they?¡± I asked. ¡°They are them. Obviously.¡± The smile faded and the tears were back. ¡°They are them and them are they. I want to be them and they but they say I have to first become more like them. That¡¯s why I did this.¡± ¡°Did what?¡± ¡°This plan. This little little plan. It¡¯s genius. Would you like to hear it my dead little champion?¡± The tears stopped and his eyes once more widened as he leaned forward, his gaunt body leaning over the armrest to bring him closer to me. ¡°Sure,¡± I said, keeping my voice as steady as possible. ¡°The lady gave me my power she said I was special, a mind like mine was without equal and I should show the world what it was meant to be like. She called it¡­Dominance¡­¡± Smith clapped his hands, a little bit of drool wet his lips but his tongue darted out and pulled it back into his mouth. ¡°It lets me control others¡­its fun¡­but there¡¯s so many people. So much to control. I try. I try. I try!¡± He was crying again but I ignored it. So he had a gift of Dominance but who gave it. In the story both Hela and Lumin were girls. ¡°I try to control everyone but it doesn¡¯t work. They fight back and even Smith can¡¯t fight them all. Too many words. Too many fights. Too much. Too much. Too much!¡± The tears kept rolling but the smile bloomed again and when he spoke it was back to being casual. ¡°But I found that controlling animals was easier, they are governed by impulse more than anything. Instead of telling them to attack and having to explain to them why they are attacking and get around their¡­inhibitions, all I have to tell an animal is ''attack because it''s bad'' or ''attack because it''s food''.¡±Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. ¡°So you found a way to turn the Denvii into animals so they were easier to control?¡± I asked, sickened with the thought. Smith rocked back in his chair, his slim fingers dancing through the air as he shook his head rapidly. His perfectly combed hair didn¡¯t move an inch. ¡°Not me. Not me. Not me!¡± Two tears fell, the smile disappearing for a second but then it was back and as wide as ever. ¡°Them. They figured it out. Chaos seed they call it. Mutate ball I call it!¡± He let out another crazy laugh, his head tipping back to bounce against the chair. I glanced at Trinadelle to see if he was moving but he remained seated, his back to me. Twix was likewise still. ¡°Little bit of Earth, mixed with a little bit of us,¡± Smith said once he had gained control of himself again. ¡°Gone wild. Bonkers. Crazy. Nutters. All of them. Just put it in the water and watch it spread. So easy to dominate.¡± ¡°And the mayor? You infected him as well?¡± Smith looked around, his mismatched eyes darting from one corner to the next before he leaned towards me and whispered. ¡°Tried. Doesn¡¯t work the same on humans. Still hard to control too many humans. They made a mistake¡­but shhh don¡¯t tell them.¡± I nodded along, more than happy to let the crazy guy keep spilling his secrets. ¡°So how did you come here, my little dead Champion?¡± Smith asked suddenly, the smile on his face turning predatory. ¡°They¡¯ll want to know and I¡¯ll want to tell them.¡± ¡°Well, you see, there was this wardrobe and when I walked through it¡­¡± I trailed off as Smith leaned more and more forward until his face was barely an inch from mine. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you sit?¡± ¡°What are you talking about,¡± I asked with a frown. ¡°I¡¯m sitting right now. See, chair!¡± ¡°Stand!¡± He roared in my face, spittle spraying across my cheeks. His voice seemed to echo in my head again but it was easier to fight this time. A screen popped up in front of my eye and I smiled, happy for the first time to have Aeris on my side.
The Champion bows to no man and shrugs off all influence. Talent: Iron Will has evolved to Talent: Will of Steel.
  • Your will is tampered and folded with sheer stubbornness. You refuse to give up and you refuse the control of others.
¡°Stand! Stand! Stand!¡± Smith roared in my face again and again but I was passed the point of caring. He had just admitted to being the one responsible for controlling the Denvii and infecting them with this chaos seed or mutant balls or whatever. In my eyes that meant I could pull out his heart and solve the whole problem. I overclocked and matched his crazed smile with one of my own. His face was still close, too close, but that was perfect. I threw a tight, sharp uppercut into his jaw. There was a crack, like breaking bone, and the chair beneath Smith blew apart in an explosion of foam and wood splinters. The man himself staggered back, unhurt. I hadn¡¯t hit him. Something had stopped my fist from making contact. I growled in frustration as I got to my feet and kicked my chair away. It went spinning across the room. ¡°I¡¯m going to break your face,¡± I muttered, stalking towards Smith. ¡°and then I¡¯m going to go find them and they and fuck them up too!¡± ¡°Why hurt us?¡± Smith whined, tears rolling from his eyes once more. ¡°Why hurt them? They are from Earth to. We are all from Earth.¡± Then his tears stopped and his lips pulled up in that smile. ¡°But you¡¯re the dead Champion. The dead little Champion.¡± ¡°And you¡¯re the dead Mr. Smith!¡± I was pissed off and a little eager to end this and that meant I was overclocking more than might have been necessary. The wooden floor cracked under my feet as I pushed off, launching myself the short distance to Smith''s face. I threw a punch containing my forward momentum, the force of my weight and speed. All that physics crap. It was a punch of beauty. It landed flush on the man''s chest and the floor beneath his feet blew apart. Splinters, not bigger than toothpicks, blew out around us as the force of my punch was somehow directed into the ground. The damage didn¡¯t just stop at the wooden floor though. The stone beneath cracked and a fine layer of dust and stone chips puffed up. ¡°You think they would send me here without protection!¡± Smith roared in my face before breaking into that maniacal laugh. I just punched him in the face again. The cracks beneath his feet spread. I braced on my left foot and launched a straight kick into his stomach with my right. The floor beneath my foot cracked as some of the force fed back through my body, shaking up my insides and feeling horrible. Smith shot like a rocket across the room to slam into one of the bookshelves. The wooden frame broke apart under the impact and books rained down on the floor. We were so going to fuck this room up. I didn¡¯t care how long it took, I knew that shield or whatever the fuck he had couldn¡¯t last forever so I¡¯d just keep hitting him until it failed. I stalked forward, an almost feral snarl ripping from my lips. Smith pulled himself from the wreckage and dusted the sleeves of his coat. He opened his mouth to say something but flinched as I picked up one of the seats, turned a full three-sixty and launched it at him. He went flying back into the wall even as the seat broke apart on his shield. I kept stalking forward. I think he realized what I was planning on doing because his eyes went wide and he raised his arms like a puppet master. I took another step forward when there was a shrill whistle from behind him and I twisted in time to get slashed across the chest by Trinadelle and his rapier. Lucky for me that sword was more suited for stabbing than it was slashing and the wound was shallow if long. Blood leaked from the cut that ran across both pecs. I opened my mouth to yell at the old man but closed it. Fucking mind control. I lashed out with a straight jab, more to keep Trinadelle off-balance than to do damage, and was surprised when it connected with his nose, snapping the old man''s head back. Instinct and muscle memory meant that my left hook was already on its way before the jab had connected and my second blow sent the old man reeling. ¡°You may control the body but you have none of the skills.¡± I taunted Smith. ¡°Hit it as much as you like,¡± Smith laughed back. ¡°It¡¯s not my body. My body. My body!¡± Crap. He had a point! I don¡¯t even think Trinadelle was conscious. Would I have to destroy the brain like in some horror movie? I kinda liked the old man though. He had vouched for me and when things had gone wonky he had stood beside me and faced the Mayor. Crap, I couldn¡¯t kill him. I ducked under a wild slash, pushed the old man back hard enough that he fell over and sprawled awkwardly on the floor and turned back to Smith who stood there watching it all with a gleeful smile on his face. The smile disappeared when I threw a flying knee into his stomach. The blasted shield blocked it again, but his body lifted off the ground and he went flying back again. It was a little like playing pinball and was it my imagination or was there a little more give in the shield this time. ¡°Stop!¡± Smith roared, but his gift just slid right off me and I kept advancing. Trinadelle came at me from the side but he was slow and unwieldy and his weapon was flailing about like he was trying to swat a fly with it. I just pushed him away again before turning back to Smith. ¡°Fine!¡± Smith yelled, his voice turning shrill. ¡°Fine. Fine. Fine! You want to play like that. I can play like that! Let¡¯s see how you fight an army!¡± ¡°What?¡± I asked, confused. ¡°I¡¯ll be coming back for you, just you wait. I¡¯ll be back my little dead Champion.¡± He reached into the inside pocket of his jacket and pulled out what looked like a smartphone from the late two thousand before pressing something. Then he was gone. Just like that. I let out a roar of frustration and anger before picking up the remaining chair and tossing it across the room. It smashed against the bookshelf and shattered into pieces. Books fell to the floor as the bookshelf shuddered. I released the energy and sagged, my breathing ragged. More from rage than exhaustion. I had him. He was right there¡­and then he wasn¡¯t. It was unfair! And he knew who I was now! I almost laughed out loud as a thought struck me. If they looked for someone named Alexander Haha October, they would find absolutely nothing. Thankfully I had changed my name. ¡°What happened?¡± Trinadelle groaned as he rubbed his jaw. I just scowled. Still too pissed off to explain how the enemy had gotten away and how he had promised to come back with an army. Chapter 27 ¡°Explain it again please,¡± Trinadelle said, his voice clipped. I had been stomping around the room for the past five minutes like some caged animal. Cussing and growling and mainly just being a big baby about everything. Trinadelle had woken Twix up and the two of them had tried to piece together the chain of events as best they could given my¡­.creative storytelling abilities. ¡°I¡¯ve already explained it to you,¡± I muttered my mind on other things already. ¡°And why the hell are you checking on the mayor, isn¡¯t he dead?¡± ¡°No. Concussed, certainly. But not dead.¡± ¡°Well, it may be best if he remains that way,¡± I whispered. ¡°Smith could be listening.¡± ¡°I doubt that is the case. You said this man, Smith, needed to infect the Denvii to make them easier to control and that it didn¡¯t work as well on humans. This tells us there is a limit to what he can do with that gift of his and even if he were capable of using his gift in such a way, I refuse to leave this man unattended.¡± ¡°His limits didn¡¯t stop him from playing you like a puppet or dropping Twix like a rock.¡± I retorted. ¡°I was not prepared,¡± Trinadelle said, his face bent over the mayors still form. ¡°Mental attacks are rare and I was confused at the time. If I had known what I would be facing I would have been better prepared to fight off the attack.¡± I growled and went back to stomping. I was picking apart the interaction between Smith and I in my head. Sorting through the crazy was proving difficult but there was also valuable information in there. Like how he said ¡®The Lady¡¯ gave him his power. Which was good, because if he had hinted at the gift being from Aeris¡­well the planet and I were going to have a little talk. ¡°Chaos seed. Mutant Ball.¡± I muttered. ¡®What?¡± Twix asked and I almost jumped out of my skin. ¡°Jeezus! Do you have to be so damn stealthy? I was just remembering what Smith said about controlling the Denvii. He said ¡®They¡¯ created a Chaos seed but he called it a mutant ball. He said it was created with a little Earth and a little of us and that he infected the water.¡± ¡°And what is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear that?¡± ¡°What?¡± I asked, stopping my stomping for long enough to glare at her. Or at least try. Her face was still in deep shadow and I had no clue what part of her I was staring at. Glares aren¡¯t as effective if they¡¯re aimed at someone''s nose. ¡®When he said it to you. What was the first thing that popped into your mind?¡± ¡°A bath bead,¡± I muttered, scratching the back of my head. What! I took baths. So what? Big Bad Alexander Haha October takes baths. Deal with it. ¡°I don¡¯t know what that is.¡± ¡°It¡¯s like this little ball of oil that smells good. You put them in a bathtub and they dissolve, letting out the oil and it helps you relax.¡± A light bulb went off in my head. ¡°I see what you did there!¡± ¡°The first assumption is often correct.¡± I needed a map, a proper one. I also needed to find Nel. I looked over at Trinadelle. He had retrieved some of the stuffing strewn about the room and made a little pillow for the mayor''s head. Now the old man just stood there looking thoughtful. He must have sensed my gaze because he looked up and met my eyes. ¡°I will need to get a healer for him,¡± he said. ¡°I need to get my companion,¡± I said at the same time. The old man cocked his head to the side before nodding. He gestured to Twix. ¡°You will need to go, my dear. Alexander cannot be seen outside, his face is too well known by the guards and I will need to remain here in case the mayor wakes up or someone comes to check on all the noise.¡± The hooded head nodded. ¡°I will also need you to get a healer. I believe there is one near the herbal district of the market. An old woman by the name of Nuala, if you tell her my name she will come. Do not tell her who is injured. Alexander, I would guess your friend is hiding?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± I recounted the place where Nel had hidden as best I could, making sure to use the stalls as reference points since that was all I really remembered. The buildings all looked the same to me. I looked at the hooded woman and the old man and sighed. I needed to trust someone some time and they seemed like good people. Mostly. ¡°You should probably know¡­she¡¯s a Denvii¡­from the Brood¡­and you do not seem surprised.¡± Trinadelle shrugged but didn¡¯t say anything. ¡°She may attack me.¡± Twix said. I had to agree. Nel could be feisty. ¡°Tell her I sent you and say her brother sucks.¡± Twix slipped out of the ruined library leaving me and the old man standing over the unconscious ruler of the town.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it ¡°So you are the Champion,¡± Trinadelle said at last. ¡°That¡¯s what the screen tells me.¡± It got awkward again real fast. I almost started rocking back and forth when Trinadelle broke it again. ¡°You and Twix seemed to reach some revelation.¡± ¡°Hmm? Oh, Yeah¡­I think I know how to stop this, well some of it. I need to find the Mutant ball and destroy it and I need to find Smith and punch him in the face.¡± ¡°That is the extent of your plan?¡± He raised a single bushy eyebrow. ¡°I have an idea of where the ball is, I¡¯ll need a map though, just to confirm my suspicion. I have no idea how to stop the army Smith promised to drop on my head, but I figure if I can take off the head of the snake the body becomes useless. He can¡¯t control the army if he¡¯s dead.¡± ¡°I very much doubt he can field an army, much less control such numbers.¡± The old man walked over to a bunch of books that had fallen over and heaped them on top of each other before sitting down on the pile and crossing his legs. ¡°If the information you have provided is accurate than he has the entire Dryad Grove, perhaps some of those Messenger plants, and a few pack members. Perhaps a force of a hundred or so. That is not a large force, especially to lay siege to a town such as this.¡± ¡°You forget, those are Denvii, wild Denvii. They¡¯re going to be stronger and faster and a lot more ruthless than their tamed counterparts. Then there¡¯s Smith himself. I think he has limited control over humans and the more he tries to control the less influence he actually has over them. He could probably control enough people in the town as he attacks to open the gates and then we¡¯d have to fight on both ends.¡± Trinadelle''s cold blue eyes regarded me with something like approval. ¡°That is indeed correct. The walls mean nothing if he can control someone to open them.¡± ¡°Not just a pretty face,¡± I said, waving a hand over my face. The old man did not look impressed. ¡°So, you are correct. We must find this mutant ball and stop its contamination from spreading and we must stop Smith before he can launch an army and lay siege to this Town.¡± ¡°We?¡± It was my turn to cock an eyebrow. ¡°You want to do it alone?¡± ¡°I do if you¡¯re going to start attacking me again once we meet Smith.¡± ¡°I told you,¡± The old man nearly growled. ¡°I was not prepared.¡± I wanted to keep poking fun at him, with his upright posture and stiff upper lip, but I didn¡¯t. I went back to thinking. Events of the past few days were lining up and linking together as I got more and more information. Some things though still made no sense. ¡°How did he disappear?¡± I scowled at the spot Smith had vanished from. ¡°and why couldn¡¯t I hit him.¡± ¡°I imagine enchantments,¡± Trinadelle said from his spot on the floor. ¡°Or he is a mage.¡± ¡°How does that work? The mage thing.¡± ¡°You must receive the Gift of Mana first. It¡¯s mostly humans that get it though, the other races tend to be more physical than us, so its a trade-off.¡± ¡°Then what? You wave your hands around and Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo¡­magic?¡± ¡°I¡­is that a spell? Nevermind. No, first you receive the Gift of Mana and then you train it. You sense the mana around you and you try and shape it. Each person has an affinity and that affects the type of mana you control and if you do it enough and you are good enough you get a class related to it. Pyro Mage, or Chrono Mage or so on. Once you have the class it lets you learn the skills to mastery and your deity will help.¡± ¡°It sounds like you need to learn it before you can learn it which sounds like a bunch of bullshit.¡± ¡°You need to grasp the concept of it yourself. That is true of all things. The gods do not just grant you the knowledge, or what then would be the point of doing anything.¡± Trinadelle stood up his expression turning serious. I¡¯d only wanted to know about magic but now it looked like I was going to get a full-on lecture. ¡°Imagine a little boy. He wants to be a swordsman and so does his friend. So the first boy, he practices every day with a stick in the hope that when he reaches the age of maturity his Class will change to warrior or soldier or swordsman. The second boy watches from the side but never picks up the stick himself.¡± I watched Trinadelle pace back and forth and wondered if this had more to do with him then my actual question. ¡°Now they both mature and the boy who practices daily gets his class of warrior and is thrilled. His friend receives the same. The first boy has the skill sword artistry from his days of practice and Aeris lets him learn the skill faster and improves it where he can. The second boy practices less and only has the skill sword work.¡± ¡°Should Aeris grant the boy who doesn¡¯t work the same benefits he does the one who does?¡± I opened my mouth to answer but he kept talking. ¡°As the first boy¡¯s skill improves, so does his class. Each feeding on the other until he becomes a Sword Master with a legendary skill. The other boy never amounts to anything more than a soldier.¡± ¡°Yeah, hard work is awesome!¡± I said with so much fake enthusiasm I almost threw up. ¡°but I was asking about magic.¡± The old man blushed, looking down and shuffling his feet. ¡°Forgive me. I am something of an enthusiast when it comes to perfecting one''s skills.¡± ¡°It¡¯s cool. I may need your help with that later, once all this calms down enough for me to focus on what my stats and stuff mean.¡± I made a little seat for myself from the books and settled down. ¡°Now, you were saying that Smith could have been a mage or had enchantments?¡± ¡°The shield he used could easily be a shield spell engraved on a piece of jewelry or something, though it was powerful and the engraving class is incredibly rare. It would make more sense for him to be a mage and had created the shield himself.¡± I don¡¯t know why, given everything I¡¯d already seen, but I still had trouble believing in magic. Part of my mind was whispering things like forcefield generator or repulsion barrier. Those made more sense than magic. But forcefield generators were the size of trucks and repulsion barriers¡­well, I just made that up. We once more settled into silence as we got lost in our thoughts. The Mayor would groan occasionally but his eyelids remained closed and other than turning to look at him Trinadelle nor I did anything else. There was the sound of distant voices that slowly grew closer and I smiled when I heard Nel¡¯s voice amongst the mix. I turned towards the door, fully prepared to scoop the woman up in my arms and lay one on her. I recoiled in shock when the first person through the door was a mass of white hair with a nose. That''s what the lady looked like. There was so much white curly hair covering her face and falling past her shoulders that the only thing that stood out was a sharp lumpy nose. I caught the flash of dark pupils as the hair swayed and bounced but other than that I couldn¡¯t tell you what she looked like. She was dressed quite nicely though, in a bright orange dress and soft looking boots. ¡°But using Rot-root with Dandy flowers would produce a poison!¡± Nel said, her hooded head turned towards the hairy woman. I held my arms wide, a smile on my face, and hoped she wouldn¡¯t see the damage around me. I don¡¯t know why I bothered. She was too busy with the old woman. Nuala. It was just like in the forest. Distracted by knowledge. ¡°You dry the Dandy flower first, child. Then you run water over the dry flowers and then you crush it and add it to the Rot-root tea.¡± The woman¡¯s voice was strong and warm. Like honey spiced whiskey. I liked it. ¡°Of course! The toxins would bleed out while drying and the water wo-Oh! Alexander!¡± Nel finally noticed me and came skipping over, her hood falling back to reveal her attractive features. I accepted a hug from her and quickly disengaged myself with a hasty nod towards Trinadelle. I was so not into PDA. Who knew? Chapter 28 ¡°Oh shut up,¡± I said, pushing passed her gently and heading towards Trinadelle and Nuala. ¡°Don¡¯t you wish to examine him?¡± ¡°If you want.¡± Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. ¡°Wow, you weren¡¯t kidding, this really is detailed.¡± I traced the river up, passed the town, across a stretch of what looked like flat grassland to a mountain range. I didn¡¯t need to read the thick cursive script running along its peaks saying ¡®Champions Fall¡¯ to know the place. Trinadelle looked at the map for a second longer before nodding. ¡°I believe you are right, but I wish to know why you think it is there and not further down at say, the river bend here¡­or here? There are no settlements between here and the Mountains to infect after all.¡± Secondly, all those mountains make it easier to hide a force of considerable size like the army that nutter was talking about.¡± I was the one that answered. "He wouldn''t want to draw attention to the area any more than was necessary. Just the animals were enough to bring this lot. If people started disappearing who knows what attention that would bring." ¡°You will have trouble leaving the town. It¡¯s still on lockdown and the guardsmen know what you look like now. They are also expecting to get the privilege of hanging you soon.¡± Trinadelle hummed in thought. ¡°And we need to prepare the town for a siege if you fail to kill Smith and his force arrives.¡± ¡°And why the devil are you all clustered around between my legs?¡± Chapter 29 he¡­did things.¡± The Mayor shivered. The thought of having a wackadoo like Smith in my head made me shiver too. ¡°and he would let me go, every now and again, so I could control myself but if I tried going for help or to signal someone or alert the guards he would just¡­push me to the back of my own mind.¡± Nuala nudged Trinadelle out of the way so she could see to her patient. The mayor hissed and jerked away from her as she prodded his sensitive skull. His eyes went round at his sudden movement and I knew what was coming and had enough time to pull Nel closer to me. I don¡¯t know why the rest of them didn¡¯t answer but I knew my reason. This could just as easily be Smith controlling the man and trying to find out what we were planning on doing and I sure as hell wasn¡¯t going to explain my whole plan to him, especially since it was so simple it would take very little to fuck it up. My hopes dropped. If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Nel was having trouble fitting into the chair, her spider legs made the straight back and narrow frame to tight for her and she let out a huff of annoyance before going to stand next to Trinadelle. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s like the saying ¡®a drowning man will clutch at a straw.¡¯¡± Trinadelle took a seat on the other side of the table, opposite me. Twix settled in beside him as if she had always been there. I found myself both scared and intrigued by her stealth. Nel sidled up to me, one of her hands resting lightly on my shoulder as she stood behind me. With a reassurance to personally see us to the gate tomorrow morning he left. Tony on his heels. That solved the first problem: The guards, and the second problem: leaving the locked downtown. Chapter 30 ¡°It Itches,¡± I said for what must have been the sixth time as I tugged at the armor constricting my chest. Nel looked at me from under her hood, her eyebrows pulling together in amusement as she took in my discomfort. Those same eyes had looked at me with concern when I first brought it up this morning. We had left Trade Town at first light, The Captain of the guard kept his promise and escorted us out of the front gates. We had set off in a southwestern direction, along the road that traveled to Kings landing, but once we were far enough away from the walls and any eyes that may have been watching the three of us turned off the road and looped around the town. Now we traveled Northeast at a steady pace. The same pace we had kept all day, even with the sun beating down on us. I had started the day excited, I¡¯ll admit. It may have had something to do with the thought of being decked out in shining armor like one of those awesome heroes in stories. It could also have had something to do with all the fine steel the Mayor had provided in the form of large solid bars that I had spent most of the night consuming. The meal did wonders for my mood but the armor¡­yeah, the armor was a real let down. Plate mail and scale mail were rare, especially in Trades Town which was more agricultural and cultural trade focused. So I ended up in a mail shirt, much like the guards. Now, this is the part to remember, you can¡¯t just chuck the coat of metal links over your head and be done with it, nope. First, you need padding which takes the form of leather that smells and is stiff and a little too tight. Then the mail, and then you need another layer because if you end up walking in the sun all day long those metal links are going to get real hot, real fast. The weight of three layers and a belly full of metal left me feeling a little sluggish. Not something I was used to feeling and I wondered if I may have eaten too much. I pulled up my stat screen and had a look anyway.
Name: Alexander Haha October Class: Champion Race: Biotic humanoid. Evolution: I Stored Mass: 40.34459kg Total Mass: 405.34459kg
Integrity: 100% 365kg MCR (Mass Conversion Rate): 2.01/sec MCR In combat: .88/sec Physical Mass:365kg
Power levels: 97.3% ARR (Ambiant Recharge Rate): 0.026/sec
Micro-Evolution: 2/4 terms met Unlocked Evolutionary Skills: - Human (Augmented)
Primary Skills:
  • Bloodied Brawler (U)
  • Small arms (Un)
  • Negotiation (A)
  • Two-Handed Weapon ?
Talent:
  • Iron bones (You remain unbroken under even the strongest of blows.)
  • Iron skin (You remain unscathed under all but the sharpest of blades)
  • Iron Stomach (You remain undaunted by all but the strangest of meals)
  • Will of Steel (Your will is tampered and folded with sheer stubbornness. You refuse to give up and you refuse the control of others.)
  • Artificial Being. (Not of flesh and blood you are immune to diseases and poisons)
  • Fighter. (You have struggled since the day you were born. Only through blood sweat and tears have you achieved all that you have and all that you are!)
Allignment Interest - Primary World Aeris views you with interest. Aeris awaits the need to aid or destroy you
Gifts - Gift of Tongues - Gift of Transmutation - Gift of Advanced Mass Conversion - Gift of Unity
Well, I was a lot heavier even without the armor but with the rate I healed and how much damage I could take¡­I was practically a walking tank...okay, not quite...but still ¡°So what¡¯s the plan?¡± I asked, giving up on adjusting my armor and pack straps. At least my axe was nestled comfortably at the small of my back. ¡°We¡¯ll have to wait for Twix to come back from scouting,¡± Nel said, her hood turning as she looked down the wide dirt road we were traveling along. ¡°But I think we¡¯ll make it there by nightfall.¡± ¡°And then we sneak around like a bunch of ninja assassins until we find ol¡¯ Smith and I give him the old one-two.¡± I finished for her, jabbing the air. ¡°and if need be, I shall give him the three four five six,¡± Nel said, her spider legs flicking out from beneath her cloak to swipe at the air. I had to laugh at that. The little bit of levity felt good. I kept expecting something bad to happen¡­like an army to come stampeding down the road. Twenty minutes later and Twix seemed to grow from the side of the road. I was starting to wonder if she had magic. ¡°See anything?¡± I asked. ¡°Nothing suspicious.¡± She said, drifting along beside us. She still wore her cloak and I still had no idea what she looked like. With the heat of the sun and her layers of dark clothing, she couldn¡¯t have been comfortable though. I was carrying the only pack of supplies so she was unburdened, that was something I guess. Kind of hard to be all stealthy when you have forty pounds of stuff strapped to your back. ¡°Do you want to try the mountain first or see the stone quarry?¡± I considered her question, turning to Nel to see if she had any input but the Denvii just shrugged. ¡°Does it make much difference?¡± ¡°Yes. The Quarry will take longer to reach as we will have to pass around the base of Champions Fall to get there, but they may have information we could use.¡± A slim hand with pale fingers slid out of the folds of the cloak to point down the road. ¡°On the other hand, this road will take us directly to the entrance to the mountains before branching off to the quarry.¡± ¡°You say entrance to the mountains but not to Champions Fall?¡± Nel asked. ¡°The central, most prominent mountain is known as Champions Fall and there is indeed an entrance at its base that leads through the heart of the mountain to its peak, but the mountain itself is bracketed by hills with a small but densely wooded valley leading to it.¡± I looked up, judging the angle of the sun. We still had about three hours before sunset. I think. ¡°It may be best to head to the Mountain first and destroy the mutant-ball-chaos-seed thing. Smith is probably with it.¡± ¡°And if he is not?¡± Twix asked. ¡°Then we go to Quarry and see if the good stoneworkers have seen him,¡± I said with a shrug. To me it was simple. A little dumb, but simple. ¡°And if he is surrounded by this army he claims to have?¡± Nel asked. Twix¡¯s hood bobbed as she nodded agreement. ¡°No way that¡¯s happening. He was genuinely repulsed by the Denvii when he talked about them in the library. Forgotten would be so much worse. He¡¯d think he was too important to be near them. I think he¡¯s at the top of the mountain with the seed.¡± ¡°Then we had best pray his army is not camped out below him.¡± Twix said before drifting forward to scout once more. - The sun was setting when we made it to our valley and the branch in the road. The hills on either side of us cast deep shadows and the forest laid out before us was already shrouded in darkness. ¡°At least we will have the cover of darkness,¡± Twix said, her form barely distinguishable in the dying light. ¡°It may not make a difference if the Forgotten are around,¡± Nel said, her hood and cloak removed and her spider legs stretched out behind her. ¡°Especially members of the Pack. Their minds may be dulled but their senses are as sharp as ever.¡± ¡°I will take the lead, follow slowly and be vigilant. If you sense anything through the bond and are unsure what to do, stop and await my return.¡± Twix said before disappearing. We had formed the group bond from my Gift of Unity earlier. There had been a bit of trouble at first since Twix needed to dissolve her current bond with Trinadelle for my one to take effect and she was loath to lose contact with him but she had agreed that if we were to fight together she needed to be intuned with Nel and I. She wasn¡¯t happy about it though and I could feel her displeasure like a constant weight at the back of my mind. Nel and I entered the forest, the darkness hampering me for a second before I boosted my visual augments. I saw Nel eying the trees, her gaze sweeping across the canopy with an almost longing pout. ¡°Why don¡¯t you travel through the trees. If anything attacks me you can jump on it from above.¡± She beamed at me, her teeth flashing in the darkness.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°I won''t have to jump on it. Nuala had a great stock of herbs and chemicals and I was able to make several potions and mixtures that I could throw at our enemies if it comes to a fight.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s why you were with her all night?¡± Nel blushed a little before nodding and scampering up a nearby tree. Suddenly I felt very alone. The woods were quiet, but not the creepy quiet where you can¡¯t even hear insects. Just the normal quiet. I could hear crickets chirping and the rustle of leaves and the occasional snap of a twig as something moved through the underbrush with me, but I felt no concern through the minds of Nel or Twix and nothing jumped out at me so I moved on. It was fairly easy-going, even with very little light, and I made steady progress through the trees. I would stop occasionally to check in on Twix but she didn¡¯t seem troubled, her thoughts placid, so I would continue on again. It was truly night, weak moonbeams drifting through the leaves above to play across the forest floor when a spike of alarm went through me. But the emotion wasn¡¯t mine. I stopped, crouching low to the ground out of instinct and easing the pack containing our supplies from my shoulders as I focused on my link with our scout. I could feel her, off in the distance, but she was moving fast. Back towards me. After the initial spike of emotion, I hadn¡¯t felt anything else but I unsheathed my axe anyway. If it wasn¡¯t for the link telling me she was beside me I would have screamed like a little girl when she stepped out of a shadow to my left. There was a low creak from the tree branch above her and I saw a pair of red eyes looking down at us. ¡°There is a nature spirit up ahead.¡± Twix said without preamble, her hood tilting so she could talk to Nel on the branch above her. ¡°A young one, judging by the level of conversion.¡± ¡°Explain,¡± Nel said, dangling from the branch by her spider legs before they let go and she dropped to the ground lightly. ¡°It still retained human features, though its skin was patched with bark and moss in certain areas and its hair was vines.¡± Twix paused before saying the next part. ¡°It had black veins.¡± ¡°Was it walking or floating?¡± Nel asked. ¡°Walking.¡± Twix answered and the Denvii let out a low sigh of relief. I cocked an eyebrow at her and she said ¡°It is not a complete forest spirit. That is good, or the trees around us would betray us. It also means that there is no other one nearby. This is its territory.¡± ¡°Unless Smith can override their animalistic instincts,¡± I suggested. ¡°I was also unsure if he would know if I killed the spirit.¡± Twix said. I thought aloud. ¡°If he still controlled the mayor then he thinks we are heading to Kings landing. And he wouldn¡¯t expect only three people to come storming into what amounts to his stronghold. He probably thinks I¡¯ve fled the town or we are all there cowering behind the walls. It¡¯s what he would do¡­probably.¡± I tapped a finger to my chin as I wondered how much we could get away with killing before drawing his attention. ¡°The last thing I want is to bring all of his creatures down on us.¡± Twix slid closer to me. ¡°If I may make a suggestion?¡± I nodded my head. ¡°We move forward with the assumption that Smith is controlling every creature we come across, and we go as far as stealth will allow.¡± So that¡¯s what we did. Nel and Twix scouted the area around us as we moved forward, both of them much better at forest stealth than I. Occasional spikes of alarm would ring through our bounds if one of us saw something or heard something and the others would converge on them to lend a hand or in my case, show me where to put my foot so I could be a ninja. Eventually, though we reached the cave entrance and I almost whistled in appreciation. The hole was set amongst the tree strewn rise of the mountain and had to be at least two stories tall, the rock edges uneven but smoothed by the elements. Vines and ferns hung down from the top, the leaves fluttering in the cool night air. The moonlight faded to darkness a few steps in and I squinted to try and get my augments to adjust to the blackness. Twix led the way, Nel and I bringing up the rear. She slunk around one edge, her form pressed up against the side so as not to stand out against the forest background. I followed her lead, energy trickling through my sensory augments. I could have heard a fly fart. The inside of the cave was massive in scale. Natural rock formations covered the ground in a serious of obstacles that faded out of sight. Moonlight, thin and weak, made it through cracks in the walls to alleviate some of the oppressive darkness. The drip drip drip of water could be heard and little pools of water glowed white in the moonlight. I looked up, trying to see the roof of the cavern but I wasn¡¯t having much luck. There was only so much my augments could do and it was too far away. It just looked like a sea of inky blackness with little smudges of dark grey. Twix had said there was a pathway that wound up the inside of the mountain and she seemed to know where to look. I had trouble following her form, I kept loosing her when she walked through a particularly dark patch of shadow, only for the bond we shared to inform me where she was. Whats them stone things that spike out from the floor like stalactites? Stalagmites? Whatever¡­they littered the ground, each spike was twice as tall as me, some even larger, and as Twix led us around them, keeping close to the main wall, I reached out a ran a hand along one. It was wet and slippery to the touch and when I brought my hand away something seemed to stick to my fingers. Holding it up close to my face so I could see better in the gloom I rubbed it between my finger before giving the stuff a sniff. ¡°Fuck!¡± I hissed jerking my hand away from my nose. ¡°That shit stinks.¡± Twix¡¯s hood turned to me, a pale finger held up to silence me. I grimaced in apology and shook the gunk from my hand, it hit the ground with a wet splat that sounded like I spat. Our scout turned back around to continue and when I stepped to follow her I slipped. The same fungus or moss or whatever that grew on the stalagmites must cover patches of the floor. From then on I moved slowly and cautiously, my booted feet barely rising above the rocky ground. The problem with that was the ground itself wasn¡¯t very even and I kept tripping even as I avoided sliding. And then I slipped and tripped and went down in a pile. I struggled to right myself, my mail clinking away merrily as the pack I wore jostled about and ruined my balance and I slipped in the slim again and went back down. ¡°Shhh.¡± Twix hissed as she glided back to hold me motionless. I¡¯m a city boy through and through and walking through a strange cave covered in slim and fungus in pitch black was only reinforcing that. I lay on my back, propped up by the pack, and glowered up at the ceiling, hating the stupid cave. It was because I was looking up at the ceiling that I caught the disturbance. Twix was next to me, her hand on my shoulder and one on my back as she went to help me up, Nel was in an almost identical position on my other side. ¡°Uhh, guys¡­why is the ceiling moving?¡± I asked, pulling my hand from Twix¡¯s grip to point above us. The sea of black that hung above us was rolling with grey waves and I tried harder to see what was going on. It looked like things were moving up there. Lots of things, in fact. Twix and Nel followed my finger and I heard a very me type of swear come from out scout. Nel gasped, her hand reaching into the satchel at her waist. ¡°Twix, light!¡± Nel said, her voice shaking a little, as she handed the other woman a bundle of rags. Twix moved with quick efficiency to wrap the cloth around the head of an arrow before holding it out to Nel. I put a hand on the Denvii arm before she could strike the flint. ¡°The light will draw attention.¡± ¡°Attention has already been drawn.¡± Twix said and Nel sparked the flint. The cloth must have been soaked in something flammable because all it took was a spark before, with a whoosh, it burst into flame. I squinted at the sudden light. In one smooth move, Twix pulled her bow, strung the arrow, raised it, and let loose. The three of us followed the flight of the arrow as it arced towards the ceiling, little trails of fiery sparks shooting out behind it like the tail of a comet. At the apogee of its flight, it paused for a second. It hadn¡¯t made the ceiling but the light given off by the flames were bright enough to cover the extra distance and show us the horror fest that was the ceiling. Creatures that looked like bald bats hung upside down, their beady black eyes glowing orange in the firelight. Wings unfurled, the leathery skin pale as alabaster let the black veins stand in stark contrast as they snaked all over the inside folds of the appendages and covered bony skeletal chests. I could have handled the large man bats. Sure they were ugly as fuck but what creeped me out was the worms. Great big fat worms hung around them, their swollen bodies stuffed into holes in the rook ceiling. The lumpy skin of the worms was mottled with splotches of pink and black and two softball-sized eyes, milky white and unseeing, seemed to absorb the firelight. Then the arrow fell far enough away that the firelight faded and the ceiling once more turned dark. ¡°What the fuck¡­¡± I muttered. ¡°I have no idea what those were.¡± Twix said. ¡°Infected cave bats and Burrow Worms.¡± Nel supplied before shrugging. ¡°I think.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s all fu-¡± The rest of my words were drowned out by a shrill, ear-splitting screech that was followed by more and more until the whole cave echoed with the calls. I felt, more then heard, the thump as something hit the ground. The first thump was followed by more and more and I lurched to my feet, my eyes darting around. It was Twix that saw one first and her bow twanged. An arrow disappeared into the dark before I heard a meaty smack. ¡°The worms,¡± She said, twisting around, her cloak whipping out around her. ¡°They are falling from the ceiling.¡± ¡°Eww!¡± I grimaced at the thought. I shrugged off the pack of supplies and set it aside. ¡°We need light.¡± Nel shoved two balls made of cool glass into my hand before pulling out some more from her satchel. ¡°Toss these out. Make sure the two balls break in the same location.¡± Following her own instructions, she tossed first one ball then the other in the same place, some twenty feet in front of her. There was the sound of breaking glass, distinguishable even amongst the thumps and screeches, and a bright yellow light spread out from where she had thrown the balls. Cool. I turned and tossed mine a little further out, hoping my glow would overlap with hers. The same yellow light spread out and I could see it was some sort of liquid this time, the color running and dripping through the cracks in the stone floor. The twang of Twix¡¯s bow was almost constant now as she twirled around us. She was aiming up as much as down and occasionally the screech of a bat would change tones and I wondered if she was actually killing any. Leaving Nel to throw more of her lights I turned my mind to defense. In my case that also meant offense. The worms were easiest to spot, they slithered across the uneven ground like maggots, the yellow glow adding a sickly pallor to their lumpy flesh. I shivered in revulsion but not much fear. What could worms really do? That¡¯s when one of them screamed. The flesh under its eyes rippled before pulling apart into a mouth, flaps and strings of white flesh still clung between the seam but through the gaps, I could make out undulating rows of teeth. I nearly screamed right back at it. Then a bat dove out of the darkness above us and plucked it from the ground before soaring away. I laughed, pumping my hand in the air. ¡°Yeah boy!¡± I turned back to our little group. A worm was approaching Nel''s side, its flap mouth open to bite her leg, and she was looking the other way. I opened my mouth to call a warning, but her spider leg flashed out to strike the creature between its eyes before lashing out again to roll it away. ¡°Twix, it¡¯s cool. The Bats are eating the worms.¡± I called out happily. ¡°They have also tried to eat us.¡± She informed me, her hood jerking to the side even as she fired another arrow at a worm that was sliding through a puddle of glow juice. I followed her head and saw the still form of a bat, its wings spread out, and three arrows sticking out of its face. ¡°It was coming for me,¡± Nel said, her hands reaching into her satchel again as she surveyed the battlefield. Good enough for me. Kill them all. I took a quick look around. It was chaos but controlled. The worms kept falling from the ceiling and trying to crawl at us, their creepy little mouths open wide, and the bats flew around above us screeching and dive-bombing indiscriminately. We stood in our little circle of glowing liquid and Twix took potshots as Nel backed her up with balls of powder that sent the worms rolling away, their skin bubbling. I picked up a few good rocks and boosted a little. Picking my target I let loose. There was a crack as the improvised projectile left my hand and a fine explosion of dust filled the air as the force behind the throw broke off some of the rock but my stone sailed true. A worm burst, weird creamy slop pouring from the wounds to cover the dark ground. That may have been overkill. A screech from above made me duck instinctively and a bat went soaring over my head, its wings spread wide. I threw again. A crack followed by a smack, and the bat fell from the sky, a bloody hole through its wing. ¡°Impressive.¡± Twix said before going back to shooting. I was looking for another target when I noticed a group of three worms converge on the fallen bat. It screeched and staggered on its two clawed feet and the worms latched onto it. I watched in horror as they burrowed through it. Literally, through it. Their mouths opened wide and they sucked great big mouthfuls of meat into their maws before doing it all over again. The bat didn¡¯t stand a chance. It twitched and screeched and tried to pull itself away but the worms just kept right on eating. I took pity on the creature and sent a rock through its skull. The bat slumped over dead and the worms fled the body, their white flesh stained red and black with blood. ¡°We need to move!¡± I called out. ¡°Agreed!¡± Twix called back. ¡°I¡¯ll light the way!¡± Nel said, her spider legs already moving her towards Twix. ¡°Just show me the way.¡± Twix pointed off to the side and Nel began chucking her glass balls. I don¡¯t know how many she had, I just hoped she didn¡¯t run out. I scooped up a few more stones and fell in behind Twix as she covered Nel. Moving in a train formation we set off. It was slow going, the worms hampering us from the ground as the occasional bat screeched over our heads, but we were doing it. The light Nel provided let Twix shoot far enough out that we didn¡¯t get overwhelmed and my incredibly accurate, insanely powerful, stone throws took down anything she missed. The problem was she didn''t miss so, in reality, I just jogged behind them a little bored. ¡°There are steps against the wall!¡± Twix called out to Nel, hr rapid fire shots slowing as she looked around. ¡°I¡¯ve only been here during the day and that was years ago but I remember it was marked by a stone arch. The steps are little more than a ledge and may be hard to spot.¡± I took advantage of her distraction to get a few shots off before she could and three more worms met their disgusting end. That was when the bat came swooping down on silent wings and wrapped its clawed feet around my arms.