《New World Order》 Prologue: Retire and the world ends My name is Colonel Bishop Wells in the Special Forces; born and raised in Tekonsha, Michigan you could say I was just your normal loner in high school however after I graduated I joined the marines. I unlike most people having to do basic training I got to skip that thanks to learning all of it three years prior I even took down the drill instructor, after that I became a lone wolf kind of well that¡¯s actually what I was nicknamed as by my superiors. As time went by I rose the ranks until I became a Colonel which I became when I turned twenty five, most people thought I paid someone for my position while others just straight up hated me because of my position but I didn¡¯t care. Out of all of my missions and training no one really got why I was so good one day I would be horrible at something such as field dressing then the next I was an expert at it. To put it simply is that my enter life is a game; the system showed up around my junior year which turned my life around, I became excellent in my studies and sports not to mention being popular with the ladies. Now with all my experience in the military I got some pretty intense stat¡¯s; two months ago though I sent in my retirement form, if I was a regular soldier it would only take two weeks but thanks to my position I had to wait a little longer. In truth I really did retire at the right time seeing how the military is now handling the large amount of forestation that has been increasing around the world and even the sudden aggression from house pets. Sorry I didn¡¯t sign up to hunt dogs and cat¡¯s around the neighborhood in truth I just did it to get more useful skills, I was even allowed to buy my gear back well actually I had leave my explosives behind but still I got most of my gear back. I was sitting in the back of the buss driving to the nearest hotel going over my status screen seeing any final changes I needed to see. [Name: Bishop Wells LV 4 Job: Elite Soldier Str: 18 Dex: 20 Body: 40 Spirit: 10 Charm: 45 Luck: 15] [Academics LV Max: Knowledge flows through you like a human encyclopedia, Math, Science, history, Art, Sports, these are all known to you First Aid LV Max: you can perform master level brain surgery under fire and not break a sweat Weapon Mastery LV 2: Know how to use a weapon is one thing knowing how to use it masterfully is another Cooking LV Max: you can make shit taste heavenly, +70% increase in stat¡¯s for 48 hours Disable trap LV Max: Disable master level traps with a flick of your finger Create Trap LV 9: create a trap that can kill almost anyone Killing Intent LV 7: give physical form to your intent to kill, strong willed will feel slight fear Analyze: Reveal all information on target Synthesis: combine multiple items into one to create a stronger item, items grade won¡¯t change unless synthesis a material twice it¡¯s rank Auto-Loot: who has time to collect loot anymore, Let the system collect loot inside of your inventory, body of creature will still be left but you will have loot from the creature as a bonus Item Drop: What¡¯s a Game without Item drops and hell your life is a game congratulations Inventory: A space where you store all items, living creatures other than plants can¡¯t be stored Detect Presence: detect those around you; every point in spirit will give you 5 yards (Currently 50 yards] If people could see my stat¡¯s they would plane up just run away from me; a normal person has physical abilities around 1-10 depending on how active he or she is, while their supernatural stats such as luck, charm, and spirit should be around 0-5. My stats are so high because of my training and leveling up four times, each level gives me around fifteen AP (Attribute Points) and about ten SP (Skill Points) I have found out though that certain skills may change such as my weapons mastery it¡¯s from leveling up several fighting skills to the max while my academic skill was from the topics I learned from school and military training I received. As for the extra skills such as item drop and auto-loot well those skills are from leveling; each time I level I gain a extra skill that is impossible for everyday earth, well actually they are more like functions to the system that I need to unlock. The problem I have at the moment is that I can¡¯t level up which resulted in my retiring, the bus stopped bring me out of my thoughts as I climbed off the bus. As I approached the motel I could see several full grown men partying in the parking lot with several other females I couldn¡¯t help but think that this was what most were fighting for bunch of idiot drunks that would shit themselves at any real sign of trouble. As I walked towards the room that was rented for me I bumped into a young girl probably still in high school carrying some beers towards the men. ¡°Excuse me sir.¡± (High schooler) The High Schooler ran to the group behind me distributing the beers to them then silently went to the room next to mine. Well least one of them is smart; I went to my room only to find it was even smaller than my room back at base, there was a desk and bed with a night stand next to it and nothing else not even a bathroom! I couldn¡¯t help but feel annoyed at this but well I can¡¯t just go around demanding things just because I¡¯m stronger than normal people. I decided to do my normal work out before I went to bed; as the hours past outside slowly grew quieter as the sun retreated from the sky, I laid on my bed trying to fall asleep only to be startled by something hitting my window. In my surprise I grabbed my gun under the pillow and walked towards the sound, outside my window was a sparrow with a broken neck the glass looked like it was only scratched by it but still I wonder if it was just lost in the night? Throughout the night more sparrows hit my window and didn¡¯t stop until morning; when I got up I counted about fifteen sparrows at my window which was now broken, the last sparrow plunged its head straight through the glass only to suffocate from being stuck.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. [Dead Mutant Sparrow Rank: One Description: this small creature is probably one of the few birds that has felt the change, these creatures will target any human or prey they see, hunt in packs but only come out at night, beaks are twice as hard as regular sparrows] Damn it¡¯s here too, I should go to the store and get some supplies maybe I can find something of use, as I was thinking that I heard chirping from the other side of the wall followed by pecking. Damn they got into the room next door; I know that they didn¡¯t enter from hitting the glass so they either came from the window or door, as I went over the details I heard the guys from yesterday. ¡°Hey Brady you going to get up sometime today?¡± (???) ¡°Ya your going to miss graduation!¡± (???) ¡°Frank, Billy let him sleep he had a hard time last night!¡± (Female Voice) ¡°Shut it Whore!¡± (Billy) ¡°Ya we only let you come because Brady thought you had a nice ass, you can go home now that he tapped it.¡± (Frank) At this point I walked out to see the girl from last night almost on the verge of crying while the two drunks opened the door beside mine, when they looked inside they played exorcist almost immediately. The sparrows in the room grew restless at the sight of new food; I pulled the girl into my room so she didn¡¯t get hurt but I couldn¡¯t say the same for the other two, Frank got several sparrows throw the chest killing him after a couple of seconds while Billy had his eyes pecked out but luckily I saved him in time. The sparrows tried to get through the door but to no luck however they did dent the metal door a few times, the girl was already dialing 911 but I could see that she couldn¡¯t stop shaking; I got into my bag and got some gauze and tape, I cleaned the wound followed by wrapping the gauze around his head to stop the bleeding once that was done I taped it in place. About half an hour later the ambulance showed up taking Billy away while the cops took my statement then left leaving me with the terrified girl. ¡°T-thank you for saving me!¡± (Girl) ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it if you want I can take you into town I have to go there anyways so it won¡¯t be a problem.¡± (Me) ¡°Y-yes please!¡± (Girl) ¡°Alright calm down while I go get ready.¡± (Me) The girl nodded as I went and grabbed my gear from the cabinet; mostly it was a hoody that hid a gun holster and my knife, I thought about leaving everything else here since I wasn¡¯t going into some battle it was just shopping. After putting everything in order I walked out with the girl close behind me, now that I get a good look at her she is quite a beauty; jet black hair that went down to her shoulder blades, hazel eyes, and her perfect hour glass body outline perfectly by her uniform. We finally made it to town after a hour of walking but the girl still didn¡¯t leave my side, finally when we got into the mall I gave her a list of supplies I needed along with the money to go with it. Once she was gone I went into different aisles putting items in my inventory as I saw them, the best part of my inventory is that I could put things in without touching them only down side is that I had to be at least three meters from it. As I went along the different aisles collecting almost everything I saw but I didn¡¯t forget to get coffee lots and lots of coffee plus luxury items such as seasons and shampoo, don¡¯t forget toilet paper. I spent hours shopping until I came upon the girl with a cart full of goods a little extra than I asked for but I didn¡¯t ask any questions. The last stop I made was the hunting supplies which I looted the best I could, every time I passed something of note I would store it in my inventory of course I made sure no one say. When we got to the clerk I could see several weapons that were displayed even a M-16 Rifle, the clerk saw my gaze and gave me a toothy smirk as he knew what I wanted. ¡°Sir if you want I can ring it up for you it only costs $200, it also comes with several boxes of ammo for half price.¡± (Clerk) ¡°I¡¯ll take it and about twenty five boxes of those .22 Winchester magnum Rimfire .¡± (Me) ¡°Oh that must be a beautiful piece I wish I could have one.¡± (Clerk) ¡°Ya it defiantly severed me well in my days in the field, if you want you can see it.¡± (Me) ¡°You mean you have it with you?!¡± (Clerk) ¡°Ya but it¡¯s for the damn creatures outside they have been acting crazy just before we came here some guy¡¯s got attacked by some sparrows worst of all they were changed, some went straight through the poor boy without stopping.¡± (Me) ¡°Dear lord what the hell is happening?¡± (Clerk) ¡°Well enough about the depressing stuff do you want to see my baby?¡± (Me) I pulled out my PMR from its holster and gave it to the clerk; he sized it up checking the barrel along with its cylinder making sure it¡¯s been properly maintained, the girl behind me felt nervous around the gun but didn¡¯t say anything as she waited patiently. After the clerk was done he grabbed the M4 from the case and grabbed the boxes of bullets, before charged me though he asked for my credentials which I handed over without a problem. Once done he handed the supplies to me and I went to check out the rest of the supplies in the process I grabbed some more stuff that I fancied, I paid the clerk and left the store followed by the girl with bags in her hands. ¡°You know you don¡¯t have to follow me, I can just drop you off somewhere.¡± (Me) ¡°I¡¯m staying in the room next to you so it¡¯s okay I just wanted to get away from there.¡± (Girl) ¡°Oh.. Hey um what¡¯s your name?¡± (Me) ¡°It¡¯s Mai Lee, what¡¯s yours?¡± (Mai) ¡°Bishop.¡± (Me) ¡°Well Bishop thank you for taking me out today and buying me a few items even though I didn¡¯t ask.¡± (Mai) ¡°It¡¯s okay besides it wasn¡¯t that much but anyway tomorrow should be better just don¡¯t open your windows at night and you¡¯ll be fine.¡± (Me) ¡°Ya¡­ Hey that¡¯s weird when we left earlier the grass was cut but now it looks like it will be to our knees before long.¡± (Mei) I stopped and turned to see that she was right the entire yard was filled with over grown grass and the tree beside the house looked larger, things are getting worse if it changed this fast it won¡¯t be long before it¡¯s a jungle out here. I grabbed the girls hand and pulled her as I sped up, the surrounding people that saw the grass stopped to look at it but I didn¡¯t as I hurried to arrive at the apartments. Once I was there I forced Mai into the room ignoring the door as I turned on the news which should have just started. ¡°Today¡¯s reports of animal attacks has escalated to a extreme along with claims of rapid plant growth the government urges that it¡¯s alright and that it will be solved soon, in other reports a rise in temperature over the weekend¡­¡± (News) So that¡¯s their claim instead of warning people, got to love bureaucrats never know when to bite the bullet and tell the truth instead of covering their own ass¡¯s. I turned off the TV then shut the door locking it followed by closing the curtains to avoid being seen by anything tonight, once that was done I went around the kitchen putting food away this was being witnessed by Mai as she just stood there watching me. ¡°Bishop is everything alright?¡± (Mai) ¡°No not really.¡± (Me) ¡°Why?¡± (Mai) ¡°take your pick from problems we got plenty; animals not fearing humans, plants growing at a rapid pace, temperature rising abnormally, or the best part the government covering all this up by saying it will be resolved quickly.¡± (Me) ¡°It¡¯s not that¡­Bang!!!¡± (Mai) Mai was interrupted as a loud bang came from outside, we ran outside only to see flames in the distance as dogs ran wild. Most of the dogs avoided people because of the lingering effects of fearing humans but other than that they just ran around without a care in the world while people dodged them crashing into buildings and other things, on the other side of us was the former gas station which now was a ocean of flames and in the center was a crisp car. ¡°So it¡¯s finally beginning.¡± (Me) thanks for the support and release date thank you for the support and the comments so in return i will answer a few questions, first off i will be doing the whole evolution at a rapid pace from the epoch of twilight however the system the character has will be different. there will be similarities in the story however i will try my best not to make it the same and boring, in the future i will be getting a beast companion for the MC however i haven''t decided what it will be yet comment below if you have any suggestions and hope to read your comments in the future. also a special shout out to Silkrapids, aracgnidus as thanks especially the suggestions on fixing the story and hope you continue with good advice. if you are curious about anything just leave a comment or give me a PM i will be happy to answer any questions you might have, now that thanks are out of the way let''s get to the main topic. the release will be seperated by a couple days because they will be around six pages each and if something comes up and it will be longer i will probably notify you first thank you for your support again and so long!Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Chapter 1 It Begins We watched the chaos from inside the hotel as night approached, the dogs have token over the streets as sparrows dominated everything else. About an hour ago the dogs finally decided that they weren¡¯t scared of humans anymore and started attacking people, we were safe thanks to the new law replacing all hotel with proper security in this case was reinforced doors and windows. I decided to keep Mai in here after all it wasn¡¯t safe for her to switch rooms; Mai got the bed while I took the chair with a foot rest, throughout the night we could here shooting and screams from both humans and animals alike. I stayed up most of the night watching the scene unfold in front of me; Man VS Beast and Beast won well for the moment at least, the cops were pushed back by the animals even with their weapons. If I had to judge on what was the deciding factor I would say the sparrows were the trump card in this fight, they tore through the cops like wet paper well actually only their beaks but that was enough. I was woken up by my phone ringing I got up from my spot with my knees popping; turns out it was the general back at base I wonder what he wants, he probably wants me to come in after all things have turned for the worse. ¡°Hello?¡± (Me) ¡°Colonel Bishop I have been ordered to reactivate you effective immediately, you are ordered to come in.¡± (General) ¡°Frank that is a no go; I have someone with me that I am in charge of at the moment and I am in the heart of this mess, if I was closer to you then maybe but at the moment I¡¯m stuck.¡± (Me) *sigh* ¡°Well get here as soon as you can we are trying to get things sorted out here, if only we could do something about those damn birds!¡± (General) ¡°Actually I have found out that the Sparrows only come out at night unless you go poking around where they are staying, I figured this out just this morning.¡± (Me) ¡°Thanks for the information and stay safe out there you damn brat.¡± (General) ¡°You too old man.¡± (Me) I put my phone down and sighed; if they are pulling people back from retirement then it means it¡¯s getting serious, if I think about it logically the human race will be extinct within two-five years and that is if we actually unite and fight back but that¡¯s the best case. Plants are evolving which means so will other things such as insects and bacteria, a simple paper cut will probably fatal to normal people which means I need to get my head in the game. This is a dire situation which could lead humanity into extinction but it could also be a new chance for us a wakeup call if you will, I can get ten Exp for each human I kill and five for regular animals but that¡¯s not even counting for mutated animals. Best thing for me to do is go out and hunt while it¡¯s still semi-safe, I turned to Mai which was still on the bed her eyelids nearly shut laying motionless. ¡°You can stop acting I know your awake, I¡¯ll be leaving here in a moment to clear the district of any dogs while the sparrows are hiding.¡± (Me) Mai jumped up from my remark and stared at me like I was going to kill her but hey I have no obligation to her or anyone else besides she would be a liability if I took her with me. I grabbed my gear and started putting everything in order but this time I carried all of my gear not just my knife and PMR, between the mini-drones I also have several sensors that I helped design back in the tech labs. These sensors detect any movement at all and if it¡¯s a living creature it will send a message to my hub along with outlining it so I could see how far away it was, best part is that it can stick to any surface even on my drone which gives me a better range. It¡¯s a shame that I couldn¡¯t get any explosives though but oh well. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me like that you will be safe here as long as you stay clear of the windows and door, I should be back in a couple hours so don¡¯t try to do something stupid while I¡¯m gone.¡± (Me) ¡°So you¡¯re going to leave me here defenseless?!¡± (Mai) ¡°Relax you¡¯ll be fine just do as I say and you¡¯ll be okay but if you do something stupid well that¡¯s your own fault and don¡¯t cry to me about it, Well bye.¡± (Me) I ignored any further protests from Mai as I continued out of the door, the air smelled of the dead as the streets were painted crimson. I activated my drone along with the sensor before I sent it out to scout the area, the drone had an auto-pilot that would go around a one mile perimeter before returning to me which was actually helpful for advanced scouting I just hope no one tries to knock it down while it¡¯s out. I walked around as I waited for the drone to come back, I found several bone piles of animal and human remains which means the animals aren¡¯t just hunting humans but also each other probably for dominance but then again most animals will go for a free meal as soon as they see one. I walked over to the bones and carefully examined it, the information of the bones appeared in front of me giving me all of the information that was relevant. [Mutated Dog Bones Rank: Uncommon Description: these bones are hard and sharp however they can induce anger once other canines see them being used as weapons] I sighed at the description but I still put my knife over it and synthesized it, I know it¡¯s a bit risky with the anger effect but I need a weapon that is sharp and won¡¯t break easily if I try to slash through a mutant beast with reinforced scales or bones I will be in deep shit if my knife breaks. [Bone and Alloy Combat Knife Rank: Semi-Rare Description: this knife is made from both bone and Alloy which makes it harder and sharper than most knife¡¯s perfect for cutting through flesh or bone, it has a small chance to induce a anger effect to canines because of the bone¡¯s used in its creation] The black knife now had a bone like look to its blade but you could see it¡¯s sharpness from the gleam of the blade. I heard the drone returning as I finished with upgrading my knife; once it arrived I started going over the video it had, the dogs were scattered around the district but most were in pairs of two and three but you could also see several lone dogs around the area. There was no signs of the sparrows or humans for that matter but that wasn¡¯t my concern at the moment, I put the drone in my inventory and started my hunt. I charged through alleyways avoiding the debris around me as I approached the first group of dogs, they knew I was approaching already and met me half way, there were three dogs in the group but two of them were ankle biters. One of the dogs was a Chihuahua while the other was a Pug but the third one was a Saint Bernard its size had grown to about twice the size of a regular one while its muscles became denser. The two ankle biters charged at me from the sides while the Bernard went straight drawing my attention from the other two, I pulled my PMR and shot the Bernard but it only got the dogs shoulder causing it to stumble a little while the other two approached I kicked the Chihuahua followed by my knife being plunged into the pugs head. The Bernard tackled me to the ground as it aimed my throat but my hand kept it at bay, the Chihuahua took this chance to approach my side only to be grabbed by my free hand. I squeezed the life out of the damn Mexican Rat followed by me hitting the Bernard over the head with the Chihuahua¡¯s body, it yelped as it staggered for a second. I took this chance to drive a piece of class through its skull; I pushed the beast off and grabbed my knife and gun, Damn I was too careless that Bernard was at least three times as strong as a normal Bernard heavier too. I pushed my notifications away as I focused on the hunt at hand; the map shows there is a group of dogs about three blocks from here but it couldn¡¯t get a good image because of how dark it was, this time let¡¯s try to be a little more cautious. I charged through the back alleyways taking down individual dogs as they approached, my main goal were the groups of dogs which scattered the district and once those are taken care of I will deal with the remaining loners. As I arrived to the alley I could hear several types of barks and none of them were friendly, as I peeked around the corner I saw a group of mutated boxers attacking a husky which was twice their size. I guess there will always be infighting but if I go in at the moment I could put myself at risk only benefit is the slight chance of that husky becoming friendly with me which I doubt it. I watched from my corner as I watched the dogs actions only to decide on the former; I charged forward jumping off of a dumpster half way just enough so I could get a better view, I fired several bullets but only two hit their marks.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Two of the three boxers fell with several bullet holes in their neck and head but the third one jumped forward avoiding the bullets but not the husky that bit its neck crushing it instantly. The husky threw the boxer down as it turned towards me with hostility in its eyes, I lowered my gun to the ground showing it I wasn¡¯t a threat but it still had some hostility in its eyes. I moved a step forward only to have it growl at me but I just raised my hands and slowly approached it causing it to grow louder as a warning, I stopped several feet away from it just out of arm length. I pulled out some bandages then pointed at its paw trying to get it to give me it¡¯s paw but it just stared at me cautiously, I sighed at the stubborn husky seeing how it wouldn¡¯t trust me. I pulled my knife out causing it to bear its teeth immediately; I put the palm of my hand then rapped it with the bandage I had showing the husky, I pointed to the paw again then back at the bandage this time the husky realized what I was trying to do. The husky slowly turned to me then handed it¡¯s paw over but it kept its fangs bear ready to strike at any moment, I felt its soft steel like fur as I slowly wrapped the injured paw with the bandage once done I backed away from the husky and picked up my PMR. I slowly walked away only to be stopped by the husky¡¯s bark but this one wasn¡¯t a hostile one it only called out to stop me, I turned towards it only to see it a few feet away from me starring at me with calm eyes. [Battle Beast: Mutated Husky wishes to be your pet, do you accept] ¡®Yes¡¯ [Battle Beast Confirmed] [Battle Beast: Mutated Husky Name: None LV 2 Gender: Female Rank: 1 Loyalty: 50 (Neutral) Str: 25 Dex: 19 Body: 30 Spirit: 15 Charm: 35 Luck: 20 Stat Points: 20 Skill Points: 20] [In-born skills Detect Hostility LV 4 Tracking LV 3 Enhanced sense LV 2] [Learned Skills Bite LV 3 Stomp LV 2 Crush LV 4] [System Skills Bong LV 1- Link beast and master so they understand each other, truly speaking to each other is yet to be unlocked It¡¯s stronger than me however the rest of its attributes are lower well other than luck but still; also its skills are separated into learned skills and in-born unlike mine which are clumped together probably because mine are all learned skills. It shows that it has points still corresponding to its level but unlike me it only has ten while I get fifteen points each time I level, well no matter I can figure the rest out later. I got up and focused on the map again, I walked towards the next group keeping my speed down so my new pet can keep up. The day went on as the husky and I killed our way through the district only to find ourselves back at the hotel, the door to my room was dented more than before but other than that it was relatively the same. I opened the door and walked in only to be swung at by a lamp by a man in his forties, he was fat and in an unbuttoned suit behind him was Mai and another woman but she had a sly look about her. I dodged the lamp and threw the man to the floor as the husky growls at the rest of the occupants. ¡°S-sorry B-Bishop w-we d-didn¡¯t K-know!¡± (Mai ¡°Ya it¡¯s your fault for not informing us!¡± (Sly Woman) ¡°Mercy!!!¡± (Fat Man) I looked at the group of misfits but I didn¡¯t say anything to them instead I snapped my fingers causing the husky to turn towards me; I shut the door and sat down in my chair beside the window, the husky walked over to me and sat down in front of me looking at me curiously. I stroked the husky¡¯s fur as I checked out its stats again; given her overall stats at level two I should probably improve some of her lower stats but to begin with I added ten stats directly into body so her recovery would be better then I added +3 in Spirit and Dex finally +2 in luck and Charm. I saved the skill points for later as I watched the group in the hotel; the fat man is trying to please the sly woman while Mai is just sitting there looking annoyed at their behavior while she looked nervous with me, I was brought out of my investigation by my phone ringing causing everyone to jump while the husky twitched its ears. ¡°Bishop report how is the situation?¡± (Frank) ¡°I have cleared the district of most mutated dogs but I haven¡¯t checked the buildings yet had to come back before nightfall. The mutant animals are at least three times stronger than normal animals and twice as hostile however some animals can be friendly but I wouldn¡¯t go up and say high on random animals.¡± (Me) ¡°God kid your making me look bad how am I suppose to look when I can¡¯t even clear a street let alone a district, any ideas on how to improve our success rate at this point they are going to just bomb this city and say it was out of their control.¡± (Frank) ¡°the dogs have improved their strength and their senses with it, think about how to deal with animals driven by their senses. Anyway I have a husky with me so if you see a husky and it doesn¡¯t try to rip your face off don¡¯t shoot it or I¡¯ll shoot you.¡± (Me) ¡°Our little wolf got a wolf of his own damn what kind of irony is that? No matter I¡¯m sure we can figure something out.¡± (Frank.) ¡°I¡¯m sure.¡± (Me) ¡°Anyway you said you had a group with you?¡± (Frank) ¡°Ya three in total why?¡± (Me) ¡°Well there is a refugee camp in the old stadium on Elm it might be safer there than most places, we have been in contact with them since the beginning and have been told that they are still accepting refugees however their supply is limited so it would be best to bring your own supplies.¡± (Frank) ¡°Alright oh and notify them that there are friendly animals too so if they see a animal with another person don¡¯t kill it.¡± (Me) ¡°I¡¯ll warn them.¡± (Frank) ¡°I guess I will be moving tomorrow too dangerous at the moment with the sparrows out.¡± (Me) ¡°Ya those little shits caused enough trouble as it is but they only go after movement which is a advantage to most people, keep your curtains shut at night or drape a blanket over the window so the sparrows can¡¯t see.¡± (Frank) ¡°Thanks for the tip.¡± (Me) ¡°Well I guess I should get going I don¡¯t want my lieutenant yelling at me.¡± (Frank) ¡°Oh come now she is quite cute when she is mad at you.¡± (Me) ¡°Boy you have no idea how evil she can be, you¡¯re lucky she fancy¡¯s you.¡± (Frank) ¡°See you soon old man.¡± (Me) ¡°Don¡¯t die you damn brat.¡± (Frank) I hung up and turned to the group starring at the phone, I guess this is normal since most phones are useless now. My phone is a fully functioning phone used in the field it¡¯s pretty much unbreakable and as long as the satellite in space is up and running it will be able to call anyone, best part about it is that it has internet. I put my phone in my pocket and went towards the kitchen to grab a bight to eat. ¡°Hey let me use your phone.¡± (Sly Woman) ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡± (Me) ¡°Hey I¡¯m the wife of the mayor once this blows over I will make your life a living hell if you don¡¯t hand over your phone right now!¡± (Sly Woman) ¡°You think I care what you say, I can do whatever I want and no one will say a thing but then again why should I deal with that headache when I can deal with the problem right now.¡± (Me) The woman had a quick glint of fear in her eyes but it soon turned into anger and arrogance but before she could speak I wrapped my hand around her mouth and dragged her towards the door her muffled screams drew the others attention as I proceeded to open the door. As the door opened someone slammed it shut, when I turned my head I saw Mai starring at me in disbelief while the woman in my hands kept struggling for freedom. ¡°Bishop what are you doing!?¡± (Mai) ¡°Dealing with a headache.¡± (Me) ¡°You can¡¯t¡­¡± (Mai) ¡°Let go of the door.¡± (Me) ¡°No.¡± (Mai) ¡°If I let her stay she will only cause problems for us in the future.¡± (Me) ¡°No she won¡¯t I¡¯ll keep an eye on her.¡± (Mai) ¡°Are you serious?¡±(Me) ¡°Yes no please release her.¡± (Mai) ¡°Fine she¡¯s your responsibility which means so is her food, water and everything else that comes along but be warned if she fucks up once she¡¯s gone.¡± (Me) ¡°I understand.¡± (Mai) ¡°No you really don¡¯t.¡± (Me) I let go of the woman¡¯s face as I went back to the kitchen to get something to eat, the electricity was out so I couldn¡¯t cook anything but hey I still had some pop tarts that didn¡¯t need to be cooked but it would be good with milk. The night went on with the new additions to the group but I stayed in my little corner of the room looking over my notifications. [You have killed a Rank 1 Mutant beast, 10% experience gained, Items added to inventory] [You have killed a Rank 1 Mutant beast, 10% experience gained, Items added to inventory] [You have killed a Rank 1 Mutant beast, 10% experience gained, Items added to inventory] [You have killed a Rank 1 Mutant beast, 10% experience gained, Items added to inventory] [You have killed a Rank 1 Mutant beast, 10% experience gained, Items added to inventory] [Tame LV 1 unlocked: tame beasts that you have defeated in combat, beasts have a 10% growth rate increase] [You have LV up, reward box has been added to inventory, Skill: Quest unlocked, 15 points added to skill and stats] Chapter 2 Quest I stopped in the middle of the notifications and focused on the content, I never received a reward box before and what was up with the quest skill? I pulled up the information only to be completely confused at its content. [Reward Box: a Reward given to user every five levels or when you do something deserving of one, these boxes are completely random and will hold unknown treasures but be warned not all items are going to be good] [Skill: Quest Description: take on quests to gain unique items and skills, these items and skills won¡¯t be available on earth, quests will also be given to you for extra EXP] I dismissed the windows and opened the quest menu, there were several quests that looked interesting but one in particular drew my attention. The quest is simple just identify several plants that have mutated; the reward was 5% EXP and the skill potion making, the EXP wasn¡¯t really interesting instead I wanted potion making it would help me in the future and besides I can barter with them when I¡¯m at the refugee camp. I stood up alerting the Husky and drawing the attention of the group. ¡°I¡¯m going out for a bit gather all the food around the room so we can leave immediately after I get back.¡± (Me) ¡°Wait where are we going?¡± (Mai) ¡°There is a refugee camp set up at the stadium a few blocks away.¡± (Me) I left after answering trying to avoid any more questions however I left the husky behind to keep guard, once I was far enough away from the group I activated my Killing intent which made the surrounding sparrows flee for their lives. I keep my killing intent deactivated because it is so strong; I have even given a few people heart attacks from it when I accidently activated it, the problem I have is that it doesn¡¯t just go after those that I deem a threat it attacks everything. I activated the quest and went around the district identifying plants that seemed to change, once I gained the skill I got a new quest telling me to identify even more plants but this time the reward was levels to my potion making skill. After several quests later it was already at LV nine ready to go to the next stage however I stopped there, instead I went back to my quest menu and checked out some other quests. Turns out I can gain skill levels by doing quests which made things easier for me seeing how leveling skills up was hard to begin with not to mention the higher levels however I didn¡¯t increase my levels instead I chose to get a new skill which should help me with my killing intent. Aura control a skill used to control one¡¯s aura, a simple skill at first but as you increase its level the benefits become numerous best part is that the only thing I have to do is meditate with my killing intent activated. I spent two hours meditating before returning to the hotel, the group had bags in hand ready to go whenever I was. They looked happy for some reason but I didn¡¯t pay much attention instead I let the husky scout the road ahead while I kept the group safe from any stray dogs that wandered over, the husky came back after several minutes but it didn¡¯t find anything useful. The group grew restless as we approached the stadium especially seeing the guards outside of the door with a makeshift barricade; the guards had guns probably stolen from the police station down the road from here. ¡°Halt, we don¡¯t have room or supplies for extra people please turn back.¡± (Guard) ¡°I was sent here by General Frank West if there is a problem we can discuss it, also about supplies my group has their own.¡± (Me) ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± (Guard) ¡°Bishop.¡± (Me) ¡°The boss would like to talk with you when you have a chance but other than that you are free to stay as long as you don¡¯t cause trouble.¡± (Guard) ¡°Thank you.¡± (Me) ¡°Sure.¡± (Guard) The guard opened the doors for us then another escorted us inside to see about a hundred people loitering around the stadium each doing their own thing but about half of them looked starved and about to keel over from lack of food. I walked up the stairs and made a small place in the top row; Mai and the fat man followed however the woman from before disappeared with a bag of our food. Mai looked apologetic about it but I didn¡¯t dwell on it seeing how I had several tons of food in my inventory especially now after searching the district not to mention the dog meat that I have as well. As we settled in I noticed a few glares being directed at the husky beside me but hey I can¡¯t blame them after all most of the city has been attacked by pet¡¯s, after organizing everything I went to the announcers box which was guarded by several guards. The husky was at my side this time as we approached, a man in a suit walked out, he was a well built man with a growing beard but his eyes were full of greed. ¡°Hello Mr. Bishop and welcome to our new home, as you can see we have a lot of people here and as such we need to maintain some rules one of which is to keep animals away from our people.¡± (Boss) The man turned to look at the Husky as he said that but it only caused the husky to bear it¡¯s teeth at him which resulted in the guards pointing their guns at her. The man smiled revealing his rotting mouth, the man probably did some drugs for a while to get that bad or was it Chew either way it¡¯s fucking disgusting.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°Don¡¯t worry we will be gone most of the time, we¡¯re only here to get a little break between hunts.¡± (Me) ¡°About that there is a fee to those that can support themselves and others, fifty percent of all goods that you bring back will be put directly into food storage for us this part isn¡¯t negotiable.¡± (Boss) ¡°Are you going to pay me for it because if not I¡¯ll be keeping all of the loot I collect, oh and the people I came with are off-limits if I hear or see some of the guards harassing my people someone is going to pay.¡± (Me) ¡°Is that a threat boy?¡± (Boss) ¡°It¡¯s a promise now if you¡¯ll excuse me I have a few things I need to do before going out to hunt.¡± (Me) I left the man before he could say anything else I know this will be a issue in the future so I should probably prepare a few things but first let¡¯s get some hunting done, if I keep all of the food to myself the survivors will more than likely attack us for food however if I share my hunts I will gain support only problem with that is I will be depended on by about one hundred other people. The best course of action will be get them healthy again then teach them how to hunt, I shook my head bringing myself back to reality as I approach my group. ¡°How was it?¡± (Fat Man) ¡°Ya are we going to stay here?¡± (Mai) ¡°Well I¡¯ll be staying here for at least an month, in that time I will be teaching people how to hunt the new mutant beasts but for now I will be hunting myself so we can get them healthy again, I will be teaching both of you how to hunt as well is if you decide to stay somewhere you know how to take care of yourself.¡± (Me) ¡°Are you serious?¡± (Fat Man) ¡°But I haven¡¯t killed anything in my life!¡± (Mai) ¡°Well good of a time as any, just relax for a few days while I get things ready and don¡¯t worry I won¡¯t just send you out to die.¡± (Me) Both of them looked at me like I was crazy but I didn¡¯t say anything instead I gave the fat man the AR-15 along with several boxes of rounds, I only did this for a deterrent to those that would steal from us. I sat down in the padded seat then opened my inventory showing several items to my but the big part was the reward box that hasn¡¯t been opened yet. [Reward box opened] [Mutation pill 2x, skill book: perfect health, 3 tons of modern food] [Mutation Pills Description: these pills will cause one person to evolve, .05% of failing and causing negative trait to emerge] [Perfect Health Description: always smell good, unable to attract diseases, teeth never rot] [3 tons of modern food Description: are you missing food from before shit hit the fan well now you aren¡¯t, a different variety of foods is given to you] I dismissed the notifications and got up from my seat before proceeding to the exit, several people watched me leave but most of them were guards under orders so I ignored them. It was already noon so I have about six hours until it starts to get dark again, if I use my time wisely I can probably search the district and hunt a few mutant beasts I¡¯m sure the husky would like to get some exercise. I ordered it to do what it wants until dark and just like that it ran off without a care in the world, I guess it was bored just wandering around with us. I slaughtered the few dogs that were brave enough to attack me while I searched the buildings in the district but some of them I stayed away from since there were poisonous spores in them, I know my perfect health skill works on diseases but I¡¯m not sure if it counts for poisons too. If things keep going how they are going I probably can run a cities worth of people and still have supplies left, now then before I do anything else let¡¯s check the quests to see if there¡¯s one related to collecting supplies. [Warehouse of the night swallows Rank: B Description: a warehouse of medical equipment has been taken over by night swallows, reclaim it to posses this vital equipment Reward: Medical equipment, ???, Health Potion Recipe] [Hoarders Delight Rank: D Description: Collect several kinds of items that are not seen as treasures as other people Reward: Detect treasure] The first mission will probably easy considering I can keep the swallows at bay with my killing intent as for the hoarders delight well I can just use the items in my inventory; actually there are a lot of quests that I can complete at the moment with the items I have in my inventory but that¡¯s for another time. I walked towards the warehouse indicated on the quest page only to find a blood trail going into a warehouse with the door flung open; in the entrance one could see the bloodied remains of someone that was less fortunate, I approached the warehouse all the while activating my killing intent. When I entered I could hear the Swallows causing a racket but unlike at night these swallows were giving a warning to leave instead of being frightened. As I was feeling about retreating one of the Swallows finally acted; the Black Feathered Swallow dive bombed me only to be chopped in half by my knife, the Swallows around the rafters acted in retaliation causing the room to grow in chaos as I got attacked over and over again not allowing me to act! I back away keeping my face covered; when I was at the door way I slammed it shut followed by the few swallows that escaped, these swallows didn¡¯t last long seeing how they met their end by my PMR. I looked myself over to see my clothes shredded and my arms a shredded mess with a few holes in my torso, I turned to look at the damn pests that I just encountered. The shallow cuts began to heal themselves while the deeper cuts remained still; I ignored my wounds as I analyzed the damn birds on the ground. [Aggressive Night Swallows Rank: 2 Description: a mutated Swallow that lives in the darkness, it¡¯s sensitive eyes can¡¯t withstand bright lights which cause it to hunt in the dark, these birds aren¡¯t intelligent and will attack anything that moves even if it looks like a threat thinking that it will be alright if they are in a group] Well there goes that plan, my best route was to scare them out of the warehouse with my killing intent but I guess it wouldn¡¯t be a B rank mission if it was that easy, I guess I have to go with the next best thing but I need to do this before it gets dark.