《The Smartphone Saga Book 2 - A Place to Belong: Blueprints and Blunders》 Prologue As mysterious as the oceans are, the earth beneath your feet is far more unknowable. Twenty-five miles of rock before you hit what, by all scientific theory, must be liquid stone. Deeper than any sea, darker than any surface shadow. Impenetrable in nature. Still, in more sane realities there is little to threaten man beneath the ground. Mankind itself does not fear great tunneling beasts or ten-thousand ravenous scuttling things. Indeed, what we find most horrible is the anxious threat of collapse and our human incompatibility with tight spaces. If you were a cat, you¡¯d be fine. No problems with tight spaces, and no abstract theory to say that the ceiling might collapse at any time. No anxiety beyond the odd cucumber. Speaking of cats and things that shake in the deep, Jasson Boar had a problem. You see, the furry little buggers were cute despite their massive size. Kittens beyond the event horizon of adorable. All that translated into more kitten to cuddle. Two entire armfuls of kitten. One Kitty to fill them all. But there were two kitties and not enough hands to love them all. One would mew and press against Jasson¡¯s back whenever he turned his attention to the other. ¡°Clara!¡± Jasson hoped he was being just quiet enough to not spook the kittens. ¡°Clara! Can you hear me?! Bring everybody around here!¡± Jasson waited, rubbing the purring orange kitten with all of his limbs. Looks like she couldn¡¯t hear them. Right. Jasson pried himself away one limb at a time, trying to make his way back to the others, only to find the black and white cat waiting. It captured his freed limbs in rubbing affection and Jasson about cried from joy. He worked his way around the black and white kitten and pried his limbs away again, only to find the Orange kitten waiting for pats. ¡°Okay,¡± Jasson said, ¡°I¡¯ll make progress one cat at a time.¡± He crossed the Not-ruins one fluffy stepping stone at a time. A journey of giddy bliss, careful not to spook the precious beans. A kitten he could hug and not hurt! Eventually, Jasson arrived outside the entrance. Jasson managed to squeeze his head past the curtain and saw Clara and the others laughing. ¡°Hey,¡± Jasson said, ¡°I have good news and bad news.¡± ¡°What''s the bad news?¡± Petra said, shifting from chill to brusque in a moment.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°What''s the good news?¡± Clara said. ¡°Why are you covered in fur?¡± Harriet said. So many questions, Jasson thought as a kitten butted up against his back, one precious answer. ¡°I shall answer you all,¡± Jasson stood aside, letting a kitten butt past, ¡°We have kittens now!¡± The two kittens tumbled into the room and across the beds, tossing around and rubbing up against everyone. Then their beady eyes landed on the table and the half-eaten feast on top of it. ¡°Jasson!¡± Petra screamed as the others laughed, ¡°What have you done?!¡± Clara cut off a kitten and scooped half the dishes away, but the orange cat got a hold of the roast while the black and white one gobbled up rolls that had fallen to the floor. ¡°Don''t blame me!¡± Jasson laughed as he tried to pull away some food, ¡°The cat distribution system has chosen us.¡± Clara pulled most of the roast away from the orange kitten. ¡°These aren''t cats!¡± Petra said, ¡°They''re monst-oof!¡± The orange kitten gave up on the food and leaped for Petra, purring as it knocked her to the ground. ¡°Get off you foul beast!¡± Petra said, ¡°Get-get-awwww. It''s purring. Clara, it likes me!¡± ¡°Jasson!¡± Clara called from beneath the black and white one, ¡°Run to town and get some string and something fuzzy to play with them!¡± ¡°Everything¡¯s closed at this hour,¡± Jasson said, ¡°Besides, I think that rope would do better.¡± ¡°True!¡± Clara said, ¡°Petra, I think there¡¯s rope in your-¡± Petra had fallen into complete baby talk, babbling to the orange kitten as she petted it. Harriett had launched into a full-body hug on top of the orange cat, rubbing her face fiercely. ¡°Oh, never mind,¡± Clara laughed, petting the black and white cat, ¡°Who¡¯s a good kitty? You¡¯re so precious!.¡± The four of them lay exhausted as the two kittens snuggled by the wide kitchen fireplace. Night weighed heavily on their eyes, just as pats weighed heavily on their arms. Exhaustion was coming to one and all, especially Clara who¡¯d quit last. ¡°All right,¡± Jasson reclined on his bed, ¡°we need names for them.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Petra said, ¡°So it¡¯s up to you to decide that we¡¯re keeping them?¡± ¡°Come on,¡± Jasson motioned the the two giant lumps, ¡°It¡¯s obvious, isn¡¯t it? That orange cat that took Clout was their mother. Or rather, hard to tell. They followed us all the way home.¡± ¡°Couldn¡¯t have been that hard,¡± Petra sighed, ¡°But it¡¯s not like we can just take them back.¡± ¡°Exactly,¡± Jasson said, ¡°so they have come under our dominion. Our care.¡± ¡°You just want to keep them because they¡¯re cool,¡± Petra said, huffing, ¡°But I suppose you¡¯re right. Clara?¡± Clara was snoring to their side and Jasson said ¡°I think that she¡¯d be fine with it. Harriett?¡± Harriett didn¡¯t respond for a few moments before saying, ¡°That mother cat killed a great mage with a Greater crystal. Yeah, it was an ambush. But he was still screaming as the cat walked away. These are powerful creatures, or they will be when they grow up. Each one could be nearly considered a Dragon-level threat, but together¡­this is dangerous for my people. To this city.¡± ¡°So what?¡± Jasson turned, shocked, ¡°Are you going to try and kill them?¡± Harriett shuddered then smiled and said ¡°Me? Never. I¡¯d never let anything hurt them. But¡­we have to do this right. My mother keeps cats, but I¡¯m no expert myself. I know a few things. For instance: This black and white cat is called a Tuxedo. Socializing is important for them, as is rapid responses¡­¡± Jasson lay down on his bed and closed his eyes, feeling too heavy to stay up. ¡°Never mind,¡± Harriett said, ¡°I¡¯ll go through it with you all tomorrow. We¡¯ll need to feed them, and remember: Cats have small body language signs that are hard to notice. I¡¯m going to bed.¡± Jasson nodded groggily, stomach full, and drifted off to sleep. Arc 1 - Shadow and Stone -- Chapter 1: More Money Arc 1: Shadow and Stone Chapter 1: More Money Jasson didn¡¯t have to grab the quests anymore. The sea of sweaty flesh was no longer his to swim through. All he had to do was look over the quests Harriett brought to him. He wasn¡¯t exactly sure where she went between postings, but he had too much to do in the meantime. ¡°Man,¡± Jasson said, putting another quest through Trainslate, ¡°I need to do more Do-a-lingo.¡± This quest was another overkill adventure. Weeks away from the mansion, only a few hundred in guaranteed reward. Of course, that was the same as the one that took them to Smill. Kill 100 wyverns, go home. That ended with several near-death experiences and an absolute fortune of magic crystals. But, even if Jasson stumbled on the same miracles as last time, it wouldn''t help them. They didn''t need more treasure to liquidate. And definitely not at the cost of long travel. They needed decent-paying, short expeditions that would help Jasson rise within the Guild. It was becoming more and more obvious that all the good quests were locked behind the metallic ranks. Jasson had seen those people, their rank glinting on their chests. They were welcomed past the employee doors as VIPs. Into the back where all the good stuff was. Jasson needed to get to copper rank, ASAP. Jasson groaned and took his pile of quests back to the board. Grog watched him and Jasson couldn''t help but wonder what Grog thought. Harriet was blurring in and out, depositing several quests at Jasson''s table. But Grog didn''t ask any questions. Yet. ¡°Don''t like the ones you got?¡± An older man said, bent over by the board. Jasson glanced and saw a rank of dark wood. Mahogany. ¡°Not particularly,¡± Jasson dumped his quests in the return tray by the board. ¡°These take too long.¡± The man chuckled and said, ¡°You young people, always rushing around. Let me take a look at those. I have an adventuring party that likes to travel for decent pay. But all of those quests get¡­snapped ¡­up.¡± The old man leafed through the ten or so quests Jasson had deposited. One after the other, flicking back while muttering some numbers. ¡°You didn''t want these?¡± The man said, incredulous. ¡°These are the cream of the crop! I used to fight tooth and nail to get these kind of quests. And so many!¡± ¡°I have a friend grab them when they come out,¡± Jasson said, ¡°She''s fast but likes grabbing that type. Feel free to take them all, our party doesn''t have the time to travel anymore.¡± ¡°Sounds like you have some soaring coat tails,¡± the old man chuckled, ¡°I think I¡¯ll only take one. Except¡­these towns are right next to each other. We could stop by each and¡­hmmm.¡± Jasson left the old adventurer to his thinking. It would be hours until the next batch of quests. Perhaps there would be something short to do. A single small quest would be better for advancement than a couple hours of waiting. What to do? It would be kind of poetic to do herb gathering. That first quest he¡¯d failed, before he¡¯d met Clara and Petra. Jasson remembered that night, finally coming to grips with his failure. Was he really the same person? Jasson smiled and snatched a herb gathering quest from the door, walking quickly. If he hurried, he could get back before the evening rush. **** Two weeks with nothing to do but scroll built back some bad habits in Jasson. So it was that, walking through the city, he didn¡¯t have the best of reaction times when minor_plotpoint_gang saw him. Freshly upgraded to moderate_plotpoint_gang. ¡°It¡¯s HIM!¡± Someone shouted, and Jasson looked up in surprise just before he was pulled forcefully into an alley. ¡°Eh?¡± Jasson said, born aloft by half a dozen hands, ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Jasson watched the sky and passing roofs as his abductors made several rapid turns, pulling him deeper into the city. Jasson opened up MADaptation on his phone and pulled a water crystal from his pocket, but was unable to balance it on the screen. After his second try, it bounced in such a way that he slammed it with his flailing hand and sent it skidding into some corner of the alley.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Dang it, Jasson thought. What¡¯s my options? He opened his locker, but his abductors never stopped. Every time he opened it, the swirling portal would be left behind and lost behind another twisting corner. Jasson thought. I¡¯m beginning to think that I have overestimated my survival abilities. A few minutes later, one of the men said, ¡°All right, guys. Let him down nice and easy. There we go¡­are you okay Mister Peach-man?¡± ¡°Mister what?¡± Jasson said, dusting himself off after finding his footing, ¡°What is going on here?¡± ¡°Well,¡± the guy said, turning his feet, ¡°You see, we didn¡¯t exactly want to be doing this in the street. You know? What, with all the guardsmen around. So we figured we¡¯d bring you back to the boss. You¡­you don¡¯t mind, do you?¡± ¡°I was abducted by three men and dragged deep into the city,¡± Jasson said, ¡°Why would I mind?¡± ¡°Excellent,¡± The man led the way in, ¡°Come on. The boss is waiting for you.¡± Jasson eyed the way back but¡­well he had no idea where he was and didn¡¯t have the map for Stalt. Where would he go? He might as well see this to the end since these guys didn¡¯t seem to wish him harm. They entered a home, passed through a normal-looking living room, and pushed open a door deeper in the house. It was a storage room full of fruits. The main guy went further in and pressed a panel in the wall. The wall slid open. Pretty cool, Jasson thought. I definitely want a few of these when we build the Manor. ¡°We found him, boss!¡± The man declared at they shuffled into the dim room. Magic lights glowed a sickening green-yellow and Jasson saw a faintly familiar man sitting in the middle. It was a scarred cat-human dressed in yellow, sitting on what looked like a folding beach chair. To either side of him stood neat stacks of gold. Behind the cat-man were boxes full of viewing crystals and¡­peaches? ¡°So you¡¯re finally here.¡± The cat-man leaned forward, ¡°About time. Nearly three weeks with no fresh bites on the market. Just an insatiable growing clientele.¡± The cat-man stood, padding toward me before putting one long-nailed hand on Jasson¡¯s shoulder. ¡°It¡¯s time for you to cook again,¡± the cat-man said, ¡°We¡¯re losing our edge. Practically traditional Cheese at this point. That *(&^% that managed to get ahold of you before you disappeared, he¡¯s been undercutting us. Stealing our anxious customers who have been waiting patiently. ¡®Any day now¡¯ we told them! Well, now you¡¯re here.¡± He walked to the back and grabbed a peach, then motioned for Jasson to follow him. They walked into another room with an enormous, polished viewing crystal on the table. Several bitten peaches and smaller crystals surrounded the large one. With a wave of his hand, the cat-man directed his subordinates to clear off the table. Jasson paused at the edge, disbelief refusing to glue together the pieces. What was this about? This reminded him of how he transferred videos. Actually¡­that was his video on the main crystal. The video he¡¯d transferred on his first day in Stalt. ¡°Umm,¡± Jasson said, nervously laughing, ¡°I don¡¯t think that I can¡­proceed.¡± The cat-man slapped his own forehead so hard Jasson jumped. ¡°Of course,¡± The cat-man said, ¡°I was too eager. Men, get him a chair and prepare more peaches. We have forgotten to begin negotiations.¡± ¡°Well, that.¡± Jasson laughed, desperately searching his mind as he took a seat, ¡°And introductions.¡± ¡°Of course,¡± The cat-man said, ¡°I am now known as Fritz. I run this modest operation providing¡­luxury to our clientele. And you?¡± Way to go Einstein, Jasson thought. I guess I¡¯m into illegal substances now. ¡°Me?¡± Jasson thought through names, ¡°I am¡­are we using aliases?¡± Fritz laughed and said, ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Right then,¡± Jasson said, ¡°I¡¯m¡­er¡­Einstein. Yeah. That sounds right.¡± Sounds properly sarcastic. Jasson thought. ¡°Excellent, Einstein.¡± Fritz laughed, ¡°Shall we begin? You have the product, and we have gold and distribution. Let¡¯s do business.¡± ¡°Ah,¡± Jasson said, ¡°Okay.¡± They were all staring at Jasson, and he said, ¡°Umm¡­Are we talking pay per video or per time?¡± ¡°Which were you thinking of?¡± Fritz said. ¡°Um,¡± Jasson raced through simple estimates. Videos varied constantly and could be a cause of strife. But Time was harder to calculate. It¡¯s just cat videos. Jasson thought. Don¡¯t over think it. ¡°I was thinking per time for simplicity,¡± Jasson said, ¡°How about¡­what do you charge currently.¡± ¡°Different for different quality crystals,¡± Fritz said, ¡°But the video itself comes out to about two gold every ten minutes.¡± ¡°Perfect,¡± Jasson said, ¡°In which case, I will charge ten gold for an hour of content. Nice and simple.¡± There was a nerve scratching silence before Fritz erupted in laughter. ¡°Hah,¡± Fritz snorted, ¡°Do you take me for a fool?¡± Jasson winced. Was he asking for too much? He really didn¡¯t need the gold. ¡°I am not a fool to underpay you by that much.¡± Fritz laughed, ¡°You¡¯d be stolen for coppers by another gang. In addition to twenty gold per hour on the day of transfer, I will pay you ten percent of total sales, to be picked up monthly.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Jasson said, ¡°Well, that can¡¯t be that much. You only have¡­hundreds of customers.¡± ¡°For now, yes.¡± Fritz said, ¡°But we will grow larger with your help. Who knows, I might be Kingpin one day.¡± ¡°Okay¡­¡± Jasson said, ¡°I suppose you could deposit the gold in a neutral location. I¡­can I see a customer? I want to¡­make sure that you are dealing intelligently.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Fritz said, ¡°You''re concerned for our customers.¡± ¡°Well, yeah.¡± Jasson shuffled, ¡°Is that not something you want to show me?¡± Fritz steepled his fingers and said ¡°It¡¯s not the worst of addictions, but I will be the first to say that it has taken over a few people¡¯s lives. Well, not the first. Those high-minded *&^$# preach about it all day.¡± Fritz motioned with his hand, saying ¡°But surely you understand what we¡¯re going through. You watch these videos as well. It''s not about numbing everything, spending hours watching the same cats tumble and fall. It''s a break. A little relief from life. Taken in moderation and it would hurt no one. Merely add a little spice to life.¡± Jasson nodded. Yeah, that checked out. That¡¯s what cat videos were for. Fritz motioned to a pile of crystals, ¡°Those are our main expense. Once everyone has them, we¡¯ll be able to sell videos for dirt cheap. We already do it for repeat customers. Give us more video, help us grow, and eventually it will be nearly free for everyone.¡± Fritz held a hand out to Jasson, saying, ¡°Come on. Help us share funny videos of cats with the world. It will bring joy to everyone.¡± Jasson paused, thinking. There wasn''t anything wrong with the logic. And it was just cats. ¡°Deal,¡± Jasson took Fritz¡¯s hand, ¡°We¡¯ll make this world a little bit easier to live in.¡± Chapter 2: More Problems ¡°So let me get this straight,¡± Jane said, ¡°You took on a two-week quest with exceptional results. Slaying Wyverns. But you failed to complete this quest yesterday. For picking flowers. Am I getting this right?¡± It had taken hours for Jasson to download those cat videos with only Fisk and his men for signal, so Jasson had returned home late in the day. Harriett had also come home at some point, and about smothered Jasson when he approached the not-ruins. Apparently they¡¯d been worried that Jasson had been abducted, which wasn¡¯t far off. He got a thorough chewing from Petra on not meeting up and disappearing on them. Then, the next morning after playing with the kittens, Jasson rediscovered the quest in his pocket. Jasson hung his head and said ¡°I got¡­distracted. Side quested from a side quest. Is there really no chance of finishing this?¡± ¡°No, it expired yesterday evening.¡± Jane sighed and wrote something down, ¡°Which makes three successes, two failures. Are you really trying to go up in the guild?! If you fail the next one, you will be demoted down a level and banned for a month.¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Jasson felt his neck burn, ¡°Maybe I should just steer clear of flower quests.¡± ¡°You do that,¡± Jane said. After a moment Jane sighed and said, ¡°Look, why are you trying to go up in level? The gold you tipped the other day is indicative that you no longer have need for money. Maybe it would be best for you if you focused on more productive things than sitting around here every day.¡± ¡°I want to get to the metal ranks,¡± Jasson said, ¡°so that I can access to the quests in the back.¡± ¡°Oh, those.¡± Jane shook her head, ¡°Every level you go up is exponential in requirement. Each type of quest only gives you so many points, and flowers will take you forever. If you''re going for higher ranks and don''t need money, then pay attention to the quests stamped with a flower. Those are pro bono, or unpaid requests posted by the guild. The credit you get from completing those, no matter how small, is double or triple that of the paid equivalent.¡± ¡°Wait,¡± Jasson said, ¡°So each quest gives you credit? And you can go up in levels faster by taking quests that don''t pay?¡± ¡°Correct,¡± Jane said, ¡° And the credit is based on the difficulty. We usually teach you this once you reach Willow, but you skipped that rank.¡± ¡°I guess I did,¡± Jasson rubbed the back of his head, ¡°Thanks for the explanation. Are there other ways to advance faster?¡± ¡°Hundreds,¡± Jane motioned to the tip jar, ¡°The tip jar is optional and limited. But the Adventurer¡¯s guild has been around for hundreds of years. There are so many weird ways to do anything if you dig far enough. The city library should have a copy. Now excuse me, there is now a line forming behind you.¡± Jasson apologized and hurried to the side, making his way to the Quest Board. He¡¯d noticed those flower stamps before, and now he knew that they meant. Jasson perused the offerings, working with Trainslate and what Do A Lingo had taught him. These were little more than chores for the town. A few mentioned that the requests were from an old grandma or something, and Jasson was starting to understand. These were service projects for adventurers to do in order to get to higher levels. Nothing that good yet, Jasson thought. I should go let Harriett know the new criteria. Jasson left the guild and made his way down the corner. He¡¯d set this up as a rendezvous with Harriett while she was horsing around. Jasson didn¡¯t know why he bothered establishing a place to wait when Harriett materialized beside him the moment he rounded the corner. ¡°Hey,¡± Harriett said, ¡°We didn¡¯t even make it to the first quest of the day.¡±This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. ¡°I got new criteria,¡± Jasson said, ¡°Although this would be easier if you came into the guild with me.¡± ¡°I would but,¡± Harriett disappeared, ¡°Walking on people¡¯s heads to get to the quests is against the rules.¡± Jasson looked up and Harriett hopped off his head. He could barely feel anything when she did that. ¡°So what¡¯s the new criteria?¡± Harriett said, ¡°You already mentioned that we needed to focus on quick trips.¡± ¡°We¡¯re looking for ones with flower stamps on them and-¡± Jasson hesitated. The more difficult the quest, the more he¡¯d get from doing it pro bono. But this was Harriett¡­ Eh, whatever. Jasson thought. How hard could unpaid quests be? ¡°Flower stamp quests eh?¡± Harriett said, nodding, ¡°Looking for a charity mission? Shunning reward to serve the community?¡± ¡°As long as it doesn¡¯t take weeks to do,¡± Jasson said, ¡°A short quest that¡¯s as challenging as possible. That¡¯s the way to raise my rank the fastest.¡± Harriet burst in an ear to ear grinch-grin and said, ¡°Now you¡¯re speaking my language.¡± Chills rushed across Jasson¡¯s back, completely stripping him of the right to say that he didn¡¯t see it coming. This was the girl that cleared a den of wyverns and risked her life for the fun of it. What Harriett considered challenging¡­no. It would be fine. These were unpaid service projects. ¡°All right,¡± Jasson said, ¡°I¡­I will be in the guild. I¡¯m going to be looking over what you grab before we go on the quest.¡± Just to be safe. **** The lunch rush was oozing out the Guild doors, fleshy heat wafting out the windows with the little air crystals panning over the crowd. Jasson looked at the quest in his hands. It was one of two quests Harriett had grabbed. Jasson was torn. This first one was a quest for monster culling in the local woods. There had been an abnormal rise in monster activity in this area, and the old lady living there was starting to be threatened. Simple enough, a good task for an evening. It wasn¡¯t even due for two more days. But Jasson had seen enough fantasy, and real life, to know that this would be a more difficult quest than it seemed. Something was obviously manipulating the monster behind the scenes. Of course, Jasson felt bad for leaving the old lady there. They should help. On the other hand, or more specifically laying flat on the table, was another quest. This one was a request by a poor local potter who needed to clear out a warehouse. Something had been eating the dogs and cats, and the potter couldn¡¯t afford to hire people for the job. Huh, Jasson thought. Petra and Clara should be done feeding those kittens. Wonder if they¡¯ll be at the lunch meet-up. Then we can go handle one of these and... Jasson looked between the quests. Even if things got out of hand, he couldn¡¯t envision the twins failing to complete the quest for the old lady. On the other hand, a quest in a tightly packed warehouse didn¡¯t seem like a good place for Clara¡¯s giant sword and Petra¡¯s earthshaking magic. But to bring everyone for both seemed like overkill. Jasson stood and looked to Jane¡¯s desk. There was a line. He¡¯d be late for the meetup if he got in line now. But Grog was free. ¡°Hey,¡± Jasson approached Grog, ¡°Is it okay if I¡¯m not on one of the quests? I want to split the party for two quests.¡± Grog looked down over his book and said, ¡°Don¡¯t make a habit out of it.¡± ¡°Okay?¡± Jasson looked for a further response, but Grog was back in his book, ¡°Thanks.¡± Jasson hesitated before the door. Did he really want do take both of these quests at once? The time limit was a couple days out. But, then tomorrow there might be more quests and¡­ ¡°Victory is for the brave.¡± Jasson said, and stepped through. Officially taking on both quests. **** Petra tapped idly on the first quest and said, ¡°So you want us, both me and Clara, to tackle some light pest extermination? Wouldn¡¯t that be¡­overkill? I have things to do.¡± ¡°I mean,¡± Jasson shrugged, ¡°this has probably festered and gotten out of hand. Back up is useful.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not wrong,¡± Petra said, ¡°But why don¡¯t you serve as back up? Then we can send Clara and Harriett on the other one.¡± ¡°Hey,¡± Clara said, ¡°I wanted to go- eh¡­exterminate slimes for a few hours. Why doesn¡¯t Jasson back me up?¡± ¡°No,¡± Petra said, ¡°It¡¯s best if I go wi- It¡¯s best if you go with Harriett. Your heightened senses would be more useful in a warehouse.¡± Jasson looked between the sisters. Were they arguing about something in twin-speak? ¡°No offense,¡± Harriett said as she balanced her sword on the tip of her finger, ¡°But I¡¯m not in the mood to work with you two in a tight space. I saw what you did on the battlefield.¡± ¡°We can be careful!¡± Petra said, ¡°I have an extreme precision shot!¡± ¡°And what happens to whatever is standing behind what you shoot?¡± Harriett tossed the sword and caught it deftly, sheathing it at her side. ¡°It is cleanable with cold water and time,¡± Petra said, ¡°If I¡¯m really gentle, at least.¡± Harriett said, ¡°So if you scrub the blood off, it¡¯s not too bad. With your gentlest shot.¡± ¡°Fine!¡± Petra threw her hands up, ¡°We¡¯ll take on the other quest.¡± ¡°You could see how fast it can be done.¡± Jasson said, ¡°Speedrun exterminating the threat.¡± ¡°That sounds fun!¡± Clara said, grabbing Petra¡¯s arm, ¡°Let¡¯s go Petra! If we¡¯re done early enough, we¡¯ll help Jasson out.¡± ¡°Sounds like a plan,¡± Jasson said, ¡°After all. With people as strong as us, what can go wrong?¡± Chapter 3: More Stone The husband was inconsolable. Apparently ¡®eating the dogs and cats¡¯ meant their personal pets. Jasson could feel himself heating up as the wife described where they¡¯d found the remains, savagely consumed and discarded by some monster. Brownie and Ripper the dogs, two neighbor cats, plus their precious Nibbles. It wasn¡¯t right. This couldn¡¯t stand. Jasson¡¯s heart twinged, remembering their kittens at home. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Jasson marched from the poor potter¡¯s family home, Harriett and the couple trailing after them. ¡°The warehouse is around this way, right?¡± The wife responded, ¡°Yes, but- get up honey. They¡¯re going to the warehouse.¡± The potter just sniffled and hugged a pillow, saying, ¡°We were never able to find anything. Why do you think they will?¡± ¡°Because they¡¯re professionals,¡± The wife said, ¡°I posted the notice. I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll do their job well.¡± ¡°We haven¡¯t even explored the whole place,¡± the husband said, ¡°We should try this ourselves before paying others to do it.¡± ¡°Actually,¡± Jasson turned, grinning, ¡°We¡¯re doing this pro bono. In other words: for free.¡± ¡°Oh!¡± The husband shot up, still holding the pillow, ¡°Well okay then. Thank you, darling. I¡¯ll take them on a tour while you watch the kids.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I was hoping for,¡± The wife smiled, ¡°Be safe out there, you three.¡± The warehouse was a dilapidated building the size of two football fields. It would have been run down five years ago and now could only crawl down levels of collapsing. Jasson frowned. ¡°What¡¯s in there?¡± Jasson said, ¡°Is it empty?¡± ¡°No,¡± The potter said, ¡°It was an old family project. Some upper nobility ordered a warehouse full of goods for something or other nearby, but then fell on hard times and never paid us. Most of my family moved to the capital in search of money. Or the nobles. It bankrupted us entirely. We¡¯re still paying off the debt.¡± Jasson nodded, unsure of what to say. Maybe he could give them some crystals. But then again, they might have trouble convincing a pawn shop that the crystals weren¡¯t stolen. Maybe just some gold. ¡°Here we are,¡± the potter said, showing them the door, ¡°We found Ripper just on the inside of the door, and Brownie was further in. Half of him, anyway. We didn¡¯t go farther in to see.¡± Jasson frowned and said, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you go deeper in-¡± Harriett was suddenly by the door and pulled it open, calling out ¡°Hey! Check it out!¡± Jasson hurried to catch up. Inside, illuminated by the windows and holes in the roof, were thousands of statues. Every shape and size, an army frozen in chiseled yet forgotten glory. Light and shadows, stone and thin passages between empty hands. ¡°We don¡¯t go further in because it¡¯s creepy,¡± The potter said, ¡°Don¡¯t you feel their eyes on you?¡± ¡°Definitely,¡± Jasson did his best to avert his gaze from the more classical statues, ¡°Um¡­why?¡± ¡°My family used to be marble sculptors,¡± The potter said, ¡°But we can no longer afford the marble.¡± Anything could be hiding in here, countless jump scares hiding in plain sight. ¡°Okay,¡± Jasson said, ¡°And¡­how big were your dogs?¡± The potter chuckled sadly and said, ¡°Our dogs were leftovers from when we were catering to nobles. Lots of money. A lot of enemies. A lot of dog. Now all that¡¯s left is this evidence of our debt, standing in silence as the interest piles up.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Jasson said, ¡°Uh¡­¡± ¡°Come on!¡± Harriett walked inside. ¡°Let¡¯s finish this up quick.¡± Jasson looked back to the potter and sighed, saying ¡°Is there much that¡¯s flammable in there?¡± ¡°Nope,¡± The potter said, ¡°Just avoid the dry areas of the beams and roofs. Not that there are any.¡±This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. ¡°Thanks,¡± Jasson took a fire crystal from his pocket and opened MADaptation, ¡°I¡¯ll do my best.¡± In the two weeks traveling back from Smill Jasson got plenty of time to practice with his crystals. Only Water and Fire worked in MADaptation. The Purple one, which Petra reminded him was Gravity, didn¡¯t count as an element and so MADaptation couldn¡¯t utilize it. The satisfying click of the crystal in Jasson¡¯s headphone jack made him smile. Whatever was in here, Jasson doubted that it would resist the flamethrower feature. ¡°Wait up,¡± Jasson hurried after Harriett, ¡°We need to be watching each other¡¯s backs.¡± The warehouse was as musty as it looked. Dust piled and trailed from the unplanned skylights, tears of abandonment streaking the white-marbled forms. Haphazard rows of statues in various positions parted for twisting paths that disappeared into the horde. ¡°Wow,¡± Harriett fell back to Jasson¡¯s side, ¡°Okay. This place is uncanny.¡± ¡°Too accurate,¡± Jasson agreed, ¡°It¡¯s like the statues are alive. You¡¯d think that they''d be worn down already.¡± ¡°These are marble,¡± Harriett walked up to one and tapped it with the flat side of her sword, ¡°They¡¯re made to be put outside in gardens and stuff. They can last that way for thousands of years.¡± Harriett¡¯s words and the ringing of her sword echoed in the warehouse. Jasson fidgeted with his flamethrower. Anything could be listening. ¡°Why did they store them in a warehouse?¡± Jasson said, ¡°Why not in a field?¡± ¡°Probably to defend against vandalism,¡± Harriett said, ¡°Come on. Let¡¯s get out of here before dark.¡± Fantastic. One more thing to worry about. Harriett was smart to avoid¡­the danger¡­ Jasson paused, then said ¡°What do you mean? Won¡¯t it be scarier after dark? More of a challenge?¡± Harriett hesitated, then said, ¡°Nah. I can see fine in the dark so I wouldn¡¯t be scared. Why? Are you scared?¡± Jasson analyzed Harriett and then said, ¡°Of course I¡¯m scared. I don¡¯t remember telling anyone I wasn¡¯t. But now I¡¯m thinking that you¡¯re scared. Isn¡¯t this enough of a challenge for you?¡± ¡°Look,¡± Harriett stopped, ¡°I¡¯m not scared like some kid, okay? But if I were, hypothetically, it would be because there¡¯s a difference between a ¡®challenge¡¯ and ghosts. Alright? If I can¡¯t stab it, it would be hypothetically fine if I was scared of it. Which I¡¯m not, so I don¡¯t know why I¡¯m telling you this.¡± Jasson raised his eyebrows and then turned away. So little Miss Fearless had some uncertainty in her five-foot frame. That shouldn¡¯t have made Jasson feel better, but it was nice to feel like he wasn¡¯t the only one with a gut twisted by a legion of unmoving statues. ¡°Let¡¯s see if there are any blood trails from the dogs,¡± Jasson said, ¡°There¡¯s bound to be some kind of nest in here.¡± Jasson scanned around the statues, flamethrower at the ready as Harriett picked a path. They inched along, flinching at shadows and leaping at the scuttling mice. Whatever was in here didn¡¯t bother hunting for that small of prey. ¡°I think I see something,¡± Harriett said, sending hairs bristling across Jasson¡¯s neck, ¡°It¡¯s a bunch of eggs.¡± ¡°Eggs?¡± Jasson followed, whipping around occasionally to check for movement. Jasson looked up. Nothing. Still, Jasson thought, something isn¡¯t right. Jasson followed Harriett as they approached the ¡®eggs¡¯. Half a dozen statues were lying flat on the ground. Most importantly, there were several statues nearly covering their eyes, leaving just enough for Jasson to see their horrified expressions. ¡°These are made of marble,¡± Harriett tapped the eggs, her blade wringing against the stone, ¡°Looks like something has been here though.¡± ¡°Harriett,¡± Jasson said, watching the statues around them, ¡°Does your culture normally make statues of terrified people?¡± Harriett paused and looked around, then said, ¡°Sometimes. For scare gardens during October. But¡­not out of marble. Not when you only keep them up for part of the year.¡± ¡°Right,¡± Jasson said, ¡°Now, do you have monsters that turn people to stone when you look at them?¡± Harriett grabbed Jasson¡¯s arm, ¡°You mean Medusa¡¯s? Yeah, we do.¡± ¡°Great,¡± Jasson said, ¡°Final question, do you have a couple of hand mirrors we could use? In that handbag of yours?¡± Jasson held his breath. If she didn¡¯t then they¡¯d be in deep trouble. But she had a whole house in that bag so- ¡°Oh, yes.¡± Harriett reached into her bag and produced a couple of mirrors, ¡°Good luck.¡± ¡°Thanks,¡± Jasson said, taking the mirror and sighing in relief, ¡°You sound excited.¡± ¡°Of course I am,¡± Harriett said, ¡°Not only am I about to fight a legendary monster, but it¡¯s one I can stab without too much trouble.¡± Jasson grunted and experimented pointing the mirror to see the statues behind him. He shot off a couple of bursts of flame, getting the hang of things. ¡°I doubt a Medusa is fireproof,¡± Jasson said, then took out one of his healing crystals, ¡°Still, she¡¯ll have claws or something. Those dogs weren¡¯t turned to stone.¡± They circled around where those eggs had been, looking for other disturbances. Nothing so much as a statue tipped on its side. The entire warehouse didn¡¯t have any statues knocked over, except for around those eggs. But something wasn¡¯t right. Things were starting to feel¡­off. Like his sense of direction was wacked up, or that something had moved whenever he couldn¡¯t see it. More than once, Jasson flinched and fired his flamethrower, only to soot up a statue or two. Nothing moved besides the mice, and yet every few seconds Jasson could feel that something was different. Changed. Jasson tucked the mirror under his arms and rubbed his eyes. All this shoulder checking was starting to hurt. Harriet paused and put her own mirror away, turning to Jasson. ¡°We¡¯re not really finding anything,¡± Harriett said, turning away, ¡°But I know something is here. I can feel their eyes on me. At least half a dozen of them.¡± ¡°Six?¡± Jasson said, ¡°Dang. Let¡¯s cycle back to those eggs.¡± Jasson pushed through the growing kink in his neck and raised his mirror to- ¡°AAAH!¡± Jasson shot a bristling hot spurt of fire as he skipped forward, spinning to look. ¡°Don''t look!¡± Harriet said Jasson froze, phone aimed dead at whatever he¡¯d just engulfed in flames. Jasson''s eyes focused against his will as the animal part of his brain refused to ¡®not look¡¯ at a threat. Jasson locked eyes with the- ¡°It''s a statue?¡± Harriet said, approaching backward, ¡°But¡­it wasn''t there before. Right?¡± Chills raced a rhythm across Jasson''s skin, sweat beading in terrified preparation to run. The statue stood, arm outstretched to where Jasson had been, mouth dripping open with crude but sharp teeth. ¡°Weird design choice,¡± Harriet tapped the statue with her sword, ¡°I know this wasn''t here before. Do you think something is picking up and moving the statues? Maybe a poltergeist.¡± ¡°&*(%,¡± Jasson said, stepping back and swiveling his head around, ¡°**^&%$% ^#%^# &^%$ a &^$$%@ no¡­¡± More statues ahead. Path blocked. What was the advice? How did that episode start? ¡°Don¡¯t blink!¡± Jasson hissed, ¡°Don¡¯t turn around or look away. They¡¯re faster than you¡¯d think.¡± Jasson blinked, and the statues had moved. A final confirmation. A final settling of Jasson¡¯s plunging gut in the lake of terror. Statues that only move when you¡¯re not looking, vicious mouths ready to tear your flesh apart. Uncanny stillness meeting every frantic glance. The words Jasson had been hoping were wrong forced their way out, ¡°They¡¯re Weeping Angels.¡± Chapter 4: More Shadows Light streaked across an army of stone, shadows growing as the unseeing night crept in. A deadly poison for those with panicked eyes as their only defense. Jasson could only see four of them, three ahead and one behind. Surrounded by still silent sentries, warriors of the dark behind his back. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Harriett tapped the statue before glancing at Jasson, ¡°These things don¡¯t have any angel wings- oh!¡± Harriett skipped back, putting distance between her and the statue. ¡°I see. It got me.¡± ¡°Are you okay?¡± Jasson fumbled back toward Harriett, ¡°What did it do?¡± ¡°Cut my arm,¡± Harriett held out her arm where it dripped like a razor had cut it, ¡°They have claws on their hands. Sharp ones too. Good thing I dodged as soon as I felt it.¡± ¡°That could have been bad,¡± Jasson tried to alternate which eye was blinking and held up his mirror, ¡°I¡¯m glad you¡¯re¡­are you shaking?¡± ¡°Of course not,¡± Harriett flourished her sword in the reflection, ¡°I- I¡¯m excited. This is a challenge. After all, it¡¯s not like they¡¯re ghosts that I can¡¯t stab. They¡¯re just statues I can¡¯t stab, cut, or fight in any way. Exciting. Not helplessly terrifying.¡± Jasson paused then said, ¡°You¡¯re absolutely right Harriett. Unfortunately, I can¡¯t quite convince myself not to be scared. These statues don¡¯t really catch on fire, and I have terrible reflexes. If they get close to me I¡¯m going to end up like those dogs.¡± ¡°Split in half and spread across the warehouse?¡± Harriett said. ¡°Precisely,¡± Jasson shivered, ¡°Now what?¡± ¡°I d-don¡¯t know.¡± Harriett said, ¡°You think of one this time.¡± ¡°This time?¡± Jasson swiveled his head while not losing sight of the monsters, ¡°When was the time you made a plan?¡± ¡°On the hill with the rabbits,¡± Harriett said, ¡°Charging in and cutting up everything in front of me counts as a plan. One step. Beauty in simplicity.¡± Jasson would have laughed if he wasn¡¯t so scared, so instead he cracked a smile and said ¡°Fine. I say we try to make our way out. Then come back with more eyes. Where did we come in from?¡± Harriett pointed past his shoulder and said, ¡°That way, past these three statues.¡± ¡°Great,¡± Jasson said, ¡°Just great.¡± Jasson carefully walked up to one, then glanced back in his mirror to see Harriett staring behind them. How would this work? If Jasson went through then there would be one behind him no matter where he turned. The mirror wasn¡¯t reliable enough to stop that. But if Harriett turned to watch him, the one behind would attack. ¡°Harriett,¡± Jasson backed up towards her, ¡°I have an idea. You¡¯re just going to have to trust me, okay?¡± ¡°Trust my comrade in arms?¡± Harriett said, ¡°We have spilt blood together. I trust you with my life.¡± ¡°Great,¡± Jasson backed up beside Harriett, ¡°So what we need to do is turn around at exactly the same time so that we¡¯re facing each other from where we stand. Then I¡¯ll back up through the statues and keep moving toward the exit.¡± ¡°All right,¡± Harriett said, ¡°On your mark.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Jasson took a breath and closed his eyes, ¡°O-oops.¡± Jasson opened his eyes again and saw one statue halfway through a lunge, razor-sharp marble glinting in the dimming light. It stood, one foot off the ground as it sprung, and should have fallen over from lack of balance. ¡°Oookaaay.¡± Jasson took a breath and sidled out of the way of the monster, ¡°Ready? One, two, THREE!¡± Jasson crossed his fingers and toes as he spun, waiting for a claw to shred through his sternum. But nothing came, and Jasson was left looking at the monster pursuing them. Nearly identical to the rest, but with Harriett¡¯s blood drying on an outstretched finger. Jasson shivered. ¡°Alright,¡± Jasson said, ¡°I¡¯m going to back up now and make my way through the Weeping Angels. You watch the three, and I¡¯ll watch the one. Okay?¡± ¡°Sir, yes sir!¡± Harriett said. It felt weird for Harriett to call him sir. The way she said it didn¡¯t sound like she was being entirely playful. More¡­automatic. ¡°Okay.¡± Jasson backed up slowly, ¡°Am I going the right way?¡± ¡°A bit that way,¡± Harriett motioned, ¡°Yeah. Keep going. Stop! A bit more to your¡­¡± Jasson navigated through, feeling his way through while fighting the powerful urge to turn around. To see if they were really frozen and not about to cut him to ribbons. Eventually, Jasson put his trust in Harriet¡¯s speed, which he¡¯d seen on full display while fighting those rabbits. If he was about to be killed, she''d rush in and save him faster than the blink of an eye. ¡°You¡¯re almost there,¡± Harriett said, just another step to your left- no my left- look out! Stop!¡± Jasson stepped into the outstretched hand of one of the monsters and froze. He could feel the blood trailing down his back, and felt the overwhelming urge to check the wound. The pain would hit soon and the monsters would tear him to- I can¡¯t look away! Jasson thought. Jasson hissed through his teeth, a kind of shocked pain lacing across his shoulder. He flinched away, stepping forward and keeping his eyes fixed on the statue behind his friend. Jasson could see Harriett¡¯s horrified eyes twist behind her as she stepped aside. Jasson blinked. ¡°AAAH!¡± Jasson screamed eyes flying open as a dozen wounds erupted across his back. Jasson collapsed to his knees, eyes flinching as he tried to hide from the pain, but forced himself to focus on the one behind Harriet. He was not going to die a failure. This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Jasson saw Harriett, arms in bleeding shreds as she looked back towards Jasson. Determination evident, statue frozen an inch from her neck. ¡°Glad we¡¯re on the same page,¡± Jasson said, ¡°Are we even?¡± ¡°Close enough,¡± Harriett said, ¡°Don¡¯t look away again though.¡± ¡°I had to blink,¡± Jasson said, blood dripping down his chin, ¡°How do I get out of this?¡± ¡°They¡¯re surrounding you,¡± Harriett said, ¡°You¡¯ll need to back out between their legs. Just do your best to squeeze.¡± Half a dozen legs supported statues mid-murderous blender, and Jasson moved his foot back and forth. Jasson felt a gap back, but when he tried to move the wounds on his back flared. ¡°Okay,¡± Jasson hissed as he froze, pain thrumming across his shoulders, ¡°What if I¡¯m in too much pain to crawl?¡± ¡°Good question,¡± Harriett said, ¡°Um¡­you still have a healing crystal?¡± ¡°Oh, right,¡± Jasson hissed again, teeth gritting as he reached into his pocket and pulled out the crystal, ¡°Only problem is, I can¡¯t really reach my back like this.¡± ¡°Just use it anyway,¡± Harriett said, ¡°And hurry up. But whatever you do, don¡¯t stand up. Unless you want to become bacon.¡± Jasson healed himself up as he could, but was unable to reach a portion of his back which, unfortunately, contained a shoulder muscle needed for crawling. Still, it didn¡¯t seem inoperable. ¡°All right,¡± Jasson said, alternately blinking his eyes, ¡°Ready?¡± ¡°Go on!¡± Harriett said, ¡°I¡¯ll feel much better when we¡¯re back to back again.¡± ¡°Not my current back,¡± Jasson felt the stone legs around him and started crawling backward, ¡°It¡¯s- ah. Ow. Yeah- tsssss! Not great!¡± After a little finagling Jasson managed to find his way out of the legs, backing up until he could see all four angels at once. ¡°Okay,¡± Jasson said, ¡°Come on over. Watch out for their- ah. Never mind.¡± Harriett strolled through the murderous statues and stood face to face with Jasson, grinning broadly. They had gotten all four statues on one side of them, but Jasson couldn¡¯t help feeling uneasy. This wasn¡¯t over yet. ¡°Another challenge overcome?¡± Jasson said, ¡°Or¡­why do you look so happy?¡± ¡°Oh, nothing.¡± Harriett said, ¡°It¡¯s just awesome to have a companion that trusts me.¡± Warm fuzz flitted around Jasson¡¯s fearful heart, and he smiled. ¡°Speaking of which,¡± Jasson held out the crystal, ¡°Let me see your arms. They need- ugh. Gross. That¡­that¡¯s bone. Medkit!¡± With a red flash, Harriett¡¯s arms were healed and the only remnant was his own shredded back. ¡°Sorry I can¡¯t use a healing crystal.¡± Harriett said, as they walked down the aisle, ¡°let¡¯s get out of here and come back with- oh? The statues around the eggs are gone.¡± Jasson snuck a glance and saw that Harriett was right. The eggs were still there and roughly waist height, but the six statues were gone. When Jasson looked back, the statues were a few arms¡¯ reaches away. ¡°So these were the statues around the eggs then?¡± Jasson said, ¡°With another two we don¡¯t see?¡± ¡°I see them,¡± Harriett pointed further along, ¡°They¡¯ve been hiding among the statues down the aisle. Keep moving in and out of view.¡± Jasson frowned and said, ¡°Do you really not recognize these monsters?¡± ¡°Nope,¡± Harriett said, ¡°Not at all. Must not be native to this area.¡± Jasson glanced at the eggs again, then back at the statues. They¡¯d hardly moved. He could do this. Jasson said, ¡°They still need to reproduce, don¡¯t they?¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± Harriett said, ¡°Are you saying that these eggs are theirs? Seems a little big for monsters of this size.¡± ¡°Not if these are young ones,¡± Jasson said, ¡°But¡­¡± Jasson approached the eggs and felt one, careful to keep his eyes on the somewhat-distant monsters. The texture of the egg seemed to be different than marble, warmer, but when Jasson stole another glance it was marble. And it felt¡­colder. ¡°Hey!¡± Harriett said, ¡°you¡¯re moving behind statues. They¡¯ll-eep!¡± Jasson looked up to see Harriett flying toward him, panic on her face as four monsters froze. One was mid-pounce. Unfortunately, that meant that it was flying through the air, claws outstretched. Crashing into Jasson! ¡°AAH!¡± Half a ton of monstrous marble crashed into Jasson, razor claws punching through his shoulders in a bloody spray. ¡°Jasson!!¡± Harriett shrieked, whipping behind him and swinging her sword with all her might. It clanged helplessly off the monster, and Harriett shrieked hitting it again. Her sword sang as it shattered, a broken piece slicing a cut across Harriett¡¯s brows. Blood spilled into her eyes and she desperately wiped at her face, swinging her sword around as the monsters flickered forward. Jasson lay, crushed, unable to feel his legs as he bled. The healing crystal had fallen from his hands when he hit the ground, and he could barely lift his head to see it. He grabbed it with a skewered arm, shock blocking out the pain, and tried to cast a spell. It was at this point that Jasson realized that he wasn¡¯t breathing. He couldn¡¯t say the words. No, Jasson thought as the world went dim. Not like this. It¡¯s my fault. Heal! MEDKIT! Please! I should have been more careful¡­ A voice in his head piped up, one he¡¯d almost convinced himself he¡¯d hallucinated when he¡¯d been drowning in the river. ¡°Warning.¡± The voice in his head piped up for the first time since that day in the cave, ¡°Lethal situation imminent. Emergency measures authorized. Advance Strength and Intent growth to checkpoints ¡®Scottish¡¯ and ¡®Movie Adaptation¡¯ levels for ten seconds.¡± Jasson blinked, the world fading to black, and decided to try one more time. Medkit! Jasson thought, and the world brightened up. Harriett was crying, straining at the statue pinning Jasson. Jasson¡¯s gaze had caught the other statues just as their claws were digging into Harriet¡¯s skin and hair. Slicing at her lovely face with whole chunks of hair falling in slow motion. Blood filled Harriett¡¯s eyes as she held them open, determination piercing her panicked fog. Jasson grabbed the statue pinning him and heaved, pushing as hard as he could against the stiff form. It was heavy, but Jasson found that he was able to lift it off him like a strange bench press. With another thought, the healing crystal glowed and shattered to dust, completely healing Jasson in a flash of red light. Harriett stared at him, mouth agape, and Jasson finally took a breath as he said, ¡°Sorry to worry you. It seems like I¡¯m making a habit out of dying when I¡¯m with you.¡± ¡°How did you do that?¡± Harriett said, ¡°That weighed a ton!¡± ¡°More like half a ton,¡± Jasson carefully grabbed his phone off the floor, pointing the business end at the monsters, ¡°Too bad I used that crystal up. I have some in my locker, just- oh. You¡¯re doing okay, actually.¡± ¡°What?¡± Harriett wiped bloody hands across her wounds and said, ¡°You¡¯re right. I¡¯m not bleeding anymore. Although, my hair is ruined. But¡­ never mind.¡± Harriett stood and said, ¡°So what¡¯s your plan? They¡¯re crowding around the opening and I doubt that we¡¯d be able to do what we did last time without the other two finding our blindspot.¡± ¡°An excellent point,¡± Jasson looked around, then froze and grinned, ¡°I have a solution though.¡± It¡¯s so simple, Jasson thought. ¡°Oh?¡± Harriett said, ¡°And what is that?¡± ¡°We close our eyes,¡± Jasson said. Harriett nodded and said, ¡°That makes sense. You probably hit your head pretty hard when that thing landed on you. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll think of something.¡± Jasson laughed and said, ¡°Have you looked where I¡¯m standing? I¡¯m not just covered in blood.¡± Jasson made sure to watch the statues, the things he¡¯d mistaken for Weeping Angels, and grinned as Harriett looked him over. He was sticky and bloody and covered in clear and yellow slime. ¡°It¡¯s goopy,¡± Harriett said, ¡°But what- The egg?! Did you break through that marble egg? So it was a marble shell then?¡± ¡°Sort of,¡± Jasson said, ¡°I bet it¡¯s the same as them. Only stone while you¡¯re looking. It hurt when I crashed through it but-¡± Jasson stomped on an eggshell fragment and grinned at the crunch. He was right. Jasson said, ¡°But it was just a thick eggshell in the end.¡± ¡°All right,¡± Harriett looked back up towards the statues, smile spreading from ear to ear, ¡°So what you¡¯re saying is¡­as long as we¡¯re not looking at them, they¡¯re stabbable?¡± Jasson looked at the statues, covered in his and Harriett¡¯s blood, nothing but hunger in blank souless stone eyes. ¡°Exactly,¡± Jasson shot an experimental burst of fire from his phone, ¡°Or burnable. Mortal, in other words.¡± You could almost see the statues start to sweat as Harriett pulled another sword from her micro-purse. Her grin was infectious, and Jasson found himself giddy. ¡°I¡¯m going to spray the group in the opening,¡± Jasson said, ¡°You stab this one on the ground, and then we both open our eyes when we¡¯re done. Alright?¡± ¡°Aye, aye.¡± Harriett positioned herself, ¡°Ready?¡± ¡°On three,¡± Jasson said, turning his flamethrower on, ¡°One, two, THREE!¡± Screams rent the night as the air filled with the stench of burning tires; Jasson and Harriett worked death upon their terrorizers. Flashing shadows of fleeing forms formed a murderous tapestry of flamethrower-light against the warehouse walls. For the first time today, and probably for weeks, the blood that spilled ran green and black. ¡°That¡¯s for eating the cats and eating the dogs. Don¡¯t e-eat the dogs,¡± Jasson opened his eyes, seeing three smoldering bodies strewn across the floor. Tangled as they tried to flee. Harriett panted, standing above another which had twenty to thirty fresh holes. She held up a large crystal and grinned. ¡°I can see the Earth Crystal in this one,¡± Harriett said, ¡°There¡¯s not much flux to it at all.¡± Jasson said, ¡°Fantastic-¡± Jasson blinked and Harriett had driven her sword beside his head. Stepping away cautiously, Jasson saw Harriett withdraw her sword from the skull of another monster. Harriett opened her eyes as the monster collapsed and sighed, then wiped her blad off and sheathed it at her side. Jasson thought, I guess I missed one. Nearly died there again. Whoops. ¡°Just one left,¡± Harriett said, ¡°Give me a second. You keep your eyes out until I return, alright?¡± Harriett leaped onto the heads of the nearest statues, then blurred and disappeared into the warehouse. ¡°She probably would have been safer without me here,¡± Jasson said, turning as he tried to watch every direction, ¡°Could have easily outrun them.¡± I guess I really am slowing them down, Jasson thought.