ã€ŠReturn of the Wind Mage. {Stubbed}ã€‹


 Ch. 1 The Present Future

    1.

    A flash of golden light illuminated the world far below them. Santi¡¯s eyes stung as he activated Slipstream and started to dive down the eye of the tornado. He had built a career and reputation around his speed and he utilized every dreg of it now. He flew head down staying inside of the iron black walls of the tornado. The spinning winds contained jagged bolts of golden lighting, giving the faintest of light for Santi to take in the chaos of the attack on the cultist base.

    Even Gus, the Champion storm mage who had made the tornado, lagged behind as Santi dove. Santi rode Air Capsule in complete silence, his skill forming an isolating bubble of air that was propelled through Slipstream. It was good for speed, though it was near impossible to make quick changes in any direction.

    A second bolt of gold flashed across the world and struck a dome of muddy brown mana that rose up and over the deserted town. As Santi got closer to the ground, the world came into focus and he took in the desolate little town the cultists had taken over. It was Nowherevillle, USA.

    Dilapidated buildings, crumbling under the weight of history and neglect, littered the perimeter of the shield. The golden bolt hit the shield mana with the force of a bomb, air displaced in a crack as the ground was torn asunder, and a concussive blast spread out, flattening what little vegetation had survived years of the system.

    Kelly Tran¡¯s skills no doubt. The archer Champion was famous for her mercurial temper and hitting like a heavyweight boxer. The shield flickered, fading out for a moment before snapping back in place. Just in time to catch the tip of the descending tornado. Thin as a needle, it pierced the shield as if it wasn¡¯t there. More and more of the funnel slid into the shield, the generated winds stirring the stable earth mana of the shield. In only a moment, the shield ripped apart as the wind magic dispersed it and then they were falling toward the center of the town.

    Santi was still far above the ground, racing down the relatively calm center of the tornado as the crumbling buildings were tossed around like toys. Black blurs rose up, fighting their way through the wall of the twister to rise up to meet them. Santi had prepared for this, as the bloodsworn cultists wouldn¡¯t go without a fight. The rest of the squad couldn¡¯t keep up with his dive speed. He would get to draw first blood in the final battle, the thought made him smile as vengeance presented itself. He ran Analyze and was instantly rewarded.

    Demonic Chimera Lv. 21

    It was a twisted mockery of life, animal parts welded to each other with little rhyme or reason. Tentacles lashed out at the air as its human sized dragonfly wings forced it higher. These were the rejects of experiments, often used as a first line of defense or attack. Santi measured and took aim in the space between heartbeats and unleashed a Razor Wind blade ahead of him. The invisible blade of air entered the creature and bisected it in a shower of gore that was whisked away by the twister.  Three more blades followed that one as Santi created a hole in their formation, the body parts of the unholy experiments being flung away. The monsters were barely inside of the Acolyte tier and not a challenge at all.

    He passed close enough to them that they could have reached out and touched him. The jetwash of his passage tossed some aside, disrupting them even further as the rest of the squad fell on them like a hammer. Above him, Gus was controlling the twister¡¯s path as a trio of heavyweights guarded him from the chimeras.

    The ground was racing up towards Santi, he only had moments before he¡¯d faceplant going over a hundred miles per hour. Above him, Gus dispelled the twister outwards, the once constrained winds detonating in a blast that leveled the town. The imprisoned lightning was released, exploding outward and targeting the chimeras. Hundreds died, falling like flies as the lightning incinerated them.

    Santi canceled Slipstream and used the skill Float to stop himself from turning into paste. He bobbed a foot off of the ground, saber held loosely in his hand as he looked around. He stood in the epicenter of the explosion, the only building left standing several hundred yards away. Santi cocked his head, that building shouldn¡¯t be standing, he thought to himself.

    Floating alone through the destroyed downtown of the city, he kept his eyes peeled for more of the chimeras. While not a true threat individually, their strength as a pack could be a real menace. Hundreds of fighters were pouring into what remained of the town, beginning to search for the cultists. They had to be here, their diviners and seers had worked hard to pierce the veils to find this spot. The strength of the protections had been impressive, requiring two Champions to shatter the shield. That type of investment wasn¡¯t given to any random base.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

    Santi was hundreds of yards ahead of everyone else as he floated to the roof of the rundown warehouse. The rusted steel hulk was listening to one side, but had somehow survived the tornado''s destruction. Santi prepared himself for a fight, there was no way that some of the Apostates weren¡¯t ensconced inside. Ignoring the rooftop door, he floated up and entered through a broken window.

    And nearly died.

    A black claw materialized from the shadows and slashed the air with violet threads of mana trailing behind. Santi swung his sword up and blocked the blow, his arm going numb as he was thrown toward the ground. He hit a catwalk and busted straight through, the rusted metal failing to cut his reinforced skin before he crashed into hard concrete. The breath whooshed out of him, but hard won instincts kept him alive, his body instinctively rolling away even as his brain fought to catch up.

    Onyx claws tore through concrete like it was paper, the floating claw chasing after him. Santi threw a Razor Wind at it and watched with a grim smile as the construct broke apart in a black miasma. He spun and looked around to see what he had walked into. The rest of the attack force was coming, he only had to survive for a few seconds before help came.

    The warehouse was dim, lit by hundreds of small black candles. Shadows crept and danced out of tune of their flames, things inside of them. Cultists filled the warehouse, hundreds of them, seated and chanting around the candles, oblivious to his entrance. They were all motionless, seated carefully among the lines of black salt that snaked through the warehouse. Santi took one glance at it to recognize a spellform, the cultists sitting so that they didn¡¯t break the spell''s containment.

    Santi only had a moment to look at the spell. Ritual magic wasn¡¯t his expertise but the sheer power of the large circle gave him pause. Black salt formed a large circle that all of the mortal cultists sat inside of. The candles formed rivers of flame as they followed along the crisscrossing lanes of salt as it formed patterns on the inside of the spell form. Cultists were packed so tightly together that Santi couldn¡¯t see past the middle layer, activating Float and drifting up to see the center of the warehouse.

    Six hooded and masked figures stood in the center, inside of a final circle, holding hands and swaying slowly. There was a gap for one more, the seventh. Santi felt a bolt of horror roll through him as his mind connected a thousand disparate thoughts.

    These were The Seven, the Apostates. Some of them had been reported killed, others had been missing for years. Only three were thought to be currently alive and active. Their identities were unknown, at least to him. Myths and legends who had killed hundreds, but where was the seventh? Santi felt a ripple of air, causing him to twist and dodge on instinct. A crushing blow hit him in the side and threw him into the heart of the warehouse. Into the circle.

    Entering the circle was hell. Rampant magic flowed through it, burning and freezing, wild and full of the vile taste of the cultists¡¯ patron. Rancid meat and spoiled milk combined with gasoline. Even as he flew, he was casting his skills, Capsule of Air and Float. He froze, twisting in the air as he straightened himself to meet the shocked gray eyes of his attacker.

    Looking down at the ground several inches from his feet, Santi looked around him and had to suppress a groan of exasperation. He was hit right into the center of the ritual, in the only empty space. He looked down as black salt lines turned white, then silver, and finally the red-gold of the dawn. A scream ripped its way free of his throat as Santi was dragged down through solid concrete.

    He floated for a moment, the other six figures staring at him with their faces bared. Well, everything was bare and Santi was trying not to think of that. He stared at them, imprinting their faces on his memory as they glared at him with murder in their eyes. His heart shuddered as he met the eyes of one of them, a woman with thick brown hair and soft brown eyes. A button nose and a scar that left her mouth permanently quirked upward. Lips that he was intimately familiar with. A scream started to bubble up. They disappeared. Flashed away with a pop.

    ¡°Good luck, young man.¡± The voice was more presence than words, stroking at the back of his mind as the world twisted. Santi was just holding onto the thought that one of The Seven, the enemies to humanity, was someone he knew and loved. He had watched her die, and now she stood with the foe.

    The world inverted and then Santi was flying. In a numb despair he looked around at the surroundings as he flew and he felt it. The Patron. There was nothing else it could be. It was. Well, it just was. And it was looking at him. Santi snarled, hate broiling his blood as he stared at the foe. Years of fighting, of heartache and despair came boiling out in a stream.

    ¡°You won¡¯t win. I¡¯ll stop you!¡± Each syllable was filled with venom, the hate burning his heart.

    ¡°GO FOR IT,¡± the voice reverberated through Santi¡¯s body and he couldn¡¯t help but notice that the voice seemed apathetic.

 Ch. 2 Back To College

    2.

    The blare of his alarm clock startled Santi out of the vivid dreams he had been enduring. His hand automatically rose to paw at the insufferable alarm and its piercing cry. Santi groaned as the alarm turned off, rubbing at his eyes as he debated just staying in his warm bed. His foggy brain was slowly growing clear as he took in where he was.

    Plain white walls with shitty posters. A second bed across from him that looked undisturbed. The faintest smell of mildew and unwashed socks.His college dorm room, which hadn¡¯t existed for over seven years.

    Santiago bolted straight up and out of the bed, the blankets falling in a tangle to the ground. Wild-eyed, he whirled around taking in the small room and his eternally missing roommate Paulie. Except, Paulie was dead and had been dead for years. This whole dorm burned down in the opening days of the System¡¯s arrival.

    ¡°What the fuck is going on?¡± Santiago whispered to himself as he slowly sat back down on his  bed. The last thing he remembered was the fight, being propelled into the ritual circle. Then¡­ no, better not think about That. Santiago forced his mind off of the Patron and forced himself to be rational. He thought about it, thought some more, and then came to his conclusion.

    ¡°I¡¯m the fucking Terminator,¡± Santiago groaned as he fell back in his bed. He shook his head staring up at the ceiling. It made sense. The Fallen were losing, why not throw a Hail Mary. Gather up all your supporters, use your patron¡¯s power, and go back in time. Go back before the war started, while your enemies were unaware they were the enemy. Win the war before it even began.

    ¡°They¡¯re going to kill all the Champions before they become Champions. Ughh, I hate time travel. Stupid fucking paradoxes. This is going to be so full of plot holes, I swear,¡± Santiago grumbled as he stood up and grabbed his phone. Checking the date, April 13th, he had two days before the System arrived. The System¡¯s arrival was going to be a disaster, millions would die. Including his younger sister and parents. His older sister, Bianca, would survive the initial wave, but fall in one of the early battles with the Fallen.

    ¡°Not letting that shit happen again, obviously,¡± Santi said to the empty room as he grabbed a pad of paper and pencil. It had always helped him figure things out if he could actually see them. In big letters, on the very top of the page, he wrote ¡®Save my Family¡¯. Then started to list what he would need.

    If he only had two days, he would have to move fast. He debated for a moment leaving the area and racing to his family, to try to save them. If he left, he would lose all of his advantages though. He had stayed for six months in this area, just fighting to survive. Bianca had come to find him, traveling the distance with a convoy headed toward the pillar.

    ¡°Shit, the pillar,¡± Santi moaned in horror. Old memories were beginning to surface, memories he would prefer to stay buried. He started jotting down what he needed, ignoring the urge to find his family and hold them forever. Six of the Seven had made it back and they would be going all out from the get go. He needed to focus if he wanted to win.

    He paused, pencil frozen over the paper. Santi had done alright in the initial burst of the System¡¯s arrival. He had managed to become a Disciple after all. His potential had run out though, he had hit the wall late, but still hit it. That didn¡¯t need to be the case this time. He leaned back for a moment and started to imagine what it would be like if he accrued the power needed. The college was rich with opportunity and danger and many had risen up, taking it. Eventually. Could Santi grab it all, or most of it anyway?

    The thought danced around his mind. There were titles he never had the chance to earn. Titles he knew he could earn this time. Treasures and limited dungeons that had been taken by others who had died later, failing to use them to their potential. Six months, for six months he had stayed on campus and knew every inch of it during the systems coming. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

    Sanit started to write faster. A list of not what he needed, but opportunities that could be his for the taking. Dungeons, titles, natural treasures, and more. He could gather the momentum needed to hit Champion tier faster than anyone else had. The Apostates would be doing it too, obviously they would have planned this out before the ritual. They had plans, and plans in case those plans didn¡¯t work.

    Santi knew only one of them, and she knew him. She was on the other side of the country currently and he didn¡¯t need to worry about her yet. One of the others could be close by though. That led him down to write another list, this a group of names and where they were when the system hit. The Champions and heroes of humanity. The ones the Apostates would definitely be looking to kill.

    A stroke of genius hit him as he finished what he thought was the list of what he remembered. He started to write a second list of the dead Champions. The early ones who had died in the war and during the challenges and incursions. His head hurt. There was so much to do. He looked at his phone, perched on the edge of his bed.

    The system''s arrival would kill most technology. Guns, cars, electricity, and cell-phones. Even batteries would struggle before finally falling to the wayside. These things he needed to take into account. But, what if he got ahold of some of them now? The miracle that was social media. He would seem like a mad man, sending messages to people to be ready for the apocalypse and beware of strangers. He still had to do it.

    It took him hours to find most of them. An eccentric mix that tended to trend young. He sent them a fairly bland message that he hoped they would be a little receptive of. Then he scrolled for a bit, enjoying the creature comforts of a civilized age. There was something inherently pleasing about just being able to scroll mindlessly.

    ¡°Fuck, this is why I¡¯m failing my classes,¡± Santi muttered as he stood up and looked at his five page list.The loss of his stats was beginning to sink in. He had become so accustomed to his increased intelligence and willpower, that his sudden desire to just lay down and procrastinate was disturbing. He checked his phone again and looked at his bank account and the money sitting in it. Student housing, a grant, and some money from working through the summer. Less than ten grand to save the world. Or, at least, this corner of it.

    Santi scrolled through his contact list before he found Tank¡¯s name. The other boy lived across the hall. A large, strong, walking wall of muscle. He died holding back the monsters as they ran down the hall slaughtering half asleep students. He died a hero''s death. Santi was determined to see the big guy  make it out, he deserved a chance at life. He had given Santi the chance after all. Tank answered on the second ring.

    ¡°Sup, Santi,¡± Tank¡¯s voice was a deep and calm baritone.

    ¡°Hey, listen, can I borrow your truck?¡± Santi was going to buy a lot of shit. The extra space would be mission critical.

    ¡°Yeah man. You have to fill her up though.¡± Santi smiled at Tank¡¯s words. Always willing to help out, to lend a hand. He might grumble about it later, but he would do it.

    ¡°Of course, I¡¯m not a dick,¡± Santi said with a laugh. Tears were starting to trickle down his face as the moment hit him. He could save his friends and family. It could be stopped. He wouldn¡¯t have to be alone again.

    ¡°You good, Santi, I just tell everyone. I think people like the truck more than me, always asking to borrow it,¡± Tank laughed, deep booming chuckles.

    ¡°Nah, man, they love you too. I¡¯ll swing by in like, I don¡¯t know, an hour?¡± Santi was struggling to fight the sobs welling up. The emotional weight was settling in, hearing Tank¡¯s voice the catalyst.

    ¡°You good, man? Sounds like you¡¯re crying?¡± Tank sounded concerned, his voice softened instantly. Santi felt the urge to tell him, to spill all of the secrets the future held. The weight was suddenly unbearable. He needed to get off the phone, needed to sit down and just stare at a wall and not think for a few minutes.

    ¡°Stubbed my toe, shit hurts. See ya in a few.¡± Santi hung up on Tank and sank into his bed. It had been so long since he had been safe, even with the apocalypse coming in a few days. Right now, he was safe. He started to cry as nearly a decade of stress and fear caught up to him.

 Ch. 3 Water Run

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    Sweet grease exploded into Santi¡¯s mouth as he bit down; the savory sausage and egg, bathed in butter, filled his mouth in an intoxicating mixture of bliss. He had to stop himself from moaning out loud. He had missed fast food. Eight years of lean eating, he had taken Tank¡¯s truck through the first drive-thru he had seen. Grabbing the ice cold soda, he sucked down the drink in a few furious gulps. The cloyingly sweet syrupy water clung to his throat and he had to stop himself from rolling his eyes.

    The truck¡¯s A/C was blowing on the coldest level, bathing him in its perfection. Creature comforts, soda, fast food, and air conditioning. Things he had thought were lost forever when the system came. Now he got to enjoy them for a few days before the system came again. The thought lingered in the back of his mind as he drove through the edges of the sleepy college town. Saturday mornings were quiet, most of the students sleeping in and most of the year round residents off to work. He enjoyed it, looking over the clean streets, the morning joggers, and the occasional car passing by.

    He could feel tears edging into his eyes again, and he promised himself that his willpower would be the first thing he increased. While nice to not have the iron control of his emotions that he once had, it was growing frustrating quickly. A tremor was rocking his hand, his heart beating with a furious beat, all the while his stomach twisted up in knots at the thought of what was coming. He was no longer a Disciple, with the powers of a demigod. He was just simple old Santiago, with his soft belly and blatant lack of magic. There was a reason he chose to become a mage, and one that relied on speed on top of that.

    The grocery store parking lot was fairly empty, just a handful of early morning shoppers and the workers'' cars scattered across the lot. Santi parked in the closest spot and hopped out, feeling the warmth of the sun and the promise of a warm spring day. He grabbed a cart, then on second though, a second one. Water was heavy after all. The bright lights, shining floor, and bland music was a welcome balm of normality that called to him. While the memories of his life were slowly fading into a feverish nightmare, the plainness of the store was soothing. Santi had spent the full thirty minutes before getting the truck writing down everything he remembered while the memories were fresh.

    When he had realized the memories were fading, sliding away to the dark recesses of his mind, he had panicked. His hand had been cramping from how fast he scribbled everything down. The battered college-ruled notebook might be the most valuable object on the planet right now, just nobody knew it. He had left it closed on his bed, trusting that Paulie wouldn¡¯t look at it, even if he did come home. Santi¡¯s rough plan for riding out the apocalypse¡¯s early stages involved a series of old memories of the early days of the apocalypse. Memories formed before he had increased his intelligence and willpower. Memories that were hazy. He just had to hope they would be enough.

    The workers gave him some strange looks, their faces lined with confusion as he started to fill the carts with case after case of water. It didn¡¯t take long to fill the cart and he struggled to pull both of them to the register. It wasn¡¯t only his lacking mental stats he was missing at the moment. Even with a low strength, in comparison to his rank, he had been stronger than any regular person could have been. Now, well, now he was just average at best.

    The cashier, an older lady in her fifties with graying blonde hair and an amused smile, asked him if he found everything. The embarrassment of asking for help was still there, even after a decade of brutal fighting.

    ¡°Yeah, not really. I need a lot more water. Like I need to fill up my truck? Is there any way I could get some help with that?¡± Santi asked, half fearing a negative reaction. While his memories had transferred over, they were faded remnants that were rapidly dissolving. The majority of him was still stuck as a nineteen year old college student, including his social anxiety. He reminded himself to jot down some more notes before those memories completely disappeared. He had the faint hope that once he increased his level a few times that the memories of his old life would come in clearer.

    ¡°Sure, let me call up some of the boys in the back. We can get you settled. Do you have a rewards card with us?¡± The cashier led him through the process of setting up a card, knowing that he would never have a chance to use the rewards he was getting. Santi grabbed a few candy bars and threw them in too, even though his stomach was already trying to rebel from his rich breakfast.

    The guys came out and within ten minutes the truck was filled with water, nearly fifty cases of it. The truck was noticeably lower to the ground as the heavy water made it sag. Santi thanked the two men, both in their late twenties, and quickly took off toward the future base of operations. The dorm would be ideal, but a rift would spawn right next to it, making it near impossible to fortify.

    In the second week after the system¡¯s arrival, the survivors had found an old abandoned building tucked away on campus. All brick with an eight foot wall that ran around the perimeter. When they had originally busted in they had been fearful that there would be a monster''s nest or something equally vile. Instead, it had just been dilapidated, filled with outdated office equipment. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    It took Santi ten minutes of winding through the narrow streets, hand dancing in the air current as he let his arm dangle out of the window. The peace of the day, the warm sleepy heat, it was relaxing. His heart had slowed down its frantic pace, his stomach unclenched, and he was just enjoying the day. Santi sang along with the radio, not bothering to connect his phone, and just took a moment to enjoy life.

    The building was exactly how he remembered it. A long brick wall, discolored from spray paint, dirt, and life in general, with a strong gate. A thick, rusted padlock held the gates shut, but Santi knew a way around. Part of the wall in the corner of the building, away from the street, had fallen down. He pulled the truck around the corner, and away from prying eyes, backed the truck up onto the lawn and to the broken wall.

    It took him almost an hour of carefully sliding through the broken wall with two packs of water straining his biceps as he did so. There was a little shed, behind the main building. Santi didn¡¯t want to break into the main part of the building yet, so he kept his vandalism to the minimum. The lock on the aluminum shed was stronger than the door, a door which had yielded with a few well placed kicks. He had worried initially about people coming to see what the commotion was about, but it was an isolated corner of campus. Nobody came, no nosy neighbors looked around, and he filled the shed with packages of water.

    He could remember clearly drinking tainted water, filled with all sorts of foul things. People wouldn¡¯t unlock the Purify skill for a while. It was an Acolyte skill, which could take months for people to reach. In the meantime, Santi planned on stocking the shed with clean water, purifying tablets, and a myriad assortment of other critical supplies.

    He hit different stores, not wanting to make it too weird as he filled the back of the truck over and over again with cases of water. He had plans for food, but wanted to secure water first before calories and weapons. Water, shelter, food, weapons. That was his order of priorities. He had shelter, he was securing water, food and weapons could all come from the local super center the next town over. Santi knew you couldn¡¯t just go to some mall and find a good sword. You could go and find a solid ax at a hardware store though. They weren¡¯t designed to kill things, but were made of solid steel and had a good handle. The early waves didn¡¯t really need premium weapons. Those could be acquired in dungeons and from crafters later on.

    The sun was sitting high up, baking the land when his phone started to ring. Santi was driving back while sipping a liberated bottle of water, having worked up quite a sweat with all of these trips. He fumbled with his phone, the old habits coming back so fast as he took a glance at the screen. His previously relaxed mood dissolved as he saw the name of the caller. His mom was calling. A mom he hadn¡¯t spoken to in eight years when she was killed in the opening days of the system. Those pesky tears started coming back as he answered the phone.

    ¡°Hey, Mom,¡± Santi fought to keep his voice from warbling. Emotions warred inside of him, fighting for control. It had been most of a decade since he heard his mother¡¯s voice, and he hadn¡¯t stopped missing her.

    ¡°What the hell is going on with your card!? I have the bank calling me about suspicious charges, Santiago.¡± Santi smiled in the car as his mom¡¯s shriek rang his ears. He moved the phone away from his head and pulled Tank¡¯s truck off to the side of the road. He had a feeling this call would be emotional. He had been putting it off all morning in fact, since he knew he would have to deal with years of trauma. Part of him insisted he had talked to mom last week. Another part, fading away but still prominent, said it had been years.

    ¡°It¡¯s me. I volunteered to buy stuff for this get together for my major. I¡¯m being reimbursed, it might just take a day or two,¡± Santi lied. It wasn¡¯t even a bad lie considering he had thought of it on the spot. Lying to his mom hadn¡¯t made it into his master planning strategy. It should have, though, the way this conversation was going.

    ¡°Damn right you¡¯re going to be paid back. Why are you volunteering to spend your money, Santiago?¡± Mom always called him Santiago when he was in trouble. Her moods were easy to detect based on how long his name went. Right now, he was idling in warning territory. If any of his other names were brought in, well then, he was in for it.

    ¡°It¡¯s to make connections. You know how it is. Not what you know, but, who you know,¡± Santi said as he savored hearing his mom¡¯s voice.

    ¡°Don¡¯t spend all your money. Listen, are you going to be coming back for the summer?¡±

    ¡°Yes,¡± the lie was so easy. He would never go back to his hometown. At least the version of it he would recognize. The system''s arrival heralded the apocalypse. The collapse of humanity. The changing of Earth. He couldn¡¯t bear stepping a foot back into his hometown and seeing it changed.

    ¡°Ok,¡± in the background Santi could hear something crash and swearing in Spanish. His dad¡¯s deep voice was so recognizable, his chest tightened and something ugly was forming in his throat and in his sinuses. He wasn¡¯t going to be able to make it.

    ¡°Your father just broke something. I¡¯ll talk to you later, love you.¡± Mom hung up and Santi released the sob he had been holding in.

 Ch. 4 Murder Kits

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    Santi calmed down after an hour or so. His gasping sobs stilled and he sat in the truck, limp with exhaustion. He felt better. Clean. A cathartic sobbing in the middle of the day on the side of a road was sometimes needed. Santi found some napkins in the center console and blew his nose and rested for a few minutes.

    ¡°You ok, dude?¡± a girl was standing a few feet away from him, standing on the edge of the sidewalk and peering at him with a concerned look. Santi just nodded and she walked away. He marveled at that. In eight years there would be little time for tears or sympathy, the pain of the world dying crushing everyone down. The war with the cultists, the betrayal of the Apostates, all of it. It left one just numb to the daily suffering. Also, the higher willpower stat made it easier to repress your emotions. Santi was missing that stat at the moment.

    He drove to a hardware store and started his next round of shopping. In the first burst of the system''s arrival, when guns failed, people would look for weapons. Anything that could be used to prolong their lives just a bit longer. Santi didn¡¯t want to deal with that crowd, so he was shopping now.

    Three axes, a handful of hammers, boxes of nails, long wooden poles, some saws, and a variety of tapes filled his cart. He also managed to find some wonderful plastic tubing and clean plastic buckets. Some shovels, trowels, two pitchforks, really anything that could be used to stab, jab, or crush. As he took it up to the register, he had to deal with another wave of suspicious looks from customers as well as employees.

    His cashier was around his age, the biological one and not whatever age the memories suggested. Thick white makeup, violet eyeshadow, thick black lashes, black lipstick, and her black hair had streaks of venom green dyed into it. Santi thought about proposing. The world was ending after all. That stopped him. She was his age biologically, roughly anyway, but his memories? Did the memories make him older? Was he being a creep on a teenager? He shelved all the moral problems associated with time travel and living in a younger version of yourself.

    ¡°Fucking hate time travel. Stupid trope,¡± Santi muttered under his breath as he helped the cashier find everything to ring up. The number on the register was flying upwards at an astounding rate. Wood was expensive? He¡¯d never had to buy it before, but those long poles were pricey.

    ¡°So, is this like a murder kit or something?¡± the goth girl asked, long fingers dancing around the hammers and axes.

    ¡°That¡¯s exactly what this is actually,¡± Santi laughed. Monster murder was close enough for his definition.

    She laughed, a full belly chuckle that suited her. Santi looked at her name tag, Chloe, and met her dark eyes. Oh, what the hell, the end of the world is coming.

    ¡°You go to school here? The university?¡± Sanit asked.

    ¡°Yeah, first year.¡±

    ¡°You live in the dorms?¡±

    ¡°Wexler Tower East.¡± Santi smiled at her answer for it was apparent the gods were smiling on the small goth girl.

    ¡°I¡¯m in Wexler West. I¡¯m having something going on the day after tomorrow night. Friends and whatnot in the common rooms. You should come by,¡± Santi invited her. One more person he could probably save. Maybe.

    ¡°Your R.A is cool with a party in the common room?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s chill, as long as we don¡¯t go overboard he won¡¯t say anything.¡± Santi was certain that Kyle Vanderbill was born with a silver spoon in his mouth and a stick up his ass. He would not be cool with any type of party in the common room.

    ¡°Give me your number, and if I¡¯m interested I¡¯ll text you,¡± her white teeth flashing as she smiled behind her black painted lips. Santi gave her his number and a fast smile as he paid and walked out. It felt good to quasi-flirt. The sticky ethical and moral problems of age were forgotten as he felt the warm spring sun on his face. His mom¡¯s call reminded him he needed to call Cameron and get him to save his family. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

    Cam was his neighbor and they had grown up together playing every sport their parents could find. While Santi had gone to college, Cam had stayed at home to help his dad¡¯s small business. The larger boy had waved off every concern about his future while standing shoulder to shoulder with his dad. Cameron was his best friend, thicker than thieves. Cam would die in a few weeks on the road with Bianca.

    The phone only rang twice before Cameron picked up. Sounding sleepy even though it was close to the middle of the afternoon.

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Morning, gorgeous,¡± Santi teased as a groan of annoyance echoed over the line. He found himself falling into the same patterns that had defined him for so many years. The gentle teasing, the filial son, even the awkward serial killer flirting.

    ¡°What do you want? You never call,¡± Cameron said through a yawn.

    ¡°Your dad¡¯s out of town right?¡± Santi knew Mr. Murtaugh was out of town. He was up in the mountains and out of cell-phone range. In a few months he would come down out of the mountains a changed man.

    ¡°Yeah, some retreat or something with the guys from work. I think it¡¯s just an excuse to go up into the mountains to fish and drink all week.¡± Cameron had been sold on that theory since they were kids.

    ¡°That sounds like Mr. Murtaugh. Hey, think you could do me a favor? I¡¯m needing my bat. I¡¯m going to swing by the day after tomorrow, think you can find it?¡±

    ¡°Why the hell would I have your bat?¡±

    ¡°You borrowed it. Last summer. Remember?¡± Santi waited as the silence deepened.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go and dig it out of the shed. I think that¡¯s where I threw all my gear. Tomorrow you said?¡±

    ¡°Day after tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Ok, I can do that. How¡¯s school? Find any mamacitas?¡±

    ¡°Please don¡¯t say that. Your pronunciation of my mother tongue makes me violently ill.¡± Santi laughed as he mock scolded his oldest friend.

    ¡°Yeah yeah, just practicing so I can woo your mom.¡±

    ¡°Who the fuck says woo?¡±

    ¡°I do. It makes me classy.¡±

    ¡°No it doesn¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Always a hater, Santi. But for real, any luck in love?¡±

    ¡°You could ask me about my grades, or if I¡¯ve made any friends, or founded a cult, or anything other than romance.¡±

    ¡°I could.¡± Cam let the silence deepen as Santi waited in vain for other questions.

    ¡°I just talked to this girl at the hardware store. Gave her my number,¡± Santi conceded.

    ¡°My boy, that¡¯s what I¡¯m talking about!¡± Cameron hollered on the other side, forcing Santi to pull the phone away from his ear while he rolled his eyes.

    ¡°How bout you, anything with anyone? That¡¯s not my mom,¡± Santi cut him off before Cameron could go to that tired old joke.

    ¡°Actually yeah! Great girl, smart, funny, and has an amazing smile. Just makes me float every time she looks at me,¡± Cameron said, his voice softening.

    ¡°Who is it? Do I know her?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, you know her.¡±

    ¡°Went to school with her?¡± Santi pulled out of the parking lot and started heading back toward the abandoned brick building. He would need to stash all the tools and improvised weapons before heading to the supercenter to grab the last of the basic supplies.

    ¡°Yeah, a grade below us actually.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s still in high school? Bro,¡± Santi let his disappointment seep through his voice. They were close to the same age, but still, high school girls while they were adults?

    ¡°Yeah, yeah I know. I¡¯ve known her forever though.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s my sister isn¡¯t it?¡± Santi said with a sigh as Cameron started to howl on the other side of the phone. A smile was tickling the corner of his mouth as Cameron was lost to the joy of his rather dumb joke. If it was anyone other than Cameron, who was a frequent guest in their house since the age of six, he would have been angry. Cameron just had a middle school sense of humor.

    ¡°Got ''em,¡± Cameron choked out on the phone between gales of laughter. Santi shook his head and hung up on his best friend, tossing the phone on the bench seat of the truck. The chucklefuck was irritating, but also reliable. He would call him on the night the system came active and have him check on his family. The monsters in the first wave were weak, Santi¡¯s old bat would be more than enough to deal with them. If Cameron went and dug it out of their shed.

    Santi pulled up to the old building, back by the crumbled corner of the brick wall, and started to unload. He¡¯d come and get the weapons the night of the system''s arrival. Santi was feeling good about his plan, now he just needed to gather the rest of the most basic supplies and wait.

 Ch. 5 Contingencies

    <ol start="5">

    <li> </li>

    </ol>

    The common room was filling up with people for the movie night that Santi had sprung on his friends and dorm mates. He had to make promises and deals with devils to get most of them here. Nearly thirty students, with more arriving as the seconds ticked on. People were hooting and hollering at the screen, laughing and talking through the old movie as they ate the snacks Santi had bought. No alcohol, Santi had made sure of that.

    Tank was lounging on one of the small sofas, his white teeth flashing as he smiled and laughed with a cluster of other students. Paulie, his always absent roomate, had been found. The short boy was talking to a pair of girls, both of them bobbing their heads to whatever he was saying. Chloe had shown up ten minutes ago with three friends, her roommate and the other dorm room that probably shared a bathroom with her. She had been shooting him looks, but otherwise was engaged in a heated debate with several other people.

    Santi checked his phone and sighed. The anxiety of what was about to happen was ramping up. Fourteen minutes to go. Part of him was doubting that the memories were real. That they were just the most vivid dream he had ever had. He prayed it was true. Santi left the common room quietly and went up to his dorm room, scrolling through his contact list till he found his sister''s name. She would be up, he had texted her that he was going to call.

    The phone rang twice before Yessenia picked up the phone. This was where his plan could have been foiled. If Yessenia hadn¡¯t picked up the phone, it would have screwed up everything.

    ¡°Santi?¡±

    ¡°Hey, uhhh, this is weird, but hear me out. I had a bad dream last night. Like real bad. It was a nightmare. About the house and you guys. Could you check the locks please, for me?¡± Santi had worked hard on the excuse he needed for Yessi to get out of bed and go check the locks at eleven-thirty at night. She believed in the power of dreams, crystals, zodiacs, all of that. He had always rolled his eyes at his sister''s superstitions, but it was insanely helpful tonight.

    ¡°Santi, what happened in the dream?¡± Yesi asked in a whisper. He could hear her moving though, the creak of stairs as she treaded her ways downstairs. Santi checked the time, twelve minutes to go. He was entering his dorm room right on time. He texted Cameron, putting Yessi on speakerphone.

    ¡°You up?¡±

    ¡°This a booty call?¡± The response was instant. Good. Santi let his friend sit for a minute as he focused his attention back on his sister.

    ¡°It was bad, Yesi. Just check the locks please. All of them, even the garage door,¡± Santi ordered his younger sister. He went into the small closet and started pulling out bags. Two heavy black duffle bags, stuffed with improvised weapons, and a backpack that he strapped on.

    ¡°Huh, that¡¯s weird. The garage was unlocked,¡± Yessenia¡¯s voice held hints of horror. She was a nervous girl, always watching true crime and the thought of having an unlocked door, even into the garage, was startling. Santi didn¡¯t know how the monsters got into the house, just that they had. Bianca had escaped through a window and ran to Cam¡¯s house where he fought them off, but not without injuries.

    ¡°Check the rest, please.¡± Santi was checking his supplies he had bought from his hideout. Axes, bats, and a few improvised spears. There were a few cheap machetes and hammers he had tossed in. He didn¡¯t think much of them, they were pulled from the big shopping center and had been less than fifteen dollars. He had sharpened the blades, but they were hideously made. Built for cheap landscape work, not killing monsters. Better than nothing though.

    ¡°Shit, the front door was unlocked too! My Dad must have forgotten when he got home,¡± Yessenia complained as Santi heard the locks click into place. Ten minutes to go. He grabbed a cheap shopping bag full of glow sticks and walked out of the dorm. He had already discretely emptied it of his clothing and possessions yesterday.

    ¡°In ten minutes, shit¡¯s going to go nuts. Get that bat you pulled out of the shed and save my family.¡± Santi sent the text to Cam, while walking down the stairs back to the common room.

    ¡°What the fuck do you mean?! I¡¯m calling you,¡± Cam answered instantly. The boy lived on his phone. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    ¡°Can¡¯t answer. Talking to Yesi right now.¡± Santi texted back as he sent Cam straight to voicemail.

    ¡°Yesi, are all the doors locked?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, everything is locked. Santi, you¡¯re scaring me. What was your dream?¡±

    ¡°Grab a pen and paper,¡± Santi said as he waited in the stairwell right before the common room. Everyone was still there, talking and laughing loudly. The R.A, Kyle, was locked in a conversation with a pretty brunette and not paying attention to doing his job. Santi gave a silent prayer of thanks as he waited for Yessenia. He sent two more calls from Cam straight to voicemail.

    ¡°Got it!¡± Yesi exclaimed.

    ¡°Write this down. Take the county roads to the college in five days. Avoid the bar on road 96. Burn it down actually, don¡¯t go inside.¡± The bar was where Cam would die. Killed in a monster den, Bianca would lose her left hand fighting to escape it.

    ¡°Santi, what the fuck?¡±

    ¡°Just write it down. At the corner of Elm and Myer, there¡¯s an old brick building. That¡¯s where I¡¯ll be. Bring anyone who survives. Rifts will let you all enter them but they¡¯re more dangerous. Dungeons are limited in number, but are measured. Kill as many monsters as possible, take risks and gain levels. Be here in a week,¡± Santi ordered. Seven minutes.

    ¡°Santi¡­¡± Santi hung up on his sister and turned his phone to airplane mode. He had to be careful now and a ringing phone could ruin everything. He had set everything up to the best of his ability for his family and best friend to survive. It broke his heart abandoning them, but the presence of the Apostates weighed on his mind. They would be aggressive, earning every reward they could. He had to do the same thing.

    Six minutes.

    He walked into the common room and stuck close to the back wall. A few people noticed him, but they quickly turned back as Santi walked to the doors of the dorm. He deposited the heavy duffel bags on the ground and went to get the people he had the most trust in.

    Tank, Paulie, and the last roomate of the two rooms, Daniel. Daniel was half Korean- half English. Thin with black hair and dark eyes, he wasn¡¯t anyone¡¯s first choice for picking something to do something physical. Like slaying monsters. Santi believed he would hear him out before freaking out though.

    Four minutes.

    Santi dragged them all over to the entrance of the door and they huddled around him. They were drawing glances from people, but most everyone was focused on socializing.

    ¡°What¡¯s up, Santi? You don¡¯t look good,¡± Tank asked. The mountain of a man was six and half feet tall, but his deep voice was gentle as he looked down at Santi. How Santi had ever taken him for granted, he didn¡¯t know. Tank was a good man.

    ¡°Is Tank your actual name, or a nickname?¡± Santi blurted out. He was nervous now, trying to delay the inevitable. Three minutes.

    ¡°It¡¯s actually Dexter, but the minute I started to grow they called me Tank,¡± Tank explained.

    ¡°Good to know, thanks for sharing. In approximately two and half minutes the world is going to end.¡±

    All three of the boys stared at him with blank faces. Santi swallowed hard and looked down at his phone and the time. Two minutes and fifteen seconds actually. It got down to two minutes before anyone said anything.

    ¡°Santi, are you ok? I know midterms are coming up, but like, damn.¡± Paulie was brusque as always. His thick eyebrows were hidden in his hair at the shock that Santi had just given them. Or, well, that they thought he was insane.

    ¡°In two minutes, if I¡¯m wrong, take me to a hospital, the one with grippy socks. Eight years in the future, the world has basically completely collapsed due to a series of unfortunate events. Events that start in a minute and forty five seconds. I survived and was a scout. I got sucked into a ritual and the memories of those years were shot back in time.¡±

    ¡°Ok, it¡¯s time to call someone,¡± Daniel groused in a faded English accent. Tank¡¯s face was confused and hurt, while Paulie was looking morbidly curious.

    ¡°One minute. Hold tight. When it comes, we won¡¯t have much time. There¡¯s weapons in the bags, take them and hand them out. Stay in the building till sunrise. There¡¯s this entrance and the back entrance. Barricade the back entrance with furniture. In the plastic bag there are glow sticks. Oh, yeah, the power will go out and guns won¡¯t work.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s call someone. You said there¡¯s weapons in the bags?¡± Tank was talking softly, large hands extended outward as if Santi was a dangerous animal.

    ¡°Improvised mostly. Hand them out to those you think won¡¯t freak the fuck out. Don¡¯t let anyone leave the building till sunrise.¡±

    TIme

    The lights flashed out and the world went dark.

 Ch 2.01 Spoiled For Choices

    1.

    Santi had some choices to make. He stared at the list of spells available, having three free slots now. He¡¯d be able to slot in Air Manipulation, but in the meantime he¡¯d be going without the advantages three more spell forms would give him. With the morph blade he was kicking-ass, but he still needed to find materials for it to evolve with him. He could feel its hunger. Within a day of the goblin nest raid it had begun to grow anxious, and now a week later, it was ravenous.

    It leeched his potential and mana. He had noticed it after the fighting had slowed down. It was such a minute amount it had taken him nearly three days to realize the drain. It wasn¡¯t a problem. Yet.

    Which was why he was debating on the spell choices in front of him. After he had claimed his levels he had procrastinated opening his achievements and claiming the spells. There was no particular reason, but he already had too much stuff. His small cubby of a room was overflowing with a horde of resources and wealth. He really needed to find and secure a living situation that didn¡¯t involve him living out of a former sanitation closet.

    He let the list fall away. He was already running late to the next meeting he was supposed to be leading. The rescue party that was going out towards where his family should be coming from. Other groups had gone out and come back with survivors, their camp growing quickly. Nearly a thousand people now squatted in the building and neighborhood around it. Walls of rusting cars, cement bricks, repurposed lumber, rebar, and anything else that was kinda sturdy had been erected.

    Most of them without direction.

    The entire region was a maze of impromptu walls, half demolished buildings, and vaguely organized patrols. The only constant was the building Santi had secured, Homebase. It was a dumb name, but it had stuck.

    The brick wall around it had been fortified with more bricks and mortars. There was a blockade on every street corner and patrols who walked the streets. Otherwise it was kept clear. Homebase housed all of their healers, most of the highest leveled fighters, and every member of the Council. Another recent naming convention that had been met with rolled eyes and disgruntled acceptance.

    Santi had been unanimously told he had to be on it. Tank was also sitting next to him, as a representative of all the healers. Marisol had taken a spot, as had Abraham. Eugene had taken the death of his son hard, exiling himself off to a house and doing the bare minimum required to stay alive.

    The fifth and final member of the Council was a firefighter. Helena Carter was a solid five feet and eight inches of muscle. She had been one of the survivors Daniel and Hana had rounded up and had fought well and had the respect of her fellow professional survivors. Her inclusion to the Council had given them five people and they had decided it¡¯d be enough for now. Santi knew they¡¯d have to expand on it later when people started to evolve.

    Right now he was in charge of the fighters and expanding the operational boundaries of the camp. Helena was in charge of the inside of the walls, wherever said walls seemed to spring up overnight. Marisol had taken over the duties of a quartermaster with the help of her daughters. Her sharp eyes kept track of all the goods that Abraham¡¯s scavenger teams brought in.

    It had been decided that those who were willing to risk death for food vs. those who would risk death to see numbers go up, should be split up. Chloe had come with Santi, while Rayleigh had gone with Abraham. Santi had seen the split coming, but losing Rayleigh was rough. The beating she had taken in the hospital had shaken her just as much as the dart that had nearly killed her the first day of the integration.

    Her job was still dangerous and she was on the precipice of maxing out the Initiate tier, but it was the safer of the two jobs. In most cases she led her teams into places that Santi had already checked out. While monsters or beasts might have come after he left, it wasn¡¯t common.

    Chloe on the other hand had looked insulted when Santi had asked if she wanted to stay with her friend. She had taken to the fighting like a natural and she seemed to have the drive needed to strive far. She had maxed out her level and was waiting, trying to figure out how to evolve. Santi had told everyone that he had figured it out, but needed ingredients. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

    The grimoire he had earned had several easy to follow evolution rituals that could help someone become an Acolyte. And he had no problem using those rituals on others. For himself and his closest friends though, he had other ideas.

    Evolving was far more involved than leveling up. It was rebuilding oneself from the ground-up. How one evolved was important as were the ingredients one used to fuel the evolution. The goblin¡¯s had acquired plenty of low grade treasures that would let several people evolve, but Santi had ideas.

    The rift heart would be a good central piece to one of the evolutions. A piece of pure mana and potential. There were several other components he had found that would be helpful, but he was missing the key ingredient. His affinity.

    Right now his wind affinity was only Common grade. He wanted to upgrade it and the best time to do that was during an evolution. He needed a wind attuned treasure or something similar. The time affinity would become overpowered with enough time, but its weaker affinity would take him longer to grow and he didn¡¯t know of many natural time affinity treasures off the top of his head.

    There were plenty of wind elementals that he could harvest. Elemental cores could be used in place of treasures if he continued to strike out on finding one. He had already found a flesh treasure for Tank, an anatomically correct crystalized heart that pulsed with vitality. Chloe¡¯s affinity was metal and only a lesser affinity at that. If she had the nerve for it, he knew how to upgrade and specialize her affinity. It would be painful and expensive, but would help her become a true monster.

    All of those were plans for the future. Right now he had to go in and convince the rest of the council to approve of his newest long range scouting and rescue attempt. They didn¡¯t know he was planning on finding his family in the direction he was going. He couldn¡¯t tell them either, for how was he going to explain how he knew that his family would be coming down the road?

    He felt good it would work. There was nothing nearby that was a significant threat and Abraham¡¯s scavenger teams and Helena¡¯s security teams were all approaching the top of the tier. Santi still stood at the pinnacle, but the mountain below him was growing crowded.

    ¡°Bout time you got here. This is your meeting and you''re late,¡± Tank said gruffly. They had found a few legitimate nurses and one doctor. While Tank had the most powerful and leveled skills, the others outclassed him in knowledge. He had been going through a grind of learning on top of his daily responsibilities. It would be good for him in the long run, but for the moment he was looking a little run down.

    ¡°Sorry, I got caught up in looking at my spell choices.¡±

    ¡°You still haven¡¯t chosen? It¡¯s been a week, man.¡±

    ¡°I know. It¡¯s just that there¡¯s a lot of good options for me.¡±

    ¡°Well, come on. Need to get one of them to agree to a long range scout team.¡±

    ¡°I think Abraham will agree with us.¡±

    ¡°Why would that prick agree with us?¡±

    ¡°He doesn¡¯t want me around.¡± Santi met Tank¡¯s eyes and raised his eyebrows. The other man rolled his eyes and gave a half shrug. Abraham¡¯s insecurity was a growing realization around the camp as everyone found out how the man was wildly insecure about being weaker than ¡®the children¡¯.

    ¡°Helena and Marisol like keeping you close. Also, have you seen the list of people you want to take?¡±

    ¡°Why, yes I have. I wrote that list.¡±

    ¡°You. Chloe. Daniel. Hana. Adam. Chad. Penelope.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. That sounds right. Why?¡±

    ¡°You and Chloe are the two best fighters. Daniel and Hana are the best scouts. Adam and Chad are the best ranged fighters we have and Penelope is the best healer we have.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, that''s why I wanted them to come with me.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s also why Helena and Marisol don¡¯t want them going.¡±

    ¡°Helena and Rayleigh are just as skilled as Chloe and Chad¡¯s brother is staying.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t even know his name, do you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll plead the fifth on that one.¡± It was the way the world worked. Chad¡¯s brother had gotten hurt and hadn¡¯t gone on the mission with them. Chad had gotten a ton of experience and levels which meant he kept getting picked to go on missions and kept leveling. Now that he was closing in on the cap, his brother might catch up. Until then Santi was planning on using Chad and not Tristan.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get this over with. I just hope that Abe¡¯s jealousy works for us for once.¡±

 Ch. 2.02 Politics

    2.

    ¡°This list is unbelievable. You would strip us of our greatest fighters while you go out on a lark!¡± Abraham¡¯s voice boomed in the small room, rebounding and assaulting them all as he continued on his tirade. Santi fought to keep from rolling his eyes at the man''s over-the-top theatrics. He wanted them gone, so why was he fighting so hard about it?

    ¡°It¡¯s not a lark. We don¡¯t know what is in our surroundings past a few blocks from our walls. We need to explore and see what the rest of the city looks like. We¡¯ve been through this,¡± Santi said, exasperated.

    ¡°Because you leave us vulnerable. The best of the best. Gone!¡± He flung his hands outward as if throwing seeds to the wind.

    ¡°You¡¯ll have plenty of strong defenders while I¡¯m gone. Rayleigh is near Chloe¡¯s equal and Tank is better than Penelope.¡±

    ¡°Two of seven.¡±

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯m tired of this dick waving contest. Let¡¯s get to a vote and try to be productive. Those who vote aye to Santi¡¯s expedition?¡± Helena cut them off at the knee just as they were starting to get into the meat of the fight. Santi was sure it was the fact that he had more personal power than Abraham. The man had an important job, but for the most part he got the leftovers that Santi left him.

    ¡°Aye,¡± Tank said immediately.

    ¡°Nay,¡± Marisol said.

    ¡°Nay,¡± Abraham growled, glaring at him with a smug look. The little shit knew that they were relying on his vote to approve the expedition.

    ¡°Aye,¡± Helena said after a moment of consideration. Abraham¡¯s smug look dissolved like sugar in hot water.

    ¡°Don¡¯t look so startled, we need to see what¡¯s around us. In fact, I wish to propose two other expeditionary missions. More limited in scope, obviously.¡±

    ¡°I think that¡¯s an excellent idea,¡± Tank said, moving to support the older woman without hesitation. Political back scratching at play. Santi rankled at it but knew what he needed to do.

    ¡°As do I. Do you know what expeditions will be sent out?¡± Santi asked. He was wondering where she wanted to send out exploratory teams.

    ¡°Downtown and to the area surrounding the distribution center. We need to see what the heart of the city looks like and to see the situation there. We¡¯re also getting dangerously low on supplies.¡±

    There it was. Helena and Marisol had planned this. They had backed Santi and Tank into a corner with Helena¡¯s support, and now they had to support this. There was a rift for sure, either there or close by to the distribution center. Santi would have normally been against the plan, the rift too dangerous for them. Yet,they were all beginning to push against the tier border and when they finally tipped over they¡¯d be able to tackle the rift.

    From there the meeting dissolved into a logistics meeting that had Santi¡¯s eyes glazing over in boredom. It was important work, but damn it was boring. Having everyone starve to death wasn¡¯t in the best interest of survival. Supplies were allocated toward Santi¡¯s expedition and he was left to go and get everyone he had named. They¡¯d all agreed on joining him already, but he had to alert them that they¡¯d actually be going and when.

    Santi didn¡¯t want to spend time waiting on this. Tomorrow morning at first light they¡¯d set out to go and find his family. They didn¡¯t know that, but it was what was planned. Any type of monster nest, rift, or powerful beast would be killed. They were going to acquire the levels for the few who needed them and any and every treasure needed for powerful evolutions. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

    Chloe was with Rayleigh and the other girls from her dorm. They had taken over a house close to Homebase and were very particular about their visitors. There were a dozen former college girls living in the house in a replica of a sorority house. One that focused on killing monsters and harvesting parts. The girls who weren¡¯t fighters focused on working on other parts.

    Harvesting beast meat, learning what monster parts could be useful to their survival. The beginning of a tannery had been started and a crude forge was being built in the house next door. It had all the trappings of the initial stages of a crafters market. With a bit of time and effort, Santi was sure they¡¯d be producing gear of decent enough quality. He was looking forward to some decent armor and the sooner the better. He was burning through clothes at a catastrophic rate.

    Chloe was sprawled out over a couch, a pillow on her face. The house was too stuffy and hot for anyone to truly be comfortable to sleep easily. After their evolution the inconvenience of temperature would become something minor. Their durability and stamina so high that nothing short of mana infused storms would bother them.

    ¡°Hey, lazybones, we¡¯re on!¡± Santi yelled at her, not daring to enter their home beyond poking his head inside.

    Chloe¡¯s arm rose lazily, wrist snapping straight and middle finger extending as she huffed underneath her pillow. She had volunteered for every mission that they had run, wearing herself down in her quest to level. Santi was quietly impressed with her fortitude. She had little to no training with the axe and yet threw herself at every problem as if the correct application of focused violence was the solution. She hadn¡¯t been wrong yet.

    Santi left her alone and went and rounded up the others. Daniel and Hana were, as always, with each other. The two had shacked up together after coming back from the goblin nest. They were nestled together in a shared house with a mix of other college aged survivors. The house was fairly tidy and only had a few people lounging around in the living room.

    Still, they didn¡¯t really acknowledge him. There had been a growing distrust for him over the last week. His knowledge base and the fact he couldn¡¯t tell anyone how he knew was driving a wedge between himself and the rank and file. Those who fought with him didn¡¯t particularly care, but the ones who didn¡¯t watched him with wary eyes. Especially the scavengers.

    It was going to be unfortunate when Santi had to arrange an accident for Abraham. The man was a malevolent pest who wished to cling to whatever little iota of power he could grasp. If only his talent matched his ambition. Once they were more stable.

    He paused right outside of their room and rapped on the doorframe. He heard rustling and cursing and then Hana poked her head out to give him a quizzical look. Her short hair was disheveled and she had a cat that ate the canary smile.

    ¡°We¡¯re on. Tomorrow, first thing.¡± He left them and the musky smell that had wafted out of the door when she opened it. Everyone was handling the initialization differently. Some threw themselves at every problem, some threw themselves at each other.

    Chad and Adam were on guard duty. Perched on top of a house with their respective weapons, they watched the edge of their territory with an alertness that Santi approved of. Both of them were serious and dedicated men. It was a shame that Tristan had been injured and left behind in the leveling spree of the last week.

    ¡°We¡¯re on! Tomorrow before dawn!¡± Santi yelled up at them. Both men just gave him thumbs up and went back to scanning the streets around their corner. There were people perched on almost every roof in overwatch. The War Chief¡¯s raid had imprinted itself on them.

    Penelope was the last member he had to find. The healer was actually in Homebase. A late twenty-something with dark brown hairs and caramel eyes, she still wore her nurse scrubs as she helped out in the infirmary. She clung to the mundane, the remnants of the old society and life she had once had. It gave her the strength and comfort to continue on.

    Everyone had their own coping methods.

    ¡°Hey, we¡¯re approved to go. You¡¯re still good to go with us?¡± Santi asked. She was the weakest link of the group. She had only ran a few missions outside of the security of their compound, but aside from Tank she was the best healer they had.

    ¡°Yeah. I told you I would be good to go. In the morning?¡±

    ¡°Yup. I¡¯ll grab you and we can get going first thing in the morning.¡±

    ¡°Sounds good.¡± She went back to her patients while Santi slunk back to his room. He struggled somedays to cope. How could he throw himself over and over into dangerous situations, but the little politicking needed to run a community left him exhausted?

    He laid down in his stuffy room and brought up the list of spells again. He had three open slots and couldn¡¯t leave power sitting on the table. While [Air Manipulation] would be useful, taking a few spells instead of it would provide better utility. Now he just needed to find out which ones to take.

 Ch. 2.03 Leaving Town

    3.

    The predawn morning had the crispness of a late spring day. Hints of fog clung to the edges of the ground, already rapidly burning away as the sun began its ascent through the sky. The rest of the team was beginning to file in, their faces haggard and sleep deprived as they trickled to the meeting place. Santi couldn¡¯t help but look at his stat sheet and spells while he waited patiently.

    Santiago V. Silva

    Strength: 20 (45)

    Durability: 18 (43)

    Stamina: 18 (43)

    Dexterity: 18 (43)

    Vitality: 18 (43)

    Perception: 19 (44)

    Intelligence: 33 (58)

    Mana: 36 (61)

    Willpower: 34 (59)

    Potential: 98%

    Title(s): Cockroach (0%)

    Spells: Air Current, Gust, Identify, Air Shield, Crosscurrent-Orb

    Air Shield: Create a barrier of condensed winds in a small square.

    Crosscurrent-Orb: A condensed whirlwind of air. Explosive when the outer shell is breached.

    Both of the spells were Basic level spells. Spell levels increased with their versatility. It was why limited but powerful spells like the orb were basic while something like Air Manipulation was a common level spell.

    It finally gave Santi some firepower and a defensive ability. He had never used the orb or shield before, having not followed this path at all. He had avoided most combat related skills until later on. He had upgraded and melded spell forms to create some of his most powerful spells that had become staples for him during the later years in the war.

    ¡°Good luck out there,¡± Tank said. For such a large man he was surprisingly quiet when he wanted to be. If it wasn¡¯t for Air Current Santi wouldn¡¯t have noticed him slipping behind him.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be back in a week or so. Can¡¯t leave here for too long yet.¡±

    ¡°You will be. Eventually.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll be leaving us. I can see it in you sometimes. This wistful yearning when we start talking about supply levels or anything that¡¯s not related to fighting.¡±

    ¡°I am who I am. I can¡¯t stand it, being in those rooms and just reading off of lists and complaining about things that need to be done. I want to be out there doing what needs to be done.¡±

    ¡°I know. Administration and governance is needed in a group our size. Even a dictator would need assistants or lieutenants to do work for them.¡±

    ¡°Just think how much easier it would have been for us though. You¡¯d just tell them what to do and get things done. None of this backscratching or favors for favors.¡±

    ¡°Until we get shanked in our sleep.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, there¡¯s that.¡±

    ¡°Be safe. I¡¯ll try to keep everyone alive.¡± Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    ¡°Everyone?¡±

    ¡°Most everyone,¡± Tank laughed, throwing his head back and filling the early morning with brays of delight. Both of them were thinking of Abraham and how pleasant life would be without him.

    ¡°You two done canoodling?¡±

    ¡°What the fuck is canoodling?¡± Santi spat at Chloe as she walked up to them, axe over her shoulder and a heavy pack on her back.

    ¡°It¡¯s like making out,¡± Tank supplied helpfully.

    ¡°He¡¯s too tall for me, I¡¯d never reach,¡± Santi retorted. He nudged Tank who was in the middle of another guffaw and walked out to his team. Chloe just rolled her eyes and followed after. Once they were all assembled, Santi brought out his secret that he had been working on for a few days.

    Bicycles. With wagon attachments.

    ¡°We¡¯re riding bikes?¡± Chad asked as he stared at the seven lined bikes.

    ¡°Speed is the name of the game. I don¡¯t want to be stuck walking for fifty miles.¡±

    With his advanced stats he could probably do fifty miles in a day. The others would die trying to keep up with him.

    ¡°How are we supposed to scout if we¡¯re on bikes? We¡¯ll be stuck on the road.¡±  Daniel complained.

    ¡°Carefully. Once we get out of town and start out into the country, we¡¯ll send you two out ten minutes ahead of us. We¡¯ll have flares in case of emergency. They¡¯re all in each individual wagon.¡± Santi pointed out the equipment they would all be using and had to repress a smile as everyone nodded and told him it was decently thought out.

    Heavy packs were loaded into the wagons and they set off. Santi rode easily, his legs churning as he rocketed down the streets that led out of town. The closer it had got to when they left he more anxious he had grown.

    He was going to see them again. His family. He just had to find them.

    It took only an hour and twelve minutes for them to work their way out toward the edge of town. Golden light streamed out through the trees and houses while faint chill faded away to the heat of spring. He had told Yesi to meet him here in a week. The time had come and gone and now he worried.

    Akthyr¡¯s geas had placed so many needless complications in his path. Had Yesi¡¯s note been read. Would they know to go down Road 96. Would they avoid the barn? He had prayed they¡¯d arrive in the last few days, but it hadn¡¯t happened and he couldn¡¯t wait any longer.

    Road 96 was only tangentially connected to the city, running perpendicular to another county road. The ignored fields were filled with weeds by now and the wheeling crows were fat and plump from their feast. Animals walked through the fields with little hesitation. Humanity had been pushed back so fast and hard that the natural wildlife was coming back.

    They wouldn¡¯t last. Already there¡¯d be mana driven mutations.Beasts emerging from the initialization that would raze animal populations. When the invaders came it would only grow worse, until every strip of the planet was filled with foreign life. It was like a giant clock over his head, knowing what was coming and being powerless to stop it.

    They kept riding, the miles melting away as the sun rose high above them. At midday they pulled off to the side of the road and took a lunch break. The group was quiet with Daniel and Hana sitting off to the side, shoulder to shoulder. Chloe lay sprawled in the dirt with her feet propped up on a wagon while Penelope engaged in polite conversation with Adam and Chad.

    Santi watched.

    The fields were empty. There were no signs of wildlife that had been so abundant. Even the crows had stopped circling. They were close to Road 96 but would take another hour to reach it. Road 96 would lead them closer to his home and hopefully upon his family. If they could survive whatever it was that had spooked all the local animals away.

    ¡°Nobody freak out or anything. Stay calm. But, there¡¯s something close by,¡± Santi spoke softly to the group, hoping not to startle them. Penelope immediately showed her lack of experience by whipping her head back and forth. Adam and Chad both shifted closer to their respective wagons and the weapons sitting in them.

    Chloe pulled her feet off of the wagon and grabbed her axe which was right next to her. Daniel and Hana pulled apart and started to look around without moving their heads. Santi sighed to himself. He missed working with professionals.

    ¡°How do you know?¡± Penelope whispered. She was clutching a long repurposed butcher knife that sat inside a homemade sheathe on her waist. Her knuckles had turned a startling shade of white and fear filled every syllable when she spoke.

    ¡°There¡¯s no animals nearby. Nobody wander away from the group. Pack up and get ready to move. We¡¯re pushing the bikes. Weapons in hand.¡±

    They got up and quickly packed up the non-vital supplies. Penelope was shuffled to the middle of the group while Santi sat in the rear. Daniel and Hana moved to the front to start pushing ahead. In the middle of the day, Daniel¡¯s class was at its weakest, but he was still the most experienced scout they had.

    Chloe glued herself to Penelope¡¯s side, her wicked axe in hand. Chad had an arrow in one hand and bow in the other while Adam had grabbed a discus. The former collegiate thrower had loaded his wagon with all sort of throwing weapons, javelins, discus, shot put, and even two hammer throw things. His class allowed him to throw each of those improvised weapons with extreme accuracy and prejudice.

    Santi let his morph blade slink into his palm. The liquid metal had taken to coating his arm in a sleeve of metal, ready to be deployed in a moment. At the moment he wanted it to stay hidden and as a surprise for whatever it was that was hiding out here in the farmlands.

    Eight minutes passed before he felt the hairs on his neck stand up. There was a rustle in the tall crops on the right side of the field. Just a gentle sway as if the wind had stirred them. Except, there was no wind.

 Ch. 2.04 Winds of Destruction

    4.

    Santi had the morph blade turn into its thin whip form, thin as a string and sharp as a razor. It pooled around his feet as it stretched out, its recent growth giving it the mass needed to reach over twelve feet long. He didn¡¯t hesitate, snapping his wrist around and sending the silvery death whip through the dry crops at waist height. From the time he had seen the wilted crops move to cutting everything around him in half was less than two seconds.

    He still hadn¡¯t been fast enough.

    A brown blur flashed by him, over the top of the whip and headed straight toward the center of the group. Santi had a glimpse of mandibles and chitin before Penelope screamed. Adam went under in a blur of slashing arms, yelling in pain and rage as blood flew.

    Chloe spun, crossing the distance between them nearly instantly as her axe took on its pearlescent glow. Santi transformed his weapon to a long spear and stabbed at the mutated bug''s back. The morph blade tore through tough chitin like it was tissue paper, a shower of gore exploding outward as the spear punched out the other side. Chloe hit it a second later, her axe bisecting it as she split it in half horizontally.

    Santi heard the rustle of the dead wheat. He spun and met the next charging bug. It blew through the brown crops and stood tall and proud for a second as it took in their group. It looked like a praying mantis had been hit with a growth potion. Six long skeletal legs and two raptorial legs that stuck out like arms. The hooks on the arm-like appendages were cruel looking and Santi had no desire to feel them.

    His new found hammer crushed the five and half foot bug to a paste. His strength made up for the lack of weight as he made the ¡°hammer¡± as wide as possible. It was closer to a fly swatter, but the metal was unyielding and Santi¡¯s strength was undeniable. White gore spattered out as chitin broke and the mantis was pulped at his feet.

    ¡°Adam alive?¡± Santi called backwards, his eyes stuck on the suddenly very active field in front of him. The seven foot tall dried wheat were waving back and forth as if a storm ravaged it. There had to be dozens of the mutated bugs coming at them.

    ¡°I¡¯m good,¡± Adam yelled back. A moment later Santi heard a grunt followed by the passage of something large going by his head at inordinate speeds. As it flashed by him and into the thick wheat, he got a glimpse of one of the hammer throw implements flying surrounded by a gray aura.

    Wheat dissolved as the heavy metal ball cut a furrow through the field. Santi could hear as bugs were crushed under its undeniable impetus. And it kept going. From what he could hear, he had to assume at least five of the bugs had fallen victim to the single skill. Not wanting to be outdone, Santi started to draw the mana needed for his newest ability.

    Crosscurrent-Orb gave the promise of directed chaos. He was immensely excited to try the new spell out and the mantis-like beasts were perfect for it. Activating the spell was like reaching his hand into the wall of a tornado. The power of the summoned winds were contained in less than a second. A shell of compressed air formed around the whirling winds with a faint green glow around it.

    Santi pictured the spell leaving his hand and flying into the heart of the field. He held that image and then Willed it into existence. The green orb rocketed free of his palm and followed the path that Adam¡¯s skill had created. It flew for a hundred yards in a second and then the shell popped like a bubble.

    Arctic flurrys that howled over the tundra. Salt laden ocean gales. Scouring hot desert winds. All of those and more were contained in that simple, fragile orb. Santi could feel them, feel the eagerness to escape their containment and then their wrath.

    A bomb¡¯s detonation would have been more gentle. A thirty yard circumference was flattened. A shockwave rolled over them all as a wall of dust came to wash over the small convoy. Choking coughs and spluttered curses were all Santi could hear for a moment, but the newfound grin on his face didn¡¯t leave. That had POWER.

    Multiple kill notifications had dinged when he detonated the orb, the crushing power in the blast radius must have liquefied the mantis¡¯s insides. Not the prettiest kills, but enjoyable. The drifting dust made it hard to see and Santi had to use his Air Current to guide himself as he ran toward where the field had been. The mutated beasts were stunned and he wasn¡¯t going to give them time to recover. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

    ¡°Don¡¯t shoot!¡± Santi yelled over his shoulder right as he plunged into the destroyed field. Stalks of wheat cracked under his shoes as he searched with his spell. His blade snapped back and forth with deadly precision as he hunted. There had been nearly thirty of the beasts. Most had survived the orb but had been stunned to the point of being frozen. Santi reaped them without hesitation. It was over in minutes as Santi used all of his inflated stats to fly around without the others to see him.

    For just a minute he could revel in the surge of strength and speed he had. How his arms didn¡¯t tire as he swung his weapon, how his hearing was keen enough to hear the shift of weight from the surviving mantis. He got to play at being a god for a minute as the weak beasts couldn¡¯t have fought against him even if they hadn¡¯t been stunned.

    Mutated Mantis lvl. 21

    They were strong beasts. If it had been any other group from the city they likely would have taken casualties. The lowest ranked people in their convoy was Adam and Hana though, and both of them were level twenty-two. It showed the rapid evolution of the world around the city, that the wild animals and corrupted creatures could be just as deadly as a monster nest or rift.

    ¡°Everyone ok?¡± Santi yelled as he trudged out of the field. His weapon had decided it didn¡¯t like the mantis blood and was vibrating the blood off of itself. Santi hadn¡¯t seen it do that before, but could feel the disappointment radiating off of it.

    ¡°Adam has several lacerations. I¡¯m working on it. No other injuries.¡± Penelope told him, still hidden in the slowly settling dust cloud. There was no hint of the fear and anxiety that had been there moments before. Just the cold, analytical, experienced voice of a trauma nurse.

    ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s push out of this dust cloud and then we¡¯ll let Adam get bandaged up and then we¡¯ll be on our way.¡±

    ¡°I need to go and get my hammer,¡± Adam protested. That was one of the major problems with classes that relied on physical implements. If they lost them, they¡¯d lose a significant chunk of their powerset. It was why magic was the best class.

    At least Santi thought it was.

    ¡°Yeah, go and grab it then. Everyone hang tight and we¡¯ll be on our way.¡± Adam got finished being fixed by Penelope and then he was off and running into the field to find his hunk of steel on a string before trotting back to them. They were off and moving in less than five minutes, the entire encounter having lasted less than six minutes.

    The speed and power they all had now dwarfed where they were a week ago. After their evolutions and becoming Acolyte¡¯s the easy levels would slow. Right now if they breathed hard on something they could gain potential or levels. Soon they¡¯d have to start pushing themselves and Santi was planning for it. Once his family was safe.

    ¡°How much further are we going today?¡± Chloe asked as they left behind the scene of insectoid murder.

    ¡°We need to find something defensible, so whenever that happens. I don¡¯t want to be out in the open after dark.¡± Santi thought about it for a moment and decided now was better than never.

    ¡°Daniel, come here for a moment!¡± Santi called to the front of the line where Daniel was calmly pedaling on. He motioned for the rest of them to keep riding on while he talked to the scout.

    Daniel braked and just waited for everyone to pass him. Santi let the entire convoy go ahead as he and Daniel fell further and further behind until they could speak quietly with each other. Daniel was one of the two surviving people to have heard Santi tell them he was from the future and while his geas suppressed those memories, Daniel still trusted him.

    ¡°I need you to go up and ahead tonight. Down Road 96. You¡¯re going to be looking for people,¡± Santi explained.

    ¡°Who am I looking for?¡±

    ¡°My family. Do you think you can move through the dark?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ll be fine. Santi, how do you know your family is out there?¡± Daniel asked. He was a normally taciturn man, quiet and introspective, rarely voicing complaints or questions. British stoicism maybe. Him asking this was the equivalent of Tank getting violent.

    ¡°I told you on the night it all started. You, Tank, and Paulie.¡± The damned curse kept him from elaborating but Daniel nodded along, lost in his own thoughts.

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll go tonight after we settle down. Just keep Hana safe while I¡¯m gone.¡±

    ¡°Like my own sister,¡± Santi promised.

 Ch. 3.01 Sparring

    1.

    Grimv attacked with the ferocity of a feral badger. His axe sang a harmony of death as the sharp steel split the air in a discordant howl. Santi didn¡¯t dance backwards for once, but met him on open ground. The morph blade twisted and struck, wily as a serpent, darting around the dwarf¡¯s guard and striking his thick breastplate with a loud gong sound.

    The dwarf grunted and stopped, surprise crossing his face as he nodded his wide, sweaty head at Santi. It was a good point, their duel not putting the two combatants at even points. Grimvr had earlier managed to land a powerful blow with his axe in Santi¡¯s gut, only the heavy armor he wore prevented himself from being disemboweled.

    The sparring armor was a heavy duty plate that stretched from crown to toes and could repulse nearly any causal blow. Torin had worked hard in weaving his magics in it to make it light and impregnable as long as one didn¡¯t use any type of skills or spells on it. A mundane weapon was for all intents and purposes useless against it.

    ¡°You¡¯re getting better,¡± the dwarf said, voice only partially muffled. The steel had been made transparent somehow and the two could look each other in the eyes as they fought. Torin¡¯s works now graced  both Santi¡¯s own personal collection and Homebase¡¯s practice yards.

    ¡°I had to trick you.¡±

    ¡°Matters little to the tricked if their guts are on the ground. Honor and skill are only useful for the living after all,¡± the dwarf said with a wide grin.

    ¡°True enough. To three?¡±

    ¡°Of course, on my mark?¡±

    ¡°Say when.¡±

    ¡°WHEN!¡± Grimvr didn¡¯t give Santi time to prepare, lunging forward and sending a crippling blow for his right knee. Forced to twist away, his counter lacked the heft and speed needed to bring the smaller fighter down. Grimvr simply smacked the dull point of the morph blade away with a gauntlet.

    The dwarf kept himself tight to Santi, his double headed axe a frenzy of slashing steel that took every ounce of Santi¡¯s ability to stay ahead of. He had the advanced stats needed to beat the dwarf easily, but ever since the dwarf¡¯s evolution a week ago, it seemed to matter little. In a contest of skill, where both parties tried to restrain themselves to a normal level, Santi was coming out on the losing end too often for his liking.

    Santi blocked a swing, diverting the axe away from himself and lashing out with his armored foot toward Grimvr¡¯s side. Steel clanged on steel and Grimvr grunted, but didn¡¯t slow as he let go of the axe and tackled Santi around the waist, driving him into the dirt.

    The dwarf was shorter than him, but heavier, and Santi struggled to get out from under him as metal plated fists rained down on his own armored forearms. The morph blade made it so that he was never unarmed and it changed from a sword to a dagger and Santi drove it at Grimvr.

    Grimvr saw it coming and his thick hand caught Santi¡¯s wrist, holding his wrist still as the two of them strained. The heavy blows continued to come though, battering him around as Santi tried to finish him off.

    ¡°WHAT! ARE! YOU! DOING!¡± Torin¡¯s voice was a bellow across the field, freezing both of them in mid action. They turned and looked at the slightly older dwarf who stood there, face mottled red with fury.

    ¡°Sparring?¡± Grimvr responded, his deep voice suddenly unsure.

    ¡°Sparring requires weapons. Not beating my fucking armor like a pair of drunken pugilists!¡±

    Grimvr scrambled to his feet and offered Santi a hand up, hoisting him with ease. They both pulled their clear helms off and Santi sighed with relief as the fresh air chilled the sweat on his face.

    ¡°Sorry Hall Master. I apologize for disrespecting your craft,¡± Grimvr bent his head in apology and Santi did too, recognizing a cultural lapse here. He had no idea why Grimvr was suddenly so sincere and apologetic and why the normally relaxed Torin looked ready to strangle the two of them at the same time.

    Torin released a huff of air and turned back to the house that Santi and his family had taken up in. After¡­after, they had moved. It had been a quick and simple decision and their limited amount of stuff had taken only an afternoon to move.

    The new house was larger and slightly further away from Homebase which had slowly lost its central importance. Now it was almost exclusively a medical facility that Tank and a few doctors ran. They kept stores of System rewarded health potions there, bought at good price from Santi. A small garrison was stationed in the old house, a half dozen of the better fighters that remained with Helena.

    Most of them had migrated to the new reformed scavengers under Rayleigh. They ranged further and further now, stretching far outside of the city limits and they were encountering more and more powerful beasts. Tristan and Chad had branched off as hunters, chasing game down and bringing back Acolyte level meat for the settlement with a few others.

    The last six weeks had seen their small settlement undergo rapid change as the new order began to sink in. Marisol and Helena kept up their end of the bargain and a Bill of Rights had been drafted and posted along with a set of simple rules and the punishments for breaking said rules. Helena was left in charge of that. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

    Santi and what was left of his team focused on clearing dens, more troublesome and powerful monsters, and the occasional rift. Chad had left to become a hunter and Tank spent most of his time running his infirmary, but would tag along for the more dangerous runs. Bianca and Cameron hadn¡¯t flinched from the course and Chloe stayed as a central pillar.

    Daniel and Hana had formed a ranger company of sorts, half scouts, half hunters, and completely nutty. When Santi put out the word for a hunt they showed up though, the two of them never going far from each other. Six weeks could change a lot of things, but it also made some things clear.

    It was different. Quiet. Empty. There was a space in all of them now that couldn¡¯t be filled, only covered up. Mom was the worst. Her silence had been broken and her quiet tranquility replaced by a woman driven by raw madness. She trained constantly. With the dwarves, scouts, fighters, scavengers, anyone and everyone who would face her across the dueling ring.

    Every day there were less who were willing to do so. Her skill with the spear Torin had made for her as a funeral gift, another cultural difference, was growing by leaps and bounds. It wasn¡¯t natural. There was nothing natural about twenty hour days of training.

    She lived in the arena, and if it wasn¡¯t for the new requirements to venture out of the city limits, she would be out there. Anyone who wished to leave the city had to be Acolyte level or higher. Peak Initiates could leave the walls of the settlement, but even then they were given strict warnings. It was simply growing too dangerous for those who hadn¡¯t gotten strong enough to fight out there.

    Torin had taken an interest in Mom¡¯s training and had decided he¡¯d craft her armor. Full plate, light as a feather and stronger than oak he had claimed. The translation had claimed it, but Santi figured it was close enough. Going with her shield and spear he had already made her, she¡¯d be the best equipped person in the entire settlement barring Santi¡¯s personal team.

    Yessenia had went in the other direction. She didn¡¯t leave the laboratory she had made for herself underneath the house without family around her. A low level Acolyte golem stood guard outside her door, courtesy of Grimvr who had made it to her to pay for his evolution. Her own evolution had seen her class change from [Planner] to [Ritualist]. It was a powerful class and already multiple spells were placed around the house, just waiting for the right word or trigger to ignite their protections.

    ¡°Good fight. It would have been better if the Hall Master hadn¡¯t interrupted us, but I was sure of victory.¡±

    ¡°Your victory?¡±

    ¡°Oh of course, if it wasn¡¯t for the thick helm, I would have caved in your thick skull!¡±

    ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for that armored gauntlet, this thick skull would have broken your fingers!¡±

    ¡°Oh, lad. I don¡¯t think that had the sting you think it did.¡± Grimvr offered him a sly smile and the two walked to the water bucket they kept in the back under the shade. It wasn¡¯t for drinking, but rather for clearing the sweat, blood, and dirt off of themselves. A little plastic First-Aid kit hung on a hook. The only thing inside of it was a pair of healing potions that Santi had earned two weeks ago.

    ¡°I wanna go with you and your peoples the next time you go out. I need the levels,¡± Grimvr said.

    ¡°That didn¡¯t sound like much of a request. More of a demand,¡± Santi fired back.

    ¡°Damn translator is removing the nuance of my words, I can assure you, I was quite polite with my groveling,¡± Grimvr lied.

    ¡°Oh, might as well. It shouldn¡¯t be too much longer. Daniel said he had found some tracks to where he thinks the others might have fled too.¡±

    ¡°The rest of the traitors?¡±

    ¡°Yes. He¡¯s been searching for a while now. North and East, toward the mountains there. Plenty of small towns and cities they could be hidden in until they reach the mountain passes.¡±

    ¡°Did not Cameron say his father was in the mountains?¡±

    ¡°Much further South. Weeks of traveling from here.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s getting anxious about it. He¡¯s talking to your sister when we all spar together.¡±

    ¡°It makes sense. The competition is almost over and then we can be on our way and start heading down there.¡±

    ¡°I think I want to go with you.¡±

    ¡°Leave your clan mates?¡±

    ¡°This is a new world and I wish to see it. They will understand.¡±

    ¡°I have no objection. I don¡¯t know who¡¯s going to be going yet, but it won¡¯t be much longer.¡±

    ¡°Good, now let¡¯s get dinner ready, shall we?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re just freeloading. You saw that deer Tristan brought in and the potatoes that Hestor harvested,¡± Santi deduced, staring at the little glutton.

    ¡°Much better than the ration bars. And we are good friends, are we not?¡±

    ¡°Good enough friends that I¡¯m willing to trust you with an important task tonight.¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡±

    ¡°Have you ever peeled a potato?¡±

    ¡°Can¡¯t say that I have.¡±

    ¡°Come my friend and I will introduce you to peeling potatoes. It is a very important job.¡± Santi led him into the house and the kitchen that they were all using. Santi had salvaged what he could from their destroyed kitchen and the heavy cast iron pans were still being used.

    Bianca and Cam were sitting around the table, sipping on tea, while they talked quietly. A pile of forearm length potatoes sat behind them in a red plastic bucket. Thick stalks of fresh asparagus were on the counter and the deer that Chad had brought down a day ago had been butchered and choice cuts brought over.

    Cam and Bianca took one look at the duo, glanced back at the pile of vegetables, and fled without a word. Cam engulfed Bianca¡¯s free hand in a smooth motion as they raced away.

    ¡°They will not be partaking in the peeling of potatoes?¡± Grimvr asked.

    ¡°They are weak people, my friend. Not worthy of the task before you.¡±

    ¡°I am beginning to feel as if I have been tricked.¡±

    ¡°No, no, not at all. You¡¯re going to earn your food tonight though,¡± Santi let slip a now rare smile as he grabbed a knife and showed Grmivr the proper way to peel a potato.

 Ch. 3.2 Family Dinner

    2.

    ¡°Damn, this is good Santi!¡± Cameron stated between heaped forkfuls of mashed potatoes. His plate, once a platter, was nearly cleared as he attacked the meal with an energetic zeal. All around him, those who had been Acolytes for a while, were eating with an extra level of appreciation. It was one of their first meals made with appropriate food sources that weren¡¯t the ration bars they¡¯d been earning in award chests.

    Daniel and Hana were, for once, not staring at each other as they both hovered inches from their plates. Bianca was only a bit more restrained while Yessenia sat quietly and ate slowly. Each bite chewed with a thoroughness that was almost mechanical, her eyes glazed over, lost in thought.

    Chloe and Rayleigh were both to Santi¡¯s left, the two girls having rekindled their friendship over the last few weeks. With Abraham gone and Rayleigh now in charge  the point of contention between them was gone and they wasted no time in reconnecting.

    Grimvr was eating the potatoes like he was angry at them and after having spent an hour carefully peeling and cleaning them, Santi could understand that frustration. Tank sat next to Grimvr and the two spoke in quick sentences, chuckling often as they both seemed to enjoy the hearty meal.

    Santi could begin to understand why Dad had liked cooking so much. The act itself was peaceful in a way, rewarding to see the dishes he ended up with from the raw ingredients they had started with. The real reward was seeing everyone¡¯s joy in eating his work. They enjoyed what he had spent time and labor doing, his hard work instantly rewarded not in levels and shed blood, but in smiles and laughter and the scrape of metal on porcelain.

    ¡°Enjoy it while you can. The first crop wasn¡¯t big enough and it¡¯ll be a while before the second crop. The meat is starting to get easier to source at least, more and more animals have survived the burst and managed to level. Tristan took some type of hunter class and has been showing people how to track them.¡±

    ¡°The meat is good, don¡¯t get me wrong. But, damn brother, these potatoes are heavenly.¡±

    ¡°Acolyte level food. New taste buds and higher perception to fully experience the meal. I did the bare minimum on them.¡±

    ¡°If this is the bare minimum, I don¡¯t think I could withstand a full gourmet course,¡± Chloe said. Her plate was cleared and she was leaning back in her chair with her fingers threaded over her stomach.

    ¡°Just wait till a [Cook] or [Chef] class appears. We¡¯ll be eating good,¡± Santi told them. He could remember the camp foods that their [Cooks] had made and heard rumors of the heavenly delights Disciple level [Chefs] could create. Far above his paygrade, it had been something the Council of Champions had been able to partake in or what the ultra wealthy had managed to buy.

    ¡°I think Dad would have liked being a [Cook],¡± Yessenia finally spoke up and the room fell into silence as everyone¡¯s eyes turned to her. She had been so quiet for so long that hearing her speak in a public setting was tantamount to watching lightning strike twice.

    ¡°I think he would have too,¡± Bianca said, breaking the silence and everyone turned their gaze away from Yesi. Santi felt the familiar rush of rage and sorrow he felt every time he was reminded of what happened to her. The helplessness of not being able to fix it.

    ¡°Found another den. Well Delilah and her scouts did. A day or so Northwest. Close to the coast. She said it was too dangerous for her or even my team to handle,¡± Daniel said as the table discussion changed from the joy of food back to work.

    ¡°Alright. Chloe, what¡¯s our schedule looking like?¡± Chloe had taken over the team¡¯s scheduling once she realized Santi was often double booking or even triple booking them to be at places. Santi was more than happy to have her deal with the executive functions while he worked on drills and teamwork.

    ¡°Free for two days. Got a rift that Rayleigh and her team said they can clear out, but wanted back up just in case,¡± Chloe said.

    ¡°Rayleigh, do you guys actually need the help?¡±

    ¡°Probably not. We¡¯re just thin on veteran people. Almost everyone is new and raw. Even in comparison to where we were. It¡¯s some type of spider monster and it¡¯s low Acolyte, maybe even peak Initiate rift.¡±

    ¡°Where¡¯s it at?¡±

    ¡°South East. Tiny little town of about four hundred or so people. Rift cleared the whole town we think. There¡¯s some spider webs and stuff everywhere, Daniel¡¯s people didn¡¯t think it was too dangerous.¡±

    ¡°Alright. Daniel, peel a trio of your people over to Rayleigh¡¯s clear team. We¡¯ll get Helena to put up two squads for backup but have it be Rayleigh¡¯s operation.¡±

    A round of affirmatives rang out across the table. It was getting easier and easier for him to issue orders like this. Finding the right people to train and organize had been the key. Torin and Grimvr had been a massive help as they had started to provide training and materials that allowed the settlement to be successful. There were plenty of people in the settlement with the right mindset and skills to organize and Santi had been working on finding them and putting them in place to succeed. Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

    ¡°Daniel, Hana, I want both of you with us when we do and meet up with Delilah. Tank, can you get free from the clinic?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s been slow. Shouldn''t be a problem at all,¡± Tank rumbled from the end of the table.

    ¡°Grimvr, get Torin¡¯s permission and you can come with us.¡±

    ¡°Understood.¡±

    ¡°I want to come as well,¡± Mom¡¯s voice carried across the room as she and Torin walked in. She still wore her armor and her face was covered in a sheen of sweat. The heady mix of body odor and armor came with her as she grabbed a plate and began to fill it with the leftover in the middle of the table.

    ¡°Grimvr, we shall both go. I must see how my works perform,¡± the older dwarf slapped Grimvr on the shoulder as he walked past him and began to fill his own plate. Everyone shuffled down, creating spots for the two older people to squeeze into as chairs were grabbed for them.

    ¡°Are you ready for that, Mom?¡± Yesi asked, voice trembling.

    ¡°Torin has given me the best weapons aside from Santi¡¯s morph blade. I¡¯ve trained hard and have the skill, I just need the levels now.¡±

    ¡°You won¡¯t be able to fight effectively in the den at all, but we can search for opponents for you,¡± Santi said. If his Mom could get the levels necessary to evolve it¡¯d be a massive weight off his shoulders.

    ¡°That¡¯s all I need. Torin will stay with me.¡±

    ¡°I shall,¡± Torin promised as he poked with his fork at the mountain of mashed potatoes, looking at Grimvr with confusion written across his face.

    ¡°It¡¯s delicious, Hall Master. Try it with the brown sauce.¡±

    ¡°Yesi, you should come as well. Try out your power in the field,¡± Santi floated the suggestion to his sister. He cringed inwardly as Yesi seemed to fold under the weight of the possibility of leaving her sanctum.

    ¡°No¡­maybe, ummm,...next time,¡± she stammered, face burning red with shame as she stood in a hurry, leaving her half eaten plate behind her as she fled out of the room.

    The mood soured as everyone stared at her now deserted seat. Santi wished to have Abraham in front of him again, just to rip him in pieces for what he had done to Yessenia. Santi heard her crying at night, the strangled screams as nightmares tore at her, the haunted look in her eyes.

    ¡°Is there a therapist or someone who could work with her or something?¡± Rayleigh asked, concern on her face.

    ¡°Tank?¡± Santi asked. A psychiatrist would have been in his friend''s sphere of responsibility.

    ¡°Doc Evans has some training. She started that way and then decided to become a R.N,¡± Tanks said. Santi wanted to pound his head on the table. A partially trained therapist.

    ¡°See if she¡¯s open to talking to her,¡± Mom said. Tank glanced at Santi for confirmation, but was already nodding along.

    ¡°I¡¯ll ask her in the morning,¡± Tank confirmed.

    ¡°Thank you,¡± Mom said as she went back to eating.

    ¡°So tomorrow then?¡± Chloe asked. Santi nodded to her and the rest of the group got up and started to clean their dishes with a bucket of soapy water that Santi had pulled earlier. Germs weren¡¯t much of a threat to them now, but it was still gross to eat off dirty plates.

    ¡°Did Delilah say what type of den it was?¡± Santi asked, wanting to get away from the sudden social awkwardness and on to dealing with the threat of the den.

    ¡°Not really, she sent a messenger from one of our outposts to us to relay where it¡¯s at and threat level.¡±

    ¡°Has the messenger relay system been working well for you?¡± Santi asked. It had been his suggestion to do since no one had managed to take an effective long range communication skill.

    They¡¯d place speed based builds in small, well hidden locations and they acted as small hubs for messages for the further ranging teams. It allowed for faster communication and kept the scouting teams in the field for longer. When Yessenia recovered a bit more and could be persuaded to go out in the field, Santi was going to get her to lay some basic protections around the hubs.

    In the future, as they grew, he¡¯d need to establish forts and outposts further away from the settlement. There were just too many people to close by right now. They would begin to hunt the region into extinction and there wouldn¡¯t be enough experience or potential to continue leveling for the lower level people.

    ¡°It¡¯s working well. Need to improve the defensese around them though. Lost one of the hubs to the Northwest near the mountains two days ago.¡±

    ¡°All hands went down?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I went up there with Hana and some of my higher level guys. There were four runners assigned to the spot and we found all four bodies and a bunch of some type of insect monster.¡±

    ¡°Ants?¡±

    ¡°Beetles, they were as big as a car though and tough. Stabbed a few and their carapace was thick and resistant to damage. We harvested what we could and I¡¯ve had a team looking for where the bugs could have come from,¡± Daniel reported in.

    Santi sat back and thought on that. They hadn¡¯t found a hint of Duncan yet, but to the Northwest there were plenty of small towns and then eventually the mountains. Duncan was savvy enough he would cover up the elimination of an outpost and the loss of that outpost would severely limit their ability to report what was going on that way quickly.

    ¡°Find a new place to set up and we¡¯ll take Yesi there after we clear out this den. We¡¯ll reinforce the outpost and start searching that region. I don¡¯t like having a threat that can take out an outpost like that,¡±  Sanit ordered.

    ¡°They were only Initiates, peak, but still? It shouldn¡¯t be a threat to us,¡± Daniel wasn¡¯t arguing, but he was searching for a reason for Santi¡¯s new apparent concern.

    ¡°Only if it really was bugs. We haven¡¯t seen hide or hair of any of the traitors or that band of humans they were partnered with. Wouldn¡¯t be hard to lead a group of low level Acolyte bugs to a base and just watch the fireworks. Send runners and put all your people on alert up there, double up the patrols and increase the frequency of check-ins.¡±

    ¡°You got it, boss,¡± Daniel said. Hana was already scribbling Santi¡¯s orders on a little pad of paper she carried around.

    ¡°Everyone get some sleep, tomorrow we¡¯re off to kill some monsters,¡± Santi broke up the family dinner and sat back in his chair while everyone slowly trickled out. He sat in the empty room for a long time.

 Ch. 3.3 Raiders

    3.

    The early summer heat had parched the surrounding countryside, turning once lush fields into barren, sun baked earth. Santi and the rest of the war party moved at a fast clip, their breaths easy, even under the fast pace. Mom was the weakest of them and she managed to keep up with them, even if she was near the rear of the pack.

    A single drop of sweat rolled down Santi¡¯s face as he kept pace, running behind Bianca and Chloe. Both of the girls were more heavily invested in physical stats than he was and without his titles he would have been left in the dust by them. As it was, it required a bit of effort to keep up with them.

    ¡°How often do patrols come through this area?¡± Santi asked Daniel, the taller scout gliding along next to him. Daniel and Hana¡¯s company of scouts and rangers, along with Chad and Tristan¡¯s hunters, were the only ones who made it out this far on the regular. Helena kept her people closer to home and Santi only led his party out for heavy fights.

    ¡°Not frequent. We mainly stick around towns or anything that we can get supplies from. These long country roads get people on occasion, but not often enough for them to be deemed safe to travel,¡± Daniel explained.

    The last few weeks had seen a small trickle of people leaving the confines of Homebase and its immediate surroundings. None of them had left the relative safety of the city and the high ranking fighters living there, but it wouldn¡¯t be long. There had been a handful of people found to the South and East and directly West. Anything North and Northeast was barren of life though.

    From what Daniel had reported people had survived. The amount of dead wasn¡¯t high enough and there were signs of class skills and spells used on the buildings or surroundings. Dead monsters and campfires, but everything had been pulled up and disappeared further toward the heart of the nation.

    In time smaller communities would be absorbed. Small groups of survivors banding together to build rugged communities based around a dungeon or good hunting grounds. They would need the support of a larger community and Homebase would be the hub for this entire region. The wealth of Northern California could pool toward him, treasures, monster parts, crafters, and anything else would come to Homebase and the Pillar he would claim.

    They needed safe roads for that to happen. Continuous patrols that would purge the nuisances and alert them when real dangers arrived. Daniel and Hana¡¯s small company would be the first step and with the growth in numbers the job would be placed on Helena¡¯s head. Part of internal security. A good place for young warriors to test themselves and grow accustomed to the dangers of the new world without quite leaving the safety of the nest.

    ¡°When we get back I need you and Helena to get together and start mapping out routes for patrols. She¡¯ll provide the manpower and you provide the intelligence.¡±

    ¡°You got it boss,¡± Daniel said while flipping a snarky salute. Some of the man¡¯s earlier attitude had begun to creep back into their interactions as time distanced themselves from the acts Santi had committed.

    ¡°There¡¯s something up ahead Santi,¡± Bianca said, her hand straying to her hip where her macuahuitl sat. Santi looked past his sister and towards the ground ahead of them and saw what she had seen. A quarter mile or so ahead was a pair of abandoned wagons. The full sized one¡¯s people used to carry around their kids'' crap during soccer games.

    Goods were spilt across the ground, crushed food and water bottles that had rolled away in the gentle summer breeze. The wind shifted and Santi caught hints of blood on the air.

    ¡°Mom, get to the center of the formation, Torin you have her?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯ll be safe with me,¡± the Hall Master confirmed, pulling a heavy hammer that he used two hands to heft around from his belt.

    ¡°Grmivr, right behind the girls and Cam. You¡¯re relief. Everyone else, normal positions.¡±

    Daniel and Hana both disappeared and split apart, heading in different directions. The shadows were thin, but Daniel had been working hard on his skill and managed. Hana simply bent light around her till she was nothing more than a heat mirage.

    Tank stepped up and slightly behind Santi, unlimbering his new and improved mace that Grimvr had crafted him. The bulbous head of the mace was ridged and had a weight to it that would have caused a pre initialization human to struggle. Tank swung it about in lazy circles with ease as he scanned their surroundings.

    Without Chad they were lacking a true distance fighter aside from Santi, and he was their most effective fighter overall. Currently his spell and skill set put him as a medium range fighter, but he could pinch hit wherever the team needed him.

    Mom gripped her own spear tightly, but there was no trace of fear in her eyes as she looked around. There was a hunger there, a desire for action and blood. Torin was next to her and Santi had to focus on what was going to come next if he wanted to make sure they all stayed alive. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!

    The team slowed down, moving more cautiously as they crept closer to the signs of violence. Santi was able to fully view the wagons and abandoned supplies. Mainly dry food, crackers, dried fruit, nuts, granola, and bottled water. There were some scattered clothes, blouses and pants that blew in the wind.

    ¡°Oh fuck,¡± Bianca cursed, horror in her voice as they looked closer to the ditch that line the field. Santi peered down and quickly identified the scents of blood.

    A pair of women lay slack and still in the bottom of the ditch, their clothes stained from battle. A broken kitchen knife was near one of them and the other had a claw hammer that was just outside of her reach. The violence inflicted upon them was monstrous and they all stared down at them in horror.

    ¡°What the fuck,¡± Bianca whispered while Cam leaned over and vomited.

    ¡°DANIEL, HANA, FIND ME TRACKS!¡± Santi barked. He knew the darker sides of man, the depths of villainy that waited. He would not allow it to fester.

    ¡°Let¡¯s bury them. Bianca, Chloe, do you think you can move them while we dig?¡± Santi asked them.

    ¡°No, I¡¯ll do this,¡± Mom spoke firmly even as a tear tracked down her face. The two younger women nodded and the team broke up quickly. The work to dig graves was quick and easy compared tidying the bodies and placing garments on them. The burial was quick and with few words and Santi prayed that the two women would find peace. In total it had taken less than thirty minutes from sighting the two destroyed wagons to burying the two victims.

    Daniel and Hana had found the tracks and were waiting patiently until the final bits of earth filled the grave. The wagons were rooted through, but little of it held any value to them. They were beyond the food available in it and the weapons were basic tools that could have been found in any garage.

    ¡°They came from the North and are heading West. Directly toward where we¡¯re supposed to be going.¡±

    ¡°How many?¡±

    ¡°No idea, lots though. Footprints everywhere, the ground is too hard to leave easy to identify prints.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s go. Last thing we want is them finding Delilah and her team. Double time it,¡± Santi issued his orders and the rest of the group fell into line as they started to pick up speed. They raced across the hot blacktop, the asphalt emanating heat like a furnace. The shorter dwarves weren¡¯t holding them back, their legs pistoning as they ate up ground in a hurrying race against time.

    ¡°Daniel, you and Hana push ahead and try to warn Delilah and the others,¡± Santi said as they got closer to the small beach town that the monster den was supposed to be in. Both of the scouts pushed off as fast as possible, sprinting ahead as they disappeared from view.

    The rest of the team continued their pace, eating into the timeline that Daniel had said it would take. The day of travel timeline completely obliterated as they pushed their Acolyte bodies as hard as they could. Mom was a ragged mess, sweating profusely as she gasped in breaths, but she continued on.

    Torin had offered to carry her, but had been met with a stony eyed glare that had quieted the dwarf. She was on her last legs though and would be of little use in the upcoming fight. They had caught signs of the passage of the raiders. Discarded food packets, empty water bottles, a shoe, several signs of bowel relief. They were closing in on them, but Santi was worrying that they¡¯d be too late to find the small team of scouts

    ¡°When we meet them, Mom and Torin stay in the backline with Tank. Guys, this will be your first time truly fighting other people. The little skirmish downtown, well, you weren¡¯t prepared for that. This will be different. They will have skills and spells just like you. And they will scream and beg for mercy, plead to be arrested or to face a jury or anything to stop their immediate deaths. They all die. Every. Single. One. Am I clear?¡±

    ¡°Crystal,¡± Chloe growled. Her black hair was pasted to her forehead as she ran a thumb along the edge of her axe. They were approaching the edge of the town and Santi saw some of them.

    Dirty and ragged they walked around the town without a care. They were thin, emaciated with stringy hair with hard looks to their faces as if they were carved from granite. He counted seven with a glance as they wandered around, poking their heads into abandoned buildings or just wandered the road.

    The town wasn¡¯t even a town. It was just a single road with buildings on either side of it. A few gas stations, a diner, post office, firehouse, and then a trio of side roads that branched off with single family homes on either side. The sound of the ocean was close, the heady scents of the brine filling his nose with every breath.

    The den was somewhere close by, Delilah and her team hidden from both the raiders and the den. Santi was scanning the area as fast as possible, looking for clues to where everyone was.

    ¡°Everyone, gear up. Helms, armor, weapons checks, all of it. Grab a couple drinks of water and catch your breath. We¡¯re going to be going in fast and ending them fast, understood?¡±

    A round of nods and affirmatives came through as everyone took a knee and drank and checked their weapons and armor. Santi touched the metal breastplate that Torin had made for him. It was lightweight, an alloy of supernatural design that was a dark cobalt color. It left his arms free, but all of his vitals covered in hard steel, or at least the dwarven equivalent of steel.

    At the far edge of town, movement broke out. A burst of energy, a flash of fire, and a man¡¯s shrill scream. The town erupted like a beehive, over a dozen dirty figures running out of the buildings in a rush, brandishing a variety of crude weapons as they raced toward where someone was burning brightly.

    At the same time, closer to the sea, in sandy soil that had a thin covering of stringy grass, the earth erupted. Black proboscis, glittering eyes, eight legs on each side of a nine foot long body that wiggled as it raced toward the sounds of fighting. The sandy soil trailed off of it as its dagger-like claws tore into cement like it was dirt as it caught the first of the raiders with its long nose.

 Ch. 3.04 Cursed

    4.

    The long trunk of the monster twisted and curled inward and the distant figure¡¯s screams were faint and hardly carried in the air. Blood dripped out of the monster¡¯s trunk, splashing on the ground as it continued on its way toward the heart of the small town. The rushing raiders stopped in fright, the fight they had been looking for larger and more dangerous than they were ready for.

    Santi¡¯s team was running in tight formation, their practice over the last week¡¯s showing. Mom and Torin lagged behind while Grimv stuck to his place without need to be nudged in place. The dwarf was sturdy and ready for a fight with his axe in hand. Cameron, Bianca, and Chloe forming a wedge with Cameron in the center. Grmivr drifted behind them while Santi let them get a bit ahead of him. Tank, Torin, and Mom were the last of the group about ten feet behind him.

    The raiders were running without looking, fleeing the monster as it ravaged a building and a slower moving man. The man was throwing around skills, blue blasts of ice exploding in bursts around the creature¡¯s chitinous shell. It had little effect on the monster, it simply lifted a long leg and stabbed down at the man. Concrete exploded as the street shattered like a bomb went off as the man rolled and got away from the stabbing appendage.

    While those two were occupied in the center of town, the first trailing edge of the raiders finally turned to see Cameron and the two women flanking him. They were fully armored and armed with weapons built by Grimvr and Torin. Santi was ready to step in if they hesitated as the first of the dirty raiders charged at Cameron, screaming a wordless warcry.

    The raider was hoisting a heavy sledgehammer over his head, pale face coated in dirt and dried blood as his black eyes were wild with rage and fear. Cam¡¯s golden shield was cast as the raider swung down, interposing itself between Cam¡¯s slightly less dense head and the heavy steel hammer. The steel hammer hit the gold shield with a burst of power and the sound of a crunching glass, but the shield didn¡¯t break.

    The man stared at his weapon stupidly as Cam struck with a single minded purpose, his long hatchet slicing through the man¡¯s stomach with no resistance. Cam shouldered the man off his feet, tossing him like a child as he kept moving forward.

    Bianca slashed as the man passed by her, her blade tearing away flesh and finishing the man before he could even hit the ground. The whole interaction had been done in two seconds, their training paying off. Santi had been pushing them hard, making sure they knew how to fight as a team.

    Then the main part of the fleeing raiders were overrunning them. Cameron held his spot without fear or hesitation, his shield and hatchet moving in tandem. Golden shields appeared in quick succession as attacks slid off of his defensive skills. The raiders were peak Intitaties, their skills and spells not having the oomph needed to break apart the defensive skills that Cameron was activating.

    Bianca and Chloe were doing their parts, their weapons blurs as they chopped and hacked their way through the drifters like they were nothing but driftwood. Neither woman showed any reluctance as they took lives for the first time, killing without hesitation as the weaker fighters couldn¡¯t hope to match them.

    It took only a minute and the first batch of fleeing killers were laying on the ground in broken pieces alongside the road and they were pushing into the actual town. The ice mage was still dueling the monster, bursts of frozen power washing over the ground as the man hadn¡¯t stopped casting. He was throwing around enough power faster enough that Santi could make the guess that he was at least a mid thirties Acolyte.

    ¡°Mage and monster!¡± Santi barked, steering the team toward the main fight. Cam was chugging forward like an indomitable train, angling toward the monster. Santi risked taking his eyes off the fight for a moment to [Identify] both the monster and the man.

    Mutated Mole Crab lvl. 46

    Cursed Ice Mage lvl. 38

    ¡°Careful with the mage, he¡¯s cursed!¡± Santi told the team.

    ¡°Da fuck does that mean?¡± Cam asked without turning.

    ¡°There¡¯s more than one way of evolving. He¡¯s going to be like one of the cursed things we¡¯ve killed.¡±

    ¡°Oh, shit.¡± Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

    [Air Manipulation] tugged the mage¡¯s foot to the side as the mole crab stabbed at him again. This time he couldn¡¯t move away fast enough and Santi almost ended the problem then and there. The ice mage made a wall of ice in front of him, water particles condensing into a misty wall before flash freezing. The crystal ice had threads of inky darkness in it, worms of corruption that wriggled inside the ice.

    Ice exploded as the leg smashed it apart, spraying out the corrupted ice like shrapnel. Cameron cast a shield in front of Bianca and lifted his own personal shield up to cover his face as Chloe ducked behind the bigger man¡¯s back. Santi cast [Gust] and sent the ice away from the group.

    A drop of blood splattered the ground as the monster¡¯s leg dripped blood, its tough chitinous shell finally broken. A trickle of darkness swirled around the ice mage, darkening the air around the man as the iron scent of blood consumed the area. The monster froze, leg frozen high in the air as the swirling chaos around the ice mage flowed around it, seeping into the wound.

    The monster stopped, frozen for a long moment,and then it fled, retreating as fast as it had come. The mage turned around to face them, his face haggard as he lifted his hands up to them. Whatever curse he had, it was powerful enough that he had managed to corrupt a higher level monster than him with only one wound. Not something that Santi wanted to have around his people.

    [Gust] picked up the thin mage and threw him like a baseball, flying through the air until he crashed into the building across the street. The wall didn¡¯t break, but the mage did. One of the problems with only putting stat points into one area. Bones were sticking out of the mage¡¯s body while limbs were twisted in the wrong way.

    ¡°Careful, no kill notification,¡± Santi warned as the team slowed down. Black and red energy spread around the downed mage¡¯s body. Bones snapped back into place, limbs twisted and ground as they fitted together properly.

    ¡°Shit, that¡¯s gross. Kill him, skills only!¡± Santi barked his last order and Bianca stepped forward. Of all of the rest of the team she had the closest to a long range attack. A skill she had picked up and been working hard on since Dad¡¯s funeral.

    A simple spark ignited off the tip of her weapon, blue-white and burning with an intensity that Santi could feel from feet away. She flicked her wrist, the macuahuitl snapping like a baton to send the flickering ball of fire away.

    It crossed the distance in a blink of an eye and ignited with a whoosh and burst of intense heat as the body was consumed in a heartbeat. The kill notification dinged a second later.

    Cursed Ice Mage lvl 38

    (Blood Thirst)

    ¡°Don¡¯t get close to any of the others who are marked as cursed. You don¡¯t want an infection like that,¡± Santi warned them.

    ¡°What was that?¡± Tank asked, having not been able to see what was going on.

    ¡°Its another way of evolving. It¡¯s not advised,¡± Grmivr said stone faced. Santi was sure there was a thread of humor in there.

    ¡°Stay focused, there¡¯s still plenty more of the raiders around here. And the monster,¡± Santi chided the team.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Daniel and Hana?¡± Chloe asked, looking around carefully. Bianca hadn¡¯t taken her eyes off the burning wreck she had created.

    ¡°Who knows, they¡¯ll show up soon enough. Shit, behind us!¡± Santi caught sight of a new wave of ragged raiders wielding a motley mix of weapons as they came screaming out of hiding now that the crab had been pushed back.

    Mom spun, shield rising to cover her body as her spear rested right above the edge of the shield. Santi watched as time seemed to slow as she stepped forward and lunged, spear point glinting in the light as it passed in a blur toward the leading attacker.

    The spear spun and turned, broad leaf point parting flesh with ease, shattering bone like dry wood, and ending the raider¡¯s life with ease. Mom twisted and pulled the spear free, using her shield to stop a stray blow while she stepped back to avoid a second attack.

    Tank stepped forward, covering Mom¡¯s blindside as his maul proceeded to obliterate a human into just paste. Torin watched with his hammer, eyes alert and ready to step in if Mom floundered or hesitated.

    She didn¡¯t.

    She attacked with economical precision, no wasted movements as she butchered the enemy Initiates with ease. Their makeshift weapons hardly scratched her shield as with every strike she killed. Tank backed up as the pressure lessened and Chloe and Bianca stepped up to cover her sides while Cameron waited to slide in to replace her as she tired.

    She didn¡¯t use any skills or spells, just her own endurance and strength with plenty of practice. The two girls didn¡¯t simply slaughter the enemy, but rather let Mom get the kills, harvesting potential and experience. Santi watched in awe and horror as his quiet, iron-willed, patient, and kind mother, killed and killed and killed.

    The newest wave broke as fast as it had come, nine bodies laying on the ground felled by Mom¡¯s spear. It was like watching a machine complete a task, a testament to Torin¡¯s training.

    ¡°Mom, you ok?¡± Bianca asked as they stared down at the dead bodies.

    ¡°Yes. Why wouldn¡¯t I be?¡± Mom asked, her voice soft and clipped as she wiped the bloody spear clean on a dead man¡¯s shirt.

    ¡°No reason,¡± Bianca said, but she stayed close to Mom¡¯s side as everyone milled about in the center of the town, looking for Daniel and the other¡¯s. There was movement here and there, people moving about as they darted around the buildings, more of the weak raiders who hadn¡¯t died yet.

    ¡°There''s got to be a few more of the Acolyte level fighters around here somewhere. Stay on guard, but let¡¯s start moving to try to find Daniel and Hana.¡±

 Ch. 3.5 Infection

    5.

    Fire licked at the homes as Bianca¡¯s cleansing flame grew to slowly encompass the house and then the others around it. Red and blue flames leapt from roof to roof, increasing in size and ferocity as the small pit stop of a town emptied itself out. There were more raiders than Santi would have thought possible. Over a score of them left alive, gathering around two men who were barking orders.

    Black lines ran across their skin like sticky webs of corruption, pulsing with every word and gesture. The men around them listened and obeyed with speed, fear of their commanders greater than their fear of Santi¡¯s team. He would have to see about changing that.

    ¡°We crush them, I want one alive though. Not the cursed bastards, but one of the others.¡±

    ¡°Thought we said no survivors?¡± Cam asked.

    ¡°There won¡¯t be survivors after I¡¯m done talking to him,¡± Santi said. There was a momentary stillness, then everyone seemed to recall the two women on the roadside and all thoughts of mercy fled. The squad formed up into their normal formation and began to march with the cleansing flames behind them.

    Santi watched the raiders with one eye, while with the other he kept a lookout for Daniel and Hana. The two had a bad habit of disappearing and a great habit of showing up unexpectedly. They wouldn¡¯t stay out of this fight for the entire time but would likely hop in when the fight got down to the nitty gritty and the raiders were too busy to pay attention.

    The slapping of their feet on the pavement was loud in his ears, his breaths ragged as he let that wrath that he had been carrying around for months begin to billow inside of himself. Heat suffused his chest as he spun his mana through his body and into the atmosphere, drenching the area around them with his power.

    The trick was something that was easy in theory but tough in practice. It was similar to what Yessenia had done to activate her rituals but scaled up. It would taint the area around him with his power, his flavor of magic. While it wouldn¡¯t stop enemy mana based attacks, it would help diffuse them, make them easier to block or parry and at the same time allow him to cast his own spells with less resistance.

    [Crosscurrent-Orb] spun free of his hand, passed between Chloe and Cameron¡¯s head and crossed the distance between the two groups in a flash. The tightly packed raiders, who were trying to form some type of unarmored shield wall, were thrown apart like matchsticks in a hurricane. The two Acolytes in the center of the formation didn¡¯t budge, both of them weathering the storm with grimaces.

    ¡°Don¡¯t let those fuckers touch you!¡± Santi reminded them as Cameron closed the distance, raising his physical shield while using his skill to block a lobbed pearlescent attack that splashed harmlessly off the golden barrier.

    Cam struck like lightning, moving with the dreadful efficiency that let him move faster than he should. The hatchet sheared apart meat and bone and a limp hand fell to the ground, its former owner screaming in pain as he clutched at the severed stump.

    Bianca and Chloe were cutting and slashing, ripping apart men with no hesitation. The two enemy Acolytes were backing up, fear in their eyes as they began to break away from their dying followers.

    The poor shield wall was destroyed and now the team¡¯s wedge formation was shedding attackers, sending wounded and dying men to land behind the front line trio so that they could be ripped apart with ease by the others. Mom¡¯s spear was moving with brutal power, killing with every blow. Torin and Grimvr were unphased as they butchered while Tank held a faint grimace as he brought his maul down to end suffering.

    Santi let them work, none of them aside from Mom were earning anything of note from this. But not everything was about experience and potential gained. Something had to be done, some monsters had to be killed lest they grow and fester in the wounds of the worlds.

    Santi kept a careful watch on the two cursed Acolytes and the madness in their eyes. The bloodlust was growing until there was another palpable aura around them, a blood red and foul black aura that sank into the few survivors around them. The newly infected smiled, baring their teeth as their necks stretched taunt. They howled a fierce cry that broke over the team as they charged with reckless abandon.

    ¡°Cut them down,¡± Santi yelled, but he could feel the aura of bloodlust infusing him even as he said it. Each of the infected was a carrier, growing the curse as they raced to die on Santi¡¯s team''s weapons. Gore flew in long strings and bone was cleaved and flesh split, but the berserk Initiate class fighters didn¡¯t care.

    They howled and snapped their mouths, trying to bite even as they were trimmed of offensive limbs. Weapons were abandoned as they tried to use their fingers and nails like beasts. For a moment there was a shift in the balance of power as Cameron and the others were stymied, their superior stats not allowing for them to be overwhelmed, but lacking the experience to fight through the madness. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

    Santi stepped around them.

    The morph blade extended and struck like lightning, taking heads with each flick of his wrist. Bodies fell around him like leaves as Santi charged straight toward the two Acolyte¡¯s and the source of aura that was empowering the weaker fighters. Both men seemed to teeter on losing themselves to the curse¡¯s power, or breaking and running. Fear and death warred in their eyes as the aura around them strengthened to the point of becoming a miasma around them.

    [Gust] staggered them and pushed back against the miasma while the morph blade lengthened to a lance and Santi lunged. The tip of the lance punched through a thigh, breaking bone and emerging out the other side with a wide spray of blood. It was enough to tip the two men over and into madness.

    The impaled man ran up the lance. He drug his wounded thigh further down the lance so he could reach Santi with his own homemade spear. Santi ducked his head and retracted the lance, ripping free of the thigh in a burst of destroyed muscle. Any normal, sane, person would be down for the fight, Acolyte stats or not. The femur was destroyed.

    The man didn¡¯t stop, he stepped on his broken and bleeding leg like it was completely fine as a bloody froth stained his teeth. His spear flashed out again and Santi removed the head of it with a simple block, his own weapon slicing apart the wood as if it was rotten.

    A ball of flame lobbed past his head and struck the second cursed man. He went up like a torch, the flames burning away the miasma that clung to him breaking through the curse¡¯s seeming  granted immunity from pain. His screams filled the air, pain and terror and something darker and more twisted underneath each howl.

    Santi kept his attention on his own foe who had closed to grappling range, ignoring his wounds in his determination to grab Santi. The man didn¡¯t use any skills or spells, just enhanced stats as his clawed hands scratched at Santi¡¯s unarmored biceps. He extended a blade and circled it quickly, removing both of the offending appendages, but not before bloody furrows were staining his shirt.

    Santi finished the Acolyte with a hammer blow to the skull, caving in the man¡¯s head with a finality that no driving bloodlust could cure. He turned back to look at the others and was happy to see they had managed to drag one of the raiders off to the side, pinning him to the ground with a spear through the knee.

    With the two Acolyte¡¯s dead, the fight faded in the survivors as their wounds overrode what little remained of their killing frenzy. They didn¡¯t last long after that as blades fell like rain, cleaning away the filth of the world.

    Santi walked past the dead and looked toward their captives as his heart continued to beat frenziedly in his chest. The morph blade extended into a full sized halberd with a keen headsman edge. An urge to continue on, to finish the miscreant whispered in his mind.

    Infection of Bloodlust

    (Lesser)

    ¡°Shit.¡± Santi retracted his blade and backed up quickly. He couldn¡¯t allow the curse to gain any traction. If he fell into its primal urges it would grow stronger. Curses fed on strong, normally negative, emotions. In a world consumed by the System, bloodlust would be one of the more treacherous curses.

    ¡°Santi, it¡¯s saying your infected?¡± Tank asked, his maul held out to the side.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. It¡¯s weak. Just makes me want to hack away a bit, see some blood flow, you know?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s rhyming, something''s wrong,¡± Bianca said as she stood a few feet away.

    ¡°He¡¯s fine as long as he controls it. If he starts to feed the curse and it grows stronger, then he¡¯ll become a threat to everyone. For now just try to keep him away from the curse¡¯s stressors,¡± Torin supplied helpfully. It was nice to have someone who understood the System around to explain things he couldn¡¯t.

    ¡°So, he shouldn¡¯t be fighting in a monster den or hunting down criminals?¡± Cam asked.

    ¡°Absolutely not,¡± Thorin said. He wasn¡¯t as wary as the others who were looking at him like he was a rabid animal. There was still an edge of wariness though as he kept his weapon close.

    ¡°So, we¡¯ll have to tackle the den without him? That¡¯s not going to be easy,¡± Chloe groused.

    ¡°It¡¯ll be fine. We regroup with the others and leave Santiago here with his Mother and the scouts. I¡¯m strong enough to cover for most of his ability and leadership. We¡¯re a decently rounded team,¡± Torin supplied.

    ¡°Good idea. Torin will take command, heed his orders and trust him. He¡¯s the Hall Master for a reason. We need to break that den before that infected crab thing spreads it to the rest of the den. Don¡¯t need bloodlusted monsters running around,¡± Santi ordered the group. He was mad about losing out on the den and what would the harm be in going on one raid? His willpower was strong enough that he could resist the curse. Falling behind on the leaderboards could affect him negatively in the long run. Maybe he should go.

    That train of thought stopped him in his tracks with his mouth open, ready to countermand the orders he had just given. Curses could be nefarious, wheedling their way into his every intention to lead him toward a solution that it craved.

    ¡°Oh fuck it all, go clear it up and hurry it up. I don¡¯t want to be here all day. Me and Mom will go find our errant spies and see what this one has to say,¡± Santi said, pointing at the quietly crying man.

    ¡°No need to yell, we¡¯re right here. Tank we¡¯re going to need some assistance. All three of them are hurt, nothing severe but we got caught up with one of the smaller bands of the raiders near the edge of town,¡± Hana said, jogging toward them as she dropped her light illusion.

    Her and Daniel really did enjoy sneaking up on people and being dramatic with their entrances. It could be annoying. He should stop them from doing that, tell them they needed to be disciplined, and if they didn¡¯t, well he could always make them.

    ¡°Fuck, this curse is fucky. I don¡¯t think being around the rest of these guys is helping anything. Tank, go and heal them scouts, Hana and Daniel, go find the den and see what¡¯s going on. Reconvene with Torin and go scour the bastard. Bianca, cleanse the area please, it¡¯s giving me good ideas.¡±

 Ch. 3.6 Answers

    6.

    The town burned behind them as Bianca¡¯s cleansing flames consumed it all. Mom had helped drag their prisoner away from the strip of town while Santi patrolled the edges. [Gust] would send the fire screaming back in on itself rather than letting it grow and spread. Delilah and the two other scouts had been treated and sat away from the prisoner, often shouting encouraging words as Santi ran around in circles on his firefighter duty.

    Tank had rejoined the team and the rest of them had set off under Torin¡¯s leadership. Santi knew the older dwarf had the experience and skill to lead them, but he still worried. If that crab had spread the curse in its colony then they could be looking at a tough fight without him.

    As he slowly suffocated the fire, he worked his way back toward where the prisoner was. The great thing about magical flame was how fast it faded away when mana no longer fed it. Normal flame was easy enough to smother with the proper application of [Air Manipulation]. He could have made a killing working in the hills and mountains in the north before the integration.

    ¡°You all done Mr. Firefighter?¡± Delilah drawled as she sat with a bandaged leg out in front of her. A bad gash had cut her down to the bone but a bit of time with Tank had made it a rather simple, but long, cut. The scout was small and compact like a gymnast with a pixie cut of black hair and freckles covering her face from hairline to chin.

    ¡°For now, keep an eye out in case it takes off again. Ignore the screaming.¡± Santi passed by them and he heard some chortling and suppressed giggles as the two other women laughed at Delilah. Santi didn¡¯t think they were laughing about him implying what he was going to do to their prisoner.

    ¡°Mom, he say anything?¡± Santi asked as he walked up to them. The man was still laying on the ground and looking pale from blood loss.

    ¡°Just begging.¡± Mom had a hard look on her face as she stared down in judgment at the raider.

    ¡°Alright. What¡¯s your name?¡± Santi stood a few feet away from the man and kept his voice calm. His instincts were betraying him, telling him to smash the man and listen to the harmony of agony in the summer air.

    ¡°It¡¯s in you. I can see it. Just like it got all of us.¡±

    ¡°The curse? It¡¯s trivial, I¡¯ll ride it out and destroy the cursebearer and I won¡¯t have to worry.¡± The prisoner chuckled, quick and sharp exhalation that expanded into a full blown belly laugh. He leaned back on the ground and just laughed.

    ¡°Tony. My name is Tony,¡± he finally managed to get out.

    ¡°Ok, Tony. We found those girls on the side of the road and what you did to them. You¡¯re not coming out of this. Your only choice is slow or fast, you understand?¡±

    ¡°I deserve it. We all do. It¡­it gets into your dreams. You smell it, the blood, the pain, you start to crave it. You don¡¯t understand what it is and who she is.¡±

    ¡°She?¡±

    ¡°Mercy. She calls herself Mercy.¡±

    ¡°How dramatic. Where is she?¡± Santi had seen his fair share of over pompous people who had found their end eventually.

    ¡°Don¡¯t know. She found us at the border, in the mountains. We were doing ok, but she came from the North with a bunch of people. Fighting and killing anything that walked. Join or die. That was all she offered us. She burnt down our home and forced us to move.¡±

    ¡°How many?¡±

    ¡°Fuck man. Who knows. We¡¯re always gaining people, but we¡¯re also losing people constantly. Its a fucking bloodbath every day. Survival of the fittest. Mercy chooses who she raises up, is given her gift she calls it.¡±

    ¡°An infection?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s what the System calls it. It changes them. Those who survive it, they evolve, can start getting levels past twenty-five.¡±

    ¡°How many have received her gift?¡±

    ¡°100 or so. They fight and die all the time too though. You don¡¯t understand, when you¡¯re in that camp, it''s in the air, the ground, and water. You just need to cut and cut and hit and see the blood fall. I¡¯ve seen mothers kill their sons, husbands their wives, brothers murdering the brothers, it''s a nightmare, an unending beautiful nightmare,¡± his face cracked wide in a manic smile as blood dripped out of his nose and eyes.

    ¡°What were her plans?¡±

    ¡°Fight. Kill. Move. That¡¯s all she ever did.¡±

    ¡°And you don¡¯t know where she¡¯s moving too?¡±

    ¡°South and East, toward Nevada.¡± The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

    ¡°Other than that you don¡¯t know her numbers, her intention, or her goals?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Mom. Can you do this? I shouldn¡¯t be doing anything that reeks of bloodshed for now.¡±

    ¡°Move.¡± Mom gently guided him away with a single hand while glaring down at the doomed prisoner. The man¡¯s smile continued on even as the broadhead of the spear passed through his chest.

    ¡°Leave the corpse. When Bianca comes back I¡¯ll have her burn it,¡± Santi said as they moved back towards Delilah and the others.

    ¡°How bad is it? This infection you have now?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. It¡¯s marked as lesser, so it shouldn¡¯t be a major concern as long as I don¡¯t feed it.¡±

    ¡°By fighting?¡±

    ¡°By giving into the thrill of the fight.¡±

    ¡°Your father was ok with you having your secrets. You know too much and you don¡¯t act like my little boy who went away just a few months ago. I still see him now and then, and I know my Santiago is still there. When you¡¯re ready, I¡¯m willing to listen,¡± Mom spoke quietly and without looking at him. It was the closest anyone had come to calling him out for a long time without explicitly knowing.

    ¡°If I had secrets, I wouldn¡¯t,¡± the geas tried to slow him down, but he managed to force the words out before it constricted tight around his throat like a garotte.

    ¡°Ok. I love you, regardless.¡±

    ¡°Love you too, Mom.¡± The blood was still dripping off of her spear from the execution blow.

    ¡°What infection?¡± Delilah asked, this time without the sly smile and flirty looks.

    ¡°Curses. When you clear them you have to be careful not to let them spread. It can infect you, bleeding into your personality and behavior. If you continue to let it fester it¡¯ll consume you until you become a curse anchor.¡±

    ¡°And what¡¯s what was in them is now in you?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think that sentence makes sense. But, yes I¡¯m infected by their bloodlust. I have a much higher willpower than they did. I¡¯ll control myself until we destroy the origin of the curse.¡±

    ¡°Big words,¡± one of the other girls said. Tammy? Denise? Kammie? What the hell was her name?

    ¡°I have my family and friends to keep me in line,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Someone wants to keep you in line,¡± the third scout said, looking at Delilah with a sly smile. Delilah blushed but didn¡¯t look away from him.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think Chloe would approve of that,¡± Mom said with a straight face. All three of the other girls stilled and their smiles grew more wooden. Chloe had a reputation for bloodshed and violence that was becoming a bit worrying.

    ¡°Fuck it, shit or get off the pot,¡± Delilah said with a bit of her old swagger. Santi noticed she wasn¡¯t quite as boisterous as she had been minutes ago.

    ¡°Can you tell me how the new program is working with Daniel?¡± Santi asked, eager to change the subject.

    ¡°Trying to get us to spill on the boss?¡± The third girl asked. She had grown a bit more serious and there was a hesitancy in her words. Could be they had something to hide, or it could be nerves about talking bad about Hana and Daniel.

    ¡°No, I just want to see how everything is developing out here.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s going good. Lots of little monsters that we kill, find survivors and send them towards Homebase. Find possible supplies that haven¡¯t been destroyed and mark them down for Rayleigh. Pretty easy stuff for the most part,¡± Delila said.

    ¡°Anything strange going on? Monsters acting weird or people wandering around being psychos?¡±

    ¡°Like these assholes were? No nothing like that. Got some people who are running around looking for fights. Lots of people not knowing how to get past the level cap too. They always ask when we show up and tell them we have people who are Acolytes.¡±

    ¡°Any of those crazies running around killing monsters seem willing to come and sign up with us?¡±

    ¡°Maybe if someone other than us was asking. You or Cam or even Chloe. Someone stronger than them. They don¡¯t respect us since we¡¯re capped and haven¡¯t gotten beyond the cap.¡±

    ¡°Remind me when we get back, I¡¯ll have Yessenia bump you three to the front of the line for meritorious service to the community.¡±

    ¡°We can wait our turn,¡± the second girl said. She had a bit of a scowl on her face.

    ¡°You¡¯ve done a great service to the community, you deserve the reward.¡±

    ¡°No. We can wait. It won¡¯t look good if only fighters get to go past the cap or skip the line. We don¡¯t need that type of negativity around us,¡± the girl explained.

    ¡°Is it that bad in the main part of the camp?¡± Santi asked, genuinely curious. The last few weeks he had been swamped with fights, training, and organizing the further development of the camp. He hadn¡¯t had time to walk around and listen to the common people.

    ¡°It¡¯s not quite there. But now that the camp¡¯s calm and all the monsters are gone from the region, they¡¯re starting to question why all our resources are going towards the fighters and not towards infrastructure. Only a few crafters or farmers have gotten the levels up and they¡¯re all close to you guys. Or were close with your Dad. People are starting to talk about it and I¡¯d rather we not be part of that conversation,¡± she said.

    ¡°Well, shit. I¡¯ll have to talk to Yessenia when we get back. Maybe a lottery system or something.¡±

    ¡°Or get a second person doing the rituals?¡± Delilah asked. There was a hint of an answer in her question. She had someone in mind and was hoping to see how receptive Santi was to the question before risking her reputation and relationship with him.

    ¡°Do you have someone in mind?¡±

    ¡°A friend. He¡¯s in one of the other scout groups,¡± Delilah said, eyes keen and interested in the conversation. The other two girls looked at her and comprehension bloomed bright across their faces and wild smiles appeared.

    ¡°Keegan?¡± the second girl whispered to Delilah loud enough that even Mom could hear her.

    ¡°Yeah, Keegan. He¡¯s one of the best we have. Can¡¯t sneak around to save his life, but he makes traps and lures and has more monster kills than anyone except Daniel and Hana. He¡¯s also level capped but he has some treasures that should improve his affinity and power it all, he just needs it to get done,¡± Delilah said in a rush.

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll ask Daniel and Hana about him when they come back. Do you know where he is currently?¡± All of the girls suddenly looked pale and drawn as their faces blanched.

    ¡°The North, he was headed further up the highway towards the mountains.¡±

    ¡°Shit. I think our plans are going to have to change a bit, Mom.¡± Santi looked over to Mom who simply shrugged. She couldn¡¯t care where they went right now, she just wanted to be out and doing something.

    ¡°Alright. When Tank gets back I¡¯ll have him bust out the healing potions and get you all on your feet and then we¡¯re heading to the North.¡±

 Ch. 3.07 New World

    7.

    ¡°To recap, there¡¯s a horde of cursed people who came from over the border, down the mountains and are now spreading like an infection. We have the remnants of the traitors and those who were helping them somewhere to our North East, and you want to go looking for a scout who might be able to get a class similar to Yessenia¡¯s to help alleviate the bottleneck of evolutions,¡± Tank was looking mildly concerned.

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°And said scout just so happens to be somewhere North of us, where all the enemies are?¡±

    ¡°Pretty inconvenient, but yes. At least Daniel and Hana believe he¡¯s up there. They lost their group of runners so we¡¯ve lost contact with some of the scout teams.¡±

    ¡°You also have a curse of bloodlust. That makes you want to go and kill people, monsters, or anything that looks at you sideways?¡±

    ¡°Yes, but it¡¯s contained. My willpower is my second highest stat. I can keep it under control.¡±

    ¡°So, again, I¡¯m just reiterating what you said. After getting cursed, you decide the next best thing is to run to the North where all your enemies are and there¡¯s definitely going to be a bunch of fighting and killing?¡± Tank pursed his lips and cocked his head as everyone turned to look at Santi.

    ¡°I¡¯m in control. It¡¯s what needs to be done. We drop Torin and Mom off and head up with some of Rayleigh¡¯s heaviest hitters and anyone else we can scrounge up. Grab some of the golems and we crush them all.¡±

    ¡°See, that part is what¡¯s worrying me. The whole smashing and killing all your foes. It reeks of not being in control.¡±

    ¡°I agree with you, but it needs to be done. The longer I have the curse, the worse it will get. We have to destroy the anchor being and isolate the curse. Actually, we need Yessenia to come with us. We¡¯re going to need a powerful ritual to dispel the curse if it¡¯s as strong as I think it is.¡±

    ¡°Yesi isn¡¯t going to come out here with us,¡± Bianca said.

    ¡°She will if she feels safe. We¡¯ll bring her golem with us, and Mom and Torin can stick with her.¡±

    ¡°So, now Mom and Torin are coming?¡±

    ¡°Listen, I¡¯m trying to come up with this on the fly. We have enemies in the North. Two camps of them. Both are growing and both are existential threats to us. They need to be eliminated. Is this true?¡± Santi looked around to the faces all staring at him. Delilah and the other two girls were off to the side as far away from Chloe as they could get without making it too obvious.

    ¡°Yeah, that seems about right. If the information you tortured out of that guy is true,¡± Cam drawled.

    ¡°We didn¡¯t torture him. He spilled without us doing a thing. If anything it was a mercy killing on our part.¡±

    ¡°What we need to do is go home and regroup. Plan out a full sized expedition, have Daniel and Hana¡¯s people move North aggressively and find where the enemy is. We build up a strike force of the best people we can get. Armor them up, train in large scale movement and then we move. Also,we need to get food and supplies for a company of Acolyte fighters, which means more farmers and hunters, and all that other shit, need to be Acolytes.¡± Cam rattled everything off while everyone stared at him slack-jawed. He caught the looks and his cheeks flushed as he looked around.

    ¡°What? I like military history. Amateurs argue tactics, professionals talk logistics. Shit, I think that¡¯s the quote. Regardless, we need arms, armor, food, transportation, and then finally men. Otherwise we¡¯re going to get a day or two from Homebase and run out of food and that¡¯s going to be the end of all of us.¡±

    ¡°The tall one is right. We need to return to the forges and arm ourselves,¡± Torin said. Heads began to nod all around him and Santi could feel impatience surging through him. He wanted to act. To strike. He took calming breaths and focused on isolating that treacherous thought and slowly strangling it.

    ¡°You¡¯re right. We retreat back home and get armed. But in the meantime, I¡¯m going with Daniel and Hana and we¡¯re scouting it out. I need to see just how strong this horde is.¡±

    ¡°Can¡¯t, I need to get all my people ready. We¡¯re scattered to hell and gone doing recon. Need to gather everyone up and plan out a strategy and routes.¡± Daniel was firm, his accent thickening as he spoke. Part of Santi was proud of him for standing up and not backing down and being a leader.

    The rest of him was irritated that he wasn¡¯t going along with his plan. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go. Me and Chloe and Santi. Fighter, mage, scout. We can move fast and quietly and have the firepower to knock anything out that runs into us and the speed to escape if it goes bad,¡± Hana spoke up suddenly.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine with that. Chloe?¡± Santi spoke quickly as the momentum for his plans swung back in his favor.

    ¡°I¡¯m good with that. I¡¯m just thinking you¡¯re a little too eager to go and potentially be fighting. Shouldn¡¯t you be organizing everything?¡±

    ¡°A good leader knows when to delegate. Cam and Bianca will be organizing the fighters. Torin and Grimvr will gather the arms and armor. Daniel will get our scouts in line and Mom can get Yessenia out of her cave. Tank, I¡¯ll leave logistics with you? Food, medicine, camping gear?¡±

    ¡°I can do that. We all can do that. But, Santi, you should be at home being the leader of this. You are the leader of the community.¡±

    ¡°100% honesty right now. I never wanted to lead the settlement. I took charge because that was the best way to do it. Dad died the next day. The world is changed and we can¡¯t be like old world leaders. Alexander ruled his Empire from the saddle. Caesar became Caesar at the head of his legions. It¡¯s going to be the same for us. Our leaders will be moving, fighting, working hard to get stronger and stronger. We can¡¯t be staying at home filling out paperwork because at the end of the day what happens when a horde of cursed warriors comes knocking?¡± Santi looked around at the group. Months of repressed thoughts finally having an outlet. Most of them knew what he was saying, they might not have internalized it, but they knew.

    ¡°That horde of warriors kills us and takes our shit if we¡¯re not strong enough. And as the leader of this settlement, I can¡¯t just be a figurehead for people to rally behind. I need to be at the forefront. Marisol and Helena and others will be ministers or chancellors or whatever the hell we¡¯ll eventually call them. They¡¯ll be our paperpusher and run the day to day. We will be on the frontlines, fighting and saving people,¡± Santi finished his impromptu speech and looked around at his friends and family.

    ¡°Santi, I don¡¯t know how people will feel about this. If we¡¯re always gone, why would they continue to support us? If we can¡¯t answer to them, be responsible leaders who are there to be held accountable, why would they continue working?¡± Tank asked.

    ¡°Simple. The world sucks and the area we are creating is safe. There are laws and order here. There are no monsters prowling their streets and eating them. We will continue to lean towards our democratic heritage, there will be elections inside of the city for, let¡¯s say Mayor, or Sheriff. Local leaders. But at the end of the day, once they start to understand what this new world is. They¡¯ll realize how good they have it. They can be safe and have families and be prosperous.¡±

    ¡°A benevolent dictator?¡± Tank¡¯s voice was filled with scorn.

    ¡°What would you have me do!?¡± Frustration welled through Santi. They didn¡¯t understand. It¡¯d been months since the Initialization and they still didn¡¯t understand!

    ¡°Set up elections and have the person with the most charm and charisma win. Have them capitulate the first time a threat arrives? What happens when a powerful monster comes roaming by and they decide it¡¯s better to sacrifice a few small towns to save the few? When they tell those with the strength not to act because they won¡¯t like the results? What happens if we¡¯re not here and the next strongest person decides they don¡¯t like taking orders?¡±¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, man. I don¡¯t know. This just feels wrong to me.¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t feel right to me either, Tank. Do you think I want to be a dictator? You think I wanna be hated and reviled? They¡¯ll eventually hate me when I ask for more than they¡¯re willing to offer. When the threat is so large and great that I might not be able to stand against it. They¡¯ll remember all those times I told them to do something that was for the good of the settlement and they will spit on me. It¡¯d be easy to let Marisol or Helena or someone else take over and run this place and just be the heavy for them. Until they decide to do something that¡¯s against my conscience. Then what? Do I uphold their word as law even if it''s wrong. Even if I know it will lead to destruction and death?¡± Santi looked around to his core group of followers. Friends and family, forged in blood and tears with bonds that were as thick as oak trees. They needed to understand.

    ¡°We¡¯ve grown up and lived in a time of systems. Government had rules in place, order was followed because that¡¯s what we always had. We can¡¯t comprehend the chaos that is happening now because we¡¯ve never experienced it before. Warlords and petty tyrants happened elsewhere, not here. Well, now it¡¯s here. There is no more systems of governance, the social contract is completely shattered and gone. The ideals we held dear are gone. We can do our best to remain good and just, but this is the end of our civilization. We may survive as a species, but our civilization is gone. The longer we hold on to what was, the longer it¡¯ll be before we can forge something new.¡±

    There was a silence on the hillside they were on as everyone looked at him. There was understanding blooming in some eyes and resentment in others. He couldn¡¯t tell if the resentment was aimed at him or if it was because he¡¯d finally shown them the gravestone of their world.

    ¡°Now. Does anyone have any problems following my lead. Please, speak now and tell me. We can¡¯t have any type of resentment building between us. Aside from Yessenia, everyone I love is here right now. You are the people who will lead us to a new future, the forgemasters who create the next great world and safety for our species. We can not have infighting amongst ourselves. So, please, tell me right now.¡±

    Cam was solid as always, simply nodding. Mom¡¯s face was a blank slate while Torin and Grimvr simply nodded as he spoke of what everyone who survived the Initialization knew. Daniel and Hana were holding each other¡¯s hands but were serene and simply nodded to him when he looked in their direction. Their three scouts had wide eyes as they had been looped into a conversation far above their heads, but when Santi met their eyes they all nodded along.

    Santi met everyone¡¯s eyes until they agreed with him until Tank was the last. Santi hurt because the big man¡¯s acceptance was something that he wanted. The man¡¯s moral compass was absolute and he had never wavered from doing the right thing. If Tank rejected him, Santi didn¡¯t want to think about it.

    ¡°I don¡¯t like it. I hate it in fact. It goes against everything I believe. That man is equal to each other, that all of us matter. That no one should be above the other simply for being stronger or faster or anything. Everyone is equal.¡± Tank¡¯s face broke as his shoulders slumped.

    ¡°That world is gone though. I¡¯ll follow you Santi.¡±

 Ch. 3.08 Different Conversations

    8.

    They passed by the end of the road and split apart. Santi, Chloe, and Hana broke off from the group and started to head North. The countryside was nothing more than wilted and dead vegetation with little to see besides barren fields. The interstate was nothing but abandoned cars and skeletons. They pushed up further and further away from Homebase and toward where Daniel¡¯s relay team had been wiped out.

    The beatles could have killed them. That was always a concern when working far away from the succor of high ranking fighters. Or it could have been the Apostate covering it up. Santi liked to think it was most likely the Apostate. If it had been the new enemy, they wouldn¡¯t have tried to cover it up with the beatles. There would have been heads on pikes and fires and bloodshed up and down the interstate corridor.

    That didn¡¯t preclude the warlord and her bloodlusted cursed warriors weren¡¯t in the region. They just hadn¡¯t found anything to kill and parade around,yet.

    The first hour was spent in a leisurely jog as they headed closer and closer to the mountains that separated California from Nevada. The towns grew thin and scattered as they kept moving further up. At the second hour mark, Chloe finally broke the silence.

    ¡°Delilah seemed pretty interested in you,¡± her voice was neutral, no hint of her mood as they moved.

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Santi was treading dangerous water.

    ¡°She¡¯s pretty.¡±

    ¡°You think so?¡±

    ¡°I do. Don¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°Was busy being cursed and whatnot. Didn¡¯t really look. You should ask her out if you think she¡¯s pretty,¡± Santi threw it back at her. Chloe looked at him with a shocked face.

    ¡°You¡¯d be ok with me asking someone out?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re your own person.¡±

    ¡°Ok. Then I¡¯ll ask out the person I want to ask out.¡±

    ¡°Good.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s you.¡±

    ¡°Even better,¡± Santi could feel a bit of a smile break on his face.

    ¡°That a yes?¡±

    ¡°Enthusiastic, yes.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s our first date?¡± Chloe asked. They had never broken their stride but Hana had pulled ahead of them to give them a semblance of privacy.

    ¡°You asked me out. It¡¯s on you.¡± Santi was smiling widely now as Chloe was looking at him with a bit of mischief in her eyes. She was enjoying the back and forth.

    ¡°Well, I¡¯ll have to think about it then.¡±

    ¡°You ask me out and don¡¯t even know where you want to take me? I don¡¯t think you¡¯re taking this seriously.¡±

    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m quite serious about this. Not exactly like I can take you out for a Friday night dinner and movie combo.¡±

    ¡°I always thought that was a flawed date. It should be movie and then dinner,¡± Santi said, glad to have something to talk about while they moved.

    ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡±

    ¡°You have something to talk about during dinner. You can get to know a person by how they think about a movie.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡±

    ¡°Oh, yes. I took my movies very seriously.¡±

    ¡°I would have never thought you were a movie bro.¡± Chloe looked a mixed of perplexed and disturbed as if she didn¡¯t understand how she could have missed something like that.

    ¡°What about you? What did you like to do before, well, this?¡± Santi didn¡¯t know her well, didn¡¯t know any of them really. For the last months they had been living in a state of constant fighting and killing, living on the edge of survival.

    ¡°I like movies myself. Primarily horror and romcoms.¡±

    ¡°Really? That¡¯s a fun combo.¡±

    ¡°Not going to say anything about it?¡±

    ¡°What would I say about it?¡±

    ¡°That it¡¯s girly or cliched or something like that.¡±

    ¡°I love romcoms. They¡¯re hilarious and easy to watch. Makes me happy watching them.¡±

    ¡°Figured you¡¯d watch some deep, indie movies with hidden depths.¡±

    ¡°Oh,no. I¡¯m an idiot. Can¡¯t figure out the hidden depths of things if they¡¯re staring me right in the eye. I like action movies, comedies, and anything else that¡¯s entertaining.¡± The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°If we had any type of electricity I¡¯d have to take you up on watching a romcom.¡±

    ¡°I would have loved to watch romcoms with you,¡± Santi smiled at her and felt for the first time in a long time, light and free. The heavy depths he had been swimming in seemed to, for a few moments at least, have lightened.

    ¡°Hey, I see something coming up? Smoke.¡± Hana spoke up and Santi turned to look toward the horizon. There was a thin tendril of smoke rising and Santi felt the depths pull him back down as his heartfelt smile slid away.

    ¡°Alright. Hana, can you go and take a peak without being seen?¡±

    ¡°I hope so, otherwise I¡¯m in the wrong line of work,¡± Hana said. Her camouflage wrapped around her and she disappeared from sight.

    ¡°Just me or does she seem more communicative without Daniel around?¡± Santi asked Chloe.

    ¡°I think she feels a bit disrespected by that question. You wouldn''t have asked Daniel that would you?¡±

    ¡°Probably not. I¡¯m used to him being a sneaky fuck though. She¡¯s just become a sneaky fuck though. Class wise anyway.¡±

    ¡°Trust her to do her job. Should we stay here, or keep moving up?¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s push a bit further up. Stay on the interstate though.¡±

    They moved slowly, giving Hana time to look without encroaching on her. The smoke was miles away, but with their ground eating stride it wouldn¡¯t take long to reach it. The two companions shared a silence, broken at times by discrete looks at each other as the new shared closeness seemed to alleviate a bit of the tension that had been there.

    They went for another mile before stopping, the smoke clearly from a large fire with how thick it was. It was a multitude of plumes all intermingling together as they raced upward, forming one giant pillar.

    Santi tried to rack his brain if they¡¯re had been a town or camping ground in that direction but he couldn¡¯t remember. If he was lucky it was the horde of cursed warriors. He could slip in amongst them, kill Mercy, and then be free of the curse in only a few hours. He had a feeling they were catching the tail end of something.

    Hana came back two hours later. She was a bit wan, green around the gills as she walked up to them. Santi waited as she leaned back against the guardrail, hands on her knees as she looked up to them.

    ¡°There¡¯s nothing living up there,¡± she reported. Santi started toward the fires. Whatever had spooked Hana was something he needed to see. The last few miles flew by as he hit his full speed, having left the two women at the mile marker as Chloe had passed on seeing what it was that had Hana so shaken.

    He came up to it and was taken aback. It had been a trailer home. Or at least it had started off that way. It had spilled out of its confines, fifth wheels, camping trailers, tents, and any other type of semi-movable housing deployed all around.

    Gas stations and convenience stores were posted around the edge of the community. A few more permanent houses had been placed around with small fences marking out their territory.

    Corpses littered the ground. Partial bodies, broken limbs, blood and gore painting every inch of the ground. The trailers burned, some already smoking ruins while others were still ablaze. The small house was nothing more than a charnel, the picket fence standing unstained in a mimicry of normal life.

    Santi walked the edge of the perimeter of the slaughter. He tried to understand what he was seeing. This had obviously been an encampment of some size and likely some power. They had managed to stay safe against the animals and monsters out here. It hadn¡¯t been enough.

    Santi could see the burnt remnants of where skills and spells had splashed against concrete or a building. The feel of spent mana was in the air, the hints of crazed pain and lust that called to his own curse. Mercy had come and paid a call. The prisoner had said she had done the same thing to his home. Join or die and then burn down the town.

    Santi could see how she would roll through Homebase and its environs. There were a hundred or more Acolyte warriors in the warband, more than enough to slaughter what few fighters of strength Homebase had outside of Santi¡¯s team. He¡¯d have to thin the horde, trimming the fat from them like he had with cyclops rift.

    His heart beat a flutter at that thought. Of the continuous skirmishes, fighting and killing in a contest of a few vs. him. He¡¯d revel in it, his speed and strength greater than theirs, his heart singing as he spilt the blood of his foes like water during the rain.

    Santi stilled and focused on his will. The strength that had let him come back from the original timeline. To see the world whole again even when he knew it was ending. He purged himself of the desire to kill and fight. It took time but as the bloodlust wore off he could feel the effects of the curse more strongly.

    It was an aura that drifted and rose with the smoke, that glittered in the coagulating blood, sitting on the corpses of the dead. No longer lost in its heady aroma, he could feel how it was different. It was no longer suffused but a separate entity that sat ugly and bloated.

    Santi walked away, circling around the town as he searched for tracks. The ground was dry and hard, holding little in the way of footprints. The passage of so many was impossible to miss. He found where they had come from the Northwest and where they had left heading Northeast. Blood drops on the ground showed their path, heading toward the mountains.

    Santi followed for a ways, traveling with ease as he searched for where they could have stopped or if there was any who had been left behind. He needed more accurate answers than what the single prisoner had given him.

    For a mile he went further up, stopping in the shade of a copse of trees. He drank a bit of water, but other than that there was little for him to do. He¡¯d go back and get Hana and Chloe and chase after the group, trailing them as they went further towards the mountain.

    ¡°I see you¡¯ve managed to get yourself cursed,¡± Duncan¡¯s voice rang from his left. Santi whirled, blade extending to slice apart a thick tree. No blood flowed, though the tree slowly toppled over, crashing to the ground with a thunderous boom.

    ¡°While not polite, I do understand. Now that you¡¯re no longer enraged, may I come out? Or are you going to try to kill me?¡± the shadows reverberated and pulsed and even with [Air Current] Santi couldn¡¯t tell where he was. It wasn¡¯t like with Daniel who simply cloaked himself in the shadow. The Apostate was one with the shadows, a much higher affinity than whatever Daniel had.

    ¡°No promises. You did kidnap my sister.¡±

    ¡°You cut off my arm. I think that¡¯s fair enough.¡±

    ¡°And my father?¡±

    ¡°I had no part in that. Abraham committed that crime and he paid for it with his life.¡±

    ¡°Why are you talking to me and not trying to kill me?¡±

    ¡°I can ask you the same. You¡¯re reasonably intelligent and much more powerful than I gave you credit for. You can understand what a curse of this magnitude, spreading in the way it is, can be viewed as a greater threat than our little grudge?¡±

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t call what we have little,¡± Santi said dryly, still searching for wherever it was that the assassin was hiding.

    ¡°It is compared to what a curse like the one spreading can do. It¡¯ll eat this area dry. Killing and growing like a plague. We need to break it and neither of us have the numbers to do it alone.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯d think I could do a decent job of it.¡±

    ¡°This is why I said you were reasonably intelligent.¡±

    ¡°The old enemy of my enemy is my friend gambit. Then we go back to killing each other when Mercy is killed?¡±

    ¡°Is that the leader¡¯s name? Mercy?¡± the shadows chortled, a dry sound of amusement. Santi could picture that laugh in a conference room talking about the sales figures for a quarter. Not the laugh of a man who had tried to sell the world out.

    ¡°I thought it was a bit apt too.¡± Santi allowed a smile to brush past his lips. He was cold inside, ready to move at a moment''s notice.

    ¡°There¡¯s a few killers left. I¡¯ll give them to you in exchange for helping me purge the curse. You¡¯re already planning on doing it, might as well coordinate so it¡¯s done right,¡± Duncan continued after his laughing fit passed.

    ¡°Alright. Come out, I promise not to kill you immediately.¡± The promise of the last of the traitors was too sweet to dismiss out of hand.

 Ch. 3.09 Arrival

    9.

    Santi watched as Duncan materialized ten feet to his side. Not from the pool of shadows at Santi¡¯s feet, but rather a further away, slim sliver of shadow cast by a slight crest of the land. The plain faced man was dressed in a plain black sleeveless workout shirt that hugged his lithe frame. The ugly red wound that Santi had afflicted on him was apparent as Duncan stayed a few feet away from him.

    ¡°This is the worst wound I¡¯ve taken. I fought Champions and they couldn¡¯t do what you did. You should be proud,¡± Duncan¡¯s voice was flat and emotionless, his eyes blank pools.

    ¡°My father taught me to finish my work and do it right. Can¡¯t be proud of a half completed job now, can I?¡± Santi met his gaze and didn¡¯t flinch. He belonged here, standing equal to the former Champion.

    ¡°Big claims. Yet, we are not here to measure our mutual animosity, but rather to forge a brief alliance to deal with a greater threat.¡±

    ¡°The curse.¡±

    ¡°Yes. Did you ever see Toronto?¡±

    ¡°No, never made it there. Why?¡±

    ¡°A curse took root there. Powerful thing, gluttony. Ravenous hunger that consumed everyone it touched. It spread and spread and spread until the entire city was consumed. I wasn¡¯t in charge of the operation to break it, but I was there. Santiago. It was one of the worst things I¡¯ve ever seen in my life. I don¡¯t want to witness something akin to it again.¡± Duncan appeared to be truthful, but the master assassin would have no problems lying to him.

    ¡°Mercy is a bloodthirsty killer, but from what I heard, they are more than happy killing themselves to feed their curses. They could burn themselves out before they become a problem.¡±

    ¡°The chaff will be blown away, it won¡¯t die though. The strong will only grow stronger, spreading their rage and hatred as they do so. They won¡¯t destroy themselves, at least not without erasing large swathes of the region.¡±

    ¡°So, a truce of sorts. I can keep my desire to rip your heart out of your chest for a while longer. Can you keep it professional?¡± Santi asked as he waited, nerves stretched thin for the first hint of betrayal.

    ¡°I¡¯ve always been a consummate professional. None of this was ever personal. You are simply in the way of my Lord¡¯s will.¡±

    ¡°Do you know where they¡¯re going?¡±

    ¡°The horde is moving erratically, turning and switching direction on a dime. They¡¯ve backtracked before, swung wide of easy to conquer areas just to hit areas with strong guardians. They don¡¯t discriminate, they attack monsters, animals, or people. Nothing is beyond them.¡±

    ¡°So, no?¡±

    ¡°Currently I don¡¯t. I can keep an eye on them while you rally your people.¡±

    ¡°So you track them, I get my people, we find where they¡¯re at and then destroy them all in one big move?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°And the inevitable betrayal and backstabbing?¡±

    ¡°After we¡¯ve destroyed the curse¡¯s anchor.¡±

    ¡°Excellent.¡±

    ¡°I see why Marley loved you.¡± Duncan said it with such sincerity and deadpan tone that Santi didn¡¯t register it at first.

    ¡°Who the fuck is Marley?¡± Santi spat, but his mind was twisting. Her face changing in his mind, growing imperceptibly more full, lips plump, nose shrinking and becoming dainty as a blush and freckles appeared in his mind.

    ¡°Ahhh, I see. Makes sense. The ritual sent our memories back and without her class, oh well. You¡¯ll wake up in a second and won¡¯t remember a thing of this. Poor bastard, putting you out of your misery would be a kindness.¡±

    ¡°Marley and me were good for each other. I couldn¡¯t believe she was alive when I found her,¡± Santi said. Something was off, his sense of time was wrong. He was missing seconds. Twenty-six of them. Since coming back he was never missing time. He knew every moment of the day like he knew his own name. The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    ¡°Lots of names for that one. She played her parts well. I was honestly surprised when she was able to ascend to become a Champion. Didn¡¯t think she had it in her, but she was a welcome addition to our number.¡±

    ¡°Do you know where she is? I have some questions I would like to hear her answer.¡±

    ¡°Vaguely. She¡¯s like me, lots to do and so little time. She was deployed in the South though. Atlanta birthed so many Champions, couldn¡¯t let it go without a bit of a nudge.¡±

    ¡°Is that your goal? Change the futures of our Champions, pull them to your side before they realize what you are?¡±

    ¡°No. It¡¯s to change them so they don¡¯t become what they did. If they join the better, it is only right to bow to the power of our Lord. Yet, as long as they don¡¯t stray, they can continue to grow. Those we didn¡¯t think would change have already been pruned away. You were the last piece of business I had on the West Coast.¡±

    ¡°Glad I could ruin your plans then. So, want to tell me more of what you all are going to do? Monologue to me, your evil plot?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not evil. It¡¯s the same as you¡¯re doing. Grow strong and protect people. It¡¯s easy to hate someone when you don¡¯t know them. You should be more unbiased, it might open your eyes.¡±

    ¡°Please, you can save the propaganda for your recruits. I walked your camps, the detention centers, the rituals, and everything else. I know what you and your people are.¡±

    ¡°Pity. I had hoped to spare Claire some heartache from killing you. I¡¯ll keep tracking the horde and we¡¯ll meet in two days at the little outpost your scouts were killed in.¡±

    ¡°It was you.¡±

    ¡°No. But I watched.¡± Duncan slipped away without a word and part of Santi thought he had made a mistake. He should have struck while the assassin stood there unarmed and unprepared. Ended him before he could have a chance to betray him.

    There were the missing seconds to think about. Duncan had said Marie¡¯s name and the world had fuzzed out again. He had felt it before, he searched and strained for a moment before those gray walls rose up. They were lesser this time and part of Santi screamed as he realized what was happening to him. The walls fuzzed out and grew thin and shapeless, becoming a fog that drowned him.

    Santi blinked looking around the sunny hillside. He had to get back to Chloe and Hana. They had been waiting for a while and he didn¡¯t want the two of them to worry about him. Not after seeing what the horde had done to the trailer park.

    It took only a few minutes to make it back to them now that he was no longer trying to track the passage of the horde. Both women stood around waiting for him, silent and alert as they took cover behind a few abandoned cars.

    ¡°And?¡± Chloe asked as he got down to them. Santi had to hold back a sigh as he began to tell them what had happened. They didn¡¯t know who Duncan really was, but the fact the leader of the group that he had fought had shown himself set them both on alert.

    ¡°He¡¯s a more powerful version of Daniel?¡± Hana asked incredulously.

    ¡°More ruthless and likely a stronger affinity to shadow. I couldn¡¯t sense him this time until he decided to reveal himself. He¡¯s a true threat. Keep a wary eye out for anything that seems suspicious. I don¡¯t trust them, but this cursed group is Wrong. We need the numbers to clear them out.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not disagreeing with you, it¡¯s just. Hard to believe you¡¯d be willing to side with him,¡± Chloe stated her opinion.

    ¡°I don¡¯t like it. It¡¯ll be easier to keep track of him when he¡¯s on our side rather than being an unknown running about.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re going to double-cross him,¡± Chloe said, half-accusation, half-praise.

    ¡°If he doesn¡¯t do it first, you¡¯re damn right I am. The moment the curse holder is dead, Duncan dies.¡±

    ¡°Good. Thought you were getting a bit soft in the head for a moment.¡± Chloe¡¯s smile was kind enough that it removed any sting her words had. Before he could respond the sky rippled silver and a BOOM shook the world. Before the initial shock of the first explosion hit, another rolled over them, then another, blast after blast that shook the ground and rattled their teeth.

    [Air Manipulation] spun up and around him and the women, blocking the rippling sonic booms. Each blast of sound tore at his spells and he was forced to cast over and over again trying to keep himself and the others from being overwhelmed.

    For a few minutes they grabbed and held at each other as the world shook around them. It was as if they were experiencing a powerful earthquake while a squadron of fighter jets soared around them. Then it ended as suddenly as it began.

    Congratulations, you are still alive!

    The Initialization is well under way and many have shown their promise.

    Now, to connect you to the wider world.

    Pillars of Civilization have landed.

    Claim them and grow stronger.

    ¡°What the hell was that?¡± Chloe shouted as she clutched at her ears. Hana was on her knees, clutching her head as she worked her jaw up and down to try to have her eardrums pop.

    ¡°Pillars of Civilization apparently.¡± Santi had to keep the excitement out of his voice. The day had been a rollercoaster and now that he was seeing the trails of white vapor rising up not far from him, he was happy to think about what was to come. The mountain of coins he had accumulated

    Access to the markets would alone be worth it. Being the master of a pillar would allow him to know the strongest people in the area. He wouldn¡¯t know their exact location, but the general location of them was more than enough. If he could go and claim one fast enough, he could track both Mercy and Duncan.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go. I want to see what they are before anyone else.¡± Santi took off, not waiting for either of the women. Both of them followed a second later, their grumbling following behind him.

 Ch. 3.10 Travelling to the Pillar

    10.

    Finding the Pillar wasn¡¯t difficult. The difficulty was in everything else was also trying to find it. Mutated animals, monsters, and humans were all crawling out the woodwork and whatever hidey holes they had sequestered themselves in. Santi was forced to cast spells at a blistering pace.

    Mutated birds were wrenched out of the air and cast to the ground, frail bones shattering. Something big, ugly, and with wings shrieked at them before wheeling away when it watched a flight of birds crash to the ground. The girls were stuck with the things that came bolting out of the countryside and over the interstate they traveled.

    Peak Initiate level goblins, a lost primus, and some lizard monsters that scuttled about in bronze armor. Chloe met them head on without hesitation, her axe a black blur as bodies were dismantled around her. Hana danced in the backlines, disappearing and then reappearing to ram her knife into something¡¯s vitals. She lacked the sheer brutality of Chloe or Santi¡¯s overwhelming power, but she could kill with a practical ruthlessness that was hard to match.

    ¡°Santi! What the fuck are those?¡± Chloe screamed as something trundled out onto the interstate from an abandoned rest station. They were bears. Kinda. Big, hairy, sloped shoulders and triangular heads with beady black eyes. Yellow canines jutted from their jaws as they sniffed with inquisitive, wet, black noses. They rose to their hind legs, towering above all as they looked around with beady eyes.

    It was just the pair were the size of a house.

    Mutated Short-Faced Bear lvl. 52

    Mutated Short-Faced Bear lvl. 54

    ¡°We fighting them?¡± Hana whispered, eyes wide as she took in the North American monstrosities.

    ¡°Fuck yeah.¡± Santi hit a sprint, morph spreading and turning into a long boar spear as he closed in on the two monsters. The lone primus strayed too close, beating its chest and the bear reached out with casual authority and swatted the primus¡¯s head free of its shoulders.

    His heart sang as the lower leveled one fell forward, landing with a crushing boom that shook the earth under Santi¡¯s feet. The ground rippled forth in a wave and Santi leapt with grace, taking flight briefly as he rose up and over the quadruped, sun shining behind him as he began to fall.

    The spear stretched out and the magical blade sheared flesh, fat, muscle and bone, reaching for vital organs as the bear roared in agony.

    It shrugged its great shoulders and Santi was flung like he had been slapped out of the air. The space around the bear simply rejected his presence, slamming him away from the monster.

    Santi spun in mid air, landing light and easy on his feet as he took in the monster and reevaluated it. Not an earth affinity monster then. Something closer to space or mass. Annoying.

    ¡°Careful, don¡¯t get too close. It¡¯s in complete control of its immediate surroundings,¡± Santi called out, warning the two women before they could get too close. The monster was a hard counter to Hana if it could sense her getting close.

    The second monster continued to shuffle away, ignoring its partner as it moved across the interstate and disappeared into the rampant dried brush. Santi watched it carefully with one eye while his other was on the second mountain of fur and fang in front of him.

    The wounded bear was snuffling and licking at its wound, wine red blood staining its pale gray coat. The tongue was dark and purple and much too long.Santi cast [Crosscurrent-Orb] at the beast¡¯s face. The gale force winds ripped at its flesh, flattening its fur and caused its jowls to ripple. It ducked its head and sneezed violently, but otherwise seemed not bothered at all by his most violent attack.

    ¡°Really need a new spell form,¡± Santi murmured as he closed the distance carefully. He prodded at the bear with his morph stretched out to its current fullest extent. The wounds were middling, more irritant than deadly to the bear as it shuffled forward toward him, slowly gathering speed.

    Space shrank as with each slow, lumbering step the bear traveled further than it should.

    ¡°NOW!¡± Santi yelled, hoping that while it controlled space to chase him, it couldn¡¯t stop either of the girls. He jumped at the bear, a manic smile unnoticed on his face, the long spear transforming into a cruel axe as he swiped down to split flesh from bone.

    The bear¡¯s mighty paw rose and glinting black claws hit the axe and the axe blade slid off, redirected in an instant. Santi split the interstate in twain, the axe head burying itself deep as the bear smiled at him from only feet away. A bolt of fear rattled him, shaking the surging adrenaline and desire for bloodshed.

    Santi cast three [Air Shield]s in a row and watched as all three were destroyed with a contemptuous swipe of a paw. It had bought him a moment and that¡¯s all he needed to jerk back and create a bit of space. The bear took a single step and crossed the distance, but spun and growled as Chloe slammed into it, her axe slicing its flank.

    Hana appeared, spells falling away as she rammed home a long dagger into its turned neck, ripping and tearing as she ran away. [Air Shield] slowed the bear¡¯s sudden head turn from killing Hana as she darted away. Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

    As it turned back and forth to confront the three of them, Santi began to whittle it away. His more rational mind taking control of his bloodlust as they worked with mechanical precision. They had trained for something like this, for hunting more powerful monsters. Without Cameron and his shielding abilities it was up to Santi to play the role of frontliner while Chloe moved to damage while Hana looked for a weakness.

    It wasn¡¯t pretty. A half hundred wounds turned the bear into a tapestry of red, its howls and roars ignored as its more powerful brethren never returned. Santi was panting, gasping and clutching at his willpower as the heady copper scent of blood filled the air. Santi feinted, stabbing at an eye and the bear raised its head, jaw snapping at the spear point. Hana darted in, sliding under and slashing again at where she had already cut it.

    A geyser of red jetted out, blood staining the ground and Hana as she failed to get out of the way fast enough. Santi was forced to cast again to prevent a stomping foot while Chloe hit the beast with a shoulder charge before it could chase Hana. It staggered about, eyes glazed over in fury and blood loss as it failed to make a decision. The decision was taken from it as its tree trunk thick legs buckled and it collapsed to the ground.

    The kill notification was appreciated but Santi was already urging them forward. He left the bear to molder, the weight of a thousands of pounds of meat sitting to rot in the hot sun. If he had a crew with him the harvest would have been plentiful, but he had to keep moving. The closest pillar was going to be a hotbed of activity and he was determined to see it belong to him.

    Neither of the girls said anything to him even if they were coated head to toe in tacky blood. Santi recognized his own state as being slightly cleaner, his weapon allowing him the distance needed to avoid the sprays of blood. Part of him wished he was coated though. That the blood of his defeated floes dripped off of him, a testament to his skills and power.

    ¡°Hana, get up and ahead of us. The Pillar should be close by, it looks like it landed in the middle of that town up ahead,¡± Santi said, nodding at a sun faded green population sign. The smoke of the arrival of the pillar was rising high as a beacon, alerting all to what was coming.

    Hana nodded, face tight with a mix of anger and displeasure, but she did as she was ordered. Her light bending wrapped her up and made her disappear and a moment later Santi felt her leave his sphere of omniscience.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think you have that curse under control like you were telling us,¡± Chloe said as they slowed down from their blistering pace into a steadier march. An overpass was coming up which would allow them a decent view of the small town and the two of them walked as they started up it.

    ¡°It¡¯s a bit more insidious than I thought it was. It got me there for a minute, but I got it back under control,¡± Santi said as they got to the top of the overpass and looked down. It was another one of the small towns that dotted the Sacramento valley, formerly a farming town that had slowly withered as the locals were bought out and driven off.

    A fifty foot tall sliver of silver rose like a pin from the ground, dwarfing everything in height. It was buried through the heart of a brick store and steam and smoke wafted off of it.  All around it battles raged. Humans were the dominant group, in ragged clothes and fighting with a mix of weapons, they killed and died in small clusters. Santi watched as one group turned and fought another, two men dying under a woman¡¯s blister red, skill wreathed fists.

    ¡° Something funky is going on down there. They¡¯re not unified, maybe competing factions?¡± Chloe hypothesized as she watched, slinging her axe over her shoulder. Santi nodded his agreement while he waited for Hana to get back.

    ¡°What¡¯s the plan chief? We go in there, crack some skulls, kill some monsters, and you take the Pillar?¡±

    ¡°That could be what we do. Need to see what Hana has to say. I don¡¯t think cutting a bloody swathe through that melee would be the best for me right now.¡±

    ¡°Oh, you think?¡± Chloe smiled as she needled him. She didn¡¯t flinch from the bloodshed, from the hard realities. There was a true core of steel in her that would carry her far if she could stay alive. If Santi didn¡¯t drag her down with his personal dilemmas.

    ¡°I was thinking about first date ideas.¡± Santi raised an eyebrow and turned to her.

    ¡°I think we should go on a picnic,¡± Chloe suggested eagerly.

    ¡°I think you¡¯re just trying to get me to cook for you again,¡± Santi smiled at her as he discerned her intentions.

    ¡°Ughhh, can you blame me? Been eating those nutrition sticks for weeks and finally get one real meal and now we have to go back to the sticks.¡±

    ¡°Better than being hungry.¡±

    ¡°Just because it could be worse, doesn¡¯t mean it¡¯s not bad.¡±

    ¡°True that. But, yes, I accept your proposal of a picnic.¡±

    ¡°Excellent!¡± Chloe beamed at him with a wide smile and Santi felt himself responding back.

    ¡°You two done?¡± Hana asked as she stood right outside of his sphere.

    ¡°Now you know how all of us feel when you and Daniel do couple stuff in front of us,¡± Santi retorted. Chloe just shrugged, not caring at all.

    ¡°What¡¯s it looking like down there, besides the scrum.¡±

    ¡°Three factions of humans. They each have a small camp off to the side and are busy fighting each other. Playing keep away with your pillar. I don¡¯t know if any of them really want it, none are being aggressive about putting their reserves forward to claim it. Maybe sixty of them all together with another twenty or so in the actual fight. Monsters aren¡¯t organized at all aside from those lizards in armor. Just a few Acolyte monsters, all of them weak.¡±

    ¡°So far.¡±

    ¡°So far,¡± Hana agreed as she sipped on some water.

    ¡°March down there, crack skulls, kill monsters, and take what you want?¡± Chloe asked again.

    ¡°Let¡¯s see if we can avoid cracking skulls. Hana in your quick in and out, did you see any of them that looked like they¡¯d be willing to talk or at least not try to kill us immediately?¡±

    ¡°One of the groups has skulls, human mind you, hanging from chains. All men, no children with them, no women, no younger men either. Second group is a mix of middle aged people and they¡¯re the ones who are playing it the most defensively. They¡¯re also the smallest, but that woman down there with the red fists is with them. The last group is like us, younger and more flexible. They¡¯re mixing it up without a care in the world, but they¡¯re also killing the others whenever someone steps in front of them.¡±

    ¡°A group of killer assholes, careful middle aged fighters with a heavy weight, or a bunch of younger hot heads. Those are my options?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Chloe, I think we¡¯re going to get to crack some skulls.¡±

 Ch. 3.11 Meeting the Neighbors

    11.

    Slipping off of the overpass and into the town was easy enough. Everyone was busy fighting, slashing, stabbing, burning, and killing in an orgy of destruction that called to Santi. He forced his will to crush down the urges, focusing on their objectives as Hana led them to the camp most likely to follow them.

    The cautious middle aged group was deep in the center of the destroyed downtown. They had taken over a cored out building only a few blocks from where the Pillar of Civilization sat. The fighting around the pillar was a mess of a melee, with dozens fighting, ducking in and out of buildings, around burnt out cars, and piled up rubble. None could get to the pillar, dying as all the factions turned on any who closed in on it.

    The woman with the burning fists was duking it out with some low grad Acolyte monster. She was holding her ground, but not being able to overwhelm it as they fought through the ruins of a fast food restaurant. Santi got one last look at her as she hit the heavily armored monster in a burst of power, staggering it but not sending it to the ground.

    ¡°She¡¯s solid. Would be a good addition to Rayleigh¡¯s crew,¡± Santi remarked to Chloe. Chloe just grunted, eyes sweeping all around her as she kept her axe ready to intercede with anything that came at them.

    Hana kept moving at a brisk walk, her own knife clutched and at the ready. She didn¡¯t turn and listen to them, simply pausing at the edge of a building to peak around it. She darted around the corner and Santi followed after as they kept moving toward where the group was located. As Santi turned the corner, a shape leapt free of the second story window, landing between him and Hana. Santi lashed out without hesitation and cut the lizardman in half without pausing.

    He stepped past the dead creature even as its body settled, head swiveling and alert. Hana glanced back, startled by the sudden violence. Santi just pointed towards his own eyes and then up. She nodded slowly and began to check the upper levels of things as she walked.

    They moved slowly, never exceeding a slow walk as they moved around buildings and fights without interfering. Nothing here was strong enough to honestly challenge them, but getting dragged into the quagmire would only slow them down further. It was something that he had to remind himself frequently as he wanted to solve the quagmire mess by simply killing everything in the town. At least, a small part of him did.

    An incessantly annoying growing small part of him. Santi was forced to push it down, the niggling thoughts that wormed its way through his mind.

    ¡°It¡¯s just up ahead. There¡¯s someone on the roof watching,¡± Hana said as she peeked around the corner at where the new group was located. Santi leaned over and saw where she was pointing at.

    A single person sat by the ledge watching the streets and another lounged hidden across the street. Hana had missed the person, Santi only seeing them when he glimpsed them in the reflection of a window.

    He crossed the street after [Identifying] the sentry and realizing she was just a peak Initiate. He gave her a little wave as he walked, even as she bolted upright and promptly disappeared. A hole or quick escape route on the roof that allowed her to quickly get to the others.

    Santi wagged a finger at the second sentinel who was rising up and drawing an arrow back to fire in her bow. She froze, looking surprised as Santi walked straight through the kill zone and into the  building. Chloe and Hana followed behind, both of them looking at who Santi had waved his fingers at.

    ¡°How¡¯d you know they were there?¡± Hana asked.

    ¡°Reflection in the glass over there,¡± Santi tipped his head subtlety towards where the glass was. He didn¡¯t want the archer to see what had given her away. Not till they were officially aligned with him.

    ¡°Smart,¡± Hana whispered. Chloe just shrugged a shoulder as they marched through the broken front wall of the store.

    A pair of burly older men rose up to block their passage, their faces twisted in fear as they used a skill to identify them. Both backed up a few steps and Santi passed by them with just an easy nod.

    The linoleum floors were dirty and scratched, light streaming though behind Santi as he looked at the group of people huddled around the main table. They all looked at the three of them and slowly straightened up. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    ¡°Can I help you?¡± a slightly older man asked. His shoulder length hair was iron gray and fine as silk. He wore a patched flannel shirt with rolled up sleeves exposing corded forearms covered in military tattoos. His dark eyes were unflinching iron pits of determination. Even with Santi¡¯s higher levels and power, he didn¡¯t seem phased.

    Warrior lvl. 25

    To get the class of a warrior right off the bat spoke much of his disposition and skill set. The tattoos, build, and the way he carried himself all but screamed that he was a former active military member. These types of men and women had often managed to have early success, plying their skills to great effect. It was later down the line when things veered away from the team work and early days of the integration that they struggled. The personal growth needed to pass the next level of cap points was something that you could not do without a significant amount of resources. It required a greed that many of them couldn¡¯t or wouldn¡¯t express.

    ¡°My name is Santiago Silva and I have come to claim that Pillar of Civilization.¡±

    ¡°Pleasure¡¯s yours I guess. I¡¯m Frank.¡±

    ¡°Pleasure is mine Frank, I would like to help out with your situation outside but I would like to know what¡¯s actually happening before I start cutting.¡±

    ¡°Town went to shit. Some fucking nutters decided this was the time to start a death cult since nothing matters. Extreme nihilism but they¡¯re incompetent for the most part. The real worry is the kids. They¡¯re drunk on power and don¡¯t want to hear anything about slowing down and taking it slow. Maya got into it with one or two of them and it¡¯s been bad blood since.¡±

    ¡°The kids, can they be reined in or is it to the death?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°We want them back in the fold. They¡¯re good people, but, this power they have. It¡¯s made them hard headed. Constantly going on and on about grinding levels and finding treasures and powers. None of them have managed to get past twenty-five like you though.¡±

    ¡°Something I can help with if you¡¯re willing to sign up with my people.¡±

    ¡°You have people?¡± A woman asked suddenly, fear and hope intermingled in her voice.

    ¡°Yes. We have people. A full on town about fifty miles from here. Got a couple thousand people, farmers, armorers, clean water, the works.¡±

    ¡°Can we go there?¡±

    ¡°Yes. We are working on spreading out a bit, trying to establish smaller villages and towns to reduce the strain on our infrastructure. I just want you to know that before I bring you folks along.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯d have to settle a town. Again?¡± the same woman asked, eyes sinking downwards in defeat.

    ¡°Yes. But you¡¯d have support. I have teams of fighters who roam the area, scouts who hunt monsters, the whole kit and caboodle.¡±

    ¡°And all we need to do for that is help you with claiming the Pillar?¡± Frank cut in.

    ¡°No. You can get all that by just promising to follow our rules. And not getting in my way when I start working on claiming the Pillar.¡±

    ¡°Dillan, go and get your sister and everyone else. Pull back everyone from the pillar,¡± Frank ordered quickly, one of the large men who had confronted them when they walked in turned around and went out the hole.

    ¡°This should take a few minutes. You are sure you don¡¯t need any manpower from us in clearing the area?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be fine. Just clear out the people you want to stay alive.¡±

    ¡°Santi, you¡¯re slipping,¡± Chloe leaned in and whispered in his ear urgently. The whispered words were hardly more than the sigh of exhalation but loud enough that they rang through his growing haze of bloodlust.

    ¡°I¡¯ll try to keep the kids alive and relatively unharmed,¡± Santi amended after a second. People relaxed subtly around him. They hadn¡¯t been about to stop him, but they weren¡¯t exactly thrilled with his earlier words.

    ¡°Shit, you¡¯re all kids yourself,¡± the woman from earlier said.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about us, we can handle ourselves. Just get ready to move once I claim the Pillar.¡±

    The three of them separated from Frank and his people and walked out of the store. The negotiations had been short and sweet just like Santi liked them. It was easy when you came from a position of strength and offered the other party everything they wanted.

    ¡°Santi, are you sure this is how you want to play it? Your curse is affecting you,¡± Chloe leaned, the warmth of her body present against his back.

    ¡°It is. I can¡¯t deny it. We still need that pillar and everyone is in my way to getting it.¡±

    ¡°Let me and Hana deal with it then. We¡¯re strong enough to do it. We can¡¯t be losing you to some type of fucking madness right now.¡±

    ¡°I agree with whatever Chloe is whispering into your ear,¡± Hana said without turning to look at them.

    ¡°Alright, you two go and clear the way then. Give Dillan a minute to get his people out of the way and then you two can get to work. I won¡¯t step in unless you need help.¡±

    ¡°We won¡¯t,¡± Chloe said without hesitation.

 Ch. 3.12 Delegating

    12.

    He really didn¡¯t need to help them. The  women were like two goddesses of war out on the battlefield, the peak Initiate level monsters and fighters failing to slow them as they massacred their way across the field. Santi watched in rapt appreciation as Chloe split a lizardman in half then spun and bisected a second one, turning the two into four pieces all in one long smooth motion.

    Hana was quieter, she didn¡¯t stand in the center of the field like Chloe did, calling all attention to herself. She wove a trail of death across the battle with barely a ripple of her presence. Santi caught glimpses of her as her cloaking ability fell right as she stabbed. She hadn¡¯t mastered holding the cloak while stabbing, but it was coming along better than it had. Santi thought she might do well with a distance weapon, a shortbow, crossbow, or even a javelin. Something to keep her at range and striking invisibly.

    It had been awhile since he could just sit back and watch others. It was illuminating. Chloe shifted her weight too much when she struck, her center of balance changing in ways that would be easier to counter. Hana had a habit of only striking from the right back side. Never directly behind or to the left, obviously favoring her strong dominant hand.

    Easy things to see with a birds eye view of a larger battlefield, but not quite as easy when one was in the thick of it. He wondered to himself what else he had been missing by being too deep in the middle of things. His musings were cut short by a group of people walking up to him, the fighters pulled back by Frank¡¯s orders.

    The first was the fistfighter, Maya, and then behind her was her brother Dillan. The larger man was a walking mountain of muscle, but he trailed his younger looking sister like a hound dog. Now that he was closer he realized that Maya was probably closer in age to the young folks than she was Frank. Late twenties, maybe pushing thirty.

    Pugilist lvl. 25

    A boxer of some sort, she had the build for it. Long arms, powerful shoulders, a balanced walk with a spring in her step. Her brother was a poor imitation of the restrained violence that Maya projected so casually.

    ¡°You¡¯re not down there helping them? Can¡¯t handle the fight?¡± Maya asked, her voice edged with adrenaline, she was still floating high from her fight and was only now starting to come down. She was looking to push, to start something to keep herself up and going, keeping the engine revved so to speak. Santi took it all in and just leaned back and watched his two friends, or whatever Chloe was now to him, continue to fight for him.

    ¡°Naw, blood makes me squeamish and the girls wanted to blow off some steam. Said I¡¯d stay up here and watch out in case anything jumps them.¡±

    ¡°Smartass then. Makes sense your a mage. Wizard types are always snarky in books.¡±

    ¡°You can read?¡± Santi asked as innocently as he could.

    ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for that question mark next to your class I would box your ears,¡± Maya said with a vicious grin. There was no mistaking the pleasure in her eyes as the two settled down for a verbal spar. Both of them wanted to be out there fighting, but she was outclassed and he couldn¡¯t keep feeding his curse.

    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t pick on people smaller than you,¡± Santi said as he watched Chloe slice the monster Maya had been dueling in circles. The axewoman took two swipes to kill it, dispatching it as easily as she had the Initiate level monsters.

    ¡°Guess that means you can pick on anyone?¡±

    ¡°Yup, perks of being small. I¡¯m always the underdog,¡± Sants said while he watched as the other fighters marched down to the store that Frank was holed up in. Dillan looked at them and then shrugged before heading down himself.

    ¡°New world. Size don¡¯t mean shit. Look at my brother, looks like a hill that sprouted legs. Can¡¯t fight for a shit though. Not this new way. Just not fast enough on the uptake.¡±

    ¡°Tell him to put points into intelligence and not just strength and durability.¡±

    ¡°You can tell that from just glancing at him?¡±

    ¡°Close enough. I¡¯m observant. Just like you have a bunch of points into dex, perception, and strength. Good blend of striker and speed with the ability to find weaknesses and hit them. Lower end of the mana and willpower range, not a ton of vitality or durability either. Trust yourself to avoid being hit.¡±

    ¡°You are good. Dillan wanted to be the big guy around here. Help people out, keep them safe, so he needed to be big and tough. It worked for a bit, but he got too lopsided and then the level cap.¡± This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    ¡°We can help with that.¡±

    ¡°You can break us past the cap?¡±

    ¡°With a few ingredients. It¡¯s not always the most pleasant experience, just to warn ya,¡± Santi shuddered as he thought of his own evolutions.

    ¡°We all want it. More and more of those beasts coming over and their levels are getting close to the thirties. Me, Frank, Dillan, and a few others used to be able to work to get them down. Now, we just have to hide.¡±

    ¡°We can work on that. My sister normally does the evolutions, but she¡¯s a bit backlogged. We can always work out something here when I claim the pillar.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s so important about it anyway?¡±

    ¡°Why are you asking me, you were the one actually down there fighting for it.¡±

    ¡°That was just to stop the skeleton fucks from having it. The kids hopped in and then all the monsters started coming down. Turned into a right clusterfuck,¡± she emphasized the point by spitting powerfully on the ground.

    ¡°The System sent it. That¡¯s all I need to know,¡± and could say, Santi thought bitterly. While Akthry was helping him, the geas was a damn migraine.

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s a big one. Your girls can kill it?¡± Maya asked as a new monster announced itself by plowing though a small building, sending materials flying everywhere. Santi took a look at it and fought his instinctive urge to shudder, he didn''t like snakes. It was the way they wiggled about that had always made his skin crawl.

    Serpentine Explorer lvl. 34

    ¡°They should be fine. It¡¯s right in their wheelhouse.¡± Both of the women were higher level than it, but not by much. The flashing fangs dripped poison, the ground smoking whenever a drop landed. Its gleaming skin was emerald with black markings in diamonds running its length. Its copper colored hood flared as it hissed, two weak talon tipped arms stretching out as Chloe threw herself at it.

    Santi watched as she rippled, skin taking on a sheen as the snake spat venom at her. Instead of hitting vulnerable flesh, it splashed harmlessly off of metal, her newest armor skill working well with her affinity. She slashed and her axe split scales, blood rolling out in a wave of steaming crimson as the snake hissed and roared, rising up and wiggling backward.

    Right into Hana. The small assassin appeared next to the coils, blade flashing as she rammed it into the side of its face. She twisted and tore, disappearing as the snake jerked to the side, spitting another well of venom at the where the small woman had been. Santi hoped she¡¯d gotten out of the way in time. He didn¡¯t want to tell Daniel his girlfriend had been killed by an overgrown snake while he sat on his haunches.

    Maybe he should get up. Just in case.

    The thoughts warred in his mind until he got them under control. He loosened his white knuckle grip on his weapon, taking a calming breath as he looked at Maya. She was watching him with an interested look, half torn between excitement and fear.

    ¡°You¡¯re strange. Just now, I could swear I was going to die,¡± she whispered the words but to Santi they were a screaming recrimination.

    ¡°Going through something right now. I¡¯ll get better.¡±

    ¡°Your friends just killed that snake.¡± Maya pointed and Santi looked to see that she was right. The snake had been split down the center while another two deep puncture wounds on its face showed Hana¡¯s work. They had eventually managed to hit something of value and the monster was dead.

    The field of battle had emptied as all the monsters were slain. The girls hadn¡¯t interacted with either group right off the bat, instead focusing their work on the monsters and mutated animals, purging them from the region before they went back to the humans.

    While they did that the surviving humans had shown remarkable critical thinking and had fled as fast as their legs could carry them. Santi would have to go and hunt down the death cult, but he could wait till after the bloodlust was banished. That or after he had gotten Frank¡¯s crew leveled. He had a feeling Maya and Frank wouldn¡¯t mind dealing with them.

    ¡°Wanna see the pillar?¡± Santi asked as he got up. Maya was another of those people. The fire burnt in her brightly. She had the drive and passion to push her boundaries far enough to glimpse true power. Maybe not a Champion, but a Disciple for sure.

    ¡°Damn straight. Spent hours running around fighting for it, want to see what all the fuss was about.¡±

    Santi pushed his way downtown, mindful of keeping Maya close by and not simply sprinting to the pillar. He had never had one before, the power of the pillars kept in the hands of the strongest around. Most Champions had one if not a collection of them.

    ¡°Cleared all your lightwork for you, boss¡± Chloe called out sarcastically, axe slung over her shoulder as she walked over to them. He could feel Hana off to the side, working her way closer but not introducing herself right now. She really had been picking up habits from Daniel.

    ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll be writing up a good performance review for your next evaluation,¡± Santi smiled at her, letting a peek of his true emotions through. Chloe¡¯s clouded face drained of negativity as she smiled widely back at him.

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s gross,¡± Maya remarked snidely as she walked past them to look at the Pillar of Civilization.

    ¡°It is,¡± Hana declared as she materialized next to Maya, blocking her from touching the silvery metal of the pillar.

    ¡°Glass houses, Hana. Glass houses.¡± Chloe shot back, but the look of happiness on her face didn¡¯t diminish one iota.

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s see what this baby holds for us,¡± Santi said, stepping around Maya as he reached up to connect to the Pillar.

 Ch. 3.13 Diplomacy

    13.

    Santi¡¯s fingers brushed over the warm metal, heat emanating off the surface. A burst of pain and knowledge shot through his mind. A connectedness as his mind expanded, surpassing its limit as knowledge flowed through him like a rushing river.

    Pillar Connected

    Santiago Silva Air Mage lvl. 44

    Confirm Claim?

    With a single thought Santi confirmed his desire to claim the pillar. More power surged through him, an electricity that had his hair rising on his head and arms, taking his breath from him as he struggled to contain it all. He could now appreciate the strain people had talked about when claiming the pillars.

    24 Hour Challenge Period Started

    Survive against all Challengers

    ¡°What?¡± Santi whispered as he stared at the newest block of floating text. He couldn¡¯t remember this in the last timeline. How could he have not known of this, or was it something new?

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± Chloe asked.

    ¡°There¡¯s a wait period where people can challenge me.¡±

    ¡°Figures. Nothing is easy.¡± Chloe simply shrugged.

    ¡°This is an impediment to our plans. I won¡¯t be able to move this until it¡¯s claimed. I need to stay here and hold this until it¡¯s ours.¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t forfeit it and get another one later?¡± Hana asked.

    ¡°I mean, I could. But, in the meantime others have this. People who may not be friends. We can¡¯t give up any advantage we can claim.¡±

    ¡°So, what? We just wait here?¡±

    ¡°Me and Chloe wait here. You¡¯re going to run back to Homebase and gather up everyone and send them here,¡± Santi told Hana.

    ¡°And what about Mercy? We¡¯re just going to let her keep running wild?¡± Chloe cut in.

    ¡°No. I have a feeling she¡¯s going to be coming down to us.¡±

    ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡±

    In response to Chloe¡¯s questions a massive ding took everyone¡¯s attention. The system alert echoed out and every person stopped what they were doing to look at the words.

    Local Challenger to Pillar of Civilization

    Santiago Silva

    24 Hour Window to Contest the Claim is Now Open

    ¡°Oh, shit. You think everyone in the state just saw that?¡±

    ¡°No. It said local. Probably just a couple hundred miles. Mercy saw it for sure.¡±

    A beam of golden light shot free of the pillar, bright even in the sunlight, obvious from miles away no doubt. Every eye turned to look at it.

    ¡°Hana. I¡¯m going to need you to book it. Get there as soon as possible. How fast can you do it?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Never really gone all out for a long distance. I¡¯m going to have to cloak myself, there¡¯s things out there strong enough that I can¡¯t fight them. That¡¯ll slow me down. Maybe like an hour and a half, maybe two?¡±

    ¡°Alright get moving, don¡¯t get caught. Bring everyone here, the sooner the better. I have no doubt we¡¯ll be getting some feelers here shortly.¡±

    ¡°You and Chloe can hold the house down here?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me and Chloe. We can last long enough for you to get back.¡±

    ¡°What about us?¡± Maya cut in suddenly, the three friends turning to look at her. She had been standing quietly and observing them.

    ¡°What do you mean? I made a deal with y¡¯all, nothing has changed.¡±

    ¡°They can have whatever deal they want. I want past the cap, I¡¯ll stay here and help you out.¡± This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    ¡°Deal,¡± Santi stuck his hand out, shaking hers as she accepted extra responsibility.

    ¡°Hana, make sure that Yessenia is coming with you. Carry her if need be. Tell her to bring six standard sets of evolution guides. I¡¯m going to see if anyone else will stay here for the possibility of an evolution.¡±

    ¡°Done. I¡¯m good to go?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, bounce. Maya, this place is going to be a battlefield quite soon. We need to get your non-combatants out of here.¡± Maya nodded in acceptance and quickly jogged back to her people.

    Hana turned and disappeared in a single step, rapidly leaving his sphere without looking back or showing a hint of her form. Santi took one last longing look at the pillar and had to sigh. He had really wanted to access the pillar and its functions. Having to survive twenty-four hours before accessing it was frustrating to say the least.

    ¡°Chloe, we need to establish contact with the kids and finish off those weirdo death cultists. I don¡¯t wanna get backstabbed by them at the last minute when we¡¯re facing bigger problems.¡±

    ¡°Need me to clear out the cultists?¡±

    ¡°If you would be so inclined,¡± Santi offered her a wan smile. He was asking her to go and kill a bunch of people. He wasn¡¯t going to order it so easily.

    ¡°Yeah. Yeah, I¡¯ll take Maya with me. Maybe Frank, really see what they¡¯re made of. You get to be the diplomat, I guess.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t ask this lightly. I want you to know that.¡±

    ¡°I know.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡± Chloe smiled sadly and two of them started off towards where Frank and the others were. The walk was short and the gathering crowd of people watched him with wary eyes. Maya and Frank had their heads close together, whispering to each other.

    Frank looked up as they approached. His frown was fierce and the furrow between his eyes deep. Santi could read the questions on his face like it was a book. He had deeper concerns than Maya had, his concern for his people rand deep and wide.

    ¡°Maya updated me about what¡¯s going on. I don¡¯t like the idea of splitting up, especially if I leave the stronger fighters here to help you. There is no way the others can make it all the way to your place.¡±

    ¡°Agreed. When my people get here, I¡¯ll peel a squad of people off as a protection detail. It¡¯ll take a few hours for them to arrive, in the meantime I need to know where the kids are located. The fight just ended and they¡¯re hurting right now. If there¡¯s a time to bring them back into the fold, it¡¯s going to be now.¡±

    ¡°I know where they¡¯re staying at. It¡¯s not too far from here. I can take you there.¡±

    ¡°No need for that. I want you to take Maya and go with Chloe. Clear out the death worshippers.¡±

    ¡°Dillan can take you then. They¡¯re not far from here. Dillan! Take Santiago to where Zeke has everyone set up, will ya?¡±

    The big man gave a quick nod and started moving, not giving Santi time to issue last minute instructions. Following Dillan he worked through the town. Most of it was in poor shape, destroyed and decaying with signs of battle everywhere.

    ¡°How long have you been fighting these guys?¡± Santi asked. The big man was fairly quiet, his voice a whisper as he spoke.

    ¡°Took about a week for the first group to lose their shit. Everyone¡¯s going to die, might as well be by our hand. Fucking idiots. It was originally just our two groups, but the younger folk didn¡¯t like how Frank was doing stuff. Too slow, too cautious. They split off and a couple weeks ago one of them mouthed off to Maya. That was that.¡±

    ¡°Who¡¯s Zeke?¡±

    ¡°Unofficial boss. He¡¯s who everyone looks too. He¡¯s not as strong as Maya or Frank, but he¡¯s curious. Looks for answers everywhere. Doesn¡¯t mind getting his hands dirty either, but they don¡¯t have a heavy like us. It¡¯s why we¡¯re still alive probably.¡±

    ¡°They outnumber you?¡±

    ¡°Close, but they¡¯re certainly more aggressive. Start fights pretty much everytime we meet up with them.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a joy.¡± Santi wondered how old they were. Frank had called them kids, and Santi had automatically slotted them into that bracket.

    ¡°Not far from here, just have to turn the corner. I don¡¯t think they¡¯ll be pleased to see me.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. You¡¯re with me, you¡¯re safe.¡± Santi clapped the big man¡¯s shoulder, startling him into walking around the corner and into the line of sight.

    [Air Shield] stopped some form of magical attack, dissipating it in its chaotic environs with ease. Dillan had only begun to start grasping he was under attack as the energy was dispersed. Not a fighter then, despite his size and levels.

    ¡°Fuck, Dillan! You scared the shit out of me, man. I didn¡¯t mean for that,¡± a younger looking boy said. He couldn¡¯t have been older than fifteen, pimples still angry on his face. His blonde hair was slicked back and his face pale as he looked up to the huge man. Santi didn¡¯t think he had even been noticed behind Dillan¡¯s bulk.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Zeke?¡± Dillan didn¡¯t mention the fact his face had almost been melted off, just moving straight to business. That Santi could admire. Even if the goliath¡¯s reflexes were the same sharpness as a rock¡¯s.

    ¡°Inside. He¡¯s fucking pissed, dude. I wouldn¡¯t go and talk to him right now if I was you.¡±

    ¡°Not me wanting to talk to him. This is Santiago. He¡¯s the one who took over. He wants to talk to Zeke.¡±

    ¡°Oh, fuck. Uhmmm. Yeah.¡± Santi met the kids eyes and saw the mix of fear, anxiety and uncertainty.

    ¡°Just stay here you two,¡± Santi breezed past them, eyes on the building that they kids were holed up in. It had been some type of store before, old brick work was still there, but the everpresent cars had been used to form thick barriers around it, leaving little to the eye. They had no other guard than the stammering teenager and Santi felt his disappointment grow.

    He barged through the door and not a single spell or skill tried to kill him. The arguing voices were louder in here, people fighting for what to do. Nearly thirty teens clustered around a small room, all of them shouting and screaming at each other.

    Santi looked back at the door and wished he had given Chloe this job while he exterminated the skull guys. There was no whisper of the bloodlust in that thought, just an abject hatred of dealing with this age bracket.

    [Air Manipulation] helped him as he shouted, a wordless roar that deafened the room, amplified and spread by the wind he summoned and controlled. Everyone stopped fighting and everyone turned to look at him.

    ¡°Which one of you is Zeke?¡±

 Ch. 3.14 Negotiations

    14.

    ¡°I¡¯m Zeke!¡± A voice boomed out from the crowd of shuffling around bodies and Santi watched as the crowd broke apart to let a slightly older boy walk out. He was younger than Santi¡¯s current body, but it wasn¡¯t by much. Tall and lean, borderline emaciated with sharp cheeks and a long nose. Black dreads fell past his shoulders, gold glittered in both of his ears, diamonds shining in the light.

    He flashed a sparkling smile, his charisma undeniable. Santi stared at him, focusing on the edges of the young man and felt the illusion crack under his scrutiny. Zeke was still there, everything he had observed was the same, but the glamor of it fell away. Some type of leadership class. Frustrating.

    ¡°I¡¯m Santiago Silva. I¡¯m a leader from down the way. It was my friends that cleared out the battlefield earlier.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re with you?¡± Some of the man¡¯s swagger slipped away. Santi could emphasize with that. The two of them had likely left a permanent impression on them. Something like their display earlier today would have left him shocked when he was a young Initiate.

    ¡°Yes, they¡¯re with me. As is Frank and Maya. I want to extend that offer to you too.¡±

    ¡°Maya? Yeah, we don¡¯t fuck with Maya. She fucked up some of our people and we can¡¯t just let that go.¡±

    ¡°Listen. I don¡¯t give a fuck. I¡¯m not saying you have to be friends with her. I can set you up with a small town or area far away from her and Frank and their group. Get you supplies and the knowledge to break through the level cap you¡¯re at. All I ask is to keep the violence relegated to monsters and in self-defense.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯d give us all that and just to stay out of the way? Get us out of this shithole and show us how to push past twenty-five?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Pretty simple rules. We work with you if you follow the rules. And the rules are don¡¯t start shit and to contribute to the community. Well, there¡¯s actually more rules but that¡¯s what they boil down to.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the catch? I know there¡¯s a catch.¡± The crowd behind Zeke shifted and looked about, eyes watching Santi warily. There was the teenage distrust there, the hard eyed cynicism, the disbelief and natural arrogance of children becoming adults. It helped that Santi looked close enough to their own age.

    ¡°The catch is I¡¯m in charge. Period. We have rules, we follow the rules, we all benefit. But I¡¯m not putting up with bullshit. You want to dick around?You can find your own way.¡±

    Everyone shifted around, glances  shot at each other as they reacted to that. Most didn¡¯t like it, but they were waiting for Zeke to react. Santi could read the boy¡¯s face like a book, whatever background skill he was using was broken by his higher stats. There was exhaustion etched into the bags beneath his eyes. Anxiety and a grayness, a pallor that refused to leave even with his higher stats. Heavy was the crown indeed.

    ¡°What about the others? Faulkner and his fucking psychos? Are they welcome too?¡±

    ¡°No. They¡¯re not. Chloe, the axe girl, is going to take care of them with Frank and Maya right now.¡±

    ¡°And when you say take care of them?¡±

    ¡°Chloe is killing them.¡± Santi said without hesitation

    ¡°Just like that? No trial or process or anything?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re walking around carrying human skulls and talking about how life is pointless and people should die. They¡¯re killers and we don¡¯t put up with shit like that.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re strong. Is your girl enough?¡±

    ¡°Chloe is more than strong enough to deal with them.¡±

    ¡°We need to talk about this. But, if you can make sure we¡¯re away from Maya and Frank, I don¡¯t see why not.¡±

    ¡°Talk it over. Frank and the others were the ones who pushed me to reach out and be diplomatic, just to let you know. They want to have a relationship with you guys.¡±

    ¡°That can be for the future. Can you give us a few minutes?¡±

    ¡°Sure.¡± Santi walked away, giving them a bit of space but still close enough to hear them talking with his advanced senses.

    Most of the talk was around how they were all exhausted. They were hungry and sleep deprived, the constant fighting had sapped them of their strength of will. They were continuing on with pure grit and stubbornness. They needed this, needed the relief and break from the ongoing initialization. Zeke came back a few moments later and nodded. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    ¡°What do we need to do?¡±

    ¡°Just travel to our town. It¡¯s about fifty miles from here. I have some of my people coming. When they get here I¡¯ll split off a squad to escort you and Frank¡¯s non-combatants out of here and to our town. You¡¯ll be processed at the central location, given a spot, food, responsibilities, and the rundown on the rules. When we finish with this Pillar, we¡¯ll work on getting you guys past your caps.¡±

    ¡°We have to travel with Frank and Maya?¡±

    ¡°No. Frank and Maya will be staying here with me. Along with some of their better fighters.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll do the same. Me and a few others will stay and show our worth!¡± Pride suffused his voice. There were some nods around from some of the rougher looking people in the group. The fighters in the group who had more pride than sense.

    ¡°That¡¯s fine. Gather up your belongings and move toward where Frank and his group is set up. That¡¯s going to be our staging area to move out. My people should be here in a few hours, but we might start getting visitors sooner than that.¡±

    ¡°Visitors?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. You didn¡¯t see the giant golden beam in the sky?¡±

    ¡°Oh, well fuck me. Look at that.¡±

    ¡°Bruh, it¡¯s hella bright? How¡¯d you miss it?¡± Santi asked the leader of the group. The teen simply shrugged.

    ¡°Was a little busy with the whole murder sisters. Weird shit happens around here all the time nowadays if you haven¡¯t noticed.¡±

    ¡°Alright. Anyways, everyone who wants a shot at the pillar will be coming to challenge me. Need to get your people out of here before it gets too busy.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll get moving. Just keep Maya away from us. I¡¯ll keep my people in line.¡±

    ¡°I can do that. See you in a bit.¡± Santi left them, gathering Dillan and moved back towards where Frank had set up his headquarters. They were still gone and Santi was forced to sit around with a bunch of nervous strangers staring at him. It took Chloe twenty minutes to come back.

    The petite woman walked back with blood smeared across her face, partially wiped away but part of it missed. There was a hard look in her eyes, a fragility disguised as iron. Santi rose and went to her even as Frank and Maya walked by, both of them giving her respectable nods while neither of them had the same looks on their faces. Frank was a former soldier so he could understand that, but Maya was a hard woman if she had gone to a killing like what had likely just happened and came back as if nothing had occurred.

    ¡°Hey,¡± Santi said as he got close to her. Chloe looked at him with a vague blank stare for a second before life flared into her eyes. He wanted to reach out to her, touch her bloody hands and the white knuckle grip on the handle of her system generated axe.

    ¡°I¡¯m back.¡± Chloe bit each word sharply.

    ¡°Are you ok?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m fine. No injuries. Mission accomplished.¡±

    ¡°Alright. Why don¡¯t we sit down and you can talk to me for a few minutes. We¡¯ve got some time before anything should pop up.¡± Santi guided her to the side of the building. He wove his [Air Current] around them to help prevent eavesdropping.

    ¡°What do you wanna ask?¡± Chloe said as they sat down. Her white knuckle grip hadn¡¯t relented.

    ¡°When me and Cameron were kids we used to play outside all the time. You know, kid stuff, just running around in the backyards with interesting sticks and pretending to be knights or soldiers.¡± Santi let his mind drift to those easy memories. They were distant things, buried under the weight of his life, but they still felt warm when he visited them.

    ¡°I always wanted to be a knight. It¡¯s just a kid thing I think. Saw Aragorn charge the Black Gates, you know. That was so cool.¡±

    ¡°Thought knights were supposed to be tall?¡± Chloe asked quietly, just a hint of warmth in her voice.

    ¡°Oh they are. It¡¯s an unfortunate reality. To be a knight you need to be tall. It¡¯s why I became a mage.¡±

    ¡°You became a mage because you¡¯re short?¡±

    ¡°Close enough.¡± The answer was similar. He had been scared. Scared of fighting close enough to smell sweat and blood and fear. He had wanted the distance that a mage had promised.

    ¡°Cam makes a good knight I think. Big and strong and noble. Even has a shield. Need to get him a horse and sword.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s a good knight. I think you would have been a good knight too. Regardless of how vertically challenged you are.¡±

    ¡°Thank you, I appreciate it. But, what I wanted to say was when we were kids it was always the unending hordes. The bad guys, right. Goblins or orcs or whatever. The other thing. It wasn¡¯t people you normally see in the grocery store. Your neighbor. That¡¯s a lot harder to do.¡±

    Chloe went quiet, her small smile leaving her face as her back stiffened. Santi couldn¡¯t tell if she was reacting to the subject or if it was her worrying about how he viewed her.

    ¡°The first time I killed someone I broke down. Cried and threw up. She haunted my dreams for a long time. How still she was, her face slack and pale. It wasn¡¯t like we played about in our backyards in the suburbs. There was no honor or glory or whatever it was that I thought there was in killing someone.¡±

    ¡°They weren¡¯t the first.¡±

    ¡°I know. They won¡¯t be the last either. Might not even be the last today. I just want you to know you¡¯re not alone. With whatever it is you¡¯re feeling, whatever you experienced. You¡¯re not alone.¡± Santi risked reaching out and placing his hand over hers. He could feel the tension in her knuckles, the tendons straining, all the while she didn¡¯t look at him.

    ¡°Thank you. I just need to work through this. It was bad over there. They¡­ they might have been closer to your childhood enemies than whatever humanity they should have had.¡±

    ¡°Then it¡¯s good that they¡¯re gone. I¡¯m sorry it had to be you that experienced that, but I¡¯m glad they¡¯re gone.¡±

    ¡°It had to be done. Santiago, there were things in there that I just haven¡¯t seen others humans do. It was like a monster den.¡±

    Santi let her vent, speaking quietly of what she had seen. There were no tears or frustrations, just a nauseating description of what the death worshippers had been doing in their portion of the town. Santi wasn¡¯t shocked, there were plenty of things he had seen that defied decency or humanity. Whatever Mercy was, she was the herald of worse things to come.

    Monsters and mutated animals were the, in the end, weakest of threats. It was the sapients, the invaders and humans who had done the most damage after the initialization had stabilized.

    Santi wedged himself closer to Chloe, offering her the warmth and solidarity of his shoulder. His hand didn¡¯t waver from her as she spoke. When she finally finished, some of the strain had disappeared from her as she finished

    Santi heard the tromping footsteps of Zeke and his people. He read the strain of the older people as the kids came back home. In a moment he would have to come out of his little cocoon of magic and tackle the responsibilities of leadership. For this moment he could continue being a friend.

 Ch. 315 GOAT Party

    15.

    Two hours of silence. Awkward silence. Tension so thick that Santi could not only cut it, he could proceed to dish it up on a plate after cutting it. Zeke was sitting with a knot of his fighters, all of them working hard on not making eye contact with Maya. Maya was crouched against a wall with a cat that ate the canary grin as she watched them. She was going to be a problem, there was too much instigator in her for being a stable presence in the community.

    She didn¡¯t seem the type to stick around one spot for a long time. There was too much to explore and see. She would go far, gaining levels and power if she could keep herself from getting killed.

    Zeke had the presence to be a good leader. Solid and reliable with plenty of patience. He wasn¡¯t bothered by Maya¡¯s staring or the creeping tension or the thought of a fight coming. He simply stood there like nothing was wrong, quietly talking to his people when needed.

    ¡°How long do you think before Hana gets back?¡± Chloe asked. Santi could tell it was more to break the silence that had been growing than an actual desire to know when Hana would be back.

    ¡°She should be getting back to Homebase soon enough. Couple hours to rally everyone then couple more to get back here. That¡¯s if nothing has gone to shit.¡±

    ¡°Somethings definitely gone to shit. It always does,¡± Chloe remarked dryly.

    ¡°It¡¯s the apocalypse. Something definitely went wrong,¡± Santi said, agreeing with her.

    ¡°Probably tomorrow then. At dawn to make it much more dramatic.¡± Chloe was smiling gently.

    ¡°Of course, right as we¡¯re about to be overrun,¡± Santi played along. Others were turning to look at them with some puzzled looks.

    ¡°Hey! We have movement!¡± a voice cried out, the watcher on the rooftop. Santi perked up, finally having some type of action.

    ¡°Where at?¡± Frank called out, taking control of the environment in an instant. Zeke might have a leadership class, but he didn¡¯t have the older man¡¯s experience. Zeke and his people rose up silently, gathering their weapons. They gripped them with white knuckle ferocity, nervous but determined. Maya simply had a feral smile on her face, vicious and predatory as she cracked her neck.

    ¡°Coming from the overpass. Single person, uhhh, thing?¡±

    ¡°You all stay here. I¡¯ll call you if we need help.¡± Santi waved at the two groups as Chloe followed behind him. The two sets of people looked at him with a mix of surprise and gratitude. Santi wanted to keep them in reserve in case anything happened, but they were likely going to be seriously outclassed.

    Santi walked out of the torn up store and jogged up towards the overpass they had come down hours ago. He could feel his heart thundering in his chest as he worked his way up towards the overpass.

    ¡°Calm down, you¡¯re walking so fast,¡± Chloe complained as she had to do a little hop skip to catch up to him.

    ¡°I¡¯m bored. Want to get this shit kicked off as soon as possible.¡±

    ¡°You do, or the curse does?¡±

    ¡°Little of both?¡± Santi shrugged as he started walking up the slope of the overpass.

    ¡°Wonder what it is. Think it¡¯s Mercy and her people?¡±

    ¡°Maybe. Doubt it though. It¡¯s supposed to be a big group, they don¡¯t move as quickly as a small group can. Monsters will be faster. Some individuals or small groups might get here quicker.¡±

    ¡°Like that guy? The shadow assassin?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, he was close by too. He could get here quick.¡±

    ¡°Think he¡¯ll honor your temporary truce?¡±

    ¡°Fuck if I know. We stay on guard regardless of what happens, don¡¯t trust him at all no matter what happens.¡±

    ¡°You got it.¡± They crested the top of the overpass and Santi finally got a glimpse of what the watcher had seen. A bloody grin crossed his face, widening out as he stared at the monster who looked back at him with semi-intelligent eyes.

    Satyr Scout lvl. 49

    Bipedal with thick, muscular arms, white fur legs that were capped with goat hooves. A wide wooden club dangled from a four finger hand. Stubby horns poked out from curly white hair and wide dark eyes filled with malice. It grinned, wide teeth stained yellow showing as it started back up the overpass. Every step sent a clop as it moved up the slope of the overpass.

    ¡°Mine,¡± Santi whispered as heat began to suffuse his body. His heartbeat picked up, blood rushing through his veins as he flew toward the monster, morph blade turning into a long sword. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

    The satyr moved in a blur of speed, asphalt cracking under its hooves as it exploded forward. Its club whished through the air, aiming for his head as Santi dodged, ducking his head and slashing at waist height.

    The satyr spun gracefully, a few stray hairs coming free of its midriff as the morph blade narrowly missed a disemboweling strike. Santi sucked air through his teeth in annoyance as the fast moving monster dodge back again as Santi threw a flurry of short strikes meant to incapacitate. He targeted the monster''s legs, feinting for the goat man¡¯s throat before twisting trying to cut a knee.

    It leapt back, avoiding the initial slash, but Santi lengthened and thinned the blade, forming an oversized rapier as the slash turned into a lunge. Bone split and blood flowed as the satyr bleated in pain. It never slowed though, a huge overhand blow coming even as its white furred leg buckled.

    Santi twisted and the rough wood grazed his side, tearing at his cheek. He just smiled wider as excitement pulsed through him. A trickle of blood rolled down his scraped cheek, warm and wet as Santi pulled the rapier free and backed up. The satyr tried to follow, but its leg buckled. Panic had started to blossom in its wide dark eyes.

    ¡°SANTI!¡± Chloe yelled, breaking through the red haze that had surrounded him. He looked around, taking in his surroundings. Half a dozen satyrs were racing toward him, all of them bigger and more muscular than the one he was fighting.

    ¡°Fuck!¡± Santi spat. [Air Shield] was cast behind the satyr as it tried to retreat. [Air Manipulation] was used to hold the monster''s club down, while [Gust] was cast at the reinforcements running toward them. The gale force winds staggered the racing monsters as loose soil was scoured from the hard packed dirt.

    Chloe¡¯s axe split the air with a scream as Santi held the satyr down. Black steel bit through flesh like butter and the creature¡¯s arm hit the ground. She reversed her momentum and took the satyr through the ribs and worked up, puncturing its heart. Body parts hit the ground loudly as the two of them began to back up.

    Satyr Hunter lvl. 51

    Satyr Hunter lvl. 52

    Satyr Singer lvl. 56

    The three strongest satyrs stayed in the back. The three leading satyrs were all in the upper forties, any one of them a challenge for Chloe likely. These monsters were built on speed and strength, lacking high vitality or durability. The ease in which they had killed the scout was telling, glass cannons instead of endurance fighters.

    That singer could be dangerous, some type of shaman or mage class. Santi hadn¡¯t really seen these types of monsters in his first timeline, but he knew enough of the mythology. If it used magic it would be something nature or music based.

    ¡°Keep the heavies off of me while I kill the singer,¡± Santi barked at Chloe. She simply grunted in acknowledgment, gripping her axe tightly as she squared herself off. Santi let loose more spells, trying to prune away the leading edges of the charge. He needed them to be a bit staggered if they were going to get through it.

    The singer lifted a lute to its full lips and discordant notes came screaming out. Mana tightened around them, thickening the air as Santi could feel the howl of an autumn wind, the decaying of the leaves under heavy rain and mud. The satyrs sped up, Santi¡¯s magic rolling by them like they oil on water.

    ¡°That¡¯s fucking annoying.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Some type of buffing magic, it repels my spells. Going to have to do this the old fashion way.¡±

    ¡°Good to know,¡± Chloe said as the first of the satyrs got within range. Santi didn¡¯t give up on casting. He could overwhelm the singer¡¯s magics with pure brute force, but that would leave him vulnerable as the physical fighters closed the distance. [Air Current] and [Air Manipulation] instead poked and prodded at their defenses, twisting the air around them, trying hard to find a weak point even as he parried a glowing club.

    Whatever power the singer was using was strong, even the morph weapon couldn¡¯t cut through cleanly. Instead it sank deep into the heart of the club and with a savage twist Santi ripped the club free of the satyr¡¯s hands. Santi kicked the goat man¡¯s knee, bone popping under his heel as the monster screamed in pain.

    To his side Chloe was trading blows in a furious exchange.Skills were blurring together as she refused to give ground, trimming the club to kindling as she battered the monster into the cement.

    Santi bit back a curse as a fist came in a wide loop as the satyr refused to die even as its innards fell from its stomach. The wide smile he had cut in the satyr¡¯s stomach had been done when he glanced at Chloe. The satyr had tried to take advantage of the distraction and had paid the price.

    He let the blow land on his shoulder and grimaced instantly at the mistake. His counter strike took the monster¡¯s head, but that fist had hurt. He rolled his shoulder a few times and stepped over the dead body to interdict the second monster before it could reach Chloe. She was winning her fight fairly handedly, but he didn¡¯t trust her to win the two on one.

    The three heavy fighters were in the back, the two hunters standing next to the singer as the singer continued to play its lute. Santi was getting close to working through the defenses, they were more of a blanket cast over the fighters rather than a true shield. Santi bent back at the waist allowing the club to sail by his face as he slashed the scout across the leg.

    Flesh and bone parted as the goatman staggered back. Santi lunged as it backed up, stabbing it through the neck. With a twist he removed the blade and half the beast''s neck. Santi took another look at Chloe and nodded to himself as she stood her ground and had the higher level monster on its last legs.

    ¡°Follow behind!¡± Santi yelled as he rushed forward. Something was telling him it was the wrong move, that with the power the singer was using to protect the others was dangerous to him. He was a mage after all, not being able to cast spells on his enemies was a problem.

    He couldn¡¯t be bothered to care. The hunt was in his mind, his blood humming with endorphins and darker energy. The thrill of the blood in the air had him attacking without hesitation, leaping and twisting like a top as a tendril of the morph blade wrapped itself around him.

    The razor wire was stopped in its track, verdant green energy protecting the hunters hand held scythe. The hunter¡¯s smile blossomed into something feral as its arms blurred. Thicker green energy condensed around it as it attacked with ferocity. Santi met it blow for blow, his own crazed smile matching its smile.

    ¡°Left!¡± Chloe screamed, piercing the haze around him as he changed the morph blade. Clefts appeared in the blade, twisted metal catching the scythe and holding it still as Chloe descended like the grim reaper. Her axe was glowing as it came down like a meteor.

    A second scythe appeared, catching the axe in an explosion of light as Chloe¡¯s skills tested the defenses of the singer''s magic. The magic won. Chloe rebounded backward as the second hunter crowded her. Chloe¡¯s body flashed to metal, but the scythe still peeled a strip of metal free in a shriek. Chloe bit back a scream as she kneed the goat in the stomach, the blow sounding like a hammer hitting flesh.

    Santi finally felt his spell slide by the defense.

 Ch. 3.16 And Plants!

    16.

    [Air Current] was his weakest, but most versatile skill. He finally wormed his way around the hunter¡¯s defenses, finding a pin gap where the thick magic lacked the strength to repel his power. Santi was forced to dodge the curved edge of a scythe as he focused his strength, pouring mana into his skill as he contested the higher ranking singer.

    He won.

    There was a sudden silence as the lute cracked audibly, the power Santi had funneled at the satyr¡¯s magic shattering the focal point of the casting. The singer bleated in surprise and pain, backing up quickly and beginning to hum loudly almost instantly. The magic had unraveled the moment silence had fallen and Santi hadn¡¯t waited a moment to start the end game of the fight.

    [Gust] swept his own opponent back, throwing the heavy satyr off its hooves and toward the singer. The singer¡¯s tune was quickly broken as it leapt over its defender¡¯s body. Santi lunged toward Chloe¡¯s opponent, morph changing into a lance as he stabbed at the goats lower back. The satyr spun with a quickness that shocked him, the scythe knocking aside the lance¡¯s point.

    Chloe¡¯s axe bit into where the shoulder meets the neck in a spray of blood. The satyr screamed in agony as she ripped and tore the wicked axe head out. Santi felt the warm blood spray across his face. He licked at his lips even as he finished the wounded creature, stabbing it through its chest.

    The ding of the kill notification was a distant sound as he spun around to face the second hunter. It had gotten back to its feet in the second or so it had taken for Chloe and Santi to kill its companion. It¡¯s bestial features were controted with rage as the hand held scythe split the air all around him. Each of the blows rang out, his arm growing numb from the heavy blows.

    Chloe came to the side, her axe aimed at a knee. Blood was running from her arm where the other hunter had stripped a piece of flesh free. The satyr spun, targeted leg straight out in a vicious kick that caught her in the stomach. Santi lengthened the blade and slid it along the monster¡¯s forearm, splitting flesh like paper. It screamed and caught its balance, blade arm going limp as Santi snapped his wrist upward. Blood geysered out as the satyr¡¯s head fell free from its body.

    The singer was running, trying to escape with what little time its two protectors had given it. [Air Shield] cut off its retreat while Santi raced toward it. He wasn¡¯t going to let his prey escape, not now while it was on its last legs. The satyr bounced off the shield and spun, a long wooden dagger being produced from somewhere. Santi lifted the morph as it transformed into an executioner''s axe and reared back.

    The singer stabbed itself in the throat. Santi froze, puzzlement and alarm breaking the hold the curse had on him. He watched as the monster''s blood flowed like a river down its throat, matting the beast''s hair as it plummeted toward the earth. Its black eyes met his own for a moment and triumph shone through them even as it slowly fell to the ground.

    ¡°Santi, what the fuck was that?¡± Chloe asked as she jogged over to him, both of them staring down at the dead satyr.

    ¡°No idea, but probably nothing good.¡± Santi cocked his head and then reached down to pry the wooden dagger free of the satyr¡¯s neck. The dark wood was drenched in blood but the moment he pulled it free the blood absorbed into the dagger like it had never been there.

    Sacrificial Dagger

    Used in magical rituals, the dagger can aid in the transition of life to magic

    ¡°Have I ever told you how much I detest these descriptions?¡± Santi asked Chloe.

    ¡°Nope. That description is only kinda useful. I guess it used itself to do some type of magic?¡±

    ¡°Sacrificed itself to do something.¡±

    ¡°But what?¡± Chloe pondered as she looted the two dead hunters. The scythe daggers they had been using were sturdy Acolyte grade weapons and those were rare enough nobody would be leaving them to waste.

    ¡°Nothing good. Satyr¡¯s magic is normally nature based or music magic. Who the fuck knows what¡¯s coming. Let¡¯s get back to the camp and try to get them ready.¡±

    ¡°If this is going to be the threat level for everything coming for us, they won¡¯t be helpful at all.¡±

    ¡°These were just the fastest who weren¡¯t in the immediate vicinity. This could be the peak of them.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Not with our luck. Santi, I don¡¯t think I could have handled one of those hunters by myself. They were too fast and strong. I could take the hits, but I couldn¡¯t land any of my own without your help.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a good thing I¡¯m here then. We keep working together and we¡¯ll be fine. We just have to hold out till the rest of the team gets here and then we¡¯ll be good.¡±

    ¡°It is a good thing you¡¯re here. I still need to get stronger though. I can¡¯t be relying on you to carry me in these sorts of fights.¡± The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°More training with Grimvr then. And levels. That¡¯s all we can do. Put in the effort and reap the rewards.¡±

    ¡°Did you just use the word reap because they had scythes?¡±

    ¡°Yes?¡± Santi smiled at her, breaking the tension as she rolled her eyes. He still saw the tick at the corner of her mouth as she fought back her own smile. They broke away from the still bodies of the dead satyrs and headed up the overpass and back toward the town.

    They got to the top and looked down upon chaos. The hundred, if not thousands, of small trees and plants had come alive. Chlorophyll green spirits slashed and attacked as the survivors tried to hold themselves up. Frank was barking orders as his sword, a strip mall looking katana, wreathed in orange flames cut a bush in half. The spirit surrounding the bush screamed into the air and evaporated leaving only the burning bush behind.

    ¡°That didn¡¯t take long. They look weak though.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re small. Look for anything bigger, mature trees or those tall ass privacy shrubs.¡± Santi was scanning the small downtown region even for any threat as he looked down at the monsters.

    Neophyte Dryad lvl. 17

    (Enraged)

    ¡°Enraged? I haven¡¯t seen that.¡±

    ¡°That singer kinda fucked us over. Look there¡¯s a palm tree,¡± Santi said, nudging Chloe as they watched the long tree walk forward, fronds swaying. The ephemeral shape of the dryad was more formed around it. It had a fully formed body with emerald tresses that swayed in rhythm with the fronds.

    Juvenile Dryad lvl. 43

    (Enraged)

    ¡°You can handle that one yourself?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°Yeah, I can handle it. Why aren¡¯t you interested in it?¡±

    ¡°Look that way,¡± Santi said, pointing out what he¡¯d spied sneaking closer.

    ¡°Shit. Guess they weren¡¯t alone. Can you hold them till I finish the tree off?¡±

    ¡°Got to do it. Finish it quickly and you can come and save me.¡±

    ¡°I get to play the hero? Well can¡¯t let you down then. Get cracking,¡± Chloe shoved him with a shoulder and flashed a smile that had hints of concern in it. She raced down toward the melee, trying to interdict the palm tree dryad before it reached the group of fighters.

    Santi followed after her, peeling off to the side towards the trio of satyrs sneaking their way toward the pillar. They couldn¡¯t take it from him by touching it, they needed to kill him or force him to leave the area around it to claim it for themselves. Once it was confirmed his, then the only way they¡¯d get it was by prying it from his cold dead fingers.

    The three monsters didn¡¯t know that. They were getting close to the pillar using the distraction caused by the original singer''s sacrifice. Santi was racing down toward them without a thought, his blood already humming in anticipation again. The curse was rather insidious, Santi could understand how the others had been lost in the curse.

    Satyr Hunter lvl. 50

    Satyr Hunter lvl. 52

    Satyr Singer lvl. 54

    Weaker than the previous squad of satyrs, but he was alone this time. It would be a challenge, all three of them higher than him, but he had plenty of advantages of his own. He sped up, muscles bunching tight to explode thunderously as he shot towards them. The two hunters looked up in time to meet him, their flashing blades rising up to attempt disemboweling strikes.

    He swept aside both of them like they were nothing before him, his blade smacking both of the daggers to the side as he landed in a crouch right between the satyr hunters. The singer was lifting its lute to its lips, ready to start playing as Santi cast [Crosscurrent-Orb] right at his feet. [Air Shield] and [Air Manipulation] tamed the wind around him as the two hunters were lifted from their hooves and tossed away like leaves. The singer met his gaze with wild, fear filled eyes. Santi struck once, morph blade drinking deeply from the rich blood of the powerful monster.

    Santi watched as the life faded from its wide eyes, letting it slump to the ground as the two hunters began to work their way back to him. Without their protections though, they were vulnerable. [Gust] picked the one on the right up and threw it through the remnants of a wall of a former fast food restaurant. He turned to the left one and stood there, waiting as the satyr charged him.

    It swung horizontally, razor sharp tip aiming for his throat. He stepped back and let the scythe pass him. He stepped back toward the monster in the open space left by the wide attack. A gauntlet formed over his hand and he slammed it into the satyr¡¯s gut. Spikes erupted from the gauntlet and blood coated his arm as Santi kept his eyes locked with the hunters.

    He saw as the rage was replaced with fear. With uncertainty and then acceptance. The satyr headbutted at him, [Air Shield] cast inches from his own face to stop those wicked horns from hitting his vulnerable nose. He jerked his arm upward, spikes tearing flesh away as he ripped and tore.

    He used his free hand to toss the dying satyr to the ground and spun around as he felt as the other hunter entered his range. Santi caught the descending blow and tossed it to the side with a twist of his hips and wrenching his arm. The tip of the scythe dagger cut into the asphalt with ease. Santi stomped down on the fragile ankle joint and felt a jolt of joy when he heard bone break.

    The hunter didn¡¯t make a sound as it tried to headbutt him. Santi grabbed its horns and jerked it toward him, making it walk on the broken ankle. It finally screamed as the leg buckled and it fell to a knee. The horns were rough in his palms as Santi jerked its head viciously to the side. The gratifying crack of bone was highlighted by a ding of a kill notification as he let the limp hunter fall to the ground.

    Bloodlust Upgraded

    Infection of Bloodlust

    (Minor)

    Strength becomes you. Blood fuels you.

    ¡°Fuck,¡± Santi hissed staring at the alert. He looked down at himself and saw himself. From neck to shoes he was coated in satyr blood. Thick and tacky with the heady iron scent surrounding him. Every twitch of his body alerted him to the strength running through his muscles, the heady feeling of power that suffused him.

    ¡°Close to ten percent. Maybe a bit more, maybe twelve,¡± Santi muttered aloud, trying to put a number to the curse''s power increase. It was hefty, that was sure. Strong as the coat he had earned. Enough to let him snap a monster''s neck with ease. He was strong for a mage but he wasn¡¯t that strong. He could have gotten it, but not that easy.

    He looked over to the gurgling hunter still holding on to life. The dryads were still rampaging around him, all avoiding him. Chloe¡¯s axe was flashing, bursts of light as she used skills to prune the tree monster. He looked down at the dying satyr and finished it with a thought.

    ¡°It¡¯s going to be a long fucking day,¡± Santi said with a sigh.

 Ch. 3.17 Wind Storm

    17.

    ¡°How you doing, Chloe?¡± Santi asked as he jumped back, avoiding a crashing knot of roots and earth. Dirt scattered everywhere as the improvised maul exploded in a spray. Loose shards of razor sharp roots sprayed out in a shrapnel blast that Santi was forced to use [Air Shield] to prevent the attack from shredding him.

    The dryad rustled in annoyance, its canopy shaking and releasing a rain of green walnuts to the ground. The morph blade pruned a thick limb that sent a primary branch to the ground in a loud crash. He was forced to the side, further away from Chloe, as another wild wave of magic sharpened branches sliced apart the space he had just occupied.

    ¡°I¡¯m fine. Got the perfect weapon for this!¡± Chloe barked, a hint of laughter in her voice. Santi risked a look over toward her and saw her covered in bark, sap, and shredded shrubbery. She had been a force of nature in dealing with the forces of nature.

    ¡°Are the others still alive?¡± Santi asked, his vision blocked by the dryad that had inhabited the walnut tree.

    ¡°Most of them!¡±

    Santi mimicked her weapon, turning his long sword into a wide axe and he stopped dodging and began to attack. The fight with the ent was so long ago that it felt like a different life, but the memories were there. He started near the base and worked his way up. The dryad died with a few swift and powerful blows, the weak Acolyte monster dying with little fanfare.

    ¡°How many of these things are there?¡± Maya panted out in exhaustion. The fist fighter was wreathed in small cuts and abrasions as her skill enforced fists punched apart a medium sized lime tree.

    ¡°How many plants or trees were in the city?¡± Santi retorted.The entire downtown region, which hadn¡¯t been in the best of shape to begin with, was looking rather wretched. The entire area was filled with shredded shrubbery and broken trees.

    ¡°FUCK!¡± Maya snarled as she exerted herself. Power surged around her and her red fists cracked the sapling in half, blowing it apart in a shower of splinters.

    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s fun and easy so far!¡± Chloe said, stifling laughter as she knocked down another tree. With the satyrs dead, nothing had come that could realistically challenge them. They were simply too strong, fast, and durable for the weak dryads to kill them. The amount of the dryads were concerning though.

    Neither Santi or Chloe were strong and fast enough to protect all of their new citizens. The huddled masses had been hustled into the guts of the partially destroyed store and now all the strongest fighters, barring Maya and Frank, were standing guard.

    ¡°Retreat back to the store!¡± Santi ordered. He slashed apart a rhododendron and moved his head to the side to let rose thorns the size of his fingers fly by him. [Gust] cleared the area around him and the others, giving them a clear path towards the store. Maya and Frank ran without word, both of them tired and bloody, while Chloe took her time, slashing apart anything that got too close to them. There was finally a break in the fighting that allowed him to breathe and think.

    That hunting party of satyrs wouldn¡¯t have been it. There was likely more to them and there should be stronger dryads around the small town. Ancient trees that needed something more powerful for them to awaken. If there were more singers, and they were using the first one¡¯s sacrifice as a distraction, then there were likely more out there working on awakening more powerful nature spirits.

    He needed to go and find them, but he needed to get everyone safe before that and cutting apart every overgrown plant one at a time wasn¡¯t working out. Frank and Maya got past the lines of guards and slumped down right past them while Chloe simply took up her place in the line near the center.

    ¡°Is everyone here?¡± Santi asked Zeke. The boy looked about and shrugged.

    ¡°I think so? People are missing, but they might be gone. We had to hurry everyone over here when the fucking plants came to life.¡±

    ¡°Good enough. Everyone, stay inside the shelter of the store.¡±

    ¡°Santi, what are you doing?¡± Chloe asked, more curious than concerned. Her forearm had stopped bleeding and for most of the fight she had taken no wounds from the weaker monsters.

    ¡°Being a real mage,¡± Santi said with a flash of a smile. With a quick run and jump he scaled the side of the building, fingers grabbing the cracks in the broken wall with ease to haul himself up.

    Turning slowly he looked down at the world below him. Now that they had retreated the army of plants were marching in step to surround the store. A wall of vegetation that surrounded the entire block, rustling and shaking, branches whipping the air as they closed in on the thin line of defenders. He scanned them quickly while he mentally prepared himself. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    Not a single Acolyte level monster in the horde, all of them having been trimmed back by Santi and Chloe. He still remembered the [Night Hag], the circle around her as blows fell like rain until she had fallen to the much weaker crowd. Chloe was laughing and shrugging it off, but there was danger here.

    He reached into himself, drawing on the mana that filled his body and began to draw it forth. Just like manipulating spell forms, supercharging them was something else that could be done with enough time and practice. The spell forms were like a template, you activated if you had the required resources the spell would work. A year or two into the integration people had started to play around with spells and skills by pushing more into them.

    It went beyond strengthening the spell like he did with [Air Manipulation]. Santi took a deep breath as he began to cast. The familiar feel of [Gust] came to mind, the howling gale kept tame only by his iron will as he began to feed it more and more mana. Pressure built in his body, straining him at the seams as he watched below as his allies held the line.

    A few moments melded into minutes. Blood ran from his nose and ears, distant wetness that he could hardly pay attention to as the entirety of his world had shrunk down to the forest that had filled the area in front of the store. [Gust] was there, aching to be released, but it had grown into a tempest, a shape of unimaginable strength, held back only by Sant¡¯s strength.

    He coughed, blood spraying out of his mouth as he finally released the mutated spell. It was like a balloon popping inside of him as he deflated, his knees buckling as he hardly caught himself on the ledge in time to prevent himself from face planting. The air pressure changed as the world warped, winds that drowned out the world as they were summoned.

    The dryads dug their roots into the earth, sliding through the cracks in the concrete and asphalt to anchor themselves. It saved them for a split second as the earth below and in front of Santiago was scoured clean. Chunks of road, sidewalk, buildings, and dryads were all picked up and flung away as if by the hand of god.

    Six seconds the storm lasted, a gale of such ferocity that Santi watched as buildings were shaken and broken apart, thrown away and out of town limits. As it ended, the winds disappeared like they had never been there, nothing remained of the dryads.

    Hundreds of kill notifications began to rattle through Santi¡¯s skull as he chuckled weakly at the destruction wrought before him. His strength was gone, the effects of the curse fleeing as he depleted himself in the attempt at saving themselves from a death of a half million cuts.

    ¡°Santi? You alive up there?¡± Chloe called to him, her voice filled with awe.

    ¡°Barely,¡± Santi managed to croak out.

    ¡°I¡¯m coming up!¡± Chloe followed her words moments later by crawling up the side of the building and landing in a crouch. She raised her eyebrows at him laying there, propped up against the wall.

    ¡°That took a bit out of me.¡± Santi could already feel mana beginning to flow through him again, thin as a mountain stream at the heights of summer. In a few minutes he¡¯d be able to be functional, but it had taken more out of him that he thought it would.

    ¡°So, didn¡¯t know you had that in you,¡± Chloe said as she stood and looked down over the ruins of the town. Santi looked over at the area and had to shrug weakly.

    ¡°Lot of those buildings were already structurally compromised.¡±

    ¡°Ohhh, is that how you¡¯re going to play it? I¡¯m not strong enough to wipe away a third of a town¡¯s downtown region unless it¡¯s already structurally weakened?¡±

    ¡°I mean, it was.¡±

    ¡°Doth protest too much, I believe. This was impressive Santiago. Terrifying, but impressive. I can guess you needed that build up time to get the spell off? You can¡¯t just do it off the cuff?¡±

    ¡°Takes a few minutes for me to get the power behind it. Only became possible the last few levels when my mana stats were high enough to be worth it. Won¡¯t be doing this again for a while, I feel very wrung out.¡±

    ¡°I can see that,¡± Chloe reached into a pocket and pulled out a stained piece of cloth. She bent over and wiped at his face and ears, wiping away the blood with a faint concerned frown on her face.

    ¡°Is that the same piece of scrap fabric you use to clean your axe?¡± Santi asked as she leaned back, shoving the scrap back into her pocket.

    ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s the cleanest thing I have right now and you looked like death warmed over. If you¡¯d gone down to them looking like that you would have started a panic. They¡¯re impressed and scared because of what you just did. You come down looking like you were bleeding out of your eyes and they¡¯ll start thinking maybe you aren¡¯t invincible and they don¡¯t have to listen to you.¡±

    ¡°Heavy is the crown,¡± Santi offered her a weak smile and then his hand. She gripped his hand with a hearty smack and heaved, pulling him up so he could stare at the destruction he had wreaked.

    ¡°There might be more of the satyrs around. Trying to awaken the bigger and older vegetation around here. We need to find them. Go and ask Frank if there¡¯s any old growth, parks, anything like that while I catch my breath. If there is, we¡¯ll have to go and see if we can stop them from awakening those dryads.¡±

    ¡°You got it. Will you be strong enough to get into a fight with more of those satyrs?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll be as strong as I need to be. Got a couple levels and I¡¯m going to assign those points. Ohh, and an achievement. Maybe I¡¯ll have something nice to add to the collection.¡±

    ¡°The collection that you always leave at home?¡±

    ¡°Mom will bring it up. Didn¡¯t think this trip warranted my full war regalia for a small den.¡±

    ¡°Proper prior planning prevents poor performances.¡±

    ¡°What are you, a motivational poster?¡±

    ¡°Shut the fuck up,¡± Chloe said, throwing her head back and laughing.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go ask Frank, you assign your levels. I got some too, we gear up, catch our breaths and then clear this town of the goats before more monsters show up.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think anything will be coming from that direction,¡± Santi said, waving his hand in the direction he had directed his spell. He had thrown enough debris that way with enough force that it would have required strong Acolyte level monsters to survive.

    ¡°Hana better be dragging them back here. That was a little thorny there for a moment,¡± Chloe said. There was a hint of mischief in her eyes as she swung a leg over the ledge.

    ¡°Thorny? That¡¯s what you went with? Poor punning is unacceptable,¡± Santi said, rolling his eyes as he smiled at her. She simply laughed as she jumped down to talk to Frank. Santi stared at the ruin he had wrought and then brought up his stat sheet. The day wasn¡¯t over yet.

 Ch. 3.18 Breather

    18.

    Santiago V. Silva

    Air Mage lvl. 45

    Strength: 37 (72)

    Durability: 40 (75)

    Stamina: 40 (75)

    Dexterity: 37 (72)

    Vitality: 40 (75)

    Perception: 35 (70)

    Intelligence: 105 (140)

    Mana: 140 (175)

    Willpower: 108 (143)

    Potential: 99%

    Santi looked at the big block of text that composed his stats and had to fight back a smile. They were growing at a quick rate, especially his primary stats. He had only leveled twice in the last six weeks and had used the free points on boosting his physical stats. With the newest level he had put the points toward willpower, the curse was getting the best of him and he needed every spare iota of power he could to battle it.

    From a pure stats point he didn¡¯t think there was anyone who could match him. With the extra thirty-five points over the nine attributes he had three hundred and fifteen extra points. His class was strong, but close enough to average that fourteen stat points per level weren¡¯t an outlier. From pure numbers he had an extra twenty-two levels on anyone who faced him.

    Which led him to his biggest problem as he stared at the list of spells in front of him. The majority of his stats were locked into his mental and mana stats. Stats that were directly tied toward his spellcasting. His spells which weren¡¯t currently directly lethal. He could twist them, overcharge them, or use them to help control the battlefield. His most powerful directly combat oriented spell, [Crosscurrent-Orb] wasn¡¯t a heavy hitter though. It was good in crowds of weaker monsters, but anything durable and it was useless.

    He had his future plans, tempting spell forms that he could use to create powerful spells when combined. Right now though, he was squandering a huge amount of his battle potential by waiting. The enemies coming from them were stronger and stronger, the bear they had fought and killed would have been a brutal fight by himself. He needed something that could punch and put what he punched down right then and there.

    So he browsed the list of spells available to him. Even as an [Air Mage] he had access to spells outside of his affinity. The penalty for using them would be a huge mana sink in comparison to his current spell forms. [Fireball] was classic and could be combined with [Gust] to make raging conflagrations. How many [Fireballs] could he cast before he burned through even his own deep mana pools?

    So he kept looking. If he focused only on basic spells he could get three. Or if he really wanted to spend he could get one common spell. Santi had needs though. His speed was good for a mage, but fighting against Duncan had been frustrating as he couldn¡¯t reposition fast enough. If not for his boosted stats Duncan would have ran circles around him and left him a bleeding mess.

    [Wind Step] cured that.

    Wind Step: An explosive burst of air to propel yourself

    It was a good way to counter the quicker moving scouts and assassins that would be coming. He needed firepower now and only had two slots free leaving him fairly limited of choices.

    Wind Blade: A concentrated narrow band of air, it slices like steel

    He¡¯s had something similar though more powerful in the last timeline. [Razor Wind] had cut through monsters and men alike with ease. It¡¯s weaker, younger sibling was going to be his bread and butter for now. The final spell slot he left open, he would soon have the Pillar of Civilization and with that would be the ability to upgrade spells. He would need the open space for when he boosted up one of his base spells.

    Achievement: Spell Manipulator

    Reward: Loot Box (Lesser)

    Achievement: Peacemaker

    Reward: Loot Box (Lesser)

    Achievement: First to Claim

    Reward: Loot Box (Common) This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

    Spell manipulator was for his work with [Air Current] and now [Gust]. The wooden box was quickly ripped open and the rack of mana potions set off to the side as the box disappeared. Santi kept his eyes locked on the silver box, afraid as if it would disappear. Common grade loot boxes had been good to him and he wanted to see what it was, but the anxiety of waiting as he ripped open the peacemaker box was pleasant.

    Peacemaker was probably for getting the two factions in the town to stop killing each other. In addition to his own work at home, it was just like spell manipulator in that it had been a cumulative reward. The wooden coins he dumped on the ground were nice, especially with the pillar soon to be open for business, but then he was grabbing the heavy silver lid and sliding it free.

    A blood red circlet sat in the silver chest. Thin with a trio of spikes rising up from it, capped in glittering obsidian. Santi reached down with trembling hands as he pulled the circlet free and ran [Identify] on it.

    Circlet of Lords

    (Upgradeable)

    5% Increase to all stats.

    Another upgradeable item. That by itself made it nearly priceless. If it¡¯s base mode as a five percent increase to his stats then he could only imagine what would happen when he managed to upgrade it. How to upgrade it was a good question, but Santi had a suspicion that he had to acquire more Pillars of Civilization and extend his territory.

    Donning it, he felt it stretch out wide as it settled on his head. For a moment there was peace as he turned his head this way and that to feel how the circlet moved. Then it burned and pain wracked through his head, he could feel blood rolling down his skull as he reached to grab and tear the circlet free. Then it was over, fast as it had begun, the thin trickles of blood leaving stains down his cheeks the only sign that violence had occurred.

    ¡°What the fuck?¡± Santi muttered as he ran his hand over the cool metal that was now welded into his head. He tugged at it and felt skin starting to pull and decided to leave the circlet where it was for now. The silver loot box had disappeared while he had been occupied and now he was standing by himself, and the pile of wooden coins and mana potions, waiting for Chloe to come back.

    Santi grabbed a single mana potion and pulled the stopper out of it. That empty feeling inside of him had slackened somewhat, but he wasn¡¯t there yet. He drank the potion in two quick chugs and started to shiver as the icy potion ran down his throat. The taste of mint exploded on his tongue and he felt the sudden surge of mana racing through his body. He still wasn¡¯t fully recovered, but he was closer to full than he was half full.

    He¡¯d leave the rest of the potions up here for now. He cursed not having a better way of moving the fragile bottles around. Once the pillar was up and he could buy directly from the marketplace, but the cost of the potions had been high in his last life. He didn¡¯t want to be wasting money on having broken bottles in his pockets as he ran around fighting.

    ¡°Hey, you ready?¡± Chloe shouted up at him, not bothering to scale the side of the building. Santi left the pile of money and potions and hopped over the side to land next to her lightly. He kept his newfound spells to himself, he trusted her, but he didn¡¯t know who was around. Duncan had managed to sneak up on him and he didn¡¯t want the sneaky bastard to know he had chosen more spells. The element of surprise was what was going to allow him to kill the Apostate.

    After they dealt with Mercy.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t know you were into headwear. Not exactly your color though.¡± Chloe was looking at the circlet, her eyes a mix of curious and greedy.

    ¡°You take what you can get. Plus side to taking over the pillar, gives me a nice boost. Need the help with this damn curse, it¡¯s more insidious than I had thought.¡±

    ¡°You underestimated something? No, that can¡¯t be right,¡± Chloe said sarcastically.

    ¡°What? I appropriately guess how dangerous things are.¡±

    ¡°No you don¡¯t.¡±

    ¡°Am I alive?¡±

    ¡°Somehow,¡± Chloe said, her smile was still there as they walked away from Frank, Maya, and Zeke. Santi hoped they wouldn¡¯t revert back to their natural state of murderous rage with each other. He had just earned a nice achievement for keeping them from killing each other.

    ¡°See, if I¡¯m alive and almost everything else is dead, then I¡¯m a good guestimater in danger levels.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not a real word.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t flee to technicalities because I¡¯ve disproved your point.¡±

    ¡°You like this, don¡¯t you? The verbal sparring?¡±

    ¡°Normally it¡¯s fun. With this curse, it¡¯s pushing me to all sorts of confrontations. It¡¯s good practice for me to keep it nice and playful with you.¡±

    ¡°So, I¡¯m just practice?¡±

    ¡°I think this is where I wave the white flag.¡± Santi shot her a quick grin as she led them further away from the ravaged downtown and toward the housing areas that Santi had gone through to find Zeke.

    ¡°Where are we going anyway?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°Frank said there¡¯s only one park worth noting that has any type of trees. The rest are all small and are full of kid toys, not a lot of vegetation. This park was apparently built around a tree. An old, big ass tree.¡±

    ¡°If there¡¯s satyrs still alive and running around, I can bet they¡¯re going there then.¡±

    ¡°They wouldn¡¯t attack us straight up? Or go in with the dryads?¡±

    ¡°If we killed the strongest of them in that first skirmish, no. They¡¯ll try to even the playing field. They¡¯re smarter than the monsters we fought back at home. Likely has to do with them being higher level.¡±

    ¡°Are we going to have to worry about that more often you think? Smarter monsters? Have them planning ambushes and making alliances like the goblins and hags?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Which is why we¡¯re making alliances and training and planning. At the end of the day we are, or will be, stronger than them. As long as we can keep from fighting with each other, then we have a chance of reclaiming our world for ourselves.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t imagine our world anymore. It¡¯s a dream and every day I wake up in this nightmare. But¡­I like parts of it. I¡¯m strong now, stronger than anything I could have dreamed of before. When we¡¯re all together, I like that. The feeling of togetherness, we¡¯ve all been through it and we can just understand each other. Before this, I don¡¯t know, I just felt like I couldn¡¯t connect easily. Now all of us have something in common at least.¡± Chloe fell silent afterward, a tinge of red on her cheeks.

    ¡°Brotherhood. Siblinghood. It¡¯s what you read about from soldiers. The camaraderie. We¡¯re going through the absolute worst thing ever, but we¡¯re all standing together. I would never wish for this to happen again, but we¡¯re all together now and I wouldn¡¯t want that to go away.¡±

    ¡°Shit, we¡¯re right next to the park. We can pick this up when we¡¯re on our date.¡±

    ¡°Little heavy for a first date. Figured I¡¯d ask what your favorite color was or movie.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t know my favorite color?¡±

    ¡°Oh hey, look, it¡¯s a giant tree monster.¡±

 Ch. 3.19 Old Growth

    19.

    Mature Dryad lvl. 68

    (Dormant)

    ¡°I don¡¯t think we can fight that,¡± Chloe said as she looked up at the giant oak tree. An ephemeral spirit was trying to force its way out of the bark, the limbs shaking violently as the dryad stirred from its sleep.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to agree with you on that. Let¡¯s kill the goats before they wake up the tree.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a weird sentence.¡±

    ¡°It is, isn¡¯t it. Together or split up?¡±

    ¡°Split up. I¡¯ll take the two on the right and you get the three on the left?¡± Chloe suggested.

    The two on the right were both weaker singers, only in the low forties. The three on the right had a level fifty-three hunter standing silently as its two charges, both high forties singers, did their work. Chloe would be able to burn through both of the singers if she could catch them off guard.

    The hunter on the other hand was alert, dark eyes scanning the field around the towering tree, long conical ears twitching back and forth as it kept all its senses alert for anyone. Chloe was good, she had great equipment, but the level disparity was too much. Santi rolled his head, feeling his neck crack as he nodded his assent to the plan.

    The distance between the corner of the block they were on and the middle of the park was two hundred yards or so. There was a slight valley that led to a soccer field that went back up towards the small hill that the giant tree sat on. They¡¯d have to cross the street, down into the valleyl and across the entire soccer field to get to the five satyrs.

    The distance between the two small groups was negligible. Chloe wouldn¡¯t have much room to maneuver in her own fight unless she strayed toward his own battle. Santi wasn¡¯t worried about the two singers she¡¯d be fighting, but he didn¡¯t want to get pincered in the fight. The hunter was too strong for him to focus on all five opponents.

    ¡°On three?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°Three!¡± Chloe yelled, bursting from cover in a hard sprint. Her powerful physical stats showed as she was just a dark streak as she headed toward her targets. Santi didn¡¯t let her quick burst of speed take him off guard, he was right on her hip, racing for all he was worth even as the hunter turned to look at them.

    [Gust] smashed the hunter and its two singers, pushing them backward as their hooves tore furrows into the earth as they fought to hold their ground. The hunter¡¯s sickle blade came out from a sash it wore around its waist as it lowered its head, bellowing a screeching warcry as the spell faded and allowed the monster to charge him. The two singers turned back to the tree, their music picking up its pace as they hurried to complete the awakening of the powerful dryad.

    Santi and Chloe flew down the slope of the hill, hitting the soccer field and crossing it in the blink of an eye. The ground was dry and hard packed, giving Santi firm footing as he dug deep, rocketing up the hill in a single bounding step. The crest of the hill came up and he was inundated with an angry goat, its sickle dagger coming down and across to sever his throat.

    ¡°Fuck!¡± Santi shouted, the morph blade barely turning the dagger away from him as the heavier monster hit him in the stomach with its shoulder. Physics won out and Santi¡¯s momentum was reversed, him and the hunter falling back down the hill while Chloe headed toward her targets.

    His back hit the earth and he was able to wedge his foot up and into the satyr¡¯s gut, pushing up and shoving the monster backward, toward the street they had come from. The heavy hunter was sent sailing even as Santi continued to roll backward, the explosive kick adding to his backward momentum.

    Santi stabbed the morph blade into the earth and slowed himself as he got his feet back under him and stood upright on the soccer field. The hunter had already regained its feet and was launching itself down toward him with its evil looking scythe flashing in the sunlight. The glint of light twisted and stabbed as the hunter directed the gleam at Santi¡¯s eyes. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    Blinking suddenly teary eyes, Santi lashed at knee height with a whip, feeling out where the goat was with his spell forms. The satyr leapt over the tendril whip and landed with ease. Right as [Crosscurrent-Orb] detonated. Earth and dried grass was shredded in a blast of power, the satyr picked and flung to Santi¡¯s right. Dust rolled out as the dry dirt spread out in a haze, Santi racing through it without hesitation as the hunter rolled and came upright.

    Both of their visions obscured, Santi relied on his spells while the satyr used its superior hearing, sensitive ears twitching constantly as it caught every whish of displaced air as Santi wielded the morph blade as a longsword, trying his best to cut down the higher ranked monster quickly. Chloe was by herself against four singers and he couldn¡¯t spend time slowly whittling down his only opponent.

    The scythe¡¯s tip caught the edge of his blade and twisted, forcing him to strike the ground as a furry fist came flying at his face. Santi jerked his head to the side as hard as stone knuckles scraped across his jaw. The morph weapon turned to liquid and freed itself, forming up and over his fist into a thick spiked gauntlet.

    Santi punched the goat in the side, bones crunching as he pulverized the satyr¡¯s rib cage. The monster screamed in pain as Santi twisted his arm, ripping the spikes free in a spurt of warm blood. His free hand reached up and grabbed the goat¡¯s horns, the smooth texture warm under his palm as he brought the taller satyr down to his eye level.

    Pain blossomed through his leg as the satyr slashed him, but he was beyond that at the moment. Adrenaline was coursing through him as he reared back and hit again and again, mulching the satyr¡¯s left side. The monster¡¯s hot breath washed over Santi¡¯s face as it screamed, pain and rage intermingling as it tried to gore him through the eyes with its horns.

    His offhand strained as he kept the powerful monster from killing him while a smile spread across his face. He kept hitting the beast, anything that he could reach while the monster slashed wildly at him, scraping off his metal breastplate in showers of sparks. Twice more the blade found flesh, slicing deep on the outside of his leg.

    ¡°Come on, you have more! Fight me!¡± Santi screamed, his heart was racing as the curse surged through his body. Power was infusing him as he twisted the satyr¡¯s head sideways and forced it to its knees. He rained blows down on it without hesitation, smashing bone and pulping flesh until the ding of the kill notification sunk through his killing haze.

    He let the hunter fall dead as he shot up the hill, the wounds not slowing him as he continued to hunt for more opponents. Santi willed himself to force the red haze in his vision down. Chloe was fighting two singers at the same time, both of them dodging and twisting as she slowly whittled them down. Neither had any physical weapons, relying on their sharp hooves and wicked horns as they tried to avoid Chloe¡¯s deadly black axe.

    The other two were singing and dancing, their music a discordant harmony that raked at his soul. It seemed to be pissing off the dryad too, making it struggle fiercer and fiercer as it struggled to work itself out of the confines of the tree and into the waking world.

    He attacked, morph piercing the closest one¡¯s skull like a balloon. He twisted his wrist and ripped it free of the satyr¡¯s skull as he lept over its falling body to slay the second singer before it could fully comprehend his arrival. The horrible sounds faded, lingering in the air for a few moments even with the death of the singers.

    Santi spun and watched as Chloe finally landed a deadly blow. Eviscerating a singer that was just a bit too slow to back up. She shoulder checked it as it was bowed over and closed in on the final singer who had decided to try to flee. While fleet of hoof, it took a second too long to turn and Chloe¡¯s axe was buried in between its shoulder blades as she rode it to the ground. With another brutal strike she took its head and gave a mercy blow to the first singer she had gutted.

    ¡°You good?¡± Chloe called over, standing over the headless corpse of the satyr. Santi was busy watching the tall oak tree to see if it was going to wake up or not. The thick chlorophyll green spirit had been strengthening in density the entire time they were fighting and now it had stopped, frozen partially freed of the tree.

    ¡°Yeah. Had a moment, but I¡¯m okay now.¡±

    ¡°No homicidal urges?¡±

    ¡°No more than usual.¡±

    ¡°Fair enough,¡± Chloe chirped and came away from the dead corpse to stand next to him, her shoulders relaxed as she stared up at the entombed dryad.

    ¡°Could we kill it and harvest the experience?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Probably not. The system doesn¡¯t seem to give us freebies so far. Probably wake it up the moment we hit it and it decides to kick our ass.¡±

    ¡°So, we don¡¯t touch it and just leave it sitting here. Like an unexploded bomb?¡±

    ¡°Yup. Let¡¯s get back to the others and get ready for anyone else who decides to come and challenge me for the pillar.¡±

 Stub Announcement

    I am thrilled to announce that I will be stubbing on December 20th thanks to the awesome work of my publishing team Shadow Light Press, who have helped clean up my novel to an amazing degree, made the amazing artwork, and are handling this launch along with so many other small details that I could never imagine. I will have a link soonish and will post that for anyone who wishes to support me by buying the book. I will continue to post on Royal Road and look forward to finishing Santi''s story with all of you. Book 1 is through chapter 59.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

 Ch. 3.20 Apostate 5

    20.

    Naomi blocked the heavy swing of the minotaur¡¯s club, her sword hitting the magically hardened wood with a clear ting, rattling her hands as she pushed back the monster¡¯s attack to the ground. All around her was chaos as her team fought back against the tribe of juvenile minotaurs. Alan stood toe to toe with the only mature minotaur to take the field. The bull headed monster was landing bone shattering blows with every swing, Alan¡¯s body deforming and bursting apart with each strike.

    His body reformed as fast as it was torn apart. For every blow that landed, Alan hit the beast three to four times, his bare knuckles a blur of blood as he punched the monster. Aura was slowly gathering around him, a red-purple ugly bruise of power that was slowly rolling up his body with every strike. His hands and forearms were coated in the aura so thickly that Naomi couldn¡¯t see through it to his hands.

    Naomi was forced back to her fight as the minotaur lowered its head and tried to charge, yellowed horns still covered in sticky red-black gore attempting to skewer her. She struck its head with her circular shield, the sharp edge flaying flesh and cutting to bone as she tossed the seven foot monster to the ground.

    As it flew by her, she slashed with her longsword, hamstringing the monster as it landed on the ground. It mooed in rage as she walked and got atop of it, heavy boots pinning its arm as it tried to rise. She lifted her sword perpendicular to the ground, point down, and severed the spine with a single thrust downward.

    Now free of the annoying monster she looked back to watch as Alan did his gristly work. In the time she had looked away, the aura had crept to his biceps. Each of his blows punches landed with cataclysmic force now, rocking the nine foot tall minotaur backwards with every strike.

    The minotaur was beginning to look panicked as Alan refused to die. Blood burst from its bovine lips as Alan stuck hard, bone breaking in the minotaur¡¯s chest. It staggered, roared in rage, and then brought around its large club in a massive overhand strike. Alan punched up, aura swirling around him so thickly it was like a blanket. The aura condensed around his fist and when it connected there was a burst of power as the club shattered apart like cheap glass.

    The minotaur stood stunned for a second as Alan began to start the process all over again. His first punch was weak, just his regular strength that the minotaur hardly noticed. The  next, only a half second behind it, was slightly stronger. Naomi watched as Alan launched a flurry of jabs, each strike growing his strength as he stole from the minotaur.

    She quickly went to help one of her people, a processor named Aida, who was trying to run away from another juvenile minotaur. She stepped in the charging monster''s path, catching a crushing blow with her shield while she stabbed upward with her longsword. The creature¡¯s rush forced itself onto the sword, sharp steel parting flesh and muscle as she twisted and tore the blade free, ending the minotaur¡¯s life.

    Aida was panting hard, her oversized pack dwarfing the small woman. Her emerald eyes were filled with fear as she looked around her, shrinking into Naomi¡¯s shadow as survivors of the fight started flocking to her.

    ¡°TO ME!¡± Naomi roared, lifting her sword over her head as she tried to rally those of her party still alive. They had set out days ago with nearly forty people, much more than she had been planning on going with. There were simply too many people who had wanted to go and too many objectives to achieve with just a small war-party. Now nearly a third of them were laying on the ground, still forever.

    Her fighters were mostly fine, one or two having fallen in the surprise of the ambush. It was her gatherers and processors who had taken the worst of the losses. They had managed to collect plenty of rare ingredients and build caches on their way here that would be useful later. Now they would have to build cairns for the dead. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    Everyone drifted to her while watching Alan¡¯s duel. It was devolving from a closely contested contest of strength and endurance into just a beating. The minotaur refused to back away, but Alan was overwhelming it with every passing moment. Each blow collected more of that ugly aura around him until, as the minotaur began to sway on its feet, he struck with a single hook and the aura condensed down to explode in a burst of power that disintegrated the minotaur¡¯s head.

    Silence fell over the deserted town center. There was a den around here somewhere, likely with a few more minotaurs lurking around, but for now it was peaceful. Alan stepped away from the dead cow, shaking his hands out as if they were asleep. His gaze was still sharp, lucid, no trace of madness on his face.

    ¡°Alan? You good to hunt?¡± Naomi asked him. They were closing in on his hometown, only a day or two away at their current pace, but he had yet to turn down a chance at hunting down monster dens.

    ¡°Yeah. You coming with?¡±

    ¡°No. I need to stay here and set up camp. Lucas, Gio, Darnell, and Monica, go with Alan and clear the den. Bring back whatever we need here. Aida, I want you to start securing everything from the fallen. Anything that we can use and need or be repaired. We¡¯ll secure a cache here. Josie, you and two others, start grabbing anything burnable and start building pyres.¡±

    Everyone got to work as she took the remaining fighters and spread them out in a loose perimeter. She had sent her top fighters, aside from herself, to go with Alan. Those who remained were fresh Acolytes with little higher end fighting experience. They were rattled, the speed and ferocity of the minotaurs had taken them off guard and they were reacting badly to how quickly they had lost friends.

    She went to each of them, checking on them, touching a shoulder or arm, trying to ground them. She told them they had done well, that they were good warriors. She judged each of them silently, none of them were going to ascend past peak Acolyte. They lacked the strength of will, the iron conviction to keep pushing past all normal boundaries. They would still be valuable. They could contribute and add to the community she was building and thus they were worth the time she invested in them.

    It took over an hour for Alan to come back with all of her fighters still alive. He held a pair of minotaur horns, silver and gleaming with power, one in each hand. The team she had sent with him looked at him with a mix of awe and fear. His clothes were little more than blood soaked rags that hung off of him, offering little shielding from roaming eyes.

    ¡°Alan? Do you want some clothes?¡±

    ¡°Hmmm, oh yes, that¡¯d be helpful. Seems it¡¯s a bit drafty.¡± He looked around expectantly, a small smile on his face.

    ¡°That was terrible. Leave the horns with Aida and get some fresh clothes. We¡¯re going to burn the bodies and get a move on.¡±

    ¡°Damn, how many did we lose?¡± Alan asked. He looked at the corpses with a hint of sadness in his gaze. The dead had been gathered and pulled onto hastily built pyres of broken apart wood and soaked in gasoline.

    ¡°Seven dead. Mostly from support staff, but Benny died saving Conrad and Bethany.¡±

    ¡°Fuck.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Their conversation was interrupted as the system alert of the pillars flashed before Naomi¡¯s eyes. Columns of fire entered the atmosphere, the sonic booms of the shattering sound barrier a constant crash against their ears as people fell to the ground, covering their ears and yelling as the Pillar of Civilization¡¯s arrival acted as an assault upon the world.

    Naomi stood her ground, weathering out the assault as everyone else collapsed to the ground. She had the highest physical stats of everyone and even this was a war upon her senses that she struggled to withstand. As fast as it came, it ended.

    Echoes of the entrance still rumbled across the world, but the painful attack was over. Naomi scanned the area, looking hard for any sign of a close-by pillar. She had been waiting for this before their expedition had set off, finally giving in to Alan¡¯s requests when they hadn¡¯t arrived soon enough.

    Now they had landed in her lap while she was away from her base of power and lacking the man power needed to hold one. She looked around at the others clustered about, read the looks on their faces as they slowly got to their feet. Alan looked about, a mix of irritation and concern on his face.

    ¡°We¡¯re going to have to get one of those, Alan,¡± Naomi said. She wasn¡¯t going to yield the possibility of gathering the resources of a single pillar if she could avoid it.

    ¡°There¡¯s a plume of smoke coming from the direction of home. Two birds, one stone,¡± Alan offered the suggestion.

    ¡°It will slow us down. Might take us longer to find your son.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s survived this long, he¡¯ll last a few more days. You say we need it, then we need it.¡±

 Ch. 3.21 Besieged

    21.

    The moon¡¯s light gave Santi enough illumination as he pulled the spike free of his leg. Cursing bitterly he looked at the mutated porcupine that he had just put down. Dead mutated animals littered the edge of the city, drawn in by the power of the Pillar of Civilization. No other monsters had arrived yet, but it had still been enough to push him and Chloe to the near breaking point.

    A huge condor lay in broken pieces off to his left, Chloe slumped next to it breathing hard as she clutched at her shredded left arm. Her blood looked black in the dim light and Santi limped over to her, exhausted from the marathon fighting. Even his monstrous mana stores were running low, having burned through another two of the mana potions he had earned.

    Chloe was in even worse shape, often having to back out of fights to recover before she could help him deal with the worst surges. The mutated mammals hadn¡¯t been terrible, but the ants had nearly killed them. Scores of the low level Acolyte ants had nearly overran them, the two of them forced to overexert themselves to push them back.

    ¡°Hey,¡± Santi offered her  a smile as he let his knees fold as he fell next to her. He gently grabbed at her torn up arm, turning it this way and that as he looked at the deep furrows the condor had inflicted on her.

    ¡°How you doing?¡± Chloe asked, exhaustion and pain robbing her voice of any of its normal joviality.

    ¡°Haven¡¯t been consumed by an all consuming bloodlust that makes me a raging monster. Yet.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s the yet part.¡±

    ¡°For me, it¡¯s the you bleeding out part. Let¡¯s get you back to the others. Get some bandages on this. The others should be here soon enough.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve been saying that for hours.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll eventually be right.¡± Santi grabbed her under her arms and pulled her up, ignoring the grunt of pain as he leveraged her good arm over his shoulder so she could lean on him. She never set down her axe as he led her toward the repurposed store.  Chloe just grunted as they continued over to the store.

    Maya, Frank, and Zeke were standing there, watching them come in with concerned expressions. Or maybe they were looking at shadows, the light was weak enough and without the evolution they¡¯d have a hard time peering through the darkness. With enough stats to their perception they¡¯d probably be able to see the two of them.

    ¡°MEDIC!¡± Santi barked. Movement came behind the three leaders and a pair of people Santi hadn¡¯t talked to yet came running out, scooping Chloe up and leading her off towards the store. She waved at him weakly with her axe still in hand and he leaned up against a wall to talk to the three leaders.

    ¡°That was the last of them. Got a few more hours to go.¡±

    ¡°Wish we could be of help. Everything coming this way is overleveled. Didn¡¯t expect so many Acolyte monsters were around,¡± Maya said. She actually did sound disappointed that she couldn¡¯t fight. Zeke simply shrugged, not sad at all in the fact he wasn¡¯t out there in the fray. Frank was placid, calm in the face of the chaos, alert for any trouble that could come his way.

    ¡°These are just the survivors. I would be willing to bet that outside of the town limits is a bloodbath as all the mutated animals and monsters are fighting to get towards the pillar. When the pillar is finished calling everything towards us there will be some good harvesting to do. Hopefully Hana brings enough people to get it done right. Can¡¯t have all this food going to waste.¡±

    ¡°I miss pizza,¡± Frank said suddenly.

    ¡°I¡¯d murder for a pint of ice cream. Literally murder,¡± Maya threw in her two cents.

    ¡°You¡¯ve murdered for less,¡± Zeke hissed under his breath as he looked off to the side. Everyone ignored him.

    ¡°You¡¯re bleeding.¡±

    ¡°I noticed. It was a porcupine.¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t they herbivores?¡± Zeke asked, looking back at them from his spot against the wall.

    ¡°Yeah, it didn¡¯t try to eat me. Just stabbed me with its quills. Big ass quills.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s even worse. At least a carnivore is trying to eat you. That porcupine just fucked you up for no reason.¡±

    ¡°It didn¡¯t fuck me up. It just stabbed me a little,¡± Santi defended himself as he lowered himself to the ground.

    ¡°Regardless. I¡¯ll go and see if there¡¯s any bandages around.¡± Zeke fled from the group without hesitation.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think he likes us,¡± Maya said straight-faced.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to have to agree with that statement. Killing his friends didn¡¯t ingratiate yourself to him.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s probably my bad,¡± Maya said with a shrug.

    ¡°Probably?¡± Frank and Santi asked at the same time.

    ¡°Definitely my bad.¡± They all sank into silence as Santi strained his hearing to hear if anyone or anything else was pushing toward the store. He could hear the breathing of the survivors in the store, but nothing else. Just a warm summer night breeze blowing across the town.

    Zeke came back with a bunch of boiled cloth squares that he handed to Santi. Santi rolled down his pants and wedged the squares on his blood slick thigh. They wouldn¡¯t be of much help, but something was better than nothing.

    ¡°How¡¯s Chloe?¡±

    ¡°Tough as hell. Wasn¡¯t making a sound as they cleaned her up.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s Chloe. She¡¯s going to be something special.¡±

    ¡°When are your other friends coming?¡± Zeke asked.

    ¡°Should have been here by now. Any minute.¡±

    ¡°You have a lot of faith in them,¡± Frank commented.

    ¡°I trained them. It¡¯s going to be rough out there. I doubt that they¡¯ll be able to get to us without a hell of a fight.¡±

    ¡°Think there¡¯s really that many monsters and animals out there?¡±

    Santi could feel it. The blood splashed on the thirsty ground. Torn flesh and dying hearts. The curse surged in his veins, pushing, wanting to go out there into the night and revel in the violence of it all.

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Fuck.¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Santi looked about, feeling a stir in the shadows. Either Duncan or Daniel. Daniel would try to sneak up on him and scare him through. Not alert him of his presence by being clumsy just in range of his spell forms, but not in range of his morph weapon.

    ¡°You all go in the store. There¡¯s someone very dangerous here,¡± Santi told them as he got to his feet.

    ¡°No need for that Santiago. I¡¯m not their enemy.¡± Duncan walked out of the dark like it was a pre-integration summer night and that the town wasn¡¯t surrounded by hordes of fighting and dying monsters.

    ¡°You¡¯re all of humanity''s enemy, traitor.¡±

    ¡°Harsh words from a dictator. My actions aren¡¯t for personal gain, but in service of something more.¡±

    ¡°All of you, get inside of the store. Now, please.¡± Santi felt the others walk back into the guts of the store, Zeke looking interested in staying while Frank just tugged Maya along.

    ¡°I think you have either the greatest eye for talent in the world or the most luck I¡¯ve ever seen. The woman and boy will both be monsters if you can keep them alive and growing.¡±

    ¡°What are you doing here, Duncan? Miss me already?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to enjoy killing you when this is over. But, to honor the spirit of our tentative agreement, Mercy¡¯s people are fighting yours a few miles outside of the town.¡±

    ¡°Casualties?¡±

    ¡°Many. Most of them the cursed. You have trained your people decently and the dwarves are a massive boon. Their weapons and armor and golems are decimating their ranks. The problem is several of their strongest have broken free and are racing here.¡±

    ¡°Acolytes?¡±

    ¡°Yes. All of them forties plus. And fueled by a curse. They¡¯re carving their way through the wall of flesh that¡¯s outside of the town. I can¡¯t have you dying yet. Need you alive to help me kill Mercy.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re here to help me?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re a bit slow. Yes. I am here to help you. My people will fall on the horde of the cursed that are occupying your people. I only have a few scouting teams around, but they¡¯re good. It should be enough to clean them out of the area. Once the cursed are killed, they have orders to retreat back to our staging area. You and I will kill the Acolytes on their way here.¡±

    ¡°And you won¡¯t ram a dagger in my back because you need me to help kill the curse holder.¡±

    ¡°Yes. I won¡¯t stab you in the back again because I need you. Once she¡¯s dead and the curse is broken, we can go back to killing each other.¡±

    ¡°How many are coming?¡±

    ¡°Five at minimum. Maybe seven. It¡¯s very chaotic right now. That pillar is like a beacon to anything and everything out there right now. It was a struggle for me to make it into the town. Your little scout tried but was rebuffed. Repeatedly.¡± There was an edge of smugness to his voice.

    ¡°You have a decade of experience on him. Why are you proud of doing what he can¡¯t. It¡¯s like taking candy from a baby.¡±

    ¡°Spoilsport.¡±

    ¡°What direction are they coming from?¡± Duncan simply waved in the same direction that Santi, Hana, and Chloe had come from.

    ¡°I stand in front and draw all the attention and you stab them in the back?¡± Santi asked. It was a simple and easy plan that could work out decently.

    ¡°Works for me. Your girl going to be ok back there? Her arm didn¡¯t look good when you came in.¡±

    ¡°How long have you been watching us?¡± Santi asked, suddenly suspicious of the assassin. How soon was it till the wave of cursed Acolytes got here if Duncan could snoop around and spy for the better part of a quarter hour.

    ¡°Get better at sensing me. Basically had to wave a flag for you to notice me. Nice crown by the way, really helps with the dictator image you have going.¡±

    ¡°How has nobody killed you yet? You¡¯re annoying as fuck.¡±

    ¡°Plenty have tried. Now, are you in condition to do this? You''re looking a little tired.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me. I can handle my end. They can be here any minute you said. I don¡¯t want this fight happening where there can be collateral damage.¡±

    ¡°After you,¡± Duncan said with a thin smile, waving his one arm into the darkness.

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s not happening. You can go first and I¡¯ll follow behind.¡±

    ¡°How can I trust you? You¡¯re just as likely to stab me in the back as I am you?

    ¡°I don¡¯t need to stab you in the back to kick your ass.¡±

    Duncan fell silent for a moment and then glanced down at his missing arm. His faint smile faded and an ice cold certainty filled his face.

    ¡°No, you didn¡¯t, did you. I¡¯ll get my pound of flesh for that, don¡¯t think you¡¯ll get away with taking my arm. After.¡±

    ¡°After.¡± Santi agreed.

 Ch. 3.22 Unlikely Alliances

    22.

    Santi followed behind Duncan as the two men left the false safety of the others. Only Chloe would have been of any help and she was laid up with her arm ravaged and her energy exhausted from the fight. Santi quietly pulled another mana potion out of the pockets of his torn up pants and sipped it down slowly. The cool mint taste had become a raging, icy, fire that ravaged his throat.

    It did stir his mana though and he could feel himself regenerating slightly faster than he had been. He was still in rough shape when it came to a pure casting standpoint, but then again, he hadn¡¯t been purely relying on his mage skills since this initialization had started.

    The morph weapon on his wrist was a limp wire that radiated happiness. It had drank deeply tonight, consuming blood and potential in equal measure as they cut their way through the horde of monsters and mutated animals that had fought their way through the slaughter happening on the outskirts. Even as they walked closer to the edge of the ruined downtown, Santi could hear the fighting.

    Animal screams of pain and rage and the thunderous boom of high ranking monsters locking horns with one another. All over the power that Santi was claiming for himself. It was a heady feeling, that they wanted what he had. His chest puffed out and his tired body found a bit of energy to get him to walk with the hint of the old spring in his step.

    Santi couldn¡¯t tell if it was the curse, feeding him a bit of energy as it felt the carnage all around him. Or his own ego, small and battered as it had been, rising to the occasion. Between the slight boost and the mana potion he almost felt human again.

    They made it to the edge of the downtown region, Duncan not saying a word as he began to meld into the shadows off on the side. Santi instantly alerted as the assassin began to do his thing, Santi¡¯s instincts not allowing him to relax as the killer tried to hide.

    ¡°Where you going?¡± Santi spat out as the morph blade became his trusted saber.

    ¡°I¡¯m not exactly a stand in front of someone and punch them in the face type of fighter. I do my best work quietly and unseen. You¡¯ll have to stand there and keep their attention.¡±

    ¡°So I stand here and get punched in the face?¡±

    ¡°If you¡¯re slow, then yes.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to kill you. Can¡¯t wait.¡± Duncan looked towards Santi and smiled viciously.

    ¡°The minute Mercy is dropped, you and me are going to war again.¡±

    ¡°Promises, promises,¡± Santi taunted back as his heart began to beat harder.

    ¡°They¡¯re coming down the road right now. You hold their attention, I¡¯ll finish them off.¡± With that, Duncan completely disappeared from sight and Santi¡¯s other senses. Santi wanted to bite back a curse as Duncan dipped, but he let the words stream out anyway.

    ¡°Getting sick of dickheads always disappearing like that.¡±  Santi looked toward the edge of the town and waited. Duncan had been right, it didn¡¯t take long before the cursed Acolytes came out of the dark. Six figures, drenched in blood, some limping, walked slowly toward him. Santi stood straight and unafraid as the curse in his body stirred, resonating with the more powerful curses that the Acolytes had.

    ¡°Brother!¡± the lead shouted, his voice a thunderous boom across the night. He swaggered forward, half a stumble as if he was drunk. The pale light of the stars showed him dripping wetly as he lifted a heavy spiked maul to his shoulder. Santi ignored the attempt at fraternity and simply raised his saber to shoulder level, aimed at the cursed Acolyte.

    ¡°So be it, you will not be the first who has met their end at my hand. I will crush you and take the Pillar for myself.¡±

    Cursed Barbarian lvl. 44

    (Blood Thirst)

    ¡°Oh, fuck, he¡¯s kinda high leveled,¡± Santi muttered to himself even as the man lunged into action. His powerful stats allowed him to move in nothing more than a blur, the spiked cudgel hissing through the air as he directed it toward him. Santi swung his saber and met the cudgel in a blast of force. The cudgel didn¡¯t yield, steel scraped on whatever it was the morph blade was, as Santi was forced back.

    A System granted weapon then. High quality, but not a growth weapon like the morph blade. A hazy red aura appeared over the man and his blows picked up speed, Santi struggling to match the man¡¯s physical stats. An aura skill, or an enhancing skill, nothing that he wanted to match in pure physical stats. This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    Santi jumped backward and allowed the cudgel to sail by him, to crack asphalt into powder in a spray of chunks. He reversed his momentum and lunged upward, knee leading the way as his knee hit the barbarian¡¯s chin. Bone cracked and the barbarian staggered backward while Santi was forced to catch a long spear strike with his saber, turning the broad head away from his ribs as the second of the cursed came at him.

    Cursed Spearmen lvl. 41

    (Blood Thirst)

    ¡°Fuck off, I¡¯m busy!¡± Santi snarled at the spearmen, irritated that his duel had been interrupted. He slashed three times as fast as he could while the barbarian was still reeling from having his jaw broken.

    The spear holder was able to catch each blow, speeding up as his spear tip caught the morph blade and shoved them to the side like nothing. Santi was rapidly reaching the levels where even his titles wouldn¡¯t let him compete directly physically with physical fighters. It was why he had spells.

    [Crosscurrent-Orb] detonated in a massive explosion, tossing the barbarian backward before the barbarian could get close to him again. Santi dropped to a crouch as a skill activated, a cool blue light surrounding the spear as it suddenly triple thrust over his head fast enough that after images were left behind.

    The saber lengthened and cut across the leading quadriceps of the spearman¡¯s leg, parting flesh like paper. The lean spearman smiled and howled in a mix of pain and pleasure, stumbling as his leg collapsed underneath him. Santi leapt backward as two more of the cursed came chasing after him. A burst of fire rolling over him, kept at bay only by his [Air Current], the flames flicking at the edge of his skin.

    ¡°Anytime Duncan,¡± Santi spat, dodging a rock that was hurled at him, air cracking as the golden glowing rock flashed by.

    Four Acolyte warriors were homed in on him, their skills flashing and burning as Santi pushed himself to the fullest of his abilities to simply stay alive. His morph blade was an amorphous blur, changing to meet every attack as Santi ran backwards, circling around to keep the four fighters from overwhelming him.

    Santi nearly missed Duncan entering the fight. The assassin simply stepped into being, his knife tearing apart a throat in silence, skills at play. The furthest cursed warrior, some type of healer, died without making a sound. The others were too lost in their own battle to notice the least of them dying.

    Santi stabbed down and caught the barbarian¡¯s foot, splitting the foot in half as he twisted and ducked to dodge a spear strike. Flame spitted the air around him, burning at the spearman as the fire mage began to act wild. There was chaos in the air, joy in the fight, the thrill of death being only a misstep away. Even as blood began to soak their clothes as Santi cut them, they were growing faster and more wild.

    A laugh started to rattle around in Santi¡¯s chest as he ducked and slashed, severing a few fingers from the barbarians off hand. The bigger man simply roared, never slowing as more and more skills came out to contest Santi.

    Duncan killed the next one, an archer who was dancing around the edges of the fight, not lost to the siren¡¯s call of his curse. A shadow clone emerged from one side, causing the archer to jerk away and fire his bow into the shadow. The shadow fell apart even as the archer¡¯s lunge carried him onto Duncan''s knife. None of Santi¡¯s opponents noticed the second death.

    He pushed off hard, taking a grazing wound along his ribs from the spear user as he crossed the distance toward the rock thrower. The long lanky woman¡¯s eyes widened in surprise as Santi cut apart a wall of flame, emerging from the other side slightly singed. He speared her through the chest, cracking apart ribs like they were dry branches as she died without making a sound.

    He kicked her limp body away, his body straining as he was forced to spin and knock aside the next cudgel blow. The spiked cudgel hit and tore into the ground while the spear user lunged, crossing more ground than possible as he used another skill.

    [Gust] pushed the spear away from him and the spearman flew past in a blur. Santi redoubled his attack on the barbarian, slicing away skin and slivers of cudgel with every blow as the fire mage circled around them, trying to get a clean shot on him. Santi stuck close to the barbarian, using his weapon¡¯s superiority to keep the huge man from overwhelming him.

    He spun the blade around into a shield, swatting the cudgel away, and turning into a knife to slash along the barbarian¡¯s arm. Blood was spilling, filling the air with its iron scent, warm on his skin as he kept cutting and slicing, tearing apart the barbarian as power surged through his body.

    Heat exploded over him, his senses hardly reacting in time as he cast [Air Shield] to stop the fireball from consuming him. The barbarian wasn¡¯t as lucky. His skin blackened and burned away, hair disintegrating even as he screamed, cudgel going from blue-black to red-orange.

    Santi leapt away from the barbarian and toward the maniacally grinning mage. The man was lost in the madness of the fight, fire streaming off his fists in waves as he lifted his hand to punch at Santi. Santi cut the man¡¯s hands off, the morph blade not bothered at all by the fire magic.

    He reversed the strike and relieved the mage of his head. Santi looked back in time to watch Duncan appear to finish off the barbarian with a single strike. The spearman was running back toward him as fast as possible, but Santi had his feet set and his heart was sure. He moved with ease, stepping forward and toward the man as the spear flashed past him. Santi sliced hard, taking the man¡¯s head without hesitation.

    As fast as it had started it was over. He had killed three of them and Duncan had claimed three. The levels were waiting for him, ready to claim his new stat points in a moment.

    ¡°We¡¯re done here. You¡¯re fairly effective. Pity I¡¯m going to have to kill you.¡± Duncan was down the street from him, not willing to be within striking range of Santi. Santi couldn¡¯t blame him.

    ¡°Go now, or we can finish what we started weeks ago. When I¡¯ve gathered my people, then we can discuss finishing Mercy.¡±

    ¡°And how will I know?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll be spying on me, like you always do.¡±

    ¡°See ya around then, Santiago. Try not to die till I can kill you.¡±

 Ch. 3.23 The Toll

    23.

    They came two hours after dawn. Cameron led them through the ruins of the city outskirts, his armor dinged and bloody. His shield was a battered wreck that he let hang by his knees as he trudged at the front of the group. The rest came behind him in a ragged line, all of Santi¡¯s friends and family still alive. A heavy weight left his shoulders as he saw them all, Tank, Bianca, Daniel, and Hana. Yessenia was walking in the center, her massive golem drenched in gore, by her side.

    Grimvr and Torin were next, Mom between them looking blankly about her. Behind her trailed twenty or more people, all of them looking worse for the wear. Rayleigh had a group of her own people that clustered around her, seeking her stubborn strength after the tribulation they had just endured.

    Chloe leaned against him, more in exhaustion than in any type of affection. After he had finished off the Acolytes, more and more monsters had come. Chloe had come out of the store, tired but willing. She had killed her fair share before the waves had finally broken, thirty minutes before dawn.

    They had rested, sitting next to each other and waiting to see who would be coming out of the frenzy outside. Santi didn¡¯t know how large of a group had originally come, who had answered his call, but he was staring at a battered and exhausted group. He could only imagine who had been left in muddy ground.

    ¡°Cam! Good to see you. Tank, you have any juice left in the tank? Me and Chloe are torn up,¡± Santi said to them as they walked up to him. His wounds were half healed, coagulated messes that had drenched his clothes and were now tacky and stuck to his skin.

    ¡°Santi. This had better been worth it. There is enough dead left behind us to fill a cemetery,¡± Tank¡¯s voice was dead and flat. Exhaustion shot through his body as he staggered up to them. Santi pulled a mana potion free, his second to last one from the box he had earned, and handed it to the medic.

    Tank didn¡¯t even hesitate as he grabbed the potion and drank it down in a single swig. He went to Chloe first and started to do his work while Santi headed toward Cam and Bianca. The rest of the war party was breaking apart, collapsing into the street or against a wall, spent to their last.

    Bianca leaned against Cam who still stood tall. Mom marched toward them in a clatter of metal, her once pristine armor dented and battered. Torin stayed next to her, his hammer held easily in his hand, still dripping his opponent¡¯s blood. Grimvr stuck with Yessenia as they marched straight into the grocery store without looking at him.

    ¡°Are you guys ok?¡± Santi whispered to his best friend and older sister.

    ¡°Fuck no, Santi. That¡­that was horrible,¡± Bianca whispered towards him, seeming to draw strength from leaning against Cameron.

    ¡°Santi. It was a nightmare. That shit. That shit, man,¡± Cam swayed and Santi reached out to grab him and by proxy his sister. The three formed a tripod for a moment, helping each other stay upright. Cam got his legs back under him and Santi lead them to a partial wall and they all sank down. Mom and Torin followed after, but didn¡¯t crowd them.

    ¡°It was just a wall of flesh and blood and teeth, Santi. There were so many of them, they just kept coming and coming and coming. Then there were the other people. The cursed. They were worse. They laughed and howled when we cut them, they didn¡¯t care no badly how we hurt them. They only stopped when they died,¡± Bianca whispered, curling into Cam.

    ¡°How many were there?¡±

    ¡°Fuck man, who could tell? There were lots of them, dozens, fuck maybe a hundred. Most were weak, sub twenty-five, but there was maybe three or four who were strong as us. Me and Bianca got one of them and Grimvr, Daniel, Hana, and your Mom got another. Torin killed one and Yessesnia¡¯s golem got another,¡± Cam cut in. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°We need an accurate count. That scout we snagged said their camp numbered in the hundreds if not thousands, but they had roughly a hundred Acolytes. Six made it into the town and you got four. That¡¯s ten percent of their Acolytes right there. Then the ones we got on the coast. They¡¯re thinning down.¡±

    ¡°Santi, we lost a lot of good people. We can¡¯t afford another victory like that,¡± Cam interjected.

    ¡°Agreed,¡± Tank said as he came leading Chloe over. Chloe slumped to the ground while Tank leaned over, resting a warm hand on Santi¡¯s shoulder as spells started to work on him.

    ¡°Then we need to be smarter. They outnumber us and can absorb losses we can¡¯t afford. Where¡¯s Daniel?¡± Santi asked, looking around.

    ¡°I¡¯ll go get him,¡± Mom said, breaking off to go find the elusive scout.

    They all settled down to wait as Santi thought feverishly. His mind was in a thick fog, tired and drained of all energy, but he could feel things connecting. Dots connected together as he thought of how to solve his problems.The variables were sliding together, the pillar, the beatles, missing scouts, his sisters class.

    Daniel came up, walking slowly and without hurry as Hana trailed behind him. Mom was nowhere to be seen and Torin frowned when he failed to spot her. He turned and marched off without a word while Daniel sank into a crouch across from him.

    ¡°You called?¡±

    ¡°The scouts you lost to the beatles. Where were they? From here.¡±

    ¡°Little North and East. Maybe thirty miles.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s where we¡¯re going then. Let everyone catch their breath, any who are still able to fight will move toward where we lost the scouts. Me, Chloe, and Daniel will go find Keegan. Those who are too hurt to fight will lead the community here back to Homebase. Everyone else will go to where the scout base was wiped out.¡±

    ¡°What are you planning, Santi?¡± Chloe asked sleepily next to him.

    ¡°We have too many enemies and not enough allies. But, Duncan told me he didn¡¯t kill that base and I believe him. Which means there¡¯s a high level bug nest close to that town. We¡¯re going to make a trap and we¡¯re going to endure. Yesi¡¯s going to need a lot of supplies and we have plenty of ingredients sitting right outside the town limits moldering right now.¡±

    ¡°Who the fuck is Duncan?¡± Cam asked. Santi ignored him for the moment as he continued to come up with a plan on the fly.

    ¡°Someone go and grab Yesi. Her grimoire will have the ingredient lists she needs to make something special. I¡¯ll pay anyone who goes out there and works collecting five wooden coins and open up the market to them immediately when I finish claiming the pillar.¡±

    ¡°Are coins really worth that much?¡± someone muttered. They definitely were, but only Santi and the dwarves knew that. The wealth his Mom and Dad had acquired while running their little restaurant was impressive. It¡¯d be more than enough to pay back Torin for his time and work, if he would accept it.

    ¡°How soon till it¡¯s yours?¡± Chloe muttered.

    ¡°Later today. We will have it set up before we move out of here.¡±

    ¡°I need a nap,¡± Chloe declared, closing her eyes and falling asleep nearly instantly.

    ¡°We¡¯re getting off track. So, we¡¯re going to lure everyone up there and somehow lure a bunch of high ranking bugs into the fight and just hope we get out of it ok?¡± Bianca asked.

    ¡°It¡¯ll be more than just hoping it goes ok. We¡¯ll work it out, but Yesi is going to play a big part. We just need to find her the right ingredients and a good power source.¡± Santi¡¯s mind flashed back a particular rift heart that had been stolen from him. One that hadn¡¯t been used for the earlier ritual that Duncan and his faction had planned.

    ¡°There¡¯s plenty of ingredients, but where are we going to get a power source? I don¡¯t think there¡¯s any rifts around here for us to take.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re good now, Santi. I don¡¯t have anything left in the tank anyway,¡± Tank said, as he stepped away from Santi. The healing had been more subtle than a healing potion, but it still felt good.

    ¡°Did you just make a pun off of your nickname?¡± Santi said with a chuckle so weak it barely passed his lips.

    ¡°Yes. Laughter is the best medicine. What we need, all of us, is some sleep. We¡¯re all burnt out and at the edge of our abilities. Need to heal up and prep for tonight. Doctor¡¯s orders.¡±

    ¡°Can¡¯t ignore the doctor. Someone gather up the community members from here and have them do the harvesting. Five awake and on watch, the rest sleeping.¡± Santi¡¯s orders were met with a wave of nods and acceptance as everyone staggered to their feet and headed toward the burnt out store that Frank and Zeke¡¯s factions were set up in.

    Santi had a moment of isolation as everyone left, only Chloe, slumped against the wall next to him snoring softly, his only company. He had a long line of notifications he had to scroll through, but his eyelids were drooping shut and he was struggling to stay awake.

    With a groan of effort he got up, his knees weak and wobbly as he scooped up Chloe. She hardly stirred against him as he started off toward the store. He had a tentative plan, he had the pillar, and he had enemies. His allies were with him, now all he had to do was execute the plan.

 Ch. 3.24 Options

    24.

    Santi stared up at the pillar in the midday light. He watched as the seconds counted down the last few seconds as the pillar unlocked and he could fully utilize it. The stench was truly becoming something else, the hundreds of corpses littering the perimeter of the town had a phenomenal stench that had Santi wrinkling his nose.

    Frank and Zeke¡¯s people were out there in that charnel house, gathering up supplies under Yessenia and Grimvr¡¯s watchful eyes. Santi didn¡¯t know how they had convinced Yessenia to go outside, but someone had done it. Now a pile of grisly remains were being piled up around her, all of which she looked at dispassionately.

    Santi was worried about that blank look in her eyes. The way she seemed to be just walking though the world in a daze. Fear and anxiety were all that broke through that daze and Santi didn¡¯t know how to fix it. That familiar rage at Abraham burned up hot and fast in his gut.

    Mom and Torin were cleaning their armor. The older dwarf showed Mom the proper maintenance needed for her armor and weapons. Mom took to it with the single minded determination that she had been exhibiting since Dad had died.

    Killed. Since Dad had been killed. Santi looked away from them and back towards the pillar as the countdown ended.

    Congratulations, you¡¯re still alive!

    Now the Owner of 1 Pillar of Civilization

    You have 1 Free Move for this Pillar

    There were more of course, walls of text that Santi scrolled through that described the minutiae of what he could do with the pillar. Even with his high intelligence allowing him to process information at superhuman speeds, it took him the better part of a half hour to read it all.

    Everything was there that he expected. The wealth of options a pillar gave its owner was well known, but there were a few caveats he hadn¡¯t known about. He would have to adjust some of his plans, but for now everything could work short term. Santi dismissed the Owner¡¯s Manual and entered into the menu section for the first time.

    Owner¡¯s Menu

    Market Place

    Map

    Survey

    Taxes

    Santi locked his eye on the map tab and clicked it. A topographical map sprung up in his vision, the pillar and everyone else disappearing. The map was topographical, the valleys and hills of craggy Northern California easy to read for a twenty mile circumference. Santi didn¡¯t need to know the lay of the land, for the map didn¡¯t reveal any of the towns or settlements, just the geography of the area.

    And little blips that showed people who had the System. Santi saw the cluster of blips all around him, the scattered line right outside of town of the scavengers. He even saw one or two hiding about inside the town, either survivors from that death cult or people shirking work.

    He saw the watcher who was outside of town. He clicked the blip with his mind and a small screen popped up.

    Scout lvl. 31

    That was the only information the pillar offered him. The scout was either one of Duncan¡¯s or Mercy¡¯s. He needed both of them to know what he was doing, so he left the scout alone for now. Santi wished the pillar allowed him to see names of people, but class and level had to be good enough for now.

    He pulled up the market menu and frowned when he saw so few options. None were of much interest to him currently, most of them having to do with settling a region. Once he had the pillar back at Homebase, then he could fully utilize things like irrigation lines and purifying ponds and enriched topsoil. There were survey probes which cost ten wooden coins each. Most of Santi¡¯s horde was back home, but he had enough to buy three of them. Santi felt the weight of the coins disappear from his pocket as the pillar absorbed them.

    The map dissolved and he was back in front of the pillar as  three circular, purple glass orbs appeared in front of him. He had to reach out and snag them before they hit the ground, the heavy weight of them taking him off guard for a moment. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

    ¡°Oh shit, what¡¯d you buy moneybags?¡± Cam asked him and Bianca came strolling up to him hand in hand. Some of their swagger was back after getting a few hours of sleep and scrubbing the blood off of themselves. Cam¡¯s shield was dented but the scraps of flesh and blood had been washed off and he looked presentable enough. Bianca macuahuitl hung from her hip, clean of any detritus, and she had found spare clothes somewhere and managed to tame her hair.

    ¡°Probes.¡±

    ¡°For a first date?¡±

    ¡°Survey probes for the area, dick,¡± Santi said trying to hide his smile as Bianca shoved Cam with her shoulder, absolutely not moving him at all.

    ¡°What, he¡¯s been weird lately. I just wanted to check,¡± Cam defended himself while Chloe looked at him with an arched eyebrow, not deigning to respond.

    ¡°Yo, DANIEL!¡± Santi hollered, looking around for the sneaky scout.

    Daniel and Hana poked their heads out from around the corner. Santi jerked his head, telling them to get over here. Each of the probes were cool and glassy, but the weight was enough that it was irritating to hold.

    ¡°Toys for us?¡± Daniel asked as they got closer.

    ¡°We all know you heard us talking. Yes, they are for you. You and Hana each get one, take them out through the town. I want to see how accurate they are with recording data. Cam, want to take the third and go the other way?¡±

    ¡°Why me?¡±

    ¡°Because your jokes suck.¡±

    ¡°It was funny.¡±

    Everyone looked at him and silence fell over them all. Cam looked back and forth, a look of betrayal slowly spreading over his face as he realized nobody was coming to back him up. Finally, he turned to look at Bianca who just looked disappointed.

    ¡°Fine. Come on, amor, you can show me the town,¡± Cam said sarcastically as he grabbed one of the probes with his giant hand before walking off with Bianca. Everyone turned to look at Santi, faint smiles on their faces.

    ¡°All of you, off, scatter, begone. I have stats to go through.¡±

    ¡°So, just you and Chloe,¡± Hana began, but Chloe cut her off.

    ¡°Actually, I want to take a stroll myself. Me and Hana, some girl talk. No boys allowed.¡± Chloe grabbed Hana, interlinking their arms and the probe in one smooth motion before leaving Daniel and Santi standing by themselves.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think the two of them together is a great idea. Sneaky and muscles,¡± Daniel said.

    ¡°It¡¯s the apocalypse. We have more pressing concerns than our girlfriends chatting together.¡±

    ¡°Ye of little faith. Give me that probe. I¡¯m leaving before they get back.¡± Daniel snagged the probe and went off in the opposite direction of the girls and Santi finally had a moment to himself as he walked a few steps away from the pillar to go over his gains.

    Santiago Silva

    Air Mage lvl. 49

    Strength: 40 (75)

    Durability: 40 (75)

    Stamina: 40 (75)

    Dexterity: 40 (75)

    Vitality: 40 (75)

    Perception: 35 (70)

    Intelligence: 114 (149)

    Mana: 149 (184)

    Willpower: 120 (155)

    Potential: 99%

    The gains were quick and easy to find, extra stat points allocated to strength and dexterity to make them equal and the final points towards his waning willpower. In the quiet afterglow of a large affixation he could admit to himself that he wasn¡¯t controlling the curse.

    It was insidious. Burrowing itself deep into his psyche, whispering to him to cut and cut and bathe in the blood that was flowing. It spoke to that rage nestled deep in his chest, that hurt and emptiness and pain.

    It told him it could make it all go away.

    If he gave in.

    So he allocated extra willpower points to the stat and felt that the thick wall he had built around those treacherous thoughts grew just a bit stronger. It was unfortunate there were so many cracks in it.

    There were no awards for the butchery he had participated in last night. No alerts of the curse gaining in strength, for which he was grateful. At times last night, when the fighting was the fiercest, when his strength flagged and his mana was running dry, he thought about letting those walls fall and embracing the curse.

    The heavy thump of a golem¡¯s footsteps stirred him from his daze as he watched as Yessenia and her protector came up towards him. Yessi was dressed in an oversized sweater that fell to her knees, the gray garment stained up to her elbows with all sorts of gore. Her golem was spotless, just dull gray metal that didn¡¯t reflect the light as it marched.

    ¡°Santi, I got everything that the book says we need. Except for the power source,¡± Yesi¡¯s voice was whisper quiet as she stood next to him.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to work on that. Is the grimoire unlocking more spells for you to study?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Every time I get to a new level more diagrams open up for me to study.¡±

    ¡°Are you confident in the final spell? It¡¯s a lot more complex than most of them.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to need two days at the minimum to set up the final spell. It needs to see both starlight and sunlight, and some of the ingredients I have need to be purified. Which is a skill I just had to buy by the way.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s say three days from today then. We¡¯ll move all up together and I¡¯ll leave you and some guards there to set everything up. I¡¯m going to have to go and kick a hornet¡¯s nest.¡±

    ¡°Sounds like a normal day for you. I understand the other spells, but why the exorcism spell?¡±

 Ch. 3.25 The Groundwork

    25.

    So few were left. The majority of the reinforcements Santi had called for had been injured or killed and the majority of the survivors had escorted Frank¡¯s and Zeke¡¯s people back to Homebase. Santi¡¯s team, plus his Mom, Torin, and Yessi and her golems. Rayleigh had four fighters left, all Acolytes in the low thirties. Frank, Maya, and Zeke had all come with them, not having been asked but told. Their own evolutions coming soon enough.

    They had all watched in awe as the Pillar of Civilization had shrunk, falling into itself until it was nothing more than a thick seven foot long staff. Santi had it over his shoulder as he walked, eyes alert as they entered into where Daniel¡¯s scouts had been killed. The heavy staff on Santi¡¯s shoulder was reassuring as they looked around the cluster of buildings that composed the entirety of the town.

    Population 545. There were no apartments, no large homes. Most of the surviving houses were tract homes, easily thrown up and left alone. It was these little settlements, little more than villages, that survived the best. The populations were wiped out in most cases, but the infrastructure didn¡¯t take quite as much of a beating.

    It was a decent place to have a small team of runners. Close to the interstate, could move in any cardinal direction with ease. Slightly out of the way so nobody should have ran over it without searching for it. The carcasses of the dead beetles were still there, massive and hollow, eaten out by other wild monsters or animals.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t this cozy,¡± Santi said, leaning toward Cameron. The bigger man just looked around and raised an eyebrow at the deserted town.

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t want to be doing whatever it was Daniel had them doing way the fuck out here.¡±

    ¡°They hung out and played board games or card games most of the time,¡± Hana supplied.

    ¡°Boring.¡±

    ¡°Then they all got killed,¡± Santi reminded Cam.

    ¡°Yeah, there is that part. Bored to death.¡±

    Everyone pulled away from Cam as he stood there, his dark humor not landing. Bianca was shoulder to shoulder with Yessi as the two of them, and Yessi¡¯s golem, marched into where the scout¡¯s building had been.

    ¡°Fuck, everyone¡¯s a critic,¡± Cam grunted as he started to move toward the dead beetles. Chloe went with him, the two of them the physically strongest people in the small group, and they began to haul the corpses out of the way while Santi looked around for a good spot.

    He couldn¡¯t access the pillar while it was in its travel mode and if he wanted this to work he was going to need the map. The three probes had provided a very accurate topographical map and the plan was for Daniel, Hana, and Bianca to move around town and develop a good map of the town and the surrounding region.

    The heavy spells Yessenia would be making over the next few days would require an accurate knowledge base of the terrain. Now that they were progressing past the easy ritual spells, things like altitude and slope of the land could affect the spell. It was rapidly growing beyond Santi¡¯s limited knowledge, but Yessi was sinking into it like a duck to water.

    She had plenty of work to do and the math of building a half dozen spells, most of them overlapping, had been enough to make Santi¡¯s head hurt. Yessi¡¯s skills had been useful, shaving so much time off the effort that Santi had a brief moment of jealousy. He had faith that she could figure out all the spells needed to activate their trap, now it was just up to him to get the power source for the biggest of the spells.

    He¡¯d need to get it from Duncan. He didn¡¯t think the assassin would just hand it over, he¡¯d need to have something in return. Something of equal value to a powerful rift heart. For that he¡¯d need to start searching, these sparse areas likely had a few secrets hidden in them.

    First was to establish a small base here while he went and found the missing scout, Keegan. He¡¯d take Daniel, Hana, Chloe and Tank. The rest of the group would stay here and protect Yessenia and prepare for the siege that was coming. The two dwarves would be massive help here, the experienced builders would have tricks up their sleeves that would help even the field.

    In the center of the small town was a little field, that was more a large yard than anything. It was surrounded by ribbons of concrete, the roads all barely single lane. It was good enough for him. Santi speared the pillar into the earth, the heavy staff spearing into the hard packed dirt with ease. With a thought the pillar began to grow, stretching up higher and higher.

    The menu popped into his mind and he quickly checked the map. There were no other people around and a little bit of tension left Santi¡¯s back after seeing that. The scout had been left behind in their fast paced march to the outpost. Duncan would be around, but Santi needed to see him later, not sooner. This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    Santi left the pillar there and went back to the outpost that the runners had been housed in. It was a simple building with just a bit of plywood over the windows and the backdoor barricaded. The girls had pulled out what little was left of the runner¡¯s personal possessions, tossing them on the lawn without a care. The dwarves were looking around, pointing to this and that, their guttural native tongue gruff and grating.

    ¡°Pillar¡¯s set up. Probes are deployed. Should have a decent map of the area in a few hours.¡±

    ¡°Will we be able to access the map while you¡¯re gone?¡± Bianca asked.

    ¡°Yes. I¡¯ll set you, Cam, and Torin as being able to access it. Won¡¯t be able to do any of the functions I can do, but you¡¯ll be able to use the maps.¡±

    ¡°You trust Torin?¡±

    ¡°Trust him far enough. We have an agreement and he won¡¯t break it.¡±

    ¡°If you say so. Mom likes him. Don¡¯t know if I like who she is right now.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think many of us like who we are right now. Work got to get done. You going to be fine without me?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll be fine. Torin is impressive, have no idea how those cyclops captured him.¡±

    ¡°Numbers can still overwhelm people. At least, so far it can.¡± Santi had an image of a Champion, wreathed in lightning, as Disciples and peak Acolytes threw themselves at her. They all burned, turned to ash with a flicker of the fingers. At a certain point one would be strong enough that only their equals could match them.

    ¡°Get your ass in here and help out. I don¡¯t care how big and bad you are, you¡¯re still my little brother and you don¡¯t get to stand around while I clean.¡± Bianca had a fake stern look on her face and Santi felt grateful to her. At times he felt strange. Like he wasn¡¯t who he thought he was. That the person who was accomplishing the things he was accomplishing, the man people looked to for advice and leadership wasn¡¯t him. Just someone walking around with his face and body.

    His family helped ground him. Remind him that he was still Santiago. Which was something he sometimes forgot. He looked at the pool of silver metal wound around his arm, the numbers floating in his eyesight, and he saw the fields of the dead who¡¯d died to his hand and he forgot who he was, lost in who he was becoming.

    The inside of the outpost was mostly already cleaned out. Personal belongings strewn out and any food thrown away to get rid of pests. The food was too weak for them to eat and was already moldering. He saved a few books and  a deck of cards, but otherwise everything was thrown out. Yessenia quickly found a bedroom in the depths of the house and claimed it as her own.

    ¡°Don¡¯t forget you need to get those evolutions done!¡± Santi yelled after her. She had been more out and about the last day, but she was just as withdrawn as ever. She only talked to the family, even giving Cam just one word answers.

    ¡°I¡¯ll make sure it gets done. Those three going to get along or kill each other?¡± Bianca asked of the newest acquisitions to their little band. Santi had to think of it as he drug a couch against the wall and fluffed a few pillows.

    ¡°I think they¡¯ll get along a bit better now that they¡¯re no longer competing for the same resources. Maya needs to be kept away from the rest of the group though. I think she¡¯ll make a good addition to Rayleigh¡¯s teams, or maybe even a heavy hitter like Daniel and Hana. She has the spirit for it, the drive.¡±

    ¡°As long as she keeps that drive and spirit pointed away from us.¡±

    ¡°If she steps out of line and threatens the family, I''ll put her down.¡±

    ¡°Get in line. I won¡¯t let anything hurt us again.¡± Bianca was fierce, her eyes set and hard, a scowl on her face. They both remembered the day Abraham had come and how neither of them had been there. A lesson carved into their souls.

    ¡°I should have ended that before it started. I was weak and we¡¯re all paying for it. I¡¯m sorry Bianca.I brought you into the town I built and told you it was safe. I was wrong.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s Abraham¡¯s fault. He was the one who did it. His insecurity and greed is what killed our father.¡±

    ¡°I know that. I understand that. I still blame myself.¡±

    ¡°I love you Santi. Dad loved you and Mom and Yessenia loves you. No one blames you for what Abraham did.¡±

    Santi felt tears pricking at his eyes as he dropped the fluffed pillow to the edge of the gray couch before flopping into it. Bianca sat down next to him and leaned against him, the two siblings staring at the undecorated wall across from them in silence for a few minutes.

    ¡°Remember how he always sang the wrong words to Mom¡¯s music?¡± Bianca asked.

    ¡°She¡¯d get so pissed, but would always laugh in the end.¡±

    ¡°Vicente! That¡¯s not how it goes!¡± Bianca said in a terrible impression of their mother. Both of them laughed and the tears did slide down his face then. It was a good thing though, the old memory bringing the warm comfort of familiarity rather than the sting of loss. They sat there, just talking quietly to each other stories of before, mainly of Dad, but of just before.

    They both pretended to not hear the sobs behind them coming from the hallway where Yessenia sat, not strong enough to sit with them. When Mom came in she took one look and then held up a hand, preventing whoever else was following her to stop. She closed the door and walked past Santi and Bianca and into the hallway. The sobs grew louder, heart wrenching wails as the bottled up emotions Yessenia had been holding for months finally broke free with the gentle reminder of happy times.

 Ch. 3.26 Setting the Stage

    26.

    Santi left the others behind as he started to work his way up and into the dry brush and hills. The prickly plants around tugged at his pants, leaving burrs in the hem and in his socks as he kept moving up. The hill was nude, bare of any vegetation aside from scrub as he kept climbing.

    It had taken three hours before the [Scout] had appeared again. When they had shown up, Santi knew that Duncan wasn¡¯t far behind. He needed to talk to the man to start the next part of his plan. Without a way to contact him directly, he just had to hope that this would work.

    He pulled out his bottle of water and drank it while he sat. He munched on a meal stick and waited. And waited. And waited.

    The sun sank below the horizon, dusk flowing across the land. Santi kept waiting, his senses stretched wide and far. Duncan would be coming soon enough, the twilight of the world his perfect operating time.

    The assassin came right as the entirety of the world teetered on falling into darkness, the bruised horizon hardly emitting light and the stars yet to make their appearance. Materializing unseen and unfelt, the palid faced man walked up to him with little thought of his own safety.

    ¡°We keep meeting like this and your girlfriend might start getting upset,¡± Duncan called, his one remaining hand close to the pommel of his knife.

    ¡°I need that riftcore you stole from me.¡±

    ¡°Sure, let me just hand over a powerful possession to one of my enemies,¡± his tone dripped with sarcasm as he rolled his eyes. The longer he interacted with Santi, the more personable the man got, little slivers of his personality showing.

    ¡°What do you want for it?¡±

    ¡°Your help. Mercy is about four days out. She crossed the mountains into Nevada and is razing what¡¯s left of Reno to the ground. If she backtracks, and she should, after us killing a bunch of her people, it¡¯ll be four days. I found a dungeon but I¡¯m missing a good mage.¡±

    ¡°A dungeon run? You want me to participate in a dungeon run for a riftheart?¡±

    ¡°You participate and don¡¯t claim any of your share. It¡¯s a five man dungeon, you can bring your girlfriend or the healer. I keep all of the dungeon rewards, I pay you with the riftheart.¡±

    ¡°This seems much too good to be true. What¡¯s the catch?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°It¡¯s a level fifty dungeon. None of my people can handle it. Rewards will be juicy since we¡¯ll be the first clear team.¡±

    ¡°Average level in the dungeon is fifty, with the boss monster probably being close to sixty?¡±

    ¡°Probably sixty-five. The dungeon hasn¡¯t been cleared yet afterall.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a big ask. You, me, Tank, and two of your damage fighters?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I got a pair of guys. Bout as good as your girl, but not quite up to standard. No defender class though. Your friend isn¡¯t good enough yet to do it.¡±

    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t drag them into a level fifty dungeon. Even with the two of us, this is a big ask. What¡¯s the dungeon?¡±

    ¡°Labyrinth.¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t have a pathfinder,¡± Santi protested, even as he started to feel the itch to try it. If there was any dungeon type to attempt with a level discrepancy, it was a labyrinth.

    ¡°Please. I¡¯m a former Champion. I could figure out the way through the labyrinth by myself. Killing everything in it on the other other hand.¡± He shrugged his shoulders.

    ¡°This the only way you¡¯ll give me the riftheart?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Fuck. When?¡±

    ¡°Tomorrow at dawn. It¡¯s closer to your home. Four to six hours of hard travel. Your medic should be able to keep up.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll go let them know. Bring your people here to stage. I have a plan to lure Mercy here. Trap and kill her and her people.¡±

    ¡°Was wondering what you were planning on doing. This is agreeable. Should only take a day or so to get there and back.¡±

    ¡°Meet you in the morning then.¡± Santi stood and left, exposing his back to the assassin. Part of him was waiting for the blade to enter it, but nothing came of it as he walked back to their new camp. He slowed his steps and thought of what was going to happen, rationalizing and plotting his steps out. Every step of the plan was analyzed and attacked in his mind as he searched for hints of the curse¡¯s influence. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    Santi needed the riftheart. There were no other power sources that he knew of that he could acquire in the necessary timeframe. Was this plan the only plan that could work? Probably not, but it was the best he had at the moment. It would accomplish multiple goals at the same time and offered the safest path with the least amount of weak points.

    Would Duncan betray him in the dungeon? Doubtful. Not as long as Mercy was alive. What was the dungeon reward and why was he so certain he needed it? The expansion of Earth¡¯s potential had changed the dungeon spawns, none of them having appeared around Homebase. So how did Duncan know what this one had?

    His ruminations were cut short as he entered the little town they were planning their ambush in. Some of Rayleigh¡¯s people were awake and on watch, hiding behind cover on rooftops as they looked about for threats. He waved lazily at one of them and marched into the house that his team and family had occupied.

    Their evolutions had reduced the biological need to sleep, but there was still the psychological need for it. Sometimes the brain just needs to be shut off for a few hours. His Mom was sprawled out in the corner, her arms and armor stacked neatly next to her as she snored softly.

    Daniel and Hana had called the other bedroom and were locked in there. Chloe, Bianca, Cameron, and the dwarves were playing a vigorous game of dominos. Santi watched them play for a moment before deciding all five of them were cheating and not in the same ways.

    Yessi was in her bedroom, locked away from the world for at least a little while. Tank was perched on the too small couch watching the game with a smile on his face. Santi flopped down next to him and pulled his boots off and started picking at the burrs stuck to his clothes.

    ¡°Get done what needed done¡± Tank whispered.

    ¡°Yeah. Going to get the riftheart. Plans changed though.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s kinda the running theme with this group. Plans always change.¡±

    ¡°You know what they say, plans never survive first contact with the enemy.¡±

    ¡°Santi, your plans don¡¯t survive the walk to the enemy.¡±

    ¡°Fuck off,¡± Santi shoulder bumped the bigger man, hardly stirring him.

    ¡°So, what''s the new plan?¡±

    ¡°Dungeon run. You, me, Duncan and two of his guys.¡±

    ¡°Me. Not Chloe? Or Cam?¡±

    ¡°Naw, they¡¯re needed here. When Daniel and Hana disentangle themselves, they¡¯ll have to go and find Keegan. Chloe, Daniel, Hana, they can move fast and bring Keegan back. You guys heard that, right?¡± Santi said, turning to look at the five rowdy dominos players. He got a quick thumbs up or nodded heads as nobody looked up from their hands.

    ¡°Rayleigh and her team will stay here, along with Mom, Torin, Grimvr, Cam, and Bianca. They¡¯ll provide security and help for Yessi. We get this set up right, we can save a lot of lives.¡±

    ¡°This Duncan. He¡¯s going to fuck us over, yes?¡±

    ¡°Undoubtedly. Doubt he¡¯ll do it in the dungeon. He needs me and you are valuable.¡±

    ¡°Told you that the healer is the most important person on the team,¡± Tanks smiled widely.

    ¡°Yes, yes you did. And it¡¯s true, especially now. We¡¯ll split the health potions, give Chloe and them a couple a piece, leave some here, and take the rest.¡±

    ¡°How dangerous is this dungeon?¡±

    ¡°Dangerous enough that Duncan needs me to clear it.¡±

    ¡°And what does he get from it?¡±

    ¡°The rewards from clearing it.¡±

    ¡°Interesting. What is it?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°I think that''s what we need to focus on. If he¡¯s willing to take this type of risk, the dungeon, you and me, whatever, then the reward has to be something he thinks will tip the balance.¡±

    ¡°It could be a future thing he has going on? Plans on plans on plans.¡± Santi didn¡¯t think that was likely what was happening, but it could be.

    ¡°He knows you''re going to kill him. He knows you¡¯ve already beaten him once, took off his arm. I will assure you that he believes that what¡¯s in that dungeon will give him the edge in the fight.¡±

    ¡°Tank¡¯s right!¡± Chloe yelled over her shoulder. She shoved a handful of dominos to her right and into Grimvr¡¯s stack. Santi was sure that none of them actually knew what they were doing.

    ¡°Damn straight. So how do we counter this plan he has?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s focused on me. I took his arm, I beat him. He¡¯s not thinking about the rest of us. Let him focus on me, make all his preparations for me.¡±

    ¡°Uhmmm¡­Santi, that¡¯s what we¡¯re trying to avoid?¡± Tank asked, genuinely puzzled.

    ¡°No. It¡¯s how we beat him. He hard counters me. He plans everything out, thinks it through, makes contingency plans, everything about me.¡±

    ¡°Ahhh, then we just stalk up behind him and hit him in the back of the head while he¡¯s not looking?¡± Tank asked, half joking.

    ¡°Close enough. I¡¯m playing this one close to the vest. Not that I don¡¯t trust you guys, it¡¯s just loose lips sink ships.¡±

    ¡°Sure. Have to be careful with sneaky fucks running around.¡± There was a chorus of amens and nodded heads as everyone agreed.

    ¡°Did someone say my name?¡± Daniel asked as he walked out of the backrooms. He sat down between the Santi and Tank.

    ¡°Your counterpart,¡± Tank supplied.

    ¡°Ohh, that asshole. Can¡¯t believe he literally snuck around my city. Didn¡¯t get a single good look at him while it was happening too.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s damn good. So we keep our plans quiet and to ourselves. If anything happens to me, Yessi has what you need.¡±

    ¡°Not a huge fan of this secrecy. But if you think it¡¯ll work, then let''s do it. When do we take off?¡± Tank asked.

    ¡°At dawn. We meet Duncan outside of town and we hit the dungeon.¡±

 Ch. 3.27 Truce

    27.

    Santi and Tank left right before dawn. Heading down and out of the town and toward the edge where Duncan and his two followers were supposed to be waiting. The predawn darkness shielding little from Santi¡¯s advanced stats. Tank was yawning, his pack strapped tight to his back and his maul on his hip.

    They had stayed up late, planning out contingencies and talking their way through what Duncan and the others could do to them in the dungeon. Santi couldn¡¯t tell Tank the details of what a labyrinth dungeon was, but he was able to lead him to conclusions that were close enough to what they needed to know.

    There was something liberating in talking with Duncan. Not having that constricting feeling creep up his throat as he struggled to bring forth his information and memories. Not that talking to Duncan was enjoyable or something that Santi was looking forward to, just that it was liberating to have someone know what he knew.

    ¡°Where are they supposed to meet us?¡± Tank asked as they left the outer edge of the town and started down the country road that connected it to the rest of the world.

    ¡°We¡¯re right here,¡± Duncan said. All three of them materialized. The two brawlers next to him were equipped as close quarters fighters like Bianca and Chloe. Santi added a group cloaking skill to the list of Duncan¡¯s abilities.

    Duncan carried nothing aside from the long knife on his waist. His two followers were different. Both were big and broad men and were heavily laden with gear. Bulging packs and weapons hanging from every available place.

    ¡°Found ¡®em,¡± Tank deadpanned.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get moving. After you,¡± Santi waved to the road ahead of them and Duncan just smiled before turning and beginning to jog. The two men with him were silent guardians, neither of them saying a word as they all set out.

    Time went on as the distance stretched out, the sun rising and creeping higher and higher over the horizon. The day¡¯s heat began to creep over the land and Santi felt a tingle of sweat break out across his forehead. At noon Duncan signaled a stop at a rest stop. He scouted it quickly, sliding through the stop before coming back with the all clear.

    Tank had begun to struggle near the end of the run as they were moving faster than any bicycle could reach. Santi had to think that by the time he reached peak Acolyte his jog would be close to a cruising car speed. Tank sipped from his water bottle as he leaned against the wall of the rest stop, hiding in the scant shade available.

    ¡°How far did you think we traveled?¡± Tank asked.

    ¡°About two and a half minute miles. Six hours, but we had to backtrack a few times. Probably eighty-five miles are so,¡± Santi gave it his best estimation.

    ¡°Fucking hell man, that¡¯s insane. Not car speeds insane, but on foot and just jogging?¡±

    ¡°Fairly straight route and nothing has jumped us yet,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Think we¡¯re going to get jumped?¡± Tank asked. The two bruisers turned to look at him, interest plain on their faces.

    ¡°For sure. There¡¯s plenty of strong monsters around here and none of them would mind eating us for a snack. There¡¯s Mercy¡¯s people roaming the hills and we have gear and levels they¡¯d like. Then there¡¯s the animals out there too. Fought a bear with Chloe and Hana that was strong as hell. It had a partner that was higher level and that one walked away and is out here somewhere.¡±

    ¡°How high of a level was it,¡± one of the bruisers asked.

    ¡°Mid fifties. The one we killed was in the low fifties.¡± Santi glance and [Identified] the man.

    Warrior Adept lvl. 38

    On his way to becoming a [Warrior] or a [Knight] or some other basic martial class. Nothing fancy, but basic soldiers could kill you just as easily as some prodigy. Santi had to remind himself of that sometimes, as his power kept creeping up further and further from everyone else. He wasn¡¯t invincible and it wasn¡¯t just the other regressors that were a threat to him.

    ¡°Dunc could have taken it,¡± one of the men said, his surety in the outcome absolute. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

    ¡°Duncan could have taken it. With enough time and effort,¡± Duncan said as he came around the corner, sitting close to his men but still having a distance between them.

    ¡°My class and skill set is set up to be a man killer. I eliminate threats soundlessly and disappear without a trace. Standing toe to toe with someone is not only against my nature, but more importantly, against my build,¡± Duncan informed the men while pulling out a small ration packet.

    ¡°That¡¯s what you two are for,¡± Santi said, smiling at them grimly. While strong enough out here, in a level fifty dungeon, they¡¯d be ghastly outleveled.

    ¡°You two know a lot about this shit. How is that?¡± The second of the two bruisers had a quiet voice and his eyes had a sharper intellect than Santi had given them credit for.

    ¡°What are your names?¡± Santi asked, trying to buy time. He didn¡¯t think they really needed the two, in all honesty, Duncan and Santi could probably do the dungeon themselves. Better to be on the safe side and have the extra bags of meat walking around.

    ¡°Trevor,¡± the inquisitive one said, poking himself in the chest with a hairy knuckle.

    ¡°And that¡¯s Bo. My little cousin.¡± His distrustful eyes never left Santi and Duncan. He was a follower, but wasn¡¯t a blindly loyal follower. Tank kept eating quietly, sipping from the water bottle every now and then.

    ¡°I¡¯ve told you before Trevor. Most of this knowledge is simple deduction if one applies the right type of logic to it.¡±

    ¡°Video game logic?¡± Trevor spat contemptuously.

    ¡°Or role playing game logic, if one wishes to be pedantic.¡±  Santi let Duncan handle the questions from his subordinate. While Trevor seemed to be distrustful, Bo looked horrified that his older cousin was calling out Duncan. There was a shine of hero worship in his eyes every time he looked at the assassin.

    ¡°If it talks like a duck, walks like a duck, and looks like a duck, it¡¯s probably a duck,¡± Santi threw in.

    ¡°If you are able to accept that our world has now been set up like a video game, or role playing game, then the logic is to build yourself, stats, skill, spells, around a build. You fit into a mold so to speak. I travel a lot, so I picked a class and abilities that make it safe for me to move undetected and to kill quickly. Santiago picked a mage class because he¡¯s a tiny asshole and couldn¡¯t fight hand to hand immediately.¡±

    ¡°Close enough,¡± Santi let Duncan have it. The first time he had chosen mage was so he didn¡¯t have to fight close quarters.

    ¡°Now, on the other hand, you two bruisers are part of a group. A group who have vulnerable people in it. So you are designing your build around being strong and durable. You can take punishment and dish it out in equal measure. Santiago¡¯s friend, Dexter, is a healing mage. He believes he¡¯s best suited for keeping us alive.¡±

    ¡°How the fuck does he know my name¡¯s Dexter?¡± Tank whispered into Santi¡¯s ear. That was an excellent question that Santi didn¡¯t want to think about. Either there was a spy in their camp, a strong possibility, or Duncan¡¯s abilities were far greater than even he had assumed.

    ¡°You¡¯re the one who helped us figure out our builds,¡± Trevor murmured, eyes glass with calculations.

    ¡°Correct. The best way you could help me, and by proxy your friends and family, was by building yourselves up like this.¡± Duncan spoke as if manipulating people¡¯s entire future were the most simple of things. Santi knew he could be an asshole, but he had never tried to steer someone¡¯s build and future like this.

    ¡°You¡¯re a peach,¡± Santi said, shooting a dagger smile at Duncan.

    ¡°Santiago, you are standing inside of a glass house. You¡¯re a tyrant disguising himself as a benevolent dictator. You¡¯re even wearing a crown,¡± Duncan waved his only remaining hand at him.

    ¡°True, but I admit it to everyone. They know what they¡¯re signing up for when they join us. I don¡¯t manipulate people into changing their futures without giving them at least the courtesy of telling them why,¡± Santi countered. Even to him it seemed hollow. It was better than what Duncan was doing. Right? The inner thought was like a loose tooth that he couldn¡¯t stop thinking about.

    He had come back on accident, but they had planned on it. They had banked on their methods succeeding and Duncan had said it was to prevent bloodshed. That their goals were similar. He didn¡¯t believe him, but as time wore on and he was the last one left, how much could he trust his memories? Something was wrong, he knew that. Time was missing. And now he had someone who had lived through it all only feet away from him and they were doing the same things. Just in different ways.

    Was it really so different?

    He shrugged the treacherous thoughts off with memories of what the Apostates had done. The friends they had killed, the death they had wrought. They were different. How one accomplished their goals mattered. Even in the midst of the chaos of the apocalypse, what and how they did what they did mattered.

    The meal became remarkably silent and then they were on their feet and moving again. Duncan often took off, scouting the way ahead of them, leading them around strong beasts and monsters. This wasn¡¯t a leveling hunt, but an expedited dungeon run. If they had to run an extra half hour to avoid a fight, they did. There were no backups if one died out here and the dungeon run was the most important thing on Duncan¡¯s mind.

    Santi was still thinking of the war kit he had in his bags. The coat, amulet, and dagger. All three of them made for fighting and surviving against sapients. He didn¡¯t think Duncan would betray him inside of the dungeon or even after they got out. Santi just didn¡¯t trust the man to not go armed with his best weapons. He had already been caught a few times without them and that wasn¡¯t going to happen again.

    It took another six and a half hours to make it to the dungeon and Santi was surprised to find themselves getting close to Chico. They veered East though and went further into the mountains. There along the denuded burned forests was the entrance to the dungeon.

 Ch. 3.28 Into the Dungeon

    28.

    Nestled among the burnt trunks of blackened trees and scarred landscape was a doorway. Santi breathed deeply, appreciating the thick layer of mana, the drifting tides of it as it was pulled in and filled the area. It was like wading through a warm sea, the pressure in the air a pleasing presence.

    The doorway was cut into the side of the hill, a gaping void that was filled with the dazzle of stars. The frame of the large doorway was made of a glowing silver metal that Santi knew was mithril. The swirl of mana was pulled inwards, flowing like a river into the mouth of the dungeon.

    Dungeon of the Burning Hills

    Lvl. 55-65

    ¡°You told me it was a mid fifty dungeon, Duncan.¡± Santi couldn¡¯t keep his eyes off of the levels. The levels were the range of the monster levels in the dungeon. It should have had a much smaller range if Duncan had been telling the truth.

    ¡°It was when I found it a week ago. Only forty-nine to fifty-eight. The mana pull is stronger than I thought it was.¡± The assassin didn¡¯t sound perturbed by the increase in levels. Santi knew Duncan could punch over his level, but how much higher was a good question. Santi still couldn¡¯t [Identify] the killer or see his levels, but Santi assumed he was higher than he was.

    Duncan had spent a time traveling and fighting, killing and leveling constantly while Santi was stuck working on building a community and making sure things like clean drinking water were available for thousands. That crops were planted and evolutions were done safely.

    With all his titles and advantages, Santi was stronger than Duncan had been. But just how much had the shadow scout grown since they had crossed paths? Duncan had effortlessly killed his targets in the fight with Mercy¡¯s Acolytes, and none of them had been weak.

    ¡°Tank, when we go down there, don¡¯t engage any of the monsters. Let me or Duncan deal with it.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re still going down there?¡± Tank asked incredulously.

    ¡°Damn straight. We need the riftheart and this is the only payment he¡¯s accepting. Just play it cool and safe and we should come out of here with some extra levels.¡±

    ¡°Santi. Are you¡­you?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. No bloodlust at the moment. We do this carefully and we will be fine. I can hit hard enough and Duncan is a good enough scout. Just don¡¯t fight anything one on one, alright?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re the boss.¡±

    ¡°Ain¡¯t that the truth.¡± Santi shook his head, the weight of the crown pushing on his scalp. He forgot it was there most of the time, just resting there without notice. It was weighing on him now as they walked toward that hole in the side of the hill.

    Duncan took the lead, followed by his two goons and then Santi and Tank at the rear. The Apostate went though the portal without hesitation, disappearing in the blink of an eye. Trevor and Bo jumped through after a miniscule hesitation, then Santi was staring at the dungeon entrance. It had been years since he had done this.

    The dungeons were places for people to practice and level. There was no potential to be harvested, but plenty of experience and rewards for clearing them. By the end of the last timeline Santi had exhausted his potential, it drained away faster than he could earn it. He had been near the peak of Disciple and there was little to no reason to enter a dungeon.

    ¡°You good?¡± Tank whispered. Santi just nodded and stepped into the entrance of the dungeon. There was a sinking sensation, as if going down a slide, slick with grease. All light disappeared and Santi sat in the darkness for a moment before he felt solid ground beneath his feet again.

    Torches burned, dim and smoky along rough natural walls of rough hewn stone. The tunnels were narrow and the haze of the smoke tickled the back of Santi¡¯s throat as he walked forward. Trevor and Bo were both standing still, their weapons drawn as they peered down the dim path.

    Trevor pulled out a long handled hatchet in one hand and a thin knife in the other. Bo was armed with a wide metal club that looked like a bat had been squished down to a stub. Both of the bulky men were staring, nervously shifting back and forth as Santi got to them.

    ¡°Duncan?¡±

    ¡°Entered immediately and said he was scouting and to wait.¡± Trevor¡¯s voice didn¡¯t tremble, but the fear was there. Tank sidled up next to Santi, his own club in his hand, and they both looked about. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

    ¡°This is just¡­kinda boring?¡± Tank said.

    ¡°Ohhhh¡­.Tank, you know better,¡± Santi groaned. Tank¡¯s big head lowered and he shook it in disbelief.

    ¡°I fucking jinxed it.¡±

    ¡°Yup, here something comes now,¡± Santi said, his sharp eyes picking up movement as something broke free of the wall. Santi had a sinking feeling he knew what the mob type was going to be in the dungeon as the monster began to slide toward them.

    Earth Elemental lvl. 55

    [Gust] slowed it down, but the screaming winds did nothing to break its rocky countenance. [Crosscurrent-Orb] had more success, the wild tempest winds finding crevices to rip at and peeling apart some of the stony armor around itself.

    ¡°Blunt weapons, clubs and hammers, or a fucking pick. You¡¯ll shatter that axe hitting stone like that,¡± Santi warned as his spells wore off and the elemental continued to rush at them without slowing.

    ¡°That thing is way to fucking strong. We won¡¯t do shit to it,¡± Bo muttered as he shifted his grip on his club. Santi had to agree with the thumper, there was going to be very little they could do right away.

    ¡°Keep that thing away from Tank.¡± Santi lunged, shoving off hard and sliding between the two frontliners. The morph transformed into a lance, the tip narrow and rapidly broadening as Santi targeted a chip in the monster¡¯s stony exterior.

    Closer now that even the poor lighting couldn¡¯t disguise it, it looked nothing more than a pile of rocks in a vague outline of a human. Its legs melded with the floor, so it didn¡¯t step so much as it was propelled forward.

    Santi¡¯s aim was good, the tip of the lance fitting into the crack in the dark stone and then splintering it apart as he continued to force it deeper. His strength and speed helped, but the monster was a higher level than him. It didn¡¯t die, or even look perturbed that there was now a metal shaft wedged in its core. It just kept moving.

    Santi cursed all durability and strength builds as he was shoved backwards, inches from its grasping, thick fingers. Each time they missed his throat, they clacked off of each other. Santi imagined the lance expanding out like in a line. Rock split with a thunderous crack and the elemental groaned, the sound reminiscent of a landslide.

    Behind the thick plate of its outer layer was shifting mounds of soft, moist earth, glints of metal inside. And a pulsating, brown gem.

    ¡°The gem!¡± Santi yelled as he was forced to disengage, the elemental suddenly lengthening its arm and striking at him with a closed fist. He ducked the fist, but not the sudden spike that erupted through the ground, piercing his calf. He bit back a scream as the first of the blood dropped to the dungeon¡¯s floor.

    Bo lunged, his club a blur, a blue skill aura haze around the man that enhanced his speed. The metal club connected to the pulsating gem and the sound of glass shattering filled the air as the elemental froze.

    ¡°It¡¯s not dead. Dig, dig quick. Rip all of it out.¡± Santi had to grind the words out as he tried to free his leg from the spike in his calf. The soft soil was streaming out in a wave, making a small mountain on the floor at the elemental¡¯s feet. The shard was already piecing itself back together, crystal wiggling through dirt and melding.

    Trevor reached in with a bare hand and grabbed the biggest piece, yanking it free with a sucking sound as the elemental broke apart in a spray of dark soil. The spike in his calf fell away and Tank was grabbing him and running a litany of spells over him that immediately eased the pain in his leg.

    ¡°I see you already found the guardians. That was my fault, I stumbled over a trap on my way down the hall,¡± Duncan said, not sounding sorry at all.

    ¡°Don¡¯t sweat it. Here, give me a hand up¡­oh I mean give me your only hand up.¡± Santi shot him a vicious smile.

    ¡°That wasn¡¯t very good,¡± Tank whispered, looking disappointed at him.

    ¡°I agree with Dexter. You can do better when needling someone Santiago.¡±

    ¡°Hey, I didn¡¯t get a kill notification or experience for that? What the hell?¡± Trevor said, being the only adult in the hallway apparently.

    ¡°It¡¯s not dead. As long as the core remains somewhat whole, the elemental lives. It¡¯s just stuck right now with no way to build an avatar.¡± Duncan¡¯s plain voice was a monotone as he reached out to grab the orb. Most of it had already melded itself back together when Trevor had yanked it free, just a corner piece missing.

    ¡°So we get no fucking experience or levels in here?¡± Trevor asked, eyes narrowing.

    ¡°There¡¯ll be plenty of levels. It¡¯s just that elementals don¡¯t die easily. Also, these cores are good for future evolutions. Like your brother¡¯s. He does have an earth affinity, right?¡± Duncan said, looking into Trevor¡¯s eyes without blinking.

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Trevor spat out.

    ¡°Good. Wrap this up tight so no part is touching earth and then put it in your bag. The plan will be thus. I will go down and figure out the path forward. Follow my markings. Try not to die and assist Santiago when he requests help. This first level looks to just be a maze. If there are traps, I¡¯ll leave a sign for you.¡± Duncan turned and faded from view as he went back up the tunnel the elemental had come down from.

    ¡°Wow, that guy is just a peach. The subtle threatening is a nice touch,¡± Tank said. Bo shot him an angry look while Trevor just looked angry. Santi could see where Trevor¡¯s rage was coming from, the forced impotence of the situation, the secrets and suspicions coming to the forefront.

    He had a premonition that Trevor wouldn¡¯t be making it out of the dungeon and back to the main group. Not with how Duncan operated.

    ¡°He¡¯s a prick, but he¡¯s right. Wrap it up and keep it from stone or soil. It¡¯ll be a nice piece in an evolution ceremony.¡±

    Trevor didn¡¯t say a word as he pulled out a strip of cloth, it looked like it was a shredded shirt. That there were bundles of the torn up clothing spoke volumes. Duncan had known, or at least had very strong suspicions that the mob down here could be harvested like this.

    Which brought Santi back to his and Tank¡¯s conversation last night. Duncan wanted something out of this dungeon, besides the experience. It likely had something to do with killing Santi, which Santi wasn¡¯t a fan of. He now had his first clue as they stepped over the lump of broken apart stone and went further into the dungeon.

 Ch. 3.29 On the Ledge

    29.

    [Gust] swept the ledge clear in front of them, shadowy forms full of hate and wrath being plucked and thrown into the void below them without a sound. Kill notifications dinged in his head, but Santi was too busy fighting to pay attention to them.

    Things had been going too well, Duncan leading them through the labyrinth dungeon with few problems. More of the earth elementals, all of them high ranking but easy enough to kill. Traps had been found dismantled or yellow spray paint sprayed around activation triggers. Santi had to admit that Duncan was good at this, leading the party deeper into the depths while Santi and the others fought the few enemies.

    Until this damn ledge. Running along the side of a deep canyon that even his enhanced senses couldn¡¯t see down, they had been beset on both sides by these creatures. Formed of magic and with little to no physical bodies, they could only be killed with skills. Skill or spell that Santi had few of that could be used in the tight confines or without giving up the secret of his newly acquired spells.

    Even the innately magical morph blade simply dispersed the [Shadow Reaver] bodies, they reformed minutes later, no harm done. He had started to throw them down the ravine where some of them died, which was somewhat worrying. What was down there that could kill a magical being that didn¡¯t have a physical body? Santi was forced back to the fight as more shapes blurred toward him, dimming the blue light of the flickering torches.

    ¡°Santi, these guys are getting tired. I don¡¯t know how much longer they can hold on!¡± Tank yelled from right behind them. Santi had taken the lead while Bo and Trevor held the rear clear of the reavers that Santi had dispersed. Neither of the men had the pure power to kill the reavers, but they seemed to be weak for a few moments while they regathered from Santi breaking them apart.

    ¡°Fuck!¡± Santi spat as he turned the morph blade into a whip and slashed apart the approaching cloud of shadows. Puddles of shadow burst everywhere, landing along the narrow ledge before hurrying to scamper together. [Gust] blew most of them into the ravine as Santi continued to race down the rocky path.

    ¡°Keep ¡®em on their feet, we should be close,¡± Santi said, eyes looking for the markings that Duncan had been leaving for them. The bright yellow spray paint had been a good choice, but he hadn¡¯t seen the marks since they had gotten on the ledge.

    ¡°Think he died?¡± Tank asked.

    ¡°We¡¯re not that lucky,¡± Santi said with a dark chuckle.

    ¡°You¡¯d be right.¡± Duncan stepped out of a crease in the rock, his dagger plunging into a reaver and then twisting, shadows slinking up his arm and into the reaver. The creature writhed for a second then grew still and began to fade away as thicker and thicker shadows coated Duncan, feeding back into him.

    ¡°Really? You brought us here to work on your affinity?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°No. It¡¯s just a bonus. Follow me, this cave opens up to the next passage.¡± Duncan turned and weaseled his way back into the crease and when Santi got closer he saw how the crease in the wall was actually a disguised tunnel. One couldn¡¯t see the entrance without walking past it, the outcropping of rock stopping it from being visible. Someone in a fight and hurrying along might not have even seen the disguised tunnel and continued along the ledge to where another tunnel would be. Likely they would connect eventually, but secret paths always offered better rewards.

    Santi turned and pushed Tank toward the tunnel, the bigger man having to suck in his already flat belly and twist this way and that to get past the chokepoint. Trevor was next, sweat slick across his pale face as he had to take his bag off and shove it in first and then weasel his way through.

    ¡°GO! I¡¯ll hold the way!¡± Santi said. Bo nodded in thanks and began to strip his own heavy pack off, laden as it was with earth elemental hearts, and then began the slow process of worming after his cousin. Santi turned back to the narrow ledge, swarming with undefined blobs of shadow. He glanced back to see that no one could see him and then turned the morph into a staff, slamming it into the ground and shouting at the top of his lungs, words bouncing and echoing in the vast underground cavern.

    ¡°YOU, SHALL NOT PASS!¡± [Gust], reinforced by [Air Manipulation] whisked the path clear in a screaming howl as the reavers were tossed into the darkness. Santi had a stupid grin on his face as he followed after the others, scanning his kill notifications with one eye as he maneuvered the tight passage much more easily than his other party members had.

    The [Shadow Reavers] had all been on the low side of fifty and he only had a few of the kills, but it was enough to boost him another level. He was only one level away from fifty and another spell point. It couldn¡¯t come soon enough, and now with the Pillar in his possession, he could begin to rework his build a bit. If he had enough money.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    He glanced down the tunnel and saw the shapes of the rest of the party, waiting on him and decided he¡¯d put the stat points in now. He needed every advantage he could and the dungeon was a bit more dangerous than what Duncan had originally said it would be, which wasn¡¯t a surprise.

    Santiago V. Silva

    Lvl. 49 Air Mage

    Strength: 40

    Durability: 40 (75)

    Stamina: 40 (75)

    Dexterity: 40 (75)

    Vitality: 40 (75)

    Perception: 35 (70)

    Intelligence: 117 (152)

    Mana: 155 (190)

    Willpower: 125 (160)

    Potential: 99%

    He put the spare points into mana and willpower to give them more aesthetically pleasing numbers and kept moving without slowing down. The increase in his stats were so minimal that he hardly felt them, simply a drop in the bucket as his mana and willpower began to outdistance everything else. Especially with the titles he had earned.

    A killer like Duncan, who was likely higher leveled but lacking the titles, would have a few higher stats than he would. Santi hadn¡¯t quite figured out his rough numbers, but with how fast the man was and how easily he used his magic based skills, he had to be over a hundred points in dexterity and mana. Willpower would be a good tertiary stat for him, seeing as he had managed to escape even after Santi had cut his arm off.

    It was likely that Duncan¡¯s primary stats would be above his own primary stats without the titles. Santi doubted the level gap was enough that he significantly outpaced him in their main stats. With how easy Duncan was ghosting around the dungeon, he was close to the sixties.

    ¡°We heard that,¡± Tank whispered to him, a faint smile on his face as Santi took up his place right behind the cousins.

    ¡°What happens in the dungeon, stays in the dungeon. Ok?¡±

    ¡°You got it, boss,¡± Tank said with a chuckle.

    ¡°Done playing grabass?¡± Duncan asked. There was a bit of strain around his eyes and shadows slunk around his skin like shifting tattoos. Santi didn¡¯t want to imagine what upgrading an affinity at the higher levels was like, but it looked like it was quite unpleasant.

    ¡°What¡¯s next?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°We¡¯re about to go down to the second level. Which means there¡¯s a mini boss down ahead. Full boss will be at the bottom of the dungeon and if it follows in the theme, it will be at the high end of the dungeon levels. What we¡¯re going to fight soonish, will be mid level, close to sixty. Are you guys ready for that?¡±

    ¡°I got three levels already. Shit¡¯s been ranking me up quick! Hasn¡¯t been this easy since the beginning,¡± Bo said, his voice excited. Most of that was due to Santi cutting away heavy defenses and letting the cousins get the kills.

    Trevor was silent as his eyes glazed over and then he shuddered and gasped as he put points to good use. Trevor shook his limbs and smiled, reveling in his newfound strength.

    ¡°Haven¡¯t gotten shit,¡± Tank muttered. There had been precious little healing required and so far he hadn¡¯t gotten to use his club at all.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry buddy, your time is coming.¡± Santi couldn¡¯t tell him about the nice boost for clearing a dungeon that would dwarf what few levels they would earn killing the dungeon¡¯s denizens.

    ¡°Do you know what the sub-boss is?¡± Trevor asked. The more suspicious of the pair, if there was any division, he¡¯d be the easier one to work to Santi¡¯s side. The wind mage kept an eye on him.

    ¡°No. We¡¯ve fought earth elementals and shadow creatures. Probably an escalation of those. Now I¡¯ve only gone down this hallway a bit, but I can tell you there¡¯s not much further to go before we get to an atrium with polished stone and a bunch of bright torches with stalactites on the floor.¡±

    ¡°Stalagmites. Stalactites are on the roof,¡± Tank corrected him with casual ease. Santi looked at his big friend and then shrugged, he didn¡¯t know the difference. Duncan looked at the two of them and his brow dipped as a frown crossed his face.

    ¡°Does it fucking matter?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I just wanted to make sure you knew. Proper wordage does matter.¡±

    ¡°Is wordage a word?¡± Santi whispered to him. Tank just shrugged, face blank as Duncan blinked at them a few more times.

    ¡°Forget it. When we enter, we do so as a team. I¡¯ll ghost and flank whatever it is, Bo, Trevor, you two will try to keep its attention. Move it around, keep ahead of its attacks, the usual. Santiago will hit it as hard as he can and keep hitting it until it''s ready. If there¡¯s a way for me to get a good hit on it, I will. Dexter will keep everyone alive for as long as he can. Dump the gear when we enter the circle, you¡¯ll need to be able to move quick.¡± With that, Duncan turned and moved down the circular tunnel, disappearing down its gentle slope.

    ¡°After you,¡± Santi said, waving the two bruisers forward as he and Tank followed behind them. Trevor lagged a few steps behind his cousin and turned to whisper to Santi.

    ¡°You two are weird, but you seem not quite as nutty as Duncan. That man is like a fucking snake, ice-cold. If shit goes pear shaped, and it will, would you be looking for a new recruit?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think your cousin will be quite as willing as you are,¡± Santi hedged. Duncan¡¯s perception stat was likely high and hearing in a tunnel that amplified acoustics would be an easy trick. The possibility of pulling a veteran Acolyte fighter to his cause was too juicy to let go.

    ¡°He¡¯ll do what¡¯s good for him. He likes Duncan, bit of hero worship, but we¡¯re tight. I¡¯m all he has. He¡¯ll come with me.¡± Trevor didn¡¯t look certain about that last part but Santi didn¡¯t bother to challenge it.

    ¡°I won¡¯t put a blade in you if you don¡¯t try to bludgeon me, how bout that?¡±

    ¡°I can work with that. Thank you.¡± Trevor turned back around and caught up to his cousin while Tank and Santi kept walking side by side.

    ¡°Duncan definitely heard that,¡± Tank said.

    Santi just nodded. The betrayal was going to happen, he just didn¡¯t know when. He was starting to think that Trevor and Bo weren¡¯t going to be coming out of this dungeon.

    ¡°Just be quick and light on your feet. Grab me my jacket out of my pack too. It¡¯s time to bring out the heavy weapons.¡±

 Ch. 3.30 Earthshadow

    30.

    Santi took in the smooth polished stone, the mirror finish reflecting the light as they got closer to it. A wide platform in the middle of a land bridge across a chasm, forcing the dungeon goers through it to advance. The fact they had taken a small ledge downward to the path they were now on was a hint that finding the secret tunnel wasn¡¯t necessary. Duncan had helped them by shaving time off of their journey.

    Torches ringed the platform, scores of them fighting off the deep darkness of the cavern and giving everyone a clear view of the runes etched into the stone. Each one was carved and filled with silver, a supernatural light pulsing through them. The entire platform screamed bad vibes, every ounce of his cautious nature saying don¡¯t get on that platform.

    It was the only way deeper into the dungeon though. Duncan was perched on the edge right before the platform, his eyes sweeping about, searching and analyzing. Santi copied him, looking for any hints of what was about to come at them.

    ¡°So, this place is definitely going to suck,¡± Bo said. He shuffled his pack and clenched a club tightly.

    ¡°Oh, fuck yeah. Hundred percent a trap,¡± Tank said. He smiled widely and clapped Santi on the shoulder.

    ¡°You ready to start carrying, bud?¡±

    ¡°Just stay alive.¡± Santi stepped out onto the platform and held his breath. Nothing changed. The torches continued to flicker and aside from their breathing it was silent. Santi worked his way closer to the center, Duncan slinking around the side while Bo and Trevor walked right behind him in a delta, with Tank in between all of them.

    ¡°Where is it?¡± Trevor hissed, tension in his voice as he hunched over, looking around frantically as they reached the center of the platform.

    ¡°Chill, just be ready to¡­¡± Santi was cut off as something came dropping in from above. His spell forms warned him and he had enough time to cast [Gust] behind him, throwing his three allies backward even as he dove forward.

    It landed silently and Santi felt as the air was sliced apart where he had been standing. There was no hiss or whistle of claws sliding through the air, just the eerie silence and the feel of the creature blocking the airflow.

    Santi rolled to his feet and slashed back at it, his morph blade a comically overlong sword. It tore at something, but all sound had ceased. There was nothing in the air but a stillness, even the harsh rasp of his breath smothered by it. Santi looked at the creature and took it in.

    It was a shifting form, mostly humanoid and made from slick stone. Shadows crept and danced around it, blurring the edges of its form as it towered over them. Gemstones glinted where eyes should have been and its four arms swung about in silence, Trevor and Bo racing away while Tank rolled hard toward the edge of the platform.

    Duncan sprinted and disappeared as Santi jabbed at it twice, clipping the edges of the behemoth and sending pieces of stone to fall to the ground. Santi lured it closer to the center of the platform as the behemoth followed him.

    Earthshadow Elemental lvl. 60

    Santi tried to call out, but no sound crossed the platform. Something was off about that, this type of monster shouldn¡¯t have any type of sound magic. Its presence didn¡¯t seem to control anything related to sound either, it was big and strong and the shadows danced all around it, edges forming and slashing at Santi like blades.

    Nothing to do with sound though.

    He looked back at the glowing runes. They were brighter now, nearly luminescent against the stone. He turned and slashed down at a rune, the blade slicing through stone like butter, the rune cracking apart with a thundercrack and a bolt of light. Sounds flitted through immediately for a brief moment, shouts and cries and the rumble of stone on stone. Then the bubble of silence reaffirmed itself and Santi was forced to leap back as a fist hit the ground in front of him.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

    Trevor struck a leg from the back, his club rebounding off the thick leg like it was made of rubber. Bo hit the opposite leg with the same lack of effect, his mouth twisting in a silent curse. Tank was rotating around, getting further away from the monster, but Santi thought that if the giant monster landed a hit that it would be the end of them.

    While the giant elemental spun on the two bruisers, Santi sped about, slicing at each of the runes. Tank watched what he was doing and started to do the same. Slamming his mace down on the runes and cracking the delicate runes. More and more sound filtered in and Santi yelled at the two men, trying to organize them. Half his words were stolen, not traveling the distance needed.

    Santi stopped attacking the runes and leapt back at the elemental as Trevor was flung backward  from the close impact of a Volkswagen sized fist. Bo stumbled, frozen as the elemental turned to give Bo all its focus. Santi formed the morph weapon into a large hammer, a pick emerging from one side and slammed it into the creature''s knee.

    The strength boost from the jacket and the full increase of the crown showed out and a fist sized piece of rubble went flying as its leg buckled and it fell. Santi was forced backward as the elemental spun, backhanding at him. [Air Shield] popping in a burst of wild winds, sending pebbles and pieces of stray rocks spraying out.

    Santi avoided the actual hand, but the wake of its passage caused him to fall back on his back. The elemental rose up and towered above him, form sheathed in blurring waves of physical shadow. Duncan appeared, blade in hand and he caught Santi¡¯s eyes. There was a moment of hesitation, the space between heartbeats, then Duncan was stabbing.

    Skills appeared, shadow clones and a second dagger appearing out of nowhere, both blade shearing apart stone like it was butter. The creature went rigid and shook, chunks of stone falling free to hit the ground. Santi got back to his feet and sprinted away as Trevor and Bo both stepped up, attacking from either side to alleviate the pressure on their boss.

    Tank broke the last of the silence runes and sound filled the platform again. Trevor used some type of skill that coated his weapon and he broke the elemental¡¯s foot in half, the sound of stone cracking splitting the air.

    ¡°Keep its attention!¡± Santi yelled at the cousin duo as he skidded to a halt. He sprang back toward the elemental, leaping with all his considerable strength up and toward the creature. He rose up and over the top of the monster¡¯s head and began his descent. The hammer whistled through the air and Santi roared a challenge toward the high level monster as he splintered its head.

    Gemstones popped free and landed on the platform with the sound of chimes in the wind. It staggered and stumbled to a knee, before surging upward again even as Santi landed awkwardly.

    ¡°Fuck!¡± Santi spat as he leapt forward into a shoulder roll and passed between the elemental¡¯s legs. Trevor and Bo attacked from different angles and Tank jumped forward and struck the same knee where Santi had already hit it. Another chunk of rock came splintering off of it and then Bo hit it a second later in the same spot. The knee cracked and split like rotten timber and the elemental crashed to the ground.

    Santi circled with the others as the rest of the group fell on the elemental like a pack of wolves. Hammers and maces chipped and cracked stone as it flailed about ineffectively. It was a big monster, but it was easy to fight as long as they stayed ahead of its wide swinging hands.

    Until it stopped swinging its hands. It slumped down, slate cracking and splitting to fall like rain. The shadows deepened and strengthened, pouring out of the wide cracks in its body. The entire body crumpled, leaving nothing left but the silhouette of its body.

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s not great,¡± Santi muttered as he raced to grab Tank, dragging the healer out of the way as the elemental sank into the platform, swinging across the stone like it was water, leaving the encirclement like it was nothing.

    Duncan stuck again. A blur against the polished stone as he intercepted the fleeing elemental, tangling with the creature and the elemental burst free from the stone. It was missing an arm and staggered about wildly, striking out in every direction as Duncan rose out of the stone on the other side of the platform. He was covered in sticky shadow, covering every inch of him as he strained to consume the piece of the elemental he had just truck off of it.

    ¡°That¡¯s fucking creepy,¡± Tank said. Santi could only nod in agreement as he cast [Gust] and watched as the elemental fragmented, ragged chunks of its arm broke off to fly off the platform.

    Its remaining arm became a spear and it struck out, stabbing through Trevor¡¯s gut in a burst of movement. The man screamed in pain and Tank was rushing toward him even as Santi cast another [Gust] shoving it back and away from the wounded frontliner.

    Tank grabbed Trevor and dragged the stunned man away as Santi got close to the wounded elemental. It thrashed about, thinning and growing hazy as extra limbs shot out of its body. Bo hit it from behind with some type of crushing skill that broke another piece of the shadow off.

    Santi stabbed it through the middle of its torso, and twisted the blade. He formed hooks on the blade and ripped the sword free. The creature was dying slowly, breaking apart slowly as Santi continued to cut and rip free pieces of its body. It didn¡¯t die quickly, taking minutes for Bo and Santi to kill it.

    An achievement popped in his feed as Santi slumped down on the platform. He was tired, sweat slicking his shirt as he stared at the stain where the shadow had been.

    ¡°That wasn¡¯t too bad,¡± Duncan wheezed, his features still strained. Tank was bent over Trevor, still working to keep the man alive. Santi shook his head, the Apostate¡¯s naked desire for power blatantly apparent to all of them. Even Bo shook his head as they waited for Trevor to get back up.

 Ch. 3.31 Clearing the Air

    31.

    The platform was silent as they slowly regathered their strength. The boss had been tough, but manageable. Trevor and Bo had been somewhat useful, pulling his attention enough for him to regroup. Duncan sitting there slowly digesting the pieces of shadow he had ripped free from the [Earthshadow Elemental]. There was a certain bravado to being able to willingly risk your life by trying to upgrade your affinity in the middle of a fight.

    Santi still wanted to punt him off the platform and into the chasm.

    Tank stood up and let Trevor get to his feet slowly. Tank walked over to Santi while Trevor just stood there for a moment, shaken by what had just happened. Duncan didn¡¯t try to offer him any sort of support, just letting him stand there alone.

    Trevor¡¯s eyes were filled with impotent rage and fear, the last moments of the fight filling his vision as he had been pulled away from death¡¯s doorstep. Then it vanished, flashed away in a puff of self discipline as Trevor mastered himself. Even with his higher stats, Santi had to look for the indications of the man¡¯s rage and hatred, so masterfully hidden.

    Duncan started walking, crossing the scarred platform and further into the dungeon now that Trevor was walking. Santi wanted to wait, let the other man recover, but it wasn¡¯t his rodeo. Both he and Tank were still on their feet and with most of their mana in reserve. Santi wasn¡¯t willing to rock the boat this close to the end.

    ¡°He¡¯s a dick. Even if he hadn¡¯t done all that shit, I still wouldn¡¯t want him around,¡± Tank said. The healer didn¡¯t bother to lower his voice and both of them knew the Apostate could hear him.

    ¡°Well, he¡¯s who we¡¯re stuck with. We clear this, he gets the loot, we get the riftheart.¡±

    Trevor and Bo followed after their boss while Santi and Tank slowly skulked forward. The boss monster was little more than a stain of scattered oily shadows but Santi kept the location in mind. If he had his full team they could farm this area fairly easily, especially after he accessed the markets through the pillar and had them properly equipped.

    Then harvesting monsters like this would become worthwhile. He¡¯d have to keep his eyes open for someone who could be an [Alchemist] or something similar. Proper supplies for harvesting too. The thought of the wealth of gear was intoxicating. The thought of all his liquid wealth disappearing in a few minutes to provide said gear was sobering.

    ¡°What are you sighing about?¡± Tank asked as they started off of the platform.

    ¡°Just how much shit  I need to buy to really get up and running. It¡¯s going to be expensive.¡±

    ¡°I mean, you¡¯re just investing right? In the long run you¡¯ll make your money back and then some.¡±

    ¡°Hey, just let me mope for a minute about all my hard earned money leaving.¡±

    ¡°Ohhh, you¡¯re in one of those moods. Bet if Chloe was here you wouldn¡¯t be all mopey.¡±

    ¡°Wrong. I¡¯d be even more mopey and dramatic,¡± Santi said, smiling brightly at his friend. The two of them chuckled as they left the pale light of the platform and entered the dank tunnel to go further into the dungeon. Bo and Trevor were stopped a few feet in and Ducan¡¯s form was hardly visible in the poor lighting just a few feet further in.

    ¡°Looks like the dungeon changes up from here on out. Labyrinth,¡± Duncan said as they all clustered up. Santi peered past him and whistled softly at the maze they were staring down at.

    There was a small trail, no larger than a footpath, that led down and into a maze carved into the stone. From their vantage they could only see the first few switchbacks and dead ends before the gloom blocked the rest of their view.

    ¡°More traps, probably enemy mobs, and of course the maze itself. Pass me some fresh paint,¡± Duncan said, holding a hand out. Trevor unslung his bag and handed two cans of yellow paint to Duncan before restrapping his bag to his back.

    ¡°I¡¯ll push forward and explore the routes. Santi is on guard duty. Should be similar to what we went through in the caves. Move slowly and carefully. Unless it¡¯s time to move fast,¡± Duncan¡¯s last words were said with a sardonic smile as he started down the trail and into the labyrinth.

    ¡°I want to hit him with my club. Repeatedly,¡± Trevor hissed quietly. The look his cousin shot him told Santi that Trevor hadn''t been quiet enough.

    ¡°I¡¯ll lead, then Tank, then you two. Stick close together. Nobody gets lost today, alright. Stick tight and we will get through this,¡± Santi gave his encouragement and then was moving down the path after giving Duncan a minute or three head start.

    The path led directly into the narrow ravines of the labyrinth''s walls, hardly more than four feet wide and soaring up to touch the roof of the cavern. The slight dip in the floor was hardly noticeable, but they were continuing to move further and further downward with every step. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

    Higher and higher the walls rose up and over them. Thin strips of lichen glowing blue gave the only light and it was hardly enough to break the grip of darkness. Tank¡¯s labored breaths behind him and the soft chatter of the cousins were the only sounds he heard. Santi strained his eyes, looking for the tell tale sign of Duncan¡¯s paint.

    Thin passageways broke off every ten to fifteen feet, spidering away and twisting in ways so he couldn¡¯t see further in. There was a sense of claustrophobia in the maze, as the dark and tight walls pressed in on him. Santi had to focus on moving straight and not worrying about what may be laying around a corner.

    With the solid rock all around him, his spell forms were nearly useless and he was as blind as he had ever been since the integration had started. Each careful step forward was another bolt of excitement and fear as he waited for something to come lashing out from the darkness towards him.

    ¡°This sucks,¡± Tanks whispered. Santi could have kissed him. The sudden break in tension was enough for him to let out a shaky sigh and laugh silently. He pursed his lips in sudden thought and started expanding his mana, sending it out of him and around the small group.

    He faced immediate resistance.

    ¡°There¡¯s some type of spell or magic working in here. It¡¯s probably why we¡¯re all so fucking jumpy rn. I can push it back a bit, but I can¡¯t keep a shield around us and keep moving forward. Let me know when you need a break and we can stop and catch our breath.¡±

    There was a sense of heaviness, oppression, of weight bearing down that emanated from the environment. His own mana, stained by his wind affinity, pushed against it naturally, rebelling and seeking freedom and the ability to move.

    Santi formed a small bubble around their group, but the strain was telling. The dungeon was higher level than him and massive. He was a powerful mage with deep wells of power, but he couldn¡¯t face the entire weight of a dungeon by himself. At least not for long.

    After a few minutes Santi drew his mana back into himself. There was an audible groan from one of the cousins and Santi couldn¡¯t blame him. The dread weight settled back on him, his heartbeat spiking as fear pulsed through him. It was worse than when they had originally stepped into the labyrinth.

    ¡°I have a feeling it¡¯s like going into water. The pressure gets heavier the further in you go,¡± Santi said. They had taken a few minutes to come out of the pressure, but suddenly slamming it back was different  versus acclimating to it as they walked. A much more jarring and disturbing change.

    They continued forward and a few minutes later they found Duncan¡¯s first mark that pulled them off the main trail and into a side passage. The gulley narrowed somehow and Santi had to twist and turn at places, the larger men behind him grunting and groaning as they had to contort themselves.

    A deactivated and dismantled trap was set on top of a rock near eye level, the sharp blades sitting there without any marking. Santi glanced at the alcove they had been pulled from and realized the long scythe blade would have struck his head from torso as he passed by.

    ¡°Careful where you step,¡± Santi whispered behind him and kept pushing.

    More traps showed up, broken down and dismantled. Two more yellow markers, forcing them in more and more narrow passageways to the point even Santi was having a hard time of them.

    ¡°This is fucking ridiculous. We need to get out of here. This isn¡¯t working. Let¡¯s go!¡± Bo was chanting behind Santi as they came up to another marker. This time is seemed to show them the main passageway again, much wider than the cramped confines they had just been in.

    ¡°Let¡¯s take a minute here,¡± Santi said and Trevor grabbed his cousin around the shoulder and two of them took their heavy packs off as Santi slowly built a mana bubble around them. It was harder now. The weight of the earth and shadows so heavy that even as he strained against it, pushing more and more mana out of himself, there was hardly a difference.

    It was enough for the others who all groaned in relief, slumping against walls while Santi kept his eyes peeled. Just because there hadn¡¯t been any monsters in the tight confines of the chasm maze, didn¡¯t mean there couldn¡¯t be.

    ¡°Taking a break already?¡± Duncan¡¯s voice came out of the darkness as the average looking man walked into the temporary camp.

    ¡°Needed it,¡± Santi replied. Duncan stopped right outside of the limits of Santi¡¯s bubble, not stepping into it.

    ¡°It¡¯s worse when you take breaks like this. The weight becomes bearable the longer you hold it.¡±

    ¡°Needed to stop or we wouldn¡¯t be combat capable,¡± Trevor said. He was still clutching his cousin''s shoulder, the two men leaning on each other.

    ¡°Combat will be coming soon enough. There¡¯s a widening spot in the ravine not much further from here. Some type of lizard inside of it. I¡¯ll stick with you guys, you¡¯ll trigger the ambush, and I¡¯ll ambush the ambushers.¡±

    ¡°You got it,¡± Santi said, giving him a cheery smile and a thumbs up. Duncan scowled at him.

    ¡°I really dislike you,¡± Duncan said.

    ¡°I know. Your dislike has cost you an arm and I¡¯m sure I can price in a leg in the next few days.¡±

    ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for that cursed horde, I¡¯d have spilled your blood the minute you walked outside of your camp. You wouldn¡¯t have even noticed you were dead before you hit the earth.¡±

    ¡°Possibly. Or I could have kicked your ass again and this time, there wouldn¡¯t have been anyone to save you from me.¡±

    ¡°Hey, knock that shit off. We need to work together for another few days. Then you two can stab each other to your heart¡¯s delight,¡± Tank broke their staring contest with rational thought. Something Santi wasn¡¯t appreciative of.

    ¡°Hey, let me be toxic. I¡¯m enjoying the threats,¡± Santi said with a half smile.

    ¡°The rest of us aren¡¯t. And while you two aren¡¯t threatened by this, for whatever reason, this is dangerous for us. Our lives are in danger and the threat is real to us. We can¡¯t have the two of you stabbing each other while laughing while this shit is going on. Save it for outside of the dungeon.¡±

    Tank was right of course. There had been so few true threats to Santi lately, that he had lapsed a bit. He had forgotten the edge of the knife they all perched on. At the end of the day, he could have always fled. His skills and power made it a near certainty that if he needed to, he could escape if a fight went south. The last time he had truly been pushed beyond his limits, when death was walking beside him, was when he had crossed blades with Duncan.

    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll be the bigger man here. Until we¡¯re done with our business. We¡¯re professionals,¡± Santi said. Duncan sneered, a retort on his lips. Then he let it fade away and nodded in accord.

 Ch. 3.32 Dungeon Canyon

    32.

    ¡°Trevor, trigger the ambush. Santiago will be right behind and will protect you. Bo, you stick tight with Dexter. This is the only passage through this section, but after this I think  we will be clear of this dungeon. Just don¡¯t accidentally stab each other.¡± Duncan looked at each of them until he got an acknowledgement.

    Santi was still irritated after their last verbal sparring and having to follow the Apostate¡¯s orders did little to relieve that irritation. He nodded and let the morph turn into a short sword, the tight confines of the canyon calling for something a bit easier to use. Trevor shrugged off his pack, rolling his shoulders and shaking his arms out. He grabbed his club and slowly inched his way into the canyon.

    Nothing happened.

    He kept moving slowly. Cautious step by cautious step, eyes sweeping about as he moved in a crouch. Santi could see the nervous energy radiating off of him as he walked. Santi followed after, walking more confidently than the other man as he looked from the corner of his eyes at the cracks and crevices that the ambushers would be hiding in.

    The rock face was covered in cracks and gullies, shadowed and hard to see through, but Santi saw the gleam of eyes. Not often or in great numbers, but they were there and it set him on edge. He couldn¡¯t get a close enough look to [Identify] the monsters, but he had to assume they were stronger than the elementals were but weaker than the boss they had fought.

    Bo and Tank followed after, Duncan nowhere to be seen. Santi hated to admit that the Apostate was good enough to move without him sensing him now. Dunan had managed to become a Champion and it showed. Santi had taken him off guard with his spell sense, but he had quickly adapted and was now invisible to him.

    The first of the attacks happened swiftly, an albino lizard scampered out of the crevice and leapt at Trevor. Its six legs pumped the air as it crossed the gap in the flash of leathery skin. Dagger teeth opened and Trevor was spinning with his club coming to intercept the gecko.

    Canyon Gecko lvl. 58

    Trevor was too slow. The level disparity was too much for the man to close the gap. Santi crossed the distance in a heartbeat, shoving off hard and extending his sword and turning it into a lance. The tip of the lance caught the gecko between the second and third pair of legs and pierced through its skin with ease.

    It gave a sharp cry, wide mouth open fully as its scream echoed down the canyon walls. Santi hefted it up high and let it bleed out across the ground as he looked around the canyon walls. Geckos crawled out of the crevices, eyes blinking slowly as they lined the walls.

    ¡°I think we just fucked up,¡± Tank whispered behind him. Santi had to agree with that assessment. They probably should have sneaked through the canyon. Without lifting a dying gecko up and letting it bleed out while its family watched. Santi shrank the lance and flicked the dying gecko towards the wall. It splattered with bone crushing force and fell limp.

    ¡°They¡¯re fast and probably have a good bite strength. Low durability and no types of special attacks. Just crush the fuckers,¡± Santi said. His eyes were stuck on the blood pooled on the rocks. The curse rose like a dark tide inside of him, starved for hours now, and its hunger was painful.

    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s not good,¡± Tank¡¯s whisper was loud enough everyone heard.

    ¡°Run,¡± Santi said, voice strained. Trevor and Bo listened immediately, breaking into sprints and rushing past him. Tank hesitated a moment before he followed after them. Santi followed behind, blade flashing and carving through geckos as they leapt at him.

    The fast bastards scurried and clung to the walls with ease, moving fast enough that it was a challenge for Santi to keep up. The first kill hadn¡¯t been indicative of how hard the animals were to kill. They were fast and changed direction with violence, their six legs finding traction with ease as they scuttled all around him.

    A leg was lost here, a tail there, a foot here. Still he wasn¡¯t able to pin them down and the frustration mingled with the iron scents of blood in the air as Santi panted heavily, his willpower straining to keep the curse under control.

    [Crosscurrent-Orb] blew apart a group of them, sending the geckos scattering across the canyon. Trevor made it to the end of the canyon and ran right outside of it without looking back. Bo was a half second behind him and then Tank. As Santi got to the end of the canyon pain flared through his ankle and he looked down to see one of the squat geckos biting down on his ankle.

    ¡°FUCKER!¡± Santi screamed, pain and rage mingling as he cut the gecko in half. Blood pulsed, pressure building behind his eyes as he warred against the power of the curse. Bo and Tank were only half way through the canyon and Santi whirled about to look down the canyon. The walls were covered with the scurrying geckos and [Gust] howled down the canyon.

    The lizards grabbed to the walls, their sticky feet holding tight as the burst wind swept by. Santi slashed at two of the closes, the morph extending into whip form to slash them apart with a flick of his wrist. They were incredibly squishy, but their speed was impressive. The bite on his ankle was throbbing, blood pooling into his boot as he grunted and limped backward. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    Duncan materialized behind the rows of hunkered down geckos. He massacred the closest lizards, burst damage skills flashing in waves as the lizards died all around him. The man was using Santi as a bait trap, collecting experience to level with ease as the slippery geckos were just beginning to move again after Santi¡¯s spell.

    ¡°Get through the canyon,¡± Santi yelled, slashing another of the geckos and watching as its blood pulsed out of its missing limbs.

    Duncan rolled his eyes, but danced past the scurrying monsters. He was graceful, avoiding attacks by the barest of margins, every slash of his long knife killing another lizard. Santi didn¡¯t want to admit how good the man was, but his skill was showing as his levels had crept up since their encounter.

    Duncan dashed past Santi and Santi reactivated [Gust] to pin down the other lizards before he retreated through the gap of the canyon. The lizards kept scurrying out, dozens of them filling the small canyon like a tsunami but they stopped at the edge of the gulley and ran around hissing and growling before retreating back into the crevices they had been hiding in.

    ¡°That was the most fun I¡¯ve had since coming back,¡± Duncan said. Santi looked around and realized it was just the two of them.

    ¡°And what have you been doing back since we¡¯ve come back?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°Dalton Fage, Amanda Johnson, Julia Harden, and Nicholas Spatz.¡±

    ¡°All of them are Champions. Were Champions,¡± Santi said, though he could feel the beginning edges of horror creeping in to chill his blood. Duncan looked at him and smiled grimly.

    ¡°I was an accountant. Didn¡¯t do much in my life before this. Work, home, gym, repeat. Boring life, but it allows you to save money. I can¡¯t tell you how long we planned this out. Figuring out who needs to be where and when. Tracking down and finding out where people were right before the integration. Years of planning and you damn near ruined it all.¡± Duncan looked over his shoulder and down the narrow passage where the others had disappeared down.

    ¡°It¡¯s an intricate plan with redundancy after redundancy. Silas not making the jump hurt. He had a list longer than you are tall to do, we all do. We made contact after the jump, amazing that we could remember our phone numbers after nearly a decade. Changed things about, covered some of Silas¡¯s duties. Some of the secondary objectives had to be dropped.¡±

    ¡°So you just came back in time and talked on the phone?¡± Santi whispered. He couldn¡¯t muster his normal sarcasm. He knew what was coming.

    ¡°For the first day. About six hours of planning had to be done to accommodate your little stunt. Six valuable hours. When I knifed Dalton outside of his house it was strange. Never killed anyone without the System. Was half expecting a notice to still pop up in my feed. Instead he just gurgled at me, so confused and scared. He didn¡¯t look like he did, you know. He was pudgy and had a bad combover. His wife screamed as I stabbed him, over and over. Never felt more alive than I did escaping after that. No skills or spells or overpowered stats. Just my brain and planning.¡±

    Santi remembered Dalton as a serious bald man who looked carved from stone. A titan of muscle and strength that had stood against the tides of cultists, invaders, and monsters without hesitation. He had been one of the most prominent of the Champions who had persecuted the war against the Apostates with a fervor that was impossible to match. He had killed two Apostates in personal combat during the war over the span of three years.

    ¡°Amanda was easy. She was a literal layover stop for me. Left the airport and went to her job. Walked right into the back and got her as her coworkers screamed. I can understand now frontline fighters. The spray of blood and the look of them falling to the ground at my feet. It¡¯s intoxicating. I enjoy killing a person when they don¡¯t know i¡¯m even in the same room as them, but this isn¡¯t a bad way to do it.¡±

    Santi wanted to be sick. Amanda had been a healer. Thousands owed their lives to her. She had stopped plagues with a wave of her hand, swept down onto battlefields and simply stopped death for minutes at a time.

    ¡°I tried for her twice back in the original timeline. Nearly got her the second time, but her protector was too good. They were a good duo. It felt good to see her go down and her wounds to not just seal over. Julia was day two. Broke into her house and used  her service weapon on her. She never even heard me.¡± Duncan paused and looked at Santi and he finally saw the gleam in his normally flat eyes.

    ¡°Nicholas was right as the System activated. I thought I¡¯d get a title for that, but I missed it. Someone must have killed someone in the first moments. Took me five minutes to get to him.¡± Duncan smiled widely.

    ¡°Then there were goals during the opening days. Establishing alcoves of survivors who give tribute to the Patron. Eliminating leadership in groups. Leveling, lots and lots of leveling. Then there was you. You¡¯re just a box for us to tick off. That was a mistake. Should have gotten to you before the System activated. I knew where you were and everything.¡±

    ¡°Daphne,¡± Santi murmured, a picture of the woman¡¯s face flashing through his mind. The picture was blurry, her features twisted and changing until she was literally nothing more than a blur in his mind.

    ¡°Yes. She gave us a whole rundown on you. Only took ten minutes. You didn¡¯t accomplish much and spent so much time just hiding. I really thought you¡¯d be cowering around, maybe a bit stronger or that¡¯d you¡¯d run. We were all wrong about you. And it cost me,¡± Duncan whispered those last words as he stared down at the ground.

    ¡°Fuck you. Fuck you for taking them away. They were heroes. They save lives, and you¡­you,¡± Santi choked on his rage and sorrow. He hadn¡¯t been close to any of them, all four of the Champions so far above him socially that he¡¯d only ever met them a few times.

    But he¡¯d known of them.

    ¡°Tyrants. Murderers. Sociopaths. All four of them. Twisted by the world until there was nothing left inside of them resembling humanity. There were more, so many more names I could have taken. But those were the four worst.¡±

    Santi was trembling in rage. He wanted to kill this vile creature. This shadow assassin with his dead eyes that only showed life when he spoke about his victims.

    ¡°Come on, we have the rest of this dungeon to clear,¡± Duncan said softly, turning and heading toward the others, leaving Santi behind.

 Ch. 3.33 Shadow-Flame Sorcerer

    33.

    ¡°You good man? You look a little, uhmmm¡­well, you look like shit,¡± Tank whispered as they walked behind the others. Duncan had slipped to the front again, but had yet to disappear. Trevor and Bo walked in their own little bubble, set aside from both Tank and Santi, and from their nominal leader, Duncan.

    ¡°Yeah. Just realized something. I¡¯ll tell you about it later,¡± Santi said. He couldn¡¯t get the image of the dead Champions out of his mind. They had been icons to him. Men and women he admired, who had been the benchmarks for competence and skill. They had been the light that humanity had clung to as they weathered the storm of the Integration.

    And now they were gone.

    ¡°You say that a lot. I do expect to get told one of these days,¡± Tank whispered to him.

    ¡°You¡¯ll be one of the first,¡± Santi said as they walked through the narrow tunnels.

    Tank grunted and kept up with Santi, neither of them slowing as they caught up with Bo and Trevor. Santi had a suspicion these two weren¡¯t the best that Duncan had. They had decent levels and their skills weren¡¯t bad, but if this was all he had, Santi didn¡¯t have to wonder what the outcome of a fight between their factions would be.

    No, they were more than likely the B team. The equivalent of Rayleigh and her teams of scavengers. It just added more questions about this whole dungeon run. Obviously Duncan was using it to grow stronger, slowly absorbing shadows from the monster they fought, subjugating them and slowly strengthening his affinity.

    The level difference was enough that it made sense that Duncan would recruit Santi for the run. But why the two cousins? Santi kept an eye on the two of them as they left the convoluted canyon system and came out towards another sub-boss region.

    The canyon mouth had widened out until it was a large cavern, stalactites and stalagmites forming teeth. Bright fireflies floated about the inky darkness, the size of baseballs, each one of the thousands illuminated a few feet around their bodies. In effect it made the cavern gloomy and with plenty of shifting shadows. If the theme of the dungeon stayed the same, they¡¯d be looking at another shadow monster to fight.

    Santi looked at the Apostate who appeared to be nearly gleeful. There was a slight uptick at the corners of his mouth that one might generously call a smile.

    ¡°Want to bet he breaks off again and tries to eat whatever we¡¯re fighting?¡± Tank asked, loudly enough for the two cousins to overhear. Trevor stiffened with anger while Bo looked down toward the ground in apparent embarrassment. The hero worship Bo had towards the Apostate was slowly draining away as Duncan¡¯s greed became more and more apparent.

    ¡°Same plan as last time. Santi stands in the middle and draws aggro, you three distract when needed. I¡¯ll look for a kill shot,¡± Duncan said.

    ¡°Yes, have the mage stand in the middle of the room and get punched. Makes sense to me,¡± Santi muttered under his breath. He let the morph blade pool out of his sleeve and shape into a saber as he walked into the cavern.

    It was noticeably warmer in the cavern to the point he began to sweat under the collar of his jacket. With each step the cavern seemed to heat up, growing with intensity until he was sure he was ready to melt. It wasn¡¯t as bad as the golem rift had been, but there was a level of oppression here that the golem rift couldn¡¯t have matched if it tried.

    The flames of the fireflies grew brighter, but the shadows darkened and twisted. Behind him he could hear the cousins cursing while Tank crept forward as silently as he could. Water hissed, dripping from the stalactites and evaporating as they hit the stalagmites jutting out of the floor.

    ¡°Fuck it¡¯s hot,¡± Trevor cursed as Santi looked for whatever it was that was supposed to be in here.

    A flame flickered above them, a trail of fire as it raced from firefly to firefly. The firefly fell to the ground, squelching as it hit the hard rock floor. The flame stayed in the air though, burning brighter and brighter as a shape began to coalesce.

    Shadow-Flame Sorcerer

    Lvl. 60

    [Gust] swept across the fireflies, pushing them out of the way of the whip of flame. A growl of rage swept out of the back of the cavern as the fire evaporated in the air and a thin figure came stalking forward. It was nothing more than a silhouette with burning pits for eyes and it waved one hand at the deep shadows all around the team. Embers drifted out of the sorcerer¡¯s hand and landed in the deep pools, sitting there floating in mid air as the shadows came to life.

    Shadow-Flame Apparition

    Lvl. 28 If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    ¡°Kill those apparitions. I¡¯ll lock down the sorcerer,¡± Santi barked as he put on a burst of speed and flew at the sorcerer.

    Dungeons were the most apparent that there was a higher level of intelligence designing things. The monster in them might be a mirror of the outside world, but the way they acted was more game-like. This boss had been using the fireflies to grow in strength, absorbing the literal fire in them to empower itself. If Santi hadn¡¯t stopped the absorption, he had a feeling that these apparitions would have been much more powerful.

    [Gust] staggered the sorcerer, its weak physical stats not withstanding the powerful burst of wind. Santi urged himself on, closing the distance in a blink of pumping legs and then he was leaping at the skeletal silhouette, blade outstretched. The flames burning where its eyes should have been brightened and then a burst of fire leapt from its hands, the outer corona of the blast red, but pitch black shadows formed the core.

    Santi cursed and formed two [Air Shields]. One in front of the flames that burst apart in a second, and the other to the side of his foot. He pushed off, changing his direction, and the beam of fire merely singed him as he landed in a roll. [Crosscurrent-Orb] exploded with a fury that dispersed the flames and threw the sorcerer against a stalagmite.

    Rock exploded into a powder as the sorcerer flailed about, rising to its feet unsteadily. Santi risked a glance at the others and was pleased to see them still holding their ground, fighting with skill and decent teamwork. The two cousins held the attention of several of the mobs, while Tank protected their flanks and continued to help them with what limited healing he had.

    Duncan was again nowhere to be seen.

    Santi looked back at the monster and cursed bitterly. The half second of his attention being elsewhere had been more than enough time. The Shadow-Flame sorcerer had cast its rope of fire again, draining several nearby fireflies of their strength.

    Shadow-Flame Apparitions

    Lvl. 32

    The mobs had strengthened in a heartbeat, the few survivors suddenly pressing hard against the two cousins. They held their own, but were now being pressed much harder than they had been. Santi cast [Gust] again, clearing out the fireflies from around the trail of fire.

    Santi burst into motion again, hating the fact he couldn¡¯t use his new spells in front of Duncan. The man was a nuisance and once he was dead Santi was going to find and open a bottle of champagne. This whole sneaking around thing was beginning to get annoying. He was the one who spied on people after all.

    He dodged around a stalagmite and came face to face with the sorcerer. It lifted a hand and a shield of black flames sprang into being in one hand while in the other a sword that leapt out to nearly skewer Santi. He hurriedly blocked the flame blade, sending it into the stalagmite he had just rounded.

    The rock screamed then erupted in a shower of rocks that pelted his back, but didn¡¯t penetrate the jacket. Santi had the morph blade stretch out into a long rapier as he lunged, the tip of the sword just narrowly being blocked by the top of the shield. The creature was terribly coordinated, flailing away as Santi cornered it with solid, technical footwork and swordplay.

    The creature roared, a shattering sound, and flame leapt from its now formed mouth in a gout that reached the ceiling. It billowed about along the ceiling, fireflies consumed in a burst of flames until the entire ceiling was aflame and crawling down the stalactites.

    ¡°What the fuck!¡± Trevor yelled, as he used a skill to break apart one of the apparitions.

    ¡°Start moving to the end of the cavern. This thing¡¯s nearly done,¡± Santi yelled back. The monster was getting desperate, using powerful attacks that hurt the entire cavern in an attempt to slow him down. This was why mages didn¡¯t fight in close quarters typically, their skils were better suited for long range and powerful AoE attacks.

    Santi stuck close to the sorcerer, attacking in a blitz of lightning fast actions that ringed the creature in. It grew erratic, slashing wildly with its sword as its apparitions tried to peel away from the others and make it towards their duel. Trevor and Bo did their jobs though, keeping the mobs busy even as they retreated.

    Santi ducked under a wild swing and repeated his earlier trick, and this time managed to stab through the silhouette''s thigh. Shadow popped and fire emerged, spraying about in a thin stream like a leaky faucet. It screamed again and lashed about with a wild swing that Santi was forced to block. The power behind the blow was staggering, but his own inflated stats helped him stay on his feet as he grunted and threw the creature back.

    The fires were down the stalactites and now dripping all around them, running like rain to splash about in fiery explosions. [Air Shield] stopped one from landing on his head and he had to cast another to protect the group. The moment of inattention cost him as the sorcerer next slash burned a fiery line down the outside of his right thigh. Santi gritted his teeth and bit out a curse as his own counter-attack cut apart the creature''s hand.

    The sword fell apart as the hand burst apart in a wild spray of its fire-blood as it screeched again. Santi dodged the burst of flame and slashed under its shield and cut a leg free. The sorcerer fell to the ground, the fire from its wounds beginning to dribble free.

    That¡¯s when Duncan appeared. He simply appeared from one moment to the next. Duncan¡¯s one remaining hand speared out, wreathed in shadow and pierced the sorcerer¡¯s skull. The creature stiffened for a moment and then squalled in pain as Duncan dragged a piece of the monster free. The squirming mass was dark at pitch and wiggled like worms. Duncan opened his mouth and shoved the mass in, his face darkening and then he gasped as the knot of wiggling shadow disappeared down his throat. Duncan staggered, knees weak suddenly, and then he went to a knee.

    Santi looked back at the sorcerer, who was looking much worse for the wear. Its body had become a light gray, its inner fire overwhelming its shadow aspect. Santi stabbed it through its head and the monster stiffened and died suddenly. The whole fight had been much easier than the last, much tankier boss.

    Santi looked at the burning inferno around them and then cast an [Air Manipulation] reinforced [Gust] that swept the flames down and created a temporary tunnel for him and Duncan. With great distaste, Santi reached over and grabbed the limp assassin and hauled him to his feet. The man smiled and his teeth were stained black.

    ¡°Worth it,¡± he muttered. Santi rolled his eyes as he dragged him out of the cavern and into the next portion of the dungeon. They had to be getting close to the end.

 Ch. 3.34 Puzzle Wall

    34.

    ¡°Just me or was that easier than it should have been?¡± Trevor asked as they all caught their breath in the passage leading to the next zone. Santi wanted to groan at the man jinxing them but managed to keep his displeasure to himself.

    ¡°This dungeon is much more like a game than the world is. Even with the stat screens. This shit is designed and the bosses are designed too. We must have missed something with the first boss, but this one had a power up mechanic that Santi stopped,¡± Tank explained. Santi looked at the big man and nodded in affirmation.

    ¡°Earth, then fire, what¡¯s next, air or water?¡± Bo said with a chuckle

    ¡°Neither. This next fight should be the last one. We get through this last part of the dungeon, clear the boss, and we¡¯re in the free and clear,¡± Duncan said.

    ¡°How do you know?¡± Trevor asked with suspicion.

    ¡°Because if you come up here you can see the exit and the final boss,¡± Duncan said. The entire group moved as one to stand at the edge of the platform, a metal walkway leading down and to a gate. They could see over the gate and there was one more platform waiting for them, and then beyond that was a gate where even from here they could see the portal rippling with sunlight.

    ¡°Want to bet the gate is a puzzle gate?¡± Duncan whispered so softly that the others couldn¡¯t have heard. Santi shook his head imperceptibly. It would have been a bad bet to take. They all moved off the ledge of the platform and down the metal walkway and toward the towering gate.

    It was silver and glowed brightly, blue runes shining brightly enough that it stung Santi¡¯s eyes as they got closer. It was nine feet tall and arched, stretching from edge to edge of the platform they stood on. On either side was just an endless void, dropping away into the center of the world. Something stirred in that darkness, swirling about just outside of the illumination of the gate.

    Going around would be impossible. Santi was sure that the minute someone tried it and veered outside of the protection of the platform and the light of the gate, that they¡¯d meet a grisly fate. Duncan marched right up to the gate and peered his head back trying to take it all in.

    Santi stood next to him and they both just looked at the thing. The mirror finish of the silver gates reflected the lights of the dancing runes, pushing it further out against the encroaching darkness. Both men cocked their heads at the same time and hummed in frustration looking at it.

    Different shapes of runes flowed about, dancing from one end of the polished silver to the next in a dizzying pattern. Santi tried to figure out the pattern, but he had never been good with these types of things.

    ¡°You guys figure it out?¡± Bo asked as he trooped up towards them. The big man looked about and then back at them.

    ¡°No, not quite yet,¡± Santi said as he tried to unfocus his eyes to see the pattern.

    ¡°You should probably hurry it up, the lights getting dimmer,¡± Bo said. Both Santi and Duncan froze and turned back to the man.

    ¡°Why do you say that?¡± Duncan asked.

    ¡°When we first got here, that rock over there was fully illuminated. Now it¡¯s not,¡± Bo said, pointing toward a rock sitting on the edge of the platform.

    ¡°Timed puzzle, shit,¡± Dunca said, his head snapping back toward the gate.

    ¡°You notice anything else, Bo?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°Yeah, the thing is a pattern. Those square ones with the rays coming out of them, well anytime a U hits one, the U changes direction. There¡¯s also three locks in that door. Or at least three zones the U is avoiding.¡±

    Duncan and Santi turned back to the big man. Bo just shrugged his wide shoulders at the looks of amazement they shot him.

    ¡°I¡¯ve always been good at pattern recognition stuff. Love doing puzzles¡± Trevor snorted behind them as Duncan and Santi shoved Bo toward the door.

    ¡°Alright, you tell me what to move and where to get those U¡¯s where the locks are supposed to be,¡± Duncan said. His one hand went up and the moment it touched one of the runes, the rune flashed gold and froze at his finger. Bo started to quickly bark out orders, his own hands excitedly showing Duncan where to place what rune. When Duncan released the rune they stayed locked in place, sending the entire stream of runes scattering into new patterns.

    The light also started dimming noticeably faster. Santi turned back to the catwalk they had come down and chuckled to himself. Shapes were coming out of the abyss, crawling up the platform and dropping soundlessly to match eyes with him. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

    Shadow Elemental lvl. 56

    ¡°We¡¯ve got company. Hurry it up with that door,¡± Santi said over his shoulder as he moved in front of Tank and Trevor. The two big men slid behind him, with Tank getting close to Duncan and Trevor with his club in hand.

    ¡°Just give us time, we¡¯ll get it done,¡± Duncan snapped back. The light faded further, until it barely reached the perimeter of the platform. The elementals surged forward and Santi surprised them by lunging out of the protection of the light, morph blade slicing apart the creatures with ease.

    The magic weapon and Santi¡¯s own spells were a horrible matchup for the elementals and they died much easier than they should have. Each strike of the morph blade splintered them into a revealed a core of inky blackness that Santi grabbed with [Air Manipulation]. He threw them backward and toward Tank even as he cut, ducked, sliced, spun, and cast spells in a whirlwind of destruction.

    Pain flared through his leg and it nearly buckled as he was just a half step too slow. Shadow claws parted his pants and boots like they were tissue paper and Santi¡¯s blood splashed across the ground. The curse growled in his chest, eager at the scent of blood.

    Santi jumped backward, into the fading light of the protection of the gateway. Tank was there instantly, hand clamping on Santi¡¯s shoulder. The healing spells washed over him, helping slow the blood loss and speed up his one naturally fast regeneration rate.

    The mass of shadows he had leapt in had thinned a bit, but more and more of the monsters were crawling up the sides. It was good leveling though for him. Santi looked at his kill notifications and grimaced. Not quite to fifty yet.

    The light from the silver gate was fading quickly. Dull golden runes spotted all up and around the gate, replacing the bright blue-white ones. Nearly half the platform was now in darkness and the horde of elementals was getting closer. Santi wished for a fire mage right about now.

    He leapt back into the crowd, using a razor whip to slash apart half a dozen of the shadowy forms. They tried to reform, but Santi was faster, [Air Manipulation] yanking away their cores like they were candy from a baby. He pushed them back with a combination of lighting fast strikes and [Gust] throwing the creatures off the side of the platform. It wouldn¡¯t kill them, but it might buy them a few minutes.

    ¡°How much longer?¡± Santi yelled, forced back as a strike cut him down his already bad leg.

    ¡°Fuck!¡± Santi screamed, leaping off his good foot and back to Tank. The healer shoved a healing potion in Santi¡¯s hand and then stepped forward with his club glowing with his only attack spell. The blast of the blow sent the elementals backward for a few moments, but they quickly surged back. It was enough time for the potion to heal most of his lame leg and then Santi was holding the bridge again.

    Shadow Elemental lvl. 59

    ¡°They¡¯re getting stronger! Hurry it up!¡± Santi yelled at the duo as he cut apart a weaker elemental. He was too slow to snag its core and the tattered remnants of the elemental fled, already regrowing its severed limbs. Santi cursed, ducked under another strike and leapt back into the thin layer of light still offering its protection. They were now only a few feet away from the back of Duncan and Bo, the two men working desperately as most of the symbols were now gold.

    A great clunk sounded behind him and Santi looked back to see that one of the divots had a U rune drop inside of it, unlocking it. Only two to go, but it looked like it would be faster with most of the routes already blocked off to herd the proper runes into place.

    The space the light illuminated was now only a few feet wide. A wall of shadows loomed up and over them, Santi couldn¡¯t even see the differences in the elementals as they all formed together. His morph blade was a storm of movement, silver slashes slicing apart the darkness and keeping it at bay.

    Trevor was gripping his weapon and trembling, so terribly outclassed that he wouldn¡¯t last a moment. Then again, Santi wouldn¡¯t last much longer with how many of the elementals were crowded about the platform. Santi spat another curse and then a prayer of thanks as a second clunk happened.

    The light was nothing more than a dim glow, projecting only feet from the gate. Santi¡¯s back pressed against Bo¡¯s back and he cast [Gust] again, pushing the elementals back a few feet. If he had the time, he could overcharge the spell like he had done in the township. It would leave him drained and they were about to leave this platform and enter directly into a fight with whatever was on the other side of the gate. He didn¡¯t have the time anyway.

    The tide of shadows surged back toward them the moment the spell faded, a wall of claws and indistinct shapes. A final clunk happened and the light faded for a moment leaving them in darkness. [Gust] and [Air Shield] were cast back to back and then the gates flared, brighter than before. The elementals dissipated, flowing away like the water receding from the bay, and the platform was bathed in light again.

    Santi exhaled heavily and turned back to look at the gates which had begun to laboriously swing open. Duncan looked back at them and then at the bag that they had collected the elemental cores in. The naked avarice in his eyes gave Santi pause, but then they were all shoving their way through the gate and onto the next platform.

    Santi watched behind them until they were clear of the gates which had already begun to swing back shut. Turning he saw that they were standing on the last platform, the only illumination the gate showing the way outside. A single figure stood between them and the gate.

    Tall and broad with a massive obsidian sword on his shoulder, his pale face was bloodless and his eyes were swirling voids. Dark armor and a flowing cloak of tattered shadows floated on an invisible wind, drifting around him as Duncan slowly started to edge around the corner of the circular platform.

    ¡°I see you, brother. First to claim the key I guard. You are not strong enough,¡± the figure said, voice the sound of velvet decay, its eyes glaring at Duncan. The one armed assassin just smiled politely and pulled his knife out.

    Santi used [Identify] on the creature and wanted to go back through the gate. The dungeon boss was powerful and if what he had just said to be true, then this was some type of challenge dungeon that Duncan had lured him into. It now made a lot more sense why he insisted that all loot go to him.

    Shadow Knight lvl. 65

 Ch. 3.35 Shadow Knight

    <ol start="35">

    <li> </li>

    </ol>

    The knight moved in a burst of speed, heading straight toward Duncan before anyone could speak. The wide sword cut the air with a howl and Santi cast a series of [Air Shields] as fast as he could. Each of the shields burst apart in a tempest of wild winds that scoured the platform of any dust or debris on it. Duncan was moving, his shape blurring around the edges as he tried to fade away.

    The knight¡¯s sword passed by where Duncan¡¯s neck had been, but he was quick, spinning around and using the momentum of the missed blow to aim for the assassin''s waist. Duncan bent in half and the sword cut apart nothing as the assassin disappeared from sight.

    The knight just snorted and then spun on the rest of them, lunging across the platform in an explosive surge of momentum. The huge knight was angling toward Tank, who was looking up with wide eyes, and Santi was forced to cast [Gust]. At Tank.

    The big man was picked up and thrown backward and he avoided the knight¡¯s landing. A ripple rolled out from the monster, shadow undulating like waves, grabbing Bo and Trevor and tossing them toward the edge of the platform. Santi bit out a curse and grabbed them with [Air Manipulation], blowing them toward the ground. Both men bounced hard, but were scrambling to their feet in moments.

    Santi darted toward the knight, [Gust[ hitting the waves of shadow and they blew apart, the force of the blast rattling Santi¡¯s bones. He gritted his teeth and kept moving, blade transforming into a longsword as he stabbed at the knight. The monster was nimble, spinning on a heel and swatting aside Santi¡¯s thrust. Santi recovered, stopping his charge and retracting the blade into a shield to block the knight¡¯s riposte.

    It felt like getting kicked in the chest by an elephant. The air rushed out of his body and his bones creaked dangerously as Santi staggered several steps, the knight not letting him recover. The huge broadsword swinging toward him in an overhead chop as if to cut him in half.

    Santi dodged, leaping to the side and rolling on his shoulder. The broadsword hit the ground in a thunderous explosion, sending shattered pieces of stone flying about as if a bomb had gone off. Santi used an [Air Shield] to stop from being pelted and darted back at the knight. They exchanged three blows in the space of a moment, their blades ringing like bells as Santi was forced to push himself as hard as he could to match the knight¡¯s strength. Even with the coat on to push his strength, it was all he could do to stop from being blown away.

    He disengaged, rolling under a crosscut, and darted a few steps back. The knight looked unbothered, stomping forward as Santi tried to lead the knight close to the center of the platform. Trevor and Bo were going to be useless in the fight, the level disparity too high for them to even begin competing in it. Santi looked at the shadows and started to pray that Duncan would come and land a blow soon.

    The only thing Santi had that could bother the monster was going to be [Wind Blade] and he didn¡¯t want to expose that to Duncan and give the man time to figure out how to counter it before their final duel.

    ¡°Incessant ant. Just die,¡± the knight said. Its voice was flat and tired as it lifted its broadsword up and started toward him. Trevor and Bo decided to be dumb, leaping at the knight and their hammer blows coming in to bounce off of the armor. Santi had to cross the distance in a heartbeat, morph slashing at the knight¡¯s throat, to stop them from dying. Shadow spikes erupted out of the back of the knight¡¯s back, piercing the two men who screamed in agony.

    The knight blocked his blow, the morph sliding across the broadsword, peeling a thin layer of steel off of it. Tank was quick, grabbing the two men and pulling them back as Santi sent two more quick thrusts at the monster¡¯s face. Santi extended the blade at the last moment and skin parted, a thin line of inky black trailed out of the cut on the knight¡¯s cheekbone.

    It froze as if shocked and one gauntleted hand touched the thin line. Its blood didn¡¯t flow so much as slink, thick and gooey like webbing, and the knight looked at its finger with a puzzled look.

    ¡°You managed to cut me. Impressive.¡± It snapped its wrist and the drop of blood was thrown away and toward an empty place on the platform. The blood exploded, expanding in a wave of webbing that forced Duncan to materialize, trapped in the webs as he was closing in on the creature¡¯s blindside. It looked at Duncan and snorted contemptuously.

    ¡°Did you really think you could hide in the shadows from me? I am the shadow,¡± the knight said. Santi cursed and cast [Wind Blade], a crescent of air forming at his hand and then rushing forward. It didn¡¯t howl like his other spells, but screamed. The blade crossed the distance in a heartbeat and the knight moved at full speed for the first time.

    Its sword swept up and intercepted the spell, breaking it in a shriek of dispelled air. The knight¡¯s void-like eyes glittered as it locked onto Santiago with its full attention. It leapt and Santi was immediately forced to use his second hidden spell, [Wind Step] to avoid being split in half. You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

    The burst of speed sent Santi flying away from the knight and his injured comrades. Duncan was busy hacking away at the webbing while Tank worked tirelessly to try to keep Bo and Trevor alive. Santi was alone with the boss and he had its full attention.

    The knight came rushing towards him and Santi leapt to the side, [Wind Blade] cast and directed towards the knight¡¯s knee. Santi attacked as the knight blocked, [Wind Step] letting him redirect himself up and towards the knight. He slashed at the knight as he flew over the knight¡¯s head, the whip tendril slashed into the creature¡¯s trapezius muscle.

    The knight blocked the [Wind Blade] and cried out in pain as his neck muscle was sliced apart. Santi landed easily, casting [Gust] and reinforcing it with [Air Manipulation], driving the knight further toward the edge of the platform. The knight stabbed its blade into the ground and ground to a halt, feet from the edge.

    It growled, rattling the air as it snarled. Duncan finally finished cutting through the webbing and was moving further along the edge of the platform. Santi was hoping the assassin would hurry up and start helping him.

    The knight pulled its sword free of the platform and started marching forward, the ground shaking under its feet. Blood was running down its neck and under its armor as it marched forward without blinking. Duncan disappeared, fading away from view again. Santi wanted to shake his head in annoyance, the man had been beaten already, but he wasn¡¯t willing to learn new tricks.

    ¡°Fucker is annoying,¡± Santi whispered under his breath. The blood the thing was leaking wasn¡¯t triggering his curse and there were small favors indeed. It was built like a tank, absorbing every thing that Santi could throw at him while having several crowd control abilities. Its movement speed was based off pure stats; there had been no trace of mana when it had blitzed them, just pure strength.

    Santi hit it with two [Gusts], cast back to back and watched as it dug in its heel and refused to budge. But it stopped moving forward for a second. [Wind Blade] flew at the creature, disguised in the howling gale. The knight brought its blade up at the last moment, breaking the spell right before it hit the knight¡¯s neck.

    Santi hadn¡¯t waited for the knight to defend itself, shooting toward it with [Wind Step]. He crossed the distance in a heartbeat, the speed causing his eyes to water. Santi fell to his knees, sliding across the ground, scraping the hell out of his knees as he did so. The knight¡¯s reflexive attack sailed over Santi¡¯s head while Santi¡¯s attack hit the thinly armored knee in a burst of sparks and black blood. The knight roared in agony as its leg buckled and it staggered a step.

    Duncan made his appearance as it staggered around, his knife was wreathed in abilities and skills as he buried it in the creature¡¯s neck. Blood gouted out and the knight swung a thick arm, connecting with Duncan¡¯s ribs. Bones broke like kindling and the assassin was flung away.

    Santi didn¡¯t relent, rising to his feet and stabbing at the creature''s face. The knight¡¯s blade blocked the morph blade and it was strong enough that Santi¡¯s wrist went numb. Santi cast [Crosscurrent-Orb] at point blank range. The blast of wind ripped at the knight¡¯s face, shredding flesh and taking one eye. Santi stabbed at it, blade lengthening and aiming for its neck.

    Then he was flying backward.

    The knight had punched him with its free hand, bone breaking in his chest as he was flung backward like a limp rag. He landed, the sensation distant as he skipped across the stone, rolling twice as he torturously coughed once.

    Time slowed, red hazed his vision and his next breath was full of molten nails that ripped at his lungs. His arm twitched, the morph weapon flinching as steps rattled the platform again.

    Then the pain was fading. Bone cracked back into place as the comforting taste of a healing potion wreathed his tongue. Tank¡¯s face loomed up and into his field of view, his scowl deep and concerned. Santi coughed again, weakly, as he struggled upwards. His chest wasn¡¯t fully healed and every breath hurt as he rose up.

    The knight was only a few feet away, looming up and over them both. Santi wasn¡¯t going to make it up. Tank looked up and rose, a titan of flesh as his heavy club came up, wreathed in red as his only attack skill came into being.

    ¡°No,¡± Santi tried to say. The words weren¡¯t coming out, panic setting in as his friend stood alone. Not again. Not again.

    Tank stepped forward, placing himself between the knight and his patient.

    The knight came forward, sword rising in the air.

    Tank lifted the club and lunged at the knight.

    So slow.

    Then Tank hit the ground and a burst of red light lit the platform.

    The knight was thrown backward and Santi managed to get fully to his feet. The knight landed and rolled to its feet as the rest of the potion finally finished its work. It was looking ragged, face shredded, blood pulsing out of its neck, down its leg, and now its free arm was jagged and broken.

    Santi lurched toward it as the knight struggled to get up. [Wind Step] sent him across the distance in a second, but he was still too late. Duncan appeared, knife in hand and rammed it into the knight¡¯s neck, twisting and ripping it free. Blood geysered out of the knight as Santi saw his kill being stolen right in front of him.

    The morph lengthened into a lance and punched through the knight¡¯s remaining eye, erupting in a spray of gore. The kill notification dinged through his head and then Santi saw the alert.

    Dungeon Cleared

    Grade: A

    Rewards: Calculating

 Ch. 3.36 Leaving the Dungeon

    36.

    They all stood there in silence, the only light coming from the doorway behind them that showed their way free of the dungeon. Trevor and Bo were looking at Tank with a lot more respect than they had when they had entered the dungeon. Saving someone¡¯s life could do that.

    Duncan¡¯s eyes were unfocused as he stared off into the distance. Going through the status screen and the notifications that were likely popping up. Santi wasn¡¯t touching any of his till they were away from the assassin and into the hills and away from his prying eyes.

    He was sore about losing his secret aces, but the boss monster had been too strong for him to simply try to whittle it down. The creature¡¯s speed, strength, and durability had been impressive. Now they were all waiting as Duncan worked his way through his changes.

    ¡°That¡¯s unfortunate,¡± Duncan said. He looked toward Trevor and Bo, who¡¯s eyes had unfocused themselves as they took their own level ups. They hadn¡¯t been super helpful, but they had done enough against monsters heavily outleveling them that they had earned a few levels themselves.

    ¡°Hmmm?¡± Tank inquired. The large healer was staying alert, not lured off by the promise of prompt screens.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t quite hit my level. I can feel it, just standing on the precipice. So close,¡± his voice trailed off as both Bo and Trevor finished their level ups. Both men were smiling as they looked at each other.

    Duncan reached over and slit Trevor¡¯s throat.

    The room went quiet, shock running across it. Bo¡¯s mouth gaped open, eyes filled with betrayal, pain, and confusion. Duncan stepped to the side, letting the arterial spray fill the space he had just occupied. Before anyone could move, a shadow blade emerged from the ground and rammed itself into Trevor¡¯s chest, killing the man.

    Duncan stabbed Bo, his arm pumping with machine gun speed, killing the second man before he could begin to defend himself. Santi grabbed Tank, throwing the healer behind him as the morph blade spun into a saber and he stepped between Duncan and Tank.

    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry about it. A deal¡¯s a deal.¡± He waved the bloody knife at Santi as he bent down and started to tug the heavy bag Bo had strapped to his back off. He grunted in annoyance and wiped the knife on the back of Bo¡¯s shirt before sheathing it. He looked over and met Santi and Tank¡¯s horrified looks.

    ¡°You thought these two were going to make it out of here alive? How charming,¡± his voice had a cheer to it as if he really did the thought of not murdering comrades was charming. Santi was holding down bile as he stared at the two men.

    They had died so fast. There was nothing he could have done. They weren¡¯t his people, they weren¡¯t his responsibility to protect or lead. But they had been people. Decent enough people who didn¡¯t deserve to be knifed by the man who was supposed to be leading them.

    ¡°Why?¡± Tank asked in little more than a whisper.

    ¡°I needed the levels and they were here. If not here, then I would have taken them out on the way back, after we dropped you off. They had seen a bit too much and were getting too friendly with you. Now, I just tell their friends that you killed them, like you did their other friends, and they¡¯ll hate you more. Keeps the questions down that way,¡± Duncan explained as he rifled through the bag before heading over to Trevor¡¯s corpse and beginning again.

    ¡°You thought I didn¡¯t see you two working on them as we came down here. Trevor wasn¡¯t quite as devoted as Bo, but he was loyal. Until he met you,¡± Duncan jerked his chin toward Santi.

    ¡°Can¡¯t have a split house, Santiago. He goes to the group and tells them all about you and how wonderful you are and how I acted, and next thing I know, they¡¯ll be talking about mending fences. That what happened should be put aside, maybe we shouldn¡¯t kill you. And I can¡¯t have that.¡±

    ¡°What the fuck is wrong with you?¡± Tanks said, his hand straying toward his club.

    ¡°Careful Santiago. You two keep your word, I¡¯ll keep mine. I don¡¯t leave this dungeon, my people not only won¡¯t help you, they¡¯ll make damn sure Mercy¡¯s finishes you off.¡± Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

    ¡°Tank, chill. Just for a minute.¡±

    ¡°Fuck that Santi. He killed them! For no fucking reason, he just murdered them!¡± Tank¡¯s voice was filled with anger and his hand finished wrapping around the hilt of the club.

    ¡°And if we bring the murderer to justice, everyone else dies. We need his numbers to beat back Mercy. We need Duncan too. Aside from me, he¡¯s the most powerful person in the region and Mercy is going to be a nightmare even with Duncan. We can¡¯t square shit up right now,¡± Santi pleaded. His mind was racing.

    If Tank pushed this, Santi would be forced to kill Duncan. He¡¯d split the assassin in half without a moment¡¯s hesitation, without remorse to keep Tank alive. Then they¡¯d have to move, abandon Homebase and everything they were building. Head South towards Mexico, hope to establish themselves there.

    ¡°There has to be a line. There has to be,¡± Tank whispered those last words, so full of sorrow that it broke Santi¡¯s heart.

    ¡°Duncan crossed the line a half dozen times, and we will get square. There will be justice, it just can¡¯t be right now,¡± Santi said. Duncan snorted softly, the exhalation so faint that Santi hardly heard it.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here. I can¡¯t stand him.¡± Tank burst into motion, heading toward the gate.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you want the riftheart?¡± Duncan said and Santi paused. It was why they had come out here and done all of this afterall.

    ¡°You have it here. Brought it into the dungeon?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°Yes. You did your part and have fulfilled the bargain. I¡¯ll have my people ready to join the fray when Mercy comes down on you. You still haven¡¯t told me how you get her to attack you,¡± Duncan said.

    ¡°Just have your people ready and I¡¯ll get Mercy to come to me.¡± Santi reached a hand out and Duncan withdrew the riftheart from the bag. Metal chains with runes carved into them were wrapped around the ball of power, each of the runes glowing dimly in the dark.

    Santi grasped the riftheart through the chains and felt the pulse of power through the chains as it forced his mana down and contained it in his body. With a bit of effort he could push through the binding chains, but the fact that they already had at least one binder powerful enough to make these irons was concerning.

    ¡°Nasty aren¡¯t they? Was planning on using them on you, but our guy just isn¡¯t strong enough to really make it worth the time and effort. You can keep the chains, free of charge,¡± he offered with the hinting mockery of a smile. Tank grabbed Santi¡¯s other arm and the two of them walked out the dungeon and into the sunlight.

    Exiting Dungeon

    Rewards Not Settled

    Once you have left, the rewards can¡¯t be retrieved

    ¡°We need to get moving,¡± Santi said as he shoved the riftheart into Tank¡¯s backpack.  Tank just grunted in affirmation and the two of them set off quickly. Santi led the way as they backtracked, his mind still reeling from what had just happened.

    It wasn¡¯t the Apostate killing his own followers. It was how easily he had done it. Both of them had been decently leveled Acolyte¡¯s with a lean toward the physical side. Yet, Duncan had overpowered both of them so easily it had been almost laughable. His knife was obviously System forged and he had some skill related to killing players, but Santi was forced to re-evaluate where Duncan¡¯s actual levels were. He had to be close to sixty.

    A full ten level disparity between the two was covered by Santi¡¯s titles, but the extra skill slots the man had made it more dangerous. He had managed to avoid showing Santi any skills inside of the dungeon and had managed to get Santi to reveal his. From an information gathering point, the dungeon run had been a total disaster.

    He had the riftheart back though and the number of alerts on his feed was enough to make him a little giddy. He had cleared to level fifty, which opened another slot for him, and then there was the Pillar and the wealth of coins he had that could make up for the slots being used already. There was much to do, but he couldn¡¯t risk doing anything while they were on the road.

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe he killed them.¡±

    ¡°He caught me off guard too. If there had been an attack, I was expecting it was going to be at you. Try to remove our most powerful healer and then see what happens from there. I never expected him to kill his own people like that,¡± Santi said. They were moving at a good clip, neither of them caring to see what type of monsters or mutated animals were out and in the woods.

    ¡°They were his people and he just¡­¡± Tank shook his head as he let the thought trail off into the aether.

    ¡°I just don¡¯t understand. The world has gone to shit. Monsters are literally appearing from thin fucking air, people have become consumed by curses, there¡¯s portals to slices of different realities, and he¡¯s killing his own.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s fucked up. He¡¯s a rabid dog that needs to be put down.¡±

    ¡°Is he rabid though? Everything he does seems measured and weighed. Even killing Trevor and Bo, it was done so calculatingly. He¡¯s a fucking psychopath.¡± Tanks shook his head slowly as he finished the thought.

    ¡°Can¡¯t argue there. He¡¯s dangerous though. The moment Mercy goes down and her curse is lifted, we¡¯re taking him, and anyone of his people who fights back, out. He knows we¡¯re going to be coming too and he wanted that reward bad,¡± Santi promised.

    ¡°We have our plans and our counters. We just have to trust in each other to get it done. But first we cleanse the curse,¡± Tanks said. Santi nodded and the two of them continued on in silence.

 Ch. 3.37 Orb of Holding

    37.

    ¡°Damnit!¡± Tank spat as he dodged a wide sweeping blow from the hissing mountain lion. Talons flashed by his face, splitting the air as Santi turned around in surprise, as the mountain lion had arrived soundlessly. Santi dashed in front of them with [Windstep] as his blade lengthened into a spear. Santi stabbed the mountain lion through its chest before it could react. The lion coughed once and went still, legs going limp and collapsing as the two men stood there in silence.

    ¡°You didn¡¯t sense that at all?¡± Tank asked.

    ¡°Not at all. Just came out of nowhere,¡± Santi said a little breathlessly. The scent of blood in the air was intoxicating and he pulled his spear free as the two of them looked at each other and laughed anxiously together.

    ¡°We¡¯re almost there,¡± Santi said, the road signs slowly showing the distance traveled for themselves as they got closer and closer.

    ¡°I¡¯m tired. Let¡¯s get there and get this over with. ¡° Tank rustled his shoulders, settling the pack carefully on his shoulders as they turned and kept going. Santi looked down at the pelt of the cougar, the low level Acolyte animal would have made a solid pelt or leather armor.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go, Santi. Stop sniffing the air like a weirdo.¡± Santi came back to himself, pulling his eyes off of the dead big cat and then they were traveling again in moments. The heat of the sun was pleasant against their skin, their natural resistances enough that even the California summer was growing to be easily tolerable.

    ¡°What do we tell everyone when we get back?¡± Tank asked.

    ¡°We went and did the dungeon. We have the riftheart. That¡¯s all there is to it. Duncan used the dungeon to try to improve his affinity and it probably worked or got close to succeeding. Did you level?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I got a few. You?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I need to figure out my levels and go through these achievements when we sit down.¡±

    ¡°Still trying to be somewhat balanced?¡± Tank asked.

    ¡°Not really. We¡¯re passing the point where I can keep up with physical classers even with all my advantages. It¡¯s better for me to start focusing on my weak points and allowing gear and titles for the disadvantage. Time to start leaning into the mage class,¡± Santi said. It had been growing obvious for a while now that he was starting to be surpassed physically.

    Magically there was no one who could rival him, but without combat specific spells he had been forced to augment his combat with magic rather than augment his magic with swordwork.

    ¡°I suggest the same for you. I don¡¯t know the attribute spread for your class, but I¡¯m assuming it''s similar to mine. Leaning into mana stats, right?¡±

    ¡°Yes and no. I am a [Combat Medic]. I get strength stats right off the bat and a few durability points. The majority go toward spell casting though.¡±

    ¡°When the market is fully functional, or the dwarves get going, we equip you in armor that will protect you and items to improve strength. Lean into the mage portion of the build and just keep the heals flowing. Won¡¯t be as squishy as most healers but you won¡¯t be as powerful as them medically.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t need to heal a battlefield to perfect health. Just keep you alive until we get back to the real doctors.¡±

    ¡°There is definitely a place for a class and build like that. Splitting the difference between a physical classer and a true healer, you¡¯ll never reach the pinnacle of strength like that though. You can¡¯t completely split yourself, eventually you have to pick a direction,¡± Santi warned.

    They turned to the final stretch of road that led to their new camp. Santi was pleased to see a barricade had begun to be built. It wasn¡¯t the poorly done ones they had done either against the cyclops, as the effect of skills were evident. Cars had been melted into one another, melding together to form a mass that blocked off the road except for a single choke point.

    ¡°Haven¡¯t you been splitting your attention?¡± Tank asked.

    ¡°Yes and no. My class dumps almost all my points into mana based abilities and then I use my few spare points to bolster weak zones. I have my titles and gear now that help me cover the distance between me and a physical classer. By the time someone like Cameron or Bianca or Chloe reaches my level though, they¡¯ll have a base strength that is equal or surpasses mine, even with all my advantages.¡±

    ¡°But your magic abilities will far outclass theirs?¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah, I¡¯ll run circles around them magically. Biggest issue right now is most of my spells are more utility than combat. I can shape and change them to be combat focused, but at the end of the day they aren¡¯t as impactful as say something like [Firebolt].¡± This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

    ¡°Your sister doesn¡¯t use her affinity that much, just the one skill.¡±

    ¡°She has shit mana. She can¡¯t use her abilities as frequently as I can or even you and Cameron. Cameron is nicely balanced, but so many of his abilities use mana to create shields, he needs to be.¡±

    ¡°Really is like a game. What a fucking world,¡± Tank whispered the last part as they got closer to the barricade. Santi felt the hairs on his neck rise up as he stared at the barricade. It was eight feet tall but there was an ominous dread emanating from it as he stared. Either a skill or a spell that Yessi had laid down upon it.

    ¡°Come on in,¡± Maya yelled, her head peeking over the top and waving them in. Santi hadn¡¯t felt her on the other side of the barrier, in fact he couldn¡¯t sense anything beyond the barricade. Another layer of obfuscation that they had laid down.

    A small passage was created in the middle of the barricade, hardly large enough for Santi to pass through easily, Tank was forced to turn sideways and take his pack off to get through.

    ¡°Your dwarf friends are quite industrious. Going to have a wall up and around the whole damn town before the day¡¯s over,¡± Maya said as she sat back down on a ledge. Her head was completely hidden from the outside world, keeping the appearance of an abandoned wall.

    ¡°Good. Where is everyone?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°Everyone is working around town. The others haven¡¯t made it back yet. I got stuck up here on watch duty,¡± she yawned as she spoke, boredom and not exhaustion easily seen on her face.

    ¡°How did the evolution go?¡± Santi asked as Tank shrugged his pack back on.

    ¡°Hurt like a bitch. Gains were nice though. Ready to test them out for sure. The others said they¡¯d take me out for a hunt and level party later as we try to find those bugs,¡± Maya said.

    ¡°Alright. Keep an eye out and I¡¯ll talk to you later,¡± Santi waved a hand at the woman and then he and Tank set off. Santi was heading straight for the Pillar of Civilization which rose up in the middle of the town. He had a level worth of stat points to distribute and the awards to go through, then the kit change up.

    ¡°Take the gear back to the house, give Yessi the riftheart when you see her. I¡¯m going to get through all the changes and then start baiting the trap,¡± Santi explained to Tank. The other man grunted and peeled away as Santi reached the Pillar.

    Santiago V. Silva

    Level 50. Air Mage

    Strength: 40 (75)

    Durability: 40 (75)

    Stamina: 40 (75)

    Dexterity: 40 (75)

    Vitality: 40 (75)

    Perception: 36 (71)

    Intelligence: 120 (155)

    Mana: 160 (195)

    Willpower:130 (165)

    Most of his spare points had been added to willpower, desperately trying to hold the curse at bay. Santi now fully understood how others had fallen to its insidious whispers that constantly attacked at his restraint and tolerance. The desire to simply solve every problem with bloodletting was monstrous and lurked in the background of every decision he had made for the last few days.

    Achievement: Clear a Dungeon

    Reward: Minor Loot Box

    Achievement: Kill a Monster 10 levels above you

    Reward: Minor Loot Box

    X3

    Achievement: Survive a Monster 10 levels above you

    Reward: Title Cockroach Accumulation 10%

    X3

    Thirty percent into title accumulation was nice. Fighting and killing the bosses in the dungeon had rewarded him handsomely, but the five percent extra gain he had had as an Initiate was missing. It also marked the halfway point of climbing through the Acolyte tier and another spell slot he could work with. He wasn¡¯t looking forward to the next step in his plan.

    He opened all four loot boxes and the only thing he got was another mound of coins that piled up into a neat pile at his feet. Thirty coins from each of the boxes. Santi actually counted them this time and frowned, he could have sworn there had been more last time.

    He touched the pillar and connected with it and quickly sorted through the menus. A quick scan of the map showed a nice layered topographical map that stretched out for miles. There were a few [Scouts] or their equivalent outside of the town, but nothing he had to worry about.

    He brought up the merchant windows and began to search. There were two merchant windows, one from the System directly that offered all sorts of low end supplies at high prices and then the on world merchant site which was for trade amongst the populace. Currently the inter world trade window was empty, but in a few days or weeks it would swell with new users and the market would be flooded with low quality goods.

    Santi focused on scrolling down the list of the offerings from the System until he found what he wanted. He wanted to wince at the price, but a hundred tokens wasn¡¯t the end of the world. With a thought the majority of the pile of coins at his feet disappeared and with a pop a small cardboard box appeared at Santi¡¯s feet.

    He pulled it free and looked at the small orb that had just absorbed so much of his earnings. It was a clear globe and when Santi grabbed it, it felt like the most flimsy piece of glass in the world, ready to shatter under his fingers with just the wrong move.

    Orb of Holding (Basic)

    Pull a skill or spell from your body and place it in the Orb.

    Santi had never used one of these before, but he knew people who had. It was an expensive and painful way of fixing a mistake. Santi was looking at his [Crosscurrent-Orb] and getting ready.  [Gust] was too useful currently, but the orb attack was weak and could be replicated by other abilities. Freeing up the third slot so he could take a common level skill was too tempting.

    He activated the orb and selected [Crosscurrent-Orb]. For a moment, nothing happened as he stood there holding the orb. Pain exploded in a white sheet that drove him to his knees as his very body trembled and shook violently. It was like hooks he hadn¡¯t known existed were being yanked free of his body.

    Santi blacked out and fell on the dry grass in front of the pillar.

 Ch. 3.38

    38.

    ¡°You alive?¡± Cameron asked, leaning over Santi and blocking out his view of the warm sun above. Santi grunted as he squinted at his overly large friend and the large shadow he cast. Cameron was nothing more than a silhouette against the sun and even then, Santi could see the mocking smile he was wearing.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Santi choked out, struggling to sit up. He felt as if he had been rolled through a press, drained of all energy and left to die as he coughed once as he looked around himself. An hour and twelve minutes had passed since he had lost consciousness and it didn¡¯t look like anyone had come and pulled him away from the pillar.

    ¡°Tank said you were alive after we found you sleeping. I waited around for you to come to, just to make sure though. Cause, I¡¯m your best friend,¡± Cam said, a bit too innocently.

    ¡°Did you draw something on my face?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Cameron said unconvincingly.

    ¡°Is it genitalia?¡±

    ¡°Would you be mad if I said yes?¡± Cam asked, the hidden glee in his voice not quite so hidden. Santi wiped at his face and then rubbed his eyes as he staggered upright. His legs were wobbly and he was having a hard time seeing, his vision blurry and strained.

    ¡°So, what were you doing that made you pass out?¡± Cam asked as he leaned against the pillar and looked at Santi expectantly. Santi looked down to see the orb sitting there in the grass. He picked it up and held it up to Cameron who peered at with a scrunched up look on his face.

    ¡°It¡¯s a snow globe?¡±

    ¡°Skill orb. It pulled out one of the spells I didn¡¯t use and stored it in here,¡± Santi explained. He was ready to look at his new spell he could take now that he had three open slots, but the drain on his body made him nervous to take a new one. The ripping at the soul was dangerous and the last thing he wanted was to somehow fail when acquiring a new spell.

    ¡°You can do that?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It costs a good chunk of money and it''s incredibly painful, but you can take a skill or spell out of your slot and hold it in one of these.¡±

    ¡°And you can put it back in whenever?¡±

    ¡°Probably want to wait a little bit after taking it out, and the orb will shatter when the spell or skill comes out, but yeah.¡±

    ¡°Could I take that skill?¡±

    ¡°Yup.¡± Santi waited as the implications sunk through Cam¡¯s head.

    ¡°So, if I found the right person, I could start taking skill and spells outside of my class selection?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. They won¡¯t suit you and might be a struggle to use, but you can. For the most part we get offered skills or spells that fit our class or affinity. For me it''s wind spells and some basic others like [Identify]. You have tanking skill and earth based spells, etc. etc,¡± Santi emphasized the point by rolling his hand to show it going on and on.

    ¡°Got any water?¡± Santi said, mouth feeling dry.

    ¡°Naw, but there¡¯s some at the house. Let¡¯s get a few other people gathered up and hear this. I think this could be big,¡± Cam said, his hand slipping under Santi¡¯s arm and helping steady him as they walked back to their temporary home.

    ¡°It could, if you had the money, the right set of class types and spell types, and of course, access to a Pillar. Then you could have all sorts of hidden talents ready to go,¡± Santi said.

    "Just hold it in for everyone else. We were taking a break for lunch and that¡¯s why I was over there,¡± Cam said quickly.

    ¡°So I don¡¯t have a penis drawn on my face?¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t say that,¡± Cam said, a smile perking the edge of his mouth. Santi rolled his eyes and they continued in toward the house. He looked around as he walked there, his legs slowly growing firm beneath him as he recovered from the trauma of having a spell ripped out of his soul.

    ¡°It¡¯s looking nice out here. Or at least better than it did,¡± Santi said. Cam grunted, but there was a hint of pride in that grunt.

    ¡°Torin and Grimvr are machines and all of us being Acolytes has really sped it up. Can do the work of four or five men with ease. And that¡¯s just with stats, not including spells or skills.¡± This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    The streets had been cleared of debris and paint had been laid down carefully. Santi knew how the design worked, he had helped make it after all, but seeing pieces of it was interesting. He knew Mercy and her band of cursed would have no idea what this was, but Duncan might. A Champion accumulated enough knowledge that it was unwise to assume they were ignorant about anything, even if it was outside of the realm of expertise.

    It wasn¡¯t like the spell form would be dangerous to Duncan after all. Santi doubted the man would worry much about it.

    They walked into the house and Cam let Santi go then proceeded to flop on the couch, a piece of wood cracking as he landed with all his weight on the cheap furniture. He sighed once and then looked up at Santi.

    ¡°Hey, might want to try to scrub your face before everyone else gets here. Looks super unprofessional,¡± Cam said. Santi flipped him off and went to the restroom and saw that Cameron had indeed drawn a comically large penis across his cheek.

    It took a minute to scrub off and while he was at it he gave himself a bird bath in the sink, scrubbing off the remnants of the dungeon into the dirty porcelain before retreating back into the living room. Over the next five minutes the majority of the inner core group showed up, only the trio out looking for Keegan still missing.

    Rayleigh came too, but left her few people standing guard with the newcomers. She sat down next to Yessenia and the two whispered to each other as the rest of the family and friends showed up.

    ¡°Alright, so what happened?¡± Bianca said the moment everyone had settled down.

    ¡°Why were you out cold in the middle of the lawn?¡±

    Santi explained everything to them about the skill orb holder and how they could replace their skills or spells. And the cost to do so.

    ¡°So, you could give me your wind spells?¡± Bianca asked.

    ¡°Yeah. They wouldn¡¯t suit you at all, but you could take this one and absorb it if you have the space to slot in a basic level spell.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s to stop people from mixing and matching to their hearts content then? What¡¯s the point of having a class?¡±

    ¡°They wouldn¡¯t be efficient. Like you would be able to maybe cast this spell two or three times before your mana starts getting drained. I can spam it as much as I want. My affinity and class are better suited for it. Same with any of yours or Chloe¡¯s endurance skills that enhance your physical stats. I could do it once or twice, but the boost just isn¡¯t worth it,¡± Santi explained.

    ¡°What about spells or skills that work in concert but are out of your class?¡± Mom asked, she was leaning over and very intent.

    ¡°Cost is quite prohibitive. Then the pain of having it ripped out and you''re no longer able to access that spell again. If I give [Crosscurrent-Orb] to one of you, it''s no longer available in my spell inventory to choose again. This isn¡¯t a way for you to spam instant skills for other people, but a drastic way to make a bit of coin or retool your build.¡±

    ¡°Make coin?¡± Cam perked up at that.

    ¡°The market option on the pillar. You will be able to sell goods across to other pillar owners for money. The System will take a bit of the money and the owner of both pillars will take a piece, but you¡¯ll be able to trade goods. Like these spell orbs,¡± Santi said, hoisting said orb up for everyone to see.

    ¡°So you owning that pillar means you get continuous money by people buying and selling goods?¡± Mom asked.

    ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m the government basically.¡±

    ¡°Good.¡± She nodded her head and sat back.

    ¡°For our group and close friends, I can keep the tax low while others are charged higher. It¡¯s another way to incentivize cooperation. The more of these pillars I control, the more nodes we have to trade. After this is over, we¡¯ll be working on acquiring more pillars and establishing small trading outposts around the area, all tied to our central pillar. But, that¡¯s for the future.¡±

    ¡°So if we fuck up or find a skill or spell that someone else has that we like, we could have them trade us?¡± Bianca asked.

    ¡°Yeah, but again. It¡¯s expensive and painful as fuck. I don¡¯t recommend it.¡±

    Yessenia was looking at him with a frown and Santi had a sudden idea that she had seen a ritual in her spell book that he had hoped wouldn¡¯t be there. After that, the group broke up and ate lunches of ration bars and just chatted with each other. It was good to see Yessenia in the group setting and not hiding off to the side or retreating to her room.

    As the group broke up and everyone went back to their respective jobs, Yessenia remained behind. She waited till the door closed and then pulled out a thin piece of chalk from one of the myriad of pockets she had on her cargo pants. She went over and made a quick Silence  rune on the door and imbued it with a brush of mana. Santi felt his eyebrows raising at the quick and efficient use of the rune.

    It was a relatively quick and fast method of ritual magic and quite weak by itself. The rune would keep all sound from escaping the house for a few minutes or until someone with the right knowledge broke it.

    ¡°There¡¯s a spell in the book called Skill Extraction. Could it be used on someone unwillingly to take their spells or skills and store them in one of those containers?¡± She was looking at him with an iron gaze that Santi both admired and was a little scared of.

    ¡°Yes. It can strip someone unwilling of their skill or spell. It can¡¯t be targeted though, so it just rips them out one at a time.¡± It had been a way of punishing transgressions for some of the more authoritarian groups. Or a way of blackmarket peddlers to sell in demand skills and spells.

    ¡°The ingredients are easy and it doesn¡¯t take much to power it.¡± The question was left unsaid.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want us to be those types of people. The pain of what I just did was excruciating and it was on my own free will. It¡¯ll likely take me the rest of the day to feel better and be ready to take on a new spell. We won¡¯t force anyone to do that.¡±

    ¡°Even people like Duncan?¡±

    ¡°Especially people like Duncan. He¡¯s ruthless and dangerous and it doesn¡¯t matter what wealth we can obtain from him. It''s morally wrong and it''s how people like him became people like him. He wasn¡¯t born evil, he just kept making these types of choices over and over again. We end the threat, quickly, cleanly, and permanently. I don¡¯t want to hear about these spell holders popping up on the market place, ok?¡±

    ¡°As long as we¡¯re on the same page.¡± Yessenia turned and left, wiping away the chalk rune on the door before walking out and into the street to continue her preparations. Santi sank into the couch and looked at where his little sister had just left and thought of her words.

    She had been more than willing to do it. There had been hints of eagerness there.

 3.39 Chloes Return

    39.

    Santi stared down at the lines that everyone had worked so hard to build over the last day. Chalk outline with an adhesive laid down that held salt in place, all of in combining to form one of the largest groundwork spells he had ever witnessed.

    The complexity of the regression spell had admittedly been far more superior, but the sheer size of this one dwarfed what the Apostates had managed to accomplish. It spread across an entire town, from the newly erected barricades all the way to the pillar standing tall in the middle of it.

    Power buzzed faintly, just at the edge of his ability to sense. Ambient mana was flowing at all times and the array was slowly pulling it into itself. With enough time the array could theoretically collect enough mana to power itself. If nothing broke the array lines and interrupted its growth.

    He could always buy an array from the pillar that could draw more ambient mana towards it, but he didn¡¯t want to waste the money. At least, not when he had a riftcore that could do the same thing.

    ¡°Incoming!¡± one of Rayleigh¡¯s people yelled from a rooftop a couple houses over. Santi perked up, hoping that it was Chloe and the scout duo. He leapt, grabbing the eaves of the closest house, and then bounded to the top of the roof. He was barely tall enough to see over the top of the barricade and across the dried scrub.

    Chloe was walking in the front, her axe seated on a broad belt he hadn¡¯t seen before. Daniel and Hana were in the rear, their focus fixed on the path they had taken rather than where they were going.

    In the center of the group were three people that Santi had a vague recollection of seeing about. A tall, skinny woman with blonde hair in the middle of the group was wearing tan camo army fatigues with a crossbow on a slung over one shoulder with a green visor that covered her eyes.

    The man on the right was older with a gray and black beard and a shaved head and a pierced eyebrow that glinted from the sun. He was short and broad with an old army jacket and a knife in his belt.

    The man on the left was younger with short curly black hair and similar camo as his two compatriots. He had a pair of binoculars that hung off his neck and had a pack slung over one shoulder that looked half empty. All three of them looked tired and dusty, the hard travel having worn them down.

    Santi gave a quick wave toward them and was rewarded by Chloe waving back at him, a smile spreading across her face. He waited patiently for them, the urge to head towards them strong, but he was trying to keep some decorum. The group slipped past the barricade and into the small town. Daniel and Hana split off immediately leading their three people away towards the house.

    Chloe bounded straight up the side of the house and smashed into Santi before he could react. Her grip was strong enough that his bones creaked as she hugged him and he grunted as the air was forced out of his lungs.

    ¡°Good to see you too,¡± he managed to whisper with the last of his breath. Chloe released him and threw back her head to laugh loudly. Closer to her, Santi could see the strain building up on her. The deep bags under her eyes, the matted tangle of her hair from dirt and dried blood. Her small smile was tired and her laugh forced.

    ¡°I¡¯m used to you being the strongest person I know. It feels weird that I¡¯m stronger than you now,¡± Chloe said.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know about all that,¡± Santi said laughing even as he left his hands on her biceps. Her warmth radiated through her thin shirtsleeves and Santi felt the edge of tension he¡¯d been carrying since they left for the dungeon slowly dissipate.

    ¡°You can¡¯t be that much stronger than me then,¡±Chloe corrected herself.

    ¡°You¡¯ll pass me up soon enough, don¡¯t worry ¡®bout that. How was the trip?¡± Santi asked, already knowing from the state of her dishevelment. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    ¡°Fucking nightmare. Wildlife everywhere, a few monsters running about, then finding them was hard enough. Getting back was even worse. Most things we could sneak around or outrun getting there, but with them it became just a long running fight. Got two more levels doing it though. So there¡¯s some good that came out of it,¡± Chloe said. She slowly lowered herself and swung her legs off the gutter, looking around at the drawn on lines everywhere.

    ¡°Are you sure this is going to work?¡± She asked.

    ¡°Nope. I mean, it should. None of the spells we are doing are that advanced, they¡¯re just big. And a few of them. The hard part is going to be timing, which will be relying on you for,¡± Santi said as he sat next to her.

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°Got to get everything here at the same time. Daniel finds us that beetle nest and you¡¯re going to be our lure,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Since when?¡±

    ¡°Since you just gained two levels and are our physically strongest person here. I can¡¯t go do it, I¡¯m the bait for Mercy.¡±

    ¡°Thought you said she was going to be coming no matter what?¡±

    ¡°I was lying. Got a resonance spell here near the middle of the town that will amplify the curses call. That is what¡¯s going to drag Mercy to us.¡±

    ¡°Resonance spell?¡±

    ¡°Giant amplifier that will resonate with the curse, amplifying it and projecting it outward. It¡¯ll be like throwing up a big-ass flare for her to see. And a challenge of sorts. She won¡¯t be able to turn it down.¡±

    ¡°Ok. Then when she gets here we use the defenses and spell forms to slowly grind them down?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Close enough. Grind them down and have Duncan¡¯s people hit them from the rear. Catch them in a pincer and fall back deeper into the city and closer to the pillar before we trigger our final trap.¡±

    ¡°The beetles?¡±

    ¡°No. I¡¯m leaving it as a surprise. Just between me and Yessenia. You¡¯ll see it when it activates though,¡± Santi promised.

    ¡°Can¡¯t trust me?¡±

    ¡°I trust you. I just can¡¯t trust that Duncan is spying on us. I can¡¯t sense him,¡± Santi admitted. He had thought he had been reaching the levels of skill that the Apostates had when it came to spell manipulation. Duncan had proved him wrong repeatedly with his ability to come and go at will.

    ¡°I¡¯ll breathe easier when he¡¯s dead, that¡¯s for sure.¡±

    ¡°We all will.¡±

    ¡°You get a better feel for him on the dungeon run? Maybe discern what he¡¯s actually about?¡±

    ¡°Self-centered, megalomaniac, asshole. He¡¯s skilled though. Very, very, skilled.¡± It hurt that Santi couldn¡¯t tell her exactly what was going on. After his time with Duncan and both of them knowing what they were about and what had happened, the sudden inability to talk about his past was glaring and painful.

    ¡°Sounds like a real piece of work,¡± Chloe said, her eyes locked on her swinging boots.

    ¡°He killed his two guys to finish his leveling off.¡± The words sprung out as Santi began to talk. The words were no more than a stream of consciousness as he described what had happened in the dungeon, the three boss monsters they had killed, and culminating in the death of Trevor and Bo.

    ¡°What a fucking psycho.¡± Chloe turned and spat in distaste.

    ¡°Yeah. I don¡¯t know what I was expecting when we went down there, but it wasn¡¯t that. I think he¡¯s higher level than me, might be sixty already,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°How? You are constantly fighting and killing things,¡± Chloe said, eyebrows raised in surprise.

    ¡°No. I spend time doing paperwork. Arguing with people about how they need to be a [Farmer] and not a [Warrior]. It just takes more and more of my time the more people we bring in, the more we build out and grow. All he does is kill and hunt. I¡¯ve cleared plenty of monster nests. I think I''m close to the top on some of the leaderboards, but there are people who are only hunting. I have to split my attention. Which means I¡¯ll start lagging further and further behind on pure levels.¡±

    ¡°But, you  have other advantages?¡±

    ¡°I have a strong community. Plenty of strong fighters and I have some of my own aces. The titles and equipment have been a huge boon for me. In the future we will have more gear than others, better support, food, and everything else. And it¡¯s not like I¡¯m lagging behind either. I¡¯m still the top one percent on the planet, just not point one percent.¡±

    ¡°Am I a one percenter?¡± Chloe asked.

    ¡°You¡¯re not far off. Get you a title or some better gear, boost your affinity a bit more, and yeah. You¡¯ll be sitting at the top with me.¡±

    ¡°Then that¡¯s what¡¯s going to happen. We kill Mercy. We kill Duncan. We kill every monster or mutated animal in the region. We build ourselves up. Then we take over the world,¡± Chloe laughed as she said that last part, the final bits of stress fading away as she leaned her head against his shoulder.

    Santi laughed with her and just enjoyed the feeling of not being alone.

 Ch. 3.40 Acolyte 6

    40.

    Naomi looked around the wreckage of the small town and whistled. Whatever had hit this place had hit it hard. There was almost nothing left standing in some neighborhoods, everything torn apart to the foundation. Some buildings had lasted here or there, solitary homes that had missed the razing.

    Alan didn¡¯t even look at them as he walked down a street of crushed cars, broken homes, and skeletons. His eyes were fixed on the cluster of houses that were looking rundown, but not broken apart like everything else. Naomi kept tight to the man. If he fell apart due to finding his son dead, she would give him a clean death. She couldn¡¯t risk him becoming insane again like he had in the last timeline.

    Her team had fanned out through the town, looking for anything of use that could have been passed over. Their packs were growing so large that Naomi was certain they¡¯d have to find a cache soon to store everything. Once she had the pillar back home and started establishing a network this wouldn¡¯t be a problem.

    ¡°Right here,¡± Alan said, pointing toward a house with a broken down front door. The large bay windows were shattered wrecks and there was black ichor staining the wood of the windowsill.

    Alan walked in like it was any other day, a jaunt to his step as he swept into his old house. He passed by the overturned furniture, the gashes in the wall, and the broken pictures.

    ¡°Cameron! You here?¡± Alan shouted. The house was silent in return. Alan shrugged and went up and into a room. Naomi followed slowly and carefully, a hand on the hilt of her sword. The man was sitting on the edge of a bed, pulling free dresser drawers and taking the clothes out of them.

    ¡°Alan? I thought we came to look for your son? Not clothes,¡± Naomi said.

    ¡°The chances of him being here was slim. I do need clothes though. I have a habit of tearing mine up,¡± he smiled apologetically at her as he grabbed a rucksack from the closet and started to neatly put everything in it. Alan filled up two thirds of the rucksack and then went through another door in the bedroom, the master bath.

    He came out with a few bars of soap which he threw into the bag and a package of toothpaste and toothbrushes, all of it loaded up without hesitation. Naomi wanted to sigh. They had all of these items already, but there was a comfort of having your own things.

    ¡°I was hoping he¡¯d leave a not or something, but no dice. Let me check next door, Cam¡¯s best friend lived there.¡± Alan slung the rucksack on his back and left the master bedroom without a single look back. Naomi couldn¡¯t tell if the man was insane or just that confident in his son.

    She followed after and entered a house that had just as much damage as Alan¡¯s. If not more so. The kitchen had turned into a warzone with different splashes of blood overlaying one another on the walls. The knives in the kitchen butcher block were missing and the glass oven was broken open with shards of black glass laying on the white tile.

    Alan went up a set of stairs, hollering as he did so, while Naomi stayed downstairs. She walked through the ruins of a life and took in all the pictures of what looked like a happy family. Mom, Dad, two daughters, and one son. They were always smiling in every picture.

    She stopped and looked at the boy again. His features were similar to something. She struggled to recall where she had seen the boy before. A blooming horror washed through her as her instincts screamed at her. Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    ¡°Alan!?¡± She yelled up the stairs. The tread of footsteps rattled down the house as Alan came hurrying down.

    ¡°Did you find something?¡±

    ¡°No. But who¡¯s house is this?¡±

    ¡°The Silvas, Vicente and Gabriella¡¯s. They moved in a little before my wife passed away. They were good people, helped me through losing her. Their son Santiago is Cameron¡¯s best friend. Think Cameron had a crush on their older daughter, he¡¯d always get flustered and tongue tied around her.¡± Alan laughed as he pointed at a picture she hadn¡¯t seen yet.

    It was off Alan and, presumably, his son Cameron with the entirety of the Silva family. They were all wearing ugly Christmas sweaters while smiling like loons. Naomi felt like a lead weight had been dropped into her stomach.

    What could the odds have been?

    ¡°Santiago Silva? Goes by Santi?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. You know him or something?¡±

    ¡°A friend did. That¡¯s actually where we¡¯re going to next. His college.¡±

    ¡°Well, if Cam stuck with the Silva¡¯s and they didn¡¯t stay here, then Santi¡¯s college makes sense I guess.¡± Alan shrugged his shoulders and spun on a heel and walked right back out the door.

    She had the urge to kill him. To strike his head from his shoulders before he knew what was happening. She could already see the disaster that was coming. How would Alan stay with her when his son was with Santiago? She should eliminate the threat before it became a threat. It was one of the reasons they had come here after all, that they had flung themselves through time to try to change everything.

    To make it better.

    That last thought was the only thing that stayed her hand. She hadn''t come back to be a cold blooded killer. She wanted a world where her girls could grow up safe, where they could have a future. Where they could look up and admire her, follow her example.

    She relaxed and walked out of the house and followed behind Alan as he looked around the old neighborhood for the last time. There was a silent tear trailing down his face as he took it all in.

    ¡°I knew he wouldn¡¯t be here. But I hoped. I hoped I¡¯d see my boy again,¡± Alan whispered. Suddenly the nonchalant attitude and the carefree display made sense. He was masking himself, hiding how much he was hurting and he had done a damn fine job of it.

    ¡°He should be up and at the college then. It should only take us another day, two at most to reach it,¡± Naomi said.

    ¡°Don¡¯t you have to return that Pillar back home?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯ll get back home when it gets back home. Who knows, might even find another one or two of them out here while we¡¯re at it.¡±

    ¡°Thank you. I need to know. I need to know,¡± Alan whispered again, his eyes losing their bright sheen as despair clouded his visage.

    ¡°Hey, we can do this. Another day or two, that¡¯s all you need to hold on for,¡± Naomi said. She nudged him with her shoulder and Alan nodded back.

    Naomi just hoped that Santiago was already dead and that Duncan had been surgical rather than just slaughtering them all. She didn¡¯t want to lose Alan, not after all the time and effort that had went into keeping the man sane.

    ¡°Boss, just about done. This place was picked clean, nothing to find at all,¡± one of her people said. She had thought as much, but it was always better to check than to not check.

    ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s get a move on. New destination!¡± Naomi bellowed and a wave of affirmatives came from her small group. They had lost people, they had traveled up half the state, earned levels and collected enough rare materials it was a minor miracle. They had one more stop to do then she could head home to Marcus and the girls. As long as Alan didn¡¯t go insane. As long as Santiago was dead. As long as her plans could continue moving forward.

 Ch. 3.41 Theres a difference, Daniel!

    41.

    ¡°Those aren¡¯t beetles, Daniel,¡± Santi said, turning to stare at his scout. The other man shrugged as they stood on a small hill looking down to the gulley. It had taken them almost three hours to find the nest and now that they were looking at it, Santi was reconsidering some of his earlier thoughts.

    ¡°They¡¯re bugs. Right?¡±

    ¡°Why do you sound unsure if they¡¯re bugs? Of course they¡¯re fucking bugs. It¡¯s just that they¡¯re termites!¡± Santi said with exasperation.

    ¡°What¡¯s the difference? A bug is a bug,¡± Daniel tried to defend himself as he waved a hand at the mound in the gulley.

    The large mound. That looked more like a hill. That was covered in low-level Acolyte termites.

    ¡°There¡¯s a big ass hive of termites here Daniel. Not a bunch of random bugs that were just hanging out. The difference is in numbers. And they probably have a queen and king.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re a colony bug, with separate types of orders, soldiers, workers, and escalating to a queen and king. Which will likely be much higher level than the workers down there,¡± Santi said, pointing at the alabaster termites.

    ¡°So the; lure the bugs to the party to create chaos plan isn¡¯t going to work?¡±

    ¡°Ohhh, it¡¯s going to work. Might work too well though. We¡¯re also going to have to do something to lure them away from their colony. If it was just a few of them it wouldn¡¯t have been that hard. Beetles could be incentivized through lures or something. A colony like that, the most we will get is a handful coming to investigate. Unless¡­¡± Santi trailed off as he looked at the massive mound that formed the entrance to the colony.

    ¡°Unless what?¡±

    ¡°Unless we destroy the hive the colony is around,¡± Santi looked at Daniel and the other man¡¯s eyebrows shot up.

    ¡°Aside from you, I don¡¯t know if anyone has the power to get that done,¡± Daniel said after a moment.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have the power to destroy a hive like that. Kill them individually, yeah I could do that. Destroy the infrastructure or threaten it enough that we provoke a killing response as the entire colony comes after us? Naw, don¡¯t have the juice. But I know how to do it,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Yessenia?¡± Daniel guessed.

    ¡°She could with enough time and ingredients. Which we don¡¯t have. We do have a lot of cars and half full gas tanks around though.¡±

    ¡°Firebomb?¡±

    ¡°Firebomb,¡± Santi confirmed.

    ¡°And they¡¯ll know it¡¯s us?¡± Daniel asked, sounding even more confused now.

    ¡°They will when someone is standing out here when they come boiling out,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Sounds dangerous,¡± Daniel said suspiciously.

    ¡°Very dangerous. But I do have someone who specializes in escaping and evading. The perfect person for the job really.¡±

    ¡°Shit,¡± Daniel hung his head and said with a heavy sigh. Santi patted him on the shoulder and forced some cheer into his voice as he looked at the scout.

    ¡°Everything we¡¯re going to be doing is dangerous. Would you rather do this or be in the middle of a bloody melee?¡±

    ¡°This,¡± Daniel admitted.

    ¡°I¡¯ll have Hana on the outskirts watching for you to come in. Out of the worst of the danger,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Thanks. So, time to go and siphon gas out of cars?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Time to siphon gas out of cars. We¡¯re running a bit low on labor really. Rayleigh¡¯s team has all been conscripted to help Yesi and everyone else has their own projects. You have any of your rangers close by?¡± Santi asked, already knowing the answer.The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°A couple teams have drifted up this way. Didn¡¯t ask them too, but they know we¡¯re over here and they have been slowly forming up over the last day or so,¡± Daniel said.

    ¡°Alright, get them on it then. Salvage gas, diesel, anything that will burn. Then when the signal goes up, you burn it down,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°And then lead them right into the fight?¡±

    ¡°Yup.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the signal going to be?¡± Daniel said as they slunk away from the nest of termites.

    ¡°Will it be cliche for me to say, you¡¯ll know it when you see it?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°Very cliched. What will it be?¡±

    ¡°A red flare. That works?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. Alright, let me head off and go find my teams then we can start building a firebomb. Or two,¡± Daniel said the last part with a bit of a smirk before slipping away. Santi watched the quiet scout fade away into the brush and nodded to himself. The man was becoming more and more competent and reliable. Santi didn¡¯t think he had what it took to become a Champion, but a Disciple easily enough. In truth the organization he was building could be more helpful than a single Champion could be.

    A few hundred trained and skilled scouts and rangers who patrolled the wastes between cities would have been a godsend back in the first timeline. It had taken too long to organize the first time, too few people had survived and leveled to build a semi-autonomous fighting force that was used to clear monsters or mutated animals in the wild areas. Every single person was needed for the war effort.

    It was a nice sign. A sign of a better world. A hopefully more tame and protected world. As long as it didn¡¯t spiral out of control again. With Mercy¡¯s and Duncan¡¯s deaths this entire region would be free of any type of organization that could oppose him and his plans of settling and pacifying the region. Trade routes, communities, shelters, rangers, and so many more ideas that would help make rebuilding a peaceful society possible.

    And it was all coming down to this fight. Santi could feel the weight of it, the thought of everything being decided on whether or not he could kill them. Then again, everything had been boiling down to whether or not he kept his guts in his insides long enough to establish this safe haven. It was close to being done, the momentum building to the point that even if he was to die, that they could continue on.

    Or if it was time to move on. To leave the nest and find the other Apostates before they came and found him. Before they could drag their armies across the country and leave nothing but a trail of ruin and death behind them. With the Pillars built around his home, he could find a new one and take it with him as he traveled. He was sure that most of the team would go with him, or at least be willing to hear him out.

    Santi pushed the ideas of the future away. Having you head up in the clouds and visions of a future you could make was sure to get you killed in the present. He needed to be focused to ensure the fight went his way.

    ¡°So, the bugs huh?¡± Duncan said, snapping into reality only a few feet away from Santi. It was enough to send an icy spear of fear radiating through him, though he managed to not showcase anything visible. The nondescript man just smiled slowly, no joy in his dead eyes as he looked Santi in the eyes.

    ¡°Do you think that will tip the tide so much in your favor?¡± Duncan asked and Santi had a moment of horror as he thought the illusive scout had figured out the real plans. Then it passed as Duncan didn¡¯t elaborate more on the work Yesi was doing.

    ¡°They have the numbers advantage. I¡¯m creating an anvil in that town, you¡¯re the hammer. The bugs are the coup-de-grace.¡±

    ¡°If you think Mercy¡¯s people are going to fall over and die to some bugs, you¡¯re sorely mistaken about her strength. They¡¯ve been destroying every settlement they¡¯ve found from Oregon to Nevada. We¡¯re not the only strong people around either. The strongest probably, but not the only ones with strength. They¡¯ve been reaping levels from other humans, slaughtering monsters and animals and they¡¯ve conquered every monster den they¡¯ve come across.¡± A flicker of true emotion passed the assassin''s face, so fleeting that Santi almost didn¡¯t believe he¡¯d seen it. Fear.

    ¡°I went up North, close to the mountains and the border and there¡¯s nothing alive Santi. It¡¯s just charred ground and skeletons. Even the damn monsters haven¡¯t come back. These people are a scourge and they must be eradicated to the last person.¡± There was a conviction to his voice, a fervor that bordered on religious zealotry.

    Santi was looking at the man and really seeing him. He was a cold blooded murderer. A psychopath who looked at people like they were no more than bags of experience to further his own goals. And he was scared. He hid the fear in his rage and conviction, but it was there. And it made Santi nervous.

    ¡°You do your part and I¡¯ll do mine. How much time do we have?¡±

    ¡°Another day, maybe two. They¡¯re coming this way, finished off Reno and their celebrations have ended. Nearly a thousand of them, but most of them are low level trash. None of my scouts have seen the inner core. I¡¯m going to go and look at them myself, see if I can clear out some of their Acolytes.¡± Duncan spoke as if infiltrating a camp filled with curse afflicted soldiers was an easy thing.

    ¡°If we can get a more accurate time for arrival and numbers the sooner the better.¡± Santi said.

    ¡°I¡¯m going up there to investigate tonight and will be back tomorrow morning. Your defenses in the camp are looking fairly decent, enough to keep me out. Well¡­I have to exert some effort to get through it at least.¡± Duncan flashed a smile that did nothing to assure Santi.

    The thought of Duncan making his way through the defenses and his surprises being discovered was unpleasant to think about. None of the spell forms were complex and would be easy enough to figure out if Duncan could get enough perspective to understand the town wide formations.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know whether to wish you good luck, or hope that you¡¯re caught and ripped limb from limb,¡± Santi said, leaning on one leg and looking at Duncan. The other man laughed, a dry, harsh bark.

    ¡°You want me alive until the killing is done.¡±

 Ch. 3.42 The Horde

    42.

    ¡°I thought this was going to be that other dude¡¯s job?¡± Delilah whispered next to him. The rest of her team was scattered about with Hana on his other side. The five of them had moved quickly, following the terrain of the rolling hills until they were in position to watch as the leading edges of Mercy¡¯s following came pouring out of the mountains.

    ¡°It is. But we don¡¯t trust him. I need to know the true numbers,¡± Santi said as he looked down at Interstate-80. The abandoned cars had been shoved to the side, rusting ruins broken apart and placed against the guardrails.

    ¡°What¡¯s the point of being allied with someone you can¡¯t trust?¡± Delilah asked. The three of them were lined up in a row as they stared down at the interstate from a small hill.

    Delilah had a pair of skills, [Enhanced View] and [Projection], that allowed her to spy on far distances and project them as a hologram looking thing for others to view. Seeing a few blood spackled figures beginning to enter her range.

    Santi had seen many things, his improving memory helping nearly a decade of war become clearer and clearer, but there was something off with these people. Something he didn¡¯t remember seeing before.

    The leading edges of the horde were running, crazed looks in their eyes, arms pumping and legs churning. Their eyes were bloodshot and bugging free of their skulls as they pushed further down the interstate. Their clothes were rags, cut apart and held together by the barest strings.

    A feeling of frenzy was about them, an aura around them as they ran without thought or words. Even through the projection Santi could see a haze, red tinged air that circulated about them.

    ¡°Can you [Identify] them through this?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°No. I can¡¯t use any skills through it,¡± Delilah said. Santi grunted in annoyance.

    ¡°Everyone, have their own counts, we¡¯ll double check and see where we¡¯re at when they finish passing by,¡± Santi ordered. Then he sat down and began to count. And count. And count.

    They didn¡¯t travel in an orderly formation. Quite the opposite. They were a drifting lines of people, hundreds of people just moving in a general direction, unified only by their poor dress and dirty weapons. Blood stained weapons and gory trophies hanging from belts and off of shoulders. Monster heads, poorly cured animal skins being used as clothes, and a few system granted weapons showing here or there.

    Their movement was heralded by a red cloud that twisted above their heads, pulsing randomly as they jogged further. Santi could tell who the new recruits were. The recently implanted curse holders. Their clothes were in better condition, they still had shoes, and they weren¡¯t quite as lost in the chaos of the crowd.

    Then the numbers kept growing and growing and growing. It was past the point where Santi had thought they¡¯d be. Hundreds were growing to nearly a thousand as they passed by the small area the scout team was posted at.

    ¡°Just me, or are there a lot of them?¡± Delilah asked. Hana grunted in confirmation while Santi just had to start wondering if his plan was going to work. There was of course an advantage to being the defender, but this was way beyond what he was thinking.

    ¡°I think that¡¯s the main core,¡± Delilah said and Santi had to agree with her. Instead of streams or small clumps of people it was a solid wall of marching people. They were in the same levels of clothing distress as the rest of the groups, but the aura of red floating around their heads was much thicker than the outriders had been. It was a physical cloud that practically crackled with energy.

    Santi started counting quickly and felt his heart fall even further. There were well over one hundred of them. He had thought they had thinned the herd a bit, but it looked like they had fully replenished themselves with their raid on Reno. Once they were past the people kept coming, the stragglers who trailed after.

    Dozens of wounded, their wounds bandaged tight and a fear darkening their eyes as they raced after the main horde. Santi stared at them and figured they¡¯d have to be low level people. There were probably several hundred of them spaced out across the highway, limping behind on the dregs of the bloodlust aura.

    ¡°Did anyone see Mercy?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°No idea what she looks like,¡± Hana said. Delilah grunted in acknowledgement.

    ¡°That is a good point. Anyone stand out to you in the main group?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°A few big fellows. One woman was wearing a fur coat. That was still wet.¡± Hana said and Santi remembered her. A big woman with dark brown hair and a mountain lion pelt across her back. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

    ¡°These numbers are way too much. We¡¯re going to have to thin them down a bit,¡± Santi said to the group.

    ¡°Start raiding?¡± Delilah asked, a hint of eagerness in her voice.

    ¡°Yeah. Clear out the backlines first. Hana, how many of your rangers are about?¡±

    ¡°Twenty or so. They don¡¯t know that the Pillar allows us to know they¡¯re there,¡± Hana said with a dark chuckle.

    ¡°Race back. Get all of them and Daniel. Start clearing out the backlines. Take Maya and Frank with you, they can use the levels.¡±

    ¡°What are you going to do?¡± Delilah asked.

    ¡°You¡¯re all taking out the backlines, I¡¯m going to start dragging the front lines out. Don¡¯t think we can do much about that main block of fighters, but I can definitely thin the herd a bit.¡± Santi was thinking about how much damage he could do before an idea hit his mind and he smiled a bit.

    ¡°Did that guy Keegan finish his evolution?¡± Santi asked, turning toward Hana.

    ¡°No, but he¡¯s not far from it. Think it will be soon, why?¡± Hana said.

    ¡°Think I have a good idea to take care of some of them, just need a bit of help. Guess Yessenia will have to take the trip with me.¡± The group slowly backed away from the hill they had perched on even as the last stragglers walked down the interstate. As they came down the backside, Santi felt a shudder down his spine and spun around to see Duncan striding towards him.

    The shadows parted off of him like they were liquid, sliding around to the objects that he had pulled them from. The entire group stopped and stared at the one armed man as he walked toward them in the shelter of the backside of the hill.

    ¡°Interesting,¡± Duncan said, eyes dancing around the small group. His eyes lingered on the scouts around Santi. His dark eyes analyzed them and dismissed them in a moment.

    ¡°Can¡¯t trust me. Fair.¡± He shrugged his one arm and looked back through the hill to where the horde had just passed by.

    ¡°Lot more of them than I thought there would be. Reno had a bigger population than I figured,¡± Duncan said, with no more emotion in his voice than if he was talking about the weather.

    ¡°Yeah. Need to trim the fat if the plan is to work. Feel like helping?¡± Santi asked, ignoring the statement.

    ¡°I can do a bit of fat trimming. What were you thinking?¡±

    ¡°That town I claimed that Pillar in,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Ahhhh¡­I think I see where this is going. You need me and mine to lead them to it?¡± Duncan asked.

    ¡°Can you keep it from gathering too many of them? Think maybe thirty to fifty depending on the levels. Low Acolyte at the highest,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Yeah, I can do that. Think only fifty? You can¡¯t handle a hundred?¡±

    ¡°Fifty will be the max. Keep it clean and easy,¡± Santi said. Duncan just smiled quietly, mirth in his eyes.

    ¡°I can peel a few squads off and tear away some of the vanguard. You¡¯re people will clean up the stragglers?¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Santi said. Everyone was tense around him, a feeling of being on a tightrope filling the air around them. Delilah was nearly vibrating, her hand on the pommel of her long knife.

    ¡°We can¡¯t let any of them escape. Mercy is the curse holder, but with enough time and energy collected, they could possibly consolidate and become an anchor themselves. This curse must be purged.¡± Duncan spoke with absolute conviction. There was a seriousness to him that broke away from the apathetic persona he presented.

    ¡°The curse will be exorcised from this planet. Don¡¯t worry about that,¡± Santi said. He wished he could grab those words back, tendrils of his plan leaking in front of the assassin.

    ¡°Interesting,¡± Duncan said again. He clicked his tongue and then turned to look over towards where the horde had just passed by.

    ¡°How long do you need before we pull them?¡±

    ¡°Tomorrow around dawn. I can get everything set up by then. After that, it¡¯s started. It¡¯s going to be a marathon battle, ranging across multiple fronts and it won¡¯t end until one side is dead and buried. Everyone is going to need to be ready. Once it starts there will be no turning back,¡± Santi said. Duncan nodded like it was the most obvious thing in the world and the assassin turned and started to fade away, even in the afternoon sun.

    ¡°That dudes creepy,¡± Delilah said, her voice quiet as she looked at where Duncan had just disappeared from.

    ¡°Yeah he¡¯s a prick,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Hana, we¡¯re going to need to move fast. There won¡¯t be much time now that Duncan knows. We¡¯re going to run back real quick to the area and grab Yessenia. We¡¯ll set up the first ambush there, Hana and the rangers will clear out the rear guard. Is there anyone else around here we can bring in to man the walls?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°No. Well¡­maybe Chad and Tristan? They were out hunting when we came back and missed the muster. Maybe them and some of the higher level hunters will be at Homebase if we can send a runner,¡± Hana said.

    ¡°Rayleigh and some of her people maybe? Damn, there¡¯s just too many spinning plates. Can¡¯t wait till we can figure up some type of way to communicate long distances,¡± Santi muttered half to himself. The two pillars he had seen being carried in the core block of the cursed warriors would be a good starting place.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get going then. Delilah, I want your team to keep an eye on the stragglers. Once I bring back the rest of the rangers, I want a plan of attack, can you handle that?¡± Hana asked the other girl.

    Delilah thought for a moment then nodded slowly. Her and the rest of her scout team turned and followed along at the base of the hill, keeping out of view of the interstate. Santi and Hana took off together, heading towards the temporary camp.

 Ch. 3.43 Trap Prep

    43.

    Mature Dryad lvl. 68

    Dormant

    ¡°You sure about this Santi?¡± Yessenia asked as she worked efficiently at the base of the Dryad¡¯s tree. She drove spikes of steel into the roots with a wooden mallet, hammering away while keeping a fearful eye up on the massive monster.

    ¡°Uhhh¡­it should,¡± Santi said. He was focused on the level of detail needed in drawing the lines of chalk on the ground. Salt or another powder would have been better, but with the light breeze blowing their lines would have been destroyed in a few minutes. It was actually a really pleasant summer day for planning a massacre. The temperature was just right, the light breeze, even the brightness of the sky was pleasant.

    ¡°Santiago. That doesn¡¯t sound sure to me!¡± Yessenia half shouted at him. Santi had to hide his smile as his sister was seeming to stir more and more out of her cocoon of misery. Glimpses of who she used to be emerging to breathe quickly before sliding back under those dark waters. Santi knew better than most that you never went back to who you were before grief left its mark. There were some scars that didn¡¯t heal, you just became accustomed to the pain.

    He hoped his sister was becoming accustomed to the pain.

    ¡°It¡¯ll work. I mean, it¡¯s just an evolution circle. Kinda. It should work.¡±

    ¡°You are not inspiring confidence,¡± Yessenia said as she drove the seventh and final stake into the hard ground. Each of the lines of chalk that Santi was using lead to a singular spike, all of them embedded in the dryad¡¯s roots. The chalk didn¡¯t work well at all on the dried grass and Santi thought about using paint again, but decided it¡¯d be good enough. The satyrs had nearly awoken the powerful monster and all it needed was one final nudge.

    Who cared if the containment lines were full of holes and would bleed energy like a sieve? As long as enough energy entered the circle and into the trunks then the dryad would awaken and then it was going to be every man for himself.

    ¡°How¡¯s that kid, Keegan doing?¡±

    ¡°First off, he¡¯s older than you. Second, he¡¯s fine. Picked it up quick, had him do a few evolutions on some of the rangers that drifted up here. Super basic evolutions with only a singular treasure to fuel them, but it should be enough to influence his class selection.¡±

    ¡°We can get him to do a lot of the basic work around the new settlements. Keep you closer to home working on the more advanced stuff,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Still going to need a few more. People are starting to trickle in faster now. At least that¡¯s what the rangers said. With the group you picked up we¡¯re probably going to need a few of us roving around and building protections for the little communities,¡± Yesi said.

    ¡°Anyone else you want to train?¡±

    ¡°No. There''s a few who could probably do it. But this is exacting work. What we¡¯re doing here is like,¡± she froze, face scrunched up as she tried to think of the right word.

    ¡°Super basic and can be rough. Really could have done this myself, but with you activating it, might get you a nice achievement and help you on your next evolution,¡± Santi said. It was basic work that he could have done himself. Pulling his sister out and getting her away from the noise of the construction was a plus.

    ¡°Thanks for thinking of me.¡± Her voice softened to the point that he struggled to hear even with his advanced stats.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I haven¡¯t been¡­myself.¡± Yesi trailed off and there was a glimmer of tears in her eyes. She continued to work, reapplying the chalk lines Santi had already made, filling them out further and making sure they¡¯d work.

    ¡°None of us are,¡± Santi said. There were other things he wanted to say, but the lump in his throat gave him pause. Now wasn¡¯t the time to open up emotional wounds right before a battle, even if purging the rancid grief would be better in the long term.

    ¡°After this is all over. We should all go out together for a few days. You, me, Mom, Bianca. Maybe Cam?¡± Santi said.

    ¡°SANTI! Death flags!¡± Yessenia yelled, looking and pointing at him with a stick of chalk. Santi rolled his eyes but he didn¡¯t argue.

    ¡°So, what do I do now that this circle is all set up?¡± Yesi asked.

    ¡°We go and eat dinner and wait. The first of them should be coming at dawn. We¡¯ll find a place for you and your golem and you¡¯ll hunker down and just wait out the storm.¡± This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.

    ¡°You don¡¯t need my help?¡±

    ¡°Naw. I¡¯m not planning on doing much myself, that¡¯s why we have that,¡± Santi said, jerking a thumb at the dryad.

    ¡°Just have to get the ball rolling so to speak. Kill the first few of the group and it should wake up the big guy and then I just get out of the way. The curse should take over, fuel their battlemania as more and more of them die. This place reeks of bloodshed anyways. I¡¯m feeling the tug of the curse just hanging out around here, those guys will lose their shit.¡±

    ¡°What happens when that dryad finishes them off? You just let it walk off?¡±

    ¡°What?! No, I kill it,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Santi. That thing outlevels you. By a lot.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s why we¡¯re going to have all these cursed weaken it first. Then we¡¯re hitting it with the second ritual we have planned!¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Second ritual?¡±

    ¡°Ohhhh, I didn¡¯t tell you about that one. Yeah, one of those nasty defensive energy redirection ones.¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t have a power source Santi,¡± Yesi argued.

    ¡°What are you talking about. We¡¯re going to have fifty or so people dying in a circle. That¡¯s plenty of energy,¡± Santi said as he grabbed the chalk and started to walk around the park, beginning a much bigger circle.

    ¡°You¡¯re insane! The energy transfer will be terrible, we don¡¯t have the right ingredients to hold that power and redirect it. You¡¯ll waste over two-thirds of that energy right into the air. And how are you going to direct it?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re not. It¡¯s going to be the simplest ritual spell out there. A heating circle,¡± Santi explained.

    ¡°A heating circle?¡± Yesi said with disbelief.

    ¡°I mean, with how much power that¡¯s going to be inside of it, it¡¯ll be more like a furnace, but yeah.¡±

    ¡°You want to cook the giant tree?¡±

    ¡°Crisp it,¡± Santi said with a smile.

    ¡°You¡¯re dumb.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve been told that. By quite a few people,¡± Santi said with a shrug as he continued drawing the line around the park. Walking bent over like this was starting to cramp his back and he resisted the urge to stop and stretch. It was important to have an uninterrupted line.

    ¡°You going to make the appropriate runes to make heat, or do I need to do that too?¡± Santi said as Yesi continued to follow him. She huffed in annoyance but stepped inside the circle and began to make the adjustments to the line he was drawing.

    It really was a simple ritual, just a few runes that directed energy into heat within a confined space. Damn near anyone could make it and it had been an easy way to heat up food or drinks while on campaign when they couldn¡¯t have fires. Most of the time you powered it with a thin trickle of your own mana, but this one was going to require some extra work if it was going to work.

    It took him a few minutes to circle the entirety of the park and then he went and started adding runes as fast as he could. The normal circle required two to three. This one he was placing a rune every few feet. The moment he sealed the circle, the spare energy inside of the circle would feed into the ritual, powering the heat until it became otherworldly.

    He had seen a trap like this once. A cagey old warlord who had trapped and slaughtered a force of Acolyte warriors in a small mining town. When Santi had been dispatched to find the small group he had been the first to find them, cooked alive after the warlord had released a swarm of low level monsters at them and then activated his trap.

    Most of the humans should be dead by the time the furnace hit critical levels and Santi had to hope that cursed warriors had enough strength to weaken the dryad enough that the heating circle would work. Or at least work enough that Santi could finish off the dryad without dying.

    ¡°Still think this is stupid, but this is the biggest circle I¡¯ve ever made,¡± Yesi said looking back to admire her handiwork.

    ¡°Hey, what¡¯s to keep someone from smudging something?¡±

    ¡°Nothing. But the great thing about simple rituals like these is they are robust. It¡¯s just energy transference. One into something and the other into heat. The circles can take a beating and all that will happen is they become less efficient. We don¡¯t need them to be perfect for them to work for us,¡± Santi said with a shrug. Yesi shrugged in return and the two of them left the park and found a semi-decent house to shelter in.

    Yesi¡¯s golem followed behind with their supplies strapped to its back, each step loud and grating. She had refused to leave without her golem and Santi had acquiesced even though he was more than enough of a guard for her. It was only when she pointed out that he would be busy that he had seen her point and relented.

    They cleaned off the table of the dust and debris on it and Santi went into the backyard and quickly got a fire started with some furniture. A bottle of water was emptied into a pot and he quickly rigged a grill up and over the fire and the water began to bubble. Yesi stood off to the side as he added noodles to the water and let them cook.

    ¡°Just noodles?¡± Yesi asked.

    ¡°You got anything else?¡± Santi shot back. The food wouldn¡¯t do anything for either of them, but the noodles tasted good. He waited until they were al dente and then strained the water and let them cool. He added some olive oil to the mix and then he pulled out a few Acolyte tomatoes that had been grown and threw them into the noodles. Then he cracked open the field rations and handed one to Yesi as she stared at the pot of noodles with tomatoes.

    ¡°This the best you can do?¡± Yesi said as she used a stolen fork to stab a tomato and a few of the bowtie noodles before popping them into her mouth. Her face twisted and then she shrugged.

    ¡°Pretty plain and the tomato is a bit sour,¡± She said.

    ¡°Everyone is a critic,¡± Santi said as he stabbed a few noodles for himself and then bit into a sour tomato. He hid his grimace as he and Yesi sat there next to a fading fire and ate out of the pan and just enjoyed the evening.

 Ch. 3.44

    44.

    ¡°Right on time,¡± Santi whispered to Yessenia as they watched the squad of Duncan¡¯s fighters racing through the edges of the town, a horde of cursed warriors behind them. It was like watching hares running from rabid dogs. The vanguard of Mercy¡¯s horde were nearly frothing at the mouth as they ran with reckless abandon toward the ambush.

    ¡°Alright, time for you and your golem to go hide,¡± Santi said as he turned toward the dozens of people racing towards them. Yessenia grunted in affirmative as she went down the half burned down house¡¯s stairs and toward the root cellar she had found and reinforced over night.

    Santi leapt out of the second story and landed lightly and jogged toward the main road where Duncan¡¯s people would be coming down soon. If he timed it right he would appear right as Duncan¡¯s people passed him and Mercy¡¯s people turned the corner. From here it would be a straight shot down toward the park and to the awaiting dryad.

    He turned the corner just as the last of Duncan¡¯s people raced by and Santi stood in the middle of the road. Duncan¡¯s team turned a corner and disappeared into the ruins of some of the other buildings while Santi stood by himself as the first of Mercy¡¯s people turned the corner.

    She was a tall, white, middle aged woman. Her auburn hair had streaks of gray and was dirty and matted. Her face was gaunt and drawn as if she hadn¡¯t eaten in weeks, while her green-blue eyes were feverish, a red blush spread across her face and throat. Her clothes were dirty rags that hung off of her, several sizes too large.

    Cursed Hunter lvl. 26

    Low-level Acolyte that he could destroy in a moment without trying. Santi smelled the dry blood on her, the caked on death and despair that she wallowed in as she raced toward him with a crude metal spear in her hand. Her body had a bloody bruise colored aura that clung to herself, spilling around herself and forming around her spear as she lunged at him without a second thought.

    Santi sidestepped as her lunge slashed the space where he had been occupying moments before. He kicked her in the side and she bent in half as air whooshed out of her body. Santi kept his eyes focused on where she had come from just as another wave of high Initiate and low Acolyte cursed came rounding the corner.

    If this was the best that was in the vanguard he doubted they¡¯d be enough to harm the dryad enough that he could kill it. He was hoping for a few mid-level thirties that would come pounding down the lane, but he could make do for now. Santi spun around and jogged, keeping ahead of the mob by a few dozen feet. [Air Shield] was more than enough to keep ahead of the few attacks he couldn¡¯t dodge.

    He kept his eyes on the turn of the street and he couldn¡¯t repress his smile as a trio rounded the corner, moving languidly as if it was just a Sunday stroll. All three of them wore fine, if ill-fitting, clothes. Furs and silks and suede, all mixed together in an eclectic clash, gold and silver jewelry dangling as they followed after the horde of lower level trash.

    Cursed Berserker lvl. 32

    Cursed Looter lvl. 33

    Cursed Brawler lvl. 32

    ¡°They¡¯ll do,¡± Santi muttered and then turned and ran away instantly. It was like spilling chum into shark infested waters. They took after him without hesitation, hooting and laughing, madness racing in their voices as they ran.

    Santi saw the tree within seconds and raced past the first line of the markings he and Yessenia had made and then into the second field. He spun around as he met the first of his pursuers. It was the same hunter he had kicked and he dispatched her with a single slash of long knife and then slamming her body toward the roots of the tree, her life blood pumping into the roots of the tree.

    Two more Initiate level fighters were killed in a blitz of strikes that they couldn¡¯t keep up with, Santi killing them before they could even register his strikes. Their red blood soaked into the parched earth and the inner circle began to glow, so faint that it was hardly visible in the daylight.

    The spilling blood enraged the cursed as what little sense they had was abandoned. They raced forward and Santi kept cutting, his considerable willpower used to try to keep his curse in check even as his heart began to hammer with excitement, adrenaline surging in his veins. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

    The glow of the light increased as he cut down three Initiates in a burst of violence, their bodies stacking rapidly as Santi ran the circumference of the tree as he was quickly becoming surrounded. More and more of the cursed came out of the town and raced into the park. Enough bodies that Santi started to worry that there were too many of them. It was beginning to look like Duncan¡¯s people had managed to gather up all of the vanguard and not just some of it.

    The inner circle was white light now, gleaming powerfully as red blood turned the dry dirt to mud. Santi leapt straight up with a burst of [Wind Step], cast a horizontal [Air Shield] and landed light on it to spring off of it with another [Wind Step] to clear the crowd and land outside of the encirclement. The crowd spun around quickly with others streaming around the side of the hill as they sprinted towards him.

    It meant they all missed the dryad waking up. It shuddered as it clawed itself out of its tree in silence as the inner circle dissolved in a flash of light. It towered above the field as it stood on its small hill, its tree seeming to have shrunk as the now corporeal spirit began to move toward the cursed warriors.

    Santi smiled and started killing, making sure to keep the dead inside of the primary circle. He ducked, bobbed, cut, and slashed, a veritable whirlwind of death as he piled up corpses. The sticky residue of the curse clung to the air, a rising tide of rage and bloodlust that clung to his nostrils with every breath.

    The dryad hit the back of the horde like an avalanche. Bodies disintegrated into bloody sprays as it crushed people beneath its legs created of woven roots. It looked quite similar to the ent Santi had killed in the rift at the very beginning of the initialization.

    With a wide sweep of its arm it killed a half dozen peak Initiates and that finally broke through the haze of bloodlust as the crowd began to turn. Others leapt at it, slashing and hacking at its thick bark armor to little effect. The three Acolytes he had seen earlier all jumped into attacking the dryad, dancing around and laughing as their fellows were obliterated, the crowded disappearing quickly under the brutality of the dryad.

    The outer circle was building quickly, heat starting to build inside until it quickly passed the heat of a normal summer day and started to enter furnace range. More and more were dying, blood flowing like a river only to begin to evaporate under the mounting magical heat. Santi backed up a bit as the heat continued to skyrocket.

    The few remaining Initiates were drenched in sweat and beginning to panic as the crushing heat broke through their bloodlust and they began to look for a way out. They were stuck between a rock and shard place, Santi dancing along like a dervish on the outside of the magical circle and the dryad crushing and killing behind them.

    They tried to rush Santi. He stacked their corpses with the rest.

    It took only a few minutes for Santi and the dryad to slaughter all the Initiates and soon there were only six cursed left, panic beginning to set in as they realized the trap they were in. The heat was crushing now, the bark of the dryad beginning to have wisps of smoke trail off of it while the leaves were smoldering.

    An Acolyte fell, crushed under a foot. The leaves ignited in bursts of flame, wreathing the dryad with a crown of fire.

    Santi dodged a hammer wreathed in blue skills and gutted one and then beheaded a second Acolyte in two rapid fire strikes. The dryad picked up a third Acolyte and pulled her apart with ease.

    Its bark was smoking now and the heat was enough that Santi was forced back from the line as the poor magic circle was breaking apart. The remaining Acolytes were dying, skin bubbling and hair igniting. Jewelry was beginning to droop while furs and silks ignited. The last Acolytes died quickly, all three of them bursting apart in sprays of blood that evaporated moments laters. The dryad was a pillar of smoke as the grass in the field had lit on fire.

    [Gust] was gentle and caused the smoking bark to burst into an inferno as oxygen reached the smoldering embers inside of the thick bark. The dryad shook as its entire body was now on fire and Santi backed away. He kept the cast going, fueling the raging fire until the entire dryad was completely consumed. The high level monster ran out of the circle in a panic, crashing into the side of a partially destroyed house and blowing through it. It lost its footing and thrashed about, spreading its fire until the house was burning as well.

    It got free and staggered about, crashing into homes or cars, crushing and lighting everything on fire as it flailed. Santi stalked after it, hands trembling as the thrum of his blood filled his hearing. Everything screamed to him to attack, to keep attacking and not stop.

    He forced that down, forced the desire to lunge at the walking bonfire and turn it to kindling. Because fighting a bonfire was a bad idea. He had to repeat that simple thought in his head over and over again as he waited for the dryads natural defenses to smother the fire.

    Santi moved further away from the bloody field and kept casting [Gust] to keep the dryad burning bright. It didn¡¯t last much longer. Slowly at first and then with rapid speed the fire went out, sputtering away to leave the smoking dryad standing in a broken house.

    It turned slowly towards him and Santi waited for it as it started to walk towards him slowly. Its branches had burned away leaving only the trunk and the thickest limbs left, woven together to form crude simulacrums of arms. Its trunk was nothing more than charcoal, bark having burned off to leave a bare and charred wood.

    Its root legs were weak and cracked, every step splitting apart pieces of the root system but it continued toward him with grim determination. Santi finally let his waning willpower collapse and he was launching himself forward [Windstep] rocketing him toward the dryad as his morph blade turned into an axe

 Ch. 3.45 Back to his Roots

    45.

    Santi hit the still steaming hot trunk with both feet, his overhead strike blowing apart the charcoal-like exterior of the dryad like a bomb. Burning cinders and blackened wood burst apart in a spray and Santi hung there as the axe blade bit into the toughened trunk. He ripped and pushed off, tearing apart a chunk of the trunk as he flew backward just as the dryad¡¯s arms struck itself.

    The force of the blow did even more damage as Santi watched as pale sap ran like water over the burnt out ruins of its trunk. Then his mouth fell open as the sap started to cause the burnt parts of the tree to slough off like oil on water and fresh and healthy wood showed beneath.

    ¡°That¡¯s frustrating.¡± Santi backed away as he stared at the massive gouged out piece he had ripped out. Sap was pouring out of it in pulsing beats, amber and thick as it caused the dryad to heal faster.

    [Wind Blade] sheared off the end of a long arm, the ruined arm hitting the pavement with a loud thump. He cast two more times as he closed the distance, further chopping apart the arm as it tried to protect itself. The entire arm was nearly destroyed, but its second arm was already swinging down to hit him. He dodged to the side, rolled on his shoulder and popped back to his feet to chop where the roots connected to the trunk. Another spray of brittle wood and Santi was forced back as the dryad tried to stomp him.

    He cast an [Air Shield] and stopped the descending club-like arm dead in its tracks. The shield popped a second later, but Santi had already moved again as he dashed close to the trunk again. He hacked away at that wounded leg, chunking away the wood where the trunk met leg and his smile widened as there was a terrible crack and the leg fell off.

    The fight fell into a steady rhythm as Santi dodged in and out, his superior speed against the badly injured dryad made it impossible for it to hit him. He cut and chopped and cast in a marathon session until the dryad was stumbling backward.

    It died as its last legs cracked and fell apart, tumbling backward to crash to the ground and split apart in a half dozen pieces as the many wounds split apart as it hit the ground. Santi stood watching it for a long moment before retreating back towards where his sister had set up her small base.

    The rush of the fight faded and he felt himself shrink down as the burst of strength the curse had fed him left. A string of notifications were on the outskirts of his vision, but he let them be as he continued down and toward the house.

    He kept alert, eyes and spells searching for any stragglers that may have managed to escape the trap they had sprung. Santi had to admit that the trap had been a resounding success. The heat spell had been more powerful than he expected and he could only think that Yessenia was responsible in some way. Her class may have amplified the circle to have a higher energy efficiency as it transferred the energy from death into heat.

    The house¡¯s front door was still shut and when Santi swung it open the door fell off its broken hinges to hit the floor with a clatter that Santi ignored. A hole was in the side wall and let in a draft as Santi headed toward the small cellar. The outside entrance was barred from the inside and had a tree that had fallen over it so the only entrance left was in the kitchen behind a door for the pantry.

    He swung it open and froze as he stared at a golem pointing a razor sharp steel spear at his face. Neither of them moved for a moment and then Santi leaned around the golem and yelled down the stairs.

    ¡°Yesi. May I come down?¡±

    ¡°Sure. Hold on for a moment,¡± Yesi¡¯s voice came up the stairs and then the golem sat straight upright and then backed away down the steps, the solid wood groaning under its footsteps. Santi followed after it and noticed a few of the stairs were noticeably cracked. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

    Yessenia was sitting in a lawn chair with her feet on an empty ice cooler and was reading a book from the dim light of a pair of candles. She dogeared her page and threw the book into her backpack before zipping it up and tossing it to her golem who caught it smoothly.

    ¡°I got six levels sitting down here doing nearly nothing. You?¡± Yessenia asked.

    ¡°Just two plus an achievement for killing the dryad. Will go toward hitting the next tier of my title probably. The level discrepancy was too high for most of those kills to go toward me while yours was close enough that the numbers did the trick. Plenty of low-level Acolytes got baked in that circle. Speaking of, did you do something to increase the potency of the spell?¡±

    ¡°One of my newest skills. Increases the efficiency of any spell circle I make. I¡¯m looking forward to doing the next set of evolutions.¡±

    ¡°Good skill to have. Without it I don¡¯t think that dryad would have gone down so easily. It was more chore than battle to chop it down to size,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Your jokes are terrible,¡± Yesi said as she rolled her eyes and they started up the stairs and out of the house. Yessenia glanced toward where they had crafted the spell circle, but she didn¡¯t try to head that way and Santi was glad. That level of heat did nothing pleasant to flesh.

    ¡°I saw your smile, you can¡¯t hide that I made you laugh.¡±

    ¡°In pity. Because your joke was pathetic,¡± Yesi bantered back, her small smile growing.

    ¡°Pity? Outrageous! I have great comedic timing!¡± Yessenia threw her head back and laughed loudly then, a full belly laugh as they walked out of the edge of the town and started back.

    ¡°Thank you,¡± she said as they kept walking in silence for a few minutes.

    ¡°For what? Dragging you out here away from your dungeon and having you help me slaughter cursed warriors and tree spirits?¡±

    ¡°No. That part isn¡¯t great. I¡¯m saying thanks for everything else. You built us this place. You and Chloe and Tank and everyone else who fights so hard everyday. You kept us safe until we could learn to protect ourselves.¡±

    ¡°What else are big brothers for,¡± Santi said, nudging her with his shoulder. They should have been moving faster to get back to the ambush site, but Santi knew Yessi needed this.

    ¡°Stop it and be serious for a moment. This is hard and I don¡¯t want to do it again because you¡¯re uncomfortable and keep making bad jokes.¡± Yessenia¡¯s face was set in a serious expression and they kept walking down the road for a few moments as neither spoke. She started again after a minute as they left the town behind them and out of view.

    ¡°It¡¯s been hard on us. I know it¡¯s been hard on you too, but I don¡¯t know how we could have gotten through what happened with Dad if it hadn¡¯t been for you. At least not with us in any one piece. So, I just want to say thank you for being so good about being what we need. You helped Mom regain her power with the training and you let Bianca and Cameron develop without being some over the top protective asshole. And you let me process it in my own way, so¡­thanks.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. No problem,¡± Santi whispered. He wasn¡¯t as emotional as he had been when he had first arrived, his non-magical emotions couldn¡¯t control him like they had. But he could still feel them. All of it warring inside of his chest and heart as they walked.

    His regression had changed so many things and he had so few moments to think about it. He kept thinking of what was lost, of Dad and the world, Paulie and Justin and everyone else who had died for him or because of his inaction. He hadn¡¯t stopped to think about what he had saved.

    It just made him more desperate to protect it. The fragile sense of community and safety that they were building were under threat and he needed to be the person who could protect them. All of it, not just their physical safety, but the emotional and mental well-being too. Santi had to admit to himself that being a tyrant would likely keep them safe for a while longer, that his strong arm tactics could work even in the long term for awhile.

    An iron hand was not what was needed to grow though. He would need to trust them eventually. Trust them to be strong enough and wise enough to avoid the pitfalls of the apocalypse. Because he knew he couldn¡¯t stay here forever. If anything, Duncan¡¯s arrival was a warning that being in one location for so long was a negative. He needed to be proactive, to hunt down the Apostates and to secure the world against the other threats.

    He looked at Yessenia who for the first time in weeks looked unburdened by grief. They were leaving the scene of a massacre, but his sister looked at peace and that was worth all the blood. To have her by his side again in the flesh and not a ghost that haunted him.

    ¡°After this is over, I¡¯m going to be leaving,¡± Santi whispered to her. He had made his decision.

 Ch 3.46 Not Long Now

    46.

    Santiago V. Silva

    Level 52 Air Mage

    Strength: 40 (75)

    Durability: 40 (75)

    Stamina: 40 (75)

    Dexterity: 40 (75)

    Vitality: 40 (75)

    Perception: 40 (75)

    Intelligence: 126 (161)

    Mana: 170 (205)

    Willpower: 138 ( 173)

    The jacket gave him a pure fifteen extra points and the circlet gave a five percent boost to his base stats. That put his pure strength stat at ninety-four, which was extremely impressive for a mage. A warrior class in his level range would have a strength stat roughly between his mana and willpower stats. So he couldn¡¯t fight them toe to toe, blow to blow, but it did allow him to match them at least briefly.

    Then there was what the curse gave him. The burst in strength and speed from the curse wasn¡¯t something that couldn¡¯t be immediately dismissed. In the coming hours every tendril of strength would be needed, every iota that he could summon. Even if he had to lean further into the curse.

    Santi looked up as the door opened and Mom came in, followed by Bianca, Cameron and Chloe. They all waved in quick succession before sitting down around the table. Cameron sat down and had Bianca nestle on his lap, Mom shooting them a sharp glance but not saying anything. Chloe snorted and spun her chair around to sit on it backward.

    ¡°Are we ready to go?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°Chad got here last night with a few of his highest level hunters. Got about six mid to low thirty Acolytes. Isn¡¯t anything to sneeze about,¡± Chloe said. Cam grunted and Mom just nodded.

    ¡°The numbers we¡¯re facing are huge. I¡¯m not going to lie. When I went out there and saw how many there were, it shook me. They must have had hundreds of people in Reno who joined them. If you guys want out, I can get you out,¡± Santi said looking over his family.

    ¡°No,¡± Mom said instantly. Slowly everyone shook their heads.

    ¡°This is our home. We won¡¯t be forced out of it. Not with what we¡¯ve sacrificed to make this our home,¡± Bianca said. Chloe nodded in agreement while Mom continued to look at him with a steady gaze.

    ¡°Alright. Then step one went well. We cleared out the vanguard, or at least everything Duncan dragged over towards us. Yessenia did well, her spell work is the only reason we were successful. The dryad has been removed too, thanking again mainly to her spell work. Rayleigh, Hana, Daniel and the rangers should be clearing out the stragglers.¡± Santi stopped and debated about talking about his gains, but if he couldn¡¯t trust them who could he trust?

    ¡°Got a couple levels off of that kill too. Hit fifty-two. Another step closer to leveling up my title too.¡±

    ¡°Yessenia told me you¡¯re leaving,¡± Mom blurted out. The room went quiet and every eye turned towards him.

    ¡°Yeah. After this is done the entire region should be pretty cleared up and we¡¯ll just be working on things like crops and ranching and setting up industry. Not exactly my forte. I need to keep growing and fighting and meeting challenges, so yes, I''ll be traveling.¡±

    ¡°When we¡¯re you going to tell us?¡± Bianca asked, accusation in her voice.

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    ¡°When I asked who wanted to come with me,¡± Santi shot back and the family grew still.

    ¡°Fuck,¡± Bianca hissed.

    ¡°What?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°Cameron won the bet. Said you were going to invite us all to go with you. I thought you¡¯d try to be the lone ranger and go running off by yourself,¡± Bianca groused.

    ¡°Anyone else take up bets?¡± Santi asked, leaning back in his chair, a small smile on his face.

    ¡°I thought Cam was right,¡± Chloe said and the big man nodded in agreement.

    ¡°Mom?¡± Santi asked. Mom just blinked slowly and shook her head.

    ¡°No, I didn¡¯t bet.¡± Bianca broke with her words by pulling a ration out of her pocket and handing it over to Mom. Mom put it away, the entire time not looking away from him.

    ¡°So, just Bianca thought I¡¯d be some weird edge lord who¡¯d run away by himself?¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Chloe said as Bianca rolled her eyes.

    ¡°Well, I¡¯m glad the rest of you know me so well,¡± Santi said with a chuckle.

    ¡°Alright, that¡¯s cleared up. We just now need to kill the rest of the cursed horde, finish off Duncan and then we¡¯re moving on?¡± Cam asked.

    ¡°Easy peasy,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get serious here for a minute. How many people are we going to have here?¡± Mom asked.

    ¡°We sent Keegan back, he was done along with Zeke. Frank and Maya stayed but they¡¯re still too low leveled to be much use. Yessenia is continuing her work and we have Torin, Grimvr, Chad and his hunters. Rayleigh took her entire team along with Daniel, Hana, and all the Rangers. So we¡¯re pretty short handed here,¡± Cam said.

    ¡°Daniel and Hana and their rangers should get back in time hopefully along with Rayleigh and their team. Otherwise we¡¯re going to get crushed under the numbers, even with Yessenia¡¯s spellwork,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Do we have an ETA on when the main part of the horde will get here?¡± Mom asked.

    ¡°No, but it¡¯ll be soon. We¡¯ve cleaned off the vanguard and we¡¯re clearing off the stragglers. There should only be the core group of them left and they should be hurrying here quickly. I¡¯m going to head down after this and try to find them and give us a warning,¡± Santi said. Missing Daniel and Hana was tough at the moment.

    ¡°What happens if they don¡¯t get back in time?¡± Mom asked.

    ¡°Then we have to stall them until they do. We can¡¯t hold the walls long enough without them.¡±

    ¡°You mean, you have to stall them,¡± Mom continued.

    ¡°Me, Cam, Bianca, and Grimvr most likely. Tank, you,Chad and Torin as a secondary reserve team to pull us out if it goes to shit too fast. This will be the worst case scenario only though. I have no desire to fight a bunch of cursed warriors right outside of our defenses.¡±

    ¡°So we should plan for that to be actually what happens then,¡± Cam said with a grunt.

    ¡°Hey, not all my plans become worst case scenario,¡± Santi defended himself.

    ¡°Name one.¡±

    ¡°I got those potatoes grown, didn¡¯t I?¡±

    ¡°Wow, with the potatoes. Congrats.¡± The entire group burst into laughter as Santi smiled appreciatively at them. It was good to be here, even with his hair still smelling of burnt flesh and charred wood. They grounded him and he needed that.

    The front door opened and Tank came in, looked around at the group and sat down next to them, putting his feet up. He pulled out his own ration bar and started to munch on it as he started talking.

    ¡°Chad and Grimvr are watching the walls. The other hunters are sleeping.¡±

    ¡°Good that someone¡¯s paying attention out there,¡± Santi said as the group all relaxed for a few minutes.

    ¡°Does anyone else find it amusing that my name is Tank and I¡¯m a healer?¡± Tank finally said. The entire group went silent and then everyone burst out laughing aside from Mom who was looking confused. She switched to Spanish and whispered to Santi.

    ¡°What does he mean?¡±

    ¡°In games there¡¯s a roll called a tank, they stand in front of the group and attract all the attention. Take the beating and hold ground and space to allow others to do their job,¡± Santi whispered back. Between the stats and the system translating everything her efforts were in vain.

    ¡°Oh, so it¡¯s ironic,¡± Mom said, nodding as she leaned back, allowing herself just the thinnest smiles.

    ¡°Yes Mom, Cameron is our tank, while Tank is our healer,¡± Bianca said as she patted her boyfriend''s arm.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you pick a tank role, Dexter?¡± Mom asked.

    ¡°Not who I am. I¡¯m a big guy, but I¡¯d rather put people back together than take them apart. Or get hit in the head a bunch of times,¡± Tank said.

    ¡°Cameron doesn¡¯t mind getting hit in the head,¡± Bianca said, patting him again as he nodded absently. Then he caught up to what his girlfriend said and he pinched her hip as she laughed loudly.

    The door banged open and Grimvr rushed in looking up and around at the group before delivering the news that Santi had been hoping to hear.

    ¡°Hana and Daniel came back with everyone else, Tank, you¡¯re needed for injuries. Santi, they were just ahead of the main group. They¡¯ll be here in a few minutes.¡±

 3.47 It Begins

    47.

    ¡°Buy me a few minutes, Santi. I¡¯ll get everyone stabilized as soon as I can and back to the wall,¡± Tank said as he split off from the main group. Santi grunted and headed toward the wall as the rest of his friends and family fanned out behind him. The walls had been hastily made but the skill of the dwarves was on display as the construct was sturdy, thick, and had good fighting platforms to stand on top.

    Chad and his hunters were spaced out across the ledge, quivers of arrows or javelins were stacked everywhere around the hunters as they looked down the long road leading into the town. Santi leapt up with ease, landing lightly as he looked down the road to see where the horde of cursed would be coming from.

    ¡°Mom, you think you could go to the pillar and get a rough estimate on enemy numbers? Need you to stay there until Duncan¡¯s people come into range too. Everyone, the line must hold until  Duncan¡¯s people get here. The minute Duncan¡¯s people get here we collapse backward and draw them in,¡± Santi said, reminding everyone of the plan.

    Affirmations came from everyone as they all climbed atop of the wall, Mom peeling off without a word and heading toward the pillar. Santi peered down the road and saw the first of the cursed coming toward them. He [Identified] them immediately and felt his heart hitch for a second.

    Cursed Wall-Breaker lvl. 43

    Then a second and a third wall-breaker came around the corner. More and more of them were coming around the corner, soon filling out the road in a wave of people that started slowly moving forward. Santi looked behind the three wall-breakers and cursed as he saw them.

    Cursed Blood-Guardian lvl. 46

    ¡°Chad, send a skill shot toward them,¡± Santi ordered. The hunter nodded and pulled his bow back and fired in an instant, sending a bolt of energy toward the crowd. Santi watched placidly as the golden bolt raced toward the first wall-breaker like a falling star.

    The guardian behind the wall breaker tossed a vial outward and it exploded in a red mist instantly, happening in a second right as the golden bolt hit the mist. The glow around the bolt thinned from a bolt of lighting until it was only an arrow that moved at mortal speeds. The wall-breaker slapped it out of the air contemptuously as the horde continued forward.

    ¡°Much more disciplined than the last group,¡± Santi murmured. Cam stationed himself next to Santi nodded while he watched closely as Bianca tucked herself into the wall, her head under the ledge.

    ¡°Makes sense. Can¡¯t be crushing all these cities and settlements like they¡¯re supposed to be running around like a bunch of savages. There has to be some semblance of discipline in them,¡± Cam reasoned.

    ¡°Yeah, just sucks. Would have made it a lot easier if they were a bunch of running around savages rather than a disciplined group.¡± Santi whispered back. The haze of blood drifted in front of the group as if a gentle win pushed it.

    [Air Manipulation] reinforced three [Wind Blades] that hit the red mist. The mist burst apart like a rotten melon, dispersing around to drift along the ground as the magic raced through and sliced into the first wall-breaker. The woman split apart as she was cut in half, her eyes widening in surprise as the powerful spell connected.

    Three more blood guardians raced to the front and the thin mist Santi had just dispersed became a fog that raced forward. Santi hit it with a [Gust] but the fog resisted against him. If he supercharged a spell he could work bull through the combined strength of the four guardians, but it would just be temporary.

    ¡°Alright. Chad, you¡¯re up.¡± Santi looked at the hunter and the man nodded and looked over to two of the hunters. Claire and Heather, both of them mid twenty year olds who had joined his crew with little hunting experience. But plenty of mechanical engineering. It wasn¡¯t hard to translate that to traps and snares and other less obvious ways of killing.

    ¡°Fire ¡®em up girls,¡± Chad said. Both of them nodded and closed their eyes for a second and Santi had to suppress a smile as along both sides of the road spears lanced out to spear through the middle of the pack, who were looking relaxed as they walked forward.

    The small javelins that fired from hidden skill built snares punched into the tightly packed crowds. A wire snapped across at shin level, cloaked in shimmering light, and legs were sheared off at ankle level. A pitfall released and a half dozen of them fell into it, the stakes inside of it killing the men as soon as they hit it.

    ¡°Not bad,¡± Santi said. Days of work had been expended in seconds but the results were good. The entire interior of the block of cursed warriors collapsed inward, screams of pain rising up to mingle in the heavens as blood flowed across pavement. The blood guardians whirled around as their charges were massacred, but they were far too late to react.

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    Chad and his other more traditional hunters took the momentary distraction and capitalized on it. Arrows, javelins, and even a sling, all of it sent rocketing out to crash into the defensive mist. Most of the energy around the skills were stripped away, the mist burning as it absorbed the skills. Some of the attacks slipped through. The wall breakers weren¡¯t as unprepared this time.

    Chad¡¯s arrow dug into one man¡¯s thigh, but other than that the skills and attacks were deflected or dodged. Santi¡¯s follow up blitz of [Wind Blades] weren¡¯t. Bodies burst apart as Santi¡¯s spells hit and the guardian¡¯s turned around to watch as the wall-breakers died.

    The hunters second volley burned through them too. Santi not needing to do anything as the entire mess of bloodlust cursed warriors milled about for a moment. Nearly half their number were dead and many more were injured, but they stood there like sheep as Chad and the others kept firing skill after skill into them.

    For minutes it dragged on, blood running into the sides of the road to create mud. Clinging to the passing air and bringing the iron scent to tickle at Santi¡¯s nose. The cries of the dying rose up, pain and incoherent words mixed together. He couldn¡¯t help but feel uneasy. It was too easy.

    His fears were answered moments later as a second brick of cursed turned the corner and started marching toward them. As they got close to the massacre site Santi could see the curse¡¯s influence begin to spread, strengthened by the slaughter. Veins bulged and the lethargic movements began to pick up pace as they broke out into a trot.

    Behind the second block a third turned the corner.

    ¡°Oh, shit,¡± Santi muttered. He began to cast as fast as he could, [Wind Blades] scything into their lines, multiple of their guardians working together to keep the blades from screaming through them. The levels were roughly equivalent, low forties, but this second group was definitely feeling the effects of the spilled blood they had marched through. The ragged remnant of the first block joined the rear of the group and they pushed through under the fire of the hunters and Santi.

    ¡°Where the hell are those rangers!¡± Santi yelled, not risking turning his head to look back over the town.

    ¡°It¡¯s only been a few minutes, just hold on,¡± Bianca said. Her eyes were fastened to where Tank had run off to. They moved in a march, more and more blood mist welling around as they picked up speed. Santi¡¯s [Wind Blades] couldn¡¯t pierce the dense fog and he cursed as they got closer.

    ¡°Save your skills and power till they start up the wall,¡± Santi ordered, having to repeat himself twice before the burst of skills and attacks stopped. They watched as the group covered the last of the distance and Santi ordered the second of the traps they¡¯d organized.

    ¡°Grimvr! Now!¡± The dwarf smiled a toothy grin and a haze of energy surrounded him. Pieces of the low wall, the trash heaped at the base of it, snapped together and rose up.

    Scrap Golem lvl. 28

    Six of the golems came to attention and launched themselves into the crowds without hesitation. The mist parted for them, the physical build allowing them to bypass the energy sapping effect the mist provided. The golems were massively underleveled to be attacking the cursed, but they still had weight as they crashed into the front line, slowing the impetus. Grimvr had a thin sheet of sweat on his face and Santi watched as the six golems ignited with energy, their power level spiking as they focused on the guardians. Blows landed on the golems, shearing metal and ripping limbs free, but they continued forward without hesitation.

    They closed the distance and then flashed away in a burst of energy, exploding outward in impromptu bombs. Six golden-red lights that flashed so bright that Santi¡¯s eyes burned. He blinked tears away and frowned as he saw that all the guardians were still alive. Singed, but alive.

    ¡°Chad?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I got it,¡± Chad said. His bow became infused with energy as he pulled a long arrow free. The metal arrow was obsidian black and glittered like crushed diamonds as he drew it back. More skills overlaid it and he fired instantly, the arrow ignited as it crossed the distance. Torin¡¯s ingenuity and Chad¡¯s skills mixing together to blast right through the mists and hit the lead guardian¡¯s chest.

    The arrow sank all the way through the man¡¯s chest, erupting from his back and freezing him. Then it detonated. Scraps of flesh flew out and the man died instantly.

    ¡°That was supposed to be for heavy hitters,¡± Chad groused as he panted softly.

    ¡°Shit¡¯s going pear shaped fast. We need to keep holding till we get weight on these walls,¡± Santi said. He looked back over the wall and was dismayed as the first of the wall-breakers got close to the walls. Black energy welled over the man¡¯s hands and he shoved both palms forward in a burst of motion.

    Three black pillars formed from the wall of energy, each of them four feet in circumference. They slammed into the wall of welded together cars, stone, wood, and anything else that the dwarves had managed to get their hands on. The wall shuddered, one of the hunters falling backward and off the wall to hit the ground. Corrosive energy sizzled on the wall, burning and rusting away the metal of the wall.

    The next wall-breaker got closer sheathed in bloody red, her hands whirled and an eagle was summoned over her shoulder before it came rocketing towards the wall. Santi cast [Gust] at it trying to dispel the magic, but the eagle barreled through the wind spell without slowing. It hit twenty feet away from where the pillars were burning the wall with a squelch.

    Blood soaked up and down the walls, from crenellations to base. Fire erupted where the blood was at, metal dissolving under the unnatural flames. Santi cursed and tossed a [Wind Blade] toward them, but the thick blood fog absorbed his magic and dispersed it.

    ¡°We¡¯re not going to have time. The wall¡¯s going to melt under us. Get ready to retreat.¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t even get to have a chance to fight,¡± Bianca complained.

    ¡°Everyone, second defensive position!¡± Santi ordered, ignoring his sister¡¯s complaining. He hopped down even as part of the wall slumped inward, collapsing under its own weight. The rest of the group followed, beating a hasty retreat towards the second much smaller wall the dwarves had constructed.

    ¡°Yessi¡¯s turn I guess,¡± Bianca continued to complain as she landed next to him and broke into a sprint, matching him step by step.

 Ch. 3.48 The Second Wall

    48.

    The cursed warriors swarmed over the wall and into Yessi¡¯s first trap. With her current power and skills she didn¡¯t have the pure power to simply eradicate the cursed inside of her spell circles. Santi and Yessi had put their heads together to figure out the best way to lay a large scale trap to kill as many as possible as efficiently as possible.

    Best way to do it, they had agreed, was to use the cursed warriors'' own energy against them. Similar to what they had done with the heating circle, but much more directed. Santi landed on the second wall as Yessi ran toward it, bent in half to avoid any stray blows that came flowing over the top of the much smaller wall.

    ¡°Ready?¡± Santi asked as he stayed down and under the wall. The rest of the team came scrambling over the wall and across the inner field. Santi looked over to finally see Rayleigh and her team coming from the inner circle where the pillar was. Mom was trailing far behind them, Torin with her.

    ¡°Under this,¡± Yessi pointed to a small divot in the wall and Santi hopped off of the wall and to the ground and looked at the divot. A single large crystal sat there, liberated from some store that has specialized in home remedies. Already a soft blue glow was emanating from it the moment that Yessi laid a finger down on the chalk line. Stray mana being captured in the large circle that took up nearly a third of the defensive position.

    Every spell and stray skill that was activated had a small iota of mana that drifted free. Every blast of power had stray mana that drifted about, slowly dispersing back to the planet or atmosphere or wherever it was that mana went. Except in the circle Yessi had built and was focusing the power into the fist sized crystal at their feet.

    ¡°Rayleigh, get up on that wall with your team. Chad, keep the pressure on them, we just need to hold the line for a bit longer,¡± Santi ordered. The wall was only eight feet or so, easily leapable for any Acolyte. Rayleigh¡¯s team jumped to their fighting posts and began to rain down skills and spells on the oncoming horde, the blasts of noise and flashes of light noticeable even on the other side of the wall.

    ¡°Mom, what¡¯s the numbers?¡±

    ¡°There are a hundred-sixty-eight Acolytes around us. I didn¡¯t have time to count which ones were Duncan¡¯s and which were Mercy¡¯s.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a lot of bodies, Santi,¡± Bianca said.

    ¡°We hold the line, Bianca. Time to get up on the wall,¡± Santi backed up his comments with actions, jumping up and landing to look into the scrum boiling about just feet away.

    Rayleigh¡¯s team hit them with the full power of their attacks, and along with the rest, had halted the advance dead in its tracks. Bodies were piling up as lower leveled Acolytes were obliterated under the pressure of the attack. It didn¡¯t take more than a few moments befor the weight of the cursed pushed themselves through the temporary barrier of death and started to scramble up the walls.

    Santi speared down with his morph blade, piercing the skull of an emaciated man with wild brown eyes. The man froze, dirty clawed hands clutching the edge of the wall for a moment before he slid backwards and fell back into the crowd below.

    A bolt of violet energy seared across the area and struck one of Rayleigh¡¯s fighters, the man didn¡¯t even have time to scream as his body liquefied, sloshing away and down in a burst of blood. There was a frozen moment of horror as everyone stared at the soft, drooping, remnants of who he had been. The strength of the spells fueled by the curse overwhelming natural defenses.

    [Wind Blade] cut free limbs as it scythed through the crowd. Over and over Santi cast his spells until he could feel the strain on his body as mana cycled through his body. The kills were slow to come, the cursed were taking monstrous amounts of damage, limbs sheared free, chests caved in, burned to the bones, stabbed, crushed, and generally maimed. Still, they came on like mindless zombies, just taking the brunt of the attacks.

    Santi stepped to the side, slashing apart a thrown spear that had a ruddy light around it. Pieces of steel and wood slashed at his face, but the deadly skill dissipated as his morph weapon growled in hunger as it ate a piece of the energy that had fueled the attack.

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    Chloe¡¯s axe chopped down and a head came free, but a spear flashed up to pierce her side, only to rebound as she flared her affinity and turned her side to steel. She countered to chop apart the top of the spear and then slammed the axe home into her attacker¡¯s chest. The woman grunted, backing up and spitting blood up as she pulled herself off of Chloe¡¯s axe. Then she smiled, teeth red-black and gleaming, and came back toward Chloe despite the grievous wound.

    Santi hit the cursed woman with a [Wind Blade] as Chloe tried to recover as another cursed leapt at her, distracting her momentarily. Santi¡¯s spell hit where Chloe had already cut her, and split the attacker apart horizontally. Chloe blocked a sword strike then punched the man with a steel fist before ducking behind the wall again. A hunter took her place, stabbing out with a long spear wreathed in power.

    Santi ducked a stray strike and cut back with a long sword, taking a few fingers and sending the man backwards, cackling maniacally as he clutched at his severed fingers.

    Cam and Bianca were fighting as a duo, Cam holding the attention of three cursed warriors who were all trying to get at him, climbing up towards them on a rampart of loose earth. Bianca was fury incarnate, her weapon tearing apart flesh as she ripped into the three of them, skills radiating off of her as she fought to her utmost without fear of reprisal.

    They were in a good spot, unlike Rayleigh who was clutching a spear wedged in her gut. The woman was bent in half, still lashing about herself with her maul. Tank was there the next moment, his strong hands grabbing her and pulling her free from the wall. Grimvr took her place, his axe a blur as his heavy armor fended off stray attacks.

    A hunter was grabbed, a rope flying up and wrapping around her, before tugging her free of the wall. Her scream was short lived, dying even as she hit the ground perforated in a dozen areas.

    A minute and forty seconds.

    That¡¯s how long all of it had taken and already the second wall was bowing backward. Santi¡¯s team and followers just didn¡¯t have the weight needed to hold against the push. Too many Acolytes were arrayed against them, even with their disdain for any type of small scale tactics, the amount of damage they were absorbing allowed the second wave to push with little fear.

    ¡°Anyone see Mercy?¡± Santi asked, up and down the line. Nobody said anything, too caught up in the fight. Santi risked peeking his head over the top and looking around for the woman. If he could find her in the thick of the fight and eliminate her that way, he would save himself plenty of time and effort.

    No one was really standing out in the crowd though, it was a mess of fighting and laughter and crying and the red miasma that permeated the area around everything. A few clumps of people stood out, but Santi couldn¡¯t figure out which one of the three groups held the curse anchor.

    ¡°Yessi, fire it up!¡± Santi barked as another hunter died, caught between two different cursed warriors, ripped to pieces in the struggle.

    Yessi ducked under the divot and grabbed the crystal, now glowing so brightly that Santi¡¯s eyes watered. She scrambled up quickly to the ledge on the wall and Santi cast a series of [Air Shields] to allow her to stand up and look over the field. She took a deep breath and threw the crystal in a shallow arc toward the closest cluster of more put together cursed warriors.

    Santi watched as the crystal crossed the distance, a stray spell hitting it directly and simply being sucked into the crystal like a blackhole. The crystal glowed a bit brighter before it detonated in a noiseless blast of blue-white light. Heat blasted across the field as the cluster of twelve disappeared instantly, shadows burnt across the pavement.

    Another dozen in a loose group around them burned away, bodies cooking instantly as they tried to scream. Then skills were slamming home, spells reinforcing bodies or slowing the heat wave that had launched from the crystal. Santi watched as the last two clusters backed up a bit, the cloud of bloodlust burned away momentarily by the shock of the magic blast.

    ¡°Retreat!¡± Santi called. They had purged a large amount of the Acolytes Mercy had brought and stunned them leaving a clear path to pulling what was left of the horde deeper into their trap. The main circle was still growing in power and Yessi had one last trap to set off.

    The moment they pulled off the second level of defenses Mercy struck. She appeared out of the scrum, where she had been hiding in plain sight near the back. Away from the tight clusters of more controlled berserkers.

    A dark woman, tall and statuesque with cruelty etched onto her features as she raised a hand languidly toward them. Blood flowed around, pulled from the air and the pools on the ground, from wounds still weeping and from corpses spent of nearly everything. A whirlpool formed around her outstretched fingers, spinning fast as she smiled brightly.

    The blood shot out in a burst of energy, spearing right through the walls and bursting them apart like they were rotten wood. The explosion plucked Santi from his feet, his breath wheezing free as he was flung away. Several of Rayleigh¡¯s team disintegrated while Grimvr¡¯s armor sizzled and smoked as he flew.

    Santi hit the ground with a grunt, air whooshing free as he ragdolled across the ground. He ended up facing the sky, ears ringing and eyes watering as he stared into the sky, thinking of the woman¡¯s class floating above her head.

    Blood Mage lvl. 68

 Ch. 3.49 Step Three

    49.

    ¡°RUN!¡± Santi screamed as he leapt forward, morph stretching out into a shield as Mercy walked through the ruins of the wall. Chad rose to meet her, stringing together arrow after arrow, skills glowing as they launched at her from only feet away. The woman rolled her wrist and a torrent of blood flowed around her, spinning like a whirlpool, catching the arrows and drowning them.

    In the space between Chad¡¯s prodigious fire rate, Mercy lashed out. The change in the ambient mana was all the warning Santi had as he leapt for his sister and Cameron, shoving his rapidly expanding shield outward to make a thin cover for all three of them.

    Spikes of blood launched from the whirlpool, spearing through the air chaotically, slicing apart anyone who strayed too close. A hunter and one of few remaining of Rayleigh¡¯s squad was killed, spears punching through them like they were made of paper.

    Two spears struck the shield, both of them reverberating with such strength that Santi¡¯s arm went numb, the morph weapon rippling like water as a cried pain came through their bond. Santi risked peeking around the edge of the shield and seeing that Mercy had dropped her defensive ability as she walked slowly toward Chad.

    The hunter had somehow not been touched by a single one of the blood spears. He never flinched as he pulled another arrow free, loading it up with skills as he stared unflinchingly at the curse holder. The woman smiled broadly, teeth flashing as she stared down Chad.

    The man fired, the arrow crossing the distance in a heartbeat, tripling as it flew until three golden bolts came toward Mercy. She flicked a wrist lazily and another pool of blood poured forth and formed a shield that absorbed the arrows.

    ¡°Chad, run!¡± Santi yelled hoarsely as he helped Cam and Bianca up and kicked them moving. Grimvr was already wisely running away while Chloe looked torn for a moment, wanting to throw herself against the powerful curse anchor and running and following the plan.

    Chad didn¡¯t run. Instead he stayed planted as an oak, firing a regular arrow then quickly a skill loaded one. Mercy swayed to the side of the regular arrow whizzing past her, but used her blood shield ability to block Chad¡¯s attack. The woman suddenly surged forward, crossing the distance between her and Chad in a heartbeat. Claws formed on her fingers, long enough to reach her knees, curved like a cat¡¯s. She spun and ducked, sliding under Chad¡¯s last ditch attempt to shoot her, and sliced as she flew past him.

    Chad took two steps forward, away from Mercy, and spun. Mercy was facing him with her smile still plastered on her face. Chad reached for one last arrow but froze as blood began to trickle out of his body. Three long shallow scratches that slowly wept as Mercy crooked a single finger at Chad. The man¡¯s blood flowed out faster, rushing out as if a pump was bursting it free.

    Mercy laughed. Wild and unrestrained, insanity seeped into her every chortle. Her belly rose and fell and Chad¡¯s knees buckled, the arrow he had been notching falling from numb fingers. Santi cast a [Wind Blade] at her, but the blood she was extracting rose up to block the attack.

    His spell didn¡¯t just drown like Chad¡¯s had, but hit the pool of blood with the force of a falling boulder. The blood exploded into a fine mist and Mercy was forced to roll away from the slashing attack that dug dirt up and threw rocks in the distance.

    Her godawful smile was finally gone as she met Santi¡¯s eyes. Instead there was a look of caution, wary dark eyes that searched him as she stood up. Chad collapsed to the ground, chest still rising slowly. Santi pushed forward, trying to create space so that someone could pull Chad away.

    Mercy didn¡¯t back up.

    Blood formed over her body like a second skin, nearly black as it thickened around her, claws staying extended as she walked toward him. Nothing ever seemed to be hurrying for her, she marched forward as relentlessly as time itself. Santi jumped a bit forward, slashing at maximum distance with his blade to try to keep her from getting closer to Chad.

    The silver tip slipped into the blood armor with ease. And then slowed as Mercy spun around, letting the tip of the sword pass by her armor reformed around her as she kept marching toward him.

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    [Wind Blade] struck her as she was between steps, striking her gut and bending her in half as her armor exploded. Blood welled out of a long cut on her belly, but she simply held a hand to her gut and the blood stopped flowing out and reversed course. A pulsing black vein throbbed on her neck, but she didn¡¯t back up.

    Santi continued pushing her. Mixing spells and sword work together to try to give even an inch of ground for someone to pull Chad away. The fact that this was a battlefield and not a duel was quickly asserted as a stream of the most aggressive remaining cursed followed after their leader.

    Santi was forced backward as a club came screaming down toward his head. Santi jumped back, slashed across the man¡¯s chest, and spun on a heel and caught Mercy¡¯s blood claws high as she swiped down. Mercy pulled blood out of the bleeding man¡¯s chest, ripping his chest open as she pulled his blood into her thickening body armor. Even as the man hit the ground dead, two more cursed were coming up on them.

    Chloe had managed to get Chad up and over her shoulder, swinging her axe one handed at the closest of the encroaching cursed. Santi risked sending a [Wind Blade] at her opponent, before using [Wind Step] to get away from the flurry of attacks that blew apart the ground he had previously been standing on.

    ¡°Get moving!¡± Santi yelled, trying to get the last remnants of the team out of the conflict zone. They weren¡¯t getting the clean break he had wanted, but his flurry of attacks kept the cursed from overwhelming Chloe as she ran with Chad.

    ¡°Yessi! Last resort!¡± Santi yelled breathlessly as they entered the innermost circle around the pillar that Yessi had built. [Gust] pushed a few of the weaker cursed off their feet, but stalled the rest as Santi jumped over the edge of the circle even as Yessi activated the spellwork.

    Cool blue light flowed out of the circle and the cursed stopped immediately. Their feet dug into the ground as dark veins wiggled and squirmed beneath their skin. Santi felt his own curse twist in his gut, pulling and tugging as Santi dropped to his knees panting as the pulsing saves of the exorcism circle ripped at his curse.

    Chad was dragged away to the furthest backlines to be given to Tank as the rest of the group gathered around. The weakest Acolytes amongst them, Mom, Maya, and Frank, were watching over the handful of wounded. There weren¡¯t many who were wounded, the skills the cursed were throwing around were lethal for the most part. Torin and Grimvr were shoulder to shoulder in front of them, both fierce fighters but focused on building defenses.

    The rest of the survivors, Santi¡¯s team, and a handful of Rayleigh¡¯s and Chad¡¯s people, were all clustered around the edge of the exorcism circle. Santi was panting with effort, trying to keep the curse wedged into his gut, he didn¡¯t want to have it expunged quite yet.

    ¡°Mom, Duncan coming down yet?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°Yes. They¡¯re starting to collapse on the back of the horde now. Forty-two of them.¡±

    ¡°How many cursed are left?¡±

    ¡°Forty-six. But they¡¯re all powerful. Upper forties at the minimum,¡± Mom said without hesitation.

    ¡°Duncan¡¯s people?¡±

    ¡°Low forties but there¡¯s three of them that aren¡¯t showing a level.¡±

    ¡°Duncan¡¯s one, maybe two other disciples,¡± Santi muttered to himself.

    ¡°Daniel and Hana?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re in position. But another group just popped up on the furthest part of the map. Twelve Acolytes, one of them without a level,¡± Mom said.

    ¡°Who else got an invitation to the party?¡± Chloe asked as she rested on a knee next to him. The glow of the exorcism circle was already fading, the cursed warriors starting to walk closer to it.

    ¡°Is everybody ready for the next stage?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°Still don¡¯t like this part,¡± Chloe said. The rest of the group gathered up and sank further back till they were all clustered around the pillar. It took a minute for the pillar to spit out a box, Mom burning through the last of the coins Santi had earned during their little foray.

    A white dome encompassed them, the ten minute shield having exhausted all their temporary wealth. In the next ten minutes everything would be done. Santi stood up straight, letting his shoulders drop as the last of the exorcism power faded away.

    Then he let the curse come racing up his guts, feeding on the thick scent of blood and the boiling rage that Santi carried around with him everywhere. Dropping the amount of willpower needed to suppress the curse was like a weight lifting off his shoulders, like he could finally breathe.

    As the curse worked its way through his body and mind, years of pain and torment and frustration boiled up, fueling the negative energy. A decade of war and loss compressed to a moment. Santi grabbed the flare from the ground by his feet and lit it before casting [Gust] and sending it flying into the air. Then his thoughts fell deep into the howling pools of bloodlust.

    Bloodlust Upgraded

    Bloodlust Upgraded

    Bloodlust Upgraded

 Ch. 50 Lost

    50.

    Curse of Bloodlust (Grand)

    You are the hunger in the night, the bloodletting shall only tickle your hunger as your strength soars. Drink and bathe in gore as your foes tremble before you, lost in the insanity of the kill.

    All Physical Stats increased by 100%

    Santi stared at the alert with horror, watching as he hit the highest ranking for the curse in a matter of moments the second his willpower relaxed. Elation raced through him, energy and joy suffusing in a toxic mix as the inner exorcism circle failed. Muscles bulged in his body, strength racing through him as he opened his mouth to scream in ecstasy.

    The leading edges of the fight paused as the sickly black-red veins of the curse appeared all over Santi¡¯s body, throbbing with every beat of his heart. The morph weapon lengthened into a cruel hooked blade, barbs sprouting out along the edges as a manic laugh bubbled free from his chest.

    With the last gasps of his sanity he looked back at the shelter his friends and family had bought from the pillar and saw the flare racing across the sky.The signal to Daniel.

    Then his mind was lost in the haze, his willpower and intelligence collapsing like a poorly stacked house of cards. The trauma of the past came flooding forward in an onslaught, the feeling of helplessness, of being small and weak. The rage it had built in him as he felt smaller and smaller. The dead stacked higher than mountains, the cult fighting to the vicious end. The invaders slaughtering and enslaving without hesitation as they each carved their own kingdoms out of his home. The blinding red rage mixed with the red on the field as one last memory assaulted him.

    Dad. Laying there. Broken. Bleeding. His killers were the people Santi had protected. The killers that had escaped his justice, now rushing in to kill the cursed. To come here before his blade.

    Then he was moving, [Windstep] pushing him faster than the cursed could track as his laughter and joy spread as the blooming fields of blood deepened. A virtuoso of pain and death, Santi danced among the cursed, his own more powerful version of the curse suppressing theirs as he slaughtered his foes. Mercy was there, a beacon to him glowing ultraviolet as his entire world was red and black, the silver of his blade the only other color.

    Pulses of magic flared at him, skills cut his flesh, broke bones, but he was unstoppable in his frenzy. For the first time he truly let loose, spells spinning and combining as he carved his way through the thinning ranks of the cursed.

    Duncan¡¯s arrival was hardly noticed, another shadow in the blanket of red, slashing and killing with indiscriminate haste. Trapped between the shield and Santi in front of them, and Duncan¡¯s own people, the cursed fought back with the savagery of trapped rats. Those he had cut and slashed behind him were rising, not dead but wounded and soon Santi was in a bubble as the cursed surrounded him, isolating him from help.

    The curse controlling him didn¡¯t mind, it was just more targets to bleed. So Santi danced, leaping from one part of the circle to the next, spells flaring constantly as he searched for a weak point. Every slash of his blade opened tender flesh and every cast of his spells pushed and searched for his next victim .

    Then she was there. That violet supernova that rose above them, floating in the sky as the gorgeous rivers of red wove around her into a suit that cloaked her. A spear of power formed in her hand, a crown glowing like a beacon on her forehead, and a wand in her other hand. A queen rising above her subjects, power incarnate as her own laughter synchronized with Santi¡¯s.

    He hated her. Loved her. Worshipped her. Envied her. All of it a flash in his frantic mind as he rose. [Air Shield] making platforms for him as he cast [Windstep]  off of them, bursting them apart to whip at the people below as he entered the skies. The figure turned to him and the wand raised, a bolt of violent energy swirling around it.

    Santi dodged as it cut through the space he had been, bleeding energy that resonated with him while scaring a small part of him, that kernel of intelligence that was trying desperately to reassert itself.

    Santi closed the gap, slicing apart the spear as it tried to stab him. The blood splashed against him, warm and salty and his smile widened further as his curse drank from the power of the fresh blood. Then the blood hardened, forming chains that locked his limbs in place. He missed his next step and fell, falling back into the scrum of fighting bodies as Mercy¡¯s laughter strengthened.

    He spun, his powerful mana ripping apart the spell holding the [Blood Chains] together. Without his willpower and intelligence there was no searching for weak points, he just directed the entirety of his being into destroying them. Blood evaporated as he hit the sodden ground with a splash, rising up with the morph as a razor whip sliced apart bodies all around him.

    Duncan was there, lashing through as a shadow darker than the rest and his rage flowed thicker and hotter than before. He lunged, crossing the distance in a blink of an eye, slashing apart the thick shadow form he saw, enraged when the shadows simply burst apart not in blood, but in mana.

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    ¡°SANTIAGO! CONTROL YOURSELF!¡± Duncan screamed, his voice coming inches from his ear, but there was nobody for him to see. Santi screamed out in rage and helplessness, the Acolyte still further advanced in skill than him, needling at the ball of fury in his chest.

    Mercy was there, casting bolts of power into the shadowy shapes that didn¡¯t have the red pulsing core in them. Santi¡¯s consciousness, drowning in the bloodlust, recognized them as Duncan¡¯s people. The cream of the crop of the cultists in the region. Each blast ripped a body apart, scattering the pieces of Acolytes around like they were confetti.

    He looked back up to Mercy and leapt toward her, the ground blasting apart under the force of his leap as he sailed upwards toward her. He blasted off an [Air Shield] and cut the distance in a heartbeat, shearing the air as he tried to behead her. The cursed anchor ducked under the blade and kicked him in the gut with her shin. He bent in half, air whooshing out of him as he gagged and then he was falling again.

    Halfway to the ground he realized some of the blood was his, pumping out from punctures in his stomach from where Mercy¡¯s spikes had impaled him. He cast [Gust] angling it so it started above Mercy and forced her down to the ground.

    Santi landed on someone, breaking them under his much more durable body. He spun up and lashed out around himself again while Mercy was driven from the sky to land amongst Ducan¡¯s shadowy soldiers. She rose up and then red lines sprang out, connecting her to a half dozen of them. The shadows turned and leapt at the violet pillar of light, energy erupting from hands and weapons. Then the red lines went tight and the figures collapsed, blood rushing free of bodies to fill the battered armor and covering Mercy again, blanketing the violet light she emanated.

    ¡°Santiago, we need to kill her together. Control yourself!¡± Duncan hissed in his ear as the thick shadow figure appeared next to him. Santi shuddered as his willpower flared, his conscious mind trying to exert control over the rampaging curse. Slowly the red vision faded away, reality asserting itself.

    Pain came in waves, overwhelming his fading euphoria as he gasped in agony. His body was riddled with injuries, lacerations and puncture wounds making him feel like a pinata. He suppressed it all with a powerful flex of his willpower, straining against the mindless nature of the curse while also still letting it roll through him to keep the increased stats. It was like trying to control an overflowing river, holding tight to how the energy was directed through his body.

    ¡°You sane?¡± Duncan asked, his power emanating from Santi¡¯s own shadow..

    ¡°Enough. I distract her, you stab her?¡±

    ¡°Good enough for me,¡± Duncan said.

    Then Santi was moving again, cutting the distance between himself and Mercy in two with a single lunge. He rolled under a cursed warrior¡¯s axe swing, jumped over a fallen cultist and then had to turn and twist at the waist as Mercy¡¯s spear leapt at him. His morph blade rose to hit it with a blunt edge, preventing it from exploding again.

    He snapped upright and got within feet of the woman, who was still smiling widely. A full bloody helm covered everything except her mouth and eyes, liquid plate metal covering her from head to toe. It swirled and pulsed, eddies appearing as they rotated about herself.

    ¡°Hello.¡± Her voice was rich and pleasant, happiness and joy infused in her words.

    Santi slashed, a wide shoulder to hip blow that would have cut her in two, armor be damned. The woman just chuckled and leapt to the side, avoiding the cut, and stabbed out with her spear. Santi blocked again, but Mercy fired a bolt of energy out of her wand that he was forced to cast [Air Shield] to stop.

    The shield exploded, sending drops of blood everywhere, and then they were attacking with their weapons again. Mercy flowed well, her armor a constant swirl as she lengthened or shortened her spear. Tendrils of blood flowed around her, constantly feeding into her armor as every blow sent drops bursting away from her from the pools all around them.

    The fight was nearing its apex as the few remaining fighters on both sides were the pinnacle of their factions, but the levels were against Duncan and Santi. The raiders had built their levels off of slaughter and warfare and it was showing. None of Duncan¡¯s people could match their ferocity, the perfect blend of skills and martial prowess as they killed.

    Only a few of Duncan¡¯s people were left on their feet, outnumbered nearly two to one as they circled up, trying desperately to keep their opponents blades away. Their faces were slick with fear sweat and Santi could see the infection in them, the small pulsing lines of the curse¡¯s corruption. He could also see how the remaining cursed weren¡¯t going all out. They were waiting, stalling, keeping Duncan¡¯s people in place.

    The infection was spreading across them, infiltrating their minds and whittling down their willpower, helped by the mortal fear and what was likely the largest battle they had ever been in. A cloud of dark energy radiated around the killing field, swirling above head height, breaking apart and around the shield that Santi¡¯s family had bought. The shield that was sure to run out soon.

    Santi turned his attention back to Mercy and the woman¡¯s unwavering smile. She was waiting as well, her dark eyes drifting back and forth as she searched for Duncan. Santi was glad he wasn¡¯t the only one who couldn¡¯t keep up with the elusive assassin.

    ¡°You are beautiful. All that rage and desire to bleed the world out. You would be better with me than here,¡± Mercy said. Santi could tell she was being serious too, there was no trace of duplicitousness in her, the offer genuine and similar to what he had heard the others say she was like.

    His curse surged upward, eager to rejoin the anchor and continue bathing in the blood all around them. With the mightiest of effort, Santi forced it down as a cold sweat broke out on his neck. His plan would work, he just needed Daniel to hurry it up.

    ¡°Little shadow, come out and play. You two are the only ones worthy of my time here,¡± Mercy said as her armor continued to thicken in preparation of Duncan¡¯s strike.

    The three of them stayed like that for a moment before another group of figures came rushing behind Mercy. It wasn¡¯t Daniel and Hana and Santi had to fight back a curse at his scout being so slow.

    ¡°SANTIAGO!¡± A voice bellowed and Santi turned his gaze away from Mercy and towards the man who had yelled at him.

 Ch. 3.51 Grudge

    51.

    Alan Murtaugh stood there in the middle of the bloody battlefield with his eyes locked onto Santi¡¯s. He stared at Santi with a fixed gaze to the exclusion of everything else when he was stabbed in the gut with a machete by one of the remaining cursed. Alan looked down, puzzled at first, then lightly slapped the cursed warrior and Santi saw the string of aura connecting Alan to the raider.

    Santi leapt back into the fight, his blade a blur as he tried desperately to pin Mercy down long enough to give Duncan a chance at killing her. She was a blur of violet red, her spear and armor constantly refreshing on the battlefield as she sayed a few inches away from the edge of his blade with every jerk of her body.

    It was frustrating to say the least, Santi couldn¡¯t catch her as the boosts from her curse and the resonance of all the cursed energy in the air enhanced her further. Santi pushed harder, straining with all his might as he wove spells around the woman to keep her pinned down.

    He looked out of the corner of his eye as Alan Murtaugh became a whirlwind of energy, aura pulsing as his wounds healed as fast as they accumulated. The people with Alan fought much more disciplined than he did. They worked in teams, discipline trumping savagery. Until the termites hit their back ranks and ran right through them.

    Daniel and Hana dropped their cloaking, double teaming a wounded higher level cursed warrior as they knifed him in the back. The termites ran through the lines, breaking apart Alan¡¯s group''s discipline as they slammed into the scrum.

    Dozens of the low-Acolyte bugs wouldn¡¯t have been a threat to Mercy¡¯s core group before, but now they were caught in the pincers of three factions and they began to die, faster and faster. Santi had a brief pang of guilt for Alan¡¯s group, but he hadn¡¯t invited them to the party.

    Mercy flew up into the air again, blasting spears of blood into the termites, each spear obliterating a bug as the battle finally tilted against her. Her warriors were falling, the last core group of mid-level Acolytes finally overwhelmed by numbers and their own wounds. But Mercy was still going, power flowing through her from the battle, not a single wound on her.

    Santi aimed a series of [Wind Blades] at her, the crescent arcs of sharp winds slashing apart the air all around her as she dodged, finally lining up perfectly to the slightly darker shadow behind her. Santi could see her eyes widen as she felt something stir behind her, then Duncan was there.

    Now that he wasn¡¯t blinded by his own bloodlust, Santi saw that the assassin had crafted himself a second arm out of mana, dark shadow compressed into a powerful simulacrum of a limb. Its fingers melded together into a long blade, slicing apart the blood armor without pause, bursting through her shoulder in a spray of blood. His second arm pumped a skill wreathed long knife into her kidney, over and over again, his face a blank mask.

    Each of the droplets of blood landed on the ground with the force of a grenade, cursed energy blackening the air as they shot out, spraying the curse like an infection over the termites and Alan¡¯s small team. The termites twisted and chittered in anger, deep veins instantly appearing on their milky skin as the curse reached into their depths, plunging through their carapaces and infecting them with ease.

    Santi¡¯s breath held for a moment, stunned by the virulence of the cursed anchor. It had taken the others open wounds to infect others, but Mercy¡¯s very blood was infection itself. The termites shuddered, writhing across the muddy earth, easy prey to blades as most died before they were completely consumed.

    Some rose though, filled with bloodlust as they began to lash out about and around themselves at their hivemates, the cursed, and Alan¡¯s people. Insanity gripped them, their cursed rage spreading and thickening the aura all around them as the miasma above the battlefield started to slowly swirl above, clouds forming as the air became charged with energy.

    Santi turned his gaze back towards Mercy, leaping at her as she tumbled through the sky. His blade lengthened and he slashed down the length of her quad, splitting her armor apart and cutting a deep wound. Mercy screamed in rage as her undulating armor erupted in a series of spikes that lanced out and toward him.

    Santi cursed as two [Air Shields]  were popped in bursts of wild air, and then they all landed in the heart of the fight as more and more of the termites came flooding in, most in the high twenties or low thirties. Santi crushed a pair of them, turning his morph into a warhammer that splattered the bugs like a flyswatter did flies.

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    Duncan landed and disappeared in the clutter again as Mercy rose up, her armor reestablished as her wounds sealed over. She slashed about herself, bolts of energy and her razor sharp spear tearing apart bugs until there was a gap around her. Santi sent a [Gust] toward her, grimacing as she formed a shield of blood around herself that blocked the powerful wind.

    One of Alan¡¯s people entered the space. A black woman of early-middle age, holding a longsword and shield as she walked directly into the gap without fear, her blade glowing as she crossed blades with Mercy. The blast of power radiated away from the two of them as the unknown woman proceeded to show the utmost level of skill Santi had ever seen.

    She turned, her face showing as she dodged a spear strike. Santi saw her face and recognized it, his stomach plummeting as he saw the second Apostate. Then she was consumed again by her duel, her experience and skill cutting the gap of levels between her and Mercy.

    Santi felt the flow of battle change. The fear in his gut, the storm brewing above him, the shield about to fall behind him. His neck prickled and he bent at the waist as a knife flashed by where his neck had been. He spun on his heel, blade slashing out at neck height as Duncan dodged.

    The plain-faced assassin was smiling as he sent a flurry of attacks at Santi, each blow aimed at pulling Santi¡¯s blade further and further away from his body. Santi countered by sending [Wind Blades] at the man, forcing him to bend and twist away from the attacks and away from Santi.

    ¡°You bring her here? Couldn¡¯t finish the job yourself?¡± Santi taunted, anger burning his veins, mingling with the roaring bloodlust that assaulted his iron will.

    ¡°This is pure providence. A sign that your opposition against our lord is doomed to failure,¡± Duncan said with a smile. The man let his physical blade dance between his fingers as the battle began to end all around them, the last of the heavyweight cursed falling to blades and biting jaws.

    Alan was fighting a cluster of the termites off to the side, his aura so thick that it hurt to look at, as every one of his blows blew apart a termite. The other Acolyte had all of Mercy¡¯s attention, locking her up but not overwhelming her, and Daniel and Hana on the other side of the battle, dealing with their own mix of nearly dead cursed warriors and infected bugs.

    Everyone¡¯s attention was elsewhere, there was nobody to come to aid him.

    Santi smiled as he realized there was nobody to save Duncan. The curse surged through his veins again and it was only with the last iota of his willpower that he kept his sanity as he attacked without hesitation.

    Duncan stabbed him, the metal sliding into his guts below his ribs, but for allowing that blow, Santi got his fingers around the other man¡¯s throat. The curse strengthened his grip, allowing him to dig into Duncan¡¯s reinforced flesh, bypassing the man¡¯s stronger durability as he felt the pounding beat of Duncan¡¯s heart through his throat.

    Santi stabbed him, the two of them locked in a mortal embrace only inches from one another as Duncan panicked. Santi was grinning like a mad man, blood pumping out of him but his curse strengthened him to stay upright as the two kept stabbing. There was no skill or powers in this brutality, but just pure hatred.

    Santi never tore his eyes from Duncan¡¯s, relishing as the man¡¯s eyes began to widen as Santi didn¡¯t die. The extra points to his physicality, along with the boost from the curse and his titles, kept him upright as the supremacy of stats began to show through. Duncan¡¯s legs folded, but Santi kept him upright, still stabbing, never relenting as the murderer of hope died in his hands.

    Avatar of Shadows lvl. 64

    Duncan Glades

    Santi stared at the kill notification for a moment, almost stunned by the fact that he had killed the Apostate. He staggered back, suddenly weakened as he looked about the battlefield. The shield was down and Tank was running toward him as fast as he could as Santi¡¯s knees buckled and he fell to the ground.

    Mercy was still standing tall as the Apostate she was fighting had several cuts leaking blood down her armor. Alan was only a few steps away from entering their private duel and he was a corona of energy from all the creatures he had killed. His first punch blew apart Mercy¡¯s armor, the blood evaporating into a mist as the cursed anchor was thrown off her feet to roll across the field.

    It hardly dented the man¡¯s accumulated power as he and the other Apostate crept closer to the downed cursed anchor. Santi looked up to the storm brewing above them, power swirling in a thick morass of ugly red and black energy.

    Tank¡¯s hand landed on his shoulder and Santi could feel the healer¡¯s power rolling through him, desperately trying to repair the damage he had taken. A potion was forced to his lips and he drank desperately. Mercy began to laugh, her hands raising up to the storm brewing above her as she was the last woman standing in her faction.

    ¡°Thank you for this,¡± Mercy said as the storm began to funnel down toward her, crackling with energy as it reached down to unite her with the energy of hundreds of dead Acolytes corrupted by the power of her curse.

    ¡°Yessi, now

 Ch. 3.52 Cleansing Light

    52.

    The air became charged with power, positively crackling as incandescent white light shone through the lines that Yessi had wrapped around the town. The riftheart finally put to work, the exorcism spell flaring to life in a burst of power that filled Santi with pain. His vision went red and his bones turned to molten pillars as his breath froze in his throat as every muscle spasmed and tightened as Santi hit the ground.

    It was like a thick tar that had clung to his body was being pulled out while it was on fire. He gagged as his vision came back in, clotted blood  coming out of his mouth and hit the ground with a splat. Another heave as more of the clotted black blood came burning out of his mouth as he tried to get to his feet.

    His knees shook as he opened his eyes to look at Mercy as she was forced to her knees under the full power of the exorcism spell. The black-red clouds that had been building over the battlefield fled as the purifying energy destroyed it in moments. Mercy wasn¡¯t as lucky.

    As an anchor, especially one who had built her evolutions around her curse, she was under a full born attack on her very being. Her skin rippled, bulging and collapsing in waves, as if something was trying to get free from her. Her blood constructed weapons exploded into a mist as she writhed on her knees, grabbing at her chest as bone cracked and blood poured out of her chest to pool on the ground.

    Everyone had tendrils of cursed energy being pulled out of them, the corruption having seeped into the entire area. Alan was rolling on the ground, his aura stripped away from him in the burst of cleansing power. The other Apostate was down on a knee, but rising quickly as she stood over the crippled [Blood Mage]. Santi moved fast,battling past the pain, his mana struggling as he forced himself to cast [Wind Blade], angling it around the armored Apostate, and watched as Mercy was split in half.

    She exploded in a mass of gore, blood bursting like an overfilled balloon, all that was left was a floating orb filled with swirling energy. The blood stopped in midair, held frozen in the air as the inner power of the orb drew the drops together, forming a bloody floating shape reminiscent of a human body.

    Bloodlust Avatar lvl. 64

    Santi stared at the creature in front of him in confusion, the kill alert for Mercy Johnson there in his feed. The avatar was something else, a different entity that was weakening in power as the exorcism continued to assault it. Even as Santi watched its level dipped one more to sixty-three.

    The avatar reached out a hand and a burst of bloody power hit the Apostate in the chest, picking her up and throwing her backward. Alan groaned and got to his feet, raised his hands into a boxing stance, and staggered toward it.

    ¡°Dad!¡± Cam shouted, tackling his discombobulated father around the waist as another burst of power shot through the space where Alan had just been. Santi staggered forward, lashing the construct with [Wind Blades], each blow destroying a limb, but it was just regenerated from the pools of blood all around it. It slashed the air with a whip like crack and an [Air Shield] prevented him from being split in half. Nauseous energy ran over him, trying to sink deeper into his body, but the cleansing light pushed it away.

    It bubbled, pustules forming and popping to send sprays of infection around, only to be evaporated by Yessenia¡¯s spell. It was a plague, a walking tsunami of death and destruction, held only back by the burning away riftheart. Already the power of the spell was fading, the riftheart not strong enough to keep the power of the exorcism spell ongoing.

    Santi gritted his teeth as he got closer to the avatar, morph weapon stretching out into a lance as he lunged. Blood welded together to form a kite shield, but the lance tip popped right through it, spraying blood out in an arc as the tip of the lance skittered around the edge of the hard orb in the center of the swirling waters.

    The blade screamed in his mind, corruption trying to infiltrate the weapon, but the fading white light ripped the black tendrils away immediately. Santi fired off a pair of [Wind Blades], angling them to either side of the orb. The body exploded and the orb was left floating there for a moment without its body protecting it.

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    [Air Manipulation] formed a hand and he scooped the orb out from its body, the blood splashing to the ground instantly as Santi was forced to contend against rippling waves of power as the orb fought against his blanketing mana to reconnect to the cursed blood that filled the battlefield.

    Without the constant influx of cursed energy the blood began to be purged of the curse even with the massive exorcism spell fading away. Sweat popped on Santi¡¯s scalp as blood ran down his nose and ears, he turned and spat out another wad of clotted, blackened blood. His mana was thinning, his regeneration failing to keep up, and Santi was becoming desperate as he looked around for Yessenia.

    His sister was running forward, a dwarven crafted pot in her hands, runes she had painted around it beginning to glow as she closed the distance. It had been something Santi had asked Torin to make at the last moment and Yessenia had painted as a last moment precaution. She lifted the top off and got into position as Santi¡¯s mana finally buckled and collapsed, his spell collapsing and the orb sat there frozen for a moment.

    Yessi scooped it up, the protected lid touching the diminishing orb and shoving it into the pot. The entire pot lit up, dozens of simple runes turning bright white as the pot began to glow red. Yessi sat it down on the ground as silence grew as everyone looked over the blood splattered fields. The ragged survivors were all stunned and looking about at each other stunned.

    Santi staggered to his feet as he looked over his friends and the newest group. He didn¡¯t see Chad, but otherwise his entire group of friends and family were alive. The relief was enough to stagger him, but Bianca was there, grabbing his elbow and holding him up. Alerts were flying through his feed, but he dismissed it all with a wave of his hand.

    The white aura of the spell faded as the last of the riftheart was burned away, but the battlefield was cleared of the effects of the curse. It was all over, the looming threat contained in a simple pot, covered in reflection and protection runes, all of them keeping the dread curse contained. Santi glanced at his kill feed and saw the avatar¡¯s death in his feed. He had ¡°killed¡± it when it was at sixty-two, exactly ten levels above his current level.

    ¡°Is it dead, Naomi?¡± one of the new people asked, her voice quizzical as she stared at the glowing red pot with the white glowing runes. The Apostate looked at the pot and then slowly cleaned her blade off with a piece of fabric and then sheathed it.

    ¡°Close enough,¡± she rasped, her voice strained and hoarse as she looked over the field, settling on Duncan¡¯s punctured corpse for just a moment longer. Her face held a myriad of emotions that flickered by, but the relief was the largest. Santi blinked, not believing what he was seeing as the Apostate looked away from her dead companion and towards her team.

    ¡°Seems that some of us already know each other, but I¡¯m Naomi Weaver,¡± the Apostate stuck her hand out, blood still wet on her strong fingers. Santi stared at the bloody hand and the pure exhaustion on his friends and families faces. His own broken body was screaming for rest, the absence of the curse¡¯s strength leaving him feeling as drained as a wrung rag.

    Santi took her hand, the blood still warm and wet as he smeared it over his own hands. He pumped her hand twice.

    ¡°I¡¯m Santiago, this is a mix of family and friends. I have to say, thank you for helping,¡± Santi said, his own voice just as raspy and destroyed as Naomi¡¯s.

    ¡°We lost people, but it needed to be done. Anyone who had eyes could see they were bad news,¡± she pointed a shoe at a dead cursed warrior. The small play the two regressors were playing out for everyone else was tiring, but Santi was in no shape for another fight.

    ¡°Daniel, Hana, think you two can begin to police all the bodies? Yessi, we¡¯re going to need a purifying circle on those we killed outside of the gates. I don¡¯t think there¡¯s enough energy left to form a new cursed stone, but let¡¯s not risk it.¡± Santi scanned the last of the ruined town, their brief fight having leveled most everything left.

    Stray skills, spells, and even physical attacks sending ripples out to break apart the remnants of the mortal homes and buildings. There was nowhere to really sit or rest, besides underneath the pillar.

    ¡°Let¡¯s regroup under the pillar and let us catch our breath, shall we?¡± Naomi said, beating Santi to it. Cam and Alan were still clutching each other, Alan¡¯s smaller body seeming to encompass his son¡¯s. The two of them were sobbing, crying and gasping as they held on, relief and joy overwhelming them. Naomi had a faint smile while looking at Alan. Santi grunted and Tank and Bianca assisted him toward the pillar, while Daniel, Hana, and the remnants of their rangers began to work their way through the piles of bodies. Mom, Torin, and Yessenia had grabbed the cursed pot and Yessi¡¯s small pack of supplies before heading off towards the road.

    Naomi motioned some of her people off and they loped away back into the hills, while the rest of them formed up in a loose posse and came to sit around her underneath the pillar. Acolyte level rations were handed out, bottles of water were drank, and Tank was busy running around healing those who didn¡¯t need an immediate healing potion.

    Santi breathed a sigh of relief with his back against the hard metal of the pillar, so tired he couldn¡¯t keep his eyes open, the heavy lids closing shut on their own accord.

 Ch. 3.53 Reunion

    53.

    Santi¡¯s eyes cracked open and light flooded in. For the first time in what felt forever the pressure of the curse wasn¡¯t there waiting for him. The hunger that had gnawed and hollowed him out over the last week finally no longer there. The pleasure from the release of the strain was mind numbing, his senses weren''t as razor sharp as normal.

    It took him a moment to realize that he wasn¡¯t alone in the safety of his home. Nor was his companion a trusted friend or family member. The only one he could see through his still bleary eyes was the Apostate who had arrived at the end of the fight with Alan Murtaugh. Naomi Weaver.

    His heart suddenly thudded in his chest, shooting a pulse of panic through his body as he straightened up. The morph weapon on his arm went from a lazy noodle to a rigid sword in the space of a heartbeat and he met the Apostate¡¯s calm eyes. She smiled slowly, full of real warmth and kindness and Santi relaxed by the smallest iota.

    She let her smile fade slightly and the rasp of a whetstone along the edge of steel filled the air. Naomi was sitting with her sword across her knee, her weapon kit sprawled out around her, as she worked any nicks or burrs out of the edge of her sword.

    Santi took a second to look over the blade as his heart rate slowed down and fell back into its regular slow beat. He blinked a few times to clear the last of the sleep out of his eyes and glanced about. There was no one nearby, the two of them isolated from both their factions.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine. If I wanted you dead, I would have killed you in your sleep,¡± Naomi said. There was a true warmth in her voice even with the grim subject, a hint of humor as she finished cleaning her sword. She sheathed the blade, setting it down on the dry ground next to her, pommel in easy reach.

    ¡°Your companion used to say things like that,¡± Santi said. The death of Duncan brought no amount of relief to him. He was glad he had met the mage-killer while he was only an Acolyte. Duncan had been a hard counter to his build and having him planted and in the dirt was a relief.

    ¡°Duncan was an asshole. A true believer and a skilled killer, but not someone who you invited over to dinner with the family,¡± Naomi said.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think you¡¯re supposed to speak ill of the dead,¡± Santi said. He was beginning to mentally ready himself for a fight if it came down to it. Mr. Murtaugh being allied with her made that difficult, but Santi had to hope Alan would hesitate to intervene long enough for Santi to kill the Apostate and her people if it came down to it.

    Santi didn¡¯t want that fight. He was wrung out, body shaky and depleted from the battle and exorcism. More than that, he was tired. Tired of the killing, the slaughter of fellow humans, of constantly standing over still corpses of people who should be rallying behind him to move forward.

    ¡°I won¡¯t. I will speak honestly, though. Something that I have always tried to impart to my daughters. That speaking honestly of someone, whether good or ill, is something to strive for.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re telling me that you and Duncan weren¡¯t close and that you aren¡¯t enraged that I killed one of your allies?¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t say that. I said he was an asshole. Regardless of that quirk of his personality, he was a companion, a brother in arms.¡± Her face had a hint of sadness at that, of years of companionship cut away.

    ¡°I will also say that his bloodthirst was becoming a problem. He wasn¡¯t so far removed from that curse bearer as he would have liked. He would say that he was cold and calculating, that he only killed those he had to, but he was a liar. He enjoyed it, the power of life and death over others and it corrupted him.¡±

    ¡°So, you¡¯re not going to swear an oath of vengeance and cause us to disrupt this temporary peace?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°No. I will bury him and give him his honors as he deserved. But, what I want is to have an honest conversation with an adversary.¡±

    ¡°Adversary? Not enemy?¡±

    ¡°When you intruded on our ritual, you were a skilled member of our enemies. But you weren¡¯t anything more than a thin file and some basic reconnaissance work for our spies. You had burned out your potential and had little to no desire to be a true warrior. It actually surprised me that you were the first in the breach, surprised Becky too.¡±

    There it was, that name. The one that kept twisting and changing in his mind. But for the first time, his conscious mind clung to the fact. That the walls of mist that rose up to consume his thoughts were battered back, held at bay as his conscious mind realized that Becky wasn¡¯t her real name, that the woman he knew was an Apostate and that she had done something to his mind.

    The mist faded away from his conscious mind and Santi was able to think about the revelations. His willpower had crept up high enough, and now that the curse was gone, he could fight against whatever magic or skill had been used on his memories.

    Naomi continued to talk and took the conversation away from his sudden clarity.

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    ¡°Seven of us were supposed to go back. To change the past to create a better future. We all had our own goals, all unified only under one condition. The furthering of the Patron¡¯s goals. You¡¯d be surprised by how much infighting that caused, all of us trying to decipher what exactly the Patron wanted from us. Our minds were too weak to hear his words directly, they would have broken us and maybe this reality itself if he truly paid attention.¡± Naomi paused and reached over to take a sip of her canteen before slowly leaning back, arms behind her as she cocked her head to the side. The move took years off of her, turning her from early middle aged to looking like a young woman again.

    ¡°And I messed it all up? By keeping Silas away from his position.¡±

    ¡°You did. I¡¯m glad you did. Silas was a monster. I saw one of his labs once, where he practiced his alchemy. It was horrifying. But he was following what he thought the Patron¡¯s goals were and the rest of the council agreed enough to let it continue.¡±

    ¡°So, they¡¯re all monsters but you?¡±

    Naomi laughed at that, a rich sonorous sound that was out of place only feet from a bloody battle. It was full of humor and goodwill, pleasing to the ear as her shoulders shook from mirth.

    ¡°No¡­no¡­we¡¯re all monsters. I led armies onto the battlefield and left nothing behind but graveyards. I broke through city walls, plundered, looted, and killed with the most blood drenched of them all. I slaughtered invaders in their sleep, lured them in with false peace deals, and killed them wherever they could be found. Did worse to my human enemies too.¡± She paused as Santi realized who she was.

    Each of the Apostates had specialized in something. Silas had apparently been the alchemist. The father of abominations and tortures that were impossible to understand. Duncan had been the silent blade, who left nothing behind but corpses and terror. Naomi was their general. The leader of their conventional forces, the forces he was most accustomed to seeing.

    ¡°I see the realization. You didn¡¯t know who did what. But, yes, I was the enemy general who you most likely know. From what Becky told me, you¡¯ve skirmished with my scouts before, stayed ahead of my vanguard and were instrumental in foiling several ambushes I prepared.¡±

    ¡°Was it you in Austin?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°Austin, Texas? Yes. Three dead Champions at the end of a two month siege and two destroyed incursion forces. It was good work.¡±

    ¡°I nearly died there. Got hit by an electrical array that you had on the far perimeter,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Saze. He was a good scout, careful and cautious. He was killed the next year outside of Jersey. Monster hunt that went wrong.¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t have all the time in the world to be passing war stories to each other. You obviously wanted to talk to me about something,¡± Santi said as he changed tracks. He didn¡¯t want to get caught up in the past, not while he had so many things to do.

    ¡°Yes, I want a truce. Hopefully a peace, but I want a truce for now.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡± Santi asked, trying to buy time to think it out.

    ¡°You¡¯re strong. You¡¯ve built a community that you should be proud of, managed to defeat a powerful threat, and you¡¯re not a monster. Not like the others. The invaders are coming soon and humanity will need to stand together, not be fighting each other.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s rich coming from you,¡± Santi said, snorting softly.

    ¡°We failed the last time. Our wars for dominance left us broken. Our world shattered. I have no doubts that if the final battle had occurred the way it was supposed to, that all my fellows would be dead. Along with plenty of the Champions you had brought to bear. We pacified North America, yes, but what about the rest of the world? We were weak and broken people, ripe for the taking. I don¡¯t want that future.¡±

    Santi was tired. The iron scent of blood filled his nose and the still corpses were only a few feet away. He was tired of the bloodshed, of burying friends. Of burying family. But, could he trust her? Could he afford not to?

    ¡°I¡¯m amiable to a truce.¡± Santi said quietly. He looked over to see Alan Murtaugh working his way toward them, Cam right next to him with Bianca trailing a few feet behind them with a smile on her face. She had rescued Alan, saved him from the insanity that had driven him in the future.

    ¡°Good. Because I need help. I have built a strong community, but you have fighters. Good fighters and in higher numbers than I do. Fighters who don¡¯t mind killing other humans, either.¡±

    ¡°I thought you just said you don¡¯t want to be fighting against other humans,¡± Santi asked, exasperated.

    ¡°I don¡¯t. I wish to kill monsters in human flesh. I wish to rescue those who are even now being enslaved, and I don¡¯t have the strength now to do it. Together we could do something to stop it. Can you imagine a fight that ends not with death, but freedom?¡±

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡±

    ¡°The Blackheart rift in Vegas.¡±

    Santi opened his mouth to retort, but the geas reacted as Alan and the others got too close for them to keep talking about being regressors.

    ¡°Is it not annoying? Anyways, we are tired and I want to say thank you for offering your hospitality for us to rest before we all head back to my base of operations,¡± Naomi said, loud enough for the others to hear.

    ¡°Good that you got that all worked out. Santiago, Bianca told me about Vicente. You have my deepest condolences, he was a damn fine man,¡± Alan said with sincerity. Alan and Dad hadn¡¯t been the closest, but they had shared beers during backyard barbecues and had always made small talk while the boys had sports events.

    ¡°Thank you, Alan. It¡¯s good to see you back and here with us. Back with family,¡± Santi said as he got to his feet. Alan folded him into a hug instantly and Santi relished the feeling. Another tragedy averted.

    ¡°Have you had time to check out the alerts, Santi? I got a ton of levels, I can¡¯t imagine how you¡¯re feeling,¡± Bianca said as she walked around to their side. Santi had glimpsed at the long list, but realized he needed to open them up. He glanced at Naomi sitting there, comfortable to remain on the ground even as they all towered above her.

    ¡°No, not yet. Let¡¯s get this place cleaned up and get the dead buried first. Would feel wrong to be celebrating personal gains when there¡¯s so many dead friends here,¡± Santi said. That brought a pall over the group as they slowly broke up and got to the business of cleaning the fight.

 Ch. 3.54 The Moments After

    54.

    ¡°It¡¯s all done?¡± Santi asked as he sat in the shade of the pillar. The afternoon had been a blur of burning and digging. Funeral pyres sent great billowing black clouds up to mingle in the heavens while the graves for Naomi¡¯s people had taken a few hours. She had insisted that each of her four dead had their own graves, her non-combatant followers had trickled in and had started showing their usefulness.

    Santi had been forced to push aside his jealousy at the well oiled machine that Naomi''s support staff was. They strippled corpses quickly and efficiently, harvested animal organs with ease, and helped clean as they worked. Even if Santi hadn¡¯t just lost nearly the entirety of his faction¡¯s Acolytes, they wouldn¡¯t have been able to match the level of efficiency of Naomi¡¯s cleaning teams.

    ¡°The last of the termites are being harvested and burned now. Our fallen are loaded onto travois to be carried home. All weapons and armor that can be salvaged have been secured.¡± Mom rattled off each point like she was going down a checklist. She had a bandage over her cheek, having waved off Tank when he had offered to heal it for her. The big man was exhausted but hadn¡¯t hesitated to try to heal every little scratch and cut.

    ¡°What¡¯s the final tally?¡± Santi asked.

    ¡°Heavy losses amongst the hunters and Rayleigh¡¯s teams. The rangers were nearly wiped out, but all the officers survived. Chad and Rayleigh are both badly injured but Tank was able to stabilize them. Frank didn¡¯t survive and Tristan is currently in charge of all the auxiliary groups. We should be ready to leave in a few hours,¡± Mom said. Torin was wading a few feet away in her shadow, Grimvr next to him as the two spoke in their native tongue.

    ¡°How are you doing? Are you alright?¡± Santi asked quietly.

    ¡°I believe that¡¯s my job to ask, Santiago.¡±

    ¡°I am fine. Tired, but fine.¡± Mom stared at him for a moment, her hardened mask cracking slightly as emotion showed through for the first time in a while. Grief, concern, anger, it all flashed across her features so quickly that Santi wasn¡¯t sure if he had actually seen it or if it had been a mirage.

    She took her shield off her arm, propped it and her spear against the pillar, then sat down next to him. Their shoulders brushed against each other as they sat there for a moment in silence. Santi could feel the tension radiating off of her and Torin glanced over at them with a concerned look for his protege.

    ¡°It¡¯s strange. All this. How can I protect my children against this? You three are all so much stronger than me. But I still want to protect my children.¡±

    ¡°We all protect each other. I don¡¯t think that anyone is strong enough to protect everyone,¡± Santi said. It was a slow growing realization that had been slowly blooming in his head over the last few weeks. No matter how much strength he accumulated, no matter how many resources he consumed, he could never protect them all by himself.

    ¡°It¡¯s hard to watch your kids grow up. It¡¯s harder to watch them put themselves in danger like this. After your father¡­after your father,¡± Mom¡¯s voice cracked a bit and the glimmer of tears were there for a moment before they disappeared in a slow blink.

    ¡°I miss his stupid jokes,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°They were the worst jokes,¡± Mom said, a slow smile crossing her face as she remembered.

    ¡°I only get sick on weekdays,¡± Santi started.

    ¡°Means I have a weekend immune system,¡± Mom finished with an actual laugh.

    ¡°That was a solid joke,¡± Santi said.

    ¡°Only the first ten times he said it. After that it was annoying,¡± Mom countered.

    ¡°I really miss him. He helped me realize I had to be human. While I was¡­waiting for you all¡­I became cold and hard. I only thought of growing stronger. Of becoming so strong nothing could hurt me again. I was the strongest person in the entire city and he still died.¡±

    The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°Santiago, is this a thinly veiled allegory about my own actions since your father¡¯s death?¡± Mom asked. There was no heat in her voice, but rather just a single raised eyebrow.

    ¡°No. Yes, but no?¡±

    ¡°We all grieve in our own ways, Santiago. Your father was a strong man and he always protected me. And I him, in my own ways. Losing him meant I lost part of myself and I had to find that piece I was missing. I found it in training with Torin.¡±

    ¡°I just don¡¯t want to see you become obsessed with it. Have it become the entirety of your life,¡± Santi explained.

    ¡°Thank you for your concern, Santiago.¡±

    ¡°What do you think of Naomi?¡± Santi asked, changing the conversation after recognizing his mom¡¯s tone of conversation being over.

    ¡°Alan likes her. Says she¡¯s very organized and runs a tight ship.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not an opinion.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve known her for two hours. She helped us in our fight and isn¡¯t cackling maniacally while rubbing her hands. Seems to be a decent sort.¡± Mom shrugged at that.

    ¡°It¡¯s great to see Alan managed to survive.¡± Santi had known the man would live, but seeing that he was still sane was a massive improvement over the last time Santi had heard of him.

    ¡°Cameron is relieved. It was tearing him apart not going to look for Alan, but after what happened with Abraham and how tenuous everything was at Homebase¡­he just never wanted to push leaving so soon.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s a better friend than I deserve.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯ll be another great son,¡± Mom said with a chuckle.

    ¡°Eeeewwww, mom.¡± She just laughed as they sat together. People began to trickle closer to them, including Cameron and Alan. The duo hadn¡¯t allowed themselves to be separated, working together in tangent while Bianca had stuck with Yessenia, giving the two of them time together.

    ¡°Everything is ready to go, Santi. Injured are loaded up and are stable to move. The dead are ready to be moved and everything of value has been extracted,¡± Cam said. Naomi was in a clustered huddle of her own people, slightly isolated away from the rest of the survivors.

    ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s head home and bury our dead.¡± Santi stood up, groaning in pain as his barely healed wounds protested. Mom grabbed her gear as he touched the pillar and thought of shrinking it down. The amount needed drained whatever he had left, including what he had picked up from the dead.

    Watching it shrink down until it was little more than a quarterstaff was always amazing. How something so tall could become both that compact and manage to not weigh a metric ton managed to befuddle him.

    ¡°Got these two, too Santi!¡± Cam said, hefting two more pillars up from the ground near a travois and offering them to him. Santi groaned inwardly at the thought of having to lug all three of the heavy staffs around, but he took them and laid them all across his shoulder. The moment he touched them he got a prompt for claiming them and accepted. There was no challenge period here for them since their owners were already dead.

    Another award popped up in his feed, but he added it to the long litany of levels and rewards he would go through once he got home and didn¡¯t have a new Apostate inches away from him. As Cam finished handing off the pillars, he shrugged off a small satchell and handed it to Santi a moment later.

    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡±

    ¡°Daniel found it out by where Duncan and his team launched their assault,¡± Cam said with a smile. Santi couldn¡¯t help but open the zipper of the satchel and look inside of it. His finger¡¯s brushed over objects that radiated mana, treasures or items that Duncan couldn¡¯t use in the fight.

    A small, smooth, orb, no larger than a marble, was near the bottom of the bag. Santi plucked it free, struggling to juggle the pillars and the satchel at the same time. Raising it up he saw it was an inky black sphere, power radiating off of it.

    Jewel of Shadows (Rare)

    Part of a collection of Affinity based Jewels

    ¡°Well what do we have here?¡± Santi whispered to himself, lost momentarily in the swirling depths of it.

    ¡°Looks like a black marble,¡± Cam said helpfully. The rest of the party had managed to get moving, soon leaving only Santi, Cameron, and Alan behind if they didn¡¯t start moving. Naomi had taken a double look at the jewel, but hadn¡¯t slowed as she marched with the rest down the streets and away from the scene of the battle.

    ¡°I think this is what his reward was from the dungeon. Why was he so obsessed with pushing through it even though we were underleveled? Also why did he kill his team?¡±

    ¡°Thought you said he killed them to get his final experience for his level?¡±

    ¡°A dungeon isn¡¯t going to give a rare grade reward to a full team. Not when everyone gets a reward. Even with us fighting up levels, it wasn¡¯t so far ahead that we all earned a rare grade,¡± Santi muttered under his breath. Cam had learned enough over the weeks to not ask how Santi knew when he had these little intuitive moments.

    ¡°Allright, enough whispering under your breath. You can go all Gollum on that when we get home and lay the dead to rest,¡± Cam said after another moment of waiting. Santi grunted and let the marble slide back into the satchell before following after the tail end of the rest of the group.