Joe had seen some things in the last week. He'd fought monsters made of flesh and blood that dissolved in flame. Magic had become real and quantifiable. All of that was obtainable by walking into glowing circles of colored fire that hung suspended in the air. None of it compared to what he saw next.

A red head poked its way out of the cornfield. Joe couldn't quantify what he was seeing at first. It was built like a dog but was the size of a motorcycle. Its snout ended in a crimson beak, and the entire head was red and bald, like a turkey vulture. Everything about this beast was wrong, and Joe shuddered at the look of it. This was a monster here on Earth. His instincts were screaming at him to get away.

The monster came out of the field and wandered over to the farmyard. It paused at the pile of vomit before sniffing and taking a lick. It sniffed around, staring at the barn before its attention drifted to the house's open door. With the languid grace of an apex predator, the red monster hound strolled inside and out of sight.

The smell of hay and straw tickled Joe's nose as the scent of death squeezed his stomach. He held perfectly still, barely daring to breathe as he stared at the field. Diana did not move to join him, but thankfully she didn't speak either. His caution was proven justified when a second head broke out of the field.

This monster hound was slightly bigger and had a massive head and chest. It was black and completely hairless, with a mouth almost double the width it would have been if it was proportional. It had flat white eyes and was obviously male—a mated pair of monsters here on Earth. The black monster looked around and then slowly headed straight towards the barn.

Joe shrunk back towards the straw. He motioned to Diana in a moving gesture and finished by putting his finger to his lips. She nodded and quietly moved back farther from the edge of the loft. Joe held completely still, barely daring a controlled breath. He could hear heavy footfalls entering the barn and more sniffing as well. The smell of death intensified, and if he wasn't so scared, Joe knew he'd vomit as well. The shuffling took it directly under the hay mow, and the fencing around the animal pen broke with a splintering sound.

There was a ripping sound and then the noise of something being crushed and eaten. Another bite and that awful tearing and grinding sound again filled the barn. After ten minutes, the monster moved towards the exit, dragging something as it went. Joe caught another glimpse as it exited, and this time so did Diana. The monster hound was dragging a full-grown sheep with no apparent effort.

Joe looked over at Diana. Her eyes were wide and wild. He made what he hoped was a calming motion and renewed his vigil on the farmyard below them. The red monster left the house a minute later, its face covered in blood and viscera. In its mouth, Joe can make out an irregular lump of flesh. The monster tossed it in the air before eating it in one bite. It was a human heart. The two monstrous hounds wandered through the area for a minute before heading back into the corn.

Five minutes passed, and Diana moved out of her low crouch next to the straw bales. She clears her throat, and Joe looks over with wide eyes and a shushing motion again. He wasn't sure, but he thought he only saw one ripple walking away through the cornfield. Joe noticed a bale hook sticking out of the stack near him and pulled it out. He threw it out of the mow and aimed for a spot that wouldn't be visible from the field.

The monstrous red hound burst forward from the edge of the field with a screech. It rounded the corner and stopped, sniffing at the hook on the ground. Joe didn't move as it sniffed around and lifted its head. The monster continued to sniff, and a low growl built in its chest and filled the surrounding air. Joe's blood ran cold as he realized it knew they were here. He didn't know if it could climb up here, and he was terrified he would find out.

Diana could see this monster for the first time. Her hands were covering her mouth, and she looked frozen. Joe didn't blame her in the slightest. He didn't know what to do either. There was no way they could outrun it, and he doubted that his bat would do enough damage to hurt the thing. They sat still and waited, barely daring to breathe for fear that it would draw the monster closer. It was all he could do not to shake when he heard it enter the barn. Its footsteps were deceptively soft, unlike the plodding thumps of its counterpart. The heat of the haymow had little to do with the sweat dripping down Joe's brow.

A horrible wail sounded out in the distance. It was guttural and sounded like a mix between a wolf's howl and bones shattering on rocks. The red monster lifted its head. The monster called back, mixing a vultures screech and a baby's cry. It ran to the farmyard and gave the barn one last look. The wail sounds again in the distance, getting further away, and this time the red hound bolted into the field at a full run. Joe could see the motion in the field as it races northwest towards its mate's call.

Joe's muscles unfroze, and he sank bonelessly to the ground. He gasped for breath, his hammering heart demanding more air. The fear still coursed through his mind. He didn't know precisely what those things were, but his instincts said they were stronger than the fox and that had almost killed him. Joe heard a thump as Diana mirrored his actions. He doesn't look at her, still staring at the corn moving slightly in the warm breeze.

"I'm sorry if I scared you. Is your arm OK?"

"What the hell were those things?" Her voice shook, and Joe looked over at her. She was still holding the knife, but her hands were shaking as much as her voice. Fear had widened her eyes, and Joe felt sorry for the woman sharing the loft with him. He'd been terrified, and killing monsters was his night job. Injury and potential death were par for the course going into rifts, and he'd found it hard to breathe through the terror. She'd saved him when the dice hadn't rolled in his favor. Joe knew what it was like to look certain death in the eye.

"Those were monsters. They were the first ones I've seen outside of a rift. They were stronger than anything I've seen in the rift so far." Joe paused and cleared his throat. He reached down and took a swig of minerally lukewarm water before continuing. "They were why I was yelling at you to stop. I visited the farm earlier and saw the carnage, though the monsters weren't here then. My fight with the Council started over their refusal to do anything about it."

Joe left out that the asshats attitude had been a big part of that fight. Now was not the time for talking. It was time to leave as fast as possible. Joe stood and grabbed the ladder before slowly lowering it to the ground. He checked to make sure it was stable before climbing on and looking over at Diana. She was still frozen, and the knife point had never left his direction.

"We need to get going. I don't know what they were after, but at their speed we don't have long to get out of here. I'm sorry I scared you, but we have to go. Once we're back in town I'll leave you be, I promise."

Diana did a slow blink, followed by another and a deep breath. She sheathed her knife and walked over to the ladder. Joe was already on the ground, looking around the corner for any signs of motion. He didn't see any, and he motioned for Diana to follow him. She was close behind, and they sprinted back towards the main road, cutting over the open field to save time. After that short time in the barn filled with death, the air never smelled so clean or sweet. Diana started to angle back towards town, but Joe spoke up.

"I need to go get my water jugs at the burnt-out store. You can head back if you want. I think it might be a good idea to stick together in case anything else pops out."

Diana's eyes darted at the primarily open landscape, looking for new threats everywhere. Joe hated bringing that up instead of asking her if she would stay, but it didn't make it a lie. She didn't say anything but nodded and adjusted course to match Joe's. They got to the store, and she took a momentary break to catch her breath. Joe was still fine, having slowed down a little to let her keep up. Still, he was impressed. Her speed would have been equal to his before the system.

They both stood in the shade of the remaining wall left to the store. Diana kept her distance, and Joe was careful not to make sudden moves in her direction. He continued to gaze back towards the farm. Joe was still unsure if it would even be a fight against those things, but he wasn't going to lay down and die. Diana took another drink of water and then turned to look at him, wariness in her posture and steel in her eyes.

"What now?"

Joe should have expected the question or something like it, but it left him flat-footed. Long-term planning hadn't been his strong suit for some time, and he was still getting used to giving a damn. What needed doing now was those two monsters had to die. It might be possible that they'd gotten that powerful just eating livestock, but Joe didn't believe it. Even if it was true, he knew it was only a matter of time. They'd held no fear of people or their proximity. Joe cleared his throat and looked over at Diana, meeting her eyes.

"I need to warn the town. No matter how I feel about the Council, people are going to die if I don't. Then I need to get strong enough to kill those things, because I doubt the Council will be able to."

Diana's eye's widened at his statement. Joe could see the wheels turning at the audacity and insanity of his statement. He wasn't going to throw himself to his death, but the time to turn a blind eye to the world around him was passed. The world itself was insanity and getting worse with each day and each new living nightmare that stalked its expanse. Joe was used to being alone, but he'd realized that one man wouldn't fix this mess. A community might have a chance.

"I'm tired of running." The words were spoken softly, almost to himself, before he carried on with a firmer voice. "I need help. I don't know anything about the area or the people. I could help you in the rift. I know just how terrifying they are, but they are the only way to get stronger."

Joe looked up at her again and waited for her reply.

"I need a minute to think."

Joe nodded and turned around, watching back the way they came. Time seemed to crawl, but he resisted the urge to rush her decision. He knew how fragile his family's departure had made him for the last two years. Everyone had scars of some type lately. Diana only took a minute to speak, though it felt infinitely longer.

"Here's the deal. We head back to town, and I find a new place to live. It will have separate floors. If I catch you on my floor, I'm gone. You help me with that god-forsaken hole in the world until I'm strong enough to survive on my own, and I help you stop whatever the fuck those things were."

Joe looked back at her and smiled. He'd been told he had 'resting angry face.' When he was thinking or concentrating, he tended to frown. This didn't have any of that but was an open and friendly smile that looked out of place on his typically intense face. He nodded and went to pick up his water jugs before gesturing back towards town.

"I'm Joe."

"Diana."

Diana picked herself up, and they jogged back towards town without another word. She turned right at the first road and headed east, straight towards the creek. She seemed to have a destination in mind. Joe was curious but saved his breath for the run. Diana turned her head slightly to glance at the man jogging behind her. Joe didn't notice. His eyes continued to scan their surroundings, clearly alert for any danger. Plain City was a small town, and their destination came into view twenty minutes later.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Second-story office in downtown Plain City

Frank looked out over the small downtown area. People milled around, heading towards the edges to continue their work or the community food hall the Council had set up. A day's work earned you a meal chit. Food was the only commodity that mattered right now, but Frank knew that would change. Eventually, the coins those damn rifts spat out would take over. People loved bright and shiny things once they had a roof over their heads and something to eat. Most people were simple that way.

He could see the edges of the fence going up around the closest houses and felt a stirring of pride at the accomplishment. The Council would see all these people safe and protected, whether they wanted it or not, and he was the Council here in Plain City. Frank turns back to the other man in the room. He's a messenger from Columbus. Frank had made him wait long enough to show who was in charge and signaled for the man to speak.

"Here is the report. I don't know what's in them this time, it's very hush hush. They did mention that there won't be any supplies this week. Any future messages and shipments will have guards. We're almost out of gas and saving it for emergencies."

Frank nodded and dismissed the man, who left without another word. He'd expected as much, though he was annoyed that they'd left him hanging in the wind. He had no choice. Rift runs would be mandatory unless you were a guard or growing food as soon as the fence was done. The first teams to come out had been missing people, but that was an expected cost. Work camp teams would never be an ideal solution, but they were expendable. Those miracle berries that came out of the rift changed everything. All the chaff was expendable in the face of acquiring more of those things.

The other Council areas had rifts, but no one shared what came from them. Frank sure as hell hadn't mentioned magic berries or what they could do. He made sure to tell them about poison thorns and snakes, though. No one wanted to die, and poisoning was a nasty way to go. It would all be worth it if it kept the other areas from sniffing around until he'd consolidated his power. A man yelled his name downstairs, and two heavy sets of feet thumping up towards him broke Frank out of his thoughts.

"Frank! Something came out of the corn again. It got one of the Millers to the northwest."

"Come in and shut the damn door. I don't need people panicking."

The two men did as they were told before continuing. They were flushed and agitated, but Frank had instilled obedience in the other Council members. He stared at them for a few seconds before he asked his questions.

"Which one did it get? Did anyone see anything?"

The two men looked at each other before the one on the right spoke up.

"It got Billy. The youngest daughter was watching from the upstairs window, but she's not talking. She just shakes and sits on her bed. No one's gone out to check, but everyone heard the sounds. He's not coming back out."

Damn. Billy was sixteen and pliable enough that Frank could have turned him into a great worker. He couldn't have any more stupid losses like this if his plans were to succeed. He didn't need to force the scowl that clouded his face at these thoughts. Something was roaming west of town. Frank hoped that if he got everyone in the walls, whatever it was would move on in search of an easier meal.

"Send out messengers in trios. Everyone is to come into town. Make sure they know the details from the Millers and aren't shy about spreading it to get people moving. They don't have a choice if they're kids or working age. Bring them in."

Frank turned in his chair to look out the window, signaling their conversation was done. The two men left almost as quickly as they came, and Frank watched them leave towards the nicer houses in the downtown area. The council members had claimed those and left the dormitory-style living to the strays they'd gathered. It wasn't a sustainable solution, but Frank knew he'd have less population pressure to worry about once rift running became mandatory.

The sealed and taped manilla envelope in his hands felt heavy, and he stopped putting off opening it. A dozen pages fell out onto his lap, and he ignored the individual reports for the summary that always precluded them. Frank's face grew grim as he read the words written on the page. It was just a handful of sentences, but everything Frank had expected and feared was there, waiting for him to read it.

Columbus City Center Lost

Multiple higher-level rifts were confirmed.

Monsters sited outside of rifts.

Council staff pulled back to the secondary site.

Council pulled back to Worthington, Dublin, and Powell

New headquarters based in Powell.

All future reports will be sent to Powell through Dublin.

Run the rifts

Detailed reports of all rifts are required

Get your people levels

Rifts spit out monsters if not run regularly

Frank resisted crumpling the papers into a ball and throwing them. He'd needed a few more weeks of preparation before this happened. He'd have to hope that the rest of the Council had their hands full until he was ready. It was far too late to think about going back now. People needed a leader, and Frank knew he was the man for the job.