Chapter 5

Adrian tramped downstairs and got a concerned look from both Jules and Charlotte. He gave them a thumbs up and helped himself to the food. There was a fresh potato salad along with a host of different side salads. Even what looked and tasted like a mango salad? His identification focused on the orange fruit pieces and regional knowledge kicked in.

Tuouralac Fruits

It was an Alpha plant that produced fruit only slightly larger than a grape. They were tough like coconut and difficult to process, but if you could, the internal flesh resembled a mango. Someone with significant strength had gone to work to create the salad. Unapologetically, he scooped a large proportion before grabbing the meat and went and sat at the kitchen table.

Jules parked herself on the seat next to him.

Adrian swallowed and looked at her. “I only ever saw the result of your fight with the shintopurs. How did it go?”

Jules shrugged. “It was barely a battle. Their arrows couldn’t hurt us and then we nuked them from afar.”

“It was a bit more sophisticated than that,” Mike complained.

“So, you got the four of us who could physically stop arrows on one side,” Jules said dismissively. “The rest set up behind a ranged projectile barrier, and then we walked up to them. Your instructions were, I quote, ‘When you get close enough, blow them apart with magic.’”

“Yep,” Mike said with satisfaction. “It worked brilliantly just as I predicted.”

“That easy?” Adrian asked Jules, amused by the byplay.

“They set up a shield wall. Like forty of them packed real dense. I hit them with a lightning cloud. Then we walked through and executed them. It was nothing to do with Mike’s planning.”

“The Branawartha mages raising earth defences behind was important. It basically made it clear they had no chance of flanking us. Otherwise.”

Jules shook her head in disgust, and to Adrian, it did not sound like much of a battle plan. If the creatures were stupid enough to clump, the battle was always going to be a foregone conclusion. “Good job.”

Mike laughed, ignoring Adrian’s sarcasm. “We had them over-matched. It helped that you had wiped out their southwestern front. They were so scared of that invisible threat they met us head-on. Instead of running and regrouping”

“How did you know about that?”

“We found them in the clean-up operation,” Mike said with a shrug. “I have the cores.”

“I’ll take half,” Adrian said instantly. “Apart from one shitty snake, it was a good day. What’s on for tomorrow?”

“Springhurst,” Mike reminded him. “We can probably skip it and make Wangaratta before dark if we do.”

“No,” Adrian rebutted. “We should at least check that they have everything under control.”

“Yeah, hopefully we will get waved on.” The other man sounded doubtful. “But there are no major threats according to the badge, and the locals thought the same. But they have been cut off for two weeks.” The why was obvious.

“Are we really doing that, being heroes?” Jules asked.

“We have been the whole way,” Adrian said.

“I know, but you.”

“Yes, I complained continuously. Will the detour irk me? Maybe, but we should still do it.”

“Good,” Jules said, smiling. “With great power comes—”

“Extra servings of pig,” Adrian interrupted, standing and heading back outside.

The rest of the night went smoothly. Adrian drifted from group to group. The bashers were happy with their decision to come. Most had got a nice boost of experience, but all of them had received the closure of revenge. They were country guys and girls and not as squeamish as a city slicker like him. Overall, they were happy to have, if not ended the threat, at least materially reduced it. His own extended team was thankful they had not had to kill the juveniles.

He slept peaceful and in the morning before everyone was up he did some targeted mediation and set off the process of attuning the taraliginc feather for the spear. The process was going to take twenty sessions each twenty hours apart. It would be worth it eventually but it was not a high priority for him.

They went through Chiltern, just in case. Adrian had the tiny proportion of his feather settle in his stomach as he used its power. He could feel his personal core growing and his control and understanding of air mana at the same time.

Distracted as he was Adrian did not participate, but the rest of the group for the entire passage through the town was actively yelling. Hoping to find additional survivors, praying that their incessant shouting would encourage some starving person to crawl out of a bolt hole. The situation made Adrian cry despite himself.

The town had survived at least for a while, and then it had been broken. By the time they had gone all the way through and there were no responses, his tears were spent. The locals were less restrained, which he did not judge. For half of them, this graveyard was filled with their friends. As pathetic as the shintopurs were against something stronger than them, they were nothing but devastating, deadly efficiency against anything weaker.

Adrian shivered. He remembered that monkey town from the regional knowledge dump when he first learned about shintopurs. Barnawartha would have gone the same way if they hadn’t struck first.

His team said the goodbyes and Adrian let them, stabilising his own breathing. These locals were alive because of him. There was nothing he could have done to save Chiltern. His only choice was to keep going. A day here and there to help or hopefully stabilise a town was a worthwhile change. He was powerful and when he reached Melbourne, he doubted retirement would be an option but at least he would get to spend time with his family in between saving communities.

With the core group around him, they headed toward Springhurst. Adrian took one flank and the other two rangers the other. Adrian relaxed a bit. To do his job and the group safe, he kept scanning his surroundings while stepping from one concentrated herb patch to another.

Just before lunch, Adrian caught sight of the watcher. He was perched right in the crown of a big gum tree. Without the bonuses from the training facility, Adrian doubted he would have noticed him in time.

Step, step.

“We have company,” he announced, nodding towards the giant tree. “Everyone wave.”

He started waving, Jules and Praveen, their tank, joined enthusiastically.

There was a pause as their watcher clearly considered what to do. Then he shifted slightly and made a come here gesture before settling back into his watcher’s position.

“Fair enough,” Adrian whispered. Personally, he respected the man’s response. He had kept his discipline and his job wasn’t to look for humans.

They jogged over.

“Hi,” Jules yelled up. “Can you talk?”

“Yeah,” a youthful voice yelled down at them. “But I need to keep watch.”

“What for?”

“Monsters!” the kid yelled back.

“Anything specific?”

“Shintopurs and whatever else is out there?”

“The shintopurs are dead,” Jules told him.

“Hey, can we head into town,” Mike interrupted Jules.

“Yeah, I’ve already sent a com.”

“Keep up the good work,” Mike said, and they continued towards town. “That was great discipline. Did you see how his head rotated continuously even when he was talking to us?”

“Yep,” Jules answered.

Mike nodded authoritatively. “The town’s organised. They’ve bought pathway books for their scouts.”

“What?” Jules’s voice was incredulous. “You could tell that.”

“My class,” Mike reminded them. “These guys have a battle strategist helping or are just smart.”

Springhurst, when they reached it was clearly a tiny town, but it was equally clear that it was functional, even houses on the outskirts of town were occupied.

“Is that armour on a line?” Omala asked, pointing. It was the second house on the road and its hills hoist washing line was still functioning and had armour strung on it. There was also a welcoming party. Level 15 Enforcer, Level 14 Fire Mage, Level 14 Healer. The trio was standing in the middle of the worn down road.

“Easy mate,” the fire mage called out when they were within twenty metres. He was old with a thick blond beard. Tough man of the land type. “Hold there.”

Mike stopped, hands out in a gesture of peace.

“Some mighty impressive levels you have there.” The man was mainly staring at Jules.

She smiled sweetly in response.

Then his eyes landed on Adrian and then flicked to Omala. “All of your levels are impressive. What do you want with us?”

“Hopefully, a bit of information and we will be out of here in no time,” Mike said calmly. “Unless you need help?”

The blond chewed on something, looking thoughtful. “Bloody oath. It doesn’t matter against these guys. Stand down, boys.” The female tracker behind the blond rolled her eyes. “Luke warned me, but I thought he had got it wrong.”

“Do you need help?” Jules asked.

“No,” the fire mage answered.

“Yes,” the woman disagreed, stepping forward. “Forgive my idiot cousin’s manners. My name is Mary and welcome to Springhurst. We need help.”

“What with?” Mike said instantly.

“They are called suicide meerkats.”

Adrian activated regional knowledge.

Suicide Meerkats.

While they look like their namesakes, they are a highly evolved Alpha monster. They are pack hunters and they can propel themselves like a bullet to do considerable damage. They rarely survive these attacks, but it allows the pack to fight off stronger enemies.

There were images along with the description. They looked cute till the videos started. One of those flying into an unprotected warrior had an impact similar to a direct hit with a cannon ball.

“We can help,” Mike declared after a moment. “How big is the infestation?”

“A hundred acres.”

“It will take at least an afternoon,” Mike mused looking at Adrian as he spoke. “But we can probably finish today.”

Mike was looking at him as he said this.

Adrian gave a thumbs up. There was no way he was going to veto. He was happy to save the world one town at a time, provided it did not cost him to much time.

“You guys have no idea.” the enforcer declared before the protest was squashed by Mary grabbing his arm.

“Thank you?” Mary said. “I can take you there now. It is about five kilometres out. Horses?”

Adrian winced at that. He did not want to ride a horse, remembering how sore he had been last time.

“We will walk,” Mike declared, having obviously concluded that waiting for horses would cost time.

“Or run,” Adrian suggested, causing groans all around them.

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