Chapter 27: A Walk In The Park, pt. 2

Quest:A Walk In The ParkDifficultyBGiverKaraTime Limit12 hoursSeveral packs of Occuloraptors have appeared in Everglade National Park. While a city is not at risk, many tourists are, especially one group which is being chased.Reward150 EXP

30 silver

Random accessory

50 fameConsequence For FailureDozens will die

"Damn it," Tom cursed. "I was hoping for more time."

"A quest?" Reia asked.

"Occuloraptors are terrorizing a tourist group. Alright, considering that we haven't had enough time to prepare, we'll have to change up our strategy. Reia and I will be taking point in our movement. Vivian, I want you to stay close to Tala and Sylmae. Tala, Sylmae. You are to keep your distance away from the action and use your long range attacks."

The friends nodded in acknowledgement.

"Before we go onto the battlefield, you three need codenames in order to protect your identity outside of battle. Hmm." Tom rubbed his chin. "Really wish I had more time to think of names so I'm kinda throwing them out there. Vivian will be... Terra."

"Sounds good," Vivian said.

"Tala will be... Pyre."

"Oh!" Tala gasped.

"And finally Sylmae will be..." Tom noticed Syl looking at him with a look of curiousity. "Tempest. While on mission we use these names. Understood?"

"Right!" they all said.

"Great. Invite Vivian to Party. Invite Sylmae to Party. Invite Tala to Party."

VVVVVV

Tom and his group teleported into the swamp lands. They were ankle deep in the muddy water. Tom groaned as he lifted up one foot.

"Really? Right into the water?"

"Aren't you the one who teleported us here?" Sylmae pointed out.

"I know. I was chastising myself. I can control Fast Travel precisely at short range. Long range travel is a lot trickier. Anyway, mission mode. There's a nearby tourist group. Inventory."

The Inventory window appeared in front of Tom. He reached into it and pulled out a pair of radios. Tom passed one of the radios to Reia. "Reia, I want you to fly up and search for any nearby tourists. Call it in as soon as you find them."

"Got it," Reia said as she flew up into the sky.

"For now, we need to find a path. Ah, there we go."

Tom pointed towards a slightly elevated walkway just thirty meters away. He moved forward with Vivian, Tala and Sylmae behind him.

"I've never heard of a Occuloraptor," Tala said.

"I've fought two of them before," Vivian mentioned.

"Oh, you have?" Tom said.

"They are not particularly strong but they are dangerous in large groups. I was level five at the time and just two of them gave me trouble."

"Why's that?" Sylmae asked.

"Because they have the ability to turn invisible."

"I have some of the basic knowledge of them, but nothing about how their camouflage works-"

A large creature launched out of the water and attacked Tom. It clamped onto his right leg. Tala and Sylmae jumped back from the sudden movement. Vivian raised her hammer to attack.

"Wait!" Tom yelled at Vivian. "Don't attack."

With the water finally off of the creature, Vivian could see what exactly was biting Tom's leg. It was a three meter long reptilian creature with a rounded snout. It struggled against Tom's leg trying to roll in place.

"It's just an American Alligator," he assured them.

"Doesn't that hurt?" Sylmae asked.

"A little. He's not doing too much damage against me. I'm just seeing two damage every other second." Tom bent over and lightly smacked the gator's snout. The smack was hard enough to make the alligator let go of his leg. Tom grabbed the tip of the alligator's snout and directed him away from his party. "Come on, buddy. It's a bit dangerous for you to be here."

The gator let out a guttural growl before swimming off deep into the swamp. The group quickly reached the dirt pathway and then followed down the direction that Reia flew in.

"We should be safe on here," Tom said in relief. "We have enough trouble with Occuloraptors not having to worry about gators. Back to the previous topic. Terra, what do you know about their invisibility?"

"Oh, right!" Vivian paused, before answering Tom, as she wasn't used to her codename. "Occuloraptors are hard to hunt because they can become invisible. I do not know how to cancel out their ability. I found that the best method in dealing with them is using my Earth Manipulation skill to spread dirt clouds around me to coat the creatures."

"So you can see them while invisible," Tom mused. "Very smart."

"Thunder, look!" Tala called out.

Tom looked in the direction of where Tala pointed and saw an alligator corpse. The party approached the four meter long gator. The body was torn apart and blood was spread across the group. All that remained of the gator was the tough hide on its back and roughly half of its skeleton.

"How many Occuloraptors were here?" Sylmae thought out loud.

"Many," Vivian answered. "Especially to take down a creature of this size."

"How many is many?" Tom followed up.

"More than the two I faced."

"That was very helpful, Vivian," Sylmae said sarcastically. "Very helpful."

"What do you expect? I'm a Warrior class not a Hunter class."

"Shh!" Tom hissed. "We don't want to get attention earlier than we need to."

"Thunder, do you hear me?" Reia called in over the radio.

Tom held up the radio and replied, "Loud and clear, Aurora."

"I believe I found the tourist group. They're held up inside a small building. I can't see the monsters but I see a lot of water splashing and dirt rising off of the ground."

"What's their position?"

"Uh... I somewhat lost track where you were."

"Look around you. I'm about to launch a Fireball into the air."

"Got it."

Tom raised his hand above his head. He glanced up to make sure no trees would get in the way.

"Fireball."

A ball of flame launched from his hand at a great speed and went into the air. After it reach a height of a hundred meters, it withered away into nothing.

"I saw it!" Reia said. "I'm roughly one kilometer north-west of your current position."

"We'll be right there. Do not engage the enemy until we get there."

"I'll be waiting."

Tom clipped the radio to his belt and looked to the others. "You heard her. We need to double time it to save those people."

Tom ran in pace with Syl, Tala and Vivian in the direction Reia reported in. At the speed they were running, they covered the distance in a few minutes. When they got close to the small building, they stopped behind some bushes to scout the area.

Reia landed on the ground behind them.

"I'm not completely sure, but I believe that the tourists are in the building ahead," Reia reported. "Those Occuloraptors seem to be staying close to that building so there must be something in there."

The building ahead was a small green park centre. The windows were blocked by furniture placed in front of it. One of the Occuloraptors was headbutting the front door of the centre with little success.

While the monsters were invisible, the group could see dirt fly up off of the ground and water splash in the nearby water areas. Tom immediately began counting each disturbance. He mumbled quietly as he quickly counted.

"Seventeen," he concluded. "There are seventeen Occuloraptors in the area."

Tom focused on one disturbance in the water.

'Identify.'

OcculoraptorLevel8RankCHealth575/575TypeUncommonA bipedal reptilian/avian creature that is fairly intelligent. Standing roughly four feet tall at the hip, Occuloraptors are vicious predators that can turn invisible almost indefinitely. They tend to hunt as part of a group to take down prey stronger than themselves. This monster's main weapons are its razor sharp teeth, claws and sickle inner claw on each foot.ResistancesPhysical0%Disease45%Fire15%Plant20%Ice-20%Earth0%Lightning15%Water0%Wind0%Spirit0%Light0%Darkness0%

"Deadly bastards," Tom said to himself.

"How do you want to handle this?" Sylmae asked.

"There's too many to just rush in and take them on. I can't guarantee Tala's and Sylmae's safety if we do that. In this case, we'll have to fight smart and I think I have something. Vivian what's the most you've done with Earth Manipulation?"

"Making walls. Once used it to make a small makeshift shelter."

"Hmm. Okay, we're going to run a three prong attack. Reia, I'm going to need you to take Tala and Sylmae, and place them in a tree."

"O-Okay," Reia replied in a confused manner.

"While up in the tree, I'll need you two to use your ice magic to attack any Occuloraptors you can. Reia, you'll need to defend the base of their tree from any Occuloraptors that may try to climb up after them."

"Protect my sisters, got it."

"I've never used my magic in a combat situation," Tala reminded him, "but I'll do my best."

"Same here," Sylmae added.

"I know you two won't let me down," Tom assured them. "Now Vivian you have an important role to play in my plan. Do you see that large pool of water with dirt all around it?"

Vivian looked in the direction Tom pointed and saw the pool of water. It was roughly six meters long and three meters wide. The water wasn't too deep with the deepest part at half a foot.

"I see it," Vi replied.

"I want you to build a dirt hut over the entire thing," Tom told her. "With a ceiling and just tall enough for me to run through it. Have the front end open and the other sides walled up. Just leave a small hole for me to escape through on the other end. Take this Mana Potion to help you in this task."

Tom pulled out a Mana Potion from his Inventory and passed it to Vivian.

"And how does that help?"

"We're going to make a roach hotel for Occuloraptors," Tom chuckled.

"A what?" Sylmae muttered.

"We're making a trap. When the dirt hut is ready I'll get all the raptors to chase me into it. Vivian will seal it up behind the raptor pack. I escape through the other end and Vivian shrinks my exit hole enough to prevent the raptors from getting through. I then zap them. Everyone understand the plan?"

"Yes," the all replied.

"Then move out. Once you are all in position, I'll go kick the hornet's nest."

Vivian quietly moved towards the pool of water. Reia wrapped her arms around Sylmae and Tala. She unfurled her wings and flew up into the air towards one of the trees with thick branches. Reia cautiously placed Tala and Sylmae onto the branch.

Sylmae pulled out her bow and notched a wooden arrow. Tala slightly adjusted herself on her seat and pulled out her staff out of her Inventory. Reia flew down to the base of the tree and pulled out her spear.

Tom watched as everyone got into their positions. He pulled out his sword and held it out in front of him. Tom took a breath in and shuddered as he released it. This was his first mission he went on since he nearly died in Russia. His confidence took a hit from that quest. Despite the weak enemies of this mission, he was still nervous. The others waved to Tom to signal that they are ready to fight.

"Mission start," Tom said to himself.

Tom ran forward towards the park centre while yelling. "Over here! Come on!"

The disturbances stopped around the park centre. Tom then saw the creatures move in his direction. He held up his hand to fire off magic at the approaching creatures.

"Chain Lightning."

Blue and green electricity fired from his hand towards the raptors. Tom's attack missed the raptors and harmlessly impacted the ground. The pack of raptors split up into two groups charging at Tom.

"God damn it," he growled under his breath. Tom raised his sword and charged it up with a Lightning Strike. He swung his sword while yelling, "Surge Strike!"

An arc of magic energy launched forward from his sword towards the creatures. As the attack approached the creatures, Tom noticed they quickly jumped over the attack.

'Another bullshit enemy,' Tom thought. 'Only one thing I can do at this time.'

Tom turned around and started running away. As the Occuloraptors chased Tom, Sylmae fired her wooden arrows as best she could at the Occuloraptors. Each of her attacks missed as she didn't have a high enough Perception to see the creatures. Tala also had as little effect on the monsters with her magic.

"Are you okay, Thunder?" Reia yelled out to Tom.

"Just lovely," he replied back. "Everything is great."

Tom turned in place and used Fast Travel to teleport past the raptor pack. The sudden movement, made the raptors take a sharp turn and fall over onto the ground. The mud and dirt that they rolled in covered their sides making them visible.

"We can see them now!" Sylmae yelled out.

Sylmae notched an arrow and fired it. The arrow hit one of the raptors in its side making it grunt in pain. She saw a window pop-up stating the attack did thirteen damage against the creature.

"Let me try," Tala said as she aimed her staff. "Fireball!"

A large fireball launched from the crystal of the staff and flew towards the raptor that Syl attacked. The flames surrounded the raptor making it fall to the ground. The Occuloraptor rolled on the ground to put the flames out.

Seeing the raptors were now visible. Tom twisted his torso towards the pack. He lifted his hand for another attack.

"Chain Lightning!"

Lightning struck one of the raptors. The lightning jumped from that raptor to three other raptors. Each of them screamed in agony from the attack but they still had enough strength to keep going. Tom saw small windows pop up over each of the raptors showing the damage he inflicted with his lightning attack. While Chain Lightning wasn't as strong as his Lightning Strike, it was still strong enough to take off twenty percent of their health.

"Thunder!" Vivian called out. "It's ready!"

Tom looked over and saw the dirt hut that Vivian built. It was large and the walls were thick. It was just large enough for his trap. As he ran, Tala, Sylmae and Reia launched range attacks to keep the raptors from catching up to Tom.

"Get ready to close it behind me!" Tom reminded her.

Tom ran at full speed towards the dirt hut. The raptors were gaining on him to the point where he could hear them huffing. He went into the hut and saw a small hole at the end. It was just large enough for him to fit through.

The raptors went inside the dirt hut after him. They were so focused on the prey right in front of them that they didn't notice Vivian standing on top of it waiting for the last of the Occuloraptors to enter inside.

"Gotcha," she whispered as she sealed the front entrance of the dirt hut.

Vivian quickly turned and saw Tom jump out of the hole she had placed for him. She held out her hand and used her magic to close the hole behind him. Tom fell onto his knees on top of the dirt hut. He had a dopey smile while breathing a little heavily.

"Good job, Terra," he congratulated her. "Damn good job."

Vivian smiled at the compliment. The two could hear the raptors inside trying to claw their way out.

Tom got up to his feet and said, "Okay, now open up a small hole about yea wide." He held out his hands about a foot apart.

"No problem," she said as she held out her right. "Oh... I don't have any Mana left. Okay, no big deal."

Vivian held up her hammer and held the head downwards. She slammed it down creating a hole roughly the size Tom wanted.

"There we go," she said, being proud of herself.

"Stand back."

Vivian pushed herself back a couple meters. She stood there and watched. Tom looked down the hole to see a great stir in the area below.

Tom held his hand back and growled as the electricity surged around his arm. He roared as he flung his arm forward and fired off Lightning Strike into the water floor.

The electricity surged through the water and into each of the Occuloraptors. All of the raptors screamed as the high voltage attack coursed through their bodies.

"Tough little bastards," Tom muttered.

"They are," Vivian said. "They are more resilient than they look."

Tom nodded and then, without a word, followed up with another Lightning Strike into the hole. The remaining raptors alive let out a squeal before going quiet. Vivian saw Tom nod after his action. She thought he was going to stop but he immediately used another Lightning Strike. There were just a few raptors that whimpered that time.

Tom saw Vivian staring at him. "Just to make sure," he explained.

17 Occuloraptors are dead

You gained 2040 EXP

Occuloraptors have dropped 10 Occuloraptor hides.

Occuloraptors have dropped 7 Occuloraptor Mura Glands.

Tom has levelled up!

Reia has levelled up!

Sylmae has levelled up fourteen times!

Tala has levelled up fourteen times!

Vivian has levelled up three times!

"Over two thousand experience!" Vivian exclaimed. "I spent months and months to reach level fifteen!"

"My Agent of Kara title does give me and anyone in my party a two times multiplier of experience gained."

"Three levels in one go is crazy. Oh boy, do I feel that level up fatigue."

"Oh no," Tom said in a gasp. He looked back to Sylmae and Tala. The two looked exhausted after levelling up fourteen levels in one go. They swayed back in forth as they struggled to sit upright. "Aurora! Catch them!"

Reia looked up and saw Tala and Sylmae weave back and forth on the tree branch before falling off. She tossed her spear to the ground and opened her arms. Reia managed to grab Syl and Tala and then fell to her back to help decrease the force of the fall.

"Are you two okay?" Reia asked them.

"Y... Yeah," Sylmae replied weakly. "Just... really tired."

Tala let out a loud yawn.

"You two just levelled up too fast," Reia said. "We just need to get you two an energy drink and you'll be as good as new."

On the other side of the area, Vivian noticed Tom looking around the area with his sword still drawn.

"What's wrong?" she asked him.

"The quest isn't over yet," he answered.

"What?"

"A window hasn't come up saying we've completed the quest."

The team then heard the front door of the visitor centre open and a man walked out. He was slightly overweight and wore a light brown vest and shorts.

"Ya'll did it!" he exclaimed. "You killed those monsters!"

"Get back inside!" Tom yelled. "It's not over!"

"Wha- Ugh!"

The man tried to respond but was cut off. A line of bloody holes appeared across his stomach. He looked down to look at his wound. His shock made him repeatedly gasp. The man was then lifted into the air by several meters. At this point the man screamed with all the strength he could muster. It caused a chill to run down Tom's back.

Another line of bloody holes appeared slightly below the original. The man was then pulled in two separate directions and torn in two. With blood on their lips and their presence known, the monsters lost their invisibility to reveal themselves as extremely large Occuloraptors.

The creatures looked similar to the raptor dinosaurs in Earth's past. The two monsters that stood before his group were easily two to three times his height. What was the most distinguishing feature of the giant Occuloraptors was that their skin and claws were black. It wasn't a regular black either. They were as black as ventablack. They looked like a void in space. This made them very hard to look at.

"Oh, fuck..." Tom mumbled.

"Those are some big Occuloraptors," Vivian muttered.

Alpha Occuloraptor (male)Level16RankBHealth1545/1545TypeUncommonA bipedal reptilian/avian creature that is fairly intelligent. Standing roughly four feet tall at the hip, Occuloraptors are vicious predators that can turn invisible almost indefinitely. They tend to hunt as part of a group to take down prey stronger than themselves. This monster's main weapons are its razor sharp teeth, claws and sickle inner claw on each foot. As an Occuloraptor becomes stronger, they grow in size. Occuloraptors have been reported to grow as tall as five meters at the hip.ResistancesPhysical0%Disease45%Fire15%Plant20%Ice-20%Earth0%Lightning20%Water0%Wind0%Spirit0%Light0%Darkness0%

Alpha Occuloraptor (female)Level17RankBHealth1560/1560TypeUncommonA bipedal reptilian/avian creature that is fairly intelligent. Standing roughly four feet tall at the hip, Occuloraptors are vicious predators that can turn invisible almost indefinitely. They tend to hunt as part of a group to take down prey stronger than themselves. This monster's main weapons are its razor sharp teeth, claws and sickle inner claw on each foot. As an Occuloraptor becomes stronger, they grow in size. Occuloraptors have been reported to grow as tall as five meters at the hip.ResistancesPhysical0%Disease45%Fire15%Plant20%Ice-20%Earth0%Lightning20%Water0%Wind0%Spirit0%Light0%Darkness0%

The two raptors swallowed their pieces of meat and then turned their attention to Reia, Syl and Tala. They briefly hooted to each other and then charged forward.

"Aurora, get them out of here!" Tom ordered.

Reia wrapped her arms around her sisters' waists and spread out her wings. As she lifted off of the ground, Reia realized how awkward it was to hold onto Sylmae and Tala. Their bodies were limp in her arms and were constantly sliding in place.

"Crap," Reia groaned as she struggled to hold her sisters.

Tala's body shifted under Reia's arm forcing her to quickly land on the ground to stop her from falling. Reia cursed herself for trying to fly with the two instead of simply running. The two Occuloraptors were just ten meters away. Reia held up her spear ready to fight back to protect her sisters.

Sylmae and Tala looked up in terror as the two giant monsters charged towards them. Before the two raptors got within striking distance, Tom and Vivian went in to attack. Vivian slammed her hammer into the male raptor's side, and Tom jump-kicked it in the head. The attack sent the male raptor into the female causing the two to fall to the ground.

"Are you three okay?" Tom asked the sisters.

Syl's and Tala's mouths were agape seeing the attack.

"Y-Yeah," Syl replied. "Th-Thanks."

"Listen, I want you two to get to safety," Tom told them. "Aurora can you take them out of sight somewhere?"

Reia nodded in the affirmative.

"Terra and I will take these two on."

"W-Wait!" Syl gasped out. "Your weapons... Show them to me."

"Are you sure you're strong enough?"

Syl nodded.

Tom and Vivian held out their weapons.

"Ice Enchant," Syl casted towards Tom's sword. She then turned her attention towards Vivian's hammer. "Ice Enchant."

Sylmae then passed out.

"Sylmae!" Tom called out.

"It's okay," Reia assured him. "She's just exhausted. Go fight the raptors. I'll watch over them."

With a better hold on her sisters, Reia ran off towards a thick gathering of trees. In this time, the two raptors rolled back onto their feet. They hissed at Tom and Vivian.

Vivian flicked a switch on the bottom of her hammer. She then swung her hammer to the side. The single-hand handle suddenly extended into a two and a half foot long handle.

"Huh, didn't know you could do that with your hammer," Tom commented.

"Different situations require different weapons," Vivian said. "The hammer does more damage in this mode."

The two Occuloraptors continued to charge towards them. Despite their size they were very fast.

"Keep on your toes," Tom advised Vivian.

"I got this," she said as she moved forward.

The male Occuloraptor lowered its head to attack Vivian. She swung her hammer and struck the raptor in the side of its face. The attack made it squeal out and fall past Vivian.

The female raptor aimed for Tom. He hopped on his two feet to help confuse the raptor about what direction he would run. The female's head moved side to side in accordance to Tom's movement.

At the last moment, Tom ran directly at the female to confuse it. The female raptor raised its head in response to Tom's sudden action. He went underneath the creature and slash at its stomach as he went between her legs. The female Occuloraptor screamed from the attack. She turned and hissed at Tom.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Vivian slamming her hammer down on the male's head repeatedly while it was down on the ground.

'She might be even more brutal than me. Better not piss her off in the future.'

The female raptor charged at Tom again.

"You don't seem to learn from your mistakes," Tom growled.

Tom raised one hand and yelled out, "Fireball!"

A ball of flames fired from his hand and blew up around the female's face. Fire surrounded her face, blinding her. Tom ran forward and charged fire into his blade. As the flames died down around the raptor's face, the raptor was able to see Tom briefly before he roared, "Surge Strike!"

An arc of fiery energy erupted from Tom's sword and went through the neck of the raptor. It head flung off of its body and landed next to Tom. The body flopped to the ground in front of him. He breathed a sigh of relief with the creature's death.

Tom looked over to Vivian and saw that she had beaten the male's head into a bloody pulp.

"A bit overboard isn't it?" Tom said to her.

"It kept trying to move."

CongratulationsYour party has defeated two Alpha Occuloraptors.

You gained 1360 EXP

Alpha Occuloraptor (male) has dropped 1 Large Occuloraptor Sickle Claw, 1 Large Occuloraptor Hide and 1 Occuloraptor Hide Vest.

Occuloraptor Hide VestRankBDurability250/250Damage Resistance+5%Element Resistance+5% Darkness and EarthEffectsMakes it harder for the wearer to be seen, +10 AgilityA sleeveless vest made from the hide of an Occuloraptor. The void black colour of the vest messes with a viewer's eyesight..

Alpha Occuloraptor (female) has dropped 1 Large Occuloraptor Sickle Claw and 1 Large Occuloraptor Mura Gland.

Vivian has levelled up two times!

Sylmae has levelled up two times!

Tala has levelled up two times!

CongratulationsYour party has completed the quest: A Walk In the Park.

"Oh man, Syl and Tala are probably dead at this point," Tom joked.

Vivian laughed. "After they reached level seventeen within a hour, yeah."

"They are dead," Reia said in jest as she carried her two sisters over. "Tala was barely able to keep conscious while you two fought. She passed out as soon as she levelled up twice more."

"We'll take them back right away," Tom said. "I just need to check on the tourists. Wait, right here."

"Go ahead, we're good here," Reia said.

Tom ran over to the visitor centre. The furniture was piled up in front of the doors. He pounded his fist against the door.

"It's Thunder," he said. "It's clear."

After a moment, someone walked over and pulled down the furniture. She opened the door.

"A-Are they gone?" she asked hesitantly. The woman had tears in her tears and was shaking.

"They're gone," he said. "It's safe. Is there anyone who needs healing?"

The woman shook her head. "No. No one is injured. Just really shaken up."

"Okay, I'm glad to hear. Listen. It'll be safe to go along the trails now. I just need you to spread some news for me."

"What news is that?"

"Tomorrow. Tomorrow, everyone will know everything."

VVVVVV

Grace Cooper sat at her desk in a dimly lit room while doing research on her computer. The wall next to her desk was covered in photos and notes. Grace has spent days reviewing every minute of footage she could find of Thunder to try and find clues of his identity.

From the footage, she was able to come to several conclusions. First, she has to agree with the Spanish cop's assessment that Thunder is Canadian. She has known enough Canadians to tell the difference between their accent and the accent other English-speaking countries. Next, the tone, pitch and energy of his voice places the individual's age between eighteen and thirty-four years old. In the videos, she could see glimpses of his skin and was able to determine he is African-Canadian.

A list of physical attributes is not enough to find his identity. Grace expanded her search onto the internet. Knowing the man is Canadian she could focus her search for odd news in Canada. The individual seems to be getting stronger with every appearance he makes. Grace concluded that he must be training his powers in some manner. Based on his abilities, Grace was able to narrow down her search of unusual events. Unexplained weather phenomenon. Sounds or appearance of lightning when there isn't any clouds. Unusual acts of arson or unexplained fires. Miracle healings. Anything within the last month.

Unexplained acts of arson was ruled almost immediately. Every news article concerning arsons or fires were not out of the ordinary. Miracle healings caused a series of Christian websites to show up. Grace narrowed the search to remove these websites. Eventually she came across some interesting news stories.

The first news article was about a woman with an inoperable brain tumour. It suddenly vanished from her head saving her life. More of these articles of people being cured appeared in greater frequency. A man cured of AIDS. A child freed of leukemia. Grace looked into these people. While they lived in different locations, Grace was able to determine something they all had in common. Each of these people all have visited Royal Elizabeth Hospital within the last month.

Grace narrowed her search even more by focusing on the city the hospital is based in. There she found everything she has been looking for. On the same day as the monsters appeared, a month ago, an unusual purple storm appeared in the area that quickly vanished. This storm was similar to the ones that have been appearing before each monster appearance. At this time, many people have connected the two.

A final article was about an extremely loud and unusual animal roar that was heard right after the purple storm. Grace slapped her desk in excitement. She hasn't felt a thrill like this in years and now she was close to finally unravelling one of the greatest mysteries in modern history.

Grace pulled out her encrypted cell phone and dialled the President. It rang twice before he picked up.

"Grace?"

"I believe I found him," she said.

Forest was quiet for a moment before he replied, "Are you sure?"

"You know me, Michael. I'm sure. I'll send you over my research, but I need a flight to Toronto."

"I can get you that flight. Can you leave in a few hours?"

"I can."

"I'll contact the Prime Minister MacNeill and we can get you a CSIS agent to join you. Do you need any other help?"

"Just the CSIS agent. We don't want to spook him. Just two people will be enough. Tomorrow we'll know everything that is happening to our world."

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Author's Note:

Sorry for the wait, had many issues with this chapter and had to basically throw it out and redo it.

Anyway a detail about the Occuloraptor. I thought it would be interesting that a creature that could turn invisible would be ventablack (I know this is a substance not an actual colour) in colour as its skin colour. Basically opposites. They either reflect all light or absorb all light.

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Character Stats:

Spoiler :

StatusNameThomas "Tom" EverettLevel23Experience16870/17310ClassMagic BladeRaceHumanAlignmentGoodCurrencyCanadian$10,510,014.23Xoth0 platinum 4 gold 96 silver 30 copperTitleClever One, Determined, Giant Slayer, Vaccinated, One Of The First, Sole Survivor, Generous Healer, Interpreter, Selfless LoverBuffsAgent of Kara2x experienceBestiary of Xoth+10% damage towards the creatures of XothBrief History of Xoth+10% persuasion chance and friendliness towards the inhabitants of XothDebuffs--Health1260Health Regeneration/min34.32Mana1200Mana Regeneration/min41.92Stamina1200Stamina Regeneration/min8.3Fame3950Infamy0Strength126Intelligence120Wisdom131Perception59Endurance120Vitality104Agility83Luck91Unallocated Points5

ResistancesPhysical44%Disease/Toxin89%Fire44%Plant44%Ice44%Earth44%Lightning44%Water44%Wind44%Spirit44%Light44%Darkness44%

SkillsIdentifyMaster Level 2PersuasionIntermediate Level 1Language ComprehensionMaster Level 10Book LearningMaster Level 10TeacherBeginner Level 6NonchalantMaster Level 10Lightning StrikeIntermediate Level 6Lightning EnchantIntermediate Level 6Lightning ShieldIntermediate Level 3HealIntermediate Level 4PurifyIntermediate Level 5Sword SkillIntermediate Level 6DisguiseIntermediate Level 8PrayerMaster Level 10Hero's CallMaster Level 10Fast TravelMaster Level 10Loot CollectorIntermediate Level 3Magical RepairMaster Level 2TacticianIntermediate Level 3CookIntermediate Level 8Mixed Martial ArtistBeginner Level 8Club SkillBeginner Level 2Trap MasterBeginner Level 8UnbreakableBeginner Level 5FireballIntermediate Level 1Fire EnchantBeginner Level 9Bow SkillBeginner Level 9Surge StrikeIntermediate Level 1Enhanced BodyIntermediate Level 3Enhanced MindIntermediate Level 2Chain LightningBeginner Level 4Group HealBeginner Level 4Enhanced SpellsBeginner Level 10Enhanced ResistanceIntermediate Level 4SM TransferMaster Level 10Computer SkillBeginner Level 10MassageBeginner Level 5LoverBeginner Level 4

StatusNameReia ZyerLevel22Experience12385/13850ClassLancerRaceNagaAlignmentGoodCurrencyCanadian$0.00Xoth0 platinum 4 gold 75 silver 14 copperTitleUnknown, Giant Slayer, Determined, Life SaverBuffs--Debuffs--Health1620Health Regeneration/min9.9Mana470Mana Regeneration/min4.7Stamina1030Stamina Regeneration/min10.8Fame3950Infamy0Strength162Intelligence47Wisdom47Perception55Endurance103Vitality99Agility108Luck91Unallocated Points10

ResistancesPhysical24%Disease/Toxin100%Fire24%Plant24%Ice24%Earth24%Lightning24%Water24%Wind24%Spirit24%Light24%Darkness59%

SkillsIdentifyIntermediate Level 8Weapon RepairIntermediate Level 6Armour RepairIntermediate Level 3Weapon CraftingBeginner Level 9Armour CraftingBeginner Level 10Accessory CraftingIntermediate Level 1Spear SkillIntermediate Level 8Clothing ReformMaster Level 3Ice SpikeBeginner Level 6Wind ShieldIntermediate Level 3Wind BladeIntermediate Level 6HealIntermediate Level 4Club SkillBeginner Level 1Sword SkillBeginner Level 9PersuasionIntermediate Level 1Power StrikeBeginner Level 10Enhanced ResistanceBeginner Level 8Group HealBeginner Level 1FlurryBeginner Level 1Spiral ThrustBeginner Level 1Enhanced DodgeBeginner Level 1Language ComprehensionMaster Level 10PurifyBeginner Level 1

StatusNameSylmae "Syl" LyvanLevel17Experience3550/3625Class-RaceElfAlignmentGoodCurrencyCanadian$0.00Xoth0 platinum 3 gold 54 silver 71 copperTitleUnknown, DeterminedBuffs--Debuffs--Health440Health Regeneration/min3.6Mana410Mana Regeneration/min4.3Stamina520Stamina Regeneration/min5.7Fame50Infamy0Strength44Intelligence41Wisdom43Perception56Endurance52Vitality36Agility57Luck76Unallocated Points80

ResistancesPhysical15%Disease/Toxin100%Fire15%Plant15%Ice15%Earth15%Lightning15%Water15%Wind15%Spirit15%Light15%Darkness50%

SkillsIdentifyIntermediate Level 5Language ComprehensionMaster Level 10Bow SkillBeginner Level 5Ice SpikeBeginner Level 2Ice EnchantBeginner Level 9Ice ShieldBeginner Level 2HealBeginner Level 8SlowIntermediate Level 8Group SlowBeginner Level 3PurifyBeginner Level 1

StatusNameTala MauLevel16Experience3550/3625Class-RaceBeastkin (Feline)AlignmentGoodCurrencyCanadian$0.00Xoth0 platinum 2 gold 37 silver 87 copperTitleUnknown, Book Enthusiast, DeterminedBuffs--Debuffs--Health360Health Regeneration/min4.6Mana840Mana Regeneration/min7.1Stamina360Stamina Regeneration/min3.7Fame50Infamy0Strength36Intelligence84Wisdom71Perception39Endurance36Vitality46Agility37Luck76Unallocated Points80

ResistancesPhysical15%Disease/Toxin100%Fire15%Plant15%Ice15%Earth15%Lightning15%Water15%Wind15%Spirit15%Light15%Darkness50%

SkillsIdentifyIntermediate Level 5Language ComprehensionMaster Level 10FireballIntermediate Level 3Fire BarrierBeginner Level 2Fire EnchantBeginner Level 9Fire ShieldIntermediate Level 3FlamethrowerBeginner Level 3HealIntermediate Level 3Group HealBeginner Level 5PurifyIntermediate Level 1Ice SpikeBeginner Level 4Wind BladeBeginner Level 3Lightning StrikeBeginner Level 1Water BlastBeginner Level 8Rock ThrowBeginner Level 1EnchantmentBeginner Level 9AlchemyBeginner Level 6InvisibleBeginner Level 8Bubble ShieldBeginner Level 2DispelBeginner Level 6

StatusNameVivian "Vi" TerrabaneLevel20Experience5895/8865ClassWarriorRaceDwarfAlignmentGoodCurrencyCanadian$0.00Xoth0 platinum 28 gold 42 silver 93 copperTitleUnknown, Determined, Giant Slayer, Explorer, Lone AdventurerAdventurer Guild Rank6Buffs--Debuffs--Health810Health Regeneration/min7.1Mana410Mana Regeneration/min3.4Stamina790Stamina Regeneration/min4.2Fame300Infamy0Strength81Intelligence41Wisdom34Perception56Endurance79Vitality71Agility42Luck76Unallocated Points25

ResistancesPhysical15%Disease/Toxin100%Fire15%Plant15%Ice15%Earth15%Lightning15%Water15%Wind15%Spirit15%Light15%Darkness50%

SkillsIdentifyIntermediate Level 9Language ComprehensionMaster Level 10Hammer SkillIntermediate Level 8Rock ThrowIntermediate Level 2Earth EnchantIntermediate Level 3Earth ShieldIntermediate Level 1Earth ManipulationBeginner Level 7HealIntermediate Level 1PurifyBeginner Level 1Club SkillBeginner Level 1Sword SkillBeginner Level 1