~~~~~~~

Jake

~~~~~~~

Jake watched Alejandro as he tightened the belts that he was using to hold his ridiculous shield on while Alejandro watched the small group that had volunteered to go out today.

Sandra was spinning her metal pipe in weaving patterns like some kung fu master and Bradley was leaning on his own pipe, his face a very obvious picture of fear.

Jake shook his head internally at him but Bradley had still joined when Alejandro asked for help.

Jake had only heard about the snake afterwards, not seen it himself, at least not alive anyway. He suspected the young man was trying to thank Alejandro for pulling him out of its belly and he had to hand it to him, getting swallowed by a giant snake and still being willing to go out the next day. The kid had some guts.

“Ah,” Alejandro said. “There she is.”

Jake and the others turned at his words and looked towards the woman that had just walked out of the building. Her long dark hair was loose and framed her cinnamon tinted face that had been further browned and creased by years spent in the sun.Beside her was a man wearing, of all things, a suit and tie.

“Everyone, if you haven’t met, this is Saira. She will be helping us find any survivors out there.” Jake resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He didn't volunteer to look for weaklings hiding in their houses, he simply needed more arrows and he wasn’t quite ready to roam around solo until he had a better understanding of the threat level.

Introductions were passed back and forth while he double checked his arrows. "Only ten… have to make every shot count." He thought.

The man in the suit, Wilson Peters, was all smiles and handshakes and 'thank you for your bravery' bullshit. "Oops. I mean 'Commander' Peter's," he corrected himself sarcastically. The man was a blowhard coward, and Jake couldn't wait to be gone from this place and its dumb ass 'Commander'.

Jake paused his mental degradation of Wilson when he saw something odd. A leaf on the ground had moved against the faint breeze. His eyes, which had improved greatly with the new world, jumped to a twig a few feet closer when it was flattened and then bounced back. "Something is there."

His hand was sliding an arrow from the quiver when a young woman appeared out of thin air.

“I’m coming too…” she said, and Alejandro jumped when he suddenly noticed the other woman standing next to him.

She had the same skin tone and hair color as Saira and looked very similar to her at least from what little Jake could see of her face that was hidden behind her hair and pointing at the ground. Very likely they were sisters or…

“No you are not!” Saira snapped as she turned, dark eyes blazing. Or they were mother and daughter…

The girl lifted her head and a younger version of the first woman’s face was revealed. “I’m coming…” she insisted.

"I said…" Saira started but was interrupted by the younger woman shouting. "No!"

Jake blinked in surprise as she vanished in front of his eyes. "That's a neat trick."

"I'm an adult." she continued in a quieter voice. "You can't tell me what to do." She slowly faded back into sight as she spoke.

Saira spun on Alejandro. "Tell her she can't come." She demanded.

"I don't…" Alejandro started.

"I can help." The young woman interrupted, her voice was determined and Jake noted the baseball bat she was gripping in one white knuckled fist.

When Alejandro looked over and met her eyes she quickly looked down, breaking eye contact and Jake noticed that she became slightly translucent again.

"Can you control that ability?" Alejandro asked her.

"Reasonable question," Jake thought.

She straightened and faced Alejandro while becoming fully visible again. "Yes." She almost immediately looked away and started fading out of sight. "Mostly… it's actually easier to stay invisible…" She trailed off, her voice getting quieter as she spoke.

"You can't let her come with us!" Saira almost shouted.

Jake shook his head and glanced at Sandra. She just shrugged and rolled her eyes. Jake looked past her towards the gated entrance to the street and gestured for her to lead the way. She turned and they both headed for the exit.

Alejandro sighed behind them. "This is a volunteer trip. If she wants to help, that's on her." Jake looked back where the younger woman had been but couldn’t see her.

"I could have just followed and you wouldn't have known." A voice came out of the air.

Saira started saying something in a language he didn't know and gesturing vaguely towards the air.

Alejandro just turned away and rejoined the others who had all started walking towards the complex gate now.

"My name is Mar," a voice said quietly next to him as Alejandro caught up and Jake didn't break his stride but did glance back as he walked, to look at Saira still standing and yelling at nothing behind them.

He heard a very faint giggle and ‘Mar’ faded back into view.

"Saira!" Alejandro called back. "You coming?"

She looked their way and saw her daughter walking next to them. She yelled something and started trudging after them and he turned his focus ahead as they walked through the gate and out onto the street.

They walked less than half a block before Alejandro suddenly said, "Hold up." He stepped ahead of the group and pulled his sword free as something moved and rustled in the bushes across the street.

Jake felt his heart rate pick up as he grinned and nocked an arrow to the bow string.

Alejandro braced his feet and lifted his car door in preparation for an attack. "Good luck blocking anything with that," Jake thought.

A rabbit hopped out of the bushes and onto the grass, a normal tiny little bunny. Its nose wiggled and its ears twitched as it looked at the group of wary humans.

Alejandro relaxed and stood up straight. “I guess not everything got big…”

A brown blur slammed into the rabbit and resolved into a squirrel the size of a large dog. The rabbit squealed once and vanished into the squirrel's mouth.

“Holy shit!” Bradley yelled.

Alejandro hefted his shield and raised his sword. “Get ready!”

The squirrel took a step towards them with angry chittering sounds. Jake pulled his bowstring back and started channeling Mana into the arrow.

The oversized squirrel shot towards them and Alejandro stepped forward and smoothly smacked it backwards with his shield. The squirrel bounced back upright before suddenly turning and dashing away.

Jake held his shot when he heard something, right before Mar yelled from somewhere to his right, “Above!”

Before Jake could look up, something swooped down in a rush of wind and the squirrel was crushed under a massive hawk.

"Fuck me…" Jake started channeling more Mana into his arrow even as he started calculating which way to run once shit hit the fan.

The hawk was the size of an elephant or maybe a giraffe with the way it towered over them, even with its wings folded it was huge. It looked at them, its head twitching and turning in small quick motions.

One clawed foot lifted up the squirrel and its hooked beak ripped half of the body clean off and swallowed it. Its head twitched more as it eyed them before quickly swallowing the rest of its kill.

Everyone was taking slow steps backwards when it suddenly spread its wings and screamed at them. Jake’s ears were ringing when it flapped its wings and a wall of wind threw him and everyone else tumbling across the pavement.

Jake stopped rolling and got his free hand under him, the other still clutching his bow. He raised his head, hoping to find the arrow he’d dropped, just in time to see the hawk pounce.

A simple hop launched it into the air and then straight down towards Bradley lying on the ground below.

“He’s toast,” Jake had time to think before Alejandro shouted something that he couldn’t understand over the ringing still in his ears.

Jake felt Mana surge from the other man and Alejandro suddenly blurred through the air and came to a stop standing over Bradley with his useless van door held up as a shield.

“Time to fight or run.” Jake had one foot under him and was reaching for another arrow when the wickedly curved, sword-like talons slammed into the door. There was a boom and Alejandro dropped to one knee but his shield held.

“How the…” Jake blinked and pulled his arrow back on the string, lining up on the hawk with Mana already flowing into the new arrow when he saw the strange symbol now visible and glowing brightly on the other man's improvised shield.

It gave him a strange feeling when he looked at the glowing pattern but he ignored it and tore his eyes away, focusing back on the hawk.

The bird had hopped back, away from Alejandro when the light flared and its head once again twitched back and forth while its wings remained spread wide. "That wingspan is at least a hundred feet," Jake noted absently.

He felt its eyes pass over him and held his breath and his shot. He wasn’t sure if he could kill the bird with one shot and he really didn’t want it to decide to come his way if it turned out not.

He was trying to aim for the bird's eye but with the way its head was twitching he was not optimistic about the shot so instead he aimed for a wing joint and funneled even more Mana to the arrow. "Go big or go home."

The hawk took a moment to look them all over before Alejandro took a single step forward. The bird seemed to shy away from the glowing symbol and Alejandro took another step. That was apparently enough and the bird decided they weren’t worth the trouble. Its wings swept down and the bird shot into the sky.

Jake followed it with his eye’s and his drawn arrow, squinting against the sudden wind, just in case it was planning to dive again.

But it didn’t and he watched it soar far into the distance until even his new and improved eyes could no longer track it.

The sound of someone crying brought his attention back to earth and he found Bradley curled up where he’d fallen. “I can’t do it…” he sobbed. “I… I… I’m sorry…”

“He’s too soft...” Jake let the Mana slowly fade from the arrow while he started looking for the one he’d dropped earlier.

“Don’t worry about it Bradley.” Alejandro said softly as he helped the younger man up and started leading him back to the gate. "Let's go back."

Jake stopped listening and picked up his fallen arrow. While he inspected it for damage, Jake walked over next to the only person here that he actually cared about, at least a little, and fell into step beside the lightly tanned brunette.

“Sandra,” he nodded at her. “You good?”

He’d had a small thing with her before this all started, though it was never serious. They had met at the apartment complex gym and afterwards they had occasionally met up for more enthusiastic one on one workouts.

She glanced at him with a small smile. “Thought you were gonna kill shit and get stronger,” she said with a slightly teasing tone. “The bird got away.”

Jake smiled. “I just didn’t want it to fly away with my arrow.”

“Sure, sure.” She laughed. “Impressive block though.” She nodded towards Alejandro.

He looked over and nodded. “Very…” The symbol on his shield was no longer visible and it once again just looked like a normal van door. “I like his shield. Didn’t think it would hold up against that…” He trailed off.

“Me neither.” She shook her head.

Jake saw Wilson coming through the gate as they approached. "Must have heard the commotion." Alejandro said something quietly to Wilson and the man smiled and patted Bradley on the shoulder before ushering him back towards the complex.

"By the way…" Wilson said as he turned back to them. "Alejandro, do you know what the deal is with this building?” He pointed at the nearby three story apartment building. "It is named 'Three'?"

“It’s great!” Alejandro said cheerfully and Jake saw the scowl flash over the other man’s face almost too fast to see.

“I mean…” Wilson said. “Why can't I access its permissions in the Fort Interface? Also, do you know a Lee Cascade?"

Alejandro just looked confused. "That's my neighbor but I have no idea what the rest of that means.” Then he smiled. “You know my wife, Maria? Just ask her, she might know.” Wilson looked confused now. "She is in there with the children." Alejandro gestured towards the building.

"Ok… will do." Wilson nodded and turned away.

Alejandro called after the man. "Tell Maria to get the lookout off the roof before that bird comes back!" Wilson waved and kept walking.

Jake hid his grin. “Alejandro, you are an evil bastard.”

He knew the man’s wife, not from before but from just this morning. That was enough.

Jake thought Alejandro was a bit naive and trusting but with that woman watching his back… Well he knew better than to get on her bad side. When Alejandro had told her that Jake was coming with him on this outing…

If the bird had killed Alejandro, then Jake would have run all right, run far away from here lest he wake up with a knife in his heart.

He knew she’d had at least three knives on her person when he met her and one was in her hand. Not in plain sight of course, not with the kids all around, but Jake had seen that look in her eye. She was on edge and more than ready to kill anyone or anything that even thought of going after the children.

Jake shuddered slightly at the memory.

Maria had definitely seen some shit in her life and he would bet anything that she had handed out more than some of it herself. "God save anyone that fucks with that family," he thought, as he watched Wilson walking away to go bother the woman herself.

“By the way…” Sandra whispered quietly next to him. “Have you seen that invisible girl since the bird showed up?” She was looking around. “Think she got stepped on?”

“Nah,” Jake said calmly. “She is right over there.” He pointed towards the grassy area next to the gate.

“Where? I don’t…”

“Look at the grass.” Jake told her. “You can see her footprints.”

“Well I’ll be…” she murmured. “Good eye.” She grinned. “Let's go say hi.”

They both wandered over and saw the footprints in the grass move to the side as they approached. “Hi… Mar was it?” Sandra said cheerfully while looking in the other girl's direction.

“You… You can see me?” The voice coming from the empty air sounded almost panicked.

“Yep.” Sandra said grinning at the same time Jake said. “No.”

He glanced at Sandra who only laughed.

“Look at your feet.” He told the invisible girl. “If you're going to be sneaking around you need to watch where you step.”

“Oh.” She slowly faded into view, her eyes downcast. “Thanks,” she said quietly.

“Also I bet the beasties will still be able to smell you,” Jake said. “and anything that hunts by heat as well,” he added.

“Oh.” Mar nodded slowly, looking intently at the ground and starting to fade again.

“Relax, Mar.” Sandra said softly. “You have a great ability. We are all figuring this out together.”

Mar became fully visible again and looked up enough to smile at the other woman. “Thanks.”

“Besides,” Sandra said with a big smile, “at least it makes your clothes invisible too.” She grinned wickedly. “Imagine if you had to run around naked like in the movies.”

Jake had time to see Mar flush bright red before she squeaked and vanished. Sandra just laughed and even Jake had to chuckle at the girl's reaction. Before they could tease her anymore Alejandro called to them and they all wandered over. Jake saw Bradley walking back inside with Wilson and raised an eyebrow at Alejandro. “He done?”

Alejandro nodded. “Yes. He is still shook up from the snake.” He shook his head. “I told him he didn’t need to come but…” He glanced at Saira who was standing next to him and then back at Jake. “He is going to try his hand at wall construction instead.”

Saira was scowling and looking around, likely looking for Mar, and Jake could see her hand trembling even though she tried to hide it.

Alejandro glanced at her again. “Where’s Mar?” he asked.

“I’m here.” Mar appeared before he could point her out by her feet scuffing the pavement and the sound of her breathing.

Jake saw relief on Saira’s face but it was quickly replaced with a scowl. The woman opened her mouth but before she could say anything Alejandro turned to her.

“Saira, Wilson said you could heal?” The woman hesitated and then turned to him.

“Yes. A little.” She glanced over to the grassy area nearby. “Are you injured?”

“I think my arm got cracked by that bird,” Alejandro said. “and I’d rather not go back to my wife for healing just yet…”

Jake felt goosebumps rising along with the feeling of eyes on his back. “Good call.” He shivered.

“Come over here,” Saira said as she walked onto the grass. “I need to be near nature for this.”

“Interesting,” Jake mused as he watched Alejandro unstrap his shield from his arm and then hand it to Jake.

He was studying the shield and trying to figure out what was going on with the Mana inside it when green light flashed in the corner of his eye and he looked up again.

Saira stood with a hand on Alejandro’s arm and her eyes closed. A green glow was coming off her hand and flowing into his arm which Jake could now clearly see was swollen and forming a bruise. Yet even as he watched, the bruising faded and the swelling shrank until his arm looked normal again.

Saira stepped back, her breathing a bit elevated and Jake could see a faint sheen of sweat on her brow. “You see.” The woman gestured at the ground and Jake’s eyes widened. The grass in a rough circle below her had withered and dried up. “It’s a transfer of life from nature to you.”

“I do see.” Jake was thinking of the possibilities when she continued. “It only works on plants… and it kills them." She looked a bit sad for a moment.

"Thank you, Saira." Alejandro smiled at her and stepped over to Jake for his shield.

Jake held it for him as he started trying to get the belts back around his arm. "Nice shield, did you use a skill to block the bird?"

Alejandro laughed, somewhat nervously. "Actually I couldn't use my skill in time." He said. "But the Rune worked even better than I expected!" He grinned at Jake and thumped his fist on the door.

"Rune?" Jake asked.

"Yes!" Alejandro gushed. "My neighbor put it on."

"Like an enchantment?" Jake questioned, now very interested. "Can he do anything else?"

Alejandro nodded and then looked down the street. "Let's get moving first. I'll tell you on the way. Everyone, close group,” he told them. “Saira in the middle.”

They formed up into a triangle with Alejandro at the front. “Mar you are our scout,” he said to the empty air. “Everyone else, I want eyes in every direction and don’t forget to look up.”

He looked over the team. “If you see anything, call it out but stay in formation. If something comes after us let it get to me or me to it and then form up behind me. Keep everything away from Saira."

Alejandro turned and looked down the street towards their destination. “We’ll go down the middle of the street,” he said. “Eyes open.”

They set off at a slow walk, everyone nervous and jumping at every rustle or gust of wind. Despite the fact that it was a beautiful day with warm sunshine and fluffy white clouds none of them could fully enjoy it.

"Saira, can you do your thing while walking?" Alejandro asked and she nodded and whispered something under her breath. Jake felt some very faint Mana sweep past him.

"Nothing here big enough to be human," she said. A few minutes further down the road and she did it again. "There is life in that house." She pointed. "But I don't know if it is human or something else of similar size."

"She has a life sense." Jake realized. "Useful."

They found a scared young woman hiding alone in the house and since they were still in sight of the gates to Greenfield, they walked her back to the gate.

Apparently Wilson had assigned someone to guard the gate because the main gate had been closed but someone popped open the pedestrian gate when they approached. They left the terrified woman there and continued the walking search back down the street.

Most of the houses they passed looked untouched but a few had obvious holes in walls or roofs. And a few were little more than piles of rubble.

Saira’s skill could reach the houses on both sides of the street but not much further. Alejandro claimed that everyone here should have seen the message about the Fort but would have to actually go to the apartment complex to get the invite to join.

They did find more people and while some headed to the Fort alone, most opted to wait for an escort on the return trip. No one volunteered to join them in the search.

Alejandro told Jake about the Runes creator as they went, about how he needed more Attributes, though he was obviously not telling everything from the way he kept cutting himself off as if trying to remember what not to say.

Jake didn't mind, he still hadn't told anyone what his class or skills were and he didn't plan to either.

Despite the nerve-racking start they all managed to relax, somewhat as they encountered nothing else to fight on the way to their destination.

When they walked around the last corner and could finally see the shopping center, everyone slowed and stopped. Jake noticed that the few bird calls, from normal sized birds, and the faint sounds of nature had all faded somewhere behind them. Looking over what was visible of the parking lot, he understood.

It was carnage. Blood stained the crushed walls and pavement in the corner gas station. The grocery store across the parking lot behind the gas station was burned almost completely to the ground. Wisps of smoke still floated up from the ruin and diffused into the sky.

As they crossed the street and approached the wrecked gas station, many of the blood stains and splatters could be seen stretching and trailing away. Almost like drag marks…

Sandra glanced at him and Jake could see that she had noticed the same thing. They kept walking, weapons at the ready and Jake felt another ripple of Mana radiate from Saira.

"Nothing alive in there," she said softly as they passed wide around the destroyed gas station.

Alejandro nodded but said nothing, his eyes following the blood trails towards the superstore further away.

They all followed behind him as he crossed the parking lot, past far too many cars, some untouched while others were torn apart with bloody trails leading away. Finally they all stood in front of the shattered glass doors, most of them with pale faces and clammy skin. The blood trails all led to the door and the entryway was covered in a red brown stain of dried blood while the air was thick with the smell of it.

Someone gagged and Jake saw Mar appear and double over next to an untouched car nearby. He saw throats moving as the others swallowed back their own revulsion.

Mar finally finished and flickered in and out of sight as she rejoined them and stopped next to her mother. Saira glanced at her briefly and Jake saw her hand discreetly clasp onto her daughter's. They all stood together and peered through into the dim interior of the superstore.

"Saira..." Alejandro started quietly.

Mana pulsed from the woman and she opened her eyes and swallowed again. "Lots of life in there," she whispered. "I think… it's different somehow…" She shook her head slightly. "Also I don't think my skill reached the whole building…"

Alejandro nodded and looked at the others. "We stick together. Remember the plan." He held up a hand and ticked off items on his fingers. "Pharmacy, garden, dry foods," He looked at Jake, "and sporting goods." He glanced around. "Mar? You're here right?"

"Here." Mar replied in a nervous voice, only appearing for a second next to Saira before she was hidden again.

Alejandro nodded and led the way inside. Just past the threshold a notification popped into Jake’s mind and vision and everyone stopped.

You have entered the *%#>#×/&(Meat) Outpost.

As a member of a Non-Allied Fort, you may Conquer this Outpost and either Claim it or take its key and add it to your Fort for contribution rewards.

"Meat Outpost?" Jake questioned internally. The name was basically a gibberish screech in his head but the System apparently translated it to 'Meat'.

"Guess it was here…" Alejandro murmured.

"What does this mean?" Saira asked in a worried whisper.

Alejandro looked at her and then backed up into the sunlight again. "Right." He said. "Guess Wilson forgot to mention this." Mar appeared next to her mother, watching Alejandro curiously. "Wilson said that after our Outpost became a Fort, he got a message about a non-allied Outpost within our territory. He didn't know where it was but told us to keep an eye out just in case."

Alejandro looked back into the building and then around at the blood and destruction. "I was hoping someone else had survived and set up another safe place but…" he trailed off and Saira looked around, seeing the same things he had.

"Oh…" She said quietly. She closed her eyes briefly and started to take a deep breath before obviously thinking better of the idea. She opened her eyes and looked worriedly at her daughter who stiffened slightly and started fading out of sight.

"Please be careful," Saira whispered. "...Mar."

The young woman's eyes widened and she nodded and squeezed her mother's hand before fading completely. Saira nodded at Alejandro. "Let's do what we came here to do."

Alejandro looked at the others and when everyone signaled they were ready, he led the way back into the dark.

Scattered skylights far above let in some light, but the aisles were full of deep shadows as they turned left and headed towards the pharmacy. Jake kept his gaze moving and ears straining as they passed through the abandoned and silent checkouts. Then the clothing section was in front of them and Jake stared nervously at the clothing draped racks and aisles. "Too many hiding places," he thought as they walked slowly past.

The light from the doorway was rapidly dwindling and Alejandro stopped just past the first pharmacy aisle. "I can't see anything, I need light," he whispered.

"Wait," Jake murmured, as quietly as he could. "I see something."

They all froze in place as he lifted his bow and drew the string slowly back, aiming down the aisle and deeper into the store.

"Are you sure it's not a human?" Saira hissed in a whisper.

"I'm very sure," Jake murmured. "and talk softly, don't whisper, it carries farther." He glanced at Alejandro. "Ready?"

The man nodded and Jake’s arrow left the bow with a twang. His target was only a silhouette but he was sure it wasn’t human. It appeared bipedal but with arms far too long for a human, also too wide and hunched forward with a lump on its back.

The arrow hit the thing in center mass while Jake was already setting another on the string. He started to draw but stopped when the thing just fell over. It hit the floor and the lump on its back moved off and disappeared around a shelf. “What the…” He waited for anything else to react but the only thing he could hear was the faint sound of his fellow humans' slightly elevated breathing.

“It’s down,” he murmured. “but something…” he hesitated. “What even was that?” He couldn’t imagine what could… “Right… New world, new monsters. Could be literally anything.”

“Big one down,” he murmured again, before the others could start doing anything stupid. “But something small ran away.”

“I didn’t even see what you were shooting at,” Alejandro murmured. “If your eyes are better, want to take point?”

Jake shrugged. “Sure.” He started forward slowly.

"The pharmacy is…" Alejandro murmured but Jake held up a finger and the man quieted. “I want to see what I killed and get my arrow back,” Jake thought. "We need to know what is in here with us."

The store was ominously quiet and every loud footstep behind him was deafening. Jake just grit his teeth while he tried to ignore it all and keep his senses peeled for more monsters.

Right up until someone yelped and the whole shelf next to Jake creaked and then broke.

He spun to see Mar lying on her back with one hand gripping the broken shelf as everything on the shelf spilled down over her and the floor in a cacophony of noise.

"Back out the front! Now!" He didn't yell but he wasn't quiet either.

Alejandro pulled Saira with him as Sandra grabbed the disappearing Mar and they all moved quickly towards the entrance. Jake followed, eyes never settling, constantly scanning as he followed the others in a steadily spinning and turning crouching stalk.

Nothing roared or screeched or attacked or did anything. It was unnerving.

Something had killed a lot of people outside, something had dragged all the bodies into this store, something had taken his arrow and collapsed without fanfare. And something had quietly run away...

He looked up just as a small shadow leapt from the top of the shelves and flew at his face. Jake easily juked sideways and spun as it flew past his face, bow already lining up and creaking as it bent back.

The arrow snapped out and pierced the attacking thing before both bounced onto the linoleum floors and slid to a stop. Jake had another arrow ready before they stopped moving and he turned in place, ears straining for any sound that might indicate an impending attack.

Nothing else moved and he snatched up the arrow, still impaled in something, and quickly hurried outside to join the others. He was ready to drop his kill in a heartbeat and fire the arrow that was held ready on the bow with his other hand but it wasn’t necessary and he found the rest of the group outside in the blinding sunshine.

Sandra was crouched down and speaking to an invisible Mar and Alejandro was in front of them and Saira, in a low stance facing the door with shield and sword at the ready. "He's got the right idea at least," he thought.

Saira gasped when she saw him and Jake followed her gaze to the thing impaled on his arrow. He hoisted up the still squirming… tick?

"Ewww." He dropped the arrow and the swollen thing impaled on it. It hit the ground with a wet plop and a few drops of blood splashed onto the pavement.

Everyone backed up and stared at the disgusting, squirming, leaking, basketball sized, tick. Mar squeaked and made gagging sounds but thanks to her previous nausea nothing else emerged this time.

"That's disgusting." Sandra said.

Alejandro nodded at her words before asking, "Is that what ran off?"

Jake nodded slowly. "I think so…" he began. "It might also explain why the other…" He paused and then just shrugged and continued. "the other creature was so sluggish." He finished and Alejandro was nodding and looking around.

"So some uh, aliens, attack everyone." Alejandro waved at the parking lot. "Then drag them inside." He turned back to the store. "Then… ticks get the aliens?"

Jake shrugged and looked at Saira. "Any idea on numbers in there?"

She shook her head and said only, "a lot".

Jake stared through the door thinking and then nodded. "Let's go back in."

"But…" Saira started.

"We need supplies." He stated. "And I need some stuff too," he thought. "If the monsters are drained by the ticks then they will be slow and weak," he explained. "The ticks aren't that fast or strong." Jake stomped on the still squirming tick's head, carefully not hitting the swollen abdomen. "I think we can go ahead and make some light as well."

He felt the Mana in the tick vanish and he picked up the arrow still impaled through the tick. With a quick swipe he sent the blood leaking corpse flying free across the parking lot. "Also." He crouched and picked up the faintly glowing Chip. "We need these."

Saira looked confused and Jake sighed and held it out. "Touch it." She did, hesitantly, and her eyes widened.

"But shouldn't we leave something like this for the authorities?" She asked, pointing at the store.

Jake just stared at her, dumbstruck as he tucked the chip into his pocket. "What authorities?" He finally yelled. "Have you heard any sirens? Any gunshots?" He waved at the carnage in the parking lot. "Did the authorities do anything for all these people?"

She backed up as he advanced on her, but his tirade ended when Alejandro put a hand on his shoulder. "Relax Jake," he told him.

Jake shook his head and turned away feeling annoyed with himself for getting worked up.

"Jake is right." Alejandro said behind him. "We are all there is and so we must do what needs to be done." He said something softly to Saira but Jake ignored him.

Sandra was grinning at him and she mimed angry shouting and waved her fists around.

"Ha ha." Jake said deadpan but couldn’t help the smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth.

Alejandro and Saira walked back over and Alejandro patted Jake on the shoulder. "I think you will be a better leader for this," he stated. "So I am promoting you to team leader."

[Major] (Alejandro Morales) has promoted Recruit (Jake Thinne) to [Lieutenant]

Jake shook his head while Alejandro laughed but he didn't really care. He wasn't planning to stick around anyway. Once he got a few things where he wanted them he planned to go out and see the world. "Very well," he said. "I go first. Alejandro, stay back with the light." He looked at the man. "Do you have a light?"

Alejandro whispered something and his shield started glowing with a dim blue light.

"Good enough." He looked at Sandra. "You guard her back. Don't let the ticks get on any of you, we don't know what might happen."

"What do you mean?" Saira asked.

"Big strong monsters wrecked shit out here." Jake looked around to emphasize the point. "They went inside and now they are zoned out and letting giant ticks eat them."

She paled and nodded. "I… I see."

"Also," Jake added, "can you detect normal tiny insects with your Skill?"

"I don't know," she admitted.

"Hmm, try it."

She closed her eyes and sent out the pulse and then slowly nodded. "I think I can detect some bugs but they are very hard to notice."

"How many times can you do that before you run out of Mana?"

"If I wait a minute in between uses, I can do it indefinitely." She told him. "But why do you want to find normal bugs?"

Jake grinned evilly. "What if the ticks start small and only grow bigger once they get a meal?"

She paled further and opened her mouth again but Jake spoke first. "We go straight to the pharmacy, get what we need and get back out here. You keep that Skill going the whole way and just worry about tiny bugs." He thought for a second. "Just keep your eyes closed if it helps. The rest of us will watch for bigger things."

She looked like she was going to protest so he kept talking. "Keep a hand on Alejandro’s back and Sandra will watch your back."

Sandra nodded and twirled her steel pipe until the air started whistling past the ends. "Don't worry," she told the older woman. "I've been doing this a long time." She snapped her pipe towards Jake and he didn't flinch as each strike ended just above his head and shoulders. Saira was wide-eyed, and Jake hoped, impressed.

He turned to face the currently invisible girl. "Mar, you are a wild card."

She faded into view. "How do you keep seeing me?" she demanded sullenly.

Jake ignored her question. "We don't know how the ticks hunt." He told her. "Normally they have shit vision and hunt by feel and taste but that one," He pointed towards the dead tick. "That one jumped at me… could be the scent of blood, or water, or even heat." He stared at her and she started fidgeting and fading out of sight while avoiding eye contact. "Just stay right behind me," he finally told her. "Watch the ground and where you step." He saw her blush before she vanished entirely. "Watch my feet too and if you see anything crawling towards me just squeak." She squeaked while trying to say something.

"Perfect. Just like that," he said before she could respond and everyone chuckled.

"Thanks Mar," Alejandro said sincerely. "we needed that." He looked around at all of them. "We are a great team."

Jake rolled his eyes. "Let's go."