Jessica was relieved that at the first crack they had dealt with, since learning of the vampires and having her mind blocked permanently, the Goddess Chaiya didn't notice. She was surprised Josh had still collapsed, then she felt relief again when the goddess left and Josh woke up a lot sooner than he normally did and he still had a large portion of his mana left.

They had their own weird adventures with creatures and things at their cracks, just like Hunter and his group had. Jessica's thoughts drifted as she wondered what it would be like to be around him all the time, then she held in her sigh at the unrealistic expectations. She remembered his words and what he had said about them not having to rush, and having years to spend together. She almost laughed at that, since she knew that wasn't what he meant. She could dream, however.

The two days they had met up with Hunter and his group had been both exciting and scary. Rabid dogs were not a good thing to deal with, and they had been twice the size. She shivered as she remembered the foaming mouths and slavering jaws of the angry creatures, then she relaxed at the image of Hunter decapitating them. It had been her pleasure to cover the bodies in fireballs with Diofra.

“What are you smiling for?” Steven asked across the campfire.

“Diofra fixed the preservation spell I had made.” Jessica said and shook her head and her hair fluffed out from side to side and stayed together.

“Yeah, you look all dolled up.” Steven said with a grin. “Do you have a big date or something?”

Jessica snorted a laugh. “Who are we going to date out here in the middle of nowhere?”

Steven glanced over at Josh and Evangeline, who were currently cuddle in front of the fire.

“I'm pretty sure they are the exception.” Jessica said. “They've been gaga over each other since they met!”

“Okay, that's true.” Steven laughed.

“We can hear you, you know.” Josh said without looking away from his wife.

“We've only got another day to go before we hit that town.” Steven said. “You know what that means!”

“More vampires.” Josh said with a sigh.

“No, man. Your own bed and privacy at an inn!” Steven said with a grin, and Josh had to smile.

“That does make things seem better.”

“Damn right it does.” Steven said. “Jessica, did you...”

“Yes, they are on their way.” Jessica said. “A group of bandits found Hunter and they are going slow because of the horses and cart they had.”

“I guess that means I don't have to ask what happened to the bandits.” Steven said with a chuckle.

“Diofra said they were going to let them go, then a bandit admitted they were going to sneak attack to rob them.” Jessica said.

“Idiots!” Steven said and picked at a pack of dry rations. “I bet they were whispering about it, too!”

“They were.” Jessica smiled.

“Good riddance, then.” Steven said. “The less stupid people around, the better.”

Josh smiled and started to open his mouth.

Steven tossed a piece of dried food at him. “Shut your mouth, smart ass.”

Josh laughed and threw it back.

“I'll keep watch.” Kara said from the top of the carriage.

“When do you sleep?” Jessica asked, concern in her voice. “I can't remember you ever staying inside the carriage.”

“I don't really need to sleep.” Kara said. “I meditate and get all the rest that I need.”

Jessica thought about it. “But... I haven't seen you...”

“I'm doing it right now.” Kara said, and the others looked at her. “Yes, I really am.”

“That's both weird and cool.” Josh said, and that brought a rare smile to her face that disappeared as quickly as it appeared. “I agree, it's time for bed.” He stood up and stretched, then helped Evangeline stand and they went to the carriage that had already been altered for sleeping. It was a larger carriage than the one the queen had let them borrow. It was about the size of a camping trailer and it could fit a lot more people inside for sleeping. They all went to bed and settled down to sleep, and Kara kept an eye out for any threats that might try to creep up on them in the night.

*

We stopped outside the town and waited for the Church of Light's carriage. After the last message, we knew they weren't very far behind us. When they arrived, we moved forward as a group and the guards at the guard shack gave us a list of the people that had been detected as vampires.

“Thanks. This is really going to help us a lot.” I said as I took the list and the guard smiled at me. Jessica cast a free Mass Scribe spell and all of the guards came up as vampires. I waved my hand over my head, and in the next instant, all of the guards had one of Josh's special arrows in their chests. We quickly looted them, removed the arrows, and I shoved them into the bag of holding that I used for vampire bodies.

“I think this going to be another long one.” Steven said. “How much do you want to bet that the list is of normal people that they haven't converted yet?”

“That's a sucker bet.” I said. “First thing we need to do is check the other guards.”

“Three teams.” Josh said and we all divided up automatically into the same teams we had before. “The map Jessica made says there are only four entrances.” He said and showed us the map. “We should go around and approach from the side, instead of what we did here.”

“Agreed.” Kara said and pointed to the other side of town. “We'll take the far side.”

“Coordinated?” I asked, and she nodded. “Okay. Ten minutes, then meet back here in twenty to start the sweep.”

Everyone nodded and split up. I had Evus, Afyne, Jessica, and Viri with me and we went to the right entrance into town. We got into position and waited the required time, then we approached the guard shack and Jessica cast the spell again. They were all vampires, so we wasted no time in wiping them out, looted and stripped them of armor and weapons, then I shoved them into my bag of holding. We were back by the horses with a couple of minutes to spare and waited.

“No problems.” I said when the others showed up.

“Nice and quick.” Steven said with a smile.

“Josh?” I asked and looked at him.

“All right. You know the drill. We do the houses first and work our way into the center of town.” Josh said. “If you need refills on anything, let me know.”

“We should do the same thing we did the last time.” I said. “We've got the guard shacks cleared, so we can bring any witnesses here. If we find any healers, we send them as well.”

“We could do the healers first.” Jessica said. “That way we can just send people there, rather than bring the healers here.”

“We'd need to leave guards.” Evus said. “Unfortunately, there aren't any left, except for the ones that patrol the streets and report to the mayor.”

“I hope they aren't changed, too.” Diofra said.

“We'll find out soon enough.” Josh said. “Let's get to it.”

The town wasn't as large as the last one, so we moved through the houses fairly quickly and only occasionally found a lone vampire. Apparently, the infestation hadn't overrun everyone, so our jobs were significantly easier. None of the residents saw us removing the threats, so the healers weren't necessary. None of the healers were vampires, which was a relief.

We met up after the houses and cleared out the rest of the town's larger buildings. Once again, it was a lot easier than the last time we had done it, and there was barely anyone bothered by the vampires being there. We gathered the people together and found the mayor was human, then we warned them to be mindful and vigilant. It had taken us barely a day to clear the whole place and we decided to spend the night to clean up and relax.

The next morning, we met up and checked our maps to make sure we were still on the same routes and had marked off the cracks we had sealed. With our agenda set, we shared another amicable goodbye with the emissaries and parted ways. Jessica looked a bit more cheerful than the last time, and I figured it was because we had met up well before the schedule we had previously set, which told her that we would be seeing a lot more of each other than she expected.

We sold the cart for a good price and pretty much gave away the adventuring gear, since it was previously used and we didn't want to keep it. Afyne convinced me to keep both horses and not just the one for her that she would need later, so we had gained two more mouths to feed. It was her job to care for six horses already, so adding two more to the mix wasn't going to be that significant for her skills. We bought extra feed, the best the stable had, and loaded the new horses up. Maylia and I boosted the new horses and Viri's horse with mana and speed, then we rode out of town.

*

“We're getting closer to tracking it down.” Maleketh said absently as he recorded the last star pattern he had seen in the sky through the last crack. “You wouldn't think looking for the dark spots would be harder than looking for actual stars.” He chuckled. “Of course, it would have been a lot easier if we had bothered to look at the star patterns before the stars were darkened.”

“Mumbling to yourself again?” A woman's voice whispered into his area, and he laughed.

“It's a good way to work out your problems.” Maleketh said.

“May I visit?” The woman asked.

“Finally! Someone who asks first.” Maleketh said and waved his hand. A moment later, a woman dressed all in black faded into existence. “Hello, Laura.”

“Maleketh.” Black Laura said. She had a lithe body that was barely covered in a black sheath from mid-chest to the floor and was almost completely see-through. She moved with grace and poise as she walked over to his viewing mirror. Her long black hair was offset by her very pale white skin. “How are the children?”

“Rambunctious.” Maleketh grinned. “You'd know all about that, though.”

“I may have had a hand in it, yes.” Black Laura smiled and looked down into the mirror. “Oh, is that the map of the breaks in reality?”

“Just the one they have so far.” Maleketh corrected. “It's incomplete at the moment.”

“Perhaps you should direct them to travel to the other areas and have more maps made.” Black Laura suggested. “It could help our search significantly if the map of the planet was complete.”

“I could tell them that.” Maleketh said and looked down at it himself. “Hunter knows it needs to be done already.”

“Is he that smart?” Black Laura asked.

“Do you find that surprising?” Maleketh asked with a smile.

“Only a little.” Black Laura said. “Although, my follower did pick him to be a personal vassal.”

“That was a sneaky way to bless them without actually blessing them.” Maleketh said. “Thank you.”

Black Laura laughed. “You're welcome.” She said and touched his arm. “I would do more if I thought I could get away with it.”

Maleketh sighed. “Yes, we can't be seen as directly influencing them, despite our vested interest in helping them as much as possible.”

“It is an unspoken rule that a few of us have ignored on occasion.” Black Laura said and rubbed his arm. “However, now is not the time to create zealots.”

“You should tell Chaiya that.” Maleketh said, then he laughed. “On second thought, she would just laugh in your face.”

“Yes, she did.” Black Laura said, sadly.

Maleketh turned to face her and her hand slid from his arm to his chest. “I'm sorry.”

“She's become very full of herself.” Black Laura said and stepped close. “Her arrogance is making her blind to everything except her own plans.”

Maleketh nodded and he put his hand on hers. “She doesn't realize she has lost the devotion of one of her emissaries.”

“Ooo, which one?” Black Laura whispered seductively. “Perhaps I can scoop her up?”

Maleketh chuckled. “I don't think she has room in her heart for anyone except Hunter.” He said and waved at the mirror on the table and the image of Jessica appeared. “It's the archmage.”

“A powerful pawn to lose from the board.” Black Laura said without taking her eyes from Maleketh's face. “Will you claim her with your king?”

“Laura...”

“Yes, I know you despise the game.” Black Laura said. “That doesn't mean you aren't the best player.”

Maleketh smiled. “What do you want?”

“What makes you think I want anything?” Black Laura said and her hand slid down his chest to his hip and half-hugged him.

“The last time you tried to seduce me for a favor, I lost a ridiculous amount of followers to a plague when I said no.” Maleketh said.

“Perhaps I just want to distract you.” Black Laura said with a smile.

“There's not really anything that you could do to distract...” Maleketh stopped talking when she used her free hand to unhook her dress and it dropped to the floor. She revealed that she was completely naked underneath and Maleketh was reminded why people cursed about seeing her pale white tit. It really was quite the sight to behold.

“Help me make another star, Maleketh.” Black Laura said.

“Laura, I'm really quite busy with...” Maleketh stopped talking when she took his hands and pressed them to her breasts.

“You are the only one allowed to touch me like this, dearest.” Black Laura whispered and leaned in to kiss his cheek. The Presence didn't waver and Maleketh gave one last glace to the mirror on the table, then he waved a hand and the table disappeared as a bed appeared.

“How many planets?” Maleketh asked in a slightly defeated tone.

“Three, please.” Black Laura said and laid down on the bed and posed as sexily as she could, then she smiled seductively. “You can give me as many moons as you can stand, though.”

Maleketh couldn't help himself and laughed at her sexual innuendo, then he joined her on the bed.

*

Over the next two weeks, both Hunter's and Kara's groups fought a multitude of creatures, sealed cracks, and cleared the vampire scourge from the countryside. The two groups met at the next large city and combined forces to scan it all. Surprisingly, there were only a handful of them, and they weren't even in key positions like the others. They stopped and rested for several days, Hunter sold the loot they had gained from the bandits and gave the money to the place that took care of a bunch of orphans.

It wasn't officially an orphanage, since it was just a bunch of kids without parents that were being taken care of by a kindly old nurse. Of course, with so much money from the loot, the old nurse registered her house as an orphanage officially with the mayor's office. She and the kids thanked him and the others for their generosity and invited them to a meal. Hunter couldn't refuse, so they ate supper with a pile of rowdy and happy children.

Kara kept her surprise about Hunter's gesture on behalf of the orphans to herself. She knew they would look at her oddly if she expressed her thoughts about how Hunter's gift was wasted, mainly because she believed that the town should have taken care of the kids already. She held in her sigh while some of the others had a good time with the children.

They always look at me oddly when I express an opinion. Kara thought.

“Hey, Miss Frowny-face!” A little girl practically yelled at Kara. “Come and play!”

Kara was brought out of her thoughts and looked at the little girl, then she looked up to see Hunter laughing. “Very funny.”

“I thought so.” Hunter said and let Afyne drag him outside.

The little girl snaked her hand into Kara's and pulled. “Uncle Hunter said we're playing hide and seek!”

“U-uncle?” Kara blinked her eyes in surprise and let the girl drag her outside.

“He's family now! Momma Gracie said so!” The little girl hopped up and down. “Where should we hide? Where should we hide?” She repeated excitedly and looked around frantically. They could hear someone counting loudly nearby, so she knew they were almost out of time.

“Let's try the bushes over there.” Kara said, because she used Detect Presence and couldn't see anyone else hiding there.

“Okay!” The little girl ran over to the bushes with Kara and they ducked down. The girl giggled constantly and was sure to give them away. Kara thought about using her stealth technique and her sound dampening technique, then she noticed the girl's happy energy.

“I'm coming to get you all!” A young boy yelled and was met with loud laughter from all over the place. He laughed himself and started to run to the closest spot, which just happened to be them. “HA! Caught you!” The boy jumped behind the bush dramatically and pointed at Kara and the young girl.

“AH, FOOEY!” The girl jumped up and pretended to be angry, then she laughed. The boy tagged her and ran off to find the next person who was laughing.

Half the fun is getting caught. Kara realized.

“Come on!” The girl pulled on Kara's hand that she hadn't let go of since they left the house. “He'll catch everyone soon and then we'll be it!”

Kara walked over to the house and stood there as she lost herself in her thoughts. I'm hunting him again. That thought brought a small smile to her face as she saw Hunter and Afyne with several children walk over to the house to wait as well. I hope he sees the irony in this.

Hunter turned to see her smile. She's going to be hunting me again. He thought and let a small smile show on his face. It's ironic that I'm okay with it like this.

“That's everyone!” The first boy said as he came to the house and pointed at the little girl and Kara. “Your turn! Hide your eyes and count to twenty!”

“No cheating.” Hunter said out of the side of his mouth.

“Listen who's talking.” Kara said. “You're using it to...”

Hunter took out his blast shield to show her and then tucked it back into his bag of holding.

I didn't even notice that he wasn't wearing it! Kara thought in surprise.

“ONE!” The little girl yelled with a hand over her eyes.

Kara covered her own eyes with a hand and the kids squealed and laughed as they ran off in different directions. The game was on!

Kara would never admit that she actually had fun while playing a simple children's game that day.