We increased our pace not sure what to do with the noncombatants in our party. We came upon the Flying J truckstop a half mile distant and instantly saw that disaster had befallen it. It burned bright and hot. So hot we could feel the warmth from almost 500 meters away. In the field across from the burning truck stop I saw a giant asshole looking fucker standing by a large broken obsidian ring that pulsed with power. Everytime it pulsed a group of little imp looking fuckers with a couple half spider half woman spider things armed with swords and bows emerged from the ring. A quartet of creatures wearing robes that looked like some kind of wraith stood in attendance of the giant Doom demon looking asshole.

The system using our own pop culture shit against us? I silently asked.

“For the most part, but these aren’t monsters, they’re refugees.”

“WHAT!?!?” I exclaimed into the air.

Everyone looked at me waiting for an explanation. I sighed heavily. “Veep, explain it to them.”

“As you wish” She bobbed a moment then connected to everyone's AI then began her explanation. “These aren’t monsters, they are refugees from Grox-hoob, several billions of light years and galaxies from here. It’s only coincidental they look like demons from your pop culture.”

“If they are refugees, why are they wiping everything out?” Alyssa asked with no small amount of snark. I wanted that question answered too.

Junipher provided the most logical answer “They are establishing a foothold. I’m a little ashamed to say my people would have probably taken the same stance had our portal not appeared in the middle of a forest with no concentrated population nearby.”

I looked at her sternly for a moment but couldn’t really be angry at that admission. She defended herself along the same lines my thought had gone, “You must understand, my people were on the brink of extinction, when the system presented us with the opportunity to migrate to a newly integrated world we knew might be forced to fight for our place in it.”

It was now turn for everyone else present for the discussion to look sheepishly at the ground as they considered the truth of her words.

“She is correct, unfortunately for Winslow it was largely uninhabited by system standards. Your population locally is now down to about 3100 human sapients. And dropping rapidly.”

“How strong will they be? I can’t see the apartment from here, can you bring Dick in on this conversation from here?” I asked her rapidly and directed everyone to move below the edge of the highway opposite the Grox-hoob portal. Am I even asking the right questions?

“Wait a minute, I’ll conference Dick in with everyone here before I answer those questions.”

A moment later Dicks ragged face appeared in my vision and everyone present except Junipher gave a startled gasp. Once the novelty wore off I greeted Dick “Yo! How you guys doing? We’re just south of that shitty 911 memorial down the road from PT’s and Sonic.”

“We’ve been better, but not since this system shit.”

“Veep says that these aren’t monsters, they are refugees.”

“Hmm… maybe, we saw them forming up and scouting the area about 12 hours ago. At first they just looked around then someone from the other apartment started taking shots at them. Then all hell broke loose. They didn’t stand a chance, man. Anyway, the survivors saw me and Carly watching from the roof and ran to us for safety. We repelled their pursuers and since then they’ve been probing us every couple hours while more and more come through.”

I looked at everyone present. If we weren’t dragging three mentally and physically traumatized non combatants I’d consider attacking them from the flank. Can’t leave the “wounded” alone though, and I’d need all hands on deck for the size of the force out there. The portal pulsed and more little imp creatures and spider ladies poured out.

“Back to my questions, Veep.”

“So the system is only supposed to allow them to enter newly integrated planets near places where they won’t get overwhelmed. They will be stronger than your youngest members but not necessarily stronger than those of you with some life experience. Though they may have some high level Advanced Classers and low level Master Classers in the group. I would peg the spider ladies as having an advanced class, and that big one as a master class.”

Tactical Acumen began churning in my head and helping my brain cement connections it was unconsciously forming. They are trying to get away from being slaughtered by their dungeons. They get here, poke around a little. Some asshole with a gun blasts one of theirs not knowing they weren’t actual monsters. We’ll leave the verdict of them being hostile or not up in the air. Then they retaliate, they don’t have the population to spare, better to eliminate a potential threat then leave it at their backs.

Everyone was arguing about what to do when I gathered their attention on me. “Anyone try to talk to them since?”

Dick looked thoughtful in my head, “No, we’ve just been hitting everything that comes within the range of the road with whatever we have. Even that spider thing that came alone at first.”

He said it as I thought it. “FUCK!”

“Yeap, you merc’d their emissary didn’t you?”

“Not me, but yeah, Carly’s got better range with her ice bolts, she speared it right through the tit.” he grinned awkwardly before the reality of the situation had settled in. “Fuck.”

“Yeap, Fuck. Who the fuck is Carly btw?”

Veep added her to the conference without waiting for me to ask. I was momentarily stunned by who I saw in my head. “Hi, Karl.” the too pretty 18 year old brunette waved and smiled in my head.

“What the fuck are you doing at my place and where is your dad!?” I asked the young woman who also happened to be one of the daughters of my work friend.

“School trip got interrupted by a godzilla sized fucking lizard on the highway up there, Dad should be at work, dunno, can’t get a hold of him, I remembered that time he picked you up and we went shooting so I came here hoping you could help me out. Or at least give me somewhere to crash til this fucking shit blows over.” Her father didn’t bother chastising her when she swore so she probably dropped more F bombs than I did. I rolled my eyes. Not what I need.

No one else spoke. Our whole plan was about to get smashed by a bunch of pissed off desperate demon looking fuckers because everyone was too scared to talk.

“Well, it’s good you’re making friends, stay close to him, I’m gonna go try to talk to big fucking ugly over there and see if we can avoid being turned to ash.”

Everyone looked at me skeptically.

“What? Anyone else got a better idea?” I challenged the assembled party. The portal pulsed again behind us letting more demon fuckers onto the planet.

Alyssa wanted to protest my plan but couldn’t think of anything so she sighed in exasperation “I don’t think that’s a good idea, but I got nothing.”

“The spirits say you should be careful, but you do have something they want.”

I looked at him pointedly and he continued. “They haven’t said what, only that it will become apparent to you at the right time.”

That was helpful. NOT! “Alright, I’ll ride over with Kaia, stop short of their encampment and hope they don’t blast me to smithereens. The bottom line is I don’t have enough ammo left for that fight and we can’t risk our wounded.” the three in question each looked at me with fear written across their faces. They wouldn’t be finding their iron anytime soon.

“You should take one of us with you, just in case.” Alyssa protested. Don’t need her misplaced loyalty getting everyone killed.

“Junipher, if she moves you have my permission to entangle her with roots or something.”

Junipher nodded and Alyssa assented with a hurt look on her face and a small pout. “Fine.”

Junipher leaned into my ear and whispered “Be careful, my savage warrior.” Fuuuuuuuuuuck me she smells good.

I climbed on Kaia and directed him to slowly cross the highway in plain view of the assembling army. He trotted casually forward but his ears were perked up and tail tucked ready for any threat. I kept a hand casually on my pistol, not quite wrapped around the grip but easy to bring to bear if I needed. I had dismissed my punisher mask before I came into view of the surreal denizens of the camp.

Kaia padded down the other side of the highway and stopped 200 meters from the assembled host. I sat as casual as I could and let them get a good look at me. The giant red, horned devil watched me curiously then barked an order, one of the spider ladies surged forward on too many legs with a clutch of imps in tow and a couple of those creepy faceless floating mages. They stopped a hundred meters from my position.

When her party had assembled around her she took several quick steps forward and called out to me “HAIL RIDER! You stand in the presence of the Last Horde of Grox-Hoob, lead by His Excellency, Lord Shubin. We have been granted refuge by the System, state your intentions.”

Well, that’s a good start, I heard a lot of “proper” nouns in there.

I paused and got a good look at the menagerie of terror assembled in front of me. The spider lady was a study of contrasts. Her lower half was that of a common black widow spider, all shiny black carapace that looked like it could deflect the meager 9mm bullets of my pistol. At the front was a generously proportioned human torso with shock white skin. She wore a white linen shirt underneath a glimmering mail armor. Her hands were the same black of her carapace and ended in wicked looking slender claws. Is that nail polish!? Her face was narrow and vicious looking with black lips and oddly normal looking eyes with more black around them. Possibly eye liner? Where ears would have formed on a human, sharp black horns peeled back at an angle that followed the shape of her jawline.

The imps were barely three feet tall and looked PISSED. Fire burned in their eyes and I instantly understood why Carly was so effective against them. These guys definitely didn’t like the cold. They didn’t wear armor and their coloring varied from fire engine red to pitch black. They looked basically like fodder, though I didn’t doubt they could quickly overwhelm an overconfident opponent.

The wraiths were the creepiest of the assemblage, They had human shaped silvery heads with no facial features at all. No mouth, no eyes, no ears. Yet they both looked directly at me. They hung listlessly with too long pale arms extending past where a normal human's knees would be. They wore black robes of some unknown material and floated without moving a muscle, only adjusting the direction of their heads when I shifted in my saddle.

“Uh, hello. I’m Karl, I uh… live over there” I pointed slowly with my left arm at my apartment, I could see Dick, Carly and several others with various weapons standing on the roof of what little remained. “Or did.. Anyway, I’d like you not to destroy it.” I looked forlornly at the battered building. “Or the people within.”

The spider lady cocked an eye and considered me for long moments. I was about to turn tail and run when she motioned me forward with one of those clawed hands. Yeap, this bitch had her nails did. Can’t launch an invasion without looking good, right? “Come, Lord Shubin will speak with you.” She turned without waiting for my response and I urged Kaia forward. He quietly growled as the imps and wraiths parted and we entered their encampment. The portal pulsed with more refugees appearing beneath it.