I watched as the group headed across the parking lot towards Kaibab, Junipher and the Major were having an animated conversation. Other men and women began conversing with her and for a second I thought I felt her joy connect to me. Then I crawled up on top of Kaia and directed him over to Coronado, I pulled my ballistic mask over my face and we leapt on top of the Coronado admin building and crossed on the flat roof to get a clear view of the yard.

In Arizona prisons, inmates divide up into four general racial groups. White, Black, Mexican American and Mexican National. In Winslow we get a fifth group, Native Americans. The Natives generally congregate near the Mexican American for bolstering their strength when shit hits the fan. As I looked out on the yard I saw all five groups represented on the yards waiting for aforementioned shit to hit said fan. Almost as one, their heads turned to look at me and Kaia standing on the roof. A lone officer whom I had worked with once or twice before sat on a bench near the entrance of the yard. He stood almost comically when they all looked in the same direction and stumbled as he followed their gaze to where I sat on the back of Kaia and stood on the rooftop.

Kaia leapt off the roof and landed softly by the bewildered officer. He stared at me dumbfounded. The inmate groups stirred as they watched the exchange.

I lifted the mask slightly so he could see my face, then lowered it back in place. “Get the sallyport open, both gates. I’m gonna give these guys an offer they can’t refuse.”

I had intended to make a round of the groups and gather the race heads. When I looked up I saw they had already gathered at the center of the field. I nudged Kaia forward and made a slow circle around the gathered individuals. I gave them time to examine me closely. I watched as their eyes travelled from the big coyote up to the pistols on my hip, the armor and ballistic mask I wore, and catalogued the change in demeanor of an animal that once thought it was the predator only to realize they were now prey.

I didn’t even need the help of Steely Glare.

“In a moment the sallyport is about to be opened up. You have two choices. Leave, head south, or die by my hand.”

“That’s it? You’re just going to let us go?” A small young Mexican National spoke up with a thick accent. “Seems too easy.” I examined him as he spoke, Lvl 6 Enforcer.

“That’s it.”

“Why?” The head of the blacks, an older man solid with years of prison built muscle asked.

“Isn’t it obvious, we can’t keep you here. Everyone has powers now. So leave and don’t come back.”

“What about us who have family here in Winslow or nearby? The Native representative asked.

I thought hard on this and had hoped it wouldn’t come up. I really had a great distaste for the Native prison population. They were essentially raging alcoholics who got drunk and did something incredibly stupid and were arrested for it. It irritated me on a core level.

“I own the only safe settlement in Winslow. I intend to claim all of it. The next nearest settlement is in Flagstaff. Between here and there is nothing but monsters. If you stay here, I will kill you. Find a new place to live.” The lvl 5 Ghost Shaman stared at me for a long moment then grudgingly assented.

I looked over the other heads seeing they all ranged in levels from four to seven. Cursed grumblings quieted as they considered my words. The gates opened on the sallyport and they looked over with consideration. I left them to consider my words and rejoined the officer who now stood by the gate. The inmate heads returned to their respective groups and excited conversations commenced, soon the groups began trickling hesitantly out the sally port.

“Get on the radio and let Gate 1 know Coronado is leaving, once they are all on the highway tell them to abandon the gate and meet us all over at Kaibab.” I said to the officer that was staring wide-eyed as roughly 250 inmates just got an early release.

“Alright, we aren’t letting Kaibab go are we?” He did as directed with anger in his eyes. Rumor of the hostages got out it seems.

“No, we aren’t letting them go. If I have my way they will never leave here alive.”

I noticed the head of the whites was one of the last ones to leave. I followed him on Kaia and he looked up at me like he wanted to say something. I raised my mask so he could get a good look at me.

“This is legit, right? There isn’t a SWAT team or something down the road waiting to hose us all down?”

“Just monsters, formal government isn’t really functioning right now.”

“Thanks, I guess.” He headed straight for the gate and never looked back.

I looked back over the now empty Coronado making sure some dumb fuck didn’t get the memo then I met the only two officers and was delighted to see one of my favorite officers was the one that had been running the control room.

I cracked a big grin as she saw me come around the corner of the building “WASSUP CHEEZE!?!?”

She squinted up under my mask “BRUNETT!?!? YOU GOT FREAKIN’ BIG!”

“I’ve been getting that alot lately. You get stuck here during initialization?”

“Yeah” she frowned.

I looked her over more closely “You haven’t taken a class, why not?”

“I don’t know nothing about that stuff, it’s like a video game, though if I could get my own giant coyote it might not be too bad.” She smiled and Kaia nudged her arm with his nose and she began, to his satisfaction, petting his muzzle.

“Well, if nothing looks good to you, pick something with magic, don’t need weapons when you got firebolts and shit.”

She smiled a huge smile as Kaia practically swallowed her with his tongue and asked while giggling, “What is your class?”

Kaia sure knows how to make friends “Well, I picked something that would allow me to be the asshole I was born to be, Outlaw.”

“Ha! Well, what are we doing now? Fixing Kaibab?”

“Something like that” I said grimly and dropped my mask back in place as we reached the front entrance. Through the fence I could see bodies and blood and knew once I got inside it would be worse. “Head on in and get armed up, I’ll bring Kaia through the vehicle gate.”

We moved around to the entrance I mentioned and saw that no one was manning it. At the moment there was a line of officers on the other side with shotguns and rifles, about 10 total. A couple dozen inmates were out on the yard yelling curses at the assembled officers. Further out a single hispanic looking inmate ran for his life as half a dozen of the vicious bastards ran him down and began kicking and punching him into the ground.

Kaia leapt over the first fence at my direction, then circled back and leapt over the inner fence to land behind the line of armed officers. Just as with Coronado every eye on the field stopped and locked on me. I caught a flash of light to my right and looked up into the tower to see a familiar officer on a sniper rifle. He waved when he saw me look then went back to scanning the field.

Now that I was inside the fenceline I could see more bodies laying in the rec field. Some were charred, others were beaten to a pulp, all stained the ground with their blood and had been stripped of their meager possessions. Fires burned across the programs building to my left and inmates were running in and out stealing property contained within. My enhanced perception picked up the sound of someone being tortured somewhere within CB3.

To my right the South Administration and Kitchen building was a raging inferno belching thick black smoke into the air. The fencing between the North and South yard had been breached in multiple areas. The gym that sat on the west side of the field had a 15 foot section of wall that had been collapsed inward by something. A similar hole was visible in the Central Detention Unit right where the Able run inmates would be housed.

They clearly have the power to leave, why haven’t they? The fences on the perimeter are no more sturdy than the ones separating North from South. Hell, they can literally just jump right over them. Alternatively they could just tear them down. So why are they still here? Am I looking a fucking gift horse in the mouth?

I turned my attention on CB4 where the new Nightmare dungeon resided. More thick black smoke billowed from the rear of the building. The corner wall closest to me was bowed inwards as if a large heavy object had been smashed into it. A mixed race group of inmates sat in front of the building watching me from tables that had been pulled off the rec field. That’s interesting, the races don’t like to mix when the shit hits the fan, and this would qualify as shit hitting.

“Veep, what’s the average level of the inmates?”

“All of them or just the ones we can see outside?”

“Give me numbers for both?”

“Average level of the ones in the field on the south yard are around level 11, with a few level 14’s on the high end, and a lot around levels 6, 7, and 8. Then the spread fairly evens out from levels 10 to 12, with a couple 13’s to throw in for good measure.”

“Ok, and every inmate you can pick up?”

“There’s a little over 300 total remaining inmates, average level is 9. Highest level is 16, that one is underneath CB4 with several other similar level inmates.”

“Under? They’re trying to clear the fucking dungeon.”

“That would be an accurate assessment.”

I looked through the doors into the admin building for Kaibab, from the angle I was at I saw some feet and legs shuffling around down the hall. I decided I would go meet them but first I leapt from Kaia’s back and landed on the roof. Then looked up and jumped up to the tower, swinging my legs over the railing and promptly sitting next to Officer Bradley. He didn’t even look away from the rifle scope he was focused through. I shifted my mask up and he looked at me then went back to watching the inmates by CB4. “Hey Karl.”

“Well finally someone recognizes me. How you doing Bradley?”

He chuckled “You got big. Been up here all night and morning. The boss lady won’t let me drop them.”

I looked over the yard from the new vantage point and didn’t see anything that stood out. I leaned around to look at North and saw pretty much nonsense going on up there with less shit on fire. Still plenty of dead or dying on the field and roving bands of orange clothed assholes mucking about.

I analyzed him before I spoke again. Richard Bradley, Level 6 Sniper. Figures, still, he’s in his 30’s, even if he’s only level six life xp should push him up to the equivalent of a pre-teen Advanced class.

“Boss lady won’t be a problem anymore.” He looked up at that then adjusted his position and aim.

“Good, when do we start?”

We had discussed a scenario similar to this, so he knew what I had planned.

“Soon, also, you can’t get the Quest for it yet but CB4 has a dungeon underneath it. I’m going to take a team in and clear it. You in?

“Hell yeah, just lemme know when.”

“Alright, I’m headed downstairs.” First recruit handled, now to find Sumpter, maybe Dick, he was almost level 10 before he left the settlement. Although, maybe not, he was kinda squeamish.

I descended the circular stairway and appeared in the small control room with a young female COII named Peller. I never cared for her before the system but it seemed to have cleaned the acne off her face and filled out her ass. She didn’t even turn around when I noisily clambered off the last step. Can fix the looks, not mind apparently.

“Lemme out.” I stated flatly. She spun around wide eyed having expected Bradley’s voice behind her.

“The fuck you come from!?”

I simply pointed up. “Gonna let me out, I need to talk to the Major and Lieutenant.”

“Yeah, sorry.” She punched the buttons on the console and the door buzzed. I pushed it open with ease and ducked through it, I was too tall now not to duck under most doors. Hadn’t thought that one through did ya? I chastised myself. Peller buzzed me through the inner door and I stepped into the hallway and rounded the corner to the armory where I sought out my next recruit.

Standing behind a counter with an empty gun rack behind him was COII Phillip Sumpter. Carly Sumpters dad. And maybe one of the few people in Winslow I would consider a friend. I ducked into the small room and his eyes lit up. He came around the counter quickly and took my hand in his and squeezed. I returned the dick wagging hand shake and was surprised to feel the pressure of it.

“How you doing beesh!? I see you’ve grown. About fucking time. Told you that Keto would work! HAHAHA! Just kidding, glad to see you’re alive though!” He started asking questions and making comments in his annoying rapidfire way. I decided to slow him down and activated STEELY GLARE. He flinched and his eyes went wide, then let go of my hand.

“WHOAH! What the fuck was that beesh!?!” He only had two things to say now.

I analyzed him and quickly interjected before he could gain steam.

“I’m good dude. I see you took the Juggernaut class and you’re level 8?”

“You can see that? How you doing that? What else can you see!?”

I raised a hand to slow him down “Ask your AI. Look, lemme fill you in and then I might have something for you.”

He shut up and I proceeded to tell him a more detailed but still much abbreviated version of the past couple days events. About finding Carly alive and safe waiting for me at my settlement. I left out her current attachment to Dick. I mean, if Dick is going to die it should at least be to a monster in a dungeon, not Phil. I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy. I told him about the Daemon people and had to stop him from getting on his preachy tangent. Told him about the dude I killed and how that led to Alyssa latching on to me and then about gaining Kaia and then freeing the people in the Kobold horror dungeon, to include Junipher.

“Doooooooood. I saw that and freaked out, she’s got a great ass and legs. You hitting that!?”

“Not yet, but she’s made it clear she wants to.”

He smacked me in the chest. “Don’t be a fucking pussy, hit that. Especially if she wants it. Who cares if she’s part plant.”

I laughed and held my hands up and waved him off. “Been busy killing and shit.”

“Yeah, I heard you made Kristy shit her pants.”

“Yeah, I lost control, I saw her as an obstacle to survival. I wanted to kill her, but something in the back of my head said that wasn’t the right way to deal with that. But it insisted it needed to be dealt with.” I sighed.

“Well, for what it’s worth, I think it was good not to kill her outright. You probably wouldn’t have any support from Robyn and Steve.”

“Anyway, I need a team to go into the dungeon under CB4, I want you on it.”

“Fuck yeah, I’m down.” He said, the excitement and anticipation clear in his eyes.

“Great, that makes four, five if we count Kaia, though the dungeon doesn’t count him since he’s soul bound. I need you to find us at least three more, but five would be better.”

“Ok, there’s a couple youngsters that we can use that have some decent heads on their shoulders. What are you going to do while I scrounge up the rest of our squad?”

I let out a heavy sigh. “Take Junipher and Kaia and find our hostages. Also, I got some stuff you might be able to use.” I produced the tower shield I looted from the boss room of the Kobold dungeon and the bastard sword to go with it.

He looked over the shield and weapon carefully, hefted both and smiled back at me. “Yeah, this will work, so, you think that’s all you need for that task?”

I smiled and said simply, “Yeah, I think I can manage.” Then I summoned the rest of my equipment and entered the hall to find Junipher.