Faye watched, awed as Ailith put away more of the stew and bread than she had any right to as a human.

“Where is it even going?”

“I’m not rightly sure,” Ailith said, around a bite of bread. “Honestly, with the way my skills work, sometimes it’s as if I’m always hungry. Don’t help that I’ve been running on fumes for so long.”

Faye nodded. It made sense. The adventurers always ate well. What had sometimes surprised her was that people’s appetites were not connected with their body type as much as she was used to. Ailith could eat a lot, true. She was also a mountain. But Arran had the lean physique of a runner or swimmer, and he ate as much as Ailith would.

Faye had realised she was eating larger portions than normal, but not enough to worry her. But looking at the way Ailith was putting back this stew and bread, she wondered how the woman survived away from the town.

After a few minutes of silence, with only their muted eating sounds to accompany their companionship, Ailith mopped up the last of her stew with the bread and popped it into her mouth. She sat back with a contented sigh and spoke into the gap.

“So, what’s going on?”

Faye put some stew in her mouth to give herself some time to think of a response.

“I’d say it was something to do with the town,” Ailith continued, “but yer moods haven’t been recent. I wouldn’t mind, but I’ve also seen you surface from them a little. Willing to bet this ain’t you, normally.”

Faye swallowed. The stew really was good.

She nodded. The words were stuck, but acknowledging it was a step forward.

“Okay,” the Guardian replied. “That’s good enough for now. You need more stew?”

“No,” Faye croaked, then she coughed and shook her head. “No, thank you. And… no, this isn’t me, but it’s hard to remember the last time it wasn’t. If that makes sense.”

Ailith nodded. She had a hand resting on her knee, with the elbow up as she leaned toward Faye. She was smiling gently.

“I can’t say that it does, girl, but I’ve not known you all that long. I have seen plenty of folk that are the same. Especially after their first real fight.”

Ailith’s eyes, despite the smile, told Faye that the woman really did understand what Faye was talking about. She had seen it in others. Faye cleared her throat again.

“Actually, my system has told me what the problem is.”

Ailith’s eyebrow rose, but she did not interrupt.

“It’s a bane. Called Spectre’s Gaze. It has some bullshit description that doesn’t matter too much but it makes it hard to feel positive. Hard to keep going, sometimes, you know?”

The other woman stretched forward and grabbed Faye’s hand.

“That’s gotta be hard. I can’t say I’ve had the displeasure of a bane, myself, but I’ve heard about ‘em. Nasty things. You know how to get rid of it?”

Faye nodded. “Aye,” she said, surer of this than most things. “I kill the thing that gave it to me.”

Ailith nodded. “That’s usually a good start. But that isn’t always the full story. Sometimes you have other aspects to deal with. We’re gonna help you get through them though. You’re part of the team, alright?”

She smiled, trying to accept the Guardian’s words. “Thank you.”

“Ah, you don’t have to thank me, girl, that’s what teammates are for, eh? Now, are you finally gonna tell me what your cresting was like, or do I have to beat it outta ye?”

Faye laughed a little at that. It felt like she had done so much since then that Ailith and the others should already know. She dipped a piece of bread into the stew, hoping the delay would tantalise her friend further.

“So, I was on my way to the south side of town…”

“And I couldn’t ignore the system anymore, so I triggered the class selection.”

Ailith chuckled. “I can’t believe you waited even that long! Most people jump in with two feet.”

Faye shook her head. “I was worried it would knock me out for hours or something! We were still in hostile territory, as far as I was concerned.”

The Guardian nodded solemnly. “That is a good instinct to have. Protect it. As we level and get stronger, our natural instincts will evolve with us, it is only natural. But keep hold of that desire to be active, aware of your surroundings, because it will save your life one of these days.”

“Absolutely,” Faye agreed, with a nod. “And so—”

A Guilder burst into the room they were sitting in. It was too early for most people, so it held only the two of them as they talked, both Ailith and Faye turned around at his interruption.

“We’re surrounded!”

It took a second to process what the man was trying to say. When it permeated, Faye activated [Mana Sense] and swept her gaze across the wall. Once again, she was able to push through the noise of the enchantments of the Guild’s building and focus on what she could sense from outside.

Sure enough, the virulently green glow of Primalist magic stretched across the majority of her vision. More concerning were the drops of crimson mana that were growing by the second.

Faye hauled herself to her feet. The Guilder jumped.

It had taken Faye two seconds since his arrival.

“Ailith, monsters, attacking the Guild.”

“Shit,” the woman muttered. Then, she looked askance at Faye. “You didn’t pick Swordfighter, did you?”

Faye did not answer, but she ran from the room. The Guilder that had warned them tried to keep pace, but she easily left him behind. He shouted after her, instead.

“The Administrator said that the Guild Leader is still fighting, but she wants you to make sure the Guild stands long enough for him to return!”

Ailith was right behind her. The big woman looked like she would not move quickly, but as Faye was still getting used to the idea that looks were deceiving, she had to remind herself that Ailith was faster than her.

“Plan of attack?” Ailith asked.

“Uh, should that not be up to you?”

They skirted around some startled civilians, who were just wandering out from their beds in one of the dormitories.

“Why would it be me?”

“Because you have more experience?” Faye responded.

“Oi, you calling me old?”

Faye laughed. “Aye, I guess I am. Come on then, granny, think up a plan.”

Ailith burst out into laughter. “I will give you half a point for the attempt, but that was weak.”

They burst through the double doors and into the main lobby of the Guild. People around them were getting ready for a fight, strapping armour on, pulling weapons from resting places and occasional from a box.

Ailith must have noticed Faye’s frown, because she nudged her. “What’s wrong now?”

“The militia,” Faye replied. “I don’t like so many of them being in danger. Where are Arran and Gavan?”

Ailith grunted. “Arran’s off hunting. Gavan’s healing.”

Faye grimaced. “I knew that, I suppose. I mean, why were we split apart? We could do more, together.”

“Normally, I’d say you’re right. But concentrating power that way? Easy way to get unbalanced and fall over.”

Faye tilted her head. She supposed the metaphor worked, somewhat. “Are we really that… heavy?” she asked.

Ailith snorted. “Now yer calling me fat? That’s just rude. But yes, we are. Look, there, do you know what he does?”

She had pointed to a man wearing the uneven armour of the militia. Faye was not sure she had seen him before, so she shook her head.

“He’s a merchant. Sells food. Nice guy. Not a single skill for fighting in his list.”

“Uh…”

“And her? She—”

“The bookseller?!” Faye exclaimed. She had recognised the woman Ailith pointed to, next.

“Exactly,” Ailith replied, nodding. “From what I gather, her skills are about learning, reading, or knowledge in one form or another. I imagine she has a few mercantile skills, but she’s never mentioned them.”

Faye looked over the crowd. She anxiously flicked [Mana Sense] on to check outside, and though there were more crimson dots and blurs of light than before, they were not yet close enough to truly threaten the Guild.

“Okay, so why doesn’t anyone have skills to help them fight? Why are we asking them to fight at all?”

“Because, Adventurer Faye, if they do not who else will?”

Faye turned to look at the Administrator as she approached with a careful stride. She wore the same robes as usual, but she looked a little refreshed.

“Morning, Administrator. That’s all well and good, but in the whole town only the adventurers and guards have combat skills?”

The Administrator inclined her head in welcome. “Where you came from… was everyone a capable fighter?”

“Ah…,” Faye went to speak, but really, she had no argument against it. She felt like it was a different argument, somehow. People back home don’t live somewhere that monsters were able to attack you. People back home barely had to worry about other humans on a day-to-day basis. Here, it seemed that there were groups that resorted to violence much more than what Faye deemed ‘normal’.

“Either way, the militia are as ready as we can make them. They do train, you know.”

Faye slowly nodded. “That’s something.”

“But not enough, I know,” the Administrator replied. “But it’s all that we can do. In the past, it has been difficult to encourage even the level of participation that we have achieved with them thus far. Ironically, because I know you think they live in danger, the townsfolk of Lóthaven believe strongly that the adventurers and guards are enough to keep them safe. I fear that is no longer the case.”

The last few words were said softly. Faye recognised the sorrow there. It was the same as she felt when she looked across the ragtag band of shop owners, butchers, labourers, and the rest.

“Okay, enough of that,” Faye said. She squared her shoulders. “Let’s make sure these people are safe again. Ailith, we probably need you on the front lines. Is that okay with you?”

“Aye, that’s what I’m here for.”

“Thank you, I will take on Arran’s role from the forest. Floating attacker. I’ll go where I’m needed most and won’t stay there longer than necessary.”

“You know,” the Administrator said, “this will be more experience for more Lóthaven residents than they may have ever received at one time. This will be good for them.”

“For those that survive,” Faye said, darkly.

“That’s what we’re for,” came another voice. Gavan stepped up to the small group and smiled at Faye and the others. “Healer at your service.”

“Hey Gavan, how are you?” Faye asked.

He just shrugged, a twinkle in his eye told her he was being playful, but it did not hide his exhaustion, not fully.

“It’s good to know you’re going to be here.”

Faye stuttered to a stop. [Mana Sense] was still active, which meant she saw the pulse of crimson magic that swept across the square outside.

“It’s beginning,” she said.

The militia were better than they had any right to be. Faye could see that they were sloppy, their technique terrible, and their instincts all… odd. But that did not change the fact that many of them were still strong enough to punch holes through the Awakened Briars if they wanted. Others were dexterous enough to slip aside from attacks, though they were not able to capitalise on the openings that created.

All in all, Faye was more impressed with the militia now. She wondered what jobs those she had worked with already had. She had been too worried to ask them at the time, which seemed like an oversight.

She shook her head, bringing herself out of her reverie.

She took another drink of the cup of water she had been given.

“Anything else, Adventurer?” the woman organising the drinks asked her.

Faye smiled and shook her head. “No, thank you.”

Surveying the square, the militia were relatively evenly spread. But there were two or three Awakened hiding behind the bramble surrounding the western road entrance — it probably had a real name, but Faye was just using the cardinal directions for now — so she headed that way, next.

She looked over at Ailith’s position on the eastern flank. She was standing tall, her maul crunching through waves of lesser briars, some other varieties that Faye was not sure she had identified before and took down an Awakened even as Faye watched.

The woman was a machine.

Turning back to her front, she put her game face on.

[Mana Sense] showed her where the Awakened were hiding. The militia did not know they were there, hiding in the shadows, waiting for a moment of weakness.

But there, one of the militia missed a swing and opened himself to a counterattack by a pair of briars. They wrapped their thorny vines around him and pulled him out of the line of defenders.

With real fighters, they would have had the training to avoid the move in the first place, or to understand exactly what they needed to do to recover their missing link in moments.

Unfortunately, for the militia, there were a few too many conflicting movements and suddenly briars were in the gap, lashing outward with thorns.

The Awakened were on the move.

Faye drew her sword and let it ignite. Her flaming brand had become a symbol of reprieve for the fighters. They were able to see it as she ran forward. Each one that did seem to stand up taller, straighten weary stances, and attack with renewed vigour.

Then she was at the line.

She cut through the briars like the chaff that they were. Her blade scoring hits on them with ease. Breezing through the gap, Faye came to the downed militiaman. He was covering his head and face with his arms, crying out each time the briars tried to rip his limbs away to get at his unprotected face.

One of the briars that was attacking him was a larger type, its many vines were thicker than the other briars, but with fewer thorns. These were pummelling the militiaman’s body, eliciting cries of pain each time they connected with a dull thud.

She launched a [Blade of Flame] at that one, then used the momentum of her slash to whirl onto the others and cut them down. Letting the flame on her blade extinguish, she quickly sheathed the blade and bent down to haul the man up.

Of course, when she grabbed him under the arm pits, he lashed out and shouted, “Get off me!”

“Calm down, man, I’m here to help. You’ll be alright soon.”

He flinched away from her, but he no longer flailed his arms. On his feet, he was confused and shaking, so Faye took him by the shoulders and practically ran him back through the defensive line. The militia still standing plugged the gap.

Flagging down one of the Guilders that were acting as runners, she passed off the injured militiaman.

“Get him back to the Hall for the healers, straight away.”

“Yes, Adventurer!”

Turning in time to catch the reactions of the militia as three Awakened stormed from the shadows of the bramble, she raced forward again.

“Hold the line, you militia! Hold the line. I’ve got the Awakened.”

She slipped through and into the waves of briars. The briars were dumb enough to lash out at her, some of which she ignored, but others she easily cut through as she passed. Her attention was on the Awakened, though.

It had been a while since she had needed to fight three at a time. The first battle with them at the Steading coming back to her. They were still overwhelmingly large monsters, but the levels she had gained since that first encounter had evened the playing field.

Flicking a [Scorching Lance] at the first one, the spell punched a hole clean through its centre of mass. Ignoring the notification ping, as with every other one, she spun and launched into an attack on the second Awakened. Its heavy, bark-like limbs were being chipped away with each strike, but it charged forward regardless.

The monster’s attack beat through her guard, so Faye had to throw herself backwards to rob the strike of some of its energy. She still felt it, these things hit like a ton of bricks, but it was not disabling.

Unfortunately, the other Awakened had manoeuvred around to come at Faye as she was resetting herself. The attack had almost made her lose her feet, so when the third Awakened slammed into her from the side she was nowhere near ready to receive it.

She tumbled to the ground, the lesser briars swarming her the moment she touched down.

She grunted, despite the lack of immediate pain.

Swinging the jian around in a circle, she cleared the lessers from her immediate space and stood. The second Awakened had turned and was bellowing as it laid into the defensive line of militia. The third was coming for her again.

Shaking her head, she aimed high on the Awakened’s body. [Scorching lance] took it down, and the lance itself did not hit her own people.

Her back was to the crowd of briars, but there was a sense of unease and wariness amongst them. In that small gap, she ran back toward the defenders. Her blade ignited, and she jumped and landed on the Awakened’s back, sword plunging deep into its core as she slammed into it.

The briar bellowed, again, but with a thought Faye pressed more mana through the blade and set the monster alight from the inside.

The notification pinged a moment later.

The militia were wounded, bloody and limping, but they cheered as the Awakened dropped regardless.

“Wounded, back away! Reinforcements, move up!” Faye shouted. “This is a cross-country haul, not a run through the streets.”

As the militia rotated out, Faye turned back to the tide of briars and sliced out as they got close. Not many of them did. It did not take long for the militia to reorganise themselves.

“Ready, Adventurer!” one of the women called out to her.

She lifted a hand in acknowledgement, then dropped it to aim at the oncoming briars. With more concentration than she usually would use, she gathered the mana for multiple [Fire Dart]s. The resulting wave of darts that tumbled away from her outstretched hand landed across the briars in front of her in a rapidly expanding wave of fire and force energy, tearing apart the attacking wave.

Faye turned around and calmly walked back to the defensive line, grinning at the militia as they cheered her.

Magic is so freaking cool.

Almost the exact moment she moved back to the ‘safe’ side of the defence, something in the air above boomed. She looked up and saw the two figures of the Guild Leader and the Primalist leader as they fought for dominance.

This time, she saw precisely what the floating mana of decay was that had landed last night.

It was a spell the Primalist used to attack the Guild Leader. Faye was not sure if he simply did not care about those it fell on, did not know its effects, or was unable to do anything about it, but instead of countering the spell he simply avoided it with some kind of movement skill.

The streamers of decay mana floated down to the ground when they lost their forward momentum after missing their target.

Panic gripping Faye’s heart, she looked down at the area that would be affected and saw, with horror, that Ailith and her defenders were standing directly under it, and none of them really seemed to know what was coming.

No!