Truck stared when Rory decided to ask for his guidance. He spat out all the little bits of grass he was turning to mush in his mouth, his ears pointing straight up.

“You could not have met a worthier opponent, my dear man,” he said. His eyes were shining, and if he had been a human, Rory wouldn’t have been surprised to see a flush on his face. “You have, what you mortals call, hit the jackpot.”

“Woah, woah, woah.” Viv held up a hand. “We really don’t want a repeat of what happened with the Thunderclaw again, okay?”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

Viv stared at the donkey, who stared back placidly.

“If it all possible,” Rory said. “I think it’s best we avoid any direct contact with the monster.”

“What?” Truck looked scandalized. “But it is a tremendous opportunity!”

Rory shushed him urgently. “Quiet, please. We don’t want to work everyone up.”

He looked around to make sure no one was eavesdropping or something. After the Homeworlder’s little trick, he kept thinking he was being listened in on all the time now. His nerves really were getting old.

Not that he had hidden the truth from the others. He had explained how they were going to have to deal with yet another enormous, monstrous threat soon enough, one way or another. For now, though, they were preparing for the worst-case scenario of having to move. Even after they had taken care of the Invigilator temporarily, they might have to evacuate the palace.

“We don’t know what sort of opportunity this monster presents when we don’t even know what it is,” Rory said. “That’s why I’m asking you if you have any information.”

“Hmm.” Truck took some time to consider everything Rory had presented to him. “You say it came from the depths of a dungeon and looked somewhat like a dragon?”

“The Wraith Lord mentioned something about a Revenant dragon a while back. This could be that, but a dragon trapped so far underground and at that size…”

He grimaced, imagining something of that scale trying to burst free of its confines. That claw had been enormous. He could only imagine just what the rest of that creature looked like.

“It’s going to tear up the entirety of Hillhard,” Viv said. “Unless we stop it from coming out in the first place. That’s why we need any info you can provide.”

“Sadly, my knowledge of such creatures is limited. I can inform you, however, that they do not possess great intelligence. It is entirely likely the creature is driven by pure instinct and animalistic needs. You will have no opportunity to communicate, and your chances of learning anything about it from it will be contained mostly to observation and the like.”

“Great.” Rory sighed. “Just what we needed.”

He wasn’t one to be sarcastic, but the situation was beginning to look a little fraught. They weren’t any closer to dealing with the monster since before starting their talk with Truck.

“Another thing that might interest you is that the creature is likely to be nocturnal,” the donkey said. “For something that has spent so long without the touch of natural light, it will likely abhor your sun and only come out at night.”

“That might explain why it hasn’t fully burst out of the ground yet,” Viv said. “That claw was probably just a means of scaring us.”

“Then we’ve got some time before it properly emerges.”

“Some time.”

She was right. They didn’t really have that long before things turned worse.

“I will let you know if I can recall anything more,” Truck said. “But it is unlikely I will. Nevertheless, have heart! You have dealt with worse. After all, nothing can ever surpass a literal Invigilator on your doorstep.”

Rory would have pointed out that he had been able to negotiate with the Invigilator, but that was impossible with this creature, according to Truck. Arkone was also someone who was already predisposed to look favourably on Rory, thanks to his prior actions. They had no such helpful bias with the new monster.

Thanking the talking donkey for his information, Rory excused himself to talk with others. He was also not really appreciating the gleam of excitement in Truck’s eyes. It was a good reminder that the donkey was looking forward to entertainment, not necessarily to Rory and his group’s survival.

“What kind of monster?” the Wraith Lord asked.

Rory had called him first. It felt only right that he let his staunchest ally know the exact layout of things before everything turned out even worse. They had gone out to stop the Revenants from flooding out and wiping out the Homeworlders, but instead, they’d been forced to flee at the rise of an incredible monster. Not exactly a great showing, but no one could really blame them.

“It’s nuts,” Rory said. He described the claw, mentioning how he had seen worse within the sewer dungeon itself. “But you need to update me about what’s going on elsewhere. Have the Revenants poured out of every other hole they had? Are the Homeworlders okay? What about the Imps?”

“You ask too much in too short a time, Rory.”

“I need answers, Emerius.”

The Wraith Lord took a moment to collect himself. Rory couldn’t help but think of Emerius as the Wraith lord. That’s what he had been addressing the monster as for several days now. It was going to take some effort to change that.

“My scouts inform me that the Homeworlders have successfully rallied,” Emerius said. “Despite their lackadaisical condition—”

“You mean the fact they were nearly killed altogether at the battle? I’m not sure I’d call that lackadaisical…”

“—they were allowed to summon their reserve strength and fight off most of the Revenant waves. However, they have been pushed back and their base seems to be on the verge of being overrun. I’m not sure how long they will be able to hold out.”

“Good,” April said. “This town is ours. They don’t get to put a base here just because of their war.”

“Be that as it may, the Homeworlders are certainly hard-pressed at the moment. Perhaps things would be different under more normal circumstances, but things are far from normal.”

Rory sighed. “So essentially, they won’t be able to help us with the big monster. Got it.”

“I wouldn’t count on their help in the first place, if I were you,” Viv said.

“Yeah, yeah…”

“Luckily for you, the Otherworlders seem to be rallying,” the Wraith Lord continued. “Another scout reports—and this is a very recent one, mind you, I got it less than a few minutes ago—that the Otherworlders are also troubled by the tremors and are sending teams to investigate. It is possible they suspect gigantic monstrous activity as well.”

“Which means they’ll help!” Rory smiled. Much like the Homeworlders, the Otherworlders wouldn’t want their base of operations harmed either. “Emerius, we need to contact Arelland as fast as we can. Can you send a Wraith to him?”

“I already have, armed with one of your contacting devices and with specific instructions to call you as soon as the elf is reached.”

“Perfect.”

There wasn’t much else Rory could do at the moment. He had expected things to take a turn for the worse, conditioned by the ridiculous apocalypse over the last twenty days or so. But fortunately, he didn’t get the feeling they were in danger just yet. The tremors were still distant. Frightening, yes, but not immediately threatening. The sad fact of the apocalypse was that it conditioned them to learn to live with things one ought not to simply accept as part of life.

“Do we want to contact the Homeworlders as well?” Viv asked.

“Should we?” Ned had a somewhat angry expression on his face.

The rest of the group echoed the same feeling. Many of them hadn’t gotten over how bad the Homeworlders’ attempt to force Rory to surrender the Sigil of Weaving had been, nor had they forgiven the subsequent battle where they threatened to kill so many of them. When Michael had burst out of the palace and accused Rory so blatantly in front of everyone, all he had done was make the Homeworlders look even worse in his audience’s eyes.

“I think we should at least try,” Rory said. He wasn’t feeling very forgiving, but ultimately, he needed the trading deal and the letter of recognition. “See what the situation is there, at least.”

“Why you being so kind to them, man?” Jerome asked. “They don’t deserve it after everything they pulled.”

“Few deserve what they get in this world,” Emerius said. “And even fewer get what they deserve.”

“Let’s not get into philosophy right now,” Viv said.

Rory couldn’t agree more. “We need to set up the merchanting business, remember? For that, we need the Homeworlders, at least for now.”

Viv nodded. “Like it or not, we’re going to need them to survive.”

Some of them grumbled, but it was only the weary sort. They all saw reason.

After the Wraith Lord promised to see to what he could do, including sending some scouts towards the sewer entrance Rory’s groups had tussled around to check the gigantic monster’s status, they cut off the call. Rory trusted the Wraith Lord to see to his side of what needed to be done.

Meanwhile, there was one more call awaiting.

“A giant monster, you say?” For once, Talvic didn’t sound supremely annoyed. “To the west?”

“Correct,” Rory said. “You might be able to see it from the top of your cloud. I don’t know if that thing can fly, but it’s best you and your dwarves at least get ready to move in case things turn bad.”

“Oh, we have already moved.”

“You… have?” Rory exchanged blinking glances with the rest of them. “To where?”

“Oh, I do not think you need to know that at the moment.”

“You’re literally a cloud, minelord. There’s no real point hiding your location when just a cursory glance is going to reveal your whereabouts.”

“Truly? You think so, do you?”

There was a smugness to Talvic’s voice that promised that made Rory think of his earlier words. “You’re in the sky, aren’t you?”

“Correct! Bravo, you seem to have some wits about you. But yes, pray tell, what creature is it that has scared you so?”

Rory took a little time to explain what they had seen, surmised, and learned so far. Talvic seemed disappointed to learn that the monster was likely to only come out at night. Rory understood the frustration. The darkness would make it hard to see from a distance.

“We will come to your base, then,” Talvic said.

Rory froze. “You… will?”

“Yes, of course. Do you not wish your followers to escape? I don’t suppose you can escape with your palace upon your backs, nor can you raise it to the sky. So long as you choose to forsake your homes, you may use our cloud to escape.”

“Oh!” Rory hadn’t realized that was what Talvic had meant. He was offering his cloud as their getaway method in case things turned out to be horrible. “I really appreciate the offer. It would be great if you can come over, but we’re not sure we’d want to use it until we’re sure of what it is we’re going to face.”

“Understandable. We will make ourselves available to you by the time you may need us then. Till then, take care.”

“Same to you, minelord.”

They cut off the call. There wasn’t much Rory could check with his time running out so quickly, so he instead focused on the Settlement. Escaping was all well and good, but if they could muster a staunch defence, that would be for all the better.

The main hall was almost deserted. Everyone had packed up and were staying outside, either performing some last-minute practices or checking up on other things. It made the place feel strangely empty. Rory shuddered to think this was what it might look like one day if he didn’t succeed in his endeavours.

Shaking off the hollow sensation, Rory checked the [Settlement Status].

[Settlement Status]

Belcourt Palace

Type: Redoubt

Leader: Rory McIlroy

Tier: Cerulean IV [42%]

Stats

Population: 43

Area of Influence: 95m2

Treasury: 32,500 Mana, 75 Credits

Defences [Selectable]

Passive Reconstruction [Major]

Bolt Blaster [Major]

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Components

Sigil of Shelter: Ordinary, [Cerulean II]

Sigil of Finance: Uncommon, [Cerulean I]

Sigil of Security: Remarkable, [Cerulean VI]

Sigil of Produce: Exceptional, [Cerulean IV]

Sigil of Healing: Remarkable, [Cerulean V]

Sigil of Learning: Exceptional, [Cerulean VI]

Sigil of Energy: Remarkable, [Cerulean VII]

The Defences seemed in order. They had everything ready. Large Mana storage, a Settlement that had improved to a Redoubt that boosted their defensive measures, and even that instant ability that would allow them to rejuvenate quickly. Rory was going to have to remember it when the time came.

Pulling himself back from the column with the Sigil of Settlement Warded into it, Rory tried to calm himself. There were still a few hours left. When the time came, all they needed to do was survive.