"I want my son."

"The more you cooperate with this investigation, the sooner we can wrap this all up and return you to your family."

Marvin Ross: Level 21

(Fighter/Scout)

Irene took a slow breath, and closed her eyes without replying.

"Your website has ominous warnings on it about some future threat. Why are you trying to scare people into buying into this movement you're creating? We've already confirmed nothing you've done is turning a profit in any way, so clearly money isn't your motivation. Why do it?"

Irene exhaled deeply. "I want my son."

"Answer the questions, please, and we'll get you back to him very soon. What is the purpose of this group that you've created? Why are you trying to incite the populace with your pamphlets?"

"I want. My. Son."

On his way to collect Lash, Levi noticed a young Awakened man walking wearily down the road, only level 3. From the look of his outfit, he'd probably just finished a late shift in a restaurant or bar of some sort.

He still wasn't sure of the exact situation here, which made him hesitant to use excessive force. Even if these people had claimed control of the dungeon for themselves, they could have recruited Cassandra. He could easily see her getting thoroughly caught up in it. And then of course Irene and Peter would have gone along to not break up the group.

Everything he'd seen and felt, and the way his minions were acting, made him suspect this wasn't a friendly place that his family could just walk away from. But on the off chance that Irene was in negotiation with a potentially powerful new ally, he didn't want to immediately rush in swords-blazing and muck it up for her.

Even if he had a bad feeling about the whole thing, he'd be better served with information than guesses. So seeing the closest thing to an ordinary civilian as the town had to offer, he crossed the road and approached.

"Can you tell me about the fence up there?"

The guy startled. "Sorry, didn't see you." He glanced back at the compound, then shrugged. "All those guys showed up a week or so after the dungeon did. Quarantined it, keep people out. Good riddance, I say. That thing was trouble."

"So if someone wanted to visit the dungeon, is there a procedure to apply...?"

"No. No one's allowed in except them. Couple of the guys tried to sneak in, got themselves zapped real good by that fence. Next day one of the bosses came stumping around to make sure we all knew to stay clear." He shrugged again. "They don't bother us if we don't bother them. Mostly they're flying in and out, see the planes every few days. At least they're quiet."

"Planes?" He hadn't heard about any planes viable for Awakened, especially not at the level of those inside the compound built around the dungeon. "What kind of planes?"

"Look, I don't know anything, alright? If you want to know more, go ask them yourself. It's none of my business." The guy started walking a bit faster, and Levi let him go.

Lash did not appreciate being grabbed and dragged around like a balloon on a string. He even less appreciated having one of his tendrils tied into a knot and strung through the straps of Levi's backpack, but when he refused to cooperate Levi didn't see another alternative to keeping him reigned in.

"We're trying to avoid being seen!" Levi hissed at the wayward soul-seeker. "You can't go peering about in public. Everyone here is Awakened, they'll see you."

Lash didn't even try to reply, focusing on making himself as much of a dead weight as possible. Given that he only weighed twenty pounds at most, and probably closer to ten, this was not a very effective method of protest.

By the time Levi dragged him back to their makeshift camp, Gremlin Two had returned with his report.

Two drew extra dots and lines on various buildings, designating patrols or reinforced walls. That one took a bit of work to communicate, but they did manage it eventually between Two and Skarm. Others he put little Zs on, to indicate they were asleep.

Levi exhaled slowly, relieved by the number of sleeping fighters. If they'd all been fully aware and on alert, this would have been much more difficult.

"Is there any reason not to walk up to the gate and just... ask?" Levi wondered aloud. "If they turn out to be hostile, I'd be giving away the element of surprise, but if there's no reason to fight there's no reason to fight. I don't want to start needless infighting with other Awakened, especially if they're this strong already."

Lash tugged insistently, trying to get away. Levi swatted him down. "Not now. Behave yourself."

Skarm shook his head, baring his teeth in the direction of the compound. Crackle landed on Skarm's head and hunched down in clear solidarity.

Lash tugged again, more insistently.

"What is it?" Levi snapped, whirling on him. This whole business had him on edge. "I'm trying to have a conversation here."

Lash waved a shadowy tendril at Skarm, leaning himself as close to the gremlin as he could get after being tied down, reaching toward him with his other six tendrils.

Skarm approached, looking dubious.

Lash slipped a tendril around each of Skarm's hands, and the gremlin nodded in understanding, sitting down on the ground and leaning forward with his arms behind him, Lash holding them back.

"They're prisoners." Levi's whole body flooded with rage as he understood their production. "They're locked up and helpless, inside an active and high level dungeon?"

Skarm and Two nodded in unison, and Lash released Skarm's arms, bobbing in place with self-satisfaction.

Any thought of trying to negotiate fled, along with any plans of waiting for his revive cooldown to end.

He couldn't afford to stall for Gordon and the others to catch up.

He couldn't waste another minute. Monsters could spawn at any time. Anything could happen. He'd wasted too much time already, not trusting his instincts, trying to reason his way through this.

Levi whirled on Crackle. "They're still alive? Right now?"

Crackle retreated fearfully, but bobbed in agreement.

"We're going in. And I don't care how much of a mess it makes. Stunner, take out as many as you can, then cause a distraction on the other side of the compound. How much of a gap do you need to physically slip into a place? Can you get through the fence?"

Stunner tilted his draconic head to the side, trotted to the top of the hill to look down at the fences in question, then returned to Levi with a confident nod.

"Then get in there and take them down. Anyone who's asleep, keep them that way. Cause as much chaos as you can."

Stunner snorted and pawed the ground. Two tapped Levi's leg and gestured toward the eqralne.

"What?"

Two hastily drew a square with a plus sign inside, then mimed stabbing it with his Natureblade, gesturing to Stunner.

"He can slip under the door or something, you don't need--"

Stunner interrupted with a snort, shaking his head.

"Fine. Two, go with Stunner and break windows for him. Keep quiet as long as you can, but once they notice you make as big a fuss as possible and attract their attention."

Even as he spoke, Levi was untying Lash's tendril to release the soul-seeker. "Lash, Becca, I need you to neutralize the watchtower on this side. Skarm, you're with me."

For once, Lash didn't even try to disobey, bobbing with a quick assent, then floating low to the ground to follow Becca.

Stunner shivered liquidly, Iris's deflated remains sliding off his back and into a pile on the ground. Skarm and Two dragged her over to the nearest notable boulder, scuffing enough dirt over her body to conceal it from any casual inspection.

Becca paused long enough to lie down on their tactical map, casually obliterating any evidence of their planning, then bounded off toward the watchtower with Lash in close pursuit.

Levi paused only long enough to ping the area again several times in quick succession, verifying who was actively moving around and who was static, then sprinted toward the village.