It turned out that the Slaughterhouse was a meat processing facility, some twenty minutes to the south and east of the Silos. They had to cross the main road to reach it, and by the time they had closed in on the place, Clara was already having to guide them around some of the enemy patrols. They wouldn’t be able to slip past them forever, but every moment would likely count before they returned to the portal.
The building was a grim-looking one, with broad, empty fenced areas and narrow channels that led into the main plant. Abandoned semi-trucks that were set up for livestock sat discarded in the parking lot, allowing them to sneak close to the building without being detected by the Grue inside.
Unlike the Grain Silos, the Slaughterhouse was full of active Grue. It seemed like every single floor had some of the creatures standing sentry, and even more were milling around on the main floor. There wasn’t a massive crystal present, which meant it wasn’t a Camp, and she didn’t see anything like an Ogre stomping around, so it had to be some kind of Outpost.
If so, it wasn’t nearly as nice as the garden that she’d seen at the Red Blade facility. Gruesome machinery was poised over the conveyers inside, and Alex almost expected the half-rotten remains of the animals to be piled somewhere within. Even with no bodies, the entire place carried the rust-scent of dried blood and the pungent smell of offal.
Fortunately, they didn’t have to stay there long before Alex received the notification she’d been hoping for. Beautiful orange text splayed across her vision for a moment, confirming her hopes.
[Main Quest Completed!]
She turned and gave Abbott a signal, and he smiled. Then he gestured for them all to back away. They wove their way through the empty trucks and snuck past a patrol that had gotten a little too close.
Then they were away and heading back to the portal, battered but far from beaten. For the first time in a while, she was going to have a full clear to look forward to, and nothing, not even the Grue, could make her unhappy about it.
As if summoned by her optimism, they ran into at least four patrols before they got back to the exit. Abbott took pity on them and helped clear most of them out of the way, but it was still a bit painful to hack her way through the creatures to get back home.
Once they reached the spot, however, the swirling, crackling vortex was the most wonderful thing she had seen all day. A little fatigued, they all staggered into the blinding light…
[Mission Report]
[Successful Return! +20 Experience]
[Main Quest Completed! +140 Experience]
[Secondary Culling Quest Completed! +80 Experience]
[Secondary Culling Quest Completed! +80 Experience]
[All Quests Completed! Glorious Victory! +80 Experience]
Alex couldn’t stop smiling over the list of rewards. The fact that it had been so long since she’d been able to finish off her Quests entirely only made it that much more rewarding to see it all done now. Of course, if her math was correct, she was going to be able to enjoy even more than that in short order.
Her next source of joy came as her Skill increases popped up.
[Battle Maneuvers increased from 26 to 30!]
[Combat Balance increased from 19 to 25!]
[Combined Arms–Axe/Shield increased from 20 to 30!]
[Holy—Storm increased from 21 to 32!]
The results left her with nearly all of her Skills at maximum again. Only Holy—Storm hadn’t made it there, which was more because of the high maximum than anything else. She shrugged that fact aside with the confidence that her next Survey would bring it back to maximum and then moved on to the next notification that she’d been waiting for.
[You have reached level 3 as a Porter!]
[+2 Life gained. +1 Free Attribute awarded.]
Even as she immediately allocated the free point to Strength yet again, Alex started doing a little dance in the middle of the void that surrounded her. Reaching the next level meant that she would be that much more capable of standing up to threats like the Shifters or Liliana. Even better, she’d be closer and closer to fighting someone like Jester or Rabbit on their own terms. She hoped that wouldn’t happen anytime soon, but it would be better to plan for it rather than be taken by surprise.
[Battle Maneuvers has reached level 30! Skill is at Max Level and can no longer increase.]
[Reset Battle Maneuvers to gain a Title?]
Alex accepted the reset. She wanted Battle Maneuvers to catch up to Combat Balance when it came to Titles, and she had a little way to go. It just took so much longer to upgrade a Permanent Skill, but hopefully it would be worth it.
A rush of power went through her, even as the potency of her Skill drained away.
[Title Battle Prowess upgraded to Title War Prowess (Increases Skill grade of Battle Maneuvers, Rush Assault, and Heavy Assault by five.)]
[Motion Trance has reached level 25! Skill is at Max Level and can no longer increase.]
[Reset Motion Trance to gain a Title?]
This time, she winced. Resetting Motion Trance always hurt, but there would be no way to grow without continuing to boost it. Reluctantly, she accepted the option.
[Title Tranquil Flow upgraded to Still Flow (Increases Skill grade of Meditation, Focus, Recovery, Arcane, Sense, and Motion Trance by five.)]
[Combat Balance has reached level 25! Skill is at Max Level and can no longer increase.]
[Combat Balance has reached capacity for Titles. No more are available.]
[Reset Combat Balance to add maximum levels?]
Alex raised her eyebrows. So Combat Balance had reached its limits as well, had it? She shook her head. Unless she found a better way to train or use her abilities, she was going to get locked into her current strength for quite some time.
Still, she knew she wanted to take the chance while she could, so she did. She reset it, letting the power drain away and be replaced by new capacity for growth.
[Combined Arms–Axe/Shield has reached level 30! Skill is at Max Level and can no longer increase.]
[Combined Arms–Axe/Shield has reached capacity for Titles. No more are available.]
[Reset Combined Arms–Axe/Shield to add maximum levels?]
Another choice to expand the dependable Combined Arms. Alex grinned despite herself and agreed yet again. She was getting mildly addicted to that feeling of power flowing through her.
[Additional equipment awarded! Select new equipment.]
She almost chose to upgrade her shield again, but then she paused. She thought of all the running she’d done, and would probably do in the future.
Then she chose her boots, which abruptly shifted from the crude things she’d been wearing to something much more flexible and protective. It was a small change, but she could already tell her feet would thank her.
Still smiling, Alex closed her eyes and allowed the light to take her home…
After one brief, expensive visit to the infirmary, Alex and the others managed to make it to the cafeteria. Alex’s arm was still hurting a bit, but at the very least, she felt confident that it wouldn’t hamper her at all during the next day’s training. The lack of Motion Trance’s stamina bonuses was already dragging at her, however, and she couldn’t help but groan a little as she settled into the seat.
Sam gave her a sympathetic look. “Reset your magic Skill again?”
She nodded. “Yeah. Going to be a rough run tomorrow.”
He grimaced. “For me, too. I’m beginning to get a little addicted to Marathoning. I didn’t get the attraction at first, but now…”
Alex let out a tired chuckle. “At least you won’t have any trouble keeping up with me tomorrow, then.”
He snorted, and she smiled. As she picked up the burger that she’d grabbed, she heard Clara speak up from behind her. “Mind if we join you too? I might not have a Running-based Skill, but some more conditioning would probably help.”
Alex raised an eyebrow. “You too, Joanna?”
“You do seem to be using your speed fairly well. Having a bit of it for myself wouldn’t hurt.” The Adept set down her own tray, with a sandwich and some chips stacked on top of it. Clara moved to sit next to Alex, her own tray filled with a chicken salad. Sam was already done with his first taco, and starting on his second.
She took the opportunity to start in on her burger while everyone else began their meal. As she took the first wonderful bite, Alex looked around the room. The rest of the Surveyors in the cafeteria didn’t seem to be paying them any closer attention than before. Of course, the news about a Shade appearing might not have gotten around yet, and Abbott had reluctantly agreed to not report that it had been after her rather than him, specifically.
They ate in comfortable silence for a little, with the enthusiasm of people who were tired and hungry. Most of her burger and about half of her fries were gone by the time Joanna spoke up. “So. It seems like Abbott took that information well.”
“I was totally expecting him not to believe us at all.” Clara shook her head. “I mean, he did see Liliana, but even then…”
Sam swallowed what was left of his third taco, and Alex shook her head. What did he have in there, a black hole? “He didn’t just believe us, though. He’s completely onboard with helping us. Is it wrong that I almost see that as suspicious?”
Alex shrugged. “We haven’t exactly been blessed with great supervisors so far. Maybe we finally got lucky.”
He laughed. “What is this luck you speak of? I don’t know if I’ve ever heard of it before.”
Joanna gave him an exasperated look. “I think we can probably conclude that Abbott is sincere. He doesn’t seem like he gains anything by helping us, but he is doing it, anyway. He’s even using his time to spar with you, Alex.”
Her mouth full of fries, Alex just nodded, and Joanna continued before she’d managed to get the food down. “I do wonder why he is doing it, however. As… agreeable as he is, there must be some reason he is so willing to help us.”
“You’re suggesting it isn’t my winning personality?” Sam looked offended, though there was a hint of a smile in his expression.
“I’m suggesting that he might be helping us in spite of you, Sneak.” Joanna rolled her eyes, and Clara hid a smile behind her hand. The Adept picked at her chips irritably. “You know, I didn’t appreciate the nicknames he gave us at first, but yours does seem appropriate.”
“And I haven’t heard you complaining about yours, Professor.” Sam grinned as Joanna flushed, and he looked back at Alex. “I don’t think he has any deep, dark reasons for being helpful, honestly, but even if he does, we can’t ignore the benefits. My Skills have been gaining Titles at a pretty impressive rate, if I do say so myself.”
Clara nodded. “Yeah. I actually just got my next really high tier Skill.”
Alex raised both eyebrows. “Really? What is it?”
The Acolyte smiled. “I chained Restoration and Aura—Nature together. Gave me a Skill called Lifespring.” For a moment, her face seemed to shine with green energy, and some of the remaining aches that Alex had been feeling faded. “Allows my healing to reach a whole area instead of just one person, but it seems like it is going to take a while to develop.”
Joanna looked intrigued. “Interesting. I’m assuming that one is going to be your new Permanent when you reach C rank?” When Clara nodded, the Adept sighed. “I wish I had a clearer path for myself. I did Chain something new, but I’m not sure I want to carry it forward.”
Alex tilted her head to the side. “Was it something with Mental Search?”
She nodded. “Yes, actually. I combined Concentrate—Time and Mental Search. It gave me something new, called Flash Scan.”
Sam frowned. “That sounds… interesting.”
“I’m sure it might be useful.” She shrugged uneasily. “To tell the truth, I’d rather leave the Mind magic to you, Sam. I’d rather stick to something a bit more tangible.”
Clara snickered. “She means she’d rather burn and freeze things than mess with their heads.”
Joanna gave her a level look. “Spoken like someone who’s never had to dive into one of those thing’s memories. Believe me, fire and ice are the better way to go.”
Alex grinned. “I’ll just stick with lightning and cold steel. Seems easier.”
“You would say that, wouldn’t you?” Clara pointed a fork at her. “You know, at some point you’re going to face something you can’t chop, smash, or zap, and then where are you going to be? Begging the rest of us for help, that’s where.”
Sam finished the last of his tacos and stretched with an obvious sigh. “Oh, come on, Dryad, our illustrious leader never has to beg for help. After all, we’re all so happy to support her.”
She gave him a glare. “You mean you haven’t finished blackmailing me for things yet.”
“Now that you mention it, there are one or two things you could help me out with… you know, a chance to pay things back.”
Alex tossed a fry at him, and he ate it out of the air, grinning as he chewed. She stuck her tongue out at him and snagged another pair of fries for herself. Just as she had thought of a good comeback, a low tone echoed through the room, drawing her attention to the front of the room.
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
Mitch Warner was there, along with a handful of other Royal Purple executives. He was looking extremely satisfied with himself, which… wasn’t exactly encouraging. The CEO checked the microphone attached to his lapel and then laced his fingers together in front of himself.
“Surveyors of Royal Purple Contracting, I have an exciting announcement to make!”
Alex heard Joanna curse under her breath and saw Sam quietly go tense. She tried to ignore both of them to listen for warning signs.
“Since I joined this company, I’ve been looking for ways to share our expertise and talents with the rest of the world in a more productive and profitable way. Your work here at Royal Purple Contracting is an inspiration to all Surveyor corporations, and it would be a crime to ignore the chance that we have to be a shining example to the rest of the world.”
“Fortunately, as of today, I am proud to announce that we have found a solution to that problem. Starting now, we are going to be participating in the RESCUE initiative. This program will, in many ways, be a major turning point for the company. Now, to make sure that all of you know what RESCUE stands for, I have a short presentation…”
After what seemed like an eternity, Alex headed back with the others to the dorms. The only cheerful one was Sam. It was not pleasant.
“Hey Alex, did you know E stands for Enthusiasm and Engagement? That’s pretty creative, huh?”
“Shut up, Sam.” Her incredible lack of either quality didn’t seem to bother him all that much. If anything, he just grinned wider.
Joanna looked even less amused than she felt. The Adept met Alex’s eyes and grimaced. “It’s starting again, isn’t it? This is probably the first step.”
The question drained some of the manic energy from Sam, and Alex sighed as she nodded. “Yeah, probably.”
Clara looked back and forth between both of them. “What do you mean? All he was saying was that they were going to try and increase the number of clients, right?”
“That, and they are launching a new program to ‘help’ companies that haven’t actually signed on with us.” Alex glanced at Sam, who nodded, his expression suddenly serious. “I’m willing to bet that the ones we end up helping have been working with really stable portals for a while… until we offer them help, and their portal suddenly starts going wild.”
Sam looked at Clara. “Then we would swoop in and help them out. For a price.”
“As well as a longer-term contract just to make sure it doesn’t happen again.” Joanna had a grim expression on her face. “I wonder how many Surveyors they might end up killing with this ‘program’?”
“None, if I have my way.” Alex shook her head. “The moment they start it, I want us digging into the background on every emergency call they send a team out on. We need to find out if there are any Greylight properties nearby, and try to arrange for them to be exposed to Regulation if they are. The sooner we can shut this down, the better off we’ll all be.”
The others nodded solemnly. Alex opened her mouth to say something more, only to cut off as a siren echoed across the campus. She looked up at one of the small towers and saw a flurry of activity as they started preparing one of the tiltrotors for deployment.
Her eyes hardened in determination. “Starting with that one.”
The next morning dawned far too early, as far as Alex was concerned.
With Motion Trance at zero, it seemed like she hadn’t slept nearly enough. Instead of bouncing out of bed energized and ready for the day, she had to drag herself into her running clothes. Several parts of her were still screaming for rest, or sending up aches as she stumbled her way out to the front of the dorm.
Her friends were waiting for her, looking like they weren’t in much better shape. Alex gave them a nod of acknowledgement, and then they set off together for the first loop around the campus.
Sam spoke first, his voice only a little breathy. “The alarm yesterday was a standard one. An established client. They hadn’t had an emergency in a while, but there didn’t seem to be anything weird about the call.”
Joanna nodded. “That’s what I… heard too.” The fact that the Adept was already a little out of breath did not bode well for the rest of the run. “Seems like everything went just… fine.”
“My Mom and Dad said they’d look into the area, but it’s a long way away.” Alex shook her head. She felt a sudden ache of grief as she realized how much easier it would be if Zach were still alive. It took an effort to shove it aside. “They did say that Greylight didn’t have any interests in the place. Nothing open at least.”
“Seems like they’d hide it, right?” Clara shrugged. “What’s the use of a secret facility if everyone can tie it to you?”
“Good… point.” Joanna huffed as they turned a corner, face already covered in sweat. “We’ll just have… to keep digging.”
Alex nodded and bore down as they continued to run. Joanna was right. The alternative would be to let people die when things inevitably went wrong.
Despite her determination, nothing popped up as they trained over the next day. Every avenue they chased down led nowhere. Nothing about that first call had anything suspicious attached to it, and it was driving Alex crazy to be forced to admit that it was probably a legitimate emergency. All they’d managed to do was distract themselves during their training; the other teams wiped them out without even trying during the teamwork competition, and Abbott had asked her if something was wrong afterward.
She’d nearly given up on it when, just before bedtime, the alarm had sounded again, sending the second on-call team off on another mission. Abbott had said that multiple calls per week were not unusual, but Alex couldn’t help but see the pattern.
By the time the third call happened, midway through the morning on the next day, even the other Surveyors were starting to get concerned. The on-call teams looked a little haggard when Alex passed them in the hallways or saw them in the cafeteria. Rumors flew about portals going crazy when they had been stable, and gossip about the on-call teams taking injuries going in to stabilize things. When Alex dropped by the infirmary, it did seem like the medics were a little busier than normal, but none of them would break privacy to talk to her about it.
It was even more ominous, however, when their lecture that second day had material for portals that weren’t actually Royal Purple clients. There was more of it than they could possibly get through, and the clerk in charge seemed especially harried as they went through it.
All around her, it seemed like the very air had changed inside of the company. It didn’t help when the alarm rang late that night for the fourth time, waking her out of her sleep. As she settled back into the pillows, she wondered when things would get genuinely out of control.
“I heard that they’ve already run through the gopher teams for the on-calls. If they get another mission, they might even have to turn it down.” Trips’ voice was hushed as they waited for their turn to go through the portal, but Alex wasn’t the only one listening in. From what she could tell, half the Surveyors in the room were straining their ears to catch whatever gossip they could.
Clara was frowning in obvious concern. “Just injuries, right? No deaths?”
Trips gave her a shocked look. “No, of course, no deaths. Just wounds and stuff. I heard Dweeb got hit really bad. He’ll be out the rest of the week.”
One of the nearby Surveyors snorted in amusement, and Clara gave her a glare. Alex couldn’t help but sympathize; Dweeb was a particularly oblivious Surveyor with a lot more stubbornness than smarts. If he wasn’t so willing to work hard, Alex doubted that he would have reached D rank without something close to a miracle occurring.
Clara had turned back to Trips. “Do they know what is causing it? I don’t think I’d ever heard of them having four emergency calls in a week.”
“Four calls so far.” Grumps looked up to find both women glaring at him, and he shrugged. “What?”
Alex exchanged a look with Sam, but he just shook his head. He still hadn’t tracked down any connection between Greylight properties and the affected portals. None of the non-Surveyor employees at Royal Purple seemed to know anything either, though the maintenance workers for the tiltrotors were complaining bitterly about the schedule they were being forced to keep.
Unfortunately, there was nothing they could do to handle things without more information. They wouldn’t even see anything firsthand until they were on call themselves in the next week. Alex tried to put the issues out of her mind and focus on the upcoming Survey. Even without Liliana present, she needed to be able to help Abbott continue to progress. If things went sour, they’d need to have as many allies as they could.
The door to the training facility swung open, and Joanna glanced in that direction. Alex saw the Adept freeze and looked in the same direction.
Mitch Warner was stalking into the room, his head swiveling as he looked among the various D rank Surveyors. His gaze landed on her and he stopped. Alex did not like the smile that spread across his features. It looked entirely too much like relief, like he’d finally found the answer to a problem that had been bothering him.
He walked straight across the room to her, his smile still on his face. “Valkyrie? I need you and your team to get ready to deploy.”
Alex blinked. She glanced at Sam, who shook his head. “What do you mean? We aren’t on call. We’re supposed to go out on a Survey today.”
A flash of irritation crossed Warner’s features. It vanished behind that same smile just as quickly as it had arrived. “I’m afraid we have a developing situation. We need to be flexible to adjust to the realities of our clients.”
She looked at him, and realization dawned. “The other D ranks have too many injuries, so they can’t switch in. There’s already been four missions. That’s why you need someone else.”
Warner tilted his head slightly. He glanced back at some of the other employees that had followed him in. “Regardless of the why, we need you and your team to get ready now.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Do you have a reason to think that we’re going to have another emergency call soon?”
He didn’t respond. Instead, he just kept staring at her in silence. The quiet was enough of an answer all on its own. When he finally did respond, his voice was tense. “We need to be… cautious about this. If there is another emergency, we won’t have time to look for more options. We’ll need the best prepared team as well, in case the worst happens. Everything I’ve heard indicates that would be you and your friends.”
Warner paused for a moment. To the side, Abbott and another team of D ranks came through the vortex. The C rank was smiling, at least until he saw Warner there. Then the CEO’s false smile returned. “Please move quickly, Valkyrie. The rest of the world already is—and we don’t want you caught off guard.”
It was entirely unsurprising when the alarm went off just two hours later.
Alex and the others had already been braced for it, to the point where it was almost a relief when it happened. They hadn’t even left the building; instead, they’d found a small conference room near the active tiltrotor pad and waited. As the low thrum of the alarm reverberated through the facility and their phones pinged with urgent notifications, they each exchanged a resigned look, took up their weapons, and walked out to the waiting vehicle.
They beat the C rank team there by at least ten minutes. It gave Sam enough time to chat with the pilots and maintenance crew for a few moments before he joined them in the Greyhawk. There was no question about which seats were theirs; the words ‘D RANKS’ had been stenciled into the right-hand side over the set of seats there. Alex and the other obediently took up their positions and waited for the rest of the Survey group to arrive.
When Sam took his seat, he settled into it with a quiet sigh. He glanced at the others and grinned. “It’s apparently a new client. They hadn’t contracted with us before today, but they are sure excited to sign on now.”
Joanna spoke up; she had her eyes closed and was leaning her head back against the inside wall of the tiltrotor. “Which one?”
“Emerald Bay Surveys.”
Alex blinked. She remembered the company from one of the dossiers they’d been given to study the day before. “Which portal? Is it—”
“ES-90717.” The tone of his voice made it clear she’d just made the same connection he had. It was the portal they’d studied, right down to the specifics of how it was set up.
Clara spoke a moment later. “Which one was that?”
Alex answered, still thinking through the possibilities. Was someone helping them? Or did the company just manage to hand out the information they needed by coincidence? “The one in the middle of the town center. With the fountain.”
“Oh.” Clara settled back into her seat, looking thoughtful. “Well, at least we get to see the statues. I thought they sounded interesting.”
Despite herself, Alex snorted. They exchanged a quick look, and then the pre-Survey nerves got the better of all of them. By the time the C ranks arrived, they were all laughing quietly and shaking their heads.
The harried-looking C ranks were not quite as amused. Alex recognized them from the cafeteria and a handful of times when they’d crossed paths. There was a Knight by the name of Tracie who everyone called Thud for whatever reason. Another two were an Archer called Oops whose real name she didn’t know, and a Zealot named Shorty. Their team leader was last, a man named Orbit whose Role she wasn’t familiar with. He carried a sword on his back and had a sour expression to go along with the splint on his nose.
He glared around at them for a moment and then grunted. “You guys are the gophers?”
Alex met his gaze and raised an eyebrow. “We’re your Exploration team, yeah.”
Thud muttered something under her breath, but Orbit ignored her. “What happened to Waterfall and the rest?”
Sam answered with elaborate casualness. “Seems like you guys treated them a bit too lightly, so you have us instead. Hope it goes well for everyone.”
Orbit looked at Sam for a moment. Then a hint of guilt flickered across his bruised, blunt face. “Sorry. It’s… it’s been a rough week.”
Alex shook her head. “That’s fine. Do you know what the situation is?”
“It’s a new client. We don’t have much to go on in terms of their layout, just what we’ve heard from outside sources.” Orbit’s expression showed precisely how he felt about that without any words needed. “We’re going to be relying on you a lot more than usual. Normally, I’d know where all the locations were like the back of my hand. Now, though…”
Clara spoke up after he trailed off. She had to speak louder as the ramp began to whine shut. “What kind of emergency is it? Are they getting odd readings?”
“You could say that.” Orbit’s expression grew grim. “Two hours ago, they sent in three teams of D ranks on a standard set of Surveys. Portal had been stable for months, so nobody thought there was anything to worry about. An hour ago, the readings started going off the charts, and their stable, D rank portal is now assessed as a high D, maybe escalating to C.”
Joanna’s voice was calm, despite the sudden sound of the rotors powering up outside. “Any sign of the D ranks inside?”
Orbit shook his head. “Readings show they might have lost one or two, but it’s hard to tell with the way the portal is right now. All they know is that none of their people have come back out, and they don’t have the C ranks present to lock it down. We’ve been contracted to go in, take out whatever we need to in order to restore the portal’s stability, and then salvage whatever we can on the way back.”
Alex tilted her head slightly. “And find any survivors, right?”
He looked back at her, his expression hard to read beneath the marks. “Yeah. Sure.”
She waited until he looked away before she glanced at the others. They were watching her with expectant eyes, and Alex felt a sinking certainty that they were already expecting her to retake the lead of the team, now that Abbott was gone. “All right. Is there anything we should know about this kind of situation? This is our first time through something like this.”
To her right, she heard Sam try to cover up a laugh with a cough. Clara made a noise that might have been a yawn or a giggle, depending on how charitable you were. Orbit frowned.
“Expect higher level Grue to be present, even though the portal isn’t rated for them. Each Escalation threat takes its own shape, so it is hard to predict exactly how they’ll act, but be ready for surprises.” He paused and then shook his head again. “I know you have a reputation for being a hero, but don’t overcommit, Valkyrie. Nobody’s going to speak kindly of you if you get you and your team killed. If it gets too dangerous, pull back through the portal, and let us take the lead.”
Alex studied him for a moment. Every line of him suggested he was tired, right down to the scrapes and dents in his armor. His team didn’t look much better, despite the weary competence in their eyes. How many hours had they been fighting this week? How bad could it be, to have a pack of C ranks nearly dead on their feet?
She nodded slowly and then sat back as the tiltrotor left the ground. There was a panicked flutter in her stomach as it lurched into motion, heading for the location of the portal. Her hands clenched a little as she felt the movement of the vehicle, and it suddenly occurred to her she’d never actually flown anywhere before. Her parents had always relied on cars, buses, and trains. Planes were never a possibility.
There was a shuddering bump through the cabin, and she gulped. Surely it wouldn’t be that bad, would it?
A painful, unpleasant hour later, the tiltrotor slowed its headlong rush through the skies, and Alex felt herself calm a little. She could feel the thing hovering in the air above whatever landing place the Emerald Bay Surveys people had prepared. As it started to descend, there was some kind of wind that shoved into it, and she grunted softly. Gritting her teeth, she looked over at the others, hoping they hadn’t noticed.
Joanna had her hand over her eyes; Sam and Clara were both watching her with sympathy. The Acolyte leaned over to whisper to her. “Never flown before?”
Alex shook her head, not entirely trusting her voice. Another lurch shook the craft, and she pictured it falling from the sky like a rock. Closing her eyes just didn’t seem to help. Opening them wasn’t much better. Some of the C ranks were whispering among themselves, and she’d seen more than one tired smile hidden behind their hands and helmets.
She jerked her gaze away and fixed it on the outer ramp. Just a little while longer, and she could escape. All she had to do was hold on just a little longer. Alex repeated it like a mantra, unsuccessfully trying to reach a meditative state as the Greyhawk slowly settled back to earth.
When the landing gear finally touched ground, she felt an explosion of relief that defied description. She let out a long breath that she hadn’t realized she’d been holding and fought off a wave of nausea. How did people do this regularly? It was insane!
The ramp opened up, and Alex was out of her restraints and out into the clear air almost before it was fully open. Sam and the others filtered out behind her at a slightly slower pace.
Emerald Bay Surveys had cleared a reasonable area around their portal, about the same size as the compound for the Red Blade Securities portal. The difference was that instead of a city, the portal was located in a smallish town. Trees grew around most of the property, and Alex had to look closely to see the chain-link fences at the border.
There were only three buildings close by. One looked like some kind of warehouse, while another one seemed to be an apartment complex of some kind. The third looked like a small square block of a store, almost like the kind of place a person might find wedged into a shopping plaza somewhere.
Three people were waiting on the clear patch of grass where the Greyhawk had set down. All of them wore worried expressions and rushed towards Alex the moment her feet touched ground. One of them, an older man with scars on his face, began speaking immediately.
“We still haven’t had any contact with our Surveyors. The portal escalation has continued to get worse. At this rate, unless something changes, we’re looking at a full-fledged Escalation Event in less than an hour.”
Orbit responded, his weariness hidden behind an air of confidence that Alex hadn’t expected from him. “We have things handled, Mr. Garrison. We’re going to send our first team through now.”
He looked at Alex, and she nodded. She looked back at Garrison. “We’ll get them back. I promise.”
She heard a muttered oath from one of the Surveyors behind her, but she ignored it. Instead, she headed straight for the warehouse. Their information had the portal stored inside, and she didn’t think they had any time to waste.
The others followed her inside, where they were confronted by a very familiar sight.
Hanging above the floor, the vortex of the portal was crackling with energy. Magic flowed from it in waves that filled the air with the unnatural scent. Alex paused as the memory of the portal at Golden Swallow flashed through her mind. She saw Forsmith diving into that chaos, knowing despite everything that she wouldn’t see him again…
She shook her head and walked over to the portal. The others fell in alongside her. Sam spoke quietly as they neared the crackling hole in reality. “That doesn’t look great, Alex.”
Alex glanced at him. Then she looked back at the swirling light. “Who protects the protectors, Sam?”
He was silent a moment and then laughed. “All right, let’s go then!”
They all stepped forward together, and the light folded over her…
