The following day, we took our time heading back to Danver. We intended to return to the lodge after nightfall and catch the Kurskins in their sleep, so we were in no hurry.

  We all debated whether to rouse the human Hunters and loop them in before doing the dirty work but decided against it. There was no way to predict how some would react to the revelations, and we couldn’t risk anyone interrupting our plans.

  However, the odds would be against us without more on our side. Six Kurskins verse three humans and a Dalari wasn't a fair fight. Our only hope was to take out as many as possible in their sleep. Ersabet assured me this could be accomplished, but I worried that one of them might have some skill that alerted them to danger, even if they were asleep. I told Ersabet as such, and while she didn’t rule it out, she thought it was unlikely that one of them would have it, if such a skill even existed.

  When I asked Val, she informed me it was a stupid question as she wasn’t in control of the game.

  And so we took our time, admiring nature and resting at every opportunity. It was nice at first, but the closer we got to Danver, the worse my anxiety became. I wanted to get this over with. The anticipation seemed like it was worse than the action would be. I knew I should enjoy my day of peace because it would be the last I ever had. If I didn’t die, I would have to live knowing that others died because I manipulated them. Their deaths were a sacrifice for carrying out my plan. I felt like I was playing God, and I didn’t like it. But I was still going to do it.

  By the time the entrance to Danver was in clear view, the sun was setting.

  We couldn’t risk drawing suspicion from any Kurskins that might be out and about the town, so we were forced to untie Djadja. Ersabet made it clear that he was to stay by her side at all times, and that if he tried to flee or made any attempt to draw attention to himself, she would kill him instantly.

  I believed her, and more importantly, so did Djadja.

  Like a good dog, he did as he was told. We walked the darkening streets until we found the inn near the Hunter’s Lodge. Ersabet and I still had rooms booked there, so we holed up in them to pass the time.

  There was little conversation during those hours of waiting. Djadja sat on the floor, hands and feet bound once again. Minna and Harl occasionally whispered to each other, but I wasn’t in the mood for talking. My mind was focused on what I was about to do…what I had to do.

  It had taken me a long time to figure out how I could make a difference in this fake, fucked-up world, but I thought I was finally on to something.

  This whole game was meticulously designed and it all relied on one thing: the human population had to believe the big lie. They had to believe that the Kurskin and the Dalari were either divine or were from faraway lands, and they had to believe that one race was good and the other was bad. It didn’t matter which, really. Where I had ‘grown up’, we all believed the Dalari were evil, and the Kurskin were here to protect us. But those in the western end of the continent believed the opposite. If this lie were shattered, the game would be ruined.

  After seeing more of the world, it seemed to me that other than the devout, most humans were unsure of the origin of the Kurskin and the Dalari. They speculated plenty but none of their guesses were even close to the truth, and the only explanation that made sense was that they were from distant lands yet unexplored. The concept of an ‘alien’ was not something these people were familiar with, at least as far as I could tell.

  Despite the big lie, most humans only tolerated these invaders because they had no choice. Only where the Kurskins and the Dalari were most entrenched did it turn into a true alliance, or in some cases, a religion.

  The way I saw it, the humans in Danver only put up with the Kurskin population because the city leadership ordered them to, but the average person had no love in their heart for the lizards. That fact should make it easier to sway them to my cause.

  We waited deep into the night before making our move. I wanted to be sure that even the insomniacs were fast asleep before starting my murder spree.

  The front door to the Hunter’s Lodge was locked tight, but Minna knew of a side door kept unlocked exclusively for Hunters at all hours of the day. It was guarded on the inside, but we weren’t worried about that. The guard would be human as no Kurskin would ever lower themselves to such a menial job. I was confident I could take my way out of bringing in a tied up Kurskin, and if I couldn't, we would just subdue the guard until the deed was done.

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  All the Kurskins slept in the same wing, so at least they would be easy to find. For this plan to work, both Minna and Harl would have to get their hands dirty. I prayed they wouldn’t hesitate when the time came.

  We entered, and the guard, whom I vaguely recognized but had never met, was fast asleep. It was good that we weren’t monsters or thieves, or he’d be in for a whipping.

  Minna led us to a closet where we dumped Djadja. We left him extra-bound and gagged and secured the door. The most the poor lizard could do in his current state was wiggle around like a worm, so I wasn’t worried about him getting loose. And I wasn’t foolish enough to use a single cord like those witches had used on me.

  Before sneaking into the Kurskin’s wing, we ensured we were all on the same page. After that, we sent Minna off to spy on the Kurskins and figure out their sleeping arrangements. That knowledge would help us determine their killing arrangements.

  After a nerve-wracking eternity, Minna returned and shared her report. There were four in one room and two in the other. She sounded scandalized when she mentioned the two who shared the same room also shared the same bed. It surprised me but didn’t bother me. I was going to murder them all equally anyway.

  We had a short debate but settled on trying to take out the room of four first. If we did this right, we could slit all four throats simultaneously and not wake the others. To be accurate, we wouldn’t actually be cutting their throats. Ersabet instructed us to drive the tips of our daggers into the soft skin in their submental area, at the top of their throat, right underneath what constituted a lizard's ‘chin.’ It would kill them faster.

  We needed to make as little noise as possible, so we all removed our shoes, except for Minna who had already done so before her prior sneak attempt.

  “Ready?” I whispered to the group. “Once we do this, there’s no going back.”

  “This is our world,” Harl said. “Now that I know it, I want it back.”

  “I always knew they were monsters,” Minna said. “We’re just doing our job.”

  I smiled at the pair and then looked to Ersabet. Her eyes shone with determination, and it hit me for the first time that she wasn’t just doing this because she wanted to help me become famous and thus benefit herself. She hated the Kurskins. She wanted them dead just as bad as I did.

  “Let’s go tip this domino,” I said.

  They all looked at me confused, and I just shrugged. “Come on.”

  We stepped gingerly the entire way. Even Harl, who had at least fifty pounds on me, managed to step lightly.

  Minna led us to a door, which she had kindly kept cracked for us, and I slowly opened it the rest of the way.

  It was dark within the stone walls of the lodge, but my eyes had grown used to the dark, and I could easily see the four sleeping Kurskins within. Their beds were all spaced evenly against the far wall.

  I stepped into the room and led my kill squad to their destinations. Ersabet and I took the two in the center. Harl took the bed to my right, and Minna stepped up to the bed on Ersabet’s left.

  I looked down at the sleeping Kurskin and felt nothing but disgust. They looked just as evil in their sleep as they did awake.

  In the quiet room, I could hear their breathing, which included an occasional soft honk that resembled a snore. It was time they honked their last breath.

  I held up my left hand with three fingers extended and used my right hand to hover the tip of Tara’s uncle’s dagger over my prey’s throat.

  All my friends’ eyes were on me. I lowered one finger, then another, and then the last. I jammed the tip of my blade into the Kurskin’s throat with minimal resistance. The long, curved blade pierced deep, deep enough to hit the brainstem. My victim didn’t even have time to open his eyes.

  I heard the soft sound of other blades piercing skin, a moan and a gurgle to my left, and horrifyingly, a curse to my right.

  “Fuck, he’s gone,” Harl said. His shocked voice barely able to maintain a whisper. He spun around, eyes wide with panic. “He vanished right before me.”

  “You didn’t kill him?” I whispered back.

  “I can’t kill what's not there,” Harl said, no longer whispering.

  There was a blur to my right, and I dodged out of the way as Ersabet launched herself past me and Harl and landed on the bed. Well, not exactly on the bed…She was hovering above the mattress.

  I could see it now. The Kurskin was still there, practically invisible, but I could see a glassy blur of movement as he struggled under Ersabet.

  Her head rocked to the side, and she grunted. I don’t know what he did, but the Kurskin managed to hit her.

  Unsure of what to do, I leapt toward Ersabet and drove my dagger into bed. My first strike pierced through the mattress, but my second pierced something else.

  The Kurskin yelled out in pain, and he flickered back into existence as his active camo evaporated.

  Before I could get another stab in, he leg shot out from underneath Ersabet and struck me in the thigh. It wasn’t the hardest blow, but his clawed feet pierced my skin, and I fell to one knee.

  I felt a rush of despair, but then Harl slammed his dagger into the Kurskin's side, barely missing Ersabet.

  Minna rushed past me and joined Harl. The two of them jabbed their daggers over and over into whatever part of the Kurskin they could find while Ersabet held him down.

  When his struggle finally ceased, Ersabet sat up, still straddling him, and drove her dagger into the soft of his throat for good measure.

  “Holy shit,” I said as Harl helped me to my feet. “We did it.”

  ‘Don’t speak too soon,’ Val said. ‘I’m detecting movement from down the hall. Players, not NPCs.’

  “The others are coming,” I said, turning to the door. “Get ready for a fight.”

  The Seam: Part One of Texas Accelerated is the first book in a fun and fast-paced disaster/sci-fi adventure set in the heart of Texas. This series seeks only to entertain and has plenty of action, laughs, and Texans fighting sabertooth tigers. What more do you want?

  You can get it here! Please consider giving this one a shot. It's only available on Audible. Thank you all! I'll be putting my focus back on finishing -Non- Player Character for you all.