It's meant as an insult, to mock me. A tier seven barely past thirty and no long term physical injuries, but already retired?
Of course my title would be a joke.
But the people who gave it to me are all dead or at HQ with me because you won’t survive out there if you think the physical injuries are the worst thing you’ll suffer.
- Retired Tier VII hunter ‘Commander’
I’m beginning to think the rest of the trip won't be so bad, which is why the universe decides it'd be fun to mess with me. The shortwave radio pops on with a crackle as we’re rumbling down the ancient highway and a gruff voice comes through.
“We’ve got a tail, sandworms, and they are catching up. Brace for contact and if you have to stop then stop. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT go off road.”
As soon as he finishes, all hell breaks loose.
The ground bursts open ahead of the convoy and the ‘sandworms’ pour out. Three meters long and half as tall, the massive round maw is the only part that resembles a worm, the rest is a skittering brown lobster right out of my nightmares. Too many legs with too many sharp points. They're diving at the humvees like they’re trying to swallow them whole.
The entire convoy comes skidding to a halt as the sandworms crash into vehicles and latch themselves on trying to chew through the armor. I already hear the HMG roaring, a storm of bullets tearing through the swarm spraying blood and chitin into the air.
It looks like quiet is out so I start grabbing grenades out of my pack when I hear the militia sergeant crackle back on the shortwave yelling at the top of his lungs.
“DAVIS GET YOUR ASS BACK ON THE ROAD!”
I pause for a blink to look out the window and see a humvee barreling off course with a worm attached to the front driver door with Zachary diving out the side while carrying Dominique.
The driver only gets a couple hundred meters out before the ground splits open with a sound like a mountain crumbling. The tear in the earth continues growing until I can't see the beginning or end of it, my heart stopping cold when I notice the pulsing and squirming of the fleshy inside. The humvee and several worms are all swallowed whole by the nightmare before its sandy flesh crushes closed with tectonic force that rattles my bones.
“What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck” I mutter over and over under my breath.
I'm back to grabbing more grenades except now my hands are shaking and I can feel a cold sweat shiver through my body. Suddenly the inside of the humvee doesn't feel so safe, I don't know if anything will ever feel safe after that.
As soon as I get out I can see the feeding frenzy starting to pile up and it looks like we're stuck. The machine gun is doing its job keeping them at bay, but Zachary is still dragging a limping Dominique back from a hundred meters out and the worms can see it.
I rush forward along with Kayla, Abel, and three militia. Bolts and arrows rain down on the distant worms that are splitting off to sneak a quick meal, holding them back long enough to get in range to aim. It's only once we regroup at fifty meters out that a new group of the creatures explodes out of the ground between us and the convoy in an absurd display of tactics.
We did not just get outsmarted by fucking worms.
My disbelief doesn't change reality though and they close in on scurrying legs, pincering us from every angle. Our defensive retreat has suddenly become a chaotic brawl as the monsters start diving at us with gnashing maws.
My boot slams into the side of a sandworm with a loud crack knocking it over right as Kayla flips her entire weight into a swing with an enormous two-handed sword, cleaving the worm in half. Then I’m almost knocked off my feet as a militia guy with an axe dodges into me to avoid being impaled by a sharp leg point.
I snipe the worm in the roof of its mouth, dropping it into a skidding heap. Then turn toward the guy to chew him out, but he’s diving from another worm soaring at his head from the side so I keep my mouth shut.
Another worm tries to leap on a militia member so I snap off a quick shot, spearing one of its legs and causing it to tumble. A fleshy maw springs toward me not even a breath later and I dive away to avoid being chomped myself. It doesn't even make it to me before being obliterated by a Dragonslayer arrow.
Rolling to my feet, I snap off another shot into the head of a worm Zachary is wrestling, sending it flopping to the ground. Sidestepping yet another worm immediately after, while Dominique crushes the downed monster with a mace.
Abel puts his hand on my shoulder and is trying to shout something but he doesn't see the creature barreling toward us. I push us apart but it shifts toward me and then I'm gone, air punched from my lungs by the sudden force.
I barely feel the pressure of teeth closing on my armor and the panic creeping in before the thing splits open and Kayla yanks me to my feet, one hand still holding her oversized claymore.
This is why I hate fighting!
“We have to run!” I scream, pulling a pin out of a grenade as I rush to pick up my dropped bow. The explosive sails over a group of worms coming toward us, but I'm sprinting toward the convoy dodging holes in the ground when it goes off.
With the ambush cleared the others are able to capitalize on the space I made, rushing back alongside me toward the convoy. I whip a second grenade into the group as more worms rush in, blasting a gory chunk out of the incoming wave as we reach the line of humvees on the road.
The six of us who went to rescue the two hunters are battered and bloody but we’re alive. We're also back with the main group and now an HMG is lighting up the side we were just fighting. The swarm crashes against the steel hail like it's a solid barrier giving us some much needed breathing room.
Between my enchantments and adrenaline I'm barely feeling a burn so I grab the roof of a humvee and vault on top in a single leap. A brief flash of terror cuts through me when my muscle upgrade almost launches me past the other side, but I recover my footing in time to not go flailing over the edge.
Note to self, test each upgrade thoroughly so I don't die in an embarrassing way.
Aside from having to keep an eye on the sky for something trying to snatch me away, again, the rest of the encounter ends up being more target practice than desperate defense. It only takes a few more minutes before the swarm decides we're not worth the effort and I barely have time to hop off the roof before I feel a massive ritual goes off.
+181 SP
“No time for pissing contests or who deserves what, you either appreciate what you got or you keep it to yourself. Now pack the fuck up and let's go!” I hear the Sergeant shout in what I assume is his best ‘do what you’re fucking told’ voice.
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Before today I would have considered a mass drain ritual a waste of good points, but when the alternative is zero I see the appeal. I wouldn't be surprised if they had them primed and ready to go on the fly.
The difference between something on paper and in practice. Three hundred sixty points would have been a nice bonus though.
I’m getting ready to jump in my humvee when I catch sight of Artemis nearby. She’s staring unmoving out into the spot where the ground swallowed Davis and I’m caught off guard when she talks to me.
“Did you know him?”
I’m a little stunned, but I manage to get out a “Not really.”
“Neither did I.”
She sounds tired, so very tired. I wonder how many people like Davis she’s seen, she’s been doing this for decades after all.
With that morbid thought I hop in the back seat of the vehicle without saying anything else. I’d normally have jumped at a chance to talk to her, but that was not the kind of mood for a chat. Not that we have time for any pleasantries.
Kayla hops into the back with me much to my confusion and the vehicle starts rolling forward as soon as the door closes. I spend the next few minutes wondering if I should be saying something when she eventually breaks the silence.
“I do not trust Zachary.” she states in a tone that is both neutral and somehow filled with disdain. I turn to face her and realize she’s staring at me. It’s hard to tell with the helmet, but I just know. I’m trying to puzzle out what she means when it clicks.
“Did he do some-”
“No,” she cuts in “not to that degree from what I am aware of. His behavior is concerning.”
Her gaze is intense, but understandable for the topic. The lingering stares Zachary used to give me take on a different meaning in that context. In which case I now have a creep to watch out for.
“Do I need to warn the gals in the squad?” Carl asks and I suddenly remember he’s been here the whole time.
“They are aware.” Kayla answers, not seeming bothered by the interruption.
He’s a medic too, dammit. I’ll have to avoid getting any injuries when we’re in Phoenix.
“Thanks for the heads up.”
With that wonderful thought to dwell on, I'm back to scanning the horizon for threats. The low hum of the motor is the only sound now and I try to take Carl’s advice and not hyperfocus on danger constantly as we’re traveling. Hoping I'm not making a huge mistake I Instead check on the tier two muscle upgrades.
(Muscle)
-Strengthen Muscle ■■- 200sp / 10 power
“Potent enhancement of muscles”
-Explosive Muscle ■■- 200sp / 10 power
“Very potent but unstable muscle enhancement”
-Morphing Muscle ■■- 200sp / 15 power
“Able to temporarily alter muscle for an extreme increase in strength”
Almost everything up until tier five is well documented, but it's not as if I've an encyclopedic knowledge of them. I’ll take Explosive Muscle when I have the points to spare, but the first thing I’m going to grab is the Core upgrade to tier two to double my core output. It costs 400 SP as it’s always four times the base upgrade price and doubles every tier.
Thinking about it, I should check the other upgrades. It was easy to plot out a path before I had to start actually hunting, each choice now comes with the threat of death hanging over my head.
[Internals]
(Heart)
-Enhanced Heart Organ ■- 100 SP / 10 power
“Increased durability and capability of heart”
-Healing Heart ■- 100 SP / 15 power
“Heart injects trace amounts of directed mana that improves healing”
-Combat Stimulant ■- 100 SP / 10 power
“Heart stores and can inject a potent stimulant that lasts for several minutes”
(Lungs)
-Minor Lung Filter ■- 100 SP / 10 power
“A filter of mana forms over the lungs that blocks some contaminates”
-Increase Lung Capacity ■- 100 SP / 10 power
“Enhanced ability to breath, store, and absorb oxygen using the lungs”
-Mana Lung Filter ■- 100 SP / -5 power
“Able to absorb trace amounts of mana from the air”
(Mana Network)
-Small Mana Pouch ■- 150 SP / 50 power
“A small organ forms inside the body that acts as a mana reservoir”
-Small Mana Filter (Choose Affinity) ■- 150 SP / 50 power
“Converts a portion on mana output to a chosen affinity”
-Enhanced Mana Veins ■- 100 SP / 0 power
“Mana veins have increased durability and ease of flow”
I’ll need to make a note somewhere to upgrade my veins so I don't blow them up with a higher tier ritual. There's also my nervous system which is already strained so maybe I'll prioritize that?
[Nervous System]
(Brain)
-Minor Time Dilation ■- 100 SP / 10 power
“Temporarily perceive time at a much slower or greater rate”
-Enhanced Reflexes ■- 100 SP / 20 power
“Increases speed at which inputs are processed”
-Shock Absorption ■- 100 SP / 5 power
“Brain is surrounding by an impact absorbing substance”
(Eyes)
-Enhanced Sight ■- 100 SP / 10 power
“Eyes are capable of seeing over greater distances and with increased detail”
-Low Light Vision ■- 100 SP / 10 power
“Capable of seeing clearly with less light”
-Extrasensory Sight ■- 150 SP / 50 power
“Capable of seeing hints of reality”
(Nerves)
-Selective Pain ■- 100 SP / 5 power
“Able to manipulate your pain signals to reduce or enhance pain output”
-Enhanced Nerves ■- 100 SP / 10 power
“Reduces latency of nervous signals and increases durability or nerves”
-Redundant Nerves ■- 100 SP / 10 power
“Allows severing of some nerves without reducing signal capability”
I’ve heard stories of people who picked Extrasensory Sight, the first tier is not so bad and lets you see mana somewhat which sounds great for elementalists. The higher tiers though, there might be things we’re better off not being able to see, especially when it comes to deep space.
Wonder if the squidheads lose their minds from the upgrade or if the insanity is why they choose it.
Everything I’ve heard about cosmic entities makes me not want to curl up in a ball and sit in a corner forever. More than one hunter has retired after a contract for one and I really hope I never have to do anything involving them. I know it will happen so long as I keep being a hunter, but a girl can hope.
I've run out of things to check so I go back to staring out the window at the sandy dirt stretching out around us until I catch something in the reflection I have never seen before. Kayla took off her helmet, seemingly to wipe the sweat off her face.
I glance over and immediately freeze when I see her because she is drop dead gorgeous. Her blond hair is a beautiful mess and her eyebrows are immaculate and perfectly frame her soft yet stern hazel eyes. Her skin is flawless and I swear I could see her being on the cover of Dallas New Cosmo. She is also absolutely aware of me staring at her.
“My apologies, but I am not attracted to women and do not wish to get your hopes up” She says consolingly.
Oh come on, I didn't even say anything this time! Is it my face, is it that obvious?
I can hear Carl cackling from the front seat with deep wheezing laughs and I shove my head in my hands to hide my shame. Kayla patting my shoulder to comfort me only makes it worse.
For as embarrassing as it is, I'm still grateful that the tension from the first part of the trip has eased up. Carl was right, I don’t think I would have made it another six hours at the rate I had been going.
“I will allow you to pine for me so long as it does not go further.” She adds casually, her expression and tone the picture of stoic.
“You, you're messing with me.” I say accusingly and narrow my eyes at her. There's not a single twitch in response or shred of dishonestly on her face.
“I am the very model of politeness, I would never do anything of the sort.”
She is absolutely doing this on purpose.
“I’m sticking to fictional women from now on.” I state with mock petulance.
“A wise choice, I've found fictional men to be preferable to reality as well.”
Oh?
“Isaac doppleton?” I ask with a grin.
“A shape for every occasion.” She responds.
I pitch my voice slightly. “Oh how we fit together sir Isaac~”
“Every appendage is shaped for you my dear.” She says flatly.
I'm unable to hold back my laughter at the deadpan delivery, though my breath hitches for a second when Kayla lets out an angelic chuckle with a hint of a smile on her face. I shove the feeling down and focus on the silly lines.
“It’s so much worse when you say them out loud.” I remark after getting a hold of myself.
“Indeed. While I enjoy many stories in the genre, they are oft comical despite the author’s intentions, endearingly so.” Her smile is gone, but I can almost still hear it in her voice.
Most of the remaining trip is spent trading stories and quoting lines from ones we’ve read. I'm caught completely off guard a few times by some extremely raunchy ones that she says without hesitation. I never expected to have so much fun on a mission, I'm kind of sad when we eventually roll up the abandoned suburbs outside Santa Fe.
My body is still worn out from the day but it’s the kind from a long day and not the tension that was breaking down my mind bit by bit from before. We’ll be staying here for a week to unload the cargo, do some minor maintenance, and get some rest before another long drive out to Phoenix.
When Santa Fe finally comes into view the first thing I notice is that it has more hills and mountains than Dallas. The gate we roll up to is no less fortified though, the same gunners nests and missile systems on top a colossal steel wall that stretches the entire city perimeter. When our line of vehicles pulls up It only takes a few minutes before the main gate is sliding open with a screech that makes me wince.
Our humvee soon crosses inside and I’m immediately struck by how different the two cities are on the inside. Dallas had huge swaths of farmland, but Santa Fe is filled with hundreds of towers I vaguely recall reading about that are supposed to be vertical farms. Even from the outer limit of the city I can see the residential and business buildings clearly.
As I’m looking around I spot the crater on the east in the mountain range from where the old US military drove off the first colossal lifeform CL_001 ‘Roc’, a birdlike monster with a wingspan in the kilometers. Of course with conventional explosives until it got to Mexico and then the nukes started dropping until the only thing left was the Nuclear Wastes. As bad as things seem now, they’re still infinitely better than a nuclear armageddon like the one that kicked off at the start of the apocalypse.
We start closing in on the outskirts of the inner city so I check over my personal pack one last time. My stack of marks is kind of pitiful to see as I pull out the treated bills to double check I haven’t lost any. I’m hoping there is something small I can take care of at the Hunter’s Branch for some money and SP. As I’m looking over the black dyed denim I faintly remember hearing that they are from before the apocalypse, just preserved with a mix of monster blood and chemicals, but it’s hard to match the tinted rectangles with the green you usually see from pre-apoc entertainment.
Once we come to a full stop at the guild campus I stuff the two hundred marks back in my pack and shove out with a wave and a ‘Goodbye’ to Kayla who gives me a way too formal parting, including the curtsy. Knowing she likely also escaped from the USGA makes the action leave a bit of a sour taste on my tongue, but I try not to show it. Maybe someday I’ll move to the southern HQ past the Nuclear Wastes, far far away from any Second Adventists.