Oath of the Survivor

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Hello everybody! In celebration of the Book 3 release, enjoy this bonus chapter!

You can pick up Book 3 on Kindle/Kindle Unlimited and Print on Amazon here: Amazon.com: Oath of the Survivor 3: A LitRPG Apocalypse eBook : Meyer, James: Kindle Store

One ask for all of you - if you're still enjoying the series, even if you can't pick up the next volume, a review or rating goes a long way. It's the support of people like you that lets me continue to write!

Thank you all for your continued support, and enjoy the chapter!

~~~

Garth frowned, looking at the projection in the center of the room. Malcom had called him, Skippy, and Chester in to review a report from a large moon nearby, and the results were troubling.

“What exactly are we looking at, sir?” Chester asked, turning toward Malcolm.

“Frankly, I haven’t the faintest idea,” Malcolm replied, the cool baritone of his voice filling the room. “Now, watch the rest of the video. We’ll talk after.”

The room’s projector showed a time lapse of what looked like a small city sprouting up over the span of the last several months. Sprouting, literally, as the whole thing looked to be made of mushrooms. Brightly-colored caps expanded, and as the image froze, it zoomed in on what looked to be a humanoid figure, covered in mushroom stalks.

The image was grainy, but the figure walked out of the city holding a tool of some sort, then began to dig. The projection sped up, right until the person dropped something into the hole, then moved on and did the same a little further away. The video cut to hundreds of other similar scenes playing out around the expanding fungal colony, before the projection ended.

“We have a few settlements on the other side of this moon,” Malcolm said. “It’s habitable, warm, and has extensive cavern systems that we believe may carry some rare metals. Corthian Mining also invested quite a bit in getting rights to this moon. Boltsbury, as you’re newer to the Collective, are you aware of the official stance toward fungal creatures?”

“I am,” Garth said, suppressing a shudder as he thought back to the ants on Nierburg. “They are to be treated as highly dangerous, with Collective permission to exterminate on sight.”

Malcolm nodded. “That is correct. Awakened fungal beings are somewhat rare, but when they begin to propagate, we have seen entire continents get overtaken. Even after they are destroyed, the lingering damage can take decades to recover.”

Malcolm stopped, looking each of the men in the eye. Garth knew what they were going to be asked before Malcolm spoke, and he was certain that Skippy and Chester knew as well.

“We have not yet ruled out this moon from our primary search, and given the danger posed by this fungal colony, we are going to take steps to contain and eradicate it. Mana readings so far have been measured around mid-D Grade, so proceed with caution. If you are unable to contain it, I will get involved personally.” Malcolm said the last words with almost a warning, and he saw Chester swallow hard in response.

“Yes, sir!” The group responded as one, even Skippy erring on the side of respectfulness. Garth had yet to see Malcolm in action, but from the stories he heard, the man was overwhelmingly powerful. Aside from Angela Corthus, he was likely the second most powerful person in all of Corthian Mining.

“Mr. Boltsbury,” Chester called out, once they’d left the conference room. “May I have a moment of your time?”

“Certainly,” Garth replied, taking Chester’s measure. The man looks unsettled, Garth thought, looking at his rigid posture.

“Thank you. As I’m sure you recall, there was a strain of awakened fungus of some sort that drove the attack on your capital city. Tell me, what did you do with the fungal remains?” Chester’s voice carried a quaver, causing Garth’s frown to deepen.

“What the hell do you think I did with them?” Garth asked. “We burned them. I’ll tell you now what I told my people back then: nothing good comes from playing around with that stuff.”

“I am glad you felt that way,” Chester murmured, his expression distant as if he was lost in thought. “In any event, proceed carefully, Mr. Boltsbury. Expect our extermination work ahead to be a challenge.” For more chapters visıt novel⸺fire.net

“We’ll certainly have our work cut out for us,” Garth agreed. He watched Chester leave, looking for the cause of the man’s unease. He knows something. Or at least suspects something. That… was not a comforting thought. Because the only reason for Chester to question the disposal of the ant remains was if he thought the colony on the moon below and the fungus from Earth were connected.

If he took risks with my people, Garth thought, clenching his fists. Time would tell, but the foreman would have much to answer for if the mining company decided to take samples back to chase a profit. Chester was still stronger than Garth, at least for now, but the gap wasn’t nearly as wide as it had once been.

Returning to his own ship, he saw Joseph, Mary Ellen, Johannes, and Arianna waiting in the bay.

“What’s going on, boss?” Joseph asked, a look of genuine curiosity on his face. Garth had to hold back a smile as he looked at his team. Only Mary Ellen and Arianna were still waiting on their Level 60 skill, with both Joseph and Johannes quickly closing in at the peak of E Grade. With as powerful as the team was now, it was almost comical to think about how dangerous their fight against Cornelius and Tucker had been back on Earth. Now, any one of his team members could have handled the two of them all on their own.

“We’ve got orders,” Garth said, focusing on each of them individually. “There’s some odd activity on the other side of this moon, and we’ve been asked to check it out. It may not be related to the missing shuttle, but Malcolm wants us to suppress and eliminate a spreading fungal influence.”

He saw Joseph blanch, and gave him a reassuring look. At least, what he hoped was a reassuring look. Still not your strong suit, Garth. “I know you’ve all dealt with more than enough mushrooms to last a lifetime. Hopefully, this will just be a quick stop and some more practice. Good opportunity to work on some of your newer skills, in any event.”

“Is it infested ants again?” Joseph asked. “Stars, I hope it’s not ants.”

“I’m not entirely sure what types of creatures we’ll be dealing with,” Garth replied. “The image I saw included some bipedal humanoid shapes, but I’m not sure if it’s an infested creature or a naturally created fungus.”

“Do we have an estimate on their level?” Arianna asked, one hand dropping to rest on her specially created escrima sticks.

“Just that the city itself seems to be giving off a mid-tier D Grade aura,” Garth said. “Depending on how things with the operation go, this could be our opportunity to face down a D Grade together. If that happens, I’ll need you all to be at your best.”

Joseph gave a determined nod, while a toothy smile crossed Arianna’s face. Johannes and Mary Ellen both turned a shade paler. Those two are going to have a hard time, Garth thought.

“That’s all I have for now. Go, get some rest, and prepare yourselves. Tomorrow we make moonfall.”

He watched his team turn to leave, considering them each in turn. Johannes, the lanky Healer, walked with a nervous energy as he turned the corner to get back to his room. Even with Johannes recently crossing Level 60, he was starting to run up against a wall. His support skills were great, but his mentality for field combat was just not there.

Mary Ellen would likely continue as long as she could be around Joseph, though Garth expected her role would need to change, too. They left together, with her reaching to grab his arm. Despite her remarkable growth in power since leaving Earth, she just didn’t have the stomach for constant violence. When her appetite was altogether gone, Garth also expected that Joseph would take a step back. The two had become nearly inseparable, and he sincerely hoped that they would be able to settle into a quieter life once this expedition was done.

Arianna… Well, Garth didn’t know what to do with her. In some ways, she reminded him of Kyle. Always pushing, looking to improve. Hell, their fighting styles were even similar, courtesy of her grandfather also showing Kyle some moves back on Earth. Her drive and motivation were incredible, and he wanted to provide her with the opportunities she’d need to keep advancing. If she was able to reach D Grade, he would look into scraping together enough credits to sponsor her for a Collective Licensure Examination. It may not have been the quiet, easy life that Frank wished for her, but for now, it seemed to be the life she wanted.

Don’t get ahead of yourself, he admonished, bringing his mind back to the task at hand. This would be the first time his team was faced against a D Grade, and he needed to prepare. After all, haphazardly attacking monsters that were a full grade higher could prove deadly. No, they would need to plan carefully, evaluate their opponents, and execute with precision. I wonder if this is how Kyle does it?

~~~

“I told you to focus on the tail!” Kyle shouted, frantically dodging a claw swipe from the infuriated hodag.

“There was no need to focus on the tail if I simply killed it,” Arhades argued back, a blinding flash of light meeting a storm of needles from the hodag’s fur.

“You and I both know that you don’t have enough power to kill these things in one shot,” Kyle growled, jumping into the air as C.H.A.D.D. took him skyward. He used a blast of Repel to evade a tail attack, while continuing to focus Parasitic Resonance on the base of the monster’s spine.

“We knew that I couldn’t kill a specimen that was alert and fighting. It was worth testing if a surprise attack would be able to achieve a different result.”

Kyle just rolled his eyes as he landed behind the Hodag, pushing as much mana into it as he dared. The damn tail would already be out of commission if Arhades followed the plan. Fortunately, there was a lot less guesswork this time around. Kyle knew roughly where the nerve centers were located, and where he would have to focus his energy. The rest of the work was just allowing Parasitic Resonance to gain enough influence to overcome the hodag’s incredible natural resilience.

Another factor working in their favor was location. They’d managed to catch this one wandering away from its nest, out in an open plain near one of the pastures. The lack of woods to navigate meant that Kyle and Arhades could spend more time moving, and less time weaving through the trees. An important distinction when the landscape didn’t slow the previous hodag down at all.

Finally, Kyle was ready. With a surge of Willpower, he overwhelmed the hodag’s defenses, and saw its tail fall limp. Arhades noticed as well, his counters getting bolder with each second that passed. This time, it wasn’t the velgian who managed to land the final blow. With Parasitic Resonance continuing to ramp, Kyle refocused his efforts in the hodag’s skull, snuffing out its life with a final push after only half an hour had passed.

“You see?” Arhades said, sheathing his blade. “It all worked out just fine. We evaded its attacks, learned more about how its abilities worked, and managed to slay this one faster than the last.”

Ignoring the pang of hunger from the Core of the Parasitic Devourer as it absorbed the remnant energy, Kyle shook his head. “This was sloppy work, and you know it. We got lucky this time.”

“You say that, yet your ability to kill the creatures has clearly improved from our last encounter. I fully suspect the next C Grade hodag will be even easier than this one.”

Kyle sighed. “Where I come from, Arhades, statements like that are usually the last thing people say before something goes terribly wrong.”

The velgian seemed to consider him for a moment, then nodded. “Very well. It appears as though you do not feel triumphant after our victories, and I will accept the criticism. Though, if you will indulge me, Mr. Mayhew, at what point would you feel confident in saying that we have improved our odds against these creatures? What criteria will you use to measure sufficient progress? And how do you reconcile execution of the process with the result?”

There was no sarcasm in Arhades’ tone, and Kyle stopped to consider the questions.

“I’m not entirely sure yet,” he admitted. “All I know is that I think, for now, it’s prudent that we be careful.”

Arhades inclined his head. “I see. Think on my questions, and I will do the same. There are still quite a few left to hunt, but before we are done, I would like to attempt to slay one all on my own in a single engagement. And I think that you should consider doing the same.”