Chapter 289
“How did that creature evolve?” Arhades wondered, staring at the empty space where the projection was.
“I have no idea,” Kyle said, thinking about the strange hodag. Even though it was still clearly a hodag, the evolution was a wide departure from the others. And, given that it managed to kill two of the other C Grade hodags with such ease, it was clearly powerful. If they were both in peak condition, they might have a chance in taking it out. One glance at Arhades dispelled that notion in a heartbeat. The velgian was at his limits, no two ways about it.
Considering his options, Kyle made a snap judgment. “Hold still for a moment. You can’t cover much more ground, so we need to find a place to hide. We don’t want that thing finding us while it hunts.”
“I’m fine,” Arhades protested. “I simply need to –“
He was cut off by dozens of vines that erupted from the C.H.A.D.D. pack, binding him from head to toe before pulling him tight against the pack.
“Like I said, don’t move. I don’t want any of your injuries opening up, and this is the best way I know to keep you safe while we travel with speed.”
[WE WILL DO OUR BEST TO MITIGATE JOSTLING, ARHADES.]
“Jostling?” Arhades said in bewilderment, as Kyle took off.
“C.H.A.D.D., highlight any natural alcoves in the hills or tree hollows where we can hunker down” Kyle directed. “We’ll want to stay out of its detection for the next few days, at least.”
[CERTAINLY, DR. MAYHEW. I ASSUME YOU ARE LOOKING TO AVOID CLOSE PROXIMITY TO ANY OF THE PASTURES OR PROCESSING FACILITIES?]
Kyle considered for a moment before nodding. “Yes. The more mundane and non-descript the location, the better. Any big landmarks could draw its attention.”
[UNDERSTOOD. THERE ARE THREE LOCATIONS WITHIN TWENTY KILOMETERS THAT COULD FIT YOUR DESCRIPTION. THEY HAVE BEEN HIGHLIGHTED ON YOUR MAP.]
As Kyle moved toward the nearest of the points C.H.A.D.D. highlighted, he heard Arhades muttering from the pack. “Could this really be?”
“We both know I can hear you,” Kyle called back. “Ask your questions. Right now, we’re going to need to put all of our cards on the table if we want to finish our hunt. Assuming you’re not going to call in your seniors, of course.”
“I have considered it,” Arhades admitted. “Depending on how powerful this creature is, that still might be the wisest course of action. But I digress. Tell me; do you truly carry an unbound AI with you? And what’s more, you use skills that synergize with it?”
“I do,” Kyle said. “And C.H.A.D.D. has saved my life enough times that I’m not willing to hear any lectures about it.”
“Quite the contrary,” Arhades said. “I am impressed. The Alabaster Court has sizable rewards available for any that have evolved or been developed.”
“Bounties, you mean.” Kyle said. “And believe me, we’ve dealt with some overly interested parties already.”
“I don’t doubt it,” Arhades said, a wince of pain coming through his voice as Kyle vaulted over a large log. “In any event, its aid, and yours are welcome.”
[I AM HAPPY TO HELP.]
“Likewise,” Kyle added. “We can talk more once we get settled in, the underpass is just over here.”
The area C.H.A.D.D. highlighted was an old drainage tunnel beneath a road that connected the forests to the nearest pasture. It was just on the fringe of the woodlands, providing cover from above, while also being far enough away from the nearest pasture and processing plants that there were no other exciting points of interest nearby.
Kyle deactivated Ignition the moment he ducked into the tunnel, the crimson light around him fading. C.H.A.D.D. gave a gentle pull on Kyle’s mana, and he allowed the drone to use it freely as the vines unwrapped Arhades. A lattice of vines climbed around the heavy concrete pipe they were hidden in, expanding until it formed a mesh across both entrances. A moment later, gray bark began to form, as Kyle felt the mana-rejecting properties of the stonebloom activate.
[THIS SHOULD SOMEWHAT MASK YOUR MANA SIGNATURES TO SENSORY SKILLS, AT LEAST FROM A DISTANCE. I HAVE ALSO TAKEN THE LIBERTY OF SEEDING SOME OF THE LOCAL GRASSES OUTSIDE. THIS SHOULD FURTHER OBSCURE A SIMPLE VISUAL SEARCH.]
“Thank you, C.H.A.D.D.,” Kyle said. “If you detect the creature within range of your sensors, let us know. With any luck, it won’t even get close, and these precautions are just overkill.”
“The fact that it killed two other C Grades makes me believe that caution is warranted,” Arhades said, looking at the lattice pattern of the stonebloom-covered vines. “There are few reasons for it to immediately begin hunting others right after its evolution. It may be overly territorial, it may have borne a grudge against them prior to its own evolution, or it may be seeking powerful prey in an attempt to progress further. Unfortunately, its malevolent form makes me believe the latter two options to be the most likely.”
“At the end of the day, though, you and I are just D Grades.” Kyle said. “Who’s to say that it would even find us interesting prey to hunt?”
“Ordinarily, I would be tempted to agree,” Arhades said, his calm tone almost grating to Kyle’s ears. “However, what else is left on this planet? The D Grade animals on the ranches have almost all been consumed, and none of them are around our level. If it begins to hunt for the other C Grades of its kind, the only thing it will find is the remnants of our battles.”
Kyle met the velgian’s pale eyes. “So, you’re saying a conflict is inevitable.”
“I believe that it likely the case, yes.” Arhades replied. “And even if I’m wrong, the next question we have to ask ourselves is the same; do we want to attempt to engage this creature, or do we want to leave?”
Arhades was right, but the directness of the statement made him pause. This new variant wasn’t part of the dossier, not a part of the cultivated hunting ground that Arhades had planned on. Nobody would blame him for taking the opportunity he’d been given and calling it done here. The progress was great, and with just a little more to go until his Level 105 skill, he would have something tangible to work toward.
It would also mean running away. It would mean giving into his fear, his uncertainty. The scars on his stomach ached. That’s not going to happen. “I want to finish what we started,” Kyle said.
“As do I,” Arhades said, a grin spreading on his face. “Once I’ve recovered somewhat, of course. We will need to see if Cletus can get any other footage, but I refuse to believe that his hodag is superior in every way to the other C Grades.”
“Agreed,” Kyle said. “We’ll want to get a better understanding of what we’re dealing with, though I think that our first step in fighting it is pretty clear. As long as it can fly, it has a chance to escape.”
Arhades nodded thoughtfully. “Its frame was much leaner than the others. Unless we discover something to the contrary, I would expect that my new skill should be able to neutralize the wings, and likely cause significant further damage.”
[BE QUIET. IT IS COMING.]
The drone’s warning took them both by surprise. Their discussion ended, they listened to the gentle rustling of the wind. Even C.H.A.D.D. took it seriously, not even projecting an image or making a quip until the hodag had flown by. Finally, when the coast was clear, C.H.A.D.D. gave a new projection of the beast.
As Kyle noticed before, this one was much leaner, its body almost shaped like a ferret or badger instead of a bear. Its back legs were short and stubby, and its tail barely extended past them. However, its arms were long, with each large paw tipped with long, hooked claws. C.H.A.D.D.’s scan indicated powerful mana readings coming from the claws, far more than the other C Grades.
Of course, the claws were likely not the biggest issue, considering it held in both of its hands the skull and spine of another of the C Grade hodags. Power swirled around the bones, and Kyle immediately knew what he was looking at.
“It’s holding a staff,” he breathed. “This one is using magic.”
The next several days were spent in relative seclusion, with Kyle, C.H.A.D.D., and Arhades working together on their plan of attack. By now, it was quite clear that the monster was hunting for them, as it flew over six times during that span. Even brave Cletus decided that it was time to leave after seeing the shadow fly over the processing facility. Apparently, in his words, “They didn’t hire me to watch no dad gum bird monster fly around like a vulture.”
Arhades grimaced as he bit into a pogrit. “I don’t know how you keep eating these,” he said.
Kyle shrugged, popping another into his mouth. “Believe me, not the worst thing to be stuck eating. Now, do you really think two days will be enough?”
“I do,” Arhades said between bites of the leafy vegetable. “Once the strain on my mana network has been fully recovered, we can move.”
The plan was a simple one. Kyle would go outside when Arhades was recovered, and draw attention to himself. With all of the tools at his disposal, Kyle had the greatest chance at survival, particularly if the hodag tried to fight him from long range.
Once it engaged, Arhades would slip out, attempting to keep his mana suppressed until it was the right moment to activate his skill to hopefully slice off at least one of the beast’s wings. From there, they would adopt the same back-and-forth tactics they had against the other hodags. Of course, things rarely go according to plan.
[IT IS APPROACHING AGAIN. ALTHOUGH IT IS DOING SOMETHING ODD.]
There was a tense moment of silence, before C.H.A.D.D. withered the stonebloom-covered vines encapsulating them.
[GET OUTSIDE AND RUN, NOW! IT IS USING SOME SORT OF MIASMA THAT IS SETTLING ALONG THE GROUND.]
True enough, the moment Kyle and Arhades emerged, they saw a pillar of dark smoke descending from the sky. Focusing his gaze with Identify, he could see the flying hodag, and the massive amount of mana it was moving. When he looked at the smoke, however, he swore.
“The damn thing is trying to gas us out.”
The compound was mana-derived, carrying a nasty bundle of different neurotoxins and necrotic energy. Inhalation would result in being paralyzed while being literally withered away from the inside out.
Through Synaptic Barbs, Kyle felt Arhades reach for his blade behind him, and he shook his head. “Save your energy. I’ve got this.”
Holding his hands out in front of him, he activated Repel. The first blast toward the miasma scattered it, though it wasn’t quite what he wanted. The second was better, and by the third, Kyle achieved what he set out to do. Using Storm Shelter’s mana formation as a basis, Kyle cast Repel out in front of him in the form of a large cone. Then, raising his right hand, he did the same above him as the hodag passed overhead. While the toxins in the poison cloud were dangerous, the cloud itself had very little in terms of momentum or force. The solid blasts of mana from Kyle were enough to carve out a sanctuary in the deadly fog.
Unfortunately, it also painted a clear picture of their location. With a cackle that sounded like a cross between a hyena and a crow, the hodag descended, its macabre staff glowing with deep violet energy. Malevolent eyes peered down on Kyle beneath curled ram’s horns, and Kyle saw the delight dancing in them. It thought that it finally flushed out some tasty morsels.
Kyle and Arhades were going to have to prove it wrong.