Chapter 46 – Defense
By the next day, Sanguina had stopped feeling temporary.
Not finished, not even close, but it no longer felt like a place people had just arrived at. Movement had settled into patterns. The central space held steady, the paths Jack had shaped being used without thought, and the groups Hanna had pushed into action the day before hadn’t fallen apart overnight.
If anything, they’d gotten a bit better.
Jack noticed it immediately.
The stone pile from yesterday wasn’t just a pile anymore. It had turned into something resembling a low boundary, uneven but functional. Not strong enough to stop anything serious, but enough to define space and make people think about where they were stepping.
That alone changed how the area felt.
Jack stood near the edge of the central ground again, looking past it this time.
Outward.
The outer sections of Sanguina were still rough. Uneven terrain, scattered debris, no clear structure. The automatons patrolled through it without issue, their movement steady and unaffected, but people avoided it instinctively.
Too exposed.
Too undefined.
That needed to change.
Not everything.
Just enough.
He opened the system.
[System Shop — Territory Management]
Gold: lower than before
Still usable
He moved directly to terrain shaping.
This time, he didn’t focus on the center.
He focused just beyond it.
[Flatten Terrain — Small Area]
Cost: 12 Gold
He shifted the selection outward, forming a slightly larger rectangular space just beyond the main cluster.
[Flatten Terrain — Medium Area]
Cost: 30 Gold
Jack paused.
That was more than he liked.
But this wasn’t just space.
This was placement.
Behind him, Hanna stepped up.
“You’re moving outward now,” she said.
Jack nodded slightly.
“Need somewhere to train.”
She followed his line of sight.
“For them,” she said.
“Yeah.”
A short pause.
Then—
“Don’t make it too far,” she added. “They won’t use it if it feels separate.”
Jack adjusted the selection slightly, pulling it closer to the central space.
[Flatten Terrain — Medium Area]
Cost: 26 Gold
Better.
Still expensive.
He confirmed it.
The ground shifted more noticeably this time.
A wider section settled, uneven ridges pressing down, larger rocks sinking into place. It didn’t become smooth, but it became stable enough for consistent movement.
[Gold -26]
A few nearby people turned at the change.
Not startled anymore.
Just… aware.
Jack stepped forward slightly, testing the ground.
Stable.
Good enough.
Hanna didn’t wait.
She turned immediately.
“You,” she called out, gesturing toward the group from yesterday.
The same ones.
They looked up.
“Come here.”
They moved.
Not hesitating.
Not questioning.
That was faster than before.
Jack watched as they gathered in the newly flattened space.
Some looked around, uncertain. Others tested the ground the same way he had, shifting their footing slightly.
Hanna stood in front of them.
“This is where you train,” she said.
One of them frowned slightly.
“Train what?”
Hanna crossed her arms.
“Everything.”
That got a few looks.
“…That’s not very helpful,” someone muttered.
Hanna didn’t react.
“Start with fighting,” she said. “If something gets inside, you don’t wait for him.”
She jerked her head slightly toward Jack.
“You deal with it.”
That landed differently.
Jack stayed where he was.
Let her handle it.
One of the women stepped forward slightly.
“We don’t have weapons.”
Hanna looked around briefly, then walked over to the stone boundary they had built.
She picked up one of the larger pieces and weighed it in her hand.
“Now you do.”
The woman stared at the rock.
“…That’s a rock.”
Hanna handed it to her anyway.
“Yeah.”
A short pause.
“…Alright,” the woman said.
That got another small reaction from the group.
Not laughter.
But close enough.
Jack shook his head slightly.
Functional.
Hanna stepped back again.
“Move,” she said.
They did.
Awkward at first.
Testing.
Trying.
One swung too wide and nearly lost her balance.
Another hesitated too long before reacting.
A third just stood there for a second, clearly unsure what she was supposed to do.
Hanna corrected them quickly.
“Too slow.”
“Too wide.”
“Stop thinking so much.”
It wasn’t harsh.
Just direct.
Jack watched for a while.
Then stepped forward.
He didn’t join them.
Just stopped at the edge of the space.
“Again,” he said.
They reset.
This time, he moved.
Not fully.
Just enough.
Sanguine Grasp.
A tendril snapped forward, catching one of the stones on the ground and pulling it sharply across the space.
It stopped just short of one of them.
She flinched.
“Good,” Jack said. “Now react faster.”
That changed the tone immediately.
They moved again.
Less hesitation this time.
Still rough.
Still untrained.
But improving.
Hanna glanced at him.
“That works.”
Jack nodded.
“Better than nothing.”
They continued like that for a while.
Short bursts.
Simple drills.
Nothing complicated.
By the time they stopped, the difference was small.
But noticeable.
The group stood differently.
More balanced.
More aware.
Hanna stepped back beside him.
“They’ll get there,” she said.
Jack looked over the space again.
The central area.
The paths.
The new training ground.
Still incomplete.
Still rough.
But now—
There was structure.
And something that could defend it.