“Six had slipped past me.” TJ expined, his tretful. “I wasn’t paying as much attention as I’d thought. They’re damn hard to see, and I wasn’t careful enough. Stanton took three out before they could get close enough, but while he was able to make sure that none of their attacks were lethal, they still got him good. I tried to get ba, but the coyotes kept attag me, so he got stuck a couple more times as he fehem off and more came to kill him. I used most of my MP to kill the coyotes and cut off the pukwudgies from killing him, but then I was surrounded by 20 enemies with an injured man.

  “I did the only thing I could do, I carried him through them, going as fast as I could. With my Agility and everything, I was able to get through, but we were both attacked a couple times. My scales kept me mostly safe, but it was bad for Stanton and he passed out. After we broke through, they followed us for a little while, but eventually they just stopped chasing. That was maybe half a mile outside of town. Then, I got here.” TJ finished, shrugging his shoulders.

  When he’d mentiohe level 5 Skill and how much he’d been able to do with it, the strangers had looked at each other with no small measure of fear. TJ was too tired to care.

  “You’re pretty tough, then.” The fiery-headed woman broke the unfortable silence. “We could use you on the hunt.”

  “Sure, I’ll join in tomorrow.” TJ agreed. “The more we kill the less we’ll have to defend from.”

  “You said you’re a Neophyte?” The hunter man asked as soon as TJ respoJ nodded in response as he Appraised the two hunters he could see.

  Acolyte, 4

  Neophyte, 3

  “You are too?” TJ couldn’t help but ask as he looked at the younger man’s small amount of information. “What you transform into?”

  “Nothing. Or, not really nothing, but nothing really.”

  “That means nothing.” TJ replied. “And by the way, what are your names?”

  “Call me Zig.” The redheaded woman answered.

  “And I’m Charlie.” The man said, stretg out a hand.

  “TJ. And ’t you turn into whatever animal your Bloodline es from? Or something like that?”

  “I don’t know what snake god birthed you, but Loki was mostly a person, so far as I know. I have the Skill Diviransformation like all Neophytes, but it’s a bit different. We talk about it tomorrow.”

  “Sounds good, I’m exhausted.” TJ nodded. “Zig, you have any other questions, or I go to bed?”

  “Oh tons.” She responded. “They wait for m as well, though. You have anything to eat yet?”

  “No. All our food was in the backpacks we lost, and I don’t have hands while I’m a snake. Lost everything we had–aww dammit!”

  At his decration, every person perked up, fear obvious in their movement.

  “No, it’s nothing to worry about. I just had something special in my backpack that I don’t want to lose. And in Stanton’s. Shit, his is really important.” TJ’s mind raced, and though he wahe coyote pelt that had been g, he felt like the lifebloom was something that could be lifeging for people here in town. Could they ever find something like that again, when going into the forest otentially deadly a? It hadn’t been that long, so would it be worth it to try to go back?

  TJ sulted his MP. Only 6/240. He couldn’t really do anything with that. But he was faster than the coyotes and with his toughness–he made the decision.

  “I’ll be back soon. I o get Stanton’s pack. It’s got a magical pnt in it, and I don’t know what it do but it might save someone sometime.” Then, without another word and disregarding everything the people from Pine said, TJ transformed into a coatl and dashed out the door.

  Less than a mier, he the hill, following the road towards the ambush. Less than a mier that, TJ was regretting everything. Really? nt worth his life? Was a stupid pelt? Of course not. But he’d made the decision and the decration, and he didn’t want to walk it back. So, cursing himself, he still sprinted forward. At his speed, the mile or so to the ambush point would take him less than four mio get to. It’d only been maybe thirty minutes sihe ambush, so maybe they were still there. If the backpacks were abandoned, he’d try to grab both areat. If they were there and tended, he’d try to just take Stanton’s. If they were gone, he’d retreat.

  Perfect. A pn. A stupid pn, but a pn heless.

  The minutes passed by quickly, and TJ found himself making the turn into the bend where they’d been attacked. He subsciously slowed himself, his senses peeled for any creature lurking irees’ cover. If they couldn’t ambush him, he’d be able to escape their grasp, he was sure. There wasn’t any obvious movement, and TJ couldn’t smell or taste any nearby, so he made the turn to the ambush point.

  Nothing moved, but the signs of the fight remained. Bloodstains, fur, and bodies patterhe pavement. The pukwudgie corpses had bee where they’d fallen, but the coyotes’ were taken away. The unfortunate reality remained as well. Two tattered backpacks’ corpses y in the middle of the road, torn apart to leave nothing inside. All the food had been taken away as well as the lifebloom and Anubis-blessed coyote hide. Though he couldn’t say if the pukwudgies knew what was inside of the s, they’d been taken as well, and all that remained was nylon straps and torn fabribsp;

  TJ turo leave the disappointing discovery behind, angrily cursing himself as well as the pukwudgies’ intelligend avarice. He ed his tail across one of the bags and heard a quiet ctter from inside. After a moment attempting to open it with his snout, TJ transformed bato his human form and, with hurried movements, found the source of the sound.

  The of tobacco had beeed and damaged by the pukwudgies’ rough dismantling of the bads, but still it held whatever remained of the chew inside. With a scoff, TJ transformed himself bato a coatl, gently pced the in his mouth, and then rushed back towards Pine.

  A quiet rustling of branches seemed to follow his every step, or slither, as the case may be, back to town, but nothing approached him as he rushed down the ter of the highway. As he crested the hill to desd bato town, TJ saw three people waiting for his return. Both the hunters he’d met, Zig and Charlie, as well as another person he wasn’t sure if he’d seen before who stood on the roof of ay home. The soft sound of his scales on the grourayed his approa the dark, aransformed bato his human body as he made his way into town. He pulled the out of his mouth and pced it in his pocket as he walked forward with both hands held high above his head.

  “Just me.” TJ called as he walked slowly forward. “Didn’t get anything. Sorry for running off like that.”

  “You’re not much of a thinker, are you?” asked Zig.

  “’t say it was my fi moment.” TJ allowed, though he still felt the surge of a his poked pride from her tone. “Even so, I feel like finding that lifebloom sooner rather than ter would be good.”

  “Maybe.” shrugged Charlie. “Laura had some people go to get you and Stanton some grub, so eat up a well. See you in the m. Gd you’re safe.”

  “Yeah. ime, I’d appreciate a little more heads-up. That said, I’m the only other hunter who’s hit level 5 in my Css, so you’re probably strong enough to take care of yourself.” Zig allowed before turning to walk bato the house. Charlie nodded his goodnight while the other sentry remai his post. TJ walked up to the ground under him and waved.

  “I’m TJ. You?”

  “Farid.” The man was wearing dark clothes, and against the bck stone shingles, he blended in remarkably well. TJ Appraised him and wasn’t too surprised by what he saw.

  Acolyte, 2

  “Thanks for keeping a, Farid. Have there been any attacks the past couple nights?”

  “Not here.” He answered, his eyes roving their surroundings. “Might have e in without attag ahough.”

  “Sweet. Thanks. What time is my watch?”

  “We already have it scheduled out for tonight, so you and your friend should get some rest. Tomorrow, we’ll pn for you to join in.” The man’s voice leasant tenor, with the fai hint of an at TJ struggled to pce. “Thanks for .”

  With those st words, Farid was obviously doalking to TJ, so he raised a hand as he said goodbye. In the house where Stanton had set up camp, a paper pte sat in the middle of the table. Maybe two eggs’ worth of scrambled eggs with three strips of ba sat on it, and though they were cold when TJ held them to his mouth, his stomach gurgled happily as he ate voraciously. Faster than he’d hoped, the food was gone, and he unashamedly licked the pte .

  Stanton was curled on the cou front of the firepce, his boots on the ground in front of him. Curled under a knit quilt, he looked much frailer than ever before and TJ remembered the look of pani the old man’s face as he’d called for help. In his reting of the story, TJ had glossed over many of the worst feelings he’d been struck with that evening. For a while, he’d been vianton was dead and he was merely carrying a corpse as he fled, and he remembered the helplessness he’d felt when he’d gotten that call about Mari.

  She’d always loved riding her bike, and was as safe as she could be–helmet, lights, high-vis stripes on her jacket. That day, she’d said that they needed some carrots for dinner and wouldn’t be long. He was tired, and didn’t insist on driving. He ehe opportunity to spend time with Junior while she was out. It was te. Walmart wasn’t far, but it was far enough. The driver didn’t see her, or didn’t care, or didn’t react fast enough. By the time aalked to him, he was a blubberihat could only remember that he didn’t remember.

  TJ felt himself beginning to hyperventite a to the deyed fear. Stanton had nearly died. He put on a brave face after being healed, but his face was sallow and his meal half-eaten. His breaths came quickly, with a slight rattle. Laura insisted that he’d been healed, but the doctors swore that while Mari needed emergency surgery, she’d pull through. Could he trust the magic?

  Just like with the System, TJ could only trust. After all, if it didn’t work, then Stanton would die, and what could he do about that? If he pleted the Tutorial and still couldn’t see Junior, how could he do anything about that?

  He realized he iraling, and stood. Taking deep breaths, TJ tered himself enough to go to a bedroom, pull off the mattress from the bedspring, and drag it o the fire. Then, after stoking the fire up high, he fought to find sleep while the sight of Stanton impaled on half a dozen spears taunted him.

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