Chapter 15

  They Huffed and they Puffed

  The sun sank, dragging the last vestiges of light from the day and leaving behind a profound, unnerving gloom.

  The chill of the night immediately began to seep into the ground, and the forest, which had been alive with the chirp and chatter of birds, fell into a deep, unsettling silence.

  Within the fort's tight perimeter—a rough palisade with a single, sharp opening—the low-burning fire pit cast meager, flickering shadows.

  The butchered pig Dan provided was roasting over the embers, the scent of cooked meat a sharp reminder of their survival.

  Dan stood by the opening, glancing at his screens in the quiet night.

  He was wearing a sweat-stained t-shirt, his thick arms crossed over his chest.

  Damn, I'm sick of sweating.

  Jimmy sat cross-legged near the entrance, holding his bow.

  He wasn't looking at the woods, he was looking at Lucas’s camp.

  They had set a single, massive bonfire, a beacon of light that threw wildly exaggerated shadows of the surrounding trees—a fatal error in judgment.

  “Look at them,” Dan growled low, the sound barely audible over the crackle of their small fire.

  “They’re sitting ducks. Anything can see them, and that fire killed their night vision.”

  “Precisely,” Jimmy replied, his voice flat.

  He gave his glasses a slow, deliberate polish, using the focused action to center himself. "They will spend the night fighting their own shadows. They think the light deters danger. The light is the danger."

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  The tension was a palpable, living thing in the small fort.

  Luna abruptly jumped to her paws.

  Jimmy’s head snapped toward the tree line.

  “Movement. Left of Lucas’s camp... It's something different this time.”

  The meadow was suddenly pierced by a low, chilling howl—a sound far deeper and more resonant than any natural wolf.

  Luna tucked her tail and whimpered by Kim's legs.

  From the direction of Lucas’s camp, a new sound:

  Screaming.

  Panic erupted.

  “Jimmy, can you see what they are?” Dan asked, holding his position in the gap.

  “Worgs. They're the size of small ponies, dark fur with thick muscle. They’ve picked off the stragglers and are moving on the main group. They are... fast.”

  The screams became gurgles, and the noise from the other camp began to taper off into frantic whimpers and panicked shouts.

  “They’re coming this way,” Jimmy warned, his arrow now trained on the darkness beyond their perimeter.

  A huge shadow slipped though the night.

  It followed the line of the trench, then instinctively veered toward the open choke-point.

  “It’s coming in,” Dan roared, moving only his head to warn the group.

  "Get ready!"

  The beast burst out of the night, its massive form illuminated momentarily by the fire.

  Bowstring sang-a high, sharp sound- arrow flying through the dark.

  It struck the charging animal in the left front leg, shattering the bone above the paw.

  It let out a howl of surprised agony.

  Its forward momentum was violently interrupted as the leg crumpled.

  The beast pitched forward, its large body slamming hard into the ground just outside the perimeter.

  “Chris, now!” Jimmy barked, already nocking a second arrow.

  Chris, with a big step forward, launched his throwing stick.

  The heavy wooden wedge spun true and snapped its snout to the side.

  Wounded and enraged, it thrashing wildly, throwing dirt.

  It tried to drag its massive weight forward toward the funnel opening, but its shattered leg made the movement slow and agonizingly clumsy.

  It managed to gather itself on its hind legs and lurched forwards.

  “NO.”

  Dan sank an inch into the earth.

  His shield was raised, and bashed into the approaching maw, stopping the beast dead.

  Dan barely moved an inch.

  Jimmy’s second arrow found its mark, sinking deep into the worg's side.

  The thrashing slowed, replaced by deep, ragged growls.

  Dan seized his moment.

  He lowered his shield and swung his club in a massive, horizontal arc, fueled by his immense strength.

  The club connected with its skull, silencing the growl and turning the struggle into stillness.

  Silence returned, broken only by a flurry of frantic yelping and snarls receding into the darkness.

  Howls quickly faded, driven away by the death of their leader.

  “One down,” Dan gasped, shaking the shock from his arms. He looked out at the tree line, his eyes burning in the dim light.

  “Sure it won't be the last."

  The lingering silence was heavy.

  Low crackle of their small fire.

  Faint hiss of roasting meat.

  Ragged, panicked whimpers.

  Dan lowered his club and, with a subtle but definite nod to Jimmy, stepped back slightly from the body.

  Its large size and strength provided a high yield.

  Jimmy allowed the flow to pass through him, absorbing the raw power.

  The subtle infusion of Qi settled into his Seed, it pushed away the mental fog, sharpening his senses further. He quickly pulled up his core formation screen.

  Dan, Chris, and George, who were also close, pulled in smaller, proportional amounts of the energy, still receiving a significant boost.

  The restorative effect washed away Dan's adrenaline dump and the ache in his arms and shoulders from stopping the charge. He felt immediately ready for the next hit.

  Luna, who walked up to sniff the canine, huffed in a little bit of Qi with a snort.

  “Luna! Did you get some Qi? Who's a good girl!” Kim bent down to pet her, as she wagged her tail.

  "Some good stuff," Jimmy observed, polishing his glasses. "We should focus on maximizing these opportunities."

  “Dont forget, people just died,” Dan turned his attention to Lucas’s camp, which was now completely silent save for the subdued terror.

  The single bonfire was still raging, illuminating a gruesome scene.

  “But yeah.. You're right, I'm at 24% now.”

  After a few tense minutes, a dark figure skulked across the open meadow.

  It stopped just outside the circle fort.

  Lucas, face pale and eyes wide with fear, starkly highlighted by the firelight.

  He looked at the massive, dead beast, then back at Dan.

  “What the hell was that?” Lucas demanded, his voice shaking.

  “That,” Dan said, his voice low and steady, reinforced by the recent Qi infusion, “was the neighborhood welcoming committee.”

  Lucas seemed torn between rage and terror. "Two more of my friends are dead. Just... gone! Why didn't you help us? We're a group."

  Jimmy stepped into the funnel beside Dan, his bow held ready but pointed toward the dark woods.

  "We defended our perimeter, Lucas. You did whatever it was you did."

  Lucas glared at the cold, calculating Jimmy, then at the enormous, unflinching Dan.

  “Fine,” he spat, retreating a step toward his camp. "Just keep an eye out for these monsters."

  Luna barked at his retreating back.

  He jumped.

  Dan watched him go. "He's scared, but he's not broken. He'll be watching us closer than the forest now. Chris, drag that thing a few feet inside the wall.”

  “Yes, Drill Sergeant Dan!” Chris answered with a sloppy salute.