“Finally,” Mei thought to herself, standing with Takt and his five disciples atop a small hill overlooking a large plantation. Rows of bright red lilies danced in the wind, while groups of slaves were forced to labor away harvesting them, under the watchful eye of armed guards spread all throughout the fields. Towards the center of the miles-wide plantation stood a small cluster of farm buildings, with a single mage’s tower towering above them.

Triple Lily. The battle that Levin had tempted her with when she had first joined up with the Mage Hunters had arrived at long last. And what a welcome break it was, from the painful trudge that was studying – even if Uki’s strange ability to make Mei hear simple phrases fluently helped accelerate the process.

Takt walked over to Mei, grabbing her attention. “Wait.”

“What am I, a dog?” Mei said, but Takt would only understand the sharp nod of her head.

Cho was not here to translate for Mei, something she considered a small act of mercy. According to Levin, this farm was apparently beyond the range he could send Cho and maintain a connection. Fortunately, the distance didn’t impede Levin’s ability to spy on the farm like Uki wanted – something about pre-programmed routes. She didn’t really care.

But it did mean she was left alone as Takt and his five youths headed off towards the plantation. They circled down and around the hill to descend towards the farm in a route more guarded from view, while Mei watched their movements from afar. Uki had given her a crude spyglass, letting her watch in detail even across the distance.

They had a plan, one largely formulated by Uki. And thanks to the girl named Jess, it had been explained to Mei quite well. Jess was a small, brown-haired girl, and very good at drawing – so she had been heavily involved in Mei's education, for both language and the preparation of this attack. And as part of that preparation, Mei was to wait.

She understood why Takt had her stay behind: the Mage Hunters weren’t expecting much resistance, so Takt saw it as a good training opportunity, as well as a chance for Mei to observe how they fought. And as far as Mei goes, she wouldn't get much enjoyment from a fight that could be won without her anyways.

Which is why, as soon as Uki had managed to communicate to Mei her role, Mei had made up her mind; she would not assist. The plan was for her to jump in if things went sideways, but Mei figured it would make for a much more interesting spectacle to simply let things play out. Real danger always made for the best training, too.

By now, Takt’s group had drawn within striking distance of the farm, and she saw them all pause on the perimeter, drawing their weapons. On Takt’s cue, they rushed forward, staying low to the ground as they approached a large, outlying building – some kind of dormitory for the slaves that worked the plantation, according to Uki.

While they tried to stay inconspicuous, the small red flowers did little to cover them. But the plantation was a couple thousand acres in size at least, manned by only a dozen or so guards, leaving the Mage Hunters plenty of room to sneak in. In addition, it left each of their enemies mostly isolated.

There was a single guard off to their side, the only one at any real risk of spotting them. Compared to the simple leather armors used by the Mage Hunters, the guards were equipped in shiny chainmail emblazoned in the crest of the Turep Clan, with swords decorated with gemstone pommels at each of their sides.

But Mei didn’t get to examine his armor for long. He unexpectedly turned, spotting the Mage Hunters. The guard opened his mouth to yell an alert, but an arrow punctured his throat with pinpoint accuracy before any sound came out. Eyes wide, the dying man collapsed to the ground, disappearing amongst the lilies without any other guards noticing. But while the guards were too far apart to notice, the same could not be said of the slaves – many had detected the intruders, but none made a peep.

The one who relaxed his bow arm while nocking a second arrow was the youngest of the Mage Hunters, a freckled teen named Nano. If they were to be spotted again, the next would meet the same fate. But that proved unnecessary, as they managed to arrive at the outlying slave house without getting detected by any further guards, ducking inside and out of Mei’s sight.

They didn’t emerge, but Mei wasn’t worried. So far, everything was going according to plan. And their timing had been nearly perfect – just a few minutes later, Mei saw what Takt and the others were waiting for.

At the mage’s tower lording over the farm, two guards approached from a barracks, coming for a scheduled shift change with the two currently on duty at the double doors of the tall, skinny building.

At that moment, Takt burst from their hiding place, his five warriors trailing behind. The group rushed forwards, rapidly closing in on the center of the plantation with no regard for concealment. The guards had a clear line of sight to them, and noticed the attack instantly.

Immediately the alarm was raised. However, the Mage Hunters had managed to penetrate well into the farm before launching their assault, and the four guards only had enough time to draw their weapons before the Hunters bore down onto them.

Takt, Jess, and a short young man named Yotti went straight towards the two guards at the entrance of the mage’s tower. They stood in stance and held their swords aloft, ready to intercept and defend.

Suddenly, Takt became a blur even to Mei’s trained eyes, flashing past the two guards and striking with the twin stiletto daggers he held in each hand. With only one hand per opponent, he disarmed both guards, sending their blades flying far from their hands. Takt could easily have finished both men right then, but instead he slammed into the closed doors of the mage’s tower, ripping them from their hinges and disappearing inside.

Now it was Jess and Yotti’s turn. The two both used falchions, swiping out in sync against each of their unarmed opponents. Their armor was insufficient against the precise, trained strikes of the young Hunters, and both died with a dumbfounded expression.

Meanwhile, Miki and Nano had focused on the two guards approaching for the shift change, along with the final member of the Hunters – Kana, a young, black-haired woman and the tallest of the Hunters bar Takt. Miki lashed out with his spear and Kana with a rapier, both lunging forward against their foes. These guards fought back, trading blows with Miki and Kana until both duels were cut short by two arrows launched from Nano’s bow.

With five guards total down, the odds had been evened greatly for the five Hunters who remained outside the mage’s tower. The remaining guards on the farm had been alerted, and were rushing over towards the source of the commotion.

The small group rushed towards the farmhouse nearby, where another guard was already waiting. Kana engaged him, using her long arms and thrusting weapon to effectively launch a flurry of attacks without giving any openings.

Miki sped up, pulling ahead of the group. His target was an acolyte inside the farmhouse, one of the three key defenders they had identified ahead of time. Miki charged forward, diving through a window of the farmhouse spear-first.

Jess, Yotti, and Nano arrived at the building a second later, and the older two boosted Nano onto the roof, the place they had decided would best let him control the battlefield. Kana fell back from her duel a moment later as the remaining guards began to swarm together.

Mei yawned. A battle-cry reached her ears, the first sound of the battle she had been able to hear from her distance. With it came a sensation like concentrated energy was contained in the sound waves, faint from the distance as it washed over her – a weapon art. Jess had unleashed her power to devastating effect, leaving only two guards standing after Nano’s deadly follow up.

Though the Mage Hunters were small in number, each member was incredibly skilled, as Mei had learned over the sparring opportunities during the past week. Every single one of them could use a weapon art, a feat which not a single of these ordinary guards could match. Only a single enemy on this entire plantation could perform a weapon art, the captain and the second of their key targets.

It was only this man’s appearance that saved the lives of the remaining two guards. Wulf was his name, and the man had a stocky, burly frame that reminded Mei of a wimpy version of Tulimak. Kana approached as Jess and Yotti took up supporting positions, keeping an eye on the two guards that similarly held back.

Mei perked up. In her estimation, if the battle was to take a turn for the interesting, it would be happening here. Even though the Hunters had four warriors capable of weapon arts up against just Wulf, they were still relative novices, with only enough strength to use a weapon art once – and Jess had already used hers. Wulf alone could very possibly have more power on his own than the four combined.

Wulf made the first move, stepping forward with a downward slash that Kana sidestepped. She returned the attack, beginning a volley of exchanges between the two. Kana continued to carefully dodge, taking advantage of her weapon’s thrusting speed to dart in and out of Wulf’s range while delivering tricky stabbing attacks.

Kana slowly retreated as they dueled, trying to maintain the optimal range for her rapier while Wulf tried to close the distance to inflict a critical blow. But after exchanging a flurry of attacks, Kana was still able to hold strong in spite of her slim build. And Mei was impressed how well the rapier held up against Wulf’s heavy blade – the Hunters must have someone skilled making their weapons.

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Then, a pause. Wulf and Kana separated, squaring off nearly ten feet away and holding their stance with eyes locked. Once more the cries of battle reached her ears with a small punch of energy as both duelists unleashed their weapon arts. Their blades became bathed in a white glow as they swung at the same time, the raw power surging out and colliding in a rumbling explosion.

This time, Kana was at a serious disadvantage. Wulf pushed, sending Kana flying while he remained rooted firmly in place. She tumbled backwards but caught herself, flipping over onto her feet but remaining low to the ground.

But Kana and Wulf weren’t the only ones whose voice reached Mei’s ears. Nano, bowstring drawn and arrow nocked, had poured out his own power in sync with Kana and Wulf. His next arrow ripped through the air like a sonic boom, slamming into the ground the next instant in a massive cloud of dust.

With Wulf’s head directly in its flight path.

Mei sighed. It seemed Uki really did have a perfect read, yet she wasn’t even here to see her plan’s flawless execution. Then again, this was hardly their first rodeo.

There were still two guards left, but they were already in checkmate. Now it was Yotti’s turn to use his weapon art, easily dispatching of their remaining foes. With that, every enemy outside had been dealt with.

A moment later, the farmhouse shook underneath Nano, every window of the building shattering at once. As silence fell once more, Miki emerged from the ruins, spear casually resting on his shoulder. Clearly, his own weapon art had been enough to finish the job inside.

With the acolyte and guard captain both disposed of, two of the three key defenders of the Triple Lily plantation lay dead. The third and final, a Wisp rank mage, was up against Takt, someone on the level of a Smoke rank. Mei still didn’t fully comprehend the differences in power between ranks, but she could see the way the others treated it as an unbridgeable gulf. Not to mention their sparring, which had thoroughly convinced Mei that Takt would not easily lose.

“This was over before it began,” Mei thought to herself. “There’s nothing more boring than a plan that goes to plan.”

Miki, Jess, Yotti, Kana, and Nano all grouped up, maintaining a fair distance from the tower where Takt fought. Mei began to stroll over, hands behind her head. All around, the slaves remained docile and wary, but slowly began to gather around their rescuers.

Suddenly, screams split the air in the distance. Cries came from the edge of the plantation, shouts of terror from the imprisoned workers. A moment later, the source came into view, and Mei’s eyes narrowed. This wasn’t an enemy they had expected.

But what an eye-catching enemy it was. Though it had the silhouette of a human, Mei couldn’t even be sure if it was a he or she, not beneath the toffee-colored scales adorning every inch of its body. Behind it a long tail stretched out, swaying back and forth as the creature raced towards the Mage Hunters. It spared none of the slaves in its path, lashing out with razor-sharp claws and crushing bones with each swing of the tail.

Mei’s eyes gleamed in admiration. Even at a distance she could immediately discern the strength of this new foe, and it was enough to set her heart ablaze. A fierce itch came over her entire body, growing stronger and stronger as the lizard-like foe moved at a speed even faster than Tulimak had.

Mei’s legs began to move faster instinctively as her eyes remained locked on the charging beast, her self-promise not to assist completely forgotten. It would hardly be interesting to watch a group of children get slaughtered one-sidedly, just as equally boring as the battle she had just watched them win.

It took only a moment for her to arrive halfway down the hill, at which point Mei came to an abrupt stop, crouching low to the ground. With enough force to leave behind a crater several feet wide, Mei launched herself up and out like a spring, hurtling into the air at nearly the speed of sound. It took barely five seconds for her to fly – or fall, perhaps – over the full mile to the center of the farm where her allies stood, their eyes locked in fearful gazes at the new enemy.

And they were right to be scared. Mei doubted those five could even see that overgrown lizard’s movements as it slaughtered the fleeing slaves in a mad charge. And it was far faster in a straight line too, fast enough that it arrived at the center of the farm in the same moment Mei came crashing down.

Up close, Mei realized she recognized this creature. She had never seen a living one, and the colors were different, but there was no mistaking those scales and that humanoid figure – this thing was the same as the three corpses she and Levin had found deep underground. And unlike the deceased, skeletal remains, there was living madness in this one’s eyes.

It had been rushing towards Kana, but slid to a stop, turning to focus on Mei. She could see a visible shiver run down the beast’s spine, an instinctual, animalistic response that Mei took great pleasure in. She attacked first, launching forward in a single leap and slamming her shoulder into the hardened scales of the creature’s chest.

There was enough space between the two for the human-lizard to react, but it was futile. There was no living organism capable of avoiding a head-on tackle from Mei. But even as Mei felt the crunch of scaly flesh beneath her arm, she was surprised to find the creature hadn’t been sent flying.

It managed to grab her, wrapping its tail around her waist as one set of long claws sunk into the skin of her left arm while another slashed wildly against her face, leaving behind thin streaks of blood. Mei grinned, and a few drops of blood slipped into her mouth as she did.

Once more the monster tried to slash her face, but Mei snaked out her right arm, seizing its wrist and stopping its movement. Next she squeezed, and a sickening crunch of scales and bones came from between her fingers. The creature let out a bestial howl of pain, flailing in Mei’s grip as it unwrapped its tail from her waist and desperately tried to pull away.

But Mei would never let captured prey escape. She lifted the creature high into the air, ignoring the repeated whips of its tail even as it decorated her body in bloody trails. Then she pivoted on her foot, turning and bending at the same time to slam the creature into the ground.

She had performed the same move against Miki on their first meeting, but this time she did it with lethal intent. But perhaps the tilled soil underfoot cushioned her blow, or perhaps the monster was tougher than she had expected, because it survived – barely.

Mei pulled her arm back, then punched it squarely in the head with all her power.

When she lifted her fist this time, there was nothing left below it except for blood-stained dirt. Satisfied, Mei stood straight, releasing the tension in her body as her senses returned to normal.

And then, as the adrenaline and thrill of battle faded away, Mei braced herself. She was covered in blood, and bits of the creature’s brain were still stuck to her fist. It didn’t bother her – she had fought many vicious creatures in Earth’s dimension, and the battles usually ended up like this.

So she knew what she would see as she turned around. It was a sight she was used to. She had often fought before a crowd

Many of the vicious criminals she had hunted in her home dimension had been taken down publicly before a crowd just like this. And though she fought on the side of the law, the expressions written on the faces of those who watched her fight were always the same.

Fear. Disgust. Loathing. Mei was a monster by any human’s standards, and she fought like one too. She had grown desensitized to those stares, fueled by the thrill of combat – what did it matter if the people she helped feared her? It was better for the mighty to be feared than loved, anyways.

But this time she couldn’t just move on to another planet in another solar system, leaving all those stares behind. This time, she would have to live with the onlookers of her fight. She would have to eat, bathe, and sleep in the same home as them. She would have to learn to speak all over again from them.

Mei was shocked to find herself hesitating to turn around. She knew she had just saved the lives of all five youths behind her, but in the past even those she saved couldn’t help their natural reactions. Indeed, it was only natural.

A light touch on her arm startled her out of her reverie. It was the girl named Jess, and she was focused on wrapping a bandage around the punctures in Mei’s arm where the beast had dug in. Mei looked down at her, and their eyes met.

Jess was smiling. Not just smiling – beaming. She wore a wide, happy smile as she met Mei’s gaze without a hint of fear.

Finally, Mei turned. She looked at the other four, and found not a hint of negativity on a single face. Miki was staring at her, mouth agape with something like admiration gleaming in his eyes. Yotti and Kana were heading towards the slaves, but they responded to Mei’s gaze with a warm smile as well. Only Nano was expressionless, just as stoic as he had been since the day Mei met him. There wasn’t even the faintest hint of a tremble as their eyes met.

Finally, Takt came out of the mage’s tower. As expected, he had won without any damage to show for it. He looked confused as he scanned over Mei and her fallen opponent, a reaction that made her chuckle lightly.

Jess was done bandaging Mei’s arm now, so she reached up to dab away the blood on Mei’s scratched face. Mei simply stood there, letting Jess go to work.

Maybe the people here were better than back home.

***

A large, intimidating man sat inside a quiet inn before a gently crackling fire, poring over several sheets of paper spread out before him. Even though the wide-open dining area had enough space for several dozen patrons, the place was uncharacteristically empty save for the bartender and this single man.

The door to the inn slammed open as another person ran in, who quickly approached and went down onto one knee.

“We’ve finally found a lead, Senior Magus Azaadi. It looks like Sir Tulimak’s killer has joined the Mage Hunters.”

“Oh? That little band of miscreants might actually pose a slight threat, then. And what of the others?”

“We’ve eliminated everyone that escaped from the impact site.”

A brief silence hung in the air as Azaadi spun a small ink brush around his fingers.

“And the boy that escaped me?”

“No word of him. But it's likely that he and the woman are together.”

“Very well. We’ll get his location once we’ve captured her and these Mage Hunters. Even if they’re merely a buzzing fly, I’m sure Master Silla will be happy to be presented with their heads alongside Tulimak’s killer.”