Warning: Rat Rot infection rate now at (28%).

I awoke to the message hovering before my eyes. Once I had a chance to blink away the last vestiges of sleep’s hold on me, I dismissed the message. I was growing used to seeing it every morning as it steadily progressed.

It had been three days since I joined Crunch and the others. In that time, we’d worked our way steadily to the Southeast, not really trying to get anywhere in particular, just exploring, playing, sleeping. Taking our time as we traveled. It didn’t seem as if Crunch was in any particular hurry to get anywhere other than away from downtown.

I’d joked to our illustrious captain that it almost felt as if we were searching for something, traveling back and forth as much as forward as we did, but he’d merely grunted at me noncommittally.

In truth, we probably were searching to some degree. It turned out that many places did not remain as well provisioned as the Lake Chalet. Monsters had to eat as well, and so any obvious grocery stores were often overturned several times over before we crossed the threshold. I had yet to go truly hungry, traveling with this pack, but we weren’t as well fed as I would have liked, either.

Luckily that was not a concern at the moment. My stomach remained happily sated from our feast the night before, thanks to a selection of frozen ducks we found in the back of a small Chinese restaurant. I could only hope that today would prove as equally fruitful.

But for now, I focused on more immediate concerns and pulled up my interface.

-Stats-

Power: 18 (+5)

Speed: 5 (-5)

Agility: 15

Presence: 8 (+5)

Mind: 23 (+18)

Points Available: 0

Alright, good. Despite the disease’s progression, the modifier to my Speed hadn’t changed. I’m guessing it wouldn’t until the disease rose to stage two, whenever that would be. With any luck, it was a long way off.

[Hey, Bubba.] Leeli’s voice cut into my thoughts, and I quickly wicked my screen away to find her standing in front of me. [You aren’t by any chance interacting with the system, are you?]

From her lolling expression, she already knew the answer to that question, and knew that I knew, too. Still, I played along for anyone else listening. [Of course not, Leeli. What would the Captain think to know I was fraternizing with the enemy?]

Leeli snorted. [Little late for that, I think.]

She eyed the bracelets hanging just below my elbows, snorted again, then wandered off. I watched her slip out of sight, followed by her muted conversation with the rest of the pack. My eyes drifted down to look over my wands.

It had been something of a mild shock to discover that most of the pack wasn’t wearing any equipment. Like, at all. Once we were partied up and could see each other, I’d realized that I had on more CGI gear than the rest of them combined.

Zapper was wearing a ratty collar that he possessed before joining the gang, and Crunch had a collar as well, but Leeli and Benjamin had nothing. They told me they had a dozen loot boxes between them but had never opened any.

[The Captain doesn’t like us interacting with the system,] Leeli had whispered to me once Crunch was out of range. Apparently, that had been enough for her.

Our illustrious leader was a strange one. He had no qualms about utilizing some of the system functions to our advantage, like the party menu, but others were taboo. Leeli and Zapper had practically gasped when they’d seen how much I was sporting.

[Oooh.] Zapper’s eyes had darted between me and Crunch, like he was expecting a fight to break out. [Trouble...]

Crunch rolled his eyes. [I keep telling you idiots, if you want to make use of the system, by all means be my guest. I’m your leader, not your parent.]

He turned towards me, eyeing me up and down. His gaze lingered a moment on my collar. [I won’t question what you had to do to survive, Bubba. Just know that I won’t have you seeking out fights while you’re part of this pack. We fight monsters if we have to, but otherwise we avoid them. No sense risking ourselves needlessly.]

[Wouldn’t more equipment make sense then?] I asked. [If we can’t avoid a fight, it’s better to have every advantage possible.]

[You might think that, but every time you interact with the system, you put yourself a little more under its sway. I prefer to avoid doing so as much as possible, and the rest of the pack agrees with me.] He glanced at the others. [Right?]

The other dogs all nodded to varying degrees. I returned my attention to Crunch. [What about that collar you’re wearing?]

[Let’s just say it’s a necessary evil.] Crunch turned away and started marching for the door. [I suppose you can review our stat screens to see why, if you really want to risk it...]

And I had, at least surreptitiously, when the others were asleep or elsewhere. This morning’s slip wasn’t the first time I’d been called out on it, but for the most part I’d managed to avoid detection.

So far, I’d learned that both Zapper and Benjamin had support classes, meaning they didn’t fair particularly well in solo combat. Zapper’s Heeler class was a Speed-based one, which was reflected in his skill:

Guiding Nip — As your ancestors once harried cattle, nipping at their heels to keep them in line, so too do you nip at the heels of your enemies, driving them where you want them to be and hampering their actions. Guiding nip may be applied to up to three enemies, slowing their movement by 25% for one minute and causing them to move up to (5 + Speed/100) feet in the direction of your choice. Usable once every 10 minutes.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Already my mind had come up with at least five different ways such a useful skill could be utilized in combat, but it was Benjamin’s power that I particularly liked.

Sympathy Sight — As a Guide Dog, you are used to guiding your charges through a world of darkness. Now you can bring that darkness to bear against those who oppose you. Apply a sphere of darkness that emanates out (20 + Presence/10) feet in all directions from you. Sphere is stationary once applied, and affects all living creatures within; friend, foe, and caster alike. While inside the sphere, all occupants are afflicted with the ‘blindness’ effect. Lasts for ten minutes or until willingly dispelled, whichever occurs first. Usable once per hour.

Note: ‘Blindness’ effect is neutralized by Night Vision and other similar skills.

Then there was Leeli and Crunch. I’d wondered about their classes, since they were both ones I’d been offered as well, and now I finally got to see a bit of what I missed out on. Leeli was a DPS-based melee class, which apparently meant she could deal a significant amount of damage over time.

Gnaw — You were a tiny terror as a puppy, and as an adult, you’re a... slightly less tiny terror. Latch on to an enemy, and don’t let go until one of you is dead. Damage multiplier increases by (1 + Power/100) for every three seconds contact is maintained with enemy. As long as ability is active, you may not be shaken off or otherwise removed from target, though you may still take damage normally. Usable once per minute.

My mind filled with images of tiny Leeli hanging off a zombie guardian as it shook about, trying to dislodge her. The thought made my tail wag.

Crunch, by comparison, was a Pit Fighter, meaning his class was specialized towards tanking. I still didn’t entirely understand what that term meant, but it seemed to mean a focus towards taking damage rather than dealing it. Interestingly, I didn’t see this reflected in his class skill.

Charged Charge — Your time in the pits taught you many lessons, the most important of which is when to strike, and when to wait for an opportunity. Now you can use that ability to exploit your opponent’s weakness and take them down in a single hit.

Once activated, Charged Charge locks you in place for ten seconds, after which you immediately move up to 20 feet towards the nearest enemy. If you come into contact with an enemy during that time, do a damage multiplier equal to (10 + Power/100). Usable once per minute.

It was like a slower, more powerful version of the Aggressive Charge skill I had been offered. If not for the class ability Crunch possessed alongside, I would have considered it inferior. However, thanks to that...

Enhanced Defense — This user’s power is considered doubled when determining damage taken modifiers.

Seriously, why does every user I meet have better racial abilities than me? First Prometheus had his Enhanced Evasion, and now this! Blah.

So what it came down to was that I wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of a fight with Crunch. Luckily, I didn’t see that happening any time soon. But given his one-two combo and some of our supporting abilities, it wouldn’t be difficult to defeat most any monster. I couldn’t help but feel a little grumpy about that.

Already we had skirted around or evaded seven or eight different monster groups, from a trio of lizardmen to something the system referred to as a squonk. So much missed experience... so much potential loot...

I tried not to let the losses bother me. After all, I’d made the choice to join this pack. I could abide by the rules, if it meant safety and companionship.

Satisfied that my rat rot wasn’t going to be killing me today, I padded down the hall and joined the others. We had taken shelter on the second floor of a small apartment complex after a preliminary sniff of the area hadn’t turned up any potential dots. Now we made for the street.

[What’s the plan today, Captain boss?] Zapper asked, running a few quick circles around the group. He was practically bouncing out of his fur with extra energy today.

So, basically the same as any day.

[First, food I think,] Crunch said, a slight smile slipping across his muzzle as he watched the short-legged dog zip back and forth. Behind him, Leeli rolled her eyes. [After that, we’ll continue making our way south. I think we’ve just about exhausted this area of any useful resources.]

[At least ones we can get to easily,] Leeli added. [Ugh. What I wouldn’t give for a pair of opposable thumbs...]

[Now, now, let’s just be thankful we’ve found as much as we have. Frankly, I’m surprised electricity hasn’t turned off for the whole city by now. Must be at least a few humans out there helping to maintain the grid.]

I paused at that, while the others filed past me into the street. Humans. We hadn’t run into any yet while steadily making our way south, but surely there must be some still in the world, right? I had my quest, after all. Not to mention that feeling when I stared in the direction of downtown...

I shook my head. Crunch was right. Leave humans to their own matters, and worry about you and your pack first. And what the pack needed right now was breakfast.

[How about that supermarket we spotted just west of here yesterday?] Leeli asked. [There’s bounds to be easy pickings in a place like that.]

Crunch frowned. [I dunno, bigger stores tend to be the first targeted. And even if there’s anything left, it wouldn’t surprise me if a monster or two stuck around to cause trouble for any humans who wandered in later.]

[Good thing we’re dogs, then. C’mon, Captain! We’ll spot any monsters long before they spot us. And how nice would it be to pick from an actual selection of food for once? I’m tired of sifting through rubble just for a morsel or two.]

[Hmm.] Our illustrious leader thought about it for a moment, only for his stomach to let out an angry groan. He sighed. [Fine. But we do this by the books: careful in, quick out. Got that?]

[Aye, aye, Captain!] Leeli said, tongue lolling. Crunch sighed again.

[Zapper, scout us a path back to the store. Ben, you take lead, keep your eyes peeled for any threats that Zapper misses.] His head swiveled in my direction. [Bubba, you watch our six. I don’t want any surprises sneaking up behind us.]

[You got it, Captain,] I said, my own tongue lolling. [I won’t anything slip by, unlike some dogs.]

The day before yesterday, Leeli had been on rear duty, but had missed when a pair of slime monsters emerged from a gutter. Seemed that Crunch still hadn’t forgiven her that little slipup.

[Hey!] the Pom said indignantly, [That was one time! And they weren’t even that much of a threat...]

[I don’t know what you’re talking about,] I said, my tongue lolling even wilder. [Did I mention you, Leeli? I was simply commenting on my superior guard abilities.]

[Hey, just because you’ve got all your fancy gizmos and doodads doesn’t mean—]

[Enough,] Crunch cut in. [Positions, everyone. Let’s try to at least find a decent meal before we get ourselves in trouble, alright?]

We moved up the road for about ten minutes before the large brick building came into sight, the word ‘Foodmaxx’ in bright blue and white letters on the side.

[Ears up, everyone.] Crunch paused in front of the automatic doors, eyeing the gloomy interior on the other side. [We get in, get breakfast, get out. Don’t make me regret not finding another mom-and-pop store.]

[Oh, you’re such a worrywart, Captain.] Leeli padded casually through the door as Zapper preceded her, his tiny legs ablur. [What’s the worst that can happen? Rats taking over the deli section? A few zombies roaming the cereal aisle?]

[Leeli, haven’t I warned you never to say—] Crunch started to admonish her, but never got the chance to finish. No sooner had we passed the checkout stands than the entire building shook. I whirled around, already seeing a yellow dot in the corner of my vision before I even got halfway there.

Standing between us and the entrance were four enormous monsters.