The group did one last check on the base before departure. The doors to all open buildings were locked shut. Adam placed as many portable turrets as he could find near the gate and any cracks in the outer walls. His [Hacking] augmentation kept track of all their statuses, as long as he remained within their vicinity. Miriam estimated the radius to span from within the MOB’s center to a short distance beyond it. He'd fall out of range once he got on the path, but the connection would re-establish once he returned, thereby alerting him of any intruders. Adam then draped tarps covered in reddish-brown paint over their bodies.

The turrets wouldn’t stave off a concentrated force, but they did have the firepower to take a few nosy trespassers. It was the best they could afford. Lucy gave one last, furtive look at the base before she hauled the front gate shut with her bare hands.

There he and Lucy stood, clad in the colors of Astraea, an entire fortune of technology strapped to their packs. An unknown world peeked between the forest ahead, where red skies blanketed all, corruption turned men into monsters and Lucy’s comrades roamed wastelands of their own making. He clutched his sister’s pendant tight, his fingers running over the little notches she once carved, then slipped it beneath his shirt. It landed near the steady thumping of his heart.

"Ready, everyone?" Adam said, in English. Penny nodded, head bobbing up and down. Lucy gave him a salute.

"Let’s go." Together, they walked away from the MOB, Penny in front as a guide, Lucy in the middle, and Adam at the very back. The trail led up at a slight incline, then descended into the heart of a forest. Whatever force that had displaced the MOB had dumped it in a crater-esque formation, uncaring of its surroundings. The blast had tipped over a ring of trees and tore up dirt and rock like spilled confetti. Shadows danced along the rocky path, dyed a dark crimson by the skies. His nose itched at pollen, decaying leaves, and occasional fuel fumes.

There were wraiths of course. They stumbled out from between the reedy tree trunks. Lucy vaulted over Penny and blasted them with her rifle before they got close. Any survivors were finished off with [Photon-Blast]. Their internal fluids splattered across the pepper-white bark.

"You know." Adam said as he watched the red wisps float off the monsters’ corpses past the numerous gaps in the canopy, "You could’ve saved some for me."

"It’s beneath you, Chosen," Lucy said. "Both as your status, and you’ve killed enough of them already back at base."

"Every bit of experience counts." Lucy sent him a questioning look, which he didn’t elaborate on. His senses weren’t as far-reaching as Lucy’s, so he cocked an ear and listened. Bird chirps, rustling leaves, and shrill cries of animals. The vegetation wasn’t dense like Parris Islands. Those wraiths were stragglers then. The majority must have been attracted by the battle at the MOB a few days ago. Further evidence was demonstrated by the lack of trouble down the rest of the path.

Adam didn’t let himself relax. But, he did go through ADOSCH again. The feature to perceive its interface while still focusing on his surroundings was not a product of his own ability, though useful nonetheless. First up was this Status.

Username: Adam Westfield

Ethnicity: Unknown

Title: Her Chosen

Competence Level: 2-1

Experience: 10.00%

Vitality: 100%

Plasma: 100%

Next, he purchased the [Arm Strength] augmentation. Invisible hands caressed then squeezed his muscles tight. He checked his Attributes.

Attributes

Description

Rank

STRENGTH

Raw physical prowess.

2 (previously 1)

RESILIENCE

Ability to withstand direct damage and other trauma.

2

STAMINA

Ability to sustain prolonged physical or mental effort.

2

FINESSE

Ability at performing refined or minute action(s).

1

MOBILITY

Ability to move freely or easily to target(s).

1

PERCEPTION

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

Ability to observe, detect and perceive.

2

The combination of the augmentations had actually boosted his STRENGTH attribute. That was good. Very good! It was still a far cry from the average War Maiden, but progress was progress.

Now that he acquired all six basic Augmentations, the next rung of the Augmentation Foci was now available. Whereas the Rank 1 Augmentations were based around pure physical facets, save for [Hacking], the Rank 2 Augmentations were more diverse, applying past his anatomy to his neurology, psychophysics, biochemistry, and more.

[Perception Acceleration]: Increases the user’s rate of perception, allowing them to comprehend and react to entities as if they were slowed down. User’s thought processes will continue at a baseline rate.

[Toxin Resistance]: Bolsters the immune system, granting the user resistance to many common poisons.

[Sound Dampener]: Applies padding to the user’s hands and feet, stifling any noise made by their actions. Must be activated consciously; will drain Energy as it is used.

His existing Augmentations could also be ranked up to their II stage, but would cost him 2 Biometric Keys. A lot of the other new augmentations would cost the same. He closed the Augmentation Foci for now and looked ahead. The trees were clearing away. The bright orb in the sky still hung, its heat stifling with the forest’s moisture.

"Adam." Miriam’s voice floated through his head. It was laden with static. "You’re leaving my range. We won’t be able to communicate from hereon out."

"Figures. See you around, Miriam."

"Don’t get yourself killed by the locals, boy."

The rest of the walk continued in silence. Penny hadn’t tried to bolt, nor would she get far with the infamous Blast Witch’s gaze pressing down her back. He kicked up a stray rock and caught with [Psycho-Pull]. He threw it, caught it, and threw it again, all with his [Psychokinesis]

It's like a muscle, he remembered Esther saying. A newborn isn’t an expert in crawling, walking, pulling, or lifting. They get better via constant, continuous, repetition. Now, I'm a fantastic teacher and all, but even I know it's better for you to practice the normal way instead of this crash course.

Esther had said with a smirk, as if goading him to prove her wrong. Did she even know him? He busted thousands of push-ups back in juvie. He used to lift with nothing but two milk cartons filled with sand. This sort of mindless, repetitive training was the perfect way to clear his head too. He wasn’t so foolish as to not loosen his grip on his rifle.

Eventually, the trees parted and the winding trail reached its end. Adam lifted a palm to his forehead, shielding himself against the light, and stepped forward. A vast plain stretched out before him, surrounded by distant, curved rock cliffs. Clumps of trees, buildings, and rocky formations dotted the greenish-yellow grass.

Experience (New Location) acknowledged: +15%.

"Uh, welcome to Grassruin Valley," Penny said. "This is where we live." She swept her arm forward. Her hand landed in the direction of a wooden sign. A skull and crossbones were painted on it. No prizes for guessing why.

Adam reached into his pack and took out a scope. The plains hit the horizon and kept on spreading.

"Pretty huge, right?" Penny continue, pointing to the valley edges, which were shadowed by clouds and the surrounding forests, "Takes days to reach the other side—the sea—by bike. There’s a common road most of us use."

"Goodness, I don’t think I’ve ever seen this much grass in one place. I’ll have to take a photo." Lucy said. Adam had to agree. Grassruin Valley made Parris Island look like a suburban garden in terms of scope. There was enough grass to feed an entire plantation of cows for a month. The land wasn’t tamed, with many of the forests and fields overgrown in irregular shapes. Roads were paved not by concrete but rather heavy use. Power lines and streetlights were non-existent. Smoke trails fluttered in the distance. Human civilization had been shunted back towards the rural end of its development, but at least they weren’t situated inside a desert this time.

"So, Glenn’s Rest, yeah?" Penny said, brushing her hands together. "It’s just up ahead. The village in the distance, you can’t miss it, boss! We can get supplies and information there."

Said village was a patch of upraised brown-grey blocky buildings. It was situated across a river that snaked down a nearby mountain. They followed the water, crossing over a metal bridge made from bolted iron plates. They walked through a field of flowering weeds, then stopped at a clearing in front of the village entrance.

"Chosen," Lucy said, nudging him.

"I see it."

There were barbed-wire barricades lined in rows up ahead. The earth had been raised around them in an unnatural way, funneling the road into a single point. The village was shielded by a wall made out of metal sheets and tarred wood. A guard-tower loomed high beyond the gate.

"Penny, what the hell is this?" Adam said.

"I don't know." Penny said in a hushed tone, "These weren’t here before. Something must’ve happened! I swear, I didn’t know about this, boss!"

Adam counted on his fingers. Four to five days had passed since Raz's crew entered the MOB and got torn to shreds by corrupted Lucy. "Did your old crew warn anyone they were going?"

"More like we got laughed outta the bar," Penny said. "They wiped us all for dead men, boss. Which, sorta came true, if you think about it."

It was something unrelated then. He gritted his teeth. What awful luck. He'd hoped his weird dress and strange weapons would be the only problems to deal with here.

He took the lead. Penny and Lucy followed. They all holstered their weapons. The moment they passed by the first barricade, a voice called out to them.

"Halt!" A boy on the watch-tower shouted out. "State your business, newcomers!"

Adam craned his neck to size him up. He was young, with thin, mud-brown hair. He wore a plaid, yellow shirt and carried a bolt-action rifle with a bayonet stuck to the top.

"Travellers!" Adam shouted back. He put his hands up. Penny did the same. "We're just passing through! Can we come in?"

"Travellers, you say?" The boy said, with a sneer, "That’s real interesting’! What sort of travelers come down from the direction of the Witch’s Pit?"

Seriously? That’s what they called the MOB? Better not mention this to Lucy.

"We’re new around these parts," Adam said. "Look buddy, all we want is a place to stay for a bit. We got no business starting trouble!"

"Yeah, right!" The boy’s rifle trembled as he aimed. He spat out a wad of gum onto the floor of the tower. Adam tensed up and brought up ADOSCH's Augmentation menu. He set the cursor to a particular augmentation while keeping your eyes on the ground. "Your clothes are all weird and crap! Anyone who carries that much fire is up to no good."

It took him a bit to realize the boy was talking about his gear, "You gonna fault a man for trying to protect himself?"

"You can’t fool me. That’s star-tech! It’s not normal." The boy snapped, "Why the heck are we even speakin’ like this? Ain’t nobody comes down from the Witch’s Pit alive. That’s all I need to tell you all to scram!"

"Chosen, want me to take care of him?" Lucy said.

"No!" Adam barked, as tempting as that sounded. Last thing they needed was an entire town on their ass. He weighed his options. They could always pass this village and camp outside, but according to Penny the next village was at least half a day away on foot. Who knew what kind of danger could be lurking in this valley?

"Last chance!" The boy screamed back. "This stick’s got the rounds to put holes inside of all of you. Last chance. Back off or I'll shoot! This town has got enough problems already!"

Lucy’s eyes narrowed. She took a step forward, sparks floating around the underside of her right palm. Adam grabbed her shoulder. She wouldn't headshot this prick of a kid, would she? The sparks flattened into a sharp blade and he realised that yes, this War Maiden would kill to protect him, even if it meant setting a whole town on them. He looked around, searching for de-escalation, and landed on Penny.

"Penny!" He said, "You got a contact in this town? Someone who can vouch for us?"

Penny froze, then her eyes lit up. Adam nodded towards the gate, putting an arm in front of Lucy at the same time. She had seen the glint of the rifle scope, like him, and was mere seconds away from sucker-punching the kid and raising hell.

Penny ran in front of Adam, her hands up. "Don't shoot! It's me! My crew used to come here. We used to hit up that bar with the old nan Jona and the bull’s head on the wall, yeah? She gave me a slice of that old turkey."

"How the hell do you know that?" The boy shouted, "Wait, did ya hurt one of our guys? I swear, when we get our hands on you—

"She was with Raz!" Adam said. "The scavenger boss!"

"Then where is he, buddy?" The boy said.

"He’s dead! So’s the rest of the crew!" Penny said. "The Blast Witch took ‘em all out and I’m the only survivor. These two are just travellers I met while running my ass off. Please believe me. I’ve got no reason to pull anythin’ after seeing my crew get blasted to bits! You can ask Jona!"

The boy faltered. He lowered his rifle with a scowl. "Wait here. Don’t move a goddamn inch, or you’re not getting in."

He climbed down the tower and vanished out of sight. A few minutes later, he re-appeared back up top.

"Jona says yes." He said.

"Thank god…" Penny sighed.

"This isn’t an invitation. Any funny move and you’re all dead.

"Thanks, kid," Adam said. You fucking hick.

"Don’t think you’re welcomed here, yet." The boy said. "Favor for favor. You wanna enter this town? Better prove that you can help us. Hope you like shooting bandits!"