~ Moko, your job is to make sure the Assets you own are near the captured children. That may seem impossible without trying to be obvious. That is why you will bring Terayla. Keep a couple of cursors on her. She will need it. ~

He used this time to check on the slumbering girl. Keeping her head stable, he reached down to feel her leather shoe. His hands pinched at the sides, feeling two small lumps. He felt a jut that he knew was the thumb of a cursor. The index finger jutted on the front. Feeling the other leg, another cursor. He had to make sure that his Assets were planted in her shoewear before they set foot on land.

The ship docked at Dain Port with the lamp posts inviting their presence. Their white gleam comforted their settling feet as Moko, Terayla, and Neylan left the vessel and trotted to the harbor. Unboarded ships and the quiet land veered their attention to the open path that guided them west. They passed the lounging Domains housing people snoring and rustling beneath their beds.

“What time is it?” Moko asked, holding Terayla’s hand to not lose her from her drowsy stroll.

Neylan pulled her Cup from her pocket. Using the other hand, she swiped her fingers across the air and summoned a watch. She stepped onto the next lamp post, and the soft glow illuminated the time on the ticking accessory. “It’s five.”

“Five,” Moko sighed, feeling more exhausted from hearing the time. Maybe he shouldn’t have asked.

“First time?”

He nodded. “I have no reason to stay up all night. Nothing to stress with.”

She chuckled. “You should look at people who ruin their sleep just so they can purchase their Upgrades. A lot of sleep debt, but it’s highly effective.”

“It sounds like you don’t do that.”

“Roven and I used to,” she said quietly, “because when planning for a child, you must include another mouth to feed. Application cost remains fixed, so we simply increased production to solve the issue of cost. That was our fault for not prepping ahead.”

“It’s pretty hard to prep anything perfectly.”

“I second that,” she agreed with a teasing remark. “But according to the plan, we will discard all that we worked for.”

Moko said, recalling, “You two have saved 27 days’ worth of Entities for this day?”

“More like around 15 days because we’ve been distant from our Domain. If the System is separate from the Assets for longer than 5 days, the production stops. And these stacked Entities are specifically for you and me. If what Roven said was right, I’ll spend all our Entities for the battle.”

She kept her solemn look amidst the subtle grief in her voice. Moko chuckled to lighten the mood. Despite everything, their faces remained determined for the coming hours.

~ The General is intelligent and, in addition to the deception that occurred in Bamma, I believe he knows there will be an upcoming storm of people. You three will grab his attention just like how those scouters have done, meaning you will face the captors. Simultaneously, that would give ample distraction time. ~

~ The incursion will begin when either the time hits 11:37 or when my System notifies me that its Entities have been depleted. My team will depart to Horro at an earlier time to meet that desired frame. When you three approach the compound, our times will not intersect. If all goes well, we should be the first ones there. ~

At the same time.

~ Moko, whatever you do, when the time strikes 12:15, recall your Assets. It will be important. ~

Something about this wasn’t adding up. In fact, Moko questioned many things. He didn’t know why he needed Terayla to have cursors besides finding the children, but even that was ambiguous. It was also to his cluelessness that Impy’s team would need cursors as well. When Moko asked where Impy’s team was—comprising Lorace and his parents, he got a vague answer.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

~ They are elsewhere. They will have a part in this. ~

Moko assumed Roven was keeping things a secret. But…

You took his word and kept it. Now, there is no turning back. |

Terayla opened her eyes when the sun cast its shine on the land. Three cats followed behind. Her cold hand kept Moko holding her near, making sure she was within his sight as Neylan led the group. Sand snowed from the mountains. The windy region kept their heads on guard at full time.

She offered Moko and Terayla thick scarves to keep them protected from the downpour of sand.

Onward they went, miles to cover where they passed Fisher Harbor known for their community of fishing Systems. They went around to keep any attracted attention from discovering them. The sun gradually crawled up the mountains and hovered over the pinnacle. Shadows cast by the large mounts hid their figure.

Terayla, in the middle of the journey, had to sit on Moko’s shoulders. He even had to deal with the cats pawing at him for water. Neylan offered all drinks to keep them going. The Manaic Mountains drained their hydration undeniably fast.

With another few hours of sauntering toward the compound, the sun neared its afternoon gaze. It reached 11:00.

When they were only a couple of miles from the destination, Neylan stopped Moko. She extended her arm to the side and blocked his walking. He looked at her, seeing an alarmed look as her head glared up at the bright sky. The cats raised their heads. Terayla followed suit. Moko was the last one.

His eyes captured a formidable sight of black streaks. Two of them. They descended like balls of fire trailing with smoke that Moko was familiar with. The approaching sinister fog made his heart beat rapidly. His feet urged him to flee.

“Don’t panic,” Neylan said, lowering her arm. Terayla begged to be on the ground. Lowering her, she hid behind Moko. As they waited for their full descent, he calmed himself. He knew running away was not an option anymore. Stirring his glance around the land, they were completely open. It wasn’t like the time he fought against a captor.

Moko had no advantage, or so Roven thought.

~ If they’re alert and aware of the incursion, they will be confrontational. Passive defense is not their solution because they mustn’t underestimate the potential of Domains. One man can build a house. A dozen men can cage them in permanently. Their only solution would be to take the offense and seize us one by one. Moko, you and Neylan will be their main problem. If you go to their compound, you will certainly come across captors. You cannot beat them alone anymore—not with one hand and in an open field. ~

“I have your back,” Neylan assured, walking beside him. She stuck her hand in the mouth of her Cup as an improvised weapon. She raised her other hand with the tip of her fingers poised and ready. “Remember our plan.”

~ That is why you will have Neylan on your side. She will use an Asset, Multi-leveled Cup Dispensers, to give you a terrain to fight from. You only need her. She and I agreed to spend all our Entities for your impending fight. Our Systems are connected, so I will know when you are fighting. That will be my team’s signal to invade the compound. I wish you the best. ~

With a loud crash, two figures slammed onto the ground, one in the front and one in the back. The impact propelled sand and dirt away. Their ominous cloud of smoke dispersed and glided across the floor. Moko felt Terayla tighten her grip on his coat. Neylan showed her gritting teeth as two men emerged from the fog. Moko knew that their grown features presented strength that would outmatch him.

Amidst his tension, he took out his Cookie. Neylan raised her Cup. Terayla hid quietly. The cats fled from the scene.

Moko jerked his hand up, swiping his finger and pulling out an orb.

(–1 Cursor)

84 CpS → 83 CpS

The man in the front faced Moko, appearing to be surprised by the boy’s sequence of motions.

Moko tossed the orb. It transformed into a cursor and coursed at an alarming speed, aiming at the head point-blank.

The man morphed into a thick collection of smoke. His figure swerved away. Moko missed. Yet the captor looked utterly astonished.

From behind, another captor swiftly emerged, swiftly throwing a dagger at his head. Distracted, Moko had no time to dodge it.

Neylan extracted a plastic cup from her System and tossed it in the dagger’s trajectory. The mouth of the cup caught the tip. The plastic surface followed the drive and knocked against Moko’s head, successfully blocking the razor edge from impaling his brain.

The cup and dagger fell.

The man backed away and united with his partner. Given enough distance, Neylan began her plan. Rapidly, Moko watched her click the air multiple times, bearing the sound that he knew would change this entire terrain into a battlefield.