Chapter 30 Ash

Kate eventually found a bedroll herself, late in the night. Sleep came quickly, despite Logan’s pained breathing and Ethan’s snoring. Her ability to tune out certain sounds definitely helped. She did not dream that night.

Nor was she woken by yet another attack on their quiet castle set on the slope of Steinwacht. Instead, she blinked her eyes and opened them wide, sitting up before she looked around. Kate smelled fire and ash. She stood up quickly and rushed to the door of the armory until she remembered the previous night. The planes. The burning valley. She let go of the handle before she rubbed her eyes.

Kate heard the wind whip against the stone building, whistling sounds from above where the wooden roof remained poorly insulated. She heard the Willow River rushing past below. It was rather quiet, all things considered.

Logan, Grey, and Ethan were still asleep. She glanced at the bandage covered man but found his breathing more relaxed than when she had gone to bed. Healing magic, she reminded herself, shaking her head when she thought of similar burns she had seen before. Reconstructive surgery was just one part of it.

No major scars where I was injured. She hoped for the best, quietly moving to her bed again before she grabbed her pack and hammer. She still wore the same clothes, half burnt up. It didn’t matter much to her. They had survived the cavern. And the night.

Slowly, she closed the door behind herself and went down the small stone stairwell. Kate listened before she activated her echo location, trying it out once more whilst steadying herself with one hand against the wall. It was freaky. She shook her head, taking slow and deep breaths before closing her eyes. She tried to calm her breathing and tried again, a clicking noise echoing down the circular stairwell, into the room, and out onto the yard.

Kate knew there was nobody below. The door was closed. Her perception quickly waned as the yard opened up but it felt almost like she could see everything before. Just a flash. A static image. But she knew that sound traveled fast. Not nearly as fast as light but at this distance, and with her reaction time, what did it matter? She tried again, but already felt a headache coming. Some food would help. Coffee, a shower. And fresh clothes. I reek.

Looking down at her hammer, she decided to clean the weapon as well. Even in the stairwell, she noticed the less stuffy air. The ability is using magic. Probably can’t keep that up too much with my comparatively low Wisdom.

Kate definitely liked the additional options her Silent Striker Class provided, though it would take time for her to effectively use all of it in battle. I just slammed those orcs with everything I had. Worked well enough though. I suppose if they’re right in front of me.

She paused in front of the exit, a wry smile coming to her face. Already thinking of the next fight. How I can use my magic efficiently… to kill things. She shook her head, taking in a deep breath. The air smelled of fire and ash.

You’re killing monsters. To survive. And to help others survive. Others who cannot fight.

Kate opened the door and stepped out into the yard. The sun was out, she assumed it to be around ten or eleven in the morning, though the light seemed subdued. She was familiar with the effects, but had never seen it happen to this extent. Looking at her hands, she could see flakes of ash. Kate quickly turned away and moved to Bert’s house. She closed the door behind herself and coughed a few times.

Celeste sat at the table, the girl considering her next move in a game of chess against old man Bert. Eloise watched them, an open book sitting on the table before her. Jon sat on the couch with Melusine, the two talking in whispers.

Light came in through the windows, no lamp or other appliance running.

It’s so quiet, she thought, putting down her pack. “Morning,” she said.

“Good morning!” Celeste said, looking up with a bright smile, her deep brown eyes taking in the slightly burnt up woman. “You stink!”

Kate smiled. “Yeah. I know.”

“Feeling better?” Melusine asked, the woman looking back to see her. She rested her head on her hands as she slumped on the couch.

“Physically. I’m fine,” Kate said.

Jon chuckled. “If that isn’t a pragmatic assessment.”

“A shower, fresh clothes, food and some coffee,” Melusine said.

“That sounds like a good idea,” Kate said.

“No, that’s my prescription,” the woman answered, a broad grin on her face.

Kate nodded. “Right.”

The healer slapped the couch and stood up. “I’ll check on the others.”

The radio on the table crackled. “Status update. Boring,” resounded the slightly distorted voice of Allison.

Melusine glanced at Jon.

“I’ll go talk to her,” the man said, grabbing his pack before he put a respirator mask on.

“Right, Kate, we added the masks to the packs. I assume these are fine?” Melusine asked.

Kate looked at the thing. “Yeah. Best that we have. It’ll take a few weeks for the smoke to clear. If the forests aren’t still burning.”

“Far less than last night,” Jon said.

“Anything new on the radio?” Kate asked.

He shook his head.

She took in a deep breath before moving up to the showers. At least the water was still running, though she quickly realized it wasn’t hot. The heating was off too. Of course. Oh well. She shivered when the cold water touched her skin, the liquid running black when it reached the drain. Soap they still had, and she was glad for it, though the smell would not be gone for some time regardless. Not if she scrubbed for half a day, and she didn’t plan to stay in the cold water longer than necessary.

Back in a fresh set of clothes, Kate put her hammer into the shower and cleaned it off. She scrubbed away the blood and ash, drying the weapon before she looked at it. Good as new. It impressed her, the tool really one made to withstand incredible abuse. Lewis would like this thing, she thought with a grin. The man regularly went on rants about various pieces of equipment they had in the force, and about how badly some of it was made.

Kate didn’t feel particularly cold, despite definitely feeling the cool air in the bathroom. Without any breakfast. Another benefit of some stat or magic? Or just placebo? She didn’t mind either way. Being more resilient to the cold would be more than welcome in the coming months. We have a stove, she reminded herself, quite pleased with that circumstance.

In theory, they could even move a bathtub down into the armory, heat buckets of water, and have a hot bath. Everything is right in the world, she thought, coming down into the living room where she already smelled coffee.

“Using our precious gas to heat up your brew,” Bert murmured.

Kate took a glance at the chess board. He had double the pieces, absolutely destroying the frowning little girl. She raised a brow towards him but didn’t comment.

“She’s our Striker,” Eloise said with a bright smile. “And the striker needs to be fueled up.” She filled a mug and held it out towards Kate.

The living room was a little warmer, though Kate assumed it would become quite uncomfortable in just a few weeks. We’ll have to move furniture. Make the armory a home. It’s more defensible anyway.

She forgot the plans when she smelled the brew, taking a sip before she shuddered, the heat slightly burning her throat.

“It’s hot,” Eloise said.

Kate looked at her and took another sip.

“No… I mean it’s really hot. Near boiling… you shouldn’t drink it,” she said, her eyes widening a little.

“Oh,” Kate said and looked down at the steaming cup. “Right. Yeah Vitality makes your body tougher. I’m pretty sure it’s just that. Don’t think I would be standing h-” she stopped herself.

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“There’s bread, cold cuts, and cheese. Eat as much as you can. It’s going to go bad soon,” Eloise said, ignoring the comment with a glance to Celeste. She hesitated before looking up at Kate. “Thanks.”

“Thanks for what?” Kate asked.

Eloise looked down. “For being here. For staying. For fighting.”

Kate smiled. “It’s what I do.”

They remained in silence for a few seconds before Bert spoke up.

“Check mate.”

Celeste growled, hitting the table with her fists.

“Anger will not change the result of the game,” Bert said.

“Then explain it to me,” Celeste said, focused entirely on the board.

“She gets intense like that,” Eloise said.

Kate took another sip of her coffee, making herself a simple sandwich with her free hand. “She could make it to the nationals.”

“She also gets quickly distracted again,” Eloise said. “And… I don’t think there will be nationals.”

Much less competition now, I’m sure.

She decided not to voice that thought to the present people.

“Your backpack was too damaged, but there are new ones ready,” Eloise said, putting a pack onto the table.

“Thanks. I’ll go to the ramparts,” Kate said and put the thing on.

“Oh… I… we found this for you,” Eloise said, searching through the contents of a box near the couch. “Here it is,” she said and held out a piece of leather. “You can put it onto your belt. For your hammer. It should be less annoying than using the belt itself or your backpack.”

Kate smiled, unbuckling her belt before she added the small strap. Sliding her hammer into it, she found it sturdy enough to keep the handle from hitting her leg, the metal instead angled behind herself. “Thanks. Let me know if you find more of them.”

“Will do. Bert has a lot of stuff in his… well everywhere. This place is a treasure trove,” Eloise said. “I’m sorting and categorizing everything,” she added in a whisper. “It’s a mess.”

Kate smiled. “Great. And we’ll get you more stuff, I’m sure.” She waved to the others with two sandwiches in hand, hammer strapped to her new belt addition, and her mug of hot coffee in her other hand. A shit, the mask. She checked her pack and found it, quickly putting the thing on before she went outside and up to the battlements.

When she came out from the old stone guard tower, she slowed, looking at the forest. Smoke still rose from distant sections up on the slope, but what made her slow was the layer of gray covering the trees. The leaves moved in serene patterns, the sound quiet even to her ears. The parking lot too was coated in a thin film of gray.

Almost like snow, she thought, breathing through her mask when she saw the corpses from the fights of the previous two nights. A thin layer of ash covered them too, but it wasn’t enough to hide what they were.

“Coming up,” she said, seeing the two men and Allison absorbed in conversation.

Jon twitched ever so slightly, turning her way before he gave her a nod.

She didn’t miss his hand going towards the crossbow leaned against the stone.

Ethan smiled. “Good morning.”

Of course he’s in a good fucking mood. With half the world burned down, she thought with a sigh, joining them below the wooden roof on the battlements. Kate tried sitting down, finding her hammer in the way before she moved it to the side. She left her mask hanging from one ear and sipped on her coffee.

“You look better,” Allison said. “Morning.”

“Morning,” she said, looking at the three of them. She glanced to the right when she saw something move in the corner of her vision. A winged creature in the far distance. It flew high. Kate lost it a few seconds later when the roof got in the way.

“There are quite a few of them out there,” Jon said.

“Wyverns, yes,” Kate said. “Pretty large too. I don’t know if it’s a good idea to fight them.”

“Yet,” Ethan said and nodded her way.

She looked at him, unsure why she wanted to reprimand him. She supposed it was confusing for her too. Every time someone had talked about fighting, self defense, or even war, the most reasonable thing was running away, avoiding all of it entirely. Nothing good would come of it. With fires, it was about saving people. From the elements, she supposed. Animal attacks were rare, but now there were monsters around. Monsters that couldn’t be reasoned with. This wasn’t a political thing. Nor an angry drunk idiot trying to start a fight. More just an infestation. And if there was an infestation, Kate called an exterminator.

She took a sip of coffee, looking at the young man. The fire magic user. A fucking wizard. Or a mage? Sorcerer? Who the fuck cares.

“I saw you out there yesterday,” Ethan said. “I think you can take a Wyvern.”

“How could you possibly know that?” Kate asked.

He shrugged. “Intuition.”

She chuckled. “Fucking idiot.”

He laughed.

“It doesn’t matter. Kate is not going to be here all the time. The walls help us deal with anything that can’t fly, jump four meters high, or can break through stone or a massive gate with ease,” Jon said. “But we don’t have much against flying creatures. Other than crossbows.”

“What’s your suggestion?” Kate asked.

He sighed. “The valley is on fire. Maybe we managed to remove the orcs that attacked us at night. Allison checked for tracks, and she’s rather sure the ones you killed… did not come from the same direction.” He looked northwards and to the sky. “The military… if things are as desperate as we assume. And we have to plan for the worst. Then we need to prepare for winter. And for the next years.”

Kate nodded. She had come to the same conclusion. All of them had.

“There are dozens of towns, and Falstadt. A majority of supplies must’ve burned up, been raided, or destroyed. By monsters or survivors like us. And it’s not even been a week. We have to get more. We have to assume the penicillin, morphine, hell everything that is manufactured… what’s in the storage rooms, is what we have left,” he said.

“More supply runs then,” Kate said.

“Food too. Anything canned. And we have to learn how to make traps, how to hunt, and how to become self-sufficient. There is a patch of earth in the yard. Maybe enough for us to grow potatoes, but it’ll take time,” Jon said.

“There’s a lot to think about. We need heating too,” Kate said. “Though the wood stove should be fine.”

“I’m listing everything, setting priorities,” Jon said. “You can look over it, but I’m pretty confident I can handle this. Compared to fighting monsters.”

“I’ll have a look,” Kate said. “But realistically we’ll just go into a town and get what we can before hauling the fuck out of there.”

“Of course. Especially considering the monsters,” Jon said. “And still it will help to prioritize things. I have local maps now, population statistics, town maps too, though some are older. It’ll help plan fast raids, with priorities depending on how long you can remain, how many monsters there are.”

Kate raised her brows. “Sounds like you have a plan.”

“I have seven supply runs already planned out. With changes depending on who’s available. Eloise is categorizing what we have in the castle. We have enough food already to last us a few months but I want at least three years worth of supplies. And again, I’m planning with the worst case in mind. More optimistically, all the magic and classes will provide unknown benefits,” Jon explained.

Ethan laughed. “You remind me of a friend I used to have.”

“Used to have?” Kate asked.

He shrugged. “Yeah, cops caught him when he moved a few hundred kilograms of coke. Been in jail last I heard. Random check, was just unlucky. He’s a legend either way.”

“A stain on society, if you ask me,” Jon said.

“Hey, plenty of people hooked on the stuff. Someone’s gonna deliver anyway. His coke was pure,” Ethan said.

“You don’t know what his buyers mix in,” Jon said. “Though I understand. It’s a system wide issue of policy. Legalization and preventive measures would probably be more effective.”

“I don’t think drug policy matters much at this point,” Kate said.

“Yes, you’re right. We digress. Especially with us having quite an illegal amount of opiates in our possession,” Jon said. “What we need in addition is an illegal amount of weaponry.”

“Rifles and the like? We’d have to raid a military base, or a police station,” Kate said. “Which would likely be some of the first places any survivors have raided.”

“Your hammer seems quite effective as is,” Jon said. “Rifles and ammunition would be a boon, sure, but I’m talking about heavy machinery. I don’t think Wyverns will like standard military calibers, but what I’m rather sure of is that high caliber anti air guns will reduce them to nothing.”

“How would we even find, let alone move something like that? And where would you put it?” Kate asked.

Jon looked at her with raised brows. “I’m an architect, Kate. I design contemporary living spaces. Adding military grade air defense to a medieval castle is like playing with mega bloks. We might need machinery to move things, yes, but don’t think anyone has missed how strong you already are. The same is true for Logan. It’s not a priority. But long term planning. For now we will simply reduce our time in the open, to avoid any Wyverns noticing our presence.”

“Anti air guns, and rifles,” Ethan said with a grin.

This is going beyond mere survival, Kate thought. She still took the days one by one, all the impressions and changes more than she could reasonably process in the little time she had between chaos. She smiled. It’s good to know someone is thinking ahead. Now that we’ve found the corpses from Keilberg.

Something to fight for. Maybe this place can be the start.

“Nobody is getting any weapons without Logan’s approval,” Jon said. “So forget about that again. Kate, let me know when you think you’re ready to go out again. If you’re willing to do so at all.”

“When I’m done eating these sandwiches,” she said.

Kate Lindgren

Unspent stat points: 0

Class: Berserker – lvl 13

- Active: Mindless Ferocity – lvl 18

- Active: Furious Dance – lvl 16

- Active: Reckless Charge – lvl 14

- Active: Hunting Leap – lvl 4

- Active: Shattering Step – lvl 3

- Passive: Toll for the Living – lvl 15

- Passive: Courage of the Unarmored – lvl 14

- Passive: Two Handed Weapon Fighting – lvl 14

- Passive: Unrelenting Carnage – lvl 4

- Passive: Intimidating Presence – lvl 6

Support class: Silent Striker – lvl 7

- Active: Frightening Growl – lvl 5

- Active: Bewildering Wave – lvl 3

- Active:

- Passive: Heightened Hearing – lvl 9

- Passive: Echo Location – lvl 1

- Passive:

Status:

Vitality: 23

Endurance: 17

Perseverance: 13

Strength: 17

Dexterity: 8

Intelligence: 7

Wisdom: 10

Serenity: 7

Equipment:

Torso: -

Legs: -

Trinket: -

Food: -