Paul offered me the last donut, then activated my Explorer team chat. He promised to add the other leaders soon. He wanted me to wait to meet with them, but I declined. That new vision of Marisara was more than enough motivation to get me moving.

When I left the town hall, I strode past Sam’s tavern. It was even more crowded than before. I checked the sky to confirm the sun was just past its zenith.

Why did people look like they were planning to party all afternoon? We had hours of daylight left. Then again, most of them were already level 10, but did they think that was enough to keep them alive?

Shaking my head, I scanned a few people. Identify confirmed most were between level 10 and 15, from teams I had not met before. I spotted team Dragnet, team Die Hard, team Matrix, and team Halo. That last one was a big guy with some cool sci-fi looking armor. I nearly went over to ask what weapons he’d gotten.

Then I spotted a skinny fellow stumbling out of the tavern. He looked pale and a bit skeletal, like he’d suffered from a chronic illness for years. He staggered as if drunk. Odd. Cyrus had said our Earth diseases would fade away, cured by our innate regeneration. Healing potions should deal with the rest.

“Hank Solomon. Level 15 baby human. Team Star Wars.”

I guess I still didn’t understand the system well enough. I turned away, but paused. A nagging sense of unease turned me back around. Something about Hank triggered a thought that I couldn’t quite place my finger on, but I felt it might be important.

“Are you okay?”

Hank stopped, swaying in the street, but didn’t respond. A middle-aged woman beside him said, “Please don’t bother poor Hank. He’s not well.”

“Alice Henderson. Baby human level 18. Team Friday the 13th.”

She noticed my grimace and sighed. “Yes, I know. Terrible team for a healer.” Alice did look like a healer with her black hair pulled into a pony tail and wearing a pristine white lab coat.

“So what’s wrong with Hank?”

The poor guy still hadn’t moved, but looked even paler, if possible. He swayed where he stood, as if about to collapse.

“I don’t know,” Alice snapped, then took a deep breath, closing her eyes for a second. “Sorry. Everyone keeps asking that, but I don’t know. I can’t heal him. My spells and healing potions only revive him for a few minutes.”

I slowly paced around the unmoving Hank, frowning as I tried to grasp the thought flitting at the back of my mind. “So he’s sick? No injuries.”

“Are you a healer?”

“No, but I feel like I should recognize this.”

Alice sighed again. “I wish someone did. Hank’s not the only one sick, but he’s one of the worst. They just get slowly worse, wasting away like they’ve got stage 4 cancer on steroids.”

“Any injuries?”

“I don’t mean to be rude, but I have to get Hank back to the clinic.”

They had a clinic already. I hadn’t seen that building when we explored earlier. “Just humor me. Please.”

“Fine. No major wounds. Just welts on his shoulders and back.”

Information blazed through my mind like the opening of a floodgate and I realized what was going on. Those thoughts I’d been feeling was the half-formed memories from getting force-fed the monster dictionary. Now one entry snapped into clarify.

“Lifebane Phantom. Monster. Ethereal. This nasty parasite attaches itself to a victim’s back and plunges its mosquito-like beak into their heart. Slowly drains spirit and life and counteracts all attempts at healing the victim. Immune to physical attacks.”

There was more, but I skipped it. I’d read enough. “He’s not sick. He’s being drained by an invisible parasite.”

“What?” Alice exclaimed. She didn’t look like she believed me, but I didn’t have time to argue. Hank looked like he could die any second.

“Hit him with a healing spell. Quick.”

“It’ll only help for a minute.”

“That’s enough. Do it.”

“Listen, I appreciate your interest, but I’ve already tried it many times.”

I pulled Soulrend into my hand. Alice stumbled back with a cry of surprise that drew the attention of nearby people. Some pointed or backed up when they saw me apparently threatening a drunk.

One guy shouted, “Hey, back off, buddy.”

I ignored him and slashed Soulrend down Hank’s back, an inch from his shirt. Alice screamed and a couple people drew their own weapons, shouting for me to stop.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

A high-pitched shriek silenced them all. I still couldn’t see the lifebane phantom, but I felt Soulrend cut through its needle-like beak.

Hank screamed and fell to his hands and knees with blood spurting out of the center of his back, right where his heart would be.

“Stop it!” the same guy shouted, raising a sword threateningly.

“Back off,” I said and imagined the creature crouching on Hank’s back. I swung again. This time I felt a lot more resistance. I’d guessed right and hit the monster’s body.

Another louder shriek blasted my ears. These things were loud.

“What are you doing?” Alice shouted as Hank moaned and nearly fell over.

“Heal him!” I shouted back, swinging again. I kept slashing blindly at the monster clinging to Hank’s back, and with every swing, the beast shrieked again. Finally, after swinging half a dozen times, I got the message I’d been waiting for.

“Congratulations, Lucas! You have defeated Lifebane Phantom. Level 21.”

No bonus experience, even though I was only level 7. The monster was 14 levels higher. That should be close enough to the 15 level target Cyrus had explained I needed. Lame.

I triggered Soul Feed, and a surprisingly dense cloud of white smoke boiled out of thin air where the monster had been. It instantly topped off my pools and pushed my stats to 150% for 5 minutes. My Tesla Coil bracelet had already warmed against my skin as it absorbed a bunch of power from the invisible parasite.

I accepted the prompt to loot the monster. Hank swayed, and suddenly color returned to his cheeks. The flow of blood stopped pouring from his back and he took a deep breath.

The guy with the sword approached, flanked by 2 other armed men. “What’s going on here?”

At the same time, I was shocked to hear Crystal shouting the same thing. She rushed over, glaring at me.

Alice dropped to one knee beside Hank and placed one hand on his head. Her eyes widened and she laughed. “You did it! He’s healing.”

“Explain yourself,” Crystal ordered, looking from me to Hank.

“I thought you had tons of meetings today.” Her tone made me less than cooperative.

She grabbed my jacket and shouted, “What did you do?”

Wow. She might be an arrogant, self-important crone, but she had guts. I spoke calmly, but firmly. “Let go of my jacket, Crystal.”

Alice leaped to her feet and threw her arms around me, knocking Crystal back. “You saved Hank’s life! I never imagined he had an invisible parasite sucking away his life.”

The armed guys backed up a step, sheathing weapons and the lead guy said, “Sorry.”

As soon as Alice released me, Crystal grabbed my jacket again, her expression kind of crazy. She yanked me forward with surprising strength. “Come with me!”

I might respect strength, but I couldn’t stand bullies. I slammed my palm against her forearm, breaking her grip. “You need to calm down.”

“Get your Luffy backside moving. This is important,” she snapped, grabbing at me again, her arm swelling to twice its size.

She seized my wrist with a vicelike grip. Had to be some kind of ability, but instead of fear I felt a surge of relief so strong it startled me until I realized what it meant.

I’d been fighting crazy alien monsters for the past few days, nearly dying multiple times per day as I figured out this insane death world. I’d trained extensively in Wing Chun Do and Kali martial arts, but a lot of those skills proved meaningless against invisible ghosts or trolls the size of vacation homes.

I hadn’t fought humans since arriving, and the feel of an actual person grabbing my wrist in a threatening manner was a danger I actually had trained to deal with.

Suppressing a smile, I tapped into my level-4 hand-to-hand martial fighting ability and used her own strength against her as I twisted my arm, turning her pinky up and bending her wrist into a lock. She growled and reached for me with her other hand.

I twisted farther. Hard. Her wrist snapped with an audible crack.

Crystal screamed and fell back, clutching her broken wrist. “Nami Sanji Nico! What’d you do that for?”

“I warned you.” I kept my tone calm.

Most of the other people had retreated from our clash, but a young woman in a shimmery gray robe glided past us. Her face was not covered, but still weirdly indistinct. She was heading for Alice, but Crystal intercepted her.

She looked at the weirdly indistinct girl like she was seeing a miracle. “Lily! You’re okay.”

Crystal stepped forward to hug the young woman, and understanding clicked in my mind.

“Don’t!” I shouted as Lily spread her arms to embrace Crystal. As the two hugged, Lily’s head elongated, like she’d just grown a snake’s neck. Her nose extended into a long needle and she twisted it down toward Crystal’s back.

I slashed through her skull with Soulrend. Lily exploded into mist.

“Congratulations, Lucas! You have defeated Lifebane Phantom clone. Level 1.”

I accepted the prompt to loot the monster just as Crystal stumbled and turned. Her eyes widened in horror as she looked from the still-dispersing remains of the monster impersonating Lily and my blade. Her face twisted in rage and she swelled with power.

“You murdered my sister!”

So many things suddenly made sense as Crystal screamed and punched at me with a fist that grew to the size of my head.

She might be immensely powerful and enraged, but she broadcast that punch so wide, I bet people on the far side of town could see it coming. I leaned aside, knocking her fist away slightly with my free hand.

Her fist shot half an inch past my torso but struck nothing but air. Crystal stumbled forward and tripped. She lunged back to her feet instantly and spun, her face red with rage.

Alice jumped in front her, hands raised in a calming motion. “Stop! That wasn’t Lily. It was a monster pretending to be her. He just saved your life.”

Crystal hesitated, then looked to me, murder still in her gaze. “Explain yourself. Now!”

I reviewed the monster dictionary entry I’d only skimmed earlier and shared it with her.

“When Lifebane Phantom has drained sufficient life force, it will produce a clone. In this way, it reproduces and spreads its parasitic curse. Clones take on the appearance of the victim and remain mostly visible until their first feeding.”

“No.” Crystal seemed to wilt and sagged against Alice. “Lily.”

“Who’s Lily?”

“My sister. She’s been sick the past 2 days and getting worse, despite everything we’ve tried. I was trying to lead you to her to see if you could help her like you did Hank.”

I could think of a better way to ask, but I didn’t say it. Crystal looked emotionally wrung out and I wasn’t a big enough jerk to push her when she was down.

Alice gripped her shoulders. “According to that description, she might still be alive.”

“She’s in the clinic too?” When Alice nodded, I said, “So let’s go.”

Together we raced two streets over to a tidy little log cabin with flower boxes in the front windows. One big room filled most of the interior. Six people lay on comfortable single beds. They all looked sick like Hank, to varying degrees.

“Where’s Beth?” Alice demanded, looking around. The room was empty except for the sick patients.

Crystal rushed to a girl on the far left side who did look remarkably like the clone I’d just dispatched, but I froze, my gaze locked on the figure laying on the opposite side of the room.

“Tomas?”