The light of the morning sun was already well into the sky by the time Kyle got within eyesight of the camp. He heard a cry of alarm, and before he knew it, he was being greeted by the team he’d left in charge of the defenses. The man he’d admonished the night before came up, acting as the de facto leader of the group.

“Sir! We’re glad to see you back. Is… is it dead?”

Kyle sighed, exhausted. His voice was flat as he responded.

“It’s dead. So are the rest of our squads. We should be safe to resume resource extraction.”

“Are you alright, sir?”

Kyle saw their eyes running over his body, angry red scars where he’d been punctured and slashed. The worst of the damage had been repaired, but there was still a lot left to do before he was at full strength. ADAPTIVE REGENERATION was still at work, though Kyle had stopped channeling HEAL to conserve some mana. He was recovering it just a bit faster than his skill was using it, and he’d managed to recover about a third of his total pool.

That left him bone-weary after the night’s exertion, in pain from the lingering injuries, and still fighting the residual effects of the venom. Decidedly not in the mood for small talk.

“I’m fine. Is Benjamin back?”

“No, sir. They decided to stay in the ruins of the city, I think they’ll be there for at least another day.”

Good thing I didn’t wait for them to rescue me, I’d be dead. He nodded.

“I’m headed to get some rest. Coordinate with any of the other squad leaders and get them to work.”

Kyle didn’t wait for a response as he walked to his tent, set down the C.H.A.D.D.pack and his bundle, and wiped himself down with a damp washcloth. Satisfied he was clean enough, he tossed himself onto the cot. Sleep followed moments later.

He awoke as he felt a presence enter the tent. Unsure of how much time passed, Kyle decided to take a measured approach. Turning his attention inward, he felt that his mana reserves were nearly full. ADAPTIVE REGENERATION had run its course, and the pain was gone from his body. Satisfied with his condition, he kept his eyes closed as he focused his other senses on the person in his tent.

They moved with surprising grace, and were likely using some sort of skill to keep their footfalls silent. Unfortunately for them, the mana coursing around their body made them stand out like a sore thumb to Kyle’s Auric Perception. They walked close to the bundle, and he thought for a moment they were going to search it for treasures.

Not a terrible idea, all things considered. Kyle thought about the valuable resources C.H.A.D.D. had absorbed, and conceded to himself that there might be some merit to searching his belongings. He wasn’t going to let them get away with it, but it wasn’t unwarranted. He almost got up then and there, until the would-be-thief moved past the bundle and approached their real target, the drone resting in its pack on the ground.

Kyle’s eyes opened as the figure extended a hand. An electric blue glow filled the room as HASTE activated, and before the hapless thief could let out a sound a hand clamped over his mouth. Kyle’s grip was iron, and he casually lifted the man off the ground with the hand still grabbing the man’s face. The thief grabbed frantically onto Kyle’s arm, eyes widening in fear and pain as he looked down. Kyle recognized him as a member of one of the squads that were out in the field when he called the return to camp.

“What are you doing in my tent?”

Kyle’s voice was icy. He’d nearly died to keep these people safe. Benjamin and his bodyguards had abandoned him to fight the Shadow alone, and now he was being repaid by somebody trying to steal from him. His grip tightened a bit in reflex, and he felt something crack beneath his hand. The man let out a muffled cry of pain, and Kyle dropped him to the ground.

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“Talk. Now.”

Blue eyes wide with fear looked up at him. Months ago, that would have bothered Kyle. Not anymore. He met the man’s gaze with his own, eyes still blazing with mana.

“I… I was just going to take a look at the drone. We heard you let people borrow it after your fight with the moth…”

“I’d stop lying if I were you. You didn’t sneak into my tent with a stealth skill active to ‘ask to borrow’ C.H.A.D.D.”

The thief gulped, eyes still wide with panic. He didn’t seem to know what to say, so Kyle pushed him.

“I’m not going to ask you again. If you think Chester, Benjamin, or anybody else will take your side if I push the issue, you’re sorely mistaken. I’ve seen how your company cares for the people who died out here. Your life would be written off by lunch.”

At that, the man visibly paled, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. He stammered, wincing in pain as something in his jaw popped.

“I was just coming in to get scans of the drone, I swear. I was just supposed to get scans.”

“Why do you need scans of C.H.A.D.D.?”

“I don’t know. I think they want to know how it finds the treasures.”

“Who is ‘they?’”

“The orders got handed down from my squad leader! Please, don’t hurt me! I swear, I was just following orders!”

The man’s voice was growing shrill, and he knew that people had likely heard the last bit of the exchange. Still, he wanted to convey his message. He leaned in close to the man on the ground, voice sharp as a dagger.

“You’re lucky that I’m willing to let you go. But I don’t forget favors. You owe me. When I need you, you’re going to pay up. Am I clear?”

He nodded.

“Now get the hell out of my tent. And let your squad leader know that if any of you try to pull a stunt like this again, I’m leaving you and the rest of your squad to the bugs.”

The pale man nodded before running out of the tent. Kyle just sighed. It was a sloppy attempt, though Kyle was fairly certain that he knew who was behind it. Chester was very interested in learning more about the drone, and with Kyle ostensibly out for the count, it made sense to try to take advantage of the opportunity. It was a low-risk move; if the man got what they wanted, great. If not, Chester had enough layers of deniability that it would be difficult to ever trace it back to him. The scheming made his head hurt.

Fortunately, they didn’t know about Kyle’s unique ability to sense the flow of mana, which gave him an edge. D Grade spiders specializing in stealth attacks were a little outside his scope, but the average E Grade with a rudimentary skill would probably have better success just asking. At least that way they would just be told “no” instead of risking an… adverse reaction.

Overall, this leg of the journey had soured Kyle’s opinion of Corthian Mining. It was clear that there was a lot more at play than he could fully appreciate, and he really didn’t like being left out in the wild. Coupling that with the setbacks of losing most of his gear, Kyle wasn’t in a fantastic position. To that end, he and C.H.A.D.D. had developed a plan on their return to the camp to try and remedy those issues as best they could.

Putting on a fresh uniform, Kyle looked outside. He felt a small relief that at least there wasn’t a crowd around the tent. Before exiting, he called Duroc through his nav bracelet. To his surprise, the orc answered almost immediately.

“Hi Kyle! I was about to call you, what great timing. Benjamin wants to know if you’d meet us over in the ruins of the city. He has a lot of questions about the architecture and thought you’d be able to help.”

“I was actually going to ask if you all still needed me, or if I could head back to the flagship. The fight against the D Grade cost me my armor and weapons. C.H.A.D.D. took some damage as well, and I want to see to the repairs.”

The last part was a lie, of course, but they felt that it was a safer course of action. It would keep attention off the drone, and make the search for upgrade materials feel far more natural to any observers. It also let him test the waters – there was a chance the interest didn’t come from Chester, after all.

If Duroc was aware of the interest in C.H.A.D.D., he didn’t show it.

“I bet we can make that happen, but Benjamin will definitely want to talk about this stuff when we get back.”

“If he can get me a shuttle back, he’s got a deal.”

They organized the logistics, and Kyle was booked for transport just a few hours later. With some time left to kill, he walked back out into the forest. The man he’d admonished the day before saw him leaving, and called after him.

“Sir, where are you going? Would you like us to get a squad together?”

His attitude has really turned around.

“No, I’m fine. I’ll be back soon.”

No further questions came after him. Once he’d made it a good distance in, he looked down to C.H.A.D.D.

“Any luck getting the world tree seed to react?”

[UNFORTUNATELY NOT, DR. MAYHEW.]

“We’ll keep working on it. Without it, what else do you think we’ll need to get your upgrades started?”

[THAT DEPENDS, DR. MAYHEW. HOW MUCH DO YOU THINK YOU CAN COLLECT?]