Chapter 38: Beasties

One of the reasons, Adam had felt ok about humans evacuating via the factions, was that it was better than the alternative. The alternative being the humans trying to rebuild their own society, which would have been ok, possibly. If it wasn’t for the small fact that once the system ‘claimed’ a new portion of the multi-verse it didn’t just enlist the life-forms to its system. Enslave, more like, from what Iakesi had told him.

A ‘claimed’ territory would also gain system created dungeons and dungeon realms these would contain beasts that at their lowest levels would easily decimate the current human population. So leaving and being trained to survive, by a faction was for most a better bet. Sure the Kitsune Clan was trying to do their best, but they were inexperienced in dealing with such new threats.

It was just as well Adam felt this way, as the factions, on getting the get go from their higher ups had dropped the pretence of testing and had just started shipping earthlings out, presumably straight for the front line. It was because they were non-magic life forms.

Adam arrived on a planet in the same quadrant as the mining planet but nowhere near the front line, as it had already moved a long way, back. As successive planets had been lost to the waves of void beasts. Reports kept coming in but none of them said anything that could be repeated to the likes of them.

But we did know that no squads sent by the factions had returned except for a handful of mentalist members. What they had reported back, again was classified. But it was obvious things had not gone well, this was an extreme understatement. All the factions’ members, were aware they were being used as fodder, while the higher ups decided what they were doing. Which was maybe nothing, as at the moment the invasion was taking place only in delta-954, his backyard. So they obviously didn’t give a fuck.

Details though were spars, as to how the void beasts were getting from one planet to another? Nobody knew. What there capabilities were. Nobody knew. He felt it all a bit farcical.

Adam had been in a very large spaceship, probably large enough to fit a twenty or so football stadiums, but had soon been transferred to a much smaller, planet-to-planet jump ship, that sounded more like an rickety old bi-plane, than a high tech craft. The vibrations rattled his fillings, as they hit light speed or whatever. He didn’t understand why they didn’t just gate in. Until he was told that, apparently there was some kind of interference or barrier that had been set up, preventing this.

He had been treated to ship board cuisine and given basic training on how not to die and how to use the little equipment he’d been given: headset with built-in coms, body armour, long blade and knife and some meagre health elixir. No rations, presumably they didn’t expect them to last long enough to need them.

His team was a mixed bag, some faction, some fresh as a daisy, humans. Though the humans must have had some experience to qualify. None of them wanted to be there, he could tell. The fake camaraderie and weak smiles, said it all. Adam thanks to his acclimatize ability didn’t give a shit, but still did want to live, it didn’t make him stupid, just calm.

There was a mighty judder and the bottom of the ship fell away jettisoning all the combatants from 10k feet he presumed, the weather conditions were not great or something was covering the ground. It was like falling into soup, only the ethereal type.

There was a continual babble in my headset, from the other team members talking crap. Every now and then the channel would be overridden with some message from our seniors. I cut all channels and just looked at my altimeter to see when to open my chute. It was time to be a sitting target, my chute popped and I pulled up tight.

I could now make out parts of the terrain below, resolved into forest, oh fuck. A whole lot of it seemed to be on fire, which made sense now, that’s why I couldn’t see shit. Nearing the ground I jettisoned my parachute not wanting to be impaled by a tree, and relying on my toughness to survive the remaining drop. I landed heavily but safely, the smoke that would have scorched my throat was dispelled by a thin mana field around my body.

Presumably no one could see anything but me, I could see more than I wanted to see, with my LCD view, all was as clear as day. Although I thought the others could probably guess what was happening, there were lots of screams and whole lot of deafening roars. This at least made it easy to know where their opponents were. It was like a pyrotechnic show, there would be a blaze of either fire or electricity as mages went at it, then nothing till another one popped up somewhere else. But rarely from the same place, they were being slaughtered.

I moved in close to where the nearest fight was taking place and saw beasts, very large beasts destroying the factions. To start with it rather reminded me of my first fights with Ore beasts, the attacks would hit to no effect. But then I saw a marked difference the beast, it looked like some kind of golem, all grey stone and wiry bits. Only thing is. it kind of lit up when it was hit then just charged. It was on the mage in a second, ripping body parts and sending blood fountaining everywhere, until it got what it wanted. It seemed all life-forms had the equivalent of a beast core. As it just ripped something out and swallowed it, leaving the rest of the body laying inert on the ground.

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

I did notice however that they had no interest whatsoever in non-magic humans, to start with I thought this was because they weren’t being attacked, but nope, some were and they still took no notice.

Would I count as non-magic? I mean even a cloaking spell would be mana based and therefore still an attractive shiny bauble for them to consume. Time to find out.

I jumped in front of golem from before that answered that, he came straight at me. I punched him and he flew back into a tree. Sprang straight up again and came at me again. This time I hammered a kick into him sending him into something that looked more like a repulsive half rodent half Simian. They both sailed backwards, into the smoke. Then I thought to use identify. It worked clearly being able to see with my LCD ability counted as seeing.

Scavenger rat, level ??

“Libby could you do something about this crappy identify. Please.” I said in a pleading tone.

Scavenger rat, level 43

That’s better, ok 10 times stronger than the Simians back on the ol desert planet. And the other one:

Golem, level 47

I didn’t really understand how these were void beasts. Clarissa had said they were life-forms that had been banished to the void because they were too powerful, or something along those lines. Maybe I just filled in the gaps and thought they would be humanoid. Was it all BS?

I figure I need to use my blade, punching them is going to get old real quick. Not because I don’t like doing it but because they seem very resilient, and I’d be here all day, playing whack-a-mob.

I practise a few moves with the blade, loosening up and also trying to remember the moves I’d practised, courtesy of Huba. They seemed to be in a permanent blood frenzy of sorts, mana frenzy perhaps. Anyway they just blindly charged at me, I took the Golem’s head off its shoulders then stabbed ineffectually at the scavenger. I needed to swords, the knife had done little, it was just sticking out of the rat things shoulder. In the frenzy inflicting wounds like that was pointless.

Ah, a sword. I had noticed I had an audience of two. They were from my group, humans. Then I thought better of it, I couldn’t really leave the guy defenceless.

“I’m going this way to find a decent weapon. You coming?” I said heading back to where the golem had its last meal. Sure enough the pyromancer had had some others in his group. Their bodies peeled open like rip oranges, steam still rising from their bodies. I hunted around till I found a few nice swords, well they were all nice and stowed them in my dimensional bag. I asked the guys to help and they found some elixirs as well, neat. I stowed them to as they had nothing to carry them in, apart from the side bags, which were already crammed with rubbish. They didn’t seem to find, I nodded thanks.

Level forty beasts were clearly too much of a step up for these, level nothing, humans. I would have got them to cut out these beasts’ cores but that would just take too long right now. I could see the core with my energy sight, lit up like a beacon. But we had things to do, and besides the golem hide was hard enough to blunt the sword I had used. That’s why I needed some more.

From then on in it was plain sailing, for the heads that is. I felt bad that we hadn’t got any beast cores yet, I presumed that they could be used by these guys to level up. I thought maybe a more skilled team might have some implement or skill to make them easier to get. So I listened out for screams in the hope of finding a faction member that could tell us.

Libby gave me directions by homing in on the sounds around us. This was the third time now and each time I had got there too late, I ran like fuck leaving my two comrades to wait behind. They would get lost even if I only jogged. I on the other hand was able to weave through the trees, thanks to my LCD view. When I got to a clearing, I saw a big bugger.

Flesh hulk, level 52

It was lumbering towards a small group, who looked to be terrified and almost out of mana. Seemed like a standard grouping except they had an assassin class or something to throw into the mix. I kept running straight at the hulk beast, giving it a double slash, one blade biting into its neck from each direction. It was hard to angle the blades as its head was sunken into its chest but it toppled over and hit the dirt, so all good.

The group looked at me warily, some still looking around, I didn’t blame them. Before something else came along to finish them off I asked.

“Is there a quick way to harvest these beasts’ cores?” I half shouted.

Most ignored me, one gave me an incredulous look. “If you get us back to our ship, we will gladly give you a few beast cores” he said tilting his head and smirking slyly at his comrades.

Really, that was their attitude when I’d just saved them, from certain doom.

“How about you tell me now? Or I leave you to die in this hell scape you call the multi-verse” I replied.

Paling they looked at each other not so cocky now. The archer said “You need a mana sense ability, otherwise you can’t find them”

OMG, what an idiot. I was in such a rush I didn’t even think to just scan the guys. I nodded sagely, pretending to consider their offer, scanning them all the while. They had it seemed gone through a whole heap of elixirs that were now just empty bottles. Did they get money back on the bottles or something? But no little sharp objects for digging things out. Would the mana bolts work? I wondered or would they just destroy everything, probably.

Adam you are one major jackass, you were thinking it would involve rooting around in their innards, which it still would. But with a mana field you dullard. I had thought I’d have to just give the guys, presuming they were still alive back where I’d left them, the job.

The group all exclaimed as I used the mana field, invisible to them, filter out everything and extract the core. It was the size of my fist, throwing light in a collage of shimmering orange-red waves emanating, from its centre. Radiation? It might be a little radioactive but I couldn’t resist and snatched it from the air, and turned to them “Cherrio! Old chaps” I said, mustering up the best interpretation of a vaudeville actor I could. I chucked it in my dimensional bag were it couldn’t irradiate anyone.

As for these guys, I was no saviour, to these ungrateful assholes.

I left them and went back to find my comrades and more lovely beast cores I hoped. Not that I knew how to use them, yet.