They spent the next few minutes creeping around and blocking off doorways with debris. There were at least four stairwells that they found, though the stairs had collapsed in one of them. Joanna had insisted on moving a large fridge in front of it anyway, just in case some of the Grue could jump that high.
Then they moved towards the head of the escalators, keeping low and darting between the planters that were scattered across the upper balconies. The Grue were moving around the planters and benches that littered the area, completely oblivious to the Surveyors’ approach. Alex and Clara had taken one side, and Audrey had joined Joanna on the other.
The Acolyte seemed to have not as much to say as they crept up on their assigned targets. Joanna had told them to take out the two targets that were lounging around right at the top of the escalators. She and Audrey would ambush the ones that were lazily walking around the exterior.
When they reached their position, Alex motioned for Clara to wait. The other girl nodded, getting into her stance and preparing her shot. She waited while the guards moved through their careless patrol. As soon as they got near to where Joanna and Audrey were waiting, Alex gave her a nod.
Then, before she’d even heard the snap of the crossbow, she was off and running for the Grue.
She saw the bolt take one of them in the shoulder. It staggered, clutching at the projectile impaling it, and then lost its footing. There was a shocked yip as it tumbled over the side of the railing and fell towards the ground below.
Alex didn’t pay it any more attention, though. All her focus was on the other Grue, the one who was still half-frozen from shock as she closed in on it. When she was nearly to it, the thing grabbed for the spear still lying against the railing, and started a high, panicked howl.
She slammed into it before the thing had gotten the spear into position, knocking it backwards against the top of the escalator. It dropped the spear and grabbed for the railing wildly, just barely managing not to fall. Alex rewarded it by bringing her axe down on the top of its head.
As the corpse fell back, she looked over to where the other patrol had been, and was rewarded with the sight of both Grue on the ground. Audrey was already sprinting for one of the benches, which she and Joanna then began dragging over to the other escalator. Clara came up a few moments later, fighting to draw back the latch on her crossbow and fit a new bolt.
In the corner of her vision, yellow words blazed to life.
[Main Quest Completed]
Alex nodded and set herself at the top of her escalator. The Grue below couldn’t have missed the sounds of their friends getting killed. Any moment now—
A loud howl rose from the camp, and Grue streamed out of the tents towards the escalators. She saw some of them break off to head down the corridors for the stairwells, and she hoped that their improvised barricades held. There were a lot of Grue down there. Alex felt a small, panicked part of her wonder if they were just going to roll right over her team, and she shoved that fear aside as the first ones reached the escalator and loped up towards her.
To her surprise, it seemed to take the Grue a while to get up the stairs. She’d half-expected them to just sprint up the steps and try to pounce on her, but the incline seemed to be difficult. They weren’t able to come at her more than two at a time, either, and even then, they seemed to jostle and fight each other as much as her.
It didn’t prevent the first of them from trying to impale her with its spear, however. Alex blocked the strike with her shield and then hit the Grue in the head with her axe. It stumbled, and she shoved it to the side. The next Grue spent a precious moment tossing its supposed friend over the side, and she shield-charged it to knock it back into the crowd of its friends.
[Hidden Quest Discovered! Destroy four additional Grue Soldiers.]
[Melee–Axe has advanced to level 7!]
[Melee–Shield has advanced to level 8!]
Alex disengaged to give herself a bit of space and watched the tangle of Grue struggle to sort itself out. To her right, Audrey and Joanna were holding their side of the platform fine; at least three Grue were already down, and the others were having a hard time getting past their makeshift barricade.
She heard Clara gasp in relief as the catch for her crossbow finally caught, and resisted the urge to glance at the Acolyte. Better to focus on the swarm of monsters trying to claw their way up to her.
The next Grue finally sprang forward, stabbing at her feet. Alex stepped aside, kicking the Grue in the chest. It resisted the hit, managing to avoid falling back again, but she ducked past the second stab—aimed at her head—and connected with one, two, three axe swings. This time the Grue went down, and two more were immediately trying to claw their way over it to get to her.
Clara’s crossbow snapped, and one of them sprouted a crossbow bolt in the skull, like a strange, blunt unicorn horn. It collapsed, and the other howled in rage as it tried to leap at her.
Alex was ready, and she used her shield to shove it up and to the side. Claws scrabbled at her shield, and the spear struck past her head, drawing blood as it brushed her cheek. She ignored the line of fire that seemed to draw itself across her face, and shoved harder, this time forcing it up against the railing. The top of the railing caught it just behind its knees, and it went flying over the side to hurtle towards the tiled floor below.
Grue were getting past the escalator now, stumbling past the obstacle the other bodies had made. Alex hit the closest with her axe, knocking it to the side. She smashed the next from behind with her shield; it fell stunned at Clara’s feet. “Use a bolt like a knife!”
Then she spun and flung herself back at the top of the escalator. Her shield slammed into the next few Grue, briefly pushing them back. She had to keep them from getting past her. If they got through, they could hit Joanna and Audrey from the back. For that matter, if one just stabbed her from behind now…
She risked a glance backward, and saw Clara stabbing the Grue at her feet frantically, a crossbow bolt in her hands. When it went still, the Acolyte screamed and hurtled herself at the other wounded Grue that was still rising.
Then the Grue forced her back and she didn’t have the luxury of worrying about Clara anymore. A spear came at her over her shield, and she reacted on instinct. Hooking it with the blade of her axe, she yanked down, using her shield edge as the fulcrum; there was a startled yip as the spear’s owner lost the weapon. Another spear stabbed at her legs, and she dropped to a crouch, trapping it between shield edge and floor. The Grue had just a second to snarl at her in anger; one with its spear trapped, the other disarmed but for its claws.
Alex lashed out with her axe as she rose, hacking away at both of them with everything she had. They fell back, howling, and she used her shield as a second weapon, smashing the left side Grue under the jaw with the edge. It toppled backwards, avoided by the ones below, and the other Grue took a backhanded blow that put the rear spike of her axe through its temple.
It collapsed just as another Grue forced its way up. The spear came at her, and she once again trapped it between axe and shield. This time, she twisted in place, rotating like a top to rip the weapon away. The move through the Grue off balance; it was still staggering when she brought her axe up into its gut, once, twice, three times…
As it slumped forward, a spear tore through its stomach and slammed into Alex’s left leg. She screamed in surprise and shock, and jerked backwards. Blood sprayed from the wound, and she nearly collapsed on the now-wet tile. The spear withdrew and then got caught on the Grue corpse. A moment later, a snarling Grue vaulted the dying monster and crashed into her, with only her shield between her and its razor-sharp claws. Her axe went skittering away across the tile.
It snapped at her, purple-dark fangs trailing smoke. Alex flinched, and it wrapped both arms around the shield to claw at her arms. She screamed a second time as the claws tore lines of agony along her forearms. The thing bore down on her, still grasping at her, and it was too heavy to throw off. Panic filled her as she realized all it had to do was go for her throat, and she’d be done. There had to be something, some way to—
Something slammed into the Grue from the side, and the weight was suddenly gone. Alex rolled over and grabbed her axe, forcing herself up on her wounded leg. She spun to look for her next enemy.
All she found was Clara, stabbing the one that had clawed her. There was blood on her uniform, but the Acolyte didn’t seem to be worried about it, focused as she was on stabbing the Grue repeatedly. Alex looked at the escalator and felt a wave of relief when she didn’t see yet more Grue coming up at them. A glance behind her showed that Joanna and Audrey were just finishing off the last of the things coming up their side.
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She felt a second burst of relief, followed quickly by incredulity. Had they actually done it? Alex went down on one knee, unable to keep standing on her wounded leg for much longer. Yellow text appeared in her vision.
[Hidden Quest Completed! Additional four Grue destroyed]
[Hidden Quest Completed! Grue Camp cleared]
[All Quests Completed!]
[Melee–Axe advances to level 10!]
[Melee–Shield advances to level 11!]
Apparently, the plan had been an astounding success. Purple flame abruptly sprung up from the corpses, sending Clara scrambling backwards in surprise. The Acolyte watched the burning body for a moment, and then spun to move over to Alex. “Hey, stay with me here. Drink some of this.”
Alex numbly set down her axe and took the health potion from Clara, trying to make sure she didn’t drop the thing. There was blood all over her hands, and the forearms of her uniform were in tatters. She carefully tilted a little bit of the potion into her mouth as the scent of pure magic filled her nostrils.
The liquid tasted like a thick, cherry flavored syrup. She swallowed it and coughed. Then she gasped and clutched at her arms; a ribbon of fire seemed to flow along each cut, burning and itching its way through her skin. Even the scratch on her cheek seemed to be made of fire. Clara took the vial back, and Alex gritted her teeth for a moment.
Then the burning faded, and she took her hand away to look at her arms. The wounds had healed over, leaving thin, near invisible marks beneath the blood. Even her leg had been patched up, leaving a small, puckered scar. Alex scrubbed at the marks and then nodded to Clara. “Thanks.”
“No problem.” Clara corked the vial and stowed it back in her pack.
Down below, there was a crackling sound. Alex stood up and looked down into the camp. Her eyes widened as the hovering purple crystal above the unnatural bonfire shattered into fragments. The fire below it faded to nothing, even as the remaining Grue faded away.
Joanna limped over with Audrey; both girls had taken wounds. Clara handed over her potion, and mere moments later, they were all healed. The Adept looked around and grinned. “Shall we gather everything up? I think Liliana might be happy with what we bring home, even if we are a little late.”
The rain had faded to a mere drizzle by the time they made it back to the portal.
They hadn’t run into any more Grue on the way; either the rain had driven them all indoors, or the destruction of the crystal at the camp had somehow cleared them out. Either way, they made good time, and were in front of the portal without any further ambushes.
Each of them was carrying quite a bit of loot with them. The fragments of the camp’s main crystal weighed Clara down, while Audrey had a pack full of the smaller crystals that the Grue left behind. Both Alex and Joanna had grabbed various items from the shopping mall after all, hoping to make up for the time by gaining more material.
Standing in front of the portal’s vortex, Alex felt her hope for their reception on the other side flag a little. She was still happy that her group had somehow cleared all their Quests, but something told her that Liliana wasn’t going to see things quite the same way.
She exchanged looks with the rest of her team, and then as one they all stepped through.
Light once again surrounded her, and yellow text displayed immediately across the front of her vision.
[Mission Report]
[Successful Return! +20 Experience]
[Main Quest Completed! +40 Experience]
[Secondary Culling Quest Completed! +40 Experience]
[Secondary Purge Quest Completed! +40 Experience]
[All Quests Completed! Glorious Victory! + 40 Experience]
Alex’s eyes widened in shock. That much experience would put her more than halfway to level two on her second Survey. No matter what Liliana said, the delay had been more than worth it. She owed Joanna an apology and her thanks.
The text changed, and she felt her anticipation rise.
[Melee–Axe increased from 4 to 11!]
[Melee–Shield increased from 4 to 11!]
[Dodging increased from 0 to 1!]
[Skill Chain available. Do you wish to combine Melee–Axe and Melee–Shield?]
[Warning: Chained Skills lose all previous levels.]
The choice was easy for her. It was the plan she had been aiming for, after all. She chose to merge the Skills, and waited as a tingling sensation washed over her.
[Skill Chain unlocked! Skills Melee–Axe and Melee–Shield removed. Skill Combined Arms–Axe/Shield gained! Skill Chain bonus gained! Title War Maiden gained (Increases Skill grade of Combined Arms and Weapon Mastery by one.)]
[Skill Choice available. Please select an additional Skill.]
If she had been able to, Alex would have performed a little dance, right inside the glowing void. Chaining her axe and shield Skills had always been the plan, but she hadn’t expected to be able to do it at level ten instead of level five. Apparently, gaining it at a higher level meant she was going to see improvements in it as well. The improved Skill grade would be a major advantage; it would mean Combined Arms would be roughly three times better than the base level Melee skills, rather than only two.
Since Alex intended on keeping Combined Arms for the rest of her career as an E rank Surveyor, she didn’t mind having that advantage at all.
Once she calmed down, Alex turned her attention to the next choice in front of her. With a free Skill slot, she wanted to gain something that she could level fairly quickly. Once she reached the level cap for Page, she’d only have the chance to make one Skill permanent. Obviously the Skill she was going to choose was Combined Arms, but that didn’t make the rest of her Skills pointless. Any levels that she gained in those other, discarded Skills would translate to additional Titles, and maybe even additional levels for the Skill she kept. In other words, the higher she went on any of her Skills, the deadlier she would eventually be.
There were plenty of options, but she eventually settled on the Inspect Skill. It would help her team out when they were looking for loot or targets, and she’d be able to practice with it in the buildings that surrounded the portal on Earth. She might not end up keeping it forever, but it would help her out in both the short and long term.
With her path locked in for the next while, she dismissed the Screen and waited to be dumped back out into the real world. The green text vanished, and for a moment she just floated in the void, seemingly at peace.
Then, with the familiar flash of light, she was out and stumbling a little as she returned to Earth alongside her team.
It was refreshing, now, to arrive in a world where the sky wasn’t pouring out buckets of rain on her. Her sodden, torn clothes still seemed cold, though, and Alex shivered a little as she hefted her gear and loot.
Then she saw Liliana waiting for them. The team sergeant was not smiling this time. If anything, her expression seemed faintly disappointed. “Welcome home, team. Unfortunately, you arrived significantly behind the other team, and as a result, you have forfeited the additional day of leave. You’ll also be assigned a day of remedial training at the Golden Swallow facility in this area. I hope that you have learned from this experience, so that you can accomplish more—”
She broke off, apparently confused by the lack of devastated expressions on her team’s faces. “I also hope that you continue to take your Survey responsibilities seriously. Now, let’s hear your report.”
Alex exchanged amused looks with the others. Joanna was the first to step forward. “Our team completed all of the Quests, including destroying a Grue Camp. We’ve harvested more than twenty…”
The expression on Liliana’s face was interesting to watch, to say the least. She seemed equal parts baffled and frustrated, which was would have been confusing given the incredible success that Joanna was reporting. When Alex snuck a peek at the other team sergeant, he seemed to be trying to hide a smile. At one point, he actually coughed, attempting to conceal a laugh.
When the Adept had finished, Liliana’s face was grave. “The next time, team, I would encourage you to focus on the instructions that you receive from the Group. If you had focused on your primary mission, rather than the Quests that you received from the portal, you might have enjoyed that additional day of leave.” She paused, drawing in a breath. “At the same time, the company is proud of its Surveyors’ dedication to the cause ahead. Thank you for your efforts.”
She seemed to grow more and more unhappy as each Surveyor gave their report. By the time she got to Alex, who was going last, she already had a near permanent frown which seemed much more sincere than her usual smile. “You…Chained a Skill? And selected a new one?”
Alex heard a warning edge in the team sergeant’s voice, and she schooled her face into complete neutrality. “Yes, team sergeant.”
“Chaining Skills is considered a…subpar strategy by the Group. Further, your Skill choices seem to be deviating considerably from the standard Golden Swallow Group guides for your Role. You are not providing the most optimal support for the rest of your team, and I’m disappointed in your lack of initiative.”
There was actual fury in Liliana’s voice, and Alex risked a sidelong glance at the others. They seemed incredibly uncomfortable. Joanna’s face had shut down completely. Clara seemed a little scared, for some reason, though Audrey simply looked incredulous, like the Squire couldn’t quite believe what she was hearing.
Alex wasn’t entirely surprised, though. She’d taken one look at the ‘encouraged’ Skill development list for Pages and promptly thrown it out the window in the first place. On top of the way her team had more or less ignored the assigned time trial, her Skill choices had probably been the straw that broke the camel’s back.
“I’m sorry to hear you are disappointed in me, team sergeant.”
Liliana continued to glare at her for another moment. Then she smiled, an expression so patently insincere that it almost made Alex miss the scowl. “Well. I’m sure that we can have a discussion about it later. For now, let’s get you back to the dorms so that we can prepare for the training tomorrow. Team dismissed.”
Joanna led them down the platform to where the small bus was waiting for them. The other team was already onboard, wearing self-satisfied smirks. Their smiles went a bit uncertain when Alex smiled right back at them. It was irritating that they considered themselves the victors, but there was no way that her team had ‘lost’ at all today. They’d see in time. She’d make sure of it.
The bus ride back to the dorms was blessedly short. Her team was a bit too tired to talk very much, but the other team had spent about an hour or two waiting. They were practically bouncing off the walls of the bus as they drove back, and their comments about ‘slow-pokes’ and ‘tourists’ kept setting her teeth on edge.
Joanna seemed bothered by it too, but she still offered Alex a tight smile when they made eye contact. Audrey just rolled her eyes and went back to playing something on her phone. Clara was just quiet, her eyes relatively distant as she thought through her situation. Maybe she was worried about her scholarship deal? Alex hoped not; she didn’t think that the Group would threaten her contract over a simple exercise, especially one they were meant to lose, anyway.
She waited until partway through the drive and then leaned over to Clara. “Hey, thanks again for the save back there. Pretty sure those Grue would have had me, not to mention the healing potion.”
Clara blinked and looked over at her. The Acolyte offered her a small smile. “It was…nothing, Alex. The best I could do, honestly.” She shook her head. “I know I’m not as skilled as the rest of you, but when I saw them all swarming over you…”
Alex reached over and gave her shoulder a squeeze. “You came through when it counted. That’s what matters. We couldn’t have done it without you.”
The Acolyte nodded, seeming a little more reassured. She went back to her own thoughts and Alex went back to hers. It had been a very busy day.