We took the elevator up a few decks and worked our way toward the back of the ship and a fairly large looking boat hanging from an extendable framework. Which Hasan unlocked and began operating the support arms to extend the tender boat out over the water.

The thing looked like something you would take a river tour in, except all sealed up with windows all around. Most of the other boats we had passed were bright orange and only had few small windows.

Another crew member wandered up to ask what we were doing, and Hasan explained the whole inspection excuse, then drafted the other crew member to finish lowering the boat down as he climbed inside. "Please follow me and get strapped in."

The boat was had just slipped down pass the guard rail when I saw Chloe climb over the safety rail and hop down on top of the boat, waving at us through a higher up pilot's window from the roof top. Hasan was unhappy. " That is very dangerous, you should not be doing that."

As the boat sunk into the water, Hasan began moving about doing something or other to release the boat from the cradle it had been in while it was being lowered. Meanwhile Tok opened a door and helped Chloe to get inside. She frowned at me. "Are you trying to ditch me?"

I shook my head. "Nope, just saw an opportunity to get back to dry land and took it."

We did take a brief stop by the outside of the now closed hole in the hull to let Tok examine it. "Looks fine, the cut did no more to weaken it then a normal seam would."

From there it was a short trip back to the shore, only interrupted by a call on a radio asking us in so many words, what the heck was going on. I took the call rather then put Hasan on the spot in case he was ordered to turn back. "Hi, this is Sean Murphy, just getting a ride back to shore, we'll send the boat back to you in a moment. Bye now."

Then I turned the volume down so I couldn't hear any replies. Hasan glanced at me. "They will not be happy."

I thought that over. "Did you want to stay with us instead of going back." He hastily shook his head no. "All my thing are back there."

With no dock, getting all the way to shore involved jumping down into shoulder deep water and wading in the rest of the way, to an audience of a dozen or so people. Abb Ota warmly greeted his granddaughter who had either been toughing it out when immersing herself in water to get to shore or had only been freaking out the day before because the water had been over her head.

As I stood there dripping wet on the muddy shore, I yelled a thanks to Hasan for the ride. Then filled people in on what had happened. "So, if you didn't hear. We cleared the boat, rescued the survivors, and drove off the demon." That got something a bit short of a cheer, more like a group murmur of approval.

Heading back to the church, we split off to various location in the church to get some dry cloths. Someone was sleeping in my bed, so I had to sneak around to get everything together and then went to get dressed in my spare room.

As I was stripping down, I realized that even if the water of the lake was relatively clean, it had still left an odor on me, so I took the time to slip into the shower, again. Yeah, for averaged up social stats.

Downstairs, I laid my hand on the alter to see a now two-foot-tall Kent. He grinned at me. "Congratulations on Sanctity three, and you only need fourteen more people to make it to rank four."

I considered that. "That would give me a ten thousand foot Sanctified safe zone right."

Kent nodded in agreement. "Which will attract more people, which can raise your population for even higher ranks. Although it will most likely take you a while to get ten thousand people."

Looking down at the saint, I began planning out loud. "The Pastoria is mobile. if we send it out to circle around these seas that are all supposed to be linked together, according to Big boy at least, then the ship can recruit and haul people back here. It might take less time than you would think."

The mini saint looked intrigued. "It can also hold a lot of people while you're trying to build some sort of housing here."

I smiled. "Looks like we finally got ahead of things for once."

Which is when the Rite of sanctuary I had placed on myself activated, and the church's bell began to ring.

The back roof of the Apse, the area around the altar, suddenly was smashed apart by something which torn it open as it passed through the upper back wall. It sent bricks and rubble flying into the church. Some of which smacked into me with brutal force, knocking me on my backside.

"Wha..whahut?" I felt something wet running down my face and reached up to find out it was blood. Before I could panic, Rill grabbed me under my arms and dragged me back behind a pew. I looked up at her, "What's going on?"

The Verco woman peeked over the back of the pew between us and the wreak of the Apse. "I think we're under attack."

As we stood there hearing screams and shouts as people got to their feet, Sandra, the girl I had put in charge of the watch tower ran out into the lobby and looked around with a wild look in her eye. One of her people pointed at me and yelled, "It's the Rector guy."

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Well at least I'm not the only one who has a hard time with names. But then, I didn't know hers either.

Sandra ran towards me, shouting, "Something came flying at us from due north, there's something made out of metal over there. I think they're targeting the bell tower, so I got everyone out of there.'

A crash came from above as something was hit, dust came bellowing out from the direction of the door to the tower as ruble was sent tumbling over the rooftop to fall on the far side.

The Abb appeared by my side, reaching out, he grasped my arm. "Moment of clarity."

Suddenly my mind cleared, I had all the confused bit of information processed, and I knew what I had to do.

Pointing to each person in turn. I began barking out orders. "Rill, get the guy from my room down here and out the door. Sandra, take your team and sweep the basement. Leave everything behind, just get the people outside. Abb, get out front and start a head count, you know everyone's names."

Rill gave me a started look while Sandra was already off yelling orders in a shrill voice. The Abb smiled at me, then nodded and headed for the door, only stopping to reach out and tug at people and speak with them to get them moving.

Me, I yelled and pointed at two of the teens. "You two, with me." Then headed into the office to gather up the still recovering wounded.

We had to take them out the back door as the side of the church blew in and shattered the pews while scattering broken stone and shattered glass across the room. That's when I finally got a good look at what had been hitting us.

A door. A big sturdy looking door like something from an airplane, but flat, with thick blocky symbols on it and a shattered view port. Coming through a wall had crumbled in its edges, but it had begun to tumble as it flew across the Nave and imbedded itself in the opposite wall.

I saw Tok staring at it as she came up the side stairs to see what the latest damage was. "That's from the Horizon, it's an airlock door."

I... really didn't have time to think about the implication of that. "Tok, think later, grab people now!" She jumped, turned to look at me for a second, then nodded and got back to helping.

Outside I could see the bell tower was gone, at least the upper half. But its loss didn't seem to be stopping us from being targeted.

I tuned to Tok, "We are being targeted right? This isn't parts of your space station deorbiting?"

She shook her head. "No. The angle's wrong." She pointed at a dark speck flying our way on a downward arc. "It's being launched from several hundred feet outside of the safe zone. We're under attack."

I took a deep breath. Whatever the Abb had done to me, I had lost most of the benefit of it by then, but I was still thinking and acting on a higher level then I used to. Looking around I called Sandra over. "Get in contact with the ship and get them to send out a tender boat. Get all the wounded and anyone else that can't fight on board the ship."

I thought about asking them to move the ships north, since I was pretty sure it had its own thousand-foot safe zone now, so it could try to overlap its zone over to cover the enemy's position. But it could also become a new target, with everyone aboard it being put into danger. So no, not happening, at least not now. Maybe if we had somewhere to off load everyone.

Like into all the other lifeboats. Fat chance I could get anyone on board to go along with that right now though.

I looked around as the dozen odd people who seemed to want to throw themselves into danger. A few of the teens, Mr. Patel, some of the Verco, both young and old. Me, Chloe and Tok.

The Hazak woman pointed up at the sky. "Here comes another one."

Look back at the church, which didn't have much holding it up anymore, I could see the image of St Kentigern standing on the alter. He gave me a smile and blessed us as another hunk of space station took out the remains of the back of the church, knocking it to dust and rubble.

The one place to call my own, the only place from my home, was gone.

"Abb, that thing you did. You would have to had made a level to get another ability right?"

He patted me on the back. "I found out that if my current protegee makes a level, I get a point of grace. But it only works if once per day."

He pointed at me, then Chloe as he activated his Mentor ability again. "I also get two of you now."

I nodded, how he had gotten a level had been bugging me. "I want to go find out who is shooting at us, and possibly kick their asses." turning to the group, I made an offer. "Anyone who want to join me can come along."

Taking the lead, I remembered to ask. "If anyone isn't currently getting the benefits of Sanctuary, call out. If anyone can do anything get us there faster, speak up."

Chloe took the lead and began pumping her Mop handle up and down in the air, then spinning it around while marching with her knees going up high.

You have been inspired with a +2 to your Health by a dance of power.

She looked over her shoulder to grin at me. "May not get us there faster, but we won't be as tired when we get there."

The trip through the endlessly repeating trees was rather monotonous, only broken up by the realization that at some point the enemy had stopped shooting at us. Maybe they had decided there wasn't anything left to shoot at.

Then I heard the sound of roars, shrieking metal, and explosions.

Someone else had gotten to the bad guys first, and was giving them hell, or at least enough trouble to get them to have stopped attacking us. Then we got close enough to get a look at them.

Vern had described them pretty accurately. You take a Hazak and cover them with a head to toe covering of fur, and you pretty much got a bigfoot. Add in about two feet of height, putting them over nine foot, and make them as about twice as muscular and you got a very scary looking bigfoot.

Now take about three dozen of them, get them angry, and have them show off their mastery of magic in combat and you got a sight to see.

The blue shapes Tok used as tools was layered in shells over their bodies, the armor only becoming visible it stopped the hits raining down on the hairy Hazaks. Claws made of the same light, and well as trusting spike tore into the metal hides of their opponents.

Picture a bunch of scrap metal and high-tech junk, all of the pieces constantly shifting around and reattaching to put itself back together as a means of movement. Now set it to trying to rip and tear apart a bunch of people who are fighting your battle for you.

We had bunched up on the edge of the forest. I tuned to Tok. "These guys? Are they a greater danger then the Junk bots?"

Tok considered the question for a moment. "They can't be reasoned with, but they don't want to kill us."

I nodded. "Good enough for me." Looking at the battlefield I spotted a large vehicle sized patched together vehicle with a two-pronged cannon like thing sticking out of it, parked right next to a pile of various shaped large chunks of metal scrap.

I pointed. "Let's wreak that."