After the first night of Harvestfest, all the participants returned to their homes. Pete and Zoey ate a few slices of pizza before retiring to their room. The first night of Harvestfest had been a busy one. Zoey assured they’d captured over one-hundred spirits. Though, Pete hadn’t kept count well enough to verify one way or another.

The only thing he did know was exhaustion. His tiredness overwhelmed him. Even so, he’d expected as much. They even had the foresight to speak with Mod ahead of time. He let Pete, Zoey, and the triplets have the next two days off. Mod knew they’d need the rest to compete once darkness fell.

As evening drew near, Zoey emerged first from the room she shared with Pete. She scanned the impeccable cleanness of the restaurant. When she saw Mod behind the counter, he waved at her.

She smiled back, asking. “How’d it go yesterday? Did you get by without us?”

“With the holiday, it might have been busier than usual.” He admitted. “Though, we managed. I sent Mike and Tike on deliveries in your absence. They did well with it. They might be able to supplement Pate and you with deliveries. That is…if you guys ever need extra help.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Zoey told him, padding over to one of the dining tables, sliding a chair out, and sitting. As she sat, she lifted her legs, resting them on the chair on the other side of the table.

Mod stepped around the counter and began in her direction. “How’d things go with you and Pete?”

“My best guess…it went well. I don’t have any metric to go by…so…”

“Metric to go by?” Mod reached the table.

“I mean, I haven’t done this before. I don’t know what is good and what isn’t.” She explained.

“Ah, that makes sense.” Mod sat next to her. “You figured out a strategy, though? Yeah?”

Before she could answer, the front door clicked open. Mod kept it locked during business hours, and he was the only one with a key. So it surprised him that someone had opened it. Who would have the ability to pick a lock? He guessed one of the Trash Pandas, ex-thieves that they were. Though, he guessed wrong. As the door opened, it didn’t reveal one of the Trash Pandas.

Instead, Roger Escaron stepped through the open door. Mod locked eyes with Roger. He wasn’t sure how to react. If anyone else broke into his business, he’d yell at them and chase them out. He did not want to do that to an Escaron. In particular, he didn’t want to do that to Roger. After all, Roger was the one with the adventurer’s pass.

Zoey didn’t possess the same reservations. “There’s a reason we keep that door locked. Come back during business hours.”

Roger fixed his eyes on her. It wasn’t a typical stare. It was intense…like he wanted to see through her soul. It reminded Zoey of movies. To be specific, it reminded her of the part in a film when the heart throb looks at the awkward girl. Then said girl melts under his gaze. In other words, he was trying to impress Zoey. She was sure of that.

The problem was that Roger was no heart throb. He was the opposite of a heart throb. What is the opposite of a heart throb? Zoey wondered. After considering the answer to her question, she decided. Roger is a heart arrhythmia. She wasn’t sure if that made sense as an opposite. But the point was that she didn’t like Roger. His presence bothered her.

To make things worse, he said. “I’m not here for pizza. I’m here for you.”

“Gross,” she told him.

He blinked a few times, unsure how to respond. Then he composed himself. “It’s…last night…with the competition….we didn’t get to talk. I’d like to get to know you better.”

“I live here. You understand that?” She asked.

“Ye…”

“It was a rhetorical question.” She told him. “You don’t need to answer it. I know you know that I live here. That’s what makes it creepy. Breaking into someone’s home makes you creepy… I’m not impressed. Go away. If you want pizza, come back during business hours. Thank you. Have a nice day.”

“Yes, well…I was hoping we could go for a walk along the beach.” He explained. “Get to know each other better.”

“I was hoping you’d go away.” She told him. “It looks like we are both disappointed.”

“Listen…” This word came out forceful. Zoey wondered if Roger was beginning to lose his temper. Even so, he calmed himself before continuing. “Any woman in Greenlake would feel thrilled to be on my arm. You should take this chance while you have it.”

“I’ll risk it going away.” She answered. “Now, will you go away?”

As the conversation progressed, Zoey noticed how Mod became more and more stressed. She knew how he didn’t want to offend the Escaron family. Even so, he needed to stand up for himself. Since he couldn’t do that. She would. Mod could cede to Roger, allowing him to break into the pizzeria. Or Mod could side with Zoey and risk alienating himself from the Escaron family. At the time, she was making the choice for him. Though she’d talk to him later. If he wanted her to apologize for his sake, she would.

“Okay, it is obvious I caught you at a bad time,” Roger said. “We can continue this conversation later. Farewell, my lady.”

“Go away,” She answered.

Roger glared, then recomposed himself…and lost that composure. He finished by mumbling something resembling words. Then he hurried from the restaurant. Once he left, Zoey turned back to Mod.

Before she could apologize, Mod told her, “that was awesome.”

* * *

For the second night of Harvestfest, Pete and Zoey used the same vampire costumes from the previous night. As the pair searched for spirits, they noticed a blue glow in the distance. When they saw it, they hurried in its direction. As they sped-walked, it illuminated the branches, creating reaching shadows that stretched as if trying to grasp at the pair of pizza delivery workers. The surrealness of it created a strange dissonance.

“It’s like being in a slasher movie,” Pete observed.

“Are you scared?” Zoey asked.

After considering the question, he answered. “No, if some slasher villain attacks us, I’ll slap him.”

“Do you think you can slap your way out of everything?” She asked.

“I am a pizzaman.” He replied. “It’s what I do.”

“Fair point,” she said as they reached the branches. “Think we should push through these? Or do you think it’ll be quicker to go around?”

“It doesn’t look too thick.” He said. “It’ll be better to push through.”

“Right,” She opened her status menu, equipping her peel-shield hybrid. Once she equipped it, it materialized in her hand. “Let’s push through then. Stay close behind me.” With that, she positioned the shield in front of herself and began to push into the vegetation.

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Pete remained close behind her, tucked down so none of the branches would whip back and smack him in the face. Even so, he wanted to respect her space, so he didn’t get too close.

“You can get closer,” she told him. “I don’t want you to get whipped.

“Right,” he agreed. Yet, he continued to maintain a healthy space.

After thirty seconds of pushing through the vegetation, they emerged on the other side. There they discovered the source of the glow, a well-used fishing hole. The spirits of fish and some worms filled the space beneath the surface. Though, some fish spirits swam through the air inches above the earth and water. Others swam through the grass and earth itself. Their glow illuminated the grass with a celestial opalescence.

Unlike the tomato plant and insect spirits they’d encountered, the fish spirits remained unimpressed by Pete and Zoey’s presence. This made it easy for Pete and Zoey to capture the spirits in their orbs until they ran out of orbs.

“We’ll need to return to the Trash Panda hideout for more orbs.” Pete realized.

“I hate to admit it,” Zoey said. “But you’re right. Let’s hurry back before someone else finds this spot, though.”

“Right,” Pete agreed.

* * *

A rectangular stone doorway stood on the east edge of the forest. Instead of a door, an opaque blanket of colors filled the frame. They shifted like food coloring in water, creating neon waves of gold, crimson, cerulean, jade, silver, and tangerine. None of the colors overwhelmed any of the others.

In front of the doorway, stood Nick. For Harvestfest, he’d dressed as a sailor, wearing a white sailor’s hat. He wore the costume’s white pants and button-up shirt tight over his armor. It was so tight it appeared the buttons might burst apart. Any passerby could see the form of the armor beneath the costume.

Next to Nick stood the mayor. For Harvestfest, she had added a winged helmet to her rainbow armor. The helmet wasn’t metal, and it would do little to protect her. But she cared more about the appearance. She’d spray-painted the headgear with iridescent paint that changed color depending on how the light hit it. She’d hired Tay—the town’s seamstress and leatherworker—to fashion a sparkling red cape. “Is that what I think it is?” The mayor asked, looking at the doorway.

“It is.” Nick nodded, pushing his hand against what appeared to be liquid between the frame. Even so, it felt like solid brick under his touch. Without an adventurer pass, he knew he wasn’t getting through the portal.

“How long do you think it’s been here?” She asked.

An answer came, but not from Nick. Instead, it came from behind the pair. “About a week.”

Nick removed his hand from the portal, and he and the mayor turned toward the source of the voice.

Rumpke walked toward them. “We noticed it about a week back. It sounds like you both know what it is?”

“You knew about this?” the mayor asked.

“We did,” Rumpke said.

“You didn’t think it was important to share this information?” Nick growled.

“We don’t know what it is, so we didn’t know it was important enough to tell anyone about it,” Rumpke replied before asking. “You do know what it is?”

“It’s a dungeon portal.” The mayor answered. “There’s never been a dungeon in Greenlake before. Once word about this gets out…”

“…once word gets out, adventurers will overrun Greenlake.” Nick finished her sentence.

“Is that good or bad?” Rumpke asked.

“Both,” the mayor told him. “It’s good because the influx of people will improve the local economy. Wanda is going to make a killing selling to adventurers.”

“It’s bad because we don’t have the infrastructure to support all the adventurers. They won’t have anywhere to sleep; we don’t have enough food for them all.” Nick said. “Also, the Moderators like to keep an eye on their dungeons. It’s best to avoid any extra attention from them.”

“Roger is an adventurer,” Rumpke observed. “Can you send him to open the chests before other adventurers discover the dungeon? It would keep the riches from the dungeon within the town.”

“In the end, the Escarons would horde the money like they always do.” Nick used his thumb and pointer finger to stroke his mustache, considering how to proceed. Then he lowered his hand and said. “The benefit of having adventurers here outweighs the risk of repercussions from the Moderators. Though, we’ll need to make sure everyone is following the rules. This applies extra to a certain pizzaman.”

“Rumpke,” the mayor added. “I’ll travel to Futuretown tomorrow and register the dungeon with the Adventurer’s Society. That way, they can assign guards. In the meantime, can you station some Trash Panda’s here? Have them ensure no one tries to get in without an adventurer’s pass?”

“I can do that.” Rumpke agreed.

“Make sure they are strong,” Nick advised. “Monsters and undead are free to wander in and out of the dungeons. We don’t want anything coming out and causing trouble to the town. If your Trash Panda guards kill anything, they can loot it and say they’re doing their jobs as bandits.”

“I’ll assign individuals capable of keeping us all safe,” Rumpke said.

“Thank you,” Nick said. “I appreciate your cooperation with this.”

* * *

For Harvestfest, the triplets had told their parents they wanted to be raiderballers. And their parents agreed to the costumes. But like the caring parents they were, they made sure the costumes served a practical purpose. They did this by buying authentic raiderball shoulder pads. The triplets wore said pads on the outside of their t-shirts. Hope and Tornado used midfielder pads which covered only the shoulders. Skye used a defender’s pad which covered his chest and upper back as well as the shoulders. Authentic pads provided authentic protection for Harvestfest soul capturing.

Tornado sped down the shoreline, his tiny wings beating with a frantic ferocity as he chased after one of the insect spirits. Ahead of him, it zigzagged, its trajectory carrying it over the lake and back over the land.

“Careful,” Hope shouted, following behind. “Mom and Dad don’t like us flying over the water. What if you fall in? Remember?”

“Oh, right,” Tornado shouted back. From there, he adjusted his course to go straight, keeping over the land. This worked to his benefit. It allowed him to overtake the zigzagging insect, trapping it in one of the orbs.

“You have to remember to stay careful.” Hope reminded her brother as she stopped to hover next to him. “You won’t always have someone here to remind you to stay safe.”

“I’m sorry.” Tornado hung his head.

“Seven, eight, nine, ten,” Skye shouted from the nearby beach, counting each insect he trapped with his orbchakus.”

As Tornado and Hope returned to their brother, Hope continued to reprimand him. He continued to apologize. This cycle broke when Skye yelled, “watch out,” and sped toward his siblings.

Upon seeing this, Hope and Tornado turned their attention to their surroundings. Tornado noticed a saurian as it shot out from the lake waters, snapping its jaws toward Hope. The small crocodilian humanoids called saurians were common in Greenlake. Though, the species native to Greenlake was of the miniature variety. The species that attacked Hope was something else. It was bigger and had stripes across its back.

As the creature leaped from the water, Skye zipped to his sister’s defense. He swung his orbchaku into the underside of the animal’s jaw. It didn’t do much damage, but it was enough to knock the creature offline, causing it to miss Hope.

The thing reoriented, standing on its hind legs. At full height, it was taller than the pixies. But not by much. In terms of body mass, it outweighed them by a large margin. All three wondered how the new species of saurian had gotten into the lake, but none of the three had time to ask the question aloud. Instead, they needed to focus on defending themselves.

“Tsunami!” Tornado lifted his hands, and the lake’s tide responded. It rose, slamming into the saurian, knocking it off its feet.

Skye took the opportunity to swoop in and hit the saurian on the head with his orbchakus two more times. As it turned to counter him, he darted away. But not before one of the scales on the beast’s head scratched his leg, causing him to cry out in pain.

“Hang on,” Hope hurried over to him, pointing her palm toward the cut. A flow of green light slithered from her hand and into the wound. A few seconds later, the light faded, and the injury had healed in full.

“Thanks,” Skye said. “Watch out!”

The saurian charged toward Skye and Hope, lunging and chomping.

“Tornado!” Tornado shouted, catching the thing in a spell that created a spiraling gust. The wind lifted the creature, throwing it back into the lake.

From the water, it considered the pixies. Ultimately, it decided they weren’t worth the trouble before retreating into the depths.

“We should move toward the plaza.” Hope suggested. “It has insects, too, and it will be safer for us.”

* * *

Rosie, Cedric, and Ragoon used their small stature and agility to their advantage. They did so by climbing into the treetops and scouting for spirit-heavy areas. Once they’d located a spirit, they’d use the same treetops to move, hopping from branch to branch. Then they’d arrive posthaste at the spirit-heavy location. They’d clear out the spot, and they’d repeat the process.

To help them win the contest, they’d decided to forgo costumes. They didn’t want anything to slow them down during the competition.

From the tall branches, Ragoon looked for a new location. “Spirits are beginning to thin out. By the end of tomorrow night, there won’t be any left.”

“We’ll have to get creative,” Cedric said. “We should have to begin searching caves.”

Ragoon shook his head in disagreement. “If we wander around random caves, our spirits might be in orbs this time next year. Winning isn’t worth our lives. Though, we do need to get creative if we want to win.”

“We have to win.” Rosie said. Her voice broke with uncertainty. “There’s no other option.

“We could move deeper up the Forest Mountain,” Cedric suggested.

“That might work.” Ragoon agreed. “If we go too deep, we’ll come across nm’s, so we must be careful.”

“Guys, what’s that?” Rosie pointed below them.

Ragoon and Cedric cast their eyes downward.

Below them—no more than five feet beneath their feet—the spirit of the Turkey Titan’s enormous head stared back. It gobbled once, cocking its head with a curious stare. After two seconds of silence, it shrieked a battle cry and hopped up, snapping at them with its beak.

The trio of trash pandas jumped up a few branches. “Let’s get out of here,” Ragoon shouted as the trio began to flee through the treetops.