Cultivating Talents [LitRPG Mana-cultivation]

The call of Dump Crows scratched against Zion's ears as he processed what the short boy had just said. Was he being offered something here, a chance—by Lincoln, of all people? His fingers dug into the mud wall, propping himself up. A cool breeze brushed against his cheek as he steadied himself.

What did he really have to lose? Zion's eyes shifted to Lincoln. The taller boy held a playful smile on his lips as his eyes ran over Zion. It made Zion shiver, wishing the wall wasn't there. If he said no, a beating would probably follow. But if he agreed.

Lincoln raised a fist, coughing into it and raising an eyebrow at the shorter boy. "Aren't you forgetting something, Griffen?"

The shorter boy—Griffen—tilted his head to the side, confusion washing over his features.

"Oh, don't tell me you've forgotten what we just talked about?"

Griffen perked up and reached behind himself, pulling out a partially chewed loaf of bread. Where had he even gotten that from? Zion's eyes skimmed over the bread as he wet his dried, cracked lips. He wanted it. He wanted it bad.

"If you join us, this and much more can be yours. You just have to do what you are told."

Zion gulped, his eyes glued to the bread. Did he have much of a choice here?

—- —- —- —-

Rotting wood crunched beneath Hector's sandals as he walked down the side streets of the Sirius Quarter. Mirae and Jodie followed a few steps behind, both wearing wooden masks and cloaks that covered their forms. The sweet acrid scent of garbage and rot coated his tongue. Beggars' cans clattered against the cobblestone as they hollered and leaned against rotting walls.

The slums seemed unchanged since he'd left—though to say not at all would be a lie. There was an edge in the air; it prickled against his skin. It was in the shift in the eyes of the passersby, the noticeable hustle in their steps as they went about their business, and most of all, the increased number of men, rough-looking individuals, eyeing anyone they thought lingered too long.

Hector adjusted his mask, narrowing his eyes. As they walked past an alley, a body lay strewn on the ground, just near the entrance. Were they dead? It was possible. But the way everyone was acting, Hector would have thought it was a perfectly normal sight. The slums were bad, but if they were dead, the street cleaners would have at least picked them up by now.

"Seems the rumours might be true," Jodie muttered.

Hector lowered his head and turned to the side, glancing at Jodie from the corner of his eye. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know if it's because of what you did." Jodie reached up and adjusted her mask a little. "But from what I heard the other day, while doing some shopping, the Collar Gang is targeting the Scoda gang. Word is they target them when they are alone and put them down in the street. Then they pay off the street cleaners to leave the body there for a day or so. They want to send a message."

"Really?" Hector's gaze ran over the body as his warm breath, obstructed by the mask, blew slightly into his eyes. "Seems like we aren't the only ones being hunted."

"Seems like it."

As they continued walking, they came across a few more bodies, with everyone passing by acting in the manner Hector had seen a dozen times by now. If the Collar Gang were indeed sending a message, it was working.

Luckily, they made it to Pippa's house before too long. Hector couldn't see Mirae's face, but the way her body shook said enough. Even if they weren't being hunted, the slums were getting chaotic. In a way, it was a good thing that they'd left.

"Is this it?"

Mirae nodded, stepping forward and placing a hand on the rough wood of the fence gate. Her hand fell away, and she turned towards Hector, the worry in her eyes clear as day as she wrung her hands. What did she have to be nervous about?

"Are you all right, Mirae?" Hector asked, raising a hand and resting it on her shoulder.

"I'm sure she is," Jodie said, giving Mirae a firm nod. She shifted beneath her cloak, turning to the side and looking across the road before glancing back at Mirae. "She's just trying to figure out how to explain everything to her friend."

"Is that right, Mirae?" Hector asked.

His sister nodded slowly, a strand of white hair falling loose from underneath the cloak's hood. Hector tucked it back in and tapped his sister on the shoulder. He turned towards the fence. It had been a while. What would they say?

As he went to speak, a sharp scream cut through the air. The sound coming from behind the fence. Hector's eyes snapped to Mirae. And for an instant, her look told him everything he needed to know.

Slamming his shoulder into the gate, Hector burst through. His eyes went wide. Pippa's front door was off its hinges, lying smashed in splintered chunks against the kitchen stone. Hector made out two black-robed men standing in the room. One held a woman by the throat, while Pippa scrambled away from the other.

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Static snaked through the air as a field of it emanated from Hector in a bubble. He pulled at the back of his mind, activating the [Volt Runner] Talent. Energy from the Talent surged down his legs, and with a buzz, he zipped into the room.

Hector leapt off the floor as the man turned and slammed his knee forward. With a thud, he launched the man backward, cracking into the wall, static buzzing from his side. Hector turned to the other, and surprise surged through his chest. Lying unconscious on the floor, a short distance away from Pippa, was Harry.

Before Hector could fully process what was going on, a black tentacle shot free from the man who had been standing over Pippa. It sliced through the air, cutting towards Hector's chest. Jerking to the side, a wave of air rippled against Hector's cloak. He darted forward, slamming his fist into the man.

Blocked. Not that he even needed to land a clean hit; he just needed to build static. Ducking under the man's counter, he slammed his fist forward again. His fist slammed into a dense, squirming mass, and he dashed back, dodging out of the way of a wild tentacle swing.

Why were these guys here? Pippa had nothing to do with the Farmhands. But were these guys even Farmhands?

Hector ducked beneath another tentacle, dodging to the side. Jodie burst into the room. In an instant, the girl shot forward, throwing several wild punches at the hooded figure. He ducked out of the way of most, using the tentacle to block others. But as he took a step back, Jodie lashed out, slashing claws that had sprouted out of her nails across the man's face.

Letting out a yell of pain, the man stumbled back. She'd gotten him. Hector darted forward. Ducking under a whipping tentacle, Hector pulled on the static he'd built up on the man. He erupted into fits as static coursed through him, and with a heavy thud, Hector's foot slammed straight into the man's chest. The wood of the door cracked, then exploded as Hector launched the man through it, slamming onto the floor with a bounce and coming to a stop a few feet in the hallway.

Hector dropped to his feet, the ends of his cloak waving. Raising a hand, he adjusted his mask. And as he lowered his arm, his instincts screamed at him. He jerked his arms up and turned to the side. With a thud, a black tentacle slammed into him, taking him off his feet. He shot through the air and smacked into a far wall, shattering a shelf against his back.

The man he'd knocked out first was back on his feet, darting towards Jodie. She dodged his first jab, but he snaked around her counter, twisted and arced his foot into her gut. With a grunt, Jodie slammed against the wall. Even as she dropped and staggered to her feet, the cloaked man had ducked into the hallway.

Spice burned at Hector's eyes as he pushed off the now crushed remains of a spice rack, moved past Harry and Pippa. He spared Jodie a glance before ducking into the ageing hallway. Down it, the two figures ran, smashing through the door at the back. Should he give chase?

I can't. If I leave, I don't know where they will lead me. It could be a trap. I would also put the others at risk if more of them are around.

Jodie yelled from behind, back in the kitchen. Hector huffed and turned, stepping back into the room and meeting the girl's eyes. She cringed back slightly as the static field washed over her. Hector retracted it. Holding her stomach, Jodie dropped to one knee. "Fire!" she said, pointing behind him.

Hector turned. To the side of the room, a few feet from the woman—who was no doubt Pippa's mother—lay in a daze as flames grew. During the scuffle, someone must have knocked the lamp over, sending the oil and flame spilling across the rotting floor. He had to get them out of here now.

Flames licked hungrily at the dry wood, black smoke billowing upwards. Static crackled down Hector's legs, humming across his feet.

"Can you walk?" Hector asked, turning back to Jodie.

The girl nodded and stood.

"Good. You grab Pippa," Hector said, zipping over to Harry's unconscious form. Black veins ran up the boy's neck, some of them snaking onto his face. What had happened to him? "We need to make this quick, Jodie."

Pippa's mother sobbed, frozen in place as the fire spread across the rotting floorboards with unnatural speed. The oil was doing its job well, maybe a little too well. Hector put that thought to the back of his mind.

He hoisted Harry over his shoulder, the boy's weight barely registering with him because of his Gravity Forging-Two cultivation. The static crackling at his feet intensified as he shifted a little.

"I'm sorry, miss, but we have to leave right now," Hector said, extending his free hand toward Pippa's mother. The woman's eyes were wide with terror, fixed on the growing wall of flames.

In a way, Hector understood. She was watching everything she knew and cared about go up in smoke. But he didn't have time to wait. If they stayed too long, they'd be burnt to a crisp along with the house.

Reaching forward, Hector grabbed Pippa's mother by the hand. She didn't even put up much of a resistance as he dragged her along. Is this what he should have done with Marcus's father? No. There was no reason to think about that now.

As they stepped through the back door, Mirae stood by the entrance, her eyes wide with worry. She rushed over, taking Pippa's mother's hand from Hector and guiding her towards the fence gate. The three of them then stepped out onto the street as the house went up in flames.

"It's gone, all of it." Just in front of Jodie, Pippa's arms hung at her side as she stared on at the blaze. Her eyes didn't move. She didn't blink. She just watched as her world burned before her.

Passersby rushed over, many of them pointing and gasping as the flames continued to roar. Tearing at the structure, causing slabs of wood to slam into their charred counterparts, the flames eating away at the building.

"What are we going to do now?" Pippa's mother muttered shakily, walking over and wrapping her arms around her daughter. Tears poured down her cheeks as her mouth slowly opened and closed.

Hector turned to Jodie, holding her blue gaze as his mind processed everything that was going on. Why were those men there? Were they Farmhands? What was Harry doing here? And what would Pippa and her mother do now?

Lying at Hector's feet, Harry groaned. The boy then turned to his side, pushing off the ground and sitting up. "What happened?" he asked, rubbing at his eyes, only to freeze as he saw the sight. "By the Great Lake, what happened?"

"That's what I'm trying to figure out," Hector said, glancing down at Harry.

A group of men with buckets thundered past, barging through the gate and throwing water into the flames. It would take them a while, as long as they kept up the pace. They'd have it under control, not that there was much to save.

"Who are you?" Harry said, scrabbling back on the cobblestones.

Harry's voice must have caught their attention as Pippa and the others looked over at the boy. Pippa spoke first. "It's fine, we know them. Isn't that right?"

Mirae nodded at her, and a weak smile came to Pippa's lips. She then turned back to Harry. "What I really want to know is why those people are after you—because they didn't show up until you started freaking out?" she said, raising her voice a little at the end.

"Freaking out?" Hector asked.