New Midian

A blue box appeared in my vision.

I strangely missed them, but they still nagged at me that I was missing something. I got to reading.

"Who the hell is the 'we' part?"

There has been no answer, which is no surprise. I think I would have been more shocked if I had gotten an answer. I have to get to work.

I looked at the list of perks and read it down. Most were the same as the first time, and I was going to take crypts until I spotted something more needed and newly added to the list.

"Damn it! I need this more than crypts right now."

I selected this perk, and suddenly, everything went dark.

…..

With a flash, my sight returned, and I was in the church again, but it was different.

The walls were better constructed, not as simple, and used better-quality materials. The wooden benches were smoother and more polished. The altar was more ornate, and I spotted two parallel doors on either side of the church. I wanted to investigate them, but I had more pressing concerns, like not ignoring the body at the altar's base for the moment. He was still there, and what little blood was left in his body had pooled around him on the better-quality floor stone slabs.

I moved outside and up to the top of the bubble. The Dungeon had increased in size, along with everything in it. A quarter of a mile did not sound like much, but it added up. The pathways were longer and more elaborate, with more mausoleums, gravestones, and trees. The rain stopped, and the cloud cover broke, showing me that dawn had just arrived. The wagons were still outside, meaning things were about to get hectic, and several hours had passed. I moved to the gates.

I pulled up Rigger's sheet.

Two things were different. The first was the stealth skill, which was coloured gold in the skills section, but the second was his picture. It had changed, and not for the better. His weather-beaten skin was now a pale, unhealthy grey.

I wondered wh…

Sounds of name-calling and dismay could be heard from the wagons as the adults now knew the teenagers were missing.

"Shit! Things are about to start to happen!"

I moved closer to the gates to hear better and watched the group. The men quickly found the trail of the two teenagers entering the gates by following the muddy footprints that the rain had not washed away. It had not been that hard. Their conversations told me they feared the worst.

The two men and the two older boys armed themselves. They walked to the gates and opened them, and the four of them walked in. This left the women and girls, who were being guarded by the youngest boy, who was around eight years old. The women were also armed now. Fear and concern were on all the faces of the ones left behind.

"How many bloody guns do they have?"

Even being America during this time, I felt this was excessive.

The four entered and ignored the plinth. The father of the boys sent one with the other man. The cobblestones offered no tracks to follow. Two went north, and two went south. I knew what was about to happen.

[Alert! Intruders are not recognised as Challengers.]

"Here we go." I reached out and connected to Rigger. "Two males heading north and two south. Armed with shotguns, no pistols or knives that I can see."

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I sensed he was out of his lair and on the move. The day was still young, and the walls kept most of the Dungeon in darkness. He would need to move quickly before the sun got too high, and he would lose that advantage. The numbers game was firmly against him.

I looked closer at their weapons and noted that they were all double-barrel shotguns, not repeating or single-shot rifles. This was a mixed blessing, as I did not know the type of ammunition, but they were slower to reload. If they were buckshot, then Rigger would have a bigger problem than if they were solid rounds.

Hold on, if he were hit with any of it, there would be problems.

Rigger had angled south, aiming to take out the pair there first. I watched him move with ease through the expanded Dungeon terrain. He was using it to his advantage to conceal his approach to them. His blade was out, and he had his gun belt on with his Colt holstered.

I did not speak and let him do his work. Distractions right now could be his death.

The pair was ahead of him, and he slowed down, moving more quietly. The two ahead were calling out the names of the missing teenagers. His angle told me he would take the man first, as he was the more dangerous in his eyes. I had to agree with this strategy.

They were too focused on looking ahead and calling out that they did not sense the danger until it was too late. Rigger grabbed the man from behind, covering his mouth and pulling back to expose his throat. His knife opened it up with a jet of blood. The man collapsed, clutching his wounded neck as Rigger let him go.

The boy screamed in terror, discharging his gun into the air and pissing himself as he watched his father die before him. Rigger went at him, causing the teenager to trip and fall backwards, trying to escape the monster in front of him. He can't be any older than thirteen. Rigger grabbed his hair and thrust his blade upward into his neck, into his brain.

[A Hunter has made a Kill.]

The father was forced to watch the death of his son as he tried to hold his throat together. An animalist cry came from him, but his wound was too deep, and he was losing too much blood.

[A Hunter has made a Kill.]

Looking north, I picked out the other pair. The sound of the shotgun going off had alerted the other two, who were moving southward and calling out to the first two.

"The other two are coming south, fast. They are cutting through the graves. They will be at the church soon."

Rigger did not answer with words, but with actions. He turned and began moving in the gloom, using the terrain again to hide his movements. He was heading more westward to avoid running straight into them.

Shit! Henry's body is being stored in the church!

I shift to the church. I noticed the two side annexes that it now had. That must be where the doors lead.

Focus!

The pair was soon to arrive, and Rigger was making good progress toward them. Would they investigate the church or move on? If they did, it would give Rigger time to find a good ambush spot. How could I influence this?

I opened one of the doors, which gave a good view of the room and the body in front of the altar. The sun would soon be high enough to shine past the wall and illuminate the room better.

They reached the church. They were moving fast and breathing harder because of it. They were trying to figure out where the shot had come from. They stopped at the church, and the last son, a teenager of about fifteen, was looking around. The man, who was Susan's father, looked into the church.

The room was still mostly dark, but light shone through the windows. It was enough to see the body, but not make much more out of it. He called out and advanced into the room, followed by the teenager. The youth rushed forward past him to check on his brother, whom he had recognised.

This took both of them into the room, giving Rigger the opportunity I had hoped for. He was aware of their location and was positioning himself. He had crouched down and hugged the church wall as he moved to the doors, preventing the two inside from seeing him or his shadow through the glass. Inside, the boy was breaking down over his brother's death, and Susan's father was beginning to panic, calling out for his daughter.

The teenager was trying to lift the body, and the man was heading back to the door. He told him he could not help because he needed to find his daughter. What he found was Rigger waiting next to the door. His knife was buried in his gut as he walked out, and Rigger hit him with a reverse grip side strike. He cried in pain and fell forward, with Rigger expecting it, guiding the body to the ground while pulling the knife free.

The teenager was panicking and dropped his brother's body. Rigger moved to finish him as the boy scrambled back for his shotgun that he had left behind. Rigger crossed the distance fast, but to my surprise, the boy was faster.

He twisted and fired the gun off. The shot was wild, but he struck my Hunter. Rigger was caught on his left side just below his ribs. It was not a full-body strike but a nasty wound, regardless. He howled in pain and was spun by the impact, blood spraying from the impact point. He hit the ground hard, dropping his knife, which scattered away.

The boy's face was covered in tears and shock from what was happening around him. He was very pale and shaking from his emotions and adrenaline. The wound he inflicted was dangerous for any man, but as Rigger was my Hunter and at Level 2, I discovered he was a bit tougher than a normal man.

His anger and pain brought him back to his feet, and he leapt onto the boy. His hand wrapped around the boy's neck and squeezed. The boy panicked and hit out at Rigger with all he had, but to no avail; he was not strong enough.

I watched dispassionately as he choked the life from the youth.

[A Hunter has made a Kill.]

Rigger stood and, with great pain, recovered his blade and went to the door to finish the last one. I noted he was losing a lot of blood and was less steady on his feet. This was bad.

[A Hunter has made a Kill.]

He finished off the last man and began heading to his lair. He was now staggering more with every step. He was not going to make it. The distance was just too great. I had to do something. But what?

I almost mentally kicked myself and triggered my avatar form.

I caught him, took his weight and helped him towards his lair.

"Thank ya." He muttered.

"All part of the service." I quipped. He just grunted in response.

The first few steps were easy, but each one that followed became increasingly difficult. The stress of taking form and nearly carrying Rigger to his lair was taxing me like nothing I had done yet. By the fifteenth step, it was becoming pure agony.

I was losing focus. That was bad.

I focused more on holding my form and walking.

I got five more before my form vanished, causing Rigger to fall forward on the steps of his lair. He had left a door open in his rush and pulled himself inside with great effort. I am thankful that I cannot see inside and find out what he has been getting up to in there. He closed the door with his booted foot and…

[Hunter: John Rigger will be healed in 30:00:00.]

I was too exhausted to move.

According to the countdown, it took me ten minutes to slowly shift to the gates. It may take another ten minutes before I get there.

The women were fearful, and the other children were crying. They had heard the two shots and knew trouble was abroad. The fact that none of the four had returned told them what they needed to know.

When I looked them over, one thing stood out to me. The last boy, about eight years old, was calm and focused, staring at the gates. He was not acting like I expected, which intrigued me.

"What are you thinking, boy?"

I wondered aloud. I knew he could not hear me, and it was for my own benefit. As I watched him, the mothers had come to a decision and gathered up the remaining children. They attached the horses to the wagon and began manoeuvring them back out of the clearing to the track leading them to Crossway.

The boy protested but ultimately submitted to them. As they left, I saw him glaring from the back of the second wagon. I couldn't tell if he was being defiant or brave.

I felt this needed something to make it a more memorable ending. I smiled to myself, knowing what I needed to do. I had enough strength to do it.

The boy's glare turned to shock and fear as I closed the gates with not a soul present.

I laughed at his reaction even as it exhausted me again.

I was in no condition to do anything for some time, and neither was Rigger. At a snail's pace, I moved to the top of the bubble and looked out across the local area. I could make out the wagons travelling towards Crossway. I spent the rest of the day watching them. The muddy conditions slowed them, and fording the swollen waterway, which was now filled with rainwater, slowed them even more. However, in the end, they crossed the rise and left my sight.

The sun was almost gone, and night was soon upon the world.

I settled in and waited, slowly recovering.

Light rain began soon after, and I watched the flash of lightning in the distance.

[Alert! Infamy (Local) changed from Unknown > Whispers.]

"I should have expected that."

The fact that the last survivors of the two families had reached civilisation meant that they would start telling the local population of my existence. But would they be believed?

I looked down at Rigger's countdown.

"Nothing to be done right now."

The night passed, and the day dragged on. I saw some traffic along the track and noted a group of horsemen come over the rise from Crossway. Rigger's countdown hit zero, and he emerged shortly after. He was not wearing his jacket, his shirt was missing a section, and he was drenched in blood. He was carrying his shovel.

I watched him get to work, burying the bodies of the four he killed. I had the opportunity to look at the new two-sided buildings attached to the Church. They were just empty rooms, and I was a bit disappointed. I got Rigger to move all the guns and ammunition into one, and what wealth I had gathered into the other. The mausoleum to the north still stored everything else.

"Activate [Hide the Crime!]"

I watched as the blood stains around the church faded away, not completely, but they were significantly reduced.

"Another few activations of the perk, and they will be gone."

The night would soon be here again, and Rigger was finishing his tasks. He had taken a shirt from one of the dead and was heading back to his lair. I looked over the graves. They all sported names and dates now, and I knew which name I wanted to learn.

"Rochester." That was the name of Susan and her father. It was also the surname of the boy who glared at my gates until I scared the living shit out of him. Something about that boy stuck with me for an unknown reason.

I moved back to the top of the bubble.

"I wonder what it was?" I couldn't name it, and I had time to ponder it, as I had plenty of time to spare.

I looked out across the world and… what's that?

The group of horse riders was coming up the track towards the Dungeon. There were six in total, all men, and all appeared armed.

"Shit! They must have been believed." This was getting ridiculous. Another group so quickly! I connected to Rigger.

"Six men are approaching on horseback, and all are armed."

I felt weariness and frustration, and I could not blame him. I did not expect things to move this quickly. I looked them over as they approached, and I saw them better.

"Right, six armed men. Three outdoors types, two rugged types and… one who looks like an office clerk?"

The last was not one I expected, but the others were. He was dressed in several layers, like the others, but he wore a hat similar to a bowler's and had glasses on. His clothes were made of tweed, not leather or hide, like the others.

The men rode up the track and reached the gates, but they stopped, clearly confused. They did not expect the gates or what they could see beyond them. They dismounted and spoke among themselves. Occasionally glancing towards the gates.

"Let's see what they are going to do."