Nora stood in the empty space between the berm of Tombstone and the edge of the forest. The shadows whisked around her like fog in the wind. The last of the sunlight had just faded and her eyes were glued to the treeline.
She looked deep into the forest and saw the smoke start to rise from the ground. Without her ability to see in the dark it would be impossible to distinguish it from the black of the night.
It slowly rose from the ground in random spots among the trees, then began to take shape. Legs and claws started to shoot out of the smoke and pull their bodies out from the soil. She could recognise one or two of them, but some were too bizarre to figure out.
Nora stood there with her arms crossed. After seeing that the skeletons were being created she had a suspicion that the same might be true for the other creatures.
One came from the mines, these came from the ground, others could fall from the sky for all she knew.
One of her shadows appeared behind her and bent a knee. She never asked them to do this yet they kept doing it. The more they played around with their abilities to sneak around the more they really got into the role.
"Reporting."
The woman said with her head bowed.
Nora didn't understand why she was doing this but just went along with it, like she did with many things that didn't make sense.
"Speak."
She replied in the same style.
"We could only go so far west before being stopped. Every time we took a step we found ourselves turned back around. We couldn't go any farther."
Suddenly there was another shadow next to her, kneeling as well.
"The situation to the east is tense. We're ready to assist when instructed but time is limited."
The shadows seemed to stir and a large man who seemed out of place among the slender bodies of the legion was kneeling behind the first two.
"The north is similar to the west, only a mile distant past the town."
Nora nodded her head as she listened to them, painting a picture of their surroundings. She pushed the shadows to move in all directions to try to find others since they were the only ones safe at night.
Elli spoke about the possibility that they were trapped in this area but now it was confirmed.
The last shadow appeared kneeling next to the big man and spoke.
"Signs of humans to the south as well, past the castle, close proximity to each other. Three groups which seem to be cooperating and friendly."
"Good job. Keep searching."
Nora said and waved her hand, the shadows disappeared into the night from which they came. Expect for the largest man, who Nora could see running away in the distance, trying his best to be sneaky. She looked down and shook her head.
Why don't they just say goodbye like normal people?
—
During the night the people of Tombstone abandoned all projects and huddled in their encampment, unsure of what a night in the open would bring. At best they were right and the creatures of the forests wouldn't make their way here and at worst, well they'd fight their way back to the warehouse or die trying.
Their makeshift barrier that surrounded them was turning into a makeshift wall quickly, giving them a sense of safety.
Lucky for everyone the town remained safe, but that didn't stop everyone from staying on guard. It was only when the daylight broke that they could sigh a breath of relief.
Until they realised they'd have to start work and training again on very little sleep.
The workers continued cutting down and hauling trees, repairing the living quarters and creating the town.
The warriors of platoon 2 got back to their training, running drills and sparing against each other and the skeletons. It was hard training but they were motivated to keep going.
Mainly because they didn't have to do whatever the Wardens were having to do.
The screams could be heard from just outside the town, past the warehouse and over the berm. Li was standing on top of it yelling, cracking the whip she stole from Kai. Every few seconds a Warden would appear on top with a log twice their size across their shoulder. They'd drop it, do some sit ups or push ups until Li kicked the log down the hill and the Waden would chase it.
This was their morning warm up. The warriors of platoon 2 averted their eyes and continued with their basic thrusts and blocks, feeling ashamed of working up a sweat.
Elli and Skye were packing their bags with supplies, getting ready to head back to the fort with Claire and a team of workers to drag more equipment.
Claire was more or less healed, some bits of her were still bruised but she could walk on her own now.
They slung their packs across their backs and grabbed sleds of their own, two workers per sled pulled the others, and they waved farewell to their new town. One of the two master builders came with the last set of workers and had grand plans.
The first Wardens that came with them were happy to be returning rather than having to do that training. They knew it would be them next week, but for now they were happy to be going home. They also grabbed a sled each and started to pull.
They couldn't wait to see what it looked like when they returned.
The road was already coming along quickly for the most part, the trees were cut down in a single path and laid out as markers for the road. The soil was being compacted and flattened. It didn't go very far, but both sides should be working to meet in the middle.
Once they ran out of road the pulling got harder but they made good time. It took several hours until they met the workers who were building the road from the fort.
They wiped the sweat from their foreheads with dirty hands and waved to the tree Marked, running up and offering to help with the supplies.
"No no, we got this, you guys have an important job here, keep up the good work."
Elli replied and shook their hands. She was a born politician, except she actually pulled her own weight and led by example.
They had only been away for a few days at this point but the transformation was huge. The shovels and axes brought back lead to an explosion of productivity. Nails and hammers, hand saws and chisels. Claire and her big sword were no longer the only means of getting things done.
Skye inhaled with shock as he entered the clearing. Atop the wall stood two guards with bows in front of a gate that swung open on hinges. People were digging trenches towards the river to bring water closer to the base. Even the walls seemed to be dug deeper and expanded out, covered completely in dried monster skin with runes engraved into them.
They rounded the corner and were met with Kai outside of the gate with Shelby, pointing off into the distance with serious looks on their faces. Kai noticed them out of the corner of his eye but didn't pay them much mind.
When they got closer they could hear Shelby saying:
"Aya, I'll get it done but it's a fucking bother."
And Kai replied.
"Complaints will be heard once it's done, until then, just get to work."
And gave her a pat on the shoulder with a smile. The two of them seemed to have gotten close over the last few days. It made sense, their personalities were similar but in different ways.
"About time you slackers returned."
Kai turned and greeted them with his hands on his hips, standing tall and proud with a smile on his face.
"Like what I did with the place?"
Skye could now see into the fort now, where there once were makeshift shelters, tents using monster skin now took their place. Stockpiles of material and crafting stations near them, roads naturally taking shape between them.
Along the whole of the inner wall there was a platform at the top for people to stand on and look over, perfect for archers to shoot and still be protected.
It was truly amazing what a large group of people could do when their lives depended on hard work.
"Feeling so homely now."
Elli replied with a smile as she untied herself from the sled, workers came out to help unload it. They started to carry the goods to their designated storage places.
"Well then I better give you the tour. Follow me in."
The walked past the main gate and into the corridor built to lure monsters into, which led to the second inner gate. Once past that they were inside the fort and the empty space in front of the gate that was used as a staging area. Rows of tents that were converted for privacy and open air buildings where people were cooking or building things.
Groups of people were sawing logs into planks or stretching the skin of monsters over racks. The crafters worked together to master their new tasks.
The cooking and dining area were the largest and always busy it seemed. Water was constantly boiling or being hauled with smaller pots and meat was being smoked, and to everyone's surprise, vegetables were being cut in large quantities.
Claire spoke up and asked Kai.
"Where did all those come from?"
"From the field of course, Skye's worm lovers have been working hard."
Skye didn't know much about growing things but even in his limited knowledge he knew things took longer to grow than a few days.
I know they made my roots grow faster just by being around me, what did they do to that field?"
The smell of whatever they were cooking there washed over Skye and he forgot anything he was trying to figure out. Whatever they did, it was done, now he wanted to eat something more than dried meat.
They reached the centre of the fort, which was one of the few buildings with walls and a roof made of wood. It wrapped around in a circle around the village tree with space in the middle for it to grow.
Kai opened the door and inside the room a crude table with 5 stumps was placed in the middle. Skye was surprised to see there were no walls in the back of the building, leaving it open for light and to see the growing village tree.
He did a double take, standing next to the tree and using his body to measure it.
"Did this thing, ahh.. get bigger?"
"Yeah num nuts things grow. You don't know a lot about plants for being a worm boy do you?"
"Yeah things grow but this thing is almost as tall as me now? Isn't that a little too fast?"
Kai looked at him square in the face and took a seat.
"You just spent the week fighting skeletons and monsters and you're surprised that a tree made out of our souls is growing a bit quickly? Sit down kid."
Skye looked down and did just that, taking a seat while mumbling to himself.
"Well yeah it's growing fast man why do you got to be so mean about it."
Kai had it out for him since the day they met, yet he never felt any malice from it. Skye got made fun of a lot it seemed, but it felt more loving and familiar than some nice words he would hear at the Dome. Those always felt like a distraction to make sure you didn't notice them stealing your last credits.
Here it just felt a bit.. fun?
They all sat at the table, which was nothing more than a slab of wood put on top of a stump and tied together. Elli spoke first.
"You've done well here on your own."
"It was piss easy. Nora helped and Shelby was a life saver. She's got the workers running like a machine working constantly on shifts."
"And how are the nights?"
Kai let out a small laugh.
"We're not even needed anymore. Those Branded of yours Elli are born archers. We let them in the first gate into the corridor and they rain hell from above. Open the second gate and sweep through with spears killing anything still moving. Collect the arrows and bodies and do it again."
He leaned forward and put his elbows on the a table, resting his head on his hands.
"The walls are dug deeper and stronger, the hides stop any teeth or claws from taking chunks. They can't climb the walls. I hate to jinx it but…"
Skye interrupted.
"We're safe?"
Elli replied next.
"From the monsters, at least, and for now. Report."
A shadow in the corner of the room started to twist and a woman walked forward into the light, causing Kai to fall out of his chair and Skye to jump backwards. Even Claire jumped in surprise, letting out a squeak.
"My apologies."
The shadow took a knee and began to report.
"To the east we have found a human settlement, much like ours. The conditions there are dangerous. One of the Marked commands the dead in some capacity and has little regard for human life. They are civilians there so they've advanced to the next stage."
Elli nodded at the shadow.
"I'll take over."
She got up and faced the village tree.
"We have to decide if we should offer them sanctuary or let them die of disease and starvation. Whatever we decide we will only have a few days to prepare."
She crossed her arms across her chest.
"Nora had told me what she prefers, and I have made my decision as well. But we have to decide as a group. There are five of us, majority rules."
They didn't get to choose the people that were under their care, and were just barely managing to keep them alive. Now the choice was theirs. Let these people die or double in size and responsibility.