The tension in the courtyard broke in the strangest possible way.
A high-pitched yelp echoed from the second truck.
Then another.
The tailgate dropped with a clatter.
Two redbone puppies tumbled out onto the gravel like a pair of floppy-eared cannonballs.
One immediately tripped over its own paws.
The other pounced on it.
They began wrestling in the dust with complete dedication.
For a moment nobody spoke.
Jason pointed.
"Well," he said. "There's your real emergency."
Shane looked down.
And the expression on his face changed instantly.
The tension of the moment dissolved as he crouched.
The larger puppy waddled straight toward him, sniffed his boot, then tried to climb onto his knee.
Shane scratched behind its ears.
"Well hey there," he said quietly.
Freya folded her arms and smirked.
"You command gods and armies and that is what gets your attention?"
Shane didn't even look up.
"Priorities."
The second puppy bounded over and tried to chew the laces of his boot.
Shane laughed.
"Where did these two come from?"
Mike stepped forward.
"Mt Morris."
Shane glanced up.
"My uncle?"
Mike nodded.
"Dave and Clint."
He gestured toward the puppies.
"They said Duke's line was too good to lose."
The larger puppy suddenly attempted to climb Shane's leg again.
"Figured you should have one."
Shane studied the dog carefully.
The reddish coat.
The long ears.
The alert nose already sniffing the air.
He rubbed the puppy's head gently.
"Duke would approve," he said quietly.
Marie leaned against the truck.
"They nearly chewed through three blankets on the ride back."
Penelope added,
"And they howled every time we stopped."
Jason grinned.
"Sounded like a full hunting pack."
One of the puppies let out a surprisingly deep howl for its size.
The entire courtyard burst into laughter.
Even Olaf smiled.
⸻
But the moment didn't last long.
Olaf stepped forward slowly.
His gaze moved from Idunn… to the settlement around them.
Then to Shane.
"I have news," he said.
The tone shifted immediately.
Shane stood.
"Appalachia?"
Olaf nodded.
"Yes."
They moved toward the long wooden table near the operations building while others gathered around.
Idunn sat quietly nearby, the basket of apples resting beside her.
The puppies curled beneath Shane's chair, still chewing on each other's ears.
Olaf rested one hand on the table.
"The mountains are stable," he began.
"More stable than most regions."
Shane nodded.
"Ullr and Freyr."
"Yes."
Olaf looked toward the western hills beyond the Sanctuary wall.
"Ullr walks the ridges alone."
"He hunts. Protects refugees. Clears predators near settlements."
"But he refuses followers."
"That sounds like him," Freya said.
Olaf continued.
"Freyr works differently."
"Quietly."
"He is restoring soil."
"Reviving farmland that should still be dead."
Shane leaned back slightly.
"Which means Appalachia becomes food secure."
"Yes."
"But there are other things in those mountains."
The courtyard grew quieter.
Olaf's voice lowered slightly.
"The old spirits are watching."
Freya tilted her head.
"Land wights?"
"Something older."
Olaf paused.
"I encountered one."
Shane raised an eyebrow.
"Friendly?"
Olaf gave a faint smile.
"Curious."
"What was it?"
Olaf answered calmly.
"Uktena."
Even Freya straightened slightly at that name.
"The serpent spirit?" she asked.
"Yes."
"What did it want?"
Olaf folded his arms.
"It did not threaten me."
"But it warned me."
"About what?"
Olaf's eyes moved slowly across the courtyard.
"Something moving beneath the world."
Silence settled over the table.
Shane rubbed his chin.
"That lines up with something else we're seeing."
He turned slightly.
"Saul?"
Inside the operations building a soft tone sounded.
Then Saul's calm voice carried through the courtyard speakers.
"I have been monitoring reports from the Great Lakes corridor."
Shane nodded.
"Tell them."
Saul continued.
"Cory has documented multiple unusual events along the lake trade routes."
"Examples include damaged nets, missing boats, and abnormal water movement patterns."
Njord stepped forward slightly.
"The water is disturbed," he said.
"But not by spirits."
Saul continued.
"Cory has also recorded biological anomalies in fish populations."
Jason frowned.
"What kind of anomalies?"
Saul answered.
"Puncture wounds inconsistent with known predators."
"Dead fish appearing in clusters."
"And irregular oxygen depletion in deeper water layers."
Shane looked toward Olaf again.
"Something moving beneath the world."
Olaf nodded.
"Uktena said the mountains could feel it."
Freya frowned.
"That sounds less like a spirit problem and more like…"
She stopped.
"Something biological."
Saul spoke again.
"There is additional data."
"Please display," Shane said.
A small projection appeared on the table.
Lake maps.
Shipping routes.
Incident markers.
Clusters forming along several rivers feeding the lakes.
Mike leaned forward.
"That pattern looks like…"
"Watersheds," Penelope finished.
Saul confirmed.
"Yes."
"The anomalies are following freshwater systems."
Shane stared at the map.
Rivers.
Lakes.
Drainage networks stretching across half the continent.
"Cory thinks something is expanding territory," Saul said.
Freya looked toward the horizon.
"What kind of predator expands territory that fast?"
No one answered immediately.
The larger puppy suddenly rolled over beneath the table and kicked the other in the face.
Jason sighed.
"Probably not that."
Shane smiled faintly.
But his eyes stayed on the map.
"If something's moving through the water systems…"
Mike finished the thought quietly.
"It could spread everywhere."
Saul spoke again.
"There is another detail."
Shane looked up.
"Go ahead."
"Cory also detected abnormal chemical traces in several water samples."
"What kind of traces?"
"Artificial."
That word settled heavily over the table.
Freya crossed her arms.
"Artificial?"
Saul confirmed.
"Yes."
"Not naturally occurring compounds."
Shane exhaled slowly.
"So it's not just some giant fish."
"No."
Olaf looked toward the west again.
"Uktena said the mountains could feel imbalance beneath the land."
Shane nodded slowly.
"Which means we're missing something."
The courtyard fell quiet.
The evening wind moved through the settlement.
Somewhere nearby a hammer struck wood as workers continued rebuilding.
Life moving forward.
But beneath the table the puppies had stopped wrestling.
Both of them suddenly lifted their heads.
Their noses pointed toward the north.
They began growling softly.
Shane noticed immediately.
"What is it?"
The dogs sniffed the air again.
Then one of them let out a low, uneasy whine.
Saul spoke softly through the speakers.
"Cory just transmitted a new report."
Shane looked up.
"What kind of report?"
Saul paused.
Then answered.
"A fishing vessel has not returned."
The map on the table updated.
A new marker appeared.
Far out on Lake Erie.
And for the first time since the discussion began—
even Olaf looked uneasy.
⸻
"If you enjoyed Shane's journey, please drop a Power Stone! It helps the Common Sense Party grow."