Evolve

by Derek Belfield

  Shale looked uneasy as he talked. "I actually agree with Merus. We need to create more Scourglings so that the Guardians actually have something to guard." It was hard to tell from her raptor-like face, but her body language projected embarrassment. Slate couldn't feel anything in the Scourgemind, so he assumed she must be masking her emotions. He grew suspicious.

  "...and just how do we do that?"

  He said with slitted eyes. Shale fidgeted, and she definitely began to look uncomfortable. "well...uh…" She stammered. "Similar to normal. Except that we're not mammals anymore."

  Now it was Slate's turn to become confused. "Which means?" Shale's temper immediately erupted. "Why are you acting so dense!?"

  Merus looked like he wanted to be anywhere else than near the two murder machines that were getting angry within melee range.

  Shale continued. "With eggs, you idiot!" She hissed at him. "We do the deed. I lay a clutch of eggs. We leave the eggs to be cared for by the Guardians. They hatch. The Guardians carry them in their bodies. They evolve at level 20 into an evolutionary path."

  It was Slate's turn to look at her dumbly. He knew he wasn't human anymore, but the strange situation he now found himself in unequivocally made him realize how different his life had become.

  "Oh."

  He said lamely. He looked to Merus for some kind of support and Merus had become blank-faced again. Fucking traitor. Slate thought. "Okay." He tried to put a veneer of professionalism into his voice. "So, how long does that take."

  Shale gave him a look that told him he had asked a stupid question. "I guess that depends on you, doesn't it?" She asked archly.

  Slate had walked into that one, but he wasn't going to take the bait. "No, how long does it take from the time of conception until you lay a clutch?"

  Shale gave him a long look while Merus remained irritatingly silent. She decided to let him off the hook. "A single day."

  "Oh." Slate said, using what was coming to be his favorite phrase of this particular conversation. He felt awkward and wasn't sure what to say to her. "So…" he looked to Merus again for help, not used to being this off-balance in a verbal exchange. Seeing nothing from Merus, he continued. "...can we lay a clutch and then go kill things?"

  Shale was about to respond, but Merus finally had something to say. "I really think you should stay here, Slate."

  Slate glared at the man. He hadn't been any help before, so of course, he would say that now. Shale gave Merus a knowing glance too. Neither of them really wanted to stay and begin the bureaucratic work that was required to launch a government. "That sounds good to me," she said.

  "Wait," Merus said in a thinly-veiled panic. "I don't know how to create another government. Slate felt a certain satisfaction in Merus's fear. "Well, I don't know either Merus." He said languidly. "I'm just good at talking to people and killing things." He filled his voice with fake sympathy and sighed. "I guess you're just going to have to figure it out yourself."

  Slate got to his feet, and Shale copied the motion, already sensing his thoughts through the Scourgemind. "Besides," he said as he stretched, I made you the Governor of Lighthaven." Slate and Shale left him there with his mouth open as they made their way further into the royal suite and closing the door behind them.

  ∆∆∆

  They eventually decided to stay a total of five days before heading out. In the process, they had learned that the pyramid compound had a chamber specially made for the storage of eggs. It wasn't a large room, but it was elegant in its simplicity. It had shelves on every wall with shallow indentations for the eggs to rest in. The chamber had seating in which Shale could lie in comfort while a female Guardian attended her. Like Lucidus had promised, she bore no pain, and it was a minor inconvenience.

  Slate had asked her if she wanted him to be there and she had resolutely said no and he had readily agreed. He had no desire to see this particular biological process. During the five days, Shale had laid fifty eggs, all about the size of a human palm. The Guardians were happy that they finally had charges to care for and took to the task with relish.

  Merus and Sumnu had organized them into shifts that carried out particular tasks. Some patrolled, some guarded or tended the eggs, and some performed the mundane tasks necessary to keep two hundred people going. However, Sumnu quietly warned Slate that his speech had been more effective than was strictly necessary. The Guardians all thought of themselves as warriors and protectors of the Scourge. They chafed under the idea that they would be required to do the tasks that had completed in their previous life.

  Slate saw how this would become a problem, and his first priority on this scouting trip would be to find such a labor force. As loathe as he was to consider it, he knew he would have to take prisoners. In this kind of economy, It simply wasn't feasible to acquire such a labor force using the typical methods of capitalism. When he spoke of the subject to Shale, she simply replied: "the strong take the weak."

  On the sixth day since the conversion, they left the city after dark and entered the cover of the Wyldwood by the light of the moon.

  Chapter 13: Wayward Scouting

  Slate and Shale flew through the forest like passing shadows. They couldn't help but revel in their new bodies as they smoothly transitioned from two legs to four and back again. Slate had seen the internet trend of "parkour" in his previous life. Autumn had even gone through an irritating, but hilariously endearing, phase where she would yell "parkour!" before doing simple tasks like hopping off of the sidewalk.

  He wasn't sure what had started the phrase, but he did remember the videos she had excitedly shown him, and he had good-naturedly entertained. Those videos had nothing on what he was capable of in his new body. His talons nimbly gripped obstructions, and he had the strength to hurtle his way through the forest with Shale by his side. After about a mile of traveling to get used to their new bodies, they joyfully whooped as they ducked under branches, leaped over boulders, and sprinted through dewy clearings.

  There was nothing in this low-leveled forest that could threaten them, and so they made outstanding time through the woods. They didn't actively hunt for any creatures on their way out of the forest. However, they opportunistically killed anything in their path. There wasn't a genuine need, but they were like cats killing for the pleasure of the thing rather than the necessity. The experience was modest, but they made substantial gains in biomass. After traveling approximately twenty miles, they reached the end of the forest just as the sun was rising.

  They used their claws to dig a burrow underneath a fallen tree just within the forest. Neither of them were comfortable with exploring during the day. Their metallic colored flesh was easily seen in the sunlight and didn't lend itself to subtlety. After hollowing out space just ample enough for the both of them and using the fallen tree to cover the entrance, they nestled together as sleep took them.

  As the sun set, they naturally stirred awake. They carefully used their senses to look for mana signatures before abandoning their temporary resting place. Slate considered his next move as they waited for the sun to set over the horizon. The edge of the forest was approximately twenty miles from the center, and that meant that the Wyldwood covered an area close to twelve hundred square miles. That was close to the size of Rhode Island if he were back on Earth.

  This wasn't a vast territory, but it was significantly larger than Slate had predicted. He was lucky that when he was transported here, Lucidus placed him so close to where Lighthaven had come to be. He was sure that was by design more than luck, but he was thankful anyway. His previous form didn't have a fraction of the agility afforded to him now, and he would have been unable to trek that distance in a single night even with Merus' body.

  As the sun crossed the horizon, the land plunged into darkness and far into the distance Slate could make out flickering lights that could've been torches. Over the journey, both Shale and himself had become more adept at using the Scourgemind. They could now have a full conversation while remaining a
bsolutely silent. Slate took advantage of that ability.

  What do you think that is in the distance? He questioned and pointed a claw in the direction of the flickering lights. Shale moved so that she could see in the direction he indicated.

  I'm not sure. It's hard to tell from this distance. Perhaps, a small town? She supplied.

  Slate considered her suggestion. Maybe you're right. The light could be playing tricks on our eyes. I read once that the human eye could spot a flickering candle a mile away in the dark. Even if it is more than a mile, we could quickly get there and back before the sun rises.

  Shale nodded. It made sense. They were here to scout, and they wouldn't be able to do that from the depths of the forest. They had assured Merus that they would return within the fortnight. That was when her clutch was supposed to hatch anyway. Neither Slate nor Shale wanted to miss the momentous occasion.

  Let's scout it out. Shale decided. We don't have much time to get a full picture of our surroundings. If we can abscond with one of their villagers, then we can use your duotoxin to interrogate them for more information.

  Slate nodded and took off on all fours towards the village and Shale quickly settled into a rhythm just behind him. Their four-legged gait was more comfortable for long-distance running, and their pace rapidly closed the distance between the forest and the source of manmade fireflies. After a couple miles they slowed to a stop so they could get a better look at what awaited them.

  Without having to speak, Slate and Shale split up into separate directions. Shale circled to the right of the village while Slate took the left. Their whole goal was to scout the general layout of their side of the town, note any defenses, and then meet up on the other side to share their knowledge via the Scourgemind. It was really a valuable tool because they could share the memories in their entirety, and then they would each feel like they had scouted the full perimeter of the village.

  It didn't take long for them to meet on the other side. The village wasn't extensive. It was approximately a single square mile and probably didn't hold more than a couple hundred individuals. It was situated on a spacious road, and Slate surmised that it be a stop on the route of a more extensive trade route rather than a destination itself. It had a score of buildings that looked reasonably familiar to Slate from watching old westerns. Four men and women were patrolling the small town like a medieval form of a neighborhood watch. Their presence was unlikely to affect the Scourge's information gathering activities.

  The most significant buildings in the small town was a church, an inn, and dwelling in the direct center of town. Every structure was uniform in material and coloring. The architecture of the village consisted of unpainted wooden structures. The only notable exception was the dwelling in the center. It was the single building made out of rough stone and roomy enough to stand out against the rest. Despite its relative size, It wasn't a thing of beauty and instead one of functionality.

  Do you think that's where we need to go? He said, referring to the stone house. Shale took a moment to look through Slate's memories of the house. He had been the to spot it from various angles through the intervening buildings. She shrugged.

  Most of this is unfamiliar to me. The house isn't notably more beautiful than the others, it's simply bigger. Is that significant? She asked. Shale was well suited to combat, but she had little exposure to the politics of people.

  Yes. Slate mused. The larger, more permanent building is a sign of power. Whoever is in there, thinks themselves more important than the rest of them.

  Shale nodded at his explanation.

  Well if that's the case, then they'll probably have the best information about the region. It would be even more useful if we could procure a map.

  You're right. Slate admitted. I didn't consider the map for some reason. I was more focused on the person. We'll have to see what kind of people live here as well to see if they would make an acceptable workforce. If we can get the map, we can organize a raid on this village. Slate gestured at the house in the distance.

  Let's get past the perimeter of the village, I'll break into the house while you keep watch on the roof.

  She nodded and they made their way towards the village like wolves on the prowl.

  The first thing that Slate noticed as the neared the perimeter of the village was that it was well-lit at night for a ramshackle stop on the road. Slate idly wondered if that was because of their proximity to the forest. That would be another question he would ask if had the time.

  They leapt their way into a tree that grew just beyond the flickering torchlight. Thankfully, despite the lateness of the year, the tree had retained all of its vegetation. It's branches extended over the nearby wooden home and the street in front of it, providing a perfect place for the two to watch and further assess the situation. Besides the slight rustling of leaves, their graceful movements betrayed nothing of their presence.

  They waited to see if there were any people that were patrolling around the town. Sure enough, they began to hear the rattle of metal armor in the distance. Neither of them moved a muscle at the sound.

  Their predator instincts were cautioning them to remain patient.

  Shale and Slate glanced at each other and weighed their options. The could kill the sentry and open up a path to the stone house or let him pass and sneak past him.

  Either option carried its risk, but the deciding factor was the need to figure out just what kind of humanoid they were dealing with in the first place. As they decided, the sentry turned a corner and started moving towards their hiding place. His head was uncovered, and Slate spied a face that was similar in bone structure to the wood elves. He differed from the wood elves in a few significant ways. First, his skin tone was pale enough that it would have looked at home on a three-day corpse. His hair was bone white, and his eyes were a pale ice blue. They seemed to glow even from this distance.

  He was wearing chainmail armor on top of a black leather doublet that extended down to his knees. The chainmail itself had been darkened with soot to prevent it from reflecting unwanted light. Slate wondered why he even bothered when his pasty flesh would betray him in the night far sooner than his armor would. The man had a small buckler strapped on one arm and a wand made from bone in the other.

  Slate couldn't guess what race the man was and he looked to Shale to see if she recognized the man. She shook her head. Well, I guess it's the hard way, he said, and the two blood-hungry parasites shared a feral grin. As the man neared their position he began to look around for something and Slate feared they had been discovered. Still searching, the sentry came ever closer to the tree, and Slate felt himself stiffen.

  Finally, the man stopped just below them, and he could be seen fumbling with his wand. After sticking it into the belt on his side, the man began to unfasten his trousers and pulled out an entirely different rod. After a few seconds, Slate started to hear the recognizable sound of a man relieving himself, and he let out the breath that he had been holding. Looking at Shale, he nodded.

  Instead of watching the inevitable kill, Slate kept a lookout on the street in front of them as Shale dropped from her position and swung using the branch. She catapulted herself towards the back of the man, feet first. She hit him with the force of a battering ram, and he was launched forward before he could make a sound. He cracked his head on the hard ground with his hands still wrapped around his wand.

  He hit the ground so hard that the air rushed from his lungs and he could only make a gasping sound as Shale plunged her tail into his brain, killing him instantly.

  Congratulations! You have helped kill a level 30 Vallyr, you have earned 6,025 experience and reached level 24!

  Instead of eating the Vallyrian and risking discovery, Shale quietly drug the body further into the night. Slate patiently waited as she took the body half a mile from his current position. That should be far enough to avoid detection. He thought.

  Soon, Shale returned and joined him on the true. Good Job. He said, simply
. She only smiled in response and gestured that she was ready for the next part of their plan. Looking ahead of them, there was only one house in between the building closest to the tree and the stone house.