The Hopper, piloted by Larek, shot toward the northwest, passing through the lands that used to be a Calamity’s territory not so long ago. The landscape hadn’t completely recovered from the bare, obsidian-like environment that used to be filled with Steel Slimes wandering all over the place. While the desolate land had reverted back to dirt and stone, all of the vegetation – including trees – had been killed during the Calamity’s former occupation of its territory, leaving only dead land behind. While the Volunteers – and even natural growth – had started to restore some of the grass that used to cover the land, especially in the areas where the formerly subservient Apertures had their territories shrunk down again, it was still largely barren for as far as he could see.
“So we don’t have any other information?” the Fusionist asked for the fifth time, looking toward Nedira.
Thankfully, his betrothed was patient with him. “No, nothing other than what I’ve already told you. Hundreds of Mages and Martials have simply disappeared, which has severely affected the coverage of local Aperture closings. The Volunteers have attempted to take over the culling of monsters in the area temporarily, but if these mysterious disappearances continue, we’re going to have some trouble keeping the entire area under control. Already, there were a pair of Apertures that were neglected enough to expand, and while they have been closed by teams of Volunteers, it wouldn’t surprise me if additional expansions become more common. The last thing we need is another Calamity to spawn from all this, especially as we’ve just barely been able to recover before all of this happened.
“It might seem like we have everything under control, but even with all the efforts of the Volunteers and the SIC additions over the last few weeks, most of the Kingdom has barely stabilized. Given enough time, and with the Sanctuary beginning to produce more Fusions to distribute, everything should be in a much better shape. But whatever this is will jeopardize that.”
Larek nodded, having heard this multiple times by now, but he was still confused over one piece of information that was glaringly absent. “And there’s no idea where these people went?” It was extremely odd, because even if a mind-controlling bug had managed to get into the Mages and Martials stationed in these towns they were headed toward – which would be difficult, given the fact that the Volunteers had passed out millions of Illuminated Free Will Fusions by that point – someone would’ve seen them leave.
“Unfortunately, no,” his betrothed answered, still with incredible patience. “There were only reports of a few of them acting strangely in a city and a few towns, which fits the idea that some mind-controlling bugs were at play, but none of the normal citizens seem to be affected. After a point, it wasn’t just a few Mages and Martials acting strangely; instead, they were simply all gone. They disappeared in the night, with only some vague indications that they might have left out of one of the town gates, but any attempt to actually track them after that has failed.
“If this is, indeed, some sort of mind-bug variation, we’re going to need your help to find and free those affected. You’re the only one with experience in doing that, after all, so I’m hoping you can do it.”
“And what if it’s not a mind-controlling insect at all? Do you think it could be Gergasi finally striking back at us?”
Nedira thought about it for a few seconds before shaking her head. “Unlikely. No one has noticed any movement in or out of the central part of the Kingdom by a Gergasi, and as you know, it’s hard not to notice them as they pass by. It’s not impossible that they were missed, of course, but I can’t think of a reason why they would start whatever revenge they have planned here, of all places.” She waved at the environment, before gesturing ahead toward their destination, which was still a bit of distance ahead. “There’s nothing significant about this location that anyone can determine, as this whole area is out of the way and ‘relatively’ unimportant. The only reason that we have an interest in it right now is because of the potential cascading effects this might have on the Kingdom as a whole. Well, that, and the fact that hundreds of Mages and Martials that should be here are missing.”
Larek nodded, his mind finally concentrating on this current problem over everything else rattling around in his head. He had been so absolutely focused on the Fusionist Sanctuary, the people there, and the projects that were being undertaken that it had taken him a few hours to fully extract himself and turn his attention to something else. With a brief shake of his body and a limbering up of his shoulders, he got himself into the right mindset for whatever they were about to encounter at their destination.
“Thanks. I think I’m all better now,” he told her with a smile, before bending down and giving her a quick kiss.
As he pulled away, he could see the look of relief on her face. “Good. I was worried you’d be stuck in ‘Fusion mode’ for a lot longer.”
“‘Fusion mode’?” he asked, confused by the phrase.
She just chuckled, before patting him on his arm. “You might not see it yourself, but you tend to get a bit lost in your work when you’re focused on Fusions. It’s usually not too bad, as you’re not in ‘Fusion mode’ for too long, but this time you were fully engaged in all of this Sanctuary business for a bit longer than normal. I’m glad to see you’ve snapped out of it.”
Larek couldn’t help but chuckle at her description. While he didn’t see it while he was actively participating in Fusion-related pursuits, he could see the obsessed way he threw himself into such activities, after it was all said and done.
As the slowly recovering land of the former Calamity passed by underneath The Hopper, the pair discussed the potential reasons why all the Mages and Martials might have disappeared from the area. But without more information, all of it was simply conjecture. The 20 Volunteers that were accompanying them were relatively quiet in their seats as they traveled, and despite their presence, Larek missed having his other companions nearby on this expedition. Unfortunately, Verne, Norde, and all of his closest friends were busy with other crises that had popped up here and there around the Kingdom, so it was essentially just Larek and Nedira – along with his guard of Volunteers, of course.
In the next 20 minutes, the landscape below began to change, and vibrant color could finally be seen filling the environment. Looking at the map they’d brought along, Larek pinpointed a few landmarks and slightly adjusted his course; passing over the relatively barren land of the former Calamity made it difficult to navigate precisely when everything looked the same.
“There it is: the city of Zecklent. This was reportedly the first place where some of the Mages and Martials were acting strangely, before the phenomenon spread to the outlying towns, though they all didn’t disappear until a few days ago. With the population here, the number of missing people is more impactful because of the range over which they spread out to help protect the city, so I’m hoping that you’ll find more answers here.”
As Nedira spoke, the city of Zecklent came into view, and Larek had to agree with what she said earlier: He didn’t see anything significant about their destination. The “city” of Zecklent was just barely large enough to be called that, as it was the smallest city he’d ever seen. Its 20-foot-tall walls were pitifully short in comparison to other cities with that moniker, and its overall area covered only a small fraction of Thanesh’s sprawl. Then again, it would be unfair to compare it to the Militia’s headquarters, as that headquarters seemed to be constantly expanding. Be that as it may, this “city” was probably only twice the size of Barrowford, one of the towns near his childhood home in Rushwood.
Other than the size, it didn’t appear too much different from other cities he’d visited or seen from a distance, as all the buildings inside appeared similar enough that if he had been set down there without knowing where he was, he would be hard-pressed to see anything unique enough to pinpoint his location. Even the farms outside the walls – which, with a smile, he could see were being cultivated by using some of his crop-growing Fusions – appeared relatively normal and basic, with no surprises in particular. Overall, it appeared to be exactly what it was: a quaint, quiet city that just happened to be too large to be called a town.
As they set The Hopper down approximately 200 feet outside the walls and just outside the pathway leading up to the city’s central gate, the first real difference between this city and pretty much every other town or city he’d seen made itself known.
Stolen story; please report.
“No guards?” he asked when he saw no one near the gates or on top of the walls. Despite the fact that Scissions were a thing of the past, every settlement he knew of still had at least a few guards on top of their walls, as the nightmare of roaming hordes of monsters was still current enough in most people’s minds that no one wanted to take a chance of not having a lookout or two.
His words were out of his mouth before he fully analyzed the situation, but as soon as he realized why there were no guards, he shook his head. “Of course there aren’t,” he said to himself in a murmur. “They’re all gone.”
A minute later, Larek couldn’t help but think that it was eerie walking through the open gates of a city without even a single person stopping them, or at least acknowledging that they had permission to enter. That wasn’t to say that they weren’t seen, because plenty of the citizens of Zecklent saw them and either hurried past them or looked at them fearfully, but no one stopped to talk to them – nor even stuck around long enough for them to ask questions.
Of course, Larek didn’t necessarily need their permission to snoop around a little bit, and as he reached out with his Magical Detection Skill, he targeted the nearest dozen or so citizens rushing by.
It immediately became clear that, while the citizens were obviously scared, he couldn’t feel even the slightest hint of anything wrong with them. He thought that he would for sure find some sign of either Dominion Magic from a Gergasi or some sort of variation of a mind-controlling bug lingering in them, but there was no sign of anything. In fact, as he stretched his senses out to encompass the entire city, he felt absolutely nothing out of the ordinary.
He detected a few of his Fusions, including the Furrow Field and Strong Watered Growth that were used out in the Fields, as well as Illuminated Free Will thankfully inside every citizen in the city, but as for any other magical concentrations? Not a thing.
“I can’t detect anything strange,” Larek told Nedira, even as he glanced around the main street in front of the gate. “Nor do I sense the presence of any of the Mages and Martials within a few miles. As far as I can tell, they’re not here.”
“Then let’s go see if we can find out where they went.”
A few minutes later, Nedira led Larek and the Volunteers toward the center of Zecklent, where they found the Mayor’s office. Thankfully, it didn’t take long for them to get a meeting with the one in charge of the city.
“Thank goodness you’re here,” the Mayor, an older, nearly bald man with a few wisps of grey hair accentuating the wrinkles on his face, said as soon as they arrived. Even though the older man looked at Larek warily because of his height, he, too, had an Illuminated Free Will Fusion in his head, which toned down a lot of the prejudices that most of the Kingdom’s people had. The Mayor pushed past the sight of Larek’s physical appearance and shook his hand enthusiastically. “We’ve been wondering when someone would send reinforcements. I know that a few teams of these, uh, what do you call them? Volunteers? Yeah, they’ve helped to cull the monsters in the nearby Apertures, but they said it was only a temporary measure. I can tell you that I’m not the only one who was scared about what could happen if we didn’t get someone here soon, and I’m glad you’ve finally arrived.”
Slightly embarrassed at the misunderstanding, Larek struggled to respond, but fortunately, Nedira bailed him out of the uncomfortable situation. “Actually, Mayor Pordith, we’re here to officially investigate the disappearance of your Faction members, and to bring them back if necessary. But don’t worry, the Volunteers will continue to help you cull monsters in the nearby Apertures for now, at least until we can find out what happened in the area. Do you have any idea where all the Mages and Martials living here went? Any other insights on where they might have gone?”
The Mayor slumped in disappointment after hearing that they weren’t the replacements he was hoping for, but he perked up slightly when she assured him that the Volunteers would be helping out for now. Larek wasn’t sure how true that was, especially as he remembered Nedira saying that they were stretched a bit thin right then, but if this investigation didn’t turn up anything, he would personally do his best to help. At worst, he could simply create a ton of Fusions for the city and the nearby towns, fully outfitting them with VREP staves, transports, and a complete unlocking of their potential so that they could work to defend themselves. He was fairly certain that the only reason they hadn’t received any of that yet was because this area, as Nedira had mentioned, wasn’t exactly a priority, but that kind of help would eventually get there.
“That’s… disappointing, but it sounds like you’re actively trying to help. Unfortunately, there’s not much that I can do to help you, as any of the other Volunteers that have briefly stopped by have already obtained all the information I have. In short, a few days before the mass disappearances, a few of the Faction members started acting strange. Not like what we’ve heard those insidious bugs do to a person, but more like they were distracted, complaining of being incessantly hungry – and that nothing they ate seemed to make that feeling go away. We didn’t think anything of it, really, and largely ignored it. Sadly, one day, they simply disappeared without a trace.
“Of course, as they were the ones normally on the walls and manning the gates, there wasn’t anyone to see if they left the city or not, but it seemed to happen overnight. As for where they could’ve gone, I haven’t a clue.”
The information about the Mages and Martials portion of the Faction there being insatiably hungry was a new tidbit of knowledge, but Larek didn’t think it really helped. Is this some sort of illness? Probably not, especially if any of them were Martials; with their Body stat, it would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for them to get sick.
“Anything else you can think of?” Nedira asked politely, but the Fusionist could hear the desperation in her voice. She desperately wanted an answer to all of this, and Larek couldn’t help but agree.
“No, not really,” the Mayor said, but then his eyes widened a fraction. “Actually, there is one thing. One of the children mentioned overhearing something that night, and while most dismissed it as a dream, their parents thought it was unusual enough to mention it to me.” He paused as he visibly tried to recall what he was told. “They boy, Hefen, said he overheard some people talking outside of his window that night. Let me see if I can remember what I was told. ‘Leave? You can go if you want. But, it’s only a matter of time before our meals are delivered right to us.’ At least, I think that’s what I was told.”
Larek waited to see if the Mayor would tell them anything else, but when he didn’t, the Fusionist focused on what he already said. On the surface, it didn’t make a lot of sense. It’s only a matter of time before our meals are delivered right to us? What is that supposed to mean?
He had no idea, and he suspected that everyone might be correct that the boy who had “overheard” this was actually dreaming. Looking at Nedira, she looked similarly perplexed, but she thanked the Mayor and started heading out with Larek and the Volunteers in tow. As they emerged from the Mayor’s office and stared around the city, he turned to the others and scratched his head.
With Nedira at his side, Larek distractedly did a headcount of the Volunteers and saw a total of 21 faces looking back at him, ready for his orders, so he began to verbally make a plan. “Alright, it looks like we’re going to have to search a little bit more. I want you to look this city over from top to bottom, searching for anything that might indicate where the Faction members might have gone. Don’t accost the citizens, but ask them as politely as you can if any of them have more information about the Faction members’ disappearance. Don’t press them too hard, though, because they’re obviously frightened – and we don’t want to make it worse.
“Now, break off into teams of 3 teams of 7 and—” Larek’s mind screeched to a halt as he realized what he just said after doing another count. He specifically remembered that only 20 Volunteers had accompanied him and Nedira on this trip, but he was 99.9% positive that, just a few seconds prior, there had been 21 of them. Granted, he was distracted by coming up with a plan at the time, but he didn’t think he miscounted.
“Where—? No, never mind. New plan: Let’s do 4 teams of 5, while Nedira and I will form our own team. Meet back at the Mayor’s office in 2 hours. Any questions?”
When no one had any, the Volunteers quickly broke up into teams, and while most of them took off immediately through the city to do a search, one team stayed close to Larek and Nedira. He nearly ordered them to leave, as well, but his betrothed reminded him that they were just doing their job. He didn’t need the guards following him, but he also didn’t want to argue with them, so he let them do their thing.
“What’s wrong? You looked like you’d been punched in the gut for a moment there,” Nedira asked when he stood there unmoving after the Volunteers left.
Shaking his head, he told her, “It’s nothing. No, really. I think I must be tired or something, because I miscounted the Volunteers somehow.”
“Well, you have been busy almost nonstop for weeks now – I know how you feel. After we get this all wrapped up, perhaps the both of us should sleep for a month or so.”
Chuckling, he clasped her hand in his and kissed the back of hers. “That sounds like a wonderful idea.”
Shortly thereafter, they were off into the city, doing their own search for the missing Mages and Martials. Almost the entire time, however, he couldn’t help but think about his miscount. The more he thought about it, the more he figured it had only been his imagination. Why? Because every time he vividly pictured seeing 21 people arrayed in front of him, there was one in the back that was blurry in his memories. More than that, he even remembered the feel of the magical potential in every Volunteer looking at him at the time.
But the blurry one in his memories he couldn’t feel at all.
That was how he knew it was his imagination, because even the citizens in the cities had magical potential – but it was so small that it was like a tiny spark in comparison to the roaring fire that Mages, Martials, and Guardians possessed. So, if they didn’t have any of that in his memories, then that meant they didn’t exist.
Simple as that.
