3.

  “I’m not saying you're bad. In fact, you’re quite skilled. I’m just better,” Alan told Cameron with a smile. The two of them had developed something of a rivalry as the teams ripped through monster nests, to the point they were betting on it. Everyone was watching the father and son as they verbally jousted. Santi wouldn’t admit it, but Alan was getting the best of Cam.

  Cam didn’t mind, jousting with his father was an old tradition that he seemed happy to revive. Cam was leaning back in a chair with a cup of steaming tea in his hand as he smiled widely at his father. Bianca was sitting next to him with her own cup of tea. She didn’t seem as amused as her boyfriend. Santi was just glad that Alan could laugh and chat instead of being a crazed beast who went around killing anything that moved.

  “Why are you competing with him instead of Santi?” Bianca cut in and all eyes turned to Santi. His cup of tea was at his lips as everyone looked at him with expectant gaze.

  “Don’t pull me into this,” Santi said, waving them away with his free hand.

  “Santiago, you should be leading the race for first place,” Alan said, turning his attention to Santi. Everyone else looked at him and Santi sighed as he was pulled into the friendly argument. Naomi was sitting to the side watching it all with a quiet smile while the rest of Santi’s team were spread out across the myriad of couches and chairs they had scrounged.

  “I could be. But I had things to do. Community to build, a curse to exorcise, stuff like that. Hard to match someone who can just focus only on killing monsters and clearing the dens.”

  “Excuses,” Alan roared and everyone else chuckled as Santi just waved his hand.

  “We’re going to be entering and clearing Oakland and San Francisco tomorrow. I bet you that we clear more dens than you do,” Alan challenged.

  “What are we going to bet with?” Santi asked.

  “The reward for winning the challenge. If it’s not a title or something,” Alan said. Santi leaned forward while Naomi frowned suddenly. Alan couldn’t know that the rewards for winning a world quest, even if it was in only local or regional, would be impressive.

  “Done!” Santi shouted before Alan could have a chance to rescind his offer. Naomi snorted softly through her nose as she shook her head in annoyance. Cam leaned back and laughed loudly as Alan blinked slowly at Santi’s sudden exclamation.

  “Damn, kid. No need to yell,” Alan said laughing.

  “There should be survivors. We’ll need to make sure we can get them out safely,” Naomi reminded them and Santi had to nod in agreement. There was over nine million people in the Bay Area metro region. Even if only one in a thousand had survived, it’d leave almost ten thousand survivors scattered about. Some had already made their way out of the Bay, but there would be many more still stuck.

  “That can be Zeke and the others' jobs. We need to pull them out of the bay and relocate them in the valley and along the hills,” Santi said.

  “We don’t want to control the sea area?” Bianca asked.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  “Even clearing it with everyone we have; there will be too many monsters and dens to truly settle. We can use it as a training ground. The hills are easier to defend,” Santi defended his choice. He couldn’t tell them how dangerous the sea would become when the incursions started. Behind everyone, Naomi nodded her head in agreement.

  “Alright. So we start at the same time and go till the end of the day. One day left till ninety, right?” Alan asked.

  “Naw, two. But I know how competitive you are. I want neutral parties counting.” Santi smiled as he said it and Alan chuckled.

  “We switch. Naomi runs with you guys and I get to hang out with Bianca,” Alan suggested. Bianca’s eyes bulged as she coughed as she drank her tea, spewing it from her nose.

  “What, don’t want to hang out with your future father-in-law?” Alan said as both Bianca and Cam turned scarlet and began to stammer.

  “It’s only been a few months,” Cam started.

  “Way too early to think of that,” Bianca said. Alan was just laughing at them, enjoying his needling.

  “If they want to switch, that's fine,” Santi said, looking over at the Apostate. She was looking at Alan like he had grown a second head. She had likely never seen him like this, relaxed and laughing as he hung out with his son.

  “Naomi, are you ok with joining the kids?” Alan asked looking back at her.

  “I’m fine with that. Santi and me together are way too strong though. You won’t be able to beat the two of us,” Naomi warned him.

  “Never said you had to fight with him. Just watch him,” Alan said.

  “I’m not passing up experience like that,” Naomi said, shooting a scowl at Alan.

  “Hmmmm….” Alan looked around a minute before brightening.

  “How bout you two, vs. me and the kids?” Alan said and Santi wanted to groan. The cheating old man wanted to win and Santi didn’t mind the original challenge. He looked at Naomi and realized this would be his chance to kill her. He was stronger than she was currently and during this challenge she’d be bereft of her guards.

  “I’m game,” Santi said. Naomi looked a bit startled at first but a knowing look passed over her face as she stared at him. It was like she could read him like a book. She shook her head in amusement and smiled.

  “I’m fine with that. Santi and I can use some bonding time,” Naomi said and Alan crowed in joy. He had managed to pull all of Santi’s team away from him by giving him a single helper. That Naomi was either the second or third strongest person here wasn’t really in Alan’s thought process. Strength of the individual still hadn’t sank into people’s minds. They had seen Santi fight hordes before, but there was still something instinctive about feeling like they had a numbers advantage.

  “Me and Naomi will kick your guy’s asses!” Santi said with a laugh.

  “Oakland or San Francisco?” Alan leaned forward.

  “We’ll race through them. No calling dibs on a city,” Santi negotiated.

  “Do we have some scouts maps or something around here. I don’t want to spend half my time looking for the dens,” Alan said. Santi leaned back and had to think about it for a moment. They had some basic maps from the small handful of rangers they had who had started to scout out the Bay area. The losses from both the battle with the cursed and Delilah’s desertion with her and a few squads had massacred Daniel’s and hana’s small command. It was why they were still back in the Homebase region with Chad’s hunters.

  He still had a map with a few dens written down.

  “No, we don’t have any maps,” Santi lied. Alan grunted in annoyance and drained his drink and set it down. He rose and stretched, reaching up to the ceiling as he groaned.

  “Everyone, it’s time for bed. I want to be up and hunting first thing in the morning. Before the sun rises.” Everyone groaned but the old man was already leaving, waving Naomi to keep sitting and talking to the rest of them as he headed out the house and into the night.

  “Somehow we all got co-opted into their little challenge,” Chloe said as the rest of them sat there staring at Santi and Naomi.

  “Wait, we know what they get, but what do we get if we win?” Chloe asked. The rest of Santi's team stopped and looked around at each other as they thought about it. Naomi was laughing loudly as she stood up and left the house, following in Alan’s wake.