Chương 157: Chapter 155 – The Fungal Five

Morganstern blasted out of the woods and Cole felt her ability wash over him. The world shifted from green to rust-brown. He wasn't sure what that had to do with her time dilation active, but he knew that time was passing more slowly than outside the extent of her bubble.

"Situation?"

"Burke's KIA," said Cole, looking up from the bandage he was applying to Akira.

"It's the Beast Cult mage, zombified. Confirmed it. Just as nasty as the living version, only now he's tougher than Big Wood and faster than Bessie."

"Lovely." Morganstern spat on the ground.

"Still got all his tricks?"

"Yeah," said Cole, grimacing.

"He hit me with whatever withering curse he used on you last time. Wayland is taking the edge off." Wayland looked over from where he chewed on small bits of liver. He swallowed.

"Can't keep it up forever." Morganstern stared at him.

"Really? All this shit going down and you're snacking? Is that Jack Links?"

"It's how he gets his charges back," said Cole.

"Charges he's currently pumping into me to deal with that curse."

"Oh. Okay, do what you can, Jack Links," said Morgan.

"Alright. We're going to hunt this fucker down. Do you think you can find him, again?"

"Are we just ignorin' she just called me Jack Links?"

"If I'm close enough," said Cole.

"Jack Links can, too. But I don't think we'll have to wait long. This thing's just as mean as one of the local zombies, now. I think it'll be coming back for me. Don't know whether it remembers me or not, but I don't think it matters."

"Once you find it, you think you can kill it?" asked Akira.

"Absolutely," said Morganstern, hefting her hammer.

"Between me, Airborne, and Arley, we can definitely take it out. Probably." Cole scuffed the furrow in the ground left by the white slash spell.

"But that won't be the end of it, right?" Morganstern looked to the side.

"I didn't think so," said Cole.

"It's a Curahee monster now. It'll cycle back through the Lewis Field, just like Bessie, Big Wood, and the old king."

"Not much we can do about that," said Morganstern. She pulled off her helmet and ran a hand through her matted hair.

"Fuck me! We can't hunt this thing down every time it regenerates. It's too unpredictable. It even throws off the other elite spawns. Hell, we won't even know if it regenerated until it attacks a tryout. Curahee is completely scuffed cause of this bastard." Cole caught the sound of movement in the woods and spun to the south, gun up.

"Friendly!" called Arley as he pushed through the thicket. His voice was drawn out and pitched down as he seemed to run in slow motion. The Kicker returned to normal as he entered the active ability. He was breathing hard and toting a massive rifle that looked more like an industrial tool. Cole lowered his gun. Arley raised his hand in greeting.

"Ketchup's got the east-side tryouts rounded up. We ready to kill this thing?" Cole cradled his chin and dropped down to his haunches. He pulled out his vape and took a pull, thinking.

"What if it wasn't on Curahee when it died? Could the local god still regenerate it?" Arley barked a laugh.

"You gonna invite it to crash in your billet, Airborne?"

"Not me," said Cole.

"I don't speak its language."

"Then what the fuck is your point?" asked Morganstern. The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Cole looked between the other two proctors.

"We have a spore druid." Morganstern froze for a second.

"We do have a spore druid." She shook her head.

"A baby spore druid. He can't be higher than level six or seven. Can his ability even do anything?"

"Fasil can take control of fungal life forms," said Cole.

"He told me the mage was too powerful the first night. But he's gotten stronger. And what if it were weakened? Near-death, even?" Wayland cleared his throat.

"I ought blood-curse it, too. Lower its Resilience."

"What enhancement level are you, now?" asked Morganstern.

"Seven." Morganstern looked down at the ground and started muttering. Arley stepped up.

"Even if it were near-death, it's still a high-level mage with lethal spells," said Arley. He pursed his lips.

"But I won't be the one down range." He turned to Morganstern.

"If that's the play, I'll back you." Morganstern pulled her helmet back on and growled.

"Tame an elite fungal monster… What could go wrong?"

"There's always Hexighast for a proving grounds," said Cole. Morganstern blew a raspberry at him.

"Ain't no way I'm learning a whole new planet well enough to run tryouts there. Hexighast is your bag, Airborne." She bit her lip.

"But the more I think about it, the more I convince myself it might actually be doable. We pulverize it, curse it, contain it, and then transport it off this fucking world and finish the job at home."

"You make it sound so easy," said Arley. Morganstern ignored him.

"Alright. If we're going to do this, we're going to need your eyes up on that mountain, Arley. We're going to need Fasil and Ari close enough that I can protect them, and we're going to need a twenty on that damn mage." Cole eyed Arley.

"Up on the mountain? You're going to cover us from five klicks upslope?" Arley grinned.

"I've heard you're a decent marksman, Airborne. But you're no sniper. Not like me. Trust me, it'll feel like I'm sittin' on your shoulder. I'll find Ari and Fasil and send them your way." Akira coughed into her hand.

"What about me?" she asked.

"You're with me," said Morganstern.

"We're going to take Arley north and collect the brothers. When we come back, you and Ari will head east, link up with Ketchup, and bunker up."

"Meantime," said Cole, "Wayland, you're with me. Let's pick up this thing's trail, make sure we're the ones getting the jump on it and not the other way around, yeah?"

"You got it, bossman," said Wayland. Morganstern headed north with Arley and Akira. Cole turned and jogged west, Wayland following close behind. They had to find where the trail started, and Cole picked it up just beyond the trees where they'd fought the fungal mage.

"You feel him anywhere?" asked Cole, looking at a line of tracks in the mud below a rock that had a bloody handprint. For such a fast, silent creature, it wasn't covering its trail well. Maybe it was too used to being the hunter instead of the hunted. Maybe there just wasn't enough mind left in the thing to care.

"Nope," said Wayland. He looked down at the hunk of dried liver in his hand and frowned.

"I don't know how much more of this I can eat before I puke. Hey, uh, this Jack Links thing… you don't think it's gonna stick, do you?" Despite the situation, Cole grinned.

"Welcome to your new callsign. I've heard worse." Wayland sighed. Cole followed the trail, slipping back into his woodland stalker mode, keeping Wayland back behind him about fifty meters—close enough to cover him and keep his blood curse in check, but far enough that the tryout wouldn't be collateral damage if the BC mage managed to turn this into an ambush. The path led west and slightly south, heading back to the southern part of the valley instead of back toward the Silk Forest.

Wayland kept up well, but his enhancement metrics weren't what Cole's were, and after an hour of tracking, Cole called a break so he could radio the others and let Wayland catch his breath.

"Morganstern, you up?"" Yeah. Arley's getting in position, I'm headed back to you with Fasil. What's your twenty?"

"Four klicks west of where we spoke. We've got the trail. But we're—"" Cole, it's here,"whispered Wayland." Just entered my range." Cole immediately went silent, burning a half-charge of his ability to mark nearby enemies. A sea of red shapes took form in the woods, but one patch was blocky, indistinct. Ironically, the very thing that let the Beast Cult at least partially nullify his IFF, made it separate and distinct from the rest of the Curahee rabble." Arley," Cole whispered." You got my position?""

Affirmative, Airborne. If you're with Jack Links, anyway. I can't see you for shit with that smelly cloak."" Two-hundred meters west of me," said Cole." Wait one… Got it. I see him. Ugly fucker." Cole was amazed that Arley could see anything at all through the thick canopy. Cole only caught glimpses of the mountain through small breaks in the trees. Whatever Arley's class ability, his Acuity must have been even higher than Cole's." Ground guide us," said Cole." Three-hundred-meter stand-off. Where's Morganstern?""

Headed to you now, Airborne. Ten mikes."" Good copy," said Cole. He glanced at Wayland." Cavalry is ten minutes out." The radio crackled in his ear, again." Airborne, he's on the move. Headed south-east, now."

"Come on," Cole whispered to Wayland." Break's over."