Chương 20: Chapter 19: System Quest

"Well, that definitely sounds a whole lot better than a warrior class," Denise said, letting out a visible breath of relief.

"I don't want our children turning into front-line fighters and constantly putting themselves in harm's way."

"Oh, absolutely," I agreed immediately, nodding along with an earnest expression. Internally, I felt zero need to complicate her peace of mind by mentioning that in the brutal math of role-playing systems, Artificers were actually some of the most devastatingly lethal force multipliers in existence. That was especially true if they focused their specialization paths toward combat engineering, explosive ordnance, and automated defense structures rather than simple utilitarian crafting.

Given his personality, I was quite sure Travis—and very likely Jace, too—would eventually point himself directly toward the offensive side of the tree. But I'd cross that bridge when we actually came to it, preferably after they locked in their respective class choices.

"So, what's our next step?" Denise asked, shifting back to the grim reality of our situation.

"We have maybe a month's worth of dry food left in the pantry, and less than a week's worth of water."

"Well," I began, gesturing toward the window.

"Long-term, we're basically going to have to start cultivating sustainable crops and raising livestock immediately. And we need a steady, independent water supply. More importantly, we're going to need a localized compound that is both easily defensible and highly livable. And I think I know just the place. Better yet, if what I've read about High-Altitude EMP physics holds true, this specific target should still have functional electricity." Denise tilted her head, her curiosity piqued.

"And what place is that?"

"The new high school over on the east side of town," I replied.

"It has acres of open land for farming and raising livestock, and it runs on its own dedicated deep-well water pump. Most importantly, when they built it, they installed a massive solar panel farm across the overhead covers in the parking lot. If my memory serves me right, that entire array was specifically designed to be EMP hardened and isolated from the main civilian grid."

The exact moment the words left my mouth, a sharp, ringing chime echoed in my ears, and a brilliant cascade of golden text flashed into my peripheral vision: [New Quest Gained: A Place of Power] Objective: Recover the location known as "The High School" and secure it as a viable, fortified sanctuary for your family to thrive. Quest Rewards: A permanent, sustainable stronghold for your family; Moderate EXP. System Note: Remember, power takes many forms—if you are strong enough to take it. (Shareable).

"Oh, snap!" I exclaimed, my eyes widening as I stared at the glowing letters.

"I just triggered a definitive System quest. It seems like my strategy is on the right track. But look at the flavor text... it says we need to recover it, if we're strong enough to take it. That heavily implies there are either hostile entities or an armed faction of survivors already occupying the grounds. It also explicitly notes the quest is shareable." The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"What exactly does 'shareable' mean in this context?" Denise asked, her brow furrowing.

"It means I don't have to do this solo. I can formally recruit a fire team," I replied, a cold, calculated focus settling over me.

"And who exactly are you going to build a fire team with, out here?" she asked.

"I need to find Joe," I said simply. Joe Garcia had been one of my absolute closest, most dependable friends for over fifteen years. He was a hardened Army Infantry veteran with multiple combat tours through the sandbox of Afghanistan and Iraq. After his time in uniform, he'd also clocked a few years working as a private military contractor for a discrete security firm—doing specific things, in specific classified sectors, that he was legally and contractually prohibited from ever discussing.

I was never entirely sure if he couldn't talk about it due to sensitive national security clearance, or if the company just didn't want the details seeing the light of day out of fear of international litigation. Either way, Joe was a premier, highly experienced combat asset. More importantly, over the years, Joe and I had cultivated a tight-knit inner circle of friends who were all prior military. We were completely like-minded in our approach to prepping, tactical tracking, and localized survival.

"Do you actually know where he is right now, or how to locate him without phones?" Denise asked.

"Yeah," I explained, gesturing out toward the neighborhood.

"His primary residence is literally just two blocks around the corner from us. And if he's not bunkered down there, he'll be at his secondary property just a few blocks further down on the rural outskirts of town. That's where he keeps all his livestock. Last time I checked his inventory, he had about thirty chickens, a couple of pigs, a goat, and roughly seven head of cattle." Denise looked at me, her eyes reading my posture.

"I'm assuming you're planning to leave immediately."

"Just as soon as I gear up," I responded, pushing back from the table.

"Where are the kids?"

"Where do you think?" Denise replied with a wry smile.

"They're out in the side yard playing with your newly adopted apex predator. Wait a second... you're not planning on dragging them along into a potential combat zone, are you?"

"No," I replied, chuckling softly as I raised my hands.

"Absolutely not. I was just going to say good morning before I head out." With that, I leaned down, planted a firm kiss on her cheek, and headed back down the hallway into the master bedroom to prep my kit. I strapped into my tactical vest, checked the retention on my sidearm, and grabbed my primary weapons. Once fully kitted out, I stepped through the back door into the crisp air of the side yard. The sight that met my eyes made me stop dead in my tracks.

Dog—the massive, terrifyingly mutated, hound that had ruthlessly slaughtered an enemy combatant in an alleyway—was currently lying flat on his back in the grass with his massive paws flopping uselessly in the air. He was letting all three of my kids aggressively rub his belly, his giant tail thumping against the dirt like a rhythmic hammer. I dropped my head, placing my palm squarely over my face in utter disbelief. Lifting my head back up, I stared down at the giant beast.

"You know, you're supposed to be this vicious, bloodthirsty attack dog, right?" Dog just rolled his eyes over in my direction, letting out a low, content huff with an expression that I was absolutely certain translated to pure, unadulterated giddy pleasure.

"You realize you completely lost ownership of that dog the exact second you brought him through the gate, right?" came Denise's amused voice from the back porch behind me.

"Yeah, I'm starting to realize that," I replied over my shoulder with a grin.

"But I still need to take him out on patrol with me." Raising my voice so it carried across the yard to the kids, I called out, "Alright, if you guys are officially done pampering the monster, it's time for him to get to work." With a sharp, guttural chuff, Dog rolled onto his massive feet, arched his spine into a deep, long stretch, and lumbered over to my side, his golden eyes instantly sharpening as he fell into a perfect heel. I turned back to Denise, stepping close to pull her into a tight, reassuring embrace.

"I'll be back soon. I love you, baby."

"You better," she replied, burying her face into my chest for a brief second before looking up.

"Better what?" I teased, a smirk breaking through my serious demeanor.

"Be back soon, or love you?"

"Both," she said firmly.

"I definitely will, and I most certainly do," I responded, leaning down to press a deep kiss to her lips.

"I love you too, my love," she whispered as we broke apart. I turned to the kids, pulling each of them into a quick, fierce hug, reminding them to keep the perimeter locked down. Then, with my bow held comfortably in my left hand, and Dog pacing silently by my side, I cracked open the side gate and stepped out into the quiet, fractured streets.