"Scrabblers," the old elf said.
And just like that, we were screwed.
Apparently, these things owned the only water hole around.
Every night, they came to collect their tax, which was usually one of the outcasts.
Yael crossed her arms, her jaw tight.
"So," she said, her voice practically dripping poison, "what's the brilliant plan, Commander?"
"Gonna go out there and flash that pretty face until they die of jealousy?"
I ignored her.
Of course she was being a pain.
My eyes were locked on the canyon.
Authority failed.
Charm failed.
Time for Plan C: Kill everything.
A slow grin spread across my face.
I could feel it, that little spark you get when a real challenge pops up.
"No," I said.
"I'm going to teach these people how to fight."
This isn't a recruitment mission.
It's a tutorial.
First up, recon.
I spent the rest of the day on a high ledge, just watching.
Map the terrain.
Time the wind patterns.
Classic raid leader stuff.
As dusk settled, I saw them.
They looked like hyenas made of rock and pure rage.
A whole dozen of them, moving with the kind of creepy coordination that tells you they're a well-programmed mob.
And one was bigger.
Darker.
The alpha.
It hung back, its eyes scanning everything.
Smart.
A mini-boss.
It had a pattern.
And every pattern has a weakness.
I walked back to camp, my plan fully formed.
I grabbed a stick and started drawing in the dirt, my voice sharp.
No more Mr. Nice Guy.
"This is how we win," I declared.
"We use the terrain."
"We build a bottleneck."
"We set traps."
I started assigning tasks, turning their useless moping into actual prep work.
They just stared at me, their faces blank.
"It's flawed."
The voice was calm, sharp.
It cut right through my speech.
I turned.
It was her.
Lianna.
The woman with a soldier's posture and a ghost's eyes.
She stepped forward, staring at my dirt map with cold contempt.
"Your plan is flawed," she repeated.
My face got hot.
Pride, that stupid, noisy beast, started roaring in my chest.
"Explain," I managed to choke out.
"The alpha," she said simply.
"It'll hang back."
"It'll watch the pack die in your trap, then it'll circle around from the high ground."
She pointed a slim finger at the cliffs.
"And it will kill you from behind while you're celebrating."
Silence.
Damn it.
She was right.
Completely, infuriatingly, one hundred percent right.
I should have been pissed.
Instead, a slow smile bloomed on my face.
Respect.
"You're right," I said.
The whole camp went dead silent, probably shocked I'd admit it.
I held the stick out to her.
"So, how do we kill the alpha?"
Her eyes widened, just for a second.
She took the stick.
The next evening, we were ready.
Bottleneck, check.
Traps, check.
Me, Yael, and Lianna hiding on the high ground, check.
The pack came, just like I knew they would.
They charged blindly down the narrow path.
"Now!" I roared.
Boulders crashed down, sealing them in.
The outcasts swarmed from their hiding spots, a screaming wave of pure desperation.
It was a chaotic, bloody mess down there.
And just like Lianna predicted, the alpha saw the trap and bolted.
It scrambled up the rocks, heading right for its escape route.
Our kill zone.
It burst over the ledge, a whirlwind of mangy fur and yellow teeth.
It saw us.
HP:[125/125]
A low growl rumbled in its chest.
"Hhhhrrrrrr...."
It lowered its head, muscles coiling.
Yael didn't even wait for me to give an order.
She moved.
A silver-haired blur against the rock.
She took a deep breath.
"Boom!"
She stomped her foot so hard the rock cracked, the force shooting her forward like a missile.
She wasn't a tank anymore.
She was a rogue.
The alpha lunged, its jaws snapping shut on empty air.
"WHOOSH!"
Yael was already at its side.
She wasn't holding a sword.
It was a scavenged dagger, and she didn't aim for its tough hide.
She went for the joint, slamming the heavy pommel into its back leg.
"CRACK!"
The sound of bone snapping was sharp and final.
The beast howled, a shriek of pure agony.
"Yeeeee-owwwl!"
The alpha spun around, limping, furious, its attention locked completely on Yael.
"Quinn, now!" Lianna yelled.
"Its hide is weaker under the jaw!"
My hand was already out.
Mana, cool and electric, flooded my arm.
The air in front of my palm started to crackle.
"Hey, ugly!" Yael shouted, dancing back.
"Your breath smells worse than my brother's cooking!"
The alpha roared, its tiny eyes full of hate.
She had its aggro.
She was buying me time.
I poured everything into the spell.
My rage.
My pride.
The burning need to prove I was better than this.
A sphere of violent, blue energy formed in my hand.
It wasn't a spark.
It was a miniature sun.
"Die," I snarled.
"FWOOSH!"
The Mana Bolt shot across the ledge.
It hit the alpha right under its jaw, exactly where Lianna said.
There was no explosion.
"SQUELCH!"
The sound was wet.
Disgusting.
Like punching a rotten melon.
Dark blood erupted from the wound.
The Scrabbler alpha staggered, gurgling.
Its eyes bulged.
It took one wobbly step, then collapsed in a heap.
A wave of golden energy washed over me.
The glorious ding.
The sweet, sweet sound of leveling up.
Down below, the fight was over.
The leaderless pack had been butchered.
We had won.
Later, the camp was actually alive for once.
The fires were high and bright.
The outcasts were talking, laughing, not looking like ghosts anymore.
They'd faced death and stomped on its face.
I sat by a fire, feeling that satisfying hum in my bones.
I looked up and saw Lianna.
The firelight was dancing in her sharp, intelligent eyes.
She was watching the others, a faint, proud smile on her face.
My brain, ever the raid leader, piped up: She's your best asset.
But then another thought snuck in: And she's hot.
She must have felt me staring.
Her eyes met mine across the fire.
I didn't see any fear or fawning.
I saw respect.
It was the silent head nod of one raid leader to another.
A warmth spread through my chest that had nothing to do with the fire or the level-up.
And just past the edge of the light, leaning against a rock, Yael watched us.
Her face was a blank mask, but I saw her hand clench into a fist.
She saw the look.
She saw the nod.
Uh oh.
Someone's jealous.