Joel gave the couple a wave as they passed by. There had been talk about pulling down a couple of the houses to make more room, only to stumble into the problem that was the giant concrete slab that modern houses were built on. Smashing the slab up seemed to be the only solution anyone could think of. But other than a few hand tools, there wasn’t a way to do so efficiently. And Joel’s first attempt to clobber a block of concrete hard enough to crack it broke the hammer.

  In the end, it was decided to leave the homes, at least for the time being, and use them for housing and storage if people came to join them.

  There was one unknown benefit that many of the crafters or non-fighting members of the community discovered and discussed among themselves. Crafts worked on overnight when in the world of Morpheus translated into faster skill increases which was seen by the food produce created by the communities two farmers. Joel and Emily had initially worked on the farm by day. But by doing so when transitioning into the mirror world of Morpheus, they were pleasantly surprised to see the skill level gains. Something that they could keep when they returned to the waking world.

  Literally overnight, their higher skills meant they could plant seeds during the day that sprouted as if they had been growing for days. Which inspired Peter to work on newfound plans to farm as much as he could at night for the skill increases. Especially since things like construction and ploughing didn’t last when the sun came up. Anything that was structural to the world around them needed to be done in the daytime. You could burn down a house in the night in that strange mirror world and by morning it would be back and ready like nothing had gone wrong. That lead to many people breaking or trying to fix buildings and houses in Morpheus to try and improve their own skills.

  There was also another change that had occurred over the last few days.

  “I’m not enjoying these biting insects,” Luneira complained.

  Joel sighed. “I did tell them they didn’t need to bring mosquitos back.”

  Mentioning to Morpheus and whoever it was that ran the system that they needed pollinators, had worked rather well. Maybe a little too well. There were now plenty of insects. Bees, bugs, flies and all the rest. Along with a few actual birds, though they tended to get picked off by impyles who snatched them from the air. Still, there was enough wildlife out there that it was now possible for plants to continue to propagate naturally. Lack of pollinators would have killed everyone eventually, and Joel had no idea how things worked on the other worlds.

  Worlds like the one Luneira came from. Or Jenny. That was one of the few things Joel knew for certain. This world was one of many. Morpheus was a system that linked them all together. But not in an altruistic way. Whatever the system was. Whatever it represented, whatever its goals, it created a trial that seemed to have killed ninety percent of the population.

  Those who remained got classes, skills and little windows to track everything. Which was when things only got worse. By day, things were relatively safe. At least until an incursion chance started to increase. Things like increasing land, population or gathering strength. Anything that would put you in a position of power increased the incursion chance around you.

  When that chance got high enough, it was expected that the monsters would arrive that night. Nightmares made flesh and pulled out of dreams and into the real world. Some of them, like the eaer, the giant spider on the school oval, were passive. They sat still and didn’t move around much. Others, like the impyle and hellhounds, were active hunters. They preyed on people, as well as other creatures. And when the incursion chance got even higher, more insidious beings were sent.

  The first of which was Luneira. A night hag, who attempted to suffocate each of them one by one, only to fall in battle with Joel. Who then became his vassal, and quickly inserted herself into his love life alongside Jess. The next had been after a horde. A naturally occurring incursion of roaming monsters had attacked Mitch’s settlement. He’d known they were coming and had hoped to bring Joel and his people into their fold, but Joel had firmly refused. He had, however, joined them in the fight, only to find himself put up against a new form of demon with a short range teleport ability. Jenny was a monster of a thing. But she too fell under Joel’s command after being defeated.

  And none of that would make a difference if Joel didn’t get a grip on the situation here at home. He had one mission. A quest set by Morpheus itself. And if he didn’t complete it, he might have his rank stripped, and that would cost him a vassal. The part that worried him, though, was how many others, like Mitch, had the same quest. This sounded like another trial by fire. Throw a bunch of people into a melting pot and see what formed.

  With a probable enemy at the back gates, Joel remembered the other people he’d met. There were the old folks at the back of town. Where Helen had come from. Other than the cranky old man by the gate, they were peaceful enough. Most of them had survived, too. Having a sturdy gate to keep out the monsters worked out for them. Joel just needed to check they were okay since the horde came through.

  There were others out there, too. Amanda and her friends Marlene and Timothy were part of one group. They, along with a pair of brothers, Dante and Bryson, had joined up shortly after Joel finished the wall at the front of the street. Only to discover later that Dante and Bryson considered their new status, deserving of certain liberties. Liberties that neither Marlene nor Amanda were willing to give.

  And while Joel hoped he wasn’t going to have to kill a bunch of rapists… it was almost a certainty he’d have to address it sooner or later.

  “You’re back,” Jess called.

  Joel turned and regarded the tall blonde. She, at six feet tall, was taller than most women he’d met before. They had harbored a small two-way crush for a few years, with neither of them putting much effort to move past it. Not until the end of the world had pushed them into it.

  “Shouldn’t you be resting?” Joel asked.

  “Marlene said I could move around.” She rolled her eyes. “I’m not even doing anything and Buster is right here.”

  The pup in question was indeed with her. In his pup form, he had that roly-poly exterior common to actual puppies—despite his glowing red eyes and a darkness that literally dripped from his body as he bounded around with a clumsy lope.

  “Did she now?” Joel frowned as he walked over to check on her himself.

  Jess rolled her eyes. The attack had come in the daytime. Injuries that happened overnight in Morpheus were healed by morning. So long as you survived the night and fell asleep, you would wake whole and uninjured. Jess, taking an arrow to the shoulder during the daylight hours, had a real injury. And while Marlene the cleric had healed her, there was weakness there that needed time.

  “Maybe I just don’t like the idea of you being outside where you’re vulnerable,” Joel mumbled as he put his arms around her.

  “Maybe I don’t like the idea of you going outside where you’re vulnerable,” Jess countered, but tilted her head up.

  Joel kissed her lightly. They hadn’t used the ‘L’ word yet, but he certainly harbored some strong feelings for the woman. She’d stood by his side since this started and he didn’t feel right going out without her.

  “All the more reason for you to rest up,” Joel insisted. “Sooner you’re better, the sooner you can come with me.”

  Jess sighed. That was the main problem with all this. Going out by day wasn’t a huge risk, so long as the incursion chance was low. A quick patrol and resource gathering were fine enough. Your primary issue was running into other people. The main problem right now was when they patrolled at night within Morpheus. Jess would carry that injury and be unable to fight effectively until she had healed properly. And missing a patrol was a quick way to push up the incursion chance, making the daylight progressively more dangerous.

  “I’ll get there,” Jess said and sighed. “I just worry.”

  “I know you do.” Joel kissed her again. “I won’t be out late. I just want to check the east side. See if there’s anyone else nearby.”

  “There were a few groups where we came from,” Amanda pointed out. “Not everyone was a giant douche canoe, but I don’t know how they went, either.”

  “I get it,” Jess said in acknowledgment. “Just wish I could help.”

  “Help by keeping an eye on things here,” Joel suggested. “You’ve got eyes still. Just… be careful.”

  “Yes dad,” she said and rolled her eyes.

  “I mean… I don’t mind if you wanna call me daddy,” Joel smirked.

  Amanda giggled, and then blushed when everyone looked at her. “Sorry.”

  “Don’t be,” Jess grunted, before giving Joel a pointed look. “Go on then. Go do manly stuff.”

  “Manly stuff?”

  “You know what I mean,” Jess huffed and pulled back. “Just… come home safe, okay?”

  “That’s the plan.” Joel squeezed her lightly and grinned.

  “I shall bring my lord home safely,” Jenny assured them.

  “We shall not disappoint the first girlfriend,” Luneira agreed.

  Jess stared at them both before shaking her head. “I’m going to go put on a bikini and lie in the sun for a while.”

  Joel stared at her as she walked away. Sensing his eyes on her, Jess turned her head and winked at him before putting a little more sway in her hips. Joel took a deep breath, admired the view for a moment and turned back to the road. There, he spotted Helen smirking at him, as if she’d heard the whole thing. With her were Dawn, Jason, and baby Matthew.

  “Hey, ahh, Joel?”

  Joel twisted and turned as Dale hurried over. “Everything okay?”

  “Hmm? Oh yeah, fine. That’s… sorta what I wanted to talk about.” Dale scratched his chin. “We’re all set up, really. I was just going to ask what the living situation was here. Are we communal? How are we going to earn our keep?”

  “Oh…” Joel frowned. “I hadn’t really gotten that far.”

  Dale grinned, then sighed. “Look. I get how this works. You’re not as big an ass as Mitch is. But you’ve still gotta crack the whip. I’m just trying to get us moving before you start asking hard questions.”

  Joel nodded for a few moments. “Y’know, I think you’re right. You should go talk to Jess. Tell her I sent you and let her know that you and the others are looking for something to do.”

  “Oh, she’s doing better, is she?” Dale brightened slightly.

  “Marlene is a cleric. She can’t fix people as well during the day as she can in Morpheus, but please see her if you need anything,” Joel said, patting him on the shoulder. “Right now, though, if you have anyone who’s been outside recently, I wouldn’t mind their help checking things outside.”

  Dale nodded and slowly shook his head. “Not sure you’ll find anyone like that. It was Mitch, going out on his bike most of the time. He didn’t really like it when people went outside the walls.”

  “Is there anything Mitch did that didn’t make him sound like a gaping dick hole?” Amanda grumbled.

  “Not off the top of my head, no,” Dale admitted. “I’ll ask though, if you wanna give me a moment. Someone might know something.”

  Several minutes and a resounding ‘no’ later, Joel, along with Amanda, Jenny and Luneira were dropping down onto the main road once more. Joel looked around. It was past noon. Not late though. Still a few hours until sunset. Unlike the back of town towards Mitch, the front half looked far livelier. There were a handful of people moving into Flash’N’Save. They couldn’t quite see how that was going from here, only the people moving back and forth across the street.

  “So,” Joel said and nodded at the open space in front of them. “Where should we all start?”

  “I’d rather stay away from the giant spider for now,” Amanda spoke up.

  “I have no preference,” Luneira followed suit.

  “Nor I, my lord,” Jenny answered.

  Joel looked both ways down the street before looking at the empty road straight ahead. They hadn’t checked over here yet. The main road was long enough, but they hadn’t checked the east side at all beyond a casual look. Down towards the shopping center, there was another set of unit complexes with gates. Joel didn’t want to deal with them yet. He figured, like the old people, they probably held the highest number of survivors. Unlike the old people, he could only hope they had banded together by now.

  Joel figured while it would be good to know who the neighbors were, he’d rather scope out any hidden pockets. If there was some terrified family hiding out somewhere, it would be nice to give them an alternative rather than letting them cower in fear of what was outside.

  With a nod, Joel crossed the street. Amanda hurried alongside him and the two demonic women spread out on either side.

  “Really need to get you some new clothes,” Joel suggested toward his two vassals. “We might bust into a few houses and find you new things to wear.”

  They really needed some hoodies or something. A way to cover their faces and hide the fact they weren’t human. Stop people freaking out before they understood the situation. For now, Joel just followed the road. He knew from experience that this road looped around on itself. The first left was that loop, while there were two more left turns that led to small cul-de-sacs. After going halfway around the loop, there would be a right-hand turn that would exit north, to the main road that shared an intersection with the eaer.

  They kept to the road, sticking in the middle where they could be seen. It didn’t offer cover, but it prevented anything from being able to jump out from behind an abandoned car, or from behind a fence. So when a trio of hellhounds appeared, Joel had more than enough time to ready himself.

  “Amanda,” Jenny hissed. “Watch.”

  Joel flinched as the wraith vanished, only to appear behind the last hellhound. The poor creature didn’t see her at all until she plunged a pair of blades into its back. The hellhound yipped as it collapsed, while the two ahead of it didn’t react to the death of the third. Joel readied himself before stepping forward with his shield levelled.

  “Bash!”

  The hellhound closest was the target. It was readying to leap, when Joel closed in and swung that massive shield. It caught the beast under the chin and was knocked up into the air. As it flipped, the hellhound on its tail rushed in—only for Joel’s sword to swing around, hacking it across the face, killing it instantly. The tumbling hellhound hit the ground hard, where Luneira extended her arm like a tentacle and grabbed it around the neck. One quick thrash and its spine broke, ending the beast without a fuss.

  As Joel looked around, he noticed movement at a nearby house. The blinds swung like someone had darted out of view so they wouldn’t be seen. Joel noted the home and gestured for the others to follow. Ignoring the first left for the loop, he brought his team to the second and turned down what he already knew was a dead end.

  This street looked rather quiet, too. Nobody was around. A couple of front doors were kicked in. And one house had signs of fighting, where someone had set a fire in the front yard that had destroyed a car. Whatever happened, there weren’t any bodies, so someone either cleaned up, or it ended elsewhere.

  “Should we check that out, you think?” Joel asked.

  Jenny rushed off without a word. Sprinting straight through the front door. Joel let out a sigh and jogged after her.

  “I wasn’t expecting this much excitement during the day,” Amanda complained.

  “Neither did I,” Joel grumped. “I’ll talk to her.”

  “Talk to me about what?” Jenny asked, as she stepped out into the light once more. “Nobody is in there.”

  “Well, that’s good at least,” Joel sighed and stepped into the house on his own.

  It had a lived-in feel. Not one that suggested that people lived there at one stage. That was obviously the case for the middle of suburbia. No, this one had the feel that people had lived in it as recently as to have left a bowl of cereal on the dining room table, while a sink full of dirty dishes suggested that whoever was here hadn’t thought to clean up.

  Along with the dishes, there was a huge pile of rubbish. Wrappers and bags from chips and biscuits. All dumped in a pile that was probably once a garbage bin.

  “Teenagers,” Amanda said thoughtfully.

  “You say that like you know for certain,” Joel pointed out.

  Amanda gave a small shrug. “Don’t pretend like you’re that much older. This looks like a couple of teens are living here,” she said, going over the dishes. “And I think they have a kid with them.”

  Joel frowned as she held up the only clean dish in the kitchen. A child’s bowl, along with a matching spoon.

  “Dammit,” Joel sighed and turned on the spot. “Where are they, do you think?”

  “They might have fled the hellhounds,” Luneira suggested.

  Joel didn’t want to think about that. It was an option. He tried to think about whether the hellhounds had blood on them. He hadn’t been paying that much attention. He just killed them, and now there was plenty of blood on at least two of them.

  “Check the cupboards,” Joel nodded as he pulled one open.

  Kitchen chemicals glinted back. Enough dish washing liquid to suggest their cleaning problems extended in a different direction.

  “There’s no food,” Amanda said, holding open a pantry.

  “Is this food? It has a picture of a fruit on it,” Jenny asked.

  Joel turned and saw the small cupboard. It held just three small jars. All baby food. Joel frowned and pulled open a few more. A cupboard of pots and pans, another filled with plastic lids without containers. Joel stood and leaned over the counter to reach the tap. Which, when twisted, showed no signs of water pressure.