Man, that thing is huge.

With every step it takes, you could feel small earth quakes beneath your feet. Imagine something that massive and imposing display such a tremendous amount of strength just by walking, let alone when it's in combat. A Tremortusk is one of many terrifying examples.

Fortunately, a few miles from here was a Tremortusk site where you could watch the monster machine wondering in its own territory. I carefully approached the towering pile of metal and muscle while staying hidden amongst the red bushes, rock prepared in hand to throw it close to my hiding spot to attract the machine then override once it gets close enough. As I waited, I thought of the Utarus. I hoped they made it back safe. Since they have my machine to protect them, it should even the odds if they find trouble on the way. Because while the distance between their camp and the outpost wasn't very far, it could still be far enough for trouble to ensue before you are at your destination. I'll check in on them once I'm done with taking care of that thing.

Speak of the devil…

"There!" I whispered excitedly as I tossed the rock right in front of me, which was exactly where I wanted the Tremortusk to be. I need that thing to be at a close enough proximity to ensure a successful override.

With a robotic rumble, the machine lens flare switched from blue to orange to mark its change in mood. It turned its head in my direction to check the source of the noise. Then slowly began to approach. The earthquakes getting more severe as I got a better look at it upclose and personal.

60 tons of machine muscle and steel. Four bladed tusks and a long trunk powerful enough to annihilate a group of small machines with a single swing. Multiple canons equipped on both sides of the body. Dump all that into one machine and you have a perfect nightmare ahead of you.

There's a reason why I don't really enjoy fighting that thing. But it's also the same reason why I picked it. Something that powerful is exactly what I needed for what I'm planning to do next. And just like that, with a simple contact from the override drive attached at the bottom of my spear and the machine was mine to command.

"Come to mama." I smirked as I watched the bright blue cords gradually developing along the machine's neck marking its re-programmed state. The bigger the machine, the longer the process takes. But even then, it never reaches ten seconds.

I de-attached the spear and stepped backwards so I could examine my temporary new best friend. There. An overridden Tremortusk. Fresh and ready to wreak havoc.

First half of the plan is complete. Now let's go to that hell of an outpost.

The view was pretty nice from here! I could easily get a layout from the land at this height. Not as high as I could get atop a Tellneck though but hey, no complaints there. Only drawback is that I gotta keep my balance on top of the Tremortusk who was speedwalking towards our target. I proudly patted the metallic head of the machine smirking at the thought of the destruction it could bring upon that quarantine zone. Personally I would have preferred a Thunerjaw or a Slitherfang to control. Those guys are more aesthetically pleasing to look at and just as powerful. Helmets off to the cauldron that designs those things. Buuut beggars can't be choosers. I need to get rid of a menacing threat plaguing an entire outpost and I had to pick the nearest heavyweight machine that could pulverize the whole settlement ensuring that nothing is left.

In the distance, the outpost became apparent in my line of sight. Once the Tremortusk slowed down when it was close enough, I could practically sweep the entire outpost with my eyes from my vintage point. There they were; the corpses of the Tenakth, both static and mobile. The moving ones were still wondering in their non-living state as if questioning their purpose. Everytime I ask myself how they must be feeling in their conditions, I keep reminding myself they are technically no longer among the living. Their souls have already found their way to the afterlife. Something simply was keeping their previous shells moving. That doesn't mean they have retrieved any piece of their conscious back. There's a serious affair at hand and I'm gonna put a stop to it and I'll have to be quick about it. It's not just about eliminating the threat, but it's only a matter of time before the override wears off. I must get this over with soon.

"It's showtime." I mumbled. "Ready for some fireworks, big guy?"

"Rrrr." The massive elephant machine – or was it a mammoth? – raised its trunk in response. I gotta get back to the Old Ones documents again to revise the difference between the two.

"DESTROY THE OUTPOST!" just as I hollered my command, I had to hang tight as the moving weapon charged on demolishing the fence a few feet away from the entrance. Imagine being so big and powerful that you don't need an available entrance, you make your OWN. But it doesn't matter to me how the fuck it does things as long as it gets them done. Yet I gotta say I was pretty impressed with how the metallic giant I was mounting started with the destruction procedure.

Fire erupted out of its trunk. Canons were shooting in all directions. Tusks swiping at constructions. Feet creating electricity waves at a large radius with every step as if to symbolize its thunder-like footsteps.

And from my safe spot, I witnessed how everything in the vicinity was annihilated in the wake of the Tremortusk's rampage. The huts were burned by the tusk fire and the corpses were fried by the electricity from the canons. I stole a final look at the pole the headless body was tied to before they got swept away by the thunder stomps. The degutted corpse alongside its entrails were engulfed in the flames. The re-animated Tenakth that I had left behind were already crushed to the ground, a rotten mass of flesh, bones and armor were all that was left of them.

See if you can get up again after that! I thought with a smirk. Even the Tenakth champion exploded in a mass of organs at a swipe from the Tremortusk's trunk. Heh. I forgot about that guy.

"Now you won't burn anyone's eyes with your smell again." I spat. But I had to get ready as the machine opened all four tusks so wide preparing to destroy the largest hut in the outpost as if it was about to squeeze the building into one deadly hug. And when it closed the tusks together, the hut was instantly reduced to splinters. I had to shield my face from the dust and flying wood remains and when I raised my arm again, I found a mere empty space where the building used to be a few seconds ago. So far, so good. This was going just as I planned. The outpost was officially no longer. It was gone taking its sickly residents with them. Except for one teenzy peenzy horrible detail.

It took me a while to notice as I was busy surveying the remaining area in case I missed something that I didn't pay attention to the blue cords on the machine which had gone missing. I felt the machine acting strange and I looked down to finally get punched in the face with a 2 ton piece of realization:

The override was over.

I didn't even have time to so much as open my mouth for a quick 'oh shit' when the now hostile Tremortusk glowed red in the eyes and raised its trunk above its head trying to grasp me. But I was already gliding my way off of it with my Shieldwing before it does to me what it did to the outpost. Well, at least it has served its purpose of turning the outpost into ground zero and good thing it did before the override was over. But now I gotta part ways with it.

"AGH!" fucking sharpshooter managed to hit me midair with a ball of electricity shot from one if its too-many-for-comfort canons. My Shieldwing was disabled on contact and I fell the rest of the way down forcing an omph out of my lungs. Luckily, I fell a small distance yet was still shaken up from having just gotten zapped. I unsteadily got up to face the furious machine staring me down with glaring red eyes. Its trunk swung abundantly as more waves of electricity were released every time it stomped its massive feet to the ground. I dodge rolled back and forth to avoid the waves of high voltage but I missed one and got stunned before falling down helplessly. But I refused to face the same fate as the Tenakth and quickly rose up to my feet and ran just as a tusk closed in on me. I can't risk fighting that thing here when the entire settlement is on fire. If the machine won't kill me first then the fire and smoke will. I coughed as I ran and hastily searched for an opening amongst the burning debris. But to my horror, the whole premises had walls of fires blocking away any chance for me to make a run for it.

I gasped as I avoided a plasma shot from one of the machine's hundred canons. First fire and electricity, now plasma. Add the multiple elemental advantages to the ridiculous size and brute force and you'll have a bullshit fight on your hands. Seriously, that thing is equipped to show no mercy.

"This is backfiring." I stated in a panic as I ran in a wide circle around the machine, jumping over debris and running around the flames. I almost tripped over a burnt corpse but I kept on running for my fucking life. The plan may have been a success but let's face it; I didn't think it through. Otherwise, I wouldn't be trapped in a burning outpost with a pissed off Tremortusk. But either that or this outpost remains open for anyone who'll get a load of its nasty surprises. Now I gotta worry about- "Whoa!" – not getting smacked by a trunk.

I ducked as the giant metal appendage swung over my head. I coughed as I was being chased by the angry moving power plant from behind me. Either I fucking escape right now, try to fight it off in these less than ideal circumstances, or get killed. The third option of which I absolutely refused.

But wait, I got an idea. I dropped a few smoke bombs and the attacks instantly stopped. As long as I'm out of sight, that should give me a chance to search for an opening, anything to get out of this inferno. Not even my Focus could help as it doesn't point out exits or entry points.

Come on! Where the fuck is it?! I strained my eyes through the smoke desperate for any sign of escape. I was about to accept the horrible reality until-

Ah-hah! Of course I had to exclaim that in my head. Any squeak from me and the machine is gonna unleash its entire artillery on me. But there it was, a small gap in the fence between two long stakes leaning on each other. If I could be just fast enough…

And just as I found my hope of surviving this nightmare, the smoke bomb has worn off. And the second it did and I bolted off towards the exit. I could have sworn the machine was surprised at how fast I ran. But judging from the tremors and the sounds of its elemental blasts getting shot that it only gives a crap about my own demise. Thankfully, not today. As soon as I was within distance and I dive jumped through the opening and out that crazy outpost.

"Finally! Freedom!" I panted and took in a lungful of air that wasn't polluted from the smoke of burning wood and decayed ass. I was still coughing but not as bad as I did inside. I'm safe now. Now I gotta-

CRAAAAACK

"You've got to be fucking kidding me…" I turned around to find the Tremor-fucking-tusk ramming through the wood and flames. The first thing visible amongst the dense clouds of dust were a pair of glowing red spots reflecting its seemingly hellbent tendency to end my existence.

I know I shouldn't bother with a needless fight and the damn thing will eventually leave me alone if I make a run for it. And with a mad dash, I began to sprint back to the Utarus camp. But not before getting hit with a plasma ball tripping me for a moment before I kept going. Luckily, the impact wasn't enough to create the buildup before I go poof.

"Thanks for the parting gift, asshat." I yelled as I ran - away from the empty ground where an outpost used to be, away from the berserk machine that caused the destruction, away from what could have been a potential threat that might have doomed half of the Forbidden West if not all of it.

I just hope I did the right thing.

"Talanah. What happened to you? You look like you got flamed in your face by a Tremortusk." Was the first thing being said to me by one of the humanoid basket cases, which happened to be Maki, the moment I came back panting my ass off.

"Accurate." I said panting. "Dafuq are you? A fortune teller?"

"Nah. You just look like it." He shrugged.

"Right…" I mumbled as I straightened up and turned my attention to Ahmik. I took a look at his thigh and it seemed he got batched up already. But that was the least of my concerns. The other Utarus seem to know what I was thinking as they made way for me to head over to that moron and gave him a hard poke in the chest. "You OWE me an explanation, buddy." I demanded practically growling out the word 'owe'.

"Let's take it easy, Talanah!" intervened Maki standing between me and Ahmik raising his hands to calm things down. I stood my ground not taking my narrow eyes off of Ahmik who was gulping visibly and looked about ready to beg for mercy.

"It's okay, Maki. Let me talk to her." Said Ahmik as he gently brushed by his fellow tribe member to approach me.

"What the hell were you thinking when you left for the Tenakth outpost this morning and from behind everyone's back for that matter?" I chastised folding my arms. "If something happened to you, no one would have known about it. You could have gone missing for good."

"I didn't want them to get hurt alongside me. I had to go there alone. I knew you were going to that outpost by yourself so I beat you there so you wouldn't leave without me."

"So you were planning to take out an entire rebel outpost without my help! Some good that did! Now you're even more injured! You were in a tight situation when I found you! You're lucky I bailed you just in time!"

"Talanah, I-"

"There's a reason why I wanted to go alone. You were in no condition to play hero." I sighed heavily through my nose after the short angry rant. "Do the others know about this?" I pointed with my head to everyone who was watching with strained faces this drama show unfold.

"Yes, I have already explained everything to them." He nodded.

"Good. Now it's my turn to know."

"Hold it right there, Talanah. Since when is it your place to reprimand us like that?" I sharply turned toward the owner of such a bold claim, which was none other than Yulia.

"Peg pardon?" If I were talking to a mirror, I'd be terrified of my own reflection. Even the others flinched at the strange tone they heard from me.

"You're not our leader or anything." she gulped visibly, probably collecting what little courage she had left before carrying on with her bullshit knowing full well it will do nothing but fuel my temper. "We asked for your help with the Grimhorns and nothing more. What happens next should be none of your concern. Ahmik made a mistake, yes, but you still have no right to interfere with how we do things."

The low growl emitted from me was enough to almost make everyone jump. Judging from the way they backed away a little that I must have made a scary face. "And how, pray tell, do you do things? Mmm? Do you charge head on into a Tenakth outpost alone with almost no weapons?"

"Well, no but-"

"Listen, sweetheart." Don't be fooled by the affectionate nickname. My voice was far from loving. "You're right about one thing: I'm not your leader. I'm not even your friend. Yet here I am! Skipping breakfast to risk my life chasing after your tribemate when I was in no way obligated to do so. I sure as hell don't have the right to interfere into your lives nor do I have any intention to, but since I have already been involved to the bones, I have every right to know the reason behind the mess he dragged me into with him." I emphasized the last sentence pointing my finger downwards.

"But you don't need to talk to him like that! You have no responsibility over us!"

"So, what - I can't get mad at him? Don't tell me you're not!" I said gesturing at her. "And why do you keep implying I'm forcing myself onto you guys? Whatever is going on between everyone here doesn't concern me. My concerns only go as far as I'm involved. I saw his broken bow, a trap he left behind and even his blood and you expect me to keep my mouth shut about it?" then I realized that I was borderline yelling at this point so I breathed deeply before speaking calmly. "I don't want you to assume that I'm trying to force my authority or anything like that cuz I'm not. I only want to help and all I ask for in return is your cooperation. Make it easy on me just like I'm trying to make it easy on you."

"She's got a point, guys." Remarked Maki.

"She's right, Yulia. We owe her that much." Stepped in Zohha to put her hand on Yulia's shoulder. I don't know what the latter was being so distraught about. It's not like I was gonna interrogate the guy at the tip of my spear.

"She went through the trouble to bring Ahmik back, after all. I'd say that's a pretty normal reaction from her." Shrugged Maki. That was when I began to notice that Tsulu had been eerily quiet all this time. I wanted to check in on him but I was too distracted by the issue at hand.

"I don't want trouble, Yulia. I just want answers. I don't give a crap about anything else." I calmly stated furrowing my eyebrows.

"When I was heading over to the outpost, I took a couple weapons with me." started Ahmik. I repaid my attention back to the idiot in question. "I thought I was ready to take on the Tenakth but I wasn't planning to get attacked by a Charger on the way. It knocked my bow just as I pulled it out and had to make a run for it. That bow wasn't originally mine actually. It used to belong to the Tenakth that attacked me a couple nights ago." that explained what a Tenakth weapon was doing in the hands of an Utaru. I should have known, I guess, considering that the night before he just told me about his run-in with a Tenakth.

"What about the trap?" I asked.

"I knew I'd have a hard time outrunning the machine and there was nowhere for me to hide, so I installed a trap to buy myself some time before it can come after me. I was planning to put it at the entrance of the outpost but I ended up being more worried about a machine attack. Hehe. Didn't go as planned, did it?" he admitted with a sad smile.

"You bet it didn't. I literally followed your blood trail the rest of the way to the outpost. Well?"

"Was getting there." He gave me a playful 'be patient' look. "Remember the Tenakth I told you about? Same bastard ambushed me a small distance away from their outpost. This time, he somehow got his hands on a Lancehorn's horn and was waving wildly with it like a drunkard and hit me in the leg. I took out my machete and sliced at him. I didn't know I was gonna hack his arm off!"

"That was the one I found when I entered the outpost. He was missing an arm and I found it holding a Lancehorn's drill horn by the entrance." I recalled when Maki uttered a small 'what?!' "That was your doing?" I raised an eyebrow and Ahmik chuckled awkwardly. "Well, it makes sense that his body wouldn't handle such a blow. The machetes are designed for machine combat, after all. If it can damage a machine then surely it can slice through flesh, let alone when it's already decayed."

"Gross." Mumbled Zohha.

"How did that braindead moron procure a Lancehorn part anyway? He can't have plucked it off the machine himself." I enquired skeptically.

"Must have been the Lancehorn we killed a few days ago." Shrugged Yulia. "We didn't have a practice dummy so we went to hunt a machine so we could start training on its carcass. Before we took down the Lancehorn, we broke off a horn and it flew away somewhere, only to be found by that man. He just had to pick a damn horn out of all parts." I looked behind me and took another glance at the Lancehorn practice dummy I saw the previous night. Now that I know the story behind that one, I'm seeing it under a new light. As I turned my head back to the group, I noticed that the boar was completely roasted yet was left untouched save for a few pieces missing from it. The spit flame has long since died. The Utarus must have been having their morning meal until they got worried about Ahmik and decided to follow after us before they were done. He took the silence as a chance to carry on where he left off.

"When I made it inside the outpost, I found there were more of those freaks. Just like the one who attacked me before. I panicked and ended up running deeper into the outpost. I tried to find a high place to stay away from them so I climbed up to the platform and found a dead guy on top. I stayed put to safely watch them from up there but all of sudden, the guy who was next to me started moving and attacked me. And that's the part when you found me." he finished with a carefree shrug.

"You should have just gone back, Ahmik." Said Zohha after a moment of silence.

"Zohha is right." I confirmed sternly amongst everyone else's voices of agreement. "You lost your weapons. You got injured. Yet you still trudged on knowing the odds were against you. Why didn't you call it quits and returned back to camp?"

"I couldn't go back. Not after I have made it this far. Even if I went back the way I came from, you guys were going to ask me about my injury anyway. And besides-" he shifted his weight. "-when I realized those Tenakth weren't normal and that they were already dead and decomposing, I got kinda cocky and thought they were going to be an easy kill. I still had my machete so it gave me more confidence to carry on buuuut… you know what went wrong after that."

"No, Ahmik. It all went wrong the moment you left camp." Stated Yulia shaking her head slowly.

"You could have gotten yourself seriously hurt if not killed had Talanah not been there to bail your ass out." Gritted Zohha from between her teeth.

"Don't scare us like that again, man." pleaded Maki. He was the only one not expressing direct anger at the guy, instead displaying passive demeanor. I'm beginning to think he's the nice guy of the group.

"…" Tsulu however might as well have been on another planet. Now would be as good a time as any to check if he's still with us.

"Hey, buddy. Daydreaming of some sweet ass?" I flicked him playfully on the forehead and to my horror, his neck bent extremely backwards. I backed away in the middle of our gasps of panic as Tsulu suddenly began moving sporadically and, to make things creepier, an inhuman giggling voice came out of his wide grin.

"Whoa! Tsulu! Don't joke like that, man! We're stressed enough already!"

"No, Maki." I shook my head. "He's not joking…"

I knew as my heart started beating faster at the sight of the Utaru cracking his joints and bending his back that the situation is dead serious.

He's been possessed.

"Tsulu! What's happening to you?" panicked Zohha as Yulia put her hands on her mouths, eyes wide in shock at the sight of their very own tribemate acting in a way similar to what we just faced back at the outpost. Ahmik simply stood there frozen obviously having an internal freakout.

"Come on, man. Snap out of it." Said Maki as he approached Tsulu who stared at him as if he was a stranger.

"Maki, no!" I warned but it wasn't soon enough to stop what happened next.

"Ack!" yelped Maki as his throat was surrounded tightly by Tsulu's hands in a horrid attempt to strangle him. We all jumped at the two to wrestle them apart and force Maki out of the sickly tribemate's grip.

"Fuck. This is getting out of hand." I grumbled as me and Ahmik each wrenched Tsulu's arms free from Maki, who was coughing and sputtering as the two women helped him away. I grabbed Tsulu's wrists from behind while Ahmik pressed on his shoulders from the front.

"What's wrong with you, Tsulu?!" yelled Zohha still holding Maki's arm.

"I don't think this is Tsulu anymore." I informed from between my teeth struggling to keep the psycho under control.

"Just help me keep him still!" strained Ahmik as he dodged a kick from Tsulu. "Zohha! Get a rope!"

"Hehehe." Me and the other remaining tribe members stood there staring helplessly at the now deranged Utaru who began giggling in a way that unnerved us all beyond words. We somehow managed to tie him to one of the beams supporting the canopy.

"Ok, now what?" I shook my head in distress. Never have I felt this powerless in my entire life. Not even my Focus can help me this time. That much I realized with a heavy heart.

"Now what?! We're supposed to know that?" snapped Yulia.

"Something has to be done!" Exclaimed a wide-eyed Maki. "We can't just leave him like that!"

"But is there anything that can be fucking done?" Growled Zohha impatiently.

"Everyone calm down." Ordered Ahmik. "There's not much we can do for him. All we can do right now is wait."

"Wait until when exactly?" questioned Yulia. "The reason why we are into this mess is because a certain someone had to wonder off into a cursed outpost." I inhaled through my nose at Yulia's accusation, knowing full well that this was about to get ugly. Well, uglier than it already did.

"Come to think of it, Tsulu didn't start acting strange until we went to that Tenakth settlement." Pondered Zohha at which Ahmik started to sweat arrows.

"Come on, are you for real? It's not like I asked for any of this to happen!" said Ahmik. His shaky voice visibly displaying his panic. Doesn't feel good to have your entire squad mad at you, does it?

"Whether you did or not, it's still your damn fault." Spat Yulia Pointing her finger at him. "None of this would have happened had you sat your ass with us at camp instead of that stunt you pulled."

"Yulia!" objected Maki.

"Guys, let's think this one through for a moment…" I started defending poor Ahmik. But deep down, I couldn't help but feel like he really was indirectly responsible for Tsulu's condition. He was the one who ventured to the outpost after all forcing us to follow after him getting Tsulu infected in the process. But I'd feel like a jerk for admitting it. The man didn't mean it after all. Yulia, however, wasn't afraid to speak her mind.

"We could have been having breakfast and collected more herbs by now! *sniff*" the girl broke down. Oh, goodies. "Now our own tribemate has been cursed or infected or whatever the FUCK made those people go crazy!"

"Yulia, that's enough. Take a deep breath…" rushed Zohha to calm Yulia down. Things have taken such an emotional turn that I felt like the slightest wrong word would lead to more verbal explosions.

"I… don't know what to say… I…" hesitated Ahmik putting his hands to his head. Just now, I noticed that the blood stain on his head bandage has gotten bigger. The wound most likely reopened slightly from all the shit he's been through. But nevermind that, I felt bad for the guy as I sensed his guilt setting in.

"Alright. All of you, shut the fuck up." I started. "Whether it was Ahmik's fault or not, it doesn't matter. Pointing fingers will do no good other than causing more stress. Yulia, I know you're troubled about Tsulu but you have to calm down. The accusations will just make things worse." I expected her to tell me off considering what she said to me earlier about me interfering into their business or whatever. But she kept on sniffing in Zohha's embrace while Maki rubbed her back. Ahmik however seemed to be on the verge of collapse. I had to do something before his conscious nags at him into madness. I pulled him from his arm and took him a couple feet away from the others so we could speak in privacy.

"Talanah, I screwed up." He began sniffing and when I looked at him, his eyes were puffy with unshed tears. One blink would make a cascade down his cheeks. "I swear I had no idea this was going to happen. I didn't mean to get Tsulu cursed."

"I won't deny that going to that outpost wasn't a wise move but to blame you for what happens after that is unfair if you ask me." Then I decided I should take a smoother approach. "Listen, People say dumb shit when they're mad. When they get seriously angry or in a state of breakdown, they begin saying crap that isn't supposed to be said whether they mean it or not." I stole a sideway glance at the others, they were huddled together warily watching the thrashing and giggling Tsulu, before looking back to Ahmik who was shaking and sniffing as he listened. "Yulia is freaking out over what's happening to Tsulu. And that's pretty understandable. What she doesn't understand though was that all you wanted was the safety of your squad."

"Safety? I was supposed to ensure that but I ended up accomplishing the opposite!" spat Ahmik seemingly mad at himself. "Yulia was right. I should have just minded my damn business and stayed away from the Tenakth outpost. Just collecting the plants nearby would have been enough *sniff* and we could have gone home without any trouble. Now I feel stupid thinking about what I just did." He wiped his eyes after his guilt induced speech.

"Look, I feel you. We all regret something in our lives and we should take that as a chance to set things right whenever possible. Maybe there's still a chance to help Tsulu. We can take him to a healer and see how they'll handle him." I took a deep breath in preparation for I know what I'm about to say next reflects some harsh reality facts but it's definitely less harsh than keeping his hopes up. "I can't promise you anything. I don't know for sure what's gonna happen to him later on. Maybe he will be healed or stay that way forever. But whatever happens in both cases, stop blaming yourself, okay? You didn't know any better. No one did."

He nodded before wiping his tears and stayed quiet, still sniffling. I felt bad for him. Yulia might be upset about what happened to her tribe mate but she needs to get her shit together. "You think Yulia might forgive me?"

"She must. I only hope she'll come around once she's calm enough." He seemed uncertain. "I mean she can't blame you forever especially over something that was out of your control. She gotta understand that sooner or later."

"Only time will tell." He went to sit down by one of the beams resting his head on his arm only to end up flinching at the wound that's still there. I stood there slowly processing how things have escalated this far. It all started with getting rid of the Grimhorn trouble which was the only intended goal. But I actually planned to leave after having my breakfast with the Utarus then go my way before ol' Ahmik forced a change of plans. There're still some upgrade jobs I haven't scraped off my list. I'll see what I'm gonna do next once I'm out of this mess.

"Um, guys?" I turned around at the sound of Maki who was pointing at something in the distance. When I turned to look, my eyes went as wide as a Watcher's lens.

The Tremortusk had followed me. And lo and behold, it's heading straight towards us.

"Son of a bitch…" was all I could think of to say.