+ Reid +

His original plan had been to fly in fast, and take down as many beasts as possible to save the most lives he could. When he slowed and opened his eyes to take in the situation, he instead found himself faced with an... odd scenario. Most of the spiders were already dead, save for a pair that floated oddly far from the group of locals huddled on the sand next to a dark ocean that set small, soft waves against a crescent beach.

He flapped in midair for a few seconds, flapping with jarring upward momentum as he tried to puzzle out what was going on, and how the people here had managed to take down so many of the things so far. The scant seconds in the dark didn't reveal much about the city aside from a general aesthetic similar to what he'd seen in photos of Greece vacation towns, and some large industrial looking buildings close to shore. What really drew his attention were the combat platforms - elevated positions that were damaged, and stained with blood.

He couldn't see anyone else moving around in the city, so it appeared the only people left were on the beach. A few of them flung weak magic spells slowly at the beasts - the attacks landed without much tangible effect.

Between that sight - and the townspeople's terrified screams at the beasts, Reid was spurred into action. It was probable that their current scenario hovered on the edge of a knife, and every dead beast had been earned through tremendous sacrifice. He wouldn't let any more of their people fall to a problem he was responsible for creating. Or at least, a problem he helped make worse.

As he moved to approach the group, spiders started flying forward and the group scrambled back towards the water, clawing and kicking at sand in barely coherent panic. Reid shifted course slightly. He didn't want to unintentionally crash into the locals and hurt someone by coming in too hot. He still wasn't great with landings, after all.

Reid burst forward, tired wings and tired internals pushing hard to propel him fast enough to intercept the beasts before they reached the townspeople. The poor locals were so overwhelmed and frenzied, they threw out magic and mundane attacks with reckless abandon. Balls of flame, dozens of arrows, pieces of dirt and metals, and handfuls of other elements Reid didn't recognize flew wild into the air. Many of them splashed or crumbled against his ivory armor. To Reid, it was just proof of how outmatched they were to mistake him for one of the flying beasts - and emphasized how badly they needed his help.

He hefted Requiem up in his hand - and involuntarily moved his opposite leg to compensate for the motion of his weapon. That leg movement caused a half fold to one of his wings, and put him into a mid-air spiral. His vision spun rapidly as he failed to self-correct the mistake.

Flight was still hard.

The bright side was that he was too close to his target - and going too fast - for the issue to prevent him from intercepting his foe.

Requiem lashed out in front of Reid and obliterated the spider entirely.

Reid spat out the bit of bug guts that had managed to find the slit in his helmet while he flailed wings and arms to get himself back under control. He barely managed the task, and immediately turned his attention to the remaining spider. The last enemy for Dayo Sovni in this wave. It flicked attention between the group of townspeople and Reid - covered in the innards of its recently departed friend. Reid, hovering above the sandy shoreline, spared the group another glance. Many were huddled together. Some seemed to offer prayers of thanks and ritualistic hand motions to thank him for his arrival.

His full attention went back to the fight as the spider thankfully chose Reid as its target, and flew to meet him. Reid kept his altitude steady, and watched the beast approach. He had forgotten somewhat how slow these lower leveled monsters were compared to their stronger brethren.

A flash of motion came from the dark seas, as a pair of indistinct forms broke free of the water and angled in towards the beach. As they neared, torchlight and what seemed to be skill-based illumination revealed more detail.

The newcomers were... fish. Silver scales on their bellies, grey-blue scales that wrapped up and over their back. Eyes with sockets that made it seem like they should have been set on either side of their head, but with eyeballs that bulged out wide enough for the beast's vision to face forward. A tail shaped like a boomerang sat at the back, acting like a rudder while the fish flew through the air on a pair of semi-translucent wings that looked incredibly similar to a bird with feathers. They were each the size of a large motorcycle - and sailed through the air with a practiced, effortless grace.

Reid reached down and grabbed a pair of marrowbombs from his waist - then paused.

The fish weren't going after the townspeople. One was headed for the flying spider - and the other was on a collision course with him. He'd just unbalanced himself by trying for too much motion while airborne, and there was a good chance his throwing motions all involved enough leg movement to take him out of the sky. He slapped both marrowbombs back onto his tasset and moved Requiem back to his main hand.

The lead fish opened a pair of jaws as wide as its body, lined with stubby teeth in an outer row, and lines of double-sided molars further into its maw. A small spark of light flicked from its tail, and the creature accelerated towards the spider. Another spark of light from its mouth was followed by its jaws snapping shut in motion that was almost too fast for Reid to see. Definite speed related skills. The flying fish's jaws sank deep into the spider and cracked its abdomen in half. The spider flailed, clinging to life as the fish chomped down again to get the arachnid further down its throat. It angled itself back towards the water and flicked its tail repeatedly, the glow from its movement skill flashing like a strobe light.

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Reid took in the scene, until the second flying fish was upon him. Its tail flashed with the same movement skill as the first had used - but Reid was ready with his mace. He lifted it even with the fish's approach - and the beast attempted to swallow Reid, mace and all. Its jaws clacked ineffectively against ivory regalia, and Reid twisted his wrist without any self-empowerment added. Requiem shredded through the creature's mouth and tore a long gash into its stomach. Red blood sprayed wild out of the massive wound, and the fish shook violently. It set Reid off balance, and he struggled to keep himself aloft with a series of heavy wingstrokes. He - and the fish - still fell towards the beach. With a last series of flaps, Reid managed to stay on his feet instead of falling down to the sand. He handed Requiem to himself through the hole in the fish's stomach, then used his now-free, already-dirty hand to punch through the beast's eye and put it down.

You have defeated Rapid Gibbosus - lvl 54. Experience Awarded ( +7,000 xp)

The gear's in Reid's head turned as he read the notice. The group huddled on the beach, the fires and towers, and the E-grade flying fish. They were all connected - not as some lucky attempt at survival - but as a solid plan. These fish, assuming they lived all around the island, were probably why he didn't see spiders right away when he spawned near the shoreline. The spiders he saw floating without attacking the group were likely hesitant to go near water because the fish were a natural predator. The one detail that didn't sit well with him was the level the fish managed to achieve, but that could be an issue for another time. None of the landbound locals were targeted by the fish, so it stood to reason the things only went after airborne targets. He idly shook gore off his half-armored hands, and wiped his palms over the fish's scales. They were dense, and probably pretty durable.

When he was as clean as he hoped to be, Reid stood back up, and turned to the locals while taking off his helmet. This was still his first interaction on the planet proper, and he wanted it to go well.

"H- "

He opened his eyes and - before the first word was out of his mouth - a weak ball of magical fire washed harmlessly over his face. To Reid, it felt like lukewarm water splashed against his skin. He frowned and shot a glare into the crowd. A Vuxarinan with greying hair and a shiny, stretchy outfit shook the fire magic away from his hands and stared at Reid with frightened eyes. He distinctly reminded Reid of an assistant gym coach. The man looked between a woman who looked like she was - wait, holy shit that IS actually makeup - a woman who had taken the time to do her makeup for the system apocalypse's beast wave, and a cragged-skin Vuxarinan that sported thick, calloused hands, a tangle of long hair, and a slightly discolored nose and cheeks. Neither of the other two seemed to know what to do in response to the gym teacher's hostile greeting. Reid sighed, and started again. It was a simple speech he'd practiced in his head dozens of times, and the words flowed smoothly.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Serroc, and I am a lost child. I only got back to Vuxarina when the tutorial started, but I am aligned with you against Belar, and the beasts. I was teleported separately from the rest of my tutorial. Please direct me to whoever's in charge, so we can talk. I have more help I can offer, but I need information in return."

The eyes of the crowd before him - at least the ones he could see in the first few rows of heads - flicked between the dead fish, his hands, and his face. The gym teacher, hands shaking, stuttered out a response as he pointed to the old cragged man and the makeup-wearing woman. He subtly put himself behind them as he spoke, obviously preparing to use one of them as cover if the situation devolved.

"W-w-we're in charge here, and we have p-p-powerful friends."

Reid's face twisted for a moment. That was how they greeted people here? This was how this little asshole was going to play things?

He had flown in and took down two strong beasts, and so far he'd gotten a fireball and a 'veiled' threat from this cowardly little pimple of a man. The hours of flying and effort and the mental strain of knowing he was on the hook to make it here and the frustration at the fact that he was on an island all caught up to him, and Reid snapped a response.

"Do you greet your 'powerful friends' with those candle flares? Fuck's sake, how did a reactive little shit get put in charge, anyway? Are you a telepath? Cut a deal with the invaders and they put you at the top? Or do you always just bluster and nobody called you out on your bullshit yet?"

The man's shoulders drooped further and he mouthed a few unintelligible words. The woman placed a hand on the shrinking man's forearm. Her knees were shaking. Reid put a hand to his temple and took a breath. This was not going how he'd intended. The old man stepped forward. His speech came in a voice rough from a lifetime of shouting, words slightly elongated like he was trying to overpronounce.

"I'm sorry there, stranger. You gave us a fright. But I say no harm done - either side, right?"

Reid leapt at the old man's olive branch.

"Right. No harm done - not even a burnt hair, which means we can talk."

Multiple pairs of eyes widened in shock, and more nervous glances followed. Reid groaned internally. He didn't even try to figure out what he'd said to set them off this time. It was already a tedious conversation, and he figured things would go more smoothly if he didn't have such a large audience. The old man was exchanging a series of looks with his two co-leaders, probably ready to extend another, more rational response. But he was taking too long, and Reid really wanted to rest. Maybe all his time alone had intensified his hate for larger groups. Reid scanned over the buildings that lined the space near the shore. Most were small homes, with a single domineering structure that seemed made to offload vessels and transport their cargo out into the city. Two other structures stood out because of the signs hung over their doors. One had the lights on. Reid shook his head and pointed at the trio, then the building as he spoke with clipped words.

"You, you, and you. The four of us, that building, let's go. We're going to have a chat."

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