No one paid any mind to the rippling screen of force as they all stared down at the small group of people staring up at them.

Strangely enough, after the first shot arrived no follow-up attack came. They all glanced amongst one another, and then at Sam, who shrugged.

"I'm not sure what going on either, but I can tell you the gear we need is probably somewhere down there."

Mark pursed his lips and dropped the cloaking of light, causing their forms to shimmer into view, not that it mattered. They'd somehow know their group was there, and if they were living out here, they had to have a decent level of strength.

The moment they revealed themselves Sam began to descend, so Mark followed. Jonathan descended after them and Jason and Wesley dropped last.

When they were in range, Sam allowed her excitement to show on her face.

"This is incredible, we honestly didn't expect to find anyone alive out here. It's great to meet you all, I'm Samantha, and we're from NYC. Is there someone we can talk to here, we're on a mission but it would be wonderful to meet other survivors."

Mark stared at the faces down below. There were four survivors standing on the wall staring up at them. None of them looked particularly friendly but one of the two women stepped forward. Mark noted they all had bows so it could have been anyone that fired, but this woman was the only one who didn't have an arrow currently notched.

"Hello, I must apologize for the hostile welcome but we sensed someone approaching so we reacted."

Mark frowned as he turned his sight toward their surroundings. It was difficult to tell at first, but a net of Mana covered the entirety of the settlement and beyond. It wasn't any threat but Mark could feel it brushing gently against the outside of his construct. For now, he ignored it because it was weak and it wouldn't be able to get past even his lesser constructs, but he kept an eye on it. Their group slowly lowered themselves to be parallel with the low wall, but they didn't land on it. Jonathan and Jason were still searching for traps.

Now that they were closer Mark could see the woman better, she was wearing simple jeans and a t-shirt from the system store, they all were. The bow they all carried looked simple but it had packed a mean punch so clearly there was something special about it.

"Yes, well, we understand the caution and no harm done. I was actually wondering if we might speak with someone in charge. If possible we'd like to talk a little bit of business with you."

Mark glanced at her a realized where she was going with this. If they could trade for the equipment they needed, then things would be far easier.

Mark was just glancing at the other men and women on the wall when Jason spoke up.

"I'm sorry Sam, but we should talk about this. We were just ambushed a day ago, twice in fact. I think we should treat their people with a little more suspension, don't you?"

Sam pursed her lips and glanced at Mark.

"You would have detected if they were Corrupted, right?"

Mark had been searching for a while now but couldn't tell just from look alone. To be certain he'd either need to extend his senses out there or encase them in his construct and he'd been avoiding that in case it was seen as an attack.

Mark used [Telepatick link] to bring all of them into a link and explain this to them.

They all glanced at one another but it was the woman that had stepped forward and spoken first.

"I can assure you that none of us are infected with Corruption, nor do we have any of the defiled humans in our ranks. We have ways of detecting them."

Mark turned back to the woman's interest crossing his features.

"Well I'm sure you can understand our hesitation, I'd imagine you also want to confirm we're not infected either. How about we both send one person at random to comply with a test to make sure," Jason said with a level expression on his face. By the looks of things, he would not accept anything less than complete transparency.

Mark didn't mind the intention behind it per se, but he didn't like the idea of one of their number being exposed to whatever was out there.

The woman shook her head.

"Where is no need for us to test you, we have it on good authority that you are human. I will however comply with a test if it will put you at ease. We welcome your presence."

Mark didn't miss the looks of sorrow passing over the other three people on the wall. Mark had noticed they didn't show much emotion for anything else or even move all that much. They simply stood there backing up the woman. Mark cleared his throat.

"That's very generous of you. If you are up for it I will now create a bridge. Step over here so that we can test you."

The woman took a step forward as a darkened construct rushed to create a narrow pathway under her, leading to them.

Mark insulated them all in another layer of force in case this was some kind of trap.

The woman got to the perimeter and the people behind her were watching as though she were about to leave this world.

Then she stepped through.

At the same time Mark felt the Mana outside ripple for a moment and then scatter, but otherwise, nothing else happened.

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Sam stepped forward and greeted the woman again.

"I'm sorry to ask but what can I call you?"

Mark noticed the woman's face had become ashen gray to the moment she'd crossed the threshold.

"...You may call me Aiyana. Now could you do your test?"

Mark had immediately gone to work the moment she crossed the threshold but he noticed the impatience in the woman's demeanor.

He could tell right away that she wasn't a Corrupted human, which was in and of itself interesting. But more so than that, her body did not contain even the smallest shred of corruption. If Mark were to guess he'd say this area probably didn't contain any either. At least that was the only explanation he could come up with.

Aiyana was looking over her shoulder already. From the looks of things, she was about to bolt.

Mark's Prana returned with an assessment that her body was in perfect health, though her Mana was behaving a little strangely. It squirmed as if it were searching for something, yet it couldn't push beyond the secondary construct. Fascinated, Mark observed the restless Mana—much like the Mana outside, it posed no threat.

"She's completely free of Corruption," he nodded, confirming his findings.

As the words left his mouth, Aiyana stepped back from the construct and sighed in relief. Outside, the Mana rippled again as if responding, then settled back into its dormant state.

"If you're satisfied, I'll take you to our leader now," Aiyana said, rejoining her allies.

The whole exchange felt off to Mark, but he didn't have long to dwell on it. Their small group hopped over the wall and landed in the street on the other side. As they regrouped, Mark cast [Bestowal] and surrounded them in four lesser constructs, each imbued with an absorb modifier. If something happened to him, the others would still be protected.

Jonathan and Jason took the lead as they began their walk, which, though short, was surprisingly pleasant.

On this side of the wall, vibrant green grass stretched across the landscape, dotted with several large trees. Small, neatly arranged houses lined the main road, each with a well-tended lawn. People dressed similarly to Aiyana and her companions worked in their gardens or tended to nearby buildings, all going about their tasks with quiet diligence. It was a surreal scene, a slice of tranquility set against the backdrop of the apocalypse.

Yet something was wrong.

At first, Mark hadn't noticed. But when they passed a pair of children helping their parents by a shed, he realized it: no one was speaking. People moved with calm expressions, yet an eerie silence blanketed everything, making the scene feel unnaturally still.

A chill crept up his spine. Was the silence a way to avoid drawing the Corrupted's attention?

When he looked over to Sam he saw the same recognition in her eyes.

Mark pursed his lips and the link between the five of them ignited.

'What in the hell kind of horror movie shit is this?' Jason shot through the link.

'Something is very wrong with this town' Wesley thought as he silently watched two men throwing bricks up a level. Nothing was said and yet they always seemed to know when the other was ready for the next brick.

'Wait! They're doing the same thing as us.' Sam thought as the retaliation struck.

Mark frowned at Sam.

He knew what she meant but it wasn't possible, right? An entire town of people?

Aiyana had turned off the main road where and arrived near a stand-alone police precinct.

She entered while the other three turned to wait outside.

This all happened in absolute silence and the set of doors stood open waiting for them to enter the cool shade of the building. The mana in theis area was far more concentrated.

They all looked at one another and Jonathan 'spoke' up.

'Whatever is happening here we won't discover anything by waiting out here, lets go.'

They stepped into the reception area where someone was currently sitting at the desk.

Aiyana walked past her without a glance and the other woman never even looked up. They walked deeper into the precinct until they came to a room with holding cells. Wesley and Jason's hands went to their weapons, but Aiyana spoke for the first time since leaving the wall.

"Please don't fret she just likes to rest her body in the cell beds." she indicated with her hand for them to go on.

Jonathan stepped around the corner to the first cell and then cocked his head. He sent an image of an older Cherokee woman sitting up in the cot and looking at him with interest. The Mana coming off her made it clear she was the source of the net outside.

When the rest of them saw that there was no trap, they followed.

Mark had only just laid eyes on her and her waist-length hair when she began talking.

"It's an honor you meet you all, you may call me Aiyana."

They all frowned and Mark glanced back at the younger woman that had led them in here.

"I'm sorry but you're both Aiyana?" Jonathan said with a questioning glance.

"Yes, we are Aiyana, but that's not important right now. What is, is why you have come."

Jonathan looked like he'd been taken off guard but he nodded for Sam to speak.

"Ma'am we've come looking for some particular equipment and we believe it to have once been in this area. If we gave you a list of what we needed would you be willing to trade it to us?"

The woman nodded like she'd expected this.

"We have the particular equipment you need and are more than willing to trade, but not for money or resources, we get everything we need from the land. No, what we need right now is your strength."

Mark was taken aback, their strength? From the outside, it was easier for an Aura user to tell who they shouldn't mess with, but it was still not all that accurate.

The woman spoke with conviction, almost as though she knew how strong they were. Perhaps they had a spell or skill at their disposal.

The rest of them seemed to fall quiet at this but Jason glared at the woman.

"You can't be serious. We don't have time to lend you aid right now, we have to get back to get back. Plus how do you even know you have the equipment we need when we haven't even told you what we're here for?"

Aiyana's face remained calm but her voice took on a unyielding tone.

"Mr. Price, I believe it's long-range communication you are after correct? Well, we're not going to trade you anything unless you help us deal with a problem on our doorstep. This I can swear to you."

Jason pulled out his weapon as his gaze narrowed on the woman.

"How in the hell do you know my name!"

Mark could see this was not going well but he had his own worries. The Mana that had been so calm just seconds ago suddenly became a whiling mass of power. He had to reinforce the wall to prevent the Mana from slipping through his defenses.

While Mark was fighting the gathering storm, Aiyana spoke again, but this time both women spoke together.

"That's quite simple. A woman by the name of Chloe came through here recently, and she told me that you would be willing to help, for the right price."

Mark's eyes widened, he hadn't thought of the woman in a while, but it all made sense now. If Chloe had been here, she must have known they would be heading this way eventualy.

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