D.E.M.O.N.S: Getting Summoned Weekly isn't so Bad

Chapter 2004: Chapter 2004 Shall We Stay Inside?

— Kat —

The trio moved over to the kitchen eventually, and got started on making something to eat all together. Lily and Kat mixed up the salads, with Lily also using some shadows to watch some frying bacon. Assuming it still counted as bacon when it wasn’t from a pig? They didn’t know what it came from after all. Just that it was the wrong colour for proper bacon. Hedera on the other hand worked on the dressing, making some fresh for everyone to enjoy.

Once the food was laid out, they had some spare for Steel just in case… but if he didn’t show up before they finished the plan was to eat that as well. Hedera and Lily for instance were actually quite hungry, with Hedera especially feeling the hunger pangs. She didn’t even comment on the addition of some meat to the salad and simply devoured the entire bowl she had set aside for herself before any conversation could continue.

Eventually though, Kat felt it was best to bring it up. “How much longer do you think we should stay in the city?”

“What do you mean?” asked Hedera.

“Well, ultimately we’re not likely to find anyone to fight in here. We’re not eliminating other contestants… though we can get a near infinite supply of orbs. At some point though, whatever rewards we might get from staying are going to just… not be worth it. Plus, Weaver will probably want us to set up more teleportation points.

“On the other hand, we don’t know what has happened to Jen. I assume she’s still being guarded and remains asleep. Then there’s whatever plans her Grandma Lin is also planning things. Part of me wants to stick around and ’finish’ everything here but I don’t know how viable that is, truly. It feels like leaving the job unfinished… like, what’s up with the council? Do we need to worry about them doing something stupid as soon as we leave?” Kat expounded.

Hedera glanced not so subtly at the spare bowl of salad before speaking. Kat, seeing this used her tail to shove it over as Hedera began. “I get what you’re saying… oh thanks for that. I’m sure you’re both hungry as well. As for what to do? I’m not sure. It depends on how many issues other people are having getting orbs. We were pretty low for a moment there… we could see people start to drop really fast. Or maybe it’s not that important.

“As for rewards… not to be rude but as long as we’re still teamed up I just don’t see the point. The rule changes are questionably useful and any bonuses we might find are basically random. Heck, if we were just after a power up all we’d have to do is steal one of the juggernaut armours before we leave. I don’t recommend it, but we could do it.”

“Your ambivalence isn’t really helpful in this case,” Kat sighed.

Hedera shrugged. “Look, it’s all I can really offer you. Perhaps if we had ANY idea what the other teams were doing we could make a better judgement. If we knew some teams were struggling with orbs staying here would be amazing. If we thought they were getting geared up easily we could try and take them out and steal some. However, we haven’t seen anyone. We haven’t heard anything. We know, nothing. I think, personally, it might come down to what Weaver wants. If she thinks more tunnels are necessary we’ll probably be corralled in that direction.”

“Before we finish everything up here?” asked Kat. Hedera just shrugged back at Kat as she started to shovel the second bowl of food into her mouth. Apparently she really was hungry. “What’s causing you to eat like that? I’m a touch worried now…”

“Not eating properly the last few days,” said Hedera. “We’ve been on watch, and while it was fine to snack sometimes, it certainly wasn’t last night. Even after the army disappeared I was on high alert. The risk someone would sneak up to me while I was eating a nutrient bar or some other snack was too high. Perhaps if I had a chance to swap out even for just a few minutes I could’ve had some… but I didn’t.”

“Sorry,” mumbled Kat.

“It’s not your fault. Plenty of times I’ve had to go without food for a night or a day when on watch. It’s not a new problem and it’s not one that can be easily solved if you want to do the job properly. It just means I’ve got to deal with the hunger. I probably don’t even NEED this much food,” Hedera patted her slightly distended stomach.

“It’s just that, after not having food for a bit my mind and body are like ’we might be starving soon! Gotta get that food when we can!’ so instead of eating what I need and maybe a bit more, my body wants to eat like, twice what I need. Even after that second bowl I still feel hungry. Though I’m also half liable to explode if I try for a third,” explained Hedera.

“Are you going to be alright?” asked Kat unsure.

“In what way?” asked Hedera confused.

“I mean, isn’t it hard to move around after overeating?” asked Kat.

“Oh… huh… you probably haven’t had the chance to see it but, no not at all. When you Rank up your body gets better in general and dealing with a bit too much food is easy in comparison to shrugging off regular attacks. I’ll be fine,” explained Hedera.

“Ah, yeah I guess it’s never really come up for me. Anyway, should we summon Weaver for a heads up on what to do next?” asked Kat.

Hedera shook her head. “No, best not risk having someone come and check on us. Plus, Weaver should be at least a little surprised. Then again maybe it would be better for her to have some warning?” Hedera shrugged. “No best to wait on it. We can catch up with her after the node is open.”

“What about if they’re delaying things another day?” asked Kat.

Hedera shrugged. “I honestly don’t see that happening. From the look on Gravel’s face? I’d bet he’s going to push to get it done just to ensure that it’s in place before anyone can cause more damage or complain too much. Sure it’s possible… but I’d be willing to be that leaving it for another night and allowing for another attack would be too much. Too risky, for him and the city anyway.

“We might be asked by Weaver to protect the Tunnel for a bit… but it’s my understanding that she has good enough control that she could either banish them away or simply close it off, which was never the same as having it forcibly sealed. So there’s that to watch out for.”

Kat nodded along to that, and soon they were washing the dishes and getting ready to leave. With nobody coming to notify them of anything, the three weren’t certain what to expect when they headed back over to the warehouse. The streets in the surrounding areas had been mostly repaired. It wasn’t in the same excellent conditions as the streets further out, but it was perfectly useable for the moment. They’d focused on clearing out the rubble and flattening the surface for the most part. Not perfectly flat, but not a tripping hazard at least.

The warehouse itself was still under guard, though not a particularly heavy one, not from what Kat could see. When the three of them arrived, a guard spotted them and directed them off to the side where a tent had been setup. Slipping inside, Steel was sitting a desk with his armour on a stand nearby. “Reporting for duty,” said Kat with a grin.

“Good to see you three. Gravel has pushed to have the node in place before the end of the night. The enchantments aren’t quite ready, and even once they are… they’re not going to be up to the level anyone is really happy with. However, it was decided that the risk of not activating it immediately was too great. Well, Gravel decided on it with input from me and Charles. The others still aren’t happy with things,” explained Steel.

“So… when are we putting the node down?” asked Kat.

“The plan is for it to be within the hour, but truthfully we’re looking closer to an hour and a half. The hope is we don’t see too many last minute attacks. We’ve had a few light probings throughout the day but we THINK they’ve all been headed off. The enchanters are getting restless though, and that’s one of the reasons for the probable delay. Too many worried people making small mistakes or needing to take extra time,” explained Steel.

Kat nodded a few times. “Ok, so what’s the plan while we wait? Should we be on high alert?”

Steel shrugged. “I haven’t told the other guards when things are swapping over. Just to change out at the end of shift like normal, and the plan is to keep the guards around until lunch tomorrow… but the enchanters might’ve let something slip on their break. Plus, if you’re good enough you might just be able to tell. I’d say be on alert but not too worried.”