Even with the help of RandidlyÆs plants it was a slow process Well it felt extremely slow to Randidly But in truth they were clear of the facility in a little over four minutes Pausing outside Randidly looked down at the scalpel woman She was completely bound and blinded but it was a strange thing to be taking a prisoner
Would he torture her
The question would have to wait because at the moment RandidlyÆs ears twitched drones were coming along with helicopters The reinforcements were coming more quickly and more heavily
Randidly clicked his tongue unhappily There was nothing definitive but Randidly didnÆt doubt that he would be able to trace these people to the Unity Church It was almost a let down that he hadnÆt been able to find more than a trace of the CreatureÆs energy That similar trace was still here of course but it was frustratingly vague
How did the Creature control its influence so well What were its goals in making these strange facilities
Dinesh Randidly said abruptly Keep going to the agreed meet up point Tykes and Karlito will meet you there
Buying time Dinesh asked skeptically Is that really necessary Besides the public Randidly Ghosthound that is staying with the senator is known to control plants If you
Relax this is just stress relief Randidly said flexing his fingers Some combat drones were on the way and he wanted a look at their insides He would try his best to capture a couple so he wouldnÆt need to buy their blueprints
Besides I have many types of spells Randidly pointed at the ground which began to bubble and hiss After a few seconds the dirt had become a bubbling pool of molten rock A hand pierced the surface and grabbed at solid ground Then it hoisted its red and orange body out of its hole
LetÆs see if they have an answer for a Lava Golem
Chapter 547
IÆm really sorry I havenÆt had time to talk Tatiana said to Randidly as she moved a pot off the fire to a stone slab to cool IÆve been rather preoccupied with nursing the injured we received back to health
Randidly scratched his chin no worries ThatÆs actually why IÆm here Recently we discovered a group of similarly abused individuals We brought them here because well I wouldnÆt know where else to turn I have a lot of Skills but this is an area where I donÆt think IÆd be very helpful
Tatiana looked up at Randidly sharply his eyes searching his face for something Inwardly Randidly wondered if something had gone wrong with his Baloo Erickson illusion But after several seconds she gave him a tired smile
More huh Well this is definitely the place for them We wonÆt let those fucking Unity Church goons touch a single hair on their heads Where are they
That woman Monica Randidly said gesturing over towards the central hut Last time I was here she seemed like she knew what was going on We gave them to her Eight more this time Are you do you have proof the Unity Church is responsible for them
Honestly Randidly had the same impression But he would appreciate some proof
Tatiana hissed sitting down on a wooden chair Well no But those that were willing to talk did all confirm they were staying in one of the Unity Church Refugee camps The last thing they remember was heading to bed like any other day If someone really was going into Unity Church camps and body snatching I have a hard time believing the church wouldnÆt know about it
Inwardly Randidly wondered if that was true It seemed like more and more people were being vindicated from the borderlands every day The methods of rescuing had become much more refined and now there was a constant stream of new blood to the System Of course there was apparently a super camp in the East that was a city entirely composed of refugees but that was still unable to handle the sheer volume of people
Fuck Tatiana swore abruptly She glared at the ground shaking her head back and forth Her hair was up in a ponytail and Randidly found himself oddly comforted by the way it swung back and forth ItÆs true it’s just a gut instinct But even worse than their wounds is what some of the girls said about life in the refugee camps How they need to repeat the chants of the priests How they are told they need to indicate specific flaws they see in other people in their daily prayers so they can stomp such behavior out of themselves How the primary virtue in the Unity Church is faith in God and trust in your fellow man Asking questions is frowned upon especially in regards to the System They say that everything will be revealed in time
Tatiana trailed off seeming to run out of gas Suddenly she just seemed tired She was definitely a woman who had fought her way through some tough times to get where she was The time spent struggling became the bags under her eyes
Then she sighed Well if Monica has them they should be fine for a while I just made bean casserole would you like any
So for the next 10 minutes the two of them sat outside and slowly ate in silence Tatiana seemed lost in her thoughts and Randidly was already thinking about the drones he had recovered from the spat earlier as he was leaving the bunker There were a half dozen different varieties he had recovered and Randidly was pleased to find that they were some of the most expensive
Besides it was nice to just sit and think Slowly Randidly was learning the role of rest in his life
I have a strange question Randidly said finally
Tatiana looked up at him her eyes curious Randidly scratched the back of his head
IÆm not sure if I should even say it It just sounds well anyway why are all the girls who live here with you so attractive That canÆt be normal right
Tatiana burst out laughing Ha And here I thought you were near celibate
Randidly gave her a sour look but she ignored him
No itÆs not a coincidence A lot of these gals were people that I knew before the System They were recently freed from the borderlands Worked as escorts or were reporters or the pretty lawyer at the firm Back in old Washington when the same older men with wives were hitting on you you swiftly learned to rely on social cues from other women to understand what sort of situation you were in for if you decided to humor the man Did he have weird kinks Would he try and blackmail you If it was a transaction for money would he stiff or shortchange you
Saying it now it sounds seedy But thatÆs just what life was like Now I dare not let these girls go I mean look at them they are gorgeous It was one thing to have threats hanging over them was just how much more upper body strength men have than women And when men got old enough in the old world that went away Now They would be devoured
As they were speaking two women walked from one hut towards the central hut It was clear from the breathy laughter of the one and the constant spinning and posing of the other that the latter woman was wearing a new dress and showing off Her friend was more than happy to laugh and compliment
It was a simple thing a sapphire blue number that stopped a bit above the womanÆs knees She paired it with a leather belt that was probably from some of the oversized wolverine monsters that Tykes had helped kill last week When they noticed Randidly and Tatiana they both waved and continued on their way
Both were tall and slender with high cheekbones and thick hair that cascaded down their backs They seemed more at home in a catalog than a series of brick huts
See one you like Tatiana said elbowing Randidly
He chortled lightly None more than you
Well then She said smiling back at him
They fell silent just looking at each other In fact the silence lasted so long that Randidly began to get uncomfortable And she was just looking at him sizing him up again
It was a relief when she spoke So you just found these people
Yep
So IÆm to believe that it is a coincidence that you and your group is the only few that have found these tortured people