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This was a success and a failure in equal measure, I thought.

On the one hand, there was a native girl who would under normal circumstances represent a perfect emissary. Not only wasn't she hostile to us, she ostensibly approached us with unusual, earnest and almost eerie respect. She was also highly resistant, if not straight away immune, to the negative side effect of our powers, representing a bridge between the two worlds I didn't believe was possible.

As far as I was able to tell, the natives were at the very least allergic, if not straight away incompatible with the abilities of my monsters - our plants were toxic to them, healing magic caused them great pain, and the spacial rift the 'Displacers' used to travel killed them outright.

We inadvertently confirmed how deadly the 'Displacer' power was by using them as containment to quell the riot - the villager that stepped through was transported without being held by my feline girls, but it only made his death even more gruesome than one on the merchant. It broke him, in the most literal sense. The rift carried him merely a few metres, but the body looked like it crashed from several stories high, bouncing all the way down.

Not all the blood made it through the portal, lost in the between. It didn't make it any less nauseating.

This crazy girl, on the other hand, had been fine, if only slightly disoriented after being brought on Sora's whim from the first settlement we controlled.

The overall experience didn't seem to be wearing on her any worse than it did on me.

Now, she joyfully preached to captured peasants. At least, I thought it was what she did since I didn't understand the local language.

That was the one problem.

Though she appeared to be on our side, she was an interpreter that couldn't translate. The girl was also slightly deranged, for lack of better words, prone to random fits of giggling. Worse even, the locals hated her too, forcing us to intervene when they attacked her on approach. There was no way to find out what she was telling them, but my results were so abysmal she was hardly making it any worse than I would have managed.

Some people died, others escaped, and a lot of survivors were subdued when my monsters rushed in. A pointless, regrettable fight, but ultimately unavoidable once we set foot or paws on the village's grounds.

My monsters - my girls - cheered at the successful, and easy conquest, but my feeling on the matter wasn't so clear cut.

If Sora hadn't dragged me here, a group led by Helmy and Brave would have reached this place on their own either way, in an attempt to cut the access to our main camp from the hills. It wasn't apparent from here, but this was an access route to the valley, I recalled.

There was no way to tell how many humans had been killed. Still, I felt more frustration than guilt at the moment, more annoyed at the unfortunate twist of events rather than any actions of my girls.

At least, there were survivors, many humans were far too surprised and shocked to put up much of a fight.

Most of them weren't struggling anymore, though some kids among them cried, for very understandable reasons, while the adults gave the ranting girl hateful looks. There was no way to salvage the situation, I thought, and I tried to harden myself.

There was no alternative. I tried to 'do it another way' already and failed miserably.

So I let our mad herald speak. The term fit her perfectly - 'our human' may have had a few screws loose indeed, but we didn't have any other way that would help us breach the insurmountable language barrier between us and the locals. Only this once homeless girl we fished from the ditch.

It could have been worse.

I made a few steps closer.

"Give them some space," I ordered my monsters, gesturing them away while making a few steps towards the captives we rounded at the centre of the village. I was going to make a gesture.

I noticed some of the prisoners lower their heads avoiding the gaze, but hesitantly, which was making their neighbours nervous, and villagers were giving them ostracising looks.

There was even one who kneeled and bowed down, as 'our mad girl' once did. This wasn't a popular choice. It almost seemed as if the humans were about to attack each other.

Our slightly unstable emissary somehow managed to convince the natives to stay down, and considering the attack-on-sight approach they had, it was not a small feat.

Even without any knowledge of the local tongue, it was apparent she was likely awful in rhetoric, but she didn't lack enthusiasm. She also giggled along with a random 'Purifier' for some reason, before saying something in their tongue, earning herself some looks from the humans.

I realised I would have to find out the mad girl's name or give her one, instead of referring to her as 'that loony' or something similar.

Even if insane, she was still a better negotiator than I was, ironically enough.

Other villagers shook nervously, eyeing the nearby monsters, while my girls tensed readying to rush back in, their claws and their magic ready.

Although I was painfully aware of my previous failings, I became tempted by the fact that the strange girl seemingly did put the good word for us and foolishly tried to talk. I approached one of the peasants in order to defuse the situation or make some form of statement, or maybe a proclamation, momentarily forgetting that the only spokeswoman we had wasn't able to translate.

"There is no need for further violence..."

It was a mistake.

One of the villagers, a man, used it as an opportunity to rush at me, attempting to grab the farming tool as a weapon still left abandoned on the ground.

He lifted the improvised weapon up, with the intent to strike, but was put down before I was able to react, as Helmy blasted him with a fire bolt while jumping on him, sword in hand, mad with fury.

It was over in an instant, even the normally protective Miwah and Tama didn't have to act. They, however, moved closer in case another assailant would attempt the same.

None did.

"No one! Touches! My Master!" The new 'Alpha Purifier' screeched in her girlish voice while hacking the body of the man in a fit of pure rage, even after the body stopped moving. Blood splashed, and the flames sparked.

Helmy, grown out into the proportions and power of the 'Alpha' didn't lose an ounce of her own brand of insanity, and the scene she made was extremely effective in terrifying the locals.

"Helmy, please." I reprimanded her, weakly.

It was inappropriate, disproportionate even, considering the brutality it involved, but I couldn't bring myself to yell at the girl that protected me from the very start, and was more than willing to sacrifice herself just to shield me from harm.

The bloodies vixen rose up, pointing the bloodied blade at the small crowd of humans.

"I will burn those who disrespect Master!" She announced anger in her feminine voice, her armour and fur splattered with gore.

"For Master!" Echoed the 'Purifiers' nearby, with a giggle of their own.

"For Master!" Said the crazy human girl, parroting the expression perfectly in her own right.

Though I thought Helmy to be extremely aggressive, and violent, I attributed it more to poor-self control rather than any propensity for theatrics. I doubt the locals understood her words anyway, they didn't comprehend our language so far at all, but the act that was practically a public execution of dissent did have the undeniable effect of terrifying them, discouraging further attempts at hostility and triggering a new wave of cries from the captives.

It may have been a nightmare for them, but for me, it was a disaster.

My anger, once again, flared, and I could feel my heart starting to race. However, instead of fear because of the attempt on my life, it was all caused by the realisation of how repetitive and pointless it all was.

The crazy human girl then shouted something in their native tongue - and I very much doubted it was the translation - and all humans quieted down somewhat.

Managing to calm myself, I had to face the reality that I would be forced to deal with insoluble problems and maniacal followers, with no alternative in sight. Given how it started, the raid not ending significantly worse than my previous attempts at negotiating expulsion was probably fortunate in its own way.

And no matter how dissatisfied, I was also left clear on what remained to be done.

I looked at the female werewolf overlooking the collection of captured peasants and gestured towards the 'crazy girl. A new 'Alpha' would have to manage. She, and her 'Eviscerators' would, despite the name, be more fitting for the guards than the 'Purifiers' even be, especially with Helmy being around.

"This will be enough. We will be occupying this village." I decided, "Brave, you are in charge."

Noticing the nervousness among the humans, who didn't understand a single word, I thought that perhaps their invisibility could be put to good use too.

"All interaction with the humans is up to..." I continued, pausing when I realised I didn't know how to call the girl, "...the interpreter. If humans try anything, keep her safe. Watch them from the shadows if it helps. If humans want to leave, fine, but don't let them go towards our territory!"

Brave didn't need an explanation, as she replied with a simple acknowledgement.

"Yes, Master."

There was a good deal of Miwah's personality between her kin, and Brave was no exception.

She would be a better solution than the scorching fury of the 'Purifiers' with Helmy in charge.

I wanted to point towards this imaginative region we had claimed but realised I didn't know where we were in relation to the most points of interest I was aware of. The road, although visible, wasn't that good a landmark on its own.

Claims, however, were secondary.

My thoughts ran wild. It was almost paradoxical, considering the mental tiredness that motivated me to make a more proactive approach, and I had to remind myself why we came here.

I, once more, looked around, my gaze landing on my ursine monsters. There were only a couple of them present, considering the logistics of the 'Displacers' teleport.

"Kuma. You and your sisters, check what was mined there, please. If you can absorb the metal without it being smelted first!" I continued, trying to stay focused

"Yes, Master," Kuma yawned. She still followed the order without question, making me almost certain that 'Ravagers' drowsy expression was some form of the mental tick, as the 'Purifiers' giggling was.

My attention snapped back to humans and for the first time, I felt genuinely fatigued by the prospect of remaining anywhere close to them.

I shook my head. If I continued that train of thought, I would be speaking like Mai. There was a need for a gesture towards those who surrendered.

"Sora." I spoke, sparing the restless feline a brief glance, "If you know where the chest of coins ended up, bring it here and leave it in the middle of the village. Humans are allowed to take money, let's call it reparation."

They would need money to trade with the outsiders. Without the means to communicate, it would be pointless, but I refused to mull over it anymore - the 'interpreter' girl would have to do it, and perhaps, if we played it right, we could finally establish relations.

It was a worry for another time.

Sora disappeared into the spatial rift without a reply, without a way to give her further instructions, but it didn't matter. I managed to catch one of the smaller 'Displacer' kin instead.

"Kitty. Kat. Little ones. Start teleporting reinforcements. I say fifty more Eviscerators to watch this settlement. If there are too few of you, I'll raise our numbers through naming!" I decided.

"For Master" They meowed, almost cheerfully, with the rest of the feline crew vanishing into the suddenly appeared patches of the broken space to carry out the order. It startled the humans, but surprisingly enough, didn't faze me as much.

I let it go.

Without words, I made a hasty exit from the village towards the snaking stone road, leaving all the madness behind. The sudden cry from the confused humans made me stop, adding one more thing.

"Helmy! I want you near me at all times!" I ordered. Better not let her anywhere close to captives before she mutilated someone else.

"Oh, Master. Am I not enough?" Tama teased.

Two vixens weren't the only ones waiting for attention, as two of the Sora's folk demanded some attention as well.

Apparently, two 'Displacers' remained behind, and were looking at me with anticipation in their feline eyes. They were yellow this time, a strange trait among the 'Displacers' was the fact they didn't have universal eye colour shared by their rank-and-filers like the other breeds.

They, apparently, wanted names, as I promised a moment ago.

"For..." One of the two intoned, "...Master!"

I hesitated, realising that I didn't have any clear idea how many 'Displacers' I need to carry out all the transportation I asked them to. I had to defer to the judgement of their 'Alpha' - she could certainly hear me through the ears of her smaller kin.

Abuse of this glitch - if it was one - would only land me into trouble. The system already counted numbers wrong.

However, since their numbers normally rose only with continued bloodshed, there wasn't much of an alternative. Even doomed to continue the cycle of violence, I was determined to at least avoid killing for the killing's sake, to satisfy some hidden counter.

Despite the aesthetics the power took, this wasn't a game.

"You should be Kate." I decided, in a resigned tone.

|

*Unit named! Kate, The Named Displacer! *

Skill "Stalker on the Boundary lvl.6" gained.

|

"And let's call you Mau." I pointed at others after the serious pause to think of something unique, considering the menacingly large horde my girls became. I would not be able to remember the names later, I was certain.

|

*Unit named! Mau, The Named Displacer! *

Skill "Stalker on the Boundary lvl.7" gained.

|

Twelve more of the blueish anthropomorphic felines materialised from the ruby fog, making me, once again, truly ponder where they all came from. The unseen force behind wasn't hesitant in providing ever more followers.

Was there no end to our numbers?

What was the cost to pay, why was it encouraged and to what end?

I banished the thought, promising myself to show restraint, though some strange nudging from the back of my brain I didn't know was there protested. It was my purpose to make more monsters, it insisted, but I tried to pay it no mind.

"Hush. Go help others!" I stopped my anthropomorphic kittens before all the fluffy menace approached demanding personal engagement. Luckily, they obeyed.

"For Master!" They cheered and teleported away.

I underestimated the side effects of witnessing it after thinking I was getting used to it. I was wrong. The twisty nature of the spatial anomalies they used to travel made me feel wobbly, but Miwah and Tama intervened, grabbing my shoulders each.

Any humans that witnessed the portals were likely also experiencing serious vertigo caused by the ever-shifting rift.

We, at my urging, left the village, to put my distance between me and the conquered.

I didn't pay attention to the personal retinue that tailed us. Helmy and Narita were included, along with the assorted mini-version that usually stayed the closest, and were tasked by the 'Alphas' to protect me from both local threats and from my own foolishness.

If this village was indeed at the imaginary border of our equally pretended territory, I wanted to see it first, and then, I wanted to unwind after this neverending cascade of troubles, ever snowballing into greater issues.

For the moment, I decided to walk around.

Leaning more towards Miwah, her tall werewolf form providing more than physical support, I realised how much this all changed.

In merely a few days, the regret towards the senseless loss of life and the constant bloody skirmishes with the humans became less and less crippling, almost slipping from my mind the moment the corpses weren't in sight.

Instead, I was glad that this place didn't have its own sorceress to harm my monsters - my girls.

I once was scared of them, and now the mere idea of being separate from the endless furry menagerie following was almost painful. They followed me around as the all-eating swarm, yet it felt somehow right to just have more of them.

The more of them there were, the more it affected me, almost like all those numbers only furthered the connection we had. Maybe, there was a point in their endless reproduction, each fluffy addition to the horde eroded the distinction between me and them.

I shook my head. There were other things to concern me with.

Still, I was tired.

Mentally, rather than physically. A quick glance back towards the settlement with its wooden huts and terraced fields under the rising craigs gave me no peace, no matter how picturesque it may have looked.

Such things held little importance in our situation.

I looked around.

The stone road continued past it under the mountain shadow. It wasn't the end of the world, even as far as the natives were concerned, merely a stopping point on a longer trail to somewhere far away. Its houses may have appeared slightly better with their tiled roofs, perhaps the architectural differences from its status as a little mining town of sorts, but it was in no way a fortress.

This wasn't the definite border I was told it was.

It didn't look like one. Mountains themselves might, but wasn't the entire point of the paved road to steer travellers here?

A commotion coming from the village, undoubtedly caused by the 'Displacers' bringing up the reinforcement through their dazing portals, interrupted my thoughts.

I heard the voice of the crazy girl shouting. Perhaps she was trying to calm down the crowd, but it was almost like she was giving the survivors a sermon. Giving her free reign in something as critical as communication was an unmitigated risk, but considering the terrible track record I had with it, it was the best we could do. It also made me realise something, taking my thoughts away from the search for the border.

"Narita? How does she ... the loony girl ..." I asked, realising how inappropriate it was to call the girl that way, "...how does she know your name? I think I heard your name."

Our anthropomorphic rodent girl was, as always, in earshot, following us almost as the guard, her polearm in hand.

"Yes-yes, Master. I tried to speak with. The girl. Master," Narita replied, her strange speech pattern once again prominent with the longer sentences: "She understood. Names. Not meanings."

This was an advancement I wasn't even aware of. It was probably the first time Narita didn't refer to the locals as the 'human-things' too, or at least 'the humans'. It was almost strangely accepting from her side, and broke the monotony of disgust, or hate, my girls universally expressed towards humans.

"Do you know hers?" I asked.

"Yes-yes. She is Ari. I think. Master." Narita replied, immediately.

This should feel like a historical moment of sorts. It would be the first human we at least knew the name of, my previous attempts to lead a conversation and master the language didn't quite manage to establish even the basics.

"And the other guy?" I queried. The third captive - second after the unfortunate demise of the merchant - was clearly an intelligent man, assumed scribe.

"Human-thing. Speaks too much. We don't understand him, Master." The 'Alpha Defiler' replied in a rejecting tone, showing that her attitude didn't leave her entirely, which was speaking volumes about how unusual this crazy girl - Ari - was, perhaps not just me, but all of us.

Was Ari's acceptance granting immunity, or was immunity granting acceptance?

This was a valid, important question to ask.

However, no matter how crucial it seemed to be for our future endeavours in this accursed world, I felt little motivation to actually work on resolving the issue in any meaningful way. I simply couldn't think of a way to confirm any suspicion without randomly throwing prisoners into the 'Displacers' portals.

I thought of the mutilated body such a thing left behind, and it made me shiver.

"We will solve this later." I said in a dejected tone before verifying: "Who is guarding him if you are here?"

"My sisters are, Master," Narita said, her eyes briefly gazing away from me, and towards the horizon, briefly spacing out, a sign of her synchronising her perception with her smaller cousins.

"Human-thing is trying to talk even now, Master." She informed me.

"Saying?"

"We don't know, Master." Narita admitted, "I think. I can say numbers. And spear."

She raised her arm. I would call her weapon a bardiche, or some oriental variant of it, rather than the spear, but it didn't matter. It was in no way an important word.

"It is not going to be easy," I said silently to nobody in particular.

It made me wonder whether the man would be immune to the powers, or simply be torn to shreds by the force of the 'Displacer' teleport. Bringing him to the settlement that was still inhabited by humans, and allowing him contact with the crazy girl - Ari, I corrected myself - would be certainly beneficial.

Or I would end up with another dead body.

It was yet another problem I wasn't ready to address right now.

"I want you to try figuring out the language, you have the knack for it." I decided, "Get Sora to transport you."

Rats were often deceptively smart, and Narita, as their anthropomorphic personification, wasn't lacking in wits, making progress where I was just flailing around.

"Talk human-things. Yes-yes, Master." She replied, her reply less energetic than it was usually, but voicing no real complaint. I still felt bad for forcing this upon her, all while feeling tired from the struggle myself.

"You can talk with Ari if you want, but I don't want to risk learning only from her. I'll make it up to you somehow, I promise," I added, freeing myself from the grasp of Miwah and Tama, and reaching to touch her face, scratching the fur. Narita was the least cuddly but didn't seem to mind, and looked at me with those red eyes of hers.

"Making up seems interesting, Master. Can we join?" Tama quipped. Helmy giggled. At least, Miwah was silent, merely tilting her head and looking at me with curiosity. They seemed to be developing quite the attitude, but I let them be themselves and steer the conversation back to the more pressing concerns.

Narita, however, wasn't playing their game and answered with the usual "Yes-yes, Master." in a hushed tone.

"Just take him to a secure place for the night, and give him something to eat. We will wrap things here and join you."

"Yes-yes, Master." She acknowledged, this time slightly more loudly, taking a step back, although not immediately.

"Narita, but before you go, I want one or two of your sisters stationed here. Try to heal the wounded humans if they are any." I decided, then realised the side effect would likely kill the weaker subjects in the process, "Perhaps, wait ...."

I didn't finish the sentence, trying to consider the impact first. It may be almost as bad as throwing people into the 'Displacer' portals.

"Only the most wounded. Try with a few, using trees to drain the energy from." I decided, "And make sure none of the others harms them."

"Yes-yes, Master." She replied, with a sharp nod, heading back to the village. Sora was nowhere to be seen.

I looked around.

The skies were already darkening, and even though the sun didn't completely set down over the forest, I estimated we have perhaps a last hour of daylight, perhaps two with my skewed perception of time without any clock to reference.

I still keenly remembered Sora mentioning that there was only one entrance to the valley on our side of the river - it, along with the mention of the mine, made me wish to see it, bringing down this entire disaster.

We learned something new, but the humans paid for it with their lives. Even as the regret slipped away from my treacherous brain as it prioritised the well-being of my girls, I was tired and wanted to feel it was worth it.

However, Sora wasn't around to advise at the promised bottleneck entrance.

I searched for her siblings instead.

There was one of her little ones though among the retinue, the small feline 'Displacer' looked at me with red eyes, and I struggled to remember her name. As ingenious as it was to offload the interaction with me to the rank-and-file members of the monster breed, abusing their telepathic connection, it represented a challenge to recall their names. Linked in mind or not, they were individuals.

I was almost certain she was named one. A lot of them stalking closely were, I understood, maybe they considered it a rank.

Or perhaps, were the named ones like sergeants, telepathically yelling orders at the unnamed ones right now?

Didn't matter.

"Kitty?"

"For Master." She said, disappointed, making me feel ashamed for the failing memory.

I should reconsider the whole naming madness - however, this one was a red-eyed variant, giving me some hint at her identity. I thought I sent her out, but she came back, apparently.

"Kat. Sorry."

"For Master!" Kat cheered, and I was relieved I actually picked the right one. She could have been the unnamed one striving to be noticed. The awkwardness made me rush to the point of the conversation.

"Bring me to the place Sora spoke about," I ordered, and immediately regretted it.

My felines were paradoxically a personification of being rash, trigger-happy, and hyperactive.

Being hugged by the anthropomorphic kitten wasn't unpleasant, the 'Displacers' were soft, fluffy, and cute, smaller than me, but with a reasonably feminine shape. Being the target of their power was - everything but not that.

The space swirled around and I was pushed into the void where the rules of reality no longer applied.

The 'Displacer' power looked at the law of physics and laughed, and laughed.

I came back to my senses at the edge of the cliff.

Nothing terrified me more than the height, making my heart race and my head spin.

I froze, crawled my way back to more stable footing and sat down on the cold ground, all while still holding Kat tightly. The smaller versions of the teleporting felines were relatively light, it seemed.

"Never! Never ever! Teleport me to heights! Or the sky! Or edges!" I whispered, with emphasis in my voice, to the fluffy animal ears, while holding the little, annoying, space-bending catgirl very tight, instinctively hoping that the next jump would bring me to a considerably safer spot.

"For Master!" She agreed

I didn't. I just sat on the ground. The catgirl on my lap, however, quite enjoyed the cuddle, and purred, calming me down while I finally started to pay attention to our surroundings.

She brought me to a cliff road sliding down at the side of the mountain ridge, with the dense, haze-drowned forest below us, and metric tons of rock above. Despite the initial shock of my arrival, I had to admit it could be worse.

I was still determined to hold on to the catgirl until she teleported me back. Very tightly.

"For Master." The Displacer approved.

Although absolutely horrid for anyone with acrophobia, his path was wide enough for two carriages to pass each other, with the cobbled stone road in reasonably good shape, and probably relatively safe to traverse all things considered. Although the route itself was looking abandoned, with no travellers threatening us, there were signs of the civilization lost in the mist in the distance.

Finally...

The other 'Displacers' brought in the rest of my usual company to me, though in much safer spots. Did their accuracy increase when one of their kin was nearby or was this revenge for misremembering her name? The group, finally, included Sora, which could answer my questions in a more practical manner rather than throwing me through the portals.

"If you wanted a private time with Kat you could have said so, Master." Tama teased, but I kept holding my space-bending feline close anyway, petting her head. I hated cliffs. Sitting on the ground a metre from the edge still made me nervous, better to hold on to something - someone - that could blink me away to a less distressing spot.

"I am holding her until she transports me to the safer space I can't fall from, then I hold you for the rest of the night," I answered without thinking, in all honesty.

"Yes, Master," Tama answered in a suggestive tone typical for her, but I decided to ignore her.

As tired as the whole endeavour with the settlement brought me, I was positively exhausted now, gathering my remaining mental strength to deal with this.

"Sora, please explain where we are," I ordered, somewhat annoyed with the sudden transportation, but I cooled my temper very quickly.

"We are on the access route to the valley. The village we annexed is on the other side of this mountain." Sora explained though I didn't look at the spot she was pointing at.

I wasn't ready to deal with it now.

"There is no way around it?"

There certainly had to be some alternative - I felt queasy just from being there, the route, although well maintained, would be impassable in winter. The idea of slipping down and plummeting down to the abyss was way too vivid.

"There must be, but not from this direction, Master." That was the answer, filled with certainty, and I tried to think.

My eyes were fixated on the distance, the expanse that truly suggested the vast world beyond, filled with dangers.

We weren't at the end of the world, merely at the limit of what 'Displacer' could map at a moment's notice. They could go farther, but the idea of being teleported up into the sky was disturbing.

There were more important matters to be afraid of, aside from crashing down to the depths.

The 'elites' came from out there. They could be somewhere down this road, at the moment, as we spoke, perhaps considering their return. They had the advantage of hours, a half-a-day perhaps, nothing more.

How far could they get?

Would they turn around and return?

Would I be able to stop them?

We, ultimately, didn't have any place to run, and even if we had to, it certainly wouldn't be towards the source of the most dangerous enemies we encountered so far. Almost as if the powers present in our very secluded place weren't enough, I had more things to worry about seeing all this settled land beyond.

We would face it, eventually, but I would opt to delay the encounter as much as I could.

There were fights to be had here.

But the damn sorceress' in the castle wouldn't be getting any help anytime soon.

I looked at the sky, giving this a last consideration, before I spoke my final decision.

"Find a way to collapse this." I said, "We are sealing the valley in."