That evening, Nick suggested a bonfire gathering involving the villagers. They lit fires at the center using available firewood while encircling the bonfires, gearing up for interaction. Once everything settled, Nick began his speech.
"Thank you all for coming together around the bonfire. I've come up with some amicable ideas! We'd like to get to know everyone better. If everyone could kindly introduce themselves—your names, roles or positions, and family backgrounds."
One by one, everyone stood to give their brief introductions.
Nick, being the last, rose to speak. "I'm Nick Putian, husband to Tiffy here! I'm a fugitive soldier from the Sultan military camp. I come from Liputian ancestry. Funny enough, my dad and my father-in-law descend from the same lineage. That's important because, after some spells from one of the witches back home, we found matched maps with Elizabeth and Tiffy. It means it's highly probable we all descend from the inheriting lines of either the Liputian or Crispin empires. The maps even led us to capture the first black gem at Crapaud zones! We're looking to find the other three gems stealthily, without getting caught. Thanks again!"
Nick sat down to applause.
Dr. Orville suddenly spoke up. "I can help map out the locations of the other gems. I know how to perform such spells—they involve blood, and magical wall writings that appear temporarily. I've done it for a few clients before, but I was unsuccessful because they were misled. We'll try again later, so don't worry!"
"Thanks, Dr. Orville! We'd be glad to be part of that effort," Nick said gratefully before continuing.
"This bonfire is about getting to know each other better and raising any pressing issues. I'll start with mine: Chief Elias, how do you combat threats like hybrids or strange wild animals around here?"
Nick waited as Chief Elias replied.
"Nick, that's a good question. We have weapons the government left us for self-defense to reduce conflicts. As a military man, you've likely encountered these before—hybrid or wild animal threats. Military patrols are rare here, maybe once a year or in emergencies, but they're well-connected to us. We've been trained well by them after they set up a training camp in our village. Over the years, we've learned various skills and developed our own creative defenses.
The hybrids attack in seasons: one season they launch crazy attacks, the next they calm down. It's precarious—we never know when they'll strike again. So we stay alert to defend ourselves and call for aid when needed. Our weapons include guns, ammo, grenades, daggers, and swords—all infused with UV energy from the government. If we run out, we request more, since they usually supply automatically.
If we neutralize a hybrid or mutated wildlife, the government picks them up later. We only aim to kill mutated wildlife possessed by spirits, with government permission. We differentiate them by their appearance and behavior. For the rest, we use a special gun to knock them unconscious, then tie them up for government collection later on. Mutated wildlife are sacrificed to appease our ancestors after such government's official approvals."
A brief silence fell before Nick asked, "We're familiar with peacekeeping missions in conflicted areas, but how fast is the government's response if the hybrids attack—say, right now?"
Chief Elias answered, "If the hybrids attacked now, we'd first launch a counterattack. If we neutralize and tie them up, we call the government immediately. From experience, the response is fast—usually government choppers arrive by morning or mid-morning to pick them up."
Nick frowned. "Now that we're running from the government, would it still be mandatory to alert them quickly in such scenarios?"
"It's tricky," Elias admitted. "If they find we delayed communication, we risk losing their protection and aid. Stray hybrids are trackable. Maybe Mikal knows this—that's why bats and vampires followed you closely that night. They're fast flyers and can track their fellow hybrids."
Silence fell before Nick turned to Mikal. "Mikal, is that why those vampires and bats trailed us that night? Did you know you might have a tracker or teleportation device inside you? They appeared out of nowhere!"
Mikal sighed in relief. "I swear, I didn't know about any tracking or teleporting device! They might have just appeared mysteriously. I'm clueless about all this. Maybe Chief Elias can explain?"
Chief Elias spoke up. "When you get injected with such transformations stuff, the serum is designed so that only fellow hybrids can sense or track you. Even if you transform back to human, you need to remove serum traces from your bloodstream. Dr. Orville can perform surgical procedures, assisted by traditional herbalists and nurses here. They have perfect herbal medicine to cleanse your blood after the serum is removed."
"Okay, thanks. That explains the midnight chase during the full moon," Mikal said. "I guess I need the surgery just to be safe."
Elizabeth asked Chief Elias, "I'm curious—how do you deal with stray spirits? How do you protect yourselves spiritually?"
"Dr. Orville handles spirituality here," Elias said.
After a pause, Dr. Orville answered. "We perform weekly rituals with cursive spells. We throw ashes around the village perimeter and light four oil street lamps. The combination causes spiritual mirages and confusion that drives spirits away over time. It's a confusing tactic—meant to disorient and repel them."
Elizabeth asked, "When you say 'brew,' do you mean you get the spirits drunk or hallucinating?"
Dr. Orville smiled. "Yeah, you could say that—it's justice for us, using whatever tactics that work!"
"So the spirits attack your village's reputation or people, but you're willing to confuse them in return?"
"Exactly."
"We've experienced looming sandstorms and suspected spirits were behind midnight vampire attacks. They even caused earthquakes when we lost our keys. To what extent can these monitoring spirits control animals?"
"They draw power from the four gems—the source of all magic. Myths say the gems existed before magic evolved. The only way to stop spirits is to control the four gems and unlock a pure magic that renders spirits powerless. Right now, their power is limited—it's a mystery why. Meanwhile, confusion tactics work."
"In our journey, spirits keep following us closely. Do you have any remedies for that?"
"Carry lanterns and ashes during your journey. We'll supply more and teach you the spells."
"Thanks, Dr. Orville."
A brief silence followed before Tiffy asked about the UV-infused weapons.
"Chief Elias, can you explain the equipment available for energy transformations? We want to convert photovoltaic cells from panels into liquid UV chemicals."
Elias answered, "I understand you need UV chemicals to fight hybrids trailing you. Are you referring to radioactive materials or extractors?"
"Yes, that's right."
"I'm not sure about that. You'll work with our traditional scientists—some got scholarships after meeting government officials at our training camp. Our new camp supports scientific research alongside military training. We even have an open library with reliable internet. It'll be valuable to you."
"Wow, Chief! I can't wait to get hands-on with the training camp—I love research!" Tiffy said excitedly.
Chief Elias grew curious after a moment of silence. "Do you need backup support? I doubt your mission's chances—you're outnumbered."
Before anyone could respond, Tiffy recalled Luca the dragon. "Just before answering, I remembered Luca—the indigenous dragon that saved Nick and the others. Do you know where we can find such creatures?"
"Indigenous creatures like Luca are believed to live near Mount Volta, a volcanic and dangerous place. Spiritual mutations caused their evolution, but that doesn't mean they're possessed. They've mutated and others faced extinction over time. If you have an ally there, good luck on such a dangerous mission."
"Thanks for the info! I'd really like to meet Luca someday," Tiffy said.
"About backup—traveling in large numbers might alert your trackers," Chief Elias cautioned. "Do you have a formal way to contact us? How fast can we respond?"
"Don't worry," Nick replied confidently. "We'll fake a government emergency and steal their choppers. Anyone know how to fly or drive a helicopter?"
"Just hijack the pilot and force them to fly to you," someone joked.
"Great idea! We'll hijack choppers whenever we need backup."
Silence fell before Nick asked, "Anyone have pressing questions?"
No one spoke.
"Well then," Nick said with a smile, "let's roast some meat and enjoy the night."
For the better part of the night, they roasted meat and interacted freely before retiring to their beds around midnight.