Flat Out (System Apocalypse: Australia #2)

=Chapter One: Three Days Early=

13 days, 21 hours post System Onset

Gripping the railing at the top of the gate, I peered down, trying to make out what the hell was going on. Even with those flat and strange alien ships so close to us, I couldn’t tell quite what was happening. Down the way, closer to where the OfficeWorx building was, I could see movement.
It had to be IRSHA, right? I could feel how restless the others were right behind me. Dale and Chris, Kyle and Evelyn, Dor and Sienna – all trying to figure out what was going on.
Apparently intergalactic species didn’t care about making appointments and keeping them. There was being early, like five to ten minutes early for an appointment, and there was seventy-two hours of obnoxious early. I could already tell these guys were going to piss me off. Something in the pit of my stomach warned me, queasiness and all that maybe, just maybe, our defenses weren’t going to be enough yet. I hoped it was just nerves.
Kyle elbowed me in the ribs. “What do you think this is about?”
“Didn’t they say they’d be coming to claim unclaimed settlements? So they shouldn’t even be here.” Evelyn spoke softly, and I could feel the irritation radiating off her.
“Supposedly.” There had to be something else going on here. After all, Evelyn was correct. We had claimed the settlement mere hours after our last encounter with IRSHA.
There was more movement, and while I could have walked all the way down the parapet to where they were, I felt like somehow that might relinquish some of the power dynamic. Make them come to me. That was all I could think of. So that’s what we did. We waited.
And it felt like my insides were roiling with ants.
I frowned at the sight of the spaceships above us. Shaped like stealth bombers, they were still much smaller than I’d expected alien space craft to be. It gave me a moment’s pause. They also simply hovered, like they weren’t attempting to land or park. Maybe I’d seen too many sci-fi movies.
Now that the gate was reinforced with metals, it felt safer up here. We’d made a lot of small yet effective changes since our Wombutant arrived and we’d fought off the harpies.
Maybe I could reinforce it with earth and stone and rock and magic-type things. There was a group of them approaching now, taller creatures than I’d been expecting. A relatively large group. Though from what I could see farther down, just a sampling of the people they’d sent.
A cold line drew itself down my spine like someone slowly lowering an ice cube. Even without settling on any one individual in that group, I could feel the danger right in front of me. Whether it was strength of Mana, or simply just towering levels above me, those people moving in on our gate, those aliens, creatures, whatever they were—some of them posed a severe threat.
And the mama bear in me wanted to rear her snarly head.
The first being to reach the gates made it with an entourage that lagged slightly behind them. They were tall, about half the height of our walls, and their feet splayed out like an upside-down hibiscus flower in full bloom. Four arms with ribboned flesh held in a way that made it seem like they were standing with their hands on their hips, and I realized it was, in fact, the exact same being we’d encountered before.
Dequasha stood below us, her eyes peering up out of her face that still vaguely resembled a flower. Something about her expression seemed perturbed by the sight of a rather large barricade that hadn’t been there a few days earlier. I didn’t need to be psychic to feel the irritation emanating off her as she realized we had, in fact, likely spoiled some of her plans.
“As previously mentioned, we are here to claim our property. Stand aside and allow us entrance,” she said, quite hoitily.
Mum tone it was then. “What did you say?”
She blinked at me with all of her eyelids and cocked her head to one side like she was checking the translation or something. “I’m quite sure I spoke with the correct modulation. We are here to claim our property. We did warn you. Should you not vacate this property immediately, we shall be forced to slaughter every one of you. I do so hate to get blood on my parts directly, so could you be a dear and just clear off.”
“No.” Dale stood, pushing himself to the front and crossing his arms. He was decently tall, and as I was only just noticing, had a decidedly un-dad bod. It’d never thought of him as imposing before, but I guess he had coached teenage sports.
“Did you say no?” Dequasha asked incredulously.
“Yes. I said no.” But Dale wasn’t finished. Maybe he’d decided to take over Barry’s role and be our representative to others. He was gruffer and not as friendly, but it felt like we might need that. “What gives you the right to think we would just hand our settlement over to you?”
Dequasha’s eyes narrowed for a moment before she presented a projection to us. It flickered to life like an old television screen with nothing visible supporting it, allowing us to read the statement upon it.

Formal notice is provided that the order of the Intergalactic Rare Species Hunter’s Alliance, IRSHA’s exploratory and discovery team IRSHA Q-a593NP, has purchased from the Galactic Council first right of refusal and purchase of any and all yet unclaimed settlements on the continent of “Australia,” on the Dungeon Planet “Earth,” within the first sixteen days of System integration.
Please be advised that any illegitimate settlement squatters will be evicted by IRSHA.

Dale rolled his eyes. “And you are showing this to me because?”
Dequasha was about to speak again when one of her entourage pushed to the fore. This being was huge, much larger than I’d originally thought while he hid in the shadows.
His head was only a few feet below the top of our wall, so he probably hit like nine feet on a good day. The hair on his head looked like it had been molded into spikes by a rough, black clay, and there were bright markings all over his body like he’d been tattooed under a blacklight that glowed permanently beneath his skin even though his complexion appeared less soft and more like polished granite.
“Junior members of the alliance needs be educated more, it seems.” His dark eyes flashed with a flame tinged with blue and I suddenly had no desire to figure out what his species was. He felt dangerous, if the Mana dancing around his body was anything to go by. And if nothing else, I’d learned just how badly I needed to pay attention to my Mana senses.
While he spoke, I took the opportunity to Analyze him.

Mon’swkinon
Third in Line
Dash’Kiri Clan
Warrior of Sound
Level 12

Warrior of Sound piqued my interest. I wondered what that was about. From his appearance I didn’t think it would take him much punch a hole through our wall. So I appreciated the restraint he showed at not doing so. He inclined his head, and in doing so, briefly made eye contact with me. It took all my willpower to hold that gaze, however brief it was.

Release Date: February 1, 2022

Pages: 449

Genre: LitRPG Sci-Fi

eBook ISBN: 9781990491771

Language: English

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