Down in the tunnels somewhere around that Maw’s territory, Nova watches as the party sleeps. The prisoners are sleeping, too, but I think their status as prisoner will pretty quickly change to defector or maybe refugee after Teemo and Leo get a chance to talk with them. I’d say interrogate, and while that’d technically be accurate, the pale elf and dwarf seem pretty relaxed and accepting of their situation.

It could be a trick, but the kind of paranoid fishing trip they would have to have been sent on is way beyond reason. The Maw would have to send out a bunch of newbies with directions to split up and make themselves targets, and somehow expect all of them to be good enough actors to fool my scouts. The kind of zeal it’d take to follow that kind of plan is at odds with how Lechula and Merrik are acting. Merrik might have pulled it off on his own, but Lechula is an open book. Merrik had to wean himself off calling the Maw great, but Lechula had already dropped it. It’s probably not the kind of thing to earn yourself a trip to the reeducation camp, but it’d certainly get eyes on her that she wouldn’t want.

The way they’ve been talking about the way Silvervein and the Maw work, I’m more convinced than ever to deal with this problem, even if they’ve confirmed the… like fifth-worst case scenario? I haven’t done a hard list, but having a lot more scions and having mutant scythemaw denizens would definitely make the situation worse. The situation with civilians pretty much is my worst case scenario, though.

Some fanatic followers, some sympathetic followers, some neutral, but basically everyone believing anything outside is a threat. Counter-propaganda is going to be difficult, if it’s possible at all.

“Everything ok, Boss?” asks Teemo from Vernew’s shoulder as the two relax. My forces are making great time through the shortcut, and they’re all camped out right now. Teemo’s question earns a curious look from the Huntsmistress.

“Hmm?”

“The Boss is just worrying.”

…Maybe a little. Just processing what we’re learning about the Maw.

“That’s the dungeon, yeah? I can hear you reacting to what you’re hearing through Nova, but I can’t hear what she’s hearing. I’m only getting like half the conversation.”

“Can’t imagine what that’s like,” snarks Vernew with a wide grin, which helps lighten my mood a bit.

Well, the short version is that Yvonne, Ragnar, and Aelara have captured a few people from Silvervein, the town outside the Maw, which is the dungeon we’re after. They’re technically POWs right now, but they’re probably going to be refugees here real quick. I don’t think they want to go back. The town is… well, I’d call it a communist state, but it’s probably more a theocratic dictatorship. Less ‘it belongs to everyone, and I get first pick’, and more ‘it belongs to the Maw, appreciate the scraps you get to keep.’

Teemo grunts at the weight of the words I dump on him, but waves off my concern before I can apologize. “That doesn’t sound great, but now Leo can actually plan for that, yeah?”

Yeah. I just wish I had advice for what he should try. I’m not exactly a student of history, but I’m pretty sure a society like that will be difficult to change without a lot of growing pains.

“Anything I can help with?” asks Vernew, getting a smile from Teemo.

“Nah, but I might need to leave the comfort of your shoulder and go on ahead to meet with Leo. Yvonne’s group captured a few people, and while the Boss can hear what they’re saying thanks to Nova, he can’t really tell Leo the details on his own. The report should be moving through the rockslides quickly, but I can get there even faster.”

“I’m fast! I can help!” she insists, getting to her feet. I consider for a few seconds, before giving Teemo the verdict.

“Sorry Vernew, the Boss needs you here with everyone. Rocky is friendly enough, but he’s not going to be able to organize setting up and taking down camp. If you went on ahead and I stayed, you wouldn’t be able to give Leo the details. The Boss needs you to make sure everyone gets to the Southwood quickly and safely. The pace today should be good, so mostly try to keep that for everyone, ok?”

Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

“But…” she starts, before closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. “Yeah… yeah, ok. It’ll be like leading a huge hunting party.” Her eyes drift over all the dwellers and denizens. “A really huge hunting party.”

“Hey, it beats latrine duty!”

She gives him a flat look. “Digging it wasn’t that bad. Covering it will probably be a bit less fun, but probably better than having to keep track of everyone. There’s a reason I leave that kind of stuff to Norloke and Folarn.”

Teemo pats her shoulder. “You’ll be fine. Rocky’ll be here to make sure everyone understands you’re in charge with me gone.” A bit of her tension eases at that, and she looks over at the zombie as he tries mixing sonic and fire. It looks really cool, especially with the standing wave he’s conjured around himself. I don’t think he’s going to get to lightning with that, but it’s cool enough that I don’t think he’s bothered. If nothing else, it helps him train what he already has.

“Right, Rocky. Not on my own, at least.”

Teemo pokes her chitinous cheek. “You alright?”

She tenses up and looks ready to deflect, before deflating instead. “I think so? I’m just… trying to do better. I don’t want to disappoint Him again.”

“Hey, Vernew. Look at me.” She obeys, getting to see one of the few times Teemo has a serious look, instead of the casual smile or smirk he usually wears.

“The Boss isn’t after perfection, ok? Failing to stop the kids wasn’t the problem. Failing to take them seriously was.” Vernew’s eyes flick away, and I nudge Rocky to come over for a second, as Teemo continues.

“You need to be a proper web as a person, yeah? Too much tension, and you’ll snap when an opportunity comes along. Too loose, and the opportunity will slip through instead. Don’t overcompensate and snap, ok?” Vernew dejectedly nods, before her eyes snap to Teemo in confusion. Rocky grunts a chuckle as he hugs the smol spider, and Teemo smiles.

“Boss says you looked like you could use a hug, and I’m a bit small for that. Thanks, Rocky.”

My zombie scion grunts and nods, giving Vernew another squeeze before releasing her. She looks a little overwhelmed and a lot relieved as she sinks down into a sitting position, and meets Rocky’s eyes as he sits beside her.

“I… I think I did need a hug, yeah. Thanks, Rocky. And thank You, Weaver,” she finishes quietly, closing her eyes for a few moments. She takes a deep breath, and opens her eyes, looking a lot better. “Then… I guess you should get going, Teemo? The Weaver is always busy.”

Teemo laughs at that and hops to the ground. “You’re telling me! You kids be good! I’ll see you in about two days!” He gives them a wave, which they both return, before he scurries off down the shortcut. I can feel him working his affinity as he goes, compressing the distance even further than it already is, and letting it snap back as he passes.

I watch Vernew through Rocky’s eyes, and she looks a lot more comfortable now, after the little pep talk. Never underestimate the power of a hug.

“Think a hug might stop the Maw?” asks Teemo, and I laugh at the idea.

I seriously doubt it. You can suggest it to Leo, though.

“Yeah, but I gotta get there, first. Got any advice for humble little Teemo, oh mysterious Weaver?”

Don’t make me figure out a way to smack you. Teemo chuckles at my empty threat as I consider his question.

Well, there’s a couple things to potentially try. I think you’re close to something fundamental with your spacial affinity, but trying to play with that is something to do while sitting down, I think. Not when you’re trying to make good time. Right now, you’re just compressing the space around you, right?

“Yeah. It’s a lot like making a shortcut or a trail, but those last a lot longer.”

Yeah, I can feel it snapping back into place behind you, which is a weird thing to sense. Anyway… how about not fully compressing space around you?

Teemo stops and scrunches his face at that as he tries to picture it. “What?”

Well, right now, you’re making it so you just have to travel less distance, yeah? But if you can unwarp around your feet, I think you can increase your speed, too. Instead of each step being like an inch apart, you could effectively have them be yards apart.

Teemo folds his arms as he tries to wrap his head around that, and I do my best to not think about the math very hard. “That… might work? I’m gonna go slow, I don’t want to accidentally leave a foot behind or something.”

Yeah, that would make it a bit difficult to go fast.

Teemo smirks before concentrating, moving slowly at first. It feels really weird when he starts reaching outside of his compressed bubble, but it doesn’t seem like it’s hurting him. I mentally step back, letting him focus, and also letting me let my mind wander a bit. I make sure to try to keep my thoughts distant from Teemo, not wanting to hurt him.

I realized like halfway through the idea what I was explaining to him, and I’m just glad I could keep my thoughts from running away before I could give him the very basics of the idea. I don’t know how well it’ll actually work, but I wouldn’t want to pop Teemo’s head with the full concept of an Alcubierre drive.