Trigger looked around at everyone there and noticed only 9, including himself; from the small details he could pick out from everyone present, he assumed the missing one was Mirage.

  "Where's Mirage?" Trigger asked.

  "When Siren and I landed, we did some recon. We picked up a large group of organisms 2000 meters up ahead. The Conductor sent Mirage to scout ahead." Sage responded.

  "You guys hear me?" Mirage's voice echoed in everyone's minds.

  "We hear ya, mate. What you got for us?" Shango asked.

  "Yeah, it's not looking good, folks. It feels like they were expecting us. I'm inside their camp, and it looks more like a miniature town, with a population closer to 600, maybe 900. They've constructed a 12-meter tall barricade. It looks to be made of some wood and scrap metal. There's also a gate in front made out of steel."

  "A town. I thought Skinwalkers took over towns, not built their own. Are you sure they're Skinwalkers?" Trigger asked.

  "Oh, I'm sure. I've seen 2 Chupacabras, a Yeti, three lions, a talking shrub, a cat that turned into a naked woman, and a bear walking on its hind legs with a duffle bag on its shoulder. And those are the least weird. And they're building a town here. Maybe we should call off this mission?" Mirage asked.

  "We still need to find the reason for those eight missing people. Eight people don't go missing from a small town in such a short time for no reason. Continued to scout." The Conductor commanded.

  "I mean, sure, but that doesn't mean these Skinwalkers are responsible. I know we're supposed to keep things like this from the public, but killing them just for that does seem right." Trigger commented. Siren nodded her head in agreement.

  "That's not what I'm suggesting; I-" The Conductor began to speak but was cut off by Mirage's concerned voice.

  "Ok, I've found the eight missing people, and there are more than 8."

  "Report!" The Conductor ordered.

  "I can't get a good head count, but 20 to 40 people are being shuffled in and out of a mine shaft on the northeast end of town. They look roughed up and are being guarded by… hell, I don't know how to describe them. Big ass lizard people with wings."

  "Dragonkins!" Manic shouted excitedly.

  "Dragonkins? No, I suppose that makes sense, relatively." Sage spoke.

  There was no reason why skilled adults couldn't become creatures of their imagination for their benefit, if the young could turn into things that didn't exist because of a mistake. Sage had looked through all records of creatures the Chasers had encountered. Dragonkin nor anything that resembled them was mentioned.

  "Well, whatever they are, they look like tough bastards. Also, none of the humans looked to be badly wounded. What do we do?" Mirage asked.

  "What do you mean? We complete our mission. They have human slaves and set up a defensive position; they knew we were coming. They have no thoughts of negotiating." The Conductor responded.

  "He's right, mate. Go get an accurate headcount and make sure there ain't no Skinwalkers among the enslaved people." Shango commanded,

  "On it." Mirage's voice faded out.

  The Conductor turned towards the group and then said,

  "The chain of command is as follows: Me, then Shango. If neither of us is around, you will follow Sage's and Siren's commands in that order. Am I clear?"

  Everyone nodded their heads without argument. Over the past week, the different teams sparred against each other several times. During that short time frame, The Conductor's ability to lead and judge the abilities of those around him became known. He naturally commanded obedience.

  "Let's move." At The Conductor's words, they ran through the forest in a V formation with The Conductor out front. They moved at speeds far surpassing anything a human could hope to achieve. As they sprinted through the forest, Sage spoke.

  "Three to our left, three to our right 80 meters. Marking."

  At her word, the overlay within everyone's hoods highlighted six large trees ahead of them. These marked 6 Skinwalkers disguising themselves.

  "Trigger, Amaterasu, take them out." The Conductor commanded.

  Without a word, Trigger and Amaterasu sprang forward, and their top speed increased even further, thanks to Trigger's ability. Claws that exuded a light blue glow formed on Trigger's hand as he ripped through the three marked trees on the left. Only the sight of Amaterasu resheathing her blade was visible as the three trees on the right fell over. The six trees wiggled as their original forms were revealed.

  "Ergh!" Amaterasu groaned as she gazed at the Skinwalker's proper form.

  They were grotesque things covered in mangled brown and black fur. They had fanged teeth, flat faces with two slits for noses, and long thin black tongues. Though in multiple pieces, their bodies seemed somewhat humanoid, with six fingers and toes, all with long claws and reverse-jointed knees. They were 3 meters in length. The ones killed by Amaterasu had been cleanly sliced in two, and their wounds cauterized; the ones killed by Trigger, on the other hand, dripped with yellow blood that gave off a rancid smell.

  "Gross," Trigger commented as he shook the yellow blood off his hands.

  The others caught up to the two and glanced at Sage, who crouched in front of one of the dead Skinwalkers Trigger had killed. Once she confirmed that she was finished, they took off again.

  "Guys! I got a total headcount; there are 63. I've marked them, so you should know when you see them. But I have no idea how to pick out the Skinwalkers from the humans." Mirage's voice sounded over coms.

  "We have to check their blood. But we'll have to do it after we get them all out of there." The Conductor said.

  "That may not be necessary," Sage responded, pulling out a small vial of yellow blood from her left bangle.

  "I need about 30 to 45 mins." She said as she placed the vial back into her bangle.

  "I doubt we'll be done by then. So you'll have plenty of time, yeah." Shango responded.

  "Great then, I'll just continue scouting." Mirage mused as he ended communication.

  After a few moments, the group found themselves in visual range of the town, in the large clearing up ahead. They all looked at the 12-meter wall and steel gate in the front. They could see watchtowers out front while using the forest as cover.

  "So what's the plan?" Siren asked.

  "Our objective was to eliminate the pack, but they have human slaves they could use as hostages. Things have changed." Trigger responded.

  "Why? We're gonna kill all those gross things anyway, aye?" Bumi added.

  "Yes, but if we attack suddenly, they may kill the humans and make their escape." Siren reasoned.

  "You don't need to worry about that. The only way in or out is that front gate. However, I can't tell if they have any escape tunnels." Mirage spoke over comms.

  The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  "I can handle that, aye?" Bumi said with a smirk.

  "Be gentle, mate," Shango spoke.

  "You think I'm that bampot?! I know what I'm doing." Bumi chided as he pointed at Manic. He then placed his hands on the earth. After a few moments had passed, Bumi mused,

  "Oh, aye! I feel a few underground tunnels. A girthy one is heading out towards the western mountains."

  "That must be their escape route. Close it up." The Conductor commanded.

  "Aye, aye." Bumi bellowed sarcastically.

  A very gentle cave-in was fifty meters from the tunnel's entrance. The young Chasers could not account for the Skinwalkers transforming into something that could burrow their way out through that cave-in; all they could do was hedge their bets.

  "Should we wait for nightfall to attack?" Amaterasu asked.

  "I don't think that's wise. They can turn into almost anything; we don’t need darkness hindering our visual acuity." Sage responded.

  The Conductor silently leaned against a tree as everyone waited for him to decide. He had studied the movements and characteristics of all supernatural targets they could encounter. Everything he read about Skinwalkers said nothing about them behaving in this manner. When he heard they had set up camp, at most, he was expecting them to be gathering forces and not building a town and using humans as slave labor. If they attacked blindly, the Skinwalkers could have killed the humans. If they rescue the humans first, escorting 63 humans, with the possibility of some being Skinwalkers in disguise, poses an incredible risk. There was also the chance that all those "humans" were Skinwalkers.

  "Dammit…" The Conductor cursed himself.

  "Mirage, what are their long-range communications looking like?" The Conductor asked.

  "Doesn't look like they have any or any modern weapons for that matter. I've been looking; I haven't even seen so much as a walkie-talkie." Mirage responded.

  "They also aren't a hive mind species. So what are you thinking, Conductor?" Sage asked.

  The Conductor looked over at Sage and came to a decision.

  "We're going to split into two teams. Shango, Siren, Trigger, Amaterasu, and Manic will be the frontal assault team. Me, Sage, Hoarder, Bumi, and Mirage will be the rescue team." The Conductor started to give out orders.

  The assault team was filled with Chasers who could dish out devastating damage. On the other hand, the rescue team consisted of Chasers whose power could give the most Utility and support, which could be critical in hostage situations. Sage nodded in approval of the team spread, as it also took care to maintain the chain of command.

  "Mirage, if it looks like they are going to make a move on the humans before we get there, hold them off as long as possible." The Conductor commanded

  "Also, if you can manipulate what they see from where you are, that'll be great. I'll try to muffle the noise we make as much as possible." Siren added

  "Roger, that shouldn't be a problem," Mirage responded.

  "When are we making our move?" Shango asked

  "As soon as Sage finishes whatever the hell she's doing." The Conductor responded.

  "It's ready. It's a shame I don't have the time or resources to make more. But this should be enough for our needs." Sage mused as she held up a small vial with a violet liquid moving inside it. She placed it back into her bangle and nodded her head.

  "At your mark, Shango." The Conductor

  A couple of men atop the 12-meter wall saw the cloaked figures entering the clearing. His eyes widened as he shouted out,

  "Man the gate!!! Chasers!!" However, as he shouted, no sound left his mouth. The terrified man looked over to see a cloaked figure with a glowing magenta face mask, wagging her finger in disappointment.

  "Alright, Siren, sing me a song. Hoarder, can you give her a beat?" Shango spoke.

  Hoarder chuckled as his fists began to glow with Kinetic energy, and he beat his fist into the ground. Siren let out a deafening scream. Both attacks sent out powerful shockwaves. The shockwaves produced by the Hoarders were lifted off the ground and coated Shango's left hand. The shockwaves produced by Siren were ripped from the air and coated Shango's right hand. Those shockwaves blended and amplified, forming a small orb of destruction between his hands.

  "Chase the lightning, mates." Shango chuckled.

  With a clap of his hands, a devastating thunderclap echoed. The next instant, the front gate was blown open, and the 12-meter wall surrounding it was reduced to splinters and scrap metal; the ground burst from the explosion's shockwave, kicking up dust. The sounds of screams echoed as Skinwalkers patrolling the walls were blown away. Before the dust cleared, two figures zipped out of the dust, one with two glowing pistols in hand, the other holding a plasma-bladed katana in one hand and plasma-bladed Wakizashi in the other.

  With mechanical precision and inhuman speeds, Trigger shot a flurry of shots and a multitude of directions, every shot finding the head of a Skinwalker in all visible watchtowers. Some shots found their mark from impossible angles. While Trigger handled the watchtowers, Amaterasu quickly cut down the first wave of resistance. Amaterasu looked to her right to see another wave of creatures rushing toward them.

  "Chasers die!!" A Skinwalker who looked like a man but had the talons of a hawk rushed toward Trigger and Amaterasu.

  "Finally, my turn!!!" Manic shouted.

  Trigger turned to see Manic holding a giant blue, glowing Gatling gun. Trigger and Amaterasu glanced at each other before leaping into the air. A hailstorm of exploding psionic bullets mowed down the second wave of Skinwalkers before they could properly take action. Trigger and Amaterasu landed back in their original positions once the explosions stopped.

  "Let's make more noise deeper in," Shango commanded as he ran past Trigger and Amaterasu. They nodded and chased after him, followed by Siren and Manic.

  Moments later. Shango's group found themselves in the center of town. A group of 8 "Dragonkin" dropped from the sky to surround Trigger. They were all at least half a meter taller than him and armed with metal spears. It seemed the stronger warriors took the form of these Dragonkin as a form of status among the pack.

  "Your guns won't be able to penetrate our skin, Chaser! We'll make you pay for what you've done." The leader taunted.

  They chose to take him down first. Compared to the others they thought him to be the least impressive of the 5. The other abilities were admittedly more flashy, but the implication struck a nerve that Trigger wasn't even aware that he had.

  "Is that right? Don't blink." Trigger responded.

  Trigger drew his guns up and increased the speed of his draw momentum, making his movements impossible to track. He fired off two shots, and each shot's speed increased past what was possible. Two "Dragonkins" had holes drilled in their chests. He repositioned his guns and rattled off another two shots. He repositioned and fired again, and again, and again, and again. Trigger finally stopped, but the 8 "Dragonkin" couldn’t track anything happening. The leader looked at his team and saw them riddled with holes and looked down at his own body and saw his yellow blood spilling out of multiple wounds.

  "What happened?" He muttered.

  "You blinked." A metallic voice came from behind Trigger's mask.

  The "Dragonkin" fell over dead and reverted to their true selves.

  "Can never get used to this smell… !" Losing his train of thought, Trigger picked up movement behind him.

  He quickly whipped around and pointed his gun at the disturbance. He held himself back from pulling the trigger when he saw children cowering on the side of a trash can. Trigger let out a sigh,

  "Get out of here, Go!" He commanded the children as he began to walk away.

  He was aware of his mission, but he'd be damned if he was going to kill some kids. His mask and hood picked up hostile activity behind him as he walked away. He turned to see two giant venomous snake-like creatures lunging at him. His Nano-Armor came to life reflexively, sending spikes from his arms to penetrate the attacking Snake. The spikes retracted, and yellow blood oozed out of the snakes.

  "Idiot. Of course, they can turn into kids." Trigger thought to himself.

  Unfortunately, when they turned to their true forms, the bodies of these Skinwalkers were noticeably much smaller than those he had killed until now.

  "No…" Trigger's mask disappeared from his face, and he used the side of the building for support as he threw up. Killing monsters was easy. If he had just seen these small hideous forms he would have had no issue killing them, but seeing them as children first, shook him to his core. Monsters or no, they were just children. He threw up again, as he looked over at the small bodies.

  Amaterasu and the others saw Trigger in the distance. They looked at the eight large dead Skinwalkers, saw two small ones, and instantly knew what happened. The 4 of them dispatched the Skinwalkers in their vicinity and made their way over toward him. Amaterasu was the first to arrive, rubbing Tigger's back.

  "That's rough, mate," Shango said.

  "You ok?" Siren asked.

  "Yeah… I guess." Trigger stood up and then looked out at the town around him.

  He saw the looks of horror and hatred directed at him by some Skinwalkers. While others looked at him like they were ready to throw their life away if it meant they could take him with them. All of that was layered with the howls of anguish and rage of the Skinwalkers. Another group of Skinwalkers slowly began to make their way toward the group.

  "Why do I feel like the bad guy?" Trigger asked.

  "Because to them we are," Amaterasu said while holding Zac's face.

  "They don't see us freeing slaves. They see us killing their family and friends. To them, WE are the monsters." Amaterasu said with a concerned look on her face.

  It was clear that this was getting to her as well.

  "But that's our job. Being the monster that monsters are afraid of, right?" Manic asked curiously.

  "I guess so." Trigger let out a sigh. This was the first time he’d gotten jealous at Manic’s chaotic yet simplistic train of thought. He then looked at Amaterasu with a forced smile.

  "Get your shit together." Amaterasu smiled, still holding his face.

  "Yes, mam."

  "Your breath smells like vomit." She whispered into his ear, with a smile.

  Trigger chuckled as the Nano-mask formed back onto his face.