Harem Legion: Queens of the Apocalypse-Chapter 148 Into the Wild, For the Skyfall

That evening after dinner, Magnus had someone bring Alex a bottle of hard liquor and a can of preserved fish. The guy downed the entire bottle, knocked out snoring, completely defenseless. If someone had planted him as a spy, they’d picked the dumbest actor alive. Nobody that deep undercover would be this careless - unless he’s got nerves of steel.

In the RV’s lounge, Magnus sat with the women discussing it.

Liana spoke first, "I think Alex is reliable. I trust him."

Emily nodded, "Yeah, same here. If he’s faking it, then that performance deserves an award."

Charlotte and Sophia were silent. Coming from military backgrounds, they knew acts like Alex’s could very well be drilled into someone. And right now, the people they were dealing with - were mostly ex-military.

Magnus quietly sipped his tea, half-listening. His mind drifted elsewhere. A meteor the size of a mountain? Just how many Crystals could that thing hold? Life Crystals, Earth Crystals, Nature Crystals... or maybe one of those pitch-black orbs, the size of a damn football?

Too many questions.

"I’ll go," Magnus said at last. "Give me... 150 Awakened. And 300 Metal Crystals, 300 Fire Crystals. Tomorrow, I head out with Alex."

"No, Magnus, we should wait and figure out more first," Charlotte objected.

"I’m with her. It’s too dangerous," Sophia echoed.

"There’s no such thing as safe or unsafe out there," Magnus replied firmly. "We’re crossing mountains - tanks and carriers can’t make it up there. If it’s an ambush, it’s all manpower. With 300 Metal Crystals, each of our fighters can hold for two hours. That’s enough time. If we decide to run, nobody’s stopping us."

He wasn’t asking anymore. He turned straight to Liana: "Get 151 climbing packs ready tonight. Add extra rations."

"No trouble, but..." Liana hesitated. She didn’t want him walking into death.

"Emily," Magnus turned, "find me 150 fighters. Solid ones."

"I’m coming with you," she said immediately.

"No need. Megan and Amber will go with me."

He barely finished the sentence when Lucy and Molly jumped in.

"Magnus, we’re going too!"

"Yeah, let us go - we’ll take care of you!"

As they stressed "take care," Magnus’s face twitched. Any more sweet talk and he was going to choke. Clearing his throat, he caved, "Alright - fine. You two can come. Emily, you stay. You and Sophia need to hold things down here. For all we know, someone’s trying to draw us away."

Emily glanced from the two girls to Magnus. Something felt off, but she just gave a small nod, didn’t press it.

Next morning, Magnus and his team were up early, packing gear - rations, weapons, torches, Crystals, and a hefty load of rice Alex insisted on. Each of the 150 fighters was saddled with 20 pounds.

Alex was the last to drag himself out, clearly hungover. He yawned, saw everyone packed and ready, and scoffed, "Just 20 pounds each? Back in the village, we hauled seedlings weighing over 200. You folks... soft as butter."

"Alex, we’ve got 150 people with us. Say each carries 20 pounds - that’s 3,000 pounds total," Magnus said. "If what you told us yesterday checks out, we’ll drop off this rice for your folks. Once they’ve eaten it, you bring everyone out from your village and carry the rest yourselves. We’ll give you another 10,000 pounds. Deal?"

"Deal! Sounds perfect! That’s more than fair... but you gotta stick to your word, alright?" Alex grinned wide, completely awake now.

Three buses were prepped to take them to the trailhead leading toward Willowglen Village. It wasn’t far; after 28 minutes, they arrived. Magnus led the team off the bus and gave instructions to Chloe, who came to see them off.

"Chloe, leave one squad here to hold the spot. No need to drive the buses back. Wait ’til we return," Magnus told her. "If we’re not back in twenty days, then bring a team in to find us. Till then, avoid stirring up trouble with the Ridgebreak Battalion or Springvale’s forces. Whatever happens, wait till I return."

"I understand, Captain. Please... stay safe."

Chloe kept watching until Magnus and the others disappeared into the pass, swatting giant centipedes as they went. Only then did she sigh softly and get back into the driver’s seat. Hands on the wheel, she stared through the windshield at the direction they had taken, muttering to herself, "Magnus... there’s something I wanted to tell you..."

Just then, someone appeared behind her, laid a hand gently on Chloe’s shoulder, and said quietly, "You still didn’t tell him, huh?"

Chloe tensed, instinctively stiffening under the touch, but then placed her own hand over it. "I’m sorry... Just give me a bit more time. If anything happens to Magnus... then I won’t regret a thing."

*****

The mountain path was rough. Alex led the way with a kitchen knife in hand, hacking down spiders and centipedes like it was nothing. Since the world fell apart, he’d been climbing these hills hunting food - he knew them well.

Magnus’s group was cautious - three carried torches to guard the air, two scanned the ground, always on edge. Compared to Alex, they looked inexperienced.

Not many mutated creatures roamed these parts. Sometimes, they’d walk half an hour without a single encounter. Even the bloodsucking mosquitoes stayed in the canopy, rarely diving for a meal.

"Hold up!"

Up front, Alex threw out a hand, grinning wide. Magnus, confused, gave the same signal back to his team - stop.

Alex glanced up - nothing swarming in the sky. Calm. He pulled off his glasses and crept forward low and steady. Then suddenly - smack! He slammed his knife down. A speckled snake, three feet long, pinned through the skull.

Grinning, Alex grabbed the snake by the tail, swung it overhead several times, twisting its spine with a violent snap.

"Ha! Snake stew tonight!"

Magnus exhaled, half annoyed. That’s it? You made all 150 of us stop... for a snake dinner?

But thinking back to his past life, he probably would’ve been just as excited. The tension eased.

Then, just as Magnus felt the knot in his chest loosen -

From the still brush ahead, a massive head lunged out - silent, fast. One bite, took Alex at the waist. A scream tore the air -

Then the beast was gone, dragging Alex back into the green, his howl cut short.