47 Men and Wilds

[Can someone please tell me what is going on?] The Spike-Back Lizard asked.

[You great goof!!] Carrie barked at him. [You've destroyed the human nest! What are you doing all the way over here?!]

[I… I don't know…] the great big fellow looked around, blinking. [Where am I? What happened to that horrible shrieking…?]

[You're at the far north end of Shadowflash's territory.] Carrie advised. [Shadowflash is going to be so mad at you.]

[Shadowflash is dead.] Spike-back grouched.

[That's what they say. But nobody has proof.] Carrie insisted.

[I'm here. He isn't. That's proof enough.] Spike grumped. [If he were alive, he would never have let me get this far.]

Carrie fell silent. She did not retort to that. [So… what now? You've passed through his entire territory unchallenged. You've proven yourself to be the strongest Wild here. Do you intend to claim this territory as your own?]

[What? No way! I don't want that sort of responsibility!] Spike turned and started running south. [You guys handle your own problems and leave me OUT of it! I'm going home!]

There was screaming from those measly humans as Spike ran for his freedom. The ground shook so hard, they practically bounced around as he fled at full speed.

"So fast!" one particular small female human exclaimed, as Spike ran past.

It seemed they underestimated him. Spike decided to show them how fast he could REALLY run, and left the whole mess far, far behind him.

***

Remian crouched down on all fours as the shaking subsided. He turned to Carrie. [Did he say… something about 'shrieking'?]

[The only shrieking I heard was Jane.] Carrie scratched at her ears with a back leg. [She was loud enough to cover everybody else's screaming. I don't think that's what caused Spike to go mad.]

In two sentences, both Remian and Carrie had summarized their conclusions.

First, Spike hadn't done any of this intentionally. He certainly had no interest in Shadowflash's territory.

Second, Spike mentioned there was some sort of 'horrible shrieking'. If he had heard it back at his home, and lost all reason until it ended, then it stood to reason that the cause of his madness had something to do with that shrieking.

[So… it's not that they hate us?] Remian perked up. The realizations were starting to dawn on him. [Which means… it doesn't matter what we build, or how much we build… the only one who have any rights or reason to stop us would be Shadowflash himself, and he obviously hasn't done anything to anyone for a long time…]

[That also means that no matter how little you build, you will still be targeted and destroyed.] Carrie pointed out. [Whatever is causing this, it can still strike you even if you move, or even if you build only a scarcely.]

[Whatever… or 'whoever'.] Remian concluded grimly. [Someone is doing this on purpose.]

Carrie did not refute that either. Someone who knew about their defenses, and their abilities, and their growth, had deliberately changed the tactics and form of the Beast Waves to destroy them.

Yet there had been no Wilds straying south this week. They had tightened security so much, even if they couldn't stop word from getting out, someone would have seen something.

Remian glanced once at where Mandy was being treated, and his fist clenched. He turned and looked at the remains of Frontier Town. His eyes fell on the only remaining structures of Frontier Town. Slowly, his face turned dark.

There was only one gang that remained untouched after all the mayhem the town went through. The Legion was trampled, the Burning Steel lost all their forges, nothing remained of the church or the inn or the airport… but the East Side stood relatively untouched.

Who could have known what sort of defenses the town had raised? Who stood to benefit from such Beast Wave attacks?

But there was no evidence. Remian had only suspicions.

[Carrie… we're going to need spies.]

***

In the dark of the night, furtive shadows slipped into the East Side of Frontier Town.

"Mip." One shadow said to another.

"Mik, miik." The other replied.

Ears perked up, angular, and oddly large for their heads. Pointed noses sniffed the air.

Then, as if on some hidden signal, they scattered. Into the drains, into the alleys, and attics, two dozen small, furtive Tier 1 Wilds spread throughout the entire East Side and began to spy on the unsuspecting humans.

***

[This is Miik.] Carrie introduced. [He is a chief of the local Lynxmice.]

Remian inspected the Tier 3 Wild in front of him. Lynx ears and claws and tail, mouse nose and whiskers… the Lynxmouse was a mix of cat and mouse about as big as Mindy. [Isn't he a bit big to be a spy?]

[Miik is one of the largest of his kind.] Carrie explained. [Most Lynxmice are Tier 1, about the size of your shoe. They report to family heads and leaders who are Tier 2, who are wiser and smarter and able to make more sense of what they see and hear. Those leaders in turn report to their chiefs, who are again, far wiser and smarter. The chief of the Lynxmice in Shadowflash's region is Miik.]

[And Miik would serve you willingly?]

[In return for something that we cannot get by ourselves, something that is in very short supply, lately.] Carrie advised.

[What is that?]

[Cheese.]

Remian froze. He coughed uncomfortably. [Uh… cheese…?]

[Yes. You can purchase some, can't you?]

Remian hesitated for a while. [Yes. I can buy some.]

For a moment there, he had a thought; what if they made their own cheese? They had a farm, right? They could rear cows for milk, plant citric fruit trees, allow Caper or Malva to grow around just for vegetable rennet…

But starting a dairy production line could get extremely awkward in the long run. In fact, the very idea of using common methods to acquire milk might very well cause a war with the Wilds for real… Remian wondered if, early on, mankind received such bad appraisals from the Wilds simply because of their farming methods. What would the Wilds think if they saw what happened to cows in dairy farms?

Or chickens, for that matter? Heck, even the wool industry might embarrass the local sheep…

Then again, Carrie had no problems eating barbecued Wilds. She herself ate Wilds all the time, cooked or otherwise. She was a wolfcat. If Remian didn't provide meat for her, she'd hunt for it herself. Perhaps she might be understanding when it came to milk and eggs and wool.

But while a wolfcat might understand, a Fire Bull, for example, likely wouldn't take human dairy farming kindly.

Then Remian realized something. Somewhere along the way, the presence of Wilds had become an expected part of his vision for the Frontier. Carrie and Vigil and all the wolfcats, and now the addition of the Lynxmice told him something; that Wilds could actually live with humans, working together. It was a vague concept for now, but compared to the blood and death of Beast Waves attacking human towns and the 'Destroyers' killing all the Wilds they see, Remian would rather have the kind of warmth and friendship the children of the Adventurers Guild currently had with the wolfcats.

Even if it could ultimately only happen in limited form. They might one day befriend only some Wilds and subjugate the others… or wolfcats and lynxmice and the occasional grumpy bear might really be the limit… but what if it were possible for people to really live in harmony with the Wilds on the Frontier? What would it take for that kind of co-existence to happen?

Remian didn't know, but it was an enticing idea. Maybe an impossible one, but wasn't it worth at least thinking about?

But first, he'd need to ensure their survival. Since the Adventurers Guild and the mercenaries and workers' quarters were all outside town, most of Remian's base was intact. They had lost the airport, and the shop, but everything else was fine. He still had the potions, and the crystals. If they could re-establish contact with civilization, with Charlie's help, they could easily have the funds and resources to rebuild bigger and better than ever.

Re-establish contact, however, could be tricky. The airship was done for.

[Remian?] Carrie looked at him concernedly. [Hello? The cheese?]

[Yes, well… we'd have to import that. We will need to get a new airship for Charlie, and then he can go fetch it for us.]

[Very good.] Miik nodded approvingly. [We will keep an eye on those people for you, in exchange for 100 tons of cheese every day.]

[100 tons?!] Remian burst out. [That's impossible!]

[10 tons, then?] Miik offered.

[A day, you say? Try 1 kilogram.] Remian grimaced.

[That's not enough for even my own clan, much less all twelve!] Miik snorted. [We need more!]

[12 kilograms?] Remian winced. Again, he thought about making their own cheese.

[1 ton!] Miik exclaimed.

[18 kilograms.] Remian shook his head. [That's a lot already. Cheese isn't cheap!]

Miik sighed. [120 kilograms.]

[For goodness' sake, Miik!] Carrie snorted. [How many clans do you need to keep an eye on a measly forty humans? Your clan alone will do.]

[Just forty? But what about all these others here?] Miik glanced about. [What about the Desert City to the Far North? What about the explorers and gold-diggers and all the wandering humans spread out across Shadowflash's and Razorbeak's and Seven's and Highcrown's territories? Or even that nutcase in the Dragon's turf?]

[You can keep tabs on them?] Remian asked, stunned. [Even that far away?]

[Please.] Miik snorted. [We Lynxmice are everywhere. Our numbers are unfathomable!]

[That's true enough.] Carrie barked a laugh. [Not even you can count how many children your clan alone has every year.]

[That's great… but we can't afford that much right now. We only need one clan. 20 kilograms of cheese a day, just for your clan alone, how does that sound?]

[50 kg!] Miik stamped his foot. [We'll keep an eye on all the humans on the Frontier, not just that East Side!]

[But I'm only interested in watching the East Side. At least, for now. 25 kg, and that's my final offer. If I want you guys to do more later, and I probably will, we can discuss it when the time comes. But first, I need a small sample to see if it will be worth the cost.]

Miik fell silent, then nodded. [Very well. A small sample, for now. You won't be disappointed.]