God Ash: Remnants of the fallen.

Cain's grin was sly,

"Didn't I tell you? There's no need to think to head when dealing with these fools."

Right now the Brig was completely filled with a lot of people thanks to Rollo's hard work. Several days had passed since that day, and yet, the ship was still bubbling with all sorts of gossip about the comical situation.

Hunter shook his head, "Still, the main culprits could still be out there."

Cain shook his head, "Do they dare stick their heads out. Don't worry about them for now."

With a smile on his face, he spoke,

"Besides, It doesn't matter either way. We've won this round. Before whatever mastermind there is can think something up, we'd already be sailing through the Death Zone."

Hunter raised a brow, "Death Zone?"

Cain nodded calmly, "The area of Dead Spots surrounding the City's, perhaps even the entire continent's shoreline."

Hunter sighed, "Is that so. Then what do we do with them?"

After defeating the attackers, Cain had them all transferred to the Brig. There had been many people that witnessed the attack, and it was no secret what they had done it for.

Most humans weren't very intelligent, usually acting on emotions. They couldn't fathom that perhaps there were deeper elements and meanings behind actions and events.

This was why so many of them had rushed headfirst into the trap without first thinking...

Cain stroked his chin, "Throwing them all overboard wouldn't be a bad idea. But let's hold on for now."

Seated on one side of the table, Cain snuggled into his seat. Now that he had delay with the most pressing issue at hand, he had to deal with the other one.

"So, what do you think this Dead Zone will be like?"

Cain shook his head, "I have no idea. Evangeline informed me so I know what to expect."

Hunter's eyes narrowed, "And where is she right now?"

Cain shrugged, "Who knows..."

Hunter frowned immediately, "What do you mean? This isn't the time to give anyone free reign. I'll be frank with you. I don't trust that chick one bit. She's definitely up to no good."

Cain smiled, "You think I don't know that?"

Hunter's frown became even deeper,

"Then why do you still keep her around?"

Cain shook his head, "Our relationship is a mutually beneficial one. She's far more useful to us than you think. Ever single one of us is an important resource that will be harder to find in the days to come."

Hunter sensed something ominous in Cain's words,

"What do you mean?"

Indeed, Cain's expression was a bit grim. Staring at a piece of paper on the table, lines naturally formed in his face.

"Let's not discuss that for now. Weapons and armor are not an issue. There's a lot of food in storage and we don't have to worry about drinkable water for now. In theory, we have all we need to face the Dead Zone. At the end of the day, that is only in theory."

Cain leaned against the table with his elbows,

"In reality, the lives of every single one of these people, depends on us."

Hunter snorted, "What do you mean by us?"

Cain chuckled, "We Tier 1 humans. To put it frankly, I believe that whatever it is we are to face isn't something normal humans can contend with. To prevent unnecessary deaths, we'll have to rely on our hands."

Hunter sighed, "I hear what you are saying, but that's easier said than done. Besides this is all based on your assumptions, right?"

Cain nodded. Hunter shook his head,

"Then we should hold off on doing anything rash. We might as well prepare for it mentally though."

Cain nodded with a smile on his face,

"That's exactly what I mean."

Hunter stood up, "In that case, I'll be on my way. When will weake contact with the Dead Zone?"

"From my calculations, probably in a day or two..."

Hunter frowned, "That seems a bit... rushed."

Cain shook his head, "What choice do we have? I've contacted the rest. Everyone should be reaching the ship today."

Hunter nodded for the finale time before taking his leave.

Cain sighed to himself. Things were about to change drastically. Mostly for the worse.

The Dead Spots were always a source of terror, so the upgraded versions bound to be quite something.

'It doesn't matter. What it is, I'll tear it apart.'

There was conviction on him, but perhaps the world would try to prove him wrong. Who knows...

***

A day later, most of the teams that hadn't been on the ship returned.

Suki and her team of Lightslayers returned first, then Leah and her team of defiant Beastwomen.

Once they had all gathered, it was time for a briefing...

It was at moments like this that Cainw as grateful for how big the rooms in the ship was.

The entire room was filled to the brim. However, there was an odd quiet that settled around each and every one of them. Their faces were grim, completely understanding of the situation.

"And so, that's what we are going to have to deal with. Luckily for us, there's a lot of us that have ascended to Tier 1. If we meet a Tier 2 creature, we can only try our best."

Cain spoke calmly and measured, scanning the room and taking in the expressions of everyone presentm

He continued, "However, to alleviate some of our worries, I've prepared a special something; five hundred deep-sea explosives."

A few eyes widened in surprise. The {Black Eggs} were the magic explosives Cain had dedicated a decent portion of his time to create. Maintaining access to the materials necessary to create the explosives was getting difficult. So Cain had decided to improve a few things.

'Well, calling the {Black Eggs} isn't very accurate, right?'

Making use of the magic seaweed gunpowder, as well as a few other materials, Cain liked to call this new and improved version the {Black Sea Orb}. It was far more functional and concentrated than the {Black Egg}. It also produced a rather viscous flame that was difficult to get rid of.

What was even worse about this flame, was that it couldn't be put out by water, thanks to the special properties of the explosive seaweed.

Cain was very satisfied...

From those gathering, a dainty hand rose from the crowd. Cain snapped out of his thoughts. Clearing his throat, he asked,

"What is it?"

Lin Lin, ignoring the stares, stared straight into Cain's eyes,

"There's something I'd like to ask."

Cain nodded calmly, "Go ahead."

Seated not far away, Leah sighed, 'Just what is going on in her head?'

Lin Lin's eyes narrowed, "What are we going to do about the spoils of whatever battle that goes on in the 'Dead Zone'?"

Cain smiled slightly. He could tell where this was going. Having worked for others for so long with little personal gain, it was only normal to assume that a lot of people wouldn't be very pleased.

This had also been on his mind. How was he going to pay them back, for the battles they were about to face, and the ones they had already fought through.

Reasonably, he could say he had nothing to give them, as he hadn't forced anyone to fight. But that would be very pretentious, and also not very wise to say.

So instead, he said this, "Whatever spoils you gain, this includes the mana shards, the meat, and the materials, from the Mutant Creatures, belongs to those that kill it. Not only that, but those who survive the Dead Zone will be compensated for their troubles."

Lin Lin frowned. It seemed way to easy. She pressed even more,

"Oh? You aren't being clear with your words. Are you planning to screw us over?"

Cain chuckled, "I have no reason to. In fact, I can even provide you all with the mana shards you've brought back if we survive through this."

Getting the mana shards wasn't going to be an issue to him, Cain thought. He had a surplus of system points, and if push came to shove, he would just have to cash them in. Nothing too serious...

"Lin, that's enough." Leah said, her tone firm.

With a snort, Lin Lin plopped back down to her seat.

Steve snickered to himself. Vincent was seated right beside him,

"What's with the chuckles?"

Steve sighed after a coughing fit, "Things are getting tense, yet nobody seems to want to say anything."

With soany strong people gathered in one place, it was a given that they were all opinionated.

Vincent shook his head, "But most of the people here are in alignment with our tyrannical boss, right?"

Steve nodded, then shook his head, "But that doesn't mean we all are. In the herd, there will always be a few black sheep. Although some of them aren't really black. More like a mix of -"

Vincent cut him short, "I get what you're saying..."

Steve chuckled, "Either way, this is quite amusing to see. I'm curious. Who's going to say something nex-"

Just as the words were about to spill from his mouth, the ship was suddenly rocked by a huge tremor.

The entire meeting room was thrown into disarray.

Cain stood up in one fluid motion, "We are under attack."

Without wasting anytime, his body vanished from their sight...

... reappearing right on the deck of the ship.

"Fuck! This is bad!"

Cain hadnifor a moment doubted Evangeline on the existence of the Dead Zone. However, never would he have expected that it was much closer than she had let on.

What they had been supposed to encounter much later, was swirling right before his eyes.

Staring at what could only be called a catastrophe in the making, Cain's mind spun.

'Did she lie? What is she trying to gain?'

It seemed stupid, thinking such thoughts in such a situation.

The sound of footsteps coming from behind brought him back to reality.

Turning around, Cain could see the expressions of confusion on their faces rapidly morph into disbelief and fear. Why?

"Good God..."

Because the so called Dead Zone wasn't a Dead Zone. No... It was a Death Zone! A Dead Zone was already pretty inescapable. This place looked like nature's own welcome party to the afterlife.

And to make matters exponentially worse...

They were already in it!