Under Pressure

Several zombies were shambling in from the front and an ominous black cloud was closing in behind. This was supposed to be a simple trip out but now they were both in danger.

A smile slipped across Zanir's countenance as he thought up a plan.

Seeing the lad break into a smile at a time like this Reed thought he had a mental breakdown. 'Was it his first time in actual combat?' he wondered.

Raising his hand up and extending a finger out Zanir aimed at the head of the nearest zombie. The aqua subroutine ejected a high pressure water jet. All of the power had been focused onto a pinpoint area.

Shimmering a thin sliver of water flew through the air. It looked like a long needle. The zombie's cranium was pierced through. It slumped onto the floor motionless.

Before Reed could recover from the previous shock Zanir startled him again.

Having confirmed his idea worked Zanir started to use both hands. He could aim each arm independently to double his fire rate. A wicked grin crossed his face. 'You want to take me out with some slow moving zombies and a fart cloud?'

"Reed I need you to stall that cloud for me. Please tell me you can buy us some time."

He noticed how calm Zanir was. He was impressed with the way the kid kept himself together during a crisis.

"You've got two or three minutes so move quickly boy!"

Smiling after his reply Reed channeled his power. A green aura slowly formed and surged forth to meet the cloud. They clashed and seem to come to a standstill. Sweat started pouring from his forehead. 'Be quick lad I can't keep this up for long'

Knowing that time was essential Zanir moved quickly. Bodies began to fill the canyon as he massacred the zombies. Each water jet was like a bullet and there was no cooldown or reload.

The large crowd was devastated as he swept through. While initially terrifying in great numbers the zombies slow movement left them defenseless against long range attacks.

As he approached the fallen zombies he absorbed them. Zanir wasn't sure if the system could use them or not. He did it so they couldn't be raised against him again. He knew that the undead could be especially pesky and keep coming back if left unchecked.

Suppressing the system announcements into an appendix he ignored the dings that kept going off. Sweeping the entire area clean he turned back to see Reed finishing off a weakened death cloud.

Astonishment was clear in Reed's face as he turned back to face Zanir. He was sure that they had been beset by zombies moments ago. There were a few bloodstains remaining but no bodies could be found.

"Let's get you home kid before anything else happens"

There was no hesitation as both of them left the area. Deep within one of the mine-shafts a hooded man opened his eyes slowly as the duo left.

Dropping him off at the outskirts of the forest Reed tossed Zanir a pendant.

"Take this so you can keep in contact with me"

He caught it and felt a gentle warmth from the smooth green stone. The simple rope it was tied to gave the pendant a rough and natural look. Zanir could feel the essence of nature flowing from it.

"Thanks old man"

"When you did get so familiar?"

"Didn't we just go through a life and death experience together?"

"I guess you could call it that. Anyway I'll be off now. I will come back when the first batch of wine is done."

With his final reply Reed returned into the forest. The sun had set and it was early evening now as Zanir strolled back home. The farmhands had all finished their work for the day and returned home. The moonlit fields swayed gently as he returned home.

He checked the system status and saw that around two thirds of the sunlight needed had been acquired. Impressed with what he gathered so far Zanir ordered the system to gather moonlight as well.

The sun icon briefly blurred and was replaced with another icon. The new icon was a sun and moon duo that slowly rotated around the same bar. It kept the progress he already had so he should be done in no time.

With a spring in his step Zanir returned home. It was a productive day. He had made progress on the environment subroutine and made connections with a druid. He'd make even more progress tonight when his parents returned.

Since they still weren't back yet he decided to prepare dinner for his folks. He was able to put to together a basic meal by the time he heard them come in. Zanir knew it wasn't much but hot food was always appreciated after a hard day of work.

His parents both returned soon after. His mother Sarah had returned with a large trunk that was fitted onto a small cart. It was probably packed with all manner of mystical items. Dirt and dust were caked all over his father.

The scent of a home cook meal drew them in. Seeing that Zanir had prepared something to eat filled the parents with pride. After exchanging greetings they sat down to eat together.

Both of them were shocked to hear about their son meeting a druid. He showed them the pendant and his mom confirmed that it contained nature essence. The green stones were originally pebbles that the druids carried with them. She explained that they would retain some of the druids residual energy.

Hearing about zombies so close to home worried both of his parents but they knew that Reed would notify headquarters. They would send someone out to deal with this issue. Who knew how long it would take though.

"These kinds of things are why we want to get your system going. If we can use it to defend ourselves we won't have to rely on outsiders."

His father continued.

"I've gathered materials in the backyard so let's head there after dinner to get started."

Finishing the meal everyone went to the backyard. It was an area at the rear of the house that had been cleared out. Usually it was open area with plenty of space.

Currently the area was filled with large piles of various kinds of soil. Some were dark in color and looked full of life. Others were dull and loose in comparison.

It was time to absorb them all!