They entered through the gate and witnessed the splendor of Breadfruit Village.

Trees dominated, both breadfruit and coconut, swaying with large fruit between wattle and daub houses. The palisade extended around approximately half of the large village's perimeter. Most of the village real estate existed atop a peninsula stretching onto a large lake. The lake front property was defended by a stone wall set back from the water, beyond which dugout canoes rested along the bank. Communal pavilions with thatched roofs over stone floors held cooking fires. Chickens roamed freely throughout the village.

Rising over everything else stood a grand living building. Its heart was a large tree with its branches trained to form a roof. Around the exterior were walls of creeping vines grown over a trellis. The arched entryways to that building revealed a suspended floor made of reeds and Hector caught glimpses of oil lamps lighting the interior.

While they marveled at the scene, Mila arranged for their feast. She dispersed the warriors gathered to fight the demons off on tasks to welcome honored guests. The men fell under her will even faster than the members of Misfit Squad. Hector watched the people of the village swarm into purposeful activity. Breadfruit, coconuts, and various ingredients were brought. Chickens were beheaded and plucked. Tatami mats were set out on the central lawn. Young women gathered together and waved the guests forward provocatively, laughing and blushing all the while.

Cleo appeared at Hector's side. "You seem marginally less brain dead than the others. Is this Mila doing something to manipulate all of you?"

Hector harrumphed. "Just normal hot woman stuff." As the words rolled off his tongue, he recalled that Evelyn had said something similar when he first met her. He worried she was manipulating his thoughts and she of course couldn't give him a straight answer. One of her many flaws…. Too bad she was busy being the Sage of Foresight. Exploring the multiverse with someone from home would have been a lot more fun.

"Are you sure? Everyone is acting all kinds of stupid. It's like I'm working with five leaping idiots instead of a team of competent adults."

Fred interrupted Cleo's questioning. "Hey, Cleo, can you check a strap up top? I'm worried something came free."

The surge of annoyance on Cleo's face indicated she was close to her breaking point. Hector sighed. "I've got it." He reached the top of Fred with a single jump and began searching for anything amiss. His eyes immediately caught on an ajar maintenance door, behind which a glowing screen could be seen.

Without thought, Hector moved closer and read the words displayed there.

'Hector, you are an idiot. I am trying to send a message to Cleo without being overheard.'

He blinked. "Cleo? You're better with knots than me. Can you give me a hand?"

The woman rolled her eyes and scrambled up top. Almost as soon as she reached his position, she noticed the screen and the direction of Hector's gaze. Cleo caught on immediately. "I can't believe you have trouble with a simple knot. Let me show you how this works again."

The two of them bent close to the screen, where the words shifted.

'If Mila asks, tell her I have a fully functional penis. Whatever you do, don't call it an antenna.'

Cleo smacked her fist against the metal body. "Stop screwing around, Fred."

'You are no fun, Cleo. Let us be serious and boring now. I am not impacted by Mila. She is hot and all, but the whole "no biology" thing strikes again. I'm impotent! Woe is me! Anyway, I have been watching. She uses life energy on the mental band when speaking to her own people but not to us. There is no Strigoi trickery directed towards our squad.'

After a moment, the text changed. 'My gas chromatography module picks up a lot of unusual activity around Mila. I suspect there are pheromones being released. Plus she is very attractive. And biological brains are stupid. That is more than enough to explain everything. I have done a threat assessment and I am not worried. Mila is only level eight. The next highest person is only level six. She needs us to close that rift. We want a break from rations and hunting for water.'

Giggling caught their attention. Hector and Cleo watched as two attractive women pulled Leroy towards a nearby house. The giggling came from Leroy.

"Damn, the leaping idiot is getting laid," Hector muttered.

Several of the warriors from before had started Ajax talking about his past battles and were listening with rapt attention as the Titan described fighting against a tide of monsters on Aes while being careful to avoid wafting miasmic mists. Nestor interrupted to take over his brother's narrative periodically. They were being expertly entertained by the village. No doubt to keep them too occupied to become a headache.

Down on the ground, Hunter stood awkwardly, looking alone and neglected. "I guess no one is trying to extend the red carpet for our guide," he said.

"What does carpet have to do with anything?"

Hector opened his mouth to reply, then thought better of it. One learned quickly living in a multiverse that no one was all that interested in the cultures of random worlds. Instead he shrugged and jumped back down. While their feast was being prepared, he intended to do a quick walk around the place. He didn't plan to investigate, exactly, but Hector didn't like that he was being shown a carefully curated image of Breadfruit Village.

First he went to the edge of the lake, which reminded him that they should fill up the water tanks on Fred before seeking out their enemies. Then he walked the perimeter of the village, wondering about the need for palisades fronted by thorn bushes. His ears picked up occasional conversations in the houses he passed. Those people spoke of normal matters. Plans to take a day off fishing to fix a leaky roof. Requests to spend more time with the family. Curiosity about the visiting demons. Concern over the effects the miasmic taint would have.

He found rows of crops planted in neat rows. There were flat rocks with chalk denoting the details of each row. 'Soybeans', 'sweet potato', 'millet', 'onion', and so on. It didn't look large enough to feed a village with a few hundred people, but Hector supposed that most calories would come from the breadfruit the place was named after. There certainly were enough hanging from the trees. They also obviously fished and ate chicken.

Stolen novel; please report.

"Has your inspection turned up any evidence of tyranny?"

Hector spun to face a smiling Mila. She stood leaning slightly forward with her chest forward in a provocative manner. "I just wanted to see the village."

Mila held out her arm and Hector took it without thinking. "I don't know what you have heard of Strigoi. Probably about as much as I have heard of Xian. Let us not assume the worst of strangers based on unkind rumors."

"Do you not drain the life energy from other humans?"

"Of course not, Hector. Draining is the way of the Ogre. I have specialized in the kind of life energy I harness. That gives me a degree of influence over other humans, but I haven't distorted the nature of life itself. I let the energy flow through me. Sometimes I redistribute energy among my village. The sick sometimes receive a boost from the healthy to let them fight off their ailments. You surely don't disapprove of such charities?"

Hector squinted at the woman, trying to see past her beauty to the creature she was in truth. "You manipulate everyone in this village to do your will, do you not?"

"There is a kin who lives among a pack of wolves in the forest. Does he abuse his pack mates when he steers their hunt away from human lands where they would be killed?" Mila squeezed his arm and made herself look emotionally vulnerable. "Am I evil for making my village run well?"

"Other people in the area fear you," he said.

"Of course they do. Strigoi are not so powerful as a demon, perhaps, but still unnaturally so. Some of my kind can be cruel as well. I am not like that. My way is to nurture what is mine. This village is a paradise, Hector. Our only problems are external."

Hector realized they were walking back towards the tatami mats, which were already loaded with food. People were sitting on the mats beside the food, which was served community style on top of large leaves. He allowed Mila to drag him down to sit beside her towards the center. Not far away, the two Titan brothers alternated between telling their tales and chowing down on the plentiful offerings. Leroy sat beside an attentive woman and let her feed him, his smile big enough to make his chewing look awkward. Cleo sat beside Hunter, the two of them united in their distrust of the banquet. Fred sat alone and forgotten like he really was no more than an abandoned truck.

"He is content," Mila said.

"Who?"

"You were worrying about Fred. He is content to see his subordinates fed and observe from a distance. I often do the same. I climb a tall tree and watch the people of my village enjoy themselves after a productive day. Appreciating the more subtle pleasures is an important skill to cultivate."

Hector reached out and picked up chunk of whatever was resting inside the polished coconut shell bowl closest to him. He popped it into his mouth and chewed for a moment, closing his eyes to savor the flavors. It was mildly sweet, tangy, meaty, and held onto just a bit of smoke from the fires. "What is this?"

"Andy Stew. They call the variety after the man who makes it. Chicken and breadfruit and mushrooms and herbs cooked in coconut water." Mila nodded towards the food laid out. "This feast is to give you strength for tomorrow. Honor the ones who made it by eating your fill."

"They wouldn't let us past the gate if left to their own devices," Hector said.

"Indeed. Tell me something, Hector. Are Alfar considered weak among the other worlds? I have never had a solid grasp of how we rank. Surely the outsiders who come here are strong, but perhaps that is because only the strong can travel."

Hector alternated partaking of the feast and explaining the multiverse to Mila. He covered the existence of true and unempowered worlds, explained the monster invasions, and informed her that Alfar did indeed rank low on the list of types that are dangerous in a fight.

"So you are not even a true Xian? Those without an energy can simply choose what they become? That seems problematic. What stops everyone from becoming metal like Fred?" Mila had a habit of biting her lower lip when she pondered something. Hector tried hard not to notice that.

"It's really not that simple to gain power on an unempowered world. The big problem is in the name. There just aren't the concentrations of energy you need to have real success." Hector glanced around suddenly. "Where did Cleo go?"

"She and Hunter took a walk," Mila said.

Hector's brow drew down. "A walk or a walk?"

"It could go either way. You are off to fight tomorrow. Do you not feel the urge for release?"

He found himself torn between maintaining eye contact and looking away. One made him look like a horny fool. The other made him look shy and uncertain. "I am here for a specific purpose."

Mila studied him, her smile growing. "Did you know I have an insight?"

Hector paused, found himself staring at Mila, and struggled to pick up the threads of their conversation. "Uh… insight? Into what?"

"They don't always fit well into words. Let's call it discernment. I can sense the motivations of other people. Not their momentary desires. I sense what drives them in the deepest part of their being. Do you want to know what I sensed today?"

Hector swallowed. "Sure."

"Let's start with Fred. He wants to prove himself. Many successful people have that need in their heart driving them towards each new achievement. Your large Titan friends share a motivation. They may claim they want to protect, but revenge is their core. Revenge against monsters. I don't know who they lost, but their urge to balance the scales is overwhelming. Cleo is motivated by fear. These monsters exist as a terrifying force in her mind and she needs to strike back at them. Leroy… he wants friends. I think all of you fill that gap in his life."

A sharp pain hit him. Leroy might have no business being in war, but why were they taking out their frustrations with that on him? The man repeatedly put his life on the line because being part of an army meant he had people around him who were something like friends. Meanwhile, everyone thought him a joke. It might be time to revive his cultivation of charity.

Mila bumped him with her elbow. "Do you want to know your motivation?"

Hector grunted. "I'm a bit worried about what you might say, if I'm being honest."

"You shouldn't be. You want to improve things, Hector. It's a very stable motivation, so you have held it for a long time. I think it is an admirable trait for a person to have."

Improve things. Hector thought over his life. Exercising. Earning money. Optimizing an underfunded warehouse. Cultivating cosmic energy. Saving Earth. Cultivating virtues. Fixing Riley and Darius. Fighting in the dungeon. Joining the task force to save Eden.

"That may be accurate."

Mila tilted her head. "It is guaranteed accurate. Are you interested in improving this night with some companionship, Hector? I must confess that I am fascinated by the thought of being with someone whose mind I cannot touch."

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