A New World ch. 1

You hurry down the hallway, silently cursing as you rush, hastily belting your pants and awkwardly hopping while trying to tie your boots.

You're late to your meeting with the Oberlautnant, though you only have yourself to blame. You knew you shouldn't have been scheisseposting on krautchan when you had an important meeting like this but... oh well.

At least you won that argument on the internet.

You burst into the reception office, startling the female secretary at the desk. You try to gather yourself as you approach her, you've never really had a way with women and it's been a few months now since you properly interacted with one.

You place your hands on the counter of her desk and lean over her. You try to say [G-good da-] but are cut off when some of the breakfast rations you grabbed as you rushed out the door spill out of your pocket. You continue looming over her and staring for a moment before sighing and kneeling down to pick up your breakfast. Recovering from her shock, the secretary gives you an odd look and asks [Can I help you?]

You explain that you are here to meet with the Oberlautnant and surreptitiously glance at the clock on the wall. Huh, you're actually a little early! The secretary tells you to take a seat and picks up a phone, meanwhile you saunter over to the nearby bathroom and give yourself a once-over in the mirror.

A clean-shaven Aryan posterboy stares back at you from the mirror (thank gott you remembered to shave last night). With blond hair and bright blue eyes over a straight nose and thin lips, you're fairly handsome. Well you think so, you've never really talked to girls much and it felt like it'd be weird to ask the other guys in your unit if they thought you were hot.

You shake your head and glance over the rest of you, straightening your clothes. You're rather tall, though not amazingly so, and in excellent shape. One of the best scouts of the special forces Ebbinghaus Reconnaissance division, you take pride in the fact that you could honestly consider yourself one of the best soldiers the Neue Wehrmacht has to offer.

Mind you, this was because you'd joined the military as early as possible. Unwilling to deal with the stress of deciding what to do with your life, you'd simply joined the army, which turned out to be perfect for you. You visited your father when you could, and made sure to keep in touch with him, otherwise having nothing to distract you from your job. Especially not women, as your father had always taught you that women were “vapid, self-centered and greedy. If not that, then just lazy and incapable” After this point he'd usually start ranting about social justice warriors and the feminist agenda, which you'd usually tune out. He was a pretty cool dad though, and meant well.
You shrug your shoulders and go back to the waiting room to sit. It's not like you ever really interacted much with women, being a part of the special forces, so there really wasn't even a chance for them to tempt you. Your squadmates had taken you to a brothel a couple times, but you'd just tell your hooker to take a nap while you browsed Krautchan on your cellphone.

Speaking of which, you pull out your phone to see if that thread about monstergirls was still going on Krautchan, but a man in his forties steps out of an office behind the secretary's desk and smiles warmly at you. He's dressed in a crisp-looking uniform that gives him a dignified air. He steps over to you and shakes your hand. [Obergefreiter Anon! Glad to see you came early, exactly the kind of thing I expect from our finest. Now let's go, I need to drive you to where you'll be debriefed].
You snap into an uncharacteristically sharp salute, barking [Yes sir!] The Oberlautnant nods approvingly and turns on heel to walk out. You follow him out through the door, and he leads you down the hall towards an exit. You go outside and find a car waiting, and he gets into the driver's seat, motioning you to get into the front passenger seat. Once you're seated, he pulls out and you start driving to a different part of the base.
The usual questions start racing through your head. You've been on a few classified missions, but this is different. In the months preceding your mission you heard about unusual questionnaires and tests taking place throughout the whole reconnaissance division.

Eventually your Unteroffizier had approached you, with vague orders regarding a mission. Usually he would notify your whole squad about any missions you all had received, but he'd told only you and had specifically ordered you to tell no one. He'd seemed uneasy - which you'd never seen in the usually unflappable man - and had only told you to be ready for a summons from the Oberlautnant.

And now here you were, sitting in uncomfortable silence as one of the highest-ranking superiors in your unit drove you to... wherever it is that you're going. At least, the silence was uncomfortable for you. The Oberlautnant simply smiled and hummed to himself as he drove, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel.

You decide to try and finally figure out some of what's going on. [Excuse me, sir... where are we going? I know I'm supposed to wait for the debriefing, but I've never experienced this much secrecy surrounding a mission.] Your superior officer looks at you from the corner of his eye and seems to be considering something. He then replies with a sigh. [Honestly my friend... I have no idea. I'm driving you to one of our military research facilities, where I'm supposed to hand you over.] He hesitates before continuing [… I can tell you this much though, apparently our Hauptmann got the orders to send you to the facility from very high up. Whatever this is, it's big.] You shift uneasily and he eyes you a bit before clapping you on the shoulder with a hearty laugh. [But you've been hand-picked from out of all the military reconnaissance units in the Neue Wehrmacht! You, out of tens of thousands! Have faith in yourself, I know you'll be able to take whatever they throw at you.] Though he's still facing the road, you can see the resolution in his face and can't help but feel a little better.

You feel honored by the trust this man places in you, and slam your fist to your chest in salute and state [Jawohl, I'll do whatever it takes!] The officer simply smiles and nods, before advising you to get some rest. Deciding to take his advice, you  promptly fall asleep. This is partly because you stayed up too late arguing on Krautchan about which girl is the best in one of the animation series' created by your Japanese allies, but also because you'd had to quickly learn to sleep when you could in the special forces.

You wake up much later to the Oberlautnant gently shaking your shoulder. [We're here my young friend! Look sharp, and be ready for... well, pretty much anything.] You both get out of the car, and you quickly wipe some sleep out of your eyes as you stand up. The building is large and obviously made of some of the finest technology in the Vaterland, and therefore the world. You feel a small surge of admiration and pride at this display of true German kultur

He escorts you to the front door, where he swipes a card, and leads you in. In the lobby are some men in lab coats, who cease their discussion and begin to approach after you enter. Your Oberlautnant turns to you and offers his hand. [I do not know what the Vaterland needs you for, but allow me to wish you luck. Men like you are what makes the Neue Wehrmacht what it is.] You are somewhat taken aback by the strong praise from such a high-ranking officer, but he seems earnest, so you gladly take the proffered hand.

As you finish shaking hands, he swiftly turn on his heel and strides out before you can even thank him. The scientists reach you, and immediately state [We've been expecting you, come.] They abruptly leave, forcing you to hurriedly catch up as they lead you to an elevator. The inside is sleek and shiny, but still disconcerting in it's near-medical sterility. One of the scientists inserts a card into a slot, presses long chain of seemingly random floor numbers and lets a small lens scan his face. The elevator begins to descend.

Considering that these guys were scientists, you figure that they might browse Krautchan or maybe have something else in common with you that most of your fellow soldiers don't appreciate. But after a few probing questions, they just blankly stare at you before awkwardly saying [Uh... no idea what you're talking about.] One of your forgotten breakfast rations fall out of your pocket, and you scramble to pick it up. You realize that you haven't had breakfast but still offer them some ration bars, and when they uncomfortably decline you simply eat them yourself. After a few minutes of embarrassed silence, you realize that if where you entered was the ground floor, then this facility must extend far deeper than you thought. Nearly five minutes later, the elevator stops and the door opens with a quiet hiss.

The scientists step out, and facing you as you follow suit is an officer dressed in what you quickly realize is the uniform of a Generalmajor. You swiftly snap your heels together and salute, earning a chuckle from the officer. [At ease boy, there is much to do and little time to waste on formalities. Come, walk with me.] Not one to argue with dropping formalities, you match your pace to his, walking beside him.

The Generalmajor flashes you a grin as he leads you down a flight of stairs leading into what appears to be a subterranean cave. [First, let me introduce myself. I am Generalmajor Schtutz, but just call me Erik. So tell me, what do you know of the infamous second Reich?] His nonchalant reference to such a touchy subject in history makes you wince before you can catch yourself. You clear your throat and eye him warily, replying with [Well I know that it was a bad time for our country. Though we were more united than before, the anti-intellectualist polici-] but Hans cuts you off with an impatient wave of his hand. [No no, I suppose that was badly worded of me, but what do you know about the interests and goals of the Vaterland at the time?]

You notice that you're now walking through what seems to be a rough tunnel, but are too preoccupied with Hans' questions to pay attention. You thoughtfully state [Well uh... what we were famous for is antisemitism, ambitions of world domination, interests in topics such as the occult in human experi-] and Hans interrupts you again. [EXACTLY!] he shouts, causing you to jump. He begins to gesticulate wildly. [Most scoff at the idea of the Nazi party actually researching the occult extensively, but they actually invested more into it than you'd think... at least in the beginning. But why would a country taking on the world spend resources on such a thing? What if I told you...] Hans stops with a grin and flourishes his hand at something. [That the Nazi party had found an artifact that actually functioned under laws that they simply could not comprehend?]

You turn and stare at what appears to be a large circular stone formation, inscribed with symbols that are utterly alien to you. You blink and realize you're in a massive cavern, with cables crusting the walls, as well as the circle in the center. There's advanced-looking equipment all over the place, with scientists bustling about and tinkering with them. Spaced throughout the cavern are machine gun nests and squads of what you recognize to be elite shock troops, standing guard. Several cables and devices are attached to the circle itself, and you can do nothing but gape at it all. Hans turns to you with another grin. [Come now, let's get you outfitted and brief you on the details of this mission.]

Hans takes you by the elbow and leads you to a table where you see some equipment laid out. All of it looks very advanced, even by the standards of the Neue Wehrmacht. You see what appears to be a blocky, complicated rifle with an FTS scope next to 3 magazines, an intricate suit of combat armor composed of armor plates and some kind of densely woven material, and three small, slender cylinders. Hans pats you on the back and gestures to a tired-looking scientist next to the table. [This guy will explain your equipment to you. Once you're outfitted just meet me by the giant stone circle, you can't miss it.] The portly Generalmajor guffaws at his own joke as he walks off.

You turn to the scientist and he sighs, running a hand through his hair. [Look, I'm not going to explain the science behind these weapons because you probably wouldn't understand. I'll just tell you what they do, alright?] You slowly nod. The scientist pokes the armor. [Okay, good. Let's start with the armor. This is the 1IGH7-Kampfrüstung, a light combat armor that is water-tight and extremely heat-resistant. It can prevent a lot of damage, but it probably won't hold up against any strong piercing force and powerful impacts can still hurt you. The mask filters air and can also let you breathe somewhat under water, as well as providing night vision, protecting you against flashbangs and similar effects, and granting binocular vision. Good stuff.] He then gestures to the rifle. [This is the D4KK4 Prototyp Gewehr, a marvel of nuclear battery technology and its applications. Simply put, it functions as both a rail gun for long-range applications, effective range 3 km, and a laser weapon for close range applications, effective 20 meters.] You nod your head in approval, and in a brief flash of mutual understanding you both can't help but fist bump each other. The scientist nods to the cylinders. [These are prototype antimatter grenades. Although small and light, these pack one hell of a bang.]

You carefully pick up different parts of the gear and look it over. It strikes you that this stuff seems rather experimental, and the rifle even has “Prototype” in its name. You decide to voice your concerns. [Just some quick questions, how safe is this stuff, how do I use them and will I have time to familiarize myself with them?] The scientist rubs his chin as he answers. [It's all safe, although the rifle is prone to overheating, especially when you use the laser. You won't ever need to recharge it though. With the grenades, you just twist the top and bottom in separate directions, press them towards each other and pull out the pin that pops out. I already covered what the armor does, you just need to put it on. I should warn you that none of these have been tested outside the lab, and I have no idea how much time you'll have to familiarize yourself with these. You'll have to ask the Generalmajor. Now let's get you fitted]

After equipping everything and running you through how to use your equipment, the scientist also straps a belt to your armor. He explains as he fastens it. [This contains some basic medical supplies, survival gear, rations and a bottle of combat-pills. The combat pills give many benefits for a few hours, and are ideal for emergency combat situations or if you're wounded, but take more than three a day and there will be side-effects.] You frown pensively at the pouch containing the combat-pills. You've heard rumors of these as they were supposedly quite commonly used among the shock troops, though it wasn't official. You'd heard tales of men continuing to fight with life-threatening wounds as though they were nothing, and of the fearlessness and the unnatural reflexes that these drugs could grant. But you'd also heard of men going berserk and slaughtering everyone that they could find, ignoring wounds that would outright kill other men, until they simply collapsed. These could be useful... but you can't help but suppress a shudder.

Finally, the scientist pulls up an ordinary-looking rucksack from beside the table. Wondering what arcane technology and strange functions it might have, you excitedly open it to see… water, MREs, a fire kit, and an emergency bivy. It's not exactly the stuff of science-fiction, but necessary you suppose. Noticing your reaction, the scientist shrugs. [While not as cool as your fancy new toys, you wouldn't want to die from dehydration, would you?]

Somewhat embarrassed, you thank the scientist and go look for Hans. As you go, you try moving about a bit in your armor, and find it to be extremely light considering how much you had on. Huh, the wonders of Neue Reich technology, you guess. As promised, Hans is by the stone ring, though he'd be hard to miss due to his loud voice and wild gesticulating. He's standing with a small group of scientists, who seem to be working a console attached to most of the equipment on the ring. You politely cough to get Hans's attention. He turns around and looks you over, nodding with approval.

[It seems you're ready, excellent! Now to explain what your mission entails...] Hans clears his throat. [We have reason to believe that this artifact may lead to somewhere else, we've managed to open it before and sent a probe through. The transmissions we received indicate that wherever this is has an atmosphere almost identical to ours, even down to the microbiological components such as bacteria. We wanted to send in one of our finest operatives, and decided that you would be best suited for this mission. Really all you're doing is quickly going on a jaunt through the “Portal”, as we've dubbed it, getting a quick lay of the land and coming back within eight hours. We're also using you to field-test your equipment, as they've never been used outside the lab. Any questions?]

You gape at the Generalmajor, blinking a few times. This was like something out of one of those adventure threads you'd occasionally see on krautchan. A top secret mission? Equipment that's futuristic even by the standards of the year 2035? A friggin portal leading to gott-knows-where? You've never been this excited in your life! You collect yourself, snapping into a sharp salute and barking [Jawohl, I shall do whatever it takes!] Hans chuckles, replying [This eagerness for the unknown is a part of why we chose you. But as I said earlier, there's no time to waste! Let's get you through that portal!]

Hans hustles you in front of the portal and withdraws a safe distance away, gesturing to the scientists at the consoles. They start operating the complicated looking machinery and you hear a thrum of power as electricity is rerouted. Slowly, the symbols crusting the edge of the portal begin to slide and shimmer, rotating around the edge of the ring. A quiet, eerie hum begins to emanate from the portal.

Hans calls out to you. [Quickly, go stand inside the arches of the ring! We'll only be able to maintain it for a split second to send you through!] You slowly move to obey. All of this was exciting, sure, but you kind of weren't expecting this to go so fast. You didn't even get to test your new equipment! But you find comfort in thinking that all of this is for your beloved Vaterland, as you note that in the background the symbols are now a blur, spinning around the ring. You try to ignore it and tell yourself that you are being sent through the portal using the finest technology in the world. Hell, there probably wasn't even anything to worry about.

Suddenly the humming seems to take on a different, strained tone, and you can almost feel the sound reverberating through your bones. You hear alarms stridently going off behind you, and can make out the voice of Hans shouting. [What do you mean there are irregularities?! You said that it should be able to transport organic material without any problems! Shut the machine down ri-] You then experience what can only be described as a ripping sensation, and everything goes dark.

You awaken face-down in what appears to be a field. It's pleasantly warm, and it appears to be midday. Behind you stands a lichen-encrusted portal similar to the one you just went through, seeming to be completely inert. You slowly stand up and brush yourself off, making sure you're alright and that your equipment appears to be in order. You try to quell the panic you feel rising inside of you, and look around to distract yourself.

You're standing on a small hill in what appears to be a large meadow. There's forest not too far away, and you can see mountains in the distance. You can't say for sure, but you also think you see buildings or possibly a wall pretty far out past the field. Remembering your masks abilities, you amplify your vision and see that there is indeed what appears to be a palisade surrounding something past the end of the field. In that case, there's nothing for it but to fulfill your mission, you tell yourself, considering that the scientists will probably fix the portal and get it working again. You didn't really want to consider the alternative.

The only question is what should you do now?

Well if you're going to follow your mission then there's nothing for it but to get the lay of the land. It'd probably also be best to avoid any creatures who might live here, you have no idea what this world might throw at you. You decide your first priority should be to get into the cover of the forest and check your equipment more thoroughly. You trot over to the treeline and find a small dip among the base of some trees. You take out all your gear, though you leave the armor on, and tally it. Everything seems to be there, and nothing appears to be damaged, though it's hard for you to tell where the rifle is concerned. At least nothing has any obvious damage.

As you finish your equipment check, you notice a flicker of movement in the foliage. You reflexively hunker down and peer out. About twenty meters away you see what appears to be three girls cautiously making their way towards the forest's edge. They're dressed simply and are carrying baskets of what look like plants and mushrooms, but what catches your attention are their fluffy tails and the seemingly canine ears atop their heads. They couldn't be any older than twenty by your reckoning, and you can see that they're whispering amongst themselves and gesturing towards the portal in the field.

Hold up… are those… w-wolf girls? No, of course not… mein gott, maybe you should browse monster girl threads a little less often. That aside, you consider your options. They hardly seem like a threat, but then again it'd probably be best to err on the side of caution. You're fairly confident that you could sneak away with little difficulty, although you aren't sure if their hearing is as good as their canine appearances would suggest. You could possibly sneak up on them too, as you're confident in your skills. Staying put is also an option, though you need to decide fast.

Your orders are pretty straightforward, and you'd like to avoid taking any chances if possible. However it's fairly obvious that whatever these creatures are, they're sentient. Also, you can't shake the idea that they're are awfully similar to what you'd see in monster girl threads on krautchan, except in 3-D. That, combined with the fact that this will probably also be of interest to the Generalmajor, makes you decide that there shouldn't be any real harm in observing them. Taking their rather wolfish traits into consideration, you wonder if their sense of smell might be enhanced as well. Although the trees block any breezes, you decide that you might as well try to conceal your scent. You carefully take some nearby shrubs and dirt and quickly rub it into your armor. You hear raised voices and clutch your rifle, cautiously peering back at the trio of girls.

They're still in the same spot, and now two of them are arguing about something, with the third one nervously trying to stop them. One of them stomps her foot down and yells “We're going back to the village and that's that! Whatever that horrible sound was, if it came from the artifact then we have to tell the village elder immediately!” You freeze as you realize that you not only understood her, but that she was speaking English. At least the mandatory English classes for reconnaissance units ended up being good for something other than scheisseposting and interrogation, but it strikes you as really odd that these things would be speaking it. However, in traditional military fashion, you simply decide to not question it and continue observing them.

The girl who was arguing with the one you overheard seems to grumble about something and begrudgingly acquiesce. The third and apparently more timid girl is obviously relieved. They all turn towards your position and start walking, with the one who won the argument in the lead. You start, and swiftly duck down, internally cursing. You quickly drop to your belly with your rifle in one hand and scuttle your way deeper into the forest, hoping that they hadn't noticed you. You conceal yourself in some shrubs and anxiously watch. The girls nonchalantly approach your hastily-evacuated vantage point and, just as you're about to mentally congratulate yourself, the leader abruptly stops and starts sniffing the air. “Do you guys smell that...?”

Well scheisse, having a sense of smell that keen just isn't fair. What do now?

You tense up as they all start sniffing the air, but decide to trust in your skills of concealment. After a few more tense moments, you see them exchange some worried looks. “Have you guys ever smelled anything like that?” the leader asks. The others shake their heads, and they all seem a little nervous. “I-I bet one of us just stepped on a bitter-smelling herb or something, let's just hurry up and go”.

The girls walk away a little more urgently, occasionally casting pensive glances around them into the forest. They're quickly swallowed up by the trees, and you release a sigh of relief. It's barely been half an hour and yet you already have so much to report. Speaking of which, you still have a lot of time before you were supposed to go back. Honestly, you're more interested in finding out more about the village and those canine-girls than scouting the landscape, but their sharp senses seem to be a cause for worry. They had gotten far closer to finding your position than you'd have liked, and you hate to admit it but you were lucky that they were spooked.

There's still the rest of the forest to explore though, and you see some plains on the side of the meadow opposite to the village, with the mountains in the distance. There is also more forest on the opposite side of the meadow, so you'd probably have to go there as well if you want to explore thoroughly. Whichever you choose, you realize that you should probably make up your mind before the girls get too far off.
Hastily making up your mind, you decide that checking out the topography can wait for now, better to tail these girls and see if they're going to the structures you saw earlier. You stand up to a crouching position and begin moving in the direction that they went, flowing almost soundlessly from one hiding spot to the next. You immediately pick up their trail and begin to follow. A minute later you see them through the trees up ahead and slow your pace. After following them for a while, you notice that the forest is beginning to thin and conclude that you must be nearing the edge. Unwilling to pursue the fluffy-tailed canine girls without cover, you look around for a better vantage point. The ground is fairly level here, and it seems you have no choice but to climb a tree.

Following the girls as close to the edge of the forest as you dare, you see where the forest ends and patiently wait for them to leave. As you look around for a suitable tree, you notice that the palisade you initially saw actually encircles a village. Taking note of this, you find a tall and leafy tree, perfect for your needs. The grip on your boots make it exceedingly simple to climb it, and you soon find yourself near the top, with a view of everything for kilometers around. You spot the girls, walking towards the village, and amplify your vision with the mask.

You amplify it as far as it'll go, 8x amplification. This gives you a clearer view of the village. It seems to be fairly large and though you're no expert on architecture, the town is reminiscent of the medieval European towns you'd see in various TV series. Focusing, you try to get a clearer view of some of the people bustling about the village. There appears to be a commotion, but what captures your attention is the appearance of the townsfolk.

Though all of the men look completely human, the female population has traits ranging from mice to wolves, cows, sheep, and birds. You even see some that look like centaurs and one that looks like the spider equivalent of a centaur. For some of the other girls you can't even begin to guess where their traits come from. One thing is certain though: these are most definitely monster girls. You can no longer deny it.

You'd always enjoyed monster girl threads and had thought that monster girls were pretty cute, but you'd never really gotten into it enough to seriously read up about their characteristics. But maybe if you can recall what you learned about monstergirls, it'd be useful in this world?

First things first though, you take out your survival kit from one of your pouches and remove the compass within. Using it and some quick guesswork, you determine that the village is located roughly four kilometers northeast of the portal, with forests directly on either side to the east and west. The plains are to the south of the portal. You check your digital watch to see exactly how much time has passed, only to find that it won't turn on. Maybe the battery is dead? It shouldn't be, but gott knows what effect that portal has on things. You sigh to yourself and settle for trying to approximate the amount of time that has passed, deciding that everything has taken you between one and one and a half hours. Judging by the sun, you still have several hours of light, provided this place has a similar day and night cycle to earth.

You consider trying to sketch the village, but the notebook that came with your survival kit is small enough to fit in the palm of your hand... not very ideal for drawing pictures. You glance at your watch again and suppress a sigh. If only this thing wasn't broken, it'd be so much easier to know when to head back to the portal.

Considering that they said to come back after eight hours, you'd assume that you should go back to the portal around dusk. Guessing by the position of the sun, you'd say it's sometime in the afternoon now, probably around two o' clock. Regardless, you have a lot of time. You hope... no, you KNOW that the Generalmajor will get the portal open again, so you'd better have something to report.

With that said... it's best to plan for the worst, right? You decide to set up some snares and look for any identifiable edible plants, so you'll have a source of food just in case. You climb down the tree and look around. The first order of things is to cover your scent, in order to prevent your smell from getting on the snares and scaring off your prey. It'd probably help keep you concealed from these “monster girls” too.

You forage around for a bit and find some wild mint. You do your best to collect as much as possible and crush what you find, rubbing it all over yourself. You're worrying that it isn't enough when you spot some lilacs in the meadow. You creep towards the edge of the treeline and look around. The coast seems clear, and they're only around thirty meters away.

You take the chance and slowly approach the brightly-colored flowers. With no other creatures in immediate sight, you quickly pick an armful and rush back to the forest. You take the pungent flowers and grind them against your armor, thoroughly drenching yourself in the smell of lilacs. You reek of lilacs by the time you're done, and you reflect that if it's strong enough for you to be able to smell it, it might be a little overkill. At least this should cover your scent though.

You look around for a bit before finding some animal trails that still seem to be in use. You set up some snares at various intervals along the different trails, but you know that even if they yield anything it'll be a short-term solution at best. You push these thoughts to the back of your mind as you finish setting up the traps and decide to head back to your post.

Ah, this. This is what you hate the most about your job. The waiting. If you had to hazard a guess, you'd say it's been two hours since you climbed back into your tree and resumed your watch. The weather is beautiful, but it's not enough to distract you from your boredom. Gott, how you wished you could surf the internet right now, or at least work out.

But you still do your job, keeping sharp watch despite your boredom. Because of that, you notice a commotion at the village, and use your mask to see what's up. You see a motley group of “monstergirls” emerge from a gap in the palisade, equipped with a ragtag assortment of weapons and equipment. Oh boy.