Arlee waved goodbye as the three men cycled off down the road, kitted out with their armour-patched clothes, weapons, flame-tubes, and carrying two large shopping bags full of poisoned food. The group had worked hard, scavenging unpleasantly gone-off food from the surrounding houses – the smellier, the better. Then they took thumb-sized patties of rat poison and either wrapped bacon around, or inserted them into bulkier foodstuffs like steaks, potatoes and the like. It was revolting, nauseating work, but they all hoped that the resulting parcels would attract and put a serious dent in the nest of vermin.

  She turned back inside, closing the door and jumping slightly as she came almost nose-to-nose with Nala, who had silently snuck up on her to sit in the hallway. Scratching under the large cat's chin, she moved back upstairs to sit on the bed next to her daughter. Kira was avidly reading once again, flipping pages back and forth with suspicious speed. Arlee settled herself with her own book of choice as Nala paced into the room and settled onto the end of the bed, eyes closing with a gentle purr.

  After a few minutes, Arlee looked over at her daughter and brushed an errant strand of hair back from her eyes, before speaking. "What are you finding out about today, Kira?"

  "Wait a mo…" came a distracted response. "I'm just finishing off this section… and done!" Kira closed the book and put it to the side, before leaning forward to stroke Nala's lustrous pelt.

  "I've been reading about a lot of different things, but mainly trying to help La' with finding her own loci, so she and Oswald can get more magical, along with the rest of us. It's really important to her, and I think it would help her get better from… losing… everyone." Her voiced trailed off, uncomfortable raising the tragic events.

  "You might well be right darling." Arlee replied. "I think it's more important to keep taking care of her, help and support her when she needs it, and just carry on being the best friend you can be. You know, when you connected to the thing at Lion's grave, she was terrified as you were in pain and then fell over. I think you need to be extra careful and make sure you don't shock or frighten her."

  Lara was spending time over at the Brands' house with Carry, learning about the new ways of living, the rota of re-activating patches, and the best ways to get giant shadow-loving cats to go back to their most kittenish. She had been quiet after Kira's recovery, withdrawn even after Carry had brought her downstairs. Sitting wordlessly with Oswald cradled in her lap, her gaze had flicked to Kira constantly, without ever meeting her eyes. She had quietly accepted Carry's offer of some time to learn about Matt's patches, and Arlee had taken Kira back over the road with the two husbands as Matt got his equipment ready for their expedition against the nest.

  Frank had joined them before the group set off, though without the time to weave more armour patches, he was equipped with a flame-tube for emergencies, but more practically with a loud whistle Matt had dug out, along with an old but serviceable pair of binoculars. He would be their long-range lookout, as they hunted for any other entrances to the nest.

  Arlee thought some more before asking Kira again. "What are the other things you've been reading about?"

  "There's a list of stuff that dad wanted me to research, and some other stuff I found that sounded interesting. We know that he does a kind of magic called Adornomancy, but the way the book described it, it sounds like there might be other types of magic as well. I hadn't found anything before today, but now there are a few things that sound really cool – elementic, pure arcanic and some others. One of the things that came up as part of the stuff we found earlier was the Overlay, then there was some more stuff on loci and how they form – why they have different colours and stuff like that." Kira rattled off a short and extremely complicated sounding list of barely comprehensible terms and phrases, which Arlee struggled to keep up with.

  "What do you think the most important things are, that you should tell your dad about first when he and the others get back?"

  "I don't really know – maybe the loci stuff? Dad is conn…attuned to three of them now, and it sounds like that is a really high number! My book says that very few people attune to even one, because…" She flipped the book open and started reading immediately. "…the con-flu-ence of necessary conditions to locate and recognise loci are relatively rare, without accounting for the dangers and additional challenges presented in the post-Overlay environment."

  Arlee was about to interject but Kira ploughed on. "It would be great if we can help La' to find her own loci – because Oswald is a proper person rather than just a toy – or like that statue you told me about – that they can both attune to it together, and develop…" She turned over to a different page before continuing. "…sym-biotic effects and power."

  Arlee finally managed to wrest control of the conversation as Kira paused for a breath. "It would be wonderful Kira, but it's not guaranteed that there are any loci out there for Lara. She's only young, and might not have…"

  "She lost her whole family, mum." Kira interrupted quietly. "Whatever makes a locus, it doesn't care about whether it's nice or not. It just needs to be significant enough to leave a mark on someone's life. There almost has to be one at her house."

  Arlee was quiet, troubled by the thought, but bursting with pride at the maturity which her daughter had developed further over the last week. Despite the playful, silly side she displayed with her friends and the cats, Kira had a deep vein of focus that was clearly displayed in the school subjects she enjoyed. This had obviously passed over to her connection with the old encyclopaedia that Matt had chanced to give to her at the onset of the recent changes. She was displaying some real responsibility and newfound judgement in her research and thoughts.

  Arlee leaned over and kissed her daughter's forehead before drawing her into a hug, which Kira awkwardly accepted in the way of children who aren't quite sure what the reason for it is.

  "I'm… we're very proud of you darling. For the most part you've been very sensible and worked hard with the rest of us since this all started. The work you have put in to help us find out about the things going on have been a real help, and you've taken good care of Lara. Well done."

  Kira smiled. "Thanks mum, I'm loving being able to find out all this stuff, and I want to help as much as I can!"

  Arlee settled back on her side of the bed and picked up her book once more. Something had been nudging at the edge of her mind for the last few minutes, but she couldn't quite catch the thought. Opening the pages of her book, she started reading.

  "…after a long flight, the layover in Boston was a welcome…"

  That was it, she thought to herself. "Kira – what's 'the Overlay'?"

  "It looks clear, no sign of movement, no other obvious entrance points." Frank said, lowering the binoculars and getting down from the climbing frame to crouch next to Matt and Alan.

  In the South-East corner of the King George V Recreation Ground, a large play area stood at a slightly higher elevation and was surrounded by thick hedges, broken only by a couple of access gates. The concealed area was an ideal initial scouting point, from which to survey the rest of the park. They had spent most of the last hour roaming cautiously through a number of gardens and roads along the park edges, but had yet to find any other burrows or tunnels of any kind. Dirty and scratched from pushing through bushes, they were catching their breath before proceeding.

  At one point they had huddled trembling under a boat trailer, as high overhead a gigantic red kite circled. The shriek as they caught its notice had alerted them as it began a dive, but luckily there was plenty of tree cover and heavy vegetation to conceal their desperate crawl under the large cruiser. More high-pitched cries rang out, fading as the enormous raptor climbed higher and slowly moved off across the sky.

  With the sun now beginning it's passage down toward the West, the group knew they had to hurry. Otherwise they risked disturbing the nest's denizens which might awake at any time. Alan stood and took up one of the bags of poison parcels, the others swiftly following as they made their way to a tall tree, standing on its own by a newly renovated set of skate ramps. It stood out in the otherwise mostly level park and would provide an excellent vantage point for Frank to keep watch from.

  "Remember the signals." Frank said as he scrambled up into the branches. "Three whistles for anything non-threatening that might get involved, two whistles for anything that looks dangerous and one whistle for 'get the hell outta there'! Also, one long blast if I see one of those massive birds." He looked up at the widely spread branches. "Not sure if I'll be able to see them though."

  "No probs mate. "Alan replied. "We're pretty used to keeping one eye up high now. When we get back, remind me to tell you about Matt's last attempt to become bird food." They grinned at each other, until Matt gave Alan a jab with the butt end of his spear.

  "Let's do this while there's no wind. I bet these things have a better sense of smell than we do, and we're carrying the world's stinkiest picnic." Matt urged them. Frank gave them a thumbs up and wrapped his arm around a thick branch, standing ten feet above them and looking through his binoculars.

  "All clear at the moment, good luck guys." He said, eyes sweeping the surrounding area.

  The pair took off at a jog, angling toward the West side of the park, as the entrance tunnel opened toward the East. The hundred-odd yards seemed to stretch out in front of them endlessly, as they listened for any sign of activity. Weaving their way between mounds of excavated dirt, they crouched down in the shadow of one of the larger piles to get their breath back.

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  This close to the entrance, the first thing they noticed was a foul smell in the air – fetid with both biological and chemical taints. The first was easily explained, as a growing nest of rodents would create a lot of bodily waste. The second was less clear, until Matt remembered that the park was laid out on top of an old landfill site, and there were likely hundreds – if not thousands - of tons of slowly degrading human rubbish buried directly underneath them.

  "That might be a problem." Alan said after Matt gave voice to this thought. "If the air is that bad down there, it might not be breathable for us, at least not for long enough to clear out the whole place."

  "We're not planning on invading today, so let's worry about that later." Matt said. "Let's spread the poison around the entrance and take a look from outside to see how far we can see in, see what the lay of the land is."

  Steeling their nerves, they advanced slowly toward the mouth of the tunnel. Alan carried both their weapons and kept an eye on the open skies above them, while Matt donned a single rubber glove and used it to grab handfuls of the poison parcels, scattering them haphazardly around the entrance. Coming to the end of the first bag, he discarded it and started on the second. Turning to Alan, he pointed down into the tunnel and gave a questioning look. After a moment's thought, his friend gave a nod and they moved through the gaping entrance with as much stealth as they could muster.

  Moving into the tunnel, the stench became even worse, a gentle air flow bringing air up from the depths directly into their faces. Both brought a sleeve up across their nose as they grimaced in disgust – they would not be able to remain for long. Matt recalled a long-ago memory of a kit bag left unwashed after the last match of a season, and the discovery several weeks later of the world's first smell with a physical presence, enough to have him reeling backward and retching. They slowly advanced, the limited light from the tunnel entrance allowing them to see a short distance ahead of them as the tunnel curved slightly to the left, angling down in a shallow incline.

  The ground was pressed firm, but the walls and ceiling were a bit crumbly, with occasional stones and bits of dirt falling to the ground as they passed. There were drag marks everywhere, testament to the scavenging efforts of the nest's inhabitants. They couldn't make out the colour of darker patches in the fading light, but with an iron tang joining the already foul smell, they could both imagine the source of these. A significant number of the local population having probably met their ends under the teeth and claws of the invading vermin. If Kira's research was accurate, many bodies had likely been dragged down this tunnel.

  Weighing the pros and cons for a moment, Matt triggered his light patch, turning toward the wall to limit the light as much as possible from giving away their position. The edges of the glow showed them about ten feet of tunnel ahead of them before turning and they cautiously went deeper. After about fifty feet they came to another bend in the tunnel and even before arriving could make out a faint, sickly yellow glow emanating from around the corner. Alan put a hand on Matt's shoulder to stop his advance, pointing at the light patch and shaking his head. Matt nodded and moved back up the tunnel a way, as Alan crept forward and poked his head around the corner. After a few moments, he hurried back.

  "I could see what looks like the start of a big cave, and there was definitely something moving, but I didn't see anything." He whispered into Matt's ear. "I think this is far enough, let's dump the stuff and do a runner."

  Matt nodded and upended the bag, creating a pile of rotting food parcels on the floor, then used his gloved hand to spread them around. Once again he discarded the bag and threw down the rubber glove as well, covered in the disgusting remnants of rotted food and poison paste. Taking back his spear from Alan, they turned and started moving quietly back up the tunnel. They paused now and then to listen out for any sound, but heard nothing more than the scrapes of their feet, and the slight rush of air out of the nest below.

  Rounding the final bend and seeing the tunnel entrance, their spirits buoyed. Nearing the exit, Matt paused again to listen, then turned to Alan. "Do you hear rain?" He asked in a whisper.

  Alan closed his eyes to focus on any sound, catching the faint pitter-patter on the edge of his hearing. Looking out the entrance, they could see a relatively clear sky. Already the soft sound was coalescing into a scrape of claws, backed by a growing, terrifyingly familiar chitter.

  "Run!" Both whispered hoarsely together.

  Frank hadn't seen anything of significance from his vantage point, and was anxiously awaiting the return of his new acquaintances. Prior to the onset of this emergency, he had never met Alan, and only knew Matt peripherally through some sport and the occasional school activity. Their respective wives were more familiar, but there were so many people to potentially interact with, it was difficult to build up a relationship if you weren't seeing someone regularly.

  All that had changed in the space of a week. From the initial frustration at what had appeared to be a complete power and communication cut, through the realisation that something totally unexplained had happened. The trauma of friends and neighbours being savagely killed by an overgrown monstrosity. The growing hopelessness as food and water supplies dwindled.

  Then from out of nowhere, the most unexpected rescue. The world flipped upside down again as they abandoned their home to start a new one with a group of people who turned out to be wizards! Frank and the rest of their expanded family group had realised that there was something supernatural going on, as they learned about the items they had connected to. He was initially bitter about the fact that his scrubbing brush seemed to be the limit of his magical immersion into this new world. But to be then gifted with the magical tools to support and protect his family, with a group sharing a strong bond, it beggared belief!

  It seemed so unlikely as to be a weird, post-curry-and-lager dream, but it was real. Too real at times he thought, recalling the abject fear he had felt in stepping outside the house to help rout the pack of rats as they attacked his family's saviours.

  Frank was jolted from his reverie as movement attracted his attention. Putting the binoculars to his eyes, he watched in growing anxiety as his two new friends erupted from the tunnel entrance. One sprinted toward him while the other seemed to be fumbling with an item on the ground. Abruptly there was a bright flare of flame from the tunnel entrance, as the second figure turned and started a dead run after the first. As they reached the halfway mark between the nest and the tree, Frank's blood ran cold as a mass of huge, brown- and red-furred rats burst out of the tunnel. Seeming careless about each other, they piled up as the first ones out stopped to look around in the bright sunlight, noses held high to sniff the air.

  It took only a few seconds for them to find their fleeing targets, and they turned into a charging wave of maliciousness. They swiftly started to close the distance between themselves and Matt, as Alan neared the tree and looked back anxiously at his friend. Frank scrambled through the branches, reaching down and grabbing Alan's extended hand, struggling to haul the big man high enough to get a grip and secure his position. Alan wedged his staff in the crook of a higher branch and they both turned as Matt put everything into a last-gasp sprint to the tree. Running flat-out, he leaped and put one booted foot against the trunk, pushing higher as the others grabbed his extended hand and hauled him up into the safety of the branches.

  Lungs heaving, they clung to each other as the front edge of the rodent swarm broke against the trunk and swiftly surrounded the tree. Standing on hind legs and scrabbling at the bark, they tried frantically to get at the tasty morsels only feet above them. Seemingly hampered by their massive growth they didn't display the nimbleness of the pre-weirdness equivalents. But as more arrived the closest rats were pushed further up, like medieval soldiers scrambling up siege ladders. The trio were just able to keep them from getting high enough with determined staff swipes and spear stabs, leaving a steadily growing number of broken or twitching bodies at the base of the tree.

  But they could all see how this would end. The trunk below them was showing huge gouges as teeth ripped into it, and their arms were already growing tired at the constant strain of maintaining balance as well as relentless attacks. Frank's flame-tube was used at a critical moment as Alan over-balanced and only just managed to keep his spot in the branches. The stabbing gout of flame angled down into the mass of furry bodies scrambling up the trunk, forcing them to fall back as fur ignited and flesh blistered.

  The group found themselves having to climb higher to get out of reach of the snapping jaws, and once that started they could see the end. The ground for a dozen yards around the tree trunk was covered with a writhing mass of rats. There were quite a number nursing burn wounds – several from Matt's ambush at the tunnel entrance – but others with open sores and blisters from the previous attack on the Brands' house. Maybe a dozen were littered around the base of the trunk, trampled under the uncaring feet of their brethren after meeting one of the trio's weapons.

  Hopelessness mounted for the men as they climbed higher, already struggling to find adequate grips and footholds. As their implacable foes drew nearer, Alan shouted between staff swings. "Out of the frying pan into the fire, eh Matty! Got any more surprises to pull?"

  Matt shook his head wordlessly, exhaustion setting in and lungs burning. He was filled with fear, his spear-thrusts erratic and only effective because the slightest cuts from its poison tip made the climbing rats spasm violently, sending them crashing down through the branches.

  Above him, Frank struggled in vain to tear a branch from the tree to serve as a club, his face showing all the terror that Matt felt. This can’t be how it ends, not like this. Bel, kids, I’m sorry….

  The chittering cries rising from the pack grated on their minds, but was suddenly drowned out as a familiar, ear-splitting shriek sounded above them. A diving form sped past - too fast to follow. Great wings spread with a cracking of air as enormous talons carved twin swathes through the mass of rats outside the cover of the branches. The enormous kite turned its raking pass into a graceful swoop back into the air, one talon lifting a struggling rodent forward, where a cruel beak ripped the life from it, gulping down a huge chunk of flesh before settling into a graceful wheel around the field.

  On the ground, the pack was in full retreat, boiling across the open park toward the nest entrance. Again the huge raptor swooped down and unerringly snatched more rats up in its talons, crushing down on them before letting the bodies fall to the ground. The trio found new reserves of energy as their monstrous rescuer routed the pack of rats, only a few left in the branches, struggling awkwardly to reach their prey. Matt and Alan swiftly dispatched these with the greater reach of their weapons, and the men clung to the tree in awed shock as the carnage out on the field continued.

  The mass of rats had made it to the tunnel, where the frantic rush to escape into the darkness caused a huge pile of bodies to become jammed together, each impeding the efforts of those around it. This lasted only as long as it took for the red kite to land and start ripping the back edge of the pile-up to shreds, releasing the plug and allowing the survivors to rush down into the darkness.

  The trio watched in silence as the kite hopped around the tunnel entrance, gathering the still or weakly struggling bodies it had savagely mauled. As it moved about, Alan tapped Frank on the leg and indicated the binoculars which the other man passed down. Alan squinted through the glasses, before whistling and passing them down to Matt.

  "Take a look Matty,"

  Taking them and looking over the park, Matt focused on the huge bird as it hopped awkwardly around, piling up rat bodies. He was again struck by the sheer size of it, with a body almost twice the length of his own six-foot height. The striking red colouring was there, along with… burned feathers?

  He looked back up at Alan. "Is that…?" he started, words trailing off.

  Alan was still looking across the field as he replied. "Yup, your old mate Crispy is back. Looks like he's bloody hungry."

  The awful sound of tearing flesh floated across the field, underscoring how close they had been to a similar fate.