As Atlas and his team discussed the various possibilities for Fort Bone, their minds buzzing with ideas about new buildings and facilities, the Red Fairy appeared again in the sky. All conversations halted as the familiar, almost whimsical, yet unwelcome presence made itself known.
High above them all the Red Fairy appeared, her wings fluttering as she hovered in the air, looking down on the wasteland apocalypse, a satisfied smirk playing on her lips. "Oh my, oh my, look at all the changes you children have brought," she said, her voice carrying an unsettling mix of amusement and approval.
The Portal Crushers exchanged wary glances, knowing that nothing good ever came from her mouth.
"First of all, good job everyone. Lots and lots of settlement chaos. Mayhem and chaos, my favourite drink!” the fairy continued, her tone dripping with sarcasm. "And a special good job to Atlas and his team of Portal Crushers. Look at that. Somebody set themselves up a town. Make sure all of you go visit him, maybe buy a Tshirt."
At her words, a notification flashed before Atlas’s eyes.
‘Achievement Unlocked ‘
Title: Civ Builder
Aren’t you busy bunnies? Who knew making a town was so easy! The other folks in the wasteland must be real dumbasses.
Bonus:For being the first to build a town, and open it to the public you’ll receive one free upgrade.
The accompanying message confirmed what Atlas already knew—their little settlement was now officially recognized as a town. For being the first to build a town and open it to the public, Atlas had earned a free upgrade. He quickly checked the settlement kiosk and saw that Fort Bone's capacity had shot up to 500 people.
Another big bonus was that official towns didn’t use up the one daily teleportation action that every settlement received. People could visit their town, and still teleport somewhere else during the same day. This wasn’t just an added convenience. It could be used as a strategic tool.
Before he could fully process the upgrade, the Red Fairy continued, her tone now taking on a gleeful tone. "And some more great news for everyone. There won't be any more fairy wipes announced!”
A wave of relief washed over those gathered, especially the leaders of the smaller settlements who had lived in constant fear of the dreaded fairy wipes. Cheers erupted from those who had been teetering on the edge of annihilation, their joy was a hopeful wellspring.
‘Thank the lord.‘ thought Amili, leader of the settlement People are dying .
But the Red Fairy wasn’t done. "That's right," she said, her smirk widening. "We're going to be doing something different."
The cheers quickly died down, replaced by an uneasy silence. The Portal Crushers leaned in, their instincts telling them that there was more to come. Nothing the Red fairy said was ever one sided and beneficial.
"Don't worry," the fairy cooed, her voice mockingly reassuring. "We'll keep an eye on everybody. We just won't tell you about it. Who's on the top? Who's on the bottom? I guess you'll just have to find out."
‘Wait! That’s worse! Now we will just live in perpetual dread about whether we are last without knowing?!.‘ thought Amili leader of the settlement People are Dying
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With a final, maniacal laugh, the Red Fairy vanished, leaving them all in a state of heightened tension.
Atlas watched the Red Fairy disappear, muttering, "Fuck." He turned to his team, who had been chatting about the facilities, and barked, "We have got to set up all the facilities right fucking now. Everybody, go!"
Without missing a beat, Atlas sprinted to the settlement kiosk, determination etched on his face. The urgency of the situation hit him hard, and he started spending money like a drunken Fort Mac rig pig on a two week break in Las Vegas, fingers flying across the interface. Facilities were bought, placed, and staff quickly assembled as if they’d been ready for this moment all along.
"Where's that auto toll button?" Atlas muttered, scrolling through the options. "If we set it up right, I can get a whole bunch of coins." His mind raced with calculations.
‘With a capacity of 500 people now, that’s a couple hundred coins every day, easy money if I play my cards right. Even with the mana tax. Half the coins disappeared each time it was collected.‘ His inner eager beaver smiled and slapped its tail in anticipation.
As Atlas was deep in his setup frenzy, the Portal Crushers were also in motion, moving like beavers on crack. Isabella and Alexander were especially busy, directing people into teams to patrol the area. Isabella’s voice rang out over the noise, sharp and commanding, as she broke off people into groups, each tasked with specific duties.
“Alexander, take your team and secure the perimeter!” she ordered, her eyes scanning the growing chaos around them. "We can't have anyone sneaking in while we're setting up."
Alexander nodded, already gathering his crew, his face a mask of focus. The tension in the air was thick, but the Portal Crushers were used to this. Chaos was their playground, and they moved with the confidence of those who had faced down worse odds.
‘Gotta send people out to start collecting ingredients for the beers ASAP! Can’t have a gosh darned tavern without no beer!‘
Atlas barely registered the activity around him, too engrossed in his task. The settlement was growing, expanding in ways he hadn't fully anticipated, but there was no time to dwell on that now.
The sound of the outer teleportation area started going off. As curious visitors started portalling in.
“Errrr…Welcome to Fort Bone. Please pay your toll here.” Said the newly recruited guard pointing to the AutoToll machine.
Two hours later the original intermittent portalling had become a steady flow.
Three figures materialised in the transport area just outside Fort Bone, their expressions a mix of curiosity, excitement, and something else.
"Wow, look at this place!" one of them, a tall guy with a broad grin, exclaimed, eyes wide with excitement. "They weren’t kidding. This settlement’s got everything. I heard they’ve even got a tavern brewing up some of the best beer in the Wasteland."
A shorter, wiry girl with a smirk glanced around suspiciously. "Yeah, yeah, sure. But the real question is, how loose are the rules here? They can’t be watching every corner, right? With all these people portaling in, I bet there’s plenty of opportunities to... stir the pot a bit."
The third visitor, a woman with a sharp gaze, narrowed her eyes at the bustling settlement. "Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. We’re here to scout it out first. See how things work, what kind of defences they have. Then we’ll decide if it’s worth making a move."
The tall guy chuckled, nudging the smirker. "Don’t worry. Plenty of time to cause some chaos later. For now, let’s enjoy the beer and see what kind of trouble we can find."
‘‘‘
John stood off to the side, watching the steady flow of visitors pouring into Fort Bone, a deep scowl etched on his face. ‘Overcrowding’s gonna be our first problem,‘ he thought, eyes narrowing as yet another group materialized at the teleportation area.
‘We can house up to 500 people, but there’s no way we’ve got enough food, water, or shelter for all these people. The vending machines should handle most of it but I can see problems popping up. People are gonna start camping out in any corner they can find. That’ll cause slums, shanty towns. Hell, it’s a recipe for disease, if you ask me.‘
He crossed his arms, watching a few shadier-looking characters slip through the gates. ‘And security… Christ, I’m already seeing the type of scum that’s sneaking in. Thieves, bandits, probably even enemies disguised as curious travellers. There’s no way our guards can keep track of them all, and before long, we’re gonna be dealing with theft, fights, or worse. Fort Bone’ll be crawling with spies and scumbags.‘
John clenched his fists. ‘We barely got this place set up, and already it’s on the brink of collapse. If Atlas thinks this is gonna run smooth just ‘cause we’ve got a fancy auto-toll machine, he’s dead wrong.‘
Atlas had no idea about the issues John was thinking of. But he was lucky John was there, to oversee it all.