The meeting continued. The leadership were all waiting for what John had to say.
John said, “What if we led a trail of breadcrumbs all the way to, let’s say, America United?” Amber literally opened her mouth, about to say something, but she was shocked. They had been battling the two towns economically, but she had never considered actually attacking them. It just seemed so wrong.
John looked at the faces of everyone around them and said, “Let me explain what I’m thinking. Those skeletal hordes are going to attack humans.”
Atlas said, “They are, and we’ve got to save them.”
John said, “Alexander, what are the chances of us defeating the skeletal horde based on what Isabella told you?”
Alexander said, “If we round up our allies and get everyone set, we oughta be able to take down that skeletal horde.”
“The damages though?” Asked John
Alexander said, “It’s not going to be pretty. It’s going to be worse than locusts on a summer day. We’ll be able to kill them, but they’re going to eat a whole bunch of the crops.”
John said, “That’s what I want to do. Atlas, I know you want to save people, but you’ve told me time and time again, you know it’s not your responsibility to save all of humanity. Just the best of it. The skeletal hordes have already wiped out some of the bandits, like Nadir’s leftover army. Why don’t we have them do a little more before we actually have to fight them? If we can split them into two directions, that gives us half the skeletal horde to fight, saving our men and maybe even saving the men on the other side in the America United Settlement,” John thought. ‘That’s a nice way of putting it. I’m sure they’ll go for it.‘
Atlas had a lot to think about.
Atlas said, “So you’re thinking of creating other large mana sources?”
“Yep,” said John. He started positioning little bits of bone all around the table, then showed the scattered rock candies starting to spread out from an arrow into a blob. “And now, watch this,” he said, dropping larger concentrations of bone leading towards America United.
Atlas said, “That works, but we have a wall and a watchtower. Those skeleton hordes aren’t likely going to get through. And if they do, they’re going to tear apart our wall.”
John said, “Yeah, we have a wall, a watchtower, but you know what else we’ll have? A gate. We don’t have to close it. Let the skeletons through. We’ll just take down the ones that are attacking the actual walls or the watchtowers. That’ll take a lot of pressure off the men. And once those skeletons start streaming through, if we—” and then he illustrated again, “have pockets of mana leading towards the settlement of America United, those skeletons will start forming momentum.” He began to form the blob into a line again, but this time there were two arrowheads and a very thin line between the two of them, connecting them. “We can use our adventurers with demon wards. Hell, we can even give them anything else they want. What else creates a big amount of mana?”
Atlas said, “Well, we could blow up some of the flares. Those all run on mana, and even though the undead are unspeaking, it doesn’t mean they’re unhearing. With that amount of noise, light in the sky, mana… yeah, they’d be ants at a picnic.”
John said, “See? Our plan will work.”
Atlas replied, “Hold on a second. Let’s talk this out.” The Portal Crushers did; they talked about the morality of what they were planning.
Everyone was actually surprisingly on board with this. Atlas was the one who was arguing against it. ‘Why am I the one who's a giant pussy? I'm supposed to be this badass time regressor,‘ he thought. Then he realized it was probably the inner guilt from all the losses he felt in the first year and those he had already lost the second time, building up and telling him, ‘Don’t do it. Don’t let ANYONE die.‘
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
Atlas had to reconcile that with the reality of the situation. ‘People were going to die. There were no two ways about it. A skeleton horde led by a general wasn’t a Sunday school picnic. The question was, who was going to die?‘
He looked at the trophies on his walls and realized again that it wasn’t about saving everyone. It was just about saving the people he cared about. His job wasn’t to be a hero. It was to be reliable, trustworthy, and a member of the Portal Crushers—not the wasteland’s version of Superman
‘Thankfully, the Portal Crushers couldn’t read my mind,‘ he thought, ‘otherwise they’d realize that my tough exterior protects a soft, girly interior.‘
“Yes, that’s a great plan,” Atlas said, unconsciously lowering his voice to Batman levels. Everybody else agreed. The argument about John’s controversial proposal hadn’t been nearly as much of a fight as John had planned, as he thought it would be. ‘I worked so hard on making up all those little visual cues too,‘ John thought, amused.
“Alright. I’ll get the details of my specific plans out to Isabella. And Olivia, I’m going to need your help too.” Olivia normally wasn’t in the Leadership Council meetings, but she had been called in specifically by John. And now she knew why.
“Let’s do it,” said Atlas.
—
POV : CELESTIAL WAGER
The Celestial Wager was alive with energy, its liquid silver floors shimmering under the glow of holographic projections displaying the current wagers. In the zero-gravity arenas, orbs of light floated mid-air, casting a warm glow on alien spectators lounging in anti-gravity seats. Conversations buzzed around the vast casino, a mix of excitement and anticipation as aliens from across the galaxy placed their bets on the unfolding events.
Zeltrax reclined in his private viewing pod, his translucent skin glowing faintly under the ambient light. His three green eyes stayed glued to the largest holographic display, which showcased Atlas and the Portal Crushers in their latest meeting. “I’m so glad they made that decision,” he exclaimed, excitement pulsing through his voice.
“Oh, I don’t know,” Kroxar replied from the shadows, his tentacles coiling lazily around the armrests of his seat. “Humans always betray each other. It’s practically tradition.”
“This is gonna be fun!” Zeltrax said, waving off the cynicism. “Sure makes up for all those boring, dull episodes we just sat through. I mean, really, who cares about Isabella making a cake?” He rolled his eyes dramatically, earning a chuckle from nearby patrons.
“Yeah, but some of the settlements that aren’t the Portal Crushers had some good fights,” Kroxar countered, his tone defensive.
“Sure, but you know how invested you get in one particular storyline? Even though we can watch them all with our Dead Zone pass?” Zeltrax shrugged, his voice thick with mock frustration.
“Fair enough,” Kroxar muttered, though his amusement was evident. He gestured toward the betting displays overhead, where odds and predictions scrolled alongside live footage. “Celestial Wager really knows how to keep us hooked. The announcers, the stat sheets for gamblers—it’s brilliant. Keeps the credits rolling in.”
***
In the corner, Blontik sat hunched over his jar of seasonal rock candy, popping a piece into his mouth. His toad-like figure quivered with glee as he watched the planning on the screen. ‘Season-specific snacks are always a hit at Celestial Wager,‘ he mused savouring the sweetness of the snack, a greedy grin spreading across his face.
‘Finally,’ he thought, eating anither sugary treat. ‘More action means more money. More money means the house wins more, more, more, more.’
***
Zark and Bleeb sat at a nearby table, their small, slug-like forms slumped in their seats. Known for losing every bet they placed, the duo was once again lamenting their latest failure.
“I told you Atlas wasn’t gonna complain,” Zark grumbled, his slimy arms crossed over his chest.
“How was I supposed to know? The plan looked shaky!” Bleeb retorted, slapping the table with one of his stubby limbs.
Their bickering drew amused glances from patrons nearby, including Virelia, the elegant waitress with glowing lavender tendrils. Floating past with a tray of Red Fairy Rock candy, she stifled a laugh at their expense.
Above them, the holographic displays shifted to show Atlas agreeing with the plan, his expression calm but resolute. The Portal Crushers’ strategic brilliance had been paying off, and the casino crowd roared with approval as the announcers broke down his latest moves.
“This is gonna be good,” Zeltrax said, leaning forward in his seat. “Finally, some real action!”
“And action,” Kroxar added with a dark grin, “is where the real money is made.”
Blontik chuckled softly, his greasy lips curling into a smile. On the Celestial Wager, action wasn’t just entertainment—it was profit.
And everything from drinks, to betting, to selling seasonal snacks was all about the profit,