With a tenuous alliance in place with both the Co’xatl and the Jree, it was time to switch gears. There were a few pressing things I needed to do—pushing through to Adept one of the bigger tasks. But first, I needed to meet back up with Michelle Waterstone—and by association—Governor Johnson.
I had to remind myself that for every hour wasted, more humans were dying in the various Tower Instances. Even though the Jree shouldn’t be actively hunting us down, that didn’t mean accidents weren’t happening, let alone the wild mobs, traps, and the sheer difficulty of triggering the portal to get out of the First Floor.
With support from Johnson and the U.S. military, we had the potential to save hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people and boost our overall strength come the Second Floor.
We split up into two groups. Lacy, Athena, and myself went to the state capitol building to meet with the Governor. Bringing a ten-year-old to an important meeting like this wasn’t my first choice, but I did it anyway, because team two had a much more dangerous job.
Amos, Byron, Lex, and Frank, led by Jerome, went to deal with the nearby bandits. I knew that they’d have no problem dealing with those slaving-fucks, but I was still a bit anxious. Jerome was nearly bulletproof in his armor and could make grown men weep and shit themselves with his magnified Intimidation aura—not to mention his new shielding toy he got from Aestus. Amos’ pigeons were deadlier than ever with his new Body Boon and his survivability was pretty good with his boosted Endurance. Byron’s new buffing ability would amplify their fighting synergy and I was sad to miss it in action. Frank had his powerful ice abilities and his Karmic Sight would spot danger before it hit.
And to cap off the team, Lex would be flying high above, scouting out the situation and swooping in to save the day if needed. I’d also be able to watch the fight through his eyes to make sure everything went off without a hitch.
All that said, I was still nervous as fuck. This was the first time I’d trusted them by themselves without a redo in my back pocket. If anything went wrong, the consequences were permanent. But it was Lacy herself who convinced me to trust them.
“You can’t expect them to grow into their new abilities if you’re always holding their hands,” she had said.
Though I agreed with her, that didn’t mean I was happy about it.
As for Lacy, she had insisted on coming with me to meet Johnson because, and I quote:
“You’ll find a way to cock this up.”
Athena had cackled her little ass off and I’d threatened to leave her behind with Mama G. That had straightened her out and we set off together.
Now, as we approached the first security checkpoint leading to the capitol building, I felt butterflies swirling around in my stomach.
Give me a thousand-pound crocodile alien over a professional politician any day of the week.
There were a handful of soldiers at the checkpoint, with one of them manning a .50 cal behind a wall of sandbags. They weren’t shooting the shit or lounging around either. Their eyes were on a swivel and a pile of dead imps had been dragged off to the side. Rolls of barbed wire jutted off either direction and there were more than a few dead imps embroiled in the steel thorns. A pair of humvees were parked behind the checkpoint and one of them had another machine gun unmanned on its roof.
Before we approached, I had Lacy send forward an illusion of us to make sure they weren’t jumpy enough to just start blasting.
They certainly perked up as the illusion approached, but didn’t do anything reckless. With a nod from Lacy, the three of us caught up to the illusion and matched up with our images. Red was in cape form, which, believe it or not, was more casual than her full-coverage armor form.
Lacy and Athena were in casual clothes and none of us had any weapons out.
When we were within a hundred feet, one of the soldiers shouted commands to us.
“Hands up! No sudden movements! Approach slowly and stop on the yellow line!”
We did as he ordered, though I angled myself slightly in front of Athena just in case. She rolled her eyes at me but I wasn’t in the mood and used Red to shield her even more.
I had debated cycling my Fate or Mass energy before showing up. The Fate energy would have been useful for reading their intentions, giving us time to react if anything unusual happened. But the Mass energy made me a walking tank and I’d be able to eat anything that wasn’t a .50 cal right to the face.
Once we stopped at the designated line and complied with their orders, the soldiers relaxed slightly. Meaning, they weren’t pointing their guns directly at us, but held them loosely in between us and the ground. I could tell they were ready to shred us on a dime, though.
“We’re not taking refugees,” the soldier yelled over. “Head five blocks south, then three blocks west. They’ll take you and your kid in.”
I shook my head and nodded toward my hand.
“Not refugees. Mind if I pull out my I.D.?” I had grabbed it earlier from my Storage Chest.
“Don’t extract anything from your Inventory until I give you an express command,” he barked. The soldiers tensed and the .50 cal slowly swiveled up a handful of degrees.
“We get it,” I replied coolly. “You do see the ten-year-old with me, though, right? I’m not exactly in a threatening position right now.”
He ignored me, his tone full of steel. “State your name and purpose.”
“Dirk Damascus, Lacy Wu, and this is Athena.” I omitted Athena’s last name. If anyone asked, she was my kid. It was unlikely Child Protective Services were still around, but I wanted to avoid any awkwardness if someone tried to take her from me.
And when I say awkwardness, what I really mean is bloodshed.
The soldier was about to bark another command when one of his guy’s whispered something behind him. My Perception was high enough from my traits that I was able to hear it.
“They’re both on the list.” The soldier’s eyes were slightly wide as he added, “That Dirk guy’s at the top! Ten milly, Sarge.”
The sergeant didn’t visibly react, but I imagined he was gulping in surprise.
“Standby,” he called to us. He looked over his shoulder to his man. “Call it in.”
The same soldier that had whispered to the Sergeant ran into the booth where I could see him talking on a landline. The call was brief, no more than ten seconds, before the soldier peeked his head out.
“They’re cleared. Command is sending an escort team now.”
The Sergeant nodded, his posture relaxing slightly. “Escort is on the way. Standby, please.”
I shrugged and turned to Lacy and Athena.
“Anyone got a deck of cards?”
Lacy cast me an unamused look while Athena chuckled.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
“I’d smoke you in a game of Hold ‘Em right now,” the girl said with a lopsided smile.
I scoffed, shaking my head. “You’re ten. Bet you don’t even know the rules.”
I expected her to scowl or fire back, but instead, a thoughtful look passed over her face.
“Bet you that bounty on your head that I felt you within fifty hands,” she replied with a confident expression.
My eyebrows raised. “Tempting offer, but you forgot rule number one in a wager.”
Turning away, I started pointedly combing through my Inventory, using my finger to move some items around, even though I could do most of it mentally.
I was baiting her for a reaction, of course.
“Well? You gonna tell me? Or I gotta drag it outta you kicking and screaming?”
Looking over my shoulder, I shrugged. “Like I said, you’re ten. You ain’t got anything I want to wager for.”
Her eyes narrowed and she looked away in thought. I hid the smile playing across my face, turning back to my Inventory.
That oughta keep her busy for—
“I know something you want,” she said smugly.
Though I was wary from her overconfident tone, I maintained my usual air of aloofness.
“I’m sure your Beanie Babies collection is quite impressive—”
To my dismay, she didn’t rise to the bait. Instead, she went behind Lacy and pushed her toward me. Lacy didn’t resist, but looked at Athena with a confused expression.
“I beat you, the ten million is mine—consider it like a college fund, but for cultivation. And if you beat me…” She nudged her head toward Lacy with a mischievous smile. “You get a date with the hottest girl in the Tower.”
My eyes snapped toward Lacy in shock. Her cheeks turned bright red and I’m sure mine weren’t much better. We both spoke at the same time, our words a confusing jumble.
“I’m flattered—”
“That’s not really—”
We stopped, each of us waiting for the other to speak. When neither of us took the initiative, we shared an awkward laugh.
Once I had my wits about me, I looked down at Athena.
“You think you’re just gonna Parent Trap us, huh? I’ve seen that movie a hundred times, kid—the original, not that shitty Lindsey Lohan remake.”
“What’s a Parent Trap?” she asked with a furrowed brow.
I nodded and winked like she wasn’t selling the deception very well. “Uh huh, sure. Let me guess, you were gonna throw the game with a ‘Oh, man, Dirk. You’re too good for me. Guess you have to go on a date with Lacy. Gee wiz, I really wanted that money. Oh, well,’ like I don’t know a setup when I see one.”
She looked side to side with a confused look. “Throw the game? No, dude, I want that money…”
I snorted and looked at Lacy. “You in on this? You know, you coulda just asked me out. It’s the 21st century, Lace. Woman shouldn’t feel weird about asking men out—”
She laughed and crossed her arms. “You wish. In fact, I’ve been waiting for Amos to grow some balls and make his move.” She looked off into the distance with a whimsical expression. “Now that’s a real man. The elegant comb-over, the burst blood vessels on his face, the faint aroma of whiskey and pigeon shit…it’s every young girl’s dream.”
Athena snorted in laughter, which broke the dam, causing us all to start laughing our asses off. The soldier boys at the checkpoint must have thought the Apocalypse had cracked us in the heads.
By the time we had settled down, a caravan of four humvees and a black sedan were approaching from the state capitol building. They pulled to a stop on the other side of the checkpoint and we sobered up real quick.
“Alright, game faces everyone. Not that I was able to vote last election cycle, but this Johnson guy seems like a real prick. Silver spoon up his ass type that somehow’s made a brand off of pandering to the working class. Waterstone seems solid, but she’s not calling the shots, so we may be in for a real shitshow.”
Lacy nodded. “Yeah, I didn’t vote for him. Reminded me of a used car salesman. Big ego, too. He got really offended in that one debate when the moderator brought up his three vacation homes. Just remember, we’re here for diplomacy, not a pissing match.”
“Why does it feel like that last bit was directed at me?” I asked in outrage.
She pursed her lips and simply stared at me.
“Diplomacy?” Athena asked. “Why’d we bring him, then?” She nodded at me with a shit-eating grin.
“Hey! I’ve brokered multiple alliances with violent aliens from different solar systems! Remind me why I brought you. Now that I think about it, maybe you should head back? I’ll be sure to send for you if we need an expert on My Little Pony. Oh!” I snapped my fingers. “Maybe the Governor would like some nice crayon drawings? You could give him one of your latest works!”
She slapped my arm in outrage, her eyes wide with rage. “You son of a—”
“We’re ready for you,” the Sergeant called out. “Approach the checkpoint, please.”
I looked down at Athena who was simmering. “Diplomacy time, kid. Lock in.”
To her credit, she seemed to do just that. Her trembling fists fell to her side and she squared her shoulders. Before I could even make another joke at her expense, she was striding toward the caravan with a determined pace.
Lacy and I had to stretch our legs to catch up, but by the time we did, we all wore serious expressions.
A familiar face stepped out of the car and I mentally heaved a sigh of relief.
“Mr. Damascus, Ms. Wu, thank you for waiting. I’m Michelle Waterstone. “ She regarded us without a hint of familiarity, which made sense—we’d never met in this redo and I’d already decided not to indicate we knew her either. She did narrow her eyes for the briefest moment before looking at the young girl walking between us. “And Athena, was it? Welcome to the Capitol.”
We nodded and shook hands before she waved toward the car, inviting us to squeeze into the backseat. I craned down and scanned the interior. It was going to be a tight fit.
“All the limos taken or something?” I asked with a joking tone…sort of.
It was going to be a really tight fit.
She eyed me with a business-like expression that told me the joke hadn’t landed. Lacy lightly bumped me and cast me a less business-like glare before turning to Waterstone.
“Apologies, Ms. Waterstone. We still haven’t found his off switch.”
The two of them shared a light chuckle while I pursed my lips and narrowed my eyes. Athena looked up at me with a smug smile and I stuck my tongue out at her—which made me feel better.
“Unfortunately, Mr. Damascus, we’re limited in our selection of non-combat vehicles. Everything else is being scrapped for parts or kept in reserve until we understand the extent of this alien invasion.”
I shrugged and bent down to squeeze in. Shimmying across the leather, Red got tangled up in the door for a moment before using her [Morph] ability to get loose. Once I was all the way across, Athena followed, with Lacy behind her. Michelle sat in the passenger seat and briefly introduced the driver before we started off.
Athena was smushed between Lacy and I, and she wiggled her shoulders back and forth until her weight settled back. I scowled at her and leaned forward awkwardly. Cycling my Mass energy, I brought it down so that I didn’t squish the poor kid to death.
As the car took off, Michelle swiveled around to face the three of us. Her brown hair was in a loose bun, wisps flying off in every direction. Her eyes were bleary and bloodshot, like she hadn’t slept since the Apocalypse hit, and she had signs of day-old makeup ringing her eyes.
But there was a note of clarity that eclipsed all those signs, an intelligence that was evident in the way she efficiently scanned each of us and moved on to the next item of note. Her eyes flicked over Red, who had obviously changed shape, to Athena’s ragged clothes, to my own soot and blood covered attire, and probably more things that I didn’t pick up on.
After her subtle, but unmistakable, assessments of each of us, she finally broke the silence.
“I’ll be frank with the three of you, since I don’t believe in playing games with potential allies,” she started. “You, Mr. Damascus and you, Ms. Wu, are the first listers to approach the government—”
“Please, call me Dirk. Mr. Damascus makes me squirm.”
“Yeah, I prefer Lacy.”
She pursed her lips and nodded. “Sure thing. And likewise,” she added as an afterthought. “As I was saying, you two are the first so-called listers to approach their local government—as far as we know, at least. And Mr.—I mean, Dirk—as the top-ranked individual across the three races, we’re quite eager to debrief you. You, as well, Lacy—but the Governor has specifically mentioned you, Dirk.”
She hesitated a moment, her eyes tracking between the two of us as Athena melted behind our shoulders in the middle seat.
“This puts you two in a bit of a dilemma,” she eventually said.
“How’s that?” I asked.
She looked at me like I was a victim in all of this and she was breaking the bad news. “The whole world knows your name, Dirk. It’s all the leaders of the world are talking about. Who the hell are Dirk Damascus and Craig Allen.” I kept my expression completely blank at his name, but my pulse started pounding in my temple. “But more importantly than that, it’s the only thing the news are talking about. I…I’m afraid some of your past has already been brought into the light.”
I purposefully didn’t react, didn’t even twitch a muscle. But my teeth were grinding together so tight that it was painful.
“Uh huh,” was all I could say.
“I don’t mean to be tactless, Dirk. I’m simply forewarning you that any and everything from your past will be dredged up and used against you. But on the flip side, you have leverage here. Johnson has been dying to get his hands on a lister—hell, he woulda been happy for anyone in the top 100.”
I chewed on her words for a moment, then said, “I appreciate your candor, Michelle. But let me be frank, too. Why the hell are you showing your boss’s hand minutes before we presumably meet the guy?
She sighed, turning to look out the front windshield as she collected her thoughts. When she turned back around, her lips were set tight, her eyes full of fire.
“I’m telling you this because if Johnson has his way, the two of you will be his show dogs for the next six months as he jockeys for power in this new government. I’m telling you this because I think you can be so much more than his Presidential run boost. He isn’t taking the threat of the demons, this Tower, or the aliens orchestrating this seriously.”
Her voice went quiet and I felt Athena leaning in at my side to hear her words.
“I believe we’re on the precipice of an extinction event, and people like you and Lacy may be the only parachute humanity possesses…”