CHAPTER 358 – OPERATIONAL SECURITY
With Phil gone, there was a period of awkward silence. People took sips of alcohol others put their cups down on the bar tables that had been grown from the floor.
Slowly, all eyes turned to Gerald.
“What? I only said what most you were already thinking. We should have kicked the fucker out sooner.”
“As Tom said,” Michael interjected in a reasonable tone. “We need to work with him. Everyone received the same warning about him. All you had to do was to be polite until the end of the night.”
“It’s just he’s so slimy and he was asking me about my build information like we were best friends from childhood. I could see him sizing me up and…”
Michael rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Sometimes a veneer of civility can prevent people from descending to their more basic instincts. When that’s pulled away, there are no longer any checks and balances to deter them. You’ve torn that veneer away, so we’re all less safe than we were before.”
“I wouldn’t worry about it.” Tom interrupted. “He would get next to nothing from killing any of us. I’m the highest rank and therefor the most at risk, but even me…Nah he won’t do it. Yeah, there’s probably a bonus because I’m sapient, but I doubt I would be worth any more than a typical monster at his rank. He has no incentive to kill us.”
“Tom, power might not be his motivation.” The healer said.
“Yeah, he might be an out-of-control mass murdering psychopath I get that, but I don’t think it’s likely. I can see DEUS letting in a serial killing sociopath, if it serves her purpose. But that would only occur if they killed not for pleasure but to strengthen humanity. That’s a different case from one who just likes killing other humans. That type won’t get through.”
The healer shook his head vigorously. “No, no. That was not how the rules of the competition worked.”
“As I said I don’t believe that DEUS would let someone like that through. She would tweak something to prevent it.”
“Wow, that some balls. You actually believe that you know how the GODDESS thinks. That’s arrogance or delusion on a whole new level.”
Tom froze. The words he had been planning to say were caught by Social Silence. Playing the card ‘I personally know the GODDESS,’ in the context of those hidden titles would not be very clever.
“Tom does think highly of himself.” Everlyn interjected quickly. “And we can hope that DEUS is that hands on but we can’t know. Phil might have murdered for humanity because we know people willing to do that. Or he could kill for pleasure. If it’s the latter. Gerald, you understand what you did was bad, right.”
“True … I shouldn’t have said anything. Sorry guys… my emotions got out of control.”
He had been fifteen before getting sucked into the tutorial Tom remembered. While he was mentally older thanks to the years by himself, Tom wasn’t sure that counted. What did it do to you if a significant number of your formative years had been spent in isolation?
It was quite possible that he was even more screwed up than me, Tom thought to himself. “Not your fault,” he volunteered. “I wanted to do the same. I think we all wanted to yell at him.”
The interruption to the party seemed to signal its death. Almost as one everyone was making excuses and soon Tom settled down to sleep.
As he lay there with his head on his pillow, he focused on his needs. Tonight, he had to find out more about the dragon. Did she have extra capabilities that he was unaware of? What was her rank? Was there an unknown ability that could stuff up their plans?
Eventually, sleep claimed him. Not immediately, but close to it, a True Dream sucked him up.
He was in the dragon. Tom had been expecting it, but it was still shocking how quickly he became certain of that fact. He knew before he could even engage with the new senses that he had available.
It was her mind that revealed the truth. It was unique. Her disdain for anything and everything else was something he had never witnessed elsewhere.
Her current mindset was open to him. She was not worried about the world she had been dragged into, but remained cautious. Her GOD had both told her that he was gifting her with mighty powers and at the same time had warned her that there would still be many opponents more powerful than her. She was no longer the strongest on the planet and would need to adjust her actions accordingly.
Which is what she was doing.
The first step was to discover the realities of the place she found herself in.
Pinned under her claws was a native.
She tickled it and a dark purple almost black liquid trickled out of the spot. It quivered in her grasp, cowed and in pain.
“So, am I strong?” she whispered to it a sense of glee in her voice. “I am. I know I am. All the champions of my species were promised additional power to help us thrive here. I can feel it in me. It’s majestic. Everything I had before, just more intense. I have extra speed and strength. My scales, as you observed now resist magic significantly more effectively, and you saw that time stop ability. That’s new, and it froze everyone else in place. Everyone but you became little statues…”
She tickled it and the creature whimpered.
“You used your magic to keep moving. It’s obvious in hindsight that freezing all physical motion won’t trap anyone who can move like that.” She laughed in a delighted tone. “Not that it helped. Did you enjoy watching me kill them each individually?”
She paused to allow it to speak, but it just moaned more.
“So how strong am I?”
She tickled it again to clarify that this was an actual question that she expected it to pay attention to.
“More powerful than you, obviously,” she continued. “But only two or three times. Are you considered strong?”
“No, the opposite. I am very weak. The most pathetic of our nation were sent here.”
It was lying. This was another ability her God had given her. She could detect intent and lies easily.
She tickled it absently to punish the attempt to deceive her.
It shuddered and more of the nearly black liquid flowed and the skin where she had tickled slowly reformed.
“Am I strong? Tell me and I will kill you quickly.”
“Swear on your god.” It hissed at her.
For a moment, she considered it, but couldn’t see a downside. “I swear on my god.”
“I place you at somewhere around rank one hundred and twenty. Possibly slightly stronger because of your passives from being a dragon. You are of similar strength to the most powerful in my kingdom. But if you attack, it’ll be ten on one, and you will be destroyed.”
“That last is only a partial truth?” She mused. “What are you trying to hide. I’m guessing you don’t think they will come to give quick enough, is that right?”
The person under her claws did not respond, but she triggered her new skill, and it told her that her captive agreed with what she had said.
“Do you think if I tried, I’d have a fifty percent chance of winning?”
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“You’ll lose.”
She ignored the words that were being said and concentrated on her feelings. “Higher? No, not higher lower? That’s disappointing.” The skill had restrictions on the number of uses, and its power was fading. Stretching it to measure non communicated responses exhausted it faster than if the victim was answering her questions willingly.
Nevertheless, she had gained the information she was after. “There is too much chance of dying if I attack now. Pity a bit of proper blood shed would be welcoming but it would be foolish to throw my life away when there is so much potential for growth. I guess I’ll have to get a bit stronger and come back then.”
Her eyes turned back to her captive, and she frowned. She had guaranteed a quick death… but not a painless one. Without hurrying, she leisurely peeled off its skin. It yelled and tried to escape, and she kept going. Its healing powers warred against the damage she was doing.
“You promised quick.” It screamed.
“This is fast.” She responded, smiling. “I never vowed it would be instant.”
The dream shattered.
As always, he made an effort to remember all the details of the dream. He replayed each of the important moments to make sure he wouldn’t forget any of the dragon’s capabilities. Then normal sleep dragged him into its embrace once more.
He woke up feeling warm and fuzzy.
His domain spread over the room, and he assessed everything it told him before he opened his eyes. There was only one person there and when he rolled over and looked, he was unsurprised to see that it was Everlyn.
She had been sitting on her bedroll with her back against the wall, but she stood immediately when he moved. “Good, you’re up. Claire is working in the rooms three down and she wants you when you're available. While you're talking to her I’ll get Bao to start cooking and we'll send the food there.”
“Were you watching me sleep?”
Her eyes flashed. “I will have you know I was ordered to be here. And not really. I was practising my magic while monitoring you passively and I could tell you were waking up a couple of minutes ago and I’ve been more attentive since.”
Tom tidied up his sleeping quarters, relieved himself in the dedicated bathroom. Once more, he was amazed at how it absorbed everything. There was no time for a bath, so he used his magic and when he came out Everlyn was still waiting.
He looked quizzically at her. “Sorry do you need something?”
“I have a few private questions I need to ask. Do you mind?”
He licked his lips. There was no harm in listening. Her clear desire for privacy worried him. He hoped that whatever it was wouldn’t be too personal and awkward. “If you think the system room is necessary, then let’s get it out of the way.”
She approached him, linked her fingers with his, smiled sadly in a way that made his heart thump in worry and then her face went inanimate. There was no avoiding this. Reluctantly, he stepped sideways into the system room and accepted the waiting invitation.
Tom was hyperconscious of everything. He analysed how she was dressed. It was nothing romantic and mimicked the armour she wore everywhere. Her face was a focused business look, and he appreciated immediately that she had not manifested him into a romantic setting. If they had appeared sitting next to each other on the couch or with champaign glasses, he would have been far more concerned. Instead, they were standing next to the couch and far enough away from the fire that it provided a pleasant warmth without being overbearing.
He suppressed a sigh of relief. “Why am I here Evie.” “Tom, this is a question Clare wants answered.”
Business, he thought. She had brought him here for business. His imagination had been running away from himself.
“By the way, I have to admit she was a divine choice for the leader.”
She grinned at him.
“Pun intended?”
“Yep, but Clare’s awesome. She’s thrown herself into the task and she was ready for it. I reckon she’s been making notes in private for months, which basically must have amounted to her continually asking, ‘what would I do if I was in charge?’ And now that she’s in command she can draw on all that knowledge. Anyway, she noticed something we should all have picked up on. When answering the giant’s questions, you didn’t deem your own survival to be a critical part of killing the dragon.”
Tom shrugged. “I increase chances, but only Rahmat and the giant are really core parts of the plan. After that, it’s just a matter of making up the numbers to distract the dragon and insects for long enough for those two to make the kill.”
“I know, and that makes sense. But as we understand it your fate spike ring is not transferable. If you combine those, then it means your fate spike ring is not required to be used on the dragon.”
Tom froze, his mind racing. Logically, what Everlyn had just said was rational. It was however, at odds with how he had always imagined the final fight progressing. He had always assumed that the first thing they would do to open the battle was to sever her access to fate. But the more he thought about it the less certain he was that the approach was right. “It might not be a difference maker, but using it will improve our chances. If you stack enough small advantages they all add up.”
Everlyn nodded as if she had expected that answer. “Useful, but only marginally so?”
“Well…” he wanted to claim otherwise, but that was not what his feelings were indicating. “It’ll help, but only by a few percent, but that impact shouldn’t be underestimated. One percent might be the difference between success and failure.”
She nodded her face thoughtful. “That response is what Clare predicted. Her instructions to you is to use the ring on the dragon unless you get separate orders before then.”
“Are separate orders likely?”
“I don’t know. But Clare mentioned that a human crafter is creating rings you can imprint with a couple of sentences that, when triggered the user gets the information instantly. She might be planning on distributing them and making everyone use them when they go through the portal.”
“Why would she do that?”
“For operational security purposes. It can prevent critical parts of the strategy leaking and also stymies the giant if it attempts a last-minute interrogation to make sure it’s not being betrayed.”
“No one is stupid enough to plot against the giant.”
She ignored him. “With so many truth telling abilities out there, you can’t be too careful.”
“But if the giant asks her directly.”
“Hardly anyone knows she’s in charge. None of the aliens, that’s for certain. In fact, I think it is just me, you, Thor and possibly Keikain who’s been told. Everyone else thinks it’s either Michael or you pulling the strings.”
“All this planning sounds so paranoid.”
“Prudent,” she shot back.
“Maybe. It doesn’t matter. We’ll find out. Now, is that it? Is the business you brought here for concluded?”
Everlyn smiled. “That’s all Clare needed to discuss in the privacy of a system room. When you see her, tell her its outcome A.”
“Outcome A?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.
“She, I and you know what it means, but no one else does. Even if it’s overheard by some powerful spell, it gives away nothing apart from the fact that we’re using code words which… given the situation we are in with all these reluctant allies that’s not going to surprise anyone. Now, how are you going? Are you nervous?”
Tom thought about it. “No, not really, I think with all the fate we’ve invested over the last couple of months and the preparations I’m seeing the dragon’s toast. You?”
“I haven’t had the time for worrying. I’ve been pretty busy. But it’s always good to break up the day and reconnect with people. Do you have a few minutes to chat?”
He nodded.
Everlyn sat down on the couch, and he joined her. They chattered for five minutes. There was time to do so. There was a lot of work required over the next week, but they were on track to kill her.
After a pleasant conversation in the system room, they split and Tom went to meet with Clare. The door to the third set of rooms opened and his target was working at a table only three metres from the entrance.
“Option A,” he called out.
Her eyes flicked up to acknowledge him but she kept scribbling in the book in front of her clearly finishing jotting down her thoughts before giving him her attention.
He walked up to her took the seat across from her and then plonked down the overly large communication crystal the giant had given him
“A true dream,” she guessed, shutting the notebook. “Tell me everything.”
He detailed the dream he had just had. He spoke to Clare the whole time and not the crystal, trusting it could safely record the information in the background.
“Great news,” she said when he had finished and put away the crystal. “The best type of update is where we don’t have to materially change any of our plans. Getting everyone artefacts to let them move when she uses that time stop ability shouldn’t be difficult. I’ll solve it and get back to you if I need any further information on the skill. Now, I asked Everlyn to send you here primarily to discuss your golem crafting. Through going forward if you’re talking to that crystal, you should make sure I’m present as well to avoid having to go over the same information twice. That’s just an aside. Turning our attention back to the topic of golems. After the discussions last night, I’m convinced it’s the right way to go and I want you to start straight away.”
“Won’t Michael be suspicious. Even if I try to hide it, he’s very observant. He’ll be able to work it out”
She shook her head. “Nope, he and Thor are currently on a mission with the wador leader. They’ll keep the pressure to get materials and you can craft without worrying about him discovering the plot.”
“So, what am I building?”
Clare grinned in excitement. “I don’t know.”
“What do you mean you don’t know?”
“I’m going to use some oracle questions now to confirm the plan.”
“Do we need Everlyn to act as a middle person?”
She shook her head. “Ask. ‘Is strategy alpha materially better than strategy beta.’”
“Really? That’s the question you want answered? I have no idea of what either of those refer to.”
She nodded. “Just like option A. It’s all in code. Can you get the answer?”
He ducked into the system room and the answer was no.
What followed was five minutes of Tom asking questions and getting the response yes or no without him understanding anything of what was being asked.
She scribbled furiously.
“Only eight questions that was better than expected. I will have to think about how to use the remaining five.”
For a moment he was stumped by the number five, and he wondered if she had forgotten about the ones he had given the giant and then he realised that she was factoring in the two he would earn between now and the final fight.
“All in all that was very enlightening. And based on the information you just gave me I want the following golems made.” She passed him the paper she had just finished writing on.
He checked the contents.
* Ten, that can mimic flying humans with an aura of around rank thirty-eight.
* Eight capable of creating an intense blast of light and magic interference within a hundred metres of the dragon’s head.
* As many as possible that can cast a tier six stun or crowd control ability. (Multiple casts are not required.)
“What’s the last for?” he asked straight out.
“That’s need to know only. If the requirements change, I’ll contact you.”