35 - Twenty Million
“Maya Sullivan,” Anisa Karam said, extending her hand.
Maya only grinned and grabbed the woman in a hug. She jerked back in surprise, but relented, grinning also.
“Good to see you, Anisa,” Maya said. She noticed a young girl beside the woman, she was thin and lanky, a child moving onto becoming a teenager. “Who’s this?”
“This is my daughter, Yasmine,” Anisa said.
“Good to meet you Yasmine. You’re mother’s a brave woman,” Maya said.
The girl nodded, not saying anything. She was dressed in civilian clothing and stayed close to her mother.
Maya looked at Anisa. “You realize this is going to be a war zone soon?”
Anisa nodded. “Yes, I am aware, but I have left Bierut when you asked for our help. It saddens me to see that my people are unwilling to lend a hand when you have offered so much. But I hear you are allowing people to be moved to Ko Sumai or Ibadan, Yasmine will join them there.”
Maya looked to the girl, she stared back with defiance. “I will fight too,” she said.
“No she will not,” Anisa replied. “You have schools now, right? Places to learn to be a mage or enchanter or engineer?”
“Yeah, we’re moving the teaching to Ko Sumai for now,” Maya said.
“Then she will go to Ko Sumai, she will learn a craft that is not killing and skinning monsters for experience. There is much to learn and slaying monsters is not a path I wish for anyone to follow.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Maya said. “There’s going to be a couple of more stops to Ko Sumai in a few hours. We’re trying to conserve mana since we’ll need every ounce we can scrap together for the fight.”
“Understood. I would also like to introduce you to my team,” Anisa said and gestured to a group of seven men and women behind her.
They were dressed in post-apocalyptic chic, leather, metal, and carrying various melee weapons that Maya recognized as coming from the Emporium.
“Your party,” Yasmine clarified.
Anisa rolled her eyes. “She still thinks this is a game, but she is learning life is not a game.”
“Nice to meet you,” Maya said, going through each and every member of Anisa’s party and shaking their hands. They were quiet and only nodded and returned her shake before looking off elsewhere. Maya peered at them, seeing a familiar look in their eyes. The look of being haunted and scared by what they had witnessed and survived in the past month.
Bierut had been hit hard by Integration. Mana renders, monsters from the sea, and a city of millions collapsing overnight. Those that survived did so by pure chance and luck. The terrible fact was that the same thing had occurred across the world in every major city and was at that moment still happening.
“We have some armor and weapons in reserve for those who volunteered to fight,” Maya said. “You’re free to take what you need or upgrade your gear.”
“For free?” one of the men asked.
“Well, not exactly. You’ll be fighting against monsters for it.”
“I hear you’re paying,” a woman in a hijab said. Her name was Hania. Her dark eyes peered from behind the cloth, seemingly searching for any kind of weakness within Maya to exploit. Maya noted she carried thin daggers and beam pistols, so some kind of stealth build.
“Enough experience shards to get you up to level eighteen,” Maya said. “Twenty million experience points.”
“I’m already level nineteen,” the woman said. “It’s useless to me.”
“Twenty million would get you to level twenty,” Anisa said. “Enough for you to gain another occupational bonus.”
Hania nodded at Anisa’s words, stepping back and looking as if she’d been chastised by the woman. Maya glanced to Anisa and the woman looked embarrassed by the reaction.
“Cool,” Maya said. “You’ll get the points and you can do whatever you want with them. I’d suggest boosting your levels as much as you can, but if you want to hang onto them and give them to someone else, that’s cool too.”
“How is this possible?” another man asked. He was garbed in plate armor, rusty and pocked, but still serviceable. Maya saw it wasn’t armor she sold, instead it looked like a relic or something taken from a museum. Even if it was human made, it seemed to give off an aura of power.
“Trade secrets,” Maya said. “We have experience points to give and anyone who’s willing to fight will gain them. Along with whatever is obtained by defeating the Tarvana army.”
“It’s a good deal,” another man said. He was dressed in robes and carried a massive blade across his shoulder.
“Again, I’m sorry about my own people refusing to join this fight,” Anisa said. “If it weren’t for you, if it weren’t for the levels I gained from fighting alongside you, then Beirut would never have existed. The Landsharks would have killed us, we would not have had a chance to gather together, and all the lives that have been saved is due to you,” Anisa said. “Lebanon has been rebuilding since you were last there. We have set up more settlements and have been reclaiming land. This, I fear, has made everyone forget that we had help from the beginning, that what we have now would not be possible without you.”
Maya gave a tight smile, not knowing how to respond to the woman. She had changed a lot since they had first met all those months ago, for Maya it had been nearly a year ago, but for Anisa is was barely a month before. She had been a starving, scared woman trying desperately to scavenge for herself and her daughter. Now she was the strongest woman on Earth and had the highest levels. She had rebuilt the nation of Lebanon once more.
“I’m really glad you’re here,” Maya said.
“So this lure of experience shards, has it brought many to the fight?” Anisa asked as they walked from the threshold. Already Yosi was creating another, as information trickled in for pickups of soldiers.
“Not enough,” Maya said. “If we just had more time, we could have gotten the word around a bit more. There is interest from Japan, Russia, and the US, but there is a lot of pushback also.”
“Pushback?” Anisa asked. “Why would anyone have anything negative to say about it? It’s basically free levels, if you’re low leveled, to do a job that needs doing.”
“I wish everyone saw it that way,” Maya said. “The pushback comes from the fact that I had these levels and wasn’t giving them away for people. Millions are still dying and bumping up a few thousand people to at least level eighteen would have been a massive boon for our planet.”
“You have that many experience shards?” Anisa asked, her voice held some concern. “I have only come across experience shards from killing people.”
“Yeah, that’s usually how it goes,” Maya replied. “Only SIL drop actual shards, everything else is automatically dumped into your body by the System. Why the System set it up that way is something that’s still a mystery.”
“It’s so we kill one another,” the woman Hania said. “The System is death, of all things that were once pure. Our planet is becoming hell and all that we tried to conserve and replenish has been fouled. I was apart of a conservation organization. Mana has mutated everything, crops, animals, plants and species that were considered endangered have all been warped by Integration. My entire life was made into a foolish waste.” Bitterness rode the edge of the woman’s words as she and the group continued down the receiving area.
Maya took the time to glance around the vast open space that was now dubbed the Threshold, where the door would always open up when connected to Earth or the Multiverse at Large. Thousands of people were milling around, all armed and armored.
They were all survivors, they were all hard men and women who had seen the horrors of the world, and all of them were vying for the spot of being recognized as the baddest ass on the planet. There was a lot of posturing and glares being tossed around. Already she had to have Tender take care of a few fights, as the tiny constable station that Hanna had set up was absorbed into the Infantry.
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Eyes immediately locked upon Anis and Maya, along with the men and women trailing them. Anisa had changed in the month, she was now a leader and a fighter. She walked like one, she moved with deadly grace, and the weapons and gear she carried were all the best that Maya had at the time they went their separate ways. She practically exuded and aura of deadliness that brought silence to the crowds of volunteer fighters.
“Shit, most people don’t even notice me,” Maya muttered.
“It’s a burden,” Anisa replied. “Everyone sees me and everyone wants something from me. I am merely an ornament, a face that everyone sees, while the real work is done behind the scenes and by men and women who will never be celebrated for the work they have done. The true work of saving mankind.”
Yosi arrived, with her small detachment of Tender drones. She was the face of the Emporium these days, as Maya had pretty much plastered the woman’s face on everything having to do with the Sullivan Boxes and the running of the Cage. Maya could see that Anisa was talking about. Yosi ran the Cage these days, while Maya jumped around putting out fires and making life difficult for her.
When this was all over, she would have to send Yosi on a vacation somewhere nice. Hawaii was still a paradise.
“It’s Yosi,” Yasmine whispered excitedly. She tugged at Anisa’s armor, practically vibrating with glee.
“Greetings,” Yosi said. “I’m glad Maya has allies that have come in our time of need.”
“It is our duty and honor,” Anisa said. “All we have and all that we have built is due to Maya.”
Maya felt like blushing but held back the feeling. The last time she had spoken with Anisa had been when Beirut had decided to refuse to join the Alliance and go their own way. It was a choice that Maya hadn’t been thrilled about, but it was also something she had little choice in the matter. The settlements were free and independent, they all could pull out of the Alliance tomorrow if they wanted.
It was also the reason so few had sent any troops or help. They all saw the writing on the wall, especially after the speech Maya had given, asking for help from the world that was already being battered to hell everyday.
There were hard feelings on the matter, but Maya choked that down. In a world where everyday was a gamble for survival, everyone had to weight their odds when it came to a fight. What were the costs of siding with Maya against an army of sixty thousand? What were the benefits? Even the addition of experience shards wasn’t enough to bring all of mankind to her side. Only a few thousand extra bodies.
“Colonel Canton and his soldiers will be arriving next,” Yosi said. “I fear this may cause some issues with the US contingent.”
Maya grimaced. Although she had made a deal with the US President regarding the naval ships and weapons they carried, the former Colonel in Chicago, Gary Canton, had been selling out the US for profit and power. The former Colonel had set up a settlement in the US, partly paid with form the credits that Maya had paid him for munitions and tools that he commanded due to taking over a supply depot. They were all pre-Integration tech that no one on Earth could use, but they still had value.
Canton had stepped up, surprising Maya and the others. He wasn’t high leveled and the troops that were loyal to him only numbered less than a thousand, but they were deeply loyal to the man. He had aims to be apart of the Alliance, purely for the logistic and trade support and saw the upcoming battle as a way to increase his soldiers levels and also get into Maya’s good graces.
She wasn’t immune from him actions and was thankful for the nearly seven hundred troops he brought with him. It had practically stripped his settlement, but he claimed the risk was worth it. Maya didn’t know if he was crazy or knew something she didn’t, because most every other settlement had refused to get involved.
“I held up my end of the bargain,” Maya said. “Canton is the one who’s rebelling from the US and has turned mini dictator. That is an internal issue between him and the President. I was approached by people who had an excess of pre-Integration weapons, that’s all.”
“I doubt they’ll see it that way,” Yosi muttered.
“Seven hundred troops is Seven hundred troops. The US only sent two hundred and they are all low leveled and shitty.”
“Raw recruits,” Ramon Sanchez announced approaching the group. The former Peruvian Captain was now Maya’s Infantry Colonel. She wanted to make him General, but the old soldier refused it, saying that being Colonel was rank enough for him. Especially since he was only commanding less than two thousand people. “She dumped you with all her rejects, the bad apples the lazy, and the stupid. They don’t recognize my authority and refuse to be ordered by ’the likes of me’.”
“Well, we can just toss them back,” Maya said.
“We stil have a fair amount of mana in reserves,” Yosi said, “but we can’t just keep opening thresholds when every gen is needed.”
“All it takes is a reason to fight well,” Anisa said. “I shall see to them.”
“You sure?” Maya asked. Sanchez echoed her question.
“I have experience in dealing with people who do not pull their own weight. I have experience in dealing with people who did not recognize the change in the world.”
“I’ll show you the way,” Sanchez said, looking at Anisa as if seeing her for the first time. “I’ve never seen anyone with so many levels.”
“Her eyes are up there,” Maya said as the two walked off. Anisa’s party followed her, with Yasmine staying behind. Maya looked at the girl who only smiled back.
“I want to see what’s going on,” she said.
“You’re the cutest spy so far,” Maya replied.
“I’m outraged,” Chu said. “I thought I was the cutest.”
“Oh, you’re still a cutie to me,” Hanna said.
“I must be the foremost among all those that are cute,” Chu continued. “Otherwise, what’s the point in life?”
Yasmine chuckled at Chu’s antics.
“We into child labor now?” Chu asked, eyeing Yasmine.
“Anisa’s daughter. Mess with her and you’ll be splattered across several dimensional planes,” Maya replied. “
“As in Anisa the Powerful? Anisa the Monster Clobberer?” Chu asked. He craned his neck, looking around. “Can I get an autograph?”
“Do people actually call her that?” Maya asked Yasmine. The girl nodded eagerly.
“Anisa the God Sent, Anisa the Protector, Anisa the Sword of Heaven,” Yasmine said. “There’s a lot of them. The creepier ones are from the super religious, most of them describing her beauty and child bearing abilities.”
No one said anything of r amount, digesting her words.
“Weird,” Maya replied after a while.
“We’ve got the comms all set up,” Chu said, clearing his throat.
“You set aside the time?” Maya asked Yosi.
“You’ll have about five hours, if you need it. Otherwise we can always shift some people around and move the schedule about,” Yosi replied looking at her tablet. “There’s only about five more spots that we need to pick up stragglers and equipment, then we’ll be as set as we can be.”
“Alright, let’s go meet with a High General,” Maya said, leading the way to the control room.
***
“Why do we wait here still?” one of the Blood Commanders snarled. She was a massive thing, all muscle and talons, one of the Mother’s combat leaders. She was also High General Deathblade’s biggest pain when it came to the commanders of the army.
The Mother, in all her wisdom, had Risen her loyalest servants, but sometimes those servants had more loyalty than brains. Blood Commander Vile Gaze was one of the latter. She was big, mean, and a terror in combat, but she was dumber than a trash pile.
“The Merchant has been poisoned and she cannot control her dimensional Skills,” Vile Gaze snarled. “We should be attacking, the more we wait, the bigger a target we become. The more vulnerable we are.”
Deathblade agreed with her on that point, but he also had his orders. He was told to stay. He was told to hold his position and wait. He did so.
“I sense a dimensional threshold,” Black Horizon whispered. The Mage was hunched in the corner, the body of a soldier lay before him, blood and entrails scattered upon the gray dirt.
Deathblade had seen plenty of blood and offal in his life. He had been a Butcherer and was Raised by the Mother so long ago. The weak were meat and the strong would only grow the Motherland. Still, there was something odd about the Mages that served the Mother. Mages in general were rare and some claimed that the mana that coursed through them also warped their minds.
“Is it an attack?” Vile Gaze demanded.
“Too small. I sense objects, scores of small objects.”
“Bombs?” Deathblade wondered outlaid. He rose from his seat and scanned the ebony sky. A Silence Bubble enveloped them, along with interlacing defensive mana shields by other Mages, and there was no need to shelter in a plane with no weather to speak of.
“They are machines,” the Mage stated. “I sense mana in them.”
Vile Gaze snarled. “So rich is this Merchant that they waste mana to power their machines?”
Deathblade ignored the woman’s antics, although he was also worried about the mana situation. His army was a leveled army and most, if not all, of its power lay in their Skills that could be used in a fight. His own Skills would work, at the cost of blood sacrifices, but the lesser leveled soldiers would have to only count on their frail bodies to do the damage.
“What kind of machines?” Deathblade ask.
“I am no engineer,” Black Horizon hissed. Deathblade would have killed a lesser Tarvana for such a remark, but Black Horizon was highest among all the Mages in the Motherland. This attack was so important that the Mother had sent her greatest Mage, a Tier 2 [Warp Mage] to help in this fight.
“There,” Vile Gaze snapped.
Deathblade watched as a box slowly floated down from the sky. There was a bit of cloth attached to it, slowing its descent. The box beeped as it landed not far from Deathblade. Soldiers raced up to it, to destroy it or protect their leader.
“It is not a weapon,” Black Horizon said.
Deathblade walked to the box. It began beeping again and a figure suddenly appeared before him. She was short, bipedal and had a small frame. Human, that’s what Bad Blood had told the Mother. A survivor from the World Beyond, who the System had brought to this place. In any other situation, such a being would be considered special. The Mother would consume them and add their genetic material and genes to bettering her people.
Instead this creature somehow manage to return to the World Beyond, the Multiverse, and return. It defiled everything that the System had done. It went against the Tarvana’s greatest teachings. That this plane was for them and them alone. That the System only brought those who were strong to this place to ensure the Motherland grew and grew until they controlled all of it.
“High General Deathblade,” the figure said. It was a hologram and she looked directly at him.
“Speak, Merchant,” he hissed.
“I want to make a deal, one that will benefit all of us.”
Behind him, Black Horizon grinned.