The three moons dulled in the bright blue morning sky, like a reflection within foggy waters, overshadowed by the rising sun casting its rays down to the new earth.
The sun had once been a pure bright yellow ball of flame, but purple embers had now mixed themselves in.
Celes looked up into the sky after changing into a new set of leggings and over it, a set of baggy clothes tightened at the sleeves and ankles.
She knew that in the coming months, another sun would form. Fortunately, with the strength of the new seven-layered atmosphere, it didn't matter whether there were two or five suns in the sky.
‘The day of the Second Sun would be the next global card fall…’
It would be far more than just an ordinary card fall. Alien races would then be active on Earth, intelligent plants and beasts, activated cards, and humans.
Although, only humans could harness the true and full power of the cards, other races could also benefit from their magical effects in different ways.
So on that day, humanity would have to fight for the cards, instead of having them fall directly into their lap as they had in the beginning.
The Day of the Second Sun was a mere nine and a half months away, and by then many of the surviving humans wouldn't have much fighting power. The ratio of Card Masters to normal humans would be about one to five hundred at that stage, with the majority being God’s Favored, the Blessed Ones.
It was an expected outcome. Drunk on power, with a lengthy head start and even with knowledge on how to transform ordinary mortal humans into Card Masters, most Blessed Ones would not encourage it. No, they would rigorously try to control this source of power.
Some would even downright hide its existence so the cattle would stay cattle and do their bidding!
They were the sovereigns of the New World! They would not allow the ordinary man a chance at being a threat to them.
Unfortunately for them, circumstances changed. Willfulness faded against the pressure of outside threats.
They had been caught unprepared by the intensity of the war for magic cards. They had thought themselves invincible. The alien races giving trouble were temporary and eventually they would surpass them.
This war proved them wrong. Alien races and other native creatures could match their pace of getting stronger, and some were even gaining power at breakneck speeds, leaving them in the dust.
After the Day of the Second Sun, the monopoly on power was loosened a bit.
The Favored leading their various groups began to expand their fighting force in preparation for the next global cardfall.
Celes had also participated in that gruesome battle, sustaining heavy injuries, but luckily she managed to survive.
She made it out with two good cards in the end, but they didn't match the lives lost in the great battle.
She did all that for an equipment card and a temporary card that disappeared after three uses. Looking back at it now, it was so ridiculous. Such was the charm of cards.
This time would be different.
Minnie walked up to the brooding young lady, softly informing her. "It's time, I've gathered everyone."
Responding with a nod, Celes took a deep breath and followed her outside, ascending the makeshift podium.
The crowd had already gathered with all in attendance. Their fierce gazes lined up with her walking silhouette. Some familiar with her had already started rudely calling out and protesting.
She calmly took the stage on the podium. In the face of all her experiences, a crowd of angry mortal humans was nothing.
"I have already explained the basics of the different magic cards prior,” she began. “Now you would have realized that my words were not nonsense, and many of you are demanding to know how to use them. I have decided to take possession of all cards. "
Celes looked into the crowd, sweeping her gaze anti-clockwise to catch their shocked reactions. Before they could interrupt with a protest, she contined in a firm tone. "However, basic knowledge will be explained for your safety and for future reference, to make good decisions in your personal cultivation of strength. But the sources of this strength will not be given to you unless you prove yourself valuable to the group with skills or feats, or is expressly given cards by me. You can also find them yourselves again, but without my help. In that case, they will belong to you."
The crowd started looking amongst themselves and whispering with a low buzz. Celes continued nonetheless.
"We will have a merit and rewards system established in the coming days. Everyone will start off with 30 merits. That’s enough to buy food for a week, for a family of four. The specifics of the system will be detailed in brochures in the coming days for your understanding. By the end of this week, we will commence execution of the system.”
She held up her hands and counted off them as she spoke. “You can earn credits by scouting, crafting items, making new discoveries, going on missions, and so on as situations present; anything to benefit the group as a whole. I will be choosing seven young persons as the first batch to awaken their powers and use cards. They will have the full support of the base and will personally be trained by me.”
To finish the speech, Celes declared, “At this moment, Day 2 of the New World, I decree that the Blue Flame Stronghold is born."
The merit-point system originated in the remnants of the East and was eventually adapted into many strongholds due to its efficiency.
There were a few systems to govern bases and shelters, but they were largely decided upon on a case-by-case basis, factoring in the population size, dominant internal power, external threats, number of card masters, and so on.
The merit-point system happened to stay true for a variety of shelter compositions and environments. There was no number one system of governance, only the most suitable.
"Wait, does that mean that you're still going to take away our cards?!" someone shouted.
"Weren’t you listening? Yes, she has," Minnie responded in a curt tone, mildly annoyed from spending the morning dealing with them.
"That's not fair. We earned those, we got them ourselves! You can't just take our blood and sweat away!" one woman screamed.
Another middle-aged man supported her. "Yea, that's not fair!"
The complaints and shouts of injustice were lit ablaze by these two firestarters.
"We demand justice!"
"Little girl, that's a bit much, isn't it?"
"Did your parents raise you to be greedy?!"
The voices chanted indignantly. They couldn't watch as the magical power slipped through their fingers without a fight, by a little girl many years younger no less. What gave her the right?!
"Falone, please have a word with your daughter. Do you see what she's doing?!"
Voices pleaded to Falone Greymore who was watching the development silently.
Celes felt her heart waver, seeing her father look over at her with an unexplainable expression. She wondered if he pleaded for them, would she be abel to stand on her word or would she retract her decision?
In truth, she probably would back down if it came from him…
She looked over to his right, seeing her mother sweating profusely from being surrounded by relatives. Some were even tugging at her while screaming in her face, spit flying everywhere.
Those damn pigs! How dare they!
As she was about to go over there, her father spoke up.
"I fully support my daughter's decision. As does her mother, I'm sure. What about you all. Can’t you see how you’re acting like children? No, more like beasts,” he winced in unhidden disgust. “How can you talk to your savior in such a manner? Without her, many of you would be dead by now, not sitting pretty inside this bunker or even remembering your rights enough to scream for them.”
Celes let out a breath she hadn’t realized she had been holding. Just then, she met her father’s gaze before he continued.
“She owes you nothing at all. Conduct yourselves with some dignity and show some gratitude. No one is forcing you to be here. If you don't like it, leave." Falone then nodded to her in approval, a shift from his earlier doubtful tone.
He was a well-known detective and commanded quite a significant amount of respect in the city.
Seeing the truth come to light, he made it clear he was entirely on her side. Celes breathed a sigh of relief. Having her father against her would be the last thing she wanted to happen.
With that, the crowd died down, but from the expressions on many of their faces, it was clear this was not the end of the matter.
The relatives grabbing her mother, typically her aunts and some uncles had let go as well, but Celes remembered their faces.
They would not be getting away with putting their hands on her mother in her presence.
*
"Here's the list and order we'll be going in. I put your family 4th, like you asked." Minnie handed Celes a few sheets of paper with names on them.
"Quick as always,” Celes smiled, patting her small shoulder. “I knew I could count on you."
The lights in the ceiling cast long shadows on their faces.
They could hear disgruntled friends and relatives gathering together and discussing her announcements.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
"They're not too happy it seems,” Minnie mumbled, worried for a fleeting moment but shrugging and reinforcing her trust in her leader and best friend. “Well, we expected as much.”
Celes couldn’t seem to care less. “They’ll understand as time goes on.”
“So… Apart from Xia, Giselle, and me, who else are you bringing in the first batch with you?"
Celes raised her gaze with a chuckle. "I take it you have some suggestions?"
She had placed her family fourth in line for their safety. She wasn't active this early. There was no telling what they might encounter on their way to the Altar. But she figured that after three trips she'd be able to handle any situation that would pop up.
"Yes,” Minnie eagerly recommended. “Priya and Justin showed good initiative. That's a good sign this early into all this. Shows they’re self-aware and can think ahead.”
Feeling as though she was getting ahead of herself, she added, “Of course, you should know best, but since you told me you were stuck at the government shelter for a while before you went back to school and didn't leave, I figured you'd only know a few of the people here. Their character, I mean…"
Celes nodded in response. She was slow on the uptake in the beginning and didn't take much action herself. Gathering a group didn't happen until a few weeks into the apocalypse.
Furthermore, this melting pot of individuals wouldn't have gathered without their interference.
The city was large and now filled with danger, and they would have been scattered in all directions. Some likely died in the first wave of threats. Others were not in the city at all. Some never were, others had recently left.
The only familiar persons among this group matching 'elites' were those she brought in as friends.
Celes looked over to one corner. A brunette with dyed brows was holding a small child. She was the daughter to one of her mom's friends and was once her classmate.
There was nothing particularly outstanding about Kelsie Wave, but she was a reputable scout for one of the city's guilds. Celes had called her and her family simply because she had some amount of friendship with her and could bring her there faster.
Celes looked in another direction, capturing an elderly man dressed in a neat blue suit. His niece was a few years older than her. She had invited them based on her dad's connections.
They were another story entirely. The elderly man was a researcher with decades of experience and ties to many government projects.
His niece was in a similar field and very talented as well. Both of them were responsible for a lot of discoveries on the mechanics of the Card Master system of transcendence, researching the effects of the many minerals and natural treasures that were born in the New World.
Lastly, was a chubby boy with a round childish face, wearing glasses and a kitty-patterned pink shirt.
Cooper, nervously sweating even now.
He was nothing special in normal times, only a shut-in gamer living in his parent's basement. Celes had played with him a lot when they were children.
She was not ashamed to say she cut him off once they reached adulthood because of his lifestyle.
Ironically, his lifestyle put him ahead of the game in the New World. Gamers, the ones with some amount of backbone and a lot of smarts, were at the forefront of figuring out how the Card Master system worked and the abilities of various cards.
Oddly enough, gamers progressed in that area even more than the educated scientists and researchers. Cards, monsters, aliens, whatever it was, they managed to decipher a lot of their abilities and behaviors within a relatively short time of first meeting them. They were the head explorers and inventors of the New Age.
These were the four people she specifically invited to be of use to her.
Tracing Celes’s gaze, Minnie smiled, nudging her.
"I never expected you got so sly with age. When you told me about them, I figured you'd put them in the first group and keep them close to win them over, but instead you're playing hard to get.” She chuckled, tucking a lock that had slipped out her fair ponytail. “Touché, Les. Touché."
Celes didn't respond. Yes, putting them in the first group would have helped in winning them over, but she wasn't satisfied with just that. She wanted their loyalty, and the biggest step towards that was for them to come to her. She couldn’t risk having them feel too important.
Even if they did come to her so early, she would find a way to refuse. Only after spending some amount of time as mortals, watching others get ahead of them and experience everything they wanted, would they be grateful to her for giving them a chance.
Desires achieved without effort were not as treasured as much as those fought for. This was human nature.
*
Seven bicycles and a low-flying Sapphire Beauty exited the base under the balzing noon sun, to the wonder of the outside crowd.
Celes and Minnie nodded to their fathers. Both men were left in charge of managing the base in their absence.
"Wow, it looks like a whole different world out here now,” Priya exclaimed, “Like fifty years have passed or something."
Large vines and moss-covered buildings crumbling slightly in place and tilted over like the leaning Tower of Pisa seemed to be the new architecture trend. In such a short time, New Roselee had transformed into a true post-apocalyptic scenery.
"Hard to believe a few days ago it was business as usual," Justin commented, riding his bicycle alongside his younger sister. “Well, as usual as it could be with the disasters and all.”
Screee~
"It sure is an amazing new world,” Priya marveled, her eyes refusing to stay put as it drank in the sights. “Terrifying but amazing." She glanced up to Sapphire gliding just ahead of them. Her beautiful blue plumes fluttered ever so slightly in the wind.
Just a moment ago, she had spat her phoenix flame, burning a cluster of Blood Sucking Mosquitos to ash.
Her blue flames were like ignited gas from a stovetop, but they burned much brighter and vivid, like melted sapphire gems mixed with a tinge of silver.
The heat from the flame was oddly gentle and soothing, like a spring breeze, yet when it caught ablaze it was as terrifying as any flame.
"Fourteen Goblins about 200 yards ahead," Celes announced from above.
"What do we do? Avoid them?" asked Minnie.
Celes thought for a while before deciding. "No. A few are unarmed and the rest just have wooden spears and clubs. It's time for your first battle."
With a different group, she would have gone around or gone ahead to take care of the enemies, but since this was the team she wanted to entrust and delegate a significant amount of authority to, her most elite troop, she decided to baptize them in blood as early as possible.
She had planned to wait until after they awakened, but seeing such a well-matched group of foes changed her mind.
Goblins were strong, yes, but with the right strategy they would be easily handled. They were sneaky and well-versed in traps and sleazy ambushes, but that was about it. Without any totems, priests, or a chieftain, they were no match for a competent Tier 0 Card Apprentice.
She had armed her elite squad with blades and guns, weapons their current target lacked, so she had high expectations for them.
Hearing her declaration, the group tensed up. They had heard her describe the unearthly flesh-eating abominations, reminiscent of the fantasy-like creatures in games and media.
Unfortunately, they were not the weakest version of the fairy tale monster, but they weren't the most disgusting ones either, so there was solace in that fact for the women in the team especially.
As a part of a civilized society, many had rarely fought, much less to the death with their lives on the line.
Justin, who was over six feet tall, looked over at his sister. Priya met his eyes, communicating wordlessly.
They had to prove themselves here and stick close to Celes, otherwise, they and their family might be in danger. Looking at the crowd of fearful survivors outside their base was enough to convince them.
The wondrous abilities she promised to give them after they awakened were another great motivator.
They had to perform well in the coming battle.
Xia and Giselle did not have the same worry, being long-time friends of Celes and Minnie, but Giselle was fearful of her first encounter with the monstrous creatures. Even Xia who hardly broke a sweat knitted her brows in worry.
The remaining three members of the team were a short man called Reid. He tutored Celes in Archaeology in the past. She actually wanted his brother, but they were separated and Reid had his own advantages worthy of placing him on the team. Although, the same was not true for the quiet bespectacled girl who hadn't said a word until then. The remaining member of the squad was Celes’s younger sister, Jasmine, hitching a ride on a Sapphire.
Celes massaged her temples, thinking of the hell Jasmine raised to tag along. Celes had assured her she would have her turn in due time, but she wouldn't have it.
Faced with her unruly behaviour, she had to give in. Blame her for feeling deeply about their last fight before learning of her unsightly death in the future past.
Although she hadn't mentioned it specifically, her sister was quite sharp when she needed to be and picked up on it, successfully guilt-tripping her.
The group pedaled steadily on the cracked street. The cluttered cars from escapees in the early days of the seven-day calamity no longer blocked the road; most vehicles were pushed to the sides of the street by the earth's expansion.
The bright rays of sunlight reflected off their windows and frames, shedding light in some darker corners of the enlarged streets.
Entire buildings and some sections fell sideways into the streets like felled trees, causing them to go around or climb over with their bicycles on their back.
These fallen buildings were quite fragile as well, so they had to watch their steps while climbing.
"She's so pretty. I want one. How do I get one?" Jasmine clamoured, tusseling Sapphire’s feathers once getting a ride.
"I thought you said you wanted to fight up close when I asked,” Celes responded. “Though, if you want, I can change your natal card for you. They can be your cute pet, go scouting for you, fight for you, carry you around, scare off lower level creatures, hunt for you, shield you, keep watch for you..." She easily listed a dozen more reasons.
Natal cards determined the path one would take and the combat style. It was the strongest, most effective, and most sustainable power you possessed. It only made sense to build everything else around it.
Celes thought long and hard to extend the list while saying it. As her older sister, she wanted Jasmine to be as safe as possible. She had expected Jasmine to reject being a healer, but being a close combat specialist was outside of her expectations.
Celes had spent hours trying to convince her sister and failed, but now the chance presented itself again, she grabbed it with renewed gusto.
The nine main positions for a competent wilderness team within the New World consisted of the main close combat damage dealer to attract the monsters attention, a healer or priest to take care of any injuries obtained at any point of the journey, a long-range damage dealer to give suppression fire, a shield bearer to block powerful or corrosive damage.
The remaining five positions were a secondary melee combatant to assist the primary damage dealer, a mage type for magical large scale area damage, scouts or rangers to do reconnaissance and set traps, assassins to do quick and stealthy damage and a master of mystic arts to predict the weather, handle curses, test bad luck, find treasures and so on.
Of course, Mystic Masters were rare, so it was usually an eight-person professional team. Though the standard team was twelve persons, one profession was repeated twice in the setup.
It goes without saying that healers were the safest in any group apart from the master of mystic arts.
"On second thought, I'll get one later,” Jasmine happily said, continuing to massage Sapphire's soft feathers. “You can have more than one card right? I'll wait."
Celes pursed her lips, but she chose to not say anything at that moment.
Jasmine’s pink hair was slightly haggard from lack of care, but Celes observed her sister's bright and unwavering expression as she voiced her refusal.
‘She had always known how to get under my skin... If I was the same as before, this would have started an argument.’
Jasmine had always been difficult, so Celes quickly accepted her defeat. Perhaps she would have been harder on her if she had survived the Last Days in the future past, but that was a 'what if' scenario on the other side of Fate's coin.
She quite preferred this turn of fate, getting a second chance to watch over her younger sister. She had prayed the same many nights back then, that if she could get back her sister, she wouldn't care how annoying she was.
Even after slaughtering her murdering rapists, she was left empty inside because that wouldn't bring back her sister from the dead.
It was the same for her mother, although anger didn't cloud her judgment in that case and she got to give them a very painful death, worthy of their animal like natures. Yet even then, the hole in her heart from their loss was bleeding for years without a moment's break.
"We're almost there. Don't rely on me to save you,” she called out to the ones on the bicycles. “If you can't handle this much, then you're better off knitting at an elderly home."
Celes wished for them to live their lives without worry, but to survive in the New World was no walk in the park, so she had to strictly train them to be ready.
The group left their bicycles in a safe corner while Celes kept a safe distance. Sapphire was a variant Phoenix, a higher transcendent bloodline several tiers higher than goblins. Even if she was a single tier higher than them, their cowardly natures of bullying the weak and fearing the strong would cause them to run either way.
Celes subtly placed three cards in her sleeves in case of emergencies. Whatever her mouth might have said, she was not going to risk anyone's life, especially her sister's.