Kyle and C.H.A.D.D. continued to make their way through the woods in the days that followed, with Kyle consistently finding opportunities to test his aim with his staff. He shifted his grip from the shoulder-width alternating style to something approximating a baseball grip. He knew his stance needed work, but all in all this felt much better. As they passed stones or small pieces of wood, Kyle would stop and throw them in the air to practice his swings.
C.H.A.D.D., for its part, tried to avoid the random detritus as it flew by. The days passed in relative peace, with Kyle finishing the last of the rations he brought from the hospital. While he didn’t relish his meals being beetle-exclusive, he felt he was making good time towards Cathwick. With luck, that meant shelter and some real food.
He and C.H.A.D.D. were about 25 kilometers away from the edge of the woods and the beginning of the Cathwick suburbs, and while the destruction was still incredible Kyle had noticed more and more trees still standing as they had progressed over the past week, and while the ambient mana was still chaotic and hostile it was markedly less damaging now than it was when he started his journey. That brought him hope. If the mana in the air continued to disperse the farther he moved from Newton, there was a strong chance that there would be survivors.
Kyle was lost in thought when he bumped into a floating C.H.A.D.D., who had zipped in front of him and stopped abruptly.
“C.H.A.D.D., what’s going on?” Kyle asked, concerned by the drone’s behavior.
He had noticed subtle changes in the way that C.H.A.D.D. had been communicating over the last couple of weeks, and knew the absorption of this chaotic mana was likely having effects on the way that C.H.A.D.D. was operating.
[DR. MAYHEW, YOU SHOULD KNOW THAT THERE ARE SEVERAL LIFE SIGNATURES AHEAD THAT ARE WITHIN A 97.6% MATCH OF THE LARGE BUG PREVIOUSLY DIAGNOSED.]
Kyle was a little startled that C.H.A.D.D. had taken the initiative to share this information; however, he was pleasantly surprised that the drone had the ability to detect these types of life signatures.
“How do you know what’s out there?” Kyle asked, unable to contain his curiosity.
[PER INSTRUCTIONS, I HAVE BEEN ATTEMPTING TO RECONNECT WITH THE MANA NETWORK. IT WAS DECIDED THAT REGULAR SCANS OF AMBIENT MANA SIGNATURES WOULD SUPPORT THIS ENDEAVOR, AND IN DOING SO THE MANA DETECTED SOUTHWEST OF OUR LOCATION WAS FAMILIAR. A DETAILED SCAN OF THE AREA REVEALED BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES CONSISTENT WITH THE PREVIOUSLY IDENTIFIED LARGE BUG.]
Kyle was again taken aback by the level of forethought here, but that was overshadowed by his curiosity of how he’d stack up against similar beetles. He had grown quite a bit since his first encounter, currently sitting at Level 34. He was still six levels off of his next skill, but felt confident that the growth in his physical attributes alone would make him much more capable of defending himself, his new weapon and training notwithstanding. He knew he was far from a true fighter, but to handle some unintelligent bugs he felt confident. Besides, he was running low on meat. What’s the worst that could happen?
~~~
Victor looked with disgust at his plate. He had requested a whitefish, but the idiots in his kitchens had brought him a red wine to go alongside it. It was a pairing that was simply unacceptable, and he strongly considered throwing out the food and drink and insisting they remake it. Fortunately, his calmer side won out, even if it was difficult as he choked down the wine.
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After all, there was still much to do, and he knew that his magnanimity towards his lessers would go a long way towards maintaining morale. With a sour expression as he ate, he focused his attention back to the reports on his desk.
The first was a notice from Central Health – all the surviving healers from the surrounding area had been identified, processed, and put to work. Basic triage had been completed, and the most seriously injured had either passed or recovered by now. The population remaining in Nierburg was roughly two hundred and eighty thousand, well below its previous three million. Still, it was enough to begin rebuilding.
The blast and subsequent aftershocks were only the beginning, taking out well over half of the population in the initial shock. From there, the casualties were virtually all unawakened – unsurprising as the hostile mana in the air was caused continual damage without near-constant healing. With many of the unawakened already being injured from the blast… well, it was a foregone conclusion.
While they had Healers available, Victor had to prioritize, and he had made the hard call. Save the people who can contribute the most and take the least. This calculus wasn’t shared with the population at large, but was communicated to the highest-ranking official in Central Health, Dr. Brock. He had handled passing the instruction down, and while the healers may not have liked the decision they agreed with the efficacy.
Satisfied that his orders had been followed, he picked up the next report from Central Defense. Unsurprisingly, the most physically fit and resilient members of the Central Authority structure suffered fewer losses than most. With nearly four thousand combat-capable troops at his disposal he felt confident about peacekeeping.
While this branch of the organization had historically been used to keep wild beast populations in check, they were also effective as a police force, and one that was largely loyal to DeRosa as a former executive. His old lieutenant Reynolds was now in charge, but the man still looked up to Victor as a mentor. What’s better, survivors from other towns to the west had also been making their way to Nierburg, with their bulk being members of Central Defense.
The last missive unfortunately didn’t carry the good news of the others – while Addison in Central Communication had succeeded in creating a barrier to prevent the infusion of more rogue mana, he was as yet unable to forcibly purge the mana from within the barrier. Instead, it would have to disperse naturally, which meant that more of the unawakened would have to die. Beyond that, attempts to reactivate the Mana Network and use Nierburg as a new hub had stalled due to the chaotic energy trapped within the barrier. This mana had proven to be damaging and chaotic enough, so they had ordered all equipment and drones to power down and cease further infusion until they could get this energy removed. This would push his timeline back significantly to get everything operational, but there was little that could be done to change it at this time.
Victor filed each of the missives in their appropriate drawer, then stepped out onto his balcony and looked out at the city. He watched as work crews removed rubble from fallen buildings and others began mapping out foundations for new construction where other fallen structures had been cleared. He observed small groups running food and water out to the workers to keep them moving, and he felt a smile creep across his face. Despite all the adversity and challenge, he was witnessing the genesis of a truly harmonious society.
The Central Authority had always worked towards this ideal, but despite the challenges he could feel the dream coming to fruition. His hand absently stroked his long, sharply pointed beard as he considered the possibilities. A world where everybody had a place, where everybody had a defined contribution. What felt impossible in the macro being played out in the micro before his eyes. His smile deepened as he watched, imagining his name being heralded alongside the Originators for leading humanity out of its darkest hour. Victor DeRosa, savior of the world.