Alyssa said, “We don’t have a choice.”

“It’s almost fifty miles away,” Roman pointed out. “It’s not our problem.”

Alyssa looked around at the others. Carmen was there representing the noncombatants, but the rest of the council were Roman’s allies. He had handpicked most of them because they agreed with his philosophy of blatant self-interest. Not on a personal level, but rather when it came to the way they ran Easton. That meant that, of the eight members of the council, Alyssa only had one ally.

She resisted the urge to scream. The formation of the council was supposed to have been a compromise, a way to solve the rift between Roman and her. But in her frequent absence, the former police chief had managed to stack the deck against her. A few of her people had been intimidated into stepping down, and one had been outright bribed. The replacements were loyal only to Roman.

No - that wasn’t quite right. They didn’t care about him. They cared about themselves, and it didn’t matter if that came at the detriment of everyone else. To Alyssa’s sensibilities, they were selfish and cowardly.

But she couldn’t really argue with their reasoning – not on a purely logical level. It didn’t make much sense to put their lives on the line in order to help people who couldn’t do anything for them. And if they responded to this new threat, they would certainly be putting themselves, as well as all of Easton, at risk.

Choosing not to act carried with it its own risks, though.

“You heard the Envoy,” she said, gesturing to Dirk. He claimed to be completely neutral, and as an Envoy of the Cult of the World Tree, that was precisely what he was supposed to be. However, he was clearly Roman’s stooge. He’d proven that a hundred times over. “This tower is a threat to our survival. If nothing is done, it’s going to overflow. We’ll be inundated by more Voxx. You have to see that it’s better to take care of it before circumstances force our hand.”

“And I’m sure the proximity of the refugee camp has nothing to do with your stance,” one of Roman’s flunkies said. “Pardon me if I don’t share your bleeding heart and –”

“Enough,” Roman interrupted. The woman snapped her mouth shut. The former police chief took a deep breath, then continued, “Compassion is commendable. You know I don’t want anyone to die unnecessarily, Alyssa. But the fact remains that if we attack this tower, we’ll have to send some of our best. That will leave us vulnerable, and not just to the wildlife. You know what’s coming our way.”

Alyssa looked away. They’d recently received word that there was a roving band of warriors making their way across the landscape. They’d already sacked a half-dozen towns, and there was a good chance that they’d soon target Easton. The group – no, it was an army, by all accounts – might never find the settlement, but they had to be ready to fight in the event that they were attacked.

It had been so much easier when all she had to worry about was patrolling the surrounding area. But as Dirk had leveled, he’d unlocked more features of the Branch of the World Tree, including the ability to communicate with other nearby settlements. And to Alyssa’s surprise, there were dozens of them, though none as large or successful as Easton.

But with that communication had come trade, dependence, and news.

And it had unlocked Roman’s ambition. It was an open secret that he wasn’t content with ruling Easton. He wanted his own kingdom. Sure, he couched that ambition in a desire to save as many people as possible. After all, Easton was far safer than anywhere else with whom they had been in contact. It only made sense that he take them all under his wing.

Of course, if he had his way, that would mean the virtual enslavement of anyone who didn’t offer immediate benefit to society. Alyssa had fought against it, and she’d been mostly successful, but the more power Roman got, the less capable she was to fight against the worst of his nature.

“Then we should send our best,” Alyssa said. “Get through it quickly, gain the benefits, and be better prepared to meet the army coming our way. Or do you want to fight a war on two fronts? Think about it. What’s going to happen when that tower bursts? Even if we fight off the waves of Voxx, we’ll be weakened when that army gets here. They’ll roll over us.”

“Unlikely,” one of the others scoffed.

Alyssa shook her head. Of the people present, only she and Roman fought with any regularity. The others were just sycophantic bureaucrats. They all had combat classes, but they used any excuse to avoid anything that might put them in danger. They were cowards, and as such, Alyssa had no respect for them.

Certainly, they served a purpose. Someone had to tend to the minutiae required to run the city whose population had grown into the thousands. However, recognizing that they weren’t completely useless didn’t equate to respect.

Either way, that lack of combat experience meant that they wavered between looking down on those who protected them and putting far too much trust in those same people’s abilities.

“You know I’m right, chief,” she said.

Roman locked his eyes on hers, but he didn’t change his expression. She couldn’t read him. Not anymore. Not since Trish’s death. His thoughts and emotions had become a mystery to her.

After a moment, he asked, “How do you propose we do this?”

“You and me, at minimum,” she said. They were the two highest-leveled people in the city. “A healer. Maybe two. And at least a couple of damage dealers. The tower won’t allow more than six people inside at a time.”

He nodded, but before he could speak, one of his sycophants spat, “You can’t be serious? We would be defenseless!”

“There are more than a thousand warriors in this city,” Roman stated. “Surely they can defend you while we’re gone. Perhaps you can even defend yourself, Mr. Adams.”

“You’ve got a combat class, don’t you?” asked Alyssa. “A warrior variant, right? We could use you in the tower. Unless you think you’re needed here, of course.”

“I…I don’t…”

“We should take Verin Watson,” Roman stated. “She got some sort of Priest class, and she’s probably the most versatile healer we have in the city.”

The woman in question was one of the newer arrivals, though Alyssa didn’t know much else about her.

“I want Bryce Caraway.”

“The Wizard?”

“Yeah. He’s one of our hardest hitters,” she stated.

“That’s four. You know another healer?”

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Could take Kevin Tate,” she suggested. “I’ve worked with him.”

“No. I think I have someone else that would work,” he said. “In fact, I think I can fill our other two slots. So, I suggest you spend the night saying your goodbyes and preparing. We leave in the morning.”

And just like that, Alyssa had won the argument, though she wasn’t certain if she would grow to regret it. The minor dimensional rift had been difficult enough to overcome, but a tower was supposed to be far more dangerous. The guides she’d purchased from the Branch had been limited in what information they contained, but one thing seemed certain – if they were going to challenge a tower, it was going to be deadly.

After Roman had agreed to the plan, the meeting concluded, and Alyssa and Carmen quickly left the former police station behind. Having grown to five stories tall, it was unrecognizable, as was the rest of the city. The collection of log cabins had been replaced by more permanent, brick buildings, and though none of them had much artistry to be seen, there were a couple that had been designed by Architects. Those were clearly higher quality, and there was a hope that soon enough, the rest of the city would follow suit.

After traversing the city, Carmen and Alyssa retreated to their home. It still wasn’t huge, but they’d had a host of modern amenities installed. Running water, central heating, and a working kitchen, complete with ethereum-powered appliances meant that it was almost as comfortable of a home as the one they’d abandoned shortly after the world had transformed. In that respect, the Branch of the World Tree had proved invaluable, if only for the guides it made available. Without them, Easton would’ve still been stuck in the stone age.

Once they got home, Carmen said, “I don’t like this. You saw that, right?”

“What?” Alyssa asked, plopping down on one of the couches. She’d gone to the meeting straight from a patrol, so even with her inflated Constitution, she was absolutely exhausted.

“Roman. He didn’t want you to bring your people even though it made sense,” she pointed out. “Why would he do that?”

Alyssa shrugged. “Probably because he thinks his people would be better,” she answered.

“Or he’s going to betray you,” Carmen stated.

“Oh, come on. This is Roman. He’s the chief. He’s a good man.”

“Who wants to let people die just because he doesn’t consider them useful.”

Alyssa sighed. “It’s not like that. We have limited resources, and –”

“I know more about our resources than you do. I go to almost all of those sham council meetings, you know. And we could have taken those refugees in. It would’ve meant people had to cut back a little, but we could have done it.”

“Yeah? And what about the next group. We’d cut back a little for them, too. And the next after that. Until, suddenly, we have people starving or sleeping in the streets. It’s a slippery slope, Carmen.”

“I’m aware.”

Alyssa rubbed her eyes. “I don’t want to argue about this again,” she said. “I trust Roman. Besides, he needs me.”

“For now,” Carmen pointed out. “But fine. Just promise you’ll stay on your guard in there.”

“I will.”

“Did you see it?” asked Carmen in a different tone.

“What?”

“The ladder.”

“Oh. He’s…he’s still on there,” Alyssa said, referring to her brother’s placement on the worldwide power rankings. How he’d managed to even survive, much less climb to such heights, was a mystery to her. When she’d first noticed his name on the list, she had wanted to pick up right then and there and try to find him. But it didn’t take long for reason to take over when she realized that she didn’t even know where to start. The world had been entirely transformed, and there was no telling where Elijah had ended up. However, she took more than a little comfort from the confirmation that he wasn’t just alive, but he was also thriving.

She could only wish that everyone could say the same.

After that, they moved on to more pleasant topics, like the fact that Miguel had won an archery competition among the town’s children. There were only a couple hundred, and half of those weren’t old enough to compete. But still, it was quite an accomplishment.

As the afternoon turned to night, Miguel got home from the school the town had set up. He eagerly told his mothers about his exploits at the competition, and Alyssa made it clear that she wished she’d been able to attend. Carmen had been there, but that was because, as a crafter, she didn’t have to leave the city. Eventually, Alyssa had to break the news that she was once again leaving. Miguel took it well – he took pride that his mother worked so hard to protect everyone – but he was still disappointed.

In the end, the family spent a nice night together, though. Which made it that much more difficult when, the next morning, Alyssa found herself waiting near the southern gate. Slowly, the members of the group trickled in. Bryce was the first to arrive, followed by the healer, Verin. She was a matronly woman, but she looked solid enough. And judging by the spring in her step, she wouldn’t slow them down.

Next came a man who introduced himself as Trace. He also claimed to be their scout, with the Outlaw class. The next to last to arrive was a woman with the Disciple class, which apparently was a healer variant that also specialized in unarmed combat. Alyssa had no idea how that worked, but the woman – named Chen – seemed pleasant enough.

Finally, Roman arrived, flanked by a pair of his sycophants. Alyssa had never even learned their names.

Alyssa looked around at her party. Of them all, she was the most heavily armored, but that was no surprise. Carmen had made her a full suit of actual plate armor, and just like her spear, it could take a significant beating. Chen and Trace both wore leather armor, while Roman had equipped a chainmail hauberk, heavy leather gloves, and a pair of armored pants. Bryce wore heavy robes, as much because he didn’t have the Strength to accommodate heavier armor as because he thought it appropriate for his Wizard class. Finally, Verin’s armor was almost as heavy as Alyssa’s, and the older woman had a wicked-looking morningstar at her waist.

All in all, they looked like a well-equipped party.

“Everyone have rations?” she asked, looking from one to the other. Each had a sizable pack on their backs, and they all confirmed that they’d packed plenty of dried meat, hard tack, and extra bottles of water. “Alright, let’s get this thing going.”

She and Roman had agreed that, while he was the highest-ranking official in the city, she would command the party during combat, largely because she had far more experience than the rest of the group combined.

“This is going to be so awesome,” Bryce muttered.

The others looked at him like he was crazy, but no one argued. Instead, everyone but Trace followed. The Outlaw ran ahead, scouting their path.

And like that, they slowly made their way across the wilderness towards the south. The tower had appeared almost fifty miles away, so it took them two days of hard travel to reach it. When they did, the group took the opportunity to rest for a day before finally approaching it.

To Alyssa, it looked like a ruin, though it was almost entirely intact. The impression of age was due to the thick moss coating the weathered stones. Vines cascaded from the crown, blending it in with the surrounding forest.

“And if we go in that thing, we’re going to what? Teleport somewhere else? How does this thing even work?” asked Trace.

Alyssa told him what she knew, which was precious little. The towers were constructs meant to contain the surging Ethera that came with powerful dimensional rifts. If they conquered them, it would drain the rift for a time, removing the possibility that it would spill over.

“So, those Voxx creatures we’ve killed, they’re just…what? Constructs?” asked Bryce.

“I don’t know. I don’t think so, though. In truth, I only know as much as I’ve read in the guides I’ve bought from the Branch,” Alyssa admitted. “But I think it’s more like these creatures are alien enough that they need all that Ethera to cross over. Again, I might be wrong, though. The guides weren’t very specific.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Roman said. “We have a job to do, so let’s do it. We’ll leave the conjecture to the Scholars.”

“Agreed,” she said. Then, to Trace, she said, “You found the entrance, right? Lead on.”

“Aye, cap’n,” he said with a mock salute. “Right this way, m’lady.”

“Is it captain? Or lady?” asked Bryce.

“Don’t humor him,” Chun said.

“Give me a shot, and you’ll find I’m quite humorous,” Trace said with an exaggerated wink.

“That makes no sense.”

“I stand by it,” he said. Then, he thrust a finger to the sky and shouted, “Onward!”

Alyssa glanced at Roman and asked, “He’s the best you could find?”

“He’s…an acquired taste. But he’s a fantastic fighter. Stealthiest man I’ve ever seen, too.”

“If you say so,” Alyssa said, watching the ridiculous Outlaw march off.

They followed Trace around the tower until they found him standing by a large crack in the masonry. Inside was completely dark, and Alyssa could tell by the ambient Ethera that they’d found the entrance to the tower. In truth, she’d expected something more grandiose, but she had no idea why she might’ve thought that.

In any case, she once again asked if everyone was ready, and when they confirmed that they were, she said, “Okay. You all know the order. Wait two seconds, then follow. When you get inside, step to the left so the next person in line doesn’t trample you. Everyone got it?”

They all said they did, which was unsurprising. They’d been over it more than once, after all.

So, with that confirmed, Alyssa took a deep breath, then ducked into the tower.