Nessyra turned her attention to Alistair before glancing at the projector as well.

"I'd love to offer a good news bad news scenario, but honestly, it's all bad news. There had been multiple American factions that had initially tried to work together, but they failed for a variety of reasons. They split into multiple factions again, with the largest two forming a rivalry, each claiming to be the legitimate leading party. The Initiation granting everyone powers created a power imbalance between individuals and factions. Each of the two factions believes they could create a better America without the other and seeks to absorb the smaller factions. The only thing they agree on is their hatred for Sol. They were horrified to learn that Sol had essentially stolen all their military equipment, and they both demanded its return." Nessyra concluded, looking back at Alistair, who frowned.

"Let me guess, he refuses to return the equipment," Alistair said, already knowing the answer.

Nessyra gave him a knowing smile. "Yes, He told them in no uncertain terms that the only way for them to get their hands on the equipment was under his banner or have it shot at them. He had offered them their own orders and limited autonomy, which both of them rejected."

Alistair could only imagine that the leading world power would not take kindly to such a drastic change in power dynamic. He suspected this would be a common occurrence, as many people would refuse to return to the old power structure. Alistair had read a little about the actual going on behind the curtain in the Earth sub-section but dropped it as it got too dark, and he planned to leave that planet anyway. Knowing all that horrible stuff wouldn't help him, he decided. Many people were unhappy about how their government handled things before the Initiation, not knowing they were just puppets for those truly in control. Alistair had his suspicions before the initiation, but having them confirmed left him empty and disappointed in humanity. These new nations would now perhaps stay true to their proclaimed values. There were plenty of patriotic individuals willing to prop up a new idealized version of the old country governments under mostly new management. Still, he had little hope for them and did not believe they would end up as more than emerging factions that would fight for control of Earth.

"What about China?" Alistair probed.

"They are highly fractured due to corruption and ambition. The disappearance of the power structure has utterly destroyed their status quo. From what I gathered in Earth's section, the Chinese government had a lot of issues even before the initiation. Now, they've fragmented into numerous smaller factions and sects. Cultivation appears to be prevalent among them, prompting the formation of sects mostly based on familial bonds, each vying for power independently, so we will probably see a lot of them rise and fall once they fight among each other once they return to Earth," Nessyra concluded as she got ready to address the next faction.

Nessyra had been right. The bad news kept piling on; it wasn't overly surprising that the people of China would embrace cultivation, but it would make them volatile and extremely dangerous to deal with. Reinforcing that it was a good thing that they had been preparing to leave Earth. Having to deal with a ton of cultivators would be a nightmare for Sol.

Turning her attention to the topic of the United Coalition (UC), Nessyra continued, "The United Coalition UC, operates under a unique dynamic. It's not simply a continuation of the EU or UN as it existed on Earth. Instead, it functions as a coalition of stable nations, predominantly from Europe but also including countries like Japan and Australia, which joined following the initial formation. Their membership is provisional until the conclusion of the Trial, at which point they can decide to remain or withdraw. While the individual factions within the UC are generally cohesive, there is some friction regarding the coalition's direction. It currently functions more as a defensive pact, and negotiations with Sol are ongoing, with some factions considering taking up his offer of limited autonomy and support under his banner."

Nessyra continued to explain how Sol had his followers comb through the information from the Earth sub-section of the study dungeon. Sol had used the information to sow discontent and discredit many of the leaders of the emerging nations. All of this while promising to bring about the change the people want and form a united front against outsiders. She added how many factions on Earth were currently scrambling to get members to join their cause and how most had a wait-and-see approach toward Sol, who is currently by far the largest and most powerful faction at the moment. Alistair noted how Nessyra had kept many of the darker and not commonly known details he had found under wraps and would have to talk to her about it later.

Another interesting tidbit was that South Korea planned an exodus from Earth and focused most of its resources on acquiring a fleet to get them off the planet. Those interests were mostly steered by chaebols, who were some of the lower rank and more public members of the oligarchy. Publicly, they were incredibly influential family-owned conglomerates from South Korea that owned most of the largest companies within the country. They used this to control the nation through their influence. Unsurprisingly, the government of South Korea still supported the decision and did not push back even a little. The whole situation had put their own little exodus into perspective.

Eventually, Nessyra switched the view to show Neshan's factions, which were mostly comprised of corporations and family businesses rather than nations. This was not overly surprising to Alistair, as they were a Plutocracy before the initiation. Interestingly, the list included the Ryser clan, which still lacked a banner or sigil but was among the most powerful factions in terms of value and average power level.

"Any reason why we are listed as a Neshan faction?" Simon interjected.

Nessyra temporarily halted as she turned to face him. "Yes, I was getting to that. The primary reason is that a majority of our workforce that has signed contracts to join us in exodus comes from Neshan, not Earth. The second reason is that Arbiter Zaltom, the natural god of Neshan, has announced his claim over our origin to Sol and offered to discuss his official recognition as a faction from Neshan. Sol, on the other hand, seemed to have mostly lost interest in us after that. Zaltom wishes to open negotiations of mutually beneficial agreements such as his official recognition."

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Alistair, Riseth, and some of his family members looked at Nessyra with surprise, but he was the first to speak up.

"When you say he recognized us as such, were you already in contact with him, and if so, why is this the first time I've heard of this?" Alistair inquired, raising an eyebrow in curiosity.

Nessyra nodded in understanding. "His people were one of my contacts, but I only recently received these messages and have not met him in person. I thought it best to bring it up in this meeting. The Arbiter has extended an invitation to you, Riseth, and me to discuss terms. I believe we should accept. He is much more predictable and easier to negotiate with than Sol. Contracts and promises hold immense cultural significance for us demons of Neshan, and this aspect of our culture is strongly reflected in his personality and chosen role. I am certain he won't breach any agreements, not out of fear of the consequences, but because it goes against his fundamental nature."

Alistair scratched his beard, deep in thought. If they could get an agreement with Zaltom, it would further discourage other Gods, especially Sol, from messing with them. Zaltom's willingness to recognize their clan as one of Neshan's factions was already a show of goodwill on his part. He knew Nessy was gearing up to talk about the god some more, but he would seek to direct some of his more pressing questions.

"How do we know he won't interfere with us, especially if we do not reach an agreement with him? Also, how has he treated his own people and uprising factions?" Alistair questioned.

Nessyra nodded approvingly. "We don't know that he won't do that, but we will want to work it into any agreements we make. This would ensure our safety. Unlike Sol, he is hands-off and much better received among the factions of Neshan, so nobody is currently rebelling against him. He is more of an arbiter or judge for those unfamiliar with the term and offers them benefits for recognizing his authority. Many of the factions have already married daughters to him to make official ties to him. He has a healthy following among the general population and smaller groups that answer directly to him."

Juliana raised an eyebrow. "And there are no religious conflicts?"

"No," Riseth chimed in. "Neshan was not big on religion. Neshan only believes in reputation and coin."

"Reputation in Neshan culture is measured by the reliability of one's word," Alistair added, garnering him some surprised looks.

"Correct," Nessyra confirmed. "Not to put too fine a point to it, but Neshan is not a human world. While the process won't be entirely smooth, it won't be the unmitigated disaster that is Earth. Most of Neshan has already accepted Zaltom as their arbiter. There are, of course, old rivalries that persist, but with an outside threat, I doubt it will come to large conflicts. And the smaller factions resisting will be absorbed into the larger ones and their assets added to the fold."

Nessyra then proceeded to list how Zaltom had not seized any assets and, according to rumors, had maintained most of the planet's infrastructure. This was not particularly difficult because Neshan had built its cities in compact and structured layers within mountains and underground, forming closed systems maintained by the local corporations controlling the cities. This stood in stark contrast to Earth's intricate web of cities and nations sprawled across the surface, interconnected by wiring spanning across landmasses and even through the ocean. She also highlighted some of the larger corporations that might become relevant later and with which she had already had dealings. Nessyra also pointed out which corporations were new, and which were old and established. There had been a large rise in new factions coming to power, capitalizing on the introduction of magic.

They took a short break before moving on to the next topic, which was discussing what they had learned so far. Other factions leaving the planet and Sol's seeming inaction were of particular interest. The pessimists were sure he would intervene in some ways, while the others thought he might legitimately not care, as there were just fewer people to fight over the planet with. Alistair's mother started to question Riseth about their culture and things she should know about.

"Nessy, have you already scheduled a meeting with Zaltom, or is that up in the air?" Alistair asked.

"I have not made an appointment yet. But I have been told that Zaltom frequently visits the Trial, and a meeting with us would be considered a high priority, so we would not have to wait long." Nessyra replied.

"Alright, let's look into it after the expedition. Is there anything else going on we should know about?" Alistair followed up.

Nessyra seemed to debate something as she tilted her head. "Well, yes, you upset the Greys of planet Riotov. You killed their champion, and they put a collective fortune on Zutriniz to win his tournament batch. They demanded we give them their money back, but I told them to dance on coals."

Alistair chuckled and gave her a thumbs up. Being a sore loser over a lost bet was on them. There were some conflicts after the last tournament. Nobody knew there would be a scoreboard, and many debated whether the winner was determined by being at the top of that board or the last one standing. Luckily, Riseth and him were both, so there was no debate over their match. Most of his family had held themselves admirably and gotten a decent amount of kills, but besides him and Desily and Zathrons, none had won. Esta and Simon had gotten 18 kills and second place before being overwhelmed, which had still doubled their gains from being in a higher-grade tournament.

Eventually, James stepped up for his portion of the presentation. Alistair already knew some of the things he would be presenting. People got back to their seats as the projector changed to show a sphere, part of which was mapped out and showed terrains littered with red and yellow dots. James waved his hands and zoomed into the part that was not hidden in the fog of war.

"As some of you know, I deployed drones to scout out the trial. The planet is much larger than expected, and some of the drones had to self-destruct upon discovery. I retrieved the map data shown here a few hours before the meeting while deploying safety measures for the gate location." James explained with practiced ease.

Alistair had attended one of James' technical presentations and presumed he had to give occasional project updates to his employers. This meant that his presentation was quite detailed and felt quite professional. James was currently listing the changes to the ruined bunker structure. With Nessyra's assistance and plenty of funds, he had placed both camouflaged turrets and illusionary arrays. He also isolated the gate chamber so the energy spike of the portal use would be dampened to sensors.

"It is crucial that the gate location stays undiscovered. That is why we will not be using these ruins as a staging point. We need to stay mobile and strike positions of interest for both warring factions. The yellow dots represent the Nugan automata, while the red represents the Itania troops. I swear I wish they would change their color scheme around." James commented, slightly irritated.

"I know, right?" Alistair concurred as they exchanged smiles. "But what about the staging point?"

"Ah, about that," James began, a mysterious glint in his eye. "As most of you know, I've been hard at work for weeks preparing for this challenge, and I've got some surprises up my sleeve."

His tone suggested excitement and confidence. He let his attention build for a few seconds before typing something into the projector.