K and Mimic were rushed when we left the goblin markets. We hadn’t spent that long there, maybe an hour. I was done shopping. A goblin friend might lead to a useful skill, but even if it wouldn’t, there wasn’t anything better to buy in this sector. Bribing my way to the inner sectors would be more trouble than it was worth, since Dreamers had no affinity for Fae relics.
I couldn’t give Quanta to anyone who was neither “a player” nor a Monarch. Every person who had been native to Earth was, of course, “a player”, but there would be others who would become players as well. Some of them had clear origins and rules, but others seemed to spring from the void.
When we left, the streets were even more flooded with monsters than they had been on the way in. Thanks to the Dungeon, I had grown strong enough that I could probably survive adventuring alone. The monsters in [Blood of the Sacrificed] died in seconds, and I had a sword to stab anything that came close with. I was powerful, and it was delightful.
After the monsters died, I noticed something depressing.Three corpses were lying on the ground, freshly dead. They hadn’t been here when we entered the dungeon. While I had been trying to clear the dungeon, they had been fighting for their lives, and they had lost.
One of them was a girl who resembled my sister, if my sister had a hole in her stomach. She was gripping an improvised spear, crudely fashioned from a broom and a knife. I flinched, and looked away.
The second was a boy. He couldn’t have been more than fifteen, and even that was a generous estimate. Only his upper body was intact, his legs had been shredded.
The third was a grandmotherly woman, and her throat had been ripped out.
I froze. These people were dead. I had forgotten this wasn’t just a game. While I was trying to maximize my power, they had needed my help. I’d let myself forget that the danger was real. My sister might be dead already, and my contract with Eris would prove ruinous if I didn’t resolve it within three months.
My mind crashed, caught up in a spiral of self-hatred. I tried to rationalize it. It wasn’t actually my fault. If I’d been there I would’ve saved them, but I wasn’t. Even if I’d spent the time I spent in the dungeon saving people, I probably wouldn’t have saved them. I was stronger now, and better able to save people in the future. I would save more people in the future than if I hadn’t. None of these rationalizations worked. They were right, but my emotions didn’t care.
I’m pretty sure both Mimic and K recognized the breakdown, but they couldn’t do anything about it. I continued to help fight with [Blood of the Sacrificed], but the trip back was a blur of terror and guilt.
[You have slaughtered numerous Shadowbeasts. You gained 45,130 Potential and 4,513 Net Quanta]
When we got back, we parted ways. I stumbled back to my dorm, physically and emotionally exhausted, and collapsed on the couch. I fell asleep in an instant.
Getting dragged into a meeting with Eris was a mercy, compared to the nightmares I would’ve faced otherwise.
===
“This isn’t a social call. What do you want from me?” I asked.
“You’re not immortal.” Eris said, “You think you know how to fix this. I can’t let the information be lost with your death. If you’ll tell me how, I’ll amend the contract. You’ll be freed if anyone fixes things, rather than only you.”
“You can’t comprehend it.” I said, “There are things the world will never let you learn. Do you know the court of the moonlit lands or the feasts of valhalla? Can you name the power of Ev or the beast that powers New Atlantis? Can you comprehend the existence of the kingdoms of ghosts and fear, or is that yet hidden from you?”
She winced. She hadn’t understood any of what I’d said, then. “Is that a trick?” she asked.
“The walls between worlds remain solid for you.” I said, “The universe will not allow someone with your power to learn of too many of your neighbors, not yet. Any information I convey will be painfully taken from you.”
“Can any get through?” Eris asked.
“That’s the wrong question. Even if it can, you can’t act on it effectively.” I said, “The right question is ‘who doesn’t share my condition?’”
“Humans.” Eris guessed.
“Most of the ones you could find, yes.” I said, “K, too. If you give me paper, I’ll write down my top three plans. I need you to swear that you won’t try to read it personally for three months, and that the change to the terms you offered earlier will apply.”
“I swear.” Eris said, and handed me a notebook.
“Anything else you want to know?” I asked.
“Not today.” Eris sighed.
===
[Your bond with Eris has deepened. Blood of the Sacrificed Subskill: Heart of the Sacrifice has been unlocked.]
[Heart of the Sacrifice: [Blood of the Sacrificed] will now protect all other non-enemy entities within its radius of effect. Harm suffered within the bounds of the skill will be mitigated, with the reduction based on your Dream potency stat, and the power behind the initial harm. This skill will not affect its caster.]
===
When I stumbled out of my bedroom the next morning, several messages were waiting for me.(1) My sister still hadn't gotten back to me. (2) That wasn't actually a bad sign, but it wasn't good news.
---
--- K Mandatory has begun mass messaging Sanctuary Citizens ---
K Mandatory: If you want to volunteer to help directly evacuate people, meet at the Library auditoriums.
K: We’ve got a plan.
K: Bear in mind that while what we most urgently need is people to go out and help with evacuation directly, there are jobs that can be done from within the safe zone as well.
K : If you want to volunteer with that, meet at Engineering Building 1, the Administrative Offices, any of the Cafeterias, or check out our volunteer forms here.
K: Regardless of which role you take, you will be compensated for your time.
K: As always, if you want the most up-to-date status of the laws and logistics of Sanctuary, check the announcements here.
K: Thank you for your time.
---
Apparently, K had gotten around to naming the safe-zone. Sanctuary wasn’t the worst name, but it wasn’t the best one, either. I took a moment to be glad that K was the only person who could grant rights to do this sort of bulk Mail.
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---
--- K Mandatory has begun Messaging Ashlyn Thresher ---
K Mandatory: Hey, Ashlyn, I owe you an apology for how I acted in the dungeon.
K: I shouldn’t have taken out my issues with Eris on you.
K: I’m sorry.
K: I’d tell you this to your face, but there’re too many sheep to herd.
K: Once things are organized, more people will be a good thing.
K: For now, it’s a problem.
K: I blame you and Mimic.
Ashlyn Thresher: Praise me more!
Ashlyn: More seriously, thank you for the apology.
---
--- Mimic Uvev has begun messaging Ashlyn Thresher ---
Mimic Uvev: Ashlyn, are you doing alright?
Mimic: Don’t push yourself too hard, and don’t blame yourself.
Mimic: We all assumed we weren’t working alone.
Mimic: I don’t know what happened to the other capes, but we thought they’d be here and they weren’t.
Mimic: At the minimum, you did the best you could.
Mimic: You can’t be everywhere, and you thought you were doing the right thing.
Ashlyn Thresher: I’m doing fine.
Ashlyn: Going to help with evacuation, I think.
Mimic: Good luck with your assignment, then.
Mimic: K and I are probably going to be working separately.
Mimic: I might get paired with you, if I’m very lucky.
---
The library was relatively quiet, but still busier than usual. The instant I stepped through the doors, a booth saying “Evacuation Signups Here” was sprawled in the middle of the hallway. There wasn’t quite a line, but nine of the ten seats were in use.
I headed for the tenth, and looked at the paperwork I was handed. It was fairly simple, as such things went. Six questions, each in the essay format, plus a name field at the top.
1. What is your class, and your total stats? (numbers and names both, please!)
2. In general, what can you do? (3)
3. Do you have any specific abilities that would be useful for finding survivors? Describe said abilities, their limitations and their use here. (4)
4. Do you have any specific abilities that would be useful for defending over ten noncombatants? Assume that they would be both willing and able to receive direction. Describe said abilities, their limitations and their use here.
5. Do you have a reason to believe you would be more able to handle high risk work than others? Conversely, do you wish to be given safe work preferentially? (5)
6. Do you have any abilities that would allow you to safely transport a significant number of non-combattants? Describe said abilities and their limitations.
I was skipping around on the form, doing the easy questions first, when a man walked up to me.
“Are you having any trouble with the form?” He asked.
“I’m doing fine.” I said, “I don’t envy whoever has to sort all of these, though.”
He grinned, “I don’t envy your job, either. Mimic is good at this, and no one’s going to be stupid enough to intentionally exaggerate their abilities. Besides, many hands make light work. A lot of people wanted to help from a position of relative safety, myself included.”
I nodded, and reached out a hand, “Ashlyn Thresher.”
He grinned, “Ah, you’re the one Mimic mentioned. I’m March Sarakin, one of the administrative volunteers for Mimic. Feel free to contact me if you need anything, both today and in the future.”
"I'll do that, then." I said.
“Let me know when you’re done with the paperwork, and I’ll brief you on the organization we’ve cludged together.” He grinned, “We’re doing our best, but the protocols we borrowed weren’t exactly meant for untested capes.”
I finished filling out the form, and handed it to him.
“Thank you.” He said, “Please, follow me.”
He led me to one of the study rooms in the library, where a map was showing on the tv screen within.
“Take a seat, please.” March said, “Any, as long as you can see the map.”
I did so. The map was an unmarked mess of shapes. The campus was one, and then the next was a ring that surrounded it, and then after that they broke into bizarre shapes. They usually looked fairly square, but the actual shape varied significantly.
“The plan, such as it is, is for us to prioritize local evacuation first.” He said, “Anywhere within the campus is completely safe, and anywhere within the ring surrounding it is already in the process of being evacuated by volunteers who are waiting for a more complex mission. Once a suitable combination is found, your team will be assigned a territory,and a
set of smartphones with GPS and communicator functionalities. Your team’s job will be to find every survivor you can in the area and offer them the chance to evacuate. If they decline, do not take them by force. I hope I didn't need to specify that. Our minimum viable team comprises one person for area defense of the gathered survivors and your means of evacuation, one person for sensing anyone within the area, and one to protect the sensor. Beyond that, internal logistics are at your group’s discretion.”
He frowned down at the form.
“That said, it sounds like you are exceptionally suited for zone defense, and less suited for sensing survivors.” He said, “However, if you have a preference, we are more than willing to accommodate you. Which would you prefer?”
“Wherever I would be more useful.” I said.
“Then you will be zone defense.” March said, “We have a shortage of suitable abilities for that, and trying to do it through numbers is fairly tricky.. We also have two other team members ready and waiting for someone like you, I’ll let them know to meet you now. On account of your limitations, we might need to figure out a solution to the transportation problem down the road, but give us a half-hour, and we should be ready to have you on your way. You should pack a lunch for yourself, some of my coworkers have set up a nice selection of food. Let me lead you to what we currently have available.”
He led me to another room with half a dozen refrigerators lined up and a wide selection of premade foods on the table. Most foods I could think of were somewhere on the table. (6)
"Feel free to take anything." March said, "We're not anticipating any issues with food supply, and a lot of people were happy to cook food rather than do nothing, or help personally. Also, grab one of the lunch boxes in the fridge, they've got preservation tech, apparently. The ones with the lids on are premade selections, the ones with the lids off are for people to fill up themselves. If you have an allergy, the major allergens are labeled on the side, but you might want to assemble one yourself.."
I grabbed a box, and grabbed some pizza for breakfast. I had skipped dinner yesterday, after all. March came in again with a backpack while I was eating.
“For any supplies you might wish to carry, either for yourself or for teammates.” He said, “The campus stores had plenty, and it looks to be in better condition than your current one. We’re looking into acquiring or producing enhanced storage devices, but this would be dramatically superior to nothing.”
“Thank you.” I said, and took it. I hadn’t left my previous backpack home, but I’d just realized that it had acquired more holes than a pincusion. Storing very sharp glass in a cheap backpack might not have been the best idea.
“They’ll meet you here when they’re back.” March said, “Feel free to eat as much as you want.”
I did.
---
(1) I felt oddly okay, the next day. I presumed that was some form of Dreamer "emotional resiliency" influencing me. I was still probably scared and feeling guilty, but I was able to repress it almost completely, until it was almost like I wasn't bothered at all.
(2) That wasn't actually surprising, Safe Zones were generally hard to make or find. It was very lucky that K was here, because otherwise it wouldn't be possible until someone reached her power level the slow way.
(3) I put down both my current abilities and a rough outline of how my capabilities would improve in the areas where that wasn't unpredictable - "larger area of effect", "more potent effects within the area", "ability to make the area actually apply in reality directly", and so on.
(4) Currently a clumsy patch job of an option, but that would probably improve soon.
(5) Without going into detail, I'm definitely better equipped to handle high-risk work than most of my peers, at least today.
(6) I didn't spend that long looking. I know I'm prone to choice paralysis, and I don't have that many opinions about what I eat. That said, I definitely noticed that some of the foods weren't well-suited for eating quickly, but there was a significant skew.