After their first encounter, the rest of their time exploring through the cave actually wasn’t that bad, all things considered. Raemiel had been quick in slicing through the corpse of the giant creature, getting them through it before Mike was forced to stop holding his breath.
Though he wasn’t sure how that part of human anatomy would function still in a world where he supposedly could only get hurt by other Summons and not even his own biology should act as an exception But since he had nothing better to do while just following behind his diligent companion, Mike decided to put that idea to a quick test.
As they continued to walk through the tunnel, he took a deep breath and then held it. Mike knew for an absolute certainty that he wasn’t one of those people who had strong enough lungs and training to hold their breath for several minutes even while moving around. So he would be surprised if it took more than just a full minute before his body naturally began to tell him to…
The sensation he’d been expecting hadn’t even started yet, not by the slightest. That feeling as the carbon dioxide increases and oxygen decreases in your blood, triggering your body into telling you to stop being an idiot and actually get some air. Yet even as a minute and a half and counting had already passed, Mike still felt like he could just keep holding his breath indefinitely without any problems.
179 Mississippi, 180 Mississippi, and that’s three minutes. Okay this isn’t normal for me. It would have made sense if the System made it so that we couldn’t die of suffocation, but let us pass out from the lack of oxygen or something. But the fact that I’m not feeling this, like at all, is pretty wild. Would I be able to just indefinitely swim underwater without a care in the world? Would the extreme pressure even bother me if I dived deep enough? Water isn’t a Summon, so that would be a no, right? Mike asked himself.
He’d seen the message, but it was only now starting to truly feel real for him. Walking while just staring at the back of the tall angel in front of him, Mike was being given a lot of time to fully process everything that’d just happened. Ten years of being effectively immortal, expect if killed by another Summon that was either Wild or controlled by a fellow human. Ten years of being expected to murder each other and turn their world into a blood bath. Ten years until only half or less of humanity remained, or else none of them would.
Just how many people are even going to die over the next month? Or the first year? Mike internally questioned as he began to do the math in his head. If one just rounded and said that humanity had a population of eight billion, then around 400 million people would need to die each year to bring that number to under four billion by the end of the decade.
400 million per year as an average would need to be… what, something like 33 million per month? That would mean just over a million people would be dying as the daily average. More than a million people dead. Every. Single. Day.
An entire major war as just a daily occurrence. In just a month from now, wouldn’t the total number of fatalities be at least comparable to everyone who died from the Black Death? Who knew how many would be killed by just the unknown number of Wild Summons running around, and how many would be people actually killing each other?
But while Mike wanted to believe that not that many would so quickly turn into mass killers, he wasn’t naive enough to truly think that. When the options were either to kill others or risk dying yourself due to the threat of complete extinction, the decision to ensure your only path to survival could suddenly become an easy one to make.
And if the System was literal in its claim that every single human had received a Summon, it meant that children and even infants would have living weapons at their side at all times. Summons that would likely prioritize the survival of their Summoners if the latter was too young to even talk, if he had to make a guess.
“Damn, man,” he said under his breath. Mike couldn’t help but shake his head at just how quickly the next few years might turn into Hell on Earth.
“Is there an issue, Mike?” Raemiel asked while glancing back at him. Noticing that the Sumonner hadn’t stopped moving forward, the angel also continued to walk ahead at the same pace.
“It’s- it’s just that I think the reality of all this is just now hitting me. Before this is all over…” Mike trailed off, momentarily unsure if he should even speak the words aloud. “Other people are probably going try and kill us at some point, right? And then we’ll be forced to try and kill them back, won’t we?”
It was then that Mike stopped in place, and his Summon followed suit. The angel then stared up at the ceiling for a moment, before fully turning around to face him.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
“Yes. In the days to come, there will be many who wish to do us harm. Both the Summoner and Summon alike will have their own reasons for fighting. But whatever their thoughts might be, if they choose to be hostile, then I will uphold my duty to defend you. I can do so while attempting to not kill if that is your command, but it simply not always be possible for me to do so. There will be those whose mouths ask for mercy while their hearts swear vengeance, and it is for their kind especially that we must be vigilant against,” Raemiel started while placing a clenched fist against his breastplate.
“But I agree that if unneeded death can be avoided, then that will be best. To tell the truth, I am glad that someone like yourself who is worried about the prospect of killing ended up becoming my Summoner. While I would still have followed their orders to the best of my ability, I would have found it concerning if my Summoner was eager to shed the blood of their fellows. While I see glory in defeating monsters and such like the Wild Summon just now, killing sapient beings like your kind will often leave me with a sense of unease, even if that killing was judged to be necessary.”
Mike nodded, feeling a bit better now that he knew that Raemiel had similar thoughts on the subject. While the objective to ensure their own survival would require killing, they didn’t need to be the ones who chose to proactively do so.
If other people forced their hand and left them with no other choice, then he believed that he could make his peace with that. It was hard to say for sure until it actually happened, but just going off his personal sense of morality, that’s what Mike believed, at least. But with that matter now settled for the time being, the pair continued on their journey toward the surface.
The walk through the cave system was a rather dull one after that brief stop, however. There were a couple of points where the tunnel branched off into side paths. But between all other options, they always stuck to the one that the Wild Summon had charged through. There was no guarantee that it’d come from outside, but it was better than just guessing random paths and hoping they eventually got lucky.
“Ahah, I believe we shall soon find the exit, Mike. It is still rather subtle, but can you feel it? A breeze is coming from further down this tunnel,” Raemiel commented after what had felt like several more minutes of walking in silence.
“Not yet, but I’ll take your word for it,” Mike replied while brushing off some of the dust that’d fallen onto his clothes. From the creature charging through and grinding against parts of the walls and such, there were plenty of particulates still in the air. It was probably a very good thing that the same changes to his body that made it impossible for him to suffocate would likely also help him be unaffected by all the particles he was currently inhaling.
The two walked forward for another minute, but now with a notably more brisk and energized pace than before. Raemiel was still somewhat cautious in his body language while seeming ready for anything, but his excitement about getting to leave the cave soon was clear. And it would be soon, because it was at this point that even Mike could detect the light breeze coming from further down the tunnel.
As the walked more and more, the breeze just continued to get stronger. Even the general light level had now started to increase, at least to the point where Mike would likely be able to just barely see if Raemiel hadn’t been there.
Finally, they saw it after turning a final twist in the tunnel. A large hole in the ceiling that seemed to perfectly match the Wild Summon in shape and size. More of the cave continued past the hole, but that didn’t matter now that they were here. Despite the literal angel standing close by, it was the rays of sunlight spilling through the hole that currently felt almost heavenly.
“Pardon me, but it will be easiest if I carry you up,” Raemiel said while extending an arm. Considering that the ceiling was at least 20 feet above his head, Mike had no problem with that plan and allowed the angel to grab onto him.
Now securely holding onto his Summoner, the angel unfolded his wings. And with just a single flap, the two of them soared up and through the hole. Mike had to squint as the sudden influx of bright daylight was too much to take in at once. But even as they went past the exit, he could feel the air rippling around them was only getting stronger as Raemiel seemed to just be picking up in speed.
“I hoped to make use of a high vantage point for the purposes of surveying the immediate area. Tell me, Mike, is there anything about these surroundings that you might happen to recognize? Even if the System located you in a random area after greatly altering your planet by merging it with another, there may yet be some discernable landmarks you to judge our location from,” Raemiel said while then coming to a stop.
After blinking the spots out of his vision, Mike finally took a good look. They had to be at least a thousand feet in the air as the hole they’d come from appeared small and far away. Yet despite not actually being affected by so quickly moving that high up, he felt his breath be taken away.
“Woah…”
A vast forest of giant trees surrounded them. One that seemed to go out in all directions with a thick canopy that covered almost everything else in a layer of green. And giant was the only that the trees themselves could be described, for the two of them were only just a bit higher than the tallest near them. Yet off in the distance, Mike had already spotted some even taller trees that reached well past where Raemiel was hovering, and seemed to simply stretch into and past even the clouds.
So this is the world now, huh? Mike thought to himself, still absolutely taken aback by the size and majesty of the unworldly gargantuan forest.