Coop was waiting at the civilization shard, along with what seemed like most of the residents of Ghost Reef. The town circle had people scattered around, new faces along with more familiar ones. Word had spread through the settlement that something was starting, and for the last few days everyone was preparing as much as they could, even when they weren’t exactly sure what was coming.
The residents had made an effort to gather as many levels as possible and the phantoms had immersed themselves in their training. The crafters had worked hard to equip as many as they could and the services had all been working overtime to stockpile supplies, though the contracted residents were more relaxed than Coop and the rest of the humans had been.
The entire army of phantoms was on duty, occupying the walls all the way around the fort, manning the cannons on all three upper levels, and otherwise waiting in orderly rows near the entrance of the fortress under Gideon’s supervision. Kayla’s fleet was already sailing among the reefs, leaving no ships at the dock, not even the partially repaired, pirated sailboats.
Coop’s research in the library hadn’t yielded anything useful about what to expect. The records of past assimilations were surprisingly limited, and what was available only revealed how different each scenario was. The planetary sponsor’s disposition had a large influence on how events played out, and the system appeared to be extremely flexible, altering the script entirely, depending on the sponsor. Once again, Coop had the feeling that the system’s role was quite strange. It rarely seemed like the driving force behind anything that happened despite mana’s ubiquity.
Coop did learn that, while the factions were blind to what was happening on the planet themselves, the system actually provided some simple information to those on the outside. It was to the point that a popular recreational activity was observing and betting on system provided leaderboards. Coop thought it was similar to following professional sports through live text updates. They could see more than just the leaderboards that he could access; the disposition of settlements, faction strengths and population, territory control, and all sorts of other stats were also presented. The factions might not know what people did individually, but they could see the assimilation’s progress in other ways.
In the end, his visit to the library hadn’t offered him any last minute insights into what to expect. He was waiting along with everyone else. All they knew for sure was that the factions believed the settlement events would be abundant sources of experience. To Coop, experience meant monsters. Coop checked his own status, hoping to be able to compare it with his progress after the event.
[Status]
HP - 4350/4350
MP - 8100/8100
Class - Revenant (Level 51)
Profession - Basic Scavenging (Level 45)
Affinity - Spectral
Race - Human (Rank 1)
Faction - None
Strength - 30 (+810)
Agility - 30 (+405)
Body - 30 (+405)
Mind - 810
Intelligence - 30
Acumen - 30
Unallocated - 0
Titles - Champion III, Haunted, Ethereal, Reaper, Slayer III, Dauntless
Skills (Active) - Retribution, Salvation, Presence of Mind, Fog of War
Skills (Passive) - Common Language, Mind Over Matter, Adamance, Practical Application
Quests - Defeat Ancient Devourers II (0/25), Defeat Primal Serpents II (4/25), Defeat Ruin Excavators IV (440/5000), Defeat Primal Kites III (0/250), Upgrade Village to Town
Basic Credits - 250,982
Coop didn’t like having so many incomplete quests, it was like leaving a task half finished, but he would have to work on them later. He also worried about needing so many more credits to reach one million. Hopefully, Marcus wouldn’t need him to spend more on the settlement any time soon. At least his stats were looking nice, he was looking forward to hitting four digits in Mind. It felt like that would be a huge milestone.
He looked around the town circle and observed the residents that were waiting there with him. Laurie was looking determined as she spoke to a group of worried parents. The children were all inside the tavern with the non-combatants, including a handful of the elderly that hadn’t leveled enough to be comfortable around a fight, and of course Jones was settled into his own room where Madison or Olani could check on him.
The parents already had a schedule for who would remain inside the Tavern with the kids, to make sure they were comfortable, and Maeve and Desmond had already proven themselves to be excellent hosts to everyone on the island. Still, the parents fussed over the arrangements.
It didn’t help that some of the kids, led by Elly, wanted to help the adults fight. The youngest of the Cleary family had already snuck out once, but her non-magical stealth was no match for the watchful eyes of Maeve and Desmond once they knew to pay attention for the little mischief maker’s tactics.
Gibson was with his party, also discussing their readiness with a group of people, most of whom were Charlie’s neighbors. He had the easier job between the two emerging community leaders, the elderly that had leveled were particularly enthusiastic about participating, feeling rejuvenated after adding a dozen levels worth of attributes to their Body stats. They were eager to pay it forward by helping out the settlement where they could.
Jett was curled up in a ball, on top of a column on the exterior of the tavern, staying out of reach, but still a part of the crowd. Sunny, on the other hand, was on the patrol for ear scratches.
“It’s about that time.” Camila muttered, standing up from her position next to Coop and Charlie. Sure enough, the civilization shard started buzzing with energy.
The shard illuminated the circle in bright red light, overwhelming the late morning sun, until it shot a laser, like a spotlight, straight up, piercing the delicate clouds that innocently drifted by. The red light stopped abruptly at an invisible barrier that Coop assumed was the limit of the settlement’s territory. Then the red color started to spread along an invisible dome, like syrup coating a candy apple, blanketing the outside of the settlement’s territory in liquid energy produced by mana. When it reached the surface of the ocean, the glassy red mana continued down, undisturbed. It penetrated the ground underneath them, forming a perfect sphere around the territory. Balor had been the one to emphasize that the territory was three dimensional, and this was visual proof for anyone that hadn’t figured it out on their own.
A few more seconds went by while everyone waited for the sphere to complete, then they were bombarded by system notifications.
[Settlement Event: Siege - Initiated]
[Temporary Leaderboards Available]
[000:59:56]
[049:59:56]
[099:59:56]
[149:59:56]
[199:59:56]
[249:59:56]
[299:59:56]
[349:59:56]
[399:59:56]
[449:59:56]
[499:59:56]
Coop scrolled through a bunch of timers that were counting down together. There were so many of them it seemed like the system’s user interface had bugged out. They practically overlapped with each other, and even when he closed his notifications with a mental nudge, the timers remained in the periphery of his vision. It was a jumbled mess.
The people around him started murmuring in confusion. Coop looked at the girls, but they were both looking just as confused while they checked their notifications. Clearly, it wasn’t just his interface that seemed bugged. He checked these new leaderboards, curious and excited about having more ways to compete. If Coop had a guilty pleasure it was seeing his name on lists.
Siege Event Settlement Scores:
1. Ghost Reef - 0 (x48828125)
2. Shinjuku Gardens - 0 (x125)
3. Neon Park - 0 (x125)
4. Windy Coast - 0 (x125)
5. Aotearoa New Zealand - 0 (x125)
6. New Elega - 0 (x125)
7. Al Khalubad - 0 (x125)
8. Odense - 0 (x125)
9. Bakilon - 0 (x125)
10. Toledo - 0 (x125)
Coop was surprised to see they were already number one, he thought that must be good and a proud smirk crept onto his face. Ghost Reef’s numbers actually spilled over the edge of his vision. He wondered what the numbers represented, and a mental query told him that they were ‘Challenge Assessments’ based on the difficulty of each settlements’ encounters. Scrolling through the list, other than Ghost Reef, every single settlement had been assessed x125, x25, or x5. Coop’s smirk quickly disappeared as he started changing his mind about it being good to start at the top.
Coop scrolled through the settlements and eventually found Empress City, ranked 504 with a x5 multiplier. It was actually near the bottom as only 649 settlements were listed. Quite a few civilization shards had been lost even before the first event had a chance to begin.
There was another leaderboard titled ‘Individual Scores’ that tallied individual contributions among all the settlements, but the list hadn’t been populated yet. Coop was feeling motivated to get the show on the road, planning on topping both lists if he could. There was nothing like the threat of a long grind and a bit of friendly competition to get a junkie like him going.
He waved away all his notifications and looked around the town circle once again. The mood had taken a turn, it went from the anticipation of a final exam to feeling like he was attending a funeral. The other residents had gone from motivated or worried to panicked or forlorn. The Challenge Assessment was certainly troubling.
The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
Coop was trying to think of some inspiring words to say to dispel the concern in the atmosphere, but before he came up with anything, Vronk burst onto the main street from his bakery. Even the alien ogre looked worried as he hefted a basket over his head.
“Eat Vronk bread! Big buff!” He bellowed toward the town circle from down the street. Sunny jogged over, oblivious to the tension, and some people followed, not wanting to miss out on the spontaneous giveaway.
Coop was starting to follow as he exchanged looks with Charlie and Camila. At least they didn’t seem to be completely shaken by all the rather arbitrary numbers. They’d just have to see whatever came, no matter what the numbers said.
He stopped walking when Maeve came out of the tavern and announced that the stew was on the house for everyone fighting. She propped the door open and her welcoming smile was more anxious than Coop had ever seen.
“Oy! We got another batch of last minute weapons!” Coop spun around as Garod and a few aliens he hadn’t met, announced themselves while they pushed iron carts hastily filled with their most recent creations across the bridge.
Erasimus Doomthread was jogging into the town circle from his boutique to the west, arms full of fabrics, and Sojjah and Olani were both coming from the east carrying packs and pouches, followed by Caisalya with a basket full of roots and flowers. In the distance behind them, Coop watched as curtains of stone unfurled along the walls of the library, covering every window and turning the massive structure into a solid black stone, glowing with deep blue, blood red, and purple runes. The alien residents were clearly spooked.
“Marcus!” Coop got his advisor’s attention, he was standing in a daze just like everyone else. “You should probably go comfort Zakronaw. Maybe ask him what’s up?”
“Ah, right. I’ll come to the wall after I check in with him.” Marcus said as he turned on his heel and headed to the town hall.
Balor burst out of the tavern, through the gap Maeve made on her way out, leaving before he could have finished off more than four or five mugs of ale for the day. Coop hustled over to grab him. “Hey Balor!” He called out as he grabbed his stone shoulder. “What’s got everyone so excited?”
“Listen lad, there’s no shame in retreating. I think you’d have a good shot at making it to another settlement. You’re strong enough.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You know I haven’t been on any baby planets, but I’ve bet on assimilations from time to time, and I’ve never seen such an absurd challenge assessment. Desmond has been through many assimilations himself, and even he was… disturbed.” The dwarf grabbed a fist full of his beard nervously. “It must be a mistake, but the Great Golem is infallible…” He shook his head as if he didn’t want to contemplate it anymore. “I can still reinforce the area around the shard before it starts. It’ll give any last stand a better chance.”
Coop glanced over at the shard in the center of the town circle, exposed as it was. “Should we move it somewhere safer?”
Balor shook his head, “It’s in a good spot, central to the defenses.”
“We could bury it.” Coop suggested.
Balor squinted at the ground for a few moments before responding. “I don’t think that would be a good idea. It would be better if we constructed a citadel right where it is, but there’s no time. I’ll get some final barriers built before the wave starts.” He raised an arm to pat Coop on the back. “Good luck, Champion.”
Coop watched as Balor stomped away, faster than Coop had ever seen him move. This was very different from when the settlement ownership was challenged. Back then, it was clear that the system prevented the contracted residents from being directly involved in their conflict by putting them on lockdown. Only Brewbot managed to be an exception to the system’s restrictions.
However, when the threat came from the planetary sponsor, the contracted residents could help as long as they didn’t physically fight. They were essentially a resource for the settlement to use against the Primal Constructs, that was the entire point of the system making them available. They still might not be able to get directly involved, but they could add their support to his side between events.
Coop had done his best to prepare for anything by gathering as much power as possible, but it was looking like he hadn’t done enough, if he went by the reactions of the residents. He grimly checked the first timer.
[000:51:23]
—
Platinum scanned the horizon for any more enemies. The Ruin Gargoyles that dominated the skies were a constant annoyance, but they had them firmly under control thanks to daily patrols. She let her glowing bracers fade and admired the view. The skyline of what used to be New York City was still recognizable, even if it was slightly changed.
She tied her silver, not platinum, hair back and gave a two finger salute to the Statue of Liberty in the distance. She was still standing strong and was greener than ever, covered in thick creeping vines of ivy that had also claimed many buildings downtown, turning the City into more of a strangely paved jungle with block shaped vegetation.
They had worked hard to maintain as many of the buildings as they could. It had given even the weakest residents purpose in the face of the apocalypse and brought communities together when they could have easily descended into conflict in the initial confusion.
She carefully aimed her finger at the center of an intersection 100 stories below before she used one of her solidlight abilities to momentarily create a sturdy beam of light. She jumped off the building, gripping the beam even as it faded, using it to direct her fall. Her solidlights weren’t permanent, and one as long as this only remained for a second, maybe two, at most.
Before she hit the street, she slowed her fall with a series of solidlight sheets that shattered like glass as she passed through them. For her, it was like passing through nothing more than air, but for anyone else they were as hard as steel. The sheets reduced her momentum enough that she wouldn’t put any more potholes in the streets with her landings. She didn’t want to be scolded by any block leaders again.
It still sounded like a meteor had fallen when she hit the ground.
“Hey!” Someone yelled at her. “I’m walkin’ here!”
“What are you, a tourist? You know the rules!” She yelled back without hesitation.
The pedestrian dismissively waved at her, getting back on the sidewalk. He knew he wasn’t supposed to be in the middle of the street. Most of the others didn’t even stop when Platinum landed in the intersection. Ruin Gargoyles weren’t afraid of swooping down to snatch someone not expecting it, so people were meant to stay near the buildings where the monsters had a harder time attacking. They were already getting lax thanks to the success they had in suppressing the invaders. Platinum shook her head.
The Gargoyles grew in density with elevation. By the time anyone reached 100 floors, they had to be ready for fighting almost exclusively against elite variants. More hid within the passing clouds, beyond the buildings, but humans had reclaimed the ground levels. The respawns inside the buildings were constantly patrolled. The City was in a much better situation than the borders beyond Yonkers or Newark, but they had only become part of the settlement’s territory after the last upgrade. They’d get those other invaders under control soon enough.
Platinum headed to the train station down the block. She was eager to find out more about this event. She glanced at the countdowns in her peripheral vision.
[099:11:26]
[299:11:26]
[499:11:26]
She didn’t waste any energy wondering what they meant, counting on her partner in crime to have some explanation ready for her.
The stations and their tunnels were all lit like nightclubs thanks to the abilities that had been used to chase away the darkness. She greeted the guards and started the long walk through the tunnels downtown to Brooklyn. Thousands and thousands of people had already been set up in the tunnels, but they still overflowed to the surface. It was safe enough up top, now that the settlement had expanded as much as it had, but no one went more than two or three floors up unless they were looking for a fight with respawned monsters.
The shard had allowed them to build extensive residences underground, along the tunnels and basements, until they could reclaim the surface. It would have been an impossible effort if they had to construct everything themselves, but it had still taken all of their collective resources to establish that much.
Residents greeted her as she went past. Ironically, she was more famous now than she had been when she was actually chasing fame. Eventually, she got tired of the attention, so she put a solidlight visor over her eyes and started shooting thin beams into the ceiling to pull herself forward like she had a pair of grappling hooks. Ten minutes later she was at their headquarters.
“Neon! I’m back!” She announced. “What’s with these timers?”
A crash of books indicated that he had heard her and was rushing out of his lodge. Neon was the bartender at the nightclub that she DJ’d in their past lives. The eccentric guy was the one that claimed the civilization shard when they accidentally stumbled upon it. He actually owned the club, and was some kind of nepo baby, but she thought he was cool. He was a solid roommate at least, though he owned the entire building they lived in as well.
The pair of them actually missed the apocalypse, still inside of his club while it happened, and were walking home after the power had gone out and all the trains stopped. The meteors that demolished portions of the city weren’t immediately visible and they didn’t discover the flooded channels until the next day.
Instead, they found a shard all by itself in a tiny park. Neon was the kind of dumbass that immediately touched a strange glowing crystal, so now he was the Champion, even going as far as naming the settlement after his alter ego and his nightclub.
The arbitrary name and location of the shard saved them early on, when Chosen of the Grand Authority faction coordinated with an army of former cops in riot gear for an assault on Central Park, where masses had gathered, intending to take control of the City ‘for the greater good’ and believing rumors that the shard was located there.
Everyone knew where it was now, but no one dared to try and take it anymore, not after Platinum and Neon’s classes and skills became more notorious.
“It’s the settlement events!” Neon rushed out. “I totally forgot! It said something about events when I claimed the thing. You remember I had a few too many that time…”
“But what is it counting down to?” Platinum asked and waited before she rolled her eyes, realizing Neon had no idea. “Well, what have you been doing? I thought you’d have figured it out by now.”
“I’ve been trying to figure out the challenge assessment thingy.”
“Oh? Is Ghost Reef totally screwed or what?” Platinum giggled, not particularly worried about Neon Park and not caring about some other suspicious sounding settlement.
“Totally, unbelievably, screwed.” Neon confirmed. “It’s like an error occurred somewhere, statistically there shouldn’t be such an outlier.”
“Who cares though, right? Sounds like an Undead settlement anyway.” Platinum scrunched her face. “Good riddance.”
They had dealt with an individual Chosen of an undead faction who was simply called Ghoul, early on. He had been eating people on Coney Island, trying to power level himself. Apparently, he had shapeshifter powers that improved as he leveled, but they caught him before he got out of control. It made quite the spectacle when Platinum and Neon publicly teamed up and served as a powerful deterrent against other trouble makers.
Neon pressed his glasses to his nose, even if he didn’t need them anymore, and flipped through the pages of a nearby book. Platinum recognized the pages as maps. “I’m not so sure. This info is a few years old, but there were actually 11 places called Ghost Reef before the apocalypse. Eight of them were actual, underwater reefs, but one was a small town in Colorado, another was a coastal village in Australia, and the other was an uninhabited island chain off of Florida.”
“Colorado?” Platinum thought that Ghost Reef was a strange name for a place with no coast.
Neon looked up from his book. “I dunno, maybe it’s named after some fossils or something.”
“Alright, so what about us? Do we need to get ready for something? Looks like we got a few days.”
“I’ve already sent messages to the borough commanders. The event says it’s a siege, so we’re preparing defensive plan theta: unknown, possibly alien enemies. We’ll be able to coordinate with the Niagara-Toronto alliance, they only have a x5 multiplier each, so their timers are staggered from ours. We can help each other.” Neon paused. “Actually, can you go? They’d appreciate us sending our big guns.”
Platinum sighed. “I mean, I guess…” Traveling outside of the settlements was annoying at best. The monsters had extremely variable power levels in between territories already, and every day seemed worse. She was among the strongest on the planet and she dreaded meeting some of the wild elites that existed between settlements. They were lucky Neon Park’s territory had expanded so much, thanks to the population, but there were still expansive no-go zones in between theirs and other settlement territories.
“Perfect, perfect. I’ve also sent offers to exchange defensive resources to Cherry Hill, they’ll pass it down the line. The refugees from the lost Granite State shard are still sweeping Long Island. Beantown’s caravan is still here, and they’re on board with coordinating defenses.”
Platinum snorted at Boston’s moniker. It seemed like Neon was in his element. She never would have guessed he had it in him before the apocalypse. He wasn’t even that good of a bartender. “Did you ever think you’d end up playing politician?”
Neon looked displeased. “It’s what father wanted me to do. I tried to escape that life, but maybe it was destiny.”
“Nah, there’s no such thing. You just do whatever you want, and if you don’t want to keep being Champion, we can just leave. I bet that Ghost Reef place is desperate for help right about now.”