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CH 52: Hourglass
🕑 Added 2024-12-10 15:00:00 +0000 UTC
-{///} Finola {///}-
Finola bit her nails. The report on her desk was impossible to misinterpret.
Sanctuary's pending quest had finally been assigned. They'd had another, impossible difficulty increase. They had a prodigy that hadn't yet gone to the damn beacon to awaken themselves. They had a Lord Candidate that was a potential progenitor in her own right.
Finola was happy about the Lord Candidate, at least. This Sara Calderwall had been either bright or skilled enough to negotiate a private contract with the consortium - predicated on her becoming a lord. And the young woman had already taken her first steps on that path to consolidate power. She'd even implemented a contract with one of her own compatriots that made the hair on the back of Finola's neck curl. It made the competitive part of her brain itch for a chance to negotiate head-to-head with the young prodigy. Sara was a true powerhouse in the making. Her level growth, though inconsistent, was phenomenal. Her skill was even more impressive. Finola had browsed the records, and found no real mention of Pathfinder anywhere. If Sara rose to power with it, she would be the first to do so.
It was every other bit of news that had Finola chewing on her fingertips. The self-affixation prodigy not fully awakening was an issue. If they were stuck on the planet while everyone else attended the tutorial, questions would inevitably come. Investigations might start, and the burnout beacons could be discovered. This person was a potential boon if they would just go and get themselves awakened. If they didn't... Finola and everyone else would have to ask why. And then heads would roll.
But the worst news of all was still developing. After the last difficulty increase, Sanctuary's next quest was pending for a long time. Too long.
Pending quests only happened in the very rare cases when the system needed more time to process variables, when it was locally overloaded with other events, or when it was expending power to ensure a complex set of variables were ready before it moved a quest line forward. Earth didn't have enough going on to overload it, nor did it or the local area have anything that would create a high-variable situation. The assigned quest confirmed her suspicion.
The tutorial could carry people through quite a bit of G grade. During that time, they'd grow in power while the beast zones on their planet evolved into proper domains. Once the tutorial finished, they'd be given a domain target. Conquering that target would solidify a group's position and prove their power. Domain wars were as bog-standard as the tutorial itself - like power consolidation wars, or exo-solar beast invasions, or the cosmic conflict debut - it was just something that happened to newly awakened planets the same way, every time.
It was simple, established fact. Event quests were introduced in the tutorial, and people only got their first real taste of them once a tutorial was complete. Domain quests... they were impossible to even have prior to a tutorial. The creatures one needed to kill to complete those quests were often at the peak of G grade. And a domain couldn't be fully established by beasts unless people weren't around. There was simply no way for that challenge to happen naturally.
To make this insanity possible, Finola suspected the system had forcibly increased the power given to this Crimson Titan and all of its forces. Based on the outlandish nature of the situation and the time it took the system to empower their foes... she didn't like the odds of the humans winning this fight.
Finola had an option to save her investment in Earth - to keep Sara Calderwall from an early death. An interdiction was hellishly expensive - so much so that the consortium would need to skip an awakening cycle to afford it. But it was possible, and there was a precedent for using an interdiction to salvage investments when situations had gone awry. Loz'ar's grandfather had used one to stop a colony of magma wurms from setting off a planet-killing caldera eruption. And that wasn't even for a potential progenitor.
She could do it. But using the interdiction would put everything on Earth and everything with Sanctuary into an even brighter light. There would be an executive review of her actions, and no way to hide her beacon tampering. Feigning ignorance and showing enough involvement to call for an interdiction would be impossible opposites. She wanted to scream. Loz'ar was a pragmatist at heart. He would logically agree with her decision to call for the interdiction. He may even support the idea of the beacon burnouts. But she'd kept everything until now a secret from him - and that he would not abide.
Finola would lose her position. She'd be fined by the consortium - or worse. She looked through Earth's historic projections. The planet's sapient species hadn't even been around as long as she'd been working for Loz'ar - and she would lose all of that work if she saved them.
Earth was rich with opportunity, balanced on the edge of a knife. Finola's hand hovered over the request. One tap. She could make one small motion that would ensure the survival of the potential progenitor, and the prodigy, and maybe even the planet. The projected price was immensely steep. It could take tens of thousands of years to recoup the costs. But the effect would be immediate - the system acted near-instantaneously when an interdiction request was sent. It would all be done in a flash.
And so would her career.
She angrily jabbed her hand out to close the request - then brought up another screen. Saving Sanctuary and Earth wasn't the only option.
Finola ignored the half measures and navigated to the one that mattered - slagging the planet. She'd argued against it, of course - but calling for it now would cover up evidence of the beacon burnout. It would ensure she wasn't investigated. Earth would be seen as a bad investment, a bad planet. But one bad planet over a record of hundreds was a fluke. An acceptable loss.
She made herself a promise. Finola was going to watch this battle closely. She was going to pay the cost of real-time quest data until it was done. And if Sara and Sanctuary looked like they were going to lose or flee - Finola would turn the Earth to glass.
--
+ Reid +
Hostilities will begin in 0d 0h 39m 12s...
Walt sprinted over to Reid with the walkie talkie outstretched in his hand.
"Marlene needed to talk to you."
The plastic brick clicked with static as Reid thumbed the button.
"Marlene, it's Reid. What's up?"
Reid could hear a commotion in the background when the speaker flicked on. "We're going to be delayed here, Reid. We gave the damn 'ports too much rope. They stole two vans and crashed them into the barrier. Other drivers tried to follow them out. It's a mess back here, like a train crash. Walt said the salamanders are probing the barrier by you. If they start moving towards us, I need you to find a way - a SAFE way - to keep them focused on you. At least till we can get things righted here. People see them now, they're going to panic and make things even harder to untangle."
Reid watched another pair of salamanders crash into the barrier. "Copy. How's Sara?"
"Are you by yourself?"
Reid suppressed the urge to run back to his daughter. "Hang on."
He hopped down from the wall and walked away from the bustling crowd. Despite the time they'd already had, the group had been slow to move the vehicles and refugees over to the rear gate. It gave Reid a new appreciation for the drills Marlene had set up for everyone. If it was just Sanctuary, they could've been ready and waiting at the other side of the settlement by now. Reid turned down the volume. "I'm alone. What's wrong?"
"She's been calm, Reid. And quiet. Like she's already started to give up. I don't like it. I'm keeping an eye on her, but Reid - the contract is going to stop me from intervening if she needs it. I won't be able to tell her no. I can tell you if something happens, but that's about it."
The plastic shell on the walkie talkie cracked. Reid forced himself to relax his grip. "Understood."
#
To the right of the gate, Marysa planted colored flags in the ground.
Reid wasn't keen on the idea of anyone being out in front of the wall, but the woman was insistent. The flags were just bits of rags on metal stakes, and she was using them to mark lethal distance for their archers. White showed where someone might be able to get an eye socket kill. Brown was bodkin penetration range. And yellow, orange, and red showed the effective distances for broadheads.
Reid thought they were all far too close to the wall. They had other ranged weapons, of course. Mark had a pile of throwing spears - enough to share. Many of the squads had long guns scavenged from the armory or from the corpses of Bertrand's army - and they'd use those at the longest ranges once fighting started. But the arrows were the only ranged weapons that could reliably punch through skulls. Everything else needed the luck it would take to land a hit through an eye.
Marysa finished up her work, and started back towards the gate. Reid watched an elite track her. When she climbed the ladder back up over the wall - the gate wasn't opening for anyone, on Reid's orders - the elite vocalized a series of water pops.
It emerged from the larger group with at least fifty of the regulars following behind. The elite kept eyes on the gate, and stalked around the edge of the barrier. It moved slowly, cautiously- in the direction of Sara and the rear gate.
Oh fuck.
The salamanders had shown rudimentary intelligence, and watching Marysa Enter the gate had made them focus on finding their own way around. Or they were fixated on Marysa because she'd moved in front of them, and needed another person to distract them away from Sanctuary's rear. Reid hoped it was the latter.
Reid swore out loud. “Get me a quad.”
The ATV roared as Reid thumbed the throttle. He made sure the thing still wasn't in gear and let go of the clutch.
Behind him, Sanctuary defenders stared out from the wall. Short ahead, a group of low leveled salamanders were flinging themselves against the barrier.
Reid's hunch had thankfully worked. Riding out to the group that was slowly starting to circle them, then moving back towards the salamander main group managed to take the flanking group's attention and got them to re-join the main salamander forces.
Reid let go of the throttle and walked away from the still-running ATV.
The salamanders followed Reid and ignored the noisy engine. Reid swore. Best case scenario was that they'd pay attention to the noisy thing and allow him to retreat. Less best case scenario was that he stayed by the barrier, and kept their attention himself.
The timer ticked down. A walkie talkie squawked at his waist.
“It's only part working, Walt. I need to stay here for a bit or they're going to get distracted and try to circle around again. Keep everyone else up top.“
He got his affirmation, and turned back to the rippling barrier ahead. Dozens of Teeth and claws tried to tear into the invisible wall. To get to him.
Reid could almost see it. Those same features grappling for Sanctuary's defenders. Tearing apart the teenagers holding bows. Seeking out Sara and Susan.
The fight was inevitable. The encirclement, he could prevent.
Reid planted Requiem in the ground, and cut the ATV's engine. He'd start it back up when things got closer to the start.
Hostilities will begin in 0d 0h 11m 02s...
10 more minutes, and the barrier would drop. He could wait for that, then get back to the walls.
He could wait.
#
At the four minute mark, something truly interesting happened. The Crimson titan let out a series of guttural sounds, and an elite trudged forward through the smaller salamanders. It stopped just in front of the barrier, and stared Reid down.
The elite vocalized, and all the salamanders near the wall retreated back to the group.
Did the thing want to fight him in single combat? It definitely seemed that way.
Fuck it, worth a try.
At the one minute mark, Reid notified Walt of his new intention, then switched off the walkie talkie and put it on the ATV. He started it back up and let it idle. He took a quick look at his status for the first time in a while.
--
STATUS
Name: Reid Oliver Calderwall
Affiliation: "Earth"
Race: Human
Grade: G
Level: 12
Health: 350/ 350
Experience: 84,119 / 102,400
STATS:
Constitution: 35
Dexterity: 2
Intelligence: 6
Perception: 11
Power: 35
Control: 70
Stat Upgrade Points: ERROR
SKILLS:
Strengthening [Basic]
Hardening [Common]
Calcification [Uncommon]
Petrification [Rare] (CORRUPTED)
Skill Upgrade Points: ERROR
ENHANCEMENTS:
Osteal Smithing Journeyman (Calcification)
RESISTANCES:
Substances - Sedatives
Active Skill Effects- All
RESTRICTED:
???: UNAVAILABLE
???: UNAVAILABLE
--
His body tingled in anticipation. He wasn't sure how far the creature’s logic went, but every salamander save for the Elite was still back with the rest of the line. The ATV was ready if he'd gotten it wrong.
Reid shifted his grip and held the mace like a sledgehammer.
Requiem had killed level 12s back when it was still a shovel.
Reid craned his neck up to face the elite.
It was time to see what it was capable of now.
2s… 1s… 0
The opaque wall shimmered out of existence.
And the crimson titan roared.
