by R. H. Tang
Julian stared. He'd typed out "other pros" without thinking about it. He hadn't wanted to reveal that it was Tigger. He supposed he really did think of himself as a professional now, if only just subconsciously. After all, he'd been one of the four "kings of the hill" after today's play, and he'd come by the position honestly, defeating a seemingly psychic player with a massive fifty-plus game winning streak.
Did he really want to risk it just to protect some beginners?
Every part of Julian wanted to crush Liefield like a bug, but Tigger was right. Even with the perfect account sharing equipment, there was still a real risk.
Tigger's friend knocked on the door, and the older man let him in. Tigger's friend was the same age as him, but while Tigger himself had gone to seed, his friend looked like he was nearly as strong as Tyler.
His muscles bulged against his dress shirt. He had a stern and somewhat dour face which, in conjunction with his muscular body, immediately reminded Julian of the older martial arts masters from the movies his dad loved.
The two spoke quickly in Chinese, but to Julian's shame, he could only pick up a few words.
He hadn't paid any attention when his parents sent him off to classes on weekends. It'd be better if Edwin were here. Out of the three of them, he'd been the only one good at learning. That was probably why he was a teacher now.
The man took a seat in the back and handed the box to the front.
Tigger let out a satisfied sigh as he smelled the food.
"Do you mind if I start eating?"
"Yeah."
"Do you speak Chinese?"
"Not really."
Tigger chuckled.
"My kids are the same."
Julian pulled out a burger, peeled back the familiar wrapping paper, and started chomping down. An inadvertent smile burst to his face. The food was absolutely delicious, and it reminded him of his childhood and all the long nights he'd spent playing games with Felix and Edwin. They'd been good friends their whole lives, but Overdrive had taken it to another level. It'd kept them in touch throughout college.
If they'd gotten smashed by Liefield when they just started playing, they might have quit.
Tigger's friend reached out a hand from the backseat, and Julian took it.
"Hi. My name is Charles. Are you the player who is going to fight?"
His English was good but very measured. He spoke quite slowly, carefully selecting every word. He must have changed languages so that Julian could understand him.
"I think so."
Charles nodded.
"I understand. It's tough. I don't think it will be a big risk. But there is a risk."
He turned to Tigger.
"I've been looking at the video all day. I'm not sure what the best strategy is. We clearly need some sort of specialty item, but no such thing exists in the shop. It's even worse with only two people."
Tigger nodded grimly.
"My best idea so far is a gravity core to destroy the stage. That would get rid of the terrain and also destroy his accomplice, but it'd affect the teammate. And if we came in with an obvious gravity combo, he might just kick us out. By the way, Julian hasn't seen the clip yet. Do you mind?"
The muscular man handed over an iPad. Julian wiped his greasy fingers off on the napkin and then took it.
"The code is 4328."
Julian unlocked.
"First video."
"Oh, no."
He cursed as soon as it started playing.
It was obvious what had happened.
The field that Liefield picked was perfect for the Heaven's Boxer's abilities. The Mandate System—one of the Heaven's Boxer's three rule-shattering abilities—allowed the golden Mech to command every NPC unit on the stage. He'd picked the one with an infinite number of NPC units.
It was literally impossible to clear March of Grunts. The Grunts just kept coming and coming until you died. By combining the Mandate System and Challenge System, Liefield essentially took over as the map's final boss, a final boss with an infinite army at his disposal.
Tigger's friend nodded grimly.
"Yeah."
The video went on, showing the mostly barren new player's lobby. Before, new player lobbies were almost immediately filled up. Now, the guidance missions took almost fifteen to twenty minutes before firing.
"Pause for a moment?"
Julian stopped it.
"So The Mechanical King talks a big game about it in interviews and how it's a great new feature, but he actually hates the guidance missions. He thinks it's insulting because we're replacing the in-game tutorial mode. I had an interview where I mentioned the guidance system and how I loved using it to grow the game. I got a private message from him telling me never to talk that way again. The Overdrive Corporation grew the game, not the players."
TiggerLuvr scoffed.
"In a way, this lets him kill two birds with one stone. He gets to test the Boxer and also make the guidance games look bad. Liefield is partnered up with this guy—Diamantic—who has a five-star rating."
Tigger sighed.
"Diamantic seemed like a pretty good guy. He probably just got paid off."
The three of them in the car couldn't exactly blame him. They all wanted to make money playing Overdrive.
Julian remembered how hard Captain Maxwell and Emma worked to set up the Forever Fortress then got angry again as he looked at the empty new player's lobby.
There was a bulletin recruiting new players for the Forever Fortress, but almost nobody joined.
With his blood boiling, the answer seemed obvious. It was worth the risk.
He had to stop Liefield. If Julian used a motion rig, they probably wouldn't get caught, right? Besides, the Heaven's Boxer rightfully belonged to him, and the amazing Mech would virtually guarantee his victory in the Selection.
Then he wondered if he'd still feel this way tomorrow. The rational voice in his head kept telling him it wasn't worth it.
"So what can we even do? Can't he just keep sending Grunts at us until he runs us over?"
"Yes and no—he's forced to display the Boxer to activate the Forced Battle System. In addition, he has to stay within a certain range to use the Mandate System. That means it's technically possible to hit him. We just haven't figured out a strategy yet. I'll give you some paper notes once we're done. Don't put them on your phone."
Apparently, Tigger thought that the spy meant a digital document was too much of a risk.
Tigger shook his head.
"The doc is nice, but we haven't come up with anything good enough yet. Play the video. Maybe you'll see something."
Julian wasn't sure about that. If Tigger couldn't see a way out of this, Julian didn't know who could. He'd learned to strategize by watching the brilliant pilot.
Tigger could tell that Julian was getting discouraged.
"Hey. Don't forget about your trick with the Minesweeper today. I probably wouldn't have come up with that."
Julian wasn't sure if Tigger was being entirely honest, but the compliment still felt good.
He hit play again and returned to the video.
The match started. The party of four contained Liefield, Diamantic, and their two victims.
The March of Grunts mission took place on Scrapyard, a mass grave of defeated Mechs. The destroyed frames coalesced into a towering mountain, providing the perfect vantage point for the mission's challengers. In addition, the crumpled Grunt frames also formed a pair of walls stretching out to the other end of the stage, preventing any escape. Despite the infinite store of opponents, Scrapyard was a very narrow stage.
The cramped corridors meant that mass-fire units could consistently obliterate Grunts. The typical Grunt slaying role of mass-fire Mechs was significantly enhanced on Scrapyard. Most ideal team compositions consisted of pairing powerful spread damage attackers with highly defensive bodyguard units.
Unfortunately, the endless numbers meant that nobody could last forever, not even with the
perfect team composition.
Julian only saw Liefield because he knew to observe carefully. As soon as the match started, the Heaven's Boxer flickered away, vanishing with the Reality Step. Only the vaguest glint of gold showed where he'd hidden at the edge of the map.
"Does he hide there for the whole time?"
Julian doubted it.
If Liefield did, it'd be too easy to just obliterate him with a long-range attack like a rocket launcher as soon as he activated the Challenge System.
"No, he just hides there until the enemy is weakened. Then he uses the Challenge System once people hit beneath 20% on every part—he basically treats himself as an in-game boss."
Dang.
Not only would they have to battle past the Heaven's Boxer and an unending army of Grunts, but they also had to do it with crippled machines.
Diamantic was using a basic Guardian X Grunt armed with a machinegun, a beam sword, and a shield. Julian was confident that the seasoned player could afford better parts, but Liefield's goal was to weaken the opponents. His accomplice didn't want to offer too much help.
The two victims were wondering what'd happened to their Ace player.
"Hey. What happened to that guy? I didn't even see his Mech."
"Yeah, didn't he say he had a super strong and super-secret machine?"
Diamantic lied through his teeth.
"Beats me. I think he must have disconnected or something. He's not showing for me, either. The good news is we should be able to handle the early levels ourselves. The beginner Grunts are pretty easy."
The Guardian X holstered its weapons.
"Take the lead! I'll provide tips!"
The first player was using a bright red artillery-focused Spell Titan, and the second had an orange swordsman Paragon. It reminded Julian a little of when he and Edwin had first started playing. The two of them used colors like that too.
Julian grew even angrier.
The two beginners were just using basic Ace-type Mechs. The Mechs you received once you joined Overdrive were good, high-quality machines. After all, in a game about awesome Mechs, you wouldn't want to leave anyone out in the cold when they first started. But they weren't anything special compared to what an experienced player like Liefield could get—they averaged about a B-rank in terms of their statistics.
It was so frustrating.
Liefield was doing this just to be a bully.
The two machines bravely fired at the approaching army, but they were only beginners. They made it through the first wave, but by the middle of the second, smoke and flames billowed from the two severely damaged Mechs.
"Hey, can you help us out?"
"Things are getting pretty tough!"
Golden words flashed across the screen.
REALITY SHAPING—CHALLENGE SYSTEM ACTIVATED
The Heaven's Boxer burst onto the screen, soaring high in the air.
"What is that?"
"Is that a mini-boss?"
Liefield lied through his teeth, pretending to be an NPC.
"Yes, you must accept. This is the final challenge!"
The two friends accepted before realizing it was a bet battle. Julian guessed that Diamantic would step in if anyone asked any questions.
He'd probably just point out that they had no choice. The Challenge System meant that if the players logged out, they'd automatically lose their machines.
Strangely, Liefield hadn't made any customizations in the last two months. The Mech looked identical to when Julian had first seen it during the Raid on Colony Seven mission. The Status screen was the same as well, without any additions to its parts or statistics. Perhaps he was saving up for a full upgrade. If Julian found an awesome Mech like the Heaven's Boxer, he'd be afraid to customize it and mess things up. It'd be better to request adjustments from a skilled crafter like Emma.
The Guardian X drew its machinegun. There were two echoing bursts, and then the red and orange Mechs both lost their heads.
Even though he was watching a video rather than playing himself, Julian cursed.
Diamantic's treacherous attack had blinded both of the beginners.
"Dude! What did you just do?"
"Wait, what? What's wrong with you? Why did you shoot us?"
Diamantic sighed.
"Sorry."
The Heaven's Boxer raised its fist high into the air.
MANDATE SYSTEM ACTIVATED
Grunts swarmed the entire screen, blocking out every single inch of the playing field. It was just a single shifting mechanical mass.
Julian thought that'd be bad enough.
But the Mandate System even allowed Liefield to control the dead Grunts in the mound and walls. Technically, they were built from NPC Mechs.
It was like something out of a Zombie movie. Hands rose from the mountain and pulled the two Mechs inside as the walls closed in around them.
Liefield cackled.
"Here's a tip new guys—don't bite off more than you can chew! I would strongly suggest not battling someone with my strength. You should have known what you were doing!"
He spoke entirely seriously, as if he hadn't used the Challenge System to lure the new player into an unwinnable battle.
What a jerk.
But as the army surged forward, fear swallowed Julian's anger.
How was he supposed to win?
Julian's food felt like it was losing its taste.
March of Grunts was deliberately built to be unbeatable.
Despite all their skills, what could he and Tigger possibly do?
12
After they finished eating, Julian returned to his hotel room and shot Emma a text apologizing for being late and telling her that he was available now.
She excitedly replied that she was coming over.
Julian smiled briefly as Emma's enthusiasm pushed away his trepidation. He was really excited to meet her in person.
He switched over to message Tyler about what had happened to the Heaven's Boxer, then caught himself. Tigger warned him not to put anything down in a digital message.
Julian shook his head in disbelief.
It was just so absurd.
Who was hacking pro players?
He groaned and buried his hands in his face again.
What was going on?
He'd come to the Selection to get better at Overdrive and become a Fortress Master. He didn't want to deal with all this nonsense!
He pulled out Tigger's notes and tried calming himself down.
During his Overdrive matches, he knew how important it was to maintain task focus. One of Julian's biggest weaknesses was that he constantly second-guessed himself. When he was making his approach, he had to focus wholeheartedly on reaching the enemy position. He couldn't waste his time on distracting thoughts like wishing he'd brought different items or how things would be easier if they spawned on a better stage.
This was the same.
He had to pick and choose what to focus on.
There was no chance of him uncovering the hacker. All he could do was make sure not to send anything over text.
Phillips's mysterious abilities were the same. As strange as they were, Julian had already reached his limit thinking about them. Part of him still suspected that she was cheating, but perhaps Tigger was right, and there was an in-game explanation. It certainly didn't seem possible to cheat on the Overdrive Corporation's equipment.
Either way, he wasn't likely to find out more. His Minesweeper trick had won him the match, but it hadn't revealed any additional clues.
Trying to figure out Liefield's March of Grunts map was his best bet. As difficult as it was, at least he had some sort of lead.
He spread Tigger's paper notes across his desk. He and Charles had filled about ten pages each with possible ideas, but most of them had been instantly dismissed. The two friends had shockingly similar handwriting. They both wrote in neat and precise block letters, a big difference from Julian's messy scrawl. The writing made him feel s
urprisingly comfortable. Julian's dad wrote the same way. It might have been a first-generation immigrant thing. His parents were determined to do everything correctly.
At the top of the page, Tigger mentioned that ideally, they'd complete the mission as soon as possible.
There were two forms of pressure. First, Tigger wanted to stop Liefield's bullying streak. As the big man always said, new players were the lifeblood of the game. Ruining anyone's game experience was unacceptable. In addition, they'd ideally stop Liefield before The Mechanical King's information embargo on the Reality Shapers expired. Once Liefield's victims were free to talk, everyone would be hunting for the golden Heaven's Boxer. Liefield would almost certainly change his scheme.
Despite Tigger and Charles's in-depth exploration, there was no perfect fit. The usual March of Grunts strategy of pairing a mass-fire Mech with a bulky bodyguard was utterly useless against Liefield's altered mission. The goal wasn't to destroy as many Grunts as possible—it was to defeat Liefield before his enormous army destroyed your Mech.
A mass-fire unit would never work. Their Mechs would go down just like Polygon's had when it tried to fight Phillips's Power of Nine. The highly specialized machines lacked the mobility to survive against the sniper units available in the later rounds.
Charles's favorite idea was bringing a highly mobile assassin-type unit. The stealthy Mechs were dedicated to trading one-for-one and immediately eliminating the other team's greatest threat. They were a hyperspecialized version of close combat units and frequently saw use in professional play. Giving up a Grunt unit to destroy the other team's Ace was a fantastic strategy.
If it came to it, Julian would make a great assassin player. After Julian's first battle against the Heaven's Boxer, he'd diligently worked on his approach skills. But there was no cover to sneak past on March of Grunts. The stage's terrain was actively fighting against them! If Julian tried to hide behind a wall, the wall would kill him.
Besides, there was simply no way to forge a path between the enemy Grunts. The later levels of March of Grunts featured elite bodyguards that could stop nearly any attack. If Liefield surrounded himself with them—and there was no reason for the timid pilot not to—there was nothing an assassin could do.