by Tao Wong
“No.”
“Ah…” I sigh, tapping the gift. Then there are a lot more strings to this gift than I assumed. “Why tell me all this?”
“Because I feel it’s better to be clear about our objectives before we begin negotiation.”
“Don’t think it’d help your cause to hide it?”
“Not in the long run. And I—we—wish to ensure that this is a long-term relationship.”
I grunt, leaning back. Ah hell. For all the potential problems, they’re the only Tier II guild to make an offer, one that has significant enough reserves to make full use of our dungeon. We need them—their people, their Credits. If we can get a good deal…
“All right, talk.”
“Are you certain that Ms. Pearson and the AI will be sufficient for this negotiation?” Katherine says when we’ve shown Wynn out.
“Lana will be fine. They’ve got a framework of what we want in place.” In fact, I’ve mentioned to Lana that I’m willing to let them have both North Vancouver and Kamloops, if the price is right. “Who’s next?”
“Damian.”
“Show him in.” I sigh. This should be fun.
“You know, boy-o, you’ve gotten nearly as boring as my former Companion. And all he did was sit around reading all day.”
“Trust me, I’m not impressed either.”
Our mutual bitching about my life of meetings and talking comes to an end as Damian walks in. The ex-scavenger, ex-rebel, now bureaucrat leader like me seems slightly more harried than the last time I saw him. After a few quick greetings and pleasantries, we get down to business.
“My people are growing concerned about their safety. They’ve been having to deal with more and more monster attacks recently,” Damian says. “They’re also complaining about a significant drop in their income.”
“THOSE EARMARKED AS SCAVENGERS HAVE SEEN A TOTAL LOSS OF REVENUE OF 9% IN THE LAST MONTH WITH AN AVERAGE DECREASE OF 318.64 CREDITS PER INDIVIDUAL. THIS IS BASED OFF A DECREASE IN TRANSACTION VOLUME OF 2.81%.”
I stare at the notification, processing the data. “And what do you want from me?”
“More guards. We also want a timeline of when we can expect the other suburbs to be transformed into full-fledged towns.”
“Well…” I shake my head. I’m so not answering that one since I don’t have a good idea myself. “From the information I’ve got, it doesn’t look like it’s an issue of monsters or what you’re bringing back so much as a drop in your selling prices.” As Damian opens his mouth, I raise my hand. “Let me see if I have this right. Your men—sorry, people—are bringing in the same number of items, but demand’s fallen off. At the same time, they’ve had to go farther and farther out because nearby residences have all been hit.”
Damian shuts his mouth before nodding slightly.
“Right. Well, here’s the thing. You guys are either going to have accept it or change your occupation,” I say. “As more and more people Level and get Credits through their Skills and occupations, the demand for scavenged items is going to continue dropping. It won’t take long before inter-galactic tradeliners arrive, and then your market is really going to crash. Change now or change later, but you’re in a losing game.”
“Did you tell me and my people to suck it up and deal?” Damian’s eyes bulge, a little heat appearing in his voice.
“Yes,” I say, then consider. “What we can do is provide career counseling and advice. Purchasing the AI with the skills necessary to do the analysis isn’t that expensive. If we pick out a few buildings, we can spread the locations around the city.”
“Job retraining,” Damian says, disgust in his voice.
“Counseling. No one’s going to hold their hands,” I say, leaning forward. “Your people aren’t cowards, but they’ve gotten used to an easy way of life, of low risk and a decent amount of Credits. But things change, and they’re going to have to change.”
“And that’s it? That’s what you want me to go back to them with?” Damian says, anger thrumming through his voice.
“Yes. They can either change now and be ready for the future, or we can prop them up for a few months, maybe a year or two, and then have it all pulled out from under them. This world of Levels, it gives us a ton of options. But you have to be willing to take them.”
“So you want them to fight? Be like your Hakarta and Yerrick friends? Run your dungeon like everyone else?”
I sigh, shaking my head. “I don’t want anything from them. I’m just telling you how things are. They can decide to delve or change their Classes or hell, keep doing what they’re doing. It’s up to them. I’m just saying we’re not going to subsidize them or provide anything else.”
“This is unacceptable.”
“Okay,” I say, nodding. “Anything else?”
“We’re not done speaking about this yet!” Damian almost shouts, fist hammering into the table so hard he cracks it.
“Yes, we are. Now you can move on to another topic or you can leave.”
When Damian gets out a short while later, Katherine is giving me the stink-eye.
“Do you think I’m wrong?”
“In what you said? No. In how you said it? Definitely,” Katherine says.
“It was the truth. A necessary truth.”
“But you could have been kinder.”
A feeling of déjà vu, a memory of a previous conversation. One between myself and my father, Katherine taking my place as I find myself echoing my father as he explained my lack of talent while I decried his tone.
“If I was kinder, he might refuse the truth of my words, holding himself to the tone rather than the intent. He can hate me, but at least he’ll have heard me.”
There’s something in her eyes when I say that, something I can’t understand. For a moment, I wonder if she knows why I said what I did, but then I dismiss the thought. Women can’t read minds—that’s just a fallacy.
“I’ll have Lana speak with him later then,” Katherine says instead.
I open my mouth to protest but decide against it. Having Lana soften the blow a little while reminding him of the truth is probably the best of both worlds. Good cop, bad cop at its best. “Who’s next?”
“We have the delvers.”
I groan, knowing what they want. I’m surprised they’re coming together, but at least their topic of conversation is known. They’ll want to discuss the Guild spot, their concerns about being pushed out, and of course, push for some benefits for themselves. It’s annoying, because the Guild could do us a ton of good, with quests and a ready market for our goods, but they’ll complain and bitch as if they don’t know all that just to get a little leeway. And even if I can push most of this to Lana and Kim as the negotiating parties, they still want to make sure I get my share of it too.
And sadly, I can’t tell them to bugger off. Because as much as it is politics, they might actually have a point somewhere in there that I haven’t thought of. Thankfully, today’s the last of my meeting days. After today, I’ll be mostly ready for my trip.
“Then let’s get this over with.”
“John,” Lana says softly after pulling away from the kiss the next morning.
“Mmmm…?” I say as I try to re-engage my brain. That was one heck of a goodbye kiss…
“Port me to Vancouver?” Lana says.
“Oh. Right.” I blink, waving to open the Portal.
The moment it does, Roland slips in, the only one to accompany us to Kamloops last night.
“And, John, stay safe,” Lana says, giving me one last hug before stepping away.
I watch her departing figure, sighing before shutting the inky blackness. “Now then, what next?”
“Mr. Lee!” a voice calls so loudly that it pierces the walls of the house we’re in.
When I turn, I blink and stare at KC through the living room windows, the Gunsmith struggling down the walkway with a pair of large metal boxes.
“KC.” I nod to the lady, glancing at the boxes
as I open the front door.
“Ammo! I finally… ummm… worked through the… well, blueprints. Mostly have them in sold casings, but I, uh… well. I finished these two last night. Hollow points,” KC says, flushing under scrutiny and holding up the cases.
“Oh. Thank you!” I blink, taking them from her and storing them in my Altered Space. Before I can say anything further, KC’s pulling out even more cases from her inventory, dumping case after case on the ground. “How many did you make?”
“I, uhhh… lost track,” KC says ashamedly. “I was, ummm… Leveling so much that well…”
“You got carried away,” I finish for her, and she nods. “Well, no matter. I’m sure I can use it. Did you get the rest… ah, I see they’re here.” I nod, staring at the various other boxes, each carefully labeled. Boxes of explosives, marked and stored, make their appearance. “Just send me the bill. I’ll get it paid now.”
KC bobs her head quickly, and a moment later, a small notification pops up. I don’t even bother looking at the details, just glancing at the final amount and sending the Credits over, letting Kim handle the inventory issues. While he (it? her?) won’t be useful once we leave the settlement, for small tasks like these, he’s even faster than Ali.
“INVENTORY IS MISSING TWO HIGH-EXPLOSIVE MINES AND CURRENTLY HAS ONE EXTRA WHITE PHOSPHOROUS INCIDINERARY GRENADE. ALSO, THERE IS A PACKAGE THAT IS LABELED TO YOU DIRECTLY. I HAVE ASSESSED THAT THERE IS A LOW THREAT RISK AND HAVE NOT INVESTIGATED ITS CONTENTS.”
“Let her know by notification. No biggies.”
“Thanks again. You and your people,” I say. “Anything I should know?”
“Ummm… no… We’ve had a few visits from Artisans from other cities—villages? Towns?—uhh…”
“Cities is fine. I understand what you mean,”
“Right. Ummm… so, yes. They’ve been interested in… well, us… it’s been fun. One of the, umm… visitors was an… interior designer. Upped our efficiency by 1.6%!”
“That’s good.” I nod. “Nice speaking with you, KC.”
With one last nod, I pop open another Portal and step through. Time to get to work.
Since I can only open Portals to places I’ve visited—and only within a range of a 1,000 KM of me—I have a bit of a journey to make. While we debated having some of the team accompany me, between Sabre and my ability to Blink Step and open Portals, I should be relatively safe. Of course, I promised to drag my friends to me if things look dangerous and I was still in range, but none of us expect that. At least till Edmonton.
British Columbia during the height of summer is alternately beautiful sunshine and occasional days of rain. Up north where we’re going, the rainforest gives way to more desert-like terrain before changing again. Lucky for me, it’s mostly sunshine right now, which means traveling along the weather-beaten roads is satisfactory. It does make me wonder what we should do about upkeep—now that I own a bunch of settlements in the province, trade between settlements is slowly picking up. Outside of the main towns, I’ve avoided taking control of settlements unless it’s been requested, just because I don’t want the additional responsibility. Surprisingly, that’s happened more than once, especially since we have started regular patrols. As much as I might not want to be the local government, we seem to be falling into that role more and more.
Right now, between the lack of on-going transportation and the monster problems, trade caravans are done in an unscheduled, slipshod matter. And while the nitpicky part of me wants to get involved, the lazy part of me points out that this is what the capitalist economy is meant for. Let someone else who wants to earn the Credits organize things.
However, the roads are my problem. That’s what the government is for, after all—dealing with resources and projects that make no sense for an individual to undertake. That’s why we had governments in the first place—from the mayor of a village, who decided who and when people got to use the common grounds for breeding, to the United Nations, which had helped reduce world hunger and diseases. Still, like any government, I’ll admit, that last part is a bit shaky since the UN isn’t really a government technically, but whatever. The point is, we organise because we need to.
Unfortunately, I have to contend with that most limiting of factors—scarce resources. Putting Credits and manpower into building the roads and warding them meant I couldn’t buy land in the Villages. Focus on upgrading individual Villages and I’d miss the opportunity of upgrading Vancouver from Town to Large Town. Not purchasing specialized buildings means we aren’t taking advantage or encouraging specific economies. In Whitehorse, the introduction of the Arborator had provided employment and Credits for a ton of people, increasing our efficiency further. Could I afford to shift our focus from things like that to work on something like roads? Then again, could I neglect trade?
Thoughts like this carry me from Grand Prairie to Edmonton. I could have gone north and east from Kamloops, but that would have put me through a provincial park. And those, from experience, are a tough row to hoe. Not that I shouldn’t visit one, but right now, speed is more important than Levels.
Still, for all my desire for speed, I make the time to pop open Portals for those who need it. Small towns. Individuals unlucky enough to be caught in the middle of nowhere and yet lucky enough to still be alive. Groups of survivors swept up and thrown back into civilization. I have to admit, there’s a certain satisfaction in helping them all, even if it slows me down.
In time, forests and rolling hills—and a few mountains—give way to flat prairies. The sky opens up, making me both relax from the ease of picking out dangers and tense from being so exposed. No more mountains, no more shade, just the eye in the sky and the rolling plains that were once part of some farmer’s land. By the time I hit the prairies proper, the number of individuals I find diminishes to nothing, the survivors most likely having made their way to Edmonton.
Like most prairie cities, Edmonton doesn’t really “start” with a fixed boundary; you just find yourself rolling in where more and more buildings make themselves known. Abandoned, discarded, broken down, and bloody, residences and strip malls merge into office buildings. And then there’s a wall made of grey concrete and cinder blocks, built by Skill and Credits. And towers that host beam turrets and, perhaps most startling of all, a single man waiting for me.
“Howdy, stranger,” the man calls, cowboy hat, plaid shirt, and cowboy boots set against a pair of guns slung low on his hips and a shotgun cradled in his arms. “That’s about far enough.”
“Howdy? Goblin’s arse. I didn’t get any tobacco!” Ali chimes in, shifting his clothing to mock the stranger.
I’m too busy to answer the Spirit though, as I study the man before me.
Blair Kendall, the Rock of Edmonton (Level 28 Battle Seer)
HP: 3680/3680
MP: 2110/2110
Conditions: None
Holy shit. That’s an Advanced Level. He literally has the highest Level I’ve seen on a human. While he isn’t the highest Level human on Earth—I checked, and there’s some cheat Level character at Advanced 38—he’s the highest in Canada as far as I know. And probably explains why Edmonton has managed to stay independent.
“Afternoon,” I say while getting off Sabre slowly. I keep my hands well in sight, not wanting him to get any ideas.
“Nice ride there. Mind telling us why you’re visiting this little town of ours? Don’t get many strangers these days,” Blair says, a hand coming up to absently rub at a close-cut, curly beard.
“Passing through. Maybe a little scouting. Maybe a little chat with the people in charge.”
“Really. You’re pretty well stocked and armed for someone just passing through. Redeemer of the Dead,” Blair says.
I sigh. I really, really, hate that title sometimes. “Well, colour me surprised to have the Rock of Edmonton greet me. Now, if we’re done measuring each other, perhaps you can show me where an inn or empty residence is? Preferably one with a working hot sh
ower? Cleanse spells work, but well, I’ve been on the road for a bit now.”
“We aren’t done,” Blair says. “I’m not letting a potential threat into my city.”
“Your city?” I raise an eyebrow, mentally prodding Ali.
“Can’t tell, boy-o. You can infer ownership, but you can’t actually tell. It’s one of the rules instituted by the Council in… blah blah blah year after owners kept getting assassinated. You can buy the events around a transfer, but they don’t show up on Status screens anymore.”
Ah. That’s useful. For me. Somewhat. Maybe.
“Fine. What do you want from me?”
Quest Received—Clear the Plains
A new plains dungeon has appeared near the city of Edmonton. You have been tasked with clearing the dungeon and destroying the Boss. Doing so will gain the favor of the Rock of Edmonton.
Reward: Entry to the town of Edmonton
Accept (Y/N)
“Really?” I grumble, staring at the quest information and the resulting marker.
“Yes.” Without another word, Blair walks back through the open gates, which shut behind him. Someone has the flair for the dramatic.
“Scout ahead, will you? Let’s get this garbage done.”
Nice thing about having access to an entire armory’s worth of explosives is that when you’re feeling particularly lazy, it’s a simple enough matter to overuse them. Since all the explosives were made by individual crafters, all of them are System-registered. With the help of my drones and a liberal application of explosives, clearing the dungeon doesn’t even require me to crawl through the tunnels.
I do wonder how he would have expected me to handle this if I hadn’t had my drones. After all, the tunnels themselves were barely larger than a man’s torso in most points. At times, they were significantly smaller. The only regret I have—and it’s a mild regret—is that I won’t get any Loot from all this. Even with the sheer volume of explosives, I could have looted the scattered remains if I had been willing to crawl in.