Chapter 286 (Book 7, Start!)

Goatstown, Dublin, Ireland - 8:20 AM Irish Standard Time

The destruction around me was terrible. I looked around the intersection I had been teleported to for the Star Spangled Shadow Invasion. The restaurant in front of me looked as though a steamroller had barreled through them, and the houses down the road weren’t any better. All around, pushed into the sidewalks, were the burnt out husks of vehicles, long since left by the wayside. Thick gouges had been torn out of the street, and trees had been pulled from the ground.

Even here, in the suburbs of Dublin, the scenarios had taken more than they had given. Sure, the people were more powerful than they had been before the system dropped, but that didn’t make things better.

Despite my feelings on the matter, I was feeling good. Better, even. Sara had given me a pep in my step that I was sorely needing. Swiping open my menu, I spent the points to send a message through guild chat.

<<<>>>

[[Guild Chat]]

Anthony: Yo, I’m in Dublin. I should be a few miles south of you.

Jamie: Why are you here so early? I was under the impression that you were going to be gone for a while.

Anthony: Me, too. The Dealer had a lot of things going on that he didn’t tell me, but I’m here now. Have you already started moving north?

Jamie: I just finished upgrading the defenses and was about to leave. Do you want me to move south?

Anthony: No, follow the plan and work your way up the coast. I’ll head to Alabama and start heading north. We’ll meet in West Virginia and move to Pennsylvania from there.

Jamie: Roger that.

<<<>>>

I smiled. Jamie, one of my oldest friends and strongest fighters on the planet, was the only one to join me in the Star Spangled Shadow Invasion. She was a Weapon Master, a class that only received Mastery abilities that increased accuracy and damage, but she was a phenomenal combatant even without them. Now that she was a Half-Dragon with a breath weapon and everything, she had only become fearsome.

The ninja of the Sol Ligatus guild, Mercury, was supposed to join us. While he didn’t have as much strength as Jamie, he was still a top tier fighter based on how tricky he could be. Disappearing and replacing himself with objects and people, becoming invisible, and having a plethora of movement options made him difficult to deal with once he applied himself. With the Princess, his sword inhabited by an intelligent spirit, by his side, he was a downright menace.

Just because he was supposed to join us didn’t mean he was here, however. Something had happened to change the way events worked out despite the fact that he should have been safe. It meant that there were only two of us here in Dublin, but that was okay; now he could help out back at the Emperor’s Ascent.

Hosted by the twelve traditional Zodiac Patrons and Ophiuchus, the event was held inside an extradimensional space housed within the Empire State Building. Starting with Aries, factions of up to 100 players climbed through different rooms with various challenges ranging from boss fights to puzzles to completing mythological and historical stories as best you could.

It was the fourth main scenario of New York City, and we had managed to get in thanks to Sara smooth talking the administrator, Baltastasia. Not everyone had liked the fact we were included and a couple ended up being hostile over it, but it was still a good way to accomplish my goal of getting enough Patrons to like me that the administrators wouldn’t try to kill me outright.

Not that it completely worked. The first time Baltastasia could alter things she threw the biggest stick she could find at me. That had been a Reaper. A Soul Shearer, which was powerful enough to be an Awakened Raid Boss at the time. That had been one hell of a fight, making me pull out all the tools I had in my arsenal to defeat it.

Even then, I was left with my soul sheared. The debuff was a nasty one, lowering my maximum hit points and Mental Points until they healed naturally over time. Even now, healed as I was by my Guardian Angel, I was still only at around 90% capacity, but that was more than enough for me.

After that, I mostly took a step back from letting the guild handle challenges. I took part in boss fights, sure, but I used my crippled soul as an excuse to move into a less direct role. There were over a thousand people in the Emperor’s Ascent, after all. While they were the cream of the crop as chosen by the Zodiac Patrons, most of them were only a little bit better than the normal person.

So, I created an arena in the safe zone—along with everything else people needed from a market, to a tea shop, to a restaurant—and became a trainer. My treasure trove of experience in many forms of combat made me a natural fit for the role. We went over the basics of self defense, as a vast majority of the people there were self-taught as the system tried to grind them down, and worked our way up from there.

It started off slowly. Gemini’s avatar, Trevor Price, was my first opponent and we immediately got to work building him up after the first constellation was cleared. He was a good guy; a little rough around the edges, but he wanted to get stronger and that kind of drive showed in his progress. The rest of his faction was eager, too.

Then came Cancer after I gifted a restaurant to her avatar, Callie Webber. The Monster Gourmand was a class all about food-based buffs, and my only request of her was to keep it affordable. She had, of course, done this, if only because she recognized how much people needed the help. Everyone had the capacity for mistakes no matter how strong they were, and some proved deadlier than others.

That was something I often had to remind myself of. I, too, could get a little too big for my britches sometimes.

Like when Leo decided to descend into his boss room and I went at him one on one. That in itself wasn’t a mistake, but I had made an example of one of the strongest beings in the system. He didn’t have power directly, but as a Patron he was an influential figure. In hindsight, the proper thing would have probably been to sit down and keep training, never finishing the constellation, but it all ended well.

Even if it did lead to Baltastasia managing to kill me with Leo’s help. I had died outright, it just didn’t stick.

It was because they made a competitive room against Leo’s faction a fight to the death. The people in that group might have been cold and isolated thanks to the Patron’s efforts and lied to about who I was, but that was no reason for me to slaughter them for trying to defend their city. That’s what they thought was on the line. Their leader, Arthur Sutherland as the Emperor of New York City, or me, who was apparently terrible in every way.

There were a lot of facts and stories that debunked everything they were told about me, but propaganda is a powerful tool regardless. I wasn’t going to fault them for that. Could, wanted to, but I wasn’t.

It had eaten up one of the resources I was stockpiling to keep myself from dying, my literal Spare Body, but I thought it was worth it. Everyone else was aware that I martyred myself instead of killing their own, and that was enough for me. That didn’t mean just the factions, either, but everyone that Baltastasia was broadcasting to. People and Patrons all over New York City and its surrounding area were tuned in and watching the different channels she provided.

And, when I returned to my body, I received fantastic news. Baltastasia had been deposed. The Patrons who didn’t know I revived were outraged by my passing, thinking that my death wasn’t earned or fair. Which was true. They used what they thought was my good nature against me, not realizing that, if I didn’t have a get out of death free card literally hiding under my bed, I would have gone through and slaughtered them all without a hint of mercy.

I took a breath. It would have been a good fight, I knew, but there was no reason to get my blood riled up over it now.

The rest of them were back there now, working their way up the Emperor’s Ascent to reach the top before everyone else. With Baltastasia gone, the Zodiacs took over as a council to make decisions. They had poured a ton of points into the event, so the administrators were fine handing it over as a show of good faith.

Sol Ligatus and Ophiuchus had merged together, but they didn’t need help from Magical Girl Star, also known as Ross Haverstein. Mercury, Kayla, and Jeff could have made it to the Emperor of Constellations on their own.

If it were just the Mills like I expected, then I would have been more worried about it. Since the plan was for our ninja to come along, the plan to bring Ross in had been on the wish list from the start. Either way, it all worked out in the end. They should be finished in the next couple of days.

My smile only grew wider as I thought about it. My team was a point of pride for me, and I was very happy that the newest additions were doing well. Inviting Kayla and Jeff was sort of a last minute decision on my part. He was supposed to die after, I assume, defeating Pustibule with either the building collapsing or the jump to escape the top floor killing him. She was supposed to remain in mourning for the husband that never appeared. I saw the potential in both once they were reunited.

Now, they were top tier talent in their own ways. Kayla did wonders as the face of Sol Ligatus. Not only was she fantastic at persuading people to get along, making her a great second in command, but the Double Agent was also filling in the support role very well. She had also been killing it in the Emperor’s Ascent’s puzzle rooms, solving them in record time. I knew the Zodiac Patrons had to have gotten tired of her very quickly.

In the runs before I brought Kayla around, we didn’t have a healer or buffer in the party. It was something that we were able to shore up with liberal use of Bethany’s potions. The young Tea Witch, Mercury’s sister, could make just about anything with the right ingredients, and I facilitated that quite heavily to make sure the team had what they needed to be safe.

With the Double Agent’s support, however, we had a surplus of potions. That was good for the people who entered the Emperor’s Ascent with us, because it meant Bethany could focus on brewing for them while we sat on our stockpile, using them sparingly. It had been a good call.

She had come a long way, as well. Not only had the Tea Witch broken out of her shell faster than she had before, but she even felt confident enough to turn the tea house I gave her in the Emperor’s Ascent safe zone into a made cafe. That had been a surprise, but a welcome one. The deaf girl was really coming into her own.

Kayla’s husband, Jeff, was a skilled fencer who had only gotten more proficient with his rapier as time progressed. The Queen’s Knight, Kayla’s sworn protector who had a class revolving around keeping her safe, had looked at Jamie Summers and declared her a rival to surpass. Not out loud, perhaps, but he had been one step behind her ever since she had joined.

His Evolution Hound, Corwin, was also a great joy to have around. The best boy had started as a golden labradoodle, but he had evolved as far as a Hell Hound with the goal being to transform him into a Cerberus. Even though he was Demonic in nature, something that had initially rubbed me the wrong way despite being the one to suggest it thanks to my Angelic heritage, he had always been quick to listen to commands and help out.

Ashley Reilly, the Monstersmith, had made great weapons and armor for all of us. I wiggled my toes with a smile, relishing the Comfort Plus socks she had modified. She was the only one to predate Jamie in my runs. Her attitude left a lot to be desired, but deep down she was a major softy. She was also crucial to my plans of ending the administrator’s scenarios in record time.

My mind wandered to the blueprints I had in my inventory. Even though I had gotten it not even half an hour ago, I was having trouble wrapping my mind around what had happened. Seraphim, the scum sucking bastard who was pretending to be an Angel, pulled me into the administrative layer where I made a deal that would hopefully hinder my enemies while helping myself when I returned to Etson after all this.

All the while, the Dealer was there, waiting to pull me into the outskirts of the administrative layer where no player had gone before. That had been a new and novel experience, allowing me to see things from impossible angles in a way that almost made my mind melt down. I got over it quickly thanks to my Entwined With The System skill, and we headed for the Mass Replicator to make the blueprints.

That’s when it all fell apart. An administrator for Tristan Da Cunha was there, Abbatrastoria, making enemies for his lone player to fight. We had thought he stalked off after creating what was obviously the boss monster for his area, but he returned shortly after the Dealer made the blueprints for the Hellbreaker Nuclear Bomb.

What had happened next shocked and surprised everyone. I had to dodge, duck, and weave around the administrator’s explosive projectiles. They weren’t just immune to damage; any attacks on them were met with instant death at the hands of the system before they could even land. While I was buying time for the Dealer to get us out of there, he was busy making things for himself.

I was still mad about that, I realized, but that was tomorrow 's problem. No use letting it sour my mood now.

Especially since I had managed to hurt Abbatrastoria without dying, and then went on to kill him with the help of a Primordial Weapon, Asi. The fight had been a brutal one before the Dealer managed to conjure it up. Not only did he have a random assortment of skills and passives like a player, but he also had a class. An Alchemist Brute. That led to perhaps one of the biggest revelations I think I have had in all my years.

The administrators used to be players.

I couldn’t ask about it, not without the person answering getting erased from existence by the system, but I planned on finding out more later. All I had to do was find someone who I wouldn’t mind the disappearance of. Seraphim came to mind rather steadily.

As it turned out, the Dealer wasn’t just stalling for his own ill-gotten gains. He also had to make something commissioned by Esaraphelscion, Angel of the End, and my girlfriend.

Looking at the ring on my finger, I mentally corrected myself. She was my wife.

Somehow, the two of them managed to figure out how to make an item that shunted me from the administrative layer to the Hall of the End. I couldn’t end the system right then and there, but I would never turn down a chance to see Sara in the flesh. She had healed me, gave me advice, and we were wedded before I was sent back.

“My wife,” I muttered happily.

<<<>>>

[[Patron Message]]

I see that goofy smile you have on your face. You may have missed the quest telling you about the Star Spangled Shadow Invasion, but I know you know what to do. It may be prudent to get your obelisk set up now, or you can wait for your first opponent to show up. He’s blocks away from you now.

<<<>>>

“It’s not Aaron’s avatar, is it?” I asked, looking up at the sky.

Arontalscion, the Fallen, was, as far as I could tell, Sara’s brother and evil counterpart. Their connection meant that he was given all the same benefits and drawbacks as she was. That included not being able to utter a word about other Angels, of which he was. His avatar, too, I assumed.

<<<>>>

[[Patron Message]]

No, this person is Alabama’s MVP. I’m sure you remember them.

That said, I can’t tell you where they are. Not the MVP, but the thing I can’t talk about. What I can tell you is that the north is safe. I’m sorry that I can’t give you more than that.

Also, I’m going to be using my Patron Quests sparingly. I only have three, but this is a long event and I’m going to try and pick and choose the best scenarios to get you points.

As always, be safe out there, Ant.

<<<>>>

“You’ve been more than helpful, Sara,” I replied with a smile as I mulled over her words.

If the north was safe, then that meant Aaron’s champion wasn’t in Pennsylvania. That had been one of the theories we came up with because the MVP there managed to collect enough accolades to usurp Mercury’s position. Jamie, at least, made it, but anyone from Georgia would be hard pressed to catch up with her. I sent her a message relaying this information but to keep heading that way anyway.

I purposefully didn’t activate my obelisk. It was under my control and I was supposed to protect it, but the longer I waited the more upgrade points I would get. Not only that, but I’d get a bonus when taking out another player.

Instead, I created a Force Field above my head. A lightning bolt flashed out of nowhere, striking it and causing it to shimmer from the damage. I turned, looking into the destroyed restaurant where the newcomer had hidden. A man twice my physical age was watching me between two broken support beams, mostly hidden from view. Unfortunately for him, he had no way to hide from my awareness aura.

“Albert Shaw,” I greeted loudly. “The Oncoming Storm. I’m a little surprised to see you here, considering you should be protecting your own obelisk. Care to share?”