Apocalypse Reborn: Demon Lord 16

Apocalypse Reborn: Demon Lord 16

…

With the acquisition of Guardians of the Moon, I could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Finally, I had the skilled and experienced people that I needed to rule over my holdings.

Better yet, they saw it as me granting them immense favor.

They and everyone else probably thought that I’d want them as elite shocktroopers or something. It didn’t take a genius to see all their current wealth and holdings and put their true worth together. While everyone else was busy killing each other, they were learning how to govern, lead, and build up a nation while staying under the Academy’s radar.

There’s a reason why gaining influence as the leader of the Guardians of the Moon is a big deal. The higher you were on the totem pole, the more the vampire courts were willing to lend you their aid. People only looked at finishing the tree and getting a maxed-out Champion with great gear, but in truth all the nodes leading up to that were great, too. Increased population, gold per turn, research speed, and production were great bonuses, especially at the start of the game.

The problem was the people usually mainlined one court at a time to get to a champion faster, rather than distribute their influence across all four courts evenly.

I didn’t have such intentions.

While the champions that were promised were incredible, I wanted my people to be prosperous and to be elevated to greater heights. The Guardians were to be the bureaucratic backbone of my nation. A bureaucratic backbone that didn’t tolerate corruption, who led from the front,

The fact that they saw it as an honor was just a bonus.

…

Interlude: Celia

…

Power, influence, and respect.

We were given all three in enormous amounts.

Immense swathes of land were placed under the control of each court. Everyone was left scrambling as information poured in and lands were allocated to us near or even inside citadels. Those of highest standing, those who I would’ve needed to invite weeks in advance to meet with, were gone within weeks to settle new holdings and take stock of their new lands.

The lands were rough in shape, the people just beginning to be educated, but the foundation was there. Roads were flush with merchants and cargo carriers. The streets and gutters were clean. Sewers were set, and clean drinking water was abundant. People were at work, industry was rising, and a nation was being born.

There were growing pains and struggles ahead, but everyone who looked upon it knew a singular fact: civilization was being reborn, and the Guardians of the Moon were to be its administrators.

It led to much of their lands and peoples in our territories falling to me.

What should’ve been unthinkable, their lands being consolidated under the rule of others, became a matter of fact.

I received all the power that I could’ve ever asked for, while they became the guiding stars of the new nation.

It was humbling to witness.

But perhaps even more humbling was the truth from the Ancient Reborn.

Why this was all being done.

“The enemies of the past remain. They hold the entire world in their grasp. Within a decade, perhaps two, the defenses will fail, and we must fight against them.” I listened and followed him through the Citadel. The lands and peoples that were given to me by the courts were being consolidated at the arisen structure that now pierced the sky. “The continent must be united under a singular cause, and the might of the Citadels leveraged in full, if we are to survive the coming battles.”

Ayah spoke next. An ancient administrator who saw the end of that era herself.

Not even the oldest of the still-sleeping elders could match her in age.

They only heard from their sires of what happened then.

“With five Citadels in hand, as well as the breadbasket freed of the so-called Academy, it will be of little issue.” She had short black hair and dark skin and followed him wearing a flattering black dress. She hung off his arm like a lover, but she was in truth an artificial construct of immense power. At our first meeting, she was unable to walk into the mansion without a charm to lighten the weight cast upon her. Her strength was immense, but it was her ability to calculate and store information as well as retrieve it that was staggering. “With the final three acquired, we can hold the line until the true strength of the Ancients is unleashed on the world.”

That piqued my interest, but the Ancient Reborn spoke.

“We cannot stand back and wait. There are things out there that may be lost if we do nothing. There are projects of the Ancients out there. Too dangerous to keep here as they were completed, but ready to be fetched now.” Ayah’s eyes widened at his words. I suppose that it was no surprise. He had knowledge from the past, while she was stored away and hidden. “The most important are the Divine Engines. They must not be lost. They must, at least, be secured. And the usage of atomic weapons is too dangerous.”

Atomic was an unfamiliar word to me, and I made sure it was known.

He explained after giving a single nod.

“They are powerful weapons that unleash the true potential of matter by breaking it apart. By breaking apart the bonds that tie them together, tremendous energies are unleashed. Enough to destroy cities with weapons no larger than a wagon.” I almost tripped at the explanation. The thought of such a weapon alone was staggering. The fact that they existed made me wonder how the Ancients could have lost with such powerful weapons at their disposal. My question must have been obvious, as it was soon answered. “There were answers to such weapons when the Ancients’ foes were at the height of their power. Now, we can use them as we wish, but we will not. Their use will surely be detected by foes from the stars.”

The more the Ancient Reborn spoke, the more questions I had.

Thankfully, Ayah seemed just as confused.

He explained without being prompted.

“The Ancients spoke of a being of a vast nation across the stars. Of this world not being their home, but rather forged into one. Here they made a civilization and the peoples upon it when it was once cold, barren rock.” I thought those were mere myths. Tales of creation. That the Ancients came to barren rock upon great ships that sailed the void, then created life on the planet. But here was an Ancient Reborn stating it as fact. No. As the basis of another truth. “I suspect that the attack on our planet was one of many. The fact that none of our fellows have sought us out means that they are unable to do so. The fact that none of our enemies have come from the skies… tells me that they were either defeated or that they are waiting for a sign to come.”

He turned his gaze towards Ayah.

“This is a battle that cannot be won with those great weapons, but there are many others. We will find them, use them, and we will be victorious nonetheless.” Ayah nodded at his words. Her eyes were wide, and a smile formed on her face. Adoration was too light of a word. The Ancient Administrator looked upon him with worship. How could she not? He was one of the people that created her. “Lady Celia, your people are the best suited for this. They are disciplined and need far fewer resources, as well capable of scouring vast swathes of land. There will be a break in the storm wall in the east. When it opens, an expedition to the lands beyond will be sent.”

I seized the opportunity given to me.

“I shall find strong companions and advisors and go with them.” If I do nothing, I will find my place under siege. The courts are now hard at work, but with time they will establish themselves, and they will find every reason to take my position from me. That will dilute the power of our people far too much. I had to remain as impartial as I could and retain power for the Guardians of the Moon. Everyone else was thoroughly on board with the Ancient Reborn. I had to be a bastion for our people just in case. “Rest assured, if there is something to be found out there, the Guardians will recover it and return it to these lands.”

The Ancient Administrator looked at me with surprise and then satisfaction.

My declaration must have pleased her.

The Ancient Reborn nodded at my words as well.

“Go forth and pry from the darkness the light that will lead all the peoples of this realm to the future… and perhaps beyond. I entrust this task to you, Lady Celia.”

I bowed my head at his words.

Some would say that I was making a mistake to not trust him completely.

However, as nearly all the Guardians of the Moon seemed entranced by him, someone needed to be cautious.

I will take on that task and make sure to watch him from an unassailable position.

…

Interlude: Khanrow.

…

The Guardians of the Moon entered our society, and much like a key fitting perfectly into a lock, they opened the door to magnificence once only held by the Academy.

The Vampire Counts were reclusive and unknown. They held swathes of land in the north and coordinated with one another to grow in spite of the Academy’s wishes. I knew that they were a powerful force of order in the age of warlords. A force that rescued people, kept knowledge secure, and protected many. The limit of their reach was their small numbers, and they knew that rousing incredible amounts of undead would turn the people away from them, and so they devoted themselves to smaller holdings, which they would grow year by year over the course of their immortal lives.

The Academy judged them too slow to be a true threat, but the Academy was gone now, and the Guardians were given half of a continent and all its peoples to administer and protect.

They took to the task like birds take to flight.

They were in their element, and their talent was undeniable.

Shelter, food, and cleanliness were what we achieved with our massive influxes of people. It took all we had to assign work, to reap taxes, and to make sense of our population as it grew and shifted. The population of the Academy mostly stayed put, but many still went to the Citadels. Tribes of all peoples came to our lands seeking better lives. Every day we received thousands of people and brought them into the fold, and we did our best to provide for them so that they could work for our sake.

The Guardians of the Moon arrived with their undead retainers and began to refine the rough gemstone that was our nation.

Untiring, disciplined, and principled bureaucrats.

Within weeks, homes were created, lands were assigned for farming, and schools were set up. Within months, industry was moved out of the cities to be downwind and downriver, with any tributaries clearly marked, and factories began to churn out goods for the populace. Vast swathes of farmland were cultivated with the help of skeletons, while mines were first gouged out of the ground by vampiric mages. Clerks were trained in the meantime, and once trained, they were placed where they were needed and supported by the Guardians.

Soon enough, reports started to come in, information was at our fingertips, and we found where we were lacking and thus were able to act.

We thought that we already had a fine system, but they unveiled everything without shaming us and put themselves to work fixing all that they found with our aid.

Then, with any time they could spare, they spread trees, gardens, and places to rest all over the cities. Some brought their extensive collections of artifacts and opened museums to showcase the past. Others endorsed troupes of musicians or playwrights while creating venues for them to be heard in public parks. Once enough people were capable of reading, they shared their libraries filled with knowledge from across centuries, with copies made in the Citadel from books they carefully preserved.

Their inclusion was the turning point.

Our new home went from a gathering of people under one king and turned into a true nation that befit a reborn Ancient.

It was quite entertaining to see my granddaughter return from meeting with the Wardens of the Caverns with a new Citadel and find a realm transformed.

“This was dirt the last time I walked on it.” Morgan noted. Gone were her large glasses. She bore her face proudly and even swept back her hair. She was clad in plates of white armor forged in the Citadel, and the insides of her cloak were covered in weapons. The brief trip outside the realm allowed her to transform. She no longer wished to hide. She bore the symbol given to her by the Ancient Reborn with pride over her heart. “How was this possible, grandfather?”

“While you were swaying the hearts of the Wardens, he brought all of the Guardians of the Moon into the fold. Instead of taking them as warriors, he took their ability to manage their fiefdoms.” A sharp smile came upon her face at my explanation. I glanced at her from the corner of my eye and felt contentment. I knew that she was skilled and powerful, so her changes were not new to me. Instead, I was pleased by how she was now trusting others. Even if that was only one person. “They work now to better the lands for all our new peoples.”

“And how do cleaner roads and better homes prepare us for the conflict ahead?” My granddaughter brazenly questioned me. She knew the answer. It was clear in her eyes. I almost laughed as she prodded me for an answer. “Well, grandfather, how do you see this as a former warlord?”

“If I were a young warlord, I’d see it as a weakness. A land that puts money into roads does not put it into troops. At my age? I see it as a land to be avoided. Not one person here would abandon their homes, and they would fight tooth and nail with their bare hands to keep them.” I told her the truth. That was what I saw as a warlord. She raised an eyebrow, and I chuckled as I answered her unsaid question. “As a citizen of this new land? I enjoy walking the new streets and hearing children playing in the parks, and if anything threatened this land, I’d do everything in my power to kill it.”

Morgan smiled at my words before looking around the city with the same smile.

“I feel the same.”