by Cosimo Yap
“So that’s it? They’ve won? What do we do next?” Alan asked.
Icewolf stared at the wall across from him. “I don’t know.”
“Why London, then?” Alan asked.
“To meet up with a few familiar faces,” Icewolf said. “I had hoped to hit the financial institutions here as well; our transport was booked in advance, but with the markets frozen, there isn’t much point. I also looked into what you said about reversed transactions. You were right, buying and selling on the Market fraudulently is a dead end. Getting out of the America zone was also ideal. We’re wanted terrorists now.”
Alan nodded. From what Eve had taught him, the UWG had added another layer of government. Now there were local, state, federal, and global levels. Due to how votes were weighted, often by wealth, many players had been put off by the very Western-leaning government.
“Why are you fighting for the Legion of Man, again?” Alan asked.
“Because there is no peace without victory,” Icewolf said. He stood up. “You should rest. Let me know if you have any other ideas on how to win this war.”
“Just one so far,” Alan said.
“I’m listening.”
“We take over the capital-class ship,” Alan said. “It must be its own floating city, with tens of thousands of crew, right? No one will notice a few more. And it has to stop and resupply at some point. So, we sneak aboard and take it over.”
“I’ll think about it, see what my superiors think,” Icewolf said. “But I’m not sure what we would do once we took control. Remember, the goal is to win without severely damaging infrastructure, so we couldn’t fly around blowing up cities, or self-destruct the infrastructure even if we did manage to take it over. That’s why I didn’t want you to release those financial documents—I feared that Earth’s economy would never recover.”
“Just an idea,” Alan said. He still felt tired, and his head hurt. He closed his eyes.
***
When Alan next awoke he felt much better. The ship had stopped moving. He stepped out of bed, ducking his head to avoid the ceiling. His items had been stowed in a locker beside the bed. Once everything was equipped, he double-checked that everything was there.
Scan for bugs, Lambda sent.
Alan found three: physical devices that looked like coin cell batteries had been placed on his power armor and weapons.
Leave them, Lambda sent when Alan went to pick them off. They are likely Icewolf’s; it’s better that he feels safe.
Alan glanced at the bugs. But we don’t know what they do; he could shut down our items at any point.
If he wanted to harm or kill you, he could have while you were sick and knocked out cold. Leave them, Lambda sent.
Fine. Where’s the map? Alan asked.
Use your sense of direction, Lambda sent.
Alan looked out of his room. There was a long hallway that stretched left and right, and other small cabins on either side. He started walking right.
Don’t wander randomly, Lambda sent.
What am I supposed to do? Alan asked.
How do you think Eve constructs the mental maps? Use your senses. The smell of sea air, the pressure of metal. Scan outward, detect what’s there, and construct a mental image.
Alan used his cybernetic eye. He spotted traces of solar radiation and followed it. He had chosen the correct path.
Well that works, though it wasn’t exactly what I was going for, Lambda sent.
I’ll train later. For now I need to figure out where we are and what we’re doing, Alan sent.
Outside, on the ship’s deck, he found Kitana and Icewolf talking to a man from the Port of London. That’s what his uniform said, at least. Automated cranes were lifting large cargo containers and moving them ashore.
Icewolf waved Alan over.
“And this is the last of our group. It seems he has recovered from his sea sickness.”
The man nodded, ticking off boxes on a checklist. “Are there any items of note on his person you wish to declare?”
Icewolf handed over a gold mark. “No.”
The customs officer looked around before pocketing the mark. “All right, everything seems to be in order. Have a pleasant trip.”
Icewolf smiled. He led Kitana and Alan off the ship, onto a gangway. Alan clung to the side rail.
“Careful. Have you recovered?” Kitana asked.
I’d say we’re operating at about half capacity, Lambda sent.
“Somewhat,” Alan said. He felt dizzy back on land, even though he had barely taken a few steps on the ship.
They found a town car waiting for them. Icewolf opened the door, letting Kitana and Alan in first. Two people were sitting inside.
“Heya, chaps, what’s up? Sorry the boss man took a tumble. Never really liked him. Don’t think he liked us neither, eh?”
“KingArthur. MadMerlin.” Kitana greeted the two. Alan nodded.
“It’s just Arthur and Merlin now. Maybe Squire Arthur. Don’t want to be throwing about airs,” Merlin said. He turned to Icewolf as the door shut behind him. “So, new boss man, what’s up?”
“There’s been a change of plans. We’re headed to Newquay spaceport, in Cornwall on the west coast,” Icewolf said.
“The spaceport? Why are we headed there? I still have trials to complete,” Arthur said. He had abandoned the knight’s metal armor for a set of silver power armor that looked remarkably similar. The royal coat of arms, a crowned lion and unicorn atop a royal crown, was emblazoned on it.
“You’ll have to hold off on your plans, and don’t let anyone know you’re heading out of town,” Icewolf said. “The powers that be are interested in an idea Alan had. We’re headed off to Mars, to see if it’s feasible.”
“What plan?” Merlin asked. He had replaced his blue wizard robes with a navy suit.
“Not here. You’ll learn more later,” Icewolf said. “What have you two been up to?”
“Well you told us to nosy up to the money, so that’s what we’ve been doing. I’ve been establishing myself as a respectable businessman, while Arthur’s been playing up the ladies as a knight-in-training,” Merlin said.
“Didn’t the tradition of squires die out years ago?” Alan asked.
“Well it’s had a resurgence, hasn’t it?” Merlin said. “The Queen re-established an order of knighthood as a military order instead of an old boys’ club; I think she has her own faction or guild and everything. Who wouldn’t want to fight for Queen and Country?” Merlin grinned.
“You,” Arthur coughed.
Merlin snapped his fingers and a burst of flame appeared in front of Arthur, causing him to whip his head back.
“I’d fight if the price was right,” Merlin said. “But wizards aren’t meant for such drudgery.”
“I see your psionic abilities are progressing,” Icewolf said.
“They’re coming along,” Merlin said. He glanced at Alan and Kitana.
“This next mission will involve us working together as a team—it’s too much for one person to handle,” Icewolf said. “Thus, I think it would be a good idea for all of us to get a better understanding of our current abilities.”
“Why don’t you go first,” Merlin said.
Icewolf nodded. “I’m a Rogue, specializing in assassinations, though I bet Alan could give me a run for my money. I have a few abilities that make it easier to go about undetected, blend in with my surroundings, and make bodies disappear.”
He’s likely holding something back, Lambda sent.
No duh.
“Well, I blow shit up and set stuff on fire,” Merlin said. “Haven’t figured out how to do much else.”
“The maximum force?” Alan asked.
Merlin shrugged. “Maybe a stick of dynamite. What about you? Never figured out your AI exactly.”
“I’m also a Rogue, but instead specialize in hacking,” Alan said. “There probably aren’t many systems on Earth I can’t get into at this point. Well, once I’ve
recovered from that last mission. It’ll take a few more days.”
“I remain a warrior,” Kitana said.
“Me too,” Arthur said, “though I’ve mostly learned how to take a beating. I’m also naturally likeable.”
Alan did feel Arthur was trustworthy when he looked at him.
Likely an ability, don’t trust the feeling, Lambda sent.
“Wait, recent mission? Were you the badass that erased the stock exchange?” Merlin asked.
“I didn’t erase anything,” Alan said. “That was the UWG covering up their mistakes.” He turned to Icewolf. “Also, as my Rogue class trainer, are you sure you can’t teach me any new abilities?”
“Sorry, I can’t until you complete the class quest. I do regret choosing the most difficult class quest for you,” Icewolf said. “But with great risks come great rewards.”
The rest of the ride consisted mainly of Merlin and Arthur trading banter and Alan interjecting every now and again on Lambda’s wishes. Alan’s mind was elsewhere. He was going to visit the Legion of Man base on Mars. He wondered if it’d be dusty.
***
By the time they reached the spaceport, Lambda had managed to place listening bugs back on everyone in the car.
How exactly do your bugs work, anyway? Alan asked.
Ownership of an item in-game creates a direct line between the player and the item. Thus, if you are able to hack into the item, you can manipulate that line to allow you to listen in on the messaging system, if you know the right tricks. The item does have to be on one’s person. It’s how listening devices were designed to work in the Game; otherwise people could always send in-game messages and no one would ever be able to listen in, Lambda sent.
Then can’t I track the signal that the bugs on my weapons and armor use to find the person controlling them? Or hack into them and bug them back? Alan sent.
You can, but currently shouldn’t. Both actions risk detection. Remember, your eyes glow like a ghost when actively scanning, and bugs are designed to immediately alert their controller if anything odd happens, like someone hacking in. I feel as though our next step should be to develop a signal-jamming program, so the cries of alarm go unheard…Yeesh I sound a bit grim, don’t I?
I suppose, sent Alan.
They arrived at the spaceport. It looked very similar to an airport, except in addition to runways, a security checkpoint, terminals, and a food court, there were what appeared to be massive missile silos that held rocket-powered shuttles.
Outdated tech, only good for a trip to the moon, Lambda sent.
The spaceport was practically empty—Alan had only seen a single departure of an ordinary passenger plane in the half-hour it had taken to drive along the coastal road.
They made their way through security and were on their way to a shuttle before long.
The terminals for the spaceport were spaced much farther apart than an airport’s—a full city block between each. Luckily, there were only a few. The stores and food courts were unmanned, operated by in-game machinery. As they reached the terminal, a shuttle landed. It looked familiar.
“A gift from our Haxlard friends,” Icewolf said.
“Before we went radio silent, I assume,” Alan said.
“Is that what Pharaoh told you? The Haxlards started making unreasonable demands, and ceased to do business with us until we met them,” Icewolf said.
“Conversion,” Alan guessed.
“Who told you that?” Icewolf stopped and turned sharply, staring at Alan.
Alan shrugged. The information had been in the Black Rose guild database, taught to him by Eve. Any humanoid being could, with a pledge to the Three and an unknown process, be converted to a Haxlard. By all accounts, the person would remain sound of mind and be entirely the same psychologically, but would gain increased base stats and a place within the Haxlard caste system. It was unknown if the converts only put on a mask, or if they were changed at a biological and/or mechanical level as well. The converts would also unerringly serve the Three and never be able to revert to their old race.
Alan really wanted to see what was beneath Haxlard masks, but in-game their bodies would always disappear once their mask was touched.
“Is that’s what’s in store for us then? Either we end up religious nut jobs or Empire slaves?” Merlin asked.
“Historically, all new sentient civilizations found and introduced to the Game who were present in Haxlard space were either converted or forced to move to another solar system,” Alan said. “However, Earth is a special case, as it is further out than any previously found sentient planet, at the edges of the boundary between the Haxlards and the Empire.”
“The Empire, on the other hand, has also subjugated or removed every newfound species in its space. Everyone enters the Empire as servants, but many liken it to a guild apprenticeship—many servants hold much more power than free citizens of the Empire. Every governor in Empire space is the Emperor’s servant, for instance.”
“Each new servant to the Empire is auctioned off at the start of their service, though you can purchase yourself to earn freedom and citizenship. Prices plummet when an entirely new planet joins—a few thousand credits for an able-bodied worker. You serve your master until you pay off your purchasing price. There are accounts of many cruel masters, but the Empire frowns upon most of these acts. And if you catch the Emperor’s eye you’ll be treated better than royalty.”
“You’ve done your research,” Icewolf said.
Eve had, but Alan didn’t mention that. She’d even suggested trying to gain the Emperor’s attention, but Alan had no interest in becoming someone’s servant, no matter how nice the furnishings.
The passenger boarding bridge finished connecting to the arrived shuttle. Alan heard movement—there were passengers getting off.
A ten-man squad of bulked-out soldiers with military buzz cuts and heavy power armor stepped out, lugging large trunks behind them. One soldier was flanked by two robotic canines, one with what appeared to be a massive laser cannon on its back, the other a Gatling gun.
Another soldier was wearing armor so thick and wide that he appeared to be wearing giant, silver-grey marshmallows on all his limbs.
A third soldier had two missile launchers mounted on his back, in addition to a jetpack. His loadout seemed to model a certain famous space bounty hunter.
“Damn, it’s nice to be back.”
“Home sweet home.”
“I dunno, did you look outside as we were landing? We’re going to have to travel around in cars, can you imagine?”
“Shouldn’t we have a welcome party? Who are these folks?”
“Stow it.” The soldier in front raised her fist. She had no special equipment, only a UWG symbol emblazoned on her chest; a beautiful, blue Earth with heaven’s light shining down from above.
“Who are you?” the soldier asked Alan’s party.
“We’re the next passengers,” Icewolf said. “I’m to take these recruits to Khersath for further training.”
“Where’d you get that armor?” the soldier asked Alan.
Lambda sent a suggestion.
“It was my tutorial reward, ma’am,” Alan said.
“Really now? You must’ve done awfully well. How about I take it off your hands? I doubt you have the abilities to wield it effectively as you are now. I’ll give you a fair price, a few hundred thousand credits.”
“Thanks, but I’m good. I’m going to train to learn how to use it,” Alan said, surprised the soldier recognized his armor.
“Items mean nothing if you don’t have the power to hold onto them. And right now, it seems to me that you don’t have that power.” The soldier looked over everyone. “What are your levels?”
“Look, ma’am, I assure you I can keep my recruits safe,” Icewolf said. He revealed his level. It was only 536.
The soldier showed hers: 1359. Alan swallowed. Kitana gripped the hilt of her sword, a smile at the edges of her mouth.
&nb
sp; Icewolf looked around. “We’re all friends here, citizens of Earth. God bless this forsaken world if we begin to fight amongst ourselves.”
“C’mon, captain, I’m hungry,” another soldier said. “There’s pizza. There’s nachos. There’s sushi. And I’m starving.”
“Fine. Thirty minutes of R&R,” the captain said. She turned to Alan. “Have a safe journey.”
“Bless you, ma’am,” Icewolf said.
“Don’t bless us; bless the enemies that we meet in our path.”
The soldiers unloaded their gear from the shuttle, then charged toward the food court like a horde of stampeding bulls.
Alan noted a tick-sized bot leap off one of the dogs and onto his armor. Once the shuttle began takeoff, he hacked into it and disabled it. It was a tracking device, according to Lambda.
Only when the shuttle was up in the air, leaving Earth behind, did Icewolf relax.
“That’s what I was worried about. Those were part of the UWG’s main forces—they’ve been recalled in light of the recent terrorist attacks,” he said.
“The Legion has no idea what abilities or special forces they might bring back, so they’re calling everyone in.”
“And this UWG shuttle will take us to Mars?” Arthur asked.
“Well, that’s where I was hoping that Alan assist us. Can you take over the shuttle systems?” Icewolf said.
Alan sighed, and closed his eyes.
“Not from here,” Alan said. “Kitana, cut through the doors to the cockpit. If anyone’s in there, disable them.” He activated his armor’s invisibility. Icewolf frowned.
I think he was hoping to see your hacking in-action, Lambda sent.
Kitana nodded. Her sword glowed brightly, then cut through the cockpit doors. There was no physical pilot.
Alan connected to the system, then Lambda took down the shields and defending Haxlard AI. A few minutes later, Alan was in control. He changed the shuttle’s course to coordinates on Mars that Icewolf gave him. Alan also added a few codes to the ship’s identification system. This way, Legion of Man turrets wouldn’t shoot them out of the sky.
Probably.
I’ve found something interesting, Lambda sent. He was rooting through the shuttle’s systems. Looks like the ship has some weird dead man’s switch. Not sure who it’s tied to, but if the right signal was broadcast it’d just shut down.
