Allistor’s heartrate increased, and his mouth hung partway open for a moment. “I… of course. But why would such a legendary being come here, even for a purple crafting ingredient?”
“Not just for the crafting, Allistor. Master Daigath is, or was, a Battlemage. Easily the most formidable I’ve ever heard of. Imagine having thousands of years to learn and perfect your skills and abilities.” Harmon chuckled to himself. “Daigath is so old, he may have invented the Battlemage class!”
“And you think you could convince him to come here?” Allistor was already picturing himself wielding a purple glowing wooden sword.
“I will attempt to make contact, and ask him. It is likely that if he takes the trouble to travel here, he will want to stay a while. I know you have many parks under your control. It may be that he’ll want to inhabit one of them, if he finds a forest he likes. Like the one where we first met. Your… Wilderness Stronghold?”
Allistor nodded. “He can have his pick of any forest I control. Or any that I can claim, buy, or steal for him.”
“Then I will make the request on your behalf. I’ll let you know as soon as I hear from him. It may be several days, as Master Daigath is not easily reached.”
“Thank you Harmon. Oh! My analysts have recommended we delay the wedding for three months. To give us time to prepare, both logistically and personally. It seems there’s much we have to learn in terms of etiquette.”
“Ha!” Harmon thumped the arm of his chair. “Wise decision, my young friend. And it brings the added advantage of three more months during which you will have good reason to decline or delay other offers without offending anyone.”
Shaking his head, Allistor got to his feet. “Yeah, that doesn’t hurt. Now I have to go explain the situation to Amanda. The part about delaying. Not that bit about fending off alien brides.”
Harmon just chuckled as he watched Allistor walk toward the door. “Good luck, my friend. Maybe wait until she’s not in her infirmary full of sharp implements.”
*****
Allistor was just entering his tower again, headed to find Amanda, when Nigel sidetracked him.
“Sire, you have several human visitors awaiting an audience. I have asked them to wait in the street outside the lobby. They are not citizens.”
Allistor looked across the lobby through the tall windows to where three of the Juggernauts were still parked. There were two men and two women standing around, one of them pacing nervously. All of them looked like they hadn’t had a decent meal in a while. “Thank you Nigel. I’ll take care of it.” He noted that his mini-map displayed four red dots at their location as he walked across the lobby. Exiting the doors, he waved with one hand. “Hello there. I’m Allistor. I understand you want to speak with me?”
One of the women stepped forward. “I’m Leila. Been waiting to hear from you, but got tired of waiting, so I’ve come to talk.”
Allistor was confused. “Uhh… okay. Come on in. Let’s sit and talk.” He held the glass door open and motioned toward his usual sitting area in the lobby. Several of his people, upon seeing him coming, vacated the area to give him some privacy.
When they were all seated, he held up a finger, asking them to wait a moment. “Nigel, would you ask whoever’s in the kitchen to bring a cart with some sandwiches and drinks? Thanks.” Turning back to Leila, he smiled. “Welcome to Invictus. I’m afraid I don’t know what it is you want to talk about, or why you’ve been waiting on me?”
One of the two men, a tall and scruffy-looking specimen, snorted. “You have a lot of nerve. Welcoming us to our own home.” he growled, clenching his fists. Leila put a hand on his knee and gave him a look that calmed him down some.
“Your home?” A light was starting to dawn in Allistor’s brain. “You live in one of the Strongholds here in the city. One of the ones that are now inside my walls?”
Leila pursed her lips and nodded. “We do. Got the notification when you claimed this part of the city, and saw the walls go up. We expected someone would come and try to oust us.”
“Shit, I’m sorry guys. I have you on my list, I mean, not by name or anything, just like… visit the other three Strongholds. But things have been pretty hectic. I don’t know if you heard, but I met with Jesse, and invited him and his roughly four thousand people to join us that first day. He and some of his friends tried to kill me. It wasn’t the best start. I hope things between us can be friendlier.”
Allistor paused when Meg approached, pushing a wheeled cart full of food. “Meg, thank you. This looks wonderful. This is Leila, and… I’m afraid I don’t know the rest of your names?”
Leila patted the knee of the grumpy scruffy guy. “This is Josh. Over there are Stacey and Ben.”
“Nice t’meet ya” Meg favored them with a smile as she pushed the cart closer, then proceeded to unload the food and drink onto a coffee table between them. “Help yourselves, there’s plenty more where this came from.” She looked at Allistor and added, “You should try some too. The girls have been practicing their singing, and the buffs are getting pretty substantial.”
Allistor looked over the spread. There were sandwiches of thinly sliced red meat that was probably canid steak. Several types of pastries, some grapes, and tiny carrots. He waited for the others to dish up plates before grabbing one of the sandwiches and a cup of liquid that turned out to be apple juice. Setting the plate on his lap, he said, “Please, eat while I talk. I’ll give you some background, and maybe answer some of your questions before you even have to ask them.”
Leila nodded, then took a big bite of her sandwich. She chewed slowly, then began to talk with her mouth full. “Meg, this is delicious.”
Meg winked at her. “This is just thrown-together leftovers. Hang around for dinner and we’ll get you a proper meal!” She turned and headed back to the kitchen, leaving them to eat and talk.
Allistor had taken a quick bite of his own sandwich, and noted the buffs. He was seeing +4 Stamina, +4 Strength, and +10% health regen, which were very nice. Then he noticed the duration and nearly choked. “Meg! Eight hours? Holy shit!” he shouted after the retreating woman, who didn’t even turn around.
“Sorry guys. That was rude.” He apologized to the startled visitors. While they resumed their meals, he gave them his standard speech about his background, their battles over the past year, and how Invictus City came to be. When he was done, he took a moment to drink some juice before continuing.
“And that brings us to today. I truly meant to stop by the other Strongholds that wound up inside the walls. To bring you the same offer I’ve made to the others. You have several options. Ideally, I’d like you and your people to become citizens of Invictus. You can continue to live in your Stronghold and run it your way, if you choose. Or you could choose to live here, or at any one of our properties across the country.” Allistor watched all of their faces as he spoke, trying to gauge their level of interest.
“Option two is that you elect not to become citizens, but we remain friendly. You agree not to attack me or my people, and I agree to the same. We can trade, and you remain in your Stronghold, which will eventually become a much safer place as we clear the monsters from the city. Option three, you tell me to screw off, and I invite you to relocate somewhere outside my walls. I give you food and other supplies to last you a week, and an escort to your destination. I’ll even have my battle droids clear a building or two for you, and give you and your folks all the xp for the kills.”
He stopped talking and took another bite of the tasty sandwich. It was up to Leila and company now, and he felt unusually calm as he awaited a response.
Leila took the time to chew and swallow the last bite of her sandwich, then take a long drink of water. When she was through, she looked up at Allistor. “I can’t decide if you’re completely full of shit, or just an inconsiderate ass who’s in over his head.”
Allistor had expected questions, not hostility. “I’ve told you the truth. So I guess it’s the second one.
The inconsiderate ass one.” He didn’t smile as he answered.
Leila used a napkin to wipe her mouth, then threw it down on the ground. “I’ve lost eleven of my people since your walls went up. Two of them children. Why didn’t you come to us sooner? You have this big building full of food and weapons and… and robots. This whole time we’ve been fighting monsters and half-starving to death.” Her voice hitched, and she took a moment. When she spoke again, her voice was barely more than a whisper. “Damn you.”
Allistor set his plate on the table and clasped his hands in his lap. Leila was right. He was an ass. He had shuffled the notification about the other strongholds into a folder and marked it as a priority, then forgotten all about it. People had died while he was on the roof crafting, or taking the fight to the goblins. He didn’t even know how to begin to answer her.
“I’m… you’re right to be angry. I’m sorry. I should have gone to find you in those first few days. I don’t have an excuse. I was wrong.” He paused to take a deep breath, his hands shaking. “I can’t bring your people back. But I can do my best to make sure that you don’t lose any more. Please, don’t let my failure keep you from accepting my help.” He wanted to reach out to touch Leila, but didn’t dare.
The woman stood and began to pace. Her companions remained were they were, clearly used to her movements. Allistor looked to each one of them, hoping for some hint of what they were thinking. He got nothing.
Leila sat back down, her left knee bouncing as she tapped her foot. “If we join you, I can keep my Stronghold?”
Allistor nodded. “Absolutely.”
“And my people?”
“Free to stay with you, or move to any of our locations. They can even claim their ten acres of land, and we’ll help them with resources to build Strongholds or Outposts of their own.”
Stacey spoke up next. “How do we know all of this is for real?”
Allistor looked her in the eye, which was more difficult than he expected. Her eyes held the haunted look that so many of his people had in the early days after the apocalypse, when survival was in doubt. “Take some time, explore this place. Speak to anyone you like. They’ll answer all your questions. Or you can teleport to any of our other locations and look around, speak to the folks there. I have nothing to hide.”
That seemed to satisfy the woman, and beside her Ben was nodding his head. When Leila didn’t speak for a full minute, Allistor asked, “How many of you are there?”
Grumpy Josh spat on the floor before saying, “Eleven less than there should be.”
Leila looked up from staring at her hands. “Josh, enough.” Turning to look at Allistor, she replied, “We have just over three hundred people.”
“Hungry people.” Josh added. Allistor was trying his best not to dislike the man, but he wasn’t making it easy.
“Well, I can fix that, at least. Your people are invited here for dinner, and to spend the night. I’ll send a company of battle droids back with you, and they can escort you safely here. If you have folks that can’t walk, I’ll send vehicles. We have enough empty rooms here in the tower to put you up for the night. Tomorrow you’ll be rested and well fed, and can all explore and ask questions, then let me know what you decide.”
“How do we know your robots won’t just murder us all when we get to our home?” Josh again.
Allistor sighed. “How bout I go with you? I’ll bring a few healers along in case you have wounded that need attention. If the droids get hostile, you can shoot me first. They won’t enter your gates, just wait outside to escort you back here.”
Leila nodded her head. “Fine. Let’s do it. How long do you need to get your people together?”
“Nigel, please inform Prime I need a hundred battle droids for an escort. Also ask Amanda and Helen to grab five or six more healers and join me in the lobby. And let Meg know we’re expecting more than three hundred hungry visitors for dinner. Tell her to pull some staff from other Strongholds for a few days if she needs them. And make sure we have rooms for the same number of people ready by this evening.”
“Of course, sire. The rooms are ready and waiting. Would you like Lady Kira to prepare the ship?”
Allistor snapped his fingers. “I hadn’t thought of that, Nigel. One second.” He turned to Leila. “Is there a large open space near your Stronghold? Like, a park, or a big parking lot, big enough to park a battleship-sized spaceship?”
“What?” Ben asked. “I mean, there is…”
“Okay well, that gives us the option of saving everybody the walk. And some time. We have a spaceship large enough to transport everyone. That will also reduce the number of droids we need for protection, if that’ll make you more comfortable.”
Surprisingly, that got a positive response from Josh. “I’m up for a ride in a spaceship.”
Leila nodded her head in agreement, not saying anything.
“Yes, Nigel, please ask Kira to fire up the Phoenix.”
“She is already aboard sire, and will be ready to go when you arrive.”
Amanda, Helen, William, and a half dozen others approached as Allistor got to his feet. He introduced everyone, then quickly explained to his people what they were up to.
“I’m coming with you.” William informed him. Allistor considered for a moment, then decided there was no serious risk.
“Good idea, William. There may be some frightened children who could use a brave squire to reassure them.” He put a hand on the boy’s shoulder. “But you don’t leave the ship, no matter what. On your honor, as a squire.”
This was exactly the right button to push. William’s face took on a solemn look, his chest swelled, and he placed his fist over his heart. “On my honor, as a squire.”
With that issue resolved, Allistor and Fuzzy led the group down the four blocks to the parking structure and the Phoenix. He had Prime bring along one of the industrial hoverpads, pulled by battle droids. Once everyone was aboard, Kira lifted off and hovered. Allistor took Leila to the bridge so she could direct Kira on where to land. It turned out Leila’s Stronghold was a single city block located on the northwest corner of 10th Ave and W. 21st Street. From above, Allistor could see that there was a red brick church building and attached school, with a square courtyard in the center, as well as a couple small commercial buildings that filled out the block. On the back side, there was a raised platform that looked like an abandoned railway track.
There was a small wooded area across the street that was large enough to land the ship, but Leila directed them a couple blocks north. The wide open intersection of 10th and W. 23rd – both roads having six lanes – allowed Kira to squeeze the ship between the buildings and land on the street.
As Leila walked Allistor and the others south along 10th Ave, she pointed to the park. “That’s Clements Park. We’ve been using it as a community garden, even though it’s outside the walls. I haven’t had the resources to expand them, or I would have. That’s where we’ve lost the most people lately. Trying to harvest food.” Allistor saw there was a low iron fence around the park, and several rows of corn inside, as well as other plants mixed in among the trees.
To the right, directly across the street from the park, was Leila’s stronghold. It had thirty-foot walls, and a gate that faced east toward the park. Allistor didn’t see any weapons atop the wall, though he did see a few sentries with rifles. With a whistle from Josh, the gates opened slightly. Inside, Allistor could see the front of the church, with a stone cross above the door and a faded banner that said Guardian Angel Church.
Noticing the direction of his gaze, Leila said, “Yeah, that’s where we started. When the apocalypse happened, and monsters began spawning, myself and a bunch of neighborhood folks filled the church, and prayed. I think we were hoping that somehow holy ground would save us. You know, like in the vampire movies?” She looked down at her feet, shaking her head. “But it didn’t. Monsters spawned in the cellar on the fourth day. Killed dozens of my neighbors before we managed
to put them down. We got organized, and raided a few of the hotels and restaurants close by for food and bedding and such. Folks just sort of drafted me as leader because I was a Marine. Eventually the System said we had enough resources to form a Stronghold, so I did.”
Amanda took charge. “We’ll wait out here. I expect you’ll need a little while to gather your people and speak to them. When you’re ready, bring out your injured and infirm, and we’ll begin doing what we can for them. Those that can’t walk, we can transport on the pad there, or a droid can carry them to the ship.”
Josh looked suspicious. “How do we know you won’t just attack with these battle droids while we’re inside?”
Allistor stepped close to the man, their faces less than two feet apart, and leaned in, growling, “I’m getting a little tired of your attitude, Josh. I’m here to help. If I wanted to kill you and take your stuff, you being out here wouldn’t stop me. I could have done it already.”
Stepping back and turning to face Leila, he added, “You’ve seen our tower. I have plenty of space, weapons, and food. The only resource inside these walls that means anything to me is you and your people. Human beings are the most valuable resource on Earth right now, and I want to preserve as many of us as I can. I’m sorry for failing you before, I truly am. But I’m here now.”
Leila nodded, throwing Josh a look that caused him to lower his eyes. “I’m convinced, Allistor. I apologize for Josh, he lost family last week, and is understandably angry. I’ll bring my people out as quick as I can.”
As Leila and her people entered the gates, the battle droids spread out to form a perimeter. Fuzzy wandered over to the iron gate leading into the park and pawed at it until Allistor opened it for him. He then wandered inside to sniff around the trees, and do what bears do in the woods. While they waited, Allistor took a seat on the hoverpad and opened up his file on the other Strongholds. There were two more within his Capital City’s walls, and Leila had given him a harsh reminder that he needed to reach out to them as soon as possible.
Shadow Sun Progression: Shadow Sun Book Four Page 3
