Unchosen Champion

Supreme Champion Jerry the First stewed in agitation while he sat with the remaining advisors of Empress City. They gathered around the bar in the captain’s lounge that Jerry claimed as his throne room discussing their current predicament. His new pick for Viceroy led the debate, allowing Jerry the opportunity to observe and contemplate their positions above the rabble.

There were quite a few different faces from just two weeks ago. The frequency that he needed to punish them for mistakes was far too high, but when things went wrong, someone had to answer. Without Rod, good help was hard to come by, but even he had been a disappointment when it came down to it.

Humans as a species were dominant on Earth thanks to their ability to manipulate. Whether it was other animals, the environment itself, or other people, humans needed to be able to outmaneuver them in order to survive. Like everything else, strength was irrelevant without the ability to wield it as a tool for control.

Rod had understood those lessons well, but he had still been suckered. Jerry pitied his former friend even if it hadn’t taken long to move on. There was no room for sentimentality in Jerry’s ironclad logic and Rod was a victim of emotional weakness; a grave sin, as far as he was concerned. Jerry would never let emotions overrule his thoughts.

When the siege event began, Jerry had pulled his army into the superior defensive position within the interior ring of Empress City. They had tens of thousands of Chosen prepared to defend the settlement from invaders and they made it clear that they would only defend the interior. Then, they opened up positions in the army for anyone in the perimeter that was ready to join. It was the perfect incentive. The carrot of safety with the stick of an unhindered wave of monsters.

However, their recruitment efforts had been disappointing. He had expected to triple their numbers, at a minimum, while the obstinate would be run down by monsters. The Endless Empire’s intel had been off once again.

The settlement events were meant to be challenging, with massive rewards in experience and credits for participating. Instead, the wave of Primal Tracker variants was far too easy. Barely anyone joined the army while a rebel group rose up from within the shacks around the settlement. The rebels fought the wave on all sides and their ‘noble’ efforts inspired the regular citizens to join the rebels instead of the army.

Jerry wasn’t fooled. He saw the manipulation for what it was, but he couldn’t counter it directly. It would be tricky to deal with enemies painting themselves as heroes. He would still find a way. It was just a matter of time.

But time wasn’t really on the Endless Empire’s side either. The strategy the faction employed was meant to be a blitzkrieg, a rush to grab territory, with continued expansion fueling their numbers. They had a window of opportunity that had rapidly closed. Other factions’ strategies would be coming online after the first event completed, and they would take a tech advantage over the Empire’s initial rush.

Jerry could only blame a poor spawn. The Empire had anticipated more civilization shards for them to cascade across, but the nearest settlement had been prepared to defend right away, and was much too distant to catch by surprise. The northern settlement that sprung up around old Orlando had hemmed them in from the beginning, sending caravans to raid their northern flank and executing their scouts and ships on sight. It was four days of travel between the settlements, with skill enhancement and without monster interference, but that hadn’t discouraged their opponents from establishing a forward perimeter within the first weeks of the assimilation. They killed indiscriminately whenever the Empire attempted to bypass their patrols and entrenched themselves as mortal enemies from the start.

Now, they had a new problem. The rebels had made themselves comfortable at the edge of Empress City’s territory by moving to the port and claiming the coast for themselves. They were manually repairing buildings and using the port as a headquarters as they organized themselves. Everyday, more people left the outer ring to join the port. Recruitment numbers for their army had collapsed and deserters were quietly leaving the airport to defect.

Jerry had heard rumors of early boss types appearing in situations like the siege event, but they hadn’t received anything except regular monsters. The domestic problems would have worked themselves out if a boss type had arrived to wipe out the mishmash of untrained rebel defenders. The organized army could have displayed its superiority in that situation. Alas, none came. The Trackers had been higher level at least, though the rebels managed them regardless.

Of course he wanted to crush the rebels mercilessly, but their numbers had swelled in the days since they revealed themselves, and their levels rivaled the Chosen of the Empire, thanks to the event. The rebels had gained levels while denying his army its own participation experience.

For now, they were playing at negotiating, sending representatives back and forth. The Empire couldn’t show weakness, but they were in trouble. Internal and external forces were applying pressure, and they had lost their early mover advantage. Once the event was complete, the northern settlement would continue to test them, splitting their focus. They would be vulnerable.

His advisors continued to debate their positions. “We should simply squash them immediately so we can focus on the northern settlement. The rebels won’t expect it before the event is complete.” The leader of the northern battalions argued.

“That will drive support to their cause! We should focus on negotiating, maybe even cede some responsibilities in order to form an alliance. If we combine forces, the northern settlement will be the ones who are squashed.” His domestic affairs advisor stated.

“They have nothing to offer other than manpower! If we execute their leadership, we can take it for ourselves. We can thank their corpses for inspiring so many to get involved in the fight.” His second choice of Viceroy reasoned, to Jerry’s approval.

The debate was interrupted by the sounds of muffled arguing, followed by grunts and clashing outside the doors. The group of advisors all stopped debating and twisted in their seats to look at the entrance just in time for the heavy black double doors to be violently kicked open. The handles slammed against the walls before one stopped halfway ajar.

Jerry stood up reflexively, offended that anyone would dare enter his domain without his approval first. “What is the meaning of this?!” He yelled, but he got his answer after another moment of observation.

A group of uniformed strangers stood in the doorway as one of the solid doors fell off its hinges. They stood above the bleeding bodies of his guards as they groaned pathetically. Blood pooled over the threshold and seeped onto the carpet of the captain’s lounge as Jerry’s mind ran through the possibilities. Jerry identified them immediately.

[Human (Level 35)]

[Human (Level 33)]

[Human (Level 36)]

[Human (Level 35)]

[Human (Level 35)]

Was the northern settlement making their move before the event completed? That would be exceedingly reckless. Was it the rebels? The intruders weren’t very high level but they seemed to be equipped with matching gear. The color schemes were all the same greens and browns. These weren’t familiar enemies.

The first to enter the lounge, casually stepping around the expanding blood, smiled at Jerry, revealing a gold tooth. He just walked in like he owned the place. “You must be the Champion.” He observed, getting Jerry’s full attention without shying from it.

The man was older, scarred and wrinkled, like a grizzled veteran with a thick gray mustache and bushy eyebrows underneath a black beret. He was equipped with an army green cloak, a bandolier on top of a grease-stained white shirt, and thick brown cargo pants. A combat knife was holstered at his hip. He raised his hands like he was approaching a wild animal and attempting to keep it calm.

“And who the hell are you?” Jerry asked disdainfully.

“I’m called Grizz, and I’d like to negotiate your surrender!” The old man exclaimed with an ugly attempt at a friendly grin across his face. To Jerry, all grins were ugly.

Jerry had executed his own allies for less disrespect than this bastard was showing him. He didn’t hesitate any longer to lash out. He threw six black void sparks at the old man before he made it any further into the room. Ranged was always king, and this dumbass brought a knife to a magic fight.

The black sparks shot across the room, sucking in the light as they went, gaining power and aimed for the old man’s chest. The man had the good sense to look surprised, not expecting Jerry to act so decisively, as if Jerry wouldn’t take the most logical approach to his personal area being intruded upon.

Before the old man had a chance to do anything else, the black sparking stars closed the distance with erratic movements, accelerating and decelerating at random, but the man’s bandolier suddenly exploded with six pops as some kind of automatic point defense was launched. All six of his stars evaporated in puffs of black mana smoke. Jerry’s attack was intercepted, enraging the Champion.

“What are you standing around for?” Jerry shouted at his advisors. “Attack!” He pointed aggressively at the intruders.

The fat generals and sycophants looked at each other, unsure, before his new Viceroy finally summoned oversized stone arms and rushed forward. He attempted to punch the main intruder directly, but the grizzled man stepped forward, cocked back his arm so that his cloak could wrap around it with a rustling noise that made it seem thicker than it appeared, then mirrored the advisor’s punching motion. When their fists collided, the advisor's stone armor exploded with a cracking sound as it was destroyed.

“Hmph!” The intruder grunted from the effort. Then he lunged forward and pummeled the advisor with his cloaked arm. Once his victim was unconscious, he looked up at Jerry. “You’ve got a choice here. Trade your shard and keep your lives.” He explained with a flick of his cloak back toward the rest of the waiting intruders in the entrance way. He stared into Jerry’s eyes with an earnest glare.

“Go to hell!” Jerry shouted, as he grabbed one of the last surviving artifacts after their prison had been raided. He smashed it in his fist and directed the dark energies at the invader filled with harmful intent.

The old man’s expression barely changed as he moved to intercept it with his cloak-wrapped arm, trusting his equipment to protect him. The dark energies passed straight through the barrier, punishing his trust and infecting him with the blood curse.

“Wha? Ah! Argh!” The old man shouted as he watched the veins in his forearm turn black. The black energy ran through his neck and his eyes bulged as he collapsed forward and landed, face first, on the ground, completely incapacitated.

The other invaders looked at each other in surprise. They obviously hadn’t anticipated any successful resistance. Their equipment was meant to be a massive advantage, but they suddenly had doubts when presented with its fallibility. One of the quiet observers gave a slight nod, and the rest entered the lounge.

Jerry launched another four black sparks at the shifting trespassers, but they each fizzled as the bandolier defenses activated. The stymied attack emboldened the party, and they moved to fight together, unsheathing knives and spreading out.

The advisors attempted to fight, realizing that if they didn’t do anything, they would die, whether from the invaders executing them or from Jerry’s punishment. It seemed like the only chance to negotiate had gone with the incapacitation of the grizzled veteran. The captain’s lounge exploded into chaos as spells and attacks were launched back and forth. Glass shattered, stools burst into flames, and smoke clouded the room for a brief period of uninhibited chaotic violence.

At the end, Jerry stood alone, an uncomfortable smile on his face, as he stared down all of the surviving invaders by himself. A second trespasser lay unconscious at his feet after he used his second artifact to afflict him with a blood curse, and one was kneeling, injured by the combined efforts of Jerry’s deceased advisors, bleeding from several wounds.

Jerry lifted a foot above the second curse victim’s prone body and smashed his neck under his boot with a vicious stomp.

[Congratulations! You have leveled up!]

He was glad to have kept the last artifacts on him at all times after he lost trust in the system’s security. They were still powerful trump cards in the early stages of the assimilation.

Jerry launched his last black sparks and waited for it to inevitably be snuffed out by the equipment of his enemies, but one of them bore a hole through the chest of the injured trespasser and Jerry laughed out loud.

“Hah! You’re more pathetic than I thought!” He taunted as another invader was defeated. Two were downed by curses and one by his skill. “Without your gear, you’re useless weaklings.”

“Cap? How’s he gettin’ around the aegis capes?” The last man anxiously asked. Jerry was surprised the lone female was called Cap.

“I dunno, Dan, just stay behind me.” She responded.

Jerry sneered. “That’s right, Dan. Stay behind her.” Jerry grasped the last remaining artifact and crushed it while he hid it behind his sleeve.

When Cap tipped forward, collapsing with blackened veins and a grimace, Jerry laughed as his victory was at hand. He hadn’t been having much fun with all of the problems piling on Empress City, but this was exhilarating. Perhaps it was time to abandon the faction’s carefully laid but flawed plans and take things into his own hands.

Dan stepped backwards with his hands forward. “Wait! I’m just a reader! Don’t kill me!”

Jerry paused his exultation. “A reader?”

“A mana guide! It’s pretty much a non-combat class, but I have the latest intel from the faction data banks on Day 30!” Dan desperately sought someway to make himself seem valuable, but Jerry had already decided the man’s fate.

“Well? Tell me what you know, and start with who you are.” Jerry patiently directed, in a much better mood after the fight.

“I’m Dan!” His hostage uselessly exclaimed with wild, panicked eyes.

“I mean who are you representing, you idiot. Where did you come from? Are you with the rebels?” Jerry was already losing his patience.

“Rebels? No! We’re from the Hand of Mirrors! I’m supposed to find Bosses, Wells, and Shards for the party…” Dan took a deep breath and began to explain everything in a rush.

“We returned on Day 30. This was the nearest shard, but it was several days through the wilderness. We woulda been here sooner but I thought I detected a Field Boss spawn location, so we detoured a bit, angling for the first place title. Cap thought my skill wasn’t workin’ right, since it’s too early for them, but I saw that crater in the golf course, I’m sure someone already got one, it musta been you, huh? I wonder if the 2nd to 10th place titles also got claimed. They told us Field Bosses wouldn’t even spawn ‘til Day 50 plus! And they said to stay away until we were securely on paths, cause they’re s’posed to be well-rounded and much too strong for beginner builds. You obviously handled it though…” Dan trailed off as he looked at the bodies of his party and ran out of steam.

Jerry had no idea what this guy was talking about, and his patience was really getting thin. “Why are you here?”

“‘Cause the shard…” Dan explained simply, pointing directly toward the breakroom that housed the settlement’s shard as if he could see it through multiple walls. Jerry didn’t like that this guy knew exactly where it was hidden.

“And what intel do you have?” Jerry asked, giving Dan a few more answers before he ended this conversation.

“Well, for one, this is the Endless Empire, a middle C-Tier faction according to the Mirror, aggressive expansionist, heavily invested, but had a disappointing presence on the first set of assimilation leaderboards. The assumption was that the bad start was caused by direct competition for control of territory. There were over 20 factions that attempted a blitz, but only two managed to expand across multiple shards.” The mana reader recited. “Earth is a popular place, but was severely underestimated by the system stats, and humans are just generally not as pliable as anticipated.”

Jerry grumbled for a moment at the insulting analysis of his performance. “Which faction is in the lead?”

“Well the factionless were the biggest surprise, easily combined for the most territory, but of the factions, The Abundant Grasp held 12 shards and the most territory before the event began. Also middle C-Tier, considered a persuasive expansionist faction, heavily invested, and apparently uncontested for the first 30 Days using a blitz strategy.” Dan recited.

“Where are they?” Jerry demanded.

“Um, only the factions know where they sponsored people, and the location of specific shards isn’t revealed to anyone outside the assimilation.”

“How useless.” Jerry observed.

“But I know all the factions that appeared on the leaderboards!”

“Who cares. They’re just groups of humans wearing different team colors.” Jerry was done with this guy.

Jerry cast his newest spell, one that was meant to entirely replace Rod in his role of incapacitation. Cosmic Journey was supposed to be a powerful crowd control skill and he hadn’t had an opportunity to test it.

Dan seemed to sense his time was up. His eyes widened, and he shouted, “No! Wait!”

Dan was suddenly engulfed in inky blackness, like he was floating in space with no stars in sight. He seemed to be sinking into the depths of a stellar ocean as he was pulled toward his own body, across the cosmos. His speed slowly picked up, accelerating as he was drawn back to where he belonged. Dan screamed in fear, but the sound from his lungs had nowhere to go.

Jerry observed as Dan stood frozen in place. He retrieved one of the combat knives and rubbed it against Dan’s cheek, then sliced a thin cut down his face. Dan didn’t react, not even a blink.

Jerry nodded with satisfaction. “Good.” He was pleased that Rod had been properly replaced.

He looked at the two surviving cursed bodies and the frozen Dan and briefly considered eliminating them all. While they would be worth some experience, he decided to keep them as hostages in the dungeon. Maybe knowing the other factions would become useful. It would be illogical to throw away potential intelligence just because it wasn’t pertinent at the moment. Plus, he could just kill them later.

Jerry strode out of his captain’s lounge, through the carnage, and sought some new helpers to carry his prisoners and clean up the mess. He didn’t even glance at the corpses of his former advisors or the bleeding guards groaning in pain.