Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 11

Sakura returned to me. The prince charming to the rescue we’d both hoped for ended up being considerably less dramatic. We just walked out of there, and nobody stopped us.

Once home, I issued a few more quests, this time directing Frank and the other major adventuring guilds when and where I needed them. I was already getting word that they’d made contact with other groups outside of New Kyoto that were part of the same shard and paid tribute to the oni who ruled the big city. Those were the people I needed to talk to, but there were so many small, scattered groups I’d need to rely on the adventurers again.

With the eastern front being dealt with, I turned my attention in the other direction to the military men I’d been worried about. General Marshall and I had an amicable, if odd, understanding. According to Margaret, our factions were still exchanging goods regularly. The military base had plenty of supplies in deep storage, not to mention ammunition all of our gun-toting adventurers were in desperate need of.

After checking out the oni armory, I was increasingly interested in seeing what kind of gear these guys were packing. How would they fare against the oni warriors I’d just seen if push came to shove? I imagined the oni would be just as upset about a human military faction as they would be about Crownhill, so it would only be natural for the two to come into conflict.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized I needed to coordinate with them. At the very least, I needed to warn General Marshall about what was going on. Coincidentally, that would give me another chance to feel him out and see if my fate bloodline gave me any bad feelings about him.

I hunted down Margeret, who had been managing Crownhill’s interactions with them and asked for her thoughts on the matter.

“So what are those military guys up to, really?” I asked. The suspicion was plain in my voice as I cupped my chin in my hands.

“They’ve been perfect gentlemen, at least as far as post-apocalyptic survivors go. Every week, we trade them fresh-grown food for ammunition, broken electronics, and other things from Earth that are hard to get these days,” Margaret replied.

“No secret spies? Suspicious encounters? Plots to overthrow us?” I asked.

Margaret laughed. “None that I can see. They’re a bit odd, and when you mentioned their uniforms being wrong, I looked into it. They told me they’ve taken a lot of fresh recruits from the survivor groups they’ve rescued, and they have a limited supply of uniforms. Things can’t be quite as orderly as they were before the integration when they had the support of an entire nation.”

“Hmm... alright. In any case, please pass through the trade channels that I need to have another meeting with General Marshall. The last time we spoke, he and I agreed to share scouting information. As of now, I have something he’ll want to know. I have the location of another faction on this shard, and I think we have reason to suspect they’ll be hostile to both of us.”

Margaret frowned, nodded, and then started making calls. Soon, her office was a flurry of activity while I waited patiently for her to arrange a meeting. She didn’t have a direct line to the general, so it took time for her to get in contact with the military officer in charge of trade with Crownhill to get in contact with his superior, and then for him to contact his superior all the way up the chain of command to the general. But Margaret had a time and place arranged within the hour. I would be meeting with General Marshall the day after tomorrow in the same clearing we’d first met at.

I leaned back, thinking of how I was going to present our current situation. If General Marshall and his comrades had any ill intentions, the earlier I could reveal them, the better off we’d be.

***

General Marshall and I both arrived an hour early to the meeting location. I spotted his helicopter while I was flying over, and he already had troops on the ground securing the area. In contrast, I arrived alone.

Several men with assault rifles patrolled the clearing, and barbed wire had been set up all around it as they stared into the forest. The defenses would hold fine against any E or F-Grade monster, but I was pretty sure a D-Grade one could shrug off anything that wasn’t armor-piercing, so barbed wire certainly wouldn’t slow them down. Even less so for the C-Grade monsters we had roaming the area.

If these guys had survived everything Crownhill had, they had to have faced C-Grade monsters by now. How had they dealt with those? What were their real weapons? I looked, but saw nothing. Nor anyone with the sort of levels needed to kill a C-Grade the way me or my adventurers could.

If I still had my Death Curse, I’d be keeping these guys busy throughout our meeting. The constant swarms of monsters would really put them to the test. Thankfully, I’d gotten rid of that, and the low-level freelance adventurers and small guilds had patrolled this place often enough that it was largely free of monsters. The secure perimeter would go untested today.

I suspected they knew that. This was merely a show of force. The general had arrived early and come with men to prove he and his comrades were strong and competent. But so was I, so maybe I ought to put on a show too.

Besides, they'd done nothing to guard against extradimensional invasion of their otherwise secure perimeter. Really, I was doing them a favor by pointing out the obvious flaw.

So I took a brief trip through the shadow realm and appeared in the clearing inside of all the soldiers' defenses, right where the general was about to land. My cloak was still working perfectly because nobody turned in alarm at my sudden appearance until I pulled it off and held out my hand in greeting to the general, who was about to step off his helicopter.

“Mister Smith, you’re early. I took the liberty of having my troops set up a tent for us, but they aren’t quite finished yet,” General Marshall said as he took my hand and waved off all his men, many of whom turned their rifles on me the moment they realized how close I’d gotten to their general without them noticing.

“I could say the same to you. Here I thought I was going to set up the meeting place. You're securing the area, I take it?” I asked.

“Just making sure nothing interrupts our meeting,” the general replied with a knowing smirk.

“Smart. Though I had people walk through this whole chunk of forest all week. We cleared out everything worth killing already.” As we shook hands, the general’s grip tightened, and so did mine.

We made small talk while his soldiers finished setting up a command tent, along with a table and chairs. There was a coffee maker, too, and soon, the two of us were sitting down with coffee in one hand and a crude map of the area that looked like it had been assembled from photographs taken by helicopter. It was a neat idea and one I’d thought of. I had something similar on my phone, only taken from even higher up. And I hadn’t needed a helicopter to take the pictures.

“This here is our map. It’s made from high-altitude reconnaissance imagery using the latest generation equipment,” the general said as he pointed at the map.

“Yeah, I took a few good pictures from up high too. I’ll send them to your phone,” I replied while I pulled out my own cellphone and showed off a few of my own images, which covered a much larger area. The general seemed unhappy for a few seconds before rummaging around for his civilian cellphone and accepting the image exchange. The general handed his phone off to one of his subordinates, who rushed off to get the files copied and printed.

Truthfully, I was surprised he even carried it with cell service down after the apocalypse, but maybe his people had figured out a way to get things running again, much as my people had. I'd offered to help him with that before, but he'd refused.

After giving the general the new files, I broke out a pen and started making some notes on the map he printed out for us. I marked the location of a few throwaway teleportation arrays my adventurers were using, just to delineate what I was claiming as Crownhill’s territory. I nudged things a little to suggest these outposts served a more military purpose. And that they were aligned against a common foe, New Kyoto.

“Battling the Japanese, huh?” General Marshall muttered.

“The original George Marshall would know just what to do now, wouldn’t he?” I joked, though General Marshall didn’t seem to get the jest, so I dropped my smile and corrected him. “Actually, we’re not up against the Japanese. They’ve been taken over by an off-world faction. I don’t necessarily have anything against the Oni either, but their current scheme is likely to put them at odds with us humans, and we should be prepared for conflict because of that. They’re located here.”

General Marshall’s men arrived just in time with the fresh map printouts for me to highlight New Kyoto for him.

“I see. Looks like they’re dug in and walled up. They’ll be a tough nut to crack from the air. I’m not sure we’re willing to risk landing. If these oni fellas you’ve been mentioning are as tough as you say, they might be able to take out some of our helicopters. Any that break are gone for good.” General Marshall shook his head.

“Let’s hold off on thoughts of storming the place for now. What I’m suggesting is more along the lines of joint military exercises.”

The general’s eyebrows went up at that. “Join military exercises? I thought you were a settlement of civilians? What’s this about a military?”

I chuckled. “I suppose you’re right about that. We don’t have a military, just a town defensive and policing force. But we do have what you might call mercenary companies. Most of them specialize in dealing with monsters, but the bigger ones are perfectly happy to take government contracts. These days, we’re calling them quests.”

Technically, we had the Chain Brigade, our penal legion. But there was no need to tell the general about that little project.

“Hmm. Alright. If you’re footing the bill, my boys can coordinate with some of your civilian mercenaries. I’m not sure how well a System as unorthodox as yours will hold up against first contact with the enemy. Don’t blame me if your troops get themselves killed.” The general tapped the table aggressively.

I chuckled. “Don’t worry. My methods aren’t as unorthodox as they seem in the wider multiverse we’ve found ourselves in. And I promise everyone you’ll be working with has faced plenty of challenges.”

“Maybe, but I don’t give a damn what all these alien invaders think. Loyal troops win wars, not mercs.” The general snorted derisively.

I shrugged, but there was a part of me that agreed with him.

Soon after, the general and I shook hands on the deal, and soon I had a few training exercises planned with them. The general had hidden his suspicious activity from Margaret so far, but she’d only ever been interacting with people who specialized in arranging things with us.

I was betting the average rank-and-file soldier wouldn’t be so tight-lipped about their operation, especially if my adventurers got a little alcohol into them. No doubt that was in scarce supply for them, so the Amazonian beer we’d been importing would be a welcome treat.

One way or another, I was going to scout out General Marshall and his military men, because the last thing I wanted was another enemy at my back if things turned sour with the oni. Not to mention the fact that if past trends held true, there were still two more factions we had yet to meet this stage of the integration.

***

Even long after the meeting, the general’s words rang true in my head. Armies win wars. In a way, a military is the ultimate expression of state power.

In every monarchy and empire I could think of, the reigning sovereign of that country had very real and direct control over a large military cohort. This allowed them to enact their will far beyond their own reach.

And yet here I was, running around doing everything myself. At most, one might consider Sakura part of my army. Maybe Myrina, Mimiko, Cyra, and Reluna as well when they returned. Bridget might be part of that crew again after she had our kid.

In the past, I'd drafted the guards and the adventurer guilds for offensive military actions, but as Crownhill expanded so too did the bureaucracy. There was paperwork to fill out and payroll to make these days. I couldn't just grab people and ask them to help me fight off the enemy anymore. And it had shown in how I was handling things lately. I was working by myself, which was like fighting with both hands tied behind my back.

Maybe it was time to change that.

I was overdue for a check in with Prince Herius and the girls anyway, and I wanted to see how colonizing his new world was going.

So I scheduled a trip abroad, leaving Sakura, Bridget, and Governess in charge of my stuff while I was gone. I’d set lots of plans in motion, but all of them would take time to come to fruition.

Thanks to my ring, which was an anchor to my mystic realm Sanctum, the trip over to them was quite short. Just opening a little portal and walking over was all it took, despite the journey being who knew how many lightyears away.

I waved to the crowds still in Sanctum, though they were thinner now. Instead of hundreds of thousands huddled around the mechanisms sustaining miniature pocket worlds that held millions more, there were just a few tens of thousands, though the decaying pocket worlds were still there.

I left alongside a steady stream of people making their way to Prince Herius’ new world. Roughly three-fourths of the crowd was going to a teleportation array to Glacia nearby, which Prince Herius had likely set up when he realized he had no chance of caring for so many dislocated refugees.

Even so, the one fourth of the population he was accepting would mean over a billion people on this planet. Without liberal use of pocket realms, agricultural societies simply couldn’t sustain a population like that. Hopefully, some of those pocket realms behind me were of high enough quality to last long-term. Either that, or I’d have to try my hand at making a few for the prince.

Thankfully, the planet Prince Herius was building wasn’t entirely agricultural. The massive construction golems I’d set up were hard at work building the infrastructure that would support the future population. There was a city just outside the exit to Sanctum, and people were filing out of the cramped camps they’d made in my mystic realm and into sprawling apartment complexes.

The twenty-story housing complexes were no doubt far denser than they were used to living, but the construction golems could only work so fast, and building millions of farmsteads would take much longer than assembling an apartment complex.

There were plenty of storefronts, too, and I could already see some semblance of normalcy as people walked down city streets. From the languages people were speaking and the style of the buildings, it looked like Prince Herius was giving each big group of settlers their own city to call home.

I feared such a strategy would leave this planet full of a thousand city-states of clashing cultures that would lead to inevitable conflict, but perhaps it was better than leaving each settlement such a mishmash of languages that no two neighbors could even speak to one another unless they had a forerunner title like mine that granted universal translation.

I spoke with a few shopkeepers, who seemed pleased with current happenings.

“How do you feel about the city?” I asked a small shop owner selling food from a bare but nicely-made restaurant shaped by one of the many earth-manipulation wands I’d had made. His face seemed somewhat familiar, though no name came to mind.

“Good, sir! I was given this shop thanks to that work in the mines. Your woman was a real taskmaster, but it’s worth it to have a shop of my own again. Now I just have to wait for customers!” the man laughed, and I realized he was one of my early volunteers. He must have used his contribution points to purchase this shop once our work was done.

“Well, consider me your first one. I’ll take lunch for six to go.” I flicked him a handful of silver and gold. He had no change to give me, but was very thankful for the business. I probably massively overpaid, but it’d be important to kick-start the economy of all these cities with a little coin here and there. Besides, it wasn't like he had change for me anyway.

After shopping, I took flight over miles and miles of farmland, all of it tilled and planted by enormous golem, but with no farmers to own or harvest the plots. Hopefully, by the time harvest came around, enough people would have moved out of the city to settle in the countryside.

Some searching, touring several cities, and asking questions, I finally found where Prince Herius and my ladies were headquartered as they managed the entire city. I must have just missed them because Mimiko had set down the other end of Sanctum’s Mystic Realm anchor mere minutes before I walked through it.

Eventually, I caught up with the ladies, who were all together.

“Carter!” Myrina said, jumping on top of me.

“I missed you too, Myrina,” I said, returning the hug even as she weighed me down. I would never say it aloud, but Myrina was heavy enough at any size to nearly bring me to my knees, thanks to all the density-shifting tricks her Amazonian bloodline granted her.

“Don’t forget about us, Carter!” Reluna said, jumping up and wrapping her arms around me from behind. Mimko soon joined in.

“Uh... Carter!” Cyra said, awkwardly standing. She looked at the mound of female flesh surrounding me and realized she was supposed to join in. So she started running toward me, arms spread just as Myrina’s had been.

“Wait, Cyra, ahh--“ I barely managed to get out a yell as I was soon completely smothered. If Myrina was heavy to me, both her and her sister were true pelvis-crushing Amazonians.

I coughed, spluttered, and eventually wormed my way free. Despite my lovers’ best efforts, I emerged in one piece with my pelvis intact and was able to finish lunch with them. The local snacks I’d bought were appreciated, but Bridget’s packaged meals went over far better. While the ladies ate, I picked their brains about what they’d been up to.

“Settling a planet is a pain in the rear!” Myrina complained.

“Is it, now?” I chuckled. “As it happens, Crownhill is up against a serious contender. There’s another human city that’s supported by the oni of Onibushi. Do you ladies know the planet?”

“I know it,” Cyra nodded.

“Well, war hasn’t broken out yet, but I’m wary of how much support they’ll get from there.” I shrugged.

“However much they get, it won’t be enough!” Myrina promised.

I chuckled again, then rested a hand on her shoulder. “I’ll call you when you’re needed, I promise. For now, though, perhaps it’s best if you stay here and help your brother a bit longer. Things back home require a delicate touch.”

“Aww... I thought you came here to pick me up to help you kick ass...” Myrina poked her food with a spoon, suddenly looking sour.

“Sorry. I’m actually here to chat with Reluna though. I need her for something.”

Reluna blinked in surprise, then smiled widely.

“I knew you’d come to your senses, my favorite lab assistant! Now, tell me what you need. My superb talisman crafting skills? My extraordinary divination abilities? My skillful artifact analysis?”

She looked at me expectantly, and it was my turn to smile widely instead.

<Note>

Drafting has been going a little slow, unfortunately, so I've been doubling back and getting some edits done on the earlier chapters. Normally I wait until later to do this, but I figure I'll try doing them now.

If there are any important changes I'll let you know in notes like these.