Implode ~ 10!

“You… are Aten’s father.” Joe snorted and glanced at the Guild Commander. “I'm incredibly surprised, yet somehow it makes perfect sense. I hope you aren’t worried. I have come to understand that the apocalypse on Earth was not your fault, and you were only trying to give people a fair warning. Also, I got a pod ahead of time and was already a permanent addition, so you really have nothing to worry about from me.”

“I'm glad that you liked our products, and I appreciate you trying to put me at ease, as unnecessary as it is to do so.” The man before him was no longer his president, seeing as the country as a whole had likely been swept away under a tide of monsters. “What can I do for you today? Aten here has filled me in on some of your exploits, and I understand that you are currently being hunted by the Elves. I don't have a large amount of time, since I need to be ready to move along as quickly as possible. The more humans that are in the same Zone as me, the more likely it is that we will have an… incident.”

“Not everyone is as understanding as I am about the whole ‘planet being overrun’ thing?” The Ritualist quipped, his attempt at a joke falling flat as the other people in the room only nodded solemnly. “Okay then. Ah… to use our time as efficiently as possible, I can describe my plans to provide you with the context to offer pertinent advice? I think that would work better than simply trying to delve for random information. If you actually have advance knowledge of the upcoming Zones, it would be incredibly helpful to be able to plan ahead. My present goal is to amass a large group of Dwarves and bring them with me to the next Zone as soon as the Bifrost opens. First question is this: what can we expect in the next Zone, and how can we best prepare for it?”

“That's a good question, but you are ignoring a few of the small details that need to be taken into account before you make a jump like that.” The ex-president had always been known as an extremely intense person, and that had not changed in the slightest during his time in the program. The only real difference Joe could spot from the man he used to watch on television was the oversized and extremely well-defined muscles. “First of all, the next Zone is what will come to be known as a watershed Zone, or a bottleneck. Do you remember when you first got to Alfheim, the intense pressure that you had to withstand in order to even walk or breathe?”

“Incredibly clearly,” Joe deadpanned, not wanting to get into the fact that he had been exiled to the Zone and had died multiple times before figuring out how to fill his lungs with life-giving air. “Is it going to be like that?”

“Yes and no. It will be easy to breathe, and you will have no physical troubles after learning how to navigate the currents of energy there.” The father of his Guild Commander leaned forward and stared into Joe's eyes. “The problem is going to be any skills or spells that you plan to bring along with you. In order to use them, you have to achieve a certain skill level. From this point forward, there is a minimum requirement of Mastery for all of your abilities, or you will simply not be able to access them in the next areas. Just so you know, the Bifrost connects this Zone to Jotunheim, the World of Giants. Anything remaining in the Novice ranks will be completely ineffective, and Beginner ranked skills and spells will drop to the point of being functionally useless.”

“How are we expected to learn new skills, in that case? What about the people that have already lived there, or have risen into higher areas?” Joe’s brow furrowed as he tried to calculate what the restriction would mean for him. His plan of loading up on spells and skills in the next Dwarven city seemed to be crumbling around him.

“You will still be able to train in whatever you wish, but you will be unable to generate the desired effect until it has reached at least the Beginner ranks.” Musk sighed and sat back. “It is difficult to describe exactly what it’ll be like; it's just something you are going to need to experience for yourself. I would advise you to plan accordingly, with the knowledge that Novice abilities are useless. The second thing, the most important thing, is the knowledge of how to open the Bifrost to the next Zones from there. The reason that you were asked to come to this meeting is because you are likely going to be a key component in making that happen.”

Aten joined in on the conversation, addressing Joe directly. “I filled him in on your ability to create buildings rapidly, especially your ability to integrate seemingly any sort of resource that you can get your hands on.”

“The Bifrost, the path to the higher realms, has been closed for centuries,” the president began speaking slowly, “mainly because the only way to open it is to build a proper city. The sheer amount of time that would take has made it nearly impossible for singular persons, small groups, or even a moderate faction of people. Typically, it would require a massive influx of resources equitable to an entire civilization moving in. However, that doesn't take into account the existing denizens of the Zone. On Jotunheim, there will be none of this ‘Unified Race’ or ‘Shattered Race’ nonsense. There are only monsters of varying degrees of intelligence, and the most powerful among them either remember or were informed of what happens when the Bifrost opens.”

“People travel on it?” Joe guessed, starting to piece together the big picture. “If the entire Zone is only populated by monsters, at one point, it was likely used as some kind of elite big game hunting area, right? Either that, or the monsters themselves are worth something; perhaps they can be made into high-end gear or components?”

“You told me he was a quick learner; I'm glad I took your advice and took a chance on this guy,” Musk called casually over to the person that was apparently his son. Joe was still having a hard time wrapping his head around that. The powerful man turned back to Joe and steepled his fingers. “Here's what is going to happen. As soon as you make the smallest settlement possible, such as a camp, you are going to have to start dealing with monsters. If you set up shelter for yourself, for your people, they will come in droves. After you pass a Hamlet in size, the monsters will stop coming continually, instead gathering together to attack in waves. You need to be ready for that, or all of the Dwarves that you managed to rescue will be slain in the first few weeks. Remember that as a Shattered Race, even if you get them up there, they will respawn down here as an Elf when they die.”

“Well, that really throws a wrench in my plans.” Joe sighed and started massaging his temples. “I suppose I could start with a wall? Maybe build a fort or something?”

“Just remember that the higher the town ranking, the more numerous and powerful the monsters that come after it will be. If I were you,” Joe perked up as he prepared to receive the first actual bit of actionable advice the president was about to offer, “I would figure out how to make a building that can defend itself. Perhaps if you can figure out a way to combine golems with-”

“I need to design auto-turrets. Got it. I think that's something I can set my mind to.” Joe grinned as plans started swirling in his mind, slowly for the moment, but he knew that they would start churning soon. “Thank you for the heads up. Is there anything else that you think I should know before we get on with our trip?”

“I’ve explained low-level skills failing, the type of monsters you can expect, and the requirements to get past the next Zone.” Musk ticked off each item on one of his fingers as he listed it. “No, I think that should do it. Good luck out there, and never forget that you are not alone. You have an entire Guild working hard in the lower Zones, trying to reach the highest heights. I'm pleased to see that there is someone other than Aten who is forging ahead and paving the way for the others.”

“Thank you for all of this. I'm sure that it will be incredibly useful knowledge in the future.” Joe reached out a hand, and all of the people he now recognized as secret service members stiffened. Musk cracked a smile and took the proffered limb. The Ritualist chuckled with pure giddiness; he had always wanted to meet this guy. “I hope I get to see you again in the future!”

“If you keep doing the things my boy tells me you have been, I think that is more of a guarantee than a mere hope.” With a shake and a smile, the meeting was over, and Joe was escorted out of the building.

With his thoughts swirling with information regarding what would be coming, and finally getting advance notice of what he would be facing, Joe started to sketch out a new plan. Even so, nothing fundamental about his mission had changed. Knowing that none of his team needed to sleep regularly, he met up with them and exited the capital city as quietly and stealthily as possible under the cover of night.