The Angel Express - 6:39 PM

  I sipped at my tea as I watched my guild members react to what I had just told them. They had all become very animated the moment I dropped the truth. Even Kayla and Jeff were surprised I admitted it even though I went through all the trouble to set up a System Contract enforcing silence.

  That said, I watched everyone’s auras carefully. My second in command was worried with Jeff matching her. Mercury’s was nothing but pure excitement, his sister’s confused until he rapidly signed everything to her. Then, Bethany’s aura evened out a little. She was the one who had interacted with me the least, so I wasn’t expecting much.

  Ashley was disgruntled, but only a little more than usual. That was to be expected, honestly, and I knew it would blow over into her usual mood after some time.

  Jamie, however, was full of conflicting emotions, no doubt thinking back on everything I had ever said or done.

  She was the one I had been the most worried about, and for good reason. While she was one of the most loyal people I knew, one of the reasons why I brought her along, she hated feeling like she was being manipulated. Over the course of the last month or so, she had gotten used to the fact that I knew things about the future.

  Even though I never said I had my knowledge because I was psychic, that was the connection I led people to believe. My friends included. It wasn’t an outright lie that would be picked up by someone who could detect them, but it was still something I made a decision to say.

  And now, I was going to have to defend myself.

  <<<>>>

  [[Patron Quest: The Unity of Sol Ligatus]]

  I can see why you decided to say something after all this time, but can you handle what is going to happen next?

  It looks like most of them will accept this development with open arms, but keep an eye out on Ashley and Jamie. I don’t think they’re taking this as well.

  There’s only going to be two people who feel strongly negative about this, so I’m going to have this quest focus on them. Keep Sol Ligatus alive as best you can, Ant. You’re in uncharted waters now. Fortunately, I think I can help.

  Objective: Keep Sol Ligatus whole.

  Reward: 10,000 points.

  <<<>>>

  I made a small motion to swipe away the quest when Sara stood up. She raised her hands, and everyone stopped to look at her.

  “Since Anthony is sharing his secrets, so will I,” she said and signed, taking some of the heat off of me. Her wings spread out, and she had them bent slightly so they wouldn’t clip out of the Patron’s car. “You know me as Sara, but my full name is Esaraphelscion. I am the Angel of the End, the hidden world boss at the end of the scenarios.”

  Where my confession was met with rambunctious noise, Sara’s was met with shocked silence. Her gaze swept across the room, meeting everyone’s eyes one by one, and I felt their auras settle. Well, everyone except Mercury’s, who was brimming with enthusiasm.

  “Kayla and Jeff were there when I was first summoned, which was a boon I had imparted on Anthony,” she continued, her hands folded in front of her. “Before you judge him harshly, please listen to what he has to say. Any lies of omission are ones that even I consider necessary. There is already one administrator who has figured out what he is, and others are throwing monsters like the Nautilus and Guardian at him on the mere suspicion that he’s more than he is. All I ask is that you please keep an open mind when you listen.”

  “Sorry, but now you’re claiming to be a world boss?” Jamie asked, arching an eyebrow. “You’re not actually a Patron?”

  “It’s true,” Jeff said. “Kay and I are still getting bonuses from seeing her for the first time.”

  “They show up whenever we start a scenario,” Kayla added before correcting herself. “For the first time, I mean. Second scenario, third, and I imagine the same thing will happen with the fourth.”

  “Huh, okay,” Jamie said in a tone that made it clear things were not okay, crossing her arms.

  Sara took a completely unneeded, very human, breath. “I am, technically, a monster created by the system,” she slowly answered, grimacing at the admission. “However, I was more intricately connected to it than all but the others like me. My role in all of this is to be trapped in the Hall of the End, which this room is currently modeled after, and reward whoever is the first to defeat the Emperor of the Demons and come through my portal.”

  “And that just so happens to be the Warmonger?” Mercury excitedly asked.

  “Yes. Through his repeated visits, I’ve come to learn more of humanity than I ever did watching them, detached as I was from the outside world,” she said, looking at me. “He is the reason why I want everything to come tumbling down. I used to think that the system was simply the way of the world. That its existence and appearance was an inevitability. However, he taught me that people aren’t just players to be watched, cheered for, or cursed, but that they’re people first and foremost.”

  “Repeated visits,” Mercury whispered to himself. I ignored that for now.

  She gave me a look, and I smiled. “That is just one of the reasons why I gave him the ability to summon me. You all deserve better than what the administrators have done. I find Anthony’s goal to be a noble one, but I will let him tell you all about that.”

  “Soon as you’re done,” I told her patiently.

  “Of course. As for my status as a Patron, that was the result of him blindsiding me with something unreasonable, if I’m being completely honest,” she admitted with a soft smile. “I cannot remember anything between regressions without a Memory Orb, and I was ready to smite him when I was called to do his bidding. There he was, with that infuriatingly smug smile. You all know the one. Only, instead of asking me to kill the scenario boss, he handed me my memories and a System Contract that would fundamentally change what I was.”

  “I don’t think I’m infuriatingly smug,” I defended, looking at the rest of my team. I was met with a lot of nodding heads, and I rolled my eyes. “Fine, maybe I’m a little infuriatingly smug.”

  “You are, but I didn’t say that was a bad thing,” Sara said as she watched me, her eyes soft. “Anyway, that’s how I became both a world boss and a Patron. Not the full story, of course, but we only have a limited amount of time. Anthony?”

  She gestured towards me, and I stood up to face everyone’s expectations. The mood had calmed down, sure, but only somewhat. There was still convincing to be done.

  “Some of you may have noticed that Sara mentioned repeated visits,” I said, nodding towards Mercury who nearly started vibrating in his seat. “I suppose I might as well start this off properly. My name is Anthony Franklin. I did not start off as a Warmind, but as a Field Artilleryman. This class allowed me to stay relatively safe while giving me enough firepower to also remain relevant. Kayla, I got the class because of the weapons in that prepper’s stash that I had you take Thomas to.”

  “I remember,” she said. “It contained enough weapons to arm most of his group, and one of the veterans that went with us mentioned that a surprising chunk of it was illegal to own.”

  “Yeah, those were what gave me the class,” I said with a sideways smile. Then, I became serious again. “I was overwhelming long range damage, especially after I got a skill that let me make better ammunition. Far from the best, back then, but I did what I could to remain safe and keep people alive through sheer destruction. After all, you don’t need healers or tanks if the enemy is already dead. I was in the perfect position to rack up points, survive, and eat well.”

  I hung my head for a moment before continuing. “In that first timeline, the survivors gathered near Mount Etna, in Italy, to dive into Hell a few months before the ten year mark. We knew that killing the biggest Demon down there was the key to ending everything thanks to information from treasure hunters like the Dealer. We also knew that, based on every other event the administrators cooked up, whatever they had planned for the ten year anniversary was going to be worse than everything else they had already thrown at us.”

  Letting that settle for a moment, I appreciated that no one tried to speak. They were all just soaking it in.

  “We went into the Hellmouth with a little over 500 participants, including people who would become a staple in the final push for several runs to come,” I continued. “It was a grueling campaign that almost spilled past our deadline. I won’t go into details, but in the end, only two survived. Myself, and a widow whose grief literally allowed her to refuse to die. Not a great class, to be honest, but that’s not pertinent. A golden portal appeared before us, and Geraldine wasn’t in any mood to go, so I stepped through and met Esaraphelscion, Angel of the End.”

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  I glanced at her, offering a sad smile, which she returned. “It wasn’t a very amiable meeting,” she said. “He had just lost many of his comrades, and I was too stuck in my ways to understand grief. It’s one of my many failings.”

  “You’ve learned, as have I,” I replied. “But it wasn’t a great first meeting, no. I was suspicious, angry, and young. She said a lot of things that rubbed me the wrong way that could only have been called cold and callous. There was a part of me that was relieved that it was over, but then I asked how many survivors there were. Kayla and Jeff had heard this when I tried to convince someone else, but does anyone else want to take a guess?”

  “Close to a billion?” Mercury asked, ever the optimist.

  “Wouldn’t be that much,” Jamie said, narrowing her eyes at me in thought. “They wouldn’t have gone into the final scenario with only 500 at that point. It’s not even going to be close to that.”

  “Not even close,” I confirmed.

  “Just spit it out already, then,” Ashley demanded.

  I glanced at Sara. “Out of the 8,024,247,274 people inducted on the day the system arrived, only 4,794 were still alive when Anthony stepped through my portal.”

  “That’s fucking nuts,” Mercury said before he could stop himself, and put his hand over his mouth. It was one of the rare times I heard him swear.

  “That’s exactly what I thought, and I may have thrown a fit,” I responded. “When it became obvious that I wasn’t willing to accept this outcome, Sara offered me another choice. One to go back and try it all again.”

  “I wasn’t sure if you were going to take it, but it was my job to do so,” she said.

  “I know, and I was ready to quit. I was very close to just sitting down, calling the whole thing done, and dealing with the aftermath,” I admitted with a sigh. “And then I decided to do it anyway. I mean, I survived the apocalypse once. I had won. Who was there to tell me that I couldn’t, even if both of us thought my odds were abysmal. With a warning about keeping my knowledge a secret, I regressed.”

  “But you did it more than once,” Kayla said.

  “Yes, because I was never satisfied,” I replied. “In the second timeline, I followed my first path closely with a few tweaks but only managed to save twice as many people. Not nearly as many as I had hoped for, obviously, and I tried again. And again, and again, and again.”

  Taking a breath, I stood up. “The most I had managed to save was in my 63rd run,” I said. Mercury sucked in a breath. “That was still only in the hundreds of millions, not even a billion. But by the time my runs had reached double digits, I had decided to try to find the perfect route to the end. That was a test, and I’ve continued to refine it until we made it here. Where Sara threw a wrench into all of my plans, and made almost everything better.”

  “I suppose my boon was what got you caught by Seraphim, wasn’t it?” Sara asked with a frown.

  “Don’t you dare apologize,” I interrupted when it seemed like she was going to continue. “This is still proving to be the most fruitful run of all. Because of this ring you put on my finger, we’re looking at ending the system in record time. My goal was to save everyone, but that’s always been overly optimistic. Something I had to tell myself to keep going. If I can save billions during this last run, it would still be a loss, but one that won’t be so hard to swallow.”

  Jamie picked up on that immediately. “What do you mean, last run?”

  “Exactly as it says. After this, the side effects of regressions will probably turn my brain into mush or something,” I answered. “And then we’re back to square one. I’ve done this 99 times. I’m on my 100th run. For better or worse, it ends here.”

  “That’s lunacy, Franklin. You’re basically just as much a monster as she is,” Jamie stated, nodding in Sara’s direction.

  “And yet, we’re both more human than most people you know,” I countered gently. The Weapon Master frowned, but conceded the point.

  “So that’s it, then? You’ve lived through the damned apocalypse so many times for something as idealistic as just saving the fucking world?” Ashley asked, crossing her arms. “It sounds like something an idiot would do.”

  “You’re probably right,” I said with a self-deprecating smile. “I’ve never claimed to be wise, just knowledgeable and experienced.”

  “You’re not supposed to agree with me,” she returned, frowning. “Alright then, tell me this. Who here’s been with you the longest?”

  I arched an eyebrow as I felt her aura settle into her usual range of cantankerous. “Just like that, you’re going to be fine with it?”

  “Not much else I can do, right?” Ash asked with a roll of her eyes. “You’re going to keep doing whatever shit you like regardless of what we say or do. Us leaving means the world ends faster, so at this point we might as well get some answers out of you.”

  “I didn’t say all that to get you to stay, but to tell you my side of the story,” I said. “Once again, if anyone wants to leave, then you’re free to. I know I keep stressing that things are only going to become more dangerous if you stay, but there’s a reason for that. Everyone is welcome to go.”

  “Yeah, we’re welcome to, but anyone who does is turning their back on everyone else out there,” Ash countered, gesturing towards the walls. “If we’re not shitty people, then you’ve essentially trapped us on your side.”

  “That’s the last thing I—”

  The Monstersmith waved her hand. “Not me you’ve got to worry about, I’m staying regardless like a fool,” she said, glancing at Jamie. “Just some mercenaries among us, is all.”

  “You have a problem with me?” Jamie asked coolly, staring at Ash.

  “Opposite of that, if you haven’t figured it out already, but there’s no here or there about that,” she replied before jutting her chin out. “You staying or leaving? I’ve got questions for psychic boy here. Same as everyone else, I’m guessing. If you’re going to leave in a huff because Anthony was keeping something like this from us—reasonably so, even—then don’t waste our time doing it.”

  I watched as the Weapon Master wrinkled her nose the same way she always did. Then, she focused her gaze on me. “If I do leave, how badly does your timeline get fucked up? I want to know how much I would be shooting humanity in its foot, according to her.”

  “I’ll answer Ash’s question first,” I said. “Because the answer is, of course, her. The Monstersmith became well known through the tournament circuit as a reason to join. In timelines where I didn’t intervene, Ash, you were stuck there. It took me some trial and error, but I managed to start consistently freeing you so you can do more good for everyone. That’s also when I noticed Jamie.”

  “So I was first. That’s respectable,” Ashley said smugly.

  “And I was second,” Jamie added.

  I nodded. “You were. We clashed many times, but I relied on you to watch my back. I taught you what I knew, and did what I could to make sure you grew. I know you better than anyone else does, which is why I know this is such a monumental betrayal for you. Honestly, I am a bit scared that you’ll leave. I’m wise enough to admit it. Even if you decide to leave, I have Jeff and Kayla, who together might be able to replace you. Jury’s out on that, honestly. No offense.”

  Casting a glance at them, Kayla accepted my words while Jeff frowned. I could see that he could tell where I was coming from, though.

  “But the Sara honest truth is, I’m not sure where this is going to go,” I said, running my fingers through my hair as I looked back at Jamie. “None of the other timelines have gone like this one has, and we’re going so far off course that the only things that look the same are you guys. Sure, events I haven’t touched yet are likely to go through the same steps, but there’s so many differences in this world that all I have is the knowledge and experience required to make educated guesses and a plan that I think will work.

  “But I need each and every one of you, because I don’t know anything for sure,” I sighed. “What I do know is that you all are the best of the best. You were all chosen for your skills or the ability to learn them, in Mercury’s case, but also your resilience. We’re literally cutting through the system here with damn near nonstop fighting. That takes its toll on people, but not any of you. You’re all too strong for that.

  “Even the Mills, who are the newest additions, have been a great help in this changing landscape. With this team, nothing short of the most unfair scenarios are going to bring us low, and even then we will survive. Jamie, I can’t tell you how badly the timeline will be messed up if you leave because, at this point, I have absolutely no idea. I simply cannot know.”

  “I see,” she said.

  “What I do know is that we are better for your presence. All of us are, and you’re better because of us. I won’t say how I know that, because I know you’re a very personal person, but everyone in this room is better because of everyone else,” I walked up to Jamie and held my hand out. “Will you please stay with us?”

  I could feel the room get tense as everyone waited for her response. They were all in, but her participation was still up in the air. She was fighting with herself, too, which I could feel through her aura. Jamie was a person with a lot of pride, and it was something she often warred with in an attempt to temper.

  After a few excruciating seconds, she crossed her legs after looking up from my proffered hand. “Full honesty?”

  “From here on, as long as the System Contract is in effect,” I promised.

  “Did we ever hook up?” she asked, arching an eyebrow expectantly.

  I nearly choked in surprise. That hadn’t been the question I was anticipating, but I would still answer it. I knew her well enough to know why she asked it.

  “The first time you came with Ash and I, we did have a very casual relationship,” I answered, ignoring everyone else’s reaction. “But after my next regression, I left it at that. Not that I hadn’t wanted to, admittedly, but it felt wrong to continue knowing everything that I did. Since then, I tried to remain professional and waited for you to be ready to have me as a friend, not just a boss.”

  Jamie’s eyes narrowed as she searched my face, but eventually she nodded and shook my hand. “Don’t know why you’re so concerned,” she said, covering her real feelings. The moment we let go, she was back in her seat and crossing her legs as she leaned back. “I already said I was in.”

  <<<>>>

  [[Patron Quest Complete!]]

  I wasn’t expecting Jamie to ask that, but I’m glad you were honest. It’s good that everyone is sticking by you. We need all the help we can get for this monumental task, and you’ve been fighting beside her for longer than any other. She protects you in ways I wish I could. Past relations or not, I’m glad she’s staying.

  Reward: 10,000 points.

  <<<>>>

  “Thank you,” I replied honestly, letting go of a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding.

  “Yeah, yeah, don’t,” she said, waving her hand after letting go of mine. “Alright, everyone else go ahead and ask some questions. Don’t let me be the only one. He agreed to full honesty, so tear into him. Really get to the meat of what makes psychic boy here what he is.”

  Mercury immediately raised his hand with enthusiasm. "Alright, so, in all the stories about regressors..."

  I laughed as I shook my head. Walking back to my seat, I traded smiles with Sara. If this was what it took to keep the team together, then it was a small price to pay, indeed.