SL: Chapter 770 – Day 28,364 (Part 2) – Working Together

“This ancient, what about building bombs or other traps ahead of time? Why do you need Michael?” Clarissa asked.

“I would have a chance of winning, but it is like fighting on a broken ship. The Chaos monsters outside would target all of us. The Ancient believes it can survive. I can probably survive and win, but the result would sub-optimal.”

“Can Michael even win? Against a foe you would struggle against?” Clarissa asked.

“Maybe. Such a fight would be impossibly difficult. The annihilation effect you use, combined with the control and power, are the bare minimum requirements to be qualified for such a fight. Michael has far exceeded what this training facility is supposed to train towards.”

“Really?” I asked in surprise and a touch of joy.

“Yes. I do not attempt to deceive you. The Guidebook in your possession could have been earned long ago. My guess it that this place would intermittingly take people over the first 100 days. Then it would go dormant while giving everyone 10,000 days to fight amongst each other. The winners would get the Guidebook and be inducted into the Collective. The process would repeat over a long period of time.”

“But you didn’t turn new people arriving off?” Clarissa asked.

“My understanding of energy and how it works is beyond any of you. But this place is complicated and damaged. I could have easily shut off the atmosphere instead of new arrivals instead of stopping new arrivals.”

“Then why is the function part of the tower and the voting? What was that even for?” Clarissa asked.

“A hard override if a member of the Collective was trapped inside this place. And a way for the Collective to put more pressure on individuals by testing and training whatever the towers are supposed to test. I would assume problem solving in a closed in environment,” Artifex said.

“They are also nodal points anchoring the environment and the zones to the larger complex that manages everything here. They can be reset, but that would take energy and possibly create complications.”

“What if Michael loses?” Clarissa asked.

“Then I will depart immediately. It will be annoying and sub-optimal, but necessary for my survival. That can be considered my highest priority.”

“Then let’s talk timelines. How much time do we have, before we have to act?” Clarissa asked.

“That is unknown. Chaos monsters can make more or less progress at any given moment, corrupting the various systems and processes of this place. At a certain point, there will be a cascading effect and everything will fail and be consumed in a matter of seconds. Each day increases the chance of this happening, but I can’t ascribe probability or any kind of timeframe. I know it will happen, no matter what. Just not when,” Artifex explained.

“Then what do we need to prepare?” Clarissa asked.

“Get stronger. Your timeframe of 1,000 days is acceptable,” Artifex said, showing her knowledge of our conversations. While the alien was in a female body, I wasn’t sure if the alien was a her or an it. I didn’t think that a being of such power worried about pronouns. I made sure to suppress any kind of laughter or reaction from having such a thought.

“That was to build up points for supplies. Where should people come? Here?” Clarissa asked.

“Yes. Anyone inside this structure, I will teleport to the vessel when I depart. If the Ancient is not defeated or the damage to this place is too much, we will depart immediately. Everything and everyone left behind will meet a horrible end.”

“There is no chance? They can’t escape into the rainbow dimension?” Clarissa asked.

“The astral plane, and no. You are all too weak. You would just be prey for the things that exist there and would be unable to leave. Your people can try, but the result will be the same. The portable stores will stop working once this place fails,” Artifex said.

“Would you be willing to teach people how all this works and about energy?” Clarissa asked.

“Yes. After we leave. Having capable helpers is an optimal use of available resources.”

“Is 1,000 days necessary? Since we don’t need to portable stores or extra points, that is only ten trillion points. That wouldn’t even get me another million stat upgrades,” I said.

“I will need time to prepare people,” Clarissa said.

“Three years of preparation?” I asked.

“So, they can increase their strength as much as possible before we leave. Can’t you give Michael a meta-point before the battle?” Clarissa asked.

“No. I have three left I can give out. And yes, I can take them with me. Consider these meta-points leverage. Or as you humans say, a carrot instead of a stick. Also, the boost will be limited. Meta-points are ultimately limited in power. You aren’t going to get a huge increase in stats and what they can do. The cost and their effect is logarithmic,” Artifex said.

“But it will increase his chances, which will increase your chances. It would show a willingness to trust us and cooperate in good faith,” Clarissa said.

“You can pick. Either you can make preparations for me to take people away from here. Or Michael can get a meta-point. If he wins, the other options will be given. Consider that my commitment to working together,” Artifex said.

“You think Michael would run off?” Clarissa asked.

“It is possible. While none of you have a chance of surviving, he does. While I would rate his energy control compared to mine, incredibly sub-par, his combat ability is strong enough to survive, or deter some threats instead of instantly dying,” Artifex said.

“What about using the sword to help?” Clarissa asked.

“If you make a deal with that artifact it is your responsibility. I do not care about such things.”

“Even if it could help in the battle?” Clarissa asked.

“I am delegating the task to Michael. How he chooses to complete it is his business. I am not here to micromanage everything. I can if you want. But my understanding is that humans are adverse to such control.”

“I am trying to understand how we will work with you going forward. Normally if someone is given a task like you have that impacts their survival, a teammate would not back on equipment or resources. Unless you have a use for meta-points?” Clarissa asked.

“They can be used for a range of purposes, even after leaving this place. They are surprisingly self-contained. Researching their design and application of energy construction techniques would be quite useful for me. But I also understand they hold value for you. If we are to work together a balance will be needed.”

“What kind of work would we have to do in the future? How would our relationship work?” Clarissa asked.

“A conversation like this and transactional. I would give tasks, and we can assign a value to these tasks. I will also assign a value to any lessons I give. I would be comparable to an executive and you would be the spokesperson for your people. I would handle external conflicts once we depart.”

“How much more time do you need?” Clarissa asked.

“The improvements I can make to this body are marginal. They are still useful, but ultimately they are limited with the resources I have available. Beyond that the timeline isn’t critically important. Realistically after the Ancient is defeated, you would all wait on the vessel until the moment of our departure, so I can maximize the resources of this place,” Artifex declared.

“And we can’t contribute anything right now?” Clarissa asked.

“No. Your combat abilities are what I would consider sub-par for any conflict of note. In fact your people are completely worthless to me. Future children can use another energy system for gaining strength and become of use in the future.”

“You want to replace this Collective and use us a soldiers, fighting things out there?” Clariss asked.

“That is one option and the most pertinent one. It would take generations of work and devising something would not be simple. The method I am using to strengthen this body depends on my suburb control. The methods can be discussed at a later date once we leave and I locate a suitable spot for us to restart your civilization. I hope that answers the questions you have.”

“I have more questions. Like wanting to see a food replicator and getting a tour of this vessel. Also, what exactly are the threats outside of this place,” Clarissa said.

“I suggest you bring anything you want from this place. The replicators will only make nutrient paste. As for a tour of the vessel and its various functions, that will require another trade. For now you have nothing to offer me of interest for now. As for threats outside this place, they exist in countless forms. Trying to plan for everything is impossible. It is better to focus on increasing your individual strength. As for how that would work after our departure, that is something we would have to discuss,” Artifex explained.

“Can you give people more points?” Clarissa asked.

“Interfering with how this place works is not simple. I have begun to cut energy to non-critical aspects, like the more powerful monsters.”

“Then I wouldn’t even get 10 trillion points,” I replied.

“No. In time the level 8 and higher monsters will cease to be. I estimate that over the next 100 days, they will fully disappear. You drained a noticeable amount of the reserves of energy of this place Michael. If you continued then disaster would come even sooner.”

“Should we stop new arrivals?” Clarissa asked.

“That is up to you. Human affairs are yours to handle. I will not overly interfere nor do I want to. It is tedious and complicated. Both of you understand my power and our relationship. Other individuals would be lacking in such a regard. If you only wish to bring 10 people or a 1,000 people that is your choice. I only set the upper limit,” Artifex explained.

“What about the people in storage? Can we bring them?” Clariss asked.

“No. The risk of contamination by Chaos monsters is too high. The storage area is comprised, but individual storage are not compromised.”

“What about putting people to sleep and stacking them up?” Clarissa asked. For the first time I Artifex actually paused in answering.

“It can be done. A total of 100,000 people can be brought with only 10 being allowed to remain awake at most,” Artifex finally said.

“Are there any downsides?” I asked.

“They will have to remain asleep until we find a location to settle. Also they are likely to have issues with their minds if they are asleep for a long period of time. I can make the necessary adjustments to the vessel if this is what you want.”

“That is better,” I said.

“But we would still lose a lot of people, and they wouldn’t be happy about being put to sleep,” Clarissa said.

“Give them the choice. But I don’t think there is another option. Me, you, Young Michael, that is three right there. And you can pick seven more to be awake,” I said.

“How soon do I have to make a decision?” Clarissa asked.

“Within the next 100 days, but the sooner the better. The habitation spaces can wait until then. But there are design choices that need to be made regarding the internal structure, if you want to switch to a sleeper plan.”