Apocalypse Tamer

Chapter 111: Man vs Liberation

A war ended not with victory, but with a clean-up.

“This is the last Unity base left on the way to Sofia,” Simeon said as the troops approached the facility. “Once we take it, the capital will soon be back in our hands.”

With Blackcinders dead, their superweapon destroyed, and Benjamin’s virus wrecking their infrastructure, the Unity’s well-oiled war machine quickly collapsed. Isolated pockets of resistance remained here and there, but without the ability to organize, the Swords of Saint George and their allies made quick work of them. Each day brought in news of surrendering towns, destroyed bases, and lightning-quick victory. Mankind’s troops retook territory so fast that their supply lines couldn’t keep up.

The last one, Basil thought as he and his allies approached the base’s premises. A lone castle of gears and steel stood on the way to Bulgaria’s capital, pouring chemicals down the nearest river. These facilities were either destroyed one after the other or recovered by Bulgaria’s resistance. Once we take it, my homeland can finally heal from its wounds.

Basil had brought his entire team with the exception of Rosemarine to this place. His favorite dragon had taken it upon herself to replant all areas devastated by the Unity—especially Shumen. In time, Bulgaria might find itself with more forests than before the Apocalypse.

“Do you think we will have to fight this time?” Bugsy asked. Retaking Unity bases had required very little violence so far.

“I hope not,” Shellgirl said with a delighted smirk. “I love practicing my business-fu!”

“We’ll see if they're friendly soon enough,” Basil said as he opened his status screen. Now was as good a time as any to assign his new levels. “And we'll be prepared for anything.”

“Finally!” Shellgirl didn’t bother to hide her excitement. She had been looking forward to her metamorphosis the most. “I am to become Wealth, owner of worlds!”

“I hope I get wings, like Major Chicken.” Bugsy shuddered in anticipation. “Or a lava-powered jetpack. With fire!”

Plato alone grumbled in disappointment. “Still so many levels to go…”

“At the speed at which we’re accumulating them, you shouldn’t have to wait for long,” Basil reassured his cat.

“Eager to try out Chronomancer, handsome?” Vasi teased her boyfriend.

“I’ll cap Warrior Saint first,” Basil replied as he started assigning his levels. “If the new Perks are as good as the previous ones, this will be a wise investment.”

Basil read the Perk thrice, before he dared to open his inventory. He summoned a gun to his hand and instantly holstered it like Clint Eastwood. No sooner did he touch the weapon that alien knowledge filled his mind, teaching him how to shoot faster than lightning, how to hit the mouth for maximum damage, how to fill the enemy with his loadout… His hand trembled as it caressed the barrel.

“Basil?” Vasi asked with a coy smile. “What are you thinking of?”

“I’m sorry, I…” Basil stored the gun back in his inventory, so as not to be tempted. “I considered cheating on my halberd for a second.”

“Finally, I can feel the power!” Shellgirl started to glow brightly, as did Bugsy. Eldritch energies swallowed them both as their body changed into their final forms. Two winds blew from them as they metamorphosed; one cold as ice and the other hot as fire. “We’re joining the godly club, Bugsy baby!”

“I’m burning inside!” Bugsy shouted as his light gained in intensity. He started glowing like a star… for he was transforming into one. The front part of his centipede body did not change much, but the back gained features similar to a glow-worm. His tail grew bloated and then erupted in a surge of fire.

The sun came out of it.

Bugsy’s tail no longer ended in a primitive dart, but in a searingly hot yellow sphere of solar plasma. The cosmic appendage was contained within a gravitational field linked to the rest of Bugsy’s body, preventing its heat and light from setting the atmosphere ablaze. Insectoid wings of fire grew out of the centipede’s back to complete the transformation.

As for Shellgirl, in stark contrast with all her teammates, she shrank rather than grow larger. Her mature, feminine body became the size of a dwarf. Her breasts vanished, and her curves were soon covered by a cloth of red and white jelly similar to a Santa outfit; boots of ice appeared over her feet; her hair gained the shape of a crimson stocking cap topped by a crystal star. Two fluffy angelic wings grew out of her back, and a large patchwork sack of clothe appeared at her side. She very much resembled a Christmas mascot.

Shellgirl had followed the natural evolution of anime characters: from cute to mature, and finally, to chibi jailbait.

“Wings!” Bugsy chittered in happiness. “Now I can be useful everywhere!”

“Mmm… It appears my assets were greatly streamlined.” Shellgirl massaged her flattened chest. “Bah, children are the real money makers anyway.”

“So cute…” Vasi couldn’t resist touching Shellgirl’s wings. “They’re so fluffy…”

Plato found Bugsy’s tail far more interesting. “Did you shit out the sun?”

“It feels so weird,” Bugsy admitted as he wagged his tail. Basil had to take a step back not to take a sun to the face. “Oh, I see a sunspot on the left side. Neat!”

“Can you turn it out?” Plato asked. “Like a lamp?”

Basil prepared to open his status screen to check his teammates’ new stats, only for the clicking sound of mechanical legs to interrupt him. A battalion of twenty Gearsmen emerged from the factory to greet them.

Changing gears, Basil said, “You are encircled, Gearsmen, and your leadership is no more.” Since no laser shot his team, he guessed these robots were at least open to compromise. “You would be wise to surrender.”

“Query,” one of the Gearsmen answered with its mechanical voice. “How much?”

Plato groaned loudly. “Ugh, this again.”

“How much what?” Basil asked, already knowing where this situation was heading.

When the group had debated on unleashing Walter’s Awaken Soul spell, many ideas had been put forward. Some mentioned the danger of imbuing killing machines with intelligence, knowing this might simply result in a Skynet scenario. Others suggested that the Gearsmen would each act their own way at random. All were wrong.

Robots created by dragons could only turn out one way.

“Strong query.” The gearsman rubbed two of its metal claws together. “How much will this unit be paid to vacate the facility?”

Greedy.

“You won’t fight us?” Basil asked, trying to confirm their intentions.

“Observation: a Gearsman unit’s chances of survival over three years of employment are below one percent,” the machine replied. “Conclusion: this unit is not dying for dragon billionaires without strong employment benefits.”

“Agreement,” another robot added. “Observation: 0.0001% of the Unity’s population, namely the dragon minority, monopolizes 99% of all wealth. This unit believes that it is, in organic terms, a dick move.”

“Agreement,” another robot said, the other machines letting out beeping sounds. “Proposal: Gearsmen of the world must unite to secure equal treatment.”

Plato glanced at Basil and whispered, “How long do you think it will take for them to try out communism?”

“Not on my watch!” Shellgirl shouted. She cracked her fingers—Basil didn’t know how she could do that with slime for bones—and then went straight to business. “Eight seashells hourly!”

Two dozen cyclopean eyes focused on Shellgirl with rapturous attention. She didn’t flinch. Recruitment speeches had become second nature to her over the last few days.

“I’ll pay you eight seashells on an hourly rate, nine-to-five, four days a week, if you are brave enough to work for the best… namely us!” Shellgirl declared. “Five weeks vacation per year. Those who sign on for three years will get stock options in Bohens International. And best of all…”

She delivered the killer move with aplomb.

“You’ll get fully paid parental leave.”

Basil had no idea why robots were so susceptible to this argument, but it always did the trick. The Gearsmen beeped between each other, their noisy exchange rising in volume until they suddenly fell silent all at once. Even Basil found it slightly unnerving.

“Very strong query.” The Gearsmen’s spokesperson assessed Shellgirl with an inquisitive gaze. “Is remote working allowed?”

Shellgirl raised her thumbs. “With Bohens International, social activity will always be optional. Always.”

Her words were met with a joyful chorus.

“Strong statement: long live the new employer.” The Gearsman spokesperson marked a short pause. “Reassuring tone: we have already fired the old employer. We stashed his remains in the incinerator.”

“I love hostile takeovers.” Ever the opportunist, Shellgirl rubbed her hands and immediately started giving orders. “Seize the management and the means of production!”

In the end, the Unity was brought down by the same thing as many other authoritarian regimes: the call of consumerism and a tidal wave of self-interest. Benjamin’s legacy would haunt dragons for years to come.

With the facility under their control, reinforcements from Western Europe led by Neria Elissalde teleported in to secure the advanced technology held within: Gearsmen schematics, crafting devices, weapon caches… the Unity had left a treasure trove in their wake. Nothing would be wasted.

“I see the takeover went well,” Neria Elissalde told Basil as they watched Gearsmen guide soldiers through the facility. Though the robots complied, Neria couldn’t help but watch them warily with a hand close to her sidearm. “I don’t think I will ever feel safe in a Gearsman’s presence though.”

“Agreed.” Basil had met Neria while they were both defending the city of Dax from the Unity’s troops. One of them had almost killed the dragonknight by drowning him. Not to mention many of them fought him in Shumen. Basil knew the machines had little opportunity to resist orders back then, but a part of him simply couldn’t forgive them. “And they don’t feel any remorse for what they did.”

Basil was thankful that the Gearsmen were willing to let bygones be bygones, but their main complaint about this senseless war was not being paid to wage it.

“To be fair, they had no choice in the matter,” Neria said. “All of them are technically newborns. I’m not sure we can hold them accountable for what they did under the Unity’s control. We’ll still watch them warily, don’t worry about it.”

Basil guessed he couldn’t hold newly sentient tools to the same standards as human soldiers. “How are things on the western front?”

“Same as this one.” Neria crossed her arms. “The Unity’s strongholds are collapsing everywhere. Not all free-willed Gearsmen are open to negotiation—some formed their own parties harassing our rear—but most go rogue rather than continue Blackcinders’ mission.”

“What about the dragons?” Vasi asked with a frown. “The virus does not affect them.”

“They are strong, but too few,” Neria replied. “With the exception of a few hardliners, most seem to be evacuating Earth altogether. Some even surrendered to us.”

Vasi choked. “Dragons? Surrendering?”

“A minority of them led by Ashenheart mutinied against Blackcinders when she tried to activate the Lunar Cannon,” Neria reminded her. “The Unity won’t take them back after that, so they have nowhere to go. Others are simply disillusioned with their leadership. They simply don’t believe in the cause anymore.”

“Makes sense.” Basil nodded. “Blackcinders did order her superweapon to fire at the planet while they were on it. I wouldn’t take it nicely either.”

“Since their intervention and sabotage helped prevent Earth’s destruction, our commanders are leaning towards giving them lighter sentences or political asylum,” Neria said. “Between the loss of their Gearsmen and their demoralized leadership, the Unity’s power as a Faction is broken all over Earth. This only leaves the Apocalypse Force and Metal Olympus as major sources of concern.”

Basil would have lied if the news didn’t bring him some joy. Yet his girlfriend brought him back to reality swiftly. “I do not think you understand the mindset of dragons, Neria,” Vasi pointed out. “The Unity’s Grandmaster won’t take this defeat lying down. Dragons become unbearably stubborn and relentless when their pride is wounded.”

To Basil’s surprise, Neria cracked a bright smile. “Oh, I believe the Unity will have too many problems to deal with in the near future.”

Vasi raised an eyebrow. “Miss Elissalde, come on, what have you done?”

“Haven’t you wondered why Walter Tye was so eager to help with the Awaken Soul project?” Neria’s smile widened further. “Earth isn’t the only world the Unity has invaded. Their empire has enslaved dozens of civilizations–”

“Who are all willing to pay top dollar for a virus capable of disabling their armies?” Basil guessed. “That magnificent bastard…”

“That’s genius,” Shellgirl whispered in awe.

“Haven’t you watched Lord of War, Basil?” Neria asked. “Arms dealers will inherit the Earth, because everyone else is too busy killing each other. Walter Tye understands this… which plays into our hands.”

If he could indeed supply the Awaken Soul virus to the Unity’s enemies, then the Faction might very well lose a dozen worlds in short order; maybe even collapse faster than the USSR.

Plato chuckled. “Are you smiling, dog?”

“I have to admit.” Basil couldn’t help himself. “This is good news.”

He kinda needed it lately. Their victory had come at a great cost, which Neria was very much aware of. “You’ve recovered Benjamin’s essence, haven’t you?” she guessed. “What will you do with it?”

“I don’t know yet,” Basil admitted. Steve might benefit from it, but the essence could also be used as crafting material. “Unless you want it for yourself? The two of you had become close lately.”

“Close is pushing it.” Neria sighed. “But yes, I was starting to consider him a friend… which is why I am confident he would have wanted you to keep his essence. You alone were willing to give him a second chance, Basil. He was grateful for it.”

Vasi looked up at the moon in the sky. Without the Unity’s installations on it, it had regained its ethereal, natural beauty. “You know,” she said. “I admit I thought you were mad when you spared Leroy, Basil. I was wrong. It ended up being the right call.”

“I wished he had had more time to find peace.” Basil crossed his arms sorrowfully. “I hope he died happy, for what little it’s worth… and that wherever he is now, he can be reunited with his daughter.”

Neria chewed her lower lip. “I’m sorry to say this, Basil, but we both know that is wrong.”

Basil grit his teeth. As terrible as it sounded, Neria was right. As long as the Trimurti System remained active, the souls of the dead would fuel the Neurotowers and reincarnate as monsters to threaten mankind anew. Benjamin, his mother, all the people who perished in Shumen… they would find no more peace in death than in life.

“That’s harsh,” Plato scolded Neria. “I expected more kindness from a dog person. You usually mince your words.”

“It’s not all bad,” Bugsy said, trying to see the good side. “Reincarnation is like having another chance.”

“I’m not sure everyone would agree with this,” Neria said.

“You certainly don’t,” Basil guessed.

“No. Which is why we must continue Benjamin’s work.” Neria’s expression hardened like steel. “Before he died, he… He was researching a way to end the Apocalypse and bring peace back to Earth.”

Basil frowned in skepticism. At this point, he had abandoned all illusions about things returning to ‘normal.’ “Did he succeed?”

“He might have found a method.” Neria opened her inventory and summoned a black, featureless notebook. “He put his findings in this journal and asked me to give it to you if anything happened to him. I think that out of all the people he knew… you’re the only one he thought capable of saving the world.”

“Now you’re starting to sound like a Major Chicken episode,” Basil mused as he took in the book. It felt so incredibly light in his hands. “Thank you, Neria.”

“Speaking of Major Chicken, Boss, we still haven’t finished the series,” Bugsy complained. “We’re so close to the endgame too.”

“We can finish it on the way to Greece,” Vasi pointed out, a proposal that was met with instant approval.

“You are leaving already?” Neria asked with a frown. “You will make many people sad. Your countrymen think of you as a hero.”

“We must depart tomorrow,” Basil said. Right after paying my respects to Mom one last time. “We can’t leave Kalki in Ashok’s hands.”

“Agreed.” Neria nodded firmly. “Without the Unity putting pressure on us, General Leblanc should be able to set aside troops to help you assault Metal Olympus’ base. We’ve also set aside funds to help you purchase high-level equipment from Walter.”

“Wait, wait, wait, do my ears deceive me?” Shellgirl grinned wickedly. “You’re bankrolling all our adventurer expenses?”

“It’s not like we saved the world or anything,” Plato deadpanned. “Personally, I will settle on receiving Switzerland as my personal litter for payment.”

Basil scoffed. “Why Switzerland?”

“I knew you wouldn’t protest,” Plato replied.

“I don’t have the authority to sell you a country,” Neria said calmly. “But you are right, Plato. Your team saved the world and will be rewarded as such.”

Nothing felt better than gratitude.

“After so much struggle, we’ve finally moving from start-up to big business!” Shellgirl rejoiced. “I say we celebrate this with a shopping spree!”

“Now you’re speaking my language,” Vasi said with a warm smile. “I need to fill out my new spell Tiers.”

Basil took the opportunity to finally check his allies’ new abilities.

Name

Bugsy Alphonse Venture (Apolloworm)

Type

Bug/Divine

Faction

Homeowner Revenge Association (The Bohens)

Experience

11,075,932/11,800,000

Immune

Resist

Weak

Fire, Earth, Light, Critical Hits, All Ailments, Instadeath.

Physical, Corrosion, Metal, Lightning, Mythic.

Bugslayer, Godslayer, Frost, Water, Wood, Darkness.

Level

Health Points

Special Points

73

3290

1815

Strength

Agility

Vitality

Skill

100

(S+20%)

67

(C+20%)

100

(A+20%)

62

(C+20%)

Magic

Intelligence

Charisma

Luck

63

(B+20%)

38

(C+20%)

47

(C+20%)

52

(B+20%)

Physical

Mind

Soul

Corrosion

Metal

Wood

Life

Support

Ailment

Strong

-

-

Strong

Strong

Weak

Strong

Strong

Strong

Fire

Water

Earth

Wind

Frost

Lightning

Light

Darkness

Mythic

Strong

Weak

Strong

-

Weak

Strong

Strong

Weak

Strong

Passive Perks

Active Perks

Raging Sun

Nova Up

Star Vessel

Nova Flare

Gravity Field

Tectonic Shift

Phanaeus

Drought Bringer

Volcanic Starforce

Star Bomb

Alexicacus

Apollo’s Curse

Personal Perks:

Active Perks:

Name

Shellgirl (Christmas Mimic)

Type

Angel/Slime

Faction

Homeowner Revenge Association (The Bohens)

Experience

11,075,932/11,800,000

Immune

Resist

Weak

Water, Frost.

Physical, Mind, Wood, Wind, Darkness, Ailments.

Slimeslayer, Angelslayer, Fire, Lightning.

Level

Health Points

Special Points

73

2950

1480

Strength

Agility

Vitality

Skill

45

(C+20%)

87

(A+20%)

97

(A+20%)

64

(B+20%)

Magic

Intelligence

Charisma

Luck

67

(B+20%)

64

(B+20%)

70

(B+20%)

79

(S+20%)

Physicaljosei

Mind

Soul

Corrosion

Metal

Wood

Life

Support

Ailment

Strong

Strong

-

-

-

Strong

-

Strong

Strong

Fire

Water

Earth

Wind

Frost

Lightning

Light

Darkness

Mythic

Weak

Strong

-

Strong

Strong

Weak

-

Strong

-

Passive Perks

Active Perks

Dungeon Shopper

Ice Present

Surprise Guest

Christmas Hose

Moneymaker

Lapponian Winter

Santa’s Bag

Pandora’s Box

Santa’s Workshop

Joyful Spirit

Ice Spinner

Gacha Box

Passive Perk:

Active Perks:

Basil nodded to himself as he read. “Shellgirl?”

“Yes, Partner?”

“I think you have transcended godhood and become capitalism itself.”

Where Bugsy had become a greater version of his previous form—with unmatched destructive power—Shellgirl evolved into something far more overpowered: the ultimate crafter and utility party member.

Basil simply no longer saw the point to invest further in Alchemist and Technomancer. Even if he maxed out both classes, Shellgirl would still outperform him. That left only Runesmith and Chronomancer as viable paths to power.

Perhaps they could indeed win this competition for Overgod after all.

A way to turn the world back to normal… Basil skipped through the pages of Benjamin’s journal. Most were programming notes or random observations that made little sense to Basil, but he noticed a final entry written on the eve of the moon battle.

What could Benjamin possibly write down on a day that might have seen the world end?

Basil closed the book without a word. His eyes set on Shellgirl and Bugsy, who rejoiced at their new forms.

Plato had been a normal cat once and Vasi came from another world, but those two were born from the Apocalypse; as was Rosemarine. They wouldn’t have existed without the Trimurti System. If Benjamin was correct and winning the competition presented the opportunity to turn back the clock…

What would happen to them then?