As I walked through the barrier, I felt a slight tingle as an electrical current washed over my skin. There was a faint fizzling sound followed by a loud pop, and then I was on the other side. The air was fresh and carried a slight whiff of ozone like the cool nighttime air after afternoon thunderstorms.

It the only pleasant smell in recent memory.

I hadn’t realized how badly the battlefield had stank. I had either gotten used to, or blocked out, the horrible smell of excrement, perspiration, and death. Their absence was the sweetest thing I had ever tasted. It’s funny how often the greatest pleasures are found in the relief of something unpleasant.

Silent Peacekeepers flanked me on each side. Sebbit walked directly behind me and was joined by Catayla at his left and Talith on his right. They weren’t exactly on my ass, but they walked close enough that I was starting to get a bit claustrophobic. This certainly didn’t feel like the hero’s reception I was expecting.

“So, what in Hell is going on,” I turned around to face Sebbit. “Did I somehow offend you again? Do you macho assholes not accept help even when you are surrounded and outnumbered? I mean, fuck, just look outside.”

My rant started calm, but quickly descended into shouting.

“Mr. Finn —”

“Let me, Captain,” Catayla said. She looked at Sebbit and he gave her a slight nod before she continued. Now that I was looking for them, I could see signs of pride on his face. The captain’s smile appeared and disappeared fast enough that I may have imagined it, but it lingered in his eyes.

“Finn, we’re glad to see you. We really are. Archmage Armeria told us that she had to leave you behind after stabilizing some very serious injuries.”

Catayla held eye contact with me for slightly longer than I found comfortable but looked away as she patted my shoulder with one hand.

“She also told us about the barrier,” I flinched instinctively when Talith began to speak. I’d learned the old armsmaster had a way of punctuating her statements with physical violence.

“Apparently you found a way to not only overcome your injury but also continued your mission to bring down the dome. I never imagined you’d amount to anything even close to resembling a competent soldier, but that was a damn fine performance.”

The massively tall alien looked down at me and smiled, showing multiple rows of razor-sharp teeth. “I’m proud to have trained you.”

“Uh…. Not that I’m not grateful for the praise, but if there is some shit in the middle of this compliment sandwich, I’d like to get it over with.”

“Ah, Mr. Finn,” Sebbit interjected. “I have missed your… colorful colloquialism. I cannot say, however, that I agree with your assault of women under my command. We will revisit that in the future. Trust me when I say that conversation will go much better if you cooperate now.”

Something about the way he said it made me feel ashamed. Perhaps it was the way he emphasized ‘assault of women’ – even if those women were eight-foot-tall alien super soldiers with sci-fi weapons and a nasty set of razor-sharp teeth.

“My primary concern, at the moment, is not your insubordination, but the fact that you decided it was a good idea to feed the gestating death goddess. An apotheosis, I might add, that I have spent significant time, resources, and lives just to delay.”

“Well… fuck.”

What do you even say to that? I turned and gazed at the sky. The black orb that hung there had clearly grown. It now cut a hole in the sky larger that was larger than a full moon.

“We have taken every action available to siphon off the energy in the area, and we have avoided direct conflict at all costs. Those beasts out there do not care if they kill us or we kill them — they serve their masters either way.”

“Captain Sebbit,” I said. “The only information I had was that you took one of my people into harm’s way. Make that two.” I looked over at Catayla as I said the last word.

“I will do everything in my power to get them out safely. My team means just as much to me as yours does to you. If that means dealing with a few infant deities, abominations, or elder ones then so be it.” Sebbit’s jaw tightened but I couldn’t help but notice the smiles on the faces of Talith and Catayla.

“So then,” I continued. “What’s the plan?”

“Very well, Mr. Finn. Come with me.”

Sebbit agreeing so quickly scared me more than whatever was growing in the black orb. He was even somewhat pleasant. The only explanation I could think of was that he was desperate.

We crossed the Peacekeeper camp quickly. Almost every one of the soldiers was stationed behind small, hexagonal barricades. Each shield was made of translucent energy and had several gaps in the center and around the edges that were just large enough to fit the barrel of a rifle.

No one spoke, and the silence and general stillness were unnerving. I couldn’t imagine how much training it took to develop that level of cohesion and confidence in a group this large. Not one of the soldiers so much as turned their head to look at their commanding officer as he cut a path through the camp.

As we neared the rear of the encampment, I noticed we were walking towards two massive vehicles. They looked somewhat like a tank if you took the basic idea and super-sized it. Each had multiple rows of articulated treads holding up fifty tons of armored plating. There was no cannon, but multiple turret stations lined the top of each vehicle.

Between the two tanks was a long, narrow tent made from brown cloth that was similar to canvas. This was the only area in the camp with the most activity; Peacekeeper troops were moving around the vehicles and a stream of soldiers were moving in and out of the tent.

I continued to follow Sebbit as he marched into the tent, soldiers moving aside to clear the way. The interior was simple, with a few machines placed to one side and a large, round table set in the center. There seemed to be another room, but it was sealed off behind a drawn curtain.

Above the table floated a large holographic representation of the battlefield surrounding the Peacekeeper encampment. Four Peacekeepers stood around the table. They were interacting with hieroglyphic symbols and would occasionally make changes to the hologram itself using arcane hand movements. I almost never saw male Peacekeepers, and yet every one of these technicians was male.

“You son of a bitch,” I heard Tiller before I saw him. “Was that you out there?”

I turned and found the gangly airman standing directly behind me. He lifted me into a massive bearhug that pulled me several inches above the ground. I tried to make my discomfort at his physical affection clear with a few awkward pats of his shoulder.

“I thought you were dead. Then I found out you weren’t, but then you’d been torn apart by monsters. Try to stay with us this time, okay?”

“I could say the same thing to you,” I said. “But first, can you put me down?”

“Oh,” he dropped me immediately. “Sorry about that, it’s just how I am. Are….”

I let out a soft gasp and begin to rub my temples. I was having a hard time delaying the system messages and they were demanding my attention with increased insistence.

“Are you okay?” Tiller asked. “You kinda look like shit.”

“No. I’m fine, really. Just all these status updates won’t shut up and they’re giving me a headache. I’ll be fine once I get a minute to deal with it.”

“I didn’t know that was possible,” said Tiller.

“It shouldn’t be,” said Catayla. “I mean, there are situations where the system will impose penalties if ignored — but nothing on a tier IV planet should cause it. The whole point is to impose limits, both on citizens and dangers. This gives the natives the gentlest introduction possible.”

“Ha, you call this fucking gentle?” Tiller said.

“You only think this is bad because you haven’t come up against anything above level twenty-five. I’ve seen—”

“Look,” I said. “Can we get back to what’s important? I’ll be fine.” I turned to look at Sebbit and Talith.

“I’m assuming you have a plan to deal with that thing?” I pointed behind me with my thumb.

“Hold on a moment,” Sebbit said.

The captain turned to one of the male Peacekeepers and gave an order in a growling voice that sounded like two pieces of sandpaper rubbing together. The soldier nodded and ran to the back of the tent and moved a large curtain slightly to one side. He shouted to whoever was inside, but never crossed the barrier itself.

It only took a few seconds for Telvy to walk out, pushing aside the curtain to reveal a warm golden glow coming from the room behind her.

“Finn, my dear,” she smiled and threw her arms out wide. “I was positively aghast at having to leave you behind. I’m so glad you made it back in one piece.” She paused for a moment and looked at me with narrowed eyes.

“How are you…” she started.

“Archmage, please,” said Sebbit. “I am sure Finn will answer your questions in good time.” He looked at me with an expectant stare as he finished the sentence. His cold eyes lingered for a moment before he continued. “Right now, we require a status update on your formation.”

“Oh, well alright,” the archmage frowned.

“I’ve completed the basic formation array with a series of mana infused silver inlays and copper wire salvaged from local tech, a brilliant piece of improvisation if I don’t say so myself.”

She lifted her chin and turned her head, showing off a long graceful neck. She continued to pose for a moment, seemingly gazing at some invisible point in the distance while quietly polishing her claws on the front of her shirt. When she finally finished her preening, the mage huffed before turning back to her explanation.

“I solved the power problems by connecting the dungeon cores in a master/slave chain regulated by the AI daemon, but there are just too many variables. Everything is ready — but I’ll need several minutes to calibrate and adjust to the deific entity’s specific energy signature and aspect.”

“What,” Sebbit rubbed between his eyes as he spoke. “And please speak plainly — what exactly do you need?”

“I’ll need time. The Apotheosis Horizon has already been crossed. We no longer have any chance to stop the event in its infancy. We’ll have to wait for the fledgling deity to emerge and then distract her long enough for the AI to finish calibrations – then we pray the spell works.”

“Reassuring,” Talith said.

Sebbit remained remarkably calm for a man who was just told that his only way to stop a death goddess was to ‘pray.’ He used his characteristic thousand-yard stare to look through the Archmage for a moment before nodding his head. “Get it done.”

“Mr. Finn,” the captain turned to speak to me just as he was opening the tent flap. “Leave Telvy and her new apprentice to their work…” As Sebbit spoke the word apprentice Tiller stood up straight and pointed at himself with both thumbs – the universal gesture for “this guy.”

“… and follow me.” Sebbit didn’t wait for confirmation before he exited the tent.

Tiller looked like he wanted to say something, but Telvy was already heading to the backroom and calling for him to follow. Instead, he settled for giving me a firm pat on the shoulder before running after the archmage. I followed Talith and Catayla as they exited the tent.

“Alright, Mr. Finn,” Sebbit said as soon as we were clear of the tent. “Thanks to you we no longer have to hold back. Saddle up and get comfortable, we roll out in ten.”

A powerful engine started up behind me, its roar loud enough to vibrate my teeth. “All right,” I said with a smile. I’d always had a fascination with anything that had lots of horsepower. Besides, riding inside the tank would give me a moment to allocate my stats and handle whatever other updates the system was throwing at me.

I found a ladder, but merely used it as a handhold before leaping to the top of the vehicle. I followed a group of three Peacekeepers as they entered an open hatch. The inside of the vehicle was long and narrow with two rows of chairs built into the walls. The floor and walls were solid metal and the only window was a clear door leading to a two-man cockpit.

I slid into the nearest chair, ignoring the looks of the alien commandos that sat around me. I had much more interesting things to occupy my attention.

Allocating stats felt good, like feeding some primal need.

I had gained eight levels, bringing me to twenty-five if you counted the three levels I’d gained before I had a class. The number looked satisfying, but I noticed that the bar showing progress to the next level had turned grey and no longer displayed a number. It seemed I had finally reached the cap — I vaguely remember Talith mentioning one during our training. It seemed like years ago. The existence of tiers, however, told me that there existed ways to overcome these limits.

I had sixteen free stat points, and my class bonuses had given me eight each to Focus and Perception. I spent two points to bring perception up to forty and it immediately turned grey. I split the remaining points by putting eight into Agility and five into Reaction, rounding each out at an even twenty. I regretted not saving enough to bring Focus to the cap as well, but my physical stats felt neglected. First world problems, I guess.

The concept of a first world was kind of pointless now, wasn’t it? Was America even a thing anymore? Sebbit had told me that most of the world was intact, but I also knew that monsters and dungeons weren’t the only dangers. I was pretty sure that a single high-level criminal could take on any police department that relied on pre-apocalypse weapons and tactics. Was the concept of government something that could survive that reality?

I shook off the brief lapse into introspection and began scrolling through the rest of the updates. They were mostly meaningless stamina or XP updates — but two caught my eye. The first was a warning that my progress towards the corruption feat had increased by ten, but it came with absolutely no clue what that meant.

The other was an entirely new feat:

Herald of War Ⓛ - Where you walk war follows. You have slain hundreds upon the battlefield and anointed yourself in blood and earth. Your wounds close and your stamina returns with each kill you make. This effect is proportional to the strength of those who fall before you. Beware, the very presence of a Herald on the battlefield fills the hearts of both friend and foe with an overwhelming desire for battle.

It was a double-edged sword if it caused my enemies to fight harder than before, but it was also reassuring to have a way to heal myself in battle. It also felt completely tailored to my current situation. Was it merely a coincidence or was it —

“So. You’re finally back with us. Feeling any better?”

I shook my head and looked up to find a blue-scaled face directly across from me. Catayla had changed her form-fitting jumpsuit for one of the black, bulkier versions and carried a rifle much larger than her usual armament. She’d also managed to find a bandolier filled with shiny metal orbs. There were dozens of them, and the belt carrying them had to wrap around her chest twice to accommodate them all.

“Oh. Uh Yeah, much better. It’s like scratching an itch.”

I leaned back in my chair and smiled. I probably looked goofy as hell, but I didn’t care at this point. The vehicle kicked forward at the same time and the engine became louder. The floor began to visibly vibrate, and the force of the sudden movement nearly pushed me into the soldier sitting next to me.

“I need to cover a few things with you, so listen up.”

I nodded and held eye contact to let her know I was listening. The vehicle began to shake even more violently as I heard gunfire coming from above. At the same time a deafening boom rang out, and the tank tilted slightly to the left before righting itself.

“We are going to sweep the battlefield,” she yelled above the racket of the oversized engine. “We rendezvous with team A in approximately two and a half minutes. At that time…” she paused to point to the rear wall of the transport. “That wall will blow out and we exit and secure the area. You’re going to be third out the door — just behind me. Do you understand?”

“Got it,” I said. Time to start paying attention to my surroundings — a war zone wasn’t the best place to fuss over my Skills and FP. “Stay behind you and secure the area. Simple enough.”

“Good. Finn, we’re going to need you out there — your ability to build defenses is going to save lives today. Focus on defense, leave the offense to the big guns.” She patted her comically large rifle fondly as she spoke.

I began to nod, but my head was flung back into the wall behind me as the transport ramped up a hill and came down on the ground hard.

“You’ve got it,” I whimpered. “Here to help.”

“Good —” she put two fingers against one ear and broke eye contact as she looked down and to the left. “Incoming! Hold on to your asses, ladies.”

I copied the Peacekeepers as they pressed their foreheads against their knees. I looked up at Catayla to find that she was the only one still sitting upright. She had a small circular tablet that she was typing into furiously with a single clawed finger.

“Go! Go! Go!” she yelled. Before she finished the final word, I was surrounded by a blue energy shield and the world fell out from under me. I was still belted into my chair but there was nothing beneath me but a thin blue membrane and the hard, rocky earth.

An explosion of orange and red flames lit up everything behind me. To the front was nothing but the ground, which was quickly rising to meet me. I landed with a bone-jarring thud as a cloud of dust surrounded me in a hazy fog.

I began to fumble with the buckles securing me to the chair. As the noise picked up around me my heartbeat rose as well. My hands began to sweat, and I couldn’t find purchase on the metal clasps. I could hear screams and gunfire, but I couldn’t see what was happening.

In frustration, I turned the fingers on my right hand into blades and began to cut and smash my way out of the chair. I sliced at the belts and pummeled the chair with my elbows and feet. It eventually slid off me as a tattered scrap of cloth, steel, and plastic.

By the time I stood up, the blue shield had completely faded, and the dust had settled enough that I could see a small group of Peacekeepers standing around me. They had formed a ring and were shooting outwards at shapes that moved just out of sight. I looked but couldn’t find Catayla among them.

I remembered her orders to focus on defense, and the first thing that came to mind were the hexagonal barriers the Peacekeepers set up throughout their base. The shields would protect us, and the Peacekeepers obviously had training using them.

It took me less than a second to create the constructs. They quickly grew up from the ground until we were surrounded by a ring of hexagonal barriers. The shapes were perfectly designed to be fit together, and I quickly began to construct a roof above us, merging the hexagons into a single dome.

I had to credit the Peacekeepers for adaptability, as they immediately took cover and began to fire through the small gaps in the barricade. It was as if this was a routine thing they had trained for a thousand times. Perhaps it was.

As the alien women fired into the shifting fog, I looked back in the direction of the transport. I couldn’t see through the fog, but the light of a large fire pierced the veil of smoke and dust like a beacon. Two more explosions appeared as short bursts of light and sound before fading into the constant rhythm of gunfire.

A strong hand grabbed my shoulder and spun me around. A large head encased in black armor stared down at me and yelled a few gruff syllables, but I was unable to understand the alien speech.

“I don’t understand,” I yelled while pointing to my ears.

The Peacekeeper looked at me for a moment before nodding. She pressed four outstretched fingers together and pointed using her whole hand before using two fingers to mime walking. I almost laughed at the absurdity of it, but her message was clear.

I dismissed a hexagonal shield and the Peacekeepers fell out in two single-file lines, charging across the battlefield. I followed but chose to place myself between the two lines. I was amazed when they instinctively closed ranks around me, protecting me from every side. It wasn’t much, but I felt much better having willing meat shields.