Author's Note:

Sorry about the wait. They recently extended my work hours so my updates will be a little more sporadic. From here on out, I plan to do these excerpts from the books Tom has on Xoth to help give lore without doing giant info dumps in the story. Tell me what you think about this updated style.

Enjoy!

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Chapter 29: Not The End Of The World

Excerpt from Brief History of Xoth:

Xoth Economy

Before the year 253, Second Era, the races of Xoth relied on a barter economy. Goods and services were exchanged for other goods and services. While this system was suitable for exchange between villagers, it prevented larger populations centres from receiving supplies from other locations in a timely manner. This delay, in turn, slowed their growth and weakened their defenses.

With an understanding of this problem, King Gimren Bolaweth, Dwarven king of the Bolaweth Kingdom, consulted with his most trusted advisers. The meeting they had spawned forth the concept of a currency-based economy. The Dwarven king commissioned coins made from copper, silver, gold and platinum to be used in his kingdom's new economy.

To ensure that counterfeiting, using cheaper metals, did not become a problem, the molds used to create the coins were kept under control of the kingdom's treasury and were enchanted. Every coin created had a specific energy signature that can be detected. If a coin did not have this magical energy signature, it was a counterfeit.

These coins were released and became fully implemented into the kingdom's economy within a month. The program became a runaway success as towns, villages and cities across the kingdom became more efficient in the way they traded and worked.

This program caught the eye of other countries, states and continents. They called for a conference to hold a debate on the program. This conference became known to the world as the Coin Clink Conference. This name was due to the irritating habit of some of the leaders playing with the coins while they debated.

After the conference, the currency economy became adopted worldwide. More coin molds were created by the Bolaweth kingdom and were given to various cities and kingdoms across Xoth. After three years, the coins created from these molds found their way all over the world.

Conversion rate of coins:

Copper Coin: lowest denomination.

Silver Coin: one hundred copper coins.

Gold Coin: one hundred silver coins.

Platinum Coin: one hundred gold coins. Highest denomination.

Added Note (Thunder):

The value of these coins, compared to the main currencies of our world, is difficult to place because of their buying power differing from region to region. From what I've learned from my Xoth-born companions, one copper coin is worth roughly one Canadian dollar. This means that a silver coin is worth a hundred dollars, a gold coin is worth ten thousand dollars, and a platinum coin is worth one million dollars.

VVVVVV

The light shone in through the window of the Oval Office as Michael Forest read a report on the specimens gathered in Colorado. According to the report, the examiners of the spider bodies were baffled. In Earth science, invertebrates with exoskeletons could only grow to a maximum size due to several factors. These factors included: oxygen in the atmosphere, hormones, vulnerability, and exoskeleton structure.

Arachnids, in particular, have book lungs in order to breathe. Book lungs have many folds that need air to flow over each flap in order to absorb oxygen. The larger the arachnid, the more oxygen that is needed to be absorbed by the book lungs. Due to the current level of oxygen on Earth, the maximum size most arachnids can reach is less than a foot. Hundreds of millions of years ago, when Earth's oxygen was much higher, arthropods could grow to immense sizes.

The largest land-based arthropod to have ever existed in Earth's history was Arthropleura. This creature was an eight-foot long and three-foot wide ancestor of modern-day centipedes and millipedes. It existed three hundred million years ago during the Permian period and had few predators.

The largest sea-based arthropod was the Giant Sea Scorpion. This sea predator could grow up to eight feet long and existed two-hundred and fifty million years ago. During its existence, it reigned as a dominant predator.

These giant spiders, contrary to Earth-based arthropods, were exempt from known scientific limitations. They were not only able to breathe in Earth's atmosphere without difficulty, but their exoskeleton was able to withstand Earth's gravity without collapsing upon itself. The scientists, analyzing these creatures, hoped to use the knowledge of these spiders for numerous real-world applications.

His time with the report was interrupted when his phone rang. He placed the report scroll report on his desk and reached for the phone. As soon as he placed the phone next to his ear, he heard three words come forth.

"I found him."

"Grace?"

"I found him, Michael. I found Thunder."

"And?" Forest asked with bated breath.

"He's willing to cooperate with the world community."

"That's fantastic news. What was his name?"

"Thomas Everett. He made some demands for his cooperation, but all of them were reasonable. Immunity from any crimes his may have committed while acting alone, their identities are to be kept hidden from the public, and citizenship for his nonhuman companions. That last one is Canada's problem, but Moore assured him it can be done."

"When can he meet with us?"

"Right away. We're going to teleport to pick up the Prime Minister at his residence and then head over to you. Can you let your security know? We can get there in about ten minutes."

"I'll do that right away. I'll notify the other countries' leaders as well. They're going to want to meet with him as well."

"Check your e-mail while you're at it," Grace suggested. "I'm sending you a data packet that Everett put together. It explains everything and more."

"How bad is it?"

"If everything he says is true... It's worse than we could have possibly imagined."

Forest rubbed his hand across his mouth in frustration and sighed. "Alright. Send me the packet and I'll try to read as much as I can before you get here."

"Yes, sir. See you soon."

VVVVVV

"I have never seen you so nervous," Reia said.

"Can you blame me?" he said as he flipped the hood of his cloak over his head. "We're about to meet with the leaders of my world. This is huge. I only wish we had formal wear for this."

"No one is going to mind," Grace assured him. "They care about the information you have."

"Is there anything important we should know?" Sylmae asked. "Like how do we address these leaders? Greetings? Gestures?"

"When it comes to my country's Prime Minister, you can address him as Prime Minister, sir or Mister MacNeill. For the President of the United States, you'll need to address him as Mister President. Just be polite, stand when they stand, and you'll be fine."

"Maybe you should be telling yourself that," Vivian said. "You're sweating a waterfall on your forehead."

The others laughed from the comment. Thomas forced a chuckle with them.

"Yeah, yeah. Get your laughs."

"Mister Everett," Moore said while tapping his shoulder.

Tom turned to face the CSIS agent.

"Yeah?"

"I have spoken with the Prime Minister. He's ready for your arrival. You can teleport to 24 Sussex Drive when you're ready."

Tom walked over to the kitchen island and pulled up the Maps app. He typed in 24 Sussex Drive to get a view of the street with the Prime Minister's residence was located. Tom noticed the stare of Moore.

"My teleportation ability isn't very accurate at long range," he explained. "If I'm not on a quest, I use the Maps program to get a good idea of where I'm heading. Makes it more accurate."

"Is there a danger associated with your teleportation ability?" Moore asked.

"I tested it," Tom said. "I wanted to see if it was possible to teleport inside an object, so I did a experiment where I held out my left arm and teleported myself in a position where my arm would go through the tree."

"That was an extremely reckless test," Reia chided him. She turned to Grace and said, "I yelled at him a lot after I found out about it."

"Seemed like a good idea at the time," Tom shrugged. "If my arm was fused to the tree, I could just cut it off and use my Heal skill to regrow it."

"What happened?"

"Turns out, my ability projects some protective layer of magic around me and anything I teleport. I was forcibly teleported in a position where my arm didn't enter the tree. I made repeated attempts but it all ended the same. No matter what, I cannot teleport into an object. So my Fast Travel skill is very safe."

Tom closed the Map application.

"Alright, I have a good idea where to teleport. Is everyone ready?"

"Ready," everyone said.

"Alright. Fast Travel to twenty-four Sussex Drive."

The scenery instantly shifted from Tom's home to the street outside of the Prime Minister's home. Both Moore and Cooper lost their balance and stumbled a step forward.

"You two okay?" Vivian asked while she jogged to Cooper's side.

"I'm quite alright, dear," Grace replied.

"Same here," Moore answered. "That was just... weird."

"You get used to it," Vivian said. "I had the same trouble when I first used a city portal."

"City portal?" Grace repeated.

"Magical gateways that connect cities to one another."

Before Grace could follow up with a question, Tom coughed loudly.

"I hate to interrupt, but we should keep moving," Tom suggested.

Both ends of the streets were blocked off with a line of police officers and cars that acted as barricades. The gates to the residence opened when the guard saw Tom and his group. Tom and the others walked through the gateway. He glanced at the gate guard who stared in disbelief that Tom was there.

The reaction of the other Protective Service officers were similar. Tom noticed some of the guards had their hands near their weapons. Ahead, they saw MacNeill in front of his home with two Protective Service Officers next to him. The man had a smile on his face that grew wider as he spotted Tom and his companions.

MacNeill forgone his wait for Tom and briskly walked to him. As he got within ten feet of him, MacNeill held out his hand and said, "Pleased to meet you, Thomas Everett. Or do you prefer Tom?"

"Tom is fine, Prime Minister," Tom said with a croak in his voice. He shook his hand.

MacNeill looked to Tom's friends and said, "I don't believe I got any of your names."

Reia approached him and shook his hand. "I'm Reia Zyer, sir."

Each of the friends followed suit in introducing themselves.

"T-Tala Mau, sir."

"Sylmae Lyvan. An honour to meet you, Prime Minister."

"Vivian Terrabane. Pleased to meet 'cha."

"Agent Moore explained to me about the condition of your citizenship," MacNeill stated. "I want you assure you all that there isn't going to be any problem. Canada would be proud to have such heroes as citizens of our country."

"It is a relief that hear that, Prime Minister," Sylmae said. "You have a very lovely country."

"Prime Minister, are you ready to go to the white house?" Tom asked.

"I am. I have a few Protective Service officers that will come with us as well."

"Alright. Fast Travel to White House."

They travelled to the White House front lawn where they were immediately surrounded by Secret Service agents. Tom took a defensive stance upon seeing the agents. Grace patted him on the shoulder and said, "Don't worry. They'll act like this if someone sneezes in their general direction."

One of the agents placed a hand to his ear and nodded a few times. He approached the group and said, "I'm sorry for the welcome. The President has given you clearance to come to the Oval Office. If you follow me, I'll lead you straight there."

"Lead the way," Grace said.

The walk to the Oval Office was one of the most uncomfortable moments of Tom's life. Everyone from the staff to the tourists that followed guides stared at him and his group. While walking, Tom noticed Tala had hidden herself behind Sylmae and Vivian. Her hands were held against her chest and her ears were pressed against her head.

Tom slowed his pace to be next to Tala.

"Hey, Tala," he said in a quiet voice.

"Huh?" Tala muttered.

"You seem a bit nervous. Even more so than me."

"I'm just worried about the situation. I'm just a librarian. I never thought I would meet someone of importance. I'm worried I'll make a mistake and offend someone. I'm concerned about our future from here on."

"You're very polite and kind," Tom assured her. "You only need to be you and you'll be fine."

"Th-Thank you," she managed to get out in her embarrassment.

Vivian, who heard what was said, quietly chuckled.

"Anyway, no matter what happens from here on out, you'll have your sisters by your side. I'll be there as well. I'll watch out for you all. That's a promise."

Tala looked to the ground in embarrassment.

"I was thinking that after we deal with this situation, I would help you train with your magic," Tom said.

"Really?" she said while looking back at Tom.

"I didn't really get enough time to see you use your magic, but it was impressive. While it is strong, I've noticed that your accuracy is pretty low. Have you only used your magic on stationary targets beforehand?"

Tala nodded.

"Thought so. Well, don't worry. We're going to work together to improve your accuracy."

"Thank you. I... I look forward to it."

"We're here," Grace announced.

They walked in through a door into a room where the Secretary to the President sat at a desk while working on a computer. He looked up and saw them enter. The secretary tapped a button on his desk that made a "ba-da" sound.

"Mister President. The Prime Minister of Canada, Agent Grace Cooper, Agent Dwayne Moore and Thunder and his group are here."

"Let them in," the President said back through the device.

The Secretary got up from his desk and walk over to the Oval Office door. He opened the door and said, "Please enter."

The Prime Minister whispered something to his Protective Service that Tom and his group couldn't hear. MacNeill walked ahead into the Oval Office while the Protective Service officers stood by the door of the Secretary's office.

Tom hesitantly walked forward into the office. Reia and the others followed behind him. As soon as they all entered, the door behind them closed. Tom first thought was that the office was larger than he thought it would be. President Forest sat behind his desk and watched everyone walk in.

Tom's breath left his lungs upon seeing the President. Forest got up from his desk and walked over to Tom. Tom grabbed the sides of his hood and flipped it down. Forest held out his hand and Tom grabbed it and shook.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Mister Everett," he said.

"It's an honour to meet you, Mister President." Tom struggled to retain his composure.

Forest turned to MacNeill and asked, "Prime Minister, how much did you manage to read of the packet?"

"Just the announcement letter," he admitted.

"The letter seems to summarize the situation fairly well."

"That was my goal," Tom said.

"I have sent the information packet to the other G20 nations and called for an emergency meeting."

"Wait, with each of the leaders? How did you pull that off so fast?"

"So long as they have their encrypted phones with them, we can meet. What I'm about to show you all is top secret."

Forest took out a small device from his pocket and pressed a button on it. A loud click came from the floor. A doorway pulled open revealing a staircase into the dark. Forest walked down the steps and everyone else followed behind him.

"You know when the events began a month ago, the last thing I was expecting was aliens from a fantasy world," he mused. "And if that wasn't enough, we are going to be facing an apocalypse in about a year."

"It's not the end of the world," Tom corrected. "But it is the beginning of a new one."

"What's the difference?" MacNeill asked.

"We have a chance to survive."

The stairs came to an end at a circular black room with a chair in the middle.

"What is this place?" Reia asked.

"This is the meeting room," the President answered. "It's here I can meet with the other G20 leaders."

"Is this why there hasn't been a G20 summit in years?" Tom quickly asked.

"Those summits became extremely problematic due to the costs and security. We needed an alternative so the last administration set up this private network before they left office." Forest sat in the chair and the right arm rest lit up. He tapped a few buttons and several holographic screens appeared in the air.

"I have never seen holographic technology like this," Tom muttered.

On each hologram screen, a G20 leader appeared.

"Thank you all for showing up on short notice," Forest said. He waved for Tom to step forward. "This is Thunder."

Tom stepped forward and said, "Due to the dangers my group faces, we would prefer if our identities remain secret to the public. My real name is Thomas Everett. My companions are Reia Zyer." Tom pointed to her and followed by introducing the others. "Tala Mau, Sylmae Lyvan and Vivian Terrabane."

"An honour to meet you all," Reia said.

"You can speak our language?" the Mexican President asked.

"Language Comprehension is a common skill among the people of our world," Vivian explained. "It allows a person to speak, write and read any language."

Tom noticed confused looks appear on the faces of the G20 leaders. He interjected quickly to prevent the conversation from being derailed from what they were to originally talk about. "The information packet the President sent you all includes information on what Vivian is talking about. If you have questions, I'll be more than willing to answer-"

"Why did you wait a month to tell anyone what is happening to our world?" the South African President demanded. His voice was filled with anger. It was obvious to Tom that not only did he read the letter, but that the other leaders shared his sentiment. "We have lost a month of preparation for this apocalypse!"

"For many reasons," Tom replied. "In the beginning, I had no idea how I would be treated by my government or the other governments of Earth. I have supernatural powers and was the only survivor of Monster Day. I thought if I came forward, I could possibly be detained and experimented on. At the same time, the Sage was giving me information on any dangerous transfers from Xoth. I would be the only one in the world to reach these events instantly and fight these creatures. What if I'm told that I cannot leave my living quarters or cell or whatever to stop these attacks? I cannot in good conscious stand by while people's lives are at stake."

Tom cleared his throat with a cough before continuing.

"What would happen if I violated my restraints? Would I be declared a threat to my own country? Have my bank accounts frozen and home possessed by the government? The arrival of my Xoth companions further complicated the situation. They are not Humans so technically it could be argued that our laws and rights don't apply to them. Almost anything could be done to them without legal repercussions. And I'll be honest right here. They are the only friends and family I have. If I see them getting that kind of treatment, I wouldn't hesitate to defend them. Bottom line, I didn't want to make an enemy of the world. I already have enough enemies."

"Phoenix," the Russian President said.

Tom nodded. "And then some. So that removed the option of going to the authorities. At least, that was my reasoning at the time. I had no idea what your opinions were of me. Still I had to let the people of this world know what was going on. The internet was basically a no go because I had no way to let them know it is actually me. I could post a video at some random internet cafe of me casting magic but then I'll just have thousands of people accuse me of faking a video using special effects. I'm sure you all have seen my impersonators online. There are dozens of them. Each of them very good at pretending to be me including videos that do a good job at imitating my magic. I am, therefore, left with one avenue: a news station that I would have to physically go to. This raises a whole host of new issues to deal with. My ability to teleport is fairly inaccurate at long range. At best I could teleport outside of a news building, but I would have to go in, but by then someone would have likely called the cops. Before I could get the chance to find someone to talk to and explain the situation in full, I would have the cops on me leaving me with the only choice of running."

Tom reached into his Inventory and pulled out one of his boxes that contained his information packet.

"That's where this comes in. I spent this month translating two books about Xoth, writing a book that acts as a guide to the SYSTEM, a report containing recommendations for the world on how to better prepare itself for the merger, and the letter summarizing the situation. Considering how much information is there, a month to put it together is a miracle. Maybe... Maybe there might have been a better way for me to approach this situation but I couldn't think of it at the time."

The South African President leaned back in his seat with a defeated look on his face. "That is... understandable."

"Everyone here is on edge," the Australian Prime Minster excused. "M-Day has affected every nation here and many others. Protests and riots broke out worldwide in the aftermath of that day. They have calmed down, but every monster appearance only renews that fear and anger."

"Anger?" Sylmae muttered out.

The G20 leaders' eyes fell upon Syl.

"Many of our civilians are losing trust in their government," he continued. "Since these appearances are random, we are unable to mobilize a military force before massive damage can be done."

"It's not entirely random," Tom mentioned.

"What do you mean?" the French President asked.

"This is a recent discovery thanks to my friends here. I have managed to correlate every monster appearance with a location on Xoth where these creatures roam."

"Every appearance matches?"

"All of them. I believe this is a hint at how our worlds will merge. Copies of the maps with my notes is included in the packet. In fact, one of my recommendations, in my report, is setting up military outposts or stations at large population centres that are at risk of major monster attacks. I believe a list of cities at high risk is in there as well."

"There is a lot of information here," the Japanese Prime Minister. He quickly scanned through the documents when Tom was explaining his actions for the past month.

"I wanted it to be as thorough as possible to release to the public so everyone can better prepare themselves."

"I have read a bit of your guide here about the SYSTEM. Now it says here that everyone will gain access when our worlds merge."

"That is correct."

"You also mention in the announcement letter that the reason you have early access is because you passed the test on Monster Day."

"Yes..."

"Why do certain members of Phoenix have access to the SYSTEM?"

"Hastur from Xoth sent one of his officers to our world to cause chaos. This officer is known as Mordiggian. He... It is able to create an object known as a Soul Axis. The creation of the object requires the sacrifice of sapient beings. This object can be used to increase someone's own power or, in case of Phoenix, give a regular individual access to the SYSTEM."

"Have you ever used a Soul Axis?"

"Never. I destroyed the only two I have ever come across. My connection to the SYSTEM comes from the spell that Hastur cast. As it says in my letter, The Great Sage couldn't stop the spell from being cast but she was able to modify it to give us a chance at protecting ourselves. Many died on the day of the test. I felt I owed it to those who have lost their lives due to the wildlife of Xoth. So I fight to protect as many lives as I can."

More and more of the leaders were becoming distracted by the information that Tom sent. The US President noticed the intensity of their focus and realized that this information needs to be processed.

"I believe we all need time to go over this information ," the US President said. "I think we should take a recess and meet again tomorrow."

"Agreed," the leaders all replied.

The holo-screens all flicked off.

"Phew," Vivian let out.

Tala, Reia and Vivian relaxed their stance and their shoulders slumped. Sylmae still stood upright.

"That was intense," Reia said.

"It went fine," Forest said. "You all did well."

"The information packet you provided will help ease the fears of the world," MacNeill said.

"Or worsen it," Sylmae said. "The people of your world at the moment just think monsters are randomly appearing. If they learn that their world is going to fuse with ours, I doubt they'll nod their heads in acknowledgement."

Forest chuckled. "You are not wrong, Miss Lyvan. But the greatest fear any Human has is of the unknown. Yes, people will panic, but it is better that they learn about and understand this event."

"From there we can adapt," MacNeill finished.

"Speaking of which. Next week there is going to be a vote held at the UN next week."

"A vote on what?" Tom asked.

"An accord I'm introducing. The Unity Accord. To summarize it, it is for the creation of an international military force that uses the most advance technology the world has to offer. The army would fall under control of the UN."

"That is actually one of my recommendations in my report."

"Good thing we are on the same page," MacNeill said.

"To be truthful, I wanted to reveal this information to the public today. I'm guessing that the G20 leaders will want to review my information before making a statement."

"You would be correct."

"Then I've just been made a liar to the world," Tom sighed.

"I wouldn't worry about it," Forest said as he pressed several buttons on his armrest.

Multiple holo-screens popped up of news sites and Chatter threads reporting the day's events. Pictures of Tom and his companions at Sussex Drive and the White House lawn were plastered all over the internet.

"You said you would let the world know what is happening to us. I think speaking to world leaders would fall under that promise." Forest tapped his armrest again to close the holo-screens. He got up from his seat. "We are going to read your information packet, but we will need you to come back tomorrow. After our next meeting, we'll make a public statement. For now you can head home. We'll call you when we're ready for you."

"I'm guessing you'll need a ride back home, Prime Minister," Tom said to MacNeill.

"It would be appreciated," he said.

"I'll also need you take take me back to your home so I can grab my car," Moore said.

"Me as well," Cooper added.

Everyone walked up the stairs, but the President lightly grabbed Grace's arm and said, "You did a good job, Grace."

"Just don't expect me to go out into the field any time soon," she joked.

Forest let out a laugh and said, "Admit it. You missed it."

"I cannot deny that, but I'm content with teaching. This was a nice last mission." Grace stepped on the first step of the stairs before turning to the President. A youthful smile came across her face and she said, "Maybe the next time, don't wait until it's the end of the world before you give me a call, Michael."

Grace proceeded to walk up the stairs.

"I should have married that woman," the President muttered to himself.