AN: Yes, this really happened. lol. So, we are getting closer to the end of this volume. There will be like 2-3 more chapters. The pieces are falling into place.

Chapter 82.2: Operation: Fiance Shock and Awe

The city of Valkovia, one of the largest on the continent, was a city alive with people and excitement. Scott and Rhea chose to walk to their desired dinner destination. Part of being together, was the simple joy of actually being close to each other once more.

As they walked along they would occasionally stop and take in one of the sights of local color. They witnessed all manner of people doing interesting things. People watching in a fantasy world was quite the event in and of itself. The schizo-tech in this world made perfect sense given the nature of the world's existence, but there was still something to be said when a war elephant walked down a smooth asphalt road, twin mini-guns folded down from the riding area on top, and what appeared to be a missile launcher on top. Mostly, Scott wondered how they fired the things without shooting the elephant.

"They have cars and flying vehicles, but they load down an elephant with equipment like that?" asked Scott, curious about the insanity that he saw before him.

Rhea chuckled softly then shook her finger. "All this time and you still think like an Earth-human."

"Well, I spent a lot more time there, you know."

She gripped his hand tightly for a moment then nodded. "True. Well, war animals are popular because they can be trained and will gain levels. Only the most expensive technological items can do the same, and the cost effectiveness is much lower."

"Ah, I see." said Scott. "How do they operate those things without killing the elephant, though?"

Rhea waved him off. "They would be stupid enough to fire straight forward. There would normally be two or three people in the saddle if they took that big girl out to fight. She makes a great living weapon platform."

"They call it a saddle?" he asked, curious.

"Well, on Earth they have other names like the Howdah, but here it's just an elephant saddle." said Rhea.

Scott watched the elephant wander down the street, her handler keeping her well under control so that she continued to move properly along with the light vehicle traffic. "A vehicle would be nice."

"Well, you mentioned that you are out fighting machine monsters. Why don't we go and hunt down a few vehicle types?" asked Rhea.

"They would fall apart if we tried to use them, right?" asked Scott, curiosity in his tone.

The blue haired elf maiden laughed at him a little. "Well, maybe the one's on the outskirts. If we go further inside we can probably find a few that could be fixed up. Definitely used vehicles, but still less expensive than buying something flat out."

"Now that sounds like a plan." Scott grinned at her. After a brief moment that grin slipped downward slightly to become a thoughtful expression. "How likely is it that there would be giant robots or power armor there?"

Rhea's eyes widened slightly then she offered him a warm smile. "If there are any, you'd need to go deep into the area. Even with our stats, we wouldn't be able to do much to them, yet."

"Yeah right, the levels go up to sixty there. Our stats are about the twenty to thirty range." remarked Scott thoughtfully.

Rhea leaned toward him and cupped her hand against her mouth. She whispered in a conspiratorial manner. "Actually, no. The highest levels in that area are closer to one hundred sixty."

Scott blinked then looked. "What do you mean? There's a hundred level jump?"

Rhea shook her head then clarified. "The innermost areas have tier two monsters. They might be technically level sixty, but they already reached level one hundred and started their lives anew as a second tier monster. Of course, that really just means that they spawn as tier two monsters in the system."

"Damn." said Scott. "Glad you told me. I would have pushed further inward thinking they were only level sixty."

Rhea reached over and patted him on the cheek. She smiled sweetly at him and said, "Always happy to help."

"Do you know when the power jump starts? How far we can go inward?" asked Scott while leading his lady love down the street.

"The downtown area of the city. It's marked off, if you pay attention to the subtle hints. Outside of there, the highest level monsters are in their forties, but tier one."

"Look at my beautiful tour guide." said Scott lightly. Rhea looked askance at him for a moment, but then cried out in surprise when he pulled her against his chest then held her close. "Doesn't she know that there are no better sights to see than the one I'm seeing now?"

Rhea's eyes widened slightly then began to shimmer a little in the light. Her cheeks became flush and she leaned her head against his shoulder. "Sometimes you say the sweetest things."

He nuzzled the side of her head with his cheek. "It's easy when it's you."

Rhea giggled softly in response and snuggled closer. Random people stepped around them as they continued on their way. Despite the absurdly sweet public display of affection, no one bothered them. They held each other close while the world walked by.

***

Deep in the bowels of a divine office building, three deities were hard at work finishing up their latest assignment. The task at hand had seemed bizarre at first, but the preliminary numbers showed that it might be exactly what was needed to turn things around.

"Does the boss really want this?" asked a red haired deity. He had a pencil tucked behind his ear, and a spreadsheet in his hand. His divine appearance was that of a grizzled public relations department manager from the 1980s era of American business.

"You'd know better than we would, sir." said one of the public relations department workers. Her sultry voice spoke volumes about her possible meaning and the potential for innuendo. She was a blond haired deity who enjoyed the sexy office lady concept. She wore six inch stiletto heels and showed far too much cleavage for her own good. "So much better..."

Grizzled department manager glanced at her, tried to swallow his saliva briefly, and then coughed once to return the conversation to normal. She had quite an effect, to say the least. Of course, every department had at least one such individual in it. Her archetype was practically in the job description.

The third deity was a young god, barely past his sixteen hundredth year of life. An unpaid intern, he dared not say anything to his superiors. His duty was to do the busy work and to fetch things.

"Well, if the boss wants it. She gets it. Let's run with this, full bore." said the elder deity.

The blond business bombshell laughed in a sinful manner then placed a finger to her lips. "I do wonder, though..."

Both men looked to her again and she smiled. "Is this the legendary blue haired boyfriend?"

"Probably. It's a strange tactic, but a brilliant one." said the department head before he made his crew get busy with their assigned task. Recently, he had sent a message to the head of the company to receive new instructions for their PR campaign. The image that she had sent was certainly unexpected, but he believed in the boss' business acumen. It even made a strange sort of sense.

Less than one hour later, they had the public relations machine up and running full bore. The picture of Scott looking back at the camera, his naked man booty shining for the world to see, would go out to every forum and magazine in the city. Memes were created and slipped into place in a fashion that would seem organic.

They were now in the main room of the PR department. Hundreds of staff workers were busily going about the business of relating to the public.

The blond office deity printed out one of them for personal use. "My, my..."

Scott's glorious man booty and duck face selfie had been caption with the words, "ARS for your pleasure."

"You know... I haven't actually logged in to play in a while." she said lightly before tilting her head to the side then making little pouty faces at the photo in her hand.

"Who has the time?" asked the department head.

The intern nodded in agreement, but did not speak his mind. He had a sweet job, and was the envy of the other young divinities. If he kept his nose to the grind stone and his head down, he could very well end up working for the company as a true employee. However, he did want to ask one question.

"Let's get these over to the guys in marketing so they can start up the new ad campaign properly. This should do wonders for our player base."

Unable to hold back any longer, the intern innocently asked. "Uh, how will this help to bring in players?"

Two sets of eyes turned toward the youth. Their gazes were hard, penetrating. He was the lowest form of corporate life and he should know his place.

Despite the misstep of actively questioning the boss, the department head decided to indulge the youth. "Simple. The boss has obviously been setting this up for a while. She allowed people to see this guy in a few fleeting images, and it became a serious topic of gossip that he was her boyfriend."

The intern nodded. That much he understood.

"Well, the city has been simply ravenous for more information about the guy. Now we have this ridiculous duck-faced nude selfie. Scandalous! The legendary blue haired boyfriend of the beautiful Origin, empress of our glorious gaming empire, has bared it all for her." continued the PR department head.

"Yes, but..." began the intern.

The blond office lady spoke up then, "Look kid. You put this naked ass on the Internet and the female player base will go crazy. New female, and some male, players will gravitate heavily toward that bouncy backside. Do you get it?"

"So... We'll get a few new female players?"

The department manager sighed. "Kid, you really need to open your eyes. Think bigger." He looked to the intern then grinned, it was the grin of a predatory shark. "This goofy naked bastard is bait. We catch a few new female players, and that will net a lot more male players."

The office lady laughed in a sultry manner. "The girls will come to find their sexy man candy, and the boys will come to offer it to the girls in the hopes that they will accept a substitute. It's brilliant!"

"As expected of our glorious empress." intoned the department manager. "She has seen the best path forward."

The department head turned swiftly and pointed to the large poster on the wall, a wall-sized printout of Scott's naked ass. "That backside is the pathway to the future! The road to salvation for our empire lies through that beautiful masculine ass!"

"Bask in its ridiculous afterglow! Revel in it!" snarled the department head passionately.

The entire department had grown quiet. Gods and goddesses peaked at the manager from around the sides or the tops of their cubicles.

"Revel in it, damn you!" snapped the department head once more.

The office workers immediately came to attention and snapped smart salutes. "Sir, yes, sir!"

"The ass is beautiful! It makes me feel alive." cried one of the office ladies.

"The ass makes me want to work out more!" cried one of the male office workers.

"The ass is bouncy, and makes me happy in strange ways!" cried another office worker.

Dozens of voices cried out in unison, each of them vying to be heard over the cacophony of screams and outcries. Each of them reveled in the glorious backside that might save four worlds. At least.... for a time.

"Now then. Our glorious empress has decreed that it should be so." He turned swiftly to face his subordinates, and then thrust one of his fists into the air. "Let's grip that ass tight with both hands and ride it hard into the future!" shouted the department head zealously.

A split second of silence passed through the room before hundreds of fists were sent toward the heavens accompanied by a sudden thunder of voices erupting in the air. Wild passionate cries made the cubicles rattle as hundreds of gods came on board with the new direction for public relations. When life locks the front door, the smart money was on going in through the back.