Mathew sat in his cell looking down at the floor. He failed. His future plans, hopes, dreams, even his pride, was now nothing. All the people who could help him were now more than likely fighting for their life. Some might even die.

He didn’t care about people dying, it happened all the time. What he did care about was that the lowest number possible did so. He didn’t know how, but he knew he would be better than General Payne. Better than anyone else. Something deep inside him made him feel he was born for something, anything. It’s why he set out to become a lawyer on his own terms.

His brothers all took handouts and flaunted the family name to earn their jobs. His mother and father gave them all the money they could ask for. But Mathew? He rarely asked for money, and tried to pay back what little he borrowed. Of course, he was denied such an idea as returning borrowed money to his parents.

His family was rich, powerful, and almost untouchable. He wanted to earn that, not have it handed to him. He forgot that drive, that need before The System arrived, and even a little bit after that. The fight against the wolves and their pack leader reawakened that drive.

His plan to take what he wanted failed, and now he will suffer for it. Once Payne returned, he would be given two choices, at least, that is what he would do if he was in the Generals boots. Either sign a contract that makes Mathew nothing but a slave to the man, or die.

Mathew could try to fight his way out, but against the entire army? Never would work. It’s why the idea of murder never occured to him. Harm and or injury? Sure, but not killing. It’s why he put his life on the line, instead of others. Watching Jerry die didn’t make him guilty, instead it made him angry. Not only did he fail, but it failed because of something as stuipd as Payne mixing the cups.

If the poison trick failed, and Mathew didn’t get the Hearth Crystal that way, he could live with that. If Payne drank the poison and the contact nulled out that way, he could live with that. If Panyne never showed up, he could also, but regretfully live with that. Not this. Not wasting away in a jail cell and being forced into a corner.

Yet, that drive to escape was not there. All that remained was an empty husk. Could he escape? Possibly. He was far stronger than the average human used to be. If he put in maximum effort he could bend the bars, or even better yet blast them open with [Mana Bolt].

“I guess he was right, I am a failure.” Mathew mumbled to himself. The last words of his now dead brother coming back to him. Sure, they were said when he was drunk and enraged, but now they seem to be even more true.

He leaned back and laid down on the thin mattress. He closed his eyes and started to empty his mind. He imagined himself in a room with a giant wooden box. One by one he put everything in it. The contract that somehow still exists, Payne, the Hearth Crystal, Leo, Zack, everyone else, Magic, and anything else that was a distraction. He wanted to be alone in his mind.

Once everything was there, he closed it. He walked out of the mental room and out into an empty and white void. No emotions, no thoughts, just nothing. It was a peaceful place. Mathew used to do this when he was a child. His older brothers picked on him and bullied him. His parents, rarely if ever home. It was the one place he could just not have to worry.

Mathew had no idea how long he was there, but it was long enough that the room was visually darker. The sun outside had set. The only thing lighting his cell was a single fluorescent light bulb.

Not caring about a punishment, Mathew summoned a single wisp, Wipsy. The blue ball of magic appeared and it’s tiny face looked at it’s summoner, it’s blank expression void of any thought. “What do you think? Should I even try to break out? I don’t care, but what about the others? I need them more than I pretend I do. Payne has me by my balls, almost literally. I would rather not die. So it’s either run away, and try to break out of the contract while I am magically siphoned from my money because I’m not writing contracts for him, or do the new and better contract.”

Of course, the wisp did not respond. Mathew mentally had it danced around his hand. It was slightly cold to the touch, yet had no physical matter. He imagined if fire didn’t burn you, this is what it would feel like. A cold spot in the air. No texture, nor any resistance like wind.

A large booming sound echoed through the concrete building. Mathew glanced up toward where a window was. He couldn’t see through it, as it was around a corner. He opened his ears and listened. In the distance was the sound of...gunshots? Explosions? What was going on?

Mathew stood up and walked to the door of his cell. “Hello? What’s going on outside?”

Nobody responded. “Really? Not even a guard? Did they not think I could escape?”

Mathew looked at the bars, he was really tempted to try. Yet, a better idea came to him. He sat down on the bed and closed his eyes. He focused on his ability [Share Sense] and activated it.

A moment passed where he had no senses. It was unusual, but the void was quickly filled with the senses of Jeffrey. Currently the dog was looking at the door that led outside of his room, where he left him.

A moment went by and a larger boom went off, and the wolf stood up and let out an assertive bark. “There is no way I’ve been here so long that the army was pushed back, what is going on?”

Mathew really wished he could tell Jeffrey to do something, but luckily he didn’t have to. Either the red mutt could understand Mathew, or decided to check things on it’s own, it started to bash at the door. It was solid wood with an aluminum cover. A sizable dent was all that was left. Mathew was surprised that much damage was done to the door.

Jeffrey continued to bash into the door, eventually a small hole shown and the outside air wafted in. One smell was the most easily detected, especially with the heighted smelling powers of Jeffrey. The putrid smell of rotten eggs.

Payne let out a sigh of relief. Every second the truck drove away from the base put him at ease. The fool, Mathew, really made things so much easier for him. He truly didn’t think he would stoop to poisoning him, but he played it smart. Swapping the cups around so Jerry got his own, and spilling a cup so he didn’t have to drink one.

Sure, he could have taken Mathew’s, but what if they were all poisoned? What if Mathew outplayed him by some small sliver of a chance? He didn't risk it, and look how it paid off! One problem is gone. He didn't care what Mr. Melton said, Mathew was a threat not an asset. The McGonald family name should be feared, not respected.

“Sir, we will be there in about two hours. Captain Henderson sent back a report while you were...busy. You should listen to this.”

Payne grabbed the phone handed to him by one of his personal guards. He pushed the play button and listened as best he could in the truck.

“Captain Henderson here. My team and I made contact with the Infernal Dungeon inhabitants. One known as Agnox, an Imp according to Damien, wished to establish something he called ‘Rules of Combat’. It took a lot of back and forth, but I was able to convince him to wait until General Payne arrived or a representative of his choosing. The Imp's sole request was that official war was not declared until the rules were established. I didn’t like how specific he was, but it was that or we would have started a brawl then and there.”

“I hate to say it, but if these are just two of their possible head leaders, and not even the big boss of the Dungeon, we might be in trouble. The Imp wasn’t that scary, even Zack wasn’t threatened by him. Yet the big guy he brought had something off about him. None of the others mentioned it when asked, but it’s something you see in a person's eyes. The unrelenting rage of destruction. He didn’t fear us, he looked at us like dinner. As if any battle would be anything but dangerous to him. A further detail of events will be delivered upon the General's arrival due to the sensitivity of the matter.”

Payen nodded, “She did good. I agree, something is fishy. Yet we can figure that out here in a couple hours.”

He looked out the window and noted the sun would be setting just as they arrived at the forward camp. To pass the time, Payne opened his menu to look at his stats, just to reassure himself of what is to come.

Name: Toby Payne

Race: Human [Beginner]

Class: Marksman

Profession: Hearth General

Level: 18

Universal Currency: 229,688

Titles: Dungeon Delver I, Hearth Crystal Owner, Hearth Keeper, Survivor II

Strength:

35

Vitality:

77

Dexterity:

92

Endurance:

64

Intelligence:

30

Wisdom:

97

Unallotted Stat Points: 0

Compared to the average person, it wasn’t half bad. For sure above average, but nothing compared to that monster Mathew. He had two stats above 100 for fucks sake! Payne was close to getting two of his own above that. His own Hearth Crystal Owner and Hearth Keeper titles were combined just as good as Mathew’s own Soloist.

The other two were decent, but nothing special. He was going to go slow and steady. Stats were not everything, it was about resources. Not to mention his own abilities, skills, and spells. Plus everything the Hearth Crystal gave on top of it was the icing on the cake.

Payne smiled to himself thinking of all the praise and rewards he will receive. Maybe even that third star he had been after for the last couple of years. Outside of getting on his knees, he had done everything he could to get it. A new world, with new rules. This was exactly what he needed to go above and beyond his peers. No matter who he had to step on to get to the end, he would reach it.

The truck slowing down took him out of his happy thoughts. The camp was still being set up, which made sense. He was supposed to arrive tomorrow, but after Mathew he just wanted to leave and put that ass hole behind him.

He climbed out of the truck, and a series of nearby troops started to salute him. “Hey, no saluting in a war zone. Don’t you idiots know nothing?”

They all tensed up. Payne stood there staring at them, waiting for an answer. “Well?”

One of them, a young airman spoke, “Uh sir, is this a war zone? We are still in America.”

Payne refrained from rolling his eyes. Oh how he wished for the old military, where he would be encouraged to rip these men a new asshole and then bring heat down onto their supervisors and their supervisors until everyone was drowning in shit. “Damn PC culture.”

“Yes we are in America, but there are literal enemies just a mile or two from here. So you tell me if this is a war zone or not, Airman.”

He slowly nodded his head, trying to gleam a smidge of confirmation from the General’s face. “Yes?”

“Are you asking or telling me damn it.” Payne demanded.

“Telling! I’m telling you that yes, this is a warzone, uh sir.” He saluted again, and Payne couldn’t stop himself from groaning.

“Get the hell out of my sight. If I see you again, I promise you I’ll be the last thing you do see.” Payne walked away before anything else stupid came out of the kid's mouth.

He walked toward the command tent to learn exactly what was going on. There he saw Henderson waiting for him. He was then led toward the apparent war field that was set up for what was to come.

Payne did not like how obviously prepared the red skinned bastards were for them. Even less so at the sight of two of them standing in the middle of it.

“I ensured nobody attacked them. Doing so would be seen as a war crime.”

“Henderson, what we are going to do to those fiends will become a new war crime. I’m not going to play their games, I’m sick of them. Your blue robed friend, Mathew, ensured that.”

Henderson didn’t visually react, but Payne didn’t care. “I’m about to make the Geneva Convention look like the Geneva Suggestion. Are bombers ready to fire?”

“Yes, but I think we should talk to them. They mentioned the rules of combat. I think we should at least listen to them. You could gleam a slight idea of what they are capable of. You don’t have to accept, but at least bargain.” Henderson suggested.

Payne wanted to tell her to shut up, but realized she had a point. He hated that she was right, not because it came from her, but because he had to do more thinking and planning. He wished he could just order some warheads to drop and call it a day.

“Another thing this alien magic bullshit took from us.”

“Fine, you and that geek are to come. His job is to only speak if I ask him something or you do. Understood? I want this to be quick and painless.”

Shortly after, Payne walked next to a walking trashcan and Henderson. He winced at the sound of the metal plates. He had metal plates and chains, but at least his armor was nice and appropriate for his position of authority. The kids' armor was mismatched and cheaply put together.

Once they were within talking distance of the two Infernals, Payne spoke up. “I am the leader of the base your people attacked. Know that we are Americans, and we take every threat seriously and put them down quickly. My Captain here mentioned you had rules of engagement. Let’s hear it, but know this, we do not negotiate with terrorists. I am going to send you all back to hell like the goblins I took care of the other day.”

Agnox had a cheerful expression. “My name is Agnox, I am the Imp Horde Leader of the Ky’ Clan Dungeon. Would you accept the offer of parlay so we can discuss this without worry of foul motives?”

A blue screen appeared in front of them both, one that Agnox accepted instantly. Payne looked it over, then accepted. He was used to these types of discussions, and was not worried at all about an attempt on his life. Not like the two of them had any explosive vests on them.

“Excellent, let’s start with what our people think of as the usual. Firstly, all battles will occur on predetermined battlefields. One of them is where we stand now. Secondly, The battle does not end until one side concedes or one of the leaders of either Crystal is slain. We do not care about what weapons or magic is used, and doubt you have anything worth being afraid of.” The Imp now looked bored. Payne glanced at the bigger guy and saw what Henderson talked about. There was hunger in those eyes. Payne saw a glimpse of hope as Agnox continued to talk.

“There are other rules such as not involving outside aid from other families, clans, crystal owners, or any organization. You fight with what you have. Do you have any rules you wish to add?”

Payned paused to think about the situation. Something about the way the Imp worded things made his skin crawl. “I don’t like this. It’s like they are limiting us somehow. Why only on battlefields? What weapons do they have that we don’t? Shit, what kind of magic?”

He wished he could talk to the nerdy kid to his left mentally. “Let me talk to my...advisors. Can you give us a moment please?” Payne asked.

Agnox nodded, “Of course, but don’t go too far or the Parlay will end automatically and we will think of it as you denying our requests.”

The three humans walked a little bit away. Payne turned his back so they couldn't see his mouth. He grabbed the boy's shoulder and put him next to him, so neither of their mouths could be read.

“Alrighty kid, break it down real simple for me. Anything we should worry about magic wise?”

Zack stammered. “I mean, uh, that’s a slippery slope. I have no clue what they can do, but I doubt they need magic. They have imps to swarm us. Giant infernals like that one guy next to him. Probably even more. The Goblin Dungeon had five different types of Goblins, including their head boss. This is a Beginner Dungeon, so it’s probably more, and the level difference isn’t in our favor. Should we be doing this at all?” He questioned, and tried to glance back, but Payne stopped him from doing so.

“Leave that thinking to me. Any rules from those games you play? I get reports saying it’s all the same as real life now.”

Zack thought for a moment, “Actually, I think we should only accept the rules they put down. If we add more, we risk them denying it, if we ask too little we could accidentally restrict ourselves.”

Payne nodded and walked back to Agnox. Zack confirmed exactly what he was thinking, the rules stated only limited him and his people. He would win this the old school way. Pure absolute firepower of good old American soldiers. If he had access to planes, he would glass the entire area.

“I deny all your rules, and put forth an open war. No rules, winner takes all.”

Agnox nodded and quickly responded, “We accept” A blue box appeared stating what was agreed upon and then Agnox smiled. “Pleasure doing business with you.” He then snapped his fingers and a loud explosion echoed through the air from his camp.