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LOCATION: UNREGISTERED CARGO VESSEL
AREA: NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN
COORDINATES: 48.0000° N | 32.0000° W
DATE: ??? | TIME: ???
---
System Message
You have died.
This is death number 341.
Your body is restored, but the pain lingers.
---
"That's new," Viktor muttered, as he removed the bindings holding him to the chair.
He stood, cracked his neck, and flexed his muscles until the pain of the last death (this one by decapitation) faded to dull background noise.
He had fought walking fish-men. He'd battled (and been swallowed by) a giant kraken-like beast that was almost as large as the ship itself. Once, he slipped on a oil slick and fell. His head hit the floor so hard that he died there.
That was the most pathetic of his attempts. Apparently 341 of them.
But Viktor had realized that, although all of this was essentially just physical and mental torture, he was improving.
He was faster, more agile. Stronger.
---
Are you wiser, though?
---
"Get out of my head!" he shouted.
He exited the room and broke the glass to take the axe.
But this time, as he reached for it, he hesitated.
Am I any wiser? I keep doing the same thing every time.
Maybe if he tried something different…
Viktor let his hand fall to his side. He stood still for a minute, listening, before he turned and walked up the stairs to the main deck.
His two captors waited there with Gideon Blackwell.
Viktor stood on place, waiting for them to speak first.
Shit, he wasn't even sure if they were real.
Is any of this real?
"Heh, the pain is real. That's for sure…"
Finally the American captor spoke.
"I am Graham Thorne. You can call me Grim."
Viktor's eyes widened.
"You're Grim Thorne?"
He cocked his head to the side for a second, and smirked.
"I thought you'd be taller."
Grim laughed. Hard.
"What did I tell you, Gideon? It's the sign of a true warrior. Maintaining your sense of humor in shitty situations."
Grim stepped forward and extended his right hand.
Viktor looked at it, still unsure if this was a trick or not.
He prepared for combat at he reached forward and shook the American's hand.
Grim patted Viktor on the shoulder as they shook.
"I want to make you an offer, Viktor. You can say no if you wish, but I believe you'll like what we're offering."
They released the handshake, and Viktor took stock of the man in front of him.
He was taller than the American by about four inches, but he could see this was a man not to be underestimated.
Not to mention, if he had orchestrated whatever mind-fuck this was, Viktor thought it prudent to play along.
"Sure," he said, "I'm all ears, as you say in America."
Grim chuckled as he turned. He waved Viktor over to the group, and the four men stood in the center of the main deck.
The ship lulled lightly on the waves.
The scent of seawater, ever present, filled the air.
Suddenly, a seagull landed atop one of the containers.
A seagull… We must be closer to land…
"Viktor, what we're about to tell you cannot be repeated to anyone, except those who are in the know."
Viktor nodded.
"I'm used to dealing with classified intelligence."
Samir laughed.
"He doesn't mean classified," Samir said. "He means you literally can't talk about it."
Suddenly a new notification appeared.
---
System Message
You are being entrusted with privileged information regarding [REDACTED].
This information is strictly confidential.
Attempting to disclose it to unauthorized parties will trigger a visual warning.
Continued attempts at disclosure will result in System intervention.
Do you understand? [Y/N]
---
Viktor shrugged and selected Yes.
"Good," Grim said. "On New Year's Eve, the entire world is going to enter the System. You needed to do some soul searching before you were ready, but the rest of humanity will begin their induction through a Tutorial."
Viktor had so many questions, but he nodded and let Grim continue.
"The reason we're here talking with you, is that we could use someone with your skillset. While humanity sleeps, they will need protection. But once they awaken, and Earth contains eight billion System-inducted people, we may get… visitors."
"Visitors?" Viktor asked. "Do you mean—"
"Alien life forms. Non-terrestrial Biological Entities. Whatever you may call them, once Earth becomes a System-inducted planet, we light up like a beacon across the universe. And we need Peacekeepers ready and able to defend our planet against whatever may come our way."
Viktor looked off into the distance.
Was it really so strange? He thought about what he'd experienced. 341 deaths, but yet here he stood. Still, allegedly, alive.
Unless this was hell? Nah…
"I have a lot of questions," he said, "but yes. I am in."
"Great," Samir said. "Welcome to the team."
They all shook hands this time.
"The world order," Grim said, "will never be the same. You already see North Korea joining the fold, Ukraine and Russia are at peace now. But us warriors, we get bored without something or someone to fight."
He placed his hand on Viktor's shoulder.
"I promise you will never be bored, and you'll never get rusty. Now, close your eyes, and you'll find yourself in a whole new reality."
His mind spinning, Viktor did as he was told. He closed his eyes, and felt the world shift around him.
It was a dizzying effect, but when he opened them, he was back in the dark room, tied to the same motherfu—
The door opened, and Grim walked in with a combat knife in his hand.
Viktor flinched, but Grim leaned over to cut the restraints.
"Easy there," Grim said. "We have a deal, remember?"
"That was… real?"
"Of course it was real," Grim said, laughing. "Now, follow me. We've got a lot of work to do."
Viktor stood up, and to his great surprise, he had no pain. Anywhere. He walked out into the familiar hallway and followed Grim up the stairs.
When they stepped up onto the main deck, overhead cranes were offloading containers. Crewmen were shouting everywhere, and Viktor looked over to see a sign:
PORT OF ROTTERDAM
"You'll understand why I couldn't bring you back to the States," Grim said.
He gestured to a tall German man standing nearby.
"This is Erik Drexler. You'll be working together."
Viktor sighed. Erik Drexler…
Then he laughed.
"You were near the top of our list for decades. The Kriegwolf himself. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Erik shook Viktor's hand.
"And you were on ours. I'm glad we're on the same team now. It's time we learned that there are greater things to fight for than territory and money."
"Couldn't have said it better myself," Grim said. "I'll leave you guys to it. I've got a flight to catch. Viktor, we'll be in touch. You'll see message chatter in a chat channel for Peacekeepers, but Erik will guide you through everything else."
He started to walk away, then turned back.
"Viktor, I'm really glad you found your way through. It's going to be good to have your strength on our side."
Then, he turned and disappeared into the throng of people, forklifts, and other vehicles clogging up one of the busiest commerce ports in the world.