Chapter 21 - Brief Run through of Options
Primordial Calendar 097, Summer Season 8, and 23rd day, City: Ravelin, Continent Truven, World Javelin
Whether the entire situation had gone haywire in such a concise amount of time, the uncomfortably youthful Lancer Oljan got utterly wasted out of his mind. His newfound companions put him in a small suite of rooms they rented for a week. They monitored his condition while going about their business. Fortunately, after a good night's sleep, they discovered that Lancer Oljan had come to terms with his situation. As they ate a hearty breakfast, Kenneth inquired of him. "How are you holding up now?"
Oljan shrugged. "I'm alive?" He seemed resigned to the fact that his life had irrevocably altered. "For now, I'll see how to deal with the changes in my life." He shook his head. "I'll meet you when it's time to go on a qualifying mission. How does that sound?"
Well, they would have to get used to this place eventually. "Sounds good to me," Kenneth agreed. "You're welcome to return here if circumstances leave you without a home to return to elsewhere."
Oljan hesitated when he heard that. His eyes flickered uncertainly. "If that is the case, I'll remember what you offered." He looked around with a sigh. "Now, I must take my leave." He tapped his wristwatch to theirs. "Now we can remain connected and contact each other without worry."
Conroy was relieved that he wouldn't have to ask that of the stubborn man. "See you around, Oljan." he nodded with a faint smile.
*
The countdown was on to prepare for the Alkai labyrinth's first stage. The problem he faced was that he needed to have his notes handy when setting up the design. These two individuals were mad enough at him as it was for messing with the very fabric of Javelin. He did his best to make amends by forming a party with them. However, that had yet to be Hanlon's intention initially. "Just how do you think this is going to work?" Hanlon demanded. "Our statistics are unbalanced with no healer available." He folded his arms. "Two warriors without supplementary classifications isn't going to work." He sighed. "We'll probably have to add more people to our party." Not something Hanlon looked forward to at all.
"When you made the changes in creating a species that would allow for people to change their very existences, it was enough of a mess," Ferina stated.
"However, when the thirteen-year reset was made, that was enough to unbalance everyone who might've had good lives." Gavel pointed out a fact that Hanlon was aware of.
"Yes, I know that was probably a mistake. However, I could literally see death hanging over 90% of the population even while underwater as a Snarwhallian." Hanlon stated flatly. "As the world was before the reset of thirteen years, all potential qualifiers to make it through the trials would've died just in the qualifier missions assigned." He made a slight gesture with his hand. "Look at the two images over there." He sighed when they frowned in confusion while studying them. "One is the original setting on the left."
They blanched at the implications.
"There is no way that the waystation would've withstood the devastation and resulting overpopulation." Hanlon looked at Gavel quizzically. "Your place was already straining from what residents qualified to remain there."
Gavel frowned at him but didn't deny what he stated. "What does the second image have to do with your argument?" He returned his gaze to the second image.
Hanlon scratched an ear. "Those are the potential heroes and heroines who will make it to the end of the trials." He shrugged when the two of them stared at him in shocked silence. "Though what they chose to do when reaching there will also affect the world."
Gavel nodded. "So, they would need to decide if they wanted to live another lifespan on Javelin or go back to their own worlds." He tapped his jaw. "Mmm, I see the problem now."
Ferina grunted. "So those born of this world wouldn't have any say in the end?"
Hanlon shook his head. "Only if they're one of those couples or parties that makes it to the end." He shrugged. "I tried to make it as fair as possible." Somehow, he had a feeling something else was meddling now.
"So, what are the options that would allow survival?" Gavel sighed.
"Balanced parties that don't need couples in the same groups to succeed," Hanlon stated bluntly. "Either that or come up with a different criteria that allows more than one couple to have multiple skills." He'd been thinking about the restrictions on groups and shrugged. There was nothing else he could suggest that would work.
Preoccupied with his problems, Hanlon Cozen regarded Ferina Gale and Gavel with some exasperation. "So why did you pick me besides the fact that I'm one of the writers of this setting?" He had yet to publicize the fact that there'd been a collaboration to have a film being made of the series. That was no longer viable since the game app creators screwed with the entire concept that had been created through thousands of hours with the mystery collaborator who'd passed. Now, he was being penalized for the results that were left unwritten without his knowledge.
There was also the fact that the other collaborator apparently died in a car crash or something in the past year. Hanlon didn't know all the details, but whoever was supposed to take over the collaborator hadn't ever contacted him. Instead, he'd been left hanging and made to finish it, which Hanlon had done, to the satisfaction of the readers.
However, someone else took issue with his handling of the ending. Much to Hanlon's shock, he learned that it was supposed to be a complete horror-fest and tragic ending where everyone died. Now, he was embroiled in the fate of the world he'd been writing.
How was he supposed to convey that news to the stationmaster and records keeper of the waystation that was supposed to be destroyed? Not even Hanlon wanted that to happen. A sigh escaped him. "This is what I've remembered from my previous notes." He spread them out for the two to read. "this is what someone else wanted to happen, but I was against this fate." He shrugged and let them decide what they wanted to happen. "Now, I'll work with you two to change what others decreed should've occurred."
They were in quite a quandary because Hanlon Cozen didn't know who the unknown collaborator had been. Now, others meddled to the point that he couldn't keep up with the changes any longer.