"I see that you've managed to break your new toys already. Not surprising, given that they were made of plain steel, which would barely put a scratch on the hide of even a Tier 6 creature, let alone a Tier 8. They were meant for training only."

Barry sat cross-legged in the cramped space where white branches met the tree trunk, bundled up with hunched shoulders between his MAFT and Energy Shroud. He glared through the many large, blood-red leaves at the floating image of a seemingly unconcerned Pokka.

"You've been lying to me," he said, voice thick with anger and suspicion.

Pokka held up a finger in response.

"False. I have been withholding information, for your own good. None of the information I've shared so far is factually incorrect."

"You said the monsters were an 'unfortunate side-effect' of this whole integration process. Which is not only a lie, but a bad one. It smelled like bullshit from the start. How could the whole process be random and accidental, when the monsters end up so neatly organized in zones of escalating danger?"

Barry shook his head, grimacing. He wasn't sure if he was more angry with himself, or with Pokka. Of course the invading aliens didn't actually have any good intentions. Why had he given them the benefit of the doubt for as long as he had?

A few days on the surface had been long enough to remove any remaining illusions. Looking back on the obvious evidence now made him feel like a fool. They hadn't even made an effort to not make things look computer generated. The clean lines between zones, the lack of randomness, which AI was notoriously bad at.

How could the methodical reshaping of an entire planet possibly have been a random process, even in part? In hindsight, it was an absurd idea, one that he should have dismissed outright.

"That information is included in the official announcements and onboarding, but I did not speak those words."

"So you admit that it's all a lie?"

"I believe that much is obvious to anyone capable of a modicum of critical thought."

"Then why even go through the effort?"

Pokka sighed, which angered Barry further. The AI chose to sigh, must have done it in the most calculated way, undoubtedly because it thought it might have some desirable effect on Barry. He'd been making the mistake of humanizing the AI. In fact, every gesture, every word Pokka spoke should be considered as an attempt at manipulation.

"The question you should be asking instead is, 'how may I acquire a weapon capable of piercing the hide of Tier 8 creatures'?"

"If you're not going to answer my questions, then you can just fuck off."

Barry was trying but failing to keep his anger under control. A part of his mind was nagging at him that this was really not the time to dive into those questions, but it was too easily ignored.

"Oh very well, the smarter humans will have figured it out by now anyway. That superficial lie is only there to reduce initial resistance. Less people will stubbornly deny the changes to their world, thereby increasing adoption rates and reducing needless loss of life. Unlike you, we don't like to leave anything to chance."

There was something deeply confusing about that statement. On the one hand, they fill the world with monsters, but on the other, they still care about 'needless loss of life'? What did it say about their goals, if they wanted to force people to fight monsters, while still keeping as many as possible alive?

Given that they were an extremely powerful and resourceful faction, he would just have to look at the results and assume they were intended. Taking himself as an example, the changes were stark. He would never have even considered being a soldier. But now, here he was, risking his life while training to get stronger every single day.

Assuming other people were the same, it would definitely prepare Earth to fight off a possible Ulm invasion someday, which was their stated goal. But Barry could not believe that they cared much about humanity's survival. They were far too cruel for that. There must be some ulterior motive. Then he realized, with a growing feeling of horror, that Pokka must have indeed been telling the truth after all, just not all of it.

"Soldiers," Barry said breathlessly. "You need more soldiers for your war machine."

Pokka nodded.

"The Ulm are a universal threat. We don't have the luxury of respecting each sentient species' sovereign rights. Nobody will be forced into it quite yet, but over time there will be very strong incentives to join the war effort."

Barry closed his eyes for a moment. His anger was gone now, replaced by a bone-deep sadness as he thought again of all they'd lost. Their whole world had been turned into some convoluted training and recruitment center. The scale and inevitability of it all made him feel completely powerless.

"Just go, Pokka," he said, sounding exhausted. "And don't come back."

"And what will you do, without me to keep you on course? I've gotten a good impression of you, and you are not someone who can carve out their own path."

The AI was speaking more slowly and quietly than normal, as if to match Barry's state of mind.

"Look at where you are now; your stealth proven to be ineffective, your lack of the skills and equipment to fight back. Everything is just as I predicted. The one single decision you made yourself, going directly against my advice is what led you here. It would be best if you accepted that you can only reach your goals while following my directions."

He frowned, thinking back to how he'd gotten in this situation.

"Decision? What are you talking about? That soundblast was an accident."

"You're not being honest with yourself. We both know your control was good enough to avoid it. You let that blast go straight to the entrance, almost begging for something to hear and come to free you from your torture. It's pathetic, really."

Despite his harsh words, Pokka's voice was soft, not a hint of accusation there. This was just how he looked at humans.

"That is simply the kind of person you are; a follower, someone who needs direction. And that is okay. If you're still not ready to admit that, ask yourself this: what will you do, after finding your family? I believe you already know the answer: you would just find someone else to give you direction."

There was a flash of anger, a useless desire to punch the projection, then counter-arguments and insults springing to his mind, but he was tired of arguing with the AI.

A quick glance at his PE Capacity brought him back to reality then, filling him with urgency. Already at sixty five percent. Damn Pokka for wasting his time, he needed to get out of here.

Quickly purchasing a new set of clothes, choosing one in white to blend in next to the tree trunks, he hurried to put it on before deactivating the MAFT. Barry then made to deactivate his Energy Shroud as well, but decided to scan the forest before he did.

His stomach dropped as he spotted a glimpse of silver to his right. That was the wrong direction, though. He'd expected the wolverine to have been coming from his left, where he'd left it behind. Were there more of the creatures?

He began crawling over the branches, using the Energy Shroud's cover to get a bit further away from the wolverine before moving out. But then he cursed as he caught a silver blur to his left. Having to escape two of them would not help his chances.

As he racked his brain for ideas, the two wolverines finally noticed each other. They took a threatening posture, hissing at each other with their hackles raised. Barry recalled that normal wolverines were highly aggressive and territorial. It looked like these metal versions might have inherited those traits.

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Not wanting to waste what could be a lucky break, he decided to wait, hoping that a better opportunity would arise. It didn't take long for the angry wolverines to jump at each other. Barry watched with fascination as they fought in a strange intersection of raw animal instinct and advanced technology. One moment they were rolling on the ground, clawing and biting at each other, the next they were separated by an invisible magnetic field, both floating in the air as they hissed and growled.

As the fight sped up and they moved further away, zapping from one tree trunk to the next, Barry didn't hesitate to take his chance. He put up his sphere and [Blur Image], deactivated the Energy Shroud and stored everything back into his MAFT which went in the strap around his back.

With his new outfit, he would appear as a mostly white blur, so he swung from the branches for a while to avoid catching the eye of the wolverines. Constantly looking over his shoulder with dread, he let out a breath when the glimmering beasts were out of sight, dropping to the ground and speeding off. Once again, he fed energy directly into his muscles with [Charge Muscles] to sustain his top speed.

As his environment turned into a blur, most of his attention was needed to avoid running into trees, while a less conscious part manipulated the sphere to keep pace. Every now and then, the manipulation would fail, the sphere falling behind, and he would have to slow down a bit until it was back up.

As time stretched on and less conscious focus was needed, the conversation with Pokka floated back up to the surface. The implications of what the AI had said were disturbing. If they already knew how to optimize for less loss of life in the first stage of the integration, that meant they had done this before. How many planets had fallen victim to this unstoppable war machine?

Pokka had also mentioned 'very strong incentives' for participating in the war effort, which hadn't happened yet to his knowledge, so he could only assume that would still come at a later stage.

The ball of stress and worries was back in force as he thought of the implications for his family. He'd been holding onto a thin strand of hope that they'd somehow be spared of any fighting, but that seemed like a fantasy now. What these invaders needed were soldiers, not farmers.

Armies also needed support roles, but would that be true for the aliens? Healing was covered via high tech devices. MAFTs covered the logistics of food and material. What would they still need support staff for? The making of weapons and armor, perhaps, if that wasn't done by machines.

But then, what would people be fighting for, if not to protect their homes and families? Maybe if he got strong enough, some kind of deal could be made, so that his loved ones at least could be spared any future fighting. It was again only a thin strand of hope, but it was something to hold on to. Another reason to hurry up and make sure he stayed alive.

He blasted through the forest, leaving deep gouges in the soil and a fine cloud of dust in his wake as he ate up the distance. When his PE Capacity hit thirty percent, he decided to cut most Abilities and switch to the tree tops again in case the wolverines were already on his obvious trail.

But before climbing up, he decided to use the new Ability he'd found in the store, just in case. The first activation of [Project Image] was to record something, to later be able to project it within a certain range.

With that done, he got up another tree and started to swing again. This time he moved more slowly to conserve PE, but still, his pace was many times faster than an unempowered human would be capable of.

Despite his best efforts to clear his mind, Pokka's words kept coming back. Was there any truth to his claim that Barry could have avoided that blast?

It certainly was not a conscious effort to attract monsters on his part. But could he have done more? In that final instance, he had simply put up his sphere to shield himself from the blast. Perhaps there would have been time to move it away.

In the end, it seemed to him nothing more than speculative psychoanalysis. Perhaps there was some truth to it, or perhaps not, but he definitely was sure it hadn't been a conscious act.

The other question was more interesting, as he hadn't spent any time thinking about it. What would he do after finding his family? If he wasn't forced to become a soldier, would he try to run off with them to go hide in some far off corner of a random green zone?

He had no idea what they might find. How many people were still alive? Was there anything left of human civilization? Assuming that people managed to reinstate some form of government, he would have to evaluate his options. If he had no choice but to become a soldier, wouldn't it be best to do it under the leadership of experienced military officials? That didn't feel wrong or cowardly at all; it was just common sense.

His musings were swept away when he caught a glimpse of one of the wolverines. He had been looking over his shoulder every few moments so he caught it before it was on him, dropping down as he activated [Blur Image] and [Halt Waves - Sphere].

Barry ducked behind a tree, checking his PE Capacity. Fifty percent, plenty to throw another flashbang and make a run for it. The map showed how close he was to the next zone. It would be just a few minutes if he sprinted.

He held out his hand and gathered energy, waiting for the wolverine to land on the tree opposite him before repeating the same trick he'd used before. But when it finally flashed across his vision, it didn't stop, instead instantly shooting over onto another tree, then another. It pinballed at dazzling speed between four different trees before finally coming at him, leaving him to duck to the ground as he released the energy.

There was still a loud blast, but not close enough to hurt it. He cursed its cleverness as he rolled and jumped wildly, trying to move erratically so at least it couldn't-

He cried out at a stab of pain in his hip. No time, it was in front of him again. He juked to the right, then leaped to the left to put another tree between them. It flew behind him and then he was running for his life, pumping his arms as he swerved between the trees.

Barry sped up, feeding his muscles with energy, throwing nervous glances over his shoulder. It nearly caused him to crash into a tree; he could barely spare the attention at this speed.

After two narrow misses, he slowed and ducked behind a tree again, instantly activating [Project Image]. His recorded image ran to the left and he quickly used his free manipulation of sound to throw some faint sounds where the images' feet were landing. He remained pushed against the tree, a flash of relief as he saw the wolverine streaking after his image.

That was his queue for a final, mad dash, throwing everything he could into his speed as he ran in a straight line without swerving or dodging. His surroundings turned into a blur of white, black and red as he rocketed through the forest.

An angry cry from the wolverine had him pushing even harder, until he spotted something grey up ahead. It had to be the next zone, the beginnings of the mountain range.

A final glance back had him diving desperately to the ground in a final dodge. Barry tried to land in a clean roll, but it was as if he'd jumped out of a speeding car. His momentum pushed him relentlessly forward, bouncing and skipping over the ground like a thrown pebble. Disoriented and covered in cuts and bruises, he tumbled into the next zone where he finally came to a stop against a large rock.

He groaned, blinking against his spinning vision. It took a few moments before he sat up, surprised that he hadn't broken anything. He spat some blood onto the ground, then carefully patted his body. It was bruised and bleeding, his skin chafed all over, but besides some deeper cuts from the wolverine, it looked like he'd left without any life-threatening injuries this time.

"Progress," he murmured, noticing the wolverine standing at the edge of its zone, hissing at him.

Warily, he got up, waving his hands, then wincing from the pain. When it still didn't move towards him, he slowly walked a bit closer. It made a small step in his direction, then yelped and moved back into the forest.

"Pain?" He asked the wolverine, which only answered with a growl.

He picked up a small rock and hurled it at it. It broke into pieces on its metallic skin, not leaving any marks of damage. It growled louder, took another step towards him but then moved back again.

A quick look around this new zone just showed a lot of grey rock, with a few pine trees growing in between. Not spotting any monsters, he shrugged and moved back to slump down with his back against a larger rock, happily admiring the metallic wolverine now that he was safe from it.

"So beautiful, yet so full of rage. I suppose it would mess up their pretty scheme if you were free to roam across zones. You'd probably run off and murder all your neighbors," he said with a sad smile on his face.

He brought out his MAFT, activating it to take out his Fixer Upper and start healing his cuts and bruises.

"I bet you've got the same chip implanted in your brain, don't you? It gives you powers while keeping you in a cage," he said with a sigh. "I guess we're not so different, in that regard."

He rested his head against the rock, closing his eyes for a moment. A feeling of calm came over him as the adrenaline from his mad dash subsided. He'd survived another zone. One step closer to his goal.

But what should he do with all these fresh thoughts and worries bouncing around his brain? Yes, his worst assumptions about the aliens' motivations had come true. Pokka had some theories about his personality that didn't quite ring true, but still seemed to resonate with something deep inside him.

But what did that really change? His immediate goals remained the same: to survive, to get stronger, to reach his family as soon as possible. It would only distract him, to try to find answers to scenarios he hadn't even encountered yet.

Besides, for all that Pokka accused him of being a mindless follower, he felt clear and convinced of his path. Staying in the cave would have increased his odds of survival, but it would have also slowed him down. More importantly, he was sure that it would have changed him, if he'd stayed in that dark place, kept dying painful deaths in that accursed virtual reality. The cost would have been too high.

No, there was no doubt in his mind that he was doing the right thing. He would fight tooth and nail to live through this and reach his family again.

There was one question that nagged at him, where he did feel Pokka's words resonating.

If he was so convinced of this path, why hadn't he crawled out of that damn cave sooner?

Whether or not it was true that he'd lured that monstrous bird, one thing was true for certain: he'd only left the cave after it had been destroyed. He left not entirely by his own desire, but was forced to by an external influence.

That question stuck with him, and he wasn't sure that he would like the answer.

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