Monroe

Chapter Two Hundred and Twenty-Eight. None of this is Bob's fault.

"Of course, they cured cancer." President Elania Hartford wasn't having a fantastic week. The disappearance of nearly every disabled veteran in the country had made national news, despite her administration's attempts to squash the story. Now a hospice nurse, who was also missing, and a pair of unidentified men had distributed a miracle cure of cancer.

Elania didn't believe in miracles, but she did believe in Thayland, and this had Thayland written all over it. The only solace she'd found was that the video showing the two men had revealed that neither of them were Mr. Whitman.

Ed had come through with an identification, marking the two individuals as Harv and Elli, a pair of shepherds who were friends with Mr. Whitman, and had involved themselves with the early arrivals from Earth.

She shook her head and sent a message to her assistant requesting that he put the Surgeon General on her schedule as soon as possible. Reading the woman into the integration had been inevitable, but it wasn't expected to be necessary until later. Clearly, that eventuality had been made much more urgent.

Fortunately, she had two marines standing guard outside of the oval office who had recently rotated through Glacier Valley, and as such, had the necessary skills to bring the Surgeon General over to Thayland for an introduction. Sarah Burns wasn't the sort of person to just accept that there was an alternate universe with magic without overwhelming evidence.

She paged through the intelligence briefing, thankful as always for her natural ability to read quickly and maintain a high degree of comprehension. There had been another bombing in Israel, and Pakistan and India had a small dustup on the border. South Africa was expecting lower than normal crop production due to a combination of drought and contention over irrigation practices. Venezuela's second-largest port was deemed too unsafe for use, resulting in even further shortages of materials in that stricken country.

Elania admitted that while she could kind of see a way forward for her country, pre and post-integration, there were parts of the world where she just couldn't see a plan. Fortunately, there were many people who would be involved in the evacuation of Earth, even if they weren't fully read into what was actually going on.

The Queen of England was missing and presumed to be ill. Elania rubbed her temples. She'd received reports that the Queen had been reincarnated and was rapidly leveling up in Harbordeep. With the British obsession with the monarchy, it was a wonder she'd been gone for this long without it becoming a national story.

Finishing the brief, she glanced at her watch, then her schedule. She was three minutes ahead, which meant that a quick facetime with her daughter was feasible.

Dave looked over the crowd. Amanda had just finished her 'Magic is real' speech, and everyone appeared to be enthusiastic about getting their hands on some magic of their own.

"Quite the turnout," she murmured as she slid her arm through his, leaning her head against his shoulder.

He nodded. It looked like more than one person had decided to bring a friend, and he could spot a few groups clustered together where everything indicated that they'd arrived together.

That and instead of fifteen hundred people, they had almost three thousand.

"It's a good thing we went overboard with the construction," Dave agreed, then sighed. "I suppose it's my turn now," he grumbled. They'd flipped a coin, and Amanda had gotten to give the fun speech, and he was stuck with the less fun one.

"Alright, I'm glad everyone is excited," Dave called out, his voice booming across the crowd. "Now that my lovely partner has given you the good news, I'm obligated to be the downer and give you the bad news."

The crowd quieted.

"This is effectively a one-way deal," Dave explained, "as you level up, your attributes increase." He leaned down and casually lifted a fifty-pound dumbbell. "I could not have done that before I went to Thayland and leveled up," he said, noting the chuckles that rang out through the crowd. "I'm a lot more muscular now than I was before, as well as more coordinated and generally healthier than I was. Amanda has grown ever more beautiful, and I'm told that it isn't just me who has noticed."

This generated laughter, which he took as a good sign. "We chose to be spell casters," Dave continued, "which doesn't focus on physical attributes. We have some folks who went that physical route, and they went from couch potato to greek god."

The crowd erupted into cheers, and he waited for it to die down. "Awesome, I know," Dave agreed, "but the kicker is, they can hardly come home now, can they? How would they explain losing a hundred and fifty pounds of fat and gaining two hundred pounds of muscle as well as a few inches in height, all in just two or three months?"

Now the crowd was quiet.

"To that end, and because of the problems that have arisen from not taking it into consideration, we need everyone to sit down and decide if they're sure they want to do this, and if you are, if you want to do this now, or if you have things you need to attend to first. Either way, before we bring you over, you'll need to have a good, believablecover story arranged." Dave shook his head. "We'll be reviewing them with you, as we've now had enough experience to recognize certain glaring errors that will come back to bite us."

He stepped back from the microphone and pulled Amanda back into his arms.

"You did great," she whispered.

"I love you so much," he muttered as he gave her a gentle squeeze.

"Love you more," she replied.

"Love you most," he finished.

"Worth every cent," Angela murmured as she inspected her nude body in the mirror. "I'd forgotten just how dishy I was at this age," she smiled.

Jack nodded his appreciation from the couch beside her. She really did look fantastic.

"Now you understand why you had to agree to assume another identity," he said smoothly.

"Oh, I understand," she assured him, "I've kept my first name but changed my last." She laughed, "after five marriages, I'm flexible like that."

"And you made your arrangements as far as your will and trust?" Jack asked.

"I did," she confirmed, "everything is ready to go, all I need to do is send off one email to get the ball rolling. The old Angela will be dead and buried within a week, and I'll be contacted by the executor of the trust in my new identity."

She twirled in place and danced gracefully for a moment. "Oh, to be young again," she laughed. There was a short dress draped over a nearby chair, and she glided over and slid it over her head before zipping it up and returning to the mirror, where she checked her image from all angles.

Shaking her head, she took a seat next to Jack on the couch. "So, magic is real, and if I stomp on a few cockroaches, I'll be forever young," she said.

"More or less," Jack replied. "You'll want to avoid the being here when the monsters show up in force, but you'll be able to come home in a few months if you want to."

"From what you've told me, I may not want to," she smiled brilliantly. "A mansion in the sky, overlooking a city that was designed to be beautiful?"

"And self-sustaining," Jack agreed. "Spatial Expansion does wonders for ensuring that food can be produced without the inconvenience of needing massive fields."

He left unspoken that the mansion in question would also be spatially expanded.

"And there will be a theatre district?" She asked eagerly. "I spent two seasons on Broadway, and I'd love to perform again."

"There will," Jack promised. "I've done my best to create a city where culture and art are given center stage, as it were."

"You are a delightful boy," Angela patted his arm.

"And you are, as ever, my guiding light," Jack returned.

Angela had been in her seventies and just beginning her retirement when Jack had met her. He'd been struck by her poise and grace, despite the rigors of her age. She'd had a kind word for the handsome but poor Jack, seating herself next to him and providing subtle instruction on manners and etiquette.

He'd become a student of sorts, learning the social niceties implicit but unspoken amongst the beautiful elite of Los Angles, and he'd never forgotten that kindness. Even when he was working a hundred and twenty hours a week, he made time every other week to visit Angela. Despite her five marriages, eight children, and twenty-one grandchildren, she rarely had company, and he knew how much his visits meant to her.

"Now remember, you'll want to exchange most of your assets for mana crystals," Jack warned her. "Obviously, you'll want to make sure you have enough to allow you live the life you deserve here on Earth, until the integration, but the expectation is that existing currencies will completely collapse afterward, and materials such as precious metals won't be particularly valuable either."

"I understand, dear, although I'll need to evaluate my portfolio closely to see where and when I should divest," she replied.

"I've been working with a few high-level individuals to establish a more favorable exchange rate, as far as lower-level crystals for higher-level ones," Jack explained. "It's one thing to have a currency that is fungible, it's another to have one that expires," he shook his head.

"Banking will certainly change," Angela agreed. "I can imagine that banks will become brokers of services, accepting deposits of these mana crystals with the understanding that the ones you put in aren't necessarily the ones you'll withdraw, and providing in-demand services at a profit to provide interest on investments, or perhaps having subsidiaries that do so."

She tapped a finger to her lips. "It doesn't sound like there are any regulatory agencies over there," she mused.

"Just a Dragon," Jack said flatly.

"Yes, you did mention that," Angela shook her head with a smile. "I'm rather looking forward to not having to deal with accountants and lawyers."

It was Jack's turn to smile. While she'd been a popular performer on Broadway and had been quite successful as an actress on television as well, her true genius was her uncanny ability to predict market trends. She'd amassed her vast fortune by investing her earnings and being savvy enough to keep that money separate from her various failed marriages.

He did not doubt that she'd be a major force in the banking industry that would arise on Thayland.

More importantly, his oldest friend was young and healthy again.

Henry let out a shout as he brought his weapon down, severing the head from the huge rat that was attempting to sink its fangs into his side. Pivoting, he stepped smoothly to the side, avoiding another blow and lowering his stance before exploding upwards, bringing his blade up in an arc that removed the head from another rat.

He could hear Elli's voice behind him.

"This is the reason to study and practice," Elli lectured the group of young students. "Master Schofield is level two, but you see how easily he destroys these foes?"

"Yes, the Melee school and a weapon skill are important," Elli continued, "but there is so much more to fighting than that. As I like to tell my friend Harv here, there are skills, and then there are skills."

Harv groaned audibly at that, and Henry smiled. The tall man had some minor skill with the spear, and he'd been eager to receive instruction with it.

Henry had been surprised when Elli had asked him to take a trip with him to showcase his style to a group of students. He'd been even more surprised when that trip had involved a magical portal to a magical land where humanity had to fight off monsters to survive.

He'd been appalled at the lack of martial schools.

"Watch how he moves," Elli exhorted them, "every step has a purpose, every strike angled deliberately."

"Is that how the Reef fights?" A young voice asked, "I've read 'The Rules' as well as the litany," the young woman, he decided, said. "Strike, Move, Strike!"

"Always Be Killing!" A young man chanted.

"The Reef uses magic, not weapons," Elli replied, "but yes."

"I saw the memory where he was swinging his staff though when he saved that family from the wave," the young woman protested.

"The Reef is definitely a Hero," Elli agreed. "But all of you wanted to learn how to truly use a weapon, which is why we are here."

Henry let himself fall into the familiar flow of combat. Strike, Move, Strike was not entirely inaccurate, although as his students advanced, he'd have added a few additional suggestions. It was certainly a solid foundation on which to build.

In other circumstances, he would have found the admonition to Always Be Killing distasteful, but when referencing monsters, it was again a solid foundation. He wondered who this Reef was. Elli seemed to know him.

His watch beeped at him, and he began to slowly pull back towards the circle of light where the rats were either unwilling or unable to intrude.

Returning to the group, he moved to the back and took a seat, cross-legged, and began to clean his sword, inspecting it for damage. The class, as well as Elli and Harv, were respectfully silent as he completed the ritual with the familiarity of long practice. Sheathing his blade, he looked up at the group and smiled.

"If you have any questions for me, please raise your hand," he instructed the group.

His smile widened as every hand was raised, save for Harv and Elli.

"You," he pointed at a young woman with dark skin and brilliant blue eyes.

"I'm Merri," she gave him an unpracticed bow, "and I wanted to know how old you are? Because you look really old."

"I'm eighty-two years old," Henry replied, before pointing at the young man next to her, who he suspected was her brother, as they shared not only the same skin tone and eye color, but they shared the same nose as well.

"I'm Makki," he bowed as well, "are you going to stay on Thayland to teach us?"

"Assuming I am able to rest on the good graces of Elli, Harv, and their friends, I will be," Henry agreed, "I'll need to move back and forth between here and home, as I have quite a few students there who rely on me for instruction and certification."

"You should have them come here," Makki said boldly, "I bet they'd learn faster if they had monsters to fight."

"They might, but I'm not sure they'd want to," Henry replied, then called on the next potential student.