Chapter 43: CH-43 Armageddon
His words were calm. Almost too calm. That, more than anything, unsettled both John and Natisha. Through the holographic display, they squinted slightly, disturbed by how casually William treated the gravity of the situation.
To them, his demeanor resembled that of a child handling a serious matter without truly grasping its weight.
What they didn’t know was that William truly was handling the situation exactly as it appeared—calmly, almost effortlessly. For him, this entire scenario was far too simple, despite being severely limited, unable to even access a fraction of his true strength. Yet even under such restrictions, he found the matter trivial.
And even if they had known the truth, they would have realized there was nothing they could say to compel William to act more seriously. After all, they held no authority over him—and more importantly, he was completely right. It was their Federation that needed him, not the other way around.
If they believed in any higher power, then they should indeed thank the heavens that someone like William—unbound by fate or destiny—was reincarnated into this galaxy and not elsewhere. Had things gone differently, they might not have even been given the choice to ask for his help.
They didn’t know any of this yet. But if they ever did... they’d understand just how lucky they truly were.
But as luck would have it, power is a force that never truly sleeps. No matter how structured a society is, or how faithfully it follows the rule of law, power always finds a way to reassert itself—especially by those who have once tasted it.
For such people, the moment they even sense the slightest threat to their position, they retaliate. It doesn’t matter if that threat might also represent a path to salvation. Most don’t see the bigger picture. What they do see is the possibility of their authority being undermined—and that alone is unacceptable to them.
It seemed the Federation had its fair share of such individuals as well.
Examples? John and Natisha themselves. But fortunately, they were also realists and are of the survivalist faction. They understood better than anyone that power only matters if you’re alive to wield it—and if those you rule over remain alive as well.
After all, what is a king without a kingdom? A throne without subjects is just a decorated chair. No matter how grand a ruler’s title may be, if there are no people to govern, then that power becomes meaningless. A kingdom without people is no better than an illusion—vast, perhaps, but empty. And emptiness, no matter how large, holds no true authority.