Chapter 106: The god Games Announcement
The "Odyssey" landed smoothly in its private hangar atop the god Spire, the soft hiss of its ramp lowering a welcome, familiar sound.
News of their victory over the Schism Monolith had already spread like wildfire through the Sector CommNet. They were greeted not with a wild party this time, but with a deep, collective sigh of relief from the entire population.
Their Sector Lord had faced down another cosmic horror and had, once again, come out on top. The people of Sector Gamma were starting to get used to their leader performing impossible feats. It was becoming the new normal.
The Solar Mandate and the Technocratic Imperium, the two big, powerful empires on their borders, had also been watching. Their long-range sensors had picked up the terrifying energy spike of the Monolith activating, and then the even more powerful, and completely baffling, wave of pure creative energy that had shattered it.
They didn’t understand what had happened, but they understood the result. Ryan Stone had single-handedly neutralized a sector-level threat without starting a war.
Formal messages of congratulation arrived from both empires. They were stiff, official, and carefully worded, but the underlying message was clear: We see you, Sector Lord Stone. We don’t know how you do what you do, but we are impressed.
And a little bit scared. Ryan’s reputation had grown. He was no longer just a surprising newcomer; he was a real, legitimate power on the galactic stage.
Life in Sector Gamma settled into a period of productive calm. The new alliance with Sanctuary was a massive success. Shipments of advanced healing serums and nutrient-rich food began to arrive, making the lives of everyone in the Bastion Alliance better.
In return, Zara’s Precursor Studies Institute sent back shipments of refined power cells and schematics for basic defensive technologies. It was a perfect partnership.