“What’s so important that you couldn’t tell me over the—” Mirox cut off as he entered the room. His gaze darted from me to the gear at my feet. “What’s going on?”

  “I’m going in.”

  “What, now?” Mirox glanced at the wall-screen, divided in two. One side held the possible Red Ledger challengers as computed with the old system. The other held the challengers from the new set of parameters that Mirox and I had devised based on the change in the Core’s settings. A change that had thrown the Shadow Exchange into chaos.

  The Core Collective had issued an official notice, stating that Earth’s civilization was too technologically evolved for their previous models. They’d decided, instead, to use this opportunity to beta-test a new model, one that was better suited to “evaluating adaptability and continued planetary unity in the face of systemic disruption.”

  “The Collective either has no idea what they’re doing,” I said, “which is very likely, or they know exactly what they’re doing and have devised a way to quickly prove the volatility of this planet. Continued planetary unity? Give me a break. This planet hasn’t had unity in all of its written history, and likely before it.”

  “What primitive planet has? For that matter, what colonized planet has? There are always squabbles and resource grabs.”

  “Exactly. Either this is another bright idea by the Collective, who always have massive issues when they roll out a new system, or they think this planet is going to bring out the nukes in order to prevent a hostile takeover—which is also very possible. Most primitive planets they colonize don’t have weapons of mass destruction. If the humans go for the nukes, the cost to rebuild and reseed will skyrocket, not to mention the delayed time to let the radiation clear.”

  “Yeah, but if they try to force an outcome, they’ll be brought in for a formal review and held accountable. Beings would lose their placements within the Collective. The Core itself would be in jeopardy, including all third-party funders and lenders.” Mirox shook his head. “I think this is a badly planned rollout. Regardless, why are you readying to go in before the main system goes live?”

  I threw back my whisky. “Because some genius didn’t think to put system resets in place when allowing the challengers to loot each other in the Learning Phase. If a challenger gets looted right before seeding into the main system, they’re screwed. They can’t go back and collect those resources again because nothing is respawning. Once they’ve collected it, that’s it. For them, it’s gone. Haven’t you noticed this?”

  I dropped my homing device into my pack. Its coding would be transferred into my inventory once I entered.

  I felt like a novice all over again, going into the system blind, no idea what to expect. Half of me was exhilarated, but the other half, the more logical and intelligent half, was terrified.

  Still…something pulled at me. I felt the draw to meet this challenge and see it through. My gut said to go for it, that this was the right thing. That all the time on this planet was for this reason specifically. Even having met and formed a friendship with Mirox had led to this one moment in time.

  “If the humans get looted at all in the Learning Phase,” I continued, “they’ll be at a severe disadvantage unless they, themselves, start looting. The system is effectively forcing them to go after each other and rewarding them for it.”

  I couldn’t believe that oversight. Whatever the reason for changing the system as a whole, this had definitely been an error. It would be way too obvious if it was purposeful maneuvering, and as Mirox said, that would have severe repercussions. Something like this would eventually be noticed.

  The question was, would it be noticed in time to rectify it for the humans?

  “I hadn’t noticed,” Mirox murmured, rubbing the back of his neck and looking at the wall-screen. “But still, why are you—”

  “I’m going in to protect my challenger, why do you think? The Learning Phase shouldn’t have any inherent danger, but thanks to that oversight, now it does.”

  “But…who…” Mirox was still looking at the screen.

  I finished packing. I wouldn’t be able to take any physical items in with me, having to rely on the provisions within the system and hopefully some of the cheats to slip in a couple things I’d learned in past systems, but I’d need to locate my challenger.

  Each section of the planet was onboarded into the system through a geographically based portal. Learning Phases were all the same, each housing a portion of the overall planet’s sampling. Those were then funneled into the main system.

  “You need to guide me in,” I told my friend. “You know how the Learning Phases are stacked within that plane—they’re like navigating cobwebs. I have the general location, but I might not end up where I’m headed. If I misfire, you’ll need to extract me and try again. Record the transfer. You’ll want to duplicate it after you’ve found the other challenger.”

  This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  “What?” He shook his head in frustrated jerks. “Seryn…” He clenched his jaw before walking over to the recliner and dropping into it. “I’m not doing a damn thing until you give me more information. I get the haste and the desire to protect a challenger before the main system. I get the logic. But it’s too soon to pick someone. Way too soon. We’re still trying to figure out if the parameters we’ve devised will give us the best results for this new setup.”

  I walked over and pointed at one side of the screen. “The old parameters.” I pointed to the other side. “The new. My challenger is the duplicate.”

  Mirox squinted. “She is excellent for the group setting, I grant you. I was surprised to see her…and entertained to watch her. The part where she lets the aggressive Fillers—monsters, they call them—bite and scratch her? Comical. But she’s…”

  His words trailed away as he looked at her stats on the monitor.

  “Huh,” he said thoughtfully.

  “Exactly.” I waited while Mirox looked it over. “Her stats within the previous parameters now mark her as a top pick. She has this huge drawback with directional sense that I can’t quite understand—her biology must be wonky—but with a group setting, it isn’t a problem. One of the other members guides her. She’s still lagging behind, but she is quickly catching up. She realizes the necessity of speed. Given she is also a top pick for the other metric, she’s my choice.”

  Mirox slowly shook his head, not liking this change in protocol.

  “She’s going to end up on the Red Ledger regardless,” I said. “You can guarantee it. The forums have noticed her.”

  “She’s painted in her own blood, so it’s hard not to. She’s very strange.”

  “Not to mention how she’s warded off looting attempts.”

  “Regardless, it’s incredibly early. She’ll probably go in, I grant you, but can we be certain she’ll let you guard her? That she’ll go along with your direction? She might revolt when she realizes what a dangerous situation you’ve landed her in. We have no idea yet.”

  I put out a finger. “The dangerous situation I am guarding her from. It’s all in the presentation. Plus…” I put out my hands to indicate my body before gesturing at my face. “You’ve said it yourself. Human women treat me like a deity. I am the very definition of masculine beauty. They also seem to greatly enjoy protective and sometimes possessive behavior, with brooding and growling and silence. Easy. I can handle her. She’s a striking human, but my appearance on this planet is godlike. She will be attracted, she’ll want to please me, and she’ll follow where I lead.”

  Mirox continued shaking his head. “I still think it’s too early to really tell if she’ll be a good bet.”

  “Groups of looting humans are starting to form. Her team has hit every single aggressive element—monster—in the Learning Phase so far. They have collected an incredible amount of resources, which means they have depleted most of the Learning Phase of resources so far. If she is looted, she’s sunk. She can’t go back, and without weapons, she can’t loot or go forward. I need to protect my interests, and as soon as the way is clear, you need to protect yours.”

  “Mine?”

  “Yes. Yours.” I pulled up a human male on the wall-screen, then his stats on the monitor. “You will choose him, and then you will find me.”

  “He’s not a top pick of— What do you mean, find you?”

  “He has good stats, if not excellent, but more importantly, he sought out the Core. He threw rocks at the ships until he was taken. He’s here for a reason.”

  “What’s the reason?” Mirox asked haltingly.

  I told him, pointing at the monitor to relay the various stats that had been impacted. I then went over my proposed betting structure that I’d have our team place once things were officially rolling.

  When I was done, Mirox sagged back in the chair and rubbed his hand over his face. “Seryn, that is a lot of coin for a half-baked plan and before the challengers even enter the main system. There are too many assumptions. Too much room for error.”

  “It isn’t a half-baked plan. This is the right way—I feel it. I sense it. The Fates are whispering to me on this one, Mirox.”

  “The Fates are whispering,” he grumbled. “You always get us into the most dangerous situations when your Fates are whispering to you.”

  “Dangerous but rewarding.”

  “Risky.”

  “Exciting. We always see it through.”

  Mirox’s nostrils flared as he released a frustrated breath. “We have large tracts of land purchased. Maybe we should walk away. There are too many unknowns with this one.”

  I shook my head. “The newness—and the shoddy rollout—of this system is going to bring galactic interest, you watch. The sophisticated violence of this civilization is going to keep that interest. Humans are as volatile and ruthless as they are technologically savvy. It’s a gambler’s paradise. The numbers will be high for this, Mirox, I know it. And the more acclaimed Purse Hunters don’t have time to get here and get set up. They can’t jump in, not now.”

  He kept shaking his head slowly.

  “No other Purse Hunters work with a partner. Not like us. We’ve done so much research here. We understand humans better than any other Purse Hunters. If we get in early and protect our interests, and with the holdings we have on this planet, we’ll be set. This could be the last time we have to participate. And if we identify more issues, we can push the Core Collective for an official review. That’ll give us plenty of time on this planet that we’ve grown to like so much.”

  “Unless the humans nuke the place into oblivion.”

  I grimaced. “Well…yes, unless that.” I crossed my fingers. “Hopefully that won’t happen. We are uniquely suited for this, Mirox.” I paused as though listening and cupped my hand to my ear. “The Fates have a hand in this. Do you hear them?”

  Mirox rolled his eyes, still shaking his head, but a little grin budded on his lips.

  This plan only worked if he was on board—if we managed this together. This was where we proved our trust in each other. Where we proved our partnership. The press of the Fates was riding our shoulders; I felt it. I felt the energy all around us. The risks were great, but the rewards greater still. I said as much.

  Finally, Mirox closed his eyes. “Why do I let you talk me into these things?”

  “Because you’re daft. Get ready. Time is wasting. And Mirox…” I waited for his complete focus. “Do not let your challenger get looted.”