Chapter 602: Grunt Work

Grey knew giving this much autonomy to people who had spent the last few days trying to push Elowen around was a risk, but leaving the important points of the underground formation unprotected would be even more idiotic.

The catacombs beneath those cities were part of the same structure protecting the entire Territory, and if someone got control of one of them, Grey had a bad feeling they could start poisoning the whole thing from the outside in. He was almost certain something similar had happened the first time.

There was another benefit too, one Grey hadn’t considered until now.

Earth’s greatest weakness compared to the established Races wasn’t resources or even talent, it was the fact they had almost no real experts. Grey could fight the monsters who had reached the Second Arc, while the others connected to him through Ma Famille had enough potential to catch up eventually, especially if Phase IV really let him start robbing Gods blind and passing useful things around.

Right now, though, that was all potential and fairy dust.

Amunet and Thi Lan could probably hold their own against some of the weaker threats for a while, but Grey wasn’t convinced either could reliably win against the kind of people who would start showing up now.

Brad, Mauve, Xerchen, and the others were improving ridiculously quickly, yet they were still playing catch-up against Races that had prepared for the Genesis Games for generations.

The former monarchs standing around him were different. Every one of them was Dominus Class.

The angel lady had already made it clear they were on the weaker end of that Class, but weak Dominuses were still fucking Dominuses. Even once the Second Arc began ramping up and enemies appeared that could beat them, they would still make excellent warning systems, and Grey doubted any of them were stupid enough to die quietly out of pride.

If something stronger than them showed up, all they had to do was send word and Grey would come deal with it. A very expensive bat signal.

There was always the chance one of them betrayed Melix, but Grey couldn’t build his plans around everyone potentially being an asshole. If that happened, he would deal with it then, and until that point, using their strength was the smarter move.

So, for once in his life, Grey forced himself to be responsible.

It was miserable.

Most of the next hour disappeared into discussions over which cities needed to remain populated, which catacombs mattered most to the formation, and how many civilians each location needed to function without wasting manpower.

Grey left most of the boring details to Elowen and Mauve, stepping in whenever the conversation touched the formation itself, but eventually the former rulers understood the basic shape of what he wanted.

Emperor Vaelor Ren of the Asterion Territory was one of the first to object.

"So we surrendered our lands only to become guards stationed at the edge of yours?" Vaelor asked, his bright white hair making him easy to spot among the gathered rulers. His tone was much more restrained after Grey’s earlier demonstration, though there was still enough bitterness behind the words that Grey could tell exactly what he thought of the arrangement. "You are asking us to serve as meat shields."

"Pretty much."

Elowen closed her eyes and Mauve looked away, trying to hide their cringe.

Grey scratched his cheek when he realized that probably wasn’t the diplomatic answer they wanted. "Alright, fine, that’s not all you’re doing."

Another woman stepped forward, and Elowen’s posture immediately became more guarded.

Empress Lysara Cael of the Orlith Holy Empire was tall and thin with deep violet hair falling almost to her waist, while her pale eyes carried the same calm scrutiny Grey remembered from Elowen whenever the Orlith were mentioned.

Imperial Mother had specifically warned Elowen to be careful around their Empire without ever explaining why, which automatically made Grey more interested in her than most of the other rulers.

Lysara folded her hands behind her back. "Then explain what distinction you see."

Grey studied her for a moment, then surprised everyone by answering normally.

"The difference is that I’m not asking you to sit there and die." He pointed toward the distant city walls while his thoughts moved through the formation underneath them. "I’m a mech technician, and unless somebody hiding in this room wants to surprise me, I’m also probably the best mech technician left in this Territory."

Vaelor’s expression shifted slightly.

Grey continued, "I can build teleportation formations. Give me enough time and I’ll make a network connecting every important city directly to the capital, which means if something hits one of you hard enough that you can’t handle it, you call us and help is there almost instantly."

Grey continued explaining, which somehow made the whole situation even stranger to his friends. "And what exactly is different from before? You ruled your own Territories, you protected your own cities, and if something powerful attacked, you fought it."

Vaelor didn’t immediately answer.

"The only difference now is that your formations actually fucking work."

Grey gestured toward the lands beyond Melix. "You aren’t losing anything strategically. You’re getting a functioning territorial formation, a capital strong enough to reinforce you, and eventually instant transportation between every major defensive point. In exchange, you protect the city you’re stationed in and don’t screw with the catacombs underneath it."

Lysara’s eyes narrowed slightly. "And our autonomy?"

"As much as Elowen and Mauve decide you can have without turning this into another civil war." Grey shrugged. "I’m not interested in deciding tax rates or listening to people complain about whose grandfather owned which hill."

Brad stared at him for several seconds. "Who are you?"

Grey looked over.

Brad’s brow furrowed. "You explained all that without threatening to kill anybody."

"Fuck you."

"There he is."

Amunet snorted while Elowen tried and failed to hide a smile, and even Mauve’s lips shifted slightly before she regained her usual expression. Grey rolled his eyes and let the discussion move forward, finally feeling like they had enough of a framework that other people could handle the rest.

Then his attention drifted past them.

Amara Okafor stood near the rear of the gathering.

Grey’s grin slowly returned as he looked toward the Nigerian woman Amunet had gone through all that trouble to retrieve. Amara met his gaze without flinching, her expression calm and reserved, though there was enough curiosity in her eyes to make it obvious she had been studying him for a while already.

Grey turned toward her.

"Well, hello there."