35 The Main Cluster

Micheal's entrance to the Main Cluster was rather anticlimactic.

After the incident with Ayer and the other members of his Enforcer Team, they all moved in a group through the remainder of the Great Bridge. Safety in numbers was a real concept, though the Enforcer Team likely feared little. They wouldn't have been sent after the murderess if they weren't confident about traversing the Great Bridge.

They went back to their usual method of having a leading vanguard that wiped out any potential threats, clearing the way and rotating teams in and out. The method itself was very efficient, ensuring they progressed smoothly without having anyone tired out greatly and maintaining top form.

When Ayer saw this, he was suitably impressed. This method of transport was one Micheal had learned in later Layers, in some of the few times he was participating in a large group or team. It wasn't commonly used here on the First Layer, especially considering most people crossed the Great Bridge in smaller sized groups.

In what felt like no time at all, but was actually several hours, the Main Cluster came into sight.

When Micheal first saw it, a wave of nostalgia swept over him.

A huge, seemingly endless expanse of skyscrapers was just barely visible in the background, covering the horizon. Hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands, veritably hundreds of thousands of skyscrapers were spread out, a massive maze of buildings. The variety of skyscrapers was much larger in the Main Cluster, with all sorts of uniquely styled towers.

'It really is huge. In total area, it's bigger than some countries back on Earth, if I recall.' Compared to the Stardust Cluster, the Main Cluster was significantly larger.

The other members of the Coalition hadn't had much reaction. In sheer appearance, it actually looked very similar to the Stardust Cluster from the Great Bridge, just a decent amount wider. They could only see a small portion of the Main Cluster, after all.

It took them only a couple of hours from the time they saw the Main Cluster to actually reach it, crossing over hundreds and hundreds of derelict ships.

With Micheal's precise guidance, they made incredible time. No longer was it a harrowing journey that took tons of concentration, an epic in its own right. Instead, just a quick, multi-day trip.

And just like that, they arrived at the end of the Great Bridge.

"Emissary Heron, sir, we should have one of our re-supply stations right over this way." Enforcer Ayer's voice echoed out as Micheal looked out from the exit of the Great Bridge.

The exit of the Great Bridge took the scene of a large oil tanker leaning upward at a slight angle as it connected with the edge of a smaller, grey skyscraper. The point where the boat and the skyscraper collided was easy to see, with the boat flexing and bending slightly, right at the top.

Hundreds of skyscrapers spread out, all around them. In the background, Micheal could hear several gunshots echoing. He could already see a few battles from Morenkai duking it out with humans a few skyscrapers over. The familiar sights and sounds of the Main Cluster, where the average person was typically a decent bit stronger and braver.

"Alright." Micheal replied, turning his attention over towards the Enforcer and his team. His eyes flicked to the left and right as he glanced at the immediate skyscrapers neighboring theirs.

'Ah, there they are.'

He could make out several small groups of people, sitting down or lounging on the roofs of these skyscrapers. Roughly 3 such groups, each one having 6 or 7 people.

'Scavengers.'

Despite there ostensibly being law and order here thanks to the Big 3, there still existed plenty of people that would take advantage of injured or weak people. Many groups that just finished making it across the Great Bridge would fall into the injured category, potential Point mines just ready for the taking, sometimes with even less risk than a regular Morenkai.

Upon seeing the size of their massive group, not a single one of these Scavenger groups dared to step forward. Micheal shook his head ruefully when he saw that.

His own first crossing had ended on a very different exchange. They had been ambushed by a group of Scavengers and nearly killed, surviving by the skin of their teeth and a great deal of luck.

"Give me a moment to recap with the Coalition." Micheal waved at Ayer as he jumped off the end of the ship, landing on the ground with a resounding thunk. The feeling of having the skyscraper beneath his feet, and no longer having to travel and help coordinate with a large group, was one of relief.

He may have become the de facto leader, but he didn't particularly enjoy directing so many groups and people. It was stressful, even if nothing happened, though still well within his capabilities.

"Heyo!" Micheal yelled out loud, catching everyone's attention. He rubbed at the comfortable mask on his face, his mouth twitching slightly. Wearing a mask for so long, even one magically designed by the system to be breathable and perfectly comfortable, was a slightly unpleasant experience.

'Will my face grow slightly pale because of a lack of sunlight?' He tossed the irrelevant thought from his mind as he looked over the leaders of the Coalition.

All of them, from Captain Simon of the Saru Group, to Sharpshooter Mike, the leader of the Sharpshooter Alliance, to Swiss Artillery Noah, of the Tobagin Party, to Officer Martin of the Godfather Organization, stood before Micheal, looking alert.

"Alright, everyone. This is where we will part ways." He explained, giving them all slight nods.

"Emissary Heron! It's been a pleasure traveling with you!" Captain Simon replied instantly, banging an arm on his chest as he looked over at Micheal with a warm smile. The two had become half-decent friends over the course of the journey, with Simon asking for his advice on several things relating to combat.

Micheal expertly answered all of his questions, giving Simon the impression that he was a seasoned expert. Which, he was, despite only living in the Cluster for around a month.

"Yes, Emissary! The Blue Wing Society thanks you, we are eternally grateful to all you've done for us!" A man wearing a set of blue leather armor bowed his head, sincerely voicing his opinion.

"As does the Tobagin Party!"

"As does the…"

All of the various groups offered their thanks. Micheal's presence had given everyone a large amount of reassurance and made the journey much easier. Everyone here held a certain level of gratefulness towards him.

Behind Micheal, Sophia looked on everything silently. She wanted to stick her tongue out at Micheal and the group, feeling slightly ignored. She had avoided talking much to anyone, largely because of how nervous she felt pretending to be part of some unknown group. She didn't want to spoil Micheal's plans.

As a result, she didn't leave much of an impression on anyone.

"Have you all decided who will be leading the Stardust Coalition in my absence?" Micheal continued, after the din died down.

"Yes sir, we have." Noah stepped forward and replied respectfully, his short blonde hair wobbling as a breeze drifted past. He continued,

"We've decided upon Captain Simon." The Captain of the Saru Group had shown incredible might to those present, winning many of them over.

Officer Martin nodded, as did the others.

Simon seemed to swell up slightly at the recognition, laughing out loud,

"Ah, well, I'll be doing my best, ahaha!" He smiled cheerfully,

"Maybe not as good as you could, Emissary, but I'll lead as good as I can!" Despite his words, his voice was flooded with confidence.

"A wise choice." Micheal nodded in return.

A few minutes passed as he talked with the leaders and made his farewells. He offered a few pieces of choice advice on where they might choose to settle down, advice on how to survive in the Main Cluster, and other small tidbits of info.

He had already decided to share with them the details on how to create Dragon Building Liquid and how to hunt Golden Morenkai, surprising most of them with the intel during their journey, holding back little. Them knowing wouldn't interfere in his own hunts, the sheer size of the Main Cluster seeing to that.

Finally, they parted ways. The Stardust Coalition set off heading North, towards the land of the Godfather Organization, where Micheal had suggested they head. He, personally, considered it the safer part of the Cluster to live in.

Their Great Bridge dropped them off in the south-western side of the Main Cluster, within the territory of the Angels Arcadia.

The group planned on meeting up with any agents the various organizations had in the Main Cluster before heading out.

Micheal watched them go with a faint sigh. He had quite enjoyed his occasional chats with Simon, some of his knowing talks with Officer Martin, or conversations with other members of the Coalition. It was nice to talk with people that didn't have any ulterior motives.

"Right this way, Emissaries!" Ayer's voice sounded off as Micheal and Sophia followed him and his men, leaving the skyscraper they'd arrived on.

The man led them forward across a dozen different skyscrapers, following a specific route. The sun, overhead, had long since entered its evening descent, dropping dangerously close to night.

Eventually, they found themselves at one specific skyscraper. This one had a pair of men on the rooftop that greeted them, dressed in casual clothes with large guns slung on their backs.

They followed Ayer into the skyscraper. In it, there were multiple rooms that the Angels Arcadia used as re-supply stations for agents and troops out on patrol completing missions or in the field.

It was here that Micheal finally obtained what he wanted from Ayer.

A set of maps that covered all of the Main Cluster.

.. .. .. .. .. ..

About an hour later, Micheal and Sophia were sitting down in a nice, suite style room with a large common room and foyer. Unlike the side Clusters, the Main Cluster skyscrapers had a very large variety of room types, with hundreds of different types in total.

This one was quite luxurious, and used as one of the VIP rooms of the Arcadia re-supply station.

"So this is where we are." Micheal pointed at one of the maps he had spread out on the table, pointing to a specific place on it.

"Ohh. Wow, the Main Cluster really is big." Sophia replied. Indeed it was.

"Yeah, but as long as you know where you are, it isn't too much trouble to navigate. You can always find the way to the center of the Cluster too." He nodded and smiled. They had both taken their masks off after finally escaping to privacy.

"Oh? How is that?" Sophia replied, a questioning look on her face.

"You'll see." He laughed.

"Just wait till we hit noon tomorrow. It's rather obvious." He smiled mysteriously.

She pouted and rolled her eyes.

They talked for a few more minutes before, after taking a long moment, Micheal broached a topic he'd been meaning to talk about for a while.

"So… hey… serious talk now." Micheal began, his eyes flashing with intent.

Sophia looked back at him, her short brown hair tied up in a ponytail.

"What's up?"

"It's about the future sight I have… " Micheal began slowly, sounding every word out.

"This gift of mine… Well, I'll be honest with you, Sophia. I've seen far into the future with it."

Sophia's eyes widened slightly as she heard this.

"Like really far? How far?!" She began excitedly.

Micheal's response was somber as he returned,

"Around 10 years."

"Wow!" She gasped as she replied, but then adopted a look of concern,

"And…?" She picked up on his mood.

"It's not good." He sighed, rubbing his eyes.

"Define not good." Traces of humor left her eyes as she looked at him seriously, her gaze pensive.

"At the end of this journey through the 7 Layers… humanity loses. We die."

"What?! How?! Are you sure?!" Her eyes widened in horror as she heard the response, a hand rising to cover her mouth.

"I'm certain. My visions have never been wrong before, right?" He sighed.

She gazed at him wordlessly, unable to come up with a reply.

"Humanity, in the end, doesn't even put up much of a fight. We get killed by some of the other Races that were also pulled into this insane death game, beings from worlds or universes different from our own. We aren't the main characters of this story, merely a side plot." His voice was grim as he mercilessly laid out the reality of the normal timeline's future,

"We didn't stand a chance." In the end, the safest route was to tell most of the truth, that he knew a small part of the future, without telling all of it. At this point, he trusted her fully, but there were certain rare Abilities and Artifacts that could read part of someone's thoughts, and there was no telling what weird powers other Races might have.

The difference between someone that had a few vague visions of the future and someone that knew the exact, entire future for 10 years was huge. He would rather not risk anything being leaked out or put her in any more danger if he could help it. When they grew extremely strong, he wouldn't mind telling her everything.

Sophia's mouth twisted as she heard this, her eyes full of worry and despair. Worry for her little sister, for herself, for their future, and for Micheal as well, a man she now considered one of her few friends.

"After I saw all of this… I made a decision." Micheal's words were full of determination as he continued, his voice sounding out with confidence,

"I refuse to let that future come true. I want to change that future. I want to create a world where humanity can not only survive, but flourish. Where we won't get wiped out and killed. Where we will live!" He clenched his fist in the air as he finished, genuine passion filling him.

"But I can't do that alone." He turned his full attention on to Sophia.

"I know we are on a mission to look for your sister. And we will keep doing that. But I wanted to ask if you would join me on this journey, not only to find your little sister, but also to prevent that future from coming true. To turn us from that path of doom to one that has a chance." He looked her in the eyes, his words echoing in the air.

Sophia gasped, Micheal's sheer force of presence simply overwhelming. His eyes were those of a powerful, passionate expert that had been through hell and was determined to stop that hell from appearing once more. Her eyes visibly quivered as she took everything he said in, taking several deep breaths.

"Sorry, haha. I got pretty intense there." Micheal killed the tension of the moment as he laughed quietly, giving her a chance to breathe.

"But I mean it. Everything I said. I can't do this alone."

Sophia took several deep breaths, recovering quickly. Her eyes narrowed as she thought everything over in a few short moments.

"You haven't been wrong before, it's true." She sighed, her mouth twisting.

"I don't really need to think it over. I'll join you. I can't let my sister live in a reality where we all end up dying, or worse, as slaves or test subjects. Who knows what will happen to humanity if we truly lose." Her faith in Micheal's vision and abilities proved itself here as she accepted him at his word.

"Being with you is reassuring, if nothing else. It almost seems like you've lived through everything here before. I'm really jealous of that future sight power." She smiled ruefully,

"That really was intense."

The two exchanged glances and then laughed for a few moments. Micheal felt a weight rise up from his heart. He had been confident she would join him for the long term but… Now that she said yes, it would make everything he needed to do much easier.

"Alright. Good. Now that that is settled…" He grinned at her,

"We can go over all our plans and stuff in the morning." He stood up, stretching his tired body.

"For now… let's get some rest!"

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