Chapter 99: Covering lots of ground

I should head city by city, best chance is players looking for shelter and a place to stay. Many are scared and confused, and more than likely wont move unless a leader arises. I don't see any cities in the distances, but that doesn't mean I should rush this. Flying free and high isn't something I'll get to do often once I meet up with other players and eventually make my way to the Holy City for my divine mana aura. So I might as well have some fun, I twist and turn my body as I go in and out of the giant puffy clouds. Clear skies free of pollution and visibly beautiful to look at. When I was a kid I thought that clouds were pillows in the sky, and if I grew tall enough I can jump on them. 

However the yellowing of the sky soon ruined that, and the clouds became less and less numerous. I take a deep breath and close my eyes as I just glide upside down, my back to where the ground is supposed to be. I come in and out of the clouds with my eyes closed, I don't have to worry about anything since I'm so high in the sky. I'm slightly shocked Blue Chaos never had angel wings, its unlikely he could hide them forever. That makes something I accomplished that he didn't, and I feel more pride than I should at that thought. I did steal his future, and thinking about it now he is probably dead like Marty. He didn't start playing Ancients World till a few years passed after its release, so I guess that means I doomed his existence by making mine better.

I always wanted to make it up to him, and now I wont be able to since he is dead. Unless he got a gaming pod when they went on sale, I truly hope he did. It will take a weight off my conscious, and thinking about it. All of this is also attributed to by my actions. For all I know I could have been the single reason this happened, time travel isn't something you can just jump into. I did and now everyone is suffering for it, I wonder what could have been if I used my wish on something else. Having a single wish with no ands or buts makes it hard to get everything I want. Out of all the wishes I could have made, I decided to go back in time. Not like I had much time to contemplate after all, I was a few hours from the end of my life for all I know.

Thinking about all this is putting me in a depressed mood, but sometimes facing your choices is the only way to find a solution to a current problem. I'm not great philosopher and a great thinker, but I am smart. Its the only reason I'm alive, and that's the reason I came back. In the back of my mind I knew that using my knowledge of the future was what I wanted. To use others works to benefit me, talk about a total fake. In the end no one will know, but I will and its going to haunt me every time I think about what I've taken so my life could be better. I don't want to open my eyes, I just want to stay up here and fly forever. All good things come to an end though, I open my eyes and descend under the clouds to see if anything is around.

I can see a ruined city off in the distance, bigger then the one I was in earlier. Probably has some players in it, and that means no more flying. I get as close as I can before I try and make a gentle landing, I rough up some dirt pretty bad as I land in the surrounding forest. "Looks like my landing is getting better, I'm going to be causing property damage in the future. So best get a hang on it now." I rub some of the muck and dirt off, I'm a couple minutes from the city. I begin making my way there and I eventually hear the voices of players. Looks like I found some life out here in these new lands. The closer I get the more numerous the voices get, and I can conclude there are a lot of them.

I follow the yelling through the city and eventually make it to a huge crowd, I don't know how big it is. Cant really put an accurate number on it, but best guess is around 16,000 players. I can hear some guy yelling from the center. Since I'm taller than most here I can see that this man has assumed the leader role. I'm on the very outskirts of this giant meeting so its kind of hard to hear him. I make my way through the crowd subtly as to not disturb anyone. It takes me about 15 minutes, but I make it into listening range. "THE OTHER GROUPS IN THIS CITY HAVE DECIDED TO STAY HERE AND WAIT FOR RESCUE!!!!" That wont be happening for a very long time, and from what he said there are other groups in this city. Its pretty big to only have around 16,000 players so it make sense. "ALL WHO WANT TO MOVE FORWARD AND SEARCH FOR OTHER CITIES PLEASE INFORM SIR HELK!!! WE WILL BE LEAVING TOMORROW MORNING!!! I HOPE TO SEE MANY OF YOU JOIN US!!!" I look around and see the fear of some players, others have determination. Strong players leaving these types of groups is detrimental, so many will probably follow these guys out of the city.

He continues to talk, but I pay him no attention. If there are other groups in this city then I should see their situations to. I have no intention of staying here, but trying to get information will be beneficial to me. These players could have discovered things I haven't yet. I gently make my way out of the crowd and start to roam the streets of the big city, it isn't one that I lived near. I don't even know its name. It would be hard to find out its name with it in this condition, but the local players might know its name. After walking I eventually see a massive stadium come into view, if a group of players were going to stay somewhere it would be there. I make my way to it and I can hear some faint yelling, and multiple voices. 

After a few minutes of walking I make it to the entrance and find a way in. What I see is truly amazing, players line the rows of seats and field. Tents set up in the tens of thousands, I can see an old podium and stage with speakers on it. Looks like its the people who have decided to become the leaders here, at least until the situation is found out. I hear yelling the closer I get to the field, there seems to be a heated discussion going on. "WE CANT STAY HERE FOREVER!!! THE LIKELY HOOD OF RESCUE COMING SO SOON IS A PIPE DREAM!!! OPEN YOUR EYES ZEEILL!!! ITS TIME TO MOVE!!!" I wouldn't be so aggressive trying to get my point across, but I don't know how long these people have been arguing about this. While I agree with his words, his attitude needs adjustment.

I don't get so close to the stage, I lean against a make shift shack away from others. "Why would we take such a risk when we don't have to Quiver, we have food, water, and shelter here. A steady stream of all things. We can afford to wait for rescue, be don't have the means or man power for a mass migration." Who I assume is Zeeill speaks calmly in response to the loud words of Quiver, seems everyone is going by their gamer tags instead of their real names. Both make good points, I can see why Zeeill wants to stay if he has all that in supply. In the end the decision comes down to who wants to leave, you cant stop people from walking away if they want to.

I should ask some of the players around me what they know, whether it be about changes or locations. I look around and all I see are depressed people looking to give up on life, some even looked like they tried. I see the relaxed face of an older man, he looks like the type I can ask for information. I make my way to his side and take a breath. "Excuse me sir, I was wondering if I could ask you some questions about what's going on" He turns his head and looks at me with suspicion. I can tell this is going to take longer then I want it to, most player are probably very defensive right now. Instead of rejection he just taps the seat next to him, guess this guys more intact mentally then the rest.