Beneath the Surface
Alexander read it all and found it interesting. Despite himself and the situation, he couldn't help but smile. It was the kind of smile one made when they saw something that was nonsense, but the person saying it truly believed it was right.
This guide was truly helpful and would assist even those who were clueless about RPG-like leveling or systems in getting a better idea of what to do. But anyone could notice that this PDF and the entire government response completely ignored the giant elephant in the room.
Especially point 7.
Help each other? Help each other do what?
There were only 100 slots for the entire human race. If it was something where a choice could be given to those in power, the elites who controlled the world in the shadows didn't even have enough slots for themselves, much less the 'common folk'.
And now that choice, that prerogative, had been wrested from the hands of those in power, while a relatively equal opportunity had been given to every Tom, Dick, and Harry. There was no way that people did not have selfish thoughts because those were normal thoughts in this situation.
In fact, looking at the circumstances, Alexander realized he had been too narrow-minded, especially in regards to the comment responses he read earlier. Some might mean what they said, but others might be posting the exact opposite of what they thought or meant.
Alexander raised his head and returned to the main post and re-read the comments. With an eye of skepticism and distrust, he began to see different meanings in multiple sentences, making his head ache.
He skipped this post and checked the second pinned one, which listed details of the shelters in every city, allowing each citizen to log into the map and find the nearest one.
Alexander sneered. Putting aside whether people who ran there would be eliminated, once they got there, the powers that be would definitely become your master in this Death game as they would hold your freedom in their hands.
Alexander had secured his shelter; he would never do that. He skipped this post and was about to check another one when he saw a post that rose to the top in seconds and was marked with a red exclamation tag.
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Important Post!
Posted by Ricardo Alvarez.
Title: Urgent - Shocking Incident in Southern America!
Hey everyone, I hope you're staying safe out there. I've come across something truly terrifying. A crazy warlord has launched a nuclear attack in Southern America, and it appears to be for the sole purpose of gathering Soul Points rapidly. I've attached a video link below, but please be warned, it's truly horrifying.
[Video: Devastation.mp4](Click to Play)
This is a shocking development, and we need to spread awareness and condemn such actions. Let's discuss how we can stay safe and protect our communities from such threats.
Stay vigilant, everyone.
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{User Comments}
Alex Johnson: What the heck!
Taylor Davis: I can't believe what I just saw in that video. This is beyond horrifying. How can someone be so ruthless as to use a nuke like that?
Jordan Smith: This is just sickening. That warlord is a menace to us all. We need to find a way to stop people like this from gaining power.
Morgan Brown: I'm appalled by this. We should form a coalition to hunt down these individuals and prevent further catastrophes. This can't go unchecked.
Casey Wilson: While this is incredibly disturbing, it might be a wake-up call for us to unite and protect ourselves better. We can't rely on the government or anyone else at this point. We're on our own.
Riley Martinez: You know what they say, desperate times call for desperate measures. Maybe that warlord figured he'd gather enough Soul Points to survive. Dark, but who knows what we'd do in his shoes?
Avery Clark: I can't believe what I just witnessed in that video. This is a tragedy, and my heart goes out to the people affected by this heinous act.
Jamie Anderson: Let's not forget that we're all in this together. We can't let fear or anger drive us apart. We need to stay focused on survival and helping one another.
Skylar Evans: As awful as this is, it might be a lesson for us all. We need to protect our communities, gather Soul Points wisely, and ensure our survival. It's a cruel world out there now.
Dakota Turner: Honestly, I'd be lying if I said I didn't see something like this coming. People will do anything to survive now.
Quinn Murphy: My heart aches for the victims in Southern America. We need to come together and support one another during these dark times.
Reese Taylor: Looking at the location, that might be Bolivia. If that warlord used a hydrogen bomb with at least 50 million tonnes, the entire country might be gone from the face of the earth.
---
Alexander read the details and watched the video with a chilled heart. When the video started, it showed the POV of the person who was in a helicopter while breathing heavily. Then not even 4 seconds in, the detonation occurred far in the horizon, forming a very recognizable mushroom cloud.
Luckily for them, they were far enough that the shockwave came as a slightly strong breeze and made the helicopter unsteady for a short while. Meaning for the remaining 30 seconds of the video, those in the helicopter kept swearing with terror and disbelief, looking at the now orange horizon where the colorful mushroom cloud lingered in the sky.
The video ended with the camera still on the mushroom cloud, and it seemed to linger in the eyesight of the people who watched it. The crazy thing about such explosions was that when one watched them, it was actually kind of amazing and very aesthetically pleasing from afar.
What made them horrible was the knowledge of what all those cool sights meant and the kind of experience those on the ground were having in the scene. Alexander himself could not help but lean back in his seat and realize that things were not going according to his expectations at all.
During apocalypses, all forms of such technology were supposed to be rendered invalid or useless due to the special nature of the world's magnetic field or polarity or something!
It was supposed to be everyone using their talents to fight hand-to-hand against the enemies that populated the world to empower themselves!
At best, there would be factions, large and small, with special powers and slightly better weapons like Gatling guns or rockets, but this…!
How was anyone supposed to deal with this? So early into the Death Game? It might be possible for one to harvest enough Soul Points to increase one's Vitality to the point where nukes could be ignored head-on, but certainly not on the first day!
No, Alexander realized. It was entirely possible for someone to achieve it on the first day. If the person who fired the nuke was regarded as the one who achieved the kills, then they would have gathered enough Soul Points from their action to reach such a level.
Who could challenge them now?
Not to mention, this was a precedent. There might have been others with such weapons of mass destruction who were either hesitant or unable to easily use them due to red tape, but they would now feel an itch in their heart.
Why not… try it?
After all, the benefits could be great, and the world was already coming to an end, so who cared about environmental pollution as well as repercussions for future generations?
<It has been detected that an artificial weapon of great power used to extinguish many beings, both sentient and non-sentient. The user this determined be in violation the spirit intention Death Games, their soul shall made go through tortures existences they exterminated.>
<The Death Games of Planet Earth have been updated! No weapon mass destruction shall be allowed to function until the end event!>
Right after Alexander heard these words in his head, he felt a strange wave pass through the world, and something very fundamental seemed to change. Given what he had just heard, Alexander could reasonably put it together that it was the 'ban' in question.
Alexander - and everyone who had seen the news - sighed with relief in their various locations, glad that this had been dealt with. The powers that be had more than enough WMDs to wipe out all life on the planet while hiding in their bunkers, leaving such fellows the only ones to survive the fallout.
As for the various beasts and monsters, they only felt the change but did not know what it was for. However, there was a strange feeling of relief in their minds, as if a great danger to their existence had been removed.
Meanwhile, in many parts of the world, many leaders had broken rules and rushed to various silos as well as command centers to force a launch. Just as they were about to twist the key and enter the codes, they heard this announcement.
Their hands stopped in the middle of their motions, and sweat couldn't help but form on their brow, slowly letting go of the equipment they were using to fulfill their greedy desires and taking a step back.
It was one thing to die, but to experience soul torture? That was not desirable in the least by any standard. As leaders of the world, they still had considerable advantages compared to those on the ground, so there was no need to risk it all.
On Alexander's side, he noticed that the forum was being flooded with posts about the new change, and the government had even released a statement condemning such actions and reassuring the people that things would never come to that.
Naturally, people were skeptical, and there was a lot of back and forth. Alexander only read a few lines before becoming tired and leaving his computer, moving to lie on his bed and splay himself across the soft mattress.
Alexander glanced at his ceiling, which had a poster of one of his favorite comic book heroes who was taking a picture with a typical moe-like anime girl in a silly pose. He couldn't help but smile and think of the past, the future, and more importantly, the present.
He felt the fatigue from everything that had happened in this past hour and slightly more wash over him. After all, he had woken up in the morning and started gaming with his friends without even having breakfast.
It was when he was about to have breakfast that the apocalypse descended, so Alexander was hungry as well, but his tiredness overrode his desire to eat, and his eyelids felt heavy as he slowly fell asleep.
Of course, despite his tiredness, he did not recall his death clones as he left them armed and vigilant to watch his sleeping body. One shot from them would be enough to wake him up, and he could assist them in dealing with any unwanted intruder.
When Alexander nodded off, his death clones followed his last command and watched over him vigilantly, weapons held in hand. They did not seem willing to disturb Alexander in the least, as if they understood the importance of his need for rest.
The two shared a look, and despite not even blinking their eyes, a wealth of communication seemed to happen between the two. Eventually, one stayed by Alexander's bed while the other crept out of the house while armed, slinking towards the nearby compound house where the giant pitbull had come from.