Stage One

"So now that you know everything about my past let's now build the future! We have kingdoms to claim, people to kill, and an army to build. As for you three, you really don't have any choice in this matter. This war will come, and billions and billions will die. Your choice is to join me or die." Seeker sat down and started to munch on some fruits that were still left at the table.

"So, what should I do?" Charles was the first to break the silence.

"Do what you can, Charles. The faster you complete your study in neuro-alterations, the brighter the hope for a better tomorrow."

"Looks like I have to cancel a few movies and commercials." Charles sighed. His life of prestige and fame wasn't so important anymore.

"Don't. I need you to make certain trips. Right now, I will be initiating Stage One of my plans. When playing any real-time strategy game, we start by gathering resources, right? That's going to be our immediate focus. But what I need is not just money, but power and influence to shape this world into a better place. That requires you to travel and meet certain people. You are already a celebrity anyway. That makes it easier. However, I haven't decided who to go to first. It really depends on how fast your research progresses. Right now, what I need from you is the free use of this little hideout and 3000 credits. The gang and I will have our hands full."

"Exactly what are we going to do, Zeek? You might be Unlocked, but the rest of us are only human." Meryl was worried. With Zeek's new behavior, she now had apprehensions towards the plans of their best friend.

"Oh don't worry, Meryl. We won't be doing anything dangerous. Well, at least not enough that could kill us. Stage One is the safest stage. We just need to get money and accomplish a certain level of fame. After all, this is the Age of Distrustful Nations. So we need money to fund our expenses and fame to allow us to cross borders easily. If they were famous, then traveling around the world would be. No more military checks and stuff. Especially when we are entering enemy countries."

"Let me guess. You are going to publish future famous songs, movies, and books?" Charles inquired with a humored look.

"No. I respect those artists and would dare not steal their work."

"So singing then?" Charles guessed once more.

"What? Do I look like a singer?"

"I don't know! Maybe you could alter your voice and use your hormones to attract countless girls!"

Meryl laughed at Charles guesses.

"Nah. I need to be a Ranked Hero to pull that off. If its just one or two people in a room, then Inhuman. But to make a whole crowd love me? Gotta be Ranked, Hero."

"Wait! It's possible?!" Meryl asked in surprise.

"It is. But I need to reach more levels of the Unlocking, and it would be too tiring for me to do that! Not to mention artists have to perform live on an audience to change their emotions and affect them. I can't do that. Not with our Xenophobic treatment to foreign travels. Plus, I would need to eat a lot to recover." Seeker lamented.

"Then why not start a business! With your memories, you easily become rich!" Lynd snapped.

"Bad idea. It's too much hassle." Seeker countered without hesitation.

"Ok. That's where you have it wrong, Zeek."

The three friends stared at Charles, who called Seeker, Zeek. Even Seeker found it uncomfortable that someone was calling his nickname casually.

"Uh… Too soon?"

"Way too soon, Charles." Meryl shook her head.

"You guys call me Charles, and I can't call him Zeek? Where is the respect in that? I'm a famed neurosurgeon!"

Even Lynd started to shake his head in disapproval of Charles's actions.

Frustrated, Charles ignored the two and talked directly to Seeker.

"Anyways, I'm into a lot of businesses, and I would recommend you to-"

"Let me just interrupt you there, Doc. Right now, I need to earn millions. And I need to earn it quickly. Setting up a business takes a lot of time. Not to mention the fact that what I'm aiming for is something that allows me to earn an incredible amount in an almost daily means, a business just won't cut it! I also don't want to gather a lot of capital, as it would be noticed by others. Such a fast-growing business like that would create a lot of competitions, possible assassinations, and not to mention I could alter history if my company gets bigger. Plus, if I'm in a business that successful and huge, the government is sure to watch over me and even take a lot of my taxes. You see, one priority that I need to manage is our team being inconspicuous and not affecting the general timeline."

"What? So slaughtering nations isn't inconspicuous, but setting up a coffee shop is evil?" Charles mused.

"I won't start killing people until the world war, you know? Right now, I must minimize the changes I make in the future. If I start a hugely growing business, then I would create a series of chain reactions that might change the world that I've come to know. Imagine this scenario... A fast and incredible company grows out of the blue. This rising empire would bring unnecessary attention to me and will lead to an infinite amount of unknown variables that could affect the general timeline that I remember. A simple coffee meeting in the future could already create infinitely new possibilities if it didn't go through. People who were there that shouldn't have been or people who weren't there that should have been may already have altered their very fate! A missed coffee shop may mean a missed event or failure to meet a certain person. Who knows how it will affect the future!"

"How can that be possible? I miss a coffee meeting; I end up a lesbian in the future?" Meryl objected.

"That's right!" Charles realized.

"Are you calling me a lesbian?"

"No, not that! What Seeker means is that a small act could create ripples of changes in the world. The time you spent on this would be spent on something else, you meet new people, encounter events and whatever. And that is just one coffee meeting! If Seeker built a business that would be successful on a national level, it would change a lot of things!"

Meryl and Lynd thought genuinely about Charles's explanation.

"Nutterballs. I didn't know it would be that complicated. If we think that way, what can we do to make money? Even stealing money would have that same level of impact!"

"It's actually easy to accomplish that. Take over an organization. Make the CEO a puppet and have him act normally. That way, apart from the future fate of the CEO, no major alterations and changes will happen."

"I see. That's brilliant!" Charles commended.

"Which company are you eyeing?"

"I don't know the name. Basically, I'm going to go after the strongest drug and human trafficking organization in the Pangean Nations."

A condemning look immediately replaced Charles' face. Meryl and Lynd were surprised as well.

"What?! Are you insane?" Charles was flushed in anger.

"Why not? The money I earn is kept off the record, meaning it can be spent on a lot of things. It's normal for cartels to purchase weapons and the like, so no flag is raised! But most importantly, it's actually in connection with specific requirements that I need to prepare for in the upcoming stages of my plan. I need to get connected to the drug cartels in order to shake some trees in their organization. Otherwise, those big bosses won't come out."

"Oh. Well let's say you have the best intentions for doing that, how do you intend to do that? You'd be putting everybody at risk if you do that now!"

"I know. This is why, in preparation to take over that organization, I need to earn enough money to purchase a few weapons, ammunition, and other stuff."

"And where are you going to get enough funds for that? I thought you weren't going to ask for money from me?"

"I never planned on asking any more money from you, Charles. I need to start a career that could generate a lot of money but, at the same time, create minimal changes for the future. Something that will influence a lot of people to spend money, but not enough that would change their overall life."

"So its prostitution then. I knew it." Meryl facepalmed. "It all makes sense now! It would generate a lot of money and minimize its effects in the timeline."

"What?" Lynd reacted. Was he about to become a gigolo, or will Seeker carry this heavy burden alone?

Charles had a hideous expression. Seeker gaped in wonder at Meryl's deduction. He pondered for a bit.

"Hmmm. You know, I've never thought about that." Seeker laughed.

"But that's not it."

Lynd sighed in relief while Meryl was laughing.

"Then what job could fulfill each criteria, Zeek?"

"Professional gamers!" Seeker smiled.

"With that, I can easily ask for payment for streams and donations. Also, you forget the advent of the Gambling Den! That app would be a potential area for us to earn a lot. Regardless, there would virtually be no life-changing ripple effects if I get a lot of money from gamers. I mean, the people who would watch these streams are all avid gamers who spend countless hours behind the computer screen. At most, they probably would have spent their time and money on other games instead of watching me. The ripple effects drastically minimized. And I could get a certain level of fame. Maybe enough to travel around the world. Including enemy countries."

Lynd and Meryl's face brightened up. Finally, something that is up to their alley.

Charles smiled at the ingenious calculations of Seeker.

"Virtually be no life-changing ripple effects? Pun intended?" Charles laughed.

"But I'm impressed. Looks like you're all set for Stage One."

"Of course! Once I have enough money from my gaming career, I would buy the necessary stuff, meet the key people and kidnap Miss Alean Cipril in order to blackmail her father!"

It took a few seconds for Seeker's sentence to sink in before Lynd shouted exasperatedly. "Wait. One of those doesn't seem to make any sense!"

"Alean Cipril's dad, General Harker Cipril, is involved in some drug and human trafficking operations. So we'll start with him as an entry point to the world of cartels." Seeker casually responded as he started peeling a mango.

Lynd and Meryl gulped in fear. It looks like they won't be returning to the fun and monotonous life of a Rising student in their school. They gulped at the thought of their future.

"All this trouble to shake a big boss out of his nest. Who's this big boss that you need to take care of?"

"All in good time, my dear Lynd. The less you know about him, the better. This guy's extremely dangerous. If I fight him now, I'd definitely die."

The trio looked at Seeker in surprise. Was there someone on Earth that could kill a man with Unlocking?

"How? You can dodge bullets!"

"Yeah? Well, this guy wouldn't need to dodge anything. He's practically bulletproof."