Chapters View Online
Your victory is just a new beginning for me.
Fire. That was what outstood all over the other things in the capital.
"They are marching towards the offices, sir" one of my bodyguards notified. "What course shall we take, sir?" he asked.
Not a single nerve moved in my body from the sight. I simply couldn't, not out of fear from ruining my image in front of them, but because I was fed up of all the things happening around me.
"Sir?" He asks again.
"Just let them come" I order him. "And tell the rest of the guards to come here. Just that" I added last.
I just kept looking at what once was a prosperous capital, now being reduced by the fire. The fire produced by a bunch of narrow-minded nations. My feelings were mixed. I was angry because they shouldn't have interfered with another nation's affairs, but on the other hand, I could not blame them. It was not like the government system was the most agreeable. But then anger came again when I remembered that they were also hypocrites. Their structure was also very similar, but nooooo... Because of how I seized the power I had to be overthrown, even If my approval rates were over the roof, and even if I solved all conflicts peacefully. But still, they simply could not understand.
I hear fast steps coming from the other side of the door as if someone was running. That was unusual, as guards would only run if something was wrong. If not they would limit to walk fast.
Suddenly, the door bursts open and my bodyguard takes an aiming stance, but when he sees that it is simply another bodyguard, he lowers the pistol, and then the new bodyguard gives the bad (and expected) news.
"SIR! The Equestrians reached the offices faster than expected! We couldn't hold them back! We had some casualties!"
Oh. So the horse people were the first to march in, huh? I shouldn't be surprised. They are the ones that usually lead the crusades against Silveria, with Sun Mac Asshole at the front. "At ease," I tell him. "Are the rest of the surviving guards with you?" I ask him.
"They should be coming in any moment now, sir" He replies with good timing, as four new guards enter the office in which I was going to assume one last time my duties.
"When they come, only point at them. Only shoot if they shoot at me. I'm sure that Sun Mac asshole has some words for me" I ended. There was a light chuckle among the bodyguards, as we were the only nation that dared to insult the 'sun goddess' as she was called. BAH! sun goddess, not even a half! She and her pretty army could not deliver a single scratch to anyone, except when she used her sweet tongue to convince other countries to participate in the invasions.
I get back to my desktop and I open a specific drawer and take out some special gun magazines.
"Use these ones" I recommend to the bodyguards, "If she decides to kill me, I want you to empty them on her. Understood?"
"YES, SIR!" They say, and then they proceed to equip the new mags.
Not many seconds later, we hear more footsteps coming from outside, but this time they seem to be more, and also the sound of clashing metal could be heard between them. It was time.
"Get ready" I order, and the bodyguards take the aiming position to welcome our undesired guests.
Finally, the door opens again and six Equestrians enter, being two terrans, two pegasi and two unicorns, all of them sword in hand. When they finally registered that we were there they froze, as they knew well what our weapons could do.
Then, instead of staying on their places they moved to the sides, and I could finally see the mare of all my personal misfortune.
Standing at the same height as me, and armoured with her distinctive golden armour that only left her face exposed, was her.
To some, a goddess.
To others, a great ruler.
To me... a fucking bitch.
The air of the office was quite thick from the tension of the situation. Althrough she decided to cut it.
"Alexander."
"Celestia."
Then for a few seconds silence fell again.
"It's time to end your foul rule once and forever..." she claims as she begins to charge her horn.
"Not so fast" I warn her as I raise my gun, pointing at her. "If you are taking my life, then you are coming with me."
"Do you think you can kill me with that?" she says with a smirk. "I had already been shot by your soldiers many times without being hurt!"
Just like I expected. "Did you thought that I wasn't informed of that? Listen well Celestia, each of the bullets in all the guns that are here have radioactive Polonium on them, an element well known for being the most poisonous thing in the world, and you know very well that radiation disrupts the normal working of any energy, including magic, making you as vulnerable as any person, so for the last time Celestia, desist from your invasion, or else I will make sure that your crusade was in vain." I warn her for the last time.
"You liar!" She shouts as she charges the horn faster than I expected, making it impossible to me to avoid the shot. In the instant before the shot managed to land in my chest, I shoot at her on the same spot, giving the green light to my guards to proceed with the plan. As I fall to the floor I can hear that the guards start engaging her, or more likely, obliterating her.
When I finally touch the ground, I began to lose conciousness, not before watching how the princess also fell, and not before muttering some famous final words:
"It didn't have to end like this."
I did not know how much time I had been unconcious, but when I finally opened my eyes, I was met with a familiar white rectangle surrounded by complete darkness, so I did the only thing that was possible in that situation: stand up in the void and get closer to it in order to read a very familiar message:
Game over
The enemy has killed you in combat. Now the regime is drowning in chaos.
Turns taken: 3047
Remembered for:
[Continue]
Hmm, eight years, that's better than other mandates I had. Anyways, this is the place where I always land when I lose control of my government, either by assasination or rebellion. The only path I have is to continue, and start all over again.
Without anyone else knowing of this inmortal torment I must go through.
"Continue" I say, and everything goes black again.
When I woke up, I got flooded by the light of a nearby lamp, forcing me to cover myself with my hands. When I finally got used to the light, I see that I am in the office in which I had previously killed Celestia, only that this time it looked tidier than in the confrontation, and when I took a look through the window the city was reverted to the days before the war, indicating that I was indeed in the past.
I take a look at myself and I see that I am in a formal suit which missed the tie, but it was ok, I never liked ties, and people were always ok with that. Now, in any second...
And suddenly, my adviser, Carmen, enters my office, unaware of my presence.
"...I should check that everything in his office is in- OH MY!" She says surprised when she sees that i'm there. "I'm sorry sir! I should have known that you would be here..." She apologises as if I were going to give her a punishment.
"Calm down, Carmen. I don't bite. You don't have to refer to me as sir, I'm still your friend." All the runs I had taught me a lot about her, although the first one taught me most, as it started before this moment, like if it was some sort of introduction, and from there I knew that she was a close friend to me in the rebellion, who liked paperwork. A lot.
After a few deep breaths, she manages to talk. "I'm sorry, Alex. I just wanted to make sure that everything was in conditions for the first day. I still cannot believe that the coup succeeded. Now we can really fix the problems all across Silveria."
"You are right, but you should remember that all of this was possible thanks to the people that joined the rebellion, so we must also listen to them." I remind her. "Anyways, how much time until the speech?"
"Oh right!" She exclaims. "You must be there in 10 minutes, so I think that you should be going to the balcony and get ready" She suggests.
As we walk down towards the balcony, I try to remember the bits of the speeches I did in other mandates, In order to be able to adress the people that was waiting me. Finally, We reach the room in which it was located, and I see that there are six people present in the room which I inmediately identify, but I still decide to greet anyways.
"Sarah, or should I say general Sarah, Minister of defence?" I ask her in an informal tone, even with her wearing her military uniform.
She lets out a small giggle. "That would be me Alex, or should I say sir?"
"Only the name is okay" I tell her. I made a mental note to remember that she was in charge of the military faction.
I pass the person next to her, which results to be John, an attorney that contributed to the cause that now was in charge of the ministry of internal affairs. 'Police faction' I added to my mental note.
Then it came Jessica, the representative of the movement 'neighbours in alert', a civil enforcement organisation, representing the common people.
Next it was Emile, a representative of the newspaper 'The Silverian post', Which I invited to show the possible opposition that I was not going to bite.
And now It was time for my least favourite factions: Charlie, owner of Summer PLC, a big soft drink company that financed the rebellion because we promised certain favours, and now minister of industry, representing the oligarchy. Pro tip: always accept money from industries that seem unrelated to war, no one will suspect.
And finally I greeted Sanchez, owner of a gun manufacturer called Sand ltd, and from the rebellion underground I knew he had contacts inside the mafia, so he could pass the requests of that faction. Also, he contributed with the armament of the cause, making him a key player.
After the greetings, It was finally time to address the people for the first time... again.
The doors of the balcony open and I take as few steps into it, and I got greeted by the euphoria of the people that supported the cause.
When the people down there start calming down, I address them through the microphone.
"Citizens of Silveria! We did it." The crowd roars again. "Today a new era begins. We will transform this country into what it deserves to be. Into what other governments decided to ignore. We will make Silveria strong again!" Sorry mister orange, but I still decided to use a variant.
The crowd goes wild down there. Sometimes a few words are enough to address people, and much more when you just got the job of leading a country, as actions speak louder than words.
I decide that this time the small speech was enough, and I decide to retire back to my office, in order to hear the first request.
Author's Note
New story. I will decide which story will get priority depending on what you think.
As usual, comment any errors you find.
Edit: fixed some errors in the chapter.
As I walk back to the office, I start to sort the priorities of the nation, as always in the early stages of the mandate it was difficult to correctly raise the reputation between the factions, and you need to do it quickly, or else you run out of money, and it's game over. Usually the strategy used to counter the cost of each turn consists of building two oil derricks at the beginning, covering the cost of each decision, and also build a bank and a propaganda system, the first one to gain some interest from the oil derricks, and the second one to passively gain reputation among the citizens.
When I reach the office I go straight to the desktop chair, and I await the arrival of my adviser. Not many seconds later I hear someone knocking on the door, and this time Carmen enters more relaxed, possibly knowing that I was already there.
"You did excellent out there Alex" she highlights. "I'm sure that with all the support we are getting from the people we will be able to make the cause worth it, I mean, just look at the social media! Everyone Is talking about you!" She congratulates.
"Thank you, but remember that actions speak louder than words, so as the first movement, I want to build two oil derricks on the northern sector of Silveria, and also we are going to open a bidding to build a public bank, and finally, we will need a broadcast system to inform the people of new laws." I inform her.
"You are really eager to start the change, huh? Ok, I shall make sure that all the needed documents get redacted to start the buildings as soon as possible" She claims.
"You are the best, Carmen" I compliment her, and before she retires, I ask her, "And also, could you bring Jessica here? I'm sure that she wants something, and It would be great to start attending to the concerns of people now".
"Just give me a second, please?" she asks.
"Take your time."
After she gets out and closes the door, I decide to take a look at the initial statistics of this mandate. In order to do that, I just need to think about it, and it appears.
'Stats' . As soon as I think of the word, a screen appears out of nowhere.
Statistics
Money: 350.000
Reputation
Oligarchs: XXXXXXX (0)
Police: XXXXXXX (0)
People: XXXXXXX (0)
Army: XXXXXXX (0)
Opposition: XXXXXXX (0)
Mafia: XXXXXXX (0)
Buildings
Banks: 1
Well, probably now you are wondering what the fuck is going on. Let me explain. If you have ever played Dictator 2 on your phone you surely understood the screen, but for those that do not, this is a statistics window. At the top in green you have the money, and you always start with 1.500.000 on your account. In yellow you have the tyrants A.K.A currency that you would buy with real money in a free to play game, but that here you can only gain from making decisions. At last in red you have the current turn. You advance one with each decision you take when meeting a faction.
Under the stats you have the reputation you have with each faction, and you always start with seven crosses on each one. You may gain or lose crosses depending if the faction liked or not a decision. Go as low as 3 crosses and you enter a red zone, and if you don't pay attention to that faction in 3 turns it will rebel. Go as high as 10 crosses and you will start earning green crosses, Which will give you 20.000 credits per cross. But watch out, If you reach 20 crosses with one faction, they will also rebel. Of course you can try to calm down a rebellion, but that is for another time.
At last you have buildings. Each one helps you in a different way. Banks give you an interest depending on your income. One gives you 5% interest, two 10%, and so on.
Propaganda systems gives random crosses to any faction. At 1 you get a cross every 3 turns, and by building more you reduce the number of turns. Once you reach 1 turn, building more increases the number of crosses given per turn.
Oil derricks gives you a fixed income of 50.000 credits per derrick per turn.
Finally, prisons let you imprison a faction that has fallen into the red zone, at the cost of losing 1 cross per free faction. The first 4 levels are for cells, which can be a maximum of 4, and then you start extending the number of turns which factions are imprisoned, being 5 by default.
Building the first of any building costs 150.000, and then the second one costs 500.000, and a new one after that costs the double of the last one, so a third costs 1.000.000 and a fourth 2.000.000 , and so on.
Now, you may want to know that every turn costs 100.000 credits, and that's why I decided to build two oil derricks, to make the net balance zero. The bank gives me 5.000 from the derricks and the propaganda guarantees me a cross every 3 turns.
So long story short, I'm quite in a delicate situation, since I'm gaining little money, but if I make the right decisions, I will be in the green zone before I even realise.
pop
Because you received the people's faction on your balcony, your reputation increased by one an all factions.
Oh right. If I receive a faction in the balcony, reputation increases, but if not the opposite happens. Still, It's not a frequent phenomenon so I must always pay attention in case that someone comes.
Anyways, as I was taking a look at the statistics, I hear that someone knocks on the door, so I make that person know that it can enter the office, and I see Carmen escorting the people's representative, so I wait for my adviser to exit the office before talking to Jessica.
"Please, take a seat" I invite her after Carmen closes the door. "You told me back at the balcony that you wanted to ask me something, isn't it?"
"Um... yeah. Do you remember that during the coup your organisation closed the borders to prevent the escape of the president and it's ministers?"
"Yes, that border blockage proved successful to capture them. It was very predictable that they would try to flee the country at the minimal signal of conflict, but I might be failing to see what does this have to do with your request". A lie, yes, I already had a possible idea of what she wanted, but I still needed to see if she wasn't fearful of asking the question.
"Well, um... There is a lot of people that is going to be affected by the closure, mainly farmers that are in harvest and want to export their surplus, and also many foreigners and tourists had been affected because they had been held back at the frontiers, so we want you to open the borders again."
pop
Decision detected
Open the borders? [Yes / No]
Oh yes. If this decision is appearing already then getting into the green zone was going to be easier than what I expected.
"Well, consider it done, but first give me a second to order it now" I tell her, and I see a small smile forming on her face. I take my smartphone and I dial to the general.
"Sarah, how are you?" She congratulates me for the speech. "Yeah, thank you. Are you near the Army headquarters now?"
"Thank you sir."
"Oh please, don't call me sir, It makes me feel old. In any case call me Alex or Alexander, ok?"
"Oh, ok."
"Well, it was a pleasure meeting you, Jessica. I hope that we can change everything for the better" I tell her before ending the conversation. "I'm looking forward to more suggestions. Remember that everyone is important for the country to succeed, so let the people know that they should not be shy about recommending changes to the government, ok?"
"I will make sure to let them know that. Thank you Alexander." Then we shake hands and she leaves the office.
pop
Decision results
Your reputation among the people increased by 1.
You lost 100.000 credits from the decision.
Yep, this run was going to be easier than what I expected.
This day passed faster than usual, as it was more of a day for people to get used to the new government, so I went home earlier. There was a presidential residence of course, but I still liked much more my house, because I was more familiar with it and it was closer to my workplace, but mainly to remember that at the end I was still a person, and that If I did things wrong It would end badly.
But most important, It reminded me that this was not my world.
I park my Mercedes In the side of the road and I enter my house, which after all this years looked the same as back home; a one floor property in which the design screamed modernism, and had a living room at the entrance, a kitchen, a bathroom and two bedrooms. In the back there was a garden which... which I didn't use since THAT day.
Anyways, I decided to go to bed as I had already eaten at work and getting out from work soon was relative, as it was 8 pm already and I usually get home at 10, In order to get more free time during the morning, as I would trade it off with a later arrival at work.
After I took off my clothes and I was left with my underwear and a shirt, I sat in the bed and suddenly, a thought crossed my mind: How much time I have been doing this?
pop
General statistics
Time spent: 863 years, 36 days, 4 hours, 15 minutes, 42 seconds.
Best expansion: 2 nations
Longest rule: 10.346 turns
Money earned: 96 T
N° of rules: 100
...
...the actual fuck?!
I knew that by now I should have outlived any normal person, but the fact that it was for more than a factor of 10 was what actually surprised me, which left me thinking for a long time If this was going to last forever.
The only thing I knew was that if this continued, then it meant that I was going to be stuck forever ruling and repelling the invasions of my not so friendly neighbours.
Oh boy, how wrong I was in that moment.
Author's Note
From now on, every time I update a chapter I will publish here the summary of all the statistics from all the turns taken after the last summary, so you can keep record of how Alex is doing.
Please take into account that some summaries might appear in the middle of a chapter, so be careful if you think that the maths does not give the correct numbers.
Also, some decisions are going to be custom, mainly because most of the questions in the game are quite weird, and they will not fit well in the story.
Edit: fixed some grammar issues I detected.
Statistics
Money: 355.000
Reputation
Oligarchs: XXXXXXXX (+1)
Police: XXXXXXXX (+1)
People: XXXXXXXXX (+2)
Army: XXXXXXXX (+1)
Opposition: XXXXXXXXX (+2)
Mafia: XXXXXXXXX (+2)
Buildings
Banks: 1 (interest: 5%)
Never forget who you were.
863 years ago
If there is something that everyone likes from holidays is the sensation of relax, that sensation you get when you are not under constant pressure of meeting all the deadlines imposed by your teachers, of being pressured to learn not so attractive topics, so when you are a nerd like me, being able to research those things that you actually like because of how they resemble science fiction is quite exciting, even if you don't really understand the concepts behind that new breakthrough.
Now, by research I did not meant going deep and search for the original theories, but more of reading articles and watching videos on youtube of simplified versions, so I could grasp the concept better. Then I would go deep If the simple versions were not enough.
And that was what I had been doing for at least three weeks since the beginning of the summer holidays, and at least 15 days since Christmas. Yep, Christmas on summer. Or at least when you live on the southern hemisphere of the planet.
Anyways, right in that moment I was searching for those videos under a heat of almost 40 degrees Celsius, which was an abnormal temperature for the template area in which I lived, but when you are in a quest to gather more knowledge, you can honestly give a crap about that, in the same fashion in which a gamer would not interrupt an online match for such thing.
But you know well, adults don't care about interrupting someone while doing something related to internet, and right when I was about to jump into the next one, I could listen to my grandmother calling me to the dinning room in order to eat lunch.
"Alex, lunch is ready!"
I sigh. "Coming..." I reply to her. Even if it annoyed me when that happened, at least this time wasn't in the middle of a video, so the moment could not be better.
I slide out of the desktop in my chair and then I make an 180 turn, which leaves me facing towards the door. I lazily get up of the chair and exit the room, and with only a few steps I reach the dinner-living room in which my grandparents were awaiting me with some homemade pasta. I loved food when it was homemade, as it had a special flavor that clearly showed who did it, and grandma's food was no exception. She clearly knew all the techniques... just like her.
...
"Alex, you there?" my grandfather asks me.
"Oh, um, yeah, I was only thinking about stuff" I tell him. No need to bring back those memories. I need to move forward.
After I sit down in the table my grandma comes into the room with the three plates of pasta that were still liberating their vapour, indicating the recent cooking of it. After she takes her seat, we start eating.
"So, what were you thinking about?" Grandpa, asks. Good thing I knew from adults that they have the tendency to ask about everything from their children, so I knew how to avoid THAT.
"I just saw some material on astronomy, more specifically about Tegmark's multiverse theory" I comment him. I knew that I would be able to take the conversation to something distant from them.
I must not forget, but I need to get over it.
"Ah yes, that theory. Sometimes I Imagine what worlds lay beyond our sight, may they be real or not" He says. He really likes it when we talk about astronomy. "Infinite worlds, infinite possibilities. Imagine if I met another version of me!" he exclaims. I chuckle at that thought. It would be weird to have two identical people that are not twins.
"Still, I think that it would contradict the great filter theory" I advise him. "If life is too common out there then we have not seen the worst cataclysms yet."
"True, but remember that the multiverse is supposed to be infinite, so if for example only one percent of the lifeforms managed to cross the filter, one percent of infinity is still infinity, even if it is a smaller infinity, making that filter only applicable into a system of limited proportions, so there is still the possibility of meeting my other versions and thus, Your argument is invalid ." He emphasises the last part in English, which manages to extract a laugh from me after realising the reference to a meme that is almost dead. I found it surprising when I discovered that he liked memes, as they are mostly used by the people born around the beginning of this millennia.
"You have a point there. I just imagine how different and similar the multiverse might be to this bubble in which we live" I comment him. "Maybe out there we can find answers to things that we have been asking ourselves since we started thinking about them." Sometimes I surprise myself when it comes to thinking, but I think that everyone does it, only that I give more relevance to those thoughts than most people. Or at least I think.
...
Just ignore what I said.
"You know Alex, every time we speak about these topics you remind me of my old days, when I used to have the same curiosity of yours, only difference that you are interested in topics that are more advanced than your level, while sometimes I struggled to understand them. You surely are a knowledge sponge" he points out.
"Abuelo , please don't give me more credit than what I deserve. Last year I struggled with literature and history. I may know facts, but how to apply them it's another thing. I might be intelligent, but that does not make me wise unless I know how to use it." I counter him.
"He he, you are as humble as your mother when it comes to praising..."
...
"Yes..."
And after that, nothing else was said during the rest of the lunch.
After the meal I returned to my bedroom, and by now the boiling temperatures seemed to go down a bit since midday has passed, but when something improves and you realise it, you are literally invoking Murphy to ruin it all. And this time it was in the form of an Internet shutdown.
No need to say that I was beyond pissed, but that meant that I needed to use my plan B: play downloaded games. The catch: the only games I had were phone games and a Wii, and since I had recently eaten and the Wii games I had required movement, I had to content with my phone in order to avoid unnecessary stomach evacuations.
Hmm... what should I play? Yellow... no. I already had beaten the game many times. Red...no. Same reason. Alto's adventure... no. Not in the mood for endless runners. I need a good balance between complexity and simplicity. Dictator 2... YES. That game will do it. Management combined with decision making. And card battles.
I open the game and the first thing I do is think: regular campaign or special scenario? I had already maxed out all cards in the game without paying a cent. Better check out for any new scenarios. I'm in the mood for a different gameplay style.
Let's see. Siberian empire... no. Too difficult without extra money. The threat of great Asia... neither. Something else? I slide once more, and instead of being greeted by the coming soon screen, I find another scenario.
The world of magi-tech? Created by Dw33l? when did the developers let other people to make scenarios? Still, I was curious about it, so I checked it. It costed 1000 tyrants, which for an inexperienced player might look like a lot, but being able to accumulate lots of tyrants from daily missions is the key to success. I still had 1700 spare tyrants from other games, so I spent them to unlock the scenario, and in that moment I made a great mistake: I did not check for the objective nor the rewards. How I was going to regret that.
The nation of Silveria has succeeded among it's magical neighbours which had never accepted the non-magical humans of this great nation.
After a long period of negligence from part of the corrupt democracy in charge of Silveria you decided that it was enough and you took the matter with your own hands.
Now you are in charge after a successful rebellion. Will you be able to change the country for good and make allies in the way?
And in the instant that I finished reading the last paragraph, I did not thought that my life was going to take a big turn. And it started promptly by blacking out.
The "present"
I woke up after that memory ended. The first times I had the memory I would wake up like if I just had a nightmare, but since it was becoming too frequent it simply did not have the same effect as before, as it was not as disturbing as it used to be. I had to get over it. I needed to assimilate the fact that I was stuck here for the rest of my life. No point on crying over spilled milk.
I take a look at the smartphone. It says that it is almost 6 AM. It seems that today I was going to have plenty of time during the morning, just like I wanted.
First thing I do is to get some breakfast, a grilled cheese and ham sandwich with some orange juice. As I'm eating the breakfast I decide to take a look at the news, so I turned on the TV, So I could make some zapping through the channels.
Stock markets raise by five per cent after borders were opened... Uncertainty among possible opposing collectives... Other nations still did not make any official statements... Wait. No one yet? That's strange. I know that they do not have our communications technology, but with their magic at least the Equestrians would be the first to respond. And they always were. In a negative way. Regularly I would not endure more than a couple dozen turns without them declaring war to 'free Silveria from it's cruel dictatorship' when I had the support of the population. Sometimes I ask myself if the other nations were a bunch of morons. You don't go into war with a nation that is united. It will only end in a bloodbath and in a low morale in both sides, and in the worst case, an insurrection.
After finishing breakfast I take some sportive clothes and I get my bicycle in order to take a lap around the neighbourhood. As I go further, I can see that in some places some men in black are stationed along the route, possibly part of the secret service. I could also swear that I saw some snipers when approaching my house back again.
Now that I had completed my daily lap, it was time to take a shower in order to get clean. Some quick scrubs here and there and I was already finished. Then it was finally time to get dressed up for work. White shirt, black trousers and black coat. Of course I had my underwear and some proper shoes. Not mentioning them doesn't mean I'm not wearing them.
Finally It was time to go to work. I take the keys of the Mercedes and I exit my home.
After reaching the central district of the capital in which the offices were located, I proceeded towards my office in the 20th floor of the building. Under the building standards of the city this one was between the tallest with 50 floors, while the average is 20, so you can imagine how visible this building was in the city. Annexed to it was the ceremonial building, consisting of only 3 floors, from which I gave my speech yesterday. Now, you may be asking why would the government need such a big building, so to answer that, part of is due to the fact that Silveria is a federation. It has many states that resemble cultures back home, and thus It has always been logic to have members of each state in the centre of power. Also, the legislative, the executive and the judicial power were centred in the same building, and thus the need for a large space.
Finally I reach the floor, and when I get out the military personnel that was present immediately saluted. After dismissing them I go straight to my office, but not before talking with my adviser.
"Hi Carmen" I greet her. "Got any interesting news for today?"
"Oh, hey Alex, some people over here were worried that you were not present during the morning. Are you okay?"
"It seems I forgot to tell everyone I would be working during the afternoon, I want to enjoy mornings. They are the best moment of the day for cycling." I answer her.
"Well, then I shall remember to tell anyone that wants to talk with you when they can find you. Anyways, Charlie has been around since 9 AM asking If you were here. I sent him to the cafetería so that he could wait. Do you want to receive him?" She asks me. I remember that the oligarchs only won a cross in the last turn, so i must receive him. "Sure, tell him to come" I answer her.
"I will be back in a moment. I shall direct him to your office." She replies.
"Good afternoon sir" he replies. "I suppose that you were already informed of my presence?"
"Yes, my adviser told me. If you are here then I assume that you want something."
"Straight to the point, huh? Well, you know that I helped to fund the cause in the hope of... getting an advantage over the competition. And I know that you can do what I'm going to ask you. I only want to be exempted from the basic export fee."
pop
Exempt soft drink companies from export fees? [Y/N]
Hmm... If I accept my reputation among the oligarchs would increase for sure, and maybe between the people and the mafia, due to the fact that... well... people like cheap stuff when they travel, and, even If I did not like it, less fees usually means less inspection, meaning that the mafia would be able to export drugs easier. On the other hand, I'm quite sure that the liberal opposition is not going to like the decision. And let's not talk about how the police was not going to like not being able to obtain money from the fees. Still, I think I already made up my mind.
"Sure, that's not so radical, so it will go very smooth among the population. Just write up a proper decree and I will sign it. Be careful, I'm going to read every single word of it"
"I already took my time to write it" he says as he hands me a sheet of paper. "Take your time to read it. I'm sure that you will approve it."
I unnecessarily get my glasses (since I have difficulties at looking far away, not when reading things) and I dedicate some time to read the document. I found the clauses to be quite simple, and I did not detect any loophole on it.
"Well... approved as requested" and I immediately sign up the document. "I will send a copy to the broadcasting network so that people know, but I will try to make it slide between other news. We need to prevent the opposition from taking advantage of it."
"Well, I think my business over here is done" He says as we shake hands. "Thank you Alexander".
"No problem, as long as the requests are within reason". And with that, Charlie left the office.
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Decision results
You won a tyrant.
Your reputation among the people increased by 1.
You lost 100.000 credits from the decision.
Well, I should better watch out for the police. Apart from that, I'm not going to have any serious problems, since it seems that Equestria has not declared war yet. But still, I did not know that something else was going on Celestia's mind.
And it involved me.
Author's Note
In the next chapter the good stuff will come. What could happen with Celestia? Why is Alexander involved? Leave your speculations below! (don't forget to use the spoiler tag, just in case people don't want to read theories.)
Leave any crossover ideas you think would work in the story (I already have one, but I feel that it is not enough). Please don't give random suggestions, give a reason for them. If possibly something more technology related, but not too futuristic. Refer to the who am I section in my profile to get some idea on which ideas have a better chance of peaking my attention (It might be a vague description, but it gives you more freedom on what to choose between the parameters).
As always, please point out any errors you find.
Statistics
Money: 360.000
Reputation
Oligarchs: XXXXXXXXX (+1)
Police: XXXXXXXX (-2)
People: XXXXXXXXXX (+1)
Army: XXXXXXXX (0)
Opposition: XXXXXXXXX (-1)
Mafia: XXXXXXXXXX (+1)
Buildings
Banks: 1 (interest: 5%)
"Hmm... raise minimum salary by 1.000? Sounds good."
"What? I don't want people to learn how to steal, are you crazy? Still, I will let you take down the filters to content related to that. Freedom of speech, after all. We promised it."
"Instead of raising the basic work hours, why don't we reduce the pay for overtime? Only for highly specialised jobs though."
Seriously, sometimes I think that people are responsible for all the migraines I have. Do they really want to go back in time? Because I'm definitely not modifying the 8 hour minimum shift. But on the bright side, being this more realistic than the game I can modify the decisions so I get the best of it, and thus in 7 more turns I already made it into the green zone with all the factions. I felt like I was blessed in this opportunity. I didn't need to worry about conspiracies which is the main reason I usually lose too soon, and I'm still apart from the revolt zone, so you could say that I was calm.
I wasn't.
You see, even when you live in a world in which you are the most technologically advanced country surrounded by nations that are simply too prideful to accept what we have to offer, a message would not take more than 3 days to reach even the most austral countries thanks to high speed trains, and thus a reply is expected after an equal period of time. Most of the leaders showed their concern when they got notified of the coup, and some of them even were looking forward to relations with the new government, but I was still concerned about one nation in particular: Equestria. They had yet to express their thoughts, but there was simply no answer. I could only hope that they were not already planning a way to overthrow me (again), but before the fear could develop further, something happened.
I was redacting a new decree with John that would increase the protection of prosecutors, when I received an internal call from Carmen notifying me of a visitor. At that moment I did not pay that much attention since I wanted the new decree done. After we finished and I dismissed him I went to Carmen's desk to ask her about the visitor.
"...Says that she is coming in representation of Equestria." So they decided through the diplomatic way this time, huh?
"She is over there" and when I turn to see the diplomat, I froze.
Sitting on the waiting area was a white cream coloured unicorn mare which had a pink mane, and she used a formal business attire, but her shape was not what shocked me.
When you are a person that is basically condemned to live the same time period over and over again, you know certain things you are not supposed to, such as 'future' events, the personal life of people you supposedly don't know until later...
And secret abilities. Such as the ability to disguise. And it happened that I had already seen that disguise many times before.
"Just hold her for a few more minutes. I will call you when she can pass" I tell her before going back to my office.
Back there I take again my gun from the drawer and I prepare it in case that SHE thinks of anything funny. In the spare time I have left I take many deep breaths to avoid raising any suspicions from HER.
Finally it was time.
"Carmen, please bring her" I call her over the internal phone.
The seconds that pass before SHE enters are eternal. If I do anything wrong I might get killed again. I need to pay attention to any suspicious movements from HER.
Finally the door opens and the 'diplomat' enters, and I stand up to meet her. Before continuing we both stood looking at each other for another eternity until I decided to speak.
"Nice to meet you, miss..."
"...Sunny Skies." she finishes the sentence.
I swear that pony names are too direct, and in some occasions, childish. It is like they already have predesignated their future. Guess it is all magic's fault. Also, more evidence that it is actually HER. Should at least have bothered with a more unrelated name.
"I guess that the reason for your presence must be important, so please, have a seat." And she does as I said.
You know, If it was another diplomat we would have talked before raising the matter, but since I wanted to make HER clear I was not playing HER game, I went straight to the point.
"So, what brings an Equestrian representative here?" I ask. Normally people that dealt with me and were not close would get nervous from such straightness, but I could see in HER eyes that SHE had diplomatic experience. More evidence points for me.
She took her time, but finally responded. "The princesses has sent me to request a recall of all the ponies that are currently living in this country."
...What.
"Why should I do it? If my memory does not fail me the first thing we did was to open the borders. Anyone can immigrate and emigrate with no problems as long as their papers are okay, so if they are trying this for "safety reasons" then I'm not doing it. It is completely unnecessary and I doubt they want to leave unless they are tourists. We are the only nation that has no race distinction when it comes to citizenship and we know that anyone that immigrates here is seen with bad eyes by others that decide to stay back, so I doubt that they would agree with your request that would basically mean to become social outcasts." This is escalating quickly. I need to keep my temper in line.
"How can you guarantee their security? It has reached us that certain sectors of this nation are rejecting them. Why do you think that is a good idea to keep them?." She tries to backfire, but i'm not having any of that.
"They are being dealt with. It's not the first time it is denounced by residents. Now, what do you really want? Because coming all the way along to the capital must be for some important business, so if you can tell me what's the real deal everything will be easier. I don't want to start an incident out of a misunderstanding."
"Yeah. I don't want to expose my little ponies to a war... "
...
Now I was seriously in high alert mode. THAT phrase... little ponies ... Maybe if I did not have any suspicions from the beginning I might had not paid attention to that whisper, but unluckily for her I understood every single word, and... and...
"...I won't let you harm my little ponies, you shall be stopped!"
I lost it. Seriously, always swearing to to protect them by going to war , and now she wants to avoid a political disaster? That... that had to be a joke, right? A funny, stupid, and fucking ENRAGING joke. She looked at me with a face of surprise and... hate?
I had to prevent myself from doing something stupid during that rage moment. But one thing is the theory and the other is the practice, as usual.
"You wanna know how to avoid a conflict?"I asked in a very informal tone, trying to contain the incoming rage, "You could start by stating your real intentions, princess " I reiterated in a firm tone.
As soon as the last word left my mouth... Oh, the look on her face was priceless. There you go, Celestia. Where are your gods now?
She tried to avoid the ball. "What are you talking about?" She should have realised by now that I was not having that shit anymore, and I started a rant that would change the game rules.
"Stop trying to go around Celestia , We know very well of cloaking spells, and how can only be done by high level magic users, apart from the fact that your fake Identity does not help you very much on hiding. Seriously, Sunny skies? Quite relatable to you, If you ask me. So, what do you really want? A treaty? Financial aid? Declare war ~~(~~Again~~)~~?"
...
Uh-oh.
"So you remember... "
"What?"
"You remember what happened?"
"I don't know what are you talking about..."
"Yes, you know!" She screams at me as she starts dropping her spell. I take some steps back and I take out my weapon out of reflex. She charges her horn, but stops after seeing me with the pistol. It did not have the special rounds, but the fact that it was a weapon seemed enough to deter her.
We stood in the office looking at each other, me with a serious yet surprised look, and her with what could be described as a revenge seeking face. So much happened in so little time, but I was already forming an idea of what was going on.
"What did you do?" She demanded to know, in an angry, yet serious tone.
"I did nothing. Whatever happened that made you board the train is entirely your responsibility." I answer her in a neutral tone, confirming her suspicions.
"Where did you learn such powerful magic?" She asked in a more calmed but nervous tone.
"Nowhere, because I did not do it. It's simply something that happens when I lose control of the government. I have no control over it" I answer honestly. No point on lying when someone else knows.
"Then I shall prevent you from taking control again" and her horn starts glowing again. She sends a shot that I manage to avoid thanks to a quick head movement.
"Wait! Could you please calm down? Do you want the same happening again? Get dragged back to the past?" I ask her as I get behind my desk.
"I will stop you whatever it takes! Even if I have to repeat this forever!" She shoots again but I duck under it.
Shit. I Must try something different. "Let's suppose you don't get back. How will you explain my death? Are you really going to risk a war against us, again? It will only end in the same way!"
"Then so it be!" And she shoots for the third time. The bolt went through the window and got lost in the sky. She is not thinking rationally. Then I need an emotional excuse... wait.
Why I did not thought about the other one?
"Celestia... do you really want to receive her in the middle of a war? Or risk the possibility of not seeing her again?" She went wide eyed, but I continued, "Do you even think about your sister, Celestia?"
The glow on her horn faded out quickly. I noticed that she was shaking, so I quickly reached a chair and placed it next to her. This time, she seemed to understand.
I could have remarked many negative things about her in that moment, of how she acted without thinking, maybe even I could have told her to get out, but, I don't know. I... I felt horrible for having to remind Celestia of her sister in order to save my ass, how close she was to end her loneliness.
Something I would have to endure forever, even if I did not like it. She might be a pain in every single run, but I don't wish for anyone to be alone. And I do not mean basic interaction, but to care of someone, and also be important to that person. She was about to get her sister back, why ruin it?
Suddenly I heard a frenetic knocking in the door. Of course that the commotion would not be unheard by carmen.
"You might want to activate your cloak again" I tell her. In no more than some seconds she was back as the diplomat.
Finally, I answered the door.
"Alex, Everything is okay in there? I think I heard some loud noises and I was worried."
"Don't worry Carmen, the diplomat had a sudden allergy that accidentally triggered her horn, nothing else."
She gasps. "Are you okay? Were you reached by a shot?"
"I'm okay, there was some unimportant damage in the office, and one of the discharges broke the window. It can be fixed eventually. Just tell security that it is all clear. I don't want them busting into the room thinking that there was an attack."
She lets out a small giggle. "Well, then I shall go back. If you need anything just ring me, okay?"
"Got it. Thanks for worrying about what happened, Carmen. Speaks good of you." And then I finally close the door. Then I go back to Celestia.
"Just... Don't do that again." I recommend her. "Quite the show, was it?" And I let a small chuckle at my dumb joke.
"How many times?" She asks.
"I'm sorry, what?"
"How many times you... restarted?" Oh, that.
"Last time I checked, 100 times, over the course of about 800 years" I answer her like if it was the most normal thing to happen to a human. "Why the interest on it?"
"Oh, nothing" She answers looking in various directions in a short span of time. I could tell that she was holding something, but given the recent events I deciden not to press on the matter. "I think I should get going" she suggests, and gets up of the chair.
A sudden question crossed my head. "Wait, how did you arrive here?" She could have not arrived by chariot since those long distance trips were usually reserved only for the princess, and since she was incognito...
"I got here by train." The only option left.
I took a look at my phone. It was almost night. And given the recent events the railroad network still did not have all the timetable fully operational, including night departures. It was done in order to capture all that governing scum before they could escape. "Well, then I suppose we will have to arrange a place where you can stay, and your escort too. I suppose you have one?" She nods. "Okay then, follow me."
We left the office and I headed towards Carmen's desk, to ask her about a government asset I barely used.
"Carmen? Which is the state of the presidential residency?"
"I'm staying there ?" The princess asked in a surprised manner.
"No one's using it, and it is on good conditions, so I thought it would be a good idea to use it." I answer. I know that the residence is big and important, but I don't really like that place. The few times I decided to move there I died. It is a very blatant objective for people that wanted me dead, even with all the security it has. So, since it was unused, why not open it for important visitors?
We then stay in the hall looking at each other for some seconds, unable to find something to say, so I decided to finally extend the invitation.
"I hope we can work together for a good relation between both nations, princess." It was the only thing I could say, and I really meant it. Saying that I was fucking tired from constant wars would look like an understatement.
She could only look at me with an incredulous face, but then the princess extended her left hand. Before I could extend mine she changed it for the right one, as if she had done something wrong. I wanted to know why she did that, but I still shrugged the thought off.
"I do look forward to it, president." and we shake hands.
Finally, she started walking towards the elevator. Before she entered it, I heard her calling me.
"Alexander?"
"Yes?"
"Thank you."
Then the doors closed after she got in, leaving me wondering what she was thanking me for, and what was going on with her sudden change of attitude.
Author's Note
This chapter has been the hardest by far, since developing the fight took me about a month! I had the idea, but I did not know how to write it down.
I want to thank again to Time Reaper for his help with this chapter. Without him I don't know how I would be able to make it have sense, after all, this was a great challenge for me, and sometimes external input is needed.
Statistics
Money: 900.000
Reputation
Oligarchs: XXXXXXXXXX X (+2) (+20.000)
Police: XXXXXXXXXX X (+5) (+20.000)
People: XXXXXXXXXX XXX (+3) (+60.000)
Army: XXXXXXXXXX XX (+4) (+40.000)
Opposition: XXXXXXXXXX X (+3) (+20.000)
Mafia: XXXXXXXXXX X (+1) (+20.000)
Buildings
Banks: 1 (interest: 5%)
It has been three days since my... rough encounter with Celestia. Her reaction to the situation has left me thinking through long stretches of time in the office, and it has only resulted in more questions. Would she try to extort me about what she learned, or I was going to have peace at last? What did she thanked me for? That was only part of my doubts, and I could not simply shake it off. Simply thinking about the possibility of peace...
It...
It was very strong, the happiness that I felt that night when I contemplated the possibility of peace. It could only be contrasted with... something. Something I would rather not bring up now.
...
Instead of focusing too much on my past I kept going with my constantly changing political agenda, courtesy of some ridiculous requests, such as the opposition wanting to ban fishing right on fishing season. How do they expect fishers to have an income to sustain themselves? All the species that are in danger of extinction are already protected, and the ones that are commonly fished are far from that category. Smells more like an attempt to cause internal problems, so I simply negated their request, and pretended to be oblivious to them, but I increased surveillance near to possible opposition headquarters. I might be acting a bit paranoid, but my own experience from other runs told me that is better to play safe and look for suspicious activities. People can get very creative when power is in the mix.
This day would mark two weeks since the day I assumed control of the country... again, and I was already thinking of the possibility of having some free days on some weekends, since when I am not taking important decisions I was either approving some minor documents or looking at the country's balance for suspicious money withdrawals. I was still in a delicate situation with money and losses were a no-no. As soon as the state arks had a proper amount then I could consider some rest from my unwanted job.
This day was slow, as the usually full inbox of short documents had now less, but more lengthy ones, and time is usually like that when you don't feel that you are actually progressing on your work. But at least the monotony was interrupted by the abrupt entrance of Carmen.
"Alex, they found it!" She excitedly announced.
'Wuh... what?" I managed to ask after her sudden appearance.
"The package! They found it near to the place where the president was captured. Sorry If I didn't knock, But I thought that this was more important. After all, this is not an ordinary object we are talking about."
Ah. That hellish device. Something capable of extinction. Good thing it was captured.
"Well, then I need to wait for the arrival..."
"It's already here. Sarah is waiting with it outside".
I could only look at her with wide eyes, a bit annoyed by the fact that they did not notify me before, but then I simply shrugged. It was found and it was the only thing that mattered at the moment. "Okay, let her in".
Some seconds later the door opened and the general entered the office. As she did I could see some concern on her face as she took a look at the impacts of the magical bolts from the princess. They were barely distinguishable from a wood knot, and thus it blended with the wooden furniture where it landed, unless you decided to inspect it closely. At least the window was already fixed the next day after the incident.
She was about to salute but I stopped her. "Please Sarah, drop the formalities while in private. We are friends after all."
"Oh, okay. Thought that the importance of the situation required it." She explained more relaxed.
"Still, I'm talking about protocol only. Not having to salute does not mean we cannot talk seriously about... that" I warned as I pointed my hand to the briefcase on her right hand.
"Shall I open it?"
"I think so. That was a reason for recovering it, isn't it?" And we both shared a chuckle at the obviousness of the question.
Then she proceeded to place the briefcase over the desk, And I was able to take a closer look at the design. It was silverish, and not as slender as a regular one. I knew that it was heavy, as sometimes I used to carry it myself. Then, the two locks were opened to reveal the contents of the briefcase. The lifted side simply had a black screen, but the resting side had a keyboard, a phone, a mouse-pad and most importantly, a small red button covered by a transparent lid.
"Were the biscuits also recovered?" Without them it was impossible to use.
"Unfortunately no, but still, I think it's useless. They are always randomly generated everyday, but" She took out a pair of orange cards, "We already figured out how to generate more of them. Here is the first one." And she handed me one of the cards. "Yours have both valid and non-valid codes written on it, while mine has all the correct ones, for verification. Today's codes are 2, 6 and 11" She explained. I had almost forgotten the codes were daily.
"Also, the batch will be cooked at nine in the morning by an angel." I simply nodded, as I understood what it meant.
"So now we only have to think of some counter strike strategies to input on the package" I concluded.
"That's right, although some of the pre set ones are quite good already" She adviced as she turned on the screen.
I could see how some white letters appeared on the already black screen, and after it ended loading I was greeted by a menu that contained options such as 'map', 'DEFCON level' and different attack options.
"It will take some weeks to come up with new plans as they are not top priority, but still..." I could hear her sighing. "May I be honest with you, Alex?"
I nodded.
"Even if having all this power causes me to have certain thrill... I hope we do not have to use it, Alex. We already know what a single one can cause, I don't want to imagine what would happen if we use all the arsenal" She confessed, looking at the floor while sustaining herself with her hands on the desk.
I could only think of a specific run In that moment, and how stupid I was.
"Alex, are you okay?" Sarah asked. Guess that my memories manifested on my face.
"You are right, Sarah. Nuclear weapons are not something that should be toyed with. We can only hope to never need such extreme weapons".
Paper, paper and more paper. And the day insisted on being slow. At least the white mass has been reduced to a half indicating that progress has been made. And while it was being reduced by my working energy I started to notice that at one point the paper was stacked in a way that made the corners flex down, possibly because of something that should not be there.
Since It was a little disturbing to my sight I decided to dig in the stack and retrieve the cause of the disturbance: a vanilla envelope sealed with red wax.
Or phrased simply, a letter.
Now, I had always recieved those type of letters, and from the emblem used on the wax I could more or less predict the contents, which most of the time was information that required total discretion or an invitation to an important event, and in least of the cases, diplomatic letters.
In this case I was surprised that it fell into the last category.
How did I know?
Because of a particular symbol consisting of three triangles.
Please, don't lose your mind. I'm sure that you will understand soon.
I carefully opened the letter and started reading its content.
To the new leader of the Federation of Silveria:
The kingdom of Hyrule greets the new government...
In the moment that I had realised that I was stuck in this world for eternity I was partially glad that there was something familiar in this world. I never had the opportunity to play any of the games from the Zelda's franchise, but thanks to internet I knew some things about that universe. I still wonder how I managed to watch gameplays from most of the games in a short span of time...
Anyways, given the fact that they were quite a central nation gave them a good bargaining position when it came to trade routes and mediating conflicts, so it was always good to have a good relation despite not being as advanced as Silveria. Also, they had a fucking triforce, even if right now they did not have it. Guess who was victim from one of the wishes once they found it...
The letter was a good sign of the things to come. Besides this time it had an even more positive tone than in previous runs, possibly thanks to the fact that Celestia has decided to not dennounce me.
Given their willingness to have a diplomatic relation it simply felt appropiate to reply, so I opened a text processor on the computer and I wrote down my answer to the letter.
Author's Note
Sorry if it took too long to get out. I also would like to apologize for such a short chapter, but seeing that it was dragging me back I decided to avoid fillers and I was left with this. I hope that you enjoy it.
Ps: if there are any errors please point them out. Also, any constructive critisicm is welcome :)
Statistics
Money: 1.455.000
Reputation
Oligarchs: XXXXXXXXXX XX (+1) (+40.000)
Police: XXXXXXXXXX XX (+1) (+40.000)
People: XXXXXXXXXX XXX (0) (+60.000)
Army: XXXXXXXXXX XX (0) (+40.000)
Opposition: XXXXXXXXXX X (0) (+20.000)
Mafia: XXXXXXXXXX XX (+1) (+40.000)
Buildings
Banks: 1 (interest: 5%)
