"The players…where do I begin." Understanding that I no longer wished to talk about Xipher, the Commandant readily accepted the change of topic.
"As of 10 minutes ago, we have registered a total of 13,329 people, all of whom, as you had predicted, show signs of feralness or post-traumatic stress."
"They have spent the better part of the last decade in fear for their lives, constantly on the move, and more often than not hungry, yet not one of them is malnourished oddly enough."
"It really isn’t that odd; I am sure there is more than one mechanism in place for their survivability if they so please," I interjected before allowing the Commandant to continue.
"Un, it’s as you say. From what we have learned, the structure of the first peak, as you said, consists of 6 floors, five trial floors, and one safe zone, which was the floor before advancing toward the next peak."
"On the safezone floor, or 6th, a City has been formed, and after years of hardship, many people have decided to claim that as their residence, the only downside being, if they choose not to progress, then they are forever trapped in the tower."
"Tell me about this city, its population density, development, and whatever you know." As it was a typical trope in tower novels and anime, every safezone would become a refuge for weary climbers, and it didn’t surprise me that the same thing happened in reality, either.
"The city, which is named Abbalon, houses over 500 thousand residents, and it is both safe and extremely dangerous at the same time. Apparently, there is a system registry in control, and whoever was deemed as the Strongest player at the time of unlocking the sixth floor was given the Governing rights of the entire floor, basically turning that person into a straight-up dictator while at the same time giving him free rein as to who is allowed to pass on to the next peak."
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"And let me guess, it’s some thug or overlord who got control, wasn’t it?" I asked, raising an eyebrow and expecting typical anime BS, only to be stunned by the answer.
"Actually, no, it was a politician, the Governor of Colorado to be exact, a man by the name of Benson Oliver. And at first, he ran Abbalon as he would have the state of Colorado by establishing laws and creating a well-oiled machine."
Squinting and turning my head in confusion, I waited for the punchline because if that was the case, and this Benson Oliver made a stable environment, shouldn’t there have been way more than 11 thousand people who made it to the next peak?
I mean, sure, there was an untold number of people who the NightWalkers slaughtered, but even being generous, that would put the figure in the 15-20 thousand mark, a far cry from the tens of MILLIONS that entered the Tower unwilling, or willingly.
"With governmental law and order returning under the hand of Governor Oliver, things were progressing at a rapid pace. He would allow a certain amount of Players through the entrance to the next peak if they met a predetermined set of requirements, and that’s how things went for years."
"But as they say, absolute power corrupts, and at some point in the last couple of years, Governor Oliver became a tyrant. No one is really sure what happened, and of those who made it out of the Tower, only a few hundred had recently made it through the Gate to the next peak."
"From the accounts of the players, when they stepped through, they were forced into another trial, and once finished, they suddenly woke up surrounded by other players, without any knowledge of how long they had been in the "lobby" as they called it."
"Suspended animation."
"What? Do you mean like being cryogenically frozen?" Narrowing his eyes, the Commandant looked for clarification.
"Yes and no, basically anyone who passed the trial was rendered unconscious and kept on life-support by the Tower until an adequate number of players passed the trial. It’s the only logical explanation."
"But the question is how? If I had to make an educated guess, they were kept in an alternative space, or dimension, completely free from harm, before being dropped into the lobby once the unknown requirement was met." Suddenly feeling motion in my left arm, I noticed Piniki had released me and began another round of treatment with her Talent.
"So this Benson guy went all tyrant dark side, I assume because no one returned from the other side of his floor’s Gate, and so he assumed he had been sending people off to their death. After killing thousands, part of his mind fractured, and he believed himself to be doing the right thing by stopping people from entering the gates."
"From there, it was a standard domino effect, he probably fell into a depressed state, began neglecting his duties, and crime took over the city of Abbalon, and with more and more people arriving, it turned into a total shit show."
"Your level of foresight is truly frightening, Major Nexus."
’Hardly, it’s pretty bog standard for the trope; good intentions turn into a lackluster performance; that’s what happens if someone isn’t calm and level-headed.’ I thought while resisting the urge to roll my eyes.
"It’s just simple cause and effect, Commandant; if you take an average person, career politician or not, and throw him into a world that revolves around the Law of the Jungle, they will more often than not cave to the pressures of their actions in due time."
"Whereas if it were someone like you, who understands casualty, things would be kept on track no matter what was thrown your way. Which reminds me, were any of the players from your camp?" Remembering those Soldiers and marines who had been chucked into the Tower by Draven, I brought the topic up.
"Yes, five to be precise, and they were part of those who disappeared when the Tower was first formed, three marines and two soldiers. In fact, they were all part of the group of players who stayed back to aid the Hero squads in the battle."
’Ah, that makes sense, former military men who knew the stakes given what they’ve seen and were trained to run TOWARD the enemy instead of from it.’
"I see; I would like to talk with them if given the opportunity."