novelraw Chapter 1686 - 1685 - It was Bad
Chapter 1686 - 1685 - It was Bad
Lind actually had a lot of fun. It was strange. The pressure was still there but coming back to Earth seemed to unlock a desire to relax.
The fact he had found people like his old friend helped. They began to leave him behind as they spoke on things he could not possibly know. After his death, it seemed there was a surge of shows and other media that many desperately dove into.
As he became a spectator, he began to frown as they seemed to lament the loss of all studios that had been unable to finish some of the good shows or stories. He wanted to ask but then they spoke on it.
They were gone! Businesses had not just collapsed, the world had been brought to its knees. They did not cover all he wanted to know but he was quickly understanding that the trial's summary was severely under selling the cataclysm that Earth went through.
By some miracle, it had avoided nuclear war but not for anything like morality or even some kind of last moment coup to stop someone starting it. It was actually incompetence.
It seemed the major powers suffered from economic collapse and attempts to stop it actually gutted the very people or systems to keep things running! They prioritized their own assets and even abandoned any pretense of caring about others.
The rich and powerful simply pulled back but they apparently expected someone to step in and keep the world going. No one did. It had become so bad that there was no one left actually in charge!
The lower level officials, workers, etc tried to keep things going but they had no connections to work in the wider world. Worse, no experts had been replaced as they retired or were forced out and people who assumed they could rely on external help to assume roles of authority without a true desire to work!
Lind sighed as he found it all too believable but then someone touched on a subject that silenced the impromptu gathering.
"It was really bad after the States all collapsed–" The instant silence after those words made Lind narrow his eyes.
Were they referring to countries or to the USA? He was about to ask but noticed something he had overlooked. While many had been animatedly talking before, as the conversation shifted, some left quickly but others had carefully arranged themselves to encircle the dozen people around him.
One of them was the young woman in jeans and blouse. The others had not been there before but their clothes had a similar pattern. They all were form fitting and allowed free movement.
Their physical abilities also mirrored her while some were better too. He sighed before he snapped his finger to shatter the silence.
"I have enjoyed and found enlightenment but I started this. Please, go about your day." He then cupped his hands and bowed to them. The older men and women seemed shocked but the younger generations were confused by his move.
It told him information was not dispersed equally. As if realizing something, many became pale but Lind was not done.
"They are free to leave." It was not a question. The 8 people seemed to become tense but the young woman nodded.
"They broke no rules." An older man glared at her but Lind's easy stance seemed to make him realize there were higher priorities. The people left but the oldest man with the mobilesuit shirt paused before looking at Lind.
"You are better than the others. If you really are from this planet, get them off it." The group became tense but Lind chuckled.
"I am guessing they are frustrating to deal with and seem irritated?" The older man nodded. Lind then stood alone. The group looked at the woman already familiar with him.
He simply waited. He was not in a particular rush as he had no information to help progress the trial.
"Where were you born?" LInd narrowed his eyes as the older man, maybe mid 30s, suddenly asked a question. While he had the answer, he chose to be silent. He did not know who these people were supposed to be but it was clear they represented some kind of authority.
The man seemed ready to fight but Lind vanished before appearing behind the man with his hand firmly on the man's neck. His other hand also retrieved a rather strange gun from his belt.
Its barrel was fine but the clip and hand grip were just plain odd. There was no sign of bullets but some kind of battery pack? His experienced eye understood it was not a good design also.
He estimated the heat discharge was quite severe on the metal alloys.
"Huh, maybe 10 or 11 shots and the barrel will crack from heat damage. You should get a better alloy for this thing." From when he vanished to when he spoke, it had been an eyeblink to the group.
The woman was wide eyed but the rest reacted by bringing out similar weapons. Lind was still examining the one in his free hand as the man began cursing him out. A few were quite colorful too.
At one point, he began to suspect the man was just trying to die as he insulted Lind's mother as well as his manhood at random points. Why would anyone in a death grip do that?
"So, the world I remember is gone, yes? Who are you all and why do you think those poorly made weapons will even scratch me?" Some of the group sneered but the woman held up her hand. Half of them frowned but it seemed she really did have some authority.
"Sir Beast, you have been quite reasonable so far. Do not ruin the good impression–" Lind felt it. Someone wanted him dead and was trying to kill him at a distance.
The world slowed in his perception as he noticed a shimmer of heat in the air coming at him. An actual beam weapon? Really?
It was likely invisible to everyone else but not him.
He calmly stood there as the beam struck his left shoulder. His robes were singed but that was it. The world sped back up but the woman was frozen stiff.
Even the man cursing him previously seemed to lose all his resistance.
"Excuse me a moment." Lind shattered the gun in his hand before the world blurred. He could not fly but there were plenty of handholds to ascend a skyscraper to him. He found a squat apartment complex and seemed to fly up the front before finding an older woman packing up a rifle as odd as the hand gun.
She went pale but he simply snatched up the rifle and saw the barrel was already fatigued from strain. For something that barely hurt his robes, it was clear a lof of power was put into it.
"Why are you all using such unstable weapons? These could hurt the user far more than the target." A knife flashed but Lind ignored it as it shattered on his skin. He looked up at the rather tall woman who seemed to tremble now. "Could someone please start answering questions or at least explain just what you think you are doing?"
He picked up one of the larger shards and frowned. It was not a normal metal. It was some kind of alloy he had never encountered. On old Earth, that should be impossible. The vast experience he had as a Forger included common metals.
Nothing on this planet should be beyond him.
He now became serious.
"Where did you get these materials? They do not belong here." The woman seemed to dislike his question as she tried to run away. He sighed as he easily caught her and returned to the street. He let her go gently so she did not hurt herself with the sudden shift in location.
The group seemed even more shocked now.
He held up the rifle and the strange metal with a firm gaze.
"These do not belong on this planet. Energy weapons are theoretically possible but very inefficient. If society collapsed, how have you skipped past bullets to this? Further, this metal is not native either. Someone answer me or point me in a direction I can find answers." His words surprised them all.
"Sir, you can tell what that is?!" The very young woman spoke and for the first time, she seemed excited. He was confused. Did they not know what they were using?
"Sgt. Keel! Silence!" The older women barked out an order but Lind was getting exhausted. He dropped the rifle but kept the shard as he quickly swept up the young woman.
He moved easily through the streets without endangering anyone until he came to a park. He noticed a few odd areas with what looked like memorials but he stayed away from them.
The park was not too large as even without enhanced vision, he could see the borders on all sides but it was big enough to house 4 playgrounds, a ball diamond, and what he suspected highly was a soccer field or just an open area to party.
He noted the plastic structures were absent but he ignored them for the moment as he gently set the woman back on her feet.
"I do not feel like going in circles. Please answer me at least one question. Where the Hell am I?" She slowly looked around in surprise but then focused on him.
She seemed to consider things before nodding to herself.
"You are in the Rose City. It was built from the ruins of a place once called Aurora." Lind recognized the name but they were relatively common names. It was wholly possible the Aurora was not the one he was thinking of.
"I told you, I pre-date this era. What was this place exactly?" She became a bit reluctant before sighing and looking at him seriously.
"Former United States of America, Illinois. It was one of the few states not to be rendered a deadzone." Lind froze. Aurora, IL?! He was very far from his hometown and his job!
Moreover, he had been to Aurora and it looked nothing like the city around them. He then recalled that she had said ruins of Aurora.
He looked around the park and one of the memorials was within his range of vision.
{Memorial of the Survivors of the Shattering,}
{Erected for those brave souls that came together after the United States was struck by a meteorite during its collapse.}