Arcadia I Chapter 1: Arcadia

Read chapter 1 of Arcadia I by I_live_in_your_walls on NovelPedia.

“Fifteen shillings.” “… what” A lightly armored guard with a scruffy beard, his right hand on the hilt of his sword, left arm extended, stands before me. My gaze flickered between the guard and the imposing iron-studded city gates standing behind him. “Hahh,” looking up, he sighed before meeting my eyes again, “the toll fee is fifteen shillings; hurry up, you’re holding up the line,” the guard said flatly, leaning against the stone wall, before pulling out a cigarette and struggling to light it. He looked like he’d been standing there since dawn. “If you can’t pay up, we’re going to throw you out.” “I don’t have it.” With no change in expression, I let a breath of silence pass before continuing. “Lost my wallet. Can I get a pass?” The guard paused, gave me a blank look, glanced at his partner, then back at me. “Hup!” The world spun as I was thrown into the dirt beside the road. “Who even tries getting in without money these days?” one of them muttered. “Dunno. Maybe he’s one of those otherworlders. Not our problem.” “…Hah,” I exhaled, “as expected, worth a try though.” Looking up at the shimmering sky with scattered ribbons of aurora, I contemplated the absurdity of the way I died and the fact that I was here at all. Back on earth, in my youth, I was drafted into the war. Throughout the century, I killed people of all levels, from cannon fodder to corporate executives and dictators. Meeting Monsters in human skin and witnessing unspeakable atrocities, I survived the final war, becoming a weapon of destruction and given a title I didn’t particularly like: the Slayer. Returning home to a smoldering crater dozens of miles wide, I became a gun for hire. I didn’t do it for money, some ideology, grand quest, or revenge, but to fill the void that was my life because killing was all I was good at. The least I could do was rid the world of the people who ruined it. “Slayer, Someone put up a hit. Thought you’d find it interesting,” Faceless, my jester-masked broker, said, tossing me a folder inside a bare concrete room. “You know not to call me by that ridiculous name,” I remarked as I caught the folder before flipping it open. “Besides, haven’t things calmed down since the Aegis and Arvaus corporations’ skirmish, along with the merger between the Starforge and Armora conglomerates? Monopolies don’t leave much room for conflict.” After the century war, or as it was known, WWIII ended, I had mostly done corporate hit jobs as the world had been left in shambles, countries finally struggling to fix their ruined infrastructure and economies after a long century of being focused on killing each other. Even on the apocalyptic wasteland that was Earth, the fighting did not stop. As the corporations kept the blood flowing, the number of powerful corps had dwindled to a handful; this merger had just lowered that number further. “Just take a look,” Faceless replied after a small chuckle. Hit job Target The Nameless Tyrant Location Former Korean Peninsula, Aegis capital Loryndell, secure chamber in B1200 of the Headquarters complex. Security Detail Ageis class firmament 6 Continental class Reality Anchors 403,504 armored ground platforms 125,057 aerial combat platforms 276,194,348 attack drones 90,360,109 automated infantry units 250,806 combat personnel, including augmented infantry, anti-materiel snipers, anti-air units, chemical divisions, and special forces Client #14812 “The new Starforge head posted this?” I asked, staring at the ridiculous security detail. “They don’t even operate in the same region as Aegis Corp.” “A suicidal job,” Faceless replied with a head tilt that made one think he was smirking. “Expecting a single human, even a strategic weapon like you, to kill The Nameless Tyrant with no support is insane—” I interrupted him, “I’ll do it.” Faceless goes quiet, a heavy silence descending upon the room. “You’re not serious.” He said flatly, any prior amusement in his tone gone. “The number of powers left in this world is shrinking.