While the merged CommNet was still a chaotic storm of Crimson Banner taunts and Blue Falcon jitters, Ryan switched to the private channel for Genesis Outpost #7.
Here, at least, the mood was a little less "we're all doomed" and a little more "okay, how do we not get completely steamrollered?"
Scarlett "Red" Viper, their highest-leveled player, was trying to instill some order.
Scarlett_Red_Viper [Private #7]: Alright, Blue Falcons, listen up. Kane is Level 4 with an S-Tier. He's a threat, no doubt. But he's also arrogant, and arrogance can be a weakness.
I'm currently Level 3, very close to Level 4 myself. Emma, Jennifer, you're both solid Level 3s now too, right?
Emma_Sage_Thorne [Private #7]: Correct, Scarlett. Just hit it a little while ago. My Tactical Insight is ready.
Jennifer_Quake_Lee [Private #7]: Same here! Level 3 and feeling shaky in a good, Tremor Sense kind of way! Let's give 'em a fight!
Ryan noted their progress. Level 3 was good. He was also Level 3, but his SSS-Tier system gave him an edge they didn't know about. He decided to keep that ace up his sleeve for now.
Ryan Stone [Private #7]: I'm also Level 3. Ready to help however I can. Does anyone have any actual intel on this 'Forgotten Overgrowth' or these 'Data Vaults'? The God Warden wasn't exactly forthcoming with a travel brochure.
His question was met with a chorus of digital shrugs. It seemed "The Forgotten Overgrowth" was as much a mystery to them as it was to Outpost #12.
Players in Outpost #7's private channel started to organize themselves into rough scouting parties. The general consensus was to try and find the Data Vaults as quickly as possible, avoid direct confrontation with Kane's main force if they could, and hope for the best.
It wasn't a brilliant plan, but it was a plan. Several people volunteered to act as decoys or to set up ambushes if possible, their bravery fueled more by desperation than confidence.
Ryan, however, had his own ideas. He wasn't much of a team player when it came to his SSS-Tier extraction habits, it was hard to discreetly suck the essence out of a monster when five other people were watching.
And that Prime Genesis Cache for the individual who secured the most vaults? That had "Ryan Stone Was Here" written all over it, in his humble opinion.
He looked at the countdown timer for the start of the Resource Scramble. Five minutes left.
He mentally reviewed his gear: Reinforced Utility Knife [poisoned], Phase Gauntlet [Agility +10, 3x Short Blink], Cloak of Shifting Umbra [Stealth +15], Depleted Precursor Power Cell [still dead, but hopeful], and his trusty Neural Symbiote Map.
He also had a nice stash of 9 unspent Flex Essence Points. He was as ready as he was going to be.
The God Warden's voice chimed in everyone's head, cutting through the CommNet chatter:
God Warden: The Resource Scramble Event will commence in precisely sixty seconds. All participants who choose to opt-in will be teleported to designated starting positions on the periphery of the Forgotten Overgrowth.
Opting-in is voluntary, but failure to participate will be noted and may affect future opportunities. Choose wisely.
A new button appeared on Ryan's Interface: [Opt-In to Resource Scramble Event].
Ryan didn't hesitate. He mentally slammed the "Opt-in" button. He wasn't about to miss this.
The final minute ticked by in a blur of last-minute CommNet messages, nervous good lucks, and more taunts from the Crimson Banner. Then, the countdown hit zero.
A strange, pulling sensation enveloped Ryan, much stronger than the one that had brought him to the God Verse. It felt like being squeezed through a very narrow tube made of pure light.
There was a moment of disorientation, a flash of rainbow colors, and then solidity.
He was standing on damp, mossy ground. The air was thick, humid, and smelled of unknown flowers, decaying vegetation, and a faint, electric tang. He was no longer in his cozy little swamp hummock.
He looked around. He was at the edge of a vast, dense jungle, far wilder and more primeval-looking than the Shifting Wilds around Outpost #7.
Towering trees with bizarrely shaped trunks scraped the sky, their leaves forming a canopy so thick that only mottled patches of sunlight reached the jungle floor.
Strange, glowing fungi clung to the trees, and the air was alive with the buzzing, chirping, and screeching of unseen creatures. This was, undoubtedly, the Forgotten Overgrowth.
His god Interface immediately updated, a new map overlay appearing, highlighting the general area of the Overgrowth. Three blinking icons, shaped like little treasure chests, were scattered across it, indicating the approximate locations of the Precursor Data Vaults.
They were far apart, and each one seemed to be in a particularly dense or hazardous-looking part of the jungle.
Ryan checked his own map, the one enhanced by his Neural Symbiote Map. It cross-referenced the God Warden's basic map with its own deeper knowledge, highlighting areas with high anomalous energy readings places where Precursor structures, or very nasty guardians, were likely to be found.
Unsurprisingly, the Data Vault icons were sitting right on top of some of the strongest energy signatures. These Vaults weren't going to be undefended picnic spots.
"Okay, Vaults are probably guarded by grumpy things. No surprise there," Ryan muttered. He decided his best bet was to head towards the Vault with the densest cluster of anomalous readings around it.
Go big or go home, right? Or, in this case, go big or get your Outpost's resources halved.
He could hear, even through the CommNet, the sounds of other Outpost #7 members appearing in their own starting locations, their voices a mix of awe and trepidation as they took in the Forgotten Overgrowth.
Scarlett, Emma, and Jennifer quickly coordinated in the private channel:
Scarlett_Red_Viper [Private #7]: Alright, I'm at the northern edge. Emma, Jennifer, where are you?
Emma_Sage_Thorne [Private #7]: Southwestern quadrant. Lots of weird rock formations here.
Jennifer_Quake_Lee [Private #7]: Eastern side, near a big, swampy area. My Tremor Sense is picking up some large… things… moving around underground. This place is lively.
Scarlett_Red_Viper [Private #7]: Okay, let's try to converge on the central Vault first. Jennifer, your Tremor Sense might be key to finding subterranean structures that could be Vaults. Emma, keep an eye on enemy movements if you can. Other teams, spread out, scout cautiously, and report anything significant. Avoid engaging Outpost #12 unless absolutely necessary.
The Blue Falcons were trying their best to mount an organized effort. Several other small teams of Level 2 and Level 3 players from Outpost #7 also reported their positions and formed up as support squads, ready to assist their leaders.
Ryan, however, slipped away from his own starting point without a word.
He preferred to operate solo for now. He moved quickly and quietly into the dense jungle of the Forgotten Overgrowth, his Cloak of Shifting Umbra already making him a faint blur against the riot of green and brown.
The energies here felt wilder, more potent, than in the Shifting Wilds. This place was older, less tamed by whatever forces governed the starting zones.
He hadn't gone more than a hundred yards when something dropped from the canopy above with a wet, gurgling screech. It looked like a humanoid figure made of tangled vines and thorny creepers, with glowing red eyespots in its "head."
It lunged at him, its vine-like arms tipped with sharp thorns.
The Interface helpfully labeled it: Vine Ghoul [Forgotten Overgrowth Fauna, Level 3].
"Well, hello there," Ryan said, not breaking stride. "You're not on the guest list."
He sidestepped its clumsy lunge, his Phase Gauntlet already glowing. He didn't even bother with his knife for this one. He used a Short Blink to appear directly behind the Vine Ghoul as it stumbled past, then delivered a powerful, open-palmed strike [boosted by his 25 Strength] to the back of its "head."
There was a sound like snapping dry twigs, and the Vine Ghoul collapsed into a heap of wilting vegetation.
Easy. Too easy, almost.
His god Interface chimed.
Enemy Defeated: Vine Ghoul [Level 3]
+80 god Points [NP] Acquired!
Assimilation Level Up! Level 3 -> Level 4!
All Base Stats Increased by +5!
+3 Flex Essence Points Awarded!
Assimilation Level Progress [Level 4]: 85/1000 NP
Ryan blinked. He'd leveled up again! Just from that one Level 3 Vine Ghoul! The +10% NP gain bonus for Outpost #7 from their previous win must have still been active from before the leaderboards froze, or maybe the Forgotten Overgrowth just gave better NP. Either way, he wasn't complaining!
A fresh wave of power surged through him. His stats all got another +5 boost. He now had a total of 12 unspent Flex Essence Points [9 from before + 3 new ones]. This was fantastic!
He quickly used his SSS-Tier system on the rapidly decaying Vine Ghoul.
Target: Vine Ghoul [Level 3, Decaying]
Initiating Extraction Protocol
Extraction Complete!
Acquired:
Vitality Essence [Flora Variant]: +1 Permanent Vitality!
Regenerative Sap: A sticky, green sap with potent healing properties. Can be applied to wounds.
System Note: Level up and a snack! Well, a healing snack. Probably don't eat the sap. Unless you're really into that whole 'photosynthesis' lifestyle.
His Vitality was now even higher, making him feel incredibly robust. He tucked the Regenerative Sap sample away that sounded extremely useful.
He was now officially Level 4. The same level as Tom "Shadow" Kane. The playing field was looking a little more even.
Without wasting another moment, Ryan Stone, newly minted Level 4 "Elite Human" [his Threat Level hadn't updated yet, but he felt pretty elite], plunged deeper into the Forgotten Overgrowth, heading straight for the nearest blinking Data Vault icon on his map.
The Resource Scramble was on, and he had a strong feeling he was about to make it very interesting for the Crimson Banner.