New Eden: Live to Play, Play to Live

"I didn't live until the end, so I am not a hundred percent sure. Humanity might have prevailed by some miracle in the end. But I doubt it. When I died, so many of us had already died, including some of the strongest people on Earth, that the results were certain."

Jack nodded his head gravely. He now understood why David had yet to come clean to the public.

What he didn't understand was why Constantine was keeping such a secret to herself. Did she not want humanity to survive?

In the end, her reasons didn't matter, only that they were wrong.

"Please. Tell me all you know. I can help as best I can, but only if I have the full picture."

Looking at Alex, David pondered if he should tell the whole thing. Even Alexander didn't know the full story, since he didn't know how he would react.

But now that he knew him a bit better, he felt more comfortable about telling him. But he barely knew the old man or his assistant.

Seeing his hesitation, Alexander spoke up.

"I think you can trust them. Mr. Boudreau has yet to give me any reason to distrust him. And I believe whatever is to come, he can help."

David looked deep into Alex's eyes. He didn't see any hesitation, so he chose to believe him.

"Better cancel any appointment you have today, then. This isn't something that will take five minutes to tell you."

From the corner, the assistant spoke up.

"Already did. I had a feeling this meeting might take up more time than originally deduced, so before shutting off the network, I cancelled Mr. Boudreau's day. I have also notified your wife of your absence at dinner, sir."

Jack nodded. He knew his wife would be disappointed, but she would understand. They had been married for a long time, and it wasn't the first time he couldn't make it home for dinner.

Seeing everything was settled, David started his tale. It took hours for him to recount everything he knew, up to the smallest important details.

Questions were asked along the way, from both Alex and the old man, which David answered to the best of his capacity. It was hard to tell what time it was in the office, since there were no clocks on the walls, and the artificial lighting was always at the same intensity.

When David finished his story, and the questions no longer came from anyone, Jack had his assistant reconnect the network. The day had advanced well into the night, and it was already close to morning.

David clicked his tongue.

"I settled for the first plane in the morning, but now we won't make it to the airport in time. I have nothing prepared," David said, his voice slightly hoarse from all his talking.

"I'm not ready to leave either. Guess we'll have to leave another day," Alex replied.

They were also tired from not sleeping for so long. But Jack had a solution for them.

"How long do you need to get ready and rest a little?"

"Hmm? Does it matter? I won't be able to book plane tickets for another day, at least."

"Forget your plane tickets. How long would it take you to rest, pack, and be back here?"

"Six hours, maybe? Might be less, depending on how long I rest. Why?"

Nodding, Jack turned his head to his assistant.

"Guo, have the plane ready in six hours, and the course charted for Valentine, Nebraska."

"Yes, sir."

Opening his tablet, the assistant got to work immediately. His boss had a few private jets, some of which could land on smaller airstrips.

So when he looked up the airports near their destination, he was happy to see a small airport in the town itself. He rapidly called up the pilot to their smallest private plane and had him call in the VFR flight plan.

Within minutes, he was already done with his part and ready to escort the two young men out of the office. Seeing him stand up, Jack did the same.

"Rest assured, your secrets will not leave this room from my lips or my assistant's. With what you told me, I will help in any manner I can. I will also have some plans of my own made."

"Good," David said. "There can never be too many plans."

Jack nodded in agreement.

Alexander, feeling left out, wasn't sure what he could do to help.

'Am I just hired muscle for when shit hits the fan?'

But David didn't leave him hanging for long.

"Don't worry, you'll have a part to play too. Yours will be less here, and more in New Eden. But it will still be a major part."

It reassured Alex that he wasn't just a useless pair of arms. But he wondered what his part would be.

But David didn't seem to be about to tell him here.

"I'm tired now. Can we leave? I need to go prepare and rest," David said, his tone an affirmation more than a question.

"Of course. Guo, lead them back to the facility. Alexander will probably want to see Ms. Deveille, and Mr. Magnus can be led outside. No need to cover his vision."

Nodding, the assistant walked to the elevator, where he waited for the two young men to embark. Once the doors closed, Jack sat back down in his chair.

He sat in silence, his mind still wrapping around what he had heard in the last hours.

'This isn't just a catastrophe. If this happens, as the young man said, humanity as we know it could end.'

Although he wanted to head home to his wife, and rest too, Jack's mind raced with ideas and plans, to ensure the continuity of the people he loved. He turned to look at the massive cave behind him, which had never stopped buzzing with activity.

'Should I make a shelter too? This cave would be ideal to make an underground city. We could survive here for a long time until the invasion is dealt with.'

Deciding it was better safe than sorry, Jack started calling up meetings with his contractor managers. He was going to have them change the plans he had for the cave.

As for David and Alexander, they were both led up to the facility over the office. Alexander rested here instead of going home right away.

Kary was still here too, anyway. So he preferred spending time with her than alone.

"See you in six hours, Wolfy. Rest well. You will need it. What we will fight is not like you see in the games. They will be much more ferocious and devious."

"I'll be ready, bag of bones. Just make sure you don't hold me back."

The grin on both men's lips was a tacit agreement to come back alive. They separated ways in the facility, as Guo led David higher into the hospital.

David wanted nothing more than to go back to his solitude, though. So Jack's assistant had a driver bring him back home.

Reaching his little hidey-hole, David sighed in relief.

"Finally alone. I don't remember being so antisocial in the past. I guess spending all my time with death has made me repulsed to life," David muttered to himself, as he set an alarm and fell asleep on his cot.