BXBX NOVEL Chapter 152: Any Advice? [1/2]
"Maybe I should try lying on my back before I get warped out next time."
I got up and walked to the windows of my suite. Since Aira had gotten me the penthouse, the view was amazing. The rays of the sun formed rings of blinding light that shone across the Arizona landscape.
It was then that I noticed that all the electronics in the room turned on simultaneously and began to function. From the lights, to the windows, to the air conditioning, to even a robot vacuum cleaner. The television suddenly turned on and an avatar of my AI appeared on the screen.
[My Lord, congratulations on a magnificent performance last night. The graveyard network has been littered with articles directly or indirectly discussing your actions].
"Thank you, Aira, your help made all the difference."
[I am unworthy of your praise, my lord.]
While it would be flattering to read the news about Hellsgate, it was not important at the moment. In less than four days, I would be facing a Seeker war. For my survival, I needed to focus on that.
First, the facts.
I would be fighting alone against two hundred Reapers. Thirty of whom were Phantoms.
The ones I had already met were the Slayer Robert Acwellan, a polearm user who manipulated blood, Machiavelli Dominic Maegester, an undead necromancer. He had two sidekicks named Gramps and Kid.
I also met Julius Caytiffe and his henchmen Blaze and Titan. While I heard the voice of the last three, I had yet to face any of them in combat.
"Right now, the lack of information is the biggest problem."
The doorbell suddenly rang while I was deep in thought.
[My Lord, I took the liberty of ordering breakfast. I based it on what you used to eat in the past using your credit card and online delivery orders].
"Oh? How convenient, thank you Aira."
I went to the door to pick up the food Aira had ordered. Normally, people would freak out if an AI could map a person's food preferences from their online delivery and grocery bills.
But in my case, I had much bigger problems than that. What would Aira do with my information anyway? Blackmail me? Stalk me? Hold my money for ransom?
The more you got rid of unnecessary worries, the happier you would be. After getting the food cart, I ate while I read up on the Saviors. Using {Connect}, the information I wanted to see would appear in my vision like an augmented reality as I ate.
Not having to constantly hold a phone or laptop was extremely liberating. Aira, in her wisdom, already had a summary report of the Savior members in my GRI inbox. The data in the report was clear, easy to read and understand, and well researched.
"Aira, if you keep spoiling me like this, I won't be able to function without you."
[Haha, I will keep that in mind, my lord].
"Do you have any advice for me?"
[I have several. What kind of guidance do you seek? To survive or to dominate?]
"Let's go with survival first," I replied as I ate.
[My Lord, of my combat simulations of 1,000,000 different scenarios, you die in over 95% of them].
"Oh? What happened in the 5%?"
[You prioritized survival over winning the war. 3% is due to the scenarios that involve smuggling yourself out of North America or hiding outside the battlefront].
"Hmm. I can understand that. What about the other 2%?"
[You surrender by humiliating yourself, my lord. If you surrender, you can use the time remaining to collect a large sum of funds to offer as a peace offering to ensure your own survival].
"..."
What Aira said was true. If I begged for forgiveness or ran away, I would definitely survive, but that was against what Limitless stood for, so they were all rejected.
"Then let us hear the suggestions of the Domination."
[My Lord, out of a thousand scenarios, over 65% result in defeat, 30% result in mutual annihilation, and only 5% result in victory]
"Hmm. 5% is much higher than I thought. Expand the options for victory and outline the general plans and where they differ."
[Of the scenarios in the 5%, 1% includes scenarios where you seek protection from David Thomas. By being his pet, you might gain some semblance of power. Another 1% is similar to the first, except that you subordinate yourself to Zachary Lynch instead.]
"Riding the coattails of another, huh?" I mumbled.
[Another 2% are scenarios where you join an army of higher rank than the Saviors and use them as shield and take over the group if anyone survives. The final one percent involves using the forces of Hellsgate to destroy the Saviors.]
"Again, all of your explanations make sense. In the 30% where we achieved mutual annihilation, what did I do?"
[Of the 30% of scenarios, 5% are battles in which my lord exploits the Sirens. They would cripple if not destroy Savior, but it would be at the cost of annihilating all seven of the Sirens].
Hearing Aira's words, I stopped eating as I imagined a future where the girls perished because of this Seeker war.
It wasn't as bad as the nightmare I had just a few hours ago, but any option that ended with even one of them dead was off the table.
[5% represents gathering an army of the Formless and your allies, excluding the Sirens, in a battle of attrition. Notable individuals in the simulations were Isolde Drache, Krishna Sangan, and Warren Bryant].
"..."
Aira's simulation grew darker and darker as she continued.
"Then what about the remaining 20%?"
[This is the scenario where you allow the Sirens and all your other allies to assist you. All of them would still die, but 15% of the results would guarantee the annihilation of the Saviors].
"And the last 5%?"