Williamsburg Coastline, Virginia - 11:52 AM


    To the others’ surprise, the place where the two diplomatic delegations were supposed to meet was literally marked by a rectangle of white light where State Road 199 unceremoniously dunked itself into the water. Unlike a regular beach, there would be a few feet of sand if we were to wade out before the drop became severe. Almost like we were standing over a cliff.


    “I hope you people know what you’re doing,” Warren muttered.


    “We do,” Kayla said confidently. She was wearing the Magnanimous Hat of the Charitable, the black and red hat looking out of place with her jacket. Still, the Noble Demeanor passive should help at least a little.


    The other six didn’t look convinced. These people, four men and two women, had a variety of combat classes between them and really only came for the points and the show. They were the leaders of different factions of Williamsburg, but they might as well have stayed home. Each of them trusted Kayla or Warren to speak more than themselves. I could appreciate the self-awareness, at least.


    Warren put his hands in his suit jacket’s pockets as we entered the glowing rectangle. “Good, because if this doesn’t go according to plan…” he let his voice trail off with an unspoken warning.


    Normally, I was understanding of other''s fears and nervousness. This time, I chuckled as I shook my head.


    “Do you think my concern is funny, young man?” he asked, putting on a stern face. “This is not your home, so you probably don’t understand the connection we have with it, but we hardly believe this is a laughing matter.” The others nodded in agreement.


    “I just think it’s silly that you’re going along with our plan but still don’t think it’ll work,” I replied before snorting. “And thinking I can’t understand that this is your home is just needling me because of your own nerves. My hometown was going to be attacked by thousands of humanoid wasps. We took the fight to them, and it worked out as well as it did because of that initiative. Now, if you plan on saying something substantial instead of flapping your gums because your anxiety is spiking, I’ll listen, but if you can’t even do that then keep calm and let Kayla do her thing.”


    I felt anger in his aura, but also shame. He didn’t rebuke me after that.


    “Play nice, Anthony,” Kayla chastised.


    “Yes, ma’am,” I responded immediately.


    Everyone fell silent as the white light we were standing in turned green. Jamie and I stood at attention on either side of Kayla, slightly behind her, while the others in our group jumped at the sudden shift. Before they could get even more spooked, we each received new text boxes.


    <<<>>>


    [[Jamestown/Williamsburg Scenario 3-1 Complete]]


    Congratulations, you nine have been chosen to be the diplomatic delegation for your city. Thanks to this prestigious position, you will be the first to speak to the Atlanteans in over 400 years of their history.


    The next quest will depend on how you act and what you say, so be careful with your words. No one knows what may set them off.


    Reward: 1,000 points.


    <<<>>>


    “Nine of us?” Warren asked, turning to make sure we hadn’t lost anyone.


    “I’m invisible to the administrators,” I replied, getting a glance from Kayla, to which I shrugged. “What? It’s not going to matter in a few moments.”


    “I just thought you said that was supposed to have worn off already,” she said.


    “Supposed to, yeah, but sometimes the future is surprising no matter how much you can see.”


    Before our conversation could go any further, a warning siren started to sound out from the water. An eerie green light flashed repeatedly as it emerged from the depths, and the glowing rectangle underneath us expanded. It became much larger, both taking up more space as well as becoming taller.


    “Nobody panic, but they’re now trapped in here with us,” I said.


    “Doesn’t that mean we’re also trapped in here with them?” one of the guys nervously asked.


    “No, that’s definitely not the same thing,” I replied. Kayla gave me another glance, and I shrugged again. “The plan’s going to plan. Nothing to worry about.”


    “You’re entirely too nonchalant,” Jamie said.


    “Yeah, probably,” I agreed. The others looked at me in confusion, but their attention was soon diverted.


    The light rose out of the sea to reveal a massive submarine made of green metal. It was shaped like a disc and towered over us with at least half of its height still submerged. There was no visible propulsion system on it at all that I could see, even underwater. Due to the way Atlantean technology worked, they didn’t need any to move through the water.


    There were several stylized carvings all throughout the hull. They reminded me of Aztec artwork, and one of the largest circles facing us bisected itself, revealing a few figures standing within. Everyone got tense when a gangplank was set down for the Atlanteans to walk across, including Kayla and Jamie.


    They were humanoid in shape, but on average stood a foot taller than we did. Each one of them wore metal armor with bulbous pauldrons, heavy protection around the neck, and no straps to hold them on. They were encased up to their heads, which they didn’t hide.


    Their skin was a light blue, their ears were like fins, and their eyes had extra lids, but other than that they looked fairly similar to us with black hair and brown eyes. Like it was just another evolutionary path for humans to become amphibious.


    The first down the gangplank was a somewhat portly Atlantean with streaks of gold through his long, beaded hair. That was their version of going gray. He carried a trident made of coral and walked towards us with dignity and grace, his cloak dancing in the sea breeze. This was Admiral Chekanhat, and he looked at us with barely disguised disdain.


    Next came two men who could have been brothers. They were large even for Atlanteans, and they could have completely eclipsed even Jeff if he were here. One carried a hammer that was flat on one side and had four spikes on the other. His twin carried a harpoon. They both stopped behind the admiral, hands on their weapons as they looked ahead.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    The last was a woman with some kind of binder. She was the smallest of them all, though still inches taller than me. Her light blue skin had black tattoos that, in her culture, indicated that she was not a warrior. In this case, she was the translator that Admiral Chekanhat was going to be speaking through. She stood next to her superior officer and opened the binder.


    No one on our side spoke. Though it was through the system, we were the ones that had been invited to this meeting. That meant they had the first word. To take it for ourselves would be offensive. The silence as the admiral looked us each over in turn was uncomfortable, but I knew no one was going to break. Not even Warren, now that he had been sufficiently chastised.


    The Atlantean tongue was a harsh one that enunciated its Ts and vowels to the extreme. It didn’t seem to have a basis in any modern Earth language, and the only way I had heard anyone learn it was through quests. That being said, almost all Atlanteans knew the languages of those they were going to conquer.


    Admiral Chekanhat was capable of speaking perfect English; he just refused to.


    Lucky for me, I no longer had to worry about that. When he spoke, I sent a message through the guild chat to let Kayla and Jamie know exactly what he was actually saying. It was really handy not having to type it all out now.


    “I am Admiral Chekanhat, traveling with my honor guard and trusted adviser,” he announced, his voice deep and booming. “Who do I have the displeasure of speaking to today?”


    His translator cleared her throat. “Admiral Chekanhat introduces his honor guard, Matenkarl and Dantenkarl, as well as myself, Adviser Cyrellose,” she introduced, her voice had a pleasant lilt to it that was different from her loud boss. “The great admiral asks who he will be negotiating with at this time.”


    Kayla took a step forward just as she was supposed to. “I am Kayla Mills, Queen of Sol Ligatus,” she announced, her voice only catching slightly at the need to call herself royalty. “My honor guard, Jamie Summers and Anthony Franklin, stand beside me, while the others bear witness to this glorious moment.”


    “Royalty, eh?” the admiral said, looking Kayla up and down as he stroked his goatee. “Do you hear that? The Humans think they have someone worth following. Isn''t that just precious of them?”


    The Double Agent twitched after I sent that translation.


    “The admiral is pleased to meet you,” Cyrellose lied.


    “Likewise,” Kayla returned dryly.


    “Alright, enough with the pleasantries, adviser,” Chekanhat said with a wave of his trident. “She claims to be a queen, but I’ve seen more graceful manatees than her. The sooner we get this over with, the sooner we can get off of this terrible patch of dirt and make it sand, like it should be. Give her the ultimatum, vacate the area so it can be ours or die defending it.”


    Cyrellose nodded and opened her mouth to speak. Unfortunately for her, I had just sent the translation to the guild. Jamie stifled a snorted laugh, but Kayla’s eyes darkened.


    “Ultimatum? So you were never going to take us seriously, then?” she asked, her tone low. The Atlanteans each looked at her in surprise, seemingly dumbstruck by the fact that the admiral was being called out. Kayla adjusted her glasses as she looked the enemy over. “And you’ve seen more graceful manatees than me, have you? Like you’re any better with that rotundness of yours. What, did you see a walrus and decide that’s what you wanted to model your own body after?”


    “Excuse me?” Admiral Chekanhat asked, his eyes seemingly ready to pop out of their sockets.


    “No, you are not excused.” Kayla crossed her arms, and our bystanders started shifting. “I came out here hearing about the Glorious 12th Atlantean Navy, and the first thing its ‘honorable’ admiral does is look down on us? Look at you; you’re less fierce warrior and more assistant manager at a dead end job.”


    The admiral’s eyes narrowed. “If you speak Atlantean, why do you insist on not speaking it?”


    I pursed my lips, trying not to smile at the next practiced line.


    “Like I’m going to sully my tongue with your shark shit language,” she replied combatively. “I’d rather drown myself here and now.”


    “How dare you!” he sputtered. “How can you possibly think it’s wise to speak to the admiral of the Glorious 12th Atlantean Navy that way? We will end your paltry town and its protectors without fail!”


    “Oh, is that a fact?” she challenged.


    “Indubitably so!”


    “Indubitably nothing,” Kayla spat. “If you’re so sure of yourself, then let’s settle this right now. As the aggrieved party, this queen with less grace than a manatee challenges you to ritual combat. Winner stays, loser leaves. My honor guards against yours in the ancient and sacred rite of Atsamptatero.”


    Once again, the Atlanteans were shocked. Now we didn’t just know their language and position in the navy, but also their culture and old rituals. Cyrellose quickly turned to her commanding officer.


    “Admiral Chekanhat,” she said quickly, bringing her voice down to a whisper. “There’s no—”


    He brought up a hand, cutting the poor adviser off as his lips curled into a sneer. “You think calling upon the rites of combat will save you?”


    “Only if you’re as honorable as you think you are,” she answered. “What will it be? Are we going to war because you’ll spit in the face of your own culture? Or will we decide this right now?”


    “Right now,” he answered immediately. Without looking away from Kayla, his sneer turned into a grin when he addressed his honor guard. “Matenkarl.”


    The Atlantean with the hammer stepped forward. He spoke, though it wasn’t in his native tongue. “I will challenge on land, so that glory is many,” he said in clipped English, like someone still learning how the language works.


    “I accept your challenge,” Jamie said, taking a step forward so that she was in front of Kayla. “You’re going to regret it.”


    “Dantenkarl,” the admiral called.


    As he took a step forward, I did as well. “I will fight as Atsamptatero demands, in the water,” I said first. “There is no glory in defeating an Atlantean that flounders on land with no concept of what he’s getting himself into.”


    There was no verbal response from Dantenkarl, but he nodded.


    <<<>>>


    [[Hidden Scenario Quest: Atsamptatero]]


    As the aggrieved party, the players have called for blood. The diplomatic delegation has chosen to enact an ancient rite of combat against the Atlanteans.


    Atsamptatero has been used to settle large disputes for centuries for land, resources, or insults. Fought with proxies to the death, the outcome can vary depending on the victories.


    In this case, it is honor guard versus honor guard for the sake of the land and pride. Should both players lose, the Atlanteans get full control of the land. However, if both players win, they remain in control. If one loses and one wins, then Atsamptatero can be called off or renegotiated with the survivors fighting again.


    As a player, you should be warned that an admiral’s honor guard is the cream of the crop. They are trained at a young age to be ruthless killers ready to step forward at a moment’s notice. With the Atlantean’s naturally long life span, it would not be out of line to assume they have decades more experience than you.


    Good luck.


    Objective: Win against Admiral Chekanhat’s honor guard.


    Reward: Honored Warrior passive, 1,500 points.


    [[Patron Quest: Defeat Dantenkarl!]]


    Everything’s going according to plan, and that’s great. Kayla is knocking it out of the park!


    I also just got confirmation that Skuld is going to ask Kayla to be her Avatar! Huge news. She reached out to me about you, but I was mysterious and cryptic. There’s a lot of intrigue, and she wants to know more. So, even more plans are coming to fruition.


    You just worry about your fight, and I’ll translate for Kayla when needed. It’s going to cost a lot of points since she’s not my Avatar anymore, but with all these points I’ve saved up not paying to send you messages I think I can handle it.


    Good luck!


    Objective: Defeat Dantenkarl for Kayla’s honor.


    Reward: 4,500 points.


    <<<>>>


    Jamie and Matenkarl started walking down the road, the other humans giving the large enemy a wide berth, and I walked to the edge of the water. Dantenkarl stopped beside me, saying nothing though his grip on his spear was tight.


    I summoned a scuba diving mask from my inventory and put it on. It adhered to my face without the need for straps, and a small timer appeared in my upper-righthand vision.


    <<<>>>


    [[Equipped]]


    Tankless Breather


    This mask will stick to your face until you pull it off. While wearing it, you have 30 minutes of breathable air. The Tankless Breather will refill at a rate of 5 minutes per hour when not in use.


    <<<>>>


    Looking over at my adversary, I gestured towards the water. “After you.”


    He looked down at me with narrowed eyes before jumping into the water, and I sent a quick word of warning to the guild chat as I dove in after him.