In an area just outside of the Eternal Base…

  As the last few seconds ticked down, those accepting the invitations found themselves in a large arena, one familiar to those raised on Sonata. An Arena.

  It stood ten times the size of the original, with two large and waving banners floating overhead, one slightly higher than the other. On the tallest banner, the image of the Unending Summit could be seen, a winding path to a mountaintop that never seemed to end. On the other, a furred claw caught in a circle of white.

  The location was large enough to hold over a hundred thousand people, each portal leading to a specific offloading point. The Symphonians who had already exited the portal, found sitting areas and directions arriving in their overlays, organized by the Territory from which they’d originated. As they began to take their seats, more and more people arrived, including a special section near the bottom. Here, white and sometimes grey-furred Guardians could be seen, each looking around as more and more people arrived.

  While the Arena continued to fill, conversations broke out as to what was going to happen. The fact that the top contenders for both the Individual and Territory ranks would be here wasn’t questioned; instead, the conversations floated around what those who had strived to be the best in Symphony would receive. And seated right in the center of the section reserved for the Unending Summit sat Runner Grove and the Zenith, the only Guardian not sitting with his fellows, nodding along as she spoke quickly beside him.

  A few minutes after the event timer ended, a structure came into existence in the center of the large structure. It floated in the air, ropes tethering it to the ground, with a man patiently standing upon it, his arms linked behind his back. Clothed in a robe of purple and green, Walker Reed’s presence seemed to fill the Arena more than all of the voices speaking. He looked around once before his voice boomed out.

  “Welcome, Citizens of Symphony.”

  He paused for a long moment, waiting for the crowd to quiet down before speaking again, “Welcome to the Symphony Arena, a new blueprint that all Territory Holders and Stewards will now find in their systems. From what we can thus far figure out, the Ascension has been an unmitigated success. Before the limited-time event, the average Symphonian had only sixty Milestone points. Now?” He waved a hand at the large screen that appeared in the sky, looking down at everyone.

  Average Milestone points per Sapient: 130

  The screen changed to a camera view of Walker’s face, “We more than doubled the number of Milestones completed in Symphony’s history within twenty-four hours. Congratulations!” With a big smile, he began to clap, with those in the arena slowly understanding to clap along with him. The sound of hands slapping together was raucous, as many of the seedlings hadn’t yet understood how to hold a rhythm. Walker mentally decided not to do that again.

  “As you all know, Milestones were not the only focus of the event. We also received tens of thousands of item donations to the Territory system, greatly expanding Symphony’s blueprints and further enabling the kind of growth that I’ve always hoped to see from our world.” He gestured at the screen again.

  Total Territory blueprints organized by rarity:

  Basic: 8,214

  Standard: 10,456

  Improved: 2,142

  Fine: 390

  Superior: 14

  Exquisite+: 1

  Walker, ever still the teacher, couldn’t help but make a few comments on the shown text, “You’ll notice two unique standouts in that breakdown. One, it no longer says tiers but rarity. That’s a personal choice for me, as I found that Monsters and Items using the word tiers didn’t sit right with me. Secondly, you’ll notice that there are more Standard than Basic items. That is because, as people grow more skilled, they move far beyond the Basic rarity in their creations, skipping straight to Standard even as they learn how to create new items.”

  He waited a moment for everyone to register what he’d said, then gave another smile, “Over thirty Territories began a road network that will criss-cross throughout Symphony, enhancing the ease of travel and increasing the amount of trade in our world. Dozens of non-Maritime Territories connected harbors to their areas' rivers and lakes, cultivating their land's resources. And, of course, structures were raised at a higher standard than ever, creating nominal living conditions for a place that’s only seen the touch of civilization for a little over a week. Overall, the Territorial Custodians have done far better than my assistants or I had ever expected. And the Territories, I can now say, are in fine hands as we move into the future.”

  “Hear, hear!” Lucy Reed yelled from the Independence section, an elbow jabbing into her partner. Thomas’s face turned a little red as thousands of people looked over at him.

  Walker grinned at the Founder’s embarrassment before continuing, “On the Individual side of the Ascendancy, dozens of great stories are now being told of the courage, ingenuity, and kindness of others. But rather than tell you about it, how about I show you?”

  The screens above split into dozens, showing different Humans, Guardians, and a monster in one special case. Each screen held still long enough for the crowd to see people they knew. But it wasn’t only the top scorers who appeared. When one man found himself on the screen, his mouth dropped open. It showed him as he fixed a small hut’s roof in exchange for a warm dinner, smiles passing around the dinner table after dark. The people from his Territory cheered him on, giving the humble man pats on the back and a few small words about his kindness as he tried to wave them off.

  When the screens changed, showing Bale defeating a horde of monsters about to attack a settlement, the Guardians stood up and roared, Chipper most of all from his separated section across the way.

  Bailan teaching smithing with a smile on his face.

  A second-cohort Founder building a bridge to another Territory.

  And a small Hill Giant protecting two seedlings who had been foraging from bushes. They’d been set upon by a set of Duo Wolves, unaware that their activities had been watched. The giant didn’t escape unscathed, with numerous bites and scratches across his nine-foot frame. But he smiled at the couple before walking away, leaving them standing there not in fear but in confusion.

  Walker took that moment to speak up, “For those who don’t know, that was a Hill Giant. When we created the Territories that dropped with the Grand Seeding, we included multiple with no Founders. Places where Monsters and Myths could live together, hopefully in some form of harmony. Your big world here is about to get a little bit bigger.” He paused as he fiddled with a message. A moment later, two portals opened up near an empty section, one far larger than the other.

  From the smaller portal, all of the Primigenials who had been seeded thus far stepped forth. First came the Greeks, led by a serious-looking Zeus. Then, the much smaller Nords, his two siblings behind him. Lastly to go through were the Egyptians, each having been seeded but their prime.

  As they waved at the crowds, with multiple Founders saying hello to their favorite Elders, something much taller than a Human or Guardian stepped through the larger portal. It was the small Hill Giant, a smile on his face.

  Magni stepped away from his crowd to approach the creature, and with a few pointed gestures at a much larger set of seats in the arena, the Giant finally understood, sitting down and looking around as he smiled.

  Walker paused for everyone to get settled, then spoke again, “If you ask Elder Rimi, Monster is a classification we use, not a moniker. It's used to identify those who don’t have true Sapience.” He held up a hand at the screen above. As everyone looked up, a video began to play, “These are several creatures, monsters, and people whom the Elders and I saved from a horrible fate. They’ll all come to live here eventually, as will many others who want to escape their environments. Our friendly Hill Giant there is only the first. Each monster has the potential to become Sapient. Each has the opportunity not to choose a life of violence but one of kindness. They might be the next Chipper or Runner, the next Lucy Reed or Bailan Smith. Who knows, they might be the next Elder Virgil.”

  He chuckled before saying, “I ask that you remember this sustaining Tenet from the Unending Summit- before attacking everything that scares you, always be considerate of others in your actions.”

  The video continued to play, highlighting the animal-like humanoids, a quick shot of Mirail, and the assortment of other creatures that appeared. The Scalebound Dragon had most of the pointed fingers, as expected. Walker let them talk, knowing that more sapients and monster-like creatures needed time to settle in mentally. After waiting several minutes, he sent the signal, and all the screens turned off.

  Tapping his foot, he counted to five, then used one of his abilities multiple times. Canisters of magic began to explode far overhead, their cyan coloring lighting up the whole area as he shouted to the crowd, “Now! Whose ready for the Rewards ceremony!”

  He smiled inwardly as they shifted from chatter to cheer. As their excitement built, fists raised into the sky, a thought skittered across his consciousness: All according to plan thus far.

  Snapping his fingers, the top thirty individuals appeared on a list, “I know you believed that it was only the top ten who would get a reward, but that wouldn’t be fitting for us. Everyone numbered from thirty to eleven will receive one of these,” Walker held up a red gem, “If you remember your Incipience video, this is a Cap Raiser, a gem meant to push a non-incipient skill beyond one hundred. They will also receive one of these,” Walker reached into his inventory and pulled out several cards. Lifting the first one, he threw it at the ground. It burst into a sprinkle of red coloring before settling as a large Ostrich, a saddle on its back and a small green gem centered in its chest, “These are mounts, something I’ve been working on for longer than you’d think. They connect to people through what we call soul-binding, meaning they can’t just be stolen from you.” Reaching into his inventory again, he removed nineteen more and burst them all in a haphazard pattern on the ground. As the soul-constructed mounts took shape, the crowd began wildly pointing at them, speaking to one another.

  Horses were the primary mount type presented, but there were also bulls, a few large cats, and an oversized Zebra, a snarky presentation to its mouth. Naturally, none of them were squirrels.

  Walker hardened the air below him, then stepped down as close to a hundred thousand eyes watched. When he reached the ground, the mounts preening around him, he spoke to the crowd, “If you hear your name called out, please step forward to receive your winnings. We’ll move from eleven down to thirty.”

  He waited for a beat, then yelled out, “Number eleven! Fillion the Kind Pirate from the Waterwheel Territory!

  A man stood up from a section near the front. The first pirate of Symphony swaggered out of the crowd with steady steps. He walked up to the Creator, receiving a handshake and a pat on the back. In only a moment, a lifted red gem disappeared into his inventory, white teeth showing against his red beard. Walker spoke up with one hand on the pirate’s shoulder, “As Fillion is the highest rank of the eleven to thirty group, he has the first choice of mounts.”

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  Nodding at the Creator, Fillion sauntered over and looked at each. His eyes, however, continued to go back to a thin horse with a dark saddle. Hooking a thumb to it, he said, “I choose this one.”

  Walker nodded and reached out toward the soul-construct. It collapsed into red sparkles, turning back into a card, then flew to the pirate's hand. The moment he touched it, a small red pulse came from it, a matching pulse reverberating from the Pirate.

  “You’re now bound to each other. Congratulations, Fillion.”

  The pirate nodded and stepped back towards his seat, the card dancing between his fingers as he flipped it back and forth. All eyes turned back to Walker.

  “Number Twelve and a big surprise! Karen Gold of Prosperity City!”

  One by one each stepped forward and claimed their rewards. Karen had expectantly chosen the Zebra, the only mount of its kind in the group, while everyone else seemed to find some kind of connection with their own. Hank had fallen to number twenty-two, but that didn’t bother him, as the cheering of his Territory and many others drowned out his lower-than-expected placement.

  The Ostrich was sadly chosen last, though the construct didn’t seem to notice.

  Once every mount was taken and every Cap Raiser was rewarded, Walker pushed his soul into shaping two great hands of darkness, rising over the arena. The clap they made was thunderous, quieting the crowd down.

  “Now, for the Top Ten. All of the top-seeded rewards have been personally chosen for each of you. But more than that, each of you will have your own choice to make when you step forward. As many know, the fourth battle is only a few hours away, and Symphony needs heroes.” He looked around the crowd, focusing momentarily on Runner, “In the previous battle, even though we prepped for it, they did not call upon any of our citizens. I’ve been told by Elder Virgil that it is not likely to happen again. As such, I ask the Top Ten who step forward to make the choice themselves. Do you want to be chosen to fight the forces of the Multiverse, or are you content with allowing others to go in your place? There’s no shame if you turn it down, but I do not enjoy dragooning others into battles they have no wish to be a part of. Please let me-”

  He paused his speech as Chipper stood up. The Zenith held a lot of sway with the people of Symphony. His calm, cool personality, mixed with his ability to defeat a highly skilled fighter like Runner Grove, had already made him Symphony’s first true legend. Add in that everyone who visited the Eternal Base had to walk by a giant statue of him, and you had a recipe for a voice that mattered as much, if not more, than Walkers.

  Large, bold writing appeared in the sky.

  All of those who would defend Symphony, please stand up.

  Chipper stayed standing, as slowly, then all at once, the entire arena stood with him. Walker wasn’t blind to the fact that most of the Primigenials had stood as well, nor that the Hill Giant stood up with them, a dumb smile on his face.

  Walker put his hands out, “Thank you. I thank you from the bottom of my heart.” After doing a quick mental scan, he found that all of the top ten were standing. Patting his hands in the air, he said, “You can sit down, then we’ll get this show on the road. But again, I want to say thank you for standing with Symphony. It isn’t always easy to be a Creator, but it is my true joy and honor to have met all of you. You’re what makes Symphony great.” He clapped his hands then rubbed them together, “Now, let's get to see some rewards.”

  Reaching into his inventory, he pulled out a silver chest with the number ten on it. A loud voice in the Primigenial section yelled out, “Ey! I made dat!”

  Walker smiled as laughter filtered out of the crowd, “Ah, that’s a nice sound,” He sighed. “Yes, you did, Heph, and it's part of the gift. I’ve modified all the chests to become pocket dimensions, meaning they’ll act as a secondary inventory for all of you. So, without any further delay, let's do this.”

  The first to walk up was Melias. The Wanderer’s points had dropped the longer the event went on. The man claimed his prize, his mount already chosen for him: a singular Duo Wolf.

  “Inside this chest are two Cap Raisers, an expansion stone, and a bottle of magical essence that we feel will fit you best. Also, you will find that you now have the mini-map ability in your overlay. That should help Melias’s Moving Marvel, right!”

  After shaking hands, the crowd clapped in better harmony as he moved to sit down.

  Next up was a second-cohort Founder named Grim Ben, a name Walker had jokingly said to the man that had stuck with him. Contrary to that, he smiled as he accepted the silver chest, receiving a lizard mount with it. “You’ll find the same as Melias’s reward, but with a different magical essence. You will also find a pouch of seeds that we believe will be very beneficial to your Territory. They grow exceptionally well in the swamp.”

  “Thank you, Walker,” Ben said, sticking his hand out. Walker clasped it with a smile.

  As he moved to sit, Walker called out the next in line, “Our next winner, and eighth on the leaderboard, is a special case. Bale Quick, come on up here!”

  The Guardians section stood and cheered, with Rine the Dark giving an odd-looking squirrely smile. Bale zipped over to stand in front of Walker, his tail twitching erratically as the Creator spoke, “Bale made a special request, one I’m more than happy to oblige. When we first created Guardians, we put a restriction on their Tiers. Aside from Chipper, who was a unique circumstance, no Guardian can rise about the Fourth. Bale requested that all Guardians lose that restriction, and I’ve agreed with one change. Guardians who have protected their Mana Tree for at least fifty years will find that their restriction will no longer exist. And that goes live…now!”

  A small group of the Guardian section in the arena let out loud whoops as they read the text on their screen, but Walker wasn’t finished yet.

  “Since you’ve been such wonderful caretakers for our world, I found it an incredible shame that you don’t have a space of your own. That’s why I reserved one of the Territory rewards for the Guardians alone. Speaker Adele, can you step forward, please?”

  The thin Guardian ran over quickly, leaping in her haste to arrive. When she stopped, Walker reached into his inventory and pulled out a glowing Foundation stone, “This is for you, as well as Bale and all retired Guardians. You will also receive gifts from a Primigenial who is currently busy off-world. I highly suggest you call the Territory Sanctuary, by their request.” He handed over the slightly larger than normal Foundation stone, then turned to Bale, “As for you, friend Bale.” He produced a chest with the number eight on it, “As you’ve already found your Magic, we’ve instead included several Cap Raisers to compensate you for when you unlock skills at the fifth tier, included an Expansion stone, and I’m going to personally see to it that your Incipience is an exceptional event.”

  The Guardian seemed out of sorts as he looked at the chest. Unexpectedly, he stepped forward, wrapping his arms around Walker. His Creator paused for a moment, then returned the hug, patting the guardian on the back several times.

  Bale stepped back with a slight bow before picking his chest up, while Adele reached her hand toward Walker. He grabbed it with a smile, pumping twice, “Congratulations to Bale and all of Symphony’s Guardians. You’ll have your own home from now on. And don’t worry, we’ll get new Guardians to take over your old territories.”

  They moved back to a very excited crowd of seats, a particularly happy Rine the Dark giving Walker an approving nod. Nodding back, Walker continued on with the show. Each of the top seven came up one at a time, with the fifth through third receiving special equipment on top of everything else they’d received.

  Walker called up Bailan Smith in second place. The man stood up slowly, stepping over with what Walker would call a hitch in his getty-up. The Creator, speaking in a normal tone only heard by the blacksmith, “Are you okay, Bailan? You seem pretty put out.”

  “Yeah, it’s fine,” The thick-armed man replied as he rubbed the back of his head, “But how did she beat me? And by two hundred points! That woman is a terror.”

  Walker laughed, firmly patting the big man on his shoulder, “I’ve found throughout my life that second place doesn’t mean you’re the first loser. Sometimes, you have to accept that someone out there did better than you and try to exceed your former self on the next run-through. It’s not about beating the other guy or girl in this instance- It’s about being a better you.”

  Standing up a little straighter, Bailan smiled as he received his rewards. As the second-place winner, his mount was a tier of rarity higher than those who had come before. It was a massive Rhino with a very large, green gem in the center of its chest. Walker had also included something new, a crystal blacksmith’s hammer that could self-repair along with several crates worth of the material.

  He began to walk away when Heph called him over, asking to see his new hammer.

  While that happened, Walker had the screen focus on himself.

  “And now the moment you’ve been waiting for, the #1 Ascension winner in the individual bracket. You know her, some of you love her, let's hear it for Runnnnerrr Grovveee!!”

  A small chant began in the crowd, peppered throughout different sections, “Runn-er! Runn-er! Runn-er!”

  The smiling woman zipped over in a flash of lightning.

  “Runner Grove everyone!” The crowd clapped and hollered as the short-cropped woman gave a small bow, “Runner far exceeded the requirements of reaching first place, beating poor Bailan into a second-place pulp!” They laughed as Bailan good-naturedly bowed at that, Heph holding his hammer and pointing at it, veins distending in his neck. “Runner spent the majority of her time jumping around Symphony, helping anyone she could find and making a general nuisance of herself.”

  “That’s true,” Runner said with false modesty, nodding along.

  “Here’s a few key scenes from her travels.”

  The screen above updated, showing Runner saving people, fighting monsters, and getting drunk in a territory's new tavern- the crowd laughed at that one. “Did you know that was the first tavern on Symphony? I heard Runner traveled a hundred miles to get there the moment it opened.”

  “It still wasn’t as good as Elder Dios!” She called out.

  “Damn, right!” The god of festivity said from his chair, holding up a goblet to his purple lips.

  Walker waited for the laughter to die down before the screen swapped back to his face, “Runner is unique, as we all know. Top of her cohort during the Conservatory, first to receive an Icon, and now, top of the limited Ascension event. I really racked my brain to come up with something unique that only she would appreciate. Mounts wouldn’t do it, she runs. She doesn’t have a territory, so there goes the Foundation stones. Don’t get me wrong, you’ll be getting five Cap Raisers just to help you out.”

  “Thank you,” She said with another bow.

  “Indeed,” Walker replied with a smile, “But still, what can I get Runner that would really tell the tale of this extraordinary woman who came into my life a year ago?”

  “Dude,” She said, planting her hands on her hips, “you made me.”

  “Touche,” Walker replied, getting a confused look from everyone as their translators helped out, “So, I came up with something extra unique for the very much unique Runner Grove. I present to you all,” Walker gestured at the screen, waiting until it had split into a hundred smaller screens, “The Runner system. In any region you go to in Symphony, there will now be a small stand like this,” He gestured, and one materialized before him. It was only a three-foot-tall piece of black metal, but a foot covered in lightning appeared on the top. Just above the foot was a button, “If you press on this,” Walker did so, “An image will appear of the illustrious Runner Grove.”

  A hologram came into being. It set itself into a sprinting position, looking over at Runner. With Walker’s encouragement, the actual Runner Grove set into the same position beside the image of herself. Walker continued, “Each image of Runner will have a set speed. Some will be faster, others slower, but they all have one thing in common.” He looked at the woman, bouncing on the back heel of her foot, “Go ahead.”

  Runner pushed off as she began to sprint, the image beside taking off at the exact same moment. It only took a moment for the Founder to understand that the image would simply run a circuit around the arena, causing the real Runner to grow bored quickly. Sprinting ahead of the image, she returned to the podium with more than a little time to spare. With Walker’s instruction, she touched the podium, a slight ding ringing in the arena. Her mouth dropped open at the sound.

  “I got a milestone?”

  “That’s right!” Walker cheered, “Each and every Runner trial will give milestone points if you complete them before the image. Though, a word of warning to all, this one here is the slowest Runner trial in Symphony.”

  He looked over at the smiling hero-in-training, “So, do you like it?”

  She nodded, “I love it.”

  Walker smiled back, “I’m glad.” He looked out at the crowd, “We’re going to take a quick intermission to allow everyone to go to the bathroom, which is located at the top of the stairs. Then, we’ll continue with the Territory rewards. If I could have the other members of the top ten join me and Runner, I’d greatly appreciate it.” He gave a wave, ”Thank you, everyone!”

  Walker waited until the crowd dispersed and the top ten gathered, then reached into his inventory, pulling out nine items, “I didn’t want everyone to know we were doing this, so we’ll have to be quick.” Holding out his hands, nine symbols glowed within, “You nine need to pick an Icon, Runner already has something like it.”

  One of the second-cohort Founders looked at them hesitatingly, “What do they do?”

  “They give you power,” Walker replied seriously before glancing at Bailan.

  The smith looked at Walker for a long moment, then the items in his hands. Moving one aside, he found and quickly grabbed Heph’s hammer Icon.

  “Alright, that’s one.” Walker said as he looked at the next, “I’ll explain how to use them when the event ends.”

  With Walker’s advice, each picked an icon up and placed it into their inventory. As they walked away, he looked at his notifications, finding Ra’s task incomplete.

  They’d have to use them.

  Snorting, he looked back at the crowd as they intermixed among the arena, seeing old friends and making new ones. Next was Territories and the big show he’d planned. It was time for everyone to learn what a dungeon was.

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