NOVEL FROG CHAPTER 70: Day 1
High in the sky of the wasteland a massive screen appeared for all to see.
‘‘LEADERBOARD‘‘
And beneath it, an empty giant list…with only one name on it: ‘Portal Crushers.‘ Beside that was ‘‘Atlas‘‘ and a single number: ‘‘1‘‘.
“What’s that?” screamed one of the new travellers, panic edging his voice.
“Seriously?” Amber replied, her tone dripping with sarcasm. Amber, who bore a striking resemblance to Kat Dennings crossed her arms, over her ample boobs, “You really should’ve spent more time watching TV.”
“Oh God,” another traveller groaned, “that’s the first time I think that’s ever been said in the entire history of the world. But… It's true. Atlas must be rushing in and setting up the settlement just like on the show.”
“That’s nuts!” a third traveller exclaimed, her eyes darting between Amber and the leaderboard. “So it’s just like the TV show?”
“Yeah,” Amber confirmed, nodding slowly as she scanned the horizon. “But in the show, Clark had been this huge pain in the ass who started running the settlement in the first episode. Isn’t that right, Clark?”
All eyes turned to Clark, who was suddenly the centre of unwanted attention. He noticed the combination of weird stink eyes and confusion aimed his way.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa, guys,” Clark stammered, holding up his hands defensively. “I have nothing to do with the TV show, the portals, or any of this. I’m just as new as you are.”
Clark said smoothly, masking the anxiety gnawing at him. As a fellow regressor, just like Atlas, he knew exactly what was coming. He hadn't used his knowledge at all, and now, the reality of the situation was hitting him hard.
‘Maybe this wasn’t a dream after all? No. It’s probably a dream within a dream.‘ He definitely had to discuss this with his therapist on Tuesday.
Clark thought, ‘if it really is just like the TV show, I know what’s going to happen. I’ve got to figure out what to do for myself. Even if this is all a dream, I want it to be a dream where I’m the leader, just like the TV show.‘
“Well,” Amber said, trying to ease the tension, “that was always the TV show, I guess. It’s strange they had a guy called Clark on the show who looked really similar to you, though.”
“But some of it is coming true,” another traveller chimed in, thinking about the glowing fairy. “Look, there was the Red Fairy. And there’s the leaderboard with ‘Portal Crushers’ on it. I wonder if they still have all those vending machines…”
“I don’t know,” Amber replied, squinting into the distance. “That’s where I saw them all going towards earlier. Let’s go have a look. No one says we have to stay here by the portal.”
The group of undecided newbies exchanged glances, then slowly started wandering toward the machines. As they approached, the once distant objects in the ruined castle became clear:
“There they are! The portal-approved trading vending machines! Just like in the show!” someone shouted excitedly.
“Oh, let’s see what they’ve got,” another traveller urged, practically bouncing with anticipation.
“Yeah, they never really focused on that in the show,” one guy muttered as they reached the row of vending machines.
“Oh, look at this one! Weapons… food… oh, there’s the MediPod,” a woman pointed out, moving from machine to machine. “And over here they’ve got all sorts of entertainment stuff. Look! Clothing!”
“Oh my God, I need clothing! Mama said you should always be dressed outside,” one of the travellers exclaimed, his cheeks flushed as he realised he was still wearing nothing but his tighty-whities.
“Glasses! Glasses!” another voice rang out, belonging to a man squinting at the screen. “There’s prescription contacts and glasses!”
“God, we need all this stuff,” the tighty-whities guy muttered, his eyes fixed on the clothing machine. “And they all need coins. I don’t have any coins though.”
"Of course, we can't buy anything," one of the newbies grumbled, staring at the vending machines in frustration. "We don't have any coins left! How are we supposed to get gear?"
Clark watched the scene unfold, a thoughtful expression on his face. “Well, I’m sure Atlas had a very good reason for forcibly taking all those coins that belonged to the group,” he said in a tone meant to sound reasonable. “But it would have been nice to have asked everyone’s opinion, don’t you think?”
The group murmured in agreement, already starting to view Clark as a voice of reason. He could sense it; his subtle strategy to sell himself as the settlement’s leader was working. He stressed fairness and concern for the group's wellbeing, all while planning his next move.
“Alright,” Amber said, turning back to the group as she caught sight of something in the distance. “Looks like the Portal Crushers are already on their way.”
She pointed toward a cloud of dust kicked up by Atlas and his team as they jogged toward their next objective.
“Yeah,” another traveller observed, shading his eyes with a hand. “It looks like they’re making their move.”
"Quick, let's chase them before they get out of sight!" Amber yelled, her voice urgent as she pointed towards the cloud of dust left behind by Atlas and his team. "Atlas! Atlas!"
Atlas, hearing the voices behind him, slowed his quick jog and turned to face his team. He quickly assessed the situation. The only person without a new weapon from the vending machines was Stu. Stu, as the resident hothead, probably wasn’t the best choice to be left behind. But the newly bought weapons had all been handed out and Atlas didn’t want to delay. There were some good things about leaving Stu to deal with the new refugees though.
"Stu," Atlas called, motioning for him to stay behind, "hang out here. Let everyone know that we're heading out to take down some skeletons. Have them follow us.”
Atlas turned back to face his team, the energy in the air was charged with tension. This was the moment they’d been training for, and everyone felt it. They had no time to waste, no time for hesitation. But as he glanced back at the rest of the group, his eyes locked onto Stu, who was grumbling under his breath.
“I can’t fucking believe this crap,” Stu muttered, his brow furrowed with frustration. “Shepherding newbies? That’s what I fucking get? I should be out there busting heads, not babysitting!”
Atlas didn’t have time for this. He could see the other travellers in the distance, still confused, still unsure of what to do next. The seconds were ticking by, and every moment they stood still was a moment wasted.
“Stu,” Atlas barked, his voice cutting through the tension. “Time is of the essence. We have no time to argue. We need someone to guide the others, and you’re it. Get them to follow us. That’s an order.”
Stu’s eyes flashed with anger, but he knew better than to argue further. With a grunt, he turned and headed back to gather the stragglers, his frustration evident in the tightness of his movements.
Atlas then dumped out all the gear from his massive 80-litre backpack, setting an example for the others. "Everyone, empty your packs! We'll need the space for the skeletons. But keep the backpacks—those will be crucial."
The Portal Crushers quickly followed suit, emptying their packs of everything. The pile of gear on the ground was impressive, but Atlas knew they'd be back soon enough to sort through it.
"Stu," Atlas continued, "get them to follow behind, we will need porters.”
"Alright, let's move out!" Atlas commanded, leading the Portal Crushers towards their first challenge in the wasteland.
Stu, understanding his role, met up with the curious refugees and informed them that the Portal Crushers had moved on ahead.
"It's so annoying," one of the noobies commented, folding his arms. "Nobody has explained anything to us."
“Yeah. It’s bullshit,” said another refugee.
A woman with fear in her eyes said, “I don’t want to go anywhere near skeletons!”
Stu, overhearing their complaints, let out a sigh. He wasn’t thrilled about being left behind to babysit the new recruits, but Atlas had chosen him for another reason, besides not having enough clubs to hand out. Stu’s temper and no-nonsense attitude would keep the newbies in line. He might not be the most diplomatic, but he was effective when it came to getting people to do what needed to be done. Plus, with the Portal Crushers needing to move quickly, they couldn’t afford to waste time arguing over who would stay back. Stu was the best man for the job, even if it meant dealing with some complainers.