Frostbound

Chapter 268 - North of East

The map was rolled out and people crowded around for a good look. It showed the area well and I was curious who and how the sections would be divided.

Some Factions were objectively stronger than others. The Admiral had thousands behind him while some of the lesser pylon Owners had a few hundred and nowhere near high enough level to make up the difference. Frostheim as a whole had just under a thousand Defenders.

Giving everyone the same area regardless of strength was stupid.

People had naturally grouped into a rough circle when arriving for the meeting and now that there was something to interact with and look at, that circle tightened.

Being near the back screwed me.

As the circle closed in, I was left staring at the backs of those in front of me. I was on the taller side for a man, taller than average at least, but that didn't give me enough height to see over people.

I looked over at Marcus who was in a similar predicament since he was standing next to me, and both of us nodded.

I stuck out my hand and began forcing my way through. The first person looked around angrily but even as he tried to push back it did nothing.

He quickly revised his decision after seeing that.

The next fared mostly the same.

It was rude to push through like this but I wasn't going to be languished to the back. I was fine with taking a back seat during the bickering because it didn't matter in the end. The people who spoke up for whatever idea they championed would've accomplished the same thing if they'd said nothing.

Sure, people got to hear you speak but what did that achieve?

Maybe that was purely my own opinion and people did look at them differently for having the courage to speak up, but that idea felt stupid and I hoped it wasn't true. To form an opinion on something that stupid...

Marcus forced his way through on my right. It was a deliberate decision on his part to part his own way instead of following mine and I noticed it.

As we got closer to the table of Earth that had been pulled from the ground, I had to be... rougher with my shoving. Not only did I have to displace the ones in front of me, but they also had to move to the side and displace others so I could get around them.

Most kept their mouths shut when they realized that I could physically move them out of the way with relative ease but some were more vocal about their displeasure.

I ignored them.

I also noticed others doing the same as Marcus and me. The first to leap up and position themselves at the front were either the more opportunistic or situationally aware.

Which didn't require them to be the strongest.

The noise level grew as the reshuffling intensified but by then, I'd made it to the front. The map and the table it was on were easily large enough to have twenty people surround it and there were not twenty people here I feared.

I told Abigail some of the people here felt threatening but that number was not as exaggerated as I made it sound. There were roughly ten that I became... wary of after meeting them.

Most were holding in their auras and hiding themselves enough that directly knowing who was stronger was impossible. I was doing the same as they were, holding in my aura so I knew they weren't getting the full reading from me either, but that only made people cautious.

Without knowing definitively where you ranked made things a bit more nebulous.

If I had to pick one to be at the top of the list I had to worry about, it would be the Admiral. With him, I didn't just have his personal power to consider. He had a large backing and that was something to consider as well.

It was also why no one was adamant about 'dethroning' him or stealing the microphone if I had to put a name to it. I was also alright with letting him lead because I sure as shit wasn't.

I was fine with leading my own city, proud of it even, but I was not about to saddle myself with being in charge of so many people even if I did manage to bully my way up. A person was smart, but people were stupid. If the man wanted that honor, I would let him have it.

The main reason I was fine with leading the people who came with me, was because I cared about them. I'd lived with them for a couple of years, fought with them, and bled with some of them.

I didn't give one shit about most of the people here.

Caring in the base humanitarian way didn't count. Sure, their deaths would be sad on the fact a life was ended but I wouldn't lose sleep over it on an individual level.

Marcus forced his way through after me and was standing firmly next to me again while both of us looked over the map.

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This side West of the River was full of trees and plant life as the terraforming our planet under went made everything explode in growth, but most of it had been cut down or removed by the people here already.

Mainly to make room for camps, but some did it for other reasons.

Wood for crafting or building furniture or other camping amenities. Plants uprooted to clear the ground or, if they were edible, eaten.

Putting over two hundred thousand people in close proximity had a detrimental effect on the environment, who would've guessed?

The map most likely wasn't up to date on the deforesting efforts that were currently taking place but it did show them. It showed where trees had already been taken down or where other obstacles were removed.

"How up to date is this?" the man from Yellowstone asked. His aura felt like a mixture of fire and earth before, but now that I was closer, it felt more like a dormant volcano.

It was little surprise that all the other people that made their way to the front were the ones I suspected of being Barons.

Jayla, from Mountainside. Travis from Yellowstone. Devin from Denver. Nick the sparky edge lord. Patrick from Harbordeep, wherever that was. Vanessa from Eternal Flame Falls. Vernon from New Orleans. Zuri from New York. Liam from Boston. Irwin from the Bayou.

The last man felt the weakest and was just on the edge of what I suspected was Baron level. He also looked the most humorous as his image reminded me of Crocodile Dundee and the fact he came from the Bayou only made it better.

It was also a little suspect that two baron-level people came from such close proximity. Vernon and Irwin were both from Louisiana.

Did the swamp grow?

The map we had back in our camp showed most of North America. West of the Mountains wasn't shown and anything to the far South was also left off, but what used to be Louisiana should be visible.

I'd have to check it later.

"As of a few days ago. We'll update it as soon as possible." The Admiral said.

It went without mentioning that he also had a place at the table.

The river was off on the Eastern portion of the map and that was where most of my focus was. For Abigail and the rest with Water Affinities to fight at their best, being near water would help.

It would also benefit Marcus who would be fighting next to us. Being near water also wouldn't hinder anyone except Rachel and the rare fire affinity people we had.

Affinities were usually spread out and averaged over a population large enough but we noticed that there weren't a lot of Fire affinities in our City.

It was little surprise considering there were no sources of Fire mana nearby and the City actively hindered them for nearly half the year, but it was still surprising just how little there were.

Our most popular affinity by far was Ice.

It hadn't been at first. Gabriel and I weren't alone in the beginning, but Ice also didn't stand out. It was about average in terms of numbers. Even with the rest of the Common affinities.

That changed over time.

Affinities could be changed. They could also be evolved but that wasn't what I meant.

They could be changed from one element to another. The affinity you started with didn't mean you were stuck with it forever. The process was slow and extremely time-consuming, and it also required a large source of the target affinity's mana, but it was possible.

Nature supplying large quantities of Ice mana during Winter made it easy for those who wished to change to do so. It wasn't mandatory and I didn't advocate for anyone to switch, but a decent number of people decided to.

Most did it because it was the smart play. Frostheim was located right next to a tremendous source of Ice mana and it also spent months smothered in more Ice mana than most people knew what to do with.

That, and also having techniques they could use to Refine their bodies, people were sold. They also knew that more Ice techniques would be coming.

I knew a few did it because of me. Either because of some hero worship or to emulate what I do, but I tried not to think about those people. It was... odd to me that they so easily let go of their affinity to clutch onto my coattails.

Lastly, there were the rare few who didn't like the affinity they were given. Or manifested, depending on how it was looked at. They either hated it and actively sought to switch or held no attachment to it and were open to various options. One in particular refused anything to do with Blood, even though that was the affinity he was given.

That being said, while the number of people who switched was relatively small, it swung the numbers enough to put Ice at the top. When most affinities started around the same amount, getting a boost, however small, was enough to propel it above others.

Since there weren't any glaciers or icebergs nearby, it didn't much matter where we fought. Water would help, as it made creating Ice easier, but it wasn't required.

Still, being near the river would help more than hurt so that was where I directed my attention.

"Marcus, what do you think of here." I pointed toward the Northeast section of the circle that depicted the wall-building efforts. The map showed more than just current conditions, as it also showed what they planned to build as well.

Where I indicated was around 30 degrees North of East of the obelisk and it was the section that was closest to the river. The entire ring of Wall never intersected it, as the river was far enough away, but it was within a few hundred yards.

"Our backs would be to the river if we got in trouble." He answered, "If the Wall falls, and we're pushed back, we'll have nowhere to go."

I had the same thought but I looked at it differently. "It is also one less direction to defend if the other sections fall." I said, "If the worst happens, and other sections are overrun, we'll end up surrounded."

If the 'Blight-infected denizens' punched through and managed to get behind our lines, we would be hemmed in and assaulted on both sides.

Marcus looked up, "You expect them to fail?"

We were keeping our words soft so as not to be overheard, "Yes." I said, "We must plan for the worst and in the case it happens, running won't be an option."

While discussing the notification and the specific wording used with my family's Council, it was brought up that the test only ended when all the Defenders were dead, not defeated.

There was an argument about if one ran away if they were still considered 'Defenders', but we didn't know enough to make that distinction.

We had to plan around being considered a 'Defender' from the start and never losing that designation.

Even if it didn't say that, I wasn't sure how well running away would work. If the horde of enemies was endless, a fighting retreat was impossible. If they were fast, we wouldn't be able to get away.

The best scenario, if the Wall was breached, was to put the river at our backs so we only had to fight in a reduced line.

It would mean failure meant death, but it would also be the only way to avoid being surrounded.

"That's risky." Marcus kept looking at the map intently and I turned to do the same.

If we build a fallback line from the Wall to the River, in addition to fortifying our portion of the wall, we can have defenses on all sides.

It would also screw everyone else but I couldn't consider that right now. My City came first and if we had the chance, we would help others.

"I don't see anywhere better," Marcus said after finishing his assessment. "That's most likely our best bet."

"Then it's agreed?" I asked.

"Agreed." He answered.