“What kind of sweet deal?” I had a lot of goodies on hand, but I’d never turn down another intergalactic gourmet dessert.

  “I’ve found you an ideal sponsor!” Cyrus chortled.

  Sponsor? I leaped off the bed, heart racing. Burns had a sponsor and look what happened to him. “That’s good, right? I mean, I don’t know much about sponsors.”

  “It’s not only great, but it’s vital,” Cyrus said.

  “So you get us sponsors?”

  “I manage the process of connecting you. When one of you piques the interest of a sponsor, they submit a bid. Bids remain open for 2 days for any counter bids. Usually the process is simple. A single sponsor bids for a single person. If there are counter bids, the best bid wins.”

  “So this sponsor bid on me 2 days ago?”

  A chuckle. “You’ve had bids arriving since early bidding first opened on day 10. That sparked a bidding war, which is exactly where you want to be. And now, a major player got involved with an offer on a whole other level.”

  That was sounding better and better. After my chat with Kaelor, I got a tiny taste of what kid of resources a strong faction could bring to bear when they wanted to. Getting a second one might make the difference between life and death.

  “Shouldn’t you have consulted me on the best offer to take?”

  He laughed. “Of course not. You don’t know enough about the multiverse to make a good choice.”

  “So who is my sponsor?”

  “You’ll meet them in exactly 10 seconds.”

  “How?”

  “Do more listening than talking, and remember you can still negotiate like you did with Kaelor. That’s the only advice I can give you. Good luck.”

  My mind whirled. A sponsor sounded great, but what strings would come attached? I’d seen enough about the multiverse to realize nothing came for free, and no one got involved in the game for altruistic purposes.

  The 10 seconds ticked down fast and a new voice interrupted my thoughts.

  “Hello, Lucas,” said the voice, a deep, confident baritone with a Swiss accent. Immediately, I pictured him as a banker, sitting in a corner office, overlooking a fjord.

  “Hello. What do I call you?”

  “I am known as the Archon of the Umbral Waters.”

  A bit pretentious, with a definite sinister overtone, but why not? He probably had enough money to buy Earth a hundred times over.

  “So, you want me to use the entire thing every time, or just call you Archon? Or Archie? Or Umbral?”

  “Most call me Archon,” he responded, annoyance clear in his tone. I shrugged, but he continued, more thoughtfully. “I have never heard the name Archie.”

  “Kind of like Archon, but with an Earth homeworld flavor.”

  “I like it. A strong name, a prophetic declaration of our inevitable victory together.”

  “Works for me. Archie it is.”

  I had to work to conceal a smile. Archie was clearly an extremely powerful individual. I’d suggested the name more as an off-the-cuff joke to help still my nervousness. Calling the nameless sponsor Archie helped make him feel less alien and threatening.

  Hopefully he never learned that Archie wasn’t anything special. I couldn’t afford to alienate him. Cyrus seemed genuinely thrilled about this sponsor and I couldn’t lose any help. Besides, if I ticked him off, he could no doubt make my life harder.

  “So, Archie, I’m assuming you’ve been watching me, but I don’t know anything about you or sponsors in general.”

  “The concept is simple. As the head of my company, I am offering to sponsor you, provide additional sponsor-funded loot boxes to help you excel, and support your rise to become Earth’s ultimate champion.”

  That resonated with some things Burns had said, which honestly made me more cautious. I wouldn’t go along with murdering other humans.

  “Did you know that Burns was sponsored?”

  “Of course. All sponsors know who else is sponsored. Burns and Elizabeth were the first. Once we finalize our agreement, you will be the latest new champion after Tony.”

  So Tony was getting a sponsor too? That didn’t surprise me. I should have guessed that Elizabeth was sponsored. It finally made sense how Burns ended up at the second spot on the top-10 list. Apparently, getting a sponsor counted even more than levels.

  Interesting that Tony won a sponsor, but not Paul or Crystal. They were town leaders too, but he was a warrior. Elizabeth was not a warrior, though.

  “So why me? Why Tony and Burns and Elizabeth? What do you get out of sponsoring one of us?”

  “Productive question,” Archie said. “Each of you is a rising star, and each sponsor stakes their claims on the ultimate victory of Earth through the efforts of their chosen champion.”

  “But we’re all from Earth. We should work together.”

  “You will have to. None of you can win this stage of the game alone.”

  “This stage?”

  “Never mind that. Focus on surviving this week. Every sponsor of your world is betting on the success of Earth. At the same time, I have to commend you for removing the threat that Burns and his sponsor represented.”

  “You just said we need to work together. I’m getting mixed messages, Archie.”

  “Not at all. Burns was a great warrior and could have done much for your cause, but his sponsor was Commodore Grathan Maleborn, CEO of the Abyssal Gauntlet Conglomerate, a tier-5 dungeon diver expedition club interested only in transforming your world into a dungeon diving mecca where their overpriced expeditions could grind for experience and loot.”

  The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

  That was a lot to unpack. Tier-5? That was the highest-tier organization I’d heard about so far. Cyrus had explained how some loot with high Potential could be tiered up to become useful on other higher-tiered worlds, and it sounded like that was exactly what Burns’s sponsor planned to do, if Archie was telling the truth.

  “What if Earth ends up being lower-tiered? They couldn’t send higher-tiered people, could they?”

  “I cannot share specifics at this time. Suffice it to say, it is possible to move down tiers, just as bosses moved to Arasha.”

  So if people wanted to move down a tier, they had to accept a restriction on their power? Or something? That sounded miserable. Why would people do that? Questions for later.

  “What tier is your organization, and what do you do?”

  “I lead Neptrel Core Holdings, a tier-7 luxury marine products company. My world is mostly aquatic, so Earth is an excellent fit to join our family.”

  Tier-7? Whoa. If he was level 10, and if I was correct in assuming each planetary tier was 10 times stronger than the previous, he’d be equivalent to a level 100,000,000 person on tier-0 Arasha. He could probably kill me just by breathing on me.

  The staggering difference in power levels was hard to wrap even my enhanced mind around. My throat suddenly felt dry as I considered the fact that I’d been chatting casually with a being who was basically god-like in power compared to me.

  Even Kaelor, the tier-4 Elaris clan patriarch, would be 1000 times weaker than Archie. He made Velexis and the terrifying tier-3 Shadrael demon faction seem laughable in comparison. Maybe he could help protect Earth from them.

  There had to be more going on, though. Why sponsor me on a tier-0 game world from a planet that wasn’t even integrated into the multiverse yet?

  “Can you tell me what you gain for sponsoring me?”

  “Not in detail, at least not yet. I am investing in your potential to win the game, and in your home world’s potential to integrate well into the multiverse. More information will become clear over time.”

  “Okay, can you give me hints about what’s ahead in the game?”

  My entire focus had been on reaching and defeating Marisara, but his earlier comment suggested maybe there could be more to the game than we’d been told so far. Burns had said something about that too. Had his sponsor given him clues?

  “We’re not supposed to, especially before we even sign a sponsorship contract. To skirt that line can result in major penalties, including the blocking of loot and support from me to you.”

  It was possible to give hints, though. Was that why Elizabeth set up her coup and her club to perfectly take advantage of the ‘surprise’ announcement about viewers and VIP points?

  “That’s reasonable. I guess it’s time we discuss your offer, then.”

  “My offer is simple,” Archie said. “You will receive an initial diamond loot box as a signing bonus. I will also be allowed to share a bit more about the broader game.”

  So there was more to the game! Cyrus’s habit of telling us just enough for survive each stage was getting annoying. We’d all assumed once we defeated Marisara, we’d get to go home. Could there be another step?

  Hopefully not. The bait and switch would crush many people’s wills.

  Archie continued. “Your victories will also allow me to send you additional sponsor loot boxes. And as a sponsored player, you’ll gain access to an additional menu with more player lists and stats.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Archie chuckled. “Do you think all of this is happening in a vacuum? The potential integration of new worlds is a big deal for the multiverse. My organization is only one of many interested parties. As my champion, you will begin to learn more about the broader stakes and consequences for both you and your world.”

  “So what else do you get out of all this?” If big companies were involved, it meant there were profits to be had. Big profits. In some ways, that was more dangerous than having a seemingly all-powerful AI running our lives.

  “Another good question,” Archie said with a smile in his voice. “My analyst team said you showed promise for having a head for business. I am happy to see that assumption was correct.”

  “Analyst team?”

  “Of course. You think I have time to watch the game feeds all day? I told you, integration of a new world brings with it unprecedented opportunities. I have thousands of analysts watching every contestant, tracking progress, tabulating stats and probabilities, and projecting trends. One entire team is already calculating ideal loot box contents to maximize your chances of success.”

  This really was big business. Would Earth generate unique loot like Arasha when it integrated? Was that why so many high-tiered organizations were betting on them? There had to be more to it, and just that little glimpse Archie had just given me opened up hundreds more questions I doubted he’d be able to answer. We were a prize being haggled over by giant corporations that could squash our entire planet if they chose.

  Archie continued. “So sponsors like us who feel your planet would fit well in our corporate offerings choose promising candidates to support. You then become our champions and the face of our campaigns to the public.”

  “You’re running marketing campaigns on us?”

  “Of course. The game is one of the biggest revenue-generating enterprises in the multiverse. You’re already ranking well among humans, and with sponsorship, you will gain even more attention, thus allowing me to share more loot boxes and opportunities.”

  “So what happens after stage 4?”

  “As I stated already, I cannot share anything else yet. I do not like having to repeat myself, Lucas.” His tone turned suddenly stern, and my nervousness spiked again. I couldn’t forget how powerful he was. I needed him. With a tier-7 sponsor backing me, I could win so many more benefits for Earth.

  Assuming I wasn’t helping a heartless corporation position itself to take over my planet.

  As much as I wanted to flip off everyone involved in the game, I was powerless to change things. The game was happening. If we lost, Earth would die. Even once we won, our planet would be integrated. Winning a high-tiered sponsor might help us integrate into a high-tiered position, which would make worlds of difference.

  “You know, doling out the truth about the game one tiny piece at a time is super annoying for those of us who have to fight and die down here.”

  “I understand, but you have to realize the entertainment value of this game outshines all competitors a thousand times over. There is a process and a schedule that has been perfected over millennia. You are barely starting on the road to fame and fortune. Learn to enjoy the journey.”

  I took a deep breath. Getting mad at my new sponsor, a powerful being who had just promised to help me win, would be stupid. He didn’t control the game, but was trying to profit off of it. As ugly as that was, it was in his best interest to help me stay alive.

  “Can you tell me more about the multiverse? What does it mean to be integrated, and how do we make sure Earth ends up at a higher tier?”

  “I’m afraid that’s another bit of information that will be explained later. For now, just know that I am very interested in the future of your Earth.”

  “How about religion?” I asked instead. “Are religions popular?”

  That caught him by surprise and he hesitated for a moment before answering. I could imagine a line of assistants rushing up with pre-printed dossiers containing summarized bullet points. Could they have anticipated I’d ask that question?

  “There are many religions, some even like the monotheistic views expressed by some of your companions. However, such views are less common on higher-tiered worlds once people begin to understand the potential of those at the highest tiers. Those ultimate individuals are so powerful they are usually referred to as gods.”

  So there were even higher tiers than Archie. Usually people claiming to be gods got into trouble in the long run. Then again, what did it mean to be at the peak of power in the multiverse?

  The weakest baby from Archie’s world would be almost incomprehensibly more powerful than me, and there were people on even stronger worlds? Calling those super-powered elites gods might not be too far off the mark.

  What if one of them had decided to contact Earth thousands of years ago and pretend to be an omniscient god? Disturbing, but maybe not impossible. I’d never studied religion, but I had a bunch of religious friends.

  I pushed those thoughts aside. Not helpful, too distracting, and ultimately, I lacked information.

  “It seems clear that Earth will definitely be integrated soon, one way or the other.”

  “Of course. The tier of integration lies largely upon your shoulders.”

  Yikes.

  “Do newly integrated worlds spawn more loot with higher potential like game worlds?”

  He chuckled. “I like working with one who is better informed than most. It will make working together much easier. Suffice it to say that the answer depends again largely upon your success. It is my goal, my intent, and my own self interest to increase the bottom line of my company, this I am motivated to help you in any and every way I can to succeed and win the game.”

  “Do you know why Burns was told to murder other humans?”

  A longer delay this time, and when he spoke, he obviously chose his words carefully. “His situation is not unique, but I cannot share details. It is likely you will trigger conditions to learn the details on your own soon.”

  As I pondered that, he continued.

  “Now, if you will sign the contract, we can on-board you as our champion and unlock some great loot to help you excel, ensure you make it to the next stage, and help save your people.”