New Eden: Live to Play, Play to Live

Chapter 932  World Summit

All across the globe, from the deepest reaches of the Amazonian forests to the highest habitable peaks of the Himalayas, casts of leaders were meeting to discuss the rapidly changing world.

The new spawning monsters, often accompanied by changes in the ecosystems where they appeared, were wreaking havoc on the world, starting in the deepest reaches of hidden Earth.

They were desperately trying to hide as much of it as possible, but censoring every news outlet and kid with a phone was becoming a Herculean task.

They weren't even capable of dealing with the incidents, and mysterious organizations were springing from the shadows everywhere, killing the monsters and disappearing, adding to the chaos and confusion.

The fact that the governments were unable to discover who these organizations were was the cherry on top of this confusing sundae.

As if monsters appearing out of the blue weren't enough, people with abilities that could destroy the balance in power they had established over centuries of money control were now stalking the shadows.

This was enough to put every government in the world on high alert.

After many internal meetings, a summit was finally called, and the world leaders of the globe assembled in a virtual call, all wearing grave expressions, mixed in with a variety of emotions, ranging from anger to fear.

Once everyone was settled in, they stared at each other for a while, waiting to see who would talk first.

This stare-off would determine how things proceeded, as no one wanted to show weakness in front of the others, especially the larger countries, like Russia, Canada, the USA, and China.

With the largest land masses amongst everyone around, their countries also contained most of the natural resources shared among the world's inhabitants. This has shifted political power in recent years, as the economy boomed worldwide.

Russia's president was the first one to lose patience, and he slammed the table before him, making his hologram waver to the others.

"Will someone start talking already?! We did not convene to throw loving gazes at each other!" he shouted, spittle flying out of his mouth.

"Then why don't you start, you vodka-loving communist? Or are you afraid of admitting your frozen hell of a country is losing the fight against these monsters?" the Australian prime minister mocked.

"Careful how you talk to me, Kangaroo fucker," the Russian spat out, glaring at him.

"Come now, Agapov. No one has considered your threats seriously since the Cold War. Your predecessor made sure of that," an older man with a monocle said, smiling slyly.

"You stay out of this, Tea break. I don't need you intervening in my fights," the Australian groaned. Nôv(el)B\\jnn

"All right, gentlemen. Can we just get to business?" A woman with pitch-black hair interjected.

"I agree with the Canadian prime minister on this," another man said, locking his fingers together.

"Where is your president, American?" the Chinese president asked in a rude tone.

The man smirked at the Chinese president, like his question wasn't worth answering.

"The president doesn't have time to deal with these matters. It's why he's appointed me as head of the Paranormal Front Initiative. I'll be the one talking for America in these discussions about what is happening across the globe.

"I'm actually surprised you had time to be here yourself, President Zhou. I had already assumed you would have assigned someone to deal with this. My intel tells me your country is the least plagued by these monstrosities appearing everywhere. Care to share your secret?" the man asked in a snide tone.

The American who was standing in for the President was one that many knew of in the USA, as he was currently appearing often in the media, as the new candidate for vice president, if the current president was re-elected.

It was Senator Andrew Grimm.

"Senator Grimm, although your presence here is justifiable, I'm also curious why the president isn't here himself. We called for a meeting of leaders," the Canadian prime minister said, her eyes narrowing.

"Amalia, sorry, Mrs. Calloway. I think my title as senator already is enough to make me a leader, don't you think? As I've said, I am the new head of the PFI, which makes me a leader."

Amalia Calloway looked at him and grimaced.

In the meantime, Russia and Australia had kept throwing insults at each other, relishing in the verbal joust, before the president of Brazil coughed to catch everyone's attention.

As everyone stopped bickering and turned to look at the man, whose scarred face clearly reminded them of how he'd gained popularity in his country, silence fell on the virtual room.

"All of you keep acting like this isn't an emergency meeting. Our countrymen are dying in droves, and you take time to bicker like housewives at a country club meeting. Is this what the world's leaders have come to? Bickering old men and conniving middle-aged politicians?" he asked, his voice like a sword cutting through the silence.

Everyone looked at him with a disapproving gaze, and he scoffed.

"If my words hurt you, then it means I am right. Now. Could we stop the nonsense and get back on track? Every second I waste here is a second I could have been spending moving my army around the country to save my people."

The senator scoffed back at him.

"If sending troops at the problem would fix it, don't you think we'd already have it all under control in America? Our army is ten times that of your country, with equipment that would make yours look like stone spears and knives."

The Brazilian looked at the American with fire in his eyes, but kept silent.

"Gentlemen. We are not here to have a pissing contest. We are here to discuss our success stories, and share what little intel we have on those newly appearing abominations," Amalia said, scanning the room.

It made many people in the room uncomfortable, the ease at which the Canadian prime minister talked about success stories.

"The Chinese and you might have some of those, but not everyone suddenly has a secret society to take care of supernatural occurrences," the Australian prime minister grimaced.

And the Russian president, who also had yet to see any traces of powered people appear in his country to eradicate the monsters, soon followed him.

"The Canadians barely have theirs under control, from what I hear," the senator mocked.

"We are still trying to lock them under our yoke. At least they aren't unreasonable," the woman replied, ignoring his mocking tone.

In return, she asked, "What about your PFI? How did you get powered people to deal with the monsters?"

"I can't share such information with you; you know this. I can only tell you how we've been dealing with the monsters, as per authorized by the president."

The British prime minister huffed a laugh.

"Please, senator. We know how you dealt with it. With brute force and the discovery of mana. If you had the level of refinement required to deal with the problem adequately, everyone knows you would already be butting into our backyards, claiming you are there to help."

The senator clenched his jaw at being called out like this.

"And I suppose you think you have the better method?" he asked, his teeth clenched together.

"These monsters are from across the veil. Of course we know better. Where do you think the concepts and legends about magic come from? Who else than Britain would be prepared against a threat from across the veil?" the British mocked.

China laughed loudly, looking at the Brit like he was a joke.

"You call it magic; we call it Qi. But do you think your culture has a monopoly on it? My country has a longer history than all your countries combined. Don't dare presume you have invented the mystic arts, Laowai."

The British's face became stone cold.

"Then, by all means. Share with us your great techniques," he mocked.

The Chinese president immediately sunk back into his chair.

He could not share this secret with the world; it was not his to share.

And even if he could convince the people whose secret it was to share, he doubted they would share it outside of the country itself.

"That's what I thought," the Brit scoffed, seeing him clam up.

"On the contrary, the Men of Letters have willingly shared the secret with us, and are willing to share it with the world, at not but a small cost," he added, grinning.

Everyone became silent, anticipating the cost.

"With just the chance of establishing a branch in each of your countries, the Men of Letters have agreed to share the secret with everyone."

There it was.

This empty promise fooled no one in this room.

In time, they were all sure they would find a solution on their own that didn't involve letting a foreign country take hold in their backyard. The only issue here was time.

No one knew how bad the problem was, or how bad it would become. Was this the peak of it, or just the beginning?

How many would die before they found a cure for this plague of monsters?

"So? What will it be?"