Please, please, please. Yes! He was still intact.
Above me, the kaiju clashed. I was right in the middle and in serious danger of getting squished. The large, chimera form of Lamashtu grappled with Avvinik and Banksy. I watched in awe as Banksy jumped into the air, leaping directly over me and attaching his mouth to the hell guardian’s side just as the massive lion-donkey beast looked down and saw me on the ground cowering next to the corpse of her child.
I grasped the small donkey’s leg, and I cut both of the foal’s legs off just about the knee. Lamashtu roared in a mix of anger and anguish. She moved to crush me, but Avvinik crashed into her. Banksy continued to thrash, attached to her side. The upcycle was for the feet and ankles, so it wouldn’t—hopefully—interfere with the super-jump ability I’d gained from Beleth.
Upcycle compatible hooves?
I paused. It only had a 20% chance of succeeding. I hadn’t noticed that part until now. Shit. 20%. If it failed, I’d come back here with permanent, bloody stumps where my feet used to be. My eyes focused on the angel corpse, and I knew I no longer had a choice.
Screw it. I clicked Yes.
Upcycle commencing!
The tentacles pulled me into the portal just as Lamashtu crashed down toward me.
For the first time in over a dozen upcycles, Shu the alienist performed the surgery himself while the surgery imps hovered around him. The usual heavy metal of the upcycle emporium still played, but it was muted.
“Yes, yes, this is a dangerous surgery,” Shu said as he proceeded to chop my feet off. “I will handle this myself, yes I will. You have been a good friend, a good client. Bernadette’s nephew. She was my friend.” He paused, then, looking as thoughtful as an expressionless bug could look. “I will do my best.”
A blink later, I was back on the ground in hell. I held my breath, waiting for the notification.
Upcycle complete!
Operation: success!
…Please wait.
Congratulations! Your body did not reject the upcycle!
Deftness +10
Acumen +20
Spell Rend Dimension added.
Holy shit, it had worked. It had fucking worked. I couldn’t believe it.
I looked at my new hooves sitting awkwardly where my feet used to be. I’d be a good five inches taller now. I was almost afraid to stand and try them out. I feared I’d tip right over.
Before I could try them out, movement caught my eye. Lamashtu. She was no longer the hell guardian. Nor was she a donkey. I only knew it was her because of the name blazing over her head.
She’d transformed into a beautiful, olive-skinned woman with straight, coal-black hair that sank to her waist. The woman was bloodied and bruised and dressed in rags. Her left breast hung exposed, and it leaked dark milk. Twin lines of gray, wispy smoke rose into the air, ascending from her back right where her wings once were.
She had a horrific wound to her stomach. She clutched her left arm to herself, barely holding herself together. Tears streamed down her face.
Above, Avvinik and Banksy loomed, both watching. She would not recover from these wounds, and we all knew it.
The woman limped to the body of the baby donkey as I watched. She collapsed on top of the corpse. She gently stroked the foal’s misshapen head.
“You were all I ever wanted,” she whispered as she closed her eyes.
And then she exploded, killing me.
Chapter 70
You have died 20 times.
Entering Oblation Chamber.
I’d forgotten to switch my respawn back to the Shrill. Still reeling from the death sequence, I popped into the room of screaming children. I tottered backward as I attempted to stand on my two hooves. It didn’t take long to get used to it, though I kept trying to wiggle my toes. I felt bouncier, more in control. But the upcycle had also added a whopping 10 to my deftness and 20 to my acumen, making it the best upcycle I’d yet to receive. I marveled at the beautiful, lengthy bar of soul points.
But then reality brought me back down. The plan had gone to shit. Jenk was back, and the angels were dead. We’d killed the upstart, but we still had to face Baal.
I needed to defend and heal the Shrill. I prepared myself, and I teleported directly to my base.
Multiple notifications scrolled by the moment I landed. The Shrill was in dire health. He had hundreds of cuts and bruises and lacerations. A small squad of zippers had managed to get inside and were currently wreaking havoc through his large intestine. The Shrill’s health had plummeted to 19% and was in a slow, steady decline.
I rushed into the cockpit and took stock of our surroundings. The demons were mostly gone, but small groups remained here and there, mostly skulking away back into the rift.
Most of the guardians were gone. I turned, surprised, looking for them. I saw them, then, walking away en masse. A whole mess of them, walking together toward Medina.
Why were they headed there? To protect the city? With the protections gone, they could go all the way to the city gates now. Hell, they could go into the city.
Only three guardians remained here on the outskirts of the rift. The still-flaming near-corpse of Paskunji, the Shrill, and Orthrus, who pressed his attack. Orthrus growled and slashed. The Shrill smacked back every assault. There was no marker over the kaiju’s head indicating Jenk was present. But he had to be in the game somewhere. Where was he?
I didn’t have time to fuck around. I had a belly full of zippers, and I could feel them deep within me, rummaging, slicing, cutting.
I slammed down on Hypnos.
Orthrus dropped like a rock, crashing into the burned and devastated landscape. I scuttled forward, shoving a tentacle into each of the passed-out wolf kaiju’s open and drooling mouths. I pushed deep into the rough and craggy throats, and I flexed, ripping with all of my strength.
The guardian ripped in two, blood and guts cascading down in a tsunami of gore.
I felt the familiar rush of dead-guardian soul power as I jumped out of direct control and hit the vein. I was already preparing my Antiparasitic as I jumped into the bloodstream.
***
It didn’t take long for me to discover where Jenk went.
I found him sitting cross-legged on the surface of the colon’s exterior. The organ bulged out through a nasty cut in a wall of muscle designed to keep the intestine in place. The painful hernia had to be attended to right away, and it was one of my first stops after casting Antiparasitic and repairing a half-severed off tentacle.
My neverending supply of soul power was finally starting to wane as I popped out of the artery less than ten feet from the formidable wolf. I stood there, stupidly staring at the player for several moments, too surprised to react.
Jenk raised his hands and slow clapped, grinning.
“Congratulations, Duke,” he said amiably. He didn’t move from his position on the muscle. A white fluid dripped from the ceiling. Some sort of gland directly above us must have been nicked.
I called up my spell menu, preparing for whatever was about to come.
“You’ve almost done it,” he continued. “I don’t know how you managed to kill that baby kaiju, but congrats. I’ve never actually seen the monster myself. On the KBS forums, people have talked about this route, but most people don’t even attempt it. It adds a layer of difficulty to the game without any sort of advantage.” He appeared genuinely enthusiastic. “And you combined it with the angels. Wow. When I realized you had initiated both paths, I went online to see how the endgame was going to play out. But, get this. I don’t think it’s ever been done before. Can you believe it?” He shook his head. “I’m guessing it’s probably not possible outside of co-op mode, but still. I can’t wait to see how it plays out.”
“What do you want?” I asked.
“Just a chat,” he said. He waved in a random direction. “Don’t worry. I won’t be attacking you. It’s been a while since we talked. I wanted to catch up. I just wanted to tell you how impre
ssed I’ve been with your performance. You’ve come a long way. And that move you pulled, getting me thrown in jail? I must say. Brilliant. Just brilliant. I know that had to be your idea, not Clara’s. She’s not nearly that clever.”
“Okay, now you’ve said it,” I said. “If you’d kindly fuck off, I’m a bit busy here.”
“So, I looked it up,” he said.
I just glared at him, not answering. He obviously wanted me to ask what the hell he was talking about.
“It turns out you don’t have to be a rabbi to be a mohel. Isn’t that interesting? Most are, mind you. Most are doctors, too.”
“Neat,” I said. “Are you done?”
“Clara hasn’t told you, has she?” Jenk said.
Don’t fall into his trap. Don’t do it.
“She’s told me everything,” I said, trying to contain my anger.
Jenk chuckled softly. “Oh, I doubt that. I truly do.” He rearranged himself, and I tensed. If he cast Deceleration, he could do anything he wanted to me. He also had his twin revolvers, and I knew he was faster than me.
“So, I checked up on your family recently,” he said. “I know you lost access to the feed when that Gramm idiot—SmashSouth. What an unfortunate name—when that idiot broke the controls for the stream. I’d told Lucas not to give the proctors that much power, but he wouldn’t listen.” Jenk shook his head sadly. “So, do you want to know how sweet little Ruth and stalwart Mary are doing?”
“No,” I said, growling. Yes, yes. I wanted to know. I needed to know. “I won’t believe a word you say.”
He laughed. “Oh, Duke. I am a terrible person. I am the monster under the bed. But I am not a liar. I have never lied to you, and I never will.”
“Just get the fuck out of here,” I said. I hated the way my voice sounded.
He smiled. “It’s sort of a good news, bad news situation. Good news first. They’re both still kicking. Ruth is pregnant. You’re going to be a granddad! Congrats on that. She’s been pregnant, by the way. She looks like a beached whale. And boy is she ready to blow. She was a couple months along when you came to join us here. Your wife still works at the hospital. She’s dating a doctor. She’s moved in with him, in fact. A really fat guy, ten years older than her. Odd choice, but who am I to judge? They got a dog last weekend. A Maltese, one of those little white numbers who never stop barking. They named the thing Diego. They don’t talk so much anymore, Mary and Ruth.”
I let out a long stream of breath. I had no idea if he was being honest. I suspected he was telling the truth. I knew exactly who the doctor was. Doctor Calhoun. A dermatologist. He’d been making advances on Mary for years. I felt my jaw tighten. I’d only been gone for six months.
Diego. A dog named after an artist. That hurt. That hurt a lot.
“So anyway, onto the bad news. It’s not so terrible on the Mary front. Honestly, I’m thinking she’s better off without you. The doctor guy is boring but harmless. He makes this weird face when he fucks her. He calls her ‘Kitty,’ too. I don’t know what’s up with that. But if it makes you feel better, she finishes herself off after he falls asleep.”
Jenk sighed dramatically. “Ruth, I’m afraid, is back in jail. We actually lost her feed when they upgraded her implants at the Washington state prison. So I can’t watch her day to day anymore. She got arrested less than a week after you came in here. Drugs. She also punched a cop, knocked his tooth out. I have the video if you want to see it. It’s hysterical. Anyway, the big charge is child endangerment, her being pregnant and all. You know how crazy your country is about taking care of unborn babies. Screw them once they come out, but they’re damn precious when they’re cooking. She just got sentenced a week ago. Five years, and the state will take the baby once it pops. It’s probably for the best. No offense, but you and I both know Ruth is not exactly mother material. Despite all the drama, the baby is healthy. It’s going to be a girl. Oh, and Ruth tried to kill herself a couple months back. Tried to hang herself in her own cell. She still has pending charges for that one.”
I leaned back against the thick artery, breathing heavily. I clenched my eyes shut. I knew I should not look away. God damn it. God fucking damn it.
“So, anyway. I had to send Orthrus to attack the Shrill to get your attention. But I’m going to back off. I want you to know I’m not going to interfere. I’m pretty sure you’re not going to be able to pull off this last part. Baal is a tough cookie. But I can’t wait to see what happens. Who knows? Maybe this silly little scheme of yours is going to work. You’ve already surprised me a few times. And for a guy like me, a surprise is a rare thing.”
I narrowed my eyes. “You’re just going to sit back and let us beat the game?”
He shrugged. “Originally, no. But I’ve changed my mind. I figured we can make a deal.”
“What do you mean?”
He leaned forward. “I am not a threat to you because you are not a threat to me. Even if they discover your pod before you wither away, there’s nothing you can do to harm me. You and I are not connected in any way. I have no reason to cause you harm, and you have no way of knowing who the hell I really am.”
That wasn’t actually true, but I wasn’t about to argue with him.
Jenk continued. “So, I’m assuming you know about the reset bug. That’s why you’re bending over backward to finish this season off. You win the game, and everyone gets ejected from their rig, right?” He laughed. “Here’s something you don’t know. Lucas… I mean Anatoly, he patched that bug. If you win, you aren’t going to wake up. You’re just going to find yourself sitting at the character creation scene.”
I felt as if I’d been punched in the stomach.
No. No. It couldn’t be true.
Was all of this for nothing? The thought broke me. It was as if the ground had been dropped out from underneath me.
Jenk seemed oblivious to my sudden distress. “The game will reset. Maybe this time you’ll pick yourself a less difficult race. I recommend trying a Mole Man. Technology and Earth. They’re pretty fun. Anatoly didn’t want you playing one because Princess had discovered the controller for their guardian, completely on accident one day. And that meant you’d come into the game already having control of Tsita, and that simply wouldn’t do.”
“You’re lying,” I said. “If that was true, you wouldn’t tell me.”
Jenk wagged his finger. “I don’t lie, remember? This isn’t the bad guy soliloquy at the end of the story. We’re still working on plot here. I’m telling you this for a reason, so listen up. I have the ability to step back that bug. It’s actually just a simple on-off toggle in the admin controls. And I’m switching it off right now. I’ll keep it off as long as we can come to an agreement.”
“What the hell, man? What are you playing at?”
“Clara. It’s all about Clara. You’re either going to get out of here, or you’re not. Spoiler alert. I can’t get to your rigs. I’m in a different country. Not even close. And in the spirit of total honesty, I’m not exactly certain where you are. I have a general idea, but not an exact location.”
“What about Clara?” I asked.
“You’re going to wake up, and you’re going to kill her for me.”
I just stared at the insane wolf for a long moment. “Why would I do that?”
“Because that’s our deal.”
I scoffed. “Surely you don’t believe I’d actually kill her. Even if I said I would.”
“Actually, Duke. I do believe you’re going to do it. In fact I’m quite confident.”
Christ, this man was crazy. “But why?” I asked.
“Why?” he repeated. “Why do I think you’ll kill her? Or why do I want you to?”
“Both!”
He thought for a moment, then seemed to come to a conclusion. “You’ll learn the answer to the first why before this is done. She’ll probably tell you herself, but if not, you’ll put it together. She’s like one of those puzzles, those optical illusions that make no s
ense until you twist them in just the right way. And then it all falls into place. As to why I want her put down? Because she’s a part of the machine. And I am taking it apart, piece by piece. When Anatoly first approached me and told me about this place and the clientele it would serve, I thought it was a great idea. I have since changed my mind. So I am disassembling it, as the sundered would say. I am the one who tipped off the authorities about the conspiracy. There are some loose ends left swinging in the wind. The servers, which I’m going to nuke soon enough. And Anatoly and Clara.”
There was a lot to unpack there. What else could there possibly be about Clara? And was I understanding him correctly? Jenk had turned the others in?
“What about you?” I said. “You’re a loose end, too.”
And me, I didn’t say. I didn’t think for one moment he had any intentions of allowing me to live. He was dangling this carrot because he wanted something from me. I remembered what Clara had said about him. He looks at something, and he instantly knows how to break it in the worst possible way.
Jenk laughed, wagging his finger. “I like you, Duke. I can see why Mary still cries almost every night. Anyway, I don’t know what Clara told you about this world and all the people who were working on this little project, but I’m guessing most of it was half-truths and lies. Clara has a few different personalities rattling around in that swiss cheese brain of hers, and every single one of them is a filthy liar. Some are better at it than others.”
“Lies?” I said. “So you and a bunch of your asshole friends weren’t kidnapping people, bringing them here, and torturing them?”
He waved his hand dismissively. “Yes, to a certain extent. But that was just beta testing. And payment for the proctors. I never liked the criminal aspect of the beta phase. But have you ever heard the term ‘obligate carnivore?’ These guys are like cats. You can’t feed them lettuce and expect them to stick around.”
I shook my head. “What the fuck are you talking about? Payment for who?”
Kaiju- Battlefield Surgeon Page 54