by Jak Koke
Silence.
He stood and walked quickly up the steps to the front door. There was no need for stealth. Burnout knew he was coming and had the entrances covered. There was no chance for surprise.
"Now, Jane," he said.
"Increasing oxygen content. It should reach a flammable level in just under five minutes."
With that he entered the house.
Ryan walked through the quiet darkness, and even though he knew that he was never more than fifty meters from another member of his team, he felt utterly alone. As he stepped past priceless art, he found himself growing nervous. Roxborough's self-doubt creeping in.
Ryan took several deep and cleansing breaths, trying to bring calm. But by the time he reached the sealed double glass doors of the arboretum, an edge of agitation had gripped him again. And it refused to let go.
Taking a slow breath, he keyed the palmlock, and the doors slid backward.
Humid heat smothered him, and he immediately began to sweat. The rich smell of fertile soil and blooming plant life hit him, and for just a second, he was sad that Burnout had chosen this spot. In just a few minutes, nothing would be left of the beauty around him.
It had been a while since Ryan had come to the arboretum, and for just a second, he stopped and looked around, as if he were seeing it for the last time.
Sculpted marble trees strained for the ceiling, their intertwined branches making up the supports for the twin sheets of macroglass that made up the roof. Each of the stone trees were completely wreathed in ivy, giving the impression that they were alive.
"So, we're finally alone together." The chilly voice dropped out of the air, echoing in the damp stillness.
Ryan immediately put his back to the wall, pulling the Vindicator up to ready position. Something was wrong, something in the back of his mind told him he wasn't going about this in the right way.
"Not quite, Burnout," he said. "This is between you and me. Let Nadja go."
Burnout's laughter rang through the room, turning Ryan's blood cold. "Between you and me, Mercury? It hasn't been between you and me since you killed the Kodiak."
Ryan remembered the bear shaman, Miranda held high over his head. He shifted on the balls of his feet, slowly inching his way into the dark room. Burnout didn't give much of a heat signature, so Ryan was going to have to rely on other means.
"Jane," he subvocalized.
"Copy," came the woman's voice in his ear.
"Position."
"He hasn't moved."
Ryan took a quick, silent step, and put one of the marble trees between him-and Burnout's location. "Jane, what's the count?"
"Another four minutes, but Ryan, when you blow it, you're going to have to be near the corner of the room where I can cover you with the sprinklers. Otherwise, you're going to take as much damage as he does, and I don't think I have to remind you that you are flesh and blood."
Ryan smiled in the darkness. "Don't worry about me. Just keep that oxygen rising."
There was a pause. "Ryan, you do realize that if shots are fired after the oxygen level gets high enough, the room will go ahead of schedule."
"I've already got it figured, Jane. Just be ready."
Burnout's modulated voice dropped into the room. "Mercury? Where are your friends? Don't tell me you actually did what I wanted. I would be so disappointed if you came to the party by yourself."
Ryan stepped out into the open. "I guess I'm just going to have to disappoint you, Burnout. It's just me."
There was another long laugh.
"Quicksilver! He's on the move. He's got you targeted, and he's making his way toward you, just on your two o'clock."
"Yes, Burnout. I'm here all alone, just like that night in Aztlan. It's just you and me. You think you're chill enough to take me?"
"My, my. What's that I see? Looks like a Vindicator minigun. That's some pretty heavy rock and roll, Mercury. And what a pity, I'm totally unarmed."
Ryan turned to his two o'clock, and Burnout's metal form drifted out of the shadows and into a patch of sunlight.
Grind sounded frustrated. "Frag those branches! I can't get a clean shot. Just another two meters, and he's mine."
Ryan looked at Burnout's ravaged frame, and whistled low. "You look pretty bad, Burnout."
Burnout smiled, and in the filtered light, it was the metal smile of some chromed grim reaper. "Yeah, I ain't so pretty as I was, Mercury. I guess I owe my new look to you."
Something clicked in Ryan's mind, and he knew what had been nagging. He was alone in the arboretum, but he wasn't using the Silent Way. He had been ignoring Dunkelzahn's teachings since losing the Heart, and he knew he wouldn't survive this unless he focused on his training. On who he was.
Ryan slowly knelt down on the floor, and laid the Vindicator on the warm marble. "Burnout, it doesn't have to come to this. You know I have you outgunned, and you know from our past encounters that even in a straight fight, I can give you a run for your nuyen. But this is foolishness. We don't have to fight."
Burnout smiled. "I know we don't have to, Mercury, but I want to. I want to feel your skull crack and collapse under my fingers. I've come a long way to watch you die."
Ryan held up his hands. "Listen. You stole something that doesn't belong to you, something you can't even understand. There's an easy way out of this where both of us leave this place alive. All you have to do is put the Dragon Heart on the ground and walk away."
Burnout cocked his head, as if he was listening to something inside his own skull. Then the smile returned. "Look at me, Mercury. You've left me with nothing. And for what? The Heart. You think I'm going to give up the only thing that makes all this worthwhile? Still, there is a way to end this easily."
"I'm listening."
"Why don't you lie down on the floor and let me kill you quickly. That way you won't have the shame of being beaten before you die. It would save you a lot of emotional distress." Then that scary laugh again.
Ryan shook his head. "So that's it, then. Neither one of us is going to give in."
Burnout went into a fighter's crouch. "That's it, Mercury. Let's dance, shall we?"
His movement was a blur, the fastest thing Ryan had ever seen. Burnout crossed the distance in the blink of an eye, and Ryan had just enough time to throw himself to the side as Burnout came rumbling at him like a tractor train out of control.
Except Burnout was in complete control. As Ryan leapt to the left, Burnout's right hand swung, open-handed, and caught Ryan across the chest.
The impact hit Ryan like a sledgehammer, and his body was lifted high into the air. Instinct made him roll with the fall.
Ryan came to his feet, a full three meters from where he'd been standing. His chest was on fire, and he magically channeled the pain away. When he could breathe again, he felt his ribcage, and realized that his body armor had been sliced to within a millimeter of the skin. Burnout was nowhere in sight.
"What the frag just happened?" Grind sounded completely confused. "One second he was in my sights, the next second he was gone. That fragger can move!"
"Position?" Ryan subvocalized.
"Wait a minute. Wait, I got him! Ryan, he's-"
"You still think you're a match for me, Mercury?"
Ryan spun to face the voice behind him, and just barely managed to deflect the high kick aimed for his head. The kick landed hard against his arm.
Ryan's left forearm went numb, and he rolled again, using the momentum of the kick to push himself out of harm's way. He staggered to his feet and forced himself to center.
Burnout was casually leaning against the trunk of the tree across the large center walkway.
Ryan stepped backward until his back was against a tree trunk. He could feel the cool ivy leaves rustling against his neck.
"You like how that feels, Mercury? To have your back against the proverbial wall?"
Ryan flexed his left arm, feeling the life come back in painful prickles. He smiled. "Not so much. Th
e big difference is that I didn't put your back up against any wall, you did. You messed in business that didn't concern you and you thought you could get away with it."
"Just get him to move another half a meter, Quicksilver, and I've got the shot." Grind's voice was soft, full of concentration.
Jane broke in. "You got another minute and a half until lift off. Make whatever you're going to do count, 'cause if you're still standing at your present position when that room goes, I don't think even you could live through it."
The feeling in Ryan's arm was back to normal, and he smiled at Burnout. "I came in here to try and settle things without anyone getting hurt, especially the innocent woman you've got tied up. But I guess that time is through." Ryan forced his will to be calm, and felt the power channel down his arms to his hands.
"All right, Burnout. You want to dance, I'll dance with you." With that, Ryan threw out his hands, sending a battering ram of force straight at the cyberzombie.
Burnout tried to move, but even with his speed, he was way too late. The magical wall smashed into him, catching him in the chest and sending him flying. The marble tree he'd been leaning against cracked with a sound like thunder and tilted slightly to the side.
The cyberzombie rolled with the impact, turning his air time into a series of backward somersaults.
While Burnout was still in the air, Ryan moved. He leapt the first table of flowers in a graceful kicking motion. As Burnout hit the ground, catlike, with his feet under him, Ryan's foot smashed into the side of Burnout's head.
Ryan used the impact to drop himself back into a fighting stance, and Burnout fell with the sound of rending metal.
Ryan pulled his Manhunter and was about to pull the trigger when he heard Jane's voice in his ear. "Ryan, no! If you spark it now, I won't even be able to save Nadja. You're too close to her."
Burnout looked up and suddenly was scrambling toward him.
Ryan threw his body backward, catching the edge of the table directly behind him with his left hand.
He pulled his legs in tightly, and pushed off with his hand, causing him to flip over back into the center walkway.
Ryan stood for a second in the silence. Once again, Burnout had disappeared on him.
"Position?"
"He's standing right next to Daviar. He knows you won't pull the trigger if there's a chance you might hit her."
"Burnout!" Ryan called. "You talk big, but when push comes to shove, your cowardice shows through. Taking refuge behind a hostage, that takes guts. Yes, sir."
Out the corner of his eye, Ryan saw the form hurtling through the air, and he turned, the Manhunter ready to fire, but he never got the chance.
With a scream of rage, Burnout slammed into him. One metal hand grabbed the pistol's barrel, another caught Ryan's throat.
As they fell, Ryan slammed his free hand into Burnout's chest, packing a magical, as well as physical punch, and Burnout's body twisted in mid-air. The cyber-zombie's momentum carried him over Ryan's head, but the metal man kept his grip on Ryan's neck, and Ryan felt himself start to black out as his body was wrenched backward and down.
Ryan's grip on the Manhunter loosened for just a moment, and it was gone from his grasp.
Damn, he's strong.
Choking, he let his legs go over his head, and he found himself on top of Burnout's prone form, straddling the man's huge artificial torso.
Holding Ryan at arm's length above him, Burnout tightened his grasp, and a sparkling blackness began to close at the edges of Ryan's vision. Ryan struggled, his hands battering at Burnout's chrome body, bashing deep dents into the scarred metal. His legs thrashing, searching for purchase.
Then, just as his strength started to fail him, his flailing hands felt the Dragon Heart, tied to Burnout's waist.
Ryan touched it with his mind, and he felt its power surge through him.
"So we meet again, Ryan Mercury."
The voice dropped into Ryan's mind like an old lover, so familiar, yet so hostile.
I thought I might find you here, Lethe.
38
I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. The words had become a mantra in Lucero's mind and she couldn't shake them. She was back in the dark stain, at the metaplanar outcropping of stone. She sat at the edge of the newly reconstructed wedge of blackness, her back propped against the body of a young boy, his smooth skin cold against her spine.
Directly in front of her, Senor Oscuro was pulling another docile young girl toward the new altar of corpses. The pretty raven-haired child slipped on the blood of the latest victim" and dropped to her knees.
It had taken Oscuro a fraction of the time to create the new wedge-shaped stain near the tip of the outcropping. He worked with a renewed vigor that made Lucero ill, spilling blood and carving up corpses against the music. Pressing forward until the dark barrier came very close to the singer of the song.
The black line edging just around the source of the light.
Now, with all the grace of a prince at a royal ball, Oscuro gently took the girl's hand and helped her to her feet.
I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. With each repetition, Lucero imagined that the blood stain in her soul grew fainter and fainter, until it was nearly gone. Gone also was her strange blood lust, the twisted, manipulated manifestation of her craving for the power the blood could bring.
Lucero shivered in revulsion when she thought about the things she had done, when she thought about how Oscuro had magically turned her lust for blood power into some strange, sick obsession for the blood itself.
She knew now that Oscuro had been using her all along. Everything he had done, and everything he'd caused her to do, had been a trick to keep her soul riding that fine line between light and darkness. He had managed to maintain that balance so Lucero would remain functional as the link between the real world and this one.
But was the stain on her soul really growing lighter? Could the mantra truly erase her sins?
She could tell by Oscuro's ease of movement. Before, when the black spot on her soul had lightened, it had strained Oscuro to the limit just to complete the sacrifices. Now, Oscuro moved as if he were taking a relaxing walk through a quiet park.
I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry.
As the raven-haired girl lay back on the bloody mound of dead bodies, Lucero became aware of her own scarred hands, clutching her knees. She was rocking back and forth in beat to her litany of apologies.
Oscuro looked over at Lucero and grinned, a track of spattered blood dripping down the side of his face. His violently shadowed face watched her, not the sacrifice, as he raised the gore-covered blade and let it fall.
The young girl's head nearly came away from her body as the knife cleaved the delicate skin, splitting tissue and cartilage with equal ease.
Oscuro had brought a real Chac-mool with him this time, and he bent to catch the spurting flow of life in the black granite bowl.
"We are almost there, my child, we are on the edge of the bridge," said Oscuro, his gaze still fixed on Lucero. "Soon, all of your struggle, all of your suffering will reach fruition. Soon, you will have the release you crave."
Even the sound of his voice made the bile rise in the back of Lucero's throat.
I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Lucero rocked faster, the words echoing in her mind until they started to run together, to become a blur of supplication.
Oscuro turned from the still twitching body, and delicately picked his way over the jumbled tangle of lifeless limbs.
He reached the last small section of the uncompleted wedge. Very near the power of the song, at the sharp edge of the outcropping, right next to the tip. But instead of finishing the wedge and bringing the dark stain to the tip of the spike, Oscuro turned back to Lucero. "Come, my child. This is a grand moment, a momentous occasion. I think it would be fitting if I shared it with the one who made it possible."
Lucero continued to rock, continued her mantra as stark horror filled her soul.
Osc
uro smiled softly. "As you wish, my dear. I can understand how this glorious achievement might be a bit overwhelming for one so young." With that, he turned back toward the tip of the outcropping and raised the bowl.
No! Lucero struggled to her feet. She had to stop him, she had to keep him from completing the wedge. Dread filled her, and her soul quaked before it.
She staggered across the corpses, stumbling with every step as the flaccid limbs of dead children seemed to catch at her flesh, to block her steps.
Oscuro held his position, Chac-mool raised high, until she was only five meters from him. Then he tipped the bowl.
The thick burgundy liquid poured out, searing the cracked earth with its stain. Completing the wedge. And as the wedge closed, Lucero could hear Oscuro say in a deep booming voice, "My masters, Darke welcomes you."
A tiny sliver of darkness had edged past the singer and reached the tip of the outcropping. A mere splinter. Yet it was enough.
An icy chill crept into her limbs then, a dark, barren, numbing cold that froze her mid-step, that clenched all the muscles in her body as her very flesh revolted against the touch of pure evil. This was despair at its true depths, this was hatred in its most refined form. The only thing that kept her from losing her mind completely was the muted sound of the music.
Lucero's stomach muscles seized up and she vomited blood. It splattered on the ground, mixing with the blood of those who had died before, and began to sizzle. She continued to wretch and gag until nothing more would come out of her. With a shaking hand, she wiped the muck from her chin and slowly raised her head.
Oscuro knelt before her, a bemused smile on his dark face. "Impressive, no?"
Lucero wanted to vomit again, wanted to spew her insides all over this hateful creature in front of her, but she was too weak to even spit in his face.
His smile turned to a grin. "And, as they used to say back when I was still young, you ain't seen nothin' yet."
Oscuro stood, and walked behind her, and it took every ounce of strength for Lucero to sit back and watch him. He stood as close to the tip of the spike as he could and raised his arms in welcome. "Masters, Darke bids you to come. Crush the light that has held you back for so long. Come and take what is rightfully yours."