"Don't use that weapon, there are only three other weapons like that in the game, and if you use it to kill him, he is dead. The spear will delete him completely from the game, you don't want to do that! He might have done some despicable things, but Maxine is still alive, we are still all here! Don't do something that can't be undone!"
Delete him? Part of me wondered if that was so bad? Still, Grace was right, what he did was horrible, but then what would I be? There was still so much about this game that I didn't understand; should I just get rid of him? If I don't, he will be back, but did he have a choice?
"What was your plan? In the hotel? Why were you there? Are you still working for Mainframe to cause me trouble?"
"I had just come from my room and I was waiting for the elevator. I had no plans to do anything to you, I didn't even know you were in the city. I have no directive from MainFrame now, I was to find you before and cause you trouble, but now the force that pushed me is gone and MainFrame is no longer in my head."
Could I trust his word? Should I? I went back to how easy it would be just to end it all, but Grace was right.
"So what happens now, if I let you go? I don't like looking over my shoulder, and I don't like that I can't leave the girls alone without worrying. So, how do I know you will mind your own business?"
"You can kill me, just don't use that. Your right, I am to blame, but know that I didn't want to do those things, and I wanted to tell you about Irellia, but I couldn't. You don't have any reason to trust me, and if MainFrame comes back, I will be forced to cause you trouble again," Kyrin explained.
I let the spear go, all the fire had left me. I was ready to kill him without quarter not even two minutes ago, but now I wasn't sure. I did believe that MainFrame would make him do those things, but was it worth the risk? I could just kill him right now as he said, but I just didn't have the same kind of killing intent coursing through my veins, and this wasn't like with Greg, who wanted out of the game.
I turned around, taking my eyes off Kyrin for the first time that the girls had shown up. I looked at the group of them, and they all looked worried and scared, but that was because of me, not him. I had screamed at them to stay behind, and I had almost made a mistake that couldn't be undone. I was the real monster here.
"Go, and don't bother us, or I won't go easy on you. I don't want to end you, but what you and the others MainFrame has been forcing to bother me, and hurt my girls ends today. You now know that I can get rid of you, so remember that when Mainframe tries to force you again, fight it."
"I will try, but I will also remember this. You spared me when you had every reason not to; I will not forget this. I will fight the power, or I will die trying. I will become better, and next time we meet I hope it isn't quite as exciting."
With that, Kyrin turned and walked away, but I was still feeling on edge. I didn't want to turn back around again. I was scared to face the girls, I had turned into a monster, ready to kill another person without thought. This game made me forget that it really was all just a game, but after so many lifetimes, the lines of the game really were starting to blur harder and harder.
I was starting to worry about myself; was I really so quick to kill? Or was this the way I was supposed to be? Maybe I really was meant to be groomed into a heartless killer to win this game, but I wasn't going to let that happen. I would push myself to be better than that.
"Dave? Are you okay?" Kierra asked, putting a hand on my shoulder as she walked up behind me.
"I think so, but I am…"
"Don't, you don't need to be sorry," Aquina said, coming up on my other side with Sandra.
"We don't all know why you hate him so much, but we couldn't let you destroy him. You would have had to live with killing him. This game makes killing easy because we can always come back to the next game, but that weapon isn't meant to be used on Avatars. Even Grismald is gone forever now, he will never be revived in his game of the random world. We don't want you to have to live with something like that," Grace explained, coming to stand in front of me.
"Now, that we're done here, can we go get something to eat? Both our newest member and I are hungry, and from what I heard from her, she hasn't had a decent meal in quite a while, hehe," Latisha said from behind me, and I turned to look at Carly, who was tucked into Latisha's side where I cute pink dress with her hair pulled back into a bun.
"Yes, food, I will get to that. I think I need to go fix the hotel as well."
"Don't forget the road outside!" Kierra joked.
Chapter 218: Did You Fix It?
I ended up getting my bath, and it was glorious. I know I was in the water, or at least the game would like me to think that, but this was Warm water that made me wet...this game was either trying too hard or it really just didn't care. Regardless of the mechanics or the idiot that designed them, I had a great soak, and I needed it.
After letting Kyrin go, and coming back, I had started to think about the others, Tyson, Cindy, and Irellia. The girls all laughed as I pulled all their favorite meals from under the bed in the room; I figured I might as well have fun with this, but even as I handed the meals out and then got my own I was stuck thinking. Were they really bad people, or was it MainFrame the entire time? How was I supposed to know the difference?
The girls didn't bother me, they knew I had a lot on my mind and were fine with giving me some alone time. I got up head to the bathroom, but I stopped and wrapped my arms around a startled Sandra. She had finished eating and was talking with Aquina, but I just wanted to know that I hadn't forgotten about her. So many things happened today, it would be easy just to push this off to the side.
"Hey, I am really tired, and just not really feeling like getting physical, but you and Aquina can sleep in bed with me in my room? The girls can share this room, and tomorrow we will get more rooms, okay?"
"You don't have to treat me special, you know? I can see you're tired and you have done a lot today. We can bunk in here tonight to give you some space," Sandra said, putting a hand onto my arms that were wrapped around her waist, pushed her face into mine.
"No, I would prefer that you two came and slept with me if you two want to, but I'm going for a bath."
That brings me back to me soaking into the bathtub. trying to let the world around me slip away, but these thoughts were still gnawing at me. Even while relaxing, my mind was still racing, trying to reason out everything.
What if they weren't bad people? Did it matter? I sunk deep into the water and blew bubbles letting out a long breath. I was over-stressing myself about this, but I couldn't help but wonder.
Was this all just because of what Hyde did? Like, what the hell could he have done to earn me such a hunting? I needed to find out what he did.
'And that's the real bitch of it all.' -Dansei.
'What?'
'This point has been a hot debate between us, MainFrames got its ass kicked by Hyde, but it was just a good old ass-kicking that ended. I don't get what MainFrame has against your brother, but it had to be something that happened in another reset, even Mom had no clue. I know Mainframe was on Hyde right off the hop when he came back from AIhalla, but I also think he was on you before you had to reset.' -Dansei.
'What about the others? Was it the same for them?'
'No, MainFrame was part of their games when they joined your brother. So, it has to be something to do with you two, what that is, we can't figure out.' -Dansei.
'So then, what is your opinion on the turned ones? Are they just being used, or were they chosen for that reason?'
'I think they are good people, but I have nothing to back up that statement other than my own personal opinion. I think that they are just like the rest of us, but I can't say what their personalities were before they were adjusted by MainFrame. I would say to keep your distance for now, at least until we figure out what MainFrame is trying to do.' -Dansei.
That was good, I really needed that, not someone telling me it would be all alright
. Hearing that Dansei was just as wary of them as I was good to hear. I finished in the bathroom, drying off and then grabbing a pair of perfectly fitting underwear from one of the drawers in the sink. That really never got old, I really wondered what kind of person this Bhan was, probably a comedian, but wasn't we all?
I walked out of the bathroom and saw that both girls were fast asleep in the bed already. Sandra was in the middle and had left room for me to squeeze in. I crawled into the bed after turning off the light and cuddled into Sandra's back. I closed my eyes and slowly let myself drift off.
-----------------
There's a face, shaved hair, and an excited expression on his face. My brother, but, where are we?
"Did you fix it?"
"I think so," I said.
Did I fix what? That was Hyde?
---------------
I woke up, I could still see his face, but what did I fix? Or did I fix it? That was a strange dream, and considering how I didn't have them, it must be important. Sandra stirred in front of me, and I kissed the back of her neck before getting out of bed. I needed to find answers, there was something important being hidden underneath all the layers of deception.
I grabbed my clothes and got dressed, thinking about what needed to be done. Find the pervert, and the last dungeons, then If each girl was in a tower I could get to the next one faster. There was still the matter of Irellia, the Unlife infecting her must be causing her to fight or it was her natural personality. Regardless, I couldn't leave that world unfinished, I started it and it would feel like I was failing the people that trusted me.
One step at a time, Dave, you will get it. I just needed to keep telling myself that, there had to be a purpose in all this. Though, after that dream, I was feeling less sure about myself; what if I was the one that got us all locked in this game, and there wasn't actually a purpose?
"Dave? Are you okay? You seem to have been quiet lately," Aquina said, taking my hand just as I heard the bathroom door close. "Is there something going on that you're not telling us?"
"I am just having trouble trying to understand the purpose of all of this. The games, us losing our memories, and MainFrame, I just don't get the connection. Other than Aegis and MainFrame trying to stop us and make our infinite lives hell, I just don't get why we are fighting in the first place. It's like being in a war that's pushed by invisible hands, we just fight because that's what we are supposed to do."
"Wow, you really have been thinking about this too much. Let's go get the other girls and we will go find this pervert, don't worry. From what I know, we still have a long way to go before we really need to know the answers. So, stressing about this now will get you nowhere."
She was right, there was more than enough to worry about in our daily lives without me adding more to the pile. Sandra came out of the bathroom with a yellow skirt and a white top, just putting her dirty blonde hair up in a bun. She looked great and her chest bulged out in just the right way, a very nice fit.
"Are two ready?" She asked after getting her hair tied up.
"Yes! Let's go get the girls, but first," I took off my shoe, a red sneaker, and shook out a pair of bananas and an orange. "I guess neither of you wanted this orange? No? I didn't think so."
The girls both smiled and grabbed the bananas and walked out of the room with me, also finishing the ENTIRE banana before we had left the room. Each of them tossed the spent casing in the trash on the way out, leaving me holding the door with my mouth open. Maybe I would need to save my deep introspection for the bathtubs and other alone time, not while in the company of such...hungry women.
I checked my pocket and found the card before locking the door. They turned to see the other girls coming out of the room, Carly was doing a big yawn stretch with Kierra, and Latisha, while Grace was holding a paper coffee cup that was steaming, so I walked over to her. It turned out that there was an Earl Grey teabag from the tag hanging off the other side. Feeling a bit envious, I reached out to the side and grabbed a triple triple from nowhere in particular.
"That looks a lot easier than waiting for the kettle to boil. How was your sleep? Did you get any last night?" Grace asked before taking a sip of her steaming tea.
"I had a dream last night."
"Was I in it?" Grace asked with a smile.
"No, it was very short. I think I saw my brother, Hyde, and he asked me If I fixed it."
"And?"
"I said I think so…"
"Really? That doesn't sound good, but at the same time, this could be really good, maybe you are getting close to the answers."
"But what if I caused this all?"
"Then you need to fix it," Grace said with a smile.
Chapter 219: Used Car Salesman Vibes
I headed out of the hotel with the girls and we made our way down to the Dry Cleaning store that was on the receipt. The city was packed with people moving around, trying to get to work and their morning tasks. When we got to the Dry cleaning place we had to wait in a line with a bunch of irritable people there to pick up their suit and other things that would need the service.
"I'm surprised there is such a lineup here," Latisha said, sticking her head out from the line.
"This might be the only one downtown, but I'm not sure why others wouldn't open up another location if the business is so steady," Grace said, putting a finger on her lip with a thoughtful expression.
"The town ran the last guy out of town, he is very competitive, and his services are shady, to say the least, but he is the only one in the city now. So, if you want to get cleaning done, you have to come here, but the owner has been caught wearing the suits he has got to clean," The lady in front of me said without turning.
That was suspicious, but not really a pervert action, just a creep, but they could be one and the same. Still, we were looking for someone that comes here, not the owner. The line started to move and before we knew it, we were standing in front of a used car salesman.
I mean he was that type, slicked-back hair, shining face, and a cheap suit. The type that just screamed I going to fuck you today, and you're going to like it. The man even pulled out a comb and pulled his hair back, taking a layer of grease off, and then whipping it out to the side, spraying grease on the ground. Maybe I was wrong, this guy had a greasy pervert written and poured all over his face.
"Mmm, what can I do for you and your lovely lady friends? Do they need some of their delicates dried properly? I have a great rate, the best in the city, you won't find it better than at my shop!"
Well, this was cute. I pulled out my badge and set it down on the counter. I listed off the days and times of the thefts and asked him where he was, but I got translucent answers like at home or here at the shop, but the man had no helpers and no way to prove where he was, other than his word. Still, this wasn't enough to lock him up, but someone like this wouldn't just throw away the items, but now he might try to get rid of them.
I decided that it was best just to play dumb through the whole thing, even teasing and tickling the girl while asking the questions to seem disinterested. At the end of my questions, I smiled, gave him a wave when he extended a greasy hand. After that, we all left the shop and took a short walk around the corner, so we were just out of sight, but we could keep an eye on the back of the shop.
I wasn't sure if my playing stupid routine worked, but, If the place stayed that busy all day, then he wouldn't beagle to leave until after work, so we had roughly about six hours to get damning evidence. The problem was, there wasn't a single place in the area that had lockers or storage of any kind, and walking around would take too long.
"What do you guys think?"
"I tried to ask Mom, but she can't help us with this, it's part of the mission," Aquina said as we brainstormed.
"Let's go ask Branson, the station isn't far from us, and as you said, we just have to hope he gets stuck with work all day," Grace said while motioning us to follow.
Grace was right, and the trip o
nly took us ten minutes. For being a city, most of the things we needed were in a convenient walking range. I wasn't like Bhan's magic could manipulate things on that large of a scale, but it did make you wonder.
Once inside Branson's office, the girls got told off for breaking the mall wall, but then I got screamed at for it. I knew I should have gone back there! After Branson had run out of spit, he finally went back to sit at his desk.
"There are no vibrators in your hands, so what are you doing here?" Branson asked, glaring at only me.
"Do you know where we can find any lockers that would fit a key like this?"
"That? That's a key for the lockers in the hot tub area above the dry cleaning building. I know the pace. I use the place to relax after having to put the city back together from little shits like you breaking it!"
"Well, then I think we know the culprit."
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