Turgay nodded. He knew most of that, actually. He hadn't gone to college, but he had been studying the toy maker his entire life. He knew most of the details. The “seeds” were the most common way the toy maker was used. A sample of cells was taken from the host, which was then modified into something similar to a retrovirus. Once implanted back into the subject, it would change their body over time. You couldn't use the technique to grow entirely new parts, but simple things like skin color and muscle mass were easy.
However, now that the fey had managed to successfully miniaturize the technology into the toy box, they might be able to combine the best of both worlds. That was how most anthros had been created. They just stuck us in the toy box and modified us directly, like molding a lump of clay.
“Right, so with the toy box we should be able to do m-scale MBG quickly enough so that necrosis doesn't set in.”
“But we've hit a block,” Gavii said. “At least, on the wings, and I doubt the arms will fare any better. We haven't done anything beyond theories, but we think—”
“The problem is that each person is different,” Turgay finished. “So each arm or wing has to be individually tailored. But at the same time, the design has to be perfect, or it will just wither and die.”
He looked a little put out. “Yes. Basically. I believe Anseri thought that if we could build the wing directly on the subject, while they're in the toy box, we might have more luck. Let the design grow more organically, like with the horns or beaks.”
“Horns aren't functional,” Turgay said. “No moving parts, not even any different materials. Just lumps of bone. A flaw in a horn is character. A flaw in an arm is much worse.”
“I know it's not the best idea,” Gavii said with a huff. “Which is why I'm against it. I still think that if the wings—or, in this case, arms—are mostly perfect, we can use the toy box to synch them up to the subject's system, just like normal. Then, if there are any problems, we can edit them later.”
Seeds were more reliable, but very slow. Frank Gavii was being a bit of an opportunist. Rather than just coming in once, his plan would require subjects to receive multiple treatments, which would mean more money. That being said, it did have merit. Sort of like buying a standard baseball bat and later applying tape or whatever to make it more comfortable.
“Is there a working arm design on file?”
He looked surprised. “Uh—what?” He shook his head to clear it. “Yes, yes there is. I don't have it right now, I'd have to send a runner to download it from outside.”
Turgay steepled his talons, thoughtful. “Once you get that design, make two arms, a left and a right. One at a time—there can't be any mistakes. Then, you'll attach them to an arach. Can you do that?”
“I... I...” Turgay didn't think Gavii could have been more surprised if he had pulled a gun. “I think so. But this is so sudden.” He became more confident as his verbal momentum improved. “I'll need to see the subject, and... it will require some surgery, more than just what the toy box can provide. Attaching two entirely new limbs isn't easy.”
“I'll ask the Minervas to send their girl over,” Turgay said. Yeah, the Lolths were the ones who had made the most recent request, but no way in the empty sky was he going to try and deal with those misandrist bitches. “I'm going to be honest, Gavii. I think the organic growth idea is a better one. But let's see how your cut-and-paste one pans out.”
He swallowed, and nodded. “I'll need access to the toy box, of course.”
Turgay frowned as best as he could with his beak. He had just gotten comfortable. But he sighed and stood. “Fine, c'mon.”
The toy box was in the exact center of the complex, located in a small maze of plywood walls. It was guarded by both remaining senior warhawks. They were the only ones who hadn't gone with Delia. They glared at Gavii, but Turgay waved them off, and they let them through.
One of the first things they had done once Lizzy's driver let them off and they got the device in Soaring Eagle's hands was to clean the damn thing. Pigeon's blood had been mopped off, and the amorphous metal surface polished until it shone like a mirror again. It sat in the middle of that little ten by five room, the light shining down on it like a priceless piece of art on display. Or a coffin at a funeral.
Gavii walked up slowly, mesmerized, and brushed his talons against it. “Beautiful.”
Turgay didn't say anything, but that kind of behavior made him uncomfortable. It seemed like everyone treated it like a holy relic, sacred beyond all imagining. Considering its source, and the amount of blood spilled to retrieve it, he really didn't like the comparisons.
He was beginning to think Soaring Eagle had put him in charge merely because he wasn't seduced by the possibilities it offered. It was mostly just a box to him.
Gavii licked his lips and looked at him, blind lust for experimentation in his eyes. “When... when can I start?”
“As soon as possible,” Turgay said. “The second you have something ready. Anseri and his team will have priority, but you'll get your fair share.”
Gavii nodded, still transfixed.
Turgay left, trying to pretend he was just going to send out that runner for the designs Gavii needed.
But deep down he knew he wanted to get as far away from the toy box as he could.
Chapter 31: COR
AKANE
It was late, about ten. Ling was already asleep, or at least pretending to be. She had tried to talk to Derek about their little altercation, but had stumbled over her words and run away. They'd reconcile soon. They had time.
The reason Akane wasn't asleep was because Derek had gotten a job for them. A land piranha swarm had gotten into the BOB facility nearby, and they didn't have the equipment to deal with it. They'd get paid well for this one. Swarms were pretty dangerous, and they were specifically called in for their expertise. Despite Akane's—completely undeserved—reputation for collateral damage, they were still a better choice than calling in the Canians.
She was nearly ready. She had the Minerva silk on. It fit like a glove and breathed like air, so no problems there. She had her sword at my hip and her knives strapped to her arms. She had her beads tied to her ponytail, and the blue ribbon woven within it. She was even wearing the necklace and pendant Ling and Laura gave her.
All that was left was the earrings.
She hadn't worn them since a couple days after her birthday. It had felt almost like a betrayal of Derek, which was ridiculous. The moron still didn't know she and Ling were fighting over him, even after the quick little wrestling match when Ling got her armor.
The earrings were beautiful, and very thoughtful. Akane didn't have much jewelry, since most of her money went to paying for college and healing after bad fights, but that didn't mean she didn't like it.
It wasn't that she liked Flynn, of course. She just enjoyed jewelry in general. That was all. She could appreciate a present without it having any deeper meaning, right?
Of course. Anything else would be silly.
So she should just put on the earrings. There was no harm.
Well... there was some harm. They dangled. They'd unbalance her, if only barely. They were a liability. She couldn't wear something like that into combat.
Right, so they were off the table. She stood to leave.
Except... the necklace was in the same boat. And she wasn't considering leaving it behind. Why should the earrings be any different?
The necklace meant something to her, that was it. The earrings didn't. They didn't mean anything good or bad, they were just decoration. And she didn't need that.
Ling rolled over and snorted in her sleep, and Akane nearly jumped out of her skin. Time to go.
Akane left quickly and met Derek downstairs in the lobby. Adam was nowhere to be found. He was probably off with Lily somewhere.
“Ready to go?” Akane asked.
Derek nodded, adjusting the grenade bandoleer across his torso. They were just smoke grenades, but they would b
e very useful against land piranhas. “I am. You?”
She smiled. “Of course.”
His blue eyes flickered down to her hand. “Are you going to put those on?”
She looked down at her right hand.
She had the earrings held in a loose grip and hadn't even noticed.
She swallowed. “Yeah. Just give me a second.”
Chapter 32: MERETRIX
DEREK
FIVE YEARS AGO
Lizzy looked at Derek, clearly worried. “Are you sure you guys need to go? They'll be fine without you.”
She towered over both of them, at just over six feet. She was gangly, like most kids their age, and looked like nothing so much as a bronze beanstalk. Those matching, bewitching golden eyes of hers glimmered with unshed tears. She was wearing the same type of plain white dress she had been wearing on the first day of middle school.
She was beautiful.
Derek smiled and did his best to reassure her. “I know they'll be fine, but we need to go, for moral reasons.”
She bit her lip. “But... it will be dangerous—”
“We'll be fine. We'll be with everyone else, and besides, we've been training. Right, Akane?”
She nodded, clutching her sword for comfort. It was still a little new. Derek had only bought it for her a month ago. But she already seemed to never want to let it go.
Lizzy grasped Akane's hand. “Ken-chan, kare no ue ni miru. Watashi wa kare ga anata nitotte jūyō ka shitte iru.”
Akane looked a little confused, but nodded slowly. She still wasn't quite fluent in Japanese, but with Lizzy's help, she was getting better. For a certain definition of help, anyway. Lizzy just plain wouldn't talk to her except with Japanese.
“We'll be back,” Derek promised, and meant it. He wasn't going to die before he finally mustered up the courage to tell her how he felt.
“You better,” she said. Then she walked away and disappeared into the night.
Right. Time to focus. They were in South Outer, right next to South Gate, about a block away from their goal. It was pretty far from home, and his mom would probably kill him if she found out where he was, but it was for a good cause.
Across the street was the Monster Liberation Army, a force of vampires, demons, giants and kemos nearly a thousand strong, getting ready to march. Derek took a deep breath and walked over to the orc camp, Akane dogging his heels.
“Whoa there,” an orc said as he stopped Derek a few yards from the center of camp. He had big claws and fangs, but otherwise looked like a normal orc. In other words, like any other demon, except with nighteyes. “Where do you think you're going?”
Derek stood as tall as he could manage. “I need to speak with him.”
The orc shook his head. “This is no place for kids. Get out of here before you get hurt.”
“He'll want to talk to me,” Derek insisted. “Let me through.”
The guard sighed. “Look kid, just—”
“Obould,” a deep voice grumbled from behind him. “The kid has stones. Let him speak.”
The orc sighed again, but nodded and stepped aside, allowing Derek to see the folding camp table at the center of the army.
At the table was the man who had spoken, the one Derek had come to see. He was massive. Eight feet tall at least and built like a truck, he clearly had at least one instance of the Bigger buff, probably more. His skin was blood red, from his bulging muscles to his tired face. He was just wearing jeans and a short white t-shirt, not really appropriate for the weather. He probably had some cold resistance buffs as well, or maybe he was just used to it.
His horns were what caught Derek's attention, though. Unlike the short stubs most demons had, he had massive horns, seemingly as wide as Derek's hand, curving back from the top of his head like a goat. Because of the angle, Derek doubted it would be easy to use them in a fight, but if he could, they'd gore a man in seconds.
Knight Orcus Bloodhand, founder and leader of the orcs, glared down at Derek with his pitch black nighteyes. Nearly all nighteyes were that same uniform black, of course, but they somehow seemed... deeper, and darker on him.
“What's you name, boy?”
Derek pushed aside the fear that was screaming at him to just run and never look back. “Derek Huntsman, Honored Devil.”
“Huntsman?” Orcus said. Derek could feel his voice rumbling in his bones. “The wrestler?”
“Monster slayer these days, sir,” he said.
“Hm.” Orcus eyed him warily. “How old are you, boy?”
“Thirteen, sir.”
“Hm.” He looked at Akane, before turning his gaze back to Derek. “And what is a thirteen-year-old monster slayer doing at an army formed to rescue the First Monster?”
“She doesn't deserve what she's getting,” Derek said quietly. “No one deserves that.” He met the orc's gaze again. “It's not right, and we're going to help you put a stop to it.”
“Cuss,” the guard said, in a frustrated tone. “His heart's in the right place, but this isn't the place for children. Besides, Maria will kill us both if her son gets hurt. And Lily said—”
Orcus stopped him with a raised hand, looking thoughtful. “How many people have you killed, boy?”
Derek didn't like talking about it, but I knew it was his only chance to make a positive impression. “Three, Honored Devil. Not counting monsters.”
Orcus nodded at Akane. “And your sword?”
She flinched away, so Derek answered for her. “No people, but many monsters.”
“Hm.”
The guard pinched the bridge of his nose. “Orcus...”
“They're not children, Obould,” the Power said quietly. “Lily said no children, but they're not children. They're killers, just like the rest of us, whether they like it or not. They can come with us if they wish.”
“Thank you, Honored Devil,” Derek said, trying to keep the earnestness out of his voice. “You won't regret this.”
“I honestly don't expect to, Huntsman,” he said. Then he smiled a little sadly. “You do have something of a reputation, you know.”
Derek just nodded. “When will we be moving out?”
“Shortly,” Orcus promised. “We're just waiting for a few others—Sargeras and Dispater said they'd be here soon.” He turned back to the orc who had tried to stop them. “Obould. Get young Huntsman up to speed while we make our plans.” He turned back to the table, clustered with a few other demons and vampires. The kemos and giants were in another camp. Despite being united behind a common goal, they were clearly still having trouble working together.
The guard grumbled a bit, but did as he was ordered and led them away. “Make it quick. I don't have all day.”
“I just want to know who we're fighting against, that's all.”
The orc stared at him. “You... you come and force your way into an army and you don't even know who we're fighting?”
Derek suppressed her frustration. “I know who we're fighting. Malcanthet and her succubi. Who else? We wouldn't need an army this big for a few dozen crazy demons.”
Obould sniffed. “Fair enough. Belial is in there, along with his wife and daughter and maybe half their house.”
The Belians were chem-heads. Crazy and addicted to drugs, yes, but also very, very dangerous. Chems could make you nearly invincible, and they were pumped full of pretty much all of them.
“There are also the Nessian slavers and the Satanists. We're not sure if the Beast is there, but Asmodeus definitely is.”
Derek nodded. “So the enemy are mostly vampires. Good.”
“Mostly,” he said, his tone chiding. “But we can't underestimate Malcanthet's slaves. If we try and use light against them, we'll just be making ourselves targets for their snipers.”
Derek made a mental note to keep his flashlights unused unless they had no other choice. “Okay, what else?”
“You'll stay near me,” Orcus said as he strode up. “We have teams in place to rescue the Mother M
onster already. We'll be making the main push, but it's just a distraction.”
“She doesn't like being called that, you know,” a vampire standing next to him said. He was tall and thin, with long black hair and gray skin. He raised an eyebrow at Derek. “And who's this?”
“Derek Huntsman,” Orcus said with a grunt. “Derek, meet Dispater. Leader of the warblood vampires.”
“A pleasure,” Derek said with a nod.
“This is not the place for children,” Dispater said, frowning. “Orcus, they'll just get in the way. Besides, Lily said—”
“Perhaps you didn't hear me,” Orcus interrupted. His tone was amused, not hostile. “This is Derek Huntsman. That 'child' you were hoping to recruit.”
Dispater started, then looked at Derek with wide eyes. “Wait... seriously? You're the wrestler?”
“Monster slayer these days, Honored Nightstalker.”
He glanced at Akane. “And this would be... Akiyama?”
She nodded, but kept her mouth firmly shut.
Dispater nodded in approval. “Yes, maybe you should be here. You two will go far, I think. This is a good place to learn. Just stick with us. You'll be safe, but be sure to keep your eyes open and pay attention.”
“I will, sir,” Derek promised, and meant it. He was terrified, and knew that a couple of kids wouldn't be much help against crazed demons. But he had to be here. Even if only for moral support.
Another vampire, a smaller man with pale skin and dazzling violet eyes, strode up. If not for the black-eyed men flanking him, Derek wouldn't have even realized he was a vampire. “Sargeras is here. Dis, give the order.”
Dispater nodded. “Of course, Noble Dragon. It is an honor.” He raised his voice. “Monster Liberation Army—march! Onward to Shendilavri!”
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