Chapter 3-13 Lunchtime Chat

Chapter 3-13 Lunchtime Chat

If politics is defined as the activities pursued in relation to governance and power, then the greatest conceit in New Vultun is thinking what the people want matters at all.

Thats not to say that youlittle persondont matter. You matter. You matter a lot in the big equations that make New Vultun the biggest, baddest, goddest city there ever was.

Of course, the way you matter is the same why hydrogen cells matter for the aerovec I got for my seventeenth: sure would be good to have more; sure would be bad if we ran out.

So, with that properly set, here is the major divide for terrestrial politics: Massist or Saintist?

Power shared by the manyor diluted by the mob.

Power enforced by the fewor dominion in the hands of singular tyrants.

Calla Marlowe, FATELESS Radio

3-13

Lunchtime Chat

Avo left the Mall-Brawl basking in the glorious silence. He had seen to it that the enforcers present deposit the father, Essus, into a medi-drone for treatment. All the while, he felt the burning gazes of all who were present atop the deck, watching him, judging him.

The spectators lapped at him, praising his violence with uproarious delight. Yet, the flavor of their favor found itself diluted by the synchronous emotions of horror and despair from those of Conflux.

There were no smiles or jeers coming from the enforcers anymore. No calls for continued violence. Their expressions were childlike, eyes wide at the sight of one of their own so mauled. It was clear that Rantula was someone to thema creature of fear and respect. But their creature. Their monster. Their champion.

And through his act, he reminded them that in this godless age, not even deification spared one from the desolation of violence.

Limping up the steps that split the deck, Avo nursed on a pre-lunch snack: the arm of the fathers former handler, now crisp and fried from the electrocution. Disgust played across countless faces that faded as they sank past his periphery. Their thoughtstuff remained.

Above the food court, the holographic display of the arena continued to play, scenes of med-techs trying to stabilize the still whimpering Rantula, attempting to ready her for drone transport as well. More pleasingly, a single line of text had been burned across the Nightmantis rig.

Claimed.

Another gift was claimed. Or delivered, as Mirrorhead would so say. The idea of being harmed less pleased Avo; the thought of getting actual food after days of feasting on raw meat, even more. Miserable as this day had been, he was still here, still burning.

And if it wasnt for his Liminal Frame, he wouldnt have been. Death had touched him thrice this day, and thrice he walked back out of its gates. His fears were beginning to dull, he realized. In his past life, before whatever happened to him over the course of the last week, he would have never engaged Rantula so. Hurt her, yes. But only after getting away, and finding a sliver of memory he could infect with one of his poltergeists.

Now, he greeted his problems in a different way. A savage new pathway had unveiled itself to him, and Avo found himself wanting more. Or perhaps it was the beast that desired bloodlust. It was getting increasingly hard to distinguish where his instincts began and his mind ended. With every act of brutality committed, he felt like the sinews of his being were intertwining.

Guided by the stilt-legged enforcer he called out earlier, he ordered her through grunts to lead him to the cafeteria or mess hall or whatever these street-scrum called the place they ate. He was hurting. He was healing. He neededno, deservedmore food.

Body tense with fear and reluctance, she obeyed. No one stood with her. No one pulled her away from him. How solitary it was to be an enforcer? How helplessly alone. Already, she was about to lead him into an elevator and no one had stopped him. It made him loathe the other

Oi, rotlick! Avo heard a voice call out from behind. The heartbeat and scent were familiar. He sniffed again. Ah. They smelled bad. One of Rantulas minions. He didnt care to remember either of their names.

A click followed. Avo turned, staring unimpressed into the jutting barrel of a gyrojet rifle. It was in the hands of the bald one again. Their hands were shaking, their breaths tense with withheld gasps of air. They were scared. Genuinely, truly scared of him. Avo chuckled. How amusing it was that he, by all accounts a failed ghoul if judged from the standards of the Low Masters, would be the first to experience a taste of self-actualization.

Fights done, Avo said. Won. Finished. Go lick wounds. Find a new master.

F-fuck you, the enforcer spat, sweat clinging to their brow. Was he Issig or Jareg? Avo shrugged. You godsdamned monsterwhat you did

Was good for her, Avo said, digging at the thugs wound. She was weak. Slow. Stupid. And all the augs cant fix that. He chuckled an exaggerated laugh as he pointed a claw at the enforcers implanted limbs. Six insectoid legs. Six limbs to weigh them down. Look at you. Deadweight and no will. No skill. Best part of you didnt even come from you. Bought from a grafter. How much did it cost? Three thousand imps? Thirty thousand? Wasted. All of it. Just like you. Little wonder why Mirrorhead wanted me: current stock doesnt light the wick.

The enforcers gun cracked apart in his grip, his thoughtstuff boiling as tears of primal rage spilled from his eyes.

Oh, Avo said. Thats right. Cant shoot. Mirrorheads orders. One good thing about Rantula: she was good nu-dog. Listened. Obeyed. Avo took a step forward. His foe took a step back, wilting, lips quivering like a child. Another thing about Rantula. She was a screamer. Tell me: you the same way?

Something broke inside the Rantulas former peon. His face cracked, raw fear burning away the roots of his hate. The gun slipped from his hands. He inched back. Then stumbled back a step. Fuck, he whispered, his thoughtstuff coming apart in wide strands, his will shattering under the weight of terror.

Spinning on his heels, he ran, ejecting the limbs from his back, shedding that which tied him to Rantula so he could flee faster. The sight burned itself into Avos eyes as a precious memory, something to savor in his dreams tonight when he was sequencing his Metamind.

This is power, Avo muttered, mostly to himself. It was like a light had come on in his head. His Celerostylus; the Heaven; his Hell soon to manifest. All those were a power of physical and metaphysical disciplines. Yet, what he just achieved, the control he had over the fear of another, was equally absolute, equally destructive in its capacity. This is power.

A ring sounded from behind him. His head spun. His guide was currently hitting the interface of the elevator as fast as she could, trying to get the door to open before he closed on her.

Slowly, he walked next to her, his shadow shrouding her.

Which floor? Avo asked.

Joined tables made from insta-fabbed plastics ran from wall to wall. The chairs, meanwhile, were metal stumps. Had to be with how heavy some of these enforcers were. This place was still mostly empty right now. Strange. He expected there to be more people here, eating. It looked like it could seat a few hundred easily.

But with the wealth that Mirrorhead displayed so far, he was pretty sure the Sydnicate boss had more than this single establishment, this single location filled with personnel and equipment. No one concentrated all their goods in one place. Not if they wanted to keep playing this game for long.

Ved found a nicely vacant row for them. There were ten chairs to the left and the right. The eyes of the others in the room were still locked on Avo. He wondered if they were planning to attack him at some point, and found that doubtful with how placid their thoughtstuff were. It was tense. Tense, but not nervous. Just a dull acceptance that there was a ghoul in their midst, and that he had hurt one of their number.

Besides, Avo doubted anyone here could actually ambush him properly with their pounding footsteps and thundering hearts. The constant chattering was a dulling miasma of noise to his senses, but he had lived in different Undercroft megablocks all his life. Those had millions of bodies all packed together across a few hundred levels at the most. The noises warred, a symphony of eternal discord. And the smells. What to say about the smells, other than the fact that his feelings regarding the smells were better left unsaid?

It taught him compartmentalization if nothing else.

Family, Avo said, as they were seated, pawing a handful of pork-beetles. The little spliced bugs struggled in his palm as he tossed them into his mouth. He munched them, the crunching bringing him an ineffable satisfaction. Strangely, he had expected to gain an echo from that.

There was a question in that: what made one death release an echo, while another gave nothing more? Was it tied to the ghosts? Could it be that only the intelligent, the self-aware granted him echoes?

What? Ved said, blinking.

Avo fed himself another mouthful of food before he could sigh. Writhing little limbs prodded against his tongue, tickling the roof of his mouth. His fangs fell like a guillotine, splitting their little bodies. The oozing of their juices on his taste buds was sublime. Sour and sweet, each coming apart with a satisfying pop. Glorious food. All the killing had been worth it for this alone.

Ved watched him with paling features. IuhI didnt understand the question.

Swallowing the second mouthful of bugs, Avo waited for the food to go down before talking. Manners were important. Walton said so. You were talking. About family.

Oh, Ved said, understanding. Ohoh! Yeah, uh! So as I was saying my mothers mothers mothers

This went on for some time. It appeared Ved had an aversion to using the word grand in front of mother. Even a, my distant ancestors would have been better. For a few minutes, Avo just pretended to listen, nodding and grunting as the family backstory began to expand into a metaphorical territory Avo regarded as beyond useless. He did his best not to remember anything that Ved told him aside from the essentials. Minds had limited space and he didnt want Veds story about her grandmothers funny wart to be using any of it.

...I mean, Jaus, consang, it was like she didnt even care about mom. After everything mom did for us, she just leaves. Takes the fucking Guild job and leaves. Complete half-strand behavior, the fucking sow. Fuck. Cant believe were related.

Yes, Avo said, the sow. Whoever the aforementioned sow was. Probably family. People hated their families. He interjected before Ved could go off on another spiel.

Ved. Rantula. Ved went silent. Nervous. Her heart pace doubled. She respected?

He swallowed. Rantulas one of the classics, consang. Been working for the boss since day one. But you messed her up good. The shit you did to her... She cupped her ear and swallowed, steeling herself for something to come. Wasnt right. You shouldve stopped. Shouldve let her be. She surrendered. We all heard. You couldve stopped.

Avo understood the sentiment. But understanding didnt mean acceptance. Would she?

Would she what?

She was being deliberately obtuse now. Didnt want to answer. Avo didnt care. Would she have stopped? With me? With the flat? Would any of you?

Ved opened her mouth, words slow to come as she mustered all her tact to put what she felt into words. Avo knew what was coming. He had known for years. He just liked hearing it said by another, to remind him of what the city thought about his kind.

Youre a ghoul, consang, Ved said. Those words explained everything. There's no one in this room who didnt lose someone to your like during the Uprising.

A moment of silence settled between them. Low Masters, Avo said, wanting to trade honesty for honesty. She had been brave. That was a virtue. Virtues should be rewarded. They said that we were saving you from Guilds. That our sacrifice was for you.

That made Ved laugh. Jaus Avandaer said he was going to give everyone their own Heaven, consang. She mimed getting stabbed in the chest. Suppose nobody predicts getting stabbed by their own kid, yeah.

Avo grunted in acknowledgment. No one really wanted this. No one asked for this. They just got what they got and chose from there. I didnt ask to be.

II know, Ved said, unsure how to respond.

Want to hurt you, Avo continued. Across from him, Ved went stiff. Want to hurt everyone. Eat them. Always. Not easy, trying to deny it. But I choose. You understand. And thats why I hurt Rantula. She never chose. Shes a coward. Shes like my brothers. Dont be coward Ved. Dont be like the sow in your family. Whoever she was. Be

A blaring blast wave of ghosts tore through the level. The lights flickered. Avo felt a surge of adrenaline flow through him. +Situation in medical! Repeat! Situation in medical! Staff down! Patient missingthe Regular is loose! She's fucking loose! Send helpsend+

A loud rattling scream cut the flow of thoughts off. The ghosts snapped with the termination of the host, dissolving as the phantasmal broadcast broke away into nothing.

Draus. It had to be.

Avo left that shiv with her on a whim. Just in case she wanted to make her own options. Avo hid a smile. Good for her. But wasnt the father bound for medical as well?

Sighing, Avo stood, taking the bowl of pork-beetles with him. Medical? Avo asked. Where?

Ved blinked. Its the second to last level. All the way."

Lead, he said. Get the elevator. I follow.