Mask of Humanity

While the others headed back to the safe place, Nicolai opted to take a quick detour. He headed to the tunnel, as by now the three in the prisons should’ve sent up another batch of Oma crystals, and likely their drone would be running low. He’d left the fully charged one there that morning, ready to be switched.

In the tunnel, he found the drones and checked them over the moment he drew close, in the same manner as always. First reaching out with his Soul Sense to investigate for tampering, then connecting via Link and performing another check.

The drones, being items that he visited and regularly interacted with, and which also spent long periods sitting here, out of his view, were items he had to take some caution with by very nature.

Nicolai had killed a lot of people by placing bombs in places like toilets, beds, light-switches, cars, and more. Places where people could be relied upon to come and press a switch or turn a key.

For many of his targets their last action had been pulling a toilet plunger which propelled a firing pin into an accelerant that detonated an explosive, or turning the rerouted ignition switch in their car, or flipping a light-switch where he’d swapped out the wiring.

It was not his preferred method of assassination, as by nature it tended to be somewhat indiscriminate, and it then required extra time to check and make sure that indeed, the target had been the one to blow themselves up, and not an unfortunate friend or colleague of theirs.

Nicolai had always felt that a professional killer was exemplified as someone who killed their target in a surgical and precise method, one that minimised harm to uninvolved bystanders. His preference had generally been of the 9mm variety, though he had also been partial to staging deaths that seemed accidental or unfortunate; his targets had been known to break their necks falling down the stairs, or suffered from heart attacks in the bathtub.

Nicolai thought of himself as an assassin, not a terrorist, and this preference of methods was part of the reason why.

But in his professional career he had often found himself pressed by circumstance, unable to utilise his preferred methods, and so he had a great deal of experience with explosives, poisons, vehicles, drones, and other more indiscriminate methods.

In this regard the drones they used to transport the Oma crystals had pinged his and Threat Analysis’s wariness from day one. They were exactly the kind of thing where—if he were trying to assassinate himself—he might consider placing a bomb. For example, the containment drawer where Oma crystals were stored, which required the press of a button to open, would fit a bomb and was perfectly suited for a bit of re-wiring.

So, he checked them carefully every single time.

As such the moment he approached the drones and Linked to them, he, Threat Analysis, and Cyberwarfare, were all immediately alerted.

Someone had been messing with the settings on the low-battery drone, which in fact wasn’t all that low on battery. Various random settings had been changed. There was no explanation. There was also no message from Jo, an oddity as normally she would have left one; she’d been using it to continuously exchange communication with her sister, and there were also frequently messages from Azure for John.

He paused, settling into a crouch and charging his Sheltering Glove in case of an ambush. Two drones spun away from him, streaking down the tunnel in either direction.

Meanwhile, his Soul Sense dove into and around the drone, checking for signs of physical tampering, but he found nothing. The only changes were those to the settings, and then in one other area.

The drones had cameras which they used to navigate, and they took recordings of what they saw. This was a standard feature on most drones. When he scrolled through the drone’s recording, he found that they, too, had been screwed with. He saw the drone landing and awaiting more Oma crystals. Then nothing. Then it was in the air, flying out to take the crystals here. The drone had an error message, which was trying to suggest that there had been some memory-write error, and that components needed replacing. This was supposedly the reason for the lapse in the recording.

Threat Analysis immediately identified this as a cover up. Cyberwarfare, meanwhile, sneered at what it called shoddy and amateur work.

Nicolai stood there, staring down at the drones, while Threat Analysis put the main thoughts of all three of them into words.

Something has happened. The settings change may be a message from Jo or one of the others. The deleted footage and falsified error suggests a hostile actor.

Nicolai nodded. We shall go down, and have a look, and see what we see.

But first, the drones. They weren’t trapped so he absently retrieved the crystals as he considered what to do with them.

Sending the drones told whoever received them that the first had been received by a person who had returned it. This would imply that the person up here, him, did not know there was a problem, and it should soothe whoever received it.

However, there could be some kind of trick to the drones he didn’t recognise. Not of the blowing-up-in-his-face type, but perhaps it was somehow able to recognise that he had noticed the difference in the old drone. This was unlikely and he saw no way for it to happen, but it was wise to consider all the options.

So, he opted to send the fresh drone, switching them out. But, what of the settings change? If he changed this drone’s settings to mirror those made to the other, that could be used as a signal to inform Jo, if she was able to check, that he had seen the change and was coming to investigate. Whether this was a good idea or not, he wasn’t sure. Maybe if she received no confirmation, she would do something drastic. Or, maybe, knowing that he’d seen, she would let loose some signs of this.

Neither was ideal. He opted to simply send the new drone with no changes. He had always worked alone, and felt that overall it was best that other people, regardless of allegiance to him, generally know as little of his movements and activities as possible.

The drone spun up into the air and disappeared down the tunnel. Nicolai flowed after it, steps silent and weapons ready.

###

Perro pelted through the tunnels, toward the yelling. What was going on? It was Azure, and that woman, Honey Boo. Must just be some argument, something minor. She’ll be okay. I told her we can’t afford to antagonise them.

The yelling grew in pitch as he sped through the dark. He turned a corner and the muddy backdrop of angry yelling turned clear as one spiked, with perfect clarity, right into his ears.

‘—stupid ugly bitch!’ he heard Azure howl, and his fervent hope that everything would be alright shook like a skyscraper made of rubber.

He heard a scuff of noise and saw Honey Bear, emerging fast from a tunnel right beside him, head turned to look toward the yelling. Their eyes met for just a moment as they ploughed into one another and Perro was knocked sideways into the wall, while Honey Bear staggered with him.

‘Get off me!’ he snarled, grabbing at the man and shoving, struggling, trying to move past and get to Azure. He could hear her, just on the other side of the man. But it was like trying to move an actual bear, he was just too weak.

Honey Bear shoved him in turn, and Perro staggered backwards, arms windmilling. ‘Settle down now, boy,’ said Honey Bear, teeth glinting in the light. The butt of the SMG came fast toward him and cracked Perro in the chin before he could react.

He found himself on the floor. His head turned dizzily and he found Azure. The skyscraper of his hopes firmed because she was alive, but she was on the ground, face screwed up with pain, blood on her face.

‘Little shit!’ howled Honey Boo, kicking out and catching Azure on the back, stalking around her. The woman’s nose was bleeding and her face was twisted with fury. Had Azure tried something? Tried to get free?

‘Think you can talk shit to me?’ Honey Boo hissed, circling around. She aimed a kick at Azure’s midsection, catching her.

Azure grunted and coughed, her face flexing with pain as she curled up, trying to protect herself from the kicks.

‘Kids like you,’ the woman snarled, kicking out again. ‘Talking shit to me, my whole fucking… life!’ she accentuated the word with another kick.

Struggling, he tried to rise, but a heavy foot landed between his shoulder blades and held him down.

‘Get… off…!’ Perro snarled, struggling uselessly, like a bug pinned to a page. He struggled to turn his head, looked up at the man above him. ‘Do something! Why don’t you do something?’

‘Nah. I figure it’s best to leave them to it.’ Honey Bear chuckled. ‘Look at her go, eh? She’s always been vengeful. Looks like your friend has stirred some memories. Unlucky, I guess.’

‘Get the fuck off me!’ snarled Perro, struggling uselessly.

‘Hey! What is this?’ came a voice, and Perro struggled to look behind. He saw Jo, following after.

‘Stay right over there,’ said Honey Bear, and Perro felt the man shifting above him, glimpsed him taking aim with the SMG. These two treated Jo with much more wariness than they did him and Azure, a fact that stung. They thought he was weak. That he couldn’t put up a fight. And they’re right. I can’t even help Azure. His teeth ground together.

Jo raised her hands. ‘They’re just kids. Leave them alone.’

‘You’re no one to give orders,’ snapped Honey Boo, stepping back from Azure who was silent, a curled up, bloodied ball. Perro’s wide eyes fixed on her, trying to see a sign of breathing. How many times had she been kicked?

‘Azure!’ he cried to her over Local. ‘Azure! Are you okay?’

He saw her uncurl slightly, glimpsed her eyes amidst her a pale, bloodied face, as she looked at him. She quirked a tiny smile, white teeth shining in the red blood on her face. ‘This bitch hasn’t killed me. Not yet.’ He saw her wince. ‘But I felt something break inside of me. I—‘

Before she could speak again he saw Honey Boo glance down, and a savage grin twisted the woman’s face then her foot flashed out, catching Azure in the face, snapping her head back.

‘No!’ screamed Perro.

‘See, that’s why you don’t give me orders,’ Honey Boo hissed at Jo.

‘Just leave them alone, there’s no need for this,’ said Jo, her arms held out. ‘Don’t you want us to get you those crystals? We’re no good to you if you injure us.’

‘Oh we’re long past that,’ snarled Honey Boo, ‘this little cunt said somethin’ she shouldn’t have said.’

‘She got a point though, Honey Boo,’ began Honey Bear.

‘So what if it takes a little longer?’ said Honey Boo. ‘Two is enough. Shit, we could do it ourselves and it wouldn’t take any longer, we know how the traps work now. They ate their Seeds, didn’t they? So they’ve got nothing of use to us. They’re just waiting for a chance to stab us in the back.’

Honey Bear was silent, a thoughtful kind of silent. ‘Might be you have a point,’ he said. ‘I’ve not been liking how this one’s been looking at me, anyway,’ he said, and Perro saw him gesturing to Jo, who was taking slow steps back. ‘Hey! Don’t you move!’ He grinned. ‘I guess it’s time we end this.’

###

Shit, thought Jo, her arms raised, looking down the barrel of an SMG with a grinning bastard on the other side of it.

‘Any last words, girl?’ he said, taking careful aim.

Not like this. She closed her eyes and let out a slow breath, then opened them again. She’d keep looking until the end. Be strong, keep it together. That’s what she’d always tried to do. Didn’t matter much now, but there wasn’t much point in it if you gave it up right at the end.

Honey Bear’s left eye closed. His expression grew focused. The gunbarrel was aimed right at her head. His finger squeezed on the trigger.

The air shimmered beside him, and—

The moment unfolded like a spring under tension.

A hand appeared and the gun was knocked sideways, coughing out a single bullet. Jo flinched as it cracked off the wall beside her and bounced away down the tunnel.

‘Wha—?’ began Honey Bear, turning.

Jo’s gaze was pulled by a flicker of metal, darting by like a fish through the water. She saw blood and heard Honey Boo let out a shriek of surprise when it lunged at her.

She saw it, then, a rapier, one that dove through the pistol’s trigger guard as it snapped by, tearing the gun from Honey Boo’s hand before she could react. They all stared as it turned and slipped back towards where it had come from, then coming to rest floating in the air. It tilted, and the pistol slid off.

The air shimmered and Nicolai was there, catching the pistol from the air.

Jo blinked, staring in shock along with the rest of them—Honey Boo gaping at him and the pistol in his hands, Honey Bear’s face twisted with confusion as he stared at the man who’d appeared beside him. Then she saw Honey Bear snarl, and swing the SMG round to level it at Nicolai. Her eyes shot wide—there was no time—he was already pulling the trigger—

Click, click, click, went the SMG as Honey Bear squeezed the trigger, but there were no bullets. There came another moment of utter confusion. Honey Bear twisted the SMG, staring at it, and Jo noticed what was missing.

‘Look,’ said Nicolai, and he held up the SMG’s magazine to Honey Bear. Honey Bear gaped at it, they all did. It was like a magic trick, something that caused thought to judder to a momentary halt as the rug is abruptly pulled from underneath, and the brain is stuck in a frozen loop. When did he pull it from the SMG? How did he do it with no one noticing?

Nicolai tossed the magazine into the air, and Honey Bear, so entirely baffled, could only watch it rise, his head tilting, chin drooping as his mouth hung open.

Watching the footage back later, slowing it down so she could comprehend what was happening (and also to see when exactly he got the magazine), Jo would think to herself that Nicolai seemed to create these frozen moments; these instants where nobody else was able to act or think, and only he could move within them.

While Honey Bear was staring at the magazine tumbling through the air, Nicolai took a sliding step and then his upper body moved like a piston; a short, sharp, and above all vicious snap of muscle that sent his elbow into the side of Honey Bear’s chin.

The collision made a wince inducingly audible thwack. Honey Bear’s head snapped sideways, spit and blood and maybe a tooth launched out, and from the sudden limpness of his body Jo knew he was instantly unconscious. Time resumed as he began to fall but Nicolai caught him by the shirt, checking his momentum before lowering him the rest of the way.

He whipped around, the pistol coming up and centring on Honey Boo, who had begun to step toward him. She froze, then her hands shot up.

‘H-hey!’ she gabbled, eyes wide. ‘I—who are you?’ She started to back away as he strode toward her, but she’d gotten nowhere by the time he reached her and grabbed her.

‘On your belly,’ he said, and kicked at the back of her knee, taking her to the ground. He put a foot on her back and held her there, glancing at Jo.

‘Do these two have any friends?’ he asked.

She blinked at him in the sudden silence, the sudden cessation of movement, feeling as though her body had been released from bindings. She let out a heavy breath. There had been something oddly mesmerising about what she’d witnessed. Like a Rube Goldberg machine. Click, click, click, as it all moves unceasingly towards an inevitable end.

Blinking, Jo shook her head. ‘It was just them,’ she said. Everything had changed, just like that. They were safe. The sight of that gunbarrel, aiming right at her head, was still burned into her recent memory and a shadowy spectre of it seemed to float in the middle of her vision.

‘Everyone alright?’ he spoke, eyes moving from her to Perro and Azure.

‘Still breathing,’ said Azure in a thick voice, struggling to her feet. Perro was there and helping her up. Azure glared at the unconscious Honey Bear. She spat blood and turned to scowl at Honey Boo who was struggling, snarling where Nicolai kept her pinned to the ground.

‘You!’ Azure hissed, and she ripped her arm free from Perro and limped over, watched by Nicolai who seemed curious. Her leg shot out and her foot caught the downed woman in the face. Honey Boo’s head snapped back and she yelled with pain, pressing her hands to her face.

‘Fucking cunt!’ howled Azure, kicking out again, only to be interrupted by Nicolai, who grabbed her. ‘You don’t know what she did!’ she screamed at him. ‘She deserves this!’

‘Actually, I saw,’ he said. ‘Go ahead. But not in the head. Kick her in the stomach.’ And he stepped back and waved Azure on, while Honey Boo’s expression—momentarily relieved—turned slack with shock.

Azure grinned and lunged forward, her foot sailing out. Honey Boo jerked and coughed as Azure kicked the woman in the midsection, and now the previous dynamic was reversed.

Jo stared at what was happening, yet another frown of confusion creasing her brow. This didn’t seem how it was meant to go, in this kind of situation. Did she care, though? Not really. Honey Boo and Honey Bear had earned a good kicking.

Perro did, though. ‘Azure,’ came his voice, as he struggled to his feet. ‘Don’t! You don’t want to do that, you don’t want to be like her!’

‘I’m… quite… enjoying… being like her!’ growled Azure in between kicks, while Honey Boo squirmed and tried to protect herself from the kicks, just as Azure had done.

‘Nicolai,’ tried Perro next, ‘it’s not… the right thing to do. You’re not meant to hurt unarmed people!’ His eyes were desperate as he stared at Nicolai.

For the first time Nicolai’s expression of blank-faced, engrossed focus, which he’d worn throughout the violence, changed. It turned, suddenly, into a kind of deep confusion with a shade of suspicion as he stared at Perro.

‘Right,’ he said slowly. He held a hand out, holding Azure back. ‘I… suppose that is correct.’ He was silent for a moment. His face cleared. ‘I’m taking them prisoner, anyway. She needs to be able to walk.’

‘Cunt,’ snarled Azure one more time at Honey Boo, looking like she was stopping more from exhaustion than from anything Nicolai had said. She spat at the woman before turning to stagger off, breathing in heavy, rasping breaths, right into Perro who enfolded her in a hug. Jo heard them mumbling to one another.

She moved slowly toward Nicolai. ‘You’re taking them prisoner?’ she asked him, a little surprised. She’d thought he would just kill them.

‘Of course. Hasn’t Old Ben been saying we should try to be more civilised?’ he flashed his teeth at her.

At the same time, she felt him ping her over Local, and allowed him to establish a connection. ‘Killing them would be a waste; I judge their Seeds to be at around sixty-percent. You and the other two will keep them prisoner and provide them some of the plentiful resources here to continue growing their Seeds, while ensuring they fulfil the bonding requirement. Upon completion they will integrate their Seeds, and we will seize the Symbiotes Heaven gives them. After that we will kill them. I’ll decide how much of this to tell the other two later.’

The ruthless words were spoken in a tone of patient explanation, the way one might speak when giving directions to somewhere nearby. He turned to glance at the teenagers. ‘How are you two doing?’ he asked them, a kindly smile on his face. Meanwhile Jo struggled to control her expression.

‘Good, now you’re here,’ said Perro, letting out a sigh of relief. ‘But Azure’s hurt,’ he added.

‘Why are you taking… them prisoner? They ought to die! Look what she did to me!’ said Azure, still struggling to get her breath back.

‘Perhaps they can be rehabilitated,’ said Nicolai. ‘You three stay here while I take them to their cell. Here.’ He tossed Jo her pistol, then pulled a Rejuvenating Orb from a pocket and handed it to Azure.

The woman on the ground had gone silent, listening quietly, and when Nicolai took his foot off her back and told her to get up, she did so with a wary look around.

Ignoring Azure’s taunts, she moved into the tunnel Nicolai indicated while he picked up her partner and slung the man over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry, retrieving the man’s SMG.

Jo briefly checked over her pistol, glad to have it back. She looked up to see Nicolai already disappearing into the dark of the tunnel.