Ch 26

Ben laid it all out on the line. He told them everything, about the bodies exploding into light, about his temporary transformation, even about the drugs. Doug, the smaller man, looked at Lou, the larger man.

“I'm guessing you've got some things to show us then?”

Ben nodded and took them to his Honda, opening the trunk. All the collected bags of ecstacy were piled on top of the sign with the crossed out cow. Lou stepped forward and picked up a bag, opened it, and took out a pill. From the inside of his coat jacket, he pulled a packaged vial with a screw on lid. The vial had only a small amount of liquid inside of it. He tore open the cardboard and plastic packaging, unscrewed the top, and dropped the pill into the vial. It bubbled up and Lou examined it for several moments before screwing the top back on and pocketing it.

“Good stuff,” he said.

“What else was there,” Doug said, then lit a cigarette. He offered one to Ben, and Ben accepted. He had it lit in a moment, and took a short drag.

“Guns,” he said, opening the rear doors and pulling out a black backpack. He unzipped it, opened the mouth, and four identical pistols glinted in the sunlight, prompting an interested whistle from Doug. He reached in and pulled one out, his face scrunching a bit, occasionally mouthing something like 'what the fuck' very slowly as he examined it from all angles.

“You ever take a good look at one of these, Ben?”

“Yeah. The grip is solid metal, and there's nowhere to load a bullet. I took a look inside the barrel with a camera,” he said “It goes all the way back, but the cylinder inside is smooth. They've got all those freaky engraving of bugs all over them too.”

“Really?” Doug said, turning the gun and looking down the barrel. “Huh, guess so.” Ben pulled another of the guns from the backpack “They're all the same, like, freaky, exactly the same.”

“So was there anything else besides good ecstasy and useless guns?”

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Ben almost hesitated, but then reached into his pocket and pulled out the dark crystal left behind by the Grass Wolves. It no longer burned brightly or smoked, but occasionally a flicker of something would heat up in the center.

“Oh that's neat,” Doug said, then motioned Ben to hand it over. He did, and Doug held it up to the sun. “What is this, ob-sidian?” The way he pronounced the word was extremely deliberate, like it was something he had read, but never said. He stared at it for a little while, and it seemed to kindle to life under the attention. “Well, I'm sold. You're a good bullshitter.” He handed the rock back .

“Ok, Ben. We're going for a little drive.”

–

Ben led Doug and Lou up the mountain, using the same path he had taken with the sheriffs. He had the stray thought that he was becoming disturbingly familiar with the layout of this place.

“I'll be honest with you, Ben,” Doug said, only mildly winded “I think you're full of shit.”

Ben looked back, then shrugged. He took a deep breath, the higher up they got, the more the air seemed charged up with life, invigorating him. Ben stopped walking, and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath, memories of his fight with the grass wolves filling his mind.

When he opened them, he looked behind him, and caught Doug and Lou both taking a deep, relaxing breath. Doug noticed Ben watching, then stopped.

“Here's what I'm thinking. You, your friends, and that dead guy from the pictures are all trying to set up shop, get a little side-action, make some money. You decide the smartest course of action would be to use the cartel as suppliers. Things go sour, and here we are.”

“That's not what happened,” Ben said, voice confident.

They reached the plateau of the Oasis Dungeon, the area having been entirely restored, pond in the center glinting in the sunlight. Standing next to it, back turned to them, was a naked man with steam coming off of his body. He seemed familiar, and when he turned his head, Ben understood why.

“You!” he said, voice startled as he saw the face of Vaughan's friend.

Above his head, in green light, was written Aim Hero Renegade

Lou startled, he jumped back, his face an expression of total shock. The Aim Hero Renegade smiled a blank, small smile, then began a full bodied sprint, running to the right and down a steep hill. Ben started to run forward and give chase, when Doug put an arm like steel across his chest, grabbing his shirt.

“No,” he said calmly, not looking at Ben “we're going back right now. That's none of our business, start walking.”

–

“Wow!” Melchsee said, watching the Aim Hero Renegade as he ran down the mountain “Isn't that something? You've created a man, a real hu-man! You're a regular Deus Ex Silex with that kind of talent!” She began laughing hysterically at her own joke.

“What the hell are you talking about!” Casimer said, air vibrating with the force of the words “I didn't create that thing!”