Tenner and Galvani descended down her building’s floors.
She talked all the way, countless affairs of Centercity, her past as a mastermind in command of bandit wars, and aspirations of fighting back the Corporation to take control of the Realm flowing out of her mouth.
Tenner could tell when a kid lied -- detecting her deceit was no harder. Her voice tasted a little too sweet and her words were too calculated. She wanted nothing, but to make him too comfortable. Make him slip up.
I could learn a thing from these masterminds, he thought, exiting the building. It could make manipulating people much easier. Goodness, not like it could ever be hard for me in the first place.
Galvani traded understanding glances and subtle symbols with her goons and walked out after Tenner. He stopped in the middle of the street, facing where the Hoods of Centercity would be. Of hope, a star shrouded by clouds remained that they’d fixed the Rusty Levita and escaped.
Tenner had to crush it. His quest--the only thing that mattered--was their deaths. They’re gonna be there, he convinced himself. They will die there.
Galvani looked at Tenner with an expression full of questions and her foot tapped on the ground. Tenner returned to moving as he waved after himself. I’m Tenshot, damnit. I got into Harvest myself. Those bandits leeched off of me. They’ve never had to face what I had. They don’t matter. It’s me who does. Me.
Tenner expected Galvani to state a slew of facts about the open warehouse they hid in. But she remained quiet since they entered. She understood what Tenshot needed and that she dragged behind him. Too many fools in his journey had filled his socks with sand and tried doing things their own way. But there was no other way.
Left alone, he could slaughter a slum. With a useless mastermind by his side, he’d barely noticed the rusty vehicle with faltering engines hovering overhead as they’d sneaked into the warehouse.
“I have to ask: how long will we be waiting here?”
“Until your nemesis comes back. It’ll be a minute, maybe two.” Tenner’s mouth watered and the heat of the hunt swallowed him from inside. “Centercity is unused to doing anything hard for once? Not getting what you want instantly?”
“Quite the opposite, in fact… I couldn’t control my curiosity. I’ll wait while you deal with the majority of the scum then get my… fix.”
“This is a sport for you.”
Galvani shook her head. “It’s my anger, I believe. What they have caused…” she trailed off.
“Me and you? We’re quite alike,” Tenner said, flashing a grin at the mastermind. He was perfectly aware of what effect the words would have on the mastermind.
Indeed, in an instant, her face finished a redecoration.
“No. We are not. Firstly, I don’t know you well enough--”
Tenner interrupted, “In a short while, everyone will.” It didn’t matter what Galvani said anymore: she thought she was superior to other classes and believed she’d cleaned any blood from her hands by using hunters.
Stillness left the ground and the levita lot got its first visitor of the evening -- the bandits’ rusty hideaway.
Tenner activated [True Sneakiness], [Private Eye] and [I Fight or I Die]. No need for [The Smellings of Blood], he thought. I know exactly what’ll happen. He jogged out of the warehouse, trusty laserpistol pointed. Galvani kept her elegant posture and a distance of three meters between them.
“There’s no beauty to this contract,” Tenner said. “The second the doors open, I spray whoever comes out. In a minute, we leave.”
The Rusty Levita’s hull door opened and a dozen cheerful bandits in coats stepped out. Vinny was pushed out by two. The joy of the gang’s success streamed into their tongues as they conversed with one another about exploring the world and freedom. Yet lasers cut their fantasies short, flooding their lungs with blood and setting fire to their skin.
The bandits collapsed in a slew of screams, but couldn’t see him. Tenner thanked [True Sneakiness].
His laserpistol’s handle heated up to Vinny’s temperature -- the robot’s red coat burned. Three holes of molten metal had opened in his body whilst dozens of parts fell from it.
Some Hoods of Centercity died instantly.
Some tried hiding under the levita and got crushed by its running engines.
One bandit tried crawling away, gripping a massive wound on her left leg. Tenner stepped on the shot-up limb. Burned skin crunched and scarred nerves blared pain. The bandit squirmed, prayed for mercy. And Tenner gifted it in the shape of a laser to the brain.
As the mixture of pink and red splattered across the ground, the pilot cabin opened, letting out Klitch and Gibby. The latter screamed, “He’s a fucking traitor! I knew it!” At the same time, the leader’s eyes filled with immeasurable disappointment.
Blue lasers screeched at Tenner.
Tenner danced out of the way and hid behind the cargo bay door. Red fire from one side and blue from another trapped him behind it. Then his eyes met the toilet in the middle of the levita lot.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
The leaders of the Hoods were not ten seconds away. He took off, blasting the Pissdungeon.
White shards rained as he hopped into the pit and punched the engineer hiding there. Laddo tripped and his head crashed into one of the countless holes in the wall.
In one swift move, Tenner unsheathed the axe and chopped the neck, leaving Laddo’s head for the worms’ dinner.
Tenner grabbed his invention -- a briefcase. The box, he called it, he remembered his time with the Hoods of Centercity. Let’s see how many features he hid in it. His finger pressed on a button and the briefcase morphed into a shield.
Climbing out, Tenner blasted at The Rusty Levita. A pair of lasers incapacitated an engine and a couple dozen melted parts off it. The shield in his left soaked up blue and red shots. After he was sure the Hoods couldn’t escape even if they tried, he turned to Klitch.
The leader rolled out of the way, taking shelter behind Vinny’s smoldering remains. Every few moments, he peaked out, letting stray a shot.
On the other side of The Rusty Levita, Gibby sneaked towards Tenner, growling under his teeth. One of his shots tore into an uncovered part of Tenner’s leg.
[Warning! Damage: -10 to health]
[Being’s HP is 740/750]
Pain travelled up and down the leg for a split second -- all Klitch needed to jump out and lay hell.
Lasers, swirling through the air from both directions, more and more hitting the parts the briefcase’s shield didn’t hide, drove Tenner back.
[Warning! Damage: -10 to health] [7x]
[Being’s HP is 680/750]
As he was about to jump into the Pissdungeon, a whisper sounded from the right. Four lasers pinned Gibby to the side of The Rusty Levita: he squeaked down its wall and a fifth shot turned his head into a target after a round of successful practice.
Tenner grinned and blasted Vinny. One last flame emerged from the burnt-up robot. Klitch stumbled. The tips of his hair caught fire, filling the air with the smell of charcoaled toast. Tenner shot his pistol out of his grip, pierced him with countless lasers and pressed a button with his left.
The shield retracted into the briefcase.
He wiped his sweat and walked through the ranks of corpses, stopping by each and crushing the head with the briefcase. Gibby, Galvani’s only kill, got countless punches that contorted and crumpled his lifeless face. A special gift for such disrespect.
Then, Tenner slumbered over to Klitch. The last remaining Hood of Centercity stared. Blood streamed out of his nostrils, dying his moustache maroon. A dwindling 30 HP kept him alive.
Tenner dropped the briefcase and unsheathed his axe.
“I saved your life,” Klitch whispered. “I took you in. I trusted you.”
“But you didn’t admit that you’re a fool for doing so.”
“Guess the good guys die and evil prevails. One does whatever it takes to be right while the other takes whatever it can…”
“A bandit calling me evil?”
“Will you two get on with it?” Galvani said from the side. Her silent pistol was pointed at the bandit’s leader.
Klitch sighed. “Doesn’t matter, now. Who’s evil and who’s good, who hates you and who loves -- it was all a game of the living. I’m on the other side. What matters here is what others remember.” He tapped Tenner’s shoulder. “I trusted you. I still do... “
“Trust, whatever. You’re a brick in the stairs to my greatness. I won’t forget you when I’m the greatest if that’s what you want.”
“Proceed, please.” Galvani’s deceitful tone started breaking part.
“Got any last words?”
“Gibby won’t shut up about being right, will he?” Klitch half-laughed, half-coughed blood. 15 HP, now. His tone became serious. “I think I could’ve fought back way better. It could’ve been the surprise that messed my eyesight up, props for that, but I think I didn’t on purpose. I believed my death would be the light that guides the infinite potential inside you to good…”
“May you draw all aces, Klitch.”
***
Galvani stopped in front of her building’s entrance and extended her arm sideways, blocking the door. The expression on her face was satisfied and her eyes kept in contact with Tenner’s. But one hand in pocket, one leg slightly covering the other, and countless tiny movements all seemed to scream like a classless, hunted in a slum.
“Good job,” she said. There was that sweet, calculated voice again. “Our business is concluded today and you should come back later when I have more issues to take care of.”
What was her problem? Tenner did what he was supposed to and passed the audition, but she still didn’t trust him. He’d never hear from her again and probably couldn’t enter her office, even if he tried. He even betrayed the Hoods of Centercity in exchange for a steady supply of Ultimates.
Then it struck him. Ah, was the world of Centercity slimy. This is the real test, Tenner thought. If I betrayed them, I could betray her. She got a few chores taken care of and now can just discard me…
“Something is bothering you,” he said.
“What could? We’re splitting ways-- today...”
Tenner’s teeth bit down on a hysterical laugh. “And the reason being?”
“Like I said. Because there is nothing to be taken care of,” Galvani lied and paired it with a smile then continued, “Though the fact that you can’t be trusted also added to my decision.”
“There it is.”
“Goodbye,” Galvani said, made her face seem confused and stepped inside her building. The woman on the couch in the lobby was still telling her CHEK to open the character screen, while the receptionist glued his eyes on something important on the counter. The doors shut.
“Can’t be trusted,” Tenner repeated.
Again, the universe was set out against him, not paying its debt.
He’d gotten a lead to a mastermind that would give him enough credits to leave the awful Realm. He’d made every right choice doing her jobs. And he’d gotten burned. At least I still have the money… But I could have more… Continue the hunt and draw the blood of mastermind scum..
Tenner’s fist banged on the door. It held closed while not a shuffle sounded in the lobby. He hiked to the street and overviewed the building, possible entrances and plans forming in his head.
Galvani was prepared for everything and understood he’d want to come for her. Tenner guessed deceit wasn’t her only trick and that he could expect more layers of defense than the bulky receptionist and the shady woman in the lobby.
“Just wait till she lets her guard down” was Tenner’s first thought. Then, as his eyes landed on a large window on the third floor, a better idea came.
Galvani could be dead before dayrise. He’d need a lot of wire.
Activating every perk he could think of, Tenner ran towards the Electrical Tower. Where else could he find more? And the people who depended on that electricity didn’t matter as much as the hunt.
The scent of blood flashed. Not in Tenner’s nose, but from his CHEK. [Predator]’s highest level is always coming in handy. What more could I expect? He stopped. A lean shadow blocked out some of the light from the wall of neon ads. The hunt returned from its hiatus with a different purpose -- settling disrespect.
Like the Electrical Tower behind Centercity, Valerius loomed behind Tenner.