The Perfect Run

“Sorry, I can't do that.”
Ryan scratched Eugéne-Henry’s back while watching Dr. Tyrano on his computer
screen. The A-bomb laid on the desk, right next to the late Fat Adam's gravity
cannon. “You're saying no to unlimited fundings, resources, and safety from the
monster you keep bottled up in your lab when he inevitably breaks out? Because
you know he will.”
“I don’t know how you managed to learn that much about my work,” Tyrano
admitted, a little disturbed. “But I am contractually bound to Dynamis for the next
two hundred years. I can't even leave the building without a heavy escort.”
“Two hundred years?” Were there other time-travelers running around in Italy? “Is
that even legal?”
“In New Rome, it is.”
Ryan massaged his temples, at his wit's end. “Think, Tyrano, think! You're using
an unstable product to turn people you know into timebombs! What will you have
after everyone has turned into a Bloodstream clone?”
Dr. Tyrano remained silent for a moment, but Ryan guessed his answer before he
even spoke.
“Dinosaurs,” the scalie answered. “I'd still have dinosaurs.”
That made Ryan think more than it should.
Still, the fact Tyrano wouldn't leave the Dynamis HQ nor agree to sabotage the
Knockoff supply dashed a few of the courier’s hopes. Even if the Carnival
developed a vaccine plague to cure New Rome's population, they would have to
assault Lab Sixty-Six again to finish off Bloodstream for good.
Still, Ryan didn't give up on the saurian Genius.
“What if I told you we have access to a completely safe Knockoff variant, so
strong it even works with robots?” The courier tempted him. “That we have not
one, but two Genomes with multiple powers and no-side effects to study? That
we possess a wealth of research and information on Elixirs... and a lab capable
of creating life from scratch?”
Then he delivered the coup de grace.
“Inhuman life?”
Tyrano’s slitted eyes expanded like a frog's, to Ryan's shock. The courier
wondered if it was what passed for arousal for humanoid dinosaurs. To hook him
further, the courier forwarded the Genius a sample of his Elixir research,
including a bio-scan of Mongrel.
“We're working on a cure for the Psycho condition,” Ryan said. “Though you're
contractually obligated to work with Dynamis, certainly you can sacrifice some of
your precious time for it. Who knows, maybe you could make a Green Knockoff
capable of granting your dearest, cold-blooded wish.”
The Genius barely took a glance at the data before raising his white flag. “Where
do I sign?”
“First...” Ryan scratched Eugéne-Henry behind the ears. “You must give me
access to that folder.”
“Oh, that one?” Dr. Tyrano seemed strangely embarrassed about it. “It's
something of a side-project, and early results weren't promising. But it will
change the world, you'll see!”
“I'll keep an open mind,” Ryan said, as he received an email called “Monster Girl
Project.’ He opened the video file within.
The courier instantly regretted it, as an abomination came into view.
The screams and moans that came out of this... this thing startled Ryan so
much, that he almost fell from his chair. His terrified cat leaped out of his lap to
take over the nearby bed.
“Oh God... oh God..." Ryan covered his mouth, though he couldn't tell if it was in
horror or terrible awe at the man’s demented genius. There were things that
could still surprise him after eight centuries of time-traveling. “Why?!”
“A creative spur!” Tyrano explained, as if it made up for this crime against nature.
“I couldn't do that to a reptile!”
“Why a mink?!” Ryan asked, closing the video feed when he couldn't take the
abomination’s screams anymore. “Is... is that thing still alive?”
“No, no, it died, unfortunately,” Tyrano reassured him. “But I have a spare.”
Ryan resisted the urge to throw up, and stopped the video call feed. He would
have nightmares for years to come. Even the most depraved Sonic the
Hedgehog fans didn’t go as far as Dr. Scalie did.
The courier took a moment to gather his breath, only to suddenly hold it. Two
long ears rose from the side of the desk, a monster rising from the depths of Hell.
“No,” Ryan said with false panic.
The plushie looked at his maker, then at the A-bomb, and finally back at his
maker. Meanwhile, Eugene-Henry ignored them all to vanish beneath the
bedsheets, considering the matter beneath his kingly notice.
“No!” Ryan forbade the plushie.
And for the first time since this loop began, the furred fiend answered.
“I will always be your friend!”
This plushie hastily pushed the A-bomb’s button with a loud “click.’
Nothing happened.
The plushie hit it again, and again, and again in quick succession, growing more
and more frustrated. Its eyes turned red as it glared angrily at Ryan.
“It's a prop,” the courier replied with a grin. “I gave the real one to Vulcan.”
He had bribed his favorite dwarf Genius with so much technology, that she didn’t
even ask him to ruin Star Studios this time. Vulcan insisted that Ryan become
her assistant instead, and wouldn't take no for an answer.
The courier was more than willing to help her, but only in short bursts. Though
Ryan could now interact with Vulcan without feeling stabbed in the gut every time
she opened her mouth, the shadow of his Jasmine remained ever-present. The
courier also intended to use this loop to deal with the Bliss Factory and Narcinia,
and so would rather stay a contractor working for multiple branches of the
Augusti’s organization.
The plushie’s eyes turned blue in disappointment, so Ryan tossed it the gravity
cannon. “Here, if you want to work your way up the suicide chain,” he said. “Aim
for the heart though. There's a chance you might live if you go for the head. I
know from experience.”
The eldritch horror examined the cannon curiously, though the weapon was ten
times larger than it was. “Please don't kill anyone else!” Ryan pleaded as he left
the fiend to its experiments, rising from his seat to move to his door.
“So?” Shroud asked, having waited for him in the next corridor. He had managed
to repair his glass mask, though Ryan wondered why he bothered to hide his true
face anymore.
“He won't help sabotage the tomato juice factory,” Ryan replied with
disappointment. “He fears his bosses’ wrath more than ours.”
If the courier was on a Meta run, he might have changed that, but Ryan would
have his plate full with the Augusti for now.
One day had passed since the bunker raid, though Ryan spent last night at the
harbor helping Jamie protect drug supplies. Luigi hadn't shown up this time,
probably at Livia's urging, but Jamie still invited Ryan to stay at his house all the
same. That guy was so nice, he made the courier want to adopt him.
Ryan spent the day in Mechron’s bunker, settling things here. He had contacted
Alchemo, who should make his way to New Rome by the next day and help take
over the bunker’s mainframe. With Dr. Stitch and Tyrano’s long-distance
assistance, the courier would have the best medical team in the world to figure
out a cure for the Psycho condition.
The night, he would dedicate to Livia.
“Then we will need to clean up Dynamis’ upper echelons,” Mathias said. “We
planned to wait for Hector Manada to retire, but we can hasten his departure all
the same.”
“I've seen Hector Manada fall many times.” Ryan said with a shrug. “His children
might be willing to switch to a safer, better product than one capable of causing a
pandemic.”
“Fallout won't follow,” Mathias said. “Enrique might, once we provide him with the
necessary data to show the destruction Bloodstream could unleash; and
especially if his family lied to him. But Alphonse is another beast entirely. He
won't surrender Bloodstream, even for a better alternative.”
“Why wouldn't he?” Ryan asked with a frown. “He’s a red, a commie infiltrator. He
wants to turn everyone into a Genome, maybe even for free.”
The vigilante remained skeptical. “Think about it. Fallout not only controls the
Knockoff supply, but with Tyrano’s cure, he can also remove powers at will.
That's not the case with Mechron’s variants, if I understand correctly.”
Ryan pondered Shroud's point, and had to admit that he might be right on the
money. Atom Smasher planned to make everyone a Genome so people like
Augustus couldn't monopolize power, but he didn’t wish to coexist with other
organizations. Neither did he hesitate to lie to his close allies, so that Dynamis
could develop a monopoly on Knockoff Elixirs.
If Dynamis could both give superpowers and take them away, then it could
become a true superpower. People would be kept in line by the fear of losing
their Knockoff Genome abilities, and the Manada would monopolize the market.
“Fallout cares less about his Knockoffs’ potential side-effects than the societal
control they grant his organization,” Shroud said. “If he was truly the hero he
believes himself to be, he wouldn't have created something so dangerous in the
first place. In the end, Alphonse Manada only believes in his vision. He won't
deviate from his chosen path unless forced to.”
“I can stop time,” Ryan said, remembering Bianca running off to sacrifice herself.
“I will stop him.”
“Can you?” Shroud asked, doubtful. “Among the most dangerous Genomes
operating in Italy, he comes a close third behind Augustus and Leo.”
“I can, with this base's resources.”
“This place will have to go, Ryan,” Shroud insisted. “Maybe there is something
here that could defeat Fallout, or even Augustus, true. But the risk of dangerous
weapons spreading to the public is too great. Even distributing Mechron’s
Knockoff formula doesn't strike me as a good idea. It might weaken the position
of Genome warlords, but our post-war society is too fragile to survive ten million
people with flamethrowers for arms.”
“You're preaching to a convert,” Ryan replied. “But I will only destroy this place
after it helps solve the current crisis.”
Shroudy Matty crossed his arms. “Do you truly believe Psychos can be cured?”
“You don't, my transparent friend?”
“No,” the vigilante replied, before adding, “but if there is a chance it works... if
there is even the slightest chance it works, I can't stop you from trying. It would
help too many lives.”
“For your mom, one of the Genomes I called is specialized in brains.” Shroud's
head perked up at Ryan's words. “He can even cure mental illnesses,
Alzheimer’s, and even a Psycho’s brain tumors. He could help you too.”
Ryan couldn't see Looking Glass’ face behind his mask, though the vigilante
turned his head sideways, thoughtful. “Why do you think the Alchemist distributed
these Elixirs in the first place?”
To turn us into interdimensional squids, Ryan thought. “I dunno, improve the
human condition?”
“I think so too, and yet we used them to ravage the world.” Shroud shook his
head. “When I hear all the positive things Geniuses can make, I can’t help but
wonder why Mechron built weapons rather than medical supplies. Not even
superpowers could change human nature.”
“Take it from someone who knows,” Ryan replied. “There will always be rotten
apples like Late Adam, but most people I've met only need the right
circumstances to turn their lives around. Anyone can choose right over wrong.
Even a spoiled, self-obsessed brat with a busted power.”
Shroud chuckled. “Do you know that she sculpts in her spare time?”
She must have shown her boyfriend her gallery yesterday night. “Pretty neat,
huh?”
“She’s good at it,” Mathias continued, his tone warm. “I thought she relied on her
own luck to do everything, but she hides artistic sensibilities that appeal to me as
a game designer. I can't quite explain it. And she won half a million euros in
lottery winnings this morning, but instead of sitting on it, she wants to distribute it
to Rust Town's orphans.”
My, was he speaking fondly of Fortuna? Yesterday's battle had greatly helped to
turn his opinion of her around.
“She’s a golden retriever,” Ryan summed it up. “Loud, no respect for personal
space, but surprisingly warm and loyal underneath.”
“Worse. She's a much better person than I thought.”
The courier put his hands behind his head. “Will you be transparent with her on
your next date?”
“Will you turn back time to make your own go well?” Mathias deadpanned with a
joke of his own, before answering. “I think I will clear things up with her, but... not
as long as she’s working as a hitman for Augustus. That's a dealbreaker.”
“Unlike other members of her group, she isn't in it for the killing,” Ryan said. “She
wants to protect Livia first and foremost. It's almost romantic.”
“Is that why you're dating her?” Shroud's voice turned from amused to serious.
“To turn Augustus’ daughter around?”
“I asked her out because I wanted to,” Ryan replied. He really had a thing for
Blue Genomes shorter than himself.
“Giving her access to this place is dangerous, Ryan. What if she changes her
mind and informs Augustus?”
“She has earned my trust and helped me when I needed it,” the courier replied. “I
want to return the favor.”
Her father would wreck up the world for her sake, if he didn’t. She didn't deserve
to have her sire’s crimes on her conscience.
“Mark my words, Ryan, you can't save everyone.” Shroud marked a short pause.
“Especially from themselves.”
And yet, he had to try.
“After Alchemo comes here, we'll use your rabbit foot of a girlfriend to access the
mainframe,” Ryan said, changing the subject. “You can confirm what I said about
the other Mechron bases then, and we will unlock the self-destruct mechanism.”
“I will have to inform Leo about you, you understand that?” Shroud asked. “Even
if you turn back time again, I can't keep that to myself.”
“Even for my cute, beautiful eyes?”
“Not even for them,” the Carnival member replied with a chuckle. “Is there a way
for you to carry others through time? I suppose it is only mental, since there
aren't twenty of you running around.”
Sharp guy. “I have a procedure to transfer information directly into your brain,
though your past self will have to submit to it.”
“He won't,” Shroud said, shaking his head. “I know myself. I am too paranoid to
let anyone alter my brain, even if you earn my trust beforehand. I'm not sure I
would even accept such a procedure at Leo's urging, and I respect him more
than anyone.”
Ryan had expected as much. The only people he imagined would go through
with the memory transfer unconditionally were Alchemo, who understood the
technology; and Sarin, who had nothing left to lose. Even Len had remained on
the fence so far. “I'm trying to improve a system that could bypass that extra step,
but nothing's confirmed yet.”
“I don't like it,” he admitted. “You hold all the cards, and all I can do is go along.”
“Well, I also trusted you enough to share my greatest secret too, Safelite,” Ryan
pointed out. “I can count on one hand those who know my true, phenomenal
cosmic power.”
“I wonder what adventures we went through for you to do so.”
“We defeated the Meta-Gang together once, though Lightning Butt destroyed the
city after you recruited Atom Cat.”
“Good to know,” Shroud replied dryly, though he didn't like it. Neither did Ryan,
since Atom Kitten would clearly be much happier with the Carnival than with
Dynamis. “A shame. I was interested in Felix Veran. He has a great deal of
potential as a hero, and a courageous heart.”
“As much as the Panda?”
Shroud scoffed. “Come with me and see for yourself.”
The vigilante led Ryan into the bunker’s atrium, where they found the
transformed folding paper sheets under Len’s watch. Sarin was playing pool near
a pile of books, including Discours de la méthode:Pour bien conduire sa raison,
et chercher la vérité dans les sciences, by René Descartes.
“Look, Sifu!” The exquisitely folded the paper sheet in the shape of a mantis so
fast that Ryan could barely see his paws move. The construct joined four others,
representing a monkey, a tiger, a crane, and a snake. “Tada!”
“Nice superpower,” Sarin shickered. “Can you unlock Rubik Cubes too?”
“One of my teammates, Origami, can turn herself into paper sharp enough to
slice throats,” Shroud replied dryly. “She could even slice through your suit.”
“You're salty, aren't you?” The Psycho taunted him, while focusing on her game.
“Earn my trust first, turncoat, and then we'll talk.” Though he tolerated Sarin, the
vigilante mistrusted her as much as Ryan did in the early days of his presidency.
“If you sell us out as you did your previous employer, I will slay you myself.”
“I told your hat pal, if you truly can cure me, then you've got nothing to fear from
me.” Sarin hit an 8-ball with her pool stick. “Don’t make me wait too long.”
The courier ignored them to focus on his bear disciple. Even Ryan couldn't fold
paper that fast, even though he had mastered the skill years ago. “I thought you
were a martial arts Genius?” he asked his pandawan. “Or does your brilliance
extend to all eastern disciplines?”
“No, that's not it,” Len said while shaking her head. “I ran tests. It... it took him
minutes to pick up origami, and he... he learned French five pages into
Descartes’ book.”
“The more I read, the more it made sense,” the said.
“I think... I think he can learn almost any skill at an accelerated pace,” Len
theorized. “Pick up a new language quickly, gain new skills by learning them
through osmosis...”
Ryan knew it took on average ten thousand hours to master a skill, but clearly
bears only needed half of one. “But how did enhanced learning help make you
fly, my young pandawan?"
“That was so weird, Sifu. My vision went all blue, and then I remembered
watching Bruce Lee's flying kick in the Green Hornet.” And to illustrate his point,
the mimicked a few kung-fu moves with his paws. “Then I could do it too!”
“You learned one of Bruce Lee's moves, by remembering it?”
“Yes!” The manbear nodded. “That's how I learned martial arts, but I was never
this good before!”
In half an hour, the had mastered kung-fu, origami, and Descartes.
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Ryan dreaded to imagine what he
could achieve in a week. His
,
pandawan probably couldn't learn
what a normal a re uldrcy, but
hi fair game.
Arithmetic, philosophy, martial arts...
perhaps even Genius technology, if
f : : )
given time to observe it. Bruce Lee's
moves were made for humans, and
’
yet the Panda’s second power
allowed him to adapt them to his
beastly body proportions. The
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the latest chapter there!
His arrogant young disciple had ascended to shatter the heavens.
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Speaking of power, Ryan needed to
run tests on his own after he created
the new iteration of the Saturn m
Armor. He would 3 s0&dd & few
i to deal with Alphonse
Manada, such as switching the
chest-blaster with the gravity cannon.
He had the feeling it would help deal
with the nuclear disaster, maybe
even Lightning Butt too. The content
is on Novelxo.org! Read the latest
chapter there!
“Well, I should go prepare for my date,” Ryan said. Livia asked him to pick her up
at nine, and to be on time. For once, the courier didn’t dare to be fashionably
late.
“Good luck, Sifu!” The cheered him up. “I knew the tension was palpable!”
Len, though, seemed a lot less enthusiastic. “Riri, umm... can I... can I talk to
you alone for a second?
Ryan nodded, his adoptive sister leading him outside, to the corridor overseeing
the hangars. Henriette was playing with the children near the submarine, the dog
delighting at having company. The group brought much levity to an otherwise
claustrophobic, lifeless place.
Len glanced through the corridor's window, her arms folded. “You and her...”
“It's hard to explain,” Ryan admitted.
The Genius held her breath. “In the past loops, did... did my other self know?”
“Well... 1 kinda told you how I felt, and we decided to stay family afterward.”
Len’s gaze saddened, as she glanced at the Mechron-made submarine floating
in the bunker’s water access. “We... we could reach the United States with it,”
she said. “Cross the Atlantic Sea.”
“Even I can't turn back time that far,” Ryan said sadly. “Trust me, I tried. I tried
many times.”
“I know, I..." Len bit her lower lips, and didn’t finish her sentence.
Ryan didn’t need her to do so, to guess what she didn’t dare to say. That part of
her wondered how their relationship could have ended. They had left each other
in tears, and though they had started picking up the pieces, some of them had
been forever lost to the sea.
“We could leave this place,” she said, though with hesitation. “After we... after we
deal with Dad.”
“I can't do that, Shortie. Not anymore.” If she had asked when he first arrived in
New Rome, Ryan wouldn't have hesitated. But now... now the time-traveler had
too many people to fight for. He couldn't leave them behind in the dust.
“She will be fine,” Len protested. “She's... she’s his daughter. Let them tear apart
New Rome, if they want that rotten place so much.”
“So I should let her father kill people for her sake?” Ryan asked, and instantly
regretted it. Len flinched as if she had been slapped. “I'm sorry.”
“You don't want her to end up like me,” the Genius guessed, avoiding his gaze.
Ryan glanced at the Mechron submarine. “Do you think we could reach
Antarctica with that thing?”
She frowned, not understanding what he wanted to say. “Yes, of course.”
“There's so many mysteries to uncover around the world, so many wonderful
places to explore, Shortie,” Ryan said. “Things that make life worth living. Don’t
bury yourself under the sea, please. Even whales rise up to take a breath of fresh
air sometimes.”
“I just don’t know what to make of everything,” Len admitted. “The Carnival...
they killed my father, but if what you've said is true...”
“You will let the Carnival operate on you?” he asked her. “Remove your father’s
blood tracker?”
“It's... it's the last part I have left of him.”
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Ryan put his hands in his pocket,
choosing his words carefully. His
thoughts turned to his am
with Sed Eligdn Woen hé&brie ly
ckadsed the Black World portal.
«
Someone told me once that you
have to let the dead rest. By trying to
keep the dead alive, we only make
everyone suffer. Nobody can move
” .
on.” The content is on
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chapter there!
Len wouldn't answer, her face as blank as a death mask. Ryan's hand reached
for her shoulder, but she avoided his touch. Too soon. Still, he accepted it, hoping
his words would prevail.
“Shortie, you're family,” he said. “That will never change. Not even whatever
happens with Livia, if anything happens between us, will change that. You will
always stay my best friend, my sister, my most important person in the world.”
“I...” She bit her lower lip. “I... I don’t know what to answer.”
“Then don’t say anything,” Ryan answered with a smile. “What I mean to say is
that you're not alone, and you never have been. You don’t need a ghost to carry
on. The children love you, and whenever you trip, I will be there to help you rise
back up.”
Ryan and Len fell into a comfortable silence, just as a black sphere phased
through the hanger and collapsed into nothingness. It miraculously didn’t harm
anyone, though the courier should probably check up on his bedroom before
leaving.
“Now, I hope I didn’t give you diabetes,” Ryan joked.
And to his surprise, she chuckled and relaxed. It seemed his wit had broken
through her shell. “Riri, about your memory machine...”
“You will try it on? Recover your other self's memories?” She answered his
question with a nod. “What made you change your mind?”
“Even after what happened between us... you offered me your hand.” The
shadow of a smile appeared on her face. “It's time... it's time I do the same for
you.”