Radical-9

CHAPTER 22: The Chameleon

February 24^th, 2022

11:50 AM

I'm running out of time, but I should be good. The little brat is going along with everything, making things less complicated.

We arrive at our destination, the giant altar lies before my eyes. I should've known better than to delegate this task to Rose, but we all mistakes, don't we, Andy? You've made your fair share of them.

“Where's 'Thena and Klein and other girl?” Sam asks.

“The others are waiting right at the top of that big altar there, you see it?” I ask.

“Yeah, I see it,” he says, standing on his tip toes to look over it.

“That's where we're headed.”

He nods his head and he begins running this time. If he only knew.

We make it to the bottom of the altar's spiraling ramp up. Sam begins laughing as we begin ascending it.

“Fun wide! Fun wide!”

The lisp is almost driving me to whack him upside the head to get him to talk like a fucking normal person, but it isn't smart to set him off now. Not yet. I'll give myself that pleasure soon enough.

At the top of the ramp Sam looks around himself, confused. I walk past him and hold up my hand, fire begins forming at the tips of my fingers, it grows and swells.

“I must've been slightly mistaken, buddy. We must've beaten them here, I'm going to light this fire so they can find us,” I say.

“No! Not real Andy!” He screams out.

“Hm?” I turn my head towards him.

“You said they were wight up here! You lied! You aren't real Andy! Bring him back!” He stamps his foot.

“Ugh, you choose now you son of a-” he cuts me off by screaming. I stop the fire in my hands, it is too small to be anything meaningful. I walk over to him and look down to him, he takes a step back, I pursue, taking another step forward. If anything, I must thank you for giving me the chance to properly do what I've been just aching to do since the beginning.

I slap the little fucker so hard I could swear his head spun all the way around his neck. If only. He falls to the ground on his ass and I take out Andy's gunblade, pointing it at him. “I only need to throw your body into the fire, you brat. It doesn't matter if you're alive when I do it,” I say, taking aim.

“Stop!” I hear from down the ramp.

I see Klein, Athena and Jen running up from the top, Klein is first.

“Ah, I was wondering when you all would show up, you're just about to see the main event,” I say, pulling the trigger.

The bullet leaves the gun and digs itself into Sam's chest, leaving bright pixels in its place, his scream is marvelous. His health drops below half, and then to about a quarter.

“Tsk, it's a shame that didn't kill,” I say.

“Andy! What the hell?!” Athena yells, running up.

“Oh, damn, it looks like my time here is up. Really wish I could've finished it here, but there's always round two,” I say, facing Sam, and then nodding.

I feel a burning sensation in my hands and all across my face as my time in this body fades.

~...~

The first thing I feel is a searing hot pain just behind my eyes. Everything flashes once and then color begins to return. The eyes around me dissipate and the only two I see are Sam's below me. As sound returns to me I can hear that he's wailing, and then I see Flintlocke in my hand, pointed straight at him.

It doesn't take long for me to add two and two together.

“Answer me!” I hear from my side, I turn to see Klein, Jen, and Athena.

Of course they're here. I saw what he did, they saw it all. I drop the gunblade and put my hands to my head, closing my eyes and breathing deeply. I can hear their footsteps. I wait for their judgment. I wait for it all.

“What the hell happened?” Klein asks, he's the first to approach me.

“Bad! Bad!” Sam screams, pointing.

“Beth's dead,” I say.

His eyes go wide.

“I didn't...it wasn't my intention, Ben-”

“What's this about Ben?”

“He had this skill, it took over my body once we came back to the first floor,” I say.

“Oh, so we just believe that? Could that be any more convenient?” Athena says, not even subtle with her venom.

“And what he did to you, I could never even begin to apologize for how I-”

“Quit it,” she says.

“Athena...I think I'd wait on judging him,” Klein says.

“What, do you know something, Klein?” Jen asks.

“The head of the Python Guild, his player name is Siolence,” Klein begins. “He had a skill called Doppelgänger that allowed him to take control of his enemies on the battlefield if he relinquished control over his own body.”

“Did you get a chance to see what he looks like?” Jen asks.

“No, I never saw him personally. I raided with some Pythons back before their reputation went into the shitter for being known as the PK guild.”

“So, you think that maybe Ben is this Siolence?”

“Maybe, I don't know. It'd make sense with what you're telling us,” he says.

Jen walks up to me, she embraces me in a hug, “Don't scare me like that again.” I hug her back.

“If what you said is true, then why did he leave? Why didn't he finish what he wanted to do? That still seems kind of suspicious that he just leaves when we show up,” Athena says.

Jen lets me go and steps back.

“He said something about his time being up,” I say. “Does Doppelgänger have a sort of time limit on it, Klein?” I ask.

“I don't know, I'd wager a guess and say maybe?” He says.

“So...it's really you, then?” She asks.

“It is me, right now and right here. I'm afraid I can't promise he won't come back, though,” I say.

Athena steps over to me, slowly, hesitating at first, and then all at once. She nearly falls into me, I catch her and hold her up as she breaks, “I...I didn't know what to think. I'm sorry, I didn't want...”

“Hey hey now, don't apologize. I'm the one who fucked up,” I say, holding her close to me. “I heard everything that you said, it absolutely tore me up that I could let that happen to you,” I say.

She wipes her eyes and kisses me, standing on her tip-toes to reach. I embrace it and we start laughing. It's all so perfect.

“Thank you for not being fake. Thank you for being here,” she says.

Sam stands up, wincing at his damage, but gives me a thumbs up.

“Here, take this,” Klein says, taking out a potion from his inventory and handing it to him. He takes it and slobbers it up, I can hear him breath in relief as his health is restored.

“Don't thank me quite yet, we've still got Ben to deal with. Once I put his head on a spike only then can we relax,” I say.

“You said that you lost control when we went to the first floor?” Klein asks.

“Yeah, right when the floor transition happened,” I say.

“I think his time frame is an hour,” Klein explains.

“What?” Jen asks.

“We came back to Novus Dandé at about eleven, and it's just hit twelve now,” Klein says.

“Okay, so approximately an hour, do you know it's cooldown rate?” I ask.

“With something like that, I'd assume the cooldown is similar to its frame of use? So maybe an hour of cooldown for an hour of use? I'm guessing here,” he says.

“So we've got til like, one until he tries again?” Jen asks.

“Bad Ben?” Sam asks.

“Yes, Sam. Very bad Ben,” Athena says, holding out her hand to him.

He takes it and looks straight at her, “Don't die 'Thena,” he says.

“O-Oh, don't worry, I'm not going to die,” she says to him, and then looks to me with a look that says “Where did that come from?”

“Is there a way to stop him? There just has to...”

“The only thing I would guess would be to find him, where he is. Since he needs to leave his own body to enter yours.”

“Should we head back down, then?” Athena asks.

“I think we should go up, I'd think he'd be on one of the higher floors. Somewhere where there are less players,” I say.

“I was thinking the same thing,” Klein says.

Klein looks to me, “Well, we better get going then, huh?”

“I believe so. We've got a phony to catch.”