Chapter 81 (Book 3 start)

The Angel Express, Georgia - 5:23 PM

The gentle sway of the train and the sound of tracks rushing beneath us relaxed me to no end, though I could not sleep. The bed sheets were made of silk, my pillow was fluffy and cold, and I was safe. By all rights, I should have been able to sleep soundly.

But that wasn’t what was happening. I laid in my bed, comfortable, with my eyes closed but sleep didn’t come. My mind kept going over what had happened in the hive, tracing the steps that lead me here.

Atlanta was going to be a mostly blank slate. I had sent a letter there to help the people of the city, and by the time we arrived their main scenario should already be wrapped up. That was fine, and I had planned for it. The people would be acting and going about their lives in a way I was familiar with. Which meant all I had to do was alter the plan enough to accommodate my new angelic Patron and my new friends, the Mills.

The process I went through to get Jeff was where things had gone off the rails. I still wasn’t sure if it was the Regression Imbalance that made me want to save him, or if it was the angelic splinter Sara put in me for the boon, or if I was just tired of doing the same old thing, but it had felt right at the time.

“Things… haven’t exactly gone to plan,” I said out loud. “And it could be traced back to one event that I stepped out of my path for.”

With a sigh, I opened my eyes to see a message from Sara directly in front of me.

[[Patron Message]]

Why don’t you tell me what happened? There’s still time before you reach Cordele, and I’d love to hear all about it.

Sincerely,

Esaraphelscion, Angel of the End

I thought it over before speaking carefully. “The first few parts went to plan, other than not paying attention to the fact that the Administrator Black-out didn’t appear until after the announcement. That was a bit of an embarrassing error, but for now that part’s okay. Don’t know what’s going to happen in the future, but for now that part’s okay.”

Removing myself from the covers, I put my feet on the ground.

[[Notice]]

You have rested in a Safe Zone that you own. All HP and other resources have been restored by 50%.

I didn’t feel rested, but I wasn’t about to complain to the system about that.

The dryer had gone off about ten or twenty minutes or so, but I didn’t want to wear my gear. Instead, I grabbed some clothes out of my inventory. I pulled on a plain white shirt, a pair of red and green pajama pants, and a pair of blue bunny slippers before heading for the dining car.

Corwin was not outside of the Mills’ room this time, and I assumed they would either be in the next car or cuddling with their dog. While I didn’t say it to Sara, I was worried about them. Kayla could fake it until she made it, although it would be hard. It was Jeff I wasn’t so sure on. I knew they had grown attached to Gloria in particular, and a battlefield like that changed a person.

When I saw that the dining car was empty, I went behind the bar to make myself some hot chocolate. I wanted to go through the motions of making it instead of simply ordering one from the train’s food menu. Keeping myself busy always helped clear my mind.

“Everything went according to plan until I had a moment of weakness in front of Kayla,” I continued. “They think I have visions of the future based on past iterations of things, though I think she’s going to call me out on it soon now that she saw you. But that’s neither here nor there.”

I paused, thinking about it. “Still not sure if I’m going to come clean, but at this point I’m pretty sure I can trust them,” I whispered. Then I shook my head; that wasn’t what she asked. “I became a Warmind, destroyed the car, and took care of the Kingtin without deviating from the plan. But, when I was talking to Kayla, I started going on about how things were bad, only I could fix it, blah blah blah. Apparently, I started crying and she took that as I needed to be comforted.”

[[Patron Message]]

I like this Kayla. Jeff also seems like a good guy.

I am still worried about their dog, but I’m willing to give it a chance. For you. Because you are giving it a chance.

Sincerely,

Esaraphelscion, Angel of the End

I snorted. “Yeah, they’re good people. And Corwin is a good boy. A super good boy, even. I’m also the one who advocated for him to turn into a demonic dog. Evolve him into a Cerberus,” I admitted before frowning. “If he becomes more demonic, then am I going to start wanting to strangle him? I don’t want to hurt Corwin.”

[[Patron Message]]

… I’ll overlook your advocating for turning a dog into a demon just this once, so please don’t do it again.

As for the strangulation of small animals, probably not. The boon I planted in you altered  you in some ways, I admit, but now that you have your own (admittedly small) holy flame inside of you, you’ll find it’s much easier to manage. It won’t be a pleasant feeling when you’re in the presence of an actual demon, but Corwin should ping at a level that’s easily ignored.

Sincerely,

Esaraphelscion, Angel of the End

“Thank you for overlooking my transgressions and commenting on how small my flame is,” I said cheekily with a small bow. “After sleeping on it, I decided to go and try and find Jeff. I felt terrible over all the times I had put Kayla through my spiel while she was still brain fried by the slime monster, even though those times didn’t actually happen. It felt good, though, seeing her face light up like that. He was all the way up in Stanley, so I left Kayla to Thomas’ group and started heading north.”

I threw a few small marshmallows into my hot chocolate once I finished and moved around the bar to set the mug down at a table. As I sat down with it, I opened the menu for the train and changed all of the windows in the dining car from opaque to transparent. The Georgian countryside greeted me, and I watched it slide by as I leaned back and sipped my drink.

“Stanley has a necromancer building bodies as their main scenario. I had helped them with it a few times, but I never thought it was worth it as far as saving lives and getting points went,” I admitted. “I helped a lot more people by making sure Etson was safe. But, I went up there looking for Jeff. Met Todd, who ended up being the one who killed the necromancer, and Carl. They took me up to see the person who took over logistics for the city’s factions, Heather, and I left with a few people.”

Sighing, I took another sip. “That’s where I met Pustibule, the demonic doctor. I was running low on Mental Points, and I figured out that I didn’t succumb to it when I was filled up, but the intense hatred I felt for the demon even when it was hiding in a nearby building… I’ve only felt anger and hatred like that a few times in my long life. And he had the gall to say your Kiss was corrupting me. That was pretty infuriating in its own way.”

[[Patron Message]]

I’m sorry, that one was my fault. I didn’t think to warn you about that side effect because you never mentioned demons appearing this early.

As for the boon being a corrupting force, I don’t agree with it. You’re already good, what’s there to corrupt?

Sincerely,

Esaraphelscion, Angel of the End

“It’s fine, and thank you for saying so,” I replied with a chuckle. “Honestly, the building he’s in is always demolished by the time I get to Stanley since I have to build up my strength for the trek. Going when the Writhing Juggernaut’s on the interstate is usually the best option, though, which is what I did. Pustibule booby traps the medical center he resides in to collapse when he’s dead and has a very short timer, and I’m sure everyone Sterling, the leader of the Medics, sends over there likely dies. I have a theory that this is why I never find Jeff, but obviously there’s no way to confirm that now.”

A monster goat the size of a duplex caught my eye as we passed by a vast, open field. It was grazing with a herd of smaller, regular sized goats and minding its own business. Nearby, I could see a black and white streak running around, keeping the goats from wandering too much. Despite its overwhelming size, the monstrous goat allowed itself to be shepherded, and then we passed it.

“I took out Pustibule,” I continued, still gazing out of the window. “A little more brutally than I would have liked to otherwise, but I took him out. He had offered me a summoning card and said he could remove the boon from my soul. Obviously, I wasn’t going to let him do that. I hadn’t known the boon was tangible, but I knew what he was talking about once I had time to calm down. The summoning card was a dead giveaway, though, and I should have paid more attention to that.”

Slipping off one of the bunnies on my feet, I lifted my foot and wiggled my toes. “I did miss out on getting the Wool Socks of Doom, though. Worth it for Jeff, I think,” I said before shaking my head. “The rest of my night was on track. Killed the giant boar, grabbed a few things from the shop it was in, and helped the Alurnes. Francis is a fire mage and Jess has a tank class now, which is good.”

I glanced back towards the sleeping car. “Kayla apparently smoothed things over with Thomas for me while I was missing. The next morning, I had a meeting with him, Gloria, and John. It went about as well as I could have hoped since I spilled the beans to them, and the Mills and I accompanied them to the meeting with the priest that shall not be named. That part and the fight against the Writhing Juggernaut went pretty much as planned.”

A weird twitch hit my lips like I couldn’t decide whether to smile or frown. “That was when Seraphim stepped in. The Juggernaut was set to evolve, but the process takes time. Once he assumed I was the one fighting it since there was nothing else for it to chase but a glitch, he hit the button. I had killed it already, of course, but that means nothing to him. The Juggernaut changed into a Zeppelin and I needed Gloria’s help to kill it. She did an amazing job, I’m…”

Sad she’s gone, though I didn’t say that out loud. “Gloria was a hero, through and through,” I said instead. “The Etson Faithful didn’t like me after that. Well, half of them didn’t because of the things their leader said. In order to help out Kayla and Jeff, who used Corwin to sniff me out, I took a few things from a safe room they were looking to crack. All of it went to those two since I had my gear mostly sorted out, and I wanted them to be safer since I was throwing them to the wasps to see what they can do.

“Asides from Jeff pulling Serranras, the Dryad overseeing Etson National Forest, everything else went according to plan. I was able to talk her into letting us go and save the Kobolds, which we did. Kayla and Jeff defeated Talspra with only a little help from me. Leading Elder Tet’s people out of the forest was a breeze, and we managed to make it to Serranras’ tree with no problems.”

I chuckled, shaking my head. “I have to tell you, that was the easiest defense game I’ve played in a while. Normally, I’m taking care of Jickree and scores of warriors by myself. I’ve gotten really good at fighting him. Unfortunately, I was at a handicap. I had to use Pustibule’s demonic blade against the Writhing Zeppelin in order to get deep enough to plant the Relocation Grenade where it would do the most damage. It really fucked up my hands, which didn’t get better for a whole day.”

[[Patron Message]]

That sounds horrible! It might seem counterintuitive, but it likely lasted so long because of the boon. Instead of dissipating naturally, the demonic influence might have been empowered to fight what I left in your soul, making it linger instead of gradually disappearing like it should have.

Sincerely,

Esaraphelscion, Angel of the End

“You know, you don’t have to sign every single message, Sara,” I said with a smile. “I mean, feel free to do so if it makes you happy, but I know it comes from you.”

I took a moment to see if she would respond, and when she didn’t I continued. “So, the night went on as usual. You’ll be happy to know that I didn’t sleep with Serranras in any Dryad rituals. She chose Jeff and, by extension, Kayla. So this is just gossip because there’s absolutely no way I’m going to ask, but I’m pretty sure they went with the sexy route instead of sacrificing an animal. Kayla getting Queen of the Forest kind of threw me because I hadn’t heard of any other woman interacting with the Dryads getting that kind of boon, but I think it speaks volumes. Though, that’s just gossip between us, yeah?”

Another pause where she didn’t answer. I thought it was because she was going to hit the limit before prices on messages rose since she had already sent eight today, but I wasn’t about to waste a message asking about it.

“The Dealer showed up early the next morning,” I continued. “He figured out that I was a regressor thanks to raiding Seraphim’s team. We signed a contract saying that he wasn’t allowed to spill the beans, but I also gave him first right of refusal on all information when it came to treasure hunters. With caveats, of course, because I don’t want to screw myself over if I need help and he’s not available. It was amiable, even if he tested me to check my resolve. At least, pretty sure that’s what he was going for. Might just wanted to be a dick.”

[[Patron Message]]

I’m going to keep signing my name, thank you very much. Those, I suppose using my full name and title could be a little much. I’ll change it just for you, okay?

I’m sorry to hear Kayla and Jeff might have gone through with something like that with a Dryad! They seemed like such nice folks, I can’t believe they’re degenerates!

And the Dealer is slimy. You already know how I feel about that, but I can reiterate if you’d like.

Sincerely,

Sara, Girlfri-End

I smirked as I read through this one. “Working in backwards order, Girlfri-End is amazing, and I applaud you. You don’t have to reiterate your problems with the Dealer, Kayla and Jeff are nice people and they’re not degenerates, and if you’d like to keep signing your name, feel free. I won’t stop you, I just wanted to point it out, Captain Sara.”

Finishing the rest of my hot chocolate, I stood up to put the mug in the sink. It would self wash, being the luxury version it was, and return itself to the cabinet I had originally retrieved it from.

“Where was I…?” I asked myself before nodding. “Right. Because of Seraphim having a way to find me, we had to move up the schedule. The Dealer said he was going to get back at noon today instead of tomorrow like we had originally thought. So, we needed an army.”

Instead of returning to my seat right away, I stood at the sink with my arms crossed, watching the scenery go by. “I went to the Safari Resort to talk to Thomas, but he wasn’t there. Francis wanted to go see the Mausoleum of the Arsonist for himself, which wouldn’t ever be a good idea for him as a pyromancer. Though, they couldn’t get in because a kid and his family had run in there to escape from the Juggernaut.”

I sighed. “I had no idea he was in there, waiting for his own demise. Just thinking about it puts my head in a space where I don’t want it to go. So I won’t. Just going to move along. Turns out that Thomas and friends hadn’t gone into the dungeon because Charlie was there, leaving me trapped. I managed to speak with them through the hole I made, and they waited.

“I went through the dungeon, getting burned to Hell and back but otherwise coming out better than I went in. Well, eventually. Though, that’s where Jeremiah Wilson first arrived,” I said before heading back to my seat. “Maybe arrived isn’t the right word for it considering he’s a sniper. I learned that Pustibule was back and the bastard shot me. Thomas managed to get me back onto the train thanks to my Heelies, but I’ve been expecting Jeremiah to make another appearance ever since.

“Not that he’s shown up yet, the bastard. From our best guess, he found one of Pustibule’s summoning cards and made a deal. He took out the last of the Vespae strongholds, getting his hands on the Stinger Rifle we talked about, and came after me. Not sure if he’s still hanging around Pustibule since he hasn’t shown up since then, but I’m still expecting him to come around. Better to expect him and not see him than to write him off and he rolls into town anyway. I’m sure Pustibule will end up finding me sooner or later, at the very least.”

My fingers started rapping the table as we passed through a town. It wasn’t large, but monsters still roamed the streets with not a single person in sight. We were invisible to everyone as we traveled through a separate dimension, which was a perk of train travel. The American railways were always so busy, but even the observers who took on the persona of Patrons liked trains so rails were a premium mode of transportation. Expensive, but great and well worth it for someone like me.

“Since I wasn’t sure what was going to happen, I spent a lot of time getting letters ready for the Dealer to take to other people around the world. I didn’t think I was going to die, but I wanted those letters out there. Didn’t finish them, but got a good chunk out of the way. That took up pretty much my whole afternoon until I went to see the Faithful.”

I stopped rapping the table and crossed my arms. “I met with the priest but we, predictably, didn’t get anywhere. I’m sure I could have handled it better, but I’m also sure he wouldn’t budge. So I ended up talking directly to the Faithful. Jumped up onto the gazebo and started orating to the crowd, puffing them up and asking for volunteers. I won’t rehash the speech, but Todd was there with about fifty people from Stanley. That was a surprise, but apparently two of the big factions really started working together to make sure the city was safe after I left.”

[[Patron Message]]

This Jeremiah Wilson person sounds like an asshole. Who deals with demons? Honestly? I hope he shows up again so you can do something about him. You’re Anthony Franklin, you can definitely take him in a fight.

I’m glad to hear the people of Stanley managed to rally because of you. You’re 110% inspiring.

Sincerely,

Sara, Girlfri-End

I paused as I read the last message, and ran my fingers through my hair. “Oh, uh, thank you,” I said before moving on. “Well, there really isn’t much else to say. Almost five hundred people volunteered, and the war meeting went pretty smoothly all things considered. I went to create a distraction with a few mages which worked like a charm, and the army was practically on the Vespae hive’s doorstep by the time they realized we were coming.

“It was me, Thomas, Gabrielle, the Mills, and Elder Tet going inside. Pustibule’s stupid megaphone started up and he began spewing shit about how he’s demonized the Vespae queen. We hurried, fought Ylstin, Kayla almost died, and then we went up to Amlex’s chambers. At one point Thomas almost killed her, cleaved her in two, but she had some kind of weird cord inside of her that kept her alive. Pretty sure Pustibule wanted me to use the scalpel again. Either debilitate me or put me further on the path of a demon, but I summoned you instead.”

Releasing a breath, I tore my eyes away from the window to look towards the ceiling. “And that’s all I got. I mean, obviously I broke free from the shackles of man, but this was all stuff you had already seen. No idea what happened between when I passed out and when I woke up, though.”

Suddenly, Corwin’s head was on my lap. I looked down to see his eyes staring up at me, ears alert, and I began scratching him with both hands.

“We went to go find you while Tommy and Gabrielle went to help the people,” Kayla said as she entered the dining car with her husband in tow. They were both wearing pajamas, but they looked just as tired as we all had this morning. Jeff went straight for the coffee machine. Kayla glanced up at the ceiling before looking back at me. “You talking to your sky friend?”

“Patron,” I corrected. “And thank you for finding me. I know the bugs were leaving because the queen died, but there was still a lot of danger out there.”

“You would have done the same for us,” Jeff said groggily.

“Yes, which is why I appreciate it.” As I spoke, the train began to slow. I took a look outside to see the familiar streets of Cordele passing by. We’d be stopping just north of the city by the airport. There was no train station, but it was fine, no one was around to stop us. “Have some coffee and gear up. This thing’s slow to stop, so you’ve got about five minutes. We’ll talk about my Patron when we’re outside.”

I stood up just as the city was becoming overgrown. Kayla and Jeff kept their eyes on the windows as we passed by watermelons the size of people, cars, and buses. Not all of them were green; some were light blue, others a deep red, and a few gold ones could be seen sporadically. Their vines covered many of the buildings, only giving us a few glimpses into the architecture of Cordele.

“Psychic boy, what is this?” Kayla asked, gesturing towards the window.

Shrugging, I started walking back to my room. “Cordele, Georgia,” I answered. “They call themselves the watermelon capital of the world.”