[REND] 16.1 - Fun Alone Time

“Are we seriously going to barbecue me?” I asked while sitting in front of the fireplace.

We were back at Deen’s rented house at Poblacion Verde Hills, debating how to dispose of the bits of crushed fingers I shed during practice. I thought of just chucking them into the garbage. Anyone finding them would assume they were pieces of meat trimmings. But Deen wanted to do something first.

“More than barbecuing your fingers,” Deen said, looking for the remote control for the gas fireplace. City ordinance didn’t allow wood-burning fireplaces. “We’re going to turn them to ashes before throwing them. Squeaky clean disposal.”

“I feel like that’s overcomplicating things. And I don’t think a gas fireplace is hot enough to turn flesh to ash, much less bones. Maybe we should bury them in your backyard?”

“That’s… easier.”

We buried the Erind-y bits near the roots of a fig tree that was part of the lot’s privacy hedge. In time, the flesh would decay, and the roots would hide the bones forever. Unless the tree was uprooted, of course. Deen, a total weirdo, uttered a quick prayer, as if it were a burial, before we returned inside.

“Peace. At long last,” I muttered, shutting the door to my room.

Time to recharge my social battery away from Deen. She’d be busy unpacking and stowing away all her shopped stuff. We had dinner at Sanders Mall, so there was no need to interact with Deen again. The whole evening was mine.

I dumped what I bought on my bed: a few pieces of sports bras, black dye for my hair, and makeup for my hand. Oh, and Deen gave me a present—a keychain of a fairy tale character, the head of Pinocchio with its long and pointy nose.

Deen was so happy picking this for me that I couldn’t decline. It was fancy woodwork, but I had a couple of complaints. For one, the nose looked too delicate. It might break off when I’d bump something hard. My other gripe was that I wasn’t sure if the story of Pinocchio was a fairy tale, though I was familiar with it. Unlike most fairy tales, olden stories passed by word from generation to generation until they were put on paper, Pinocchio was a serial in a newspaper or something. It was then compiled into a novel.

And I wasn’t sure of the moral lesson of Pinocchio. Recent movies re-telling Pinocchio focused on the not-lying thing, but that was a minor part of the original. Pinocchio was a brat of a kid, and he got his comeuppance… by being executed. Pinocchio was as dark as the fairy tales of old, so that checked out.

However, due to popular demand, the author got pressured to continue the story. Pinocchio was revived by a fairy—I supposed that made it a fairy tale—and got his happy ending.

“Is that the lesson that I’ll eventually get a happy ending if I survive long enough?” I shrugged. “This keychain looks cool, so I’ll use it.”

It didn’t look like I’d have my happy ending any time soon. While showering under almost scalding water, I made an unfortunate discovery. There was a small patch of skin on my inner thigh that looked… odd. It was shiny, with a purplish tinge, and felt hard instead of the usual skin texture.

Not just my hand, but the rest of me was starting to turn into Spooky Erind.

“I have to be careful about wearing shorts,” I grumbled, checking my body for other mutations. There was nothing else.

For now.

It was apparent that using my Adumbrae powers, be it the wolf mask, super regeneration, or super strength, accelerated the transformation. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the 2Ms stuff. And if mutants were defending the docks, I’d eat their brains too. Friday couldn’t arrive fast enough.

------

Flaring sunlight awakened me.

Morning already? I could’ve sworn I had closed the blinds. I always preferred sleeping in the dark.

Still sleepy. Very tired. I turned over to bury my face in my pillow when I realized that my bed wasn’t under me. Then other wrong things registered. I always woke up before sunrise because I wanted to watch it, if possible. If I didn’t, Deen would’ve barged into my room to wake me up for breakfast. There was also that floaty, dream-like feeling.

“Is Spooky Erind here again?” My voice echoed. It didn’t come from my throat. I begrudgingly opened my eyes to a blinding sight. “Ah, dammit!” I turned away, covering my eyes. I couldn’t tell what it fucking was, just that it was ginormous and had many sparkling filaments stretching out to…

… where?

I peeked through my fingers, checking what was behind me. Darkness as far as I could see. The filaments, looking like how fiber optics was depicted in ads of internet service providers, connected to nothingness. Or maybe, there was something out there.

Just that it was very far away. Pulses of light streamed across the filaments. What was this supposed to be?

“Uh, Spooky Erind, what’s going on here?” I looked down at my body. Unlike my previous visits to her dimension, I didn’t have my body. I was a hazy form, like a sparkling slime molded to my body’s form.

Did this mean that I was losing my control over my mind? Was Spooky Erind winning faster than I anticipated?

“Are you here to gloat? Where are you?”

Spooky Erind didn’t reply. How odd. She should be singing her annoying ‘meyoumeyoumeyou’ song by now. She was always so talkative. Why was she silent this time?

I tried looking at the giant supercharged disco ball, but it was impossible. It wasn’t just the brightness. The light exerted pressure, a suffocating force each time I tried to face its way. I was trapped in sludge. I swam with my blobby self away from it, pushing through the filaments that wrapped around me like seaweeds. No way I was surrendering to whatever was happening!

Then it pulsed.

I wasn’t looking at the disco ball, but I knew that it did that. A heartbeat so powerful that it shocked the entire place, wherever the hell this was. The wave stunned me. I couldn’t move. My mind was a shaking pot of popcorn. There was only one thought.

It saw me!

It had noticed my presence and had reached out for me. Dozens of filaments wrapped around my immobile self, constricting my blobby essence. They were pulling me apart! I concentrated my will into staying intact. Not sure if it was working, but I just knew something bad would happen if the filaments had their way.

The flappy tentacle that was probably my right arm suddenly blazed gold, burning away the filaments.

The last thing I heard before blacking out was, Back off, she’s mine!

“Strawberry croissants!” I yelled, sitting up.

Searing pain in my chest! I clutched at the stupid Core; it was as hot as charcoal. Not that I had tried to touch charcoal before. I slowly breathed as the heat subsided. Its tendrils burrowed deeper inside me, scurrying under my skin and across my chest. I imagined them entwining my ribs as they anchored themselves while pulling the Core deeper into my body.

What was happening?

I recalled Deen screaming her lungs out. Was I going to get my superpowers now? Did it have to be in the middle of the night? Or was this another dream-slash-nightmare whatever?

I looked around. I was back in my room. Probably…

It didn’t feel like I was in a dream.

The meager light of my charging phone flickered on the study table. Looking to my right, I noticed the light outside straining to get past the blinds, a hint of it lining the borders of the window. Those were the house’s perimeter lights. It wasn’t morning yet.

“Ugh, so sticky,” I said, wiping my sweaty neck. My hair was a shaggy mess, slick with sweat and bundling together in disgusting bunches. My shirt and shorts were absolutely drenched, and so was the bedsheet under me.

What happened…?

A dream. I was in another place. Spooky Erind must’ve visited me, but I remembered nothing about our encounter. There was something about danger. She probably got angry that I was trying to find a way to get rid of her. I thought we had gotten over that issue? Or was she pissed off that the artificial Core seemed to be successfully melding with me?

I touched my chest again. The Core had cooled, though it emitted a pale white light through my shirt.

Too tired. I didn’t want to deal with this shit right now. I’d figure this out later. I took off my wet shirt and shorts, flung them away, rolled over to the dry side of the bed, and went back to sleep. Goodnight, world.

-----

Knock, knock, knock.

My mind stirred. “Wha-what…?” I mumbled in confusion, navigating a haze of sleepiness.

“Good morning, Erind!” A cheery voice outside the door. “Are you awake?” Sounds of the door swinging open. Footsteps coming closer.

A slight bounce. Someone sat on the edge of the bed. My bed.

Deen.

Ugh. Annoying.

Well, Deen’s family was renting this place, so it was her bed. Technically. I ignored her, curling up more under my blankets. Comforting. I wanted to sleep. To hibernate. Weird that I was so tired and woozy. I hadn’t experienced this since I had turned into an Adumbrae.

“Time to get up,” Deen said. “I’ve prepared breakfast. To be accurate, my sister brought some egg tarts. They were baked by the mom of one of her boyfriends. I know egg tarts aren’t really a breakfast food, but I also know you’d like them. Anyway, she’s planning to dump him next week, so she didn’t want to eat any of the tarts. But she’s trying to find the right time to…

Blah, blah, blah… If I didn’t respond, maybe she’d walk away.

“Erind? Are you okay?” Deen shook me. After several seconds of silence, she shook me again. “We’re going to be late if you don’t get up now.” She pulled my blanket away. “Huh? You’re naked?”

My eyes flung open. I twisted back, reached for the blanket in Deen’s hand, and pulled it to cover myself. In one movement, I rolled into the blanket and sat up. I was covered like a burrito.

“I’m awake now,” I said, glaring at her.

My mind booted up. All systems were analyzing what had just happened. This was all Spooky Erind’s fault, disturbing my sleep and draining me of energy.

“I-I didn’t mean to…” Deen stammered. “Wait, I didn’t know you slept in the nude. Why? Is it to open the pores of your—?”

“I was sweating last night,” I cut in, quickly concocting a story. “The AC broke, so I took off my clothes. The AC seems to be working now.”

“Is that so? I can have that checked later.”

“No need. It was probably my fault. Rolled over the AC remote or something. Anyway, can you leave so I can get dressed? And, uh, I’ll think I’ll shower first.”

“Grumpy, grumpy Erind,” Deen said, chuckling as she walked to the door. “Don’t take too long or I’ll eat all the egg tarts.”

“Yeah, right. I know you’d rather eat grass than eat that much sugar. That many sugar? Much or many?”

“I think it’s ‘much sugar.’ Sugar is an uncountable noun.”

“What if I can count—? Never mind. Shoo, shoo, you peeper!”

While showering, I alternated between thinking about counting grains of sugar and my dream last night. I couldn’t remember a damn thing other than it happened. Why do I get the feeling that I didn’t meet Spooky Erind? This was a waste of time. Spooky Erind would show herself again if she wanted something to tell me.

I turned off the water and checked my body for anything new and unwanted.

“Hang on… Where is it?”

The patch of changed skin on my thigh was gone. I checked both legs. It really wasn’t there. I quickly dried off and looked for my phone. I had taken pictures of my mutations yesterday.

“It wasn’t my imagination,” I muttered, looking at the picture of the discolored skin on my leg. I swiped to the next picture—it was of my right palm. No changes. If anything, there was less gold on my hand. “What’s happening? Did Spooky Erind give me a fighting chance for fun? Or…” I touched my chest.

The Core lightly hummed beneath my palm. It was warm. I just knew that it’d give me my personal power soon.

Was it the reason the growths receded?

My cellphone buzzed. A message from Deen telling me to hurry up. I deleted the pictures and hurried to my egg tarts. I had cause for some celebration!

-----

“And that’s the plan,” Dario said, tapping the whiteboard with his marker. The music for the second planning montage came to a close. “Everyone clear on their parts?”

We all nodded.

“Really, Reo? You understood the plan?” That was Myra. Who else could be bothering Reo?

“Of course, Myra, dearest,” Reo replied, standing up and bowing. “Don’t forget that hijacking the truck was my plan. As for the assault, we’ll have to rely on you.”

“I’ll be the wall, and you can hide behind me as usual.”

It was late afternoon, and we had gathered to prepare for tomorrow’s operation one last time. It turned out that I had a part for tomorrow’s mission—I’d set off the bomb at Eve’s parking lot. This was acceptable to Deen. I wouldn’t be anywhere near the docks, though she was slightly worried I’d be near an exclusive club controlled by the 2Ms.

As for me, it was a huge problem because I wanted to be near the docks to join in the fun. Something hampered my Adumbrae infection. I wasn’t sure of the reason yet, which was why I had to continue experimenting. If mutant brains worked on Purple Mohawk and the clients of the 2Ms, perhaps it might have some effect on me.

Actual progress! I couldn’t help but cheer that a minuscule chance of success revealed itself.

“Amber, Erind,” Dario said. “Have you taken the pills that Myra had given you?”

(Author's Notes: I was planning to start the chapter on the day of the docks mission, but I decided to include these scenes first. It would be good to have some progress on the artificial Core. Though Erind wouldn't get her personal power just yet, we now know that the Core has activated, watching her... like Sauron's Eye. Too bad Erind didn't remember much of her vision. But this is just the beginning.

I'm very thankful for all of your support! We'll probably (hopefully) reach 4k followers on RR next week. I'll have a bonus chapter out by then to celebrate it. Additionally, we'll also increase the number of advanced chapters by one this August. Slow and steady, REND will rise. And it wouldn't be possible without your help.)