A part of me desperately wanted to ignore Maria’s call. I knew that wasn’t an option tonight. I took a long, steadying breath and reached out mentally to answer the call.

  “Hello, Ms. Caligo,” I said, afraid to offer more before hearing her tone.

  “Good evening, sweetheart. I hope I didn’t catch you while you were busy,” she said in a lilting voice.

  “Not at all. I am en route to my garage via Proxy now,” I assured her. “I plan to launch Isbrand and go to the infected hab unit.”

  “I did believe I could trust you in this matter, but…” she spoke, her voice taking on a dark tone. “Since I’ve been kept so woefully unaware of the details of your current assignment, why don’t you explain to me how this happened?”

  “I’m sorry Maria, I…” She cut me off before I could even finish speaking.

  “No platitudes,” She threatened. “Answer my question, Elias.”

  “The client withheld vital information about this operation,” I said. “I was sent in to investigate what they called a ‘single sighting’ of an Orgiastic. Initial scouting showed clear signs of a fully formed cyst. These are signs that Trevelli could not have overlooked without willful negligence. I learned all this directly after our meeting earlier, and I have been rushing to respond ever since.”

  “I suppose that would explain things from your end,” She said, her voice softening. “Trevelli corporation will be lucky to exist in the morning if this is true.”

  “I have nothing to gain from lying to you, Maria. You can examine the full report from my scouts; it will corroborate everything I’ve told you,” I said.

  “Let’s focus on one thing at a time. You have a habitation block to clear,” Maria said. “I’ll connect with D.I.C.E. to assess our options and provide support. Call me once you’re prepared to begin.”

  “Of course. I’ll contact you as soon as I’m ready,” I assured her. Without another word, the connection ended. She was still angry, but at least it wasn’t entirely directed at me anymore. I slumped back in my chair as my mind raced. How was I going to reach the best outcome for this operation? I didn’t even know how I was going to avoid abject failure. I couldn’t let this jeopardize my plans. I had to find a way to succeed. Desperation was starting to seep into me.

  “Sir, we have arrived at your destination,” The pilot said. I looked absently out the window and recognized my garage. I’d completely lost track of time. I exited the cab as soon as the door slid open.

  “You’re dismissed. Thanks for the ride,” I said as I headed for the garage. I stepped up to a smaller door beside the massive metal shutters and sent a mental signal for access. As I entered the garage, the lights turned on, and I could hear several machines humming to life.

  “Vila, give me an update,” I called out, walking over to a large display on the wall near Isbrand’s Incarnum.

  “One through four are waiting to reintegrate. Isbrand’s connection protocols have been primed. Is there anything you need to do before we initiate?” Vila asked.

  “We have one installation first, then we’re ready. I’ll take care of it once I’ve reintegrated the ersatz,” I said, connecting a cable from my Proxy to one of the ports on the wall. I slipped out of the Proxy and incarnated inside the garage itself. Everything here had been connected to a single control network. The building was an Incarnum in its own right. I shifted into an incarnated space within the building’s network. The room was a workshop where I carved pieces of my mind and soul into ersatz. Four of those shards were already waiting inside and sat at a table conversing among themselves.

  “It’s about time you showed up!” said number two. “We were going to start a betting pool.”

  “Ignore him,” Four said, rolling his eyes. “We’re up to speed on the situation. We have to reconsider sending Isbrand!”

  “And what would you have me do?!” I said, nearly screaming. “Our options are being wiped off the map faster than I can consider them!”

  “Boss, it’s alright. We know this is a bad situation,” Three said, trying to calm me down.

  “No platitudes!” I spat with as much venom as I could muster. “Give me answers! Solutions!”

  “Jakob gave you three answers. You threw two of them to the wayside without any real consideration,” One said, finally speaking up to break the long silence that had fallen over us.

  “He gave me one answer and two useless jokes,” I countered.

  “Or you’re just too stubborn to take good advice,” One said adamantly.

  “Good advice?” I muttered. “You can’t be serious!”

  “I am. You’ve got to stop avoiding this. The cage has to open at some point.” One said.

  “You don’t know what you’re saying, what you’re asking me to do!?” I accused.

  “It’s the only chance we have to come out of this unscathed,” One said. “If you don’t appease Isbrand, we will never reach the Emerald Moon.”

  “I can’t do it…I can’t do it!!” I screamed. Something within snapped under the pressure of the moment. I dropped to my knees as I continued to scream and slam my fist into the floor of the workshop. I tried to bring my fist down again, but someone caught my hand by the wrist. The grip was firm. Too firm. I looked up to see Isbrand smiling down at me.

  “I can,” he said; his voice was gravel, grit, and honey. “It’s just going to cost you.”

  “Get back in your cage!” I said, too weak to shout anymore.

  “Not this time. You’re going to admit you need me. I’m going to show you how wrong you’ve been,” Isbrand said, pulling me up.

  Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  “I will not,” I said, trying to sound as resolute as I could manage.

  “You will. You’re never leaving here without me on your side,” He said, grinning. Isbrand let go of my wrist and pushed past me to sit at the table. He was nothing like me. He looked nothing like me or the ersatz copies of me sitting around him now. He was every scar I never carried. He was the body sculpted from my ruined material. He was every fang and claw I never sharpened. A black dog of a man.

  “I’m not playing these games with you, Isbrand,” I warned.

  “No games. Just negotiation,” Isbrand said.

  “What do you want?” I asked. I felt defeated even in this simple question.

  “You know,” he said.

  “Please. Anything else, anyone else,” I muttered uselessly.

  “Careful. You don’t know what you’re offering.” Isbrand said. “How about this instead? As a show of good faith, I do this job, and you owe me a single favor. No tricks, no angles, just a handshake and an agreement.”

  “How can I trust you?” I asked.

  “How can you afford not to?” Isbrand asked, extending his hand toward me. I stood frozen in the moment, looking at Isbrand’s hand and considering his offer.

  “Don’t you dare!” Four said, standing from his seat and pointing at me. “Nothing good comes from this! Nothing!”

  “Pipe down, you sniveling cynic,” Isbrand said, glaring at four. “This is between me, myself, and I.”

  “Just make your decision,” One said, turning to me. “We are wasting time.”

  I knew he was right. Every moment wasted here at the garage made our chances shrink towards nothing. My mind raced for a solution for anything other than this. No matter what I considered, I came to the same conclusion. I didn’t have another option. It was Isbrand or nothing.

  “Alright…” I whispered, stepping over to Isbrand and clasping his outstretched hand. “Don’t make me regret this.”

  “You’ll thank me in the end,” Isbrand said.

  “Doubtful. Now. We have to move.” I said, looking at the others. Each ersatz stood from the table and walked to me in turn. As they drew closer, each was suddenly drawn in like a magnet snapping to metal. The ersatz faded into me, reintegrating its borrowed shard into my consciousness. My vision blurred, and my mind exploded with a rush of memory and feeling. Everything had to fall back into place, and I was along for the ride as the process played out. The world around me began to shift and spin. I felt like I was tumbling head over heels through the air. I nearly fell over before catching myself on the table’s edge with both hands. I took a few deep breaths and closed my eyes to reorient myself. I felt a large hand clap on my shoulder.

  “Easy now. Can’t have you falling apart before we even start this party,” Isbrand said.

  “I’m fine. Just get to the Incarnum. I’ll run diagnostics from here and join you once they’re done.” I said.

  “Don’t keep me waiting,” Isbrand said, fading from sight. I sighed and opened my eyes again. The table was no longer spinning in my vision. My mind felt like it was settling into place. I needed to work quickly. I brought up a display in the room and started the diagnostic for Isbrand’s Incarnum. Before I moved, I had to ensure he was disconnected from the garage’s network. I still had the kill switch from Jakob. I was going to keep whatever advantage I could. Once I had made sure he was inside the Incarnum, I went to work. I couldn’t install the kill switch to the Incarnum without alerting Isbrand. My only option was to install it into my psyche and prime the activation to cascade across whatever system I incarnated inside. It was an insane notion, but it was all I had. The diagnostic was nearly finished, meaning my time was short.

  I went to the workstation connected to my mental map and sat down. A web of nodes connected by thin strands of various colors appeared, suspended in a globe of iridescent mist. Where was I going to hide this kill switch? It had to be inconspicuous but easily accessible. I couldn’t risk fumbling around for the activation parameter when I needed it most. I touched the globe, turning it as I pondered the problem. Parts of the web began to glow intensely as I made my considerations; the strain on my mind visualized in real-time. An activation phrase wouldn’t work if I couldn’t speak for any reason.

  There was the possibility of using a gesture. Still, I could think of a dozen scenarios where I couldn’t move correctly. It had to be something I could do at any time and remember in the heat of the moment. That was it; memory. Isbrand wouldn’t care about my memories. I could attach the kill switch to a memory and use its recall as the trigger. I used my mental control of the web before me to filter through memories. I needed something short, distinct, and relatively obscure. If the memory was something I revisited often, I could unintentionally set off the kill switch. I scanned through my mind until something struck me. I had a memory that would fit. The first time I witnessed the exile of an Impulsate I’d helped to catch. I recalled precisely how I had felt that day because it was the first time I had considered my plans to escape this place. I remembered the case well enough to know the name of the Impulsate I had sent to exile. Donato Schade had been a serial killer before succumbing to his urges entirely. He became a rare and dangerous Impulsate known as a Bane. I had my answer. I moved quickly to piece the connections together.

  I had finished the majority of the work when I received a notification. The diagnostic was completed, and the results were displayed on a nearby screen. I reviewed what I’d managed to get done and decided it was the best I could hope for now that my time was up. I shut down the workstation and stepped away, preparing to incarnate alongside Isbrand. I closed my eyes and made the transfer.

  When I opened my eyes, I sat in a cold metal chair in the middle of a cramped, empty room. A single light shone above me, casting the room in a warm orange glow. Isbrand was nowhere to be seen, which meant he was already connected to and controlling the Incarnum. I was just along for the ride.

  “We could have been halfway to the site without your neurotic double-checking, you know?” Isbrand’s voice rang out from all around me.

  “When your body doesn’t break down in the middle of combat, you’ll be thanking me,” I answered.

  “Wishful thinking on your part,” Isbrand said, chuckling.

  “You’re clear to move out. Let’s not waste any more time,” I prodded.

  “Finally,” he said excitedly. I created a display of Isbrand’s visual feed in front of me, watching as the hulking machine came to life in the garage. The metal shutters slid up into the ceiling as the bays opened. Isbrand tore into an all-out sprint into the city, sailing towards the edge of a nearby platform.

  “Hold on! Wait! Let’s just call a carrier! Isbrand!” I shouted as we rapidly approached the edge.

  “Not tonight. I need a warm-up,” Isbrand said, with no sign of slowing.

  “You fucking lunatic,” I said, waving away the display. I couldn’t stomach watching the trip with Isbrand acting this way. “Just don’t cause any damage or injuries!”

  “Oh, I would never,” he said, feigning sincerity.

  “I mean it. Now leave me be; I have to call Maria,” I warned, shifting my attention and sending a ping. I waited for Maria to respond, trying desperately not to think about what Isbrand was doing. Maria popped up in a display and started speaking soon after.

  “Hello, dear. Are you on your way to the site?” she asked, seeming in suspiciously good spirits.

  “Uh… Yes, I’m with Isbrand now. We are on our way. Is there anything to report from your end?” I asked cautiously.

  “I have good news, actually. I have contacted your superiors at D.I.C.E to relay the situation. They are justifiably concerned about the success of the operation.”

  “That’s supposed to be good news?” I asked.

  “Patience dear, I was getting to the good part,” Maria chastised. “They saw fit to take my recommendation to ensure a successful mission and have agreed to rescind the indefinite suspension of your former partner. Two dealers are always better than one.”

  My stomach felt as if it had crashed to the floor. “W-what?”

  “Pritch should be on her way to the site as we speak. Convene with her once you arrive. I’m sure she’s dying to catch up. Purify the habitation block before you both go reminiscing. Are we clear?” Maria asked.

  “Yes…” I said, too stunned to say more.

  “Good boy. You two play nice,” Maria said, disconnecting the call.

  My former partner had just been reinstated and reassigned to me.

  The partner whose suspension I had been directly responsible for.

  The timetable for my escape just became immediate.

  I wouldn’t survive Livia Pritch a second time.