Chapter 97
“Sorry, | can’t do that.”
Ryan scratched Eugéne-Henry’s back while watching Dr. Tyrano on hisputer screen. The A-bombid on the desk, right
next to thete Fat Adam’s gravity cannon. “You''re saying no to unlimited fundings, resources, and safety from the monster you
keep bottled up in yourb when he inevitably breaks out? Because you know he will.”
“| don’t know how you managed to learn that much about my work,” Tyrano admitted, a little disturbed. “But | am contractually
bound to Dynamis for the next two hundred years. | 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 vine gue to cure New Rome’s poption, 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 | told you we have ess to apletely 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 ab 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 nce at the data before raising his white g. “Where do | sign?”
“First...” Ryan scratched Eugéne-Henry behind the ears. “You must give me ess 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!”
“lll 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 hisp 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 exined, 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 | have a spare.”
Ryan resisted the urge to throw up, and stopped the video call feed. He would have nightmares for years toe. 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, Eugéne-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.
“| 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 session, growing more and more frustrated. Its eyes turned red as it
red 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 be 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. | know from
experience.”
The eldritch horror examined the cannon curiously, though the weapon was ten timesrger 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 ss mask, though Ryan
wondered why he bothered to hide his true face anymore.Content ? copyrighted by N?velDrama.Org.
“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 te full with the Augusti for now.
One day had passed since the bunker raid, though Ryan spentst 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 nned 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, amie infiltrator. He wants to turn everyone into a Genome, maybe
even for free.”
The vignte 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 | understand correctly.“
Ryan pondered Shroud’s point, and had to admit that he might be right on the money. Atom Smasher nned 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 be 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 ce. In the
end, Alphonse Manada only believes in his vision. He won''t deviate from his chosen path unless forced to.”
“| 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, hees a close third behind
Augustus and Leo.”
“I can, with this base’s resources.”
“This ce 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 form
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 methrowers for arms.”
“You''re preaching to a convert,” Ryan replied. “But | will only destroy this ce 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 vignte replied, before adding, “but if there is a chance it works... if there is even the slightest chance it works, | can’t
stop you from trying. It would help too many lives.”
“For your mom, one of the Genomes | 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 ss’ face behind his mask, though the vignte turned his head sideways, thoughtful. “Why do you
think the Alchemist distributed these Elixirs in the first ce?”
To turn us into interdimensional squids, Ryan thought. “I dunno, improve the human condition?”
“| think so too, and yet we used them to ravage the world.” Shroud shook his head. “When | hear all the positive things Geniuses
can make, | 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. | can’t quite exin 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 | 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 | 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?”
“| asked her out because | wanted to,” Ryan replied. He really had a thing for Blue Genomes shorter than himself.
“Giving her ess to this ce is dangerous, Ryan. What if she changes her mind and informs Augustus?”
“She has earned my trust and helped me when | 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 Alchemoes here, we''ll use your rabbit foot of a girlfriend to ess the mainframe,” Ryan said, changing the subject.
“You can confirm what | said about the other Mechron bases then, and we will unlock the self-destruct mechanism.”
“| will have to inform Leo about you, you understand that?” Shroud asked. “Even if you turn back time again, | 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? | 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. | am too paranoid to let anyone alter my brain, even if you earn my
trust beforehand. I’m not sure | would even ept such a procedure at Leo’s urging, and | 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.”
“| don’t like it,” he admitted. “You hold all the cards, and all | can do is go along.”
“Well, | 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.”
“| 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. | was interested in Felix Veran. He has a great deal of potential as a hero, anda
courageous heart.”
“As much as the Panda?”
Shroud scoffed. “Come with me and see for yourself.”
The vignte led Ryan into the bunker’s atrium, where they found the transformed folding paper sheets under Len’s watch. Sarin
was ying pool near a pile of books, including Discours de méthode:Pour bien conduire sa raison, et chercher 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 snickered. “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 vignte 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, | will y you myself.”
“| 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 | read, the more it made sense,” the said.
“| think... | think he can learn almost any skill at an elerated pace,” Len theorized. “Pick up a newnguage 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 | remembered watching Bruce Lee’s flying kick in the Green Ho.”
And to illustrate his point, the mimicked a few kung-fu moves with his paws. “Then | could do it too!”
“You learned one of Bruce Lee’s moves, by remembering it?”
“Yes!” The manbear nodded. “That’s how | learned martial arts, but | was never this good before!”
In half an hour, the had mastered kung-fu, origami, and Descartes.
Ryan dreaded to imagine what he could achieve in a week. His pandawan probably couldn''t learn what a normal human couldn''t,
but anything else was fair game. Arithmetic, philosophy, martial arts... perhaps even Genius technology, if 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.
His arrogant young disciple had ascended to shatter the heavens.
Speaking of power, Ryan needed to run tests on his own after he created the new iteration of the Saturn Armor. He would also
add a few improvements to deal with Alphonse Manada, such as switching the chest-ster with the gravity cannon. He had the
feeling it would help deal with the nuclear disaster, maybe even Lightning Butt too.
“Well, | 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 fashionablyte.
“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 | talk to you alone for a second?
Ryan nodded, his adoptive sister leading him outside, to the corridor overseeing the hangars. Henriette was ying with the
children near the submarine, the dog delighting at havingpany. The group brought much levity to an otherwise
ustrophobic, lifeless ce.
Len nced through the corridor’s window, her arms folded. “You and her...”
“It''s hard to exin,” Ryan admitted.
The Genius held her breath. “In the past loops, did... did my other self know?”
“Well... | kinda told you how | felt, and we decided to stay family afterward.”
Len’s gaze saddened, as she nced at the Mechron-made submarine floating in the bunker’s water ess. “We... we could
reach the United States with it,” she said. “Cross the Antic Sea.”
“Even | can’t turn back time that far,” Ryan said sadly. “Trust me, | tried. | tried many times.”
“| 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 rtionship 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 ce,” she said, though with hesitation. “After we... after we deal with Dad.”
“| 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 ce so
much.”
“So | should let her father kill people for her sake?” Ryan asked, and instantly regretted it. Len flinched as if she had been
pped. “I’m sorry.”
“You don’t want her to end up like me,” the Genius guessed, avoiding his gaze.
Ryan nced 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 ces 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.”
“| 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 thest part | have left of him.”
Ryan put his hands in his pocket, choosing his words carefully. His thoughts turned to his discussion with his own Elixir, when he
briefly crossed the ck 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.”
Len wouldn’t answer, her face as nk as a death mask. Ryan''s hand reached for her shoulder, but she avoided his touch. Too
soon. Still, he epted 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.”
|...” She bit her lower lip. “I... | don’t know what to answer.”
“Then don’t say anything,” Ryan answered with a smile. “What | 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, | will be there to help you rise back up.”
Ryan and Len fell into afortable silence, just as a ck sphere phased through the hanger and copsed into nothingness.
It miraculously didn’t harm anyone, though the courier should probably check up on his bedroom before leaving.
“Now, | hope | didn’t give you diabetes,” Ryan joked.
And to his surprise, she chuckled and rxed. 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 | do the same for you.”