The Perfect Run

It had been a while since Ryan drove a group in his Plymouth Fury.

He often transported one or two people, especially when on a drunken bender or working as a getaway driver, but rarely a group like this one. Jamie wore his power armor in the back, while Ki-jung dressed with a green hoodie at his side. Her rats had taken over every corner of the car, hiding behind and beneath the seats.

Unfortunately, Lanka complained all the way at the front. “You cheated, blabbermouth,” she accused Ryan. She would have gone to the meeting with her bike too, had Jamie not insisted they all travel in the same vehicle for team-building. "I know you did."

“Someone is a sore loser here,” Ryan replied, having left yesterday’s table a few hundred bucks richer. Also, blabbermouth? He’d had way better nicknames! Like Lil’ Granny Destroyer.

“I counted cards,” Lanka said. “But you changed them. I’m never wrong about that.”

“So you accuse him of cheating, by admitting that you cheated yourself?” Jamie asked, unsympathetic.

“Of course I cheated,” Ryan admitted openly, much to Jamie and Ki-jung’s surprise. “And instead of condemning me, you should learn from it, my young Padawan. Failure is an experience.”

“Then you must be very experienced by now,” Lanka shrugged. Clearly, she could give as much as she took.

“There is nothing more human than cheating. You know who else accused the human race of cheating? Mammoths. They said, ‘hey, these humans they attack us with bows and spears instead of tusks, it’s not fair.’” Ryan looked at the sore loser. “Have you met any mammoths lately, Lanka?”

Jamie sighed at their bickering. “We’ll try tabletop games next time.”

The group parked near Little Maghreb, next to a fortress of stone and steel. The building had been some kind of foundry before the war until Vulcan took it over a few years back. This crimson castle of metal walls, pipes, and reservoirs seemed closer to an old army base to Ryan though; a lot of grunts patrolled the area, wielding shotguns, grenade launchers, and miniguns. He also noticed a few snipers on the roof, watching every corner of the streets around the foundry.

Apparently, it was an open secret that Vulcan’s weapon division operated there, but nobody was stupid enough to attack them. Not even the Private Security and Il Migliore. New Rome truly lived in a Cold War-like era.

It was also quite close to the hotel Ryan had used in a previous loop. No wonder Vulcan attacked Wyvern when she moved so close to their headquarters.

“Also, I want to say I am disappointed in you, ladies,” Ryan told Lanka and Ki-Jung. “Only Zanbato and I have costumes! You don’t even wear masks!”

“Why would we wear masks when the Private Security has files on us?” Ki-jung asked in confusion, leaving her rats in the car to keep an eye on it. “They even know where we live.”

“And there aren’t that many advanced armors to go around,” Lanka replied, although she had the common sense to supplement her outfit with a belt holster. “And what kind of a costume, a cape? Do you know how hard it is not to trip with it?”

“It’s not about practicality, it’s about looking stylish,” Ryan replied, hands on his trenchcoat, “Without a bright and colorful style, what are we? Mere animals! Culture is what elevates—”

“Aha, villains!”

Ryan paused and looked at a strange newcomer.

A person climbed down from a bicycle near the car, dressed like Rambo... except without the gun, and half the muscles. He had painted his face and dyed his hair white, with black spots for the eyes.

It looked ridiculous, truth be told.

The rest of the group seemed to recognize him, but instead of attacking, they all looked embarrassed.

“You have come farther than you should have, but you found your sworn destroyer!” the fool declared, trying desperately to look badass, but coming desperately short. “Prepare to face the wrath of…”

“Oh God, not this again,” Lanka sighed, the rest of the group eerily silent.

“THE PANDA!”

“The what?” Ryan asked, unsure whether to condemn this man’s terrible fashion sense or applaud his efforts. At least someone in this city understood the importance of costumes! “Is your power only getting laid every ten years?”

“Pandas are picky!” the ridiculous man answered, but something in his tone made Ryan dubious. He didn’t even look Chinese!

“He’s a ‘vigilante.’” Somehow, Lanka made the word sound ridiculous, rolling her eyes while she said it. Clearly, she didn’t take him seriously. “He can transform into a ”

“... and?” Ryan asked, expecting something else.

“And that’s it.”

“But a very big ” Ki-jung added with a chuckle as if to soften the blow.

Man, some Genomes were just unlucky.

“Has the fear of the petrified you, villains?” The hero put his hands on his waist, mistaking the awkward silence for fear.

Did he seriously come all the way here to pick a fight? Ryan could respect that, although he should work on his introduction.

“Just ignore him, and he will go away,” Jamie replied, leaving for the Armory without sparing the poor would-be hero a glance. Ki-jung followed soon afterward, although she gave a pitiful glance at the poor animal. Even the foundry’s guards seemed to joke about the newcomer, not making any effort to intercept him.

will not escape

terrible transformation. Black and white fur grew on his skin, his body gaining mass and muscle. He grew claws and fangs, shedding his pants and jacket like a magnificent

Yet when he let out a scream, Ryan found it

a heavy sigh, Lanka joined her index and middle fingers together to form a ‘gun,’ and fired an orange sphere of energy with it. The projectile flew towards the at an arrow's speed, and

understood now why they

drawing a Beretta 76 from her pocket. “I call dibs on

going to kill a panda?” Ryan asked, horrified. “They’re

to a collector.” She pointed

unable to stand animal cruelty. “I won’t let you kill the last You

like being

to anger PETA! You don’t know what those guys are capable of!”

before lowering her gun in annoyance. “You know he’s going to come back and get killed

her eyes and putting her gun back in

an eyebrow. “How do you

she was an ex-bandit? “The snake tattoo on your arm, which you tried to cover up beneath other ones,” Ryan replied, having noticed that detail during the poker night.

she replied, the guards letting them inside the foundry’s perimeter, “I belonged to a real band of savages

Oh yes he did.

with another duo. Or rather, a woman was talking, and everyone else listened

obviously a Genome; her skin was deathly pale, unnaturally so, and her long hair bright blue. This mature lady carried herself with an eerie sort of elegance, that of an otherworldly fairy among men. Unlike Ryan’s

bad feeling about her. Mostly because Jamie and Ki-jung seemed stiff

courier also recognized her bodyguard as the woman who tried to flirt with him at the Bakuto, back when he had messed up with the chain of events.

on their way to the parking lot, before stopping

Ryan pointed a finger at

her sharp grey eyes examining him closely. Somehow, it felt like locking eyes with a hungry

made a mock bow. “I’m

one is immortal,” she responded, vaguely amused. “I hope to reach your age one

him any mind and walked

whispered. “That’s

she?” Ryan

regrouping, clearly worried, “When he sends her,

Pluto a guy in Roman mythology?” Ryan asked. “I support gender equality, but wouldn’t Plutonia have

thing in the family,” Lanka replied, relaxing once the underboss was out

the spirit of the names. Ryan appreciated

Jamie said, his eyes darkening, “you

she

hint of fear and wariness in his voice. Perhaps he worried—rightfully—that Quicksave would try to put this power to the test. “There is

power must have limits,” Ki-jung said. “But we don’t

check it one loop. Lanka, however, wanted more information. “Why

our Made Men have died under mysterious circumstances lately,” Ki-jung replied

“The Meta-trash?”

to affect Genomes, explosives, drowning and suffocation… The boss believes this is a new vigilante. Pluto and the Killer Seven hit squad will take care of this, and if they ask

Explosives he said?

Ryan said, happy to have

a fight, we’re leaving the higher-ups to deal with this. Once the hit squad is after someone, it’s only a

it would be rude to

they stood before the metal gates. “Don’t make jokes about her height, and for the love of God, don’t

the doors opening to let

guided tour of the foundry, although it quickly became clear the name didn’t fully illustrate the truth. The building housed a whole weapon production operation, from the metal processing to the assembly line. The group walked through searing hot rooms full of furnaces

the quintessential Geniuses lair, full of bulky devices, glass bulbs providing light, and strange

also had a big, big robot

the wideness to match. While humanoid, the suit was so bulky it might as well be called a tank with legs. However, considering the number of miniature turbo reactors, and the multi-joint design of the limbs, Ryan guessed the machine could move surprisingly fast in the field. And of course, it had enough weapons to

courier also noticed multiple eye-shaped cameras dispatched all over the machine, perhaps to allow the user to see in all directions. Finally,

a large table. Much like Pluto, in spite of her codename, Vulcan turned out to be a

barely one meter sixty tall, with olive skin, sharp black

at him, Ryan could see

Ryan told her innocently.

incredibly tense, Everyone looked at him as if he were insane, except Vulcan, who gave him a murderous glare. Ryan looked away

off your legs, jackass,” the capo said with a face that reminded Ryan of Len. She must have had the same height complex. “Because right now, you just stepped

Here comes Napoleon!

the rest of the team nodding at

glaring at Ryan. “The

survival instinct?”

can die.” The courier glanced at the