The Perfect Run

Ryan felt a ping of nostalgia as he drove on the highway.

It had been more than a month worth of loops since he first arrived in New Rome, and he missed driving into the wasteland, Mad Max-style. The world seemed open to him, all roads leading to a different quest. The courier could never anticipate when he would face a random encounter, whether it was a band of road warriors engaging him in a car chase or a mysterious hitchhiker out for blood. As much as he enjoyed civilization, Ryan was a creature of the road through and through.

The Carnival’s rendezvous point was located near the ruins of Pompei, south of New Rome. It had been quite easy for Ryan and Felix to slip away after the Fortuna incident. Nobody blamed her brother for wanting to take a breath of fresh air after their very public argument.

Ryan felt a little bad about lying to Wardrobe though. He could tell she hadn’t been fooled by their excuses, and knew something was up.

“Something has been bothering me,” Atom Cat said on the seat next to Ryan. The Plymouth Fury followed the Neapolitan coast, the sea on one side of the road, and cliffs on the other. “The Psychos have infiltrated Dynamis, right? If so, they probably have access to my DNA-tracker. They can follow us.”

“They could.” And in a past loop, they did. “But now they can’t.”

“How so?”

“Well, I’m not a Genius with a capital ‘G,’” Ryan quoted Jasmine, “but I’m still a genius.”

The time-traveler had wondered how the tracker worked; how could you track a genome by recording their DNA after all? However, after his discussions with Jasmine in the previous loop, the answer became obvious. Dynamis didn’t track Genomes through their genes, but by the Flux radiation they passively released.

So Ryan modified his car to keep the Flux radiation within its confines, using the method Jasmine pioneered. Of course, it was a poor man’s substitute for his ex’s power armor. Staying in the car wouldn’t cause Ryan to open a gate to the Purple World, but it would make the passengers invisible to Dynamis’ radars.

Hopefully, at least. Ryan still looked into his rearview mirror from time to time.

Felix didn’t ask more questions and looked out of the window, his eyes gazing at the Mediterranean Sea. Ryan could tell his friend appreciated the silence. His sister’s visit had put him in a foul mood.

Speaking of Fortuna, she started sending messages to the courier once again. Much to Ryan’s surprise, only half of them called him an ass and other names; the other half included questions about Felix’s wellbeing.

Aww, she cared!

The constant ringing of Ryan’s phone started to bother Atom Cat. “My sister again?“

“She’s very persistent,” Ryan said. “I know I’m smart, funny, and handsome, but my popularity surprises me sometimes.”

“Fortuna’s power causes almost everything that can go well for her, to do so,” Felix replied with a sigh. “She has never paid for anything, she gets gifts out of nowhere, and she always meets men desperate to worship her. After a while, it became a self-reinforcing loop of narcissism… and I think you broke it.”

Wait, that was it! Men threw themselves at Fortuna, so she took them for granted and crushed on the few ones immune to her charms! If Ryan behaved like the perfect gentleman to soothe her narcissistic ego, she would lose interest and leave him be! All he had to do was treat Lucky Girl for dinner, and overwhelm her with affection until she found another distraction. Kill her with kindness.

“Ryan,” Felix said, apparently reading Ryan’s mind as the courier typed a response on his phone. “Can you do me a favor?”

“If it’s about the cat jokes, then you’re asking too much.”

Atom Cat looked at Ryan, their eyes meeting. “Don’t fuck my sister.”

Ryan lost himself in the blue hue of his friend’s irises, as he prepared an appropriate answer. “Which one?”

“I’m serious, Quickie.”

“Don’t worry,” Ryan replied, putting a hand on his kitten’s shoulder. “If I had to fuck the whole family, I would start with you.”

Felix recoiled in surprise, much to the courier’s amusement. “Shut up and drive,” the hero said while looking at the road.

After a short hour’s drive without getting ambushed by the Meta, the duo finally reached their destination. A lookout-point on a rock, providing an unbeatable view of Pompei. Even the world’s end couldn’t damage the ruins more than Vesuvius did, and while they briefly served as a raider gang’s hideout, they had remained untouched by the wars.

Leo the Living Sun was already present, hovering above the lookout’s edge while in his shiny form. What a showoff. Though Ryan's eyes couldn't help but ogle at this perfect fiery form, and that lithe, flaming ass. The courier had slept with men, women, robots, monster girls... but never a sun.

Yet.

A roguish woman with freckles and long auburn hair waited nearby next to an American bike, Ryan recognizing her as Ace, the Carnival’s main teleporter. “Damn, that’s really them,” Atom Cat gasped in admiration, as Ryan parked the Plymouth Fury. “I’m a big fan.”

“Thank you, Felix.” Unlike his favorite kitten, Ryan didn’t flinch as Shroud appeared on the backseat. “Truth be told, we wanted to talk to you for a while.”

“How long have you been here?” Felix asked, spooked.

“Far too long,” Mr. See-Through replied, as he opened the car door. “You drive like a madman, Quicksave.”

“Thanks for the compliment, but there’s only three of you?” Ryan asked as the group exited the car to join the other Carnival members. “You weren’t kidding about the turnover.”

“We’re six, with the others already at work in the city,” Shroud replied, sighing at the courier’s unimpressed silence. “I warned you we needed more time to gather our allies. Mushroom, Radiodead, and the Cossack are in France right now and won’t arrive before a few days.”

“I wish I could open portals that far,” Ace said upon hearing them, before smirking confidently at the newcomers. “But don’t worry, we still pack a punch. What we lack in numbers, we make up in quality.”

“Easy for you to say, you have a freaking sun on your side,” Ryan mused. While the Meta had them greatly outnumbered, they did have greater individual firepower.

The sun incarnate looked at Quicksave with a mix of amusement, and a tiny bit of respect. “Greetings, Ryan,” he said with his sexy, sexy hero voice. “I wanted to thank you for the help you provided to us so far.”

It felt so strange to meet this man again. From his point of view, it had only been four years, but for Ryan, it had been centuries since Bloodstream’s demise. And yet this event remained forever engraved in the courier’s mind.

Ryan couldn’t quite put a word on how he felt about the Carnival as a whole. On one hand, they separated him from Len for countless loops, but on the other hand, they saved him from Bloodstream, and he owed them a life debt. In the end, he leaned towards appreciation. Now that he had reconnected with Len, he would let bygones be bygones.

grown to like some Augusti members during his loops, and the Carnival planned to destroy their organization one way or another. What Livia said about her mother’s death also bothered Ryan, who

New Rome to reunite with Len, but now… he had the feeling he couldn’t leave the city, even after the Meta-Gang’s destruction.

plant all along?” Felix

of a wild card,” the courier

least you aim in the right direction. Honestly, at first I thought you

sounding

After all, he had lived through it once. “Bloodstream was sick and had to go for

push the subject further. The courier had literal centuries to emotionally process

a word, for which the courier was thankful. Though paparazzi would probably mistake the scene for something else, if they saw it... “As for you,

me for a while,” Atom Kitten said, a little embarrassed. The scene reminded Ryan of an amateur boxer meeting Mohammed Ali by happenstance. “Don’t

yes,”

term poach, but we are always on the lookout for new recruits, and I feel you have great potential.” The Living Sun marked a short pause,

sister?” Felix instantly tensed up. “What

approached the lookout. A black Maserati parked near the gathering, and two familiar faces stepping

Atom Cat.” Blackthorn removed the dust off his suit as he walked towards them, Wyvern acting as his bodyguard. “Things make much more sense

he glared at the Carnival.

didn’t,” Shroud replied, arms crossed. “They did. Blackthorn contacted

two organizations considered allying against Augustus,” Enrique said, his tone utterly monotone. “Until Don Hector

all present?”

hope you understand your mere presence threatens us all, Hargraves. If Augustus learns

made my decision long ago. I will not die before Augustus’ empire collapses and he faces

worried about him going after us by association,” Blackthorn replied dryly before raising his eyes. Ryan heard a

the group and prepared to land. The Dynamis logo was painted

was more machine than man. A bulky, black power armor protected most of his body, except for the head, which was covered by a glass dome. A skull, though, would have been a better term. The Genome’s flesh seemed to radiate with a crimson glow kept contained by the suit, and leaving the bones visible like X-rays. The armor seemed to have even more weapons than Vulcan’s, including an energy minigun incorporated into the right arm, and rocket launchers on the

instantly recognized that colossus for what he was, just

A warmonger.

called him?” Wyvern asked Enrique

tried to keep his composure, Ryan noticed the rose on his suit shifting, as if answering the Green Genome’s hidden unease.

asked, a little intimidated

VP.” Wyvern clenched her jaw, her eyes betraying her unease. “Alias

butcher of Malta?” Ryan asked, having heard

to kill him,” Shroud

under the pretext

helicopter, the ground faintly shaking under his sheer weight. “Brother, Hargraves,” he politely greeted the people present with a deep, mechanical voice, before noticing Ryan and

Atom

nickname, but for all the wrong

who provided the recording. I do not trust

Alphonse Manada examined Ryan closely, the courier waving a hand at the borg in response. The vice-president didn’t even

tincan, while

his skull.

Sabino?” Ryan

is none of your business,” Alphonse Manada

her bubble prisons, I wondered about hiring her for security purposes. An undersea

when he heard one, but Leo Hargraves coughed and took over the discussion. “Gentlemen, please. We gathered you to discuss how to deal with the various criminal groups in the city, and we strongly suspect

“Suspicions?” Felix snorted.

Augustus’ forces,” Enrique explained calmly, Wyvern crossing her arms in quiet fury. “Considering Psyshock showed an intimate knowledge of top-secret Dynamis projects, and other circumstantial evidence, I assume the intel

could not get close to their headquarters without the Land noticing me. They used repurposed Dynamis drones, and some of their unpowered mooks

“I asked Devilry to investigate, and some of our technicians have been reported as missing. I believe either our CEO directly sent them to

everything in silence, and when he finally spoke, it was with a tone of pure, unrestrained disgust. “Our father has

bad, but hopefully that means

Ryan noticed that he avoided mentioning the bunker to the corpos, which

“No,” Enrique replied.

“I will not stand by and let someone else clean up our father’s mess. I will personally remove that

now brother,” Blackthorn guessed. “You suggest a coordinated

support us?” Leonard

and

borg’s decisiveness. Though he was clearly a closet supervillain considering his fashion sense and bloodthirsty behavior, the courier might consider calling upon him in a future loop

Boy said. “If the Meta-Gang has infiltrated your organization all the way to the top, then the

reliable heroes and officers,” Enrique argued. Which, when reading between the

choice, but you forget a detail,” Shroud argued. “Psyshock will use hostages, and he

can do that?” Wyvern asked with a frown. “I wondered why he killed himself fighting Quicksave’s group, but this

Shroud sighed, taking this personally. “He has started transforming homeless people into thralls and giving them weapons. A frontal assault will lead to casualties,

he felt an ominous sense of déjà-vu. It was the

Wyvern pointed out with a grim face. “The latter can barely keep his men under control, and without his unifying presence, they will probably

can focus on hitting the Meta’s leadership while our larger force surrounds their headquarters

Leo Hargraves

town,” said his teleporter. “Like during our battle with Mechron. If we coordinate properly, I think we can hit them hard before the Meta-Gang can prepare a

remained silent, Ryan sensed his gaze on his back. The glass manipulator probably weighed the pros and cons of involving Dynamis

hands on orbital weaponrywas too overwhelming to ignore. “When would you be ready?” Sunshine

“Tomorrow,” Alphonse declared.

way too soon, Al,” Enrique