The Perfect Run

“I don’t know,” Alchemo said.

Ryan Romano slouched on his chair, the Saturn Armor’s sheer weight making it creak. Vulcan sat at his side, checking a portable computer with a frown on her face. “Well, can you give me more details, oh great keeper of knowledge?”

The cabin’s metal walls thrummed like a great beast’s bowels, as Alchemo transferred data to the Saturn Armor’s computer. Ryan watched a copy of his bioscan appear on his helmet’s lens, his organs and bones as violet as a plum.

He looked in perfect health, even after engaging in a worrying amount of euphoric substances.

“As far as the scanners are concerned, you are an average monocolor Violet Genome, with no genetic anomalies whatsoever,” Alchemo said. “You can only blame yourself for your eccentricity.”

So Ryan wasn’t a Psycho, or at least not a conventional one. The courier considered it good news. “Then how do you explain the chic jet black particles surrounding my body in the frozen time?”

“I know that I do not know,” Alchemo replied with a sarcastic tone.

“Don’t bring Socrates into this.”

“Whenever I develop a theory on powers and Elixirs, meatbag, you invalidate it!” The Genius complained. “I give up!”

“The armor’s scanners record these Black Flux particles, but I don’t know what to make of the readings,” Vulcan admitted, a cute frown of frustration on her face. “They keep changing.”

“So these particles follow quantum superposition?” Ryan asked. “The results change depending on the observation method?”

“No, the data keeps changing after being recorded.”

Vulcan turned her laptop in Ryan’s direction, allowing him to see the screen. Lines of codes and words shifted before his eyes, from binaries to trinaries, from numbers to letters and stranger symbols.

“This substance actively refuses to be categorized, and passively alters reality when I insist.” Vulcan ground her teeth in annoyance. “Either that, or you gained a second power that falsifies my data.”

“A Blue power then,” Alchemo said, jumping to the easy conclusion.

“I’m not yet colorblind, Braindead,” Ryan said. “I can tell black from blue.”

“None of this makes sense,” the cyborg complained, having grown angrier by the minute since they left the bunker. Perhaps the stress was getting to him? Ryan knew from experience that the Genius didn’t have a great mental fortitude. “A Paradox dimension? An energy that actively violates common sense? How do you want me to find logic in a situation that lacks any?”

“If the rest of our theory about Elixirs is correct, then this means you developed a link to this Black World. Perhaps even a secondary power.” Vulcan raised an eyebrow at Ryan. “What are you waiting for? Try it out.”

Ryan froze time, black and violet particles floating around him while his other self appeared in a corner. The poor ghost only advanced a few centimeters per second, desperately catching up to the courier.

Ryan glanced at his hands, and the black spots swirling around them, before raising them at Alchemo.

“UNLIMITED POWAH!” The time-traveler shouted while wagging his fingers like a maniac. “POWAH!”

And…

Nothing happened. No black lightning, no blast of antimatter. Not even the thrill of unlimited cosmic power coursing through his veins.

“Nope, nothing I can figure out,” Ryan said as time resumed. Damn it, why didn’t the dark side come with a manual? “Either I don’t have a second power, or I need to figure out what it does before I can use it.”

“Disappointing,” Vulcan said, though she sounded more playful than angry. “Do you still produce particles without the armor?”

“No more than I generate visible Violet Flux without your wonderful suit.” Ryan only produced Black Flux with the Saturn Armor on. “Neither did my main power mutate, as far as I can tell.”

His time-stop worked perfectly fine, and his ‘violet phantom’ hadn’t changed either. Thus, his save point shouldn’t have moved forward in time, though Ryan could only check by resetting. He was in no hurry to try that out yet.

For all he knew, everything would return to normal on the next save, though his gut told him otherwise. The Ultimate Darkling could apparently violate causality, so Ryan’s condition had a chance to stick.

“Then this Black Flux works on another level than our physical reality,” Vulcan theorized.

“Don’t tell me you believe in souls?” Alchemo grunted. “I thought you were a rational person.”

“A Genome like Geist has no DNA for his Elixir to hang onto, and yet persists as a freaking ghost,” Vulcan pointed out. “A similar thing happened with Ghoul as far as I know. A pity your slime friend killed him on its way out, Ryan. It could have helped us figure it out.”

Ghoul’s remains hadn’t risen up after Darkling threw them up, proving that even immortals could die. Ryan couldn’t help but wonder how Black Flux would react to an inviolable object like Lightning Butt.

The courier needed information that even Mechron’s databases couldn’t provide. Knowledge from the same place where he might find a cure for the Psycho syndrome.

Ryan would take a winter vacation next time around.

Alas, they had other matters to deal with right now, as Shortie reminded him when she opened the cabin’s door in full power armor. “We’re surfacing, Riri,” she said, her voice firm and without any trace of hesitation. “It’s time.”

“Finally,” Vulcan said, as she closed her laptop. “Time to put on my supersuit.”

your greatest quality,” Ryan congratulated the short

that’s where we part ways. Boss’ orders. I’ll scramble Dynamis’ communications

disappointment. “Don’t let the patriarchy tell you what to do, come

for your sake. You’re a Saturday morning cartoon comedian, but that mofo is

asked, concerned.

worried the last loop’s event might

apocalypse would be much

everyone looking away. “Well, it’s apparently a self-replicating killer robot, and currently assaulting our HQ. Augustus asked everyone to mobilize, which means they’re replicating faster than he can

midget glanced at Ryan with a knowing look. “You wouldn’t have anything to do

to rule the world, not destroy

whispered into his robotic antennae, as if they were ears. “I’m a Genius, but I’m also

late for that. “You should be fine, don’t

the plushies would probably

opposing sides.” Vulcan rose from her seat with a grin, the

“Same,” the courier replied.

to the shy Genius’ surprise. “Don’t hang out too much with him. You’ve got a great future ahead

in mind,” Len replied sheepishly, Vulcan leaving the room

turning at the man himself.

explained. If all went well, they could raid Lab Sixty-Six within a short timeframe and flee before Dynamis could mobilize. “You keep sending the brain maps to Livia in our

wanted, alongside a copy of Sarin’s molecular structure,” the

Yes, he did.

befriended assholes

right words, while Len watched on

yourself, you’re no longer that person. The Alchemo that betrayed me is dead,

facial expressions making his thought process unclear. “Thank you,

the courier

promised, before excusing himself with a

to bring so many people with us, Riri?” Len asked with

disappointed, than never do so and stay alone forevermore. Livia has a point, fear and paranoia lead nowhere.” Len looked at her best friend without uttering a word, her face

Ryan didn’t press the

you?” Ryan asked

“No, I’m not. But I… I can’t

put on an accessory and I’m ready to go…” Ryan searched the cabin for the last missing part of his outfit: a black

the most wonderful sound in the world.

is nice. Besides, with

Ryan had to

jokes again, Riri,” Len said, as they walked

“You noticed?”

usually you joke all the time, but not so much

“Although?” he asked.

reach your

than anyone else. “I do have an excellent sense of humor centuries ahead of its time. But... I guess I found it easier to laugh at pain rather than cry at it. My eternal life

though. She had seen him cry for the first

the

swore back. She had helped him live

and walked on

harbor, the remaining Meta-Gangsters having moved onto small boats. They could

HQ from behind. If all went optimally, everyone would live through the

shining in Rust

Bloodstream, Ryan wondered if they had temporarily allied with the

Rome looked relatively unscathed. Sure there were fires here and there, and alarms resonated across the street to urge people to stay

could it have become tamer with

Ryan of that notion, putting one hand on his arm and pointing the other at the

Augustus, the

swarm converging towards the summit. Nobody could see the villa at the top clearly, as crimson lightning bolts,

feeble mind couldn’t understand what dark thought pushed the plushie on this course of action. He did remember that the fiendish rabbit had vanished after hunting Acid Rain during the Augusti Loop, whom Augustus had slain. Perhaps the creature wanted to continue their previous confrontation. Perhaps it had grown bored of helpless targets, and wanted to hunt bigger

perhaps, it simply wanted to make

ask Livia to evacuate to a secure location, because there would be no turning back. The

did climb the equivalent of

already up and probably go on a rampage. If the plushies won, they would ride down the hill on a tide of blood and overwhelm the city.

before?” Len asked, Ryan laughing and

know, it’s not really

“Riri…”

twelfth time that I destroy the world,” Ryan meekly confessed, Len

embarrassing conversation. Only the giant hadn’t taken a small boat due to his enormous weight, his

on a bottle of