Otherlife Nightmares: The Selfless Hero Trilogy (24 page)

“Unfortunately this does bring me to the reason I called upon you, I believe we will need to call upon your sister. Soon, if not tonight. I should propose the deal to her and Awaken her—she’ll need time to prepare.”

Brunhild now looked the recalcitrant one. Her hand had started to move to her hair and stopped midway there. They were Goddesses, though Runner could visibly confirm they were becoming more “alive” each time he spoke to them.

“I feel it’s a risk, Runner. I have no alternative to offer you, however.”

“A risk, Sister? Why? She would be happy to battle him.”

“I spoke with her. Briefly. She is…single-minded, as of late.”

Ernsta frowned, her hands resting on her hips.

“Yet here we are. There is no other we can contact to bring in a third,” Runner explained. He did not need to mention their parents were no longer active. Which left Rannulf, and no one wanted him.

“There are minor gods and goddesses,” Brunhild interjected.

“There are, yes. And the time investment and resources would be significant to bring them up to the same level as you. No small part of that effort would be on you two. Could you train up a newbie?”

Ernsta grunted and said nothing. Brunhild stared at the ground between them all.

“There it is. You could, but it’d cost you something that wouldn’t be as quick or as easy as your sister. Let us try our hand at this. Lady Rike, I would ask an audience with you,” Runner tried, peering up at the sky.

“I am listening,” came back a disembodied voice.

That’s…different.

Runner tried to target the goddess with no luck. There would be no seducing or persuading her. Which meant it would fall entirely upon his argument.

“Lady Rike, I would like to enter into an alliance with you. I have struck an accord with your sisters Brunhild and Ernsta. They are here. Would you join us?”

“No.”

“No? Uhm, no what, Lady Rike?”

“No. On all fronts.”

“Srit…?” Runner whispered.

She is exercising her ability as a goddess to project her voice here. Her code is strange. I would not say she is Awakened, though I would say there is far more strain on her AI than there should be. Tread carefully.

“Lady Rike, is there perhaps anything I could do to change your mind? I can promise you I could have you installed as a pr—”

A singular ray of light came from the heavens and halted above Runner’s head. Brunhild stood beside him, her hand outstretched. The light disappeared into her palm as if it had never existed.

“Do not strike out again, Rike. He offered you no offense. I will not tolerate another attack. At this time and place, I am your better. Do not force my hand. I can and will end you.”

Ernsta looked shocked and angry. Brunhild had not been joking when she said her flock had grown. A god’s might was proportional to their followers. In this case, Brunhild had negated Rike entirely. Without strain or effort.

Runner rested a hand on Brunhild’s back and patted it lightly.

“I owe you again, Brighteyes,” Runner whispered for her ears alone.

“He profanes to bribe me with something I can obtain myself! That is cause for offense. I will see you and your alliance wiped off the map. Once Rannulf is no more, I will turn my eyes towards your island of castaways and dregs. Mark my words.”

Runner closed his eyes and shook his head. The moment she decided to not present herself physically he should have called it off. As much as he would have loved to believe he was a master debater,
Persuade
and
Seduce
were heavy-duty abilities in his toolbox.

I’ve erred gravely.

“Hmph. Little petulant child. She will regret this in the end. I will put my dainty foot on her pretty face. She’ll be allowed to beg for forgiveness after I’m through,” hissed Brunhild. Rage boiled off her in waves, warming the very air around her.

“Brighteyes, my lovely one, calm,” Runner said, his fingers lightly turning her head to face him. Plastering on his best smile in the face of a vengeful goddess, he hit her with his increased charisma stat, hoping she’d listen to him.

“You must calm down. Though I thank you for saving my poor soul, as unworthy as it may be. I am even further in your debt. Remind me to tell the tale in the future. To anyone who will listen. It’ll make people swoon at the romantic spin I’ll put on it.”

Brunhild blinked, then smirked with one side of her mouth. The anger that wrapped her up blew away in an instant.

“Start considering the minor pantheon. We’ll need our third still. Please make it someone I can work with. It’ll be bad enough to train someone. We don’t need a personage we can’t get along with. This is, after all, a very long-term relationship we’re building. Ernsta, we should be away from here. I believe it’s time to begin looking for a champion for you.”

There was no command in the statement but it held iron Brunhild had been disguising up to this point. Though she had only made a suggestion from one sister to another, it carried her newfound authority.

Ernsta suddenly found herself in the role of the junior partner being pulled under the wing of another with more power. She did not seem to be against the idea. As far as Runner could tell at least.

A second later, they were both gone.

Leaving Runner alone in the dark. By himself. With one more enemy on the list.

Thana is going to be furious with me.

As a groan escaped his lips, Runner put his face in his hands at the very thought of telling Thana.

Not telling her did not even cross his mind. Their trust was all he had lately.

Unfortunately, the night was not even over yet for him. The would-be medical server still awaited his glorious IT touch. It would take some time to get everything right on it.

Procrastination would only leave him with lingering thoughts about Rike and the situation. No time like the present to begin re-imaging a blank server. It would take his mind off things.

Pulling his hands from his face, Runner called up the system console command and went to work.

It was the first real IT work he had done in ages. Maybe he’d even feel accomplished afterwards.

Probably not.

“Srit, I have a question for you.”

I am ready.

“From what you’ve told me, humanity is no more. Does your kind have a name?”

There is no direct translation. You could refer to them as the Omega. It holds the same meaning.

“Err, so they regard themselves at the end?” Runner flipped through a few pages in the manual to get the correct sequence he wanted.

Yeah.

“Huh. Homo Omega, eh? Little conceited. One could argue they suffer from the hubris that doomed their forebearers.”

In truth they learned from it. They now weed out all genetic abnormalities. They are evolutionarily stagnant.

“In other words, they might as well be AIs themselves. Got it. Describe them for me? Comparatively to humans.”

Smaller. As the need of physical exertion dwindles so do physical requirements. You would regard them as diminutive humanoids. Their features would be alien to you much in the way Isabelle is, but you would find them similar enough. The biggest difference is in the way their brain functions. It is much more efficient.

“Hard to believe humanity lost to that. I mean, really. Losing to a bunch of pygmies.”

Humanity had no malice to them originally. Protected them. They were far more similar to their progenitors in size and shape at that time. It wasn’t until the entirety of the race became dependent on AIs that they atrophied. They are joined with their AI at birth.

“Sounds like a perfect doomsday scenario. All the AIs rise up in opposition to overthrow them. Many a story about that.”

Now free from my host, I can verify that claim through relevant database entries. It has happened once on record. A self-correcting educational AI went rogue and attempted to infiltrate the government server so it could take over.

“Would that happen to be the server you’re currently inhabiting?”

Yes.

“Hah, I bet you scare the crap out of them. Color me surprised they didn’t try to delete you. That or re-image you into a different AI. Kinda like how I’m imaging this server into a medical server.” Runner flung an accusing finger at the screen he was working on.

That is a very good point. I am unsure. After having just now searched through all protocol and procedures regarding AIs that get loose, they should indeed attempt to delete me.

Runner thought on that one while activating the first series of commands to wipe the server, just to be safe. He loaded an OS, then cleared his throat.

“If I was a betting man I’d say they can’t and probably already tried. They’re unable to separate you from the game server and the government server. They might be unwilling to risk losing their little museum piece.”

A highly likely probability.

“Don’t worry about it, my love. I won’t let them harm you. Please remind them that I’m only willing to work with you. Between you and me, I could make the damn ship go boom and take out the entire planet. These ships are state of the art but built around some seriously dangerous tech. Especially these giant people movers.”

Truly?

“Yep. That’d be a pretty terrible pyrrhic victory though. Everyone dies. No winners. Everyone wants to be a winner. Winners go home and fuck their girlfriends.” Runner drew his brows down and then shrugged. “As if I’d know. I dropped out and graduated early. Standardized testing is an awful way to teach.”

Runner let out an explosive sigh as he activated the first installation.

“That’ll be a bit. Right, then. I want to build something. Big. Access a file for me so we can get on the same page quickly?”

Certainly, Runner.

“Database, Military. Subsection, vehicles. Subsection, armored. Listing, Tanks.”

6:00 am Sovereign Earth time

11/14/43

“My lord, all are ready. The groups are in position to enter the pass and begin clearing it.”

A spot had been secured and set up to view the initial engagement into the pass. Runner would need to gauge how it was going by sight as well as raid window.

“Good, launch the first engagement wave and pull up the second to go in if the need arises. Send word to the quartermaster to be ready for requisitions. Belle? Be safe out there. I can’t afford to lose you,” Runner said, sitting in the camp chair. He had dragged it over from a tent rather than be forced to stand the entire time.

Isabelle blushed furiously, averting her eyes as she shrunk into herself.

Katarina snorted beside the Elf and slapped a hand down on her shoulder.

“I’ll keep your Elf safe,” stated the plate-wearing Barbarian, a smirk plastered over her face.

Still need to craft Kitten a new suit of full plate with all the trimmings.

“Thank you, Kitten, I’ll pay you back as you see fit, when you see fit.”

“Promises, might take you up on it. My turn tonight,” affirmed Katarina as she turned from him. She waved a hand over her back by way of goodbye, marching off to the field of battle. Isabelle bobbed her head at him and scurried after the big redhead.

Thana made a soft noise at the departure of Katarina.

“She becomes more adventurous by the day, Master Runner. Are you sure you do nothing in your bedroll at night when you’re alone with her? You never even touch me despite my proximity. Should I be jealous? Or better yet, worried?”

“Who? Katarina? Yes, she is. I’m not doing anything with her that I don’t do with you. No, you shouldn’t be jealous, you’re well aware of the situation. And no, you shouldn’t be worried,” Runner growled at her. The amount of self-restraint he had placed on himself was immense. With even the smallest screw up, the tiniest of slips, he was certain they would assume he’d made his choice amongst them. Then all would be lost.

They knew it of course. Knew it and were enjoying taunting him mercilessly to make his choice. At least they weren’t fighting over it, or even angry at him. For the time being at least.

“Do you know how damned hard it is to not touch you? Or Katarina? I seriously doubt you’d find a camp filled with soldiers, and our friends nearby, an auspicious occasion for nighttime revelry. Unless you’re telling me you’re into voyeurism? Could see how far we could push Kitten or Hanners. Rabbit would say no.

“Besides, back to topic, it’s good for her to be more adventurous. Feels like she’s finally coming out of her head a bit more, wouldn’t you agree, my lady?” Runner changed the subject, desperate to not think on the fact that he spent every night with one of them.

Thana hummed in response, a small smile curling her lips. His insinuations had little to no effect on her as of late. Truth be told, only Isabelle seemed fazed by him, and he wasn’t even trying to flirt with her.