As if spellbound, 72372 stared at the Destroyer machine gun, as if the weapon had the gift of hypnosis.
Chomping in the Destroyer’s earpiece.
«Don’t delay with her,» said the master’s voice.
The body in the Sinister uniform grew cold. The warmth from the pleasure of fear 72372 disappeared. The Destroyer grabbed the machine gun and, aiming it at 72372, yelled:
– WHY DID ELIAS COME HERE? ANSWER THE QUESTION QUICKLY!
72372 shuddered and began to jabber in wild panic:
«He came here to take his friends with him.» He asked me to secretly keep an eye on them, because…» she sighed heavily and looked away, «since they are very young and uncontrollable.» Elias planned to go to Greeverse with them – in order to see… – 72372 lowered her voice – Chancellor Greeverse himself.
The Destroyer felt Bail’s ears perk up, but he decided to change the subject by asking:
«Is Elias not in Paxbright now?»
«I think not,» answered 72372, her voice still trembling. – And his friends are gone too. I was already interrogated by an employee of the UN Grievers Department. Apparently, Elias did something serious, since there are members of the Special Forces here in Paxbright.
«Don’t forget your main goal, soldier,» Bail hissed.
Once again it flashed through the Destroyer’s head:
My main task is to get into Paxbright territory and destroy Johann Shelter. I have no right to allow myself to die before Shelter’s death. The reward for Shelter’s death will be my own death.
– Where did Elias’s young friends live? – asked the Destroyer, realizing that such a question could entail the wrath of the master.
– In dorm. – Her narrow eyes widened, watching the machine gun pointed right at her face. – Opposite the university. There… no one lives there now. After the UN visit, the hostel is… not in the best condition.
«She’s useless, shoot her,» said a poisonous voice.
The Destroyer felt that Ray’s face was beginning to awaken within him. His new reflexes gave way to insane curiosity. He wanted to see the aliens’ home. To find Elias through the aliens. To get into the past through Elias.
To perhaps meet Athena there…
«Since I can’t kill myself,» Ray’s consciousness decided, «then I just need to disappear from this time…»
«Reflexes will force me to take care of my life… but will not enslave me completely,» believed the awakening Rey.
– SHE IS USELESS, SHE IS A FUGITIVE FROM SINISTER! SHOOT HER, SOLDIER!
The Destroyer had to submit. He opened fire and, amid the ringing screams of 72372, spent the entire clip. After which he hurried to leave the university. 72372’s shocked gaze bored into his back. As soon as the Destroyer disappeared, she looked at the eye-shaped mirror – or rather, at what was left of it. The shards of the mirror glittered in the enveloping lighting of the university.
****************
The Destroyer felt frightening changes within himself.
Ray’s subdued nature begins to awaken, and, worst of all, begins to rebel.
For the first time, Ray disobeyed Bail’s direct order. The Destroyer was ready to shoot the iridology teacher, but at the last moment Ray moved the machine gun to the side.
A new goal lit up in Ray’s mind. She suppressed the Destroyer’s reflexes. New goal. Sacred…
Disappear from this time – force Elias to send him back in time to Athena. Damn Bale, that fucking cannibal! Finally, he found something that will help him find happiness. Something that will cut the strings that Bale was happily tugging at his fucking body.
With an elastic step, the Destroyer (or Rey, he didn’t understand yet) walked towards the nearest dormitory – it was the only one in the area with the windows turned off.
But…
He stopped immediately. On the veranda, Ray saw three vague shadows. He decided to go around the back of the dorm so he could overhear what these shadows were saying. Perhaps what he hears will bring him closer to realizing his new desire…
The destroyer walked around the house and entered the backyard of the dormitory. Ray walked around an unusually huge ATV with an inscription on its side, bent down and looked out the window, hoping that unknown people would enter the house. Fortunately, this is what happened. The sound of boots on plastic grew louder. The Destroyer immediately bent down even lower – it seemed to him that one of those who entered was looking in his direction. A heap of voices reached him; it was impossible to understand anything. Ray decided to take off his gas mask – not only in order to hear better, but also simply because spending many hours in stuffy uniform was, to put it mildly, unpleasant. Suddenly the Destroyer heard the first more or less distinct remark. He pressed his cheek to the wall to hear better:
– Yeah!! Keep pouring!! Like, we couldn’t know that there would be four non-policemen, and now, like, we couldn’t know that they would get to them before us!!
– Shut up, Fonzy! – an irritated male voice was heard in response. Then a woman’s voice spoke:
– What do we do? Shall we call him?
Silence – apparently the man was thinking about something. Ray moved away and carefully looked out the window, a little glad that for the first time in a long time he was experiencing quite lively excitement.
There were three people standing in the hallway. One is a broad-shouldered man in a black vest with (Rey shuddered) a crossbow instead of a hand, loaded with multi-colored tridents. Next to him stood a woman of rather powerful build with an acid-pink mohawk on her shaved head. Not far from them, a skinny guy in a skirt was walking around, looking at the furniture and dishes that someone who had been here before them had managed to destroy.
«Iya, I don’t know what we should do,» said the crossbow-handed man, nervously stroking his crossbow over his bare and, as it seemed to Ray, steel chest. «He clearly didn’t predict that Greed would overtake us.»
«Are you sure these were Greed’s people?» – the woman asked.
«More than,» answered the crossbow-handed man, looking up thoughtfully. Meanwhile, the guy in the skirt managed to find brushes and paints, and was now sitting at the table and drawing something.
Crossbowhand looked at Iya with undisguised irritation.
«I won’t rest until you divorce this idiot,» he said quite loudly.
– Non-policeman Frank, I hear you!! Don’t discuss me with my wife!!
– Found something to do, Fonzy! – Iya said dissatisfied. – We’re actually on a mission.
– Which we managed to fail, ha ha!! Fonzy said, hunched over the table with the concentration of an artist.
– Rest assured that when my sister divorces you, you will taste tridents of all colors! – Frank growled.
Fonzy grinned.
– Ha, Frank, don’t be angry, it’s not my fault that you fail operation after operation!! Ha, I missed the thief who stole a whole batch of Lycids!! And now – ha – the damn police have ruined everything for you again!!
Frank wanted to attack Fonzy, but Iya stopped him in time.
– Your only skill is to fail everything, ha!!
