Chapter 598: The Stock Car Race (2/2)
And they were both gone.
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Daxin straightened up as he left the small tent where he had put the girl, who could only be described as a bunny-girl, to bed after she had done nothing but kneel and pray for nearly two hours, weeping the entire time, after seeing the gathering.
”Did you really have to scare her into religious hysterics?” Daxin growled, moving across the fire and sitting down. He glared at the matronly woman sitting across from him.
”You imbeciles let her see who you really are,” the woman shot back. ”How do you think she's going to react to seeing this many of the Biological Apostles, whom, I might remind you, she's seen in stained glass windows and sung hymns to and prayed to?” She turned and jerked her head to thrust her chin out at a glittering figure sitting next to Bellona and holding her hand.
”And it isn't like he could show up. She'd have melted right down,” Dee snapped. ”She's barely hanging on by her fingernails after playing Camp Blood for nearly a third of her life.”
Dee picked up a small rock and threw it into the fire with a snap of her wrist.
”I fucking hate using child soldiers,” she snapped. She looked at everyone present one at a time, glaring at each of them. ”Don't give me any damn excuses on why it's permissible. I've heard it all before as I was forced to stand there and watch entire continents descend into barbarism, savagery, and an orgy of near cannibalistic slaughter.”
Kalki rolled his eyes. ”And what would you have done? Carried a half bag of rice to them? Prayed to them?”
Dee snarled and looked at Daxin. ”He respawns, right?”
Daxin sighed and nodded. ”Yeah.”
”And what will you do?” Kalki sneered.
”Brother, I love you but sometimes,” Daxin started to say.
Dee snapped her fingers, glaring at Kalki with smouldering gray eyes.
There was a sharp fzzt feeling of tinfoil across fillings on the back of everyone's molars.
A massive refrigeration unit fell from where it appeared twenty meters up, slamming down on Kalki, crushing him instantly. The door popped open and refrigerated food poured out.
”Ooh, a banana,” Daxin said, leaning forward and picking it up.
There was a ripping and tearing sound and Kalki stepped from a fiery rip in the night, landing next to Dee.
She tensed slightly as he looked at her.
Kalki suddenly laughed, grabbing her in a side armed hug.
”By the Gods, I love a good joke!” he laughed, squeezing her tight. He pointed at the refrigeration unit. ”Such an answer from the Mistress of Hell herself!”
”Get off me, you big doofus,” Dee snapped, pushing him away.
”Ah, a lúcuma!” Kalki said, grabbing a fruit off the ground. He brushed the dirt off of it and clicked his tongue. ”Dancer! Dancer, come here, girl.”
The little white goat jumped up from where it had been laying down, wagging its little tail, and hopped/skipped/pranced over to Kalki, who had broken open the fruit on his knee. He handed a piece to the little goat and sat down next to Dee.
”Lúcuma, sister?” he asked, holding out a piece.
”Thank you, brother,” Dee said solemnly.
Kalki took a bite, smiled as he chewed, then swallowed it. He then turned slightly and looked at Dee. ”With your invention, you feel you could have saved all of those people from starvation?”
Dee nodded. ”Completely removed shipping costs, time, and delay. Roadways and infrastructure would have no longer been a problem.”
Kalki shook his head. ”You are the Mistress of Hell. You know the dark hearts of men. Do you think, for a real instant, that they would have allowed you to succor the poor and downtrodden?”
Dee growled and made a fist. ”History shows, plainly, they would not. Did not.”
Kalki nodded. ”Brooding men of power, within their halls of strength and wealth, do not permit a challenge to their greatness, sister. You are intelligent enough to know what creating such an environment would have done to the halls of power.”
Daxin tossed the banana peel in the fire and Dee nodded.
There was silence for a long moment.
”Would you, if could have, daughter?” the Digital Omnimessiah asked. There was only curiosity in his tone and he gave no sign of offense at Dee's slight defensiveness.
”Yes. Without a moment's hesistation. It would have shown the primacy of my nation once and for all, crushed the spirits of all who had taken sides against us, and thrown all of the weakened and stupid nations into the dustbin of history,” Dee said, her eyes getting more and more intent as she spoke. ”No more holes in the ozone layer, instant transportation of good that no longer relied on railways and interstates and air travel. It would have broken the backs of the Arab states and the Commies so loudly the ducks on Rigel would have looked up wondering what tree trunk just broke.”
The Digital Omnimessiah nodded. ”An understandable desire in context.”
There was silence for a while before Dee stood up. ”Goodnight.”
There were murmurs of well wishing as Dee walked away from the camp, to a solitary tent.
The silence was broken only by the crackling of the fire and the self-satisfied humming of Bellona as the Digital Omnimessiah slowly brushed her hair.
”She's asleep,” Legion said finally.
”You granted to her a gift that had been denied to her her entire life,” the Digital Omnimessiah said gently. He tapped the log. ”Sit, Bellona,” he said.
Bellona stood up and moved next to the glittering figure, sitting down on the log then leaning over to rest her head on his shoulder.
”Come here, Menhit, your braids are beginning to fray,” the Digital Omnimessiah said.
Daxin looked away as Menhit moved over and sat in the dirt in front of the digital made flesh.
Kalki looked at Daxin, smiling widely. ”Sometimes I like her more than you, brother.”
”You would,” Daxin grumbled.