[REND] B2. 8.3 - The Gangsters and the Sister

How should I respond? What should an Adumbrae’s motivation be? It couldn’t be altruistic, could it? I hoped my answer was the right option. “The fewer… of us the PCM have,” I said, “the slimmer the PCM’s chance of success would be.” I avoided using the word Adumbrae because they probably didn’t refer to themselves as that.

“Success at barring us from playing on this plane,” said Kelsey.

That sounded otherworldly, alright. I couldn’t read anything from her tone, but I assumed that our conversation was going well. She seemed to know what the PCM was doing. Myra was probably right in guessing that Kelsey, the human side, asked the PCM for help curing her. It was apparent that the PCM failed.

I nodded. “Each one of us I freed was another that could bring down the PCM.” I omitted mentioning working together. I’d let her bring it up.

“Revenge?” She rolled her eyes. “That’s such a waste of time.”

“Not revenge,” I said, wondering if I made a mistake. Perhaps the concept of revenge was alien to Adumbrae. But self-preservation shouldn’t be; Spooky Erind was concerned for our survival. “Defeating the PCM is in our interest. They can’t be allowed to obstruct our passage to this plane. And I don’t think you had an enjoyable time imprisoned in the tunnels.”

“No… Which was why I escaped.”

“The PCM will come for us with their despicable machines. In fact, they’re already doing so. You know that.”

Kelsey tilted her head to the left. “Are you proposing an alliance?”

I chose the correct dialogue option! This was like the dating simulator that one of my annoying younger cousins made me play. He asked me for help because I supposedly knew how to talk to girls. But I had no intentions of dating girls, so I sucked at the game, picking the wrong things to say. In contrast, it appeared that I was winning the game with Adumbrae Kelsey.

It was a bummer that the Adumbrae was completely in control of Kelsey. Would’ve been way easier if her human side were around to talk to. Even a situation where the human and Adumbrae fought each other for control was preferable, though chaotic, compared to what I was dealing with now. This Adumbrae wasn’t as chill or relaxed as Spooky Erind.

“An alliance will benefit both of us,” I said. “We can share information and cooperate in fighting.”

“You speak of the practical course of action.”

Was she saying it was a good thing or a bad thing? I knew Adumbrae could eat each other, so Kelsey might be wary of that. Or were Adumbrae just introverts, not wanting friends?

I hedged my bets with my next words. “Then again, you can also go on your own. The PCM’s focus is on you. They search this area even as we speak. What you did here—” I gestured at the dead bodies “—will give them more reason to unrelentingly hunt you. It’s to my benefit if they focus on you.”

“Yet you’re offering to work together,” Kelsey said in a way that made it sound like she was omitting some lines from the script.

She wasn’t trying to telepathically communicate with my Adumbrae side, was she? Was that even a thing?

I shrugged. “Working together is better for me, and also for you. There are a lot of things you don’t know about the PCM.” In truth, she probably knew more about them than I did.

“You’ve escaped them long ago.”

“Correct. I’ve gathered people to protect me,” I said, explaining Overdrive and the others, which Kelsey might’ve seen. “I may be strong, but I’m alone. I have to content myself with the weak ones, those who haven’t awakened their real selves.” I didn’t know how Adumbrae would refer to ‘regular people’, so I just made shit up. “But since you’re here…”

Kelsey displayed her teeth. It was a grin, not a grimace. Probably. “Now that I’m here, you want us to work together?”

I didn’t answer immediately. This other Kelsey was circling our conversation. Why?

It could be the nature of Adumbrae to employ bullshit, never having a straight conversation. Spooky Erind seemed to be fond of being confusing. Also, I still hadn’t gotten any hint of why this Adumbrae chose to meet me. She knew she was in danger, yet she thought it was fine that I, another Adumbrae, could get close to her.

“It is beneficial for both of us,” I calmly repeated, though I was getting annoyed. “What do you think about it?”

“You saved me…”

“Yes, I did.”

“Was it your intention to save me?”

I blinked. What was this bitch getting at? I felt like I’d missed something, and she was dangling it in front of me as a taunt. “It is. As I’ve mentioned, the PCM—”

“Who did you want to save?”

I clenched my teeth for a moment before answering, “You.” I didn’t say anything more. I’d wait for this bitch to reveal what game she was playing.

The edges of Kelsey’s mouth curled into a mischievous smile. “Which me?”

Huh? This fucking monster really was messing with—Wait! My brain buzzed to process the implication of her question. Was that what she was getting at?

I might’ve made a tactical error back when I revealed that I knew her host body’s name. Shit. I thought I had seized control of the conversation by name-dropping Kelsey, but I just exposed my secret.

Kelsey giggled while pacing in front of me. Her forcefield swept away the blood on the floor. The fact that blood was everywhere when I entered meant that Kelsey could turn her forcefield on and off. Not sure if that could help me later.

“None of the PCM called you Kelsey.” I was guessing the reason why she asked a question like that. If I was remembering correctly, the scientists just called Illusory Eye a test subject. Though it was the PCM’s goal to turn Adumbrae back into a human, I doubted whether Cecilia or the other scientists cared about Illusory Eye’s former identity.

“That is right,” replied the Adumbrae, turning around and pointing at me.

Fuck! I slowly blinked to release my frustration while ensuring the rest of my face remained neutral. I had just realized my blunder!

Knowing the name Kelsey showed that I intended to save Kelsey, the human, not the Adumbrae. Kelsey went to the PCM still in control of herself. Once the PCM imprisoned and experimented on her, she was just another test subject. If I intended to free captured Adumbrae, I shouldn’t know about Kelsey’s name, much less bring her identity up. What I thought was a clever line actually busted me.

“You knew I was human since I mentioned Kelsey.” I was pissed off at my mistake and cautious of this smart Adumbrae. But I was also happy for the rare opportunity to use Rule #8—Once a face is torn, don't insist on wearing it again.

This fucking Adumbrae shredded my face for the lie that it was. I could come up with a bunch of excuses to try to tape this face back together, like I got the information about Kelsey from the PCM scientists, or maybe my men hacked a database or whatnot, but that was against Rule #8.

I should immediately wear another face. Why? Because it’d make my new face appear more reliable. It was as if I was cornered into telling the truth. Technically, I was, but I’d never give up lying. And being defensive was lame. Adumbrae Kelsey could probably tell that something was wrong with me anyway, which was why she met with me.

Unrelated to Rule #8, it was easier to wear a face close to the truth—I was a seeded human who had maintained control of her mind.

Despite knowing, or at least suspecting that, the Adumbrae Kelsey didn’t attack. There was some room for negotiation here. My plans weren’t derailed yet. The fact that I controlled my mind should make Adumbrae Kelsey worried.

“You are quick on the pickup,” Kelsey said, clapping her clawed hands like a child. She became more relaxed and animated in her movements. And talkative, too. “You shouldn’t have revealed knowing my name. But you didn’t drag out conceding defeat, which keeps our game… a game. Entertaining. This must be why the real you hadn’t bothered asserting the truth… yet.”

I had no idea what she meant, but I wasn’t going to ask a question on her terms. How do I go about this?

This was the first time I experienced my face getting backed into a corner in a conversation. Usually, the people I was trying to manipulate didn’t know that I was doing it. How could they defend what they weren’t aware of? This was different. A real challenge. Plus, Adumbrae Kelsey was really good at the war of words. But I’d attribute her win to my wrong initial assessment of the situation.

Annoying. Very. But also, fun! I should try to reassert control. I should steer the conversation into a territory that Adumbrae Kelsey wouldn’t be aware of.  

“We’re buddies, me and her—the other me,” I said. “She’s quite helpful, saving me in various situations by giving me powers. She says we’re the same, so it’s no big deal to her who’s in control.” No way Adumbrae Kelsey could verify that.

“We aren’t all the same,” said Kelsey. “But I assure you that a reflection would not last for long.”

“We’ll see about that,” I said. Before she could reply, I threw the ball into her court and changed the topic. “How were you imprisoned by the PCM?”

“You should know,” she said, gesturing to me. “You know Kelsey, after all.”

This pesky Adumbrae was gauging how important the human Kelsey was to me. Since I had wanted to save Kelsey, I should be against the Adumbrae taking over her. But Adumbrae Kelsey wasn’t worried about me because she had the perfect hostage—herself. This bitch thought she had the higher position.

I was super tired of being the lower person. I had to make some distance. “That’s where you’re wrong. I don’t know Kelsey.”

“Oh, is that the truth?” The Adumbrae pointed at me again. “Why would you save someone you do not know?”

“Because of her sister.” I had an idea on how to off-balance the Adumbrae. “Kelsey, can you hear from in there? Myra wants to save you.”

The Adumbrae frowned. “Talking to my pale reflection when I’m in front of you?”

“Myra searched for an Adumbrae for help, Kelsey,” I said. “Your sister didn’t forget about you.”

“How disrespectful. She can’t hear you.”

I don’t care. I continued, “Myra found me, an Adumbrae, to help save you. Together, we busted into the PCM’s base to free you, Kelsey. Your sister loves you.” I had seen this done in a couple of movies: the main character tries to awaken the human mind inside the Adumbrae enemy.

But that wasn’t my intent. Instead, I wanted to piss off Adumbrae Kelsey to see how far she’d hold off attacking me. It was time that I found out why she wanted to talk.

“I love Myra as well,” replied Kelsey, extending both hands to hug air. This was still the Adumbrae in control. She decided to play along instead of get riled up by my antics. “I love my sister more than she knew. But she can’t understand what I was going through. She was trying to stop my true self from surfacing.”

“Because you’re not her sister,” I countered. The direction of our conversation gradually pointed toward conflict.

“Do you know what my sister is?” Kelsey pointed at me for the third time. Or was it fourth? Was she getting paid to do it often? “She’s not a normal human.”

Attempting to throw the ball back to me? “The artificial Core. I know all about it. As much as Myra knew, anyway. She got the Core from Dario. Something about a government experiment. But Dario and the others aren’t part of this. Myra kept this little mission of ours secret from them because she cares about you, Kelsey. She knows that Dario will want to kill you if he finds out that you’re… already like that.”

“You paint my situation as quite dangerous,” said Kelsey. She ticked off her fingers. “Dario and the Professor might kill me. The PCM is searching for me. And… you… Why are you here?”

I held off answering. Something was wrong with all the pointing.

Kelsey’s power. It was connected to her hands. Kelsey’s projections were invisible. For all I know, a fist-shaped projection was an inch from my nose. Could also be that the Adumbrae was already wrapping tendrils around my right hand to stop me from wearing my mask when the fight started.

“Is it because you want me to ally with you?” Kelsey asked.

“We’re back to that point in our conversation,” I said, moving my right arm. Still unrestrained.

“With different circumstances after we’ve been truthful to each other. Some truth.”

“Really? I don’t know much about you.”

“Does that mean that you’re no longer interested in an alliance? Or you weren’t thinking of one all along?”

I clenched my teeth for a moment. This naked piece of shit was mocking me. Our conversation wasn’t going anywhere. She didn’t follow the script, making me look bad! Things should’ve gone the way I envisioned it because I was the main character.

Probably impossible to get back on track.

From Adumbrae Kelsey’s perspective, I could only think of her as the enemy. No way I’d convince her that I really wanted to team up. But then again, she wouldn’t want to. And the weightier reason why we’d eventually fight was because I wanted to beat her up. Not for information or anything, though that’d be welcome. I wanted to pummel Adumbrae Kelsey because I was a sore loser.

Before we’d be at each other’s throats, I asked straight the questions I had been skirting around. Might as well. “Are you not afraid of meeting me? You mentioned that I smelled fascinating. Didn’t that concern you?”  

Kelsey wriggled her nose. “You smell like me…”

“I don’t think so. I took a bath before coming here.” It sounded like a good comeback.

“And you also smell like my sister.”

She suspects that I have the Core! Was this why she wanted to meet me? Because I was an Adumbrae with a Core? She could be trying to make sense of my nature.

“Why is that?” I asked. Wouldn’t avoiding me be the better option? Wait a minute…

“Why do you think? You’re the one with the bizarre smell. What are you?”

Kelsey was pointing again! I swiped the shotgun down my front. It connected with something around my chest level. She was trying to touch my Core! As I stepped back, I felt the invisible thing push aside my shotgun and continue to my chest.

It connected with my Core.

A burst of memories not my own flooded my mind.

(Author's Notes: This experience is one of the ways Erind can learn lessons and as a character. As she had mentioned, she's used to manipulating people without them knowing. That's pretty easy. Talking to Adumbrae Kelsey is an actual challenge, and probably the first loss in a conversation war that Erind had experienced. Erind is on the road to maturity. 

This was a very tough chapter to write because it's two people acting smart while I, the writer, am not. Both of them had layers of plans going on in their heads. Not to mention evolving assumptions about each other. This is far from Death Note levels of confrontation, but I did what I can. Thank you all for your support!)