Symbiota Sapiens

Chapter 19

"Well. That explains how they got away." Rom's calm voice came from the doorway behind me.

I turned to look at him.

"We've been set up."

"No. I've been set up." He sounded vaguely disgusted.

"You." I said, disbelieving.

Rom sighed, then spoke to me in my mind.

::Look. At this level of the game, nothing is simple. Everything serves more than one purpose. Tell me what you think this was all about.:: He waved a hand to indicate the bed, and then the entire house.

:He wanted to show me I can't beat him. That he's always two steps ahead of me. He was already gone before we put the sensors in, before we even had a plan!: I was frustrated.

::Well. That's what he actually said, isn't it.:: Rom met my eyes evenly. I squinted back at him. He was obviously hinting at something.

I answered him aloud.

"And I guess he wanted me to see that he had infected Julian. That even if I get him back I won't be able to stop the...to stop the-" my voice broke.

"Yes, yes. All of that." Rom cut me off impatiently, then continued telepathically.

::And no doubt he wanted you to see the little scene with the girl too. Humanize the enemy. Messes with your head.::

:That's bullshit. I'm not going to have pity on him. Not that bastard.:

::Oh. Not him. Her. She's the one you're supposed to give the ultimate gift, after all. Helps if you think that's not such a horrible thing. Weakens your resolve to keep it from her, even if he's a total bastard.::

I shook my head in denial. Rom took a step towards me, eyes boring into me challengingly. His voice in my head was sharp with scorn.

::Oh come on now. Didn't you feel a stab of gratitude when she stopped him? When she saved Julian from being beaten?::

It flashed through my mind like a whip. The image. Julian, slamming backwards into the wall as a stripe of blood opened across his bare chest. Shivering, waiting bravely but fearfully for another blow to fall.

Fuck. Rom was right, damn him. I was grateful to her.

I spun towards the door and walked out, furious.

"This is all a fucking mind game!" I ranted, incensed. "He's trying to play with my head and he's damn well succeeding!"

::Block it off.:: Rom told me, coldly.

"What?" I answered aloud. We walked down the hallway, side by side, ignoring the bodies littering the floor.

::The pain. Confusion. Sympathy for the girl. Compartmentalize it. It is important, but is also in the way right now. You need a clear head. Clean motivations. You can deal with the emotional baggage later. After.::

"But, how?"

::Your AI can help you.::

::I don't know how. Emotions...I still don't understand them.:: The Kid objected.

::It's a combination of physical and logical control. Look.:: Rom sent some sort of subprogram to my AI.

::Interesting. I can do this. Do you want me to?::