Axiom's End by HotDog Girl
Chapter 35: What a Twist!
DHI Book Club Discussion by pibbs
protected by Fair Use, bitch
Cora steps out of the barn and the retard crew are staring at her.
& gives her a translation tablet. Ok.
Cora, we may never see each other again.
Oh noes!!!
Now go!
She runs to the car.
She hears alien screeching!
She heads back to the barn.
But they were gone.
Around the side, two dozen raptors, flat on the ground.
Then she sees & towering over Esperas. He fucked that dude up! No he didn't!
It was Obelus!
3 times the size of &.
Her idiot self had lead Obelus right to them!
Dun dun duuuun!
& just stood there, watching Obelus turn a fool to ash.
& looked at Obelus. Obelus looked at &.
Tablet translated what they said.
[Greetings, BELOVED.]
All right! Faggot albino dragon raptor porn!
That Lindsay! Subverting our expectations!
Esparas called them, liar, betrayer, filth!
And as much as it sickened her, she had come to the same realization that Esperas had. It wasn’t even that Ampersand had known Obelus was coming for them and had kept it entirely to himself. That much was blindingly obvious. No, it went way deeper than that.
Ampersand and Obelus were symphyles.
Fuck buddies?
Ampersand could see her, though, and shot her a brief but intense glare, a look that she couldn’t help but read as, You idiot, I’d kill you if I didn’t know that Obelus was about to do it for me.
They are in cahoots apparently.
But where is the Critter?
& drags Cora's sorry ass around the barn telekinetically.
& keeps Obelus from killing her.
I roll my eyes.
& and Obelus argue over why keep her? All I know, is something better start fucking something, or all this rum is going to waste.
Cora is asked where the Critter is.
She curled up into a fetal position next to Ampersand’s feet, continuing to whimper little “don’t hurt me’s” as she wrapped herself around the tablet at an angle where she could just see the text, trying to walk a fine line between believably panicked and not quite annoying enough to kill.
Obelus moved away from them and observed:
[Histrionic communication vessel.]
Uh.. Obelus goes to Esperas. I don't know what the fuck os going on. A mix of rum and I don't care.
Figure this shit out for yourselves.
Obelus kept on going:
[Why did you not share the truth of my identity / our bond to caste-peer, ESPERAS?]
Ampersand responded:
[It was for your protection, my BELOVED. I did not want INFORMATION revealed to your inferiors that you may not want them to know.]
Obelus spoke again:
[I require insurance you won’t betray me.]
[I require incentive not to betray you.]
[What do you value, BELOVED? There is little in this universe left that you value. But I require more than insurance that you won’t betray me—I require insurance you will not end your own life
He wants Critter. He orders the retards to go get it, and as insurance keeps a few captive.
That includes Cora.
End of Chapter.