Chapter 39

  You have to kill me to regain control of your reality!

  The words rang through Adam's head like the beginning of a migraine. He knew no matter how long he lived, every word The Voice had spoken would remain, just as clear as the moment he had first heard them.

  "Because that's less psychotic..." Hector mumbled, flicking his chin to the left.

  Adam followed the motion and spotted The Salesman approaching, a small case in one hand and the same genial smile on his face.

  "That is precisely why I want to hire you," he said, placing the case on the table between Adam and Natalie. From his jacket pocket, he pulled a remote and switched on the nearby television. An image of the Earth appeared, slowly rotating. It was peppered with red dots, mostly clustered around major cities.

  "You want to hire us?" Adam winced. He really was developing a bad habit of stating the obvious.

  "Yes. But first we must discuss terms-"

  "Not this shit again," Natalie groaned, leaning back in her chair with an exaggerated sigh.

  The Salesman's eyes wandered to Natalie, then returned to the screen. "Let me rephrase. I am offering information in exchange for the completion of a task. A task I believe you are capable of." He gestured to the television. "And to complete it, you will need context."

  "What kind of information are you offering?" Samantha asked, curiosity clearly getting the better of her.

  "Information regarding your abilities, the invasion, and what you can do about it,” he said, hitting several buttons on the remote. The screen zoomed in, showing a false-color map of their city. A bright red dot pulsed at the city's center.

  "You mentioned that before. An invasion. That is what this is, isn't it?" Adam stared at the pulsing dot. "There's no organization to it, no pattern, but we're being invaded.

  "Almost correct," The Salesman replied, nodding. He paused as if waiting for the next question.

  “Almost…?” Hector trailed off. “What do you mean almost?”

  The Salesman slipped the remote into his pocket. “There is a certain level of organization to every Announcement. This is not, of course, the first time The Voice has played this little game.”

  "Okay. Invaded by... what?" Natalie asked, leaning forward and drumming her fingers on the table.

  "Everything." The pause that followed felt intentionally theatrical. "Every conceivable version of your reality. Every planet that harbors life. Every power, intelligence, and will that exists may eventually find their way here. Once The Voice opens the tunnels between worlds, the only way to save your own is to close them."

  "And how do we close these tunnels?" Hector thumbed the piece of bone through his shirt, his eyes distant.

  "You kill the entities holding them open."

  "That's it?" Adam's skepticism slipped out before he could stop it.

  "That's it," the Salesman said. "You can also convince the entity to relinquish their hold, but killing them much more expedient, and far more reliable. There are things I can share with you to assist in this endeavor."

  "Free of charge?" Hector asked, expression amused, but not mocking.

  "Of course not. This is not a charity." The Salesman broke into his sharklike grin, all teeth and dead eyes. "There is no such thing as 'free.' The price is already what you will do, assuming you wish to survive the immediate future."

  An uncomfortable moment of silence fell across them, and Adam waited for the other shoe to drop.

  "You are currently in a lull between waves,” the Salesman explained. “The tunnels have been opened and your world, your reality, is open for occupation. You may have already noticed it, but many of your kind have already disappeared." Adam nodded, reminded of how empty the streets had become. "Many have been taken, devoured, or wandered through small tunnels into other versions of your world, or other worlds entirely."

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  "The forest. I think we already went through one, on the way to The Pagegrinder." Samantha drew her eyebrows together, placing her hand on the spot where she'd been shot.

  The Salesman nodded. "That is correct. Your memory of the primeval forest was an example of a small tunnel forming. Perhaps an analogy will help. The tunnels are similar to rivers. The river itself marks the largest point of incursion, but smaller tributaries form near it, creating additional destabilization. A few rivers are good for business, but too many and what remains of your world will be washed away."

  "What's in it for you? I mean, why do you care if our world is destroyed?" Natalie asked. Her tone was neutral, but Adam could tell she was digging deeper than the question implied.

  "In a word? Preservation. If your world becomes completely polluted by the nearly infinite other versions, what would remain unique, or valuable, about it? What of things that exist only here? This is the only version of your world that has Christmas." The Salesman's face lit with joy. "An entire day meant for the reverence of a fallen deity, reforged into blatant exercise in consumerism and greed? And even so, it remains a day where families can come together and show each other love and value. It is brilliant."

  "So, you want to save us because we're fucked up?" Natalie laughed, and the sound was so genuine Adam had to fight not to join in.

  "No. I want you to save yourselves." The Salesman's expression darkened as he looked at the map. "And to do that, you will need to grow your abilities. You are vessels. Containers for power. Ki, chi, animus, mana, essence. Call it what you will. It is the same driving force and it fuels your gifts."

  Adam smirked. "So, we're all just cosmic batteries now?"

  The Salesman pointed at him. "Correct."

  Adam couldn't think of a response, and Samantha jumped in to save his pride. "But we're not strong enough. We'll need to get stronger, right?"

  Adam couldn't help but groan. "God damn it. There it is. We've managed to avoid it all this time, but now we're here. We're stuck in some poorly written teenage power fantasy. Next thing you know, we'll be talking about powering up, attaining new levels, and getting stronger in every other conversation. Let’s not forget the beach episode with the harem…” He let his head drop onto the table with a dull thud, banging it softly against the surface. "I'd like to wake up now."

  Natalie cleared her throat, and Adam looked up to find everyone, including The Salesman, staring at him. His cheeks began to burn as he sat up. "Sorry, I used to listen to a lot of podcasts and stuff at work. The whole ‘getting stronger’ thing was, well let’s just say it showed up. A lot."

  "Uh... huh..." Natalie gave him strange look before turning back at The Salesman. "So, how do we do that? Is there some universal power station we can plug into?"

  "Unfortunately, no. You are both the vessel and the source. All that you are capable of must come from within you," The Salesman explained.

  "You sound like my abuelo," Hector said, absently reaching for the pendant beneath his shirt. He caught himself and put his hand back on the table.

  "He was a wise man," the Salesman replied, letting Hector's eyes widen before continuing. "There are three ways for you to grow. The first is to kill. Some argue that a portion of whatever you kill flows into you, strengthening your vessel."

  Adam rubbed his temples, feeling a headache forming behind his eyes. "Experience points. Fucking experience points. This can't be real."

  "The second is to utilize your abilities. Strength without proficiency is useless. You may be the most powerful entity on your world, but without the skill to harness that power you will be quickly usurped." The Salesman grew more animated as he explained, his typically flat eyes growing bright and excited. "Your power is self-actualized, honed by practice and shaped by your will." He held out his hand, and the case slid across the table toward him, gently touching his palm.

  "What's the third?" Samantha asked, her eyes lingering on the case.

  The Salesman hesitated, and Adam thought he caught a flicker of uncertainty cross his features. "Pacts. You may make a pact with a more powerful entity, a Patron, and they will lend you a portion of their power."

  "So, literal deals with the devil." Hector folded his hands, unfolded them, then laid them flat on the table. Adam couldn't remember seeing the man fidget before, but he seemed unable to sit still.

  "Devils, in a manner of speaking. It is both the fastest and most dangerous way to obtain power." The Salesman unlatched the small case, opening it and reaching inside. "But I warn you: the terms of these pacts are binding, etched into the very essence of both parties. It is not so much a fact that they cannot be broken, they simply are not. The only way a pact ends is when its terms are fulfilled... or one of the signatories dies."

  He let the silence linger, then drew a palm-sized piece of blue stone out of the case. It was polished smooth, veins of silver and gold running through it. The veins caught the light at odd angles, making the lines seem to writhe beneath the surface.

  "This is a-" the sound that came out of The Salesman's mouth landed somewhere between static and slow-motion car crash. It made Adam's ears hurt and his teeth itch. "Also known as a Seeker Stone. It was created on a world that successfully married magical and technological advancement. Their achievements were remarkable... until they committed one of the few universal taboos." He paused, letting the weight of the statement settle. Adam was convinced he intentionally dialing up the drama. "They created technologies to open tunnels before The Voice allowed it."

  “What did he do?” Samantha asked.

  “You truly do not wish to know.”