Page 162 of Code Bound
“Hello, player. Could I interest you in a quest?”
I squint my eyes at the man. “Haven’t I already seen you?”
“A sign to accept my quest!” the NPC declares. “Surely!”
“No, thank you,” I tell him. “I’m already on my own quest.”
Sighing, I continue forward. “Cipher, there isn’t a map or something of the sewers?”
“No,” he replies. “The sewers were formed as a product of New Babel and were not part of my original plan. As an effect, there are no maps, and it must be traversed by instinct or knowledge.”
“Helpful,” I grunt. “Can you tell me how to find Locke?”
“Not in your current state.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means I cannot tell you how to find him.”
I sigh. “Can you at least tell me if he’s alive?”
He hesitates, but before he can answer, I round another corner and run right into a human, a man.
“Ow!” I grunt, bouncing backward. “What the?—”
I choke off as I realize who it is. He’s leaning against the wall, looking entirely nonchalant about having been standing in the dark. Alone and brooding. Relief floods me. Finally, I can actually make some progress in these fucking tunnels.
“You’ve been walking in circles,” Havoc grunts, watching me carefully.
I scowl at him, my relief disappearing as quickly as it came. “Are you here to help or stand in my way?”
He shrugs. “I couldn’t stand to see you stumbling around in the dark like an idiot.” His eyes trail down to the white fuzzy poodle beside me. “What the fuck is that?”
My scowl deepens. “You’re an asshole.”
He levels me with those dark eyes again. “Do you want my help or not?”
“If you’re fucking offering,” I hiss. “I’m guessing you know how to find the Rat Kingdom by the smirk on your face?”
He nods, his eyes going to the poodle again. “Hopefully, the queen took a liking to him. Now tell me, what the fuck is that?”
His words make me stop and stare at him. “What happens if the queen doesn’t take a liking to him?”
“They eat the players she doesn’t take a liking to.”
My mouth drops open in horror. “And if she does?”
He studies me, straightening from the wall to tower over me. “Then she fucks them until they no longer have a use to her.” He points to the poodle. “Seriously. What the fuck is that thing?”
My stomach drops. Oh, Harrow. After everything he’d gone through with Mother Remainder, and now he could potentially be in the same position again.
“We have to hurry,” I choke. “Can you show me the way?”
He doesn’t answer, frustrated that I haven’t answered his questions about the poodle. Instead of blowing up in anger though, he starts to walk away, expecting me to follow like a dog. I don’t argue for once. I don’t even point out how much of an asshole he is. If Locke is okay at the end of this, I’ll give him whatever he wants.
“This place is the fucking worst,” I grunt to Svetlana as I follow.
“Agreed,” she says. “There aren’t even any more jars of leeches.”
