The Immortality Game

Xax looked at Surly again and gave a small jerk of his head. Surly grinned, grabbed Lev by the neck of his robe, and began hauling him toward the cave.

“Wait, stop! You can’t do this!”

Surly stopped at the entrance to the cave and held Lev there. Lovash said, “What do you think is in there, boss?”

“I have an idea,” Xax said. When Lev turned wide eyes to him, he added, “A nice study, I imagine.”

Telia slid to one side of the cave mouth, two knives at the ready. “That’s not the impression you gave us before, wizard.”

Xax approached Lev and clapped a hand to his shoulder. “Be a sport and scout the place out for us, eh?”

Spittle flew from Lev’s mouth as he shouted, “Fuck you! Fuck the whole lot of you!”

“Shouldn’t speak that way to men with weapons,” Lovash said and prodded Lev’s belly with the tip of his voulge.

Surly grunted and heaved Lev through the pitch black entrance. Xax heard Lev tumble and slide and the “oof” he made when he struck something hard.

Telia looked at Xax. “Do we follow him?”

Xax shook his head.

There was sobbing from the darkness below. “What’s happening to me? What’s…‌what’s that noise?”

Xax smirked at his companions. “Come on, let’s get out of here.” He turned and walked away.

Moscow

Monday, June 9, 2138

12:19 a.m. MSK

Tyoma stared down at himself lying in the arm chair and didn’t know what he should be feeling. However uncomfortable it made him to have to stare at himself—the real version of himself—he didn’t dare look away, because the room around them was a much greater horror. So much blood. Everywhere. So much. Stop thinking about it!

He concentrated harder on himself, his face looking slightly off given that he wasn’t looking at it through a mirror. A small war was going on inside his mind. A tiny part of him wished his original self was dead and gone, because the universe felt disjointed when there were two of him in it. He couldn’t put his finger on exactly why it had to be that way, but it was there regardless. Yet he couldn’t deny that most him was excited at the idea of having something much closer than any twin had ever felt. He had a true companion now. Someone who would understand everything he felt and enjoy every passion and hobby just as much as he did. At least at first. He realized that the two of them would become two different individuals, even if only slightly. They would make some different choices and take some different paths. Their experiences in life would diverge and they would become their own persons again. A sense of relief coursed through Bunny Tyoma’s mind and his headache lessened.

Original Tyoma’s eyes flickered and opened. A grin spread over his face. “That was fun. I’ll have to tell you about it later. We need to get out of here.” He pulled the cable from his slot and sat up in the chair. “Good God, it’s a mess in here.” He put a hand to his throat as if he might retch. He caught sight of Viktor, lying like a drowned puppy against the wall. He’d seen enough horror vids to know that the bad guys had a tendency not to stay dead. It didn’t look like that would be a problem in this case—the war bot had all but torn Viktor’s body to pieces. Even the silvery mask was shattered.

“It’s a horror,” Bunny Tyoma agreed.

“You’re going to have to carry me.” Tyoma indicated his knee.

“With this body it’s not a problem.” Bunny scooped up Tyoma and walked carefully through the gore until he passed the silent war bot and reached the lift. The panel next to the lift flashed an indicator to show that it had registered his presence. Bunny relaxed to wait for it to arrive. He saw that Tyoma was studying him.

“We’ve got to come up with a new name for you. Bunny doesn’t feel right, and I’m sorry but I just can’t call you Tyoma. What do you think about Xax?”

Bunny chuckled. “I’m not a wizard.”

“Well, think about it. Xax has been our character for years. If you have a better idea…”

“What is it?” There was a look on Tyoma’s face as if he’d been struck with a thought.

The lift arrived and Bunny got on.

“Sorry,” Tyoma said, “it’s Javier. He’s asking for our help.”

The lift began to move even though neither of them had told it where to go.

“Javier?”

“There’s so much I haven’t had time to tell you about yet. He’s a new friend.”

The lift didn’t go far before it stopped and the door opened. Bunny shifted Tyoma in his arms and got off. The blond mobster that Viktor had called Tavik was there, the rifle slung over one shoulder. He scowled at Bunny.

“This has been one long, shitty day,” Tavik said. “Your ugly face is the last thing I need to see. Out of the way.”

Bunny stepped aside and Tavik got onto the lift.

“That way,” Tyoma said, pointing.

As he walked, Bunny made a decision and caught Tyoma’s eyes. “I can’t really explain why, but I think I’d prefer to be called Bunny for now. I’ll think up something better later.”

“Okay, Bunny it is then. I’ll get used to it.”