Lights flickered in the hallway. Muddy footprints led down the center of the white floor, but doors led off into other garages and rooms every dozen feet. It seemed quiet and calm at first like everyone was out doing their jobs.
A door at the far end of the hall flew open. An isopod wielding a shotgun stumbled out, aimed, and fired.
Father covered his face with his arms and immediately felt a sting as buckshot dug into his shell.
The isopod dropped the shotgun and tried yanking on the pump with multiple arms. “How does this thing work?”
Father aimed with both guns and fired until the isopod dropped to the ground. He didn’t have a lot of experience with guns. As soon as he needed to reload, he was going to be out of luck.
Father stuffed the guns back into his waistband and grabbed the isopod’s shotgun.
“You killed him!” Pleven shouted.
“Please stop following me.”
“That was Lorno!”
Father pushed Lorno’s body aside and took the shotgun. He pumped it without difficulty. “Lorno is dead. Run away before you get killed too.”
“By you?” Pleven gestured in a dramatic, exasperated fashion with all of his arms. “Just like you shellfish to be violent.”
“Whoa.”
“What? I’m supposed to act like you aren’t running around killing my friends?”
Father turned his back on the isopod. If Mister Logs was in charge of Trash Co. his office would be somewhere inside. Probably near the center like an important manager.
He pushed onward, ignoring Pleven who continued complaining the whole way through. Most of the rooms Father found were small offices with isopods cowering behind desks or a few that were brave enough to attempt to fight. Only the one that had charged into the hallway had a gun. The rest used pens, knives, or random blunt objects in their offices.
Father kicked an isopod back into the room and closed the door. He shot a few who had dangerous looking knives, and he ignored a few others. Pleven gathered the ones Father ignored, which just made a bigger group behind him that complained even more.
Father finally stopped at the end of a long hall and spun around to face the isopods. They all cowered at once.
“I will leave once I find Mister Logs,” Father said. “Just tell me where to go!”
One isopod pointed to the left.
“Thank you.” Father adjusted the handguns in his waistband, made sure the shotgun was ready, and continued through the halls of Trash Co.
He passed through the back of the lobby. The receptionist fish didn’t even notice as Father and his little following of isopods walked around the back, passing a coffee pot and a water cooler, before stopping outside a door that just said ‘Manager.’
Some faint laughter could be heard from within. Father lifted the shotgun.
The door opened. A snow crab, still laughing, walked out and bumped right into the barrel of the shotgun.
“Hey, boss,” the crab said. He stopped moving. Little white eyes flicked up to Father’s face. “I think you’ve got company.”
Father used the barrel of the shotgun to tap part of the leather jacket. “What’s on the back of that?”
“A shellfish . . .” The crab tried backing away, but Father pulled the trigger before he got far. Crab meat splattered into the manager’s office.
“Mister Logs?” Father asked as he stepped over the snow crab’s body.
The office was significantly longer than Father had expected. A single lamp was the only light source, flickering on a desk close to the door. Bits of crab dripped from the lamp and the sides of the desk.
Huge, unblinking eyes watched from the shadows in the back of the room. “A lobster?” The voice was smooth. It was almost calming.
“Are you Mister Logs?” Father asked.
“Who is asking?” The eyes floated upward, nearly to the top of the ceiling.
“My Son was taken by the Hardbody Crustaceans. I need to find him.”
“Then go to the Reef.” Mister Logs moved out of the shadows, slowly leaning forward. A wide head with stark white skin and yellow spots emerged from the shadows. “Why bother me?”
“I need to know where to find my Son.”
“The Reef.” Mister Logs swam forward until he hovered just over his desk. He was truly massive. There was likely even more of his body coiled in the shadows.
“But where? I’ve been to the Reef.”
The eel cocked its head. “You have? It was only hours ago that your Son was taken. Just last night, if I recall.”
Father didn’t flinch at the comment. Explaining he was stuck in a loop would only make things more confusing. For someone. Maybe for him. He was really trying not to think about it all that much.
“Hm.” Mister Logs lowered his head to the desk. “Why are my workers in the hall?”
Father turned just enough to see all the isopods still standing in a group just beyond the doorway. “I don’t know.”
“Get back to work.”
The isopods scattered immediately.
This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
Father’s vision blurred. An outline appeared around Mister Logs’s body. A thin yellow light traced the eel’s face and extended back, revealing the unbelievable size of the eel’s coiled body still resting in the shadows.
1st Checkpoint Boss
Mister Logs
“What?”
Mister Logs shook, sending a wave through his whole body. “What was that?” His head snapped back, focusing on Father. “Get out of Trash Co.”
“Tell me where to find my Son.”
Mister Logs shot forward with his mouth open, baring horrible teeth. Father fired the shotgun once before needle-like teeth stabbed into his shell. The eel let out a cry and spun, whipping Father all around the room before finally letting him go. Father smashed into the wall and fell to the ground.
A long, thin tongue slithered from Mister Logs’s mouth. He licked his lips while hovering over Father. “Lobster is my favorite.”
Father reached for one of the handguns and flinched as the eel’s mouth clamped around him again.
Returned to Start.
Beginning Run 11.
Set Attributes.
Strength 10
Endurance 10
Agility 30
Intelligence 0
Luck 0
He felt dumber. Father still wasn’t sure if he really was or not, but he definitely felt like he was stupid.
He climbed out of the car with surprising grace. His steps felt light and his movements were effortless.
Mister Logs was far too fast for him to fight, even with guns. Father needed speed.
“Hey, aren’t you the Father of the Sexiest Lobster? Can’t believe you hit me! You got some balls. Too bad you aren’t getting to the Reef now. I need to beat some sense into you.”
Father walked right up to the lobster, dodged the baseball bat swing, and tripped the lobster. He snatched the baseball bat and beat the Hardbody Crustacean to death.
Within a few short minutes, the pigfish arrived. Father waited, making himself look injured.
“Are you hurt?”
As soon as one of the pigfish neared, Father swung the baseball bat. He quickly took out the first officer and threw the bat before the second could draw his gun. The raised agility apparently helped his accuracy because the baseball bat cracked against the second pigfish’s forehead.
Father pulled the gun free of the first, stomped on his head, then did the same for the second pigfish.
Before long, Father was parking his car on the back street. The sign for Trash Co. was faded and easy to miss if one didn’t know where to look.
Father checked each handgun, then spent a minute trying to hype himself up. Killing people didn’t really matter.
It was a horrifying thought, especially when he realized how calm he truly was.
Why would it matter if they just came back to life when he died? They had no memory of it while he had detailed memories of every death.
Faster the better.
But they didn’t even remember their deaths, so it didn’t matter. None of it mattered. He just needed to learn more so he could go to the Reef.
In future lives, he wouldn’t even need to go to Trash Co.
Father walked through the main door and aimed a handgun at the receptionist. The fish put their fins up.
Father walked right by, passing the coffee maker and water cooler, and went into the manager’s office. The snowcrab wasn’t there, but would likely arrive soon. Father had moved much faster than before without needing to sneak around or talk to Pleven.
Mister Logs floated out of the shadows with his mouth agape. Those needle-like teeth made Father shiver.
1st Checkpoint Boss
Mister Logs
“Tell me where they’re holding my Son.” Father aimed both handguns at the giant eel.
The eel lunged.
Father got a few shots off before his legs were torn from his body.
Returned to Start.
Beginning Run 12.
Set Attributes.
Strength 10
Endurance 10
Agility 30
Intelligence 0
Luck 0
Maybe the shotgun was a better option. Father went through the motions, took the bat, guns, and money, and stopped right in front of Trash Co. He walked inside, nodded to the receptionist, and went into the hall on the right instead of going straight to the manager’s office.
The snowcrab stood in a doorway with his back to the hall. He leaned on the doorframe and adjusted his Hardbody Crustaceans jacket like he was flirting with the isopod within.
Father walked up quietly behind, pressed the handgun barrel against the side of the crab’s face, and fired. As soon as the crab dropped, Father turned the gun to the isopod and shot. He stepped through crab blood, pushed the isopod aside, and found the shotgun underneath the desk.
He waded back out and found the hallway full of isopods watching him. Father aimed the shotgun. “Get back to work.”
It took a minute to convince the isopods to go away. Once they were gone, Father rushed back into the lobby and to the manager’s office. He adjusted his grip on the shotgun, gripping it in a single claw, and pulled a handgun from his waistband.
Conversations could wait. Father opened the office door.
1st Checkpoint Boss
Mister Logs
Father fired the handgun as fast as he could until Mister Logs started to move. He dropped the gun, lifted the shotgun, and fired. The eel’s head collided with Father, sending the lobster back into the lobby.
Father slid across the ground and crashed into a withering potted plant. He scrambled back to his feet. Mister Logs barely fit through the doorway, inching out with unblinking eyes watching Father the entire time.
Father pumped the shotgun and fired again.
Buckshot tore into the eel’s face and ripped at the skin. Blood leaked into the water.
“I adore the taste of lobster,” Mister Logs said.
Father pumped the shotgun and pulled the trigger. Nothing. He tossed the weapon aside and drew the last handgun.
Mister Logs dove forward and tore Father to shreds.
Returned to Start.
Beginning Run 13.
Set Attributes.
Strength 5
Endurance 15
Agility 30
Intelligence 0
Luck 0
A bit more endurance might not make all the difference, but he hoped it would make the pain of death a little less severe. Just a little.
Taking out the first lobster was noticeably more difficult with lower strength, but his speed helped him overcome the difference. Speed was all he needed to take out the pigfish. Father armed himself and drove into town.
He parked in the same spot, walked into the lobby of Trash Co., killed the snow crab and isopod, and took the shotgun. He ignored the other isopods and walked right back to Mister Logs’s office.
Father set the shotgun outside the office door, propped up on the wall, and took out both handguns, he kicked in the door.
1st Checkpoint Boss
Mister Logs
“Who—”
Father started shooting until the guns ran out of ammo. Mister Logs uncoiled and dove forward, teeth bared. He was bleeding from wounds all over his body, but none seemed severe enough to stop the monstrous eel.
Father retreated out of the doorway, grabbed the shotgun, and pulled it up just in time to fire at the eel’s face. The buckshot went into Mister Logs’s mouth, which made the eel stop and sway. It took just a blink of an eye for the eel to recover and rip Father apart.
Returned to Start.
Beginning Run 14.
Set Attributes.
Strength 5
Endurance 15
Agility 30
Intelligence 0
Luck 0
“The mouth.”
Father went through the motions until he stood outside the manager’s office. Firing the handguns pissed Mister Logs off, but they didn’t actually do anything significant. The only time the eel had actually reacted was when the shot went in his mouth.
“One step closer to rescuing my Son.” Father aimed the shotgun and kicked open the door.
