Chapter 28 of 35 · Book 4, The Gate of the Feral Gods

Chapter 28 — Emberus

Book: The Gate of the Feral Gods · Previous: Chapter 27 — Leatherface · Next: Chapter 29 — Where the Red God Glows · Floor: Floor 5 — The Bubbles · Series: the series

Opening

» Time to level collapse: 3 Days, 20 hours.

Summary

Three days and twenty hours remain. Mordecai thinks Juice Box will do what they asked, but not for free, and she fears being sent through; Donut thinks she is starting to remember — a dream of being a schoolteacher whose students were killed for spreading a disease, and a dragon-headed man she can turn into — and her face changed when Louis told her she was an NPC remembering her last dungeon. Carl is 47, Katia 44, Donut 39, and Carl worries he is starting to outpace Donut. Among the achievements is Fight the Power! seven times over: the AI and Carl were named co-defendants in a Syndicate suit and won, earning seven Silver Summary Judgement boxes. The lawsuit itself tells Carl his plan is possible, and Zev asks him to reword an earlier conversation about it.

Each Summary Judgement box holds a gold piece, a share of stock in a company from a plaintiff's home system, and an 8x10 photograph of the plaintiff's mother, whom Louis wants Juice Box to impersonate. Seven factions sued; with the Naga, Carl now knows eight of the nine Faction Wars teams. Mordecai explains that the AI is supposed to police speech against sponsors, not join in; all Macro AIs go insane eventually — 'Primal Degeneration' — and, as lifeforms protected by law, are retired to sealed systems. The gold boss box holds Drakea's Enchanted Kerchief of Disorder, with a Tripper spell that triggers every trap in a radius and the Remote Detonator benefit; Drakea, a bune and author of the 22nd edition, died when an elaborate trap 'unnaturally backfired', and the Syndicate collected a large sum from the Sultanate on his behalf. The Platinum Spicy Box holds the Enchanted Anarchist's Battle Rattle, a patch jacket that gains stats with every patch and boosts thrown explosives, with an Earth patch and a sewing kit.

Elle reports a flaming giant walking through their popped bubble, crushing a Lyrx Elf village and shouting 'Orthrus': Emberus, a fire god, trashing the popped bubbles; Elle does not think he can see into the sealed ones. Samantha, cackling, explains that Emberus is one of the big gods, her great-uncle and cousin, blind since he plucked out his eyes when his son died; Orthrus is his puppy, lost into the Nothing when the son was murdered. 'You guys are so fucking dead.' Bautista's group goes down the stairs; Tserendolgor's 160, one gem from finishing, watch their saferoom door glow red as the god pounds on their bubble. The house is now the Twister. Less than an hour to the lightning.

Characters

• Carl — Level 47; a lawsuit won; a patch jacket and Drakea's bandana; 'This was my fault.'
• Princess Donut — Level 39, outpaced, no boss box; embroidery snobbery; Space Jam.
• Katia Grim — Level 44; a backpack made for her.
• Mordecai — Drakea's death; Primal Degeneration; AIs as protected lifeforms.
• Mongo — Stomach-rubbed by Langley.
• Juice Box — A dream of a classroom; a dragon-headed man she touched in it.
• Ruby — Patted on the head.
• Britney Proskurina — Alone in a corner; she had told him not to go.
• Samantha — Emberus explained; 'A puppy! He's a really good boy.'
• Louis and Firas — 'Who's the hottie?'; the Twister named.
• Elle McGibbons — 'Well you better fix it.'
• Daniel Bautista — Down the stairs as a god rampages.
• Tserendolgor — 160 people, one gem short, a door glowing red.
• Prince Stalwart — Plaintiff #1; his mother's portrait in Carl's pocket.
• Gwendolyn Duet — 'What the fuck is that?'
• Zev — Asks him to reword a conversation.

Locations

• The Royal Palace of Princess Donut — Packed with children and crawlers; a head on the counter.
• The Bubbles — Popped ones wrecked by a god; sealed ones heating from outside.

Motifs

• The gods — Emberus, blind, looking for his dog; feral gods maybe mortal.
• The System AI — A co-defendant; photographs of mothers; 'going primal.'
• Faction Wars — Seven plaintiffs plus the Naga: eight of nine teams named.
• The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook — Drakea's kerchief; his fate.
• The Anarchist's Battle Rattle — A patch jacket replaces the leather one he wore out of Seattle.
• Achievements — Fight the Power! x7; Soft Vore!; Flex in the City!
• The mobs are victims — Juice Box waking up; what happened to Brandy and Tizquick.
• Explosives — Remote detonation; half again the range.