Chapter 3 of 74 · Book 6, The Eye of the Bedlam Bride

Chapter 3 — The Scavenger's Daughter

Book: The Eye of the Bedlam Bride · Part: Havana · Previous: Chapter 2 — Hills Cyclops · Next: Chapter 4 — Old Havana · Floor: Floor 8 — The Ghosts of Earth · Series: the series

Opening

I took a deep breath, and the line of boxes appeared in front of me, moving all the way to

Summary

Carl's boxes, the celestial at the end a barrel-sized rotating skull, his view counter spiked in a saferoom. A Town Upgrade coupon from the Recital; from the Vengeance of the Daughter, a stick-and-poke tattoo kit like Edgar's — the Enchanted Prison Tattoo Kit ('letting SkullFuck from the next cell come over') — which Donut and Samantha both call disgusting; a peace-symbol patch that insults hippies and gives +10% dexterity and bongos; Find Traps to 13; a second mercenary coupon; a Cosmic Buff potion held for Mordecai's table; from the Apostate box a nipple ring ('That's what you get!') — the Enchanted Nipple Ring of the Defiler, for a crawler Marked for Death: religious affiliations at a glance, shrine-breaking without consequence, +25% against clerics, and Black Nimbus, which strips a target's god-buffs like 'wearing a shirt for the band Cattle Decapitation to church'. The Imogen box: the Enchanted Right Back Atcha Personal Shield, an auto-buckler that catches attacks by dexterity and bolts by intelligence and reflects them, replacing the Peach Pit. The Scourge box: 20,000 gold, two table coupons, and Doctor Ratchet's Automaton Build-It Kit, parts for fifteen automatons. And from the celestial, which explodes into fireflies: a back patch — The Scavenger's Daughter, a pyramid of skulls sewn with fibre-optic thread, divine, unique, fleeting, its powers hidden until worn and changing near gods and demons ('Don't worry, we programmed out the head exploding debuff this season. That one was caused by Yarilo'). Carl sews it on badly while Donut critiques the angle of entry; a mercenary dot in Mordecai's room is a 'room attendant' he will not discuss. News: a fan group for Elle, mostly men; Florin's shotgun upgrade and contact with Lucia Mar; Katia's speed item; Britney's burn unhealed and Louis and Britney not opening boxes for grief; Tran in a floating wheelchair like Odette's, mourning Gwen more than his legs; the gear is good everywhere, which worries Carl. Worn: all patch bonuses doubled, +25 strength and dexterity, a notification whenever a deity is near, Climb, Soul Reaper — a Soul Essence bar filled by melee kills and drained into one attack, its capacity growing, 'Carrying corrupted essence around on your back builds character' — and the Mysterious Bone Key, a one-time key to any lock that destroys the jacket and takes a bone from the wearer. 'We're gonna mark that as a last resort item.' Then Donut bursts in: the system designed their squad flag, and Carl laughs.

Characters

• Carl — A divine back patch, Soul Reaper, a bone key; sews badly.
• Princess Donut — 'That's what you get!'; the angle of entry is crucial; an outrage about a flag.
• Mordecai — A room attendant he will not explain; 'That skill is ridiculously powerful.'
• Samantha — 'It's something Louis would wear on a date.'
• Katia Grim — Worried about Britney.
• Tran — A floating wheelchair; grieving Gwen.
• Britney Proskurina — Face unhealed, crying, clutching Louis.
• Florin — A shotgun upgrade; in contact with Lucia Mar.

Locations

• The Royal Palace of Princess Donut — Boxes to the back wall; a fireflies celestial.

Motifs

• The Anarchist's Battle Rattle — Six patches, doubled; the Scavenger's Daughter on the back.
• The Scavenger's Daughter — A bar under the mana; the more you kill, the stronger you get.
• The gods — A divine item that changes near deities; a nipple ring for apostates; Yarilo's head-exploding debuff.
• Loot boxes — Two cyclopean box openings; a box inside a box.
• The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook — A note about a bone key, somewhere.
• Loneliness — Louis, Britney and Tran after the masquerade.