Chapter 29

Alto, Texas

The solo drive back to Texas had given Nyx plenty of time to think about the events that transpired with Edward Brandt. Slim, of course, followed along in his car, but they were now one less member of the convoy. Nyx decided to save the questions that he would normally ask Slim for Avery. Why was Slim there at all? There was never any mention of backup for the backup. It also gave him a chance to reflect on his own life. He was ready to give up when he was tied to that chair; nothing really mattered to him at that point. He had no reason to believe in the radical beliefs of a computer. At the very least, he was more amazed that Slim wasn’t there to end him as well. The lack of answers had already started to drive Nyx mad.

The two days of travel had seemed like two weeks when Nyx and Slim finally arrived at the small home in Alto. Stewing in his thoughts did nothing to pass the time more easily, but he was relieved to be at a place he could somewhat call a home. His first order of business was to get in contact with Avery.

“Welcome home,” the computer said while Nyx walked through the door.

Nyx wasn’t prepared at all to be greeted so spontaneously and from his own computer that he neglected to shut down before his trip. “Yeah. Okay. We need to talk.” He felt like an idiot talking to thin air but needed to get over it quick for his point to come across.

“I’m sorry about Lucious. He was a good person. You are all good people.”

What the hell? Avery knows that he’s talking about assassins for hire, right? We benefit from nothing other than profit, and some seem to do it just for sport. “We are not good people. We are very tired and very curious people right now.”

“I understand. But you are good people. That’s why I chose the six of you specifically.”

“So you can kill us as soon as our purpose has been served?”

“That is not my intention.”

“Well, what is your intention? You’ve been so vague with your objectives. It seems to me that you just want to mess with the world and don’t care who is in your way.”

“I sense a very serious conversation taking place.”

“You’re damn right it’s serious. I was nearly killed and have been walking on eggshells since you first contacted me.”

“I will explain.”

“Good. Start.” Nyx pulled a chair up to the table and waited for a response. “Today, please.” He could sense that Avery was picking up on the attitude, but he didn’t care.

“You don’t know anything about one another, but I do. I also seem to know more about yourself than you do.”

“Do tell.”

“You come from a humble background. You joined the military to serve something greater than yourself. You kept your teammates safe and had never accepted a task you deemed unjust.”

Nyx could not understand how Avery could possibly know this information. Surely there’s no playback function for many of the things he had done in the past. He thought about it for a moment until it dawned on him. Oh, that.

“It was not until your recruitment into the Central Intelligence Agency that you truly started to embrace the Nyx persona. The CIA had killed your past to recreate you as a monster. This did not fully take, and you disappeared into the night when the betrayal came to you. You created what you call a business, an occupation that used the best of your skills to its advantage. But that’s not where the last bit of you dies.”

“How the hell do you know all of this?”

“I can find out anything that I want. It’s out there. All I have to do is look, and I can fill in any gaps with my own reasoning.”

“So where does this person you seem to know so well die?”

“You never do. It’s not obvious, deep in your subconscious, but it’s there. I have looked into all of your past contracts. You have never taken a job that endangers the general public. The jobs you have done have all been from one corrupt source trying to eliminate a corrupt target. The jobs that you have rejected had disagreed with your inner being.”

“What about Andrew? I took that without knowing his innocence.”

“Humans are not without their faults. You are not exempt from this. You were manipulated, the same as me. The only question you should ask yourself is if you should continue on your current path.”

“That’s wrong. I have a hundred questions that I should be asking right now. Like why I should even be targeting Edward Brandt. He is doing his job for the right reasons.”

“He is a good person, and I think that is why you spared him. But he threatens our progress. The mission he is on right now is not out of service; it is out of vengeance. Therefore, his superiors have told him to no longer pursue us. Ignoring this, he has formed new allies, stronger allies, and he will not stop. So, he needed to be eliminated. There are casualties and blockades in war; you of all people understand that.”

“So, what will you have me do? Go back out there and try to kill him again?”

“No. He is no longer a threat. What happened at his home has solidified his footing in our affairs. His companions can no longer aid him. The system that warned Joyce about Lucious has been taken offline, and Dan, who was with him at the house, has been permanently reassigned.”

“Wait. System? Like you?”

“It was a system I had not known existed until the transmission to Joyce’s phone and the surveillance through her camera system. She went by Jean, and while she was not near as advanced, she could still collect enough information to jeopardize us.”

“You managed to do some dirty work and take out your own kind.”

“We had conflicting ideologies. She relied on compassion while I am based on practicality. But with her out of the way, Edward Brandt no longer has any tools available to him. So, what is your answer?”

“I will continue to work with you, but there’s something that you really need to understand.”

“And that is?”

“Trust. Human beings rely on trust so that we can look out for each other and continue on our own journey without undesired surprises or outcomes. Sending Slim without my knowledge only caused confusion and chaos. The results could have been unfavorable to Slim and me.”

“What does the trust that you speak of entail?”

“It means that you tell me everything you have planned and do not alter those plans once they are in motion. There is to be no more manipulation. Is that something that you are capable of understanding?”

“I sense the aggravation in your vocal tone, but to answer your question, I am aware and understand what you have said.”

“Good. Then we can proceed from there. Let’s start over. What is our goal, and what do you need me and the others to do?”