"Alvis." "Welcome to Spring Hill, a little Company bio-dome" "I had set up outside Old Town." "Illenor Seyah Simms." "It's an honor." "She's a guest of the Company now." "If you need me, we're there." "Where are your saviors now?" "No!" "What are you?" "I'm Level 6." "Turin, what the hells do you want?" "I want you to take some unofficial assignments." "Let's call 'em unsanctioned warrants." "So this is the deal." "You use me;" "I use you." "Because until we know what Khlyen's endgame is, we're all being used." "Dutch?" "Dutch, can you hear me?" "Why are you here?" "That's not the question, little bird." "The question is why are you here?" "It's time for you to come back to Arkyn." "Is that what you wanted?" "To shove a spike in my neck and pump me full of green shit until I turn into a cold, bloodless thing like you?" "Poor Yala, you really don't remember, do you?" "Remember what?" "That it's already been done." "You're a VI, Yala." "No!" "Well, I can show you." "12 HOURS EARLIER" "Okay, you got us here." "What's the mission?" "About a week ago, three of our own got downed, north end of the Badlands, running ahead of a Black Rain storm." "It's Paolo." "You know him?" "I've heard of him." "Works with his wife, Tanya?" "They took on her sister, Deena." "Were they on a warrant?" "Level 2, salvage." "Everything else about it is sealed." "Northern Badlands, that's just... that's wasteland." "There's nothing out there to salvage." "Gets weirder." "When the team called in an evac," "Khlyen intercepted the message, covered it up." "No rescue team was sent." "I want to know whether our people are still alive." "If they are, bring them home." "And find out what Khlyen is trying to cover up." "Coordinates are on there." "Now, get the hell out of here and forget you ever saw this place." "I got to see a lake about a fish." "Try not to screw this up." "Such a dick." "NORTHERN BADLANDS" "Hey, Lucy, anything from above?" "I've located the ship." "Sending coordinates." "That's a big'un." "Anything yet?" "I've been hailing, but they're not answering." "There's nothing showing on infrared." "As far as I can see, they're not in there." "Yeah, but why would they leave their ship?" "There's nothing for a thousand clicks in any direction." "And it'd been safer inside." "Looks like the ramp's jammed." "Come on." "I do not like what they've done with the place." "What is this shit?" "Well, I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say it's moss." "In a ship?" "In the desert?" "They called in for an evac a week ago." "Where does this stuff come from, Johnny?" "How could it grow so fast?" "Seriously, what do you guys think, that I'm a mossologist?" "Must've gotten wet in here." "The electronics are shorted out." "Can't get past the damn air lock." "Yeah." "Means the comms and controls are down." "She's grounded." "Well, if they're not here, where are they?" "Let's go find out." "Grab a lamp to the rambler." "Soon as we're out of Qresh's shadow, we'll have more light." "Lucy, can you bring up a topo map of this area?" "Initiating aerial spiral search pattern." "You're the best." "I haven't found any topographical anomalies large enough for human shelter yet." "But I did a fascinating soil sample analysis." "Would you like to hear it?" "Oh, thanks, Lucy, but I'll save that for bedtime." "Can you bring up Pawter's comm link?" "Fine." "Connecting to Spring Hill." "Pawter?" "Johnny." "I forgot you put this thing in my ear." " I'm just checking in." " I'm just... making tea." "No!" "File transfer ready." "Insert data jack." "Shit." "Yeah, well, I still think that we shouldn't have left you there." "It was my choice." "I got a chance to do some good." "Why are you whispering?" "No reason." "Invalid DNA." "It's not because you're doing something dangerous?" "No." "Maybe." "Probably not." "I gotta go." "I'll call you later." "Tea's ready." "Help a girl pick out her knife?" "First time I've seen you out of your robes." "Well, not the first time." "Laundry day finally come?" "Found it in D'avin's room while I was going through his stuff." "If you really want to piss him off," "I could hire you." "Is that an offer?" "'Cause I could use the work." "You're not serious?" "Wait, this isn't about what happened under Spring Hill?" "Alvis, you can't be thinking about leaving the Scarbacks." "The faith has always been everything to you." "The faith almost turned me into a mass murderer." "Oh, that wasn't faith; that was hate." "Trust me, I'm familiar with the difference." "Really?" "What do you have faith in?" "The RAC?" "I'm the wrong person for you to talk to." "Don't know what I believe in right now." "My knife." "Maybe that makes you the right person." "So..." "Alvis?" "Yep." "Any idea how long he's gonna be with us?" "Just wondering if we're gonna be setting up a confessional in the mess area or anything." "Don't want to see him cutting himself before I've had my morning coffee." "We smuggled him out of Old Town so until he finds someplace else to go, we're responsible for him." "Ah, so that's what we're feeling." "Responsibility." "Hostiles!" "Wait." "We're on a warrant!" "Hands up, weapons down!" "So you're here to save us or kill us?" "You're Tanya, right?" "Maybe." "Depends on who's asking." "I'm Dutch." "And we're RAC Agents, answering your call foevac." "We sent that call a week ago." "What does the name Khlyen mean to you?" "He's a RAC officer; he's the one that cancelled your rescue." "We want to know why." "Tell me why I should trust you." "Because you were doing your job." "And the people who were supposed to be protecting you betrayed you." "We've been there, too." "We think you stumbled over something you shouldn't have seen." "Are we right?" "If I tell you, will you come down with me to get Deena?" "Down where?" "Into the mine." "What mine?" "This one." "We're gonna need Alvis." "What's all the shiny shit?" "The photonic crystals." "They absorb the light." "You guys have some nice toys." "Comes with the job." "Like sexy jackets and early death." "Okay, we're here so tell us what happened." "What were you sent to salvage?" "A monk." "How do you salvage a person?" "Didn't make any sense to us either, but it's triple scale." "I searched the Company records on the way here." "There's nothing in 'em about a mine in this area." "The warrant came with coordinates and they were right." "You're here, aren't you?" "Touchy." "Any thoughts on the monk angle?" "All I can say is that the faith grew up in the mines." "That's how I ended up taking the ropes." "You were a miner?" "It's why he's with us, D'av." "Here I thought it was Bring a Monk To Work Day." "Is that my shirt?" "Is it?" "So how did you guys end up down here?" "We were emptying the Recu when the Black Rain started so we had no choice." "Called in the evac and we went underground." "Then our batteries ran out." "A few of the crystals still had light." "That's how we stayed safe." "From what?" "Paolo." "Your husband?" "He's been trying to kill us." "Me and Deena." "Kill you, why?" "I don't know." "Something happened to him down here." "The night our lights when off, he just snapped." "He's still down here?" "Is he armed?" "Come on." "This way." "Oh." "Good." "Wacko in the dark." "Love these missions." "Dad, you don't understand." "Jelco shot Hillary Oonan right in front of me and I can prove it." "Whatever he's doing, he's doing it under orders from the Nine." "Then I need to talk to Mother." "There are limits to what even your mother..." "Can achieve." "Bullshit; she's the head of one of the Nine Families." "Please trust me." "You're safer in Spring Hill." "For now." "Dad, you're not going to leave me with that monster." "I see you found my holophone." "We had one in every room back home." "You get yours on the black market?" "I'm Qreshi too." "Just not a Nine like you." "Here I thought the lower families knew how to show respect." "We've got off on the wrong foot." "Join me for dinner." "House arrest comes with a meal plan?" "Even monsters have to eat." "And I have a proposition." "Hard pass." "I think I'll go for a walk." "Your father's right." "I can only guarantee your safety in Spring Hill." "Remember, if you stray too close to the perimeter, pretty princess goes boom." "No one wants that." "So, Scarbutt..." "I don't see what's so complicated about this." "You just follow the mine shaft." "It's gonna split in about 100 meters." "This mine's at least a century old." "Better try and stay close to the surface." "Got branching tunnels." "Yeah, he's right, there's a three-way fork up ahead." "I'm not getting any readings." "It's probably why Lucy didn't see the mine in her scan." "These crystals are sucking up all the EMR." "That's weird." "Look at that." "Same moss that was in the ship." "Yeah, it got in there somehow after the storm." "Must release spores carried by the wind." "Hey, I got Lucy sealed." "But we could be breathing this stuff in right now." "I don't know it'll grow on your lungs." "Probably." "Yeah, well, what about growing in our brains?" "Maybe Paolo came down with a bad case of moss-head." "Great." "Remind me to send Turin a thank you rock." " Careful with this, guys." " She's right." "The salt rock is super unstable and heavy as shit." "Clear, come ahead." "Don't touch anything." "Be careful." "I may have touched something." "What do you think it means?" "A warrant to salvage a monk?" "We're very recyclable." "It's hotter than hells in here." "Which way?" "Tunnels' well connected." "I stayed alive by moving around." "Deena could be down any one of them." "Yeah." "So could Paolo." "Whatever Khlyen's hiding down here, ten joys says Paolo found it." "So let's find them both." "You take a left." "I'll go right." "Maintain visual." "Johnny, watch our ass." "Keep an eye on her." "I don't like her." "It's nothing personal." "She doesn't like anyone." "How do you like the beeps?" "We added those to give little festive warnings, saves on the mess." "What do you want from me?" "I need you, Pawter." "My heart needs you." "I told you, I'm not interested in your proposition." "I have a genetic defect." "Chronic pericardial effusion." "A buildup of fluid in the membrane around my heart." "I know what it is." "Too many generations inbreeding." "We're a very close family." "The membrane has to be drained every day, or it'd die." "You have other doctors here." "But I want you." "Back at home, you wouldn't even need to look at me." "But here!" "You have to do what I say." "If you help me," "I'll help you." " What's all that graffiti shit?" " Waymarks." "How Scarbacks map their routes in the dark." "What was that?" "Whatever's down here, Khlyen was willing to sacrifice three Killjoys for it." "So stay alert." "D'av?" "Anything?" "Big bag of no." "Except for the hellmouth." "It's him." "Paolo, you bastard!" "Hey!" "Tanya!" "Tanya!" "We're losing you!" "D'av, you got her?" "Not here." "Paolo?" "What did you do to her?" " Where is Deena?" " Shut up." "They're here to kill us." "They know what I found down here." "Paolo?" "Please, stop, you aren't making any sense." "I told you." "You can never trust anyone." "Tanya!" "They shot him!" "They shot Paolo!" "It's all right, it's all right, you're all right." "They couldn't have gone far." "Let's go." " Not with her." " I'm okay, he didn't hurt me." "Paolo can't answer our questions if you kill him." "Take her back to Lucy." " No!" " We can catch him." "And the more we argue, the less chance we have." "We'll find Deena." "And Paolo!" "Wait, just..." " Come on." " No." "I can't go;" "I can't leave my sister down here." "Dutch was right; you're a liability right now." " Let's go." " Paolo's following us." "Look, I get it that you're freaked out." "Just pretend we're camping." "In the dark." "Miles underground." "He's here!" "Tanya!" "Tanya!" " Ah, shit." " Johnny, are you okay?" "Fabulous as always." "We might have a little problem here." "No shit." "Rockslide cut off your exit." "I can't get to you." "You guys didn't see Tanya?" "She must've gone down one of the other tunnels." "I'm gonna have to go up to Lucy to get some equipment." "You guys just stay right there, okay?" "I'll get you out of there." "Right." "Dutch." "I can see you're ignoring me." "Well, don't spy." "It's cheeky." "We'll find them before you're back." "Come on." "Shouldn't we stay put?" "There are three of us;" "I think we can handle one hostile." "What did you give me?" "Just something for the pain." "You know if you kill me, you'll be dead before you leave the clinic." "Still, it would be worth it." "I like you." "You're hard to predict." "I like to test people." "Find their weakness." "Just so I can use it." "Against them." "Your honesty is refreshing." "Did I say "refreshing"?" "I meant "repulsive."" "Damn it!" "I told him I need a nurse for this." "Put pressure on his chest." "John, I have verified that Turin was telling the truth." "Not right now, Lucy." "The Red 17 base was destroyed after a large transfer of data off moon." "At what frequency?" "Microwave." "Okay, see what else you can find out and bring up Pawter's comm link again." "I can't get a signal underground." "I'm sorry, John." "Pawter's comm link is still disabled." "You're still getting her vital signs, right?" "There was an extreme stress bank 47 seconds ago." "What?" "When were you gonna tell me?" "Given that I just did, is that a rhetorical question?" "All right." "If you get Pawter, you tell her..." "Tell her I'm coming for her as soon as I can." "Now I have to go kick a mine in the ass." "What do you see?" "Any sign of them?" "No, but there's some weird shit down here." "Looks like some kind of tree." "All the mines have underground temples, but" "I've never seen one this far below ground." "Oh, shit." "Bones." "Picked clean." "I've seen that before." "Is that a Scarback thing?" "It's a symbol from the scriptures." "A story about some monks." "Twelve went away to fight the devil and none came back." "Went away where?" "Never mind." "Thank you." "Hey, Dutch." "Are you seeing this?" "Yeah, I see it." "More crystals." "So?" "There's enough crystal in this mine to fuel half the Quad." "We're looking at millions, maybe billions of joy." "This mine wasn't played out." "Somebody shut it down." "Why would they do that?" "Good question." "Deena?" "Deena, can you hear me?" "Guys." "I found Tanya, I'm going." "Dutch?" "Wait." "Johnny, are you any closer?" "I'm coming for you!" "I found a route in!" "This shit's too unstable!" "Gotta find another way through." "Damn it." "Let's go, Monkpants." "Deena, it's me." "Where are you?" "The RAC sent help." "Deena?" "Tanya." "You don't get it." "You failed her." "Deena's gone." "Shut your mouth!" "Tanya?" "Down here." "I'm stuck." "Can you please help me!" "Shit!" "Take my hand!" "I can't reach it." "Try harder!" "I can't!" "These are on my legs!" "God, it hurts!" "What's happening?" "All I see is black." "Just get up... get up now!" "D'av, Alvis, get your asses in here." "What are those things?" "Johnny, Tanya's gone." "Get us out of here now." "Dutch, you sure you're okay?" "Peachy, except for the part where I'm surrounded by man-eating moss." "How long will it take you to clear the rockslide?" "We need to get the hells out of here." "Grabbed some volcanizing foam on Lucy." "We'll bore in through the side wall." "It shouldn't take me more than ten minutes." "I'm guessing the bugs are the reason they shut down the mine." "Maybe." "What does any of this have to do with Khlyen?" "Johnny, do an analysis." "Analysis of what?" "I don't know!" "That's just something we say and then you make it all better." "Tell me what we're dealing with." "Here, mossy-mossy." "Okay..." "Well... to start with, it looks like an angry vagina." "And these things aren't moss, they're centipedes." "Moss-covered centipedes?" "Mossipedes?" "Well, they must use moss as camouflage." "If they move together, they must have some sort of hive mind." "But it's not just that, they're... they're... well, they're smart." "Smart enough to ground that ship." "Maybe." "But they're definitely smart enough to corral Tanya into that pit." "I mean, that must be the way that they hunt." "Yeah, but she was running from Paolo." "Wasn't she?" "I don't think so." "How many skeletons were down there with her?" "Two." "So Paolo and Deena were already dead." "She was what... hallucinating?" "And that's why there was no blood after she shot Paolo." "I mean, these things, I think," "I think they have some sort of psychotropic venom." "Dutch?" "Isn't that the way we came?" "Not anymore." "I've seen these symbols at some of the junctions." "Might show us a way out." "Johnny, let me know when you figure out more about them." "We're coming to you." "Johnny, are you there?" "This is Lucy." "John is out of range." "Damn it." "Liam Jelco DNA confirmed." "John left a message." "Do you want to hear it?" "Sure." "Commencing playback." "If you get Pawter, you tell her... tell her I'm coming for her as soon as I can." "He said that?" "I'm detecting signs of psychological fixation." "Data jack inserted." "Old Town." "Lucy, I think I found the plans for the wall." "Are you referring to the boundary wall around Old Town, Dr. Simms?" "Actually, for a whole lot of walls." "One for every city on Westerley." "I'm gonna start a dissection to see what we're dealing with." "You guys getting close?" "Dutch?" "Copy?" "If you're hearing us," "Johnny, we hit another junction." "We got visual." "You okay here?" "Sure." "You take north, I'll take south." "Dutch is on post." "Any advice on the best way to kill these things?" "Yeah, uh, bad news." "Apparently you can cut these things into pieces and all the pieces live." "You tried stomping one?" "Hey, Johnny, a riddle for you." "What's filled with green goo and you can't kill it?" "What are you talking about?" "Answer:" "Level 6s." "And maybe a bunch of man-eating mossy pieces of shit." "You think that this has something to do with the plasma that I took out of Khlyen's bio-computer?" "This is the same stuff they tried to put in me on Arkyn." "Oh, whoa, whoa, D'av, slow down, not all that's green is space goo." "Makes sense though." "Might be why Khlyen cancelled the evac order." "This could be what he doesn't want anyone to find." "Maybe that's what drew the monks here." "Scarbacks go way back with Khlyen and the VIs." "So why hasn't Alvis mentioned anything?" "Alvis!" "Alvis, what's going on?" "We lost visual." "So, D'av, what's your theory?" "That Khlyen sends people down here to milk the mossipedes?" "I don't know." "You're the science guy." "Now how 'bout you tell me the best way to get these things away from us so we can get the hells out of here." "Well, they don't move very fast." "Try running." "Hey, you've always been the funny guy." "Dutch." "The monk with you?" "His feed went dark." "Khlyen!" "Dutch?" "She with you?" "I haven't seen her." "Dutch, you on the move?" "Dutch!" "What's going on?" "Khlyen." "He's in the mine." "Khlyen?" "Why would Khlyen be here?" "Because we are." "You think he followed us?" "Maybe he came down here to make sure Tanya and her crew wouldn't talk about what they found." "Whatever the reason is, he's stuck down here now." "And he's not getting away from me." "Whoa!" "Dutch?" "Dutch?" "Dutch, can you hear me?" "Dutch?" "Dutch, can you hear me?" "She couldn't have gotten far." "We were right behind her." "She's not wearing her optics, D'av." "We need to find her before the bugs do." "Why are you here?" "The question is why are you here?" "Why can't you just trust me?" "After everything you've done?" "You kidnapped D'avin, you tried to turn him into one of your soldiers." "Everything I've done has been to protect you." "You put me on a list for Red 17." "You know that won't stop me." "D'av, I'm through the wall." "I'm coming for you." "Copy that." "Is that what you wanted?" "To turn me into a cold, bloodless thing like you?" "Poor Yala, you really don't remember, do you?" "Remember what?" "That it's already been done." "Could I really have convinced you to kill all those people if you were a normal child with normal feelings?" "Didn't you ever wonder why you always said yes?" "If she gets swarmed by these creatures, they're gonna try to and gangbang her into a trap." "We checked in the pit where they got Tanya." "She's not there." "They have traps all over the mine." "She's got to be in one of them." " The bones." " What?" "In the temple." "That's one of their kill sites." "Stay to the right, Johnny, you'll find us!" "No, you're lying." "This is a trick." "No, it's no trick." "He's always been in control." "We've never been anything but a puppet on the string." "No, I... we... got away from him." "You're still a killer." "No, I do what I have to." "To protect the people I love." "So does he." "He molded us." "Shaped us." "He made us..." " Just like him." " Just like him." "And he's still pulling our strings." "Dutch." "Hey." "Hey... what are you doing?" "Oh, God damn it." "Guys, she's hurt bad." "Johnny, we got incoming." "We need to go now!" "She's right." "We're just like him, we... we can hurt everyone that we love." " No, no." " Johnny!" "There's nobody here." "You been talking to yourself." "No, he'll make me kill you!" "Dutch." "Look at me." "You're not like him." "You cut yourself and you bleed just like we do." "Can you see it?" "You said you don't know what you believe in." "Believe that I am not leaving here without you." "Even if it means we die together." "So if you want to save me, you're gonna stand up, get your shit together, and get us out of here right now." " Johnny." " Hi." "Come on." "Holy shit." "They're going." "I don't think they like me." " Let's move." " Come on." "The cut on your stomach wasn't deep." "And the antibiotics are taking down the swelling in your hand so that's the upside." "We should have checked you for bites." "We never should have left you alone." "I'm okay now, assuming the five of you are real." "Kidding." "What's the downside?" "Well, for starters," "I don't know what to feed my new pet mossipede." "Monk." "You had to bring one back?" "Look, when I get my hands on more plasma," "I want to confirm the results of D'av's squish test." "Do we know who the others were?" "The ones that died down there?" "I'm guessing prospectors." "There'd be rumors about a mine like that." "How do we know the venom's really out of her system?" "Yeah, if it's all the same to you," "I'd like to be examined by a qualified doctor." "I think it's time we get Pawter out of Spring Hill." "Lucy's been talking to you." "She's my ship." "Have you seen my guard anywhere?" "He wasn't there when I woke up." "I think he went home sick." "Well, you can play it as tough as you want, but I still know your weakness." "You're too much a doctor to kill someone you hate." "For now." "We're not so different, you and me." "We're both outcasts, both sent into exile by families that didn't want us." "We could get back at them." "Together." "This is just the beginning." "Actually, I think this is the end." "You're not gonna kill yourself." "Oh, no, that's not me." "That's you." "I used your DNA to unlock the bracelet, and reinstalled it around your heart." "I don't want to kill you, Jelco." "You're just a symptom." "And I have to treat the disease." "I wouldn't push that too far." "Or the little prick goes boom." "Guard!" "Guard!" " Johnny?" " Pawter." "Hi." "Are you on your way?" "I'm heading there now." "Great." "I'm..." "Johnny?" "Are you there?" "I'm getting static." "Johnny?" "Hey." "When we were under Spring Hill," "I never did thank you for killing me." "I needed that." "Yeah." "You did." "Mm." "How you doing?" "Never better." "Okay, now, without the bullshit." "You do this to take away other people's sins." "Does it work on yours?" "Thanks to you, I didn't kill all those people in Spring Hill." "But I did kill a guard to escape from prison." "I need to bleed for that." "Now I think it's time I stopped running away from what I really am." "Which is?" "A weapon." "It's what he made me;" "I might as well use it." "No." "Your sins can be forgiven." "Thanks, but you're just not dressed for absolution anymore." "When I saw that temple..." "I started to wonder if there's a reason you brought me here, a reason that I went down into those mines." "Now I know there was." "Where did you get this?" "I found a body down there, a monk." "The salvage warrant." "He cut off his own skin to leave a message behind." "This is his skin?" "Do you know what it says?" "Yeah, here." "It's all in the old tongue." "One of our oldest prayers." "I know the part of my back." "Twelve went to fight the devil in Arkyn, but..." "Here... one came back." "One came back, I..." "I think he was one of the monks that went to fight the devil on Arkyn." "D'avin saw that when he was there." "He said it was someone's memory." "Your monks, green liquid," "Khlyen, what's the connection?" "I'm gonna jump ship on Leith." "There's a monastery there with some of the original scriptures." "Maybe I'll get answers for both of us." "Dutch." "Yes, Lucy?" "I've analyzed the microwave radiation bursts from Arkyn." "WESTERLEY" " BADLANDS" "What the hell?" "This is where I come to get away from you people." "You didn't mention that massive data transmission" "Arkyn sent just before they blew up the base." "The piece I grabbed was encrypted, uncrackable, no point in telling you." "And you didn't tell me where it went." "Because I don't know." "And that's not how this arrangement works." "Find out where it went." "Write me a warrant to get there." "I need to know what's in that file." "So I'm your typist now?" "You know, I've been thinking about how long people have been making decisions for me, pulling on my strings." "This epiphany have a foreseeable conclusion?" "I'm tired of other people's decisions ruling my life." "And I'm done taking orders." "Here's the arrangement:" "you want my help figuring out what's really going on in the RAC... we do it my way." "I'll be in touch."