entirely gone.
“I just hope she’ll be strong enough to survive possession by Jarrow,” Dr. Husch said. “She looks so frail...”
“Let’s find out.” Nicolette drew her glittering silver hatchet.
“No!” Dr. Husch shouted, but Nicolette stepped past her and swung the weapon down in a smooth, swift arc toward Beta-Marla’s skull.
The blade just barely touched the skull, shearing away a few strands of hair, before rebounding hard enough to rock Nicolette back on her feet. Beta-Marla didn’t react at all.
“ Damn ,” Nicolette said. “You know, when I stole this hatchet, I thought I might be able to use it to kill the Mason. Guess that wouldn’t have worked.”
“The Mason told me it’s an impressive weapon,” Crapsey said. “But she said unless it was wielded by a god, it wouldn’t be able to hurt her, not really.”
“Huh. Well, apotheosis is on my to-do list anyway.”
“Please refrain from swinging axes at my patients,” Dr. Husch said wearily.
Nicolette shrugged, a strange-looking gesture from a one-armed, hatchet-wielding woman. “Whatever. If this axe had hurt her, there wouldn’t be much point in giving her body to Elsie anyway. I don’t really understand why she’s still invincible though – the cloak is gone , Marla sent it off to a whole other universe, supposedly. This thing in the chair is just a husk.”
“The host body was soaked in the Mason’s magic for over a decade,” Crapsey said. “Marinated in it. Irradiated. Whatever. And the Mason wrapped that body in every kind of protective spell she knew – and she knew a lot . You could drop an atom bomb on this body and it would come walking out again without a scratch – assuming it has a mind to tell it to walk.”
“So it’s safe to say she would be immune to cancer? And... other stresses?” Dr. Husch said. “I have speculated, but...”
“I’m not a doctor, or even really a sorcerer, but, shit, yeah. The Mason thought bodies were disgusting , so she made this flesh as unchanging and impregnable as possible.”
“Then let’s give Jarrow her new vessel,” Husch said.
“Uh.” Nicolette cleared her throat. “I’m all for unleashing devastating horrors on the world, but... Elsie’s just gonna eat us, then take this body, and leave. This is Marrowbones we’re talking about. She’s not trustworthy.”
“Nicolette, shut up, please. I have access to objects of power that make your little hatchet look like a fingernail clipper. Precautions have been taken. If Jarrow doesn’t do what I want, she’ll be back in this cube in moments. I do not need your advice on how to contain my patients. I am a professional .”
Professionals don’t let dangerous prisoners loose on murder-for-hire gigs , Crapsey thought, but didn’t figure that was a productive line of argument, so he kept his mouth shut.
“Now then,” Husch said. “Let’s crack open the seals.” One of the orderlies handed her a hammer and chisel, and Nicolette took out her hatchet again.
Beta-Marla moaned, and whispered something. Crapsey knelt down beside her, and her vague eyes seemed to fix on him. He should look familiar to her, at least, assuming she’d had some degree of consciousness during her long years of being dominated by the Mason. “What is it, sweetie?” he said, though looking at her face reminded him of his old boss and tormentor.
“Kill me,” she whispered, eyes fixed on his.
“What did she say?” Dr. Husch demanded.
“She wants us to kill her,” Crapsey said.
Dr. Husch clucked her tongue. “Can’t be done, dear. I’m sorry. But this should be oblivion, which is the next best thing.” She placed the chisel at a seemingly arbitrary point on the face of the cube, and struck it with the hammer.
The face of the cube split open, dividing one of the spirals of inlaid gold into asymmetrical not-quite-halves. White light poured from the inside, which was furnished like a rather Spartan dorm room or an upscale prison
“I just hope she’ll be strong enough to survive possession by Jarrow,” Dr. Husch said. “She looks so frail...”
“Let’s find out.” Nicolette drew her glittering silver hatchet.
“No!” Dr. Husch shouted, but Nicolette stepped past her and swung the weapon down in a smooth, swift arc toward Beta-Marla’s skull.
The blade just barely touched the skull, shearing away a few strands of hair, before rebounding hard enough to rock Nicolette back on her feet. Beta-Marla didn’t react at all.
“ Damn ,” Nicolette said. “You know, when I stole this hatchet, I thought I might be able to use it to kill the Mason. Guess that wouldn’t have worked.”
“The Mason told me it’s an impressive weapon,” Crapsey said. “But she said unless it was wielded by a god, it wouldn’t be able to hurt her, not really.”
“Huh. Well, apotheosis is on my to-do list anyway.”
“Please refrain from swinging axes at my patients,” Dr. Husch said wearily.
Nicolette shrugged, a strange-looking gesture from a one-armed, hatchet-wielding woman. “Whatever. If this axe had hurt her, there wouldn’t be much point in giving her body to Elsie anyway. I don’t really understand why she’s still invincible though – the cloak is gone , Marla sent it off to a whole other universe, supposedly. This thing in the chair is just a husk.”
“The host body was soaked in the Mason’s magic for over a decade,” Crapsey said. “Marinated in it. Irradiated. Whatever. And the Mason wrapped that body in every kind of protective spell she knew – and she knew a lot . You could drop an atom bomb on this body and it would come walking out again without a scratch – assuming it has a mind to tell it to walk.”
“So it’s safe to say she would be immune to cancer? And... other stresses?” Dr. Husch said. “I have speculated, but...”
“I’m not a doctor, or even really a sorcerer, but, shit, yeah. The Mason thought bodies were disgusting , so she made this flesh as unchanging and impregnable as possible.”
“Then let’s give Jarrow her new vessel,” Husch said.
“Uh.” Nicolette cleared her throat. “I’m all for unleashing devastating horrors on the world, but... Elsie’s just gonna eat us, then take this body, and leave. This is Marrowbones we’re talking about. She’s not trustworthy.”
“Nicolette, shut up, please. I have access to objects of power that make your little hatchet look like a fingernail clipper. Precautions have been taken. If Jarrow doesn’t do what I want, she’ll be back in this cube in moments. I do not need your advice on how to contain my patients. I am a professional .”
Professionals don’t let dangerous prisoners loose on murder-for-hire gigs , Crapsey thought, but didn’t figure that was a productive line of argument, so he kept his mouth shut.
“Now then,” Husch said. “Let’s crack open the seals.” One of the orderlies handed her a hammer and chisel, and Nicolette took out her hatchet again.
Beta-Marla moaned, and whispered something. Crapsey knelt down beside her, and her vague eyes seemed to fix on him. He should look familiar to her, at least, assuming she’d had some degree of consciousness during her long years of being dominated by the Mason. “What is it, sweetie?” he said, though looking at her face reminded him of his old boss and tormentor.
“Kill me,” she whispered, eyes fixed on his.
“What did she say?” Dr. Husch demanded.
“She wants us to kill her,” Crapsey said.
Dr. Husch clucked her tongue. “Can’t be done, dear. I’m sorry. But this should be oblivion, which is the next best thing.” She placed the chisel at a seemingly arbitrary point on the face of the cube, and struck it with the hammer.
The face of the cube split open, dividing one of the spirals of inlaid gold into asymmetrical not-quite-halves. White light poured from the inside, which was furnished like a rather Spartan dorm room or an upscale prison
Similar Books
