21 DAYS BEFORE THE REMATCH IN HALLOWSVILLE

  My eyes darted to every weird contraption and invention that were scattered across the floor of Dr. Banana’s room. My daughters and Moonlight were all snooping around like three kids in a toy store. “Is there a reason you like building all this stuff?”

  “Isn’t it obvious? For money!” he exclaimed, throwing a fat stack of cash at my chest. “Just imagine how successful I’d be if I spelled any of this in the Old World. It’s hard making money in the New World because people ask too many silly questions like ‘why is your head a banana?’ and ‘isn’t this a safety violation?’. Not to mention, all the enemies I’ve made.”

  “Cool,” I said, counting the money he threw at me. “Anyways, you wanted to help us with our powers now, right?”

  The doctor swiped the cash out of my hand, as though he was sure stealing it was my plan. “As long as you use it against Jason, then yes. Can’t have that nut job ruining my plans! But first, I want to see this energy absorption for myself.”

  Dr. Banana dropped his money on his desk and went to the back of the room. There was a long lever on the wall and — after some effort — pulled it downward.

  A section of the floor opened up, getting the attention of the girls. All three gathered around me as the growls of a beast boomed through the room. Moonlight’s giddiness was starting up again, but it slowly faded at the sight of the green, hulking behemoth rising in chains.

  “Behold…” Dr. Banana stepped back from the raging beast. “The new Type Two Radion! I have to say, keeping this guy around made it really hard to sleep. And not because of the growls. All this guy would do was shout ‘Big Bobby!’ all night long.”

  “Serves him right, Jerome, eh?” Flower said, nudging me.

  I scratched my head. “Uh, yeah, yeah.” I would’ve felt bad if it wasn’t for the fact he was riding with those human-hanging bandits.

  “What’re you going to do with that man-eater, Mr. Hunter?” Moonlight asked. Replacing her old dress was a blue dress with a white floral pattern, which she forced me to poke holes in.

  “He’s gonna absorb it!” Sunshine answered, grinning. “Also, you should call it a Radion since that’s more scientifically accurate.”

  “Well, this’ll be the first time I’m using my power again, and on this giant of a Type Two,” I said. “Don’t be surprised if it doesn’t work.”

  My first daughter patted me on the back. “You’ll be fine… I think.”

  “Always expect failure,” Flower added. “That way, the universe doesn’t think you’re an overconfident prick who needs to be turned down a notch.”

  “I’d say be careful, but you have a tendency to not be. But Flash always told me the third time’s the charm,” Moonlight also added bluntly.

  After those three doses of somewhat helpful encouragement, I approached Big Bobby the Type Two with a clawed hand. The second I got too close, he roared, body vibrating, trying to break out of his restraints.

  If that was his way of scaring me off, then it didn’t work. My fingers were already puncturing his belly. Excitement sparked as energy began to rush through me, filling my hollow body with the life it desperately craved. Slowly, parts of the zombie disappeared until the last thing left of him was his yells escaping through my mouth.

  Just then, the memories and experiences of another life flashed in my head. Pain etched into my body as the wear and tear from everyday work crashed down on me.

  Big Bobby had a brother — one so sickly that doing what everyone else did in the mines would've killed him. So the giant did his job, and after seeing how tired the other workers were, did their jobs as well. After all, his hands were big enough to encase a normal man’s head, and treated rocks like they were paper.

  But the Corleone Family overseers weren't fans of selflessness — especially when now their workers were treating their land like free housing. So, they made them work, but not back in the mines. Instead, they were gonna work for their lives.

  Big Bobby couldn't save the workers from the horde of radioactive animals chasing after them. He might’ve been strong, but he wasn’t brave.

  And that fact would lead to his brother’s demise as well, crying out the giant’s name one last time before becoming victim to a bird’s beak. And not wanting to forget the sickly man’s final words, Big Bobby vowed to only say those words for the rest of his life.

  “Shiiit,” I said, falling on my ass.

  “Fascinating. Absolutely fascinating!” Dr. Banana exclaimed, taking notes on what just happened.

  Sunshine clapped her hands. “Holy discovery! That’s my first time seeing that in person.”

  “Jerome, you good?” Flower asked, coming to my side.

  “He’s fine,” Sunshine insisted. “That guy must’ve been hard to fully contain, huh? I mean, if he jumped once, his head would’ve touched the wall.”

  Dr. Banana looked up. “That’s not a good thing. I really gotta do some renovations on this place.”

  “I’m fine. Don’t worry,” I told my second daughter. “As Sunshine said, the dude was pretty big.”

  While I missed the feeling of expressing myself through my face, I was kinda glad my zombie form took that ability away from me. It would’ve been hard to explain a look of pity after thinking back to Big Bobby’s past.

  “Well, what was his State Between Absorption like?” Flower asked as I stood back up. “How many lives did he ruin?”

  “What is a ‘State Between Absorption’?” Dr. Banana asked.

  “Oh, it’s like this-”

  Sunshine jumped on my shoulders, interrupting me. “State Between Absorption is this cool-”

  “No, let me explain,” I cut off, blocking her vision. “If you explain, we’ll be here forever.”

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  “Fine, fine!”

  I would consider the complete 180 on our relationship strange if I hadn’t missed it dearly. It’d been a while since she climbed on me like that.

  Setting her eyes free, I said, “So it’s basically like this process after I absorb another Type Two where I see their past and stuff. It’s like watching a movie — except they know I’m watching and talk to me about it sometimes.” I pointed at the side of my head. “It all happens up here, but time passes in real life.”

  Dr. Banana nodded. “When was the first time this happened?”

  “He did it with my mom in Brooklyn,” Flower added. “The, uh, plant one.”

  “The Nature Variation Type Two? I remember her! I was trying to get her to come here so I could study her body thoroughly, but she almost killed me. I have no idea why though. My approach felt very normal.”

  “Of course she almost killed you! Who the fuck tells a woman they want to examine her body thoroughly?” the teen asked angrily. “You sound like a customer for prostitution.”

  I patted Flower’s head, calming her down. “Her mother wasn't the first one though. There was this one Sunshine and I met in Boomsbarrow, or ‘Explosion City’. He called himself the Zombie King, and he could turn invisible. But when I absorb Type Twos, I'm supposed to get their powers, but I didn't get his. In fact, he didn't even get absorbed. Well, not until Hallowsville, that is.”

  “Hallowsville?”

  “Yeah, remember that Fire Zombie that almost killed you?“ So, get this. I turned invisible!”

  Everyone gasped.

  “Yeah, so I did get his powers. It just came late. I’m pretty sure he’s out of my body now after my, um, death, but I did wanna know the deal behind that anyway, doc.”

  “What are you asking me for?” Dr. Banana asked. “I’ve been researching you Type Twos for years, and I’ve never heard of this ‘State Between Absorption’. It sounds like a concept exclusive to you and your Radius Ability, Jerome. Then again, there’s still a lot we don’t know about this New World, so what do I know? Really?”

  I crossed my arms. “But if it’s exclusive to me, then why did Sunflower’s mom know about it? Hell, I didn’t even know what was going on til she spouted the name and all of the mechanics of it at me. And there’s another thing called ‘State Between Release’. What would you say about that?”

  The doctor tilted his banana head. “There’s two of them now?”

  “Yeah, it’s like the opposite of the absorption one. The person inside them tries to escape,” Flower explained. “Its only happened with me so far.”

  “But if you’re not a Radion, then how were you able to do that?” Sunshine questioned. “Also, it seems like Jerome subconsciously feeds the Radions he absorbs information, which is how they know about those States. But if Sister isn’t a Radion, then how would she get fed that info?”

  She shrugged. “If you ask me questions I don’t know the answer to, I’m just gonna shrug.”

  Sunshine tapped her chin, brows furrowing. “Well, Type Two Radions can think and speak like normal humans, but they’re made of energy which is why Dad can absorb them. But he can’t absorb humans unless they’re also made out of energy. Like Sister is. Maybe it isn’t just absorbing Type Twos. Dad can absorb anyone or anything with a human-like mind as long their bodies are made of energy.”

  “So that’s why I was able to absorb Emmy!” I realized. “But her absorption was different from the zombies. It felt more like a fusion. Like our minds and bodies combined. I kept all my strength, but she made me way smarter than usual.”

  “Fusion? That’s fascinating! But who’s Emmy?” the doctor asked. “Don’t tell me you have a fourth daughter, man.”

  “No, no,” I said, making an X sign with my arms. “She’s a KB from Underground City. But Emmy’s with us now… Well, I think she still is.”

  Dr. Banana began writing something down. “Given that new info, your kid’s theory makes more sense. Have you ever ‘fused’ with this green brat over here?”

  “Call me a brat again, and I’ll-”

  “Nope. And now that I think about it, I’m wondering what Sunflower’s problem is.” I placed my arm around the teen’s neck. “You don’t like me enough to fuse with me?”

  “Well, obviously I hated your guts before we entered Hallowsville, so does that answer your question?”

  “Aaah, so the person has to like Dad in order to fuse with him,” Sunshine said to herself.

  “Don’t make objective rules based on a joke,” Flower said.

  “Why don’t we test the theory out?” Dr. Banana suggested. “I heard you’ve been training with our resident Russian tiger, correct? You can try fusing with him.”

  “But he’s not made of energy. He’s an animal,” I said.

  “Yes, an animal who’s been mutated to look like a character out of Looney Tunes,” he replied. “All of his blood is radioactive, which can be absorbed.”

  Was Vlad even kid-friendly enough to be on that show? “I’m pretty sure that dude’s sleeping. I knocked on his door ten times to see if he was free in the afternoon.”

  Sunshine jumped off of me. “That’s perfect! In the meantime, you can show us your new form.”

  Guess it was time to see what that giant was really made of.

  *********

  After the fight Sunshine and I had, we decided to go outside into the city to see what Big Bobby had in store for me.

  “You guys do know the Empire State Building was practically ancient architecture, right?” Dr. Banana asked us, sitting on the hood of a car. “It’s one of the few big accomplishments that humanity has left. Why would you tear out a part of it?”

  “Why don't you blame the ones who dropped the bombs here in the first place?” I suggested.

  “Hey, those bombs didn't destroy anything major. Have some respect for these beautiful American buildings!”

  Ignoring the doctor’s comment, I asked everyone, “Are y’all ready to see me get big!?”

  They all responded with a loud “Yeah!”, aside from Sunflower whose voice sounded pretty dry.

  “Wait, hold on,” I said. “Sun, can you use your Energy Sense to see if someone else’s Energy Sense is clashing with yours?”

  “Why would you be worried about that?” she questioned.

  “Oh yeah, I never told you. When Kofi and I were near Underground City, we actually saw Daemon there. Then, I made a deal with him: he nor his Radius goons can attack us when we go back to Hallowsville. But I have a feeling he only said that ‘cause our powers were gone temporarily. If he can sense us, then-”

  “I don’t sense anything clashing with mine. And even if Daemon did know we got our abilities back, I don’t think he’d attack us.”

  “Why?” I asked.

  “It would be more beneficial for him if we either defeated Jason ourselves without him getting involved, or you, I, and Jason all die around the same time. Either way, he’ll plan on using our bodies as he pleases. It doesn’t matter if we win or not in his eyes.”

  “Jerome, are you sure she’s nine?” Dr. Banana said.

  I laughed. “If you’re surprised by this, you should’ve seen her as an infant.”

  “Hey, Sister, has anyone ever told you that you talk way too much?” Sunflower joked.

  Sunshine gritted her teeth. “Has anyone ever told you that you contribute too little to any conv-”

  “Hey, Mr. Hunter, can you do the transformation now?” Moonlight asked happily, raising her hand.

  “Sure!”

  I readied my body, and then energy detonated inside of me, surging through me. My muscles and bones expanded, as though deciding they were unfit for my body. I staggered back as my body pushed outward, arms thickening, ribs groaning. The ground felt farther away. Dr. Banana and the others shrank before my eyes until they were nothing but specs next to my feet.

  Before, I was only taller than the cars. Now, my head was peeking over Manhattan buildings, wind rushing against my ooze.

  I looked up. The clouds almost looked like they were in reach.

  “I’m big.” I wasn’t screaming, and yet my voice was like that of a whale. “I’m way too big.”

  “Type Two Version: Way-Big.”

  “Dad, this is amazing!”

  I glanced to my right, and was taken aback by the sight of Sunshine standing on my shoulder. “Hey, get down from up here. I don’t wanna accidentally hurt you.”

  She looked down. “I think they’re trying to tell us something from down there, but I can’t hear them. Her eyes then traced to my skull. “Yo, you got horns on your head now!”

  “Horns?” I checked the top of my head, and my fingers curled around two long and thick things. “Oh, guess I do.”

  “Either this power is size modification, or you’re just naturally a giant in this form!”

  “If there’s a future where I possibly step on one of y’all, then I’d rather not stay this big.’

  She climbed up further, latching onto my forehead. “You know, if we could turn more bad Radius Ability users into Type Twos, then you could get even more abilities! Right!?”

  “Uuuh, we should focus on your powers too, Sun,” I said, trying to dodge her question. “Which we’ll do once this transformation wears off.”

  “And when’s that!?”

  I scratched the side of my face. “I, uh, actually don’t know.”