“No need to carve us up, Tad.” Daffodil looked the killer in the eye. “I’ll answer every question you have, straight up, if you’ll do the same for me.”
“You’re not in a position to bargain, missy.”
“It ain’t a bargain. It’s a civilised conversation. You can’t have had many of those in Sunnyside.”
“That’s certainly an understatement.” The Spider pared his nails with the knife. “But if I don’t like—”
“What you hear you’ll kill us. Yeah, yeah. Stop soundin like a broken record.”
“What an astonishing young woman you are.” He looked impressed. “Very well, let’s start. Who is Frankie?”
“You’re gonna find that a bit hard to accept.”
“Try me. I’ve experienced some rather… strange things in my time.”
“He’s an artificial intelligence with computerised circuits embedded in my neck.” Daffodil rolled her eyes. “It’s so embarrassin havin to say it.”
“Well, that’s just too odd to be a lie.” The Spider got up and felt under her hairline until he encountered a lump. “Tell him to come out and play, little pig.”
“Like I said, he ain’t answerin. My turn now.”
“I shall indulge you. After all, I’m a man of my word… most of the time.”
“Frankie said you had a real beef with Manticorps. What’s it all about?”
The Spider thought for a moment. “I used to work for them as a mercenary,” he said. “I was contracted to fight in some truly inhospitable foreign places. Natives called me the White Spider because no quarry I was after ever escaped.”
‘Wow!” Daffodil exclaimed. “Could you shoot webs from your wrists?”
“What? No.” The man looked exasperated. “It’s just… spiders. They catch things.”
“Relax. I’m pullin your chain.”
“Touché. I suppose it is a rather silly title. Anyway, one day Manticorps gave me and my squad a new drug they’d been developing. They said it would enhance our capabilities. We were told it was safe.”
“I’ll lay odds it wasn’t,” Charlie grunted.
“Indeed,” the Spider agreed. “Next time we battled insurgents, we all went mad with rage. Killed the enemy and then turned on each other in a frenzy, till only I was left.” He cringed at the memory. “We were the perfect guinea pigs. Who would miss a few thugs for hire in such a war-torn land?” He crossed his legs in an attempt to stay composed. “I sneaked back home, but I was different. Smarter. Stronger. And with an anger I simply couldn’t control. Got into a fight with some people Manticorps sent to silence me and killed them too. I don’t even remember it.” He chuckled mirthlessly. “I should never have escaped, to be honest. Prison is the best place for me.”
“Can’t deny that,” Daffodil agreed.
“That’s not what I mean,” the Spider laughed. “Manticorps have tried to eradicate me in Sunnyside a few times, but I rule that place. It’s the only reason I’m still breathing.” He clapped his hands like a child. “Your turn now. I like this game.”
“I was given the same drug as you,” Charlie said. “A better version, I think.”
“You should have kept your mouth shut.” The Spider’s expression turned stony. “If I think you’re playing me for a fool, I’ll gut you.”
“Let me loose and I’ll prove it.” The boy pulled at his bonds. “If you hadn’t surprised me before, you’d be the one sitting here.”
“Nice try, sonny.” The killer rubbed his shaven head. “All right. I’ll bite. What did the serum do to you?”
“I’m smarter and stronger than I was,” the boy replied. “But, mainly, I can copy anything.”
“Now you’re just copying what I said.” The killer pointed his weapon. “I want real, incontrovertible proof or things will turn very nasty.”
“How do I convince you then?”
“Tell me how it feels.”
“On the surface, it’s wonderful,” Charlie said. “Like I’m physically, intellectually and morally superior to everyone else.”
“One win at charades,” Daffodil tsked, “and suddenly he’s a cross between Captain America and Stephen Hawking.”
“Shhhhhh!” The White Spider waved away her complaint.
“But under the surface, every vile, cruel, ugly, disturbed, violent thought I ever had has congealed into a creature that is pure hatred.”
“Go on, boy.”
“It’s desperate to take over. It never stops testing and probing. Any unguarded emotion can give it a foothold, so I don’t laugh or cry or smile. I can’t afford to care. I push everyone away.” He stuck out his chin. “I try not to feel anything.”
The White Spider stared at him for a long time.
“Yes,” he said finally. “That’s exactly what the Atlas Serum does.”
“Charlie?” Daffodil looked horrified. “I didn’t realise how bad it was.”
“It’s also a fate I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy.” The man advanced on his prey. “The only humane thing to do is end your misery.”
“Don’t you touch him!” Daffodil screamed. “Frankie? Do somethin!”
“Step away from my kids.” Frankie appeared on the computer screen as a swirl of angry red dots. “I’m the one you’re looking for.”
“Oh, I have no intention of harming the little fellow. He’s been through enough already.” The Spider winked at Charlie. “My apologies for pretending I was going to cut you.”
“No harm done,” the boy squeaked. “It’s quite an effective strategy.”
“I just wanted to bring you into the open, Frankie. I’d sorely like an explanation from the head honcho.” The Spider sat back down. “Please be quick, however. I’ve waited long enough, and patience isn’t one of my virtues, as you’ll have noticed.”
“I’ll make it rocket fast,” the AI said. “Charlie’s dad stole a refined version of the Atlas Serum from Manticorps and gave it to his dangerously ill son. As a result Charlie is invaluable to them, ’cause we destroyed all of their research before he removed me from their lab in the form of a microchip. Ta dah!”
“That is most gratifying to hear.” The Spider nodded. “I’m warming to you already.”
“Now Manticorps will stop at nothing to find Charlie and Daffodil. They’ll harvest his blood and, once they realise my chip is in Mac’s neck, remove it. Probably with an axe.” The girl’s severed head appeared on the screen. “So, you see, we’re all on the same side.”
“That’s going a bit far. Your pet minx did throw me out of a moving vehicle.”
“Don’t act cute. You were about to do a runner anyway.”
“What did you expect?” The Spider leaned forwards in anticipation. “Yes, I hate Manticorps. But I’m not idiotic enough to throw in my lot with two striplings and a talking slot machine. You’d need an army to win.”
“We did suggest that,” Daffodil said wearily. “It got nixed.”
“You are that army, Tad. With my guidance, we can beat Manticorps. If you manage to control your rage, that is.”
“But I can’t control my rage. I’d have thought that was obvious.”
“Don’t be so sure. You came here to kill the kids and yet they’re still alive.”
“Don’t remind him, hoss!” Daffodil urged.
“They are merely victims of your diabolical machinations,” the Spider grunted. “Which is why, on reflection, I have decided to leave them be. Since I owe you my freedom, and you appear to be attached to Daffodil, you shall also be spared. For now.”
“Mighty big of you.”
“I, however, will say adieu. I intend to deal with Manticorps at a more opportune time, when the odds are in my favour.”
“We don’t have that luxury,” Charlie pleaded. “Frankie has predicted that Manticorps will cause an extinction event if they’re not stopped soon. All of humanity will be wiped out!”
“Sounds like a rather tall tale to me,” the Spider snorted. “And even if I believed you, who says I want to save humanity? To be honest, I can’t even stand myself, never mind the rest of the race.”
“What a coincidence,” Daffodil sneered. “We can’t stand you either.”
“Don’t suppose you’d care for a game of charades while you think about it?”
“Frankie fancies himself a bit of a comedian,” Charlie explained.
“He needs to work on his timing.” The Spider bowed to the pair. “I’ve seen with my own eyes how capable you are, but I cannot believe this mechanised misfit thought you would succeed in such an endeavour. Attack Manticorps and you’ll die. Simple as that.”
“I don’t believe I mentioned any attack. You aren’t seeing the big picture, Mr Tietze.”
“Wait a minute…” The Spider looked around. “A sophisticated security system. An isolated location. Deliberately provoking me when I was going to flee, just so I’d follow you here.”
“The penny finally dropped, Tad?”
“You didn’t recruit these kids as soldiers.” The Spider’s bug eyes bulged. “They’re bait to draw Manticorps out here.”