Dungeon Sniper

[Freeze.]

Came the voice, and the world—the time—froze.

Everything stopped. Elysia's screaming, Rafaqa's hardened face, the blood shooting off his severed arm, the gaping Drakans with half of their skulls and bodies crushed, the disinterested sun sizzling above apathetically...

Meanwhile, I was blinking uncomprehendingly around me, knowing for sure that this was not my doing. That this was beyond my power.

Then the same voice—male, aloof and frisky—reverberated again... from within none other than the Omega rifle itself.

[I've gotta say, this is a huge disappointment.]

"... What just happened? Who's this?"

Unless Ms. God caught a nasty cold and burned his throat, her voice had used to sound much more pleasant, and more powerful, than this man's lazy slur.

Nonetheless, something in his voice sent a chill down through my spine. Ms. God's voice was imperative and authoritative, effusing power and confidence.

But this man—being—had a different voice. A different effect.

He sounded like someone who was bored... and would do anything to entertain himself.

[You know me, Beta. You don't have the whole picture, but you have enough pieces to make an educated guess yourself.]

It had felt suffocating with the dry, warm breeze that had been making me sweat all over all day long. But nothing had made me more uncomfortable, sick, than this man's manner of speaking.

Slow, meticulous, and calculating.

And extremely bored, thus thirsty for any kind of stimulus.

"Alpha," I said with a sharp inhalation.

[Good. If you asked who I was again, I could literally hear disappointment intensifying and I would have simply... 'let.']

"Let what?"

I could hear Alpha scoff softly, chagrin but ever confident.

[Let there be anything but light.]

I blinked, again, this time in exasperation.

"... I had a feeling you'd be enjoying playing god."

Another faint chuckle.

[Why play god when I am one already?]

"I want to believe you, but I've already met a god. Her name is Ms. God."

[Yeah? What makes you think she's real?]

That shut me up. I thought, and was sure, that I had plenty of things to say. The words, however, did not come out for some reason.

Then, all of a sudden, Alpha burst out laughing.

[Relax, bro. She's real. At least, for now.]

The most lighthearted, casual words so far from the whimsical hero triggered something in my memory... and a nauseating realization.

'And you. How long have you been God? All this time we had a female God and we thought you were this old grandpa—'

'The position rotates every millennium.'

'The Apocalypse. The end of this current world.'

'When is that happening, exactly?'

'Who knows? A few thousand years from now. Give or take a couple of centuries. By then, it's someone else's job, not mine.'

"... You're next up in line. You're not just some hero to a race down here. You built this place, didn't you? You really are... what you claim to be."

The ability to create Transcendent Gates and the D-Bugs, the ubiquity of being mentioned everywhere, the resilience of being remembered by everyone even without a name, through a deliberate absence—

The omnipresence.

Slowly, the sound of clapping was heard from Omega.

[See? I knew you had it in you. People call you dumb only because you sometimes don't think at all. But when you do, you're one sharp clever dude, I'm telling you.]

Alpha kept clapping, and all I heard was sarcasm. But I held my tongue, thinking, being sharp as the bastard jokingly said.

On one hand, there sat a 'being' at her desk, looking into papers and, probably, watching my progress on the Dungeon.

On the other hand, there was a legendary figure who had a decorative record of wreaking havoc in this world. Either through destruction or leaving loose ends, he had made sure he lived inside people's heads, infamously or heroically, in fear or in admiration, in contempt or in longing.

Alpha must have taken my silence as a sign of petulance rather than perception and clicked his tongue chidingly.

[I didn't expect respect out of you—oh no, not so soon—but the silent treatment was the last reaction I expected from you. After all, I'm here to help you.]

"Help me?"

[I know, I know. Why now of all time and not before, you must be wondering. And you should know that this one's on you. You've messed up a lot of times, but you really f.u.c.k.e.d up this time.]

My eyes wandered off to Rafaqa, immobile and frozen solid in time, but the look of pain and panic vaguely visible in his stoic face. Then I saw Elysia, alone and helpless at some hundred yards away from me, hand outstretched, her eyes fixed on the mutilated hero and her face twisted with regret, with fear.

"... I f.u.c.k.e.d up?"

[Big time. You want me to explain how you f.u.c.k.e.d up? I will, because I have all the time in the world. Literally speaking.]

I waited until Alpha's childlike giggle to drown.

[Right. First, you have a problem, Beta. In fact, you have lots of problems, but your biggest one yet is that you 'delegate' too much. Almost as if you're afraid to take charge. You let someone take the wheel and willingly take a backseat. Very anti-heroic, and detrimental to my plan.]

A brief sigh, and I caught the opportunity to interrupt the haughty voice.

"What plan?"

[I'm not done. How rude. Never cut me off like that in the future. Now, where was I? ... Yes, that you're a p.u.s.s.y, but you were not like all this from the beginning. Remember your n.a.k.e.d war against the Goblins? That battle with Nasty? Even the Colosseum, and your decision to tweak the rules to win it all. Beta. Beta. I was impressed. Thoroughly entertained. But most importantly, I was touched. That was when I felt sure that I had picked the right candidate—]

"A candidate? You picked me?"

[... Last warning. Cut me off talking one more time, and I'll cut off your tongue.]

I felt my tongue tense, but, hey, he just said that he liked the non-p.u.s.s.y version of me.

"Have fun with my tongue in your godly hand, because I'm not s.u.c.k.i.n.g your d.i.c.k while it's still on me. If you really picked me for whatever the reason you had, you should know that I'm not so bright and need catching up between lines. So, yeah, don't take my ignorance as insolence, dear mighty Lord. You go by that too right? I figured your creativity didn't reach to your naming sense. I mean, Alpha? Omega? And the Gates, they've got Eden reference all over."

I closed my mouth finally. The voice, however, was also silent and for a lot longer than I thought it would be.

[... Amused, and shocked. But more amused. It's been a long time since someone talked like that to me.]

"Just your humble lamb, dear f.u.c.k.i.n.g God."

[All right, enough smartassery. You're right. I don't need your tongue for s.u.c.k.i.n.g up to me. Just... ease down a little. I'm not always this cheerful.]

"Me neither. So, are you done picking on my vices or you've got more to say? When I heard you say 'help' I hoped for some results, not a lecture through Skype, minus the video."

[... The problem, your problem, is that you never act unless duties are forced upon you.]

"I mean, is that wrong? Who wants duties?"

[Nobody does. That's why heroes exist.]

"You're one to talk. Your entire history of heroism is basically how and why you bailed."

I paused, hesitant just for a second.

"... Did you know Velonis never gave birth to your children? That she had a miscarriage?"

Then, something that angered me, first through disbelief, then in pure fury.

[Velonis who?]

"... You're joking."

[Do you joke on the death of two hybrid twins that could have made a difference in this world?]

The voice sounded sharp and patronizing for the first time, and that relieved me somehow.

"So you know."

[I know everything. That's the very definition of 'omniscience.']

"But why did you say, act like you didn't know—"

[I know, but I don't care. Now, the matter at hand—]

"So it's all a lie? Your legend? The love story?"

[... What is real and what is not is never determined through truth and facts, but only through beliefs.]

"What the f.u.c.k does that mean?"

[It means everything, but nothing for you, apparently.]

The way he said those last words, the implicit meaning behind them, for some reason, I could hear it all too clearly.

None of your lowly concern, knave, Alpha seemed to say to me. No, decree at me.

"... God business only, huh?"

[Again, for someone who's an idiot most of the time, you're not half bad.]

The frozen scene around me was growing old. It was time to put a stop to this winding conversation with the biggest asshole in the world.

I hated Alpha. I had had a feeling I might, and but I knew for sure that I did now. The innate antagonism was too strong to ignore.

"You know, Ms. God said that the job was open for anyone."

[What are you talking about?]

"You talk as if the job's already yours. The next God in this world."

Silence, followed by a haughty laughter.

[Please, Beta, you're making me laugh.]

"That's the truth, but I know how hard you want to 'believe' otherwise."

[Mm, nope. Wrong usage of the innuendo, but nice try.]

"Maybe it's just me, but I can tell that you're onto me. Not because you're bored, but because you're afraid."

[... Getting less and less fun.]

"I have a guess though."

I had a guess.

If Alpha 'had' to choose me to be his purported successor as the hero of the Humans, if he had to watch me and lead me to where he was despite his clear disinclination, then maybe, just maybe—

"You don't like me, do you, Alpha?"

[But I do. A true God loves all of his subjects.]

"Cut the crap. You didn't 'choose' me because you liked me. But because you had to, and you were being the same sly snake when you did. You want me to fail, but not just in a plain old manner, but spectacularly. To prove something."

[... The Inc.u.mbent tell you that?]

The Inc.u.mbent, meaning the current Ms. God. She did not, of course, but I played on the act.

"I'm getting close, aren't I?"

For the first time, Alpha's voice grew impatient.

[So you're a part of the 'Test,' so what? You're still inferior. Weak. Ignorant. And you need my help now more than ever.]

"You think?"

[Look around you, dumbass. You're f.u.c.k.e.d.]

"Not necessarily."

[Whoa, dude. Bro. You're playing the wrong card. You don't get to play arrogant, not without power.]

"Is that another of your godly wisdom?"

[It is indeed. You see, a true god is arrogant before affectionate. Because he has the power. Omnipotence grants the luxury to be lazy, to choose whether or not to wield such power. Being all-powerful means just that. It means freedom. Evil or good has no part in it... pure, power.]

The voice sounded the most dangerous since the conversation had started. Dreamy, intoxicated... and delusional.

"You're out of your mind," I said flatly.

[And you're out of your time. Almost. Now, make your choice. A limited, powerless choice on your part. Bow before me and ask for my help, or watch your friends get eaten alive by those lizard freaks while you get to die the last. That I can do for you, free of charge.]

"My friends? Rafaqa is your friend too."

[... Rafaqa who?]

I could picture a sly smile waiting for me to erupt somewhere above or below. And I held nothing back.

"F.u.c.k you and your help, Alpha. I'm doing it my way."

A theatrical sigh, but contented.

[Be my guest. I will be watching, however.]

"F.u.c.k off."

[Enjoy the game, Beta. And death, particularly. ]

I braced for the frozen time to break back to normal, with Alpha's coy voice still ringing from the curious rifle that I gripped hard in my hands.

Enjoy the 'game,' he said. To him, this was a game. And, admittedly, there were moments when I viewed this world as a game too.

But not now. Not anymore.

Life and death had never been so close to each other like the scene ahead.

And I had never been as sincere as now not to lose the battle as well as the two companions on the verge of death in front of my eyes.

Alpha underestimated me. He probably never had stopped underestimating me, nor would he ever.

He tried his best to lead me to reject his help, but he had given me enough hints to help myself out of this shithole of a situation.

A frozen time, followed by an intermittent lecture on my vice.

All these thoughts occurred within a second between Alpha's last words and the time started to flow normally.

Elysia's scream continued along with the sickening sound of hundreds of Drakan bones crushing beneath the axe-branch.

But I was ready, ticking the switch to the thirteenth mode, which I had just come up with, and with conviction.

I glanced down at the nondescript but incredible weapon at hand, with a fleeting thought as to what kind of weapons Alpha had with him if he could leave Omega lying around as if it were nothing.

But as I pulled the trigger, I realized that he probably 'forgot' about it. The unstable, whimsical, megalomaniac wannabe God he was.

And that would be his flaw, his weakness, his vice.

A cascade of ice storm exploded from Omega's muzzle, engulfing the Dragon Tree and everything else within the fifty-yard radius around it.

The worm wailed, probably for the first time in fifty years, at taking hit with its worst elemental counterpart.

The plant that could breathe fire and summon rain had withheld winter as long as it could.

But now it faced one. I was its winter. Its end.

Spring was imminent.