同章对照

For a long moment, Ryan didn’t say a single word.

He had put his mask on a side of the table, near the chessboard, and kept looking at his steaming coffee cup. The courier could lose himself in the bitter darkness of the soft, delightful drink.

Anything to alleviate the tension in the room.

“Your cup is not poisoned,” Livia said before clearing her throat. She wore a black turtleneck, classy, but casual. “If I wanted you dead, you would be.”

“Poison wouldn’t work anyway.” Ryan shrugged, before grabbing the cookies and drenching them in the coffee. “But there are still two hitmen right outside the door, and people call this place Deathland Motel. Now that I think of it, it kinda sounds like a horror theme park...”

“It’s for my safety.” Livia put her hands around her coffee cup, to better feel the warmth on her fingers. “My previous self seems to have perished abruptly, from what I can gather.”

“It wasn’t me,” Ryan protested.

“How can I be sure?” She asked with a frown on her face. “I know you lied about your ability to my old self. You told her that you could jump through alternate realities, when you could actually go back in time.”

“It was metaphorically true,” Ryan deadpanned before eating the cookie. It was quite sweet, but not all that good.

“Which is another way to say you lied,” Livia replied, unflappable. “I would have brought Crypto to this gathering if I could, but he had a hockey-related accident. I presume you were behind it?”

“I warned him!” Ryan protested. “I warned Luigi that if he kept ruining my runs, things wouldn’t go well between us!”

The courier had made it a point to target the truth-teller in every loop, even those where he didn’t join the Augusti. If anything, Ryan considered it preemptive self-defense.

“Which confirms my worries,” Livia said with a frown, looking into his eyes. “You don’t want your secret getting out, and will use violence to cover it up if needed.”

“Speak for yourself, Miss Two Powers.”

She flinched. “I… I don’t see what you’re talking about.”

“Yeah, right,” Ryan said, truly tempted to leave the table anyway, consequences be damned. “Look, can you tell me what you want exactly? Or else I will take the door.”

“If you try to leave this room now, I will have no choice but hunt you down,” Livia declared, her eyes full of iron. “Your power is too great to be ignored, and I’m not sure you won’t be a threat to my family in the future.”

The courier glared at her, but she stood her ground.

“Ryan, the only reason I haven’t gone to my father yet with my suspicions, is that my previous self seemed to appreciate you,” she warned him. “I even called off Vulcan when she wanted to track you down. Don’t waste this opportunity.”

Ryan tried to figure how to deal with this. She didn’t remember loops but seemed capable of transferring information from one to the other, which made her incredibly dangerous.

Could he negate her advantage by canceling her power? He could always try to get Cancel to turn against her employer, but it seemed far-stretched and difficult. If Augustus’ daughter could truly interact with alternate universes beyond his reach, then even death wouldn’t solve the problem permanently. She would get right back to hunting him in the next run, and that wasn’t without considering whatever contingencies she put in place.

That wasn’t a worst-case scenario, but it was pretty damn close.

“I’ll ask again then,” Ryan said. He didn’t want to sound frustrated, but the whole situation made him incredibly uneasy. “What do you want?”

Livia inhaled, gathering her bearing. ”I want the truth.”

“The truth?” Ryan repeated the word, as the weight of countless years fell on his shoulders. “The truth caused me so much heartbreak, I guess I gave up on it. Some didn’t believe me. Some did, and went mad. Some went as far as trying to destroy me, because they didn’t want to forget. And some…”

The courier’s thoughts turned to Jasmine.

“Some did believe me, and tried to help. And yet, I kept dying, and they forgot. Over, and over, and over again.” Ryan let out a heavy sigh. “Those are the worst, because I never get used to them.”

Livia’s gaze betrayed a hint of compassion, but she regained her icy demeanor. “I think I understand,” she said. “I cannot say I can fully comprehend what you went through, but I think I see your point.”

“No, you can’t. And be thankful for it.” Ryan grabbed his own coffee cup. “You haven’t told your father, but have you told anyone else?”

“Why?” Her tone turned defensive. “Do you want to silence me?”

“No.” Ryan couldn’t even if he wanted to. “But more than half your ‘Olympians’ are murderous assholes. I don’t want any of them to know my true power.”

“If you don’t plan to move against them, then you should have nothing to fear.”

“Oh really?” Ryan deadpanned. “Your father personally tracks down everyone he remotely suspects of being a threat to him. What do you think Lightning Butt will do if he learns I can time-travel?”

“I…” His argument seemed to have hit the mark. “I could talk him out of this.”

“I don’t believe you,” Ryan replied dryly. “And let’s not talk about Bliss.”

“This has nothing to do with our conversation,” Livia argued, her body tensing. “Don’t try to change the subject.”

“It has everything to do with it,” Ryan insisted, sipping his coffee. “Bliss causes sterility in unpowered humans. I used to think Genomes were spared from that nasty side-effect thanks to their enhanced metabolism, but not anymore. Narcinia can create life as she wishes, so there’s no way she doesn’t know, and she’s way too nice not to have corrected that problem already. Hence, it’s not a bug; it’s a feature.”

Livia’s fingers trembled around her cup, her facial features crinkled.

“Why would a cartel make most of its customers sterile? It made no sense to me, until I saw your father and his crew. People like Mars look down on normal humans, like cattle.” Ryan snorted. “Your father wants to kill normies. Bliss isn’t a product, it’s a weapon.”

“You think I wanted this?!”

The sudden outburst made Ryan recoil in his chair, as anger broke through Livia’s mask.

“You don’t think I already tried to change that?!” Now it was her turn to snarl at him, bottled up anger rising to the surface. “You don’t think I tried to close that death lab a thousand times? You think I want people to associate my family’s name with a drug that kills thousands each year? You think I want this?”

Ryan said nothing, astonished, as Livia put her hands on her face.

She… she seemed to fight back tears.

“My father won’t budge,” she said, her voice weak. “He will listen to me on almost everything, but Bliss… it’s his favorite project. His legacy. Narcinia… that girl could make the world so much better. She’s a miracle. But father… father doesn’t want to save anyone. He would rather be king of a cemetery.”

Livia no longer looked like the regal, confident daughter of Augustus. The mask had fallen, and beneath, Ryan only saw a young woman with far too much pressure and unwanted expectations thrown on her shoulders.

At this moment, she looked so vulnerable that Ryan’s anger vanished. “Livia, you don’t have to do this, if you don’t want to,” he said, taking her hand in his own. Her fingers felt so cold to the touch. “Even if they’re your family. You have the right to leave.”

“I have to,” she replied, pushing away his hand and wiping away tears. “Someone worse will take over the organization otherwise.”

Livia took a few seconds to recover her composure, breathing in and out while Ryan watched.

“I just want to protect my family, Ryan,” she said. “If… whatever they are, they are still my family. My father… my father is what he is, but he is still my father at the end of the day. Do you understand?”

These words made Ryan flinch, as they brought him back to the darkest days of his childhood.

“I don’t want them to die,” Livia said with a sigh. “That’s all I ask. I want to protect them. From Dynamis, from the Meta. From you, if necessary.”

“You won’t be able to shield them from the consequences of their actions.” The Carnival’s threat already loomed over Augustus’ empire.

“I know, but I still have to try and protect them. If…” She struggled to find her words, her eyebrows narrowing in bottled-up frustration. “I just want to know you won’t threaten them. That you aren’t out to kill us. If you can guarantee that, then… then I will keep your secrets, and let you be. That’s all.”

Ryan opened his mouth, closed it, and then finally decided to reassure her. “I don’t want to kill you or your family, Livia.”

Now that the courier thought it, wasn’t that what he had always wanted? Somebody capable of remembering him? His first instinct was paranoia, yet she had been nothing but helpful in the previous loop. Lightning Dad was a colossal asshole, but his daughter seemed… nice, for a lack of a better term?

“Thing is, I…” Ryan said, trying to find his words. “I always hoped something like this would happen. That someone like you would come along, and remember me. But now that it finally happened, I have no idea how to deal with this. It’s…”

“New?” she suggested with a sigh.

“Yes,” he said and nodded. “And not in a funny way. I’ve grown used to controlling everything in a loop, and now, you’re threatening to take all my progress away.”

“I understand,” Livia replied, with a forced smile. “I feel the same way about you. I never met someone immune to my power before. It’s… a little scary, and disturbing. I don’t know what to expect.”

They were both afraid of the other.

Hedgehog’s dilemma hit again!

Eventually, after a long minute of thinking, Ryan reached a decision. It was a very risky move, but he had pushed his chips on the table a long time ago. He might as well see the river.

“Alright, if you want the full truth about my power, then I will give it.” He would be as honest with her as he had been with Len and Jasmine. “But trust is a two-way street.”

She considered his proposal for a while, her face thoughtful. “What do you want in return?”

“I want the truth too.”

“How can I know that you won’t take any information I gave, and then use it against me in your next attempt?”

“What guarantee do I have that you won’t send your army of Genomes after my hide?” Ryan let out a shrug. “Thing is, if neither of us is willing to take a risk, then there’s only one way it will end between us. And...”

He looked at this woman, who reminded him so much of someone else.

“And I don’t want to go there.”

Augustus’ daughter said nothing, mulling it over as she sipped her coffee. Eventually, she reached a decision.

“Fine,” Livia declared, putting down her cup on the table. “I accept your terms.”

“First question then,” Ryan asked, glancing at the walls. “Why this motel?”

It made her chuckle a little, releasing some of the tension in the room. “That is the first thing you wish to know?”

“It’s cozy but I’m not fond of the wall paint. You should try purple, it goes well with everything.”

“Felix and I used it as our ‘hideout,’ of a sort,” Livia admitted, glancing at the chessboard. “It was a private refuge we used when we wanted to get away from our families. It’s discreet, and the few who know about it keep their mouth shut. Since you’ve joined Il Migliore, I thought it would be a good neutral ground.”

Ryan scoffed. “I will scold the kitten for his lack of taste then.”

“How is he?” she asked, her tone soft as if afraid of the answer. “Felix?”

“Shouldn’t you know with your power?” Ryan asked, before answering truthfully. “He’s fine, if disappointed. Il Migliore isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, but he will recover. I don’t think he will be coming back though.”

“No, he won’t,” Livia agreed with a sigh. “His parents believe he will ‘wise up’ and return to the fold, but I know better. He was always too stubborn for his own good.”

After a short silence, Ryan decided to address the elephant in the room. “How did you remember?”

“You first, Ryan,” she asked, looking into his eyes. “You first.”

“You want the short or the long version?”

“The long one,” she said firmly.

Ryan strongly considered lying to her anyway, but decided against it. Odd as it may be, the courier fulfilled his promises, even if he was the only one who remembered them.

So he told her, without omission.

Livia listened to his explanations with an unreadable face, until he reached the end of his tale. He would have given everything to know what she thought, but her poker face was almost as good as Ryan’s own.

“I see,” is all she said, once he finished his tale.

“If you want to have me killed, now is the time,” Ryan replied. “Or at least, you can try.”

“I…”

Livia stopped, and the courier was certain she considered lying to him too.

“You are right, Ryan. I have two powers. Not just one.”

But in the end, she was an honorable woman.

“You drank two Elixirs,” Ryan said. “Like your father.”

“I was the one to do it first,” she admitted. “I drank a Blue Elixir, which granted me the ability to see parallel timelines. And with that power, I realized both my father and I could wield up to two powers with no ill side-effects in alternate realities.”

“A genetic quirk?” Ryan asked, the princess nodding in confirmation. “What about your uncle and aunt?”

“They didn’t inherit the necessary genes. In the realities where they drank a second Elixir, they always went Psycho. And even in my case, a third Elixir would have turned me into a monster.”

Livia cleared her throat and adjusted her hair, like a teacher preparing a lecture. “Anyway, my power allows me to see and hear through the senses of alternate mes. A limited number.”

“How limited?” Ryan asked, as he stole a second cookie.

“Six,” the princess said, her eyes squinting. “If you want a metaphor, I can watch up to six plasma screens at once. I can switch the channels, but I cannot turn them off. My power is always active.”

“And you realized I could go back in time by talking with these alternate selves?”

“Yes and no,” Livia admitted. “Thing is, I don’t perceive these other Livia directly. I use a hub. It’s hard for me to describe it, but I constantly see myself in two places. The one where I'm at right now, and a blue place where I can select the channels. I have six screens, but I watch them in a room.”

Ryan immediately caught on. “And you can interact with that ‘blue room’?”

“Yes, I can record voices and notes, like an archive,” she nodded with a smile, happy he understood her. “I actually noticed notes I didn’t remember writing. I assumed that my alternate selves also had access to this place and recorded information… until I met you.”

“You kept notes on me,” Ryan guessed. “Notes with dates, about how you met a dashing rogue your power couldn’t perceive.”

“I wouldn’t call you dashing,” the princess teased him. Now that they had both opened up, the tension between them had slowly lessened. “But yes. If it had been recorded by an alternate me, then she shouldn’t have been able to perceive you. The way we met was also different, and I had the intuition you knew me already.”

“But how did you realize I was time-traveling?”

“I don’t know anything about video games,” Augustus’ daughter admitted with a sheepish smile. “So I looked up what your name meant. I quickly connected the dots, and it clicked.”

Ryan blinked at Livia, trying to see if she was serious. It couldn’t be… “You figured it out, and you aren't even a gamer? There are no words to describe my sheer disappointment.”

“I’m surprised you took such a risk with a name like that,” she said. “Unless it was another bottle thrown to the sea?”

Maybe. Ryan ignored the question, focusing on her power’s mechanics.

“Elements made me think that all true Genomes draw their powers from a higher dimension, that embodies their colors’ essence.” The more he had thought about that theory, the more Ryan had come to believe in it. “A dimension of energy for Red. The crossroads of all spacetime for Violet...”

“A universe of thoughts and information for Blue?” Livia guessed his theory.

“I think you are like me,” Ryan explained. “A part of you, perhaps a psychic presence, exists in that Blue World. It allows you to record information outside space and time, and to see through alternate realities.”

“But not my consciousness,” Livia realized. “Which is why my memories do not carry over when you overwrite our universe. I wonder why I didn’t notice the passage of time in these alternate worlds. Some should have carried on for years, if you don’t affect them.”

“Because I don’t think you actually see parallel universes, or at least not as you understand them,” Ryan replied. “I think your power creates and sustains them.”

Livia gave it some thought, before grasping his theory. “You think they aren’t actually universes that physically exist, but elaborate simulations?”

“Possibilities that collapse whenever you stop observing them. They only start existing when you use power.”

“Mmm, I never saw things like that,” the princess admitted. “But that would explain why you don’t appear in any of them. You are the controller. The one who decides if the current reality and all its possible branches exist at all. Your power trumps mine.”

“Both of them?” Ryan teased her.

“We can check,” she said with a smug smile. He had triggered a competitive instinct within her. “I mean, if you want.”

Ryan accepted the challenge, raising his hand and moving his fingers towards himself. “Bring it, princess.”

He felt something in the back of—

---

Time seemed to flash-forward, and when Ryan regained consciousness, the white pawn and black knight on the chessboard had moved. Livia, though, seemed extremely confused.

“Is that all you got, Violet?” Ryan taunted her.

“That’s very strange,” Livia admitted with a scowl. “Can you try your time-stop on me, Ryan? I wish to check something.”

He did, and she froze like everything else. Unlike her father, she couldn’t move in the stopped time.

“I think I sensed you activate it,” Livia said when time resumed, before noticing a cookie in her hand. “But clearly, I’m not immune to it.”

“Well, your dad is,” Ryan shrugged. “One of you was enough.”

“Oh, really?” Livia blinked a few times in a row. “That… that would explain some things.”

The courier raised an eyebrow. “How so?”

“Sometimes, Dad seems to stutter, or stop mid-sentence before repeating himself. Uncle thought it was age catching up to him, but no one dared to confront my father over it. He’s very sensitive about growing old, and I suppose he didn’t want us to worry.”

“It must have been pretty annoying from his point of view,” Ryan said with a smirk as he imagined the scene.

“I think he would be torn between recruiting you for your power, or killing you for being an annoyance.” Livia chuckled, before leaving her cookie back with the others. Ryan guessed she was careful about her weight. “If he learns about you at least.”

Ryan promised himself he would time-prank Lightning Butt in the future. “Let me guess, you erased time and leapt past it?”

“Is that a reference to something?” Livia asked, and Ryan’s glare made her uncomfortable. “Why are you looking at me as if I were pitiful?”

It hurt to be a cultured person while surrounded by ignorance. He would have to do this woman’s education one day.

“My enhanced timing told me time moved forward a few seconds, and I’m pretty sure we both played a round of chess,” he said, glancing at the board. “You create a temporal anomaly where time flows forward, and since I never experienced a blackout like this one before, I assume it only affects a small area.”

“Very good guess,” she conceded. “Yes, I create a localized temporal anomaly where time behaves oddly. Events proceed as they should have, had I not used my power, but everyone except me is in a trance following a script. In that anomaly, I am the only one capable of adjusting my actions and applying force to objects, making me invulnerable; and when time resumes normally, only I remember my actions.”

Livia crossed her arms. “Or at least... that is how it works with everyone else.”

“But not me,” Ryan said with a smirk. “My time-fu is stronger than yours!”

“I can see the results of your actions, but not interact with them,” she admitted with a scowl, her pride wounded. “I put a white pawn forward, and the black knight moved on its own. As if you were a ghost capable of affecting the physical world, but immune to retaliation. Perhaps it is because you partly exist in this Purple World.”

If their powers interacted so weirdly together, Ryan didn’t dare to invite Acid Rain to the table. “So in that temporal anomaly, I am, what, intangible? Invulnerable?” Livia answered his question with a nod, and the courier remembered Ischia Island. “I think you might have saved my life once that way.”

Livia must have tried to ‘skip’ time in an attempt to survive the Bahamut’s blast, but her power probably ran out before she could find shelter. While Ryan was already in the bathysphere, and their weird power interference caused the device to move away. Or at least, it was his best guess. He would need more trial and error to figure out how their powers truly interfered with each other.

The princess’ expression turned from curious to sour, her eyes looking at her coffee. “Ryan, why did you join the Augusti in the past, and now work for our enemies? What game are you playing at?”

“Long story, but I agreed to destroy the Bliss factory on behalf of another organization,” Ryan said. “Or else they would take things into their own hands, and kill a lot of people.”

She scoffed. “I see.”

“I see you aren’t against it.” Ryan frowned, as his intuition kicked in. “Last loop, you insisted I go to Ischia Island when you were inspecting the defenses. Even if there was no reason for me to go there. You wanted me to sabotage that drug farm.”

“I must have suspected something was up with you then,” Livia replied while looking away. “Who asked you to do that? Dynamis?”

“No.”

She looked into his eyes. “Then who?”

Ryan hesitated. He remembered how she interacted with Shroud last time, and he had the feeling her beef with the Carnival was personal. If she knew, the Augusti would track Shroud down, and the courier didn’t want his translucent ally to die. “I can’t tell you.”

Instantly, he felt the tension rising again in the room. “I see,” Livia said with a frosty tone. “Then, how did I die the previous time?”

“You really want to know?” Ryan asked her, and she nodded sharply. “The Meta murdered you with an orbital laser.”

The princess blinked as she digested his answer, and then frowned. “You’re lying.”

“I wish I was,” Ryan replied, the memory of that disaster souring his mood. “I’m working towards preventing it.”

“It’s impossible, I should have seen it coming,” Livia protested.

“You kept seeing yourself dying in alternate realities.”

“Then that can only mean two things,” she said, arms crossed. “Either the Meta-Gang has a method to counter my power, or they decided to attack me first in every alternate universe I observed. Some of my other selves should have survived otherwise.”

The Meta did have access to Mechron’s bunker and the technology within it, but Ryan considered the second option more likely. Knowing Big Fat Adam, he must have decided to target any precog capable of raising the alarm on his plans to destroy New Rome first.

Unfortunately, this made Livia ask only more questions, rather than less. “How did they manage to get an orbital laser in the first place?”

Ryan weighed the pros and cons of telling her about Mechron’s armory, before realizing the risk was simply too great. Augustus had destroyed it in an act of vengeful fury in the previous loop, but in this one? At the height of his power? This god-wannabe would probably decide to claim the bunker for himself. “I can’t tell you.”

“You can’t tell me?” Livia glared at the courier. “You would rather let Adam the Ogre get his hands on a WMD rather than tell me?”

“Look, it’s not that I don’t trust you,” Ryan protested, “but you will have to tell your father to deal with this, and—”

“My father isn’t perfect, but he doesn’t eat children for dinner.”

“That’s the bar you set for human decency?” Ryan snapped back. “You know he murdered Narcinia’s real parents, to use her as a hostage against Leo Hargraves?”

“Her parents were raiders, who deserved what they got,” Livia argued, clenching her jaw in anger. “And careful with what you say. Hargraves murdered my mother.”

Oh? That explained a few things. Ryan noted that tidbit for later, dead set on confronting Mr. See-Through about it.

“I’m just saying you should look into it, because the source seemed pretty trustworthy.” For all his faults, Ryan had grown to trust Shroud over the last loops. The vigilante’s desire to do good was genuine, though extreme. “He said her mother wanted to help the world, and that she had the power to do so.”

“Who told you that?” Livia asked, her frown deepening. “You won’t tell me either? I’m sure it’s the same organization who asked you to destroy Ischia Island.”

Ryan crossed his arms, standing his ground. “I can’t tell you.”

“Why?” she raised her hands in incomprehension. “Why Ryan? You say you don’t want to harm my family, but you’re willing to work with people who are. So why should I trust you?”

“Because I can make everything right.”

“And what if you’re wrong?” Livia shook her head. “What if you blow up Ischia Island with Narcinia still inside, and it sticks? What if the Meta-Gang manages to kill you permanently? You speak about trust, but you only tell me half the story!”

“Then, what happens if I ask about Lightning Butt’s invulnerability?” Ryan replied, tone rising up between them. “Will you tell me?”

“Why would you need to know that, if you don’t intend to go after him?” she replied angrily. “I am not going to stay idle while a Psycho plots my murder and who knows how many others, Ryan! So why should I trust you to help when you’re set on keeping me in the dark?”

“Because I don’t want anyone to die!” Ryan snarled while raising a finger at the princess, at his wits’ end. “You included!”

This time, his words silenced her.

“Do you know what it is to be me?” Ryan asked, frustration he had been bottling up for decades simmering to the surface. “To have the power to help everyone, knowing that every time I save, things will stick? That if I leave someone dead when I could have protected them, then it becomes my fault? Do you know how easy it would be to just say, ‘fuck them, I don’t care anymore’ and never turn back?”

After that outburst, the two fell into an awkward, tense silence. They had reached an impasse.

“I think you should go,” Livia said, holding her arms as if shielding herself. “It’s late, and people will ask questions.”

Yeah, they were done. For now.

Without further words, the courier grabbed his mask and moved towards the door.

“Ryan.”

He froze, his hand on the door handle.

“I don’t care about the rest of the organization, but if my father, my uncle, and my aunt die because of your schemes, I will destroy you,” Livia warned him. “Same with Felix, Fortuna, and Narcinia.”

“Fine, I have a list of my own,” Ryan replied with the same icy tone. “Len Sabino, the orphans under her care, my current team, Mathias Martel, Jamie, Ki-jung, Lanka, Narcinia, Jasmine, and my cat. If you guys target any of them, I swear you will never see me coming.”

Livia sighed. “It’s not over. I will call you again.”

“Sure,” the time-traveler replied, as he opened the door and walked out. “Whatever you say.”

---

As the clock struck midnight, Ryan drove the Plymouth Fury to the harbor.

“Well, here we are,” the time-traveler said, turning to his partner. “You’re sure you don’t want to go with me? I know you hate Dynamis, but they promised me a condo with an unbeatable city view.”

No answer. Len hadn’t said a thing since they left the motel. Perhaps her medication had run off, and she found the surface world tiring.

Or perhaps she expected Cancel and the Killer Seven to crawl out of the woods to attack them. But so far, Livia hadn’t sent anyone.

“I know you think you need to overdose on antidepressants for them to work, Shortie, but please, follow the treatment,” Ryan pleaded. “It’s for your own good.”

“Riri.” Len looked into his eyes, not bothering to hide her concern. “Why did you tell her so much? You can’t take it back now.”

Why?

Ryan could say he had no choice. That with Livia’s power, it was better to be truthful and try to build a good relationship, rather than go for the kill. He could say that he wanted things to change, even if it meant taking a risk.

But that would have been a lie.

Thing was, his reasons ran deeper than that.

An invincible psychopath trying to push his daughter into a situation she wasn’t comfortable with, and turning her into a target because they couldn’t harm him directly?

How could Len ask him why?

“Because I’ve seen it before,” Ryan said, looking at the Mediterranean Sea. “And it didn’t end well the first time around.”

很长一段时间里，瑞恩一个字也没说。

他把面具放在桌子一侧，靠着棋盘，目光始终落在那杯热气腾腾的咖啡上。这饮品口感柔和，令人愉悦，他几乎能沉入那苦涩的深黑之中。

只要能缓解房间里的紧张气氛，怎么都好。

“你的杯子里没下毒。”莉维娅说完，清了清嗓子。她穿着一件黑色高领衫，优雅又不失随意。“我要是想让你死，你已经死了。”

“反正毒也没用。”瑞恩耸耸肩，拿起饼干泡进咖啡里。“可门外还是站着两个杀手，而且人家管这里叫死地汽车旅馆。现在想想，这名字还挺像恐怖主题乐园的……”

“那是为了我的安全。”莉维娅双手捧着咖啡杯，让指尖充分感受杯身的暖意。“从我掌握的情况看，上一个我似乎死得很突然。”

“不是我干的。”瑞恩抗议道。

“我怎么能确定？”她皱眉问道。“我知道，你对以前的我隐瞒了自己的能力。你告诉她，你能在不同的平行现实之间跳跃，可你实际上能回到过去。”

“从比喻的角度来说，那是实话。”瑞恩一本正经地说，然后吃掉了饼干。饼干很甜，却算不上多好吃。

“换个说法，就是你撒了谎。”莉维娅不为所动。“如果可以，我本来想带克里普托来赴会，可他出了一场和冰球有关的意外。我猜是你干的？”

“我警告过他！”瑞恩抗议道。“我警告过路易吉，他要是继续毁我的循环，我们俩就别想好好相处了！”

瑞恩已经把每轮找那个真言者算账当成了惯例，哪怕那一轮没加入奥古斯蒂也不例外。真要论起来，他觉得这是先发制人的正当防卫。

“这正好证实了我的担忧。”莉维娅皱着眉，直视他的眼睛。“你不想让秘密泄露出去，必要时也会用暴力来掩盖它。”

“先说说你自己吧，双能力小姐。”

她一怔。“我……我不知道你在说什么。”

“是啊，当然了。”瑞恩说。他真想直接离席，管它会有什么后果。“听着，你能不能直说到底想要什么？不然我可要走人了。”

“如果你现在想离开这间屋子，我就只能追杀你。”莉维娅的目光坚硬如铁。“你的能力太强大，我不能置之不理，而且我也无法确定，你将来不会威胁到我的家人。”

瑞恩瞪着她，她却毫不退让。

“瑞恩，我至今还没把这些怀疑告诉父亲，唯一的原因，就是以前的我似乎很欣赏你。”她警告道。“伏尔甘想追查你的下落，也是我拦下了她。别浪费这个机会。”

瑞恩开始琢磨该如何应付。她不记得以前的循环，却似乎能把信息从一轮传到下一轮，这让她变得极其危险。

能不能通过消除她的能力，抵消她的优势？他倒是可以试着策反消除者，让她对付自己的雇主，但这未免太异想天开，也太难了。如果奥古斯都的女儿真能与他触及不到的平行宇宙互动，那么即使杀了她，也无法一劳永逸地解决问题。下一轮她照样会来追杀他，更别提她还可能留下各种后手。

这还不算最坏的情况，但也他妈差不了多少了。

“那我再问一遍。”瑞恩说。他不想显得气急败坏，可眼前的处境实在让他极度不安。“你想要什么？”

莉维娅吸了口气，稳住心神。“我要真相。”

“真相？”瑞恩重复了一遍这个词，无数岁月的重量压上了肩头。“真相让我伤透了心，我想，我已经放弃它了。有些人不信。有些人信了，然后疯了。有些人甚至想方设法要毁掉我，因为他们不想遗忘。还有些人……”

瑞恩想到了贾丝敏。

“有些人相信我，也努力帮我。可我还是一次次地死去，而他们还是忘了。一遍，一遍，又一遍。”瑞恩重重叹了口气。“这种最难熬，因为我永远也习惯不了。”

莉维娅的目光里流露出一丝同情，但很快又恢复了冰冷。“我想我明白了。”她说，“我不敢说自己完全理解你的经历，但我想，我能明白你的意思。”

“不，你明白不了。你该为此庆幸。”瑞恩端起自己的咖啡杯。“你没告诉你父亲，那你告诉过别人吗？”

“为什么问这个？”她的语气警惕起来。“你想灭口？”

“不想。”就算想，瑞恩也办不到。“但你们那些‘奥林匹斯众神’，一多半都是杀人不眨眼的混蛋。我不想让他们中的任何一个知道我的真实能力。”

“如果你不打算对付他们，那就应该没什么可怕的。”

“哦，是吗？”瑞恩面无表情。“你父亲只要稍微怀疑某个人会威胁到自己，就会亲自去追杀对方。你觉得闪电屁股要是知道我能穿越时间，会怎么做？”

“我……”他的话似乎戳中了要害。“我可以劝住他。”

“我不信。”瑞恩冷冷地说。“至于极乐，就更别提了。”

“那跟我们现在谈的事无关。”莉维娅反驳道，身体绷紧了。“别想转移话题。”

“关系大得很。”瑞恩坚持道，喝了一口咖啡。“极乐会让没有能力的普通人不育。我以前以为，基因者能免遭这种恶劣的副作用，是因为他们的新陈代谢经过了强化，但现在不这么想了。纳尔西妮娅能随心所欲地创造生命，不可能不知道这件事。而且她那么善良，没道理到现在都不修正这个问题。所以，这不是漏洞，是功能。”

莉维娅握着杯子的手指微微发抖，脸上的五官绷在一起。

“一个贩毒集团，为什么要让自己的大多数顾客失去生育能力？我一直想不通，直到见到你父亲和他那伙人。玛尔斯那种家伙，看普通人就跟看牲口一样。”瑞恩嗤了一声。“你父亲就是想杀死普通人。极乐不是商品，是武器。”

“你以为这是我想要的吗？！”

这声突如其来的爆发让瑞恩在椅子上往后一缩。愤怒冲破了莉维娅的面具。

“你以为我没试着改变过吗？！”这回轮到她冲他吼了，压抑的怒火一股脑涌了出来。“你以为我没试过一千次，要关掉那个制造死亡的实验室？你以为我愿意让别人一提起我们家的名字，就想到一种每年害死成千上万人的毒品？你以为这是我想要的？”

瑞恩惊得说不出话，只见莉维娅双手捂住了脸。

她……她似乎在拼命忍住眼泪。

“父亲不肯让步。”她的声音很虚弱。“几乎什么事他都会听我的，唯独极乐……那是他最得意的项目，是他要留给后世的东西。纳尔西妮娅……那个女孩能让世界好上太多。她就是个奇迹。可父亲……父亲不想拯救任何人。他宁可当一座墓园的国王。”

莉维娅再也不像那个高贵自信的奥古斯都之女了。面具已经脱落，在那之下，瑞恩只看见一个年轻女人，肩上压着太多压力，以及她从未想要过的期望。

这一刻，她看上去如此脆弱，瑞恩的怒气顿时消散了。“莉维娅，如果你不愿意，就不必勉强自己。”他说着，握住她的手。她的手指冷得厉害。“就算他们是你的家人，你也有权离开。”

“我必须这么做。”她推开他的手，擦掉眼泪。“不然，就会有更糟糕的人接管这个组织。”

莉维娅用了几秒钟平复情绪，一呼一吸。瑞恩在一旁看着。

“我只是想保护我的家人，瑞恩。”她说。“如果……不管他们是什么样的人，他们还是我的家人。我父亲……我父亲就是那样的人，可说到底，他还是我父亲。你明白吗？”

这番话让瑞恩一颤，将他拉回了童年最黑暗的那些日子。

“我不想让他们死。”莉维娅叹道。“我只求这一点。我想保护他们，不让迪纳米斯和超能帮伤害他们。必要的话，也不让你伤害他们。”

“你没法替他们挡住自己行为的后果。”嘉年华的威胁，已经笼罩在奥古斯都的帝国上空。

“我知道，可我还是得尽力保护他们。如果……”她努力寻找措辞，压抑的挫败让眉头越拧越紧。“我只是想知道，你不会威胁他们。你不是来杀我们的。如果你能保证这一点，那……那我就替你保密，也不会干涉你。仅此而已。”

瑞恩张了张嘴，又闭上，最后还是决定让她安心。“我不想杀你，也不想杀你的家人，莉维娅。”

现在想想，这不正是他一直渴望的吗？一个能记住他的人？他的第一反应却是疑神疑鬼，可上一轮里，她明明一直都在帮忙。闪电老爸是个天大的混蛋，可他的女儿似乎……人还不错？一时也找不到更好的说法了。

“问题是，我……”瑞恩说着，努力组织语言。“我一直盼着这种事发生。盼着有个像你这样的人出现，能记住我。可现在终于成真了，我却完全不知道该怎么办。这太……”

“陌生了？”她叹了口气，替他接道。

“是。”他点点头。“而且不是那种好玩的陌生。我已经习惯了掌控一轮里的一切，可现在，你可能会让我所有的进度都付诸东流。”

“我明白。”莉维娅勉强笑了笑。“面对你，我也是这种感觉。我从来没遇见过能免疫我能力的人。这……有点可怕，也让人不安。我不知道接下来会怎样。”

他们都在害怕对方。

刺猬困境又来了！

足足思考了一分钟后，瑞恩终于做出了决定。这一步很冒险，但他早就把筹码推上牌桌了。不如看看河牌再说。

“好，如果你想知道我能力的全部真相，我就告诉你。”他会像对蕾恩和贾丝敏那样，对她坦诚相待。“不过，信任是相互的。”

她若有所思地考虑了片刻。“你想要什么作为交换？”

“我也要真相。”

“我怎么知道，你不会拿走我给你的信息，在下一次尝试时反过来对付我？”

“那谁又能保证，你不会派出那支基因者大军来要我的命？”瑞恩耸耸肩。“问题是，如果我们谁都不愿意冒点险，那我们之间就只会有一种结局。而且……”

他看着这个女人。她实在太像另一个人了。

“而且我不想走到那一步。”

奥古斯都的女儿没有说话，只是一边喝咖啡，一边权衡。最终，她做出了决定。

“好。”莉维娅把杯子放回桌上。“我接受你的条件。”

“那先问第一个问题。”瑞恩瞥了眼四周的墙壁。“为什么选这家汽车旅馆？”

她轻轻笑了一声，房间里的紧张气氛随之缓和了些。“这就是你最先想知道的事？”

“这里挺舒适，可我不喜欢墙漆的颜色。你该试试紫色，跟什么都搭。”

“菲利克斯和我曾把这里当成我们的‘藏身处’，算是吧。”莉维娅坦言，目光落向棋盘。“每当想躲开家里人，我们就会到这个私人避难所来。这里不引人注意，少数几个知情者也都守口如瓶。既然你加入了至优者，我觉得这会是个不错的中立地点。”

瑞恩哼了一声。“那我可得好好训训那只小猫，真没品位。”

“他怎么样？”她的声音很轻，仿佛害怕听见答案。“菲利克斯？”

“凭你的能力，不是应该知道吗？”瑞恩问了一句，随后如实作答。“他挺好，就是有点失望。至优者并没有吹得那么好，不过他会缓过来的。但我觉得，他不会回去了。”

“是啊，他不会回来。”莉维娅叹了口气，赞同道。“他父母以为他迟早会‘懂事’，回到家族，可我知道没那么回事。他一直倔得要命，只会苦了自己。”

短暂的沉默后，瑞恩决定谈谈那个绕不开的问题。“你是怎么记住的？”

“你先说，瑞恩。”她看着他的眼睛。“你先。”

“你想听长的还是短的？”

“长的。”她坚定地说。

瑞恩很想照样编个谎话糊弄她，但最终还是打消了念头。说来奇怪，他一向信守承诺，哪怕只有自己还记得。

于是，他毫无保留地告诉了她。

莉维娅始终不露声色，听他一直讲到最后。瑞恩愿意付出任何代价，只求知道她此刻在想什么，可她那张扑克脸，几乎和他自己一样滴水不漏。

等他说完，她只说了一句：“明白了。”

“如果你想找人杀我，现在正是时候。”瑞恩说。“至少可以试试。”

“我……”

莉维娅停住了。瑞恩确信，她也在考虑要不要对他撒谎。

“你说得对，瑞恩。我有两种能力，不止一种。”

但归根结底，她是个守信的人。

“你喝了两支灵药。”瑞恩说。“和你父亲一样。”

“是我先喝的。”她承认道。“我喝了一支蓝色灵药，获得了观察平行时间线的能力。借助这种能力，我发现，在其他现实里，父亲和我最多都能拥有两种能力，而且没有任何不良副作用。”

“某种特殊的基因？”瑞恩问，公主点头确认。“那你叔叔和姑姑呢？”

“他们没有遗传到所需的基因。在那些喝了第二支灵药的现实里，他们无一例外都变成了疯魔。就算是我，喝下第三支灵药也会变成怪物。”

莉维娅清了清嗓子，理了理头发，像个准备开讲的老师。“总之，我的能力让我可以借助其他我的感官，看到、听到她们所经历的一切。数量有限。”

“有多有限？”瑞恩问，顺手又偷拿了一块饼干。

“六个。”公主微微眯起眼。“打个比方，我可以同时看六块等离子屏幕。我可以换频道，但没法把它们关掉。我的能力一直都在运转。”

“所以你跟其他的自己交谈之后，才发现我能回到过去？”

“算是，又不全是。”莉维娅说。“问题在于，我并不能直接感知到那些莉维娅。我需要通过一个中枢。很难描述，但我始终能看见自己同时身处两个地方。一个是我此刻所在的地方，另一个则是蓝色的空间，我可以在那里选择频道。我有六块屏幕，但我是在一个房间里观看它们的。”

瑞恩立刻明白了。“而且你能与那个‘蓝色房间’互动？”

“对，我可以录音、记笔记，像建档案一样。”她笑着点头，很高兴他能理解。“其实，我发现过一些自己不记得写过的笔记。我以为其他的我也能进入那里，记录信息……直到遇见你。”

“你记下了关于我的事。”瑞恩猜道。“写了日期，记录自己如何遇见一个风流倜傥的浪子，而你的能力看不见他。”

“风流倜傥倒也谈不上。”公主打趣道。既然两人都已经敞开心扉，彼此之间的紧张感也慢慢淡了。“不过，是的。如果记录出自另一个我，她应该看不见你才对。而且，我们相遇的经过也不一样，我还有种直觉：你早就认识我了。”

“可你是怎么发现我在穿越时间的？”

“我对电子游戏一窍不通。”奥古斯都的女儿露出一个有些不好意思的笑容。“所以，我查了一下你的名字是什么意思。很快就把线索串了起来，一下全明白了。”

瑞恩眨着眼看她，想确认她是不是认真的。不可能吧……“你居然看穿了，而且你甚至还不是个 游戏玩家？我失望得简直无法用语言形容。”

“我很意外，你居然会取这样的名字，冒这么大的险。”她说。“还是说，这也是你扔进大海的另一只漂流瓶？”

也许吧。瑞恩没有回答，把注意力转回了她能力的运作机制上。

“有些线索让我觉得，所有真正的基因者，都是从更高的维度汲取力量。那些维度体现了各自颜色的本质。”这个理论想得越多，瑞恩就越相信它。“红系对应一个能量的维度。紫系对应所有时空的交汇处……”

“而蓝系对应一个思想与信息的宇宙？”莉维娅猜到了他的理论。

“我想，你跟我一样。”瑞恩解释道。“你的一部分，也许是某种精神层面的存在，处于那个蓝色世界里。它让你能在时空之外记录信息，也能看见其他现实。”

“但不是我的意识。”莉维娅明白了。“所以你覆盖掉我们的宇宙时，我的记忆不会跟过来。可我为什么没发现那些平行世界里的时间流逝呢？如果你影响不到它们，其中一些应该已经延续了好多年。”

“因为我觉得，你看见的其实不是平行宇宙，至少不是你理解的那种。”瑞恩说。“我认为，是你的能力创造了它们，并维系着它们。”

莉维娅想了想，领会了他的意思。“你觉得它们并不是真实存在的物质宇宙，而是精密复杂的模拟？”

“是一些可能性，只要你停止观测，它们就会坍缩。只有你使用能力时，它们才开始存在。”

“嗯，我从来没这样想过。”公主承认道。“但这就能解释，为什么你在其中任何一个世界里都不会出现。你才是掌控者，决定着当前现实以及它所有可能的分支究竟能否存在。你的能力压过了我的。”

“两种都压过了？”瑞恩逗她。

“我们可以试试。”她扬起一个自信的笑容。他激起了她的好胜心。“我是说，如果你愿意。”

瑞恩接受挑战，抬起手，朝自己勾了勾手指。“放马过来吧，公主。”

他感觉到有什么东西在后——

---

时间仿佛向前快进了一截。瑞恩恢复意识时，棋盘上的白兵和黑马已经挪了位置。莉维娅却显得极其困惑。

“你就这点本事，紫系小姐？”瑞恩挑衅道。

“真奇怪。”莉维娅皱起眉。“瑞恩，你能对我试一下暂停时间吗？我想确认一件事。”

他照做了，而她也和其他一切一样静止不动。她不像父亲，无法在暂停的时间里行动。

“我想，我感觉到你发动能力了。”时间恢复流动后，莉维娅说，随后发现自己手里多了一块饼干。“但显然，我并不免疫。”

“嗯，你爸倒是免疫。”瑞恩耸耸肩。“你们家有一个就够了。”

“哦，真的？”莉维娅一连眨了好几下眼。“那……那就能解释一些事了。”

瑞恩挑起眉。“怎么说？”

“爸爸有时好像会结巴，或者话说到一半停下来，然后再重复一遍。叔叔以为他是上了年纪，可谁也不敢当面问父亲。他对变老这件事很敏感，我猜，他也不想让我们担心。”

“站在他的角度，那肯定烦死了。”瑞恩想象着那个场景，露出了坏笑。

“我想，他会左右为难：是为了你的能力招揽你，还是嫌你太烦，干脆杀了你。”莉维娅轻笑一声，把手里的饼干放回了盘里。瑞恩猜她在控制体重。“当然，前提是他知道你的事。”

瑞恩暗自决定，以后一定要用时间能力好好捉弄一下闪电屁股。“让我猜猜，你抹掉了一段时间，然后跳了过去？”

“这是在引用什么吗？”莉维娅问。瑞恩的目光让她有点不自在。“为什么这么看我，好像我很可怜似的？”

作为一个有文化的人，身边却全是无知之辈，实在令人心痛。总有一天，他得给这个女人好好补补课。

“我强化过的计时感告诉我，时间向前走了几秒，而且我很确定，我们俩各走了一步棋。”他说着，看向棋盘。“你制造了一种时间异常，里面的时间仍在向前流动。而我以前从没经历过这种断片，所以我猜，它只影响一小片区域。”

“猜得很好。”她承认道。“没错，我会制造局部的时间异常，时间在其中以奇怪的方式运作。事情仍会按照我没有使用能力时本应发生的样子发展，但除了我，所有人都处于恍惚之中，照着剧本行动。在这片异常区域里，只有我能调整自己的行动，对物体施力，因此我不会受到伤害；而当时间恢复正常，只有我记得自己的行为。”

莉维娅抱起双臂。“至少……对其他人都是这样。”

“对我却不是。”瑞恩得意地笑道。“我的时间功夫比你强！”

“我能看见你行动的结果，却无法干预。”她皱眉承认，自尊受了挫。“我把一枚白兵向前推，黑马就自己动了。你像个能影响物质世界的幽灵，别人却无法还击。也许是因为你的一部分存在于那个紫色世界里。”

光是他们两个，能力之间的相互作用就已经这么诡异，瑞恩可不敢再把酸雨请到桌边来。“所以，在那片时间异常里，我算什么？没有实体？不受伤害？”莉维娅点头回答，瑞恩则想起了伊斯基亚岛。“我想，你可能曾经用这种方式救过我一命。”

莉维娅一定曾试着“跳过”时间，好从巴哈姆特号的轰击中活下来，但她大概还没找到掩体，能力就已经耗尽。而瑞恩当时已经进了深潜球，他们能力之间古怪的干涉，让那个装置移了出去。至少，这是他认为最合理的猜测。他还需要更多次试错，才能弄清两人的能力究竟如何相互干涉。

公主的神情从好奇转为不悦，目光落回咖啡上。“瑞恩，你以前为什么加入奥古斯蒂，现在却又替我们的敌人工作？你究竟在打什么算盘？”

“说来话长，不过我答应了另一个组织，要替他们摧毁极乐工厂。”瑞恩说。“否则，他们就会亲自动手，杀很多人。”

她哼了一声。“原来如此。”

“看来你并不反对。”瑞恩皱起眉，直觉开始运作。“上一轮，你去检查防御设施时，坚持要我去伊斯基亚岛。明明根本没有非让我过去的理由。你就是想让我破坏那个毒品种植场。”

“那时的我，应该是怀疑你有问题吧。”莉维娅移开视线。“是谁让你这么做的？迪纳米斯？”

“不是。”

她直视他的眼睛。“那是谁？”

瑞恩犹豫了。他记得上一轮她和裹尸布打交道时的样子，总觉得她与嘉年华之间有私人恩怨。要是她知道了，奥古斯蒂就会追杀裹尸布，而瑞恩不想让那位半透明的盟友送命。“我不能告诉你。”

他立刻感觉到，房间里的气氛再度绷紧。“明白了。”莉维娅的语气冷若冰霜。“那么，上一次我是怎么死的？”

“你真想知道？”瑞恩问。她干脆地点头。“超能帮用轨道激光杀了你。”

公主眨了眨眼，消化着这个答案，随即皱起眉。“你在撒谎。”

“我倒希望是。”瑞恩说。那场灾难的记忆让他的心情沉了下去。“我正在想办法阻止它发生。”

“不可能，我应该提前看见才对。”莉维娅反驳道。

“你一直在其他现实里看见自己死去。”

“那就只有两种可能。”她抱着双臂说。“要么超能帮有办法克制我的能力，要么在我观察的每一个平行宇宙里，他们都决定先对我下手。否则，总该有一些其他的我活下来。”

超能帮的确能接触到梅克隆的地堡，以及其中的技术，但瑞恩觉得第二种可能性更大。以他对大胖亚当的了解，那家伙一定决定了，要先除掉所有可能就他摧毁新罗马的计划发出警报的预知者。

可惜，这只让莉维娅的问题越变越多。“他们究竟是怎么弄到轨道激光的？”

瑞恩权衡着，要不要把梅克隆军火库的事告诉她，最终还是意识到风险实在太大。上一轮，奥古斯都在复仇的狂怒中摧毁了它，可这一轮呢？此时的他，权势正如日中天。这个妄想成神的家伙，多半会决定把地堡据为己有。“我不能告诉你。”

“你不能告诉我？”莉维娅瞪着他。“你宁可让食人魔亚当拿到大规模杀伤性武器，也不肯告诉我？”

“听着，不是我不信任你。”瑞恩辩解道。“但你一定得让你父亲来处理这件事，而——”

“我父亲不是完人，但他不会拿孩子当晚饭。”

“你判断一个人有没有良知，门槛就这么低？”瑞恩反唇相讥。“你知不知道，他杀了纳尔西妮娅的亲生父母，好把她当成人质，对付利奥·哈格雷夫斯？”

“她父母是掠夺者，死有余辜。”莉维娅咬紧牙关，怒声反驳。“而且，说话小心点。哈格雷夫斯杀了我母亲。”

哦？这倒解释了几件事。瑞恩记下这条消息，打定主意，之后一定要找那位透明先生问个清楚。

“我只是觉得，你应该查一查，因为消息来源看起来挺可信的。”裹尸布纵然有种种毛病，过去几轮相处下来，瑞恩已经逐渐信任他了。那位义警虽然手段极端，但确实真心想做些好事。“他说，她母亲想帮助这个世界，而且也有能力做到。”

“谁告诉你的？”莉维娅的眉头皱得更深了。“这个你也不肯说？我敢肯定，还是那个让你摧毁伊斯基亚岛的组织。”

瑞恩抱起双臂，寸步不让。“我不能告诉你。”

“为什么？”她摊开双手，无法理解。“为什么，瑞恩？你说不想伤害我的家人，却愿意替想伤害他们的人做事。那我凭什么信任你？”

“因为我能让一切都得到圆满的结果。”

“那要是你错了呢？”莉维娅摇头。“要是纳尔西妮娅还在岛上，你就炸了伊斯基亚岛，而且再也无法挽回呢？要是超能帮真有办法彻底杀死你呢？你嘴上说着信任，却只告诉我一半的事！”

“那我要是问起闪电屁股为什么刀枪不入呢？”瑞恩反问，两人的声音都越来越高。“你会告诉我吗？”

“如果你不想对付他，为什么需要知道这个？”她愤怒地反驳。“一个疯魔在谋划着杀我，还不知道要杀多少其他人，我不可能坐视不理，瑞恩！你一门心思把我蒙在鼓里，凭什么让我相信你会帮忙？”

“因为我不想让任何人死！”瑞恩忍无可忍，抬手指着公主吼道。“也包括你！”

这一次，他的话让她哑口无言。

“你知道活成我这样是什么滋味吗？”瑞恩问。压抑了几十年的郁愤翻涌而上。“有能力帮助所有人，却也清楚，每次存档，所有事就都定了下来？如果我本来能保护一个人，却任由他的死成为定局，那就成了我的错？你知道，直接说一句‘去他妈的，老子不管了’，然后再也不回头，有多容易吗？”

这番爆发过后，两人陷入尴尬而紧绷的沉默。他们已经走进了死胡同。

“我想，你该走了。”莉维娅抱住自己的胳膊，仿佛在保护自己。“很晚了，会有人问的。”

是啊，谈不下去了。至少眼下如此。

瑞恩不再多言，拿起面具，朝门口走去。

“瑞恩。”

他停住了，手搭在门把上。

“组织里的其他人，我不在乎。但如果我父亲、叔叔或姑姑因为你的谋划而死，我会毁了你。”莉维娅警告道。“菲利克斯、福尔图娜和纳尔西妮娅也一样。”

“好，我也有一份名单。”瑞恩以同样冰冷的语气回应。“蕾恩·萨比诺，她照顾的孤儿，我现在的队友，马蒂亚斯·马特尔，杰米，基贞，兰卡，纳尔西妮娅，贾丝敏，还有我的猫。你们要是敢对其中任何一个下手，我发誓，你绝不会预见到我何时出手。”

莉维娅叹了口气。“这事还没完。我会再联系你。”

“行。”时间旅行者推开门，走了出去。“随你怎么说。”

---

午夜钟声敲响时，瑞恩开着普利茅斯“狂怒”来到了港口。

“好了，到了。”时间旅行者转向身边的搭档。“你确定不跟我一起走？我知道你讨厌迪纳米斯，不过他们答应给我一套公寓，城市景观无可匹敌。”

没有回应。从离开汽车旅馆起，蕾恩就一言不发。也许是药效过了，地面上的世界又让她觉得疲惫。

也可能，她以为消除者和杀手七人组随时会从树林里钻出来袭击他们。但到目前为止，莉维娅还没派任何人来。

“小矮个，我知道你觉得抗抑郁药非得吃过量才管用，可还是求你按医嘱吃吧。”瑞恩恳求道。“这都是为了你好。”

“瑞瑞。”蕾恩望着他的眼睛，毫不掩饰自己的担忧。“你为什么告诉她那么多？现在已经收不回来了。”

为什么？

瑞恩可以说自己别无选择。面对莉维娅的能力，与其痛下杀手，不如坦诚相待，试着建立良好的关系。他也可以说，自己希望事情有所改变，哪怕为此必须冒险。

可那都是谎话。

真正的原因，要深得多。

一个无可匹敌的变态，硬要把女儿推入她不愿面对的处境，还因为别人无法直接伤害他，让她成了众矢之的？

蕾恩怎么还会问他为什么？

“因为我以前见过。”瑞恩望着地中海，说道。“而第一次，结局并不好。”