同章对照

Sitting on a sofa right next to the inactive plushie, Ryan stared into the abyss of the Tyrrhenian Sea. He found it relaxing to wake up to the sight of silent darkness and mutated fish, especially after he had grown used to New Rome’s noisy environment.

Each ‘apartment’ was a carbon copy of the other, each tenant free to decorate their own as they saw fit. Ryan had of course brought his entire wardrobe, and thrown euro bills everywhere to protect himself from the specter of Vladimir Lenin. It certainly haunted this underwater kremlin.

As it turned out, Len meant that she had borrowed the Meta’s own submarine during the raid. Now the vehicle waited right outside the underwater habitats, and Ryan had an excellent view of it from his underwater apartment.

However, while the submarine had allowed Len to smuggle the Plymouth Fury to her base, it also meant that the Meta-Gang could reach the area if they wanted. The courier would keep it in mind for future loops.

“Don’t do anything rash,” Ryan jokingly told the plushie while rising up from his sofa. He then moved through the corridors linking the underwater habitats together. Shortie’s own lair was next door to his own, probably because she worried the courier might influence the kids without surveillance.

Besides her own habitat, Len had established a workshop close to the living spaces. Unlike the comfortable apartments, this part of the underwater base reminded Ryan of a steampunk factory, all metal walls, and steam pipes. It wasn’t as well-equipped as Vulcan’s, and far less organized; Len had hooked the servers administering the underwater base to Dynamis’ brainscan machine, while half-finished machines covered various workbenches. Len had hung designs of submarines, underwater cocoons, and even artificial fish on the walls to save space.

Most important, Ryan’s Plymouth Fury waited in a corner. Len had removed the Chronoradio’s components, the engine, and pretty much every piece of Genius tech inside. He knew it was a sacrifice for the cause, but the sight of his beloved car turned into a husk filled the courier’s heart with sorrow.

And of course, Len listened to Alexandrov Ensemble’s March of the Artillerymen while working. Even Ryan had to admit that it was a good song, but his Genius friend couldn’t look more Marxist even if she tried.

Thankfully, somebody else was already annoying her today. “But Mama, you said I would get a suit too!” Little Sarah complained to Len, carrying a cat in her arms. The Genius was sitting behind a workbench, working on the Dynamis tech. “That I would be the Little Diver!”

“Sweetie, I know… but I have to work on something else first…” For once, Len had traded her jumpsuit for simple blue clothes. She looked a lot more lively when she turned to face Ryan, perhaps because she felt more confident inside her lair. “Hi, Riri.”

“Hi Shortie, Little Hellion,” Ryan greeted them, before recognizing the cat in Sarah’s arms. “Eugène-Henry!”

“He showed up in my room this morning,” Little Sarah said, the animal meowing in her arms. “Did you bring him from the surface to the magical place?”

“No, he brought himself,” Ryan replied, immediately petting the placid cat behind the ears. The feline’s teleportation ability had an enormous range. “Also, it’s called the Commie-Cave.”

“The Ark,” Len said with a frown.

“The Commie-Cave,” Ryan insisted. “Corpos are a cowardly and superstitious lot. To instill fear in their heart, we must abolish private property.”

Len rolled her eyes. “If this is… a Batcave, what do we call ourselves?”

“The Hammer and the Sickle,” Ryan immediately answered. “The perfect union of peasant and working-class superheroes. The children can become our minions, the Proletariat.”

Len let out a small sound that the courier hadn’t heard in centuries.

“Ma?” Sarah asked, having never heard it either.

“Shortie, you chuckled?” Ryan asked. Len tried to look away to hide her facial expression, but he was persistent. “Even you must admit my jokes are funny.”

“No, they aren’t,” his old friend replied while trying not to smirk. “You’re bad, Riri. You’re so bad, it loops back to good. Like a… like a boomerang.”

“What can I say, all my jokes are state-approved by our soviet supreme.”

Len now wore a warm smile on her face, which in Ryan’s mind was worth all the runs so far. “I’m not like that, Riri.”

“What’s a soviet supreme?” Little Sarah asked while petting Eugène-Henry.

“Wait, you didn’t send her to the Party Congress?” Ryan frowned at Len. “These children will be lost without a good revolutionary education!”

Len shook her head, the smile still on her face. “I… I haven’t thought much about education,” she admitted. “I was… too focused on building the place first.”

“What’s a soviet supreme?” Little Sarah asked, before glaring at Ryan. “Talk, motherfucker.”

“It’s a bad idea,” Ryan answered truthfully before patting Sarah on the head. “And that’s all you will ever know.”

Sarah immediately stuck out her tongue at him, causing Eugène-Henry to meow loudly and leap out of her hands. He immediately took over a server as his throne, looking down at the humans like a noble sphinx.

“Sweetie, can you leave us for a moment?” Len asked Sarah. “I… I need to discuss something with Riri. Privately.”

Little Sarah looked at Ryan and Len in turn, her gaze turning very, very suspicious. “Yes, Ma…”

The little girl left while squinting at them, and Ryan sat on the workbench once she was gone. “Are you happy now? They will think we do adult things behind closed doors… though we did, long ago.”

“That was…” Len’s face turned embarrassed. “Awkward.”

“Well, it was both our first time.” And they had to do it in a hurry, so her father wouldn’t notice. “I remember it fondly.”

Len didn’t answer, probably because they discussed an era long gone. Ryan still longed for the emotional intimacy they once shared however. Maybe that was what he was looking for with Jasmine; the echo of something once vibrant, yet long dead.

Was that how Livia felt whenever she thought of Felix?

“Have you made progress?” Ryan changed the subject upon sensing Len’s lack of comfort with the discussion.

“Sort of,” she replied, joining her fingers. “Have… have you?”

Ryan sighed. Now it was his turn to feel uncomfortable. “An idea crossed my mind,” he admitted. “Did your father ever use his power on you?”

“I… I don’t think so. I… if he had, I wouldn’t be here. I would have become him.”

“He could have done something more subtle. Closed your wounds, perhaps?”

“Why are you asking me this?” Len asked, her smile gone.

“You remember when you took your Elixir?” She nodded slowly in response. “Your father instantly knew you had done so. At first, I thought it was because he could sense blood and manipulate it from afar, but what if he had left a trace of himself inside you?”

“Like a... blood beacon?”

“You were his cherished daughter, his only reason to live,” Ryan said with a frown. “He always managed to find us when we wandered off.”

Len’s worried face told the courier she considered it a strong possibility. “You think… you think that’s what Dynamis is after? Something he left behind?”

“It’s possible. I will need a blood sample to check, and the tools in the back of my car.”

“What about the Knockoffs?” Len asked suddenly. “You, you studied Elixirs, right? Didn’t you… didn’t you notice a match?”

“How? The Carnival made sure to erase any trace of your father specifically to prevent him from returning. I had nothing to compare the Knockoffs to.”

“Until now…” Len frowned. “Riri, if there is a match…”

“I know,” Ryan sighed. “But can we focus on the brain-transfer project first? I… it’s dangerous, Len. It might take me more than one run to get into Dynamis’ labs, and I don’t want you to forget me again.”

“I… I will do what I can.” Len cleared her throat. “But there’s… there’s something missing. Something is wrong.”

Of course. There was always a new roadblock to overcome, but Ryan remained an optimist. “The tech doesn’t work?”

“It does,” she replied, pointing at the brain-scanning helmet. “It can make a brain-map and create a… a computer simulation. I can then send it… send it to a host, to overwrite the previous cognitive system. The closer the host’s nervous system to the simulation, the better. Otherwise… the host brain will degrade. Conflicting memories, confused neurons...”

“But if we send your memories to your past self, then there shouldn’t be any problem, right?” Ryan asked.

“It should be fine. Maybe a harmless concussion, maybe nothing.” Len crossed her arms. “Should work even wirelessly, when I’m done.”

“Then where’s the catch?”

“To wirelessly send the memories to a host through time, you need…” Len struggled to find the right words. “You need more power. More power than any natural energy source can provide.”

Ryan quickly caught on. “Like Violet Flux?”

“Yes. I think… I think we can only send signals, let alone the brainmap, back in time if we hook the Chronoradio to Vulcan’s armor.”

“But…” Ryan immediately noticed the problem. “That wasn’t the case in the previous run. The Chronoradio was destroyed, and Jasmine and I created the armor afterward. Yet we still received future recordings.”

“Yes,” Len nodded slowly. “I… I don’t think I sent the Chronoradio messages, Riri. Or at least, not the previous me. It… it could have been a future me.”

“That’s not how time works, unless I have been wrong about everything,” Ryan replied, scratching his hair. Only two time-periods could exist through his save point. “It has to be something else. All the messages revolved around our interactions during the previous loop.”

“Then... who sent the messages?”

Ryan tried to remember the end of the previous run, and his trip to the Purple World. The visions he had seen, and the colossal entity he briefly made contact with near the end.

‘The Ultimate Ones are compassionate, though narrow-minded.’

And the Chronoradio message happened right when Ryan seriously considered giving up...

“Not who,” the time-traveler realized. “What.”

Ryan looked at Eugène-Henry, as a few things fell into place. The cat had somehow gained powers across time, deliberately led Livia to the courier, and then appeared in the Commie-Cave right when Len considered studying Violet Flux for her experiment. Far too many coincidences at once.

“You aren’t teleporting at random at all,” the courier accused Eugène-Henry. “You’re being teleported by something else. Something showing us the way, telling us we can succeed if we work hard enough.”

The cat meowed in response.

“Riri, you… you’re talking to a cat…”

“It makes sense in the context,” Ryan defended himself, while Eugène-Henry licked his own shoulder. “You remember what I told you, Shortie? About what I saw in the Purple World?”

She quickly connected the dots. “You think the pyramid thing is… what, helping us?”

The courier nodded, leaving Eugène-Henry to his cleaning. “I’m starting to wonder if these visions, the Chronoradio signals, and Eugène-Henry’s teleportations are truly random events, or an attempt at communication.”

“That sounds…” Len tried to find the right words. “I dunno, a bit far-fetched. And if it’s as powerful as you think it is, why do so little? Why only teleport a cat around, of all things? Why would it even care?”

“I dunno,” Ryan admitted. “It’s just a theory. But I find all these strange coincidences oddly convenient, and I’m convinced the people I saw in my vision are either the Alchemist or connected to them.”

“You saw a base in Antarctica, right?” Len asked. “Could you identify where exactly?”

“Maybe,” Ryan replied. “I have only seen the night sky, not enough to pinpoint the exact position, but at least we can narrow it down.”

“We could visit that base,” she suggested. “With the submarine. Check, after… after we’re done with the rest here.”

The rest. Such an understatement.

“I guess I better work on that heist then,” Ryan said.

---

Since Len kept the car—and they weren’t even married—Ryan had to use a bathysphere to reach the surface, and then called a taxi to get to his destination.

A taxi.

“Is this karma for leaving my car to die?” Ryan wondered out loud, as he stepped out of the taxi and right in front of a Dynamis-owned hospital; the same one where Psyshock’s victims had been brought to during the courier’s first Il Migliore loop. Private Security members protected the building from intruders, but much to Ryan’s surprise, no journalists waited at the entrance. Either Dynamis kept the patients’ identity strictly confidential, or all media were in the company’s pocket. Probably both.

As he made his way towards the entrance, Ryan quickly noticed a familiar face leaving the hospital and climbing at the back of a Mercedes Benz. A young teenager with short brown hair, blue eyes, and a heart-shaped face.

Narcinia.

As for her chauffeur, Ryan recognized him as Mortimer out of costume and with sunglasses. Though the courier only caught a glimpse of her, Felix’s adoptive sister looked quite upset. He guessed her meeting with her brother hadn’t gone well.

The guards let Ryan in after a quick security check, and the courier found Wardrobe and the Panda waiting for him in the entrance hall. The former was talking with an unknown woman, and the latter texted on his phone with tears in his eyes. They had brought chocolate and flowers with Felix’s name on them.

“Hi, Ryan!” Wardrobe greeted the courier, though the Panda was too focused on his task to notice. “I’m so glad you could make it.”

“Hi, Yuki,” Ryan waved his hand at his favorite fashion designer, before glancing at the other woman in the room. She was in her early twenties, with shoulder-long brown hair and striking amber eyes; probably British too. Unlike the more feminine Wardrobe, she wore a gray corporate suit, albeit one as stylish as Blackthorn’s.

“Hello, Quicksave,” she said with a warm smile, offering him her hand to shake. Definitely British. “I’m Nora, Nora Moore. Yuki spoke a lot about you.”

“She’s my girlfriend,” Wardrobe said with a smile. “The Architect!”

“The pleasure is all mine,” Ryan said, as he took Nora’s hand and kissed it in the most gentlemanly way instead of shaking it. The woman blushed a little at the surprise attention, though the courier frowned at Wardrobe next in displeasure. “But she doesn’t have a costume. I’m disappointed, Yuki.”

“I know,” Wardrobe sighed. “I tried.”

“I can’t wear a costume like yours at work,” Nora replied with an embarrassed smile, before glancing at Ryan. “I’m not a superhero, but an independent contractor and urban planner. I have a Genius power specialized in cities and architecture.”

“And she is amazing,” Wardrobe said with a bright smile. “Come on, Nora, show him!”

Her girlfriend showed Ryan her tablet, which showed advanced plans of arcology-like, self-sustaining towns, a flying city, and even an underground bunker settlement.

“So you can make any kind of city?” the courier asked, quite impressed with her work. He recognized most of the features thanks to his own knowledge, but Nora made excellent use of limited resources. “And for a fraction of the expected cost, from what I gather.”

“How could you tell?” Nora asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Well, you fully optimize the space, energy consumption, and material,” Ryan said, pointing at various parts of the designs. “Though I think you could move the generators closer to the water recycling for shorter heating circuits.”

“Interesting idea,” Nora said with a smile. “Are you a Genius too?”

“Ryan is super duper smart,” Yuki said, doing the courier’s publicity for him. “You should see his car and weapons, it’s a treasure trove!”

“Unfortunately my Plymouth Fury is in a garage for now,” Ryan said before returning the tablet. “Do you plan to resettle areas destroyed by the Genome Wars? Some of your designs don’t make sense otherwise.”

“You’re quite sharp,” Nora replied with a nod. “A lot of my projects were scrapped by the previous administration, but the new one seems more open-minded. It will be nice to design something other than fortress cities in Sicily.”

“Have you ever wanted to build an underwater metropolis?” Ryan asked, wondering if he should introduce her to Len. “Because I know a Genius specialized in sea-based technology. She’s a Marxist-Leninist however.”

“The idea of oceanic settlements crossed my mind, yes. I would be happy to meet with her, though considering her political leanings, it will be outside of Dynamis.” Nora observed Ryan closely, a warm smile on her lips. “Maybe we could discuss that in length another time? You seem quite knowledgeable about Genius tech, and I would be delighted to exchange with you further.”

The way she looked at him made Ryan realize that he really had a thing for female Geniuses, even when they played for the other team. “Tell me, did you design the Dynamis HQ and Optimates Tower?” he asked the Architect. “I think I recognized your style from the plans.”

“I did, yes, it was one of my earliest work, so I’m not all that proud of it. Why?”

“Nothing,” Ryan replied innocently, a sinister plan forming in his mind. “Also, I apologize.”

“For what?” the Architect asked with a raised eyebrow.

“I know everyone does that, but I shamelessly flirted with Wardrobe before I knew of your existence,” Ryan apologized, making Yuki all flustered. “I hope you don’t hate me for it. She really deserved it.”

“Oh, that?” Nora exploded into laughter. “It’s fine. I really like the bunny costume you made for her actually; we’ll make good use of it.”

“I’m sorry, Ryan, I would totally date you both at once if I could,” Wardrobe said with a sorry face. “It’s an exclusive contract. Civil union and all.”

“Yes, I’m afraid so,” Nora said with a coy smile. “But I will give you my blessing to send Yuki an application if we end up breaking up. You seem like a nice person.”

“But if I wasn’t with Nora, I would wear your bunny costume, force you into a Hugh Hefner one, and we would make love everywhere in my condo!” Yuki told Ryan with a wink. “I like beautiful people. Men, women, it doesn’t matter, so long as they dress well and are beautiful inside too. And you’re beautiful everywhere, Ryan.”

“Thanks,” the courier replied, happy to keep such a cultured, gentle soul as a friend. He would make sure they got to hang out together during his Perfect Run.

“Also Ryan, I imagined a new costume for you!” Wardrobe said while grabbing the tablet and opening a new file. “I was so, so sad when I learned you would leave the team, I had to make a new one!”

“We can still team-up,” Ryan said. “Like Batman and Superman. I’ll be the grim vigilante, and you the law-abiding citizen!”

“I’ve thought of that!” Wardrobe presented him a sketch of the costume, all dark and edgy except for a silver lining on the chest. “You’ve turned your back on the light and embraced the darkness; you’ve chosen to wear Karl Lagarfeld. No longer a villain, no longer a hero, but someone in the twilight! Yet the silver lining on your chest means that you’re still looking for redemption.”

“But it’s still made of cashmere?” Ryan asked, hopeful.

“Only the shirt beneath, hidden like your tortured soul,” Wardrobe continued, “the jacket will be made of guanaco.”

“Pure genius.” Ryan then glanced at the Panda, who hadn’t left his seat yet. “Is that any way to greet your sensei, arrogant young disciple?”

When the young hero looked up at his master, it was with tears. “I’m sorry, Sifu…” he said, holding his phone with his tiny human hands. “I just… I just can’t…”

He showed Ryan his cellphone, and the website he had been browsing.

“‘Pandamania?’” the courier asked upon reading the name out loud. The landing page represented his animal friend with a cape and a lightning hammer, with ‘The Panda’s true power’ written below.

“It’s a meme!” his young and naive disciple said, with tears in his eyes. “A meme site! I have memes!”

“He is a hit on the Dynanet and our social networks,” Nora explained. “His first merchandise sold incredibly well, almost as much as all other new recruits combined.”

Ryan could see why. It seemed the Dynanet users loved exalting the Panda as an unstoppable badass, photoshopping pictures of him in place of action movie stars. ‘The Panda is the Key to Everything!’ ‘Panda OP, please NERF!’ ‘One just does not say no to a Panda,’ ‘The Panda didn’t take a second Elixir to give Augustus a fighting chance’ and so on.

“I’m famous.” The Panda wiped away a tear. “Everyone thinks I’m amazing and strong…”

“You deserved it,” Wardrobe patted him on the shoulder with a smile. “You were so brave fighting the Meta-Gang, I thought you stole everyone’s spotlight!”

“Yes, young disciple, here is the reward for your hard work,” Ryan said, trying to imitate a wise elder’s voice, “but this is only the first step towards ascension! Many roadblocks await you!”

“Thank you Sifu, I wouldn’t be here if you hadn’t believed in me. You…” The Panda couldn’t prevent himself from crying. “You are my friend!”

“Hug me, you stupid manbear!”

And so they did. Tightly. He felt so warm and furry to the touch, even while in human form. Wardrobe looked at them for a moment and then joined in, while her girlfriend looked on with amusement.

Eventually, a nurse came for them. “Mr. Veran will receive you now.”

瑞恩坐在沙发上，身旁是尚未启动的毛绒玩偶，目光望向第勒尼安海的深渊。醒来就能看见寂静的黑暗和变异鱼类，让他觉得很放松，尤其是在习惯了新罗马的嘈杂之后。

这里每间“公寓”都一模一样，住户可以随心所欲地布置自己的房间。瑞恩当然把整套行头都搬来了，还到处撒上欧元纸钞，好保护自己不受弗拉基米尔·列宁的幽灵侵害。那幽灵肯定就盘踞在这座水下克里姆林宫里。

原来，蕾恩说的是她在突袭时借来了超能帮自己的潜艇。如今，那艘潜艇就停在水下居住舱外，瑞恩从自己的水下公寓里便能看得一清二楚。

不过，潜艇虽然让蕾恩得以将普利茅斯“狂怒”偷偷运进基地，却也意味着，只要超能帮愿意，他们同样能抵达这里。往后的循环里，快递员会记住这一点。

“别冲动行事啊。”瑞恩从沙发上起身，开玩笑地叮嘱毛绒玩偶。随后，他穿过连接各个水下居住舱的走廊。小矮个的老巢就在他隔壁，大概是怕没人看着，快递员会把孩子们带坏。

除了自己的居住舱，蕾恩还在生活区附近设了一间工坊。这里不像公寓那么舒适，倒让瑞恩想起蒸汽朋克工厂，满眼都是金属墙壁和蒸汽管道。论设备，这里比不上伏尔甘的工坊，整齐程度就更差了。蕾恩把管理水下基地的服务器接上了迪纳米斯的脑部扫描设备，各张工作台上则摆满了半成品机器。为了节省空间，她把潜艇、水下茧舱，甚至人工鱼类的设计图都挂到了墙上。

最重要的是，瑞恩的普利茅斯“狂怒”就停在角落里。蕾恩拆掉了时空收音机的组件、引擎，以及车内几乎所有的天才科技。他知道，这是为了大业而作出的牺牲，可看着心爱的车只剩一副空壳，快递员还是满心悲痛。

当然，蕾恩工作时还听着亚历山德罗夫歌舞团演唱的《炮兵进行曲》。就连瑞恩也得承认这歌不错，不过，他这位天才朋友就算刻意表演，也不可能比现在更像个马克思主义者了。

幸好，今天已经有人先一步来烦她了。“可是妈妈，你说过也给我做一套的！”小莎拉怀里抱着一只猫，向蕾恩抱怨。天才正坐在工作台后，摆弄迪纳米斯的设备。“你说我也能当小潜水员！”

“宝贝，我知道……可是我得先做点别的……”蕾恩难得脱下了连体工作服，换上一身简单的蓝色衣服。她转头看向瑞恩时，神情比平日鲜活了许多，或许是因为待在自己的老巢里，她更有底气。“嗨，瑞瑞。”

“嗨，小矮个，小魔头。”瑞恩向她们打了声招呼，随即认出了莎拉怀里的猫。“欧仁-亨利！”

“他今天早上跑到我房间里来了。”小莎拉说道，猫在她怀里喵了一声。“是你把他从海面上带到这个魔法地方来的吗？”

“不是，他自己来的。”瑞恩答道，立刻伸手挠了挠这只温顺猫咪的耳后。它的传送能力范围实在大得惊人。“还有，这里叫共党洞。”

“方舟。”蕾恩皱着眉纠正。

“共党洞。”瑞恩坚持道，“公司佬都是些胆小迷信的家伙。要让恐惧扎根于他们心中，我们就必须废除私有制。”

蕾恩翻了个白眼。“如果这里是……蝙蝠洞，那我们叫什么？”

“锤子和镰刀。”瑞恩立刻答道，“农民阶级与工人阶级超级英雄的完美联合。孩子们可以当我们的小喽啰——无产阶级。”

蕾恩轻轻发出了一个声音，快递员已经几个世纪没听过了。

“妈？”莎拉问道，她也从没听过这个声音。

“小矮个，你刚才笑了？”瑞恩问。蕾恩想转开脸，藏住自己的表情，可他不肯罢休。“就连你也得承认，我的笑话很好笑吧。”

“不，一点都不好笑。”老朋友回答，努力忍住嘴角的笑意。“你太烂了，瑞瑞。烂到绕了一圈，又变好笑了。就像……像回旋镖。”

“还能怎么说呢，我所有的笑话都是经咱们最高苏维埃官方批准的。”

此刻蕾恩脸上挂着温暖的笑容，在瑞恩看来，光是这一幕，就值得他走过之前的所有循环。“我才不是那样，瑞瑞。”

“最高苏维埃是什么？”小莎拉一边抚摸欧仁-亨利，一边问。

“等等，你没送她去参加党代会？”瑞恩皱眉看向蕾恩，“不接受良好的革命教育，这些孩子会迷失方向的！”

蕾恩摇了摇头，脸上仍带着笑。“我……我还没怎么考虑过教育的事。”她承认，“我之前……一门心思只想着先把这里建起来。”

“最高苏维埃是什么？”小莎拉又问了一遍，随后瞪向瑞恩。“快说，你个狗娘养的。”

“是个馊主意。”瑞恩如实回答，接着拍了拍莎拉的脑袋。“你这辈子知道这些就够了。”

莎拉立刻冲他吐舌头，惹得欧仁-亨利大叫一声，从她怀里跳了出去。它马上占据了一台服务器，把那里当成自己的王座，如同一尊高贵的斯芬克斯，俯视着人类。

“宝贝，你能先出去一会儿吗？”蕾恩问莎拉，“我……我有点事要和瑞瑞商量。我们单独谈。”

小莎拉看看瑞恩，又看看蕾恩，目光变得极其、极其怀疑。“好吧，妈……”

小女孩眯眼打量着他们，走出了房间。她走后，瑞恩坐上工作台。“这下你满意了？他们会以为我们关起门来做大人的事……虽然很久以前，我们确实做过。”

“那次……”蕾恩一脸窘迫。“好尴尬。”

“毕竟那是我们俩的第一次嘛。”而且为了不让她父亲发现，他们还得匆匆忙忙地来。“我想起来还是觉得很美好。”

蕾恩没有回答，或许是因为他们谈论的，早已是逝去的岁月。然而，瑞恩依然渴望着他们曾经共有的那份心灵上的亲密。或许，他在贾丝敏身上寻找的正是这个：某种曾经鲜活、却早已死去的感情留下的回响。

莉维娅每次想起菲利克斯时，也是这种感觉吗？

“有进展了吗？”察觉到蕾恩不愿继续聊这个话题，瑞恩转而问道。

“算有吧。”她把双手的手指抵在一起。“你……你呢？”

瑞恩叹了口气。这回轮到他不自在了。“我有了个想法。”他承认，“你父亲以前有没有对你用过能力？”

“我……应该没有。我……如果他用过，我就不会在这里了。我会变成他。”

“他可能做过更隐蔽的事。比如帮你愈合伤口？”

“你为什么问这个？”蕾恩问道，笑容已然消失。

“你还记得自己喝下灵药的时候吗？”她缓缓点头。“你父亲立刻就知道了。起初，我以为那是因为他能感知血液、远程操控血液，可如果是因为他在你体内留下了一点自己的痕迹呢？”

“就像……血液信标？”

“你是他心爱的女儿，是他活下去的唯一理由。”瑞恩皱着眉说，“每次我们跑远了，他总能找到我们。”

蕾恩忧虑的神色让快递员明白，她也觉得这很有可能。“你觉得……你觉得迪纳米斯想要的是这个？他留下来的东西？”

“有可能。我要拿一份你的血样检查一下，还得用到我车后面的工具。”

“那些仿制灵药呢？”蕾恩突然问，“你，你研究过灵药，对吧？你没……没发现有什么相符的地方吗？”

“怎么发现？嘉年华就是为了防止你父亲回来，才特意抹掉了他的一切痕迹。我手里根本没东西能拿来和仿制灵药作比较。”

“直到现在……”蕾恩皱起眉头。“瑞瑞，要是比对得上……”

“我知道。”瑞恩叹息道，“不过，我们能不能先集中精力做脑信息转移项目？我……这事很危险，蕾恩。闯进迪纳米斯的实验室可能不止需要一轮循环，我不想让你再忘记我。”

“我……我会尽力的。”蕾恩清了清嗓子。“可是还……还缺点什么。有地方不对劲。”

当然了。总有新的障碍需要克服，不过瑞恩依旧是个乐观主义者。“这套技术不管用？”

“管用。”她指着脑部扫描头盔答道，“它能绘制脑图谱，生成……生成一个计算机模拟。然后我就可以把它……把它传给一个宿主，覆盖原来的认知系统。宿主的神经系统和模拟结果越接近越好。否则……宿主的大脑就会退化。记忆冲突，神经元紊乱……”

“可要是我们把你的记忆传给过去的你，应该就不会有问题了，对吧？”瑞恩问。

“应该没事。可能会有一点不碍事的脑震荡，也可能什么事都没有。”蕾恩抱起双臂。“等我做好了，应该连无线传输都可以。”

“那问题出在哪儿？”

“要让记忆跨越时间，以无线方式传给宿主，你需要……”蕾恩努力寻找合适的措辞。“你需要更多能量。比任何自然能源所能提供的都要多。”

瑞恩很快明白过来。“比如紫色通量？”

“对。我想……我想只有把时空收音机接到伏尔甘的装甲上，我们才能把信号送回过去，更别说脑图谱了。”

“可是……”瑞恩立刻发现了问题。“上一轮不是这样的。时空收音机被毁了，我和贾丝敏是在那之后才造出装甲的。可我们还是收到了来自未来的录音。”

“是啊。”蕾恩缓缓点头。“我……我觉得时空收音机收到的信息不是我发的，瑞瑞。至少，不是上一轮的我。也……也可能是未来的我。”

“时间不是这么运作的，除非我从头到尾都搞错了。”瑞恩抓了抓头发。他的存档点只容许两个时间段存在。“肯定有别的解释。所有信息都围绕着我们在上一轮循环里的互动。”

“那……是谁发来的信息？”

瑞恩努力回想上一轮循环的结尾，以及自己在紫色世界的经历。他看到的那些幻象，还有在最后短暂接触过的那个庞然存在。

“终极者心怀慈悲，只是思想狭隘。”

而时空收音机的信息，恰好出现在瑞恩认真考虑放弃的时候……

“不是谁。”时间旅行者恍然道，“而是什么东西。”

瑞恩看向欧仁-亨利，有几件事突然串了起来。这只猫不知怎么跨越了时间获得能力，刻意把莉维娅引到了快递员面前，又恰好在蕾恩考虑研究紫色通量来做实验时，出现在共党洞。一下子撞上这么多巧合，未免太多了。

“你根本不是在随机传送。”快递员指着欧仁-亨利说道，“你是被别的什么东西传送过来的。有东西在为我们指路，告诉我们，只要足够努力，就能成功。”

猫喵了一声，作为回应。

“瑞瑞，你……你在跟一只猫说话……”

“结合眼下的情况，这很合理。”瑞恩为自己辩解，欧仁-亨利则舔起了自己的肩头。“小矮个，你还记得我跟你说过什么吗？关于我在紫色世界里看见的东西？”

她很快把线索联系了起来。“你觉得那个金字塔一样的东西在……怎么说，在帮我们？”

快递员点了点头，不再打扰欧仁-亨利舔毛。“我开始怀疑了：那些幻象、时空收音机的信号，还有欧仁-亨利的传送，到底真是随机事件，还是某种交流的尝试？”

“这听起来……”蕾恩试着寻找合适的词。“我不知道，有点牵强。而且，要是它真有你想的那么强大，为什么只做这么一点事？怎么偏偏就只把一只猫传来传去？它又为什么要关心这些？”

“我不知道。”瑞恩承认，“这只是个猜想。不过，我觉得这些奇怪的巧合未免太凑巧、太及时了，而且我确信，我在幻象里看到的那些人，要么就是炼金术师，要么和炼金术师有关。”

“你看见了一座南极基地，对吧？”蕾恩问，“能确定具体位置吗？”

“也许吧。”瑞恩答道，“我只看见了夜空，不足以确定精确位置，但至少可以缩小范围。”

“我们可以去那座基地看看。”她提议，“开潜艇去。等……等我们处理完这里剩下的事，再去查一查。”

剩下的事。说得可真轻巧。

“那我最好开始筹备那场盗窃了。”瑞恩说。

---

蕾恩把车留下了——他们甚至都没结婚呢——瑞恩只好搭乘深潜球回到海面，再叫辆出租车前往目的地。

一辆出租车。

“这就是我丢下爱车、让它自生自灭的报应吗？”瑞恩自言自语，走下出租车，面前便是一家迪纳米斯旗下的医院。快递员第一次加入至优者的那轮循环里，心震的受害者就是被送到这里的。私人安保队的成员守卫着大楼，阻止外人闯入，但让瑞恩颇感意外的是，门口竟没有记者蹲守。要么是迪纳米斯对病人的身份严格保密，要么是所有媒体都已被公司收买。多半两者兼有。

往入口走去时，瑞恩很快看见一个熟悉的身影离开医院，坐进了一辆梅赛德斯-奔驰的后座。那是个十来岁的少女，棕色短发，蓝眼睛，一张心形脸。

纳尔西妮娅。

至于司机，瑞恩认出了他：没穿战斗服、戴着墨镜的莫蒂默。虽然只瞥了一眼，快递员还是看出，菲利克斯这个没有血缘关系的妹妹很难过。他猜，她和哥哥的会面不太顺利。

守卫简单做过安检，便放瑞恩进了门。快递员在门厅里看到了等他的衣橱和熊猫。前者正和一个陌生女人交谈，后者眼里含着泪，拿着手机打字。他们带来了巧克力和鲜花，上面写着菲利克斯的名字。

“嗨，瑞恩！”衣橱向快递员打招呼，熊猫却太过专注，没注意到他。“你能来，我真高兴。”

“嗨，由纪。”瑞恩朝自己最喜欢的服装设计师挥了挥手，随后看向屋里的另一个女人。她二十岁出头，棕发及肩，琥珀色的眼睛十分醒目，大概还是个英国人。与更显女性柔美的衣橱不同，她穿着一套灰色商务西装，不过款式和黑棘的一样讲究。

“你好，快存。”她温暖地笑着，伸出手来要与他相握。绝对是英国人。“我是诺拉，诺拉·穆尔。由纪经常提起你。”

“她是我女朋友。”衣橱笑着说，“建筑师！”

“不胜荣幸。”瑞恩说着，接过诺拉的手，却没有握手，而是极尽绅士风度地行了个吻手礼。这份突如其来的殷勤让她微微红了脸，快递员却随即不满地皱眉看向衣橱。“可她居然没有制服。我很失望啊，由纪。”

“我知道。”衣橱叹了口气。“我努力过了。”

“我总不能穿着你那样的制服去上班。”诺拉有些不好意思地笑着回答，随后看向瑞恩。“我不是超级英雄，是独立承包商兼城市规划师。我的天才能力专精城市和建筑。”

“而且她超级厉害。”衣橱笑容灿烂，“来嘛，诺拉，给他看看！”

她的女友给瑞恩看了看自己的平板电脑，上面显示着先进的设计方案：融合生态建筑理念、自给自足的城镇，一座飞行城市，甚至还有一处地下掩体聚居地。

“所以你什么样的城市都能造？”快递员问道，对她的作品相当赞赏。凭着自身的知识，他能看懂其中大部分设计，而诺拉对有限资源的利用实在出色。“而且据我所见，成本只要预计的一小部分。”

“你怎么看出来的？”诺拉挑起眉毛。

“你把空间、能耗和材料都优化到了极致。”瑞恩指着设计图上的几处说道，“不过，我觉得你可以把发电机挪得离水循环系统近一点，缩短供热回路。”

“有意思的想法。”诺拉笑着说，“你也是天才？”

“瑞恩超级超级聪明。”由纪主动替快递员宣传起来。“你真该看看他的车和武器，简直就是个宝库！”

“可惜，我的普利茅斯‘狂怒’暂时还在车库里。”瑞恩说着，把平板电脑还了回去。“你打算在基因战争摧毁的地区重新安置居民？不然有些设计就说不通了。”

“你真敏锐。”诺拉点头道，“我有很多项目都被上一届管理层否决了，不过新一届似乎更开明些。要是终于能设计些西西里堡垒城市以外的东西，就太好了。”

“你有没有想过建一座水下大都会？”瑞恩问，琢磨着要不要介绍她和蕾恩认识。“我认识一个专精海洋科技的天才。不过，她是个马克思列宁主义者。”

“有，海洋聚居地的想法确实在我脑海里出现过。我很乐意与她见面，不过考虑到她的政治倾向，最好别在迪纳米斯见。”诺拉仔细打量着瑞恩，唇边挂着温暖的笑。“也许改天我们可以详谈？你似乎很了解天才科技，我很乐意继续和你交流。”

她望着他的模样，让瑞恩意识到，自己还真是偏爱女天才，哪怕对方喜欢的也是女人。“问你件事，迪纳米斯总部和贵族派大厦是你设计的吗？”他问建筑师，“我觉得从这些图纸里看出了你的风格。”

“对，是我设计的。那是我最早期的作品之一，算不上多得意。怎么了？”

“没什么。”瑞恩一脸无辜地回答，心中却正在酝酿一个险恶的计划。“另外，我得道歉。”

“为什么？”建筑师挑眉问道。

“我知道谁都会这么做，不过在知道你的存在之前，我曾厚颜无耻地跟衣橱调情。”瑞恩道着歉，说得由纪满脸慌乱。“希望你别因此讨厌我。她真的值得人献殷勤。”

“哦，这事啊？”诺拉一下笑出了声。“没关系。其实，我很喜欢你给她做的那套兔女郎装。我们会好好利用的。”

“对不起，瑞恩，要是可以，我绝对愿意同时跟你们两个约会。”衣橱一脸歉意。“可这是独家合同。民事伴侣关系什么的都办了。”

“是啊，恐怕确实如此。”诺拉含蓄地笑道，“不过，要是哪天我们分手了，我会祝福你向由纪递交申请的。你看起来人不错。”

“不过，要是我没和诺拉在一起，我就会穿上你那套兔女郎装，逼你打扮成休·赫夫纳，然后在我公寓里的每个角落做爱！”由纪冲瑞恩眨了眨眼。“我喜欢美人。男人女人都无所谓，只要穿得好看，内心也美就行。而你哪里都美，瑞恩。”

“谢谢。”快递员回答，很高兴能与这样一个有品位又温柔的人做朋友。在他的完美通关里，他一定会留出时间，和她一起玩。

“还有啊，瑞恩，我给你构思了一套新制服！”衣橱拿过平板电脑，打开一个新文件。“听说你要离队，我真的好难过、好难过，只能再给你做一套！”

“我们还是可以组队的。”瑞恩说，“就像蝙蝠侠和超人。我来当阴沉的义警，你来当守法公民！”

“我想到这一点了！”衣橱给他看了一张制服草图，除了胸前一道银色镶边，整套衣服都走暗黑叛逆路线。“你背弃了光明，拥抱了黑暗；你选择了穿卡尔·拉格斐。你不再是反派，也不再是英雄，而是徘徊在暮光中的人！可你胸前的那道银边，又代表着你依旧在寻求救赎。”

“不过，还是羊绒做的吧？”瑞恩满怀期待地问。

“只有里面那件衬衫是羊绒，深藏不露，如同你备受折磨的灵魂。”衣橱继续道，“外套会用原驼毛。”

“纯粹的天才之作。”瑞恩随后看向始终没离开座位的熊猫。“狂妄的小徒弟，你就是这样迎接师父的吗？”

年轻英雄抬头看向师父时，已是泪眼汪汪。“对不起，师父……”他用那双小小的人类手掌捧着手机。“我只是……我实在忍不住……”

他把手机递给瑞恩看，屏幕上是他一直在浏览的网站。

“‘熊猫狂热’？”快递员念出网站名，疑惑地问。首页上，他的动物朋友披着斗篷，手持雷电战锤，下方写着“熊猫的真正力量”。

“是梗图！”年轻天真的徒弟眼里含着泪说道，“这是个梗图网站！我也有梗图了！”

“他在迪纳网和我们的社交网络上都很红。”诺拉解释道，“他的首批周边卖得特别好，几乎赶上其他所有新人加起来的销量了。”

瑞恩不难理解原因。迪纳网的用户似乎很喜欢把熊猫捧成无人能挡的硬汉，把动作片明星的照片全都换上他的脸。“熊猫才是一切的关键！”“熊猫太强了，求削弱！”“没有人能拒绝一只熊猫。”“熊猫没喝第二份灵药，是为了让奥古斯都还能有点胜算。”诸如此类。

“我出名了。”熊猫抹掉一滴眼泪。“大家都觉得我很厉害，很强……”

“这是你应得的。”衣橱笑着拍了拍他的肩膀。“你跟超能帮战斗时那么勇敢，我都觉得你把所有人的风头都抢光了！”

“不错，小徒弟，这便是你刻苦修行的回报。”瑞恩努力模仿睿智长者的口吻，“可这不过是你踏上飞升之路的第一步！前方还有重重阻碍等着你！”

“谢谢你，师父。如果你没有相信我，就不会有今天的我。你……”熊猫终于忍不住哭了出来。“你是我的朋友！”

“抱我，你这只傻人熊！”

于是他们抱在了一起。紧紧地抱着。即便是人形，熊猫抱起来也暖烘烘、毛茸茸的。衣橱看了他们片刻，随后也加入了拥抱，她的女友则在一旁饶有兴致地看着。

终于，一名护士来找他们。“韦兰先生现在可以见你们了。”