同章对照

This loop would end like the previous one, in Sorrentos.

At least a horde of bloody mutants didn’t pursue Ryan this time around, but the realization left him bitter. He knew that causality had a tendency to reassert itself, and though the courier would break that chain of destruction, he had spent weeks, if not months in New Rome. He had befriended dozens of locals, heroes, and villains. Watching the city on fire again filled him with anger.

The courier hadn’t felt so determined to save these people since his first Perfect Run in Monaco.

Only Shroud, Felix, and Sunshine had been allowed to follow him to the meeting point: the exact same building where Ryan reloaded after the last loop’s disastrous end. The group bypassed a defensive perimeter of hundreds of Vulcan-made turrets without any problem.

Only Atom Kitten and See-Through came in full costume; Leo Hargraves panted as he walked in human form, while Ryan came with a dashing suit granted by Mr. Wave.

“Have you forgotten how to walk?” Ryan asked Sunshine, who lacked endurance. “I’m sorry, but I only carry damsels in distress in my arms, or lost kittens.”

“How about Atomic Hound?” Felix asked. “How does that sound, as a new name?”

“It sounds like Atom Puppy to me,” Ryan replied. Felix let out a sigh, realizing that there would be no escape from mockery.

Hargraves smiled, though there was little joy in it. “The longer I use my power, the less I want to become a man again,” he confessed. “Sometimes I spend weeks without returning to normal, and often forget that I can.”

“Your power impacts your mental health?” Felix asked, as they reached grey, reinforced doors. A camera observed them.

“In a way,” Sunshine admitted. “A part of me wants to shed my humanity, and become a radiant sun full-time. I didn’t understand why, but meeting the Alchemist quelled my doubts.”

“It’s not a bug,” Ryan said. “It’s a feature.”

Sunshine shared an extremely strong connection with his Elixir, perhaps as much as the courier himself. Both were closer to this ‘ascension’ than most. Ryan still didn’t fully understand what the process would imply, but transforming into a denizen of the colored realms was a part of the package.

Hargraves might end up becoming a true sun one day, leaving Earth to illuminate some dark corner of the universe. Ryan considered it a better alternative than him burning their planet’s atmosphere, or worse.

“Yes. That’s why I try to stay a human when my power isn’t needed. If you spend all your time in the air, you stop relating to the people on the ground.” Sunshine narrowed his eyebrows, as a thought crossed his mind. “I wonder if Augustus is in the same situation. Unlike me, he cannot revert back to his human state.”

“If half the tales we learned about him are true, he was a nasty piece of work from the start,” Shroud replied.

“I know,” Hargraves said with a sigh. “But a part of me hoped that human nature wouldn’t be capable of such cruelty without outside factors.”

Ryan remembered his first date with Livia, and how he had found Discount Zeus posing as a statue in his own kitchen. The courier had blamed senility back then, but in hindsight Lightning Butt probably suffered from a similar syndrome as his nemesis. The power slumbering inside him wanted to become a statue of indestructible, inviolable metal, and it became harder to resist the urge with age.

The building’s doors swiftly opened, a golden retriever in human form immediately latched onto Felix. The poor kitten let out a gasp as the vile creature squeezed him like a fruit, while Ryan’s judgmental gaze appraised her white ensemble. Six out of ten, maybe seven.

“You fool, you idiot, you moron!” Fortuna said so many flowery insults in such a short amount of time, that Ryan’s mind automatically censored half of them. “You heartless little...”

“Hi, sis—” Felix didn’t finish his sentence, as Fortuna slapped him on the cheek with enough strength to crack his mask. “Hey!”

“You deserve worse!” she replied, before hugging him again with tears in her eyes. “You idiot… you almost died… if you had died, I...”

Atom Cat said nothing for a moment, before hugging his crying sister back. “I’m sorry I worried you,” he said, and he meant it.

Two other girls emerged from the building, a teenage spitfire and an elegant lady. “Felix!” Little Narcinia immediately joined the group hug, overjoyed to see her adoptive sibling again. “Thank God you’re alive!”

“I’m here, Narci,” Felix whispered. “I’m here.”

Though Leo observed Narcinia with a sad frown, Ryan didn’t pay much attention to her. He only had eyes for his own lady.

Livia walked out of the doors’ threshold, wearing the black coat and dark ensemble that she loved so much. The dress highlighted her pale skin and hair, and the red around her eyes.

She cried, Ryan realized. She cried for New Rome.

Neither said a word. They didn’t need to. The couple simply hugged tightly, and let their hands do the talking.

Meanwhile, the Veran siblings had separated, and Fortuna finally noticed her boyfriend’s presence. “Mathias.”

“Fortuna,” he replied, removing his glass helmet with his power. “I’m glad you’re—”

She kissed him on the mouth before he could finish. At first surprised, Shroud put his arms around his girlfriend and shyly embraced her back.

While Leo, Livia, and Ryan smiled at the sight, Fortuna’s siblings reacted with distress. “Ew,” Narcinia complained, while Felix looked weirded out.

“Don’t ‘ew’ my future husband!” Fortuna said upon breaking the kiss.

“Husband?” Mathias asked, horrified.

“You’re marrying me,” his girlfriend answered, as if it were obvious. “I had some doubts left about our relationship, but watching you help save my brother dispelled them. We are meant to be together, and this time, I’m not letting you leave. Ever.”

“Wow, you’re skipping a lot of steps,” Mathias replied, though he didn’t protest as much as Ryan had expected.

“But you already have the ring!” Fortuna protested. “You only have to make your proposal!”

“I don’t have a…” The squeegee man magnet froze in place, examined his glass armor, and noticed a golden ring accidentally stuck in it around his waist. He let out a loud sigh. “So that’s how it is.”

“No way out, Invisiboy,” Ryan warned him.

Mathias rolled his eyes, before pushing his girlfriend back kindly. “Let’s do it properly, alright?” he asked her. “Take it slow, see if we can make it last a few years?”

“Oh, sure,” she replied with confidence. “I know it will work out.”

Ryan chuckled, before glancing at his own girlfriend. “You’re under house arrest, milady?”

“They are,” Livia said upon breaking the embrace. “But I am not friendless. Uncle Silvio sent the guards away for today.”

“Neptune?” Shroud asked, his girlfriend putting her arms around his left one. “Why would he let us have this meeting?”

“Because I told him this was the only path to peace that I could see,” she replied with a sigh. “He is the only sensible head among my father’s close collaborators.”

“What happened in our absence?” the glass man asked.

Livia looked down on the ground, her hands reaching for Ryan’s. Her boyfriend held her fingers into his own, and she squeezed them.

“After you fled, Father reached the conclusion that you and Dynamis were allied, and so…” The Augusti princess looked in New Rome’s direction. Even kilometers away from the metropolis, one could still see smoke in the skies. “And so he decided to launch an offensive. I did everything I could to stop an escalation or delay it, but…”

“Augustus had made up his mind long ago,” Shroud guessed. His mother’s prophecy stated that Lightning Butt would go ballistic at one point, and causality would not be denied.

“Yes,” Livia said sadly. “My father always intended to strike at Dynamis. When the Bliss Factory fell and Felix attempted to take Narcinia away, the conflict became inevitable. Hector recalled Fallout before granting him command over his corporate army, and now the war will engulf Europe.”

Ryan could almost taste the guilt in her voice. Since she had helped her boyfriend destroy the Bliss Factory, she blamed herself for the war that resulted. “It’s not your fault, Livia,” the courier reassured. “You did all you could.”

“I didn’t,” she replied with remorse, while Felix observed her with a strange gaze. “I had years, Ryan. I had years to take more drastic measures to prevent this disaster. I thought… I thought that if outside circumstances changed, my father wouldn’t unleash such destruction. Because he treated me with kindness, I excused his cruelty towards others. I looked the other way, and I was wrong. It’s him, Ryan. It’s all him, and he will never change.”

Narcinia noticed Sunshine gazing at her, making her anxious. “I’m Leo Hargraves,” the shiny paladin introduced himself, his voice kind and warm. “Some people call me Leo the Living Sun.”

“I know,” Narcinia said, a bit intimidated. “My parents hate you.”

While Shroud winced, Leo shook his head. “No, they didn’t,” he said, his voice heavy. “Your parents were my friends.”

He searched into his clothes and brought out an old picture, showing it to Narcinia. Ryan glanced at the photo, which represented a couple and their baby child. The man, built like a woodsman, had black hair and familiar blue eyes, but the woman… the brown in her hair, the freckles on her cheeks, the smiling face...

Though she had only inherited her father’s eyes, the resemblance between Narcinia and her mother was uncanny.

“This is your father Bruno Costa, and his wife Julie. Some of the nicest people I ever met. And this baby…” Leo put a finger on the child. “This baby is you, Giulia.”

Narcinia took the photo without a word, while her siblings looked on. Felix could barely suppress his anger, while Fortuna clearly didn’t know what to say.

“You were born long before I met your parents, but I held you in my arms when you were only a few years old,” Leo continued. “Your parents… your parents were heroes. Your father was a Yellow who could cut through anything, and your mother was a Green with the power to alter life. Together, they were trying to make this scorched planet green again, until Augustus slew them and took you away.”

“No.” Narcinia refused to accept it. “No. It can’t be. My parents, my true parents, were raiders. They deserved to die.”

“He speaks the truth, Narcinia,” Livia said, looking at the photo with regrets and remorse, as if she had done the grim deed herself. “These are your true parents. Mars and Venus lied about everything.”

“It can’t be!” Narcinia protested, looking at her elder sister for support. “Fortuna, say something!”

“Narci, Livy is never wrong, and our parents… our parents tried to murder Felix, because Godfather Janus asked them to.” Lucky Girl tightened her hold on her boyfriend’s arm, while her brother looked away in silent rage. “If they can do that, they’re capable of anything.”

“Augustus murdered your parents,” Leo continued, the pain raw in his tone. “He… he killed them while I was away, and took you with him. Afterward, he had Bacchus shatter your mind, so you would forget your family, and gave you to Mars and Venus when they struggled to conceive a third child.”

“Augustus also slew the fifty people who lived at your mother’s farm,” Shroud added with disgust. “He burnt the crops she had made with her power, plants that could have helped erase famine and clean up radioactive areas of the globe.”

“Why?” Livia asked, while Narcinia covered her mouth with one hand in horror.

“Because your father is not an emperor, but a deranged warlord. He offers no future, believes in nothing but strength. This.” Shroud pointed a finger at the smoke clouds in the skies. “This is his ideal world. Fire and ash.”

“I know,” Livia replied, her tone icy. “I know.”

Leo Hargraves locked eyes with the Augusti princess, and the empathetic sun understood what made her feel ill-at-ease.

“What happened to Juno was a mistake,” Leo Hargraves said. “I will not apologize for it, because nothing will ever excuse an innocent dying. The ends never justify the means employed. On that front, you are right to despise me.”

“I don’t have the strength in me to forgive you for killing my mother, Mr. Hargraves, even accidentally,” Livia said with a long and heavy sigh. “But my father has to be stopped. What he has done today is monstrous, and cannot be justified… however a part of me wants to. I will not make excuses for him. Not anymore. You are right, nothing can excuse slaying the innocents, and my father killed countless more than you ever will.”

“So you will help us take him down?” Shroud asked, causing Livia to nod firmly.

“You have my word that once your father has been stopped and his organization dismantled, I will submit to whatever trial you see fit for your mother’s death,” Hargraves promised to the Augusti princess.

“If we can stop him,” Shroud replied, before glancing at Ryan.

“Leave this to me,” the courier replied. “Jupiter won the first round, but Saturn is back in the game.”

Livia didn’t answer, causing Narcinia to look up at Hargraves. “Tell me more. About my…” The young girl coughed. “About my parents.”

“I will,” Sunshine promised. He had waited years for this.

Leo Hargraves started regaling Narcinia with tales about how he met her true parents, while Mathias took Fortuna aside, holding her hands. Ryan guessed that his translucent friend needed to come clean about how he saw their relationship.

Which left only Felix, who exchanged an awkward glance with his ex. “Livia?”

“Felix,” Livia replied, half-icy, half-embarrassed.

“I’m sorry I dumped you,” he declared bluntly, before thinking it over. “Well, no, not quite. Let me reword that.”

Damn, he made Len look like a smooth-talker.

“I still think that quitting the Augusti was the right decision, and I stand by it,” Atom Cat continued. “But I could have done it less harshly. I knew you were under a lot of pressure to smooth things out with the organization, and when I saw New Rome burning… I realized that you were trying to prevent this disaster.”

“No, Felix.” Livia shook her head, her voice breaking. “You were right to leave this rotten empire. I know how you felt about me. It’s… I understand why it could never work between us. Our parents pushed us into something we weren’t ready for.”

“But it wasn’t right to condemn you for being in an impossible situation. If you had left, Augustus would have lost all fetters. I can blame Jamie and Ki-jung for looking the other way, but I see that you were trying to stop your father from the inside.” Felix awkwardly scratched the back of his head. “All of this to say that… I hope we can stay friends, even after all of this.”

“We can,” Livia replied with a small smile. “But now is not the time to discuss rebuilding burnt bridges.”

“No, no of course not.” Felix glanced at Ryan with embarrassment. “Sorry, Quicksave, I realize this discussion must feel awkward, considering the two of you are dating now…”

“Heh, jealousy is for those who don’t trust their partners,” Ryan replied, making Livia blush briefly. “It’s alright, kitty.”

Felix sheepishly looked away, before straightening up. “Good luck.”

Atom Kitten hastily left the couple alone to join Leo and Narcinia, while Matt and Fortuna had a heart-to-heart talk a few feet away. Ryan was glad that Felix made an effort to reconnect with the people he left behind; the courier still thought that the kitten had a right to leave a toxic family environment behind, but he had thrown the good aside along with the bad.

“You know,” Ryan whispered to his girlfriend, “when we met, I never thought you and Sunshine would end up on the same side.”

“I don’t like him,” she replied while leading him inside the building. “But I trust you.”

He followed her through the corridors and into a private bedroom with painful yellow walls, and a painting facing the bed. Though unfinished, Ryan recognized his own torso, holding Livia in his arms bridal-style. His girlfriend must have started it a few days before the courier returned from Antarctica.

“I missed you, Ryan,” Livia said as she closed the door behind them. “It was hard without you.”

“I told you,” he replied warmly. “I will always come back.”

“How were your winter vacations?”

“Didn’t you receive my messages, princess?”

“I did, but I want to hear it from your sweet, sweet lips.”

“The trip was pretty good,” he answered while stroking her hair. “I destroyed the Illuminati, the Reptilians, and raided Area 51.”

“You destroyed our government's secret masters without taking me with you?” She pouted. “Though I guess you left us the CIA.”

“Would the Dynamis military-industrial complex count?” He moved his forehead against her own, until he could smell her warm breath. “You wanted to tell me something when I came back.”

She blushed, before averting his gaze. “It’s going to sound cliche.”

“Can’t you subvert my expectations?” Ryan asked, causing Livia to chuckle. “Nah, I’m kidding. There’s no such a thing as a bad cliché, just a bad execution. It’s all about saying it with the heart.”

Livia moved in front of him, put her arms around his neck, and locked eyes with her boyfriend. Ryan held her by the waist, and studied her expression. Her cheeks turned bright pink and she bit her lower lip, trying to muster the courage to speak. Eventually, the Augusti princess took a long deep breath, and said four words.

“I love you, Ryan.”

And her boyfriend didn’t know how to answer.

“Oh my, you are actually speechless,” Livia said with a sheepish grin. “You didn’t expect it?”

“No, I didn’t,” Ryan admitted, his heart having skipped a beat. He… he hadn’t heard those words in a very long time. “I expected the worst, like ‘I don’t like your car,’ or ‘I’m pregnant.’ We didn’t take any precautions on that front.”

“Ryan, I have been on the pill since our first date.”

“Wait, you knew we would end up playing Bill and Monica in the oval office?”

“I…” His princess looked so cute when she was embarrassed. “I didn’t know, but I… I kinda hoped that we would from the start.”

“And you never said ‘I love you’ to anyone else?”

“I said ‘I love you, Dad,’ ‘I love you, Mom,’ ‘I love you, Felix’... but never ‘I love you, Ryan.’” Livia’s cheeks somehow reddened further, and her expression turned into a sheepish smile. “I’m so sorry, it sounded a lot better in my hea—”

Her boyfriend kissed her on the mouth before she could finish. Ryan embraced her ferociously, making up for the weeks they spent apart, and she matched his own desire. When at long last their lips parted, the courier whispered words of his own into her ear.

“I love you too, princess.”

Ryan lost himself in her blue eyes. He loved the sight of her hair, so blonde-platinum that they might as well be silver; he loved the taste of her lips, her sweet voice, her kindness, and the adorable faces she made; he loved that she laughed at his jokes, making him feel less like a lone island of culture in a sea of ignorance.

“Perfect delivery,” Livia said, her fingers moving to his hair. “Maybe we should do a double-take?”

They did, and then made a third take just to be sure. Then he lifted her on the bed, to film the uncensored director’s cut.

“I know it hasn’t been long since we met, but…” Livia’s hands trailed against his shoulders. “I haven't felt that way for a boy in a very long time.”

“I have loved too,” Ryan replied, holding her gently. “But this is the first time I get the feeling it will last.”

“I want it to last,” she said, in-between kissing his neck. “I want us to go through the next loop and prevent that horrible tragedy. I want us to share an apartment, and make breakfast together. I want to go skiing with you, and to the beach too. I want to be with you.”

“I missed you,” he answered. For a blissful moment, Ryan completely forgot about the Carnival, Bloodstream, Dynamis, Augustus, and everything else.

He could only think of her.

---

Like all good things, it was over too soon.

“We have to go,” Livia said, as she finished putting her black coat back on. “They will wonder what we’re doing.”

“We’ll tell them it was a private projection,” Ryan said with a shrug, before charmingly helping her comb her hair. “I think we’re ready for the grand opening.”

“You said you could bring six people with you now?” Livia chuckled. “One for each color? Should we call ourselves the Rainbow Warriors?”

“The Colorful Eight?” Ryan replied.

“You’re pretty bad at math, aren’t you?”

“It’s a cunning strategy. That way our foes will always wonder who is the missing member. It will inspire fear. For all they know, our eighth Genome could be Mechron.”

When she had finished dressing up, Livia sat on his lap while he rested on the bed. “So?” His girlfriend asked. “Who will be on the winning team?”

“I’m open to suggestions. Maybe Narcinia? We’re missing a tagalong kid.”

“My plan was to make a mind-map of her now, but not to transfer her mind,” Livia said. “If Felix and I ask her to, she will submit to the memory upload in the next loop willingly.”

“Livia, we can’t leave a priest, drugs, and a preteen on an island without supervision,” Ryan joked. “It’s a recipe for an FBI raid and a True Crime video. And that’s not mentioning the people in the basement...”

“To save the Bliss test subjects, we will have to strike the factory early with Narcinia and Bacchus inside. I can inform Narcinia of that secret room, and she will give the victims medical assistance, but Bacchus will ground her in response. We will have to extract her from the island by force.”

Ryan considered it a plus. He had sworn to bury Bacchus beneath his facility, and intended to deliver.

“So, here is the timeline so far.” The courier tried to put everything in order. “I call Braindead as soon as I reload, so he arrives in New Rome as soon as possible. I give Ghoul the grave robber treatment, finish my delivery—”

“Is that part necessary?” Livia asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Quicksave always delivers, no matter how many tries!” Ryan was proud of reforming the postal service, one explosion at a time.

“Do you have a twenty-four hour delivery offer?” Livia asked with a sly smirk. “I could take you up on it.”

“I have one,” he said, putting his hand on her chin, “but only for the right person.”

She exploded into laughter, the most wonderful sound Ryan had heard so far in his long, long life. “Alright, Ryan,” his princess said with amusement. “So afterward we meet at the bunker with anyone you could send back, and we deliver a one-sided thrashing to Adam the Ogre.”

“I love it when you speak my language.”

“Since we attack the Meta-Gang within mere hours of your reload, we should be able to save every Rust Town denizen that they captured,” Livia added.

“I’m hesitating about the planning afterward though,” Ryan admitted. “Should we strike the Bliss Factory and then Dynamis?”

“I suggest taking one organization at once,” Livia said. “If neither the Meta-Gang nor Felix make waves, my family will stay more or less dormant until the Olympian meeting. So I propose that we take over the bunker, build that dashing armor of yours, cure the Psychos—”

“And break the Dynamis monopoly?”

Livia nodded. “If their Knockoffs’ true nature is exposed and the supply destroyed, the organization will collapse. We can ensure both Hector Manada and Fallout are removed from power, and leave Enrique in charge of reforming what remains. Alphonse Manada will fight to the bitter end though, and there is the question of your adoptive father.”

“In the end, Len will choose what we do with Bloodstream,” Ryan replied. “I want her father dead for the good of everyone else, but I owe her that much. A choice.”

Livia nodded. “There is also another reason to target Dynamis first. Their Gravity Gun.”

“Their anti-Zeus weapon?” Ryan suspected it used the same technology as Mechron’s variant. “You said it wouldn’t work in your visions.”

“It won’t work with Dynamis, but you have a way of making my visions lie,” Livia replied. “With Dynamis out of the picture… we can focus on my family. We will need to act quickly, as Dynamis’ collapse will embolden Dad. We will have to strike before he can mobilize his organization to take over the city, and for that, we need to decapitate its leadership.”

They would have to take down the Olympians, and then top the rampage by bringing down Mob Zeus.

“Are you sure you want to be involved in the demolition?” Ryan asked. “You can leave this mess to me.”

Livia silently looked at him, her eyes heavy with concern.

“What bothers you?” the courier asked.

“What if he kills you?” His girlfriend asked with concern. “What if my father kills you? Or Aunt Pluto, or Cancel? Or Adam and Fallout?”

“They won’t.” Though deep down, Ryan remembered that all his encounters with Augustus had ended with a thrashing so far. The courier had yet to defeat Fallout in a fight either.

“They can,” she replied, unconvinced. “And if you perish without sending my mind back, I may not trust my notes and submit to the memory transfer.”

Ryan tried not to think of that possibility. “If I die, and if I reload, I will come to you, and we will find a way.”

“How?”

“I don’t know,” her boyfriend admitted, “but I will find a way. There is no such a thing as a plan guaranteed to work, and I…”

“You what?” Livia asked with a frown.

“I watched you die before,” Ryan replied, remembering the time Big Fat Adam blew up the Bliss Factory alongside Len and Livia. “I watched almost everyone outside die at least once. I can’t let that happen again. Even for the sake of memories.”

“That’s why I can’t let you fight my family alone, Ryan. The risk for us to lose everything is too great.” Livia gathered her breath, trying to process her feelings. “I can’t continue making excuses either. Not after watching this pointless bloodbath unfold. I… I love my father, and my aunt, but they are so few, and they will kill so many. I can’t close my eyes on this truth, even if it hurts.”

Instead of speaking a word, Ryan moved his arms around his girlfriend’s hips and hugged her. Livia rested her head against his shoulder, eyes closed.

“Thanks for being there, Ryan,” she said softly. “I… you can’t imagine how good it feels. To have someone there to support you, no matter how harsh the circumstances.”

“I return you the sentiment,” he replied, kissing her on the cheek. “Thanks for helping make this right, partner.”

She looked at him, and smiled.

Ryan prayed he would see that face again, for many years to come.

“So,” Livia said. “Knowing this plan, who will you take with you?”

“You and Len, obviously,” Ryan replied. “Bianca, because it will make the ogre hunt easier. Atom Kitten, because he will do something stupid otherwise, and Shroud, because I need a new windshield.”

“This leaves one spot open,” Livia said. “I can bring Fortuna as reinforcements, even if her mind isn’t sent back in time, so we need to pick the right ally.”

“Wardrobe,” Ryan said immediately.

Livia looked a tiny bit jealous, to his amusement. “Seriously, Ryan.”

“The Panda.”

“You’re sure?”

“Certain.” After all his achievements, Ryan’s Pandawan deserved a spot on the team. Besides, he could help strike the bunker early, unlike Leo Hargraves or even Mr. Wave. “Although...”

“Although?”

“I usually have ‘joyride runs’ before wrapping things up,” Ryan said. “To try all the things I won’t be able to do after my Perfect Run. Like, you know, prank your dad, send Luigi to space… we could do that together.”

Livia shook her head. “No, Ryan. It’s kind of you to propose that, but no.”

“You’re sure? It would have been amazing.”

“I know, Ryan, but you need to die with each reload. And even if we find a way to make the memory transfer painless, each new loop increases the chance that you perish early and that I… that we have to begin again.” She took his hands into her own. “I care more about us than having fun.”

So did he.

"Or..." Livia smirked. "Or you could save right after we send everyone's memories back in time. That way, everyone will keep their memories, even if you die and reload forcefully."

Ryan frowned, and gave the idea some thought. "The problem is, if I save and I missed something-"

"You will save within ten seconds of the reload," Livia interrupted him with a chuckle. "What difference could ten seconds make?"

Good point. It wasn't something Ryan usually did, but well... he was open to new experiences, and it cost nothing to try.

It was time to begin his Perfect Run.

这一轮会像上一轮一样，在索伦托结束。

至少这回没有一大群血淋淋的变异怪物追着瑞恩跑，但意识到这一点，他心里依然满是苦涩。他知道，因果总会设法重回正轨，而他这个快递员终将打破那条通向毁灭的锁链。可他在新罗马已经待了几个星期，甚至几个月，结识了几十个当地人，有英雄，也有恶棍。眼看这座城市再度陷入火海，他心中怒火翻涌。

自从在摩纳哥首次达成完美通关以来，这位快递员还从未如此坚定地想要救下这些人。

只有裹尸布、菲利克斯和阳光获准跟他前往会面地点：正是上一轮以惨剧收场后，瑞恩读档时所在的那栋建筑。一行人顺利穿过了由伏尔甘制造的数百座炮塔组成的防线。

只有原子小猫和透明人全副装扮地来了；利奥·哈格雷夫斯维持着人类形态，一路走得气喘吁吁，瑞恩则穿着波动先生赠送的一身潇洒西装。

“你是不是忘了怎么走路？”瑞恩问体力不支的阳光，“不好意思，我怀里只抱落难少女，或者迷路的小猫。”

“原子猎犬怎么样？”菲利克斯问，“拿来当新名字，你觉得好不好听？”

“在我听来就是原子小狗。”瑞恩答道。菲利克斯叹了口气，明白自己是躲不过这份嘲弄了。

哈格雷夫斯笑了笑，笑容里却没多少喜悦。“能力用得越久，我就越不愿意变回人类。”他坦白道，“有时我连续几周都不恢复正常，常常还会忘记自己能变回来。”

“你的能力会影响心理健康？”菲利克斯问。这时他们来到了灰色的加固门前，一个摄像头正对着他们。

“某种程度上，是的。”阳光承认，“我内心有一部分想抛下人性，永远做一轮光芒四射的太阳。以前我不明白为什么，但见过炼金术师后，疑惑就解开了。”

“这不是漏洞，”瑞恩说，“这是功能。”

阳光与自身灵药之间的联系极其紧密，或许不亚于瑞恩自己。他们两人都比大多数人更接近所谓的“升格”。瑞恩还没有完全理解这个过程意味着什么，不过，转化为彩色领域的居民，是其中必有的一环。

也许有朝一日，哈格雷夫斯真会成为一颗太阳，离开地球，照亮宇宙中某个黑暗的角落。瑞恩觉得，总好过他烧掉地球的大气层，或者酿成更大的灾难。

“是的。所以只要不需要动用能力，我都会尽量保持人类形态。整天飘在天上，就会渐渐无法理解地上的人。”阳光忽然想到什么，皱起了眉，“不知道奥古斯都是不是也有同样的情况。跟我不同，他没法变回人类形态。”

“关于他的那些传闻，只要有一半是真的，那他从一开始就是个烂透了的混账。”裹尸布答道。

“我知道。”哈格雷夫斯叹了口气，“可我内心还是有一部分希望，没有外力影响，人性不会残忍到这种地步。”

瑞恩想起第一次和莉维娅约会时，自己撞见廉价宙斯在自家厨房里扮雕像。当时他把这归咎于老糊涂了，现在回想起来，闪电屁股大概和他的死敌患上了相似的症状。沉睡在他体内的力量想化作一尊金属雕像，坚不可摧，任何东西都无法伤它分毫。而且年纪越大，这股冲动就越难抵抗。

大门迅速打开，一只披着人形的金毛寻回犬立刻扑到了菲利克斯身上。那恶兽把可怜的小猫当水果一样榨，挤得他倒抽一口气；瑞恩则用挑剔的目光打量着她一身白色的衣装。十分满分，能给六分，顶多七分。

“你这个傻子，白痴，蠢货！”福尔图娜在如此短的时间里骂出了如此多花样繁复的话，瑞恩的大脑自动屏蔽了一半。“你这个没心没肺的小……”

“嗨，姐——”菲利克斯话还没说完，福尔图娜就一巴掌抽在他脸上，力道大得打裂了他的面具。“喂！”

“这还算轻的！”她回了一句，随即又泪眼汪汪地抱住了他。“你这个白痴……你差点就死了……你要是死了，我……”

原子猫沉默片刻，随后回抱住哭泣的姐姐。“对不起，让你担心了。”他说，而且是真心的。

又有两个女孩从楼里走了出来，一个是风风火火的少女，另一个则是位优雅的淑女。“菲利克斯！”小纳尔西妮娅立刻加入了这个拥抱，能再次见到没有血缘关系的哥哥，她喜不自胜。“谢天谢地，你还活着！”

“我在呢，纳尔茜。”菲利克斯轻声说，“我在呢。”

利奥望着纳尔西妮娅，愁眉不展，瑞恩却没怎么留意她。他的眼里只有自己的姑娘。

莉维娅迈过门槛，穿着她钟爱的黑色外套，里面也配着深色衣装。那身打扮衬得她的皮肤和头发愈发浅淡，眼圈的红也越发分明。

她哭过了。瑞恩意识到。她为新罗马哭过。

两人谁也没有开口。他们不需要说话。恋人只是紧紧相拥，让双手代替了言语。

与此同时，韦兰姐弟已经分开，福尔图娜终于注意到了男友。“马蒂亚斯。”

“福尔图娜。”他答道，用能力褪去玻璃头盔，“很高兴你——”

他没来得及说完，她就吻住了他的嘴。裹尸布先是一怔，随即伸出双臂，羞涩地回拥住女友。

利奥、莉维娅和瑞恩都看得微笑起来，福尔图娜的弟妹却是一脸受不了。“噫。”纳尔西妮娅嫌弃地出了声，菲利克斯则表情古怪。

“不许对我未来老公‘噫’！”福尔图娜结束亲吻后说道。

“老公？”马蒂亚斯惊恐地问。

“你要娶我。”他的女友答得理所当然，“我原本对我们的关系还剩一点疑虑，但看到你帮忙救下我弟弟，那点疑虑也没了。我们注定要在一起，这一次，我不会再放你走。永远不会。”

“哇，你这跳过了不少步骤啊。”马蒂亚斯回道，不过抗议的力度倒没瑞恩预料的那么大。

“可你连戒指都有了！”福尔图娜抗议，“只要开口求婚就行！”

“我哪有什么……”那块专吸引擦窗工的人形磁铁僵在原地，检查了一下玻璃盔甲，发现腰间不知怎么卡着一枚金戒指。他重重地叹了口气。“原来是这么回事。”

“没退路了，隐形小子。”瑞恩提醒他。

马蒂亚斯翻了个白眼，随即轻轻将女友推开一点。“咱们按部就班来，好吗？”他问她，“慢慢来，先看看能不能处上几年？”

“哦，当然。”她自信地答道，“我知道一定能成。”

瑞恩轻笑一声，转头看向自己的女友。“你被软禁了，我的小姐？”

“是她们。”莉维娅松开怀抱，“不过，我也不是孤立无援。西尔维奥叔叔今天把守卫都支走了。”

“尼普顿？”裹尸布问，他的女友正用双臂挽住他的左臂。“他为什么会让我们碰面？”

“因为我告诉他，这是我能看到的唯一一条通向和平的路。”她叹了口气，“在父亲最亲近的合作者里，他是唯一一个头脑清醒的人。”

“我们不在的时候发生了什么？”玻璃人问。

莉维娅垂眼看着地面，双手伸向瑞恩。男友握住了她的手指，她用力回握。

“你们逃走之后，父亲认定你们和迪纳米斯结了盟，所以……”奥古斯蒂的公主望向新罗马。即便距离那座大都市已有几公里远，依然能看见天空中的浓烟。“所以他决定发动攻势。我想尽了一切办法，阻止局势升级，或者至少拖延一下，可是……”

“奥古斯都早就下定了决心。”裹尸布猜道。他母亲的预言早已说过，闪电屁股迟早会彻底暴走，因果不容违逆。

“是的。”莉维娅悲伤地说，“我父亲一直都打算对迪纳米斯下手。极乐工厂被毁，菲利克斯又试图带走纳尔西妮娅，冲突便再也无法避免。埃克托召回了辐尘，把企业军队的指挥权交给了他，如今战争即将吞没整个欧洲。”

瑞恩几乎能尝到她声音里的愧疚。她帮男友摧毁了极乐工厂，因此将随之而来的战争归咎于自己。“这不是你的错，莉维娅。”快递员安慰道，“你已经尽力了。”

“我没有。”她满心悔恨地答道，菲利克斯则用一种奇异的目光注视着她。“我有过好几年的时间，瑞恩。我本可以用那几年的时间采取更果断的措施，阻止这场灾难。我以为……我以为只要外部环境变了，父亲就不会大肆破坏。因为他待我温柔，我就替他对别人的残忍开脱。 我选择了视而不见，我错了。问题在他，瑞恩。全都在他，而他永远不会改变。”

纳尔西妮娅发现阳光正望着自己，不由得紧张起来。“我是利奥·哈格雷夫斯。”那位光辉的圣骑士自我介绍，语声亲切而温暖。“有些人叫我活体太阳利奥。”

“我知道。”纳尔西妮娅有些胆怯，“我爸妈恨你。”

裹尸布面色一僵，利奥却摇了摇头。“不，他们不恨我。”他的声音沉了下去，“你的父母是我的朋友。”

他摸了摸衣服，取出一张旧照片，递到纳尔西妮娅眼前。瑞恩瞥了一眼，照片上是一对夫妇和他们年幼的孩子。男人体格壮实，像个伐木工，黑发下是一双熟悉的蓝眼睛。至于那个女人……她棕色的头发，脸颊上的雀斑，含笑的面庞……

纳尔西妮娅只继承了父亲的眼睛，至于其他地方，她和母亲简直像得惊人。

“这是你的父亲布鲁诺·科斯塔，还有他的妻子朱莉。他们是我见过最善良的人之一。而这个孩子……”利奥用手指点了点那个孩子。“这个孩子就是你，朱莉娅。”

纳尔西妮娅一言不发地接过照片，哥哥姐姐在一旁看着。菲利克斯几乎压不住怒火，福尔图娜则显然不知该说什么。

“我认识你父母时，你已经出生好几年了。你才几岁大的时候，我还抱过你。”利奥继续说道，“你的父母……你的父母是英雄。你父亲是黄系，能够切开一切，你母亲则是绿系，拥有改变生命的能力。他们齐心协力，想让这颗焦土遍布的星球重新披上绿装，直到奥古斯都杀了他们，把你掳走。”

“不。”纳尔西妮娅不肯接受。“不。不可能。我的父母，我真正的父母，是掠夺者。他们死有余辜。”

“他说的是真的，纳尔西妮娅。”莉维娅看着照片，眼中满是遗憾和愧疚，仿佛做下那件惨事的人是她自己。“他们才是你真正的父母。玛尔斯和维纳斯说的一切都是谎言。”

“不可能！”纳尔西妮娅反驳，望向姐姐，想寻求支持。“福尔图娜，你说句话啊！”

“纳尔茜，莉薇从来不会错。而我们的父母……我们的父母想杀掉菲利克斯，就因为雅努斯教父让他们这么做。”幸运女孩将男友的胳膊抱得更紧，弟弟则扭过头去，在沉默中压抑着怒火。“连这种事他们都做得出来，那他们就什么都干得出来。”

“奥古斯都杀害了你的父母。”利奥继续说，语气里的痛楚毫无遮掩。“他……他趁我不在杀了他们，把你带走。之后，他让巴克斯摧毁了你的心智，让你忘掉家人，又把你交给了迟迟怀不上第三个孩子的玛尔斯和维纳斯。”

“奥古斯都还杀了住在你母亲农场里的五十个人。”裹尸布厌恶地补充道，“他烧光了她用能力培育的作物。那些植物本来有望消除饥荒，净化全球受到辐射污染的地区。”

“为什么？”莉维娅问，纳尔西妮娅则惊恐地用一只手捂住了嘴。

“因为你父亲根本不是什么皇帝，而是个丧心病狂的军阀。他给不了任何人未来，除了力量，什么都不信。这个。”裹尸布指向天空中的烟云。“这个才是他理想中的世界。火与灰烬。”

“我知道。”莉维娅冷冷地说，“我知道。”

利奥·哈格雷夫斯与奥古斯蒂的公主四目相对。那轮善解人意的太阳明白了她为何如此不安。

“朱诺遭遇的事，是一个错误。”利奥·哈格雷夫斯说，“我不会为此道歉，因为无辜者的死，没有任何东西能够开脱。目的永远不能成为不择手段的理由。在这一点上，你鄙视我，完全有道理。”

“你杀了我母亲，哈格雷夫斯先生，即便那是一场意外，我也没有力量去原谅你。”莉维娅长长地、沉重地叹了口气，“但我父亲必须被阻止。他今天的所作所为是暴行，无法辩解……无论我心里有多想替他辩解。我不会再替他找借口了。再也不会。你说得对，任何理由都不能为滥杀无辜开脱，而我父亲杀害的无辜者，比你这一生可能杀死的还多了无数倍。”

“所以你会帮我们扳倒他？”裹尸布问。莉维娅坚定地点了点头。

“我向你保证，一旦你父亲被阻止，他的组织被瓦解，我愿意为你母亲的死接受审判，无论你认为该怎样审判。”哈格雷夫斯向奥古斯蒂的公主承诺。

“如果我们能阻止他的话。”裹尸布说着，看向瑞恩。

“这事交给我。”快递员答道，“朱庇特赢了第一回合，但萨图恩又回到牌桌上了。”

莉维娅没有接话，于是纳尔西妮娅抬头望向哈格雷夫斯。“再多告诉我一些。关于我的……”少女清了清嗓子。“关于我的父母。”

“我会的。”阳光答应。他已经为此等了许多年。

利奥·哈格雷夫斯开始向纳尔西妮娅讲述自己如何结识她亲生父母的往事，马蒂亚斯则将福尔图娜拉到一旁，握住她的双手。瑞恩猜，自己这位半透明的朋友需要坦白一下，他究竟如何看待两人的关系。

这下只剩菲利克斯了，他和前女友尴尬地对视了一眼。“莉维娅？”

“菲利克斯。”莉维娅回道，语气半是冷淡，半是局促。

“对不起，我甩了你。”他直截了当地说，随即又想了想。“呃，不，也不完全是这个意思。我换个说法。”

妈的，跟他一比，蕾恩都算口齿伶俐了。

“我依然认为离开奥古斯蒂是正确的决定，这一点我不会改口。”原子猫接着说，“但我当时不必把事情做得那么绝。我知道，你承受着很大的压力，要在组织里斡旋调停。看到新罗马燃烧的时候……我意识到，你一直在设法阻止这场灾难。”

“不，菲利克斯。”莉维娅摇摇头，声音有些哽咽。“离开这个腐烂的帝国，你是对的。我知道你对我是什么感觉。只是……我明白我们为什么不可能走下去。父母把我们推到了一起，可我们都还没准备好。”

“可你身处两难的境地，我不该为此指责你。要是你也走了，奥古斯都就会彻底失去约束。我可以责怪杰米和基贞视而不见，但我现在明白了，你是在试着从内部阻止你父亲。”菲利克斯尴尬地挠了挠后脑勺。“说这么多，其实就是……我希望我们还能做朋友，即便发生过这一切。”

“可以的。”莉维娅露出一丝微笑，“不过，现在不是讨论如何修复关系的时候。”

“不，当然不是。”菲利克斯窘迫地看向瑞恩。“抱歉，快存，你们两个现在正在交往，我想这番话一定让你挺尴尬的……”

“呵，只有不信任伴侣的人才会吃醋。”瑞恩答道，让莉维娅的脸颊微微一红。“没事，小猫咪。”

菲利克斯不好意思地移开视线，随后挺直了身子。“祝你们好运。”

原子小猫匆匆走向利奥和纳尔西妮娅，将这对恋人留在原地独处；马特和福尔图娜则在几步之外敞开心扉交谈。菲利克斯愿意努力与曾经抛下的人重建联系，瑞恩很高兴。他依然认为小猫有权离开那个有毒的家庭环境，可当时他扔掉坏的，也把好的全丢了。

“说真的，”瑞恩低声对女友说，“我们刚认识的时候，我从没想过你和阳光会站到同一边。”

“我不喜欢他。”她领着瑞恩走进楼内，“但我信任你。”

他跟着她穿过走廊，走进一间私人卧室。墙壁黄得刺眼，正对床的地方放着一幅画。虽然尚未完成，瑞恩还是认出了自己的上半身，画里的他正横抱着莉维娅，犹如抱着新娘。女友一定是在他从南极回来前几天开始画的。

“我很想你，瑞恩。”莉维娅在身后关上门，“你不在，日子很难熬。”

“我说过的。”他温柔地答道，“我总会回来。”

“你的冬季假期过得怎么样？”

“你没收到我的消息吗，公主？”

“收到了，但我想听你用这张甜甜的嘴亲口说。”

“旅途相当愉快。”他抚着她的头发答道，“我消灭了光明会和蜥蜴人，还突袭了51区。”

“你消灭了暗中操纵我们政府的主子，居然不带上我？”她噘起嘴，“不过，至少还给我们留了个中情局吧。”

“迪纳米斯那个军工复合体算不算？”他将额头抵上她的额头，近得能闻到她温热的吐息。“你说等我回来，有件事要告诉我。”

她红了脸，随即避开他的目光。“听起来会很老套。”

“就不能颠覆一下我的预期？”瑞恩问，逗得莉维娅轻笑起来。“好啦，开玩笑的。没有糟糕的老套，只有糟糕的表达。关键在于是不是真心。”

莉维娅移到他正面，双臂环住他的脖子，直视着男友的眼睛。瑞恩扶住她的腰，细细端详她的神情。她双颊泛起鲜明的粉红，咬着下唇，努力鼓起开口的勇气。终于，奥古斯蒂的公主深深吸了一口气，说出了四个词。

“我爱你，瑞恩。”

而她的男友竟不知道该怎样回答。

“天哪，你居然说不出话了。”莉维娅腼腆地笑着，“没想到吧？”

“确实没想到。”瑞恩承认，心脏漏跳了一拍。他……他已经很久没听到这句话了。“我本来做好了最坏的准备，比如‘我不喜欢你的车’，或者‘我怀孕了’。那方面我们没做任何防范。”

“瑞恩，从我们第一次约会起，我就在吃避孕药了。”

“等等，你早知道我们最后会在椭圆形办公室里扮比尔和莫妮卡？”

“我……”他的公主害羞时实在可爱。“我并不知道，可我……我从一开始就有点盼着会这样。”

“你以前从没跟别人说过‘我爱你’？”

“我说过‘我爱你，爸爸’、‘我爱你，妈妈’、‘我爱你，菲利克斯’……但从来没有说过‘我爱你，瑞恩’。”莉维娅的脸颊竟然还能更红，唇边露出一个难为情的笑。“真对不起，这话在我脑子里明明好听多——”

她还没说完，男友便吻住了她。瑞恩热烈地拥紧她，弥补分离的数周时光，而她以同样炽烈的渴望回应。过了很久很久，两人的唇终于分开，快递员也在她耳边低语了一句。

“我也爱你，公主。”

瑞恩沉醉在她的蓝眼睛里。他爱她那一头浅到近乎银色的白金发，爱她唇间的滋味、甜美的声音、善良的心，还有那些可爱的表情；他爱她会被自己的笑话逗笑，让他不再觉得自己是无知之海中一座孤零零的文化之岛。

“台词说得完美。”莉维娅的手指探进他的发间，“要不要再来一条？”

他们又来了一条，接着为了保险起见，又拍了第三条。然后他把她抱上床，开始拍摄未删减的导演剪辑版。

“我知道我们认识的时间还不长，可是……”莉维娅的双手抚过他的肩，“我已经很久没对一个男孩有过这样的感觉了。”

“我也爱过别人。”瑞恩温柔地抱着她，“但这是第一次，我觉得这份爱会长久。”

“我想让它长久。”她吻着他的脖子，在亲吻的间隙轻声说，“我想和你一起经历下一轮，阻止那场可怕的悲剧。我想和你住在同一间公寓里，一起做早餐。我想和你去滑雪，也想去海边。我想和你在一起。”

“我很想你。”他答道。在那幸福的一瞬，瑞恩彻底忘记了嘉年华、血流、迪纳米斯、奥古斯都，以及其他所有的一切。

他心里只有她。

---

和所有美好的事物一样，它结束得太快了。

“我们该走了。”莉维娅重新穿好黑色外套，“他们会猜我们在干什么的。”

“就说我们办了场私人放映。”瑞恩耸耸肩，殷勤地帮她梳理头发。“我觉得我们已经准备好盛大开幕了。”

“你说现在能带六个人一起回去？”莉维娅轻笑，“每种颜色一个？要不要叫自己彩虹战士？”

“彩色八人组？”瑞恩提议。

“你数学挺差的，是不是？”

“这叫精妙的策略。这样一来，敌人就会一直琢磨，那个没露面的成员究竟是谁。未知才能激发恐惧。谁知道呢，我们的第八位基因者说不定就是梅克隆。”

穿戴完毕后，莉维娅坐到靠在床上的瑞恩腿上。“那么？”女友问道，“谁会加入这支必胜之队？”

“我欢迎建议。纳尔西妮娅怎么样？我们还缺个跟班小孩。”

“我的计划是现在给她做一份思维图谱，但不传送她的意识。”莉维娅说，“下一轮，只要我和菲利克斯开口，她就会自愿接受记忆上传。”

“莉维娅，我们不能把一个神父、一堆毒品和一个还没到青春期的小姑娘留在岛上，不闻不问。”瑞恩开玩笑道，“这么凑在一起，迟早要招来联邦调查局突袭，再拍成一部真实犯罪视频。这还没提地下室里的那些人呢……”

“要救出那些极乐的实验对象，我们就得提早突袭工厂，到时候纳尔西妮娅和巴克斯都还在里面。我可以把那间密室的事告诉纳尔西妮娅，她会给受害者提供医疗援助，但巴克斯会因此把她禁足。我们必须强行把她从岛上救出来。”

瑞恩觉得这倒是件好事。他发过誓，要把巴克斯埋在他自己的设施下面，而且打算说到做到。

“好，目前的时间表是这样。”快递员试着把一切理顺。“读档后，我立刻给脑残打电话，让他尽快赶到新罗马。然后用盗墓贼的手法料理食尸鬼，完成我的快递——”

“最后这步有必要吗？”莉维娅挑起一边眉毛。

“快存使命必达，不管要试多少次！”瑞恩很自豪，自己正用一次又一次爆炸推动邮政改革。

“有二十四小时送达服务吗？”莉维娅狡黠地一笑，“我倒是可以试着下个单。”

“有啊。”他说，抬手托住她的下巴，“不过，只对合适的人开放。”

她放声笑了起来。那是瑞恩在漫长、漫长的一生中，迄今听过最美妙的声音。“好吧，瑞恩。”他的公主笑着说，“然后，我们就带着所有你能送回来的人，在地堡会合，单方面痛殴食人魔亚当。”

“我就爱听你说这种我懂的话。”

“既然你读档后仅仅几个小时，我们就会攻打超能帮，那么他们抓走的每一个锈镇居民，我们应该都救得下来。”莉维娅补充道。

“不过后面的安排，我还拿不准。”瑞恩承认，“先打极乐工厂，再打迪纳米斯？”

“我建议一次只对付一个组织。”莉维娅说，“只要超能帮和菲利克斯都不惹出动静，我们家族在奥林匹斯会议之前基本不会有什么动作。所以我提议，先占领地堡，造出你那套潇洒的盔甲，治好疯魔——”

“然后打破迪纳米斯的垄断？”

莉维娅点头。“只要揭露仿制灵药的真相，再摧毁供应，这个组织就会崩溃。我们可以确保埃克托·马纳达和辐尘双双失势，留下恩里克来改革剩下的部分。不过，阿尔方斯·马纳达会死战到底，还有你养父的问题需要处理。”

“最终怎么处置血流，由蕾恩决定。”瑞恩回答，“为了其他所有人好，我希望她父亲死，但至少这一点是我欠她的。给她一个选择。”

莉维娅点了点头。“先对付迪纳米斯，还有另一个理由。他们的重力枪。”

“他们那件反宙斯武器？”瑞恩怀疑它和梅克隆的版本用了同样的技术。“你说过，在你的预见中，它不管用。”

“在迪纳米斯手里不管用，可你总有办法让我的预见出错。”莉维娅答道，“等迪纳米斯退出舞台……我们就能集中精力对付我的家族。必须快，因为迪纳米斯一垮，爸爸就会更加肆无忌惮。我们得赶在他动员组织、接管整座城市之前下手。为此，必须斩首他们的领导层。”

他们必须打倒奥林匹斯众神，最后再用击败黑帮宙斯，为这一场横扫收尾。

“你确定要参与这场拆迁？”瑞恩问，“这摊烂事可以交给我。”

莉维娅默默看着他，眼里满是忧虑。

“你在担心什么？”快递员问。

“万一他杀了你呢？”女友忧心忡忡地问，“万一我父亲杀了你呢？或者普鲁托姑姑、消除者呢？亚当和辐尘呢？”

“他们杀不了我。”可瑞恩心里记得很清楚，迄今为止，每次遇到奥古斯都，最后都是自己被暴打一顿。而且他也从没在战斗中赢过辐尘。

“他们有这个本事。”她并不信服，“如果我的意识还没送回去，你就死了，我可能不会相信自己的笔记，也不会接受记忆转移。”

瑞恩尽量不去想这种可能。“如果我死了，如果我读档了，我就会来找你，我们总能找到办法。”

“怎么找？”

“我不知道，”她的男友承认，“但我会找到的。没有任何计划能保证成功，而我……”

“你怎么了？”莉维娅皱起眉。

“我曾经眼睁睁看着你死去。”瑞恩答道，想起大胖亚当炸毁极乐工厂、将蕾恩和莉维娅也一并炸死的那一次。“外面的那些人，几乎每一个我都至少看着他们死过一次。我不能让那种事再发生。哪怕是为了保住记忆，也不行。”

“所以我才不能让你独自对抗我的家族，瑞恩。我们失去一切的风险太大了。”莉维娅缓了口气，努力理清自己的情绪。“我也不能继续找借口了。亲眼看着这场毫无意义的血腥屠杀发生之后，就更不能。我……我爱我的父亲，也爱我的姑姑，可他们只有那么几个人，却会杀死那么多人。这个事实，我不能视而不见，即便它让我痛苦。”

瑞恩没有说话，只是伸出双臂环住女友的腰胯，将她拥入怀中。莉维娅闭上眼，将头靠在他的肩上。

“谢谢你一直在，瑞恩。”她轻声说，“我……你想象不到这种感觉有多好。无论境况多艰难，都有一个人陪着你，支持你。”

“我也一样。”他答道，亲了亲她的脸颊。“谢谢你帮我拨乱反正，搭档。”

她望着他，笑了。

瑞恩祈祷，往后的许多年里，自己都能再看见这张笑脸。

“那么，”莉维娅说，“计划清楚了，你打算带谁回去？”

“你和蕾恩，当然。”瑞恩答道，“比安卡，因为有她在，猎杀食人魔会容易些。原子小猫，不然他会干出蠢事。还有裹尸布，因为我需要一块新的挡风玻璃。”

“这样还剩一个名额。”莉维娅说，“就算不把福尔图娜的意识送回过去，我也能带她来支援，所以最后得选对盟友。”

“衣橱。”瑞恩立刻答道。

莉维娅看上去有那么一点吃醋，令他暗自发笑。“认真点，瑞恩。”

“熊猫。”

“你确定？”

“确定。”立了这么多功，瑞恩的熊猫学徒值得在队里占上一席。况且，与利奥·哈格雷夫斯甚至波动先生不同，他能帮忙提早突袭地堡。“不过……”

“不过？”

“收尾之前，我通常会先来几轮‘兜风循环’。”瑞恩说，“试试那些完美通关之后就没法做的事。比如，你懂的，恶作剧捉弄一下你爸，把路易吉送上太空……我们可以一起。”

莉维娅摇了摇头。“不了，瑞恩。你愿意邀请我，我很高兴，但还是不了。”

“你确定？那一定会很精彩。”

“我知道，瑞恩，可你每次读档都得死一次。就算我们找到了无痛转移记忆的办法，每多一个循环，你提前死去的风险就会多一分，到时候我……我们又得从头开始。”她握住他的双手。“比起玩乐，我更在乎我们。”

他也一样。

“或者……”莉维娅狡黠地笑了。“把大家的记忆送回过去后，你可以立刻存档。这样，就算你死了，被迫读档，大家也都能保留记忆。”

瑞恩皱起眉，认真想了想这个主意。“问题是，如果我存了档，却有什么事没顾到——”

“你在读档后的十秒之内就会存档。”莉维娅轻笑着打断他，“十秒钟，能有多大区别？”

有道理。瑞恩平时不这么干，不过嘛……他愿意尝试新体验，试一试又没什么损失。

是时候开始他的完美通关了。