It took a couple of hours before Primis and I had recovered from the effects of the centrifuge. Surprisingly, I was the first to do so and took the opportunity to explain to the others what had actually transpired back in Kino der Toten. Well, minus the passionate moment between Richtofen and I...
Takeo and Nikolai quietly listened to everything I told them - unlike Dempsey. Instead, every time I tried to explain what happened; I was constantly interrupted by, profanity laden, indignant outbursts from Dempsey. But I understood his feelings of anger and it was just his way of dealing with it.
Strangely, I wasn't even perturbed or irate when the guys told me what Richtofen had done. The fact he had lied and told them that Primis and I were dead didn't really phase me. I guess it just made sense for him to do so. How else was he going to get the guys to leave the theatre with him?
However, when Dempsey told me that the others had believed Richtofen - I read between the lines. I wasn't angry at Takeo or Nikolai for doing so but I could clearly see that the fact Dempsey hadn't been listened to by them had hurt him deeply.
Everyone knew that Richtofen was deceitful and not to be trusted; but Dempsey had known deep down that Richtofen had lied about what really happened. But, the worst part about the whole matter seemed to be that Dempsey had felt betrayed by his comrades. He even went to great pains to tell me how he had begged and pleaded for them to trust him yet they never fully did so.
I tried my best to reassure him; but, truthfully, the problem was between them. The theatre had been absolutely overrun with undead and it was a miraculous intervention by Samantha which saved Primis' life. Speaking of Samantha, it now came the time to tell the others about my deal with Maxis.
"Primis and I were both contacted by Samantha... and Dr Maxis", I announced to the guys. They all turned to look at one another in confusion.
"That little girl can contact you? And who's this Maxis guy?" Dempsey asked with a frown.
"She had been communicating with me through my dreams until..." I paused as they all waited for me to continue. I let out a sigh before speaking.
"She wanted me to kill Richtofen... but I refused. So she stopped contacting me until the day the theatre was overrun. Well, she didn't really contact me that day. When Primis was knocked unconscious by Richtofen he would've been killed that day without Samantha's intervention", I explained.
"So you mean we coulda just killed the kraut and been done with all this?!" Dempsey asked in shock.
"Oh it's not that simple, Dempsey. Anyways, Samantha contacted both me and Primis to allow her father, Dr Maxis, to speak with us", I said as Dempsey's brow furled further. Takeo and Nikolai were still quietly listening to everything.
"I knew from the story that you guys would come here via the lander. But, we were still stuck in the theatre with no way of getting to Russia on time", I explained.
"So how did you make it to Motherland so fast? Must've been some pretty good vodka", Nikolai asked with a drunken hiccup.
"Maxis is trapped in something called the Aether. It's pretty much the glue that holds this universe together. Samantha is in a realm called Agartha. But, I know that her physical body is trapped within a device on the Moon which Richtofen is trying to get to", I explained slowly to make sure everyone kept up. After answering their questions; I then continued.
"Samantha is in control of the undead and her father is telling her what to do. So when he asked her to bring Primis and I to him; he promised us that he would get us to the cosmodrome on time... in exchange for one thing. He ask me to kill Richtofen just like Samantha did - but this time, he made sure to bargain when all our chips were down", I explained.
"So I said I would - to get us here. But, if I don't follow through, the undead will hunt me like they do to Richtofen", I said quietly as I looked down at my hands. Everyone stayed silent as they processed everything I said. Then, Takeo finally spoke.
"Will you follow through or was your promise hollow without the will behind it?" Takeo enquired, ready to analyse my response.
"Well, Richtofen isn't even with you. I don't even know when he will arrive here now. But - Maxis obviously knew this. He knew there was no rush to get to the cosmodrome yet he used my ignorance of this to force me to make a deal - which'll cost me my life if I don't follow through", I explained as I walked through my thought process.
"You may not realise this, especially you Dempsey..." I said with a chuckle as I looked at the man in question.
"Maxis is far worse than Richtofen--" I began before being cut off by Dempsey.
"Hahaha ha! Don't be silly, Richtofen's the biggest piece of shit on two legs!" Dempsey cried with laughter - laughter which quickly turned to silence when he serious look on my face.
"He's far more ruthless, far more vengeful and far more callous than Richtofen could ever be. There's a point in the storyline which is a great example", I began.
"When Richtofen wins and controls the undead, Maxis convinces a group of people - we call them Victis - to help him instead of Richtofen. So we had a choice in the game to either help Richtofen or Maxis; but the irony is when we help Maxis he just leaves Victis for dead. Whereas, we are handsomely rewarded in the game for helping Richtofen", I said before pausing.
"I know it's hard for anyone to see Richtofen as anything but evil. There are people who are made that way and there are those who are rotten to the core. Maxis is most certainly the latter", I explained. This time, Dempsey didn't say a word.
"So you had no intention of killing Richtofen?" Nikolai asked.
"No, Nik. But I feel bad for letting Primis think I would. I had to remove any possibility of Maxis or Samantha doubting my words. He was so shocked when I said yes but I didn't have time to talk it through with him. But I can finally be open and honest now that Maxis has shown his hand. He thinks I'll feel forced to hold up my end of the deal now. But that'snever going to happen", I said unflateringly.
Just as I had finished talking; Primis came over to join us. Everyone else decided to get up to give me and Primis some space to talk. He smiled at me and sat down after giving the others a puzzled look for leaving.
"How are you feeling, Edward?" I asked as I put a hand on his forearm.
"I'm feeling much better. Mein vestibular system has returned to normal", he said as I smiled.
"I need to talk to you about something", I whispered quietly. Primis raised an eyebrow as he waited for me to continue.
"I had to lie to you about wanting to kill Richtofen. I didn't want Maxis or Samantha to become suspicious otherwise we would've never got here. I just said yes because there was no other way to get to the cosmodrome on time. But, it seems Richtofen himself doesn't arrive until later. So, I guess I let Maxis trick me. I'm sorry", I explained before apologising.
"But Maxis vouldn't--", Primis tried to say before I interrupted him.
"He's not the same Maxis as the one you knew - just like you aren't like Richtofen. He's a real bastard. And he really screwed Richtofen over", I said which caused Primis to frown.
"No, don't think what Richtofen did was acceptable. And, a child should've never been anywhere near this kind of experimentation to begin with. But it doesn't detract from the fact that Maxis is extremely dangerous", I said - answering his silent question.
"I'm so sorry I had to lie. I thought I would've had to carry it for much longer before being able to tell you but thankfully I was wrong", I said - my apology sincere. Primis didn't seem angry or upset; he just let out a sigh of relief.
"Oh! Zhank Gött. I didn't vant jou to have to place such a heavy burden on jourshelf", Primis exhaled with relief before worry washed over his face.
"But... Maxis-- zhis Maxis vill know und he'll--", Primis said before I interrupted.
"Yeah, that's the only time he's willing to hold up his end of the bargain. The undead are going to come for me now -- just like Richtofen", I sighed dejectedly. Suddenly, Primis leaned over and hugged me.
"Vhey vill not harm jou -- I vill not allow it", Primis whispered as he held me. I relaxed into the embrace and leant my head against the side of his.
"Thank you. Now I've just got to save Richtofen whilst having Samantha and Maxis trying to kill me", I said dryly and laughed. We finally broke apart as Primis sat back to look at me.
"Ve can do it. Ve can save everyvone... even mein ozher shelf", Primis said with burning determination in his glacial blue eyes.
"I'm going to talk to zhe ozhers. Go get some rest und I vill vake jou later", Primis said with a smile before giving me another hug. I shuffled over to my blanket and wrapped it around me before resting my head on my bag. Before I closed my eyes, I noticed he had a peculiar smile on his face - like he was up to something.
And, sure enough, he was. When I awoke, no one was around. I could hear muffled voices nearby as I slowly got up and followed the sound. I suddenly realised that I must've been asleep for hours as it was now dark outside.
I grabbed my blanket and bag and headed upstairs. The door which led outside was now open; I walked out into the freezing night air after draping my blanket over my shoulders. My shoes crunched on the stony path as I took a right and made my way towards the power switch.
There were no signs of undead for miles but I still kept my guard up. I could now hear the concord of male voices coming from the ground floor of the building which housed the power switch and the launch pad. I walked through the gate and made my way towards the building and looked in.
They were all standing around the table with the Richtofen matroyshka doll. To my surprise, the room seemed to be lined with some kind of decorations. I accidentally kicked a stone which ricocheted off a nearby oil drum as I tried to walk closer. Everyone turned around to look at me.
"Leetil woman, you are too early. We haven't out up the--" Nikolai slurred before Dempsey put a hand over his mouth to silence him.
"Don't ruin the damn surprise!" Dempsey angrily chastised the drunk Russian.
"Ahh, vell. Ve may as vell just show jou", Primis said with a chuckle.
"Bitte, come over", Primis asked as everyone watched me come closer - with a look of bewildermenton my face.
As I got closer, I realised the decorations were little paper snowflakes. And then suddenly, I was hit with a smell of food. I walked in to look at the men before they moved aside to reveal the table. There were plates containing all kinds of food and more paper snowflakes.
"MERRY CHRISTMAS!" Everyone exclaimed in unison. I felt so taken aback.
"Wha--? Awww, did you guys really go to all this bother for me?" I asked as I felt tears building.
"It was his idea", Nikolai laughed and let out a belch before pointing to Primis. I then turned to look at the now blushing German.
"Edward..." I said quietly as I felt overwhelmed. He had been looking down at his boots in a vain attempt to hide his rosy cheeks; before he finally looked up when he heard me say his name. I instinctively ran over to hug him which took him by surprise.
"Thank you for going to all this bother", I whispered.
"And thank you guys for making such an effort", I exclaimed as I turned to look at the others.
Dempsey rubbed the back of his neck as he seemed lost for words, Nikolai raised his vodka bottle and Takeo gave me a nod. I ended up giving them all a hug and wished everyone a Merry Christmas in return. They then brought chairs over to the table as we all sat down to eat.
"Sorry it ain't much", Dempsey said bashfully. Depsite his words, it really was something special - he had cooked so much food for us all. The chicken looked so delicious and the potatoes and vegetables were freshly piping hot.
"Dempsey, this is wonderful. You've done an amazing job", I replied graciously - causing him to blush a little more.
"We made leetil snowflakes from random documents we found around the place. I had much fun making them... unlike Takeo", Nikolai said - giving Takeo a look of disapproval.
"They're absolutely beautiful, Nik", I smiled as Nikolai looked so pleased with himself.
"Anything for leetil woman", Nikolai slurred back with a smile.
We spent the whole evening enjoying the feast. There wasn't much in the facility but the fact everyone had gone to such lengths to decorate the place and make it feel Christmasy really overwhelmed me. We didn't have much in this apocalyptic world - but we had each other.
Later that evening, we sat by the bonfire that Primis made outside. Nikolai was absolutely exhausted from eating so much food and had passed out hugging his vodka. Takeo sat contemplatively watching the flames dance. Dempsey had found some whiskey along with the food and was happily puffing away on a cigarette whilst sipping his dram. Primis stood up before looking down at me.
"I have somezhing for jou, I vill be back in vone minute", he whispered before walking back inside the building. Sure enough, he returned and sat down beside me again.
"I made zhis... for jou", he whispered before handing me a present wrapped in more old documents. I smiled before taking it and carefully removing the layers of paper.
My eyes widened as I held up a necklace. The pendant was piece of meteorite; but not the kind that contained element 115. It had been a normal meteorite as the little piece shimmered in the light from the fire without any eery blue glow. It was absolutely beautiful - especially since I love meteorites.
I had always wanted a meteorite engagement ring when I got married. Imagine the though of a literal extraterrestrial object that had likely travelled millions of miles to land here to become your ring. The meteorite was encased within wire which held the stone in place like a setting. The pendant had a small loop at the top with a piece of cord threaded though. There was also a ring in one end and a little hook on the other.
"Here, let me put it on for jou", Primis said anxiously before picking up the necklace and putting it around my neck. I lifted up my hair as he leaned forward to fasten the necklace. Then, he sat back and looked at me - trying to gauge my response.
"I can't believe you made this for me, Edward", I said, absolutely blown away by his kindness - and the craftsmanship.
"I found some meteorite samples in zhe laboratory. Zhere vas some vire vhich sheemed sturdy enough to set zhe stone... und zhe cord vas just lying around", Primis stuttered anxiously. I leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek before hugging him. He jumped slightly and tensed before hugging me back.
"It may not have been zhe Christmas jou vanted but I hope zhis vone vas okay", Primis whispered in my ear; causing me to pull back to look at him.
"Don't be daft, it was wonderful. You've made me so happy", I happily chirped back before pulling him close again to hug him.
I looked over Primis' shoulder to see Dempsey had now fallen asleep as he and Nikolai both nursed their bottles. When we broke from the hug, I looked over to see that even Takeo had dozed off. I smiled as the three men looked so adorable. Sleep was something rarely granted to anyone these days. I looked back at Primis who passed me my blanket before we sat with his arm around me.
"I vill keep vatch tonight", Primis whispered with a reassuring smile. I thanked him and snuggled in to rest my head on his chest.
I lay contentedly listening to his heart beat before finally drifting off to sleep.
End of part eight...