Geoffrey Rofal

Geoffrey Rofal was an aberration and (briefly) the head of Rofal Syndicate.

## Personality

Geoffrey was cheerful and inquisitive person. He liked killing, dissecting and torturing people. Geoffrey stated that his own pain was an interesting, if somewhat distracting feeling, and he didn’t completely dislike it. The aberration even outright enjoyed it in some cases such as being truly hurt for the first time or the pain from the wound reminding him of Hector, but didn’t really specifically seek it out. He also had a fondness for taking pieces of corpses from those he killed to keep as souvenirs, and wanted to be feared on his own merits, as opposed to being a nephew of Joseph Rofal. Geoffrey didn’t seem to care much about keeping promises, though he presumably did, to an extent, keep ones given to people he actually liked, such as a promise to not leave the mansion.

## Relationships

### Joseph Rofal

Joseph had raised Geoffrey after the latter’s parents entrusted their child to him. Joseph treated Geoffrey well enough for Geoffrey to like him, want to make him happy and be distraught when Joseph died.

### Jeremiah Colt

Geoffrey liked Colt and considered them kindred spirits. However, after Colt killed Joseph, he became a target for revenge - Geoffrey wanted to not just kill Colt, but first torture him for a long time and make him watch his children die.

### Hector Goffe

Geoffrey referred to Hector as his “very special friend”, but in practice seemed to only view his as a good source of amusement. He didn’t want to deprive himself of that amusement prematurely, and therefore didn’t really want to kill Hector, but when faced with the possibility of someone else doing it, Geoffrey felt that it had to be him if anyone.

### Desmond Grantier

Geoffrey seemed to have clicked instantly with Desmond, becoming fast friends on basis of their similar interests and worldview.

## Appearance

Geoffrey was a nineteen years old man with dark hair and pointed eyebrows. His hair was always sharply cut and combed, and his eyebrows made him look perpetually and indignantly attentive. Geoffrey often wore tailored black suits and ties with black undershirts. He also wore a green balloon hat and a Dominated snake (enormous yellow-and-green boa constrictor) on his shoulders after visiting an amusement park, but lost both shortly after.

## Powers and Abilities

### Reaper perception

Like all aberrations, Geoffrey could see and hear reapers. To him, they appeared as blurry, flickering humans.

### Shadow

*Main article: Aberrations#Shadow*

Geoffrey’s shadow was colored red. Even with only nine people killed, it was strong enough to protect from full-powered (though not soul-powered) punches of a servant using undead vigor and gunshots, though both of those attacks apparently, while not leaving wounds, still caused pain. The shadow could easily cleave a man in two, envelop three people at the same time, bind (though not completely overpower) a servant using undead vigor and even cut through metal, though not as easily as flesh.

With around couple dozen people killed the shadow could mitigate a soul-powered (by a roughly week-old servant) undead vigor punch, leaving Geoffrey with only a snapped rib. It had also been able to stop a speeding bike, although not instantly.

After Geoffrey killed dozens more people in Brighton, an unknown number in Battonburg and possibly other communities, and a few dozen in Delroy, the shadow was strong and large enough to protect him from a point-blank grenade explosion and easily pick up and move a car. Geoffrey was also able to use the shadow to quickly bound between rooftops.

During Calman High Massacre, after Geoffrey killed at least twelve more people, his shadow could even cut through soul-powered (by a roughly month-old servant) iron, though also could still be cut by it in turn. Geoffrey was able to use the shadow for fast movement on land as well, riding it like a wave, and form it into a spinning drill to quickly make holes even in thick iron walls.

### Domination

*Main article: Domination*

Geoffrey had the power of Domination. With between nine and twelve people killed, he seemed to have some trouble perceiving through the puppets’ senses and controlling them with pure thoughts, needing to look at them himself to assess their condition, and gesturing/issuing verbal commands. However, Geoffrey was able to have them accomplish tasks far away from him, so presumably he could still do so, at least in a non-combat environment.

The exact size of his control range is unknown (and was presumably growing with more people killed), but between nine and a couple dozen people killed, it was large enough for his puppets to bring him things from the city and even hunt down his subordinates trying to leave the city, while he himself remained underground. However, it presumably wasn’t large enough to prevent his subordinates from escaping once he left Brighton.

With couple dozen people killed, Geoffrey could talk through the puppets and have them make facial expressions. After killing a few more dozens, Geoffrey controlled dozens of puppets at the same time in complex ways, seemingly without too much difficulty. After an unknown number of killings in Battonburg and possibly other communities, another few dozen in Delroy, and Samuel Goffe, Geoffrey was able to jump into the latter’s body.

With all aforementioned killings put together, Geoffrey’s total kill count seems to be around a hundred people, giving him a wealth of knowledge due to having all their memories.

## History

Geoffrey’s birth was caused by Damian, who orchestrated events in such a way that Geoffrey’s mother, a carrier of Reaper Gene, fell in love with another carrier and became pregnant. He then performed a soul-transfusion on yet to be born Geoffrey with the use of an unknown reaper. Damian initially didn’t tell his reaper Feromas about Geoffrey, wanting it to be a surprise, but then promptly forgot about his existence, leaving Geoffrey to grow up not knowing what he was. Geoffrey was initially raised by his parents, who struggled with him as a child and eventually entrusted him to Joseph Rofal.

Before the events of the story Geoffrey killed at least nine people, with the latest (shortly before start of the story) being a ten year old boy, on whose head Geoffrey dropped a brick. That latest murder presumably led to Geoffrey being not allowed outside of the mansion anymore, due to Officer Mallory witnessing it. Geoffrey escaped legal punishment due to Joseph sending syndicate enforcers to kill Mallory and his daughter, but that led to him encountering Hector.

Interested in the reapers who were following Hector, Geoffrey attempted to inspect them but was stopped by Hector, which led a a fight. During the fight Geoffrey wounded Hector many times and even managed to wound both Bohwanox and Garovel, but ultimately all three were able to escape alive from him due to Hector achieving emergence. However, during the fight Geoffrey killed three syndicate members and continued to do it after he took over the syndicate due to Joseph’s death - his control relied on simply killing any subordinate who failed him or tried to escape. One of his orders was to look for Colt, but the syndicate members were unsuccessful.

Geoffrey was invited to a meeting of Pancake House Five by Vincent Boulder, but wasn’t given right to speak, with Vincent overpowering and silencing him. Geoffrey was almost killed by Roman, but Vincent convinced Roman to spare him by pointing out Geoffrey’s potential usefulness. Due to being in a bad mood after the meeting, Geoffrey decided to torture an advisor of Nathaniel Lumenbel who approached him to find someone to kill the Queen, but ultimately did hear the advisor out and decided to fulfill the request personally.

Geoffrey came to Sescoria and met Desmond, learned about his nature as an aberration and ultimately decided to join forces with Abolish servants due to them both aiming to kill the Queen. Together with Desmond and Moss he attacked Helen and her protectors (Hector, Roman and Lynnette), got one of his ribs snapped by Hector and tore out Lynnette’s eye, but wasn’t able to kill anyone.

After getting Desmond’s help in tracking down Colt, Geoffrey returned to Brighton, only to discover that all his remaining subordinates have fled. To fill the now-empty mansion and amuse himself he made dozens of new puppets and had them interact in various ways. A few days after Geoffrey’s return, Damian had showed up. With the agreement of Geoffrey, Damian took over and started rebuilding the syndicate. Geoffrey learned about his creation from Damian, and then, following Desmond’s tip, departed to chase after Colt.

Geoffrey was able to catch up to Colt, killing dozens more people in the process, but, while he did kill Colt, Geoffrey wasn’t able to get his children or turn Colt into a puppet. Afterwards, Geoffrey intended to return to Sescoria with Moss and get introduced to Abolish reinforcements, but due to Damian killing both Moss and his reaper Ozmere after the latter recognized Feromas, Geoffrey remained in Brighton. After discovering Colt’s cellphone in the coat he took, Geoffrey used it to orchestrate Calman High Massacre due to fearing that Damian will kill Hector before him.

After Geoffrey was killed by Hector, his power remained in the possessed body of Samuel Goffe. The body was taken by Damian and used to make a number of bone rings.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 “I heard you killed five people the other day,” said Geoffrey. “How was it? Did they scream a lot?”

He figured not. “No. They didn’t even know what happened.”

“Ah. I see. Efficiency. That’s less fun, but I can appreciate the preference.”

Colt squinted at him as they walked. “What do you want, kid?”

Geoffrey’s brow receded a little. “Only to get to know you better, Mr. Colt. I like you. We’re kindred spirits, I feel. You’re not like the dullards my uncle usually has working for him.”

“The dullards I used to make a habit of killing, you mean.”

Geoffrey’s smile was full of teeth. “My uncle says you’re a true savage.”

“You should hear what he says about you.”

“Oh? Do tell.”

“That you’re an irreverent pain in the ass with no mind for the consequences of your actions.”

Geoffrey laughed. “He worries too much. Still doesn’t trust me to handle my own affairs. Well, he’s only human, I suppose.” - Excerpt from page 68
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 “Wh-who sent these men to kill you?”

Mallory squinted. “How old are you? You sound like a kid.” At Hector’s silence, he said, “Rofal. Joseph Rofal.”

“Because you’re testifying in court a-against him?”

“Not against him. His little shit stain of a nephew. I was there. I saw him murder that boy. No more than ten years old. Dropped a cinderblock on top of the kid’s head. And then *laughed*. Fuckin’ little bastard--” He broke off for a pained cringe and began coughing. His skin had grown pale. Sweat covered his face. “And now I’m dying ‘cuz of that little fuck? I should’ve just... sh-should’ve just shot that piece of... stupid piece of shit...” The dreary look in his eyes seemed to suggest he had forgotten what he was saying. Or that he no longer cared. - Excerpt from page 36
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2  The reaper listened, but too late. Geoffrey had reached the doorway, and one of the streaks was already snaking toward Garovel. It wrapped around the reaper and pulled him closer to Geoffrey.

“Found you!”

‘*Garovel!*’ Iron powder gave Hector the traction he needed to rip the streak out, but he couldn’t stand yet. His leg had scarcely regrown at all. “Don’t you hurt him!”

“Tell me what *he* is, and I won’t,” said Geoffrey.

The reaper struggled to break free of his red bonds but to no avail.

“Fine!” said Hector. He could feel his leg slowly returning. “Okay! I’ll tell you...!” He made Geoffrey wait a moment longer. “He’s... a reaper. You know. A reaper of death.”

Geoffrey raised an eyebrow, turning Garovel around in the air. “Ah... I see. Interesting. I still want to dissect him, though.” He stuck Garovel through the chest.

‘*Ugh!*’

“No!” It didn’t matter that his leg hadn’t fully returned. Hector stomped toward him with one gory stump. He clenched his fist so hard that he thought it might break, and he felt iron gathering around his knuckles almost involuntarily.

He slugged Geoffrey square in the face with every ounce of strength in his body.

Geoffrey smashed through the front of the house, and from the sound of it, several more walls within the building.

Hector looked at his hand. A thin metal veil covered the back of his palm and fingers. It wasn’t stable. Even as he stared at it, he saw it cracking and crumbling into dust, but it was still much more than he had expected to see. - Excerpt from page 102
4. ↑ So when he set his sharp eyes upon this strange man, the first thought through Geoffrey’s head was that he would very much like to torture this person. So he did. - Excerpt from page 143
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Desmond rolled his neck, stretching it. “Anyway, Geoffrey, are you alright? You don’t regenerate like we do, and that kid got you pretty good.”

Geoffrey rubbed his chest. “Pain is an interesting feeling. I don’t completely dislike it, though it is a bit distracting, I suppose.”

“That’s not what I meant. Aberrations never seem to mind pain very much. But that doesn’t make you immune to injury. If your body starts becoming sluggish, you should find yourself a new one.”

Geoffrey tilted his head. “A new body?”

“Oh, can you not do that yet? Well, I’m sure you’ll figure it out soon.”

“Really? Do all aberrations have abilities like mine?”

Desmond deferred to Ezmortig.

‘*Your shadow powers, yes. Your ability to control things, no. Aberrations have varying kinds of secondary abilities. We call yours Domination. Unfortunately, it’s not terribly useful against servants. At least, not until you develop it to dizzying degrees.*’ - Excerpt from page 188
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Geoffrey despised listening to this drivel. None of it was of any concern to him. Eyeing the reapers again, he wondered why none of them ever said anything. Perhaps they were hiding their voices from each other for some reason. Or from him. Unlike their human associates, the reapers seemed particularly wary of his presence, which pleased him to no end.

The people kept talking, but Geoffrey had ceased paying attention. Instead, he made a game of staring at the reapers, trying to see just how unsettled he could make them. His game came to an abrupt end, however, as Roman grabbed him by the neck and pinned him to the floor.

“My friend doesn’t like you,” said Roman. “And I’m inclined to agree with her.”

“Stop,” said Vincent. “The Rofal boy is my guest.”

“This thing isn’t even human,” said Roman. “I don’t see a reason to let it live.” Roman’s fingers dug through the red shadow and reached Geoffrey’s skin.

His neck started to burn. The man’s hand felt like acid against his flesh. Geoffrey cringed in real agony. But after a moment, he began to laugh. “You can actually hurt me!” he said, eyes widening eagerly. “Aha! More!”

Roman obliged, and Geoffrey’s laughter turned to coughing.

Vincent stepped closer but did not intervene. “It’s true that he requires discipline, but he could be a useful pet. And we can use him to leverage the Rofals for support. Killing him would certainly burn that bridge.”

Roman let up. “I’m not so sure these fucking things can be tamed, Vincent. Just look at him.”

Each breath felt like swallowing fire, but the pain only delighted Geoffrey further. “Do you people know what I am?” he asked, voice raspy and torn. “Tell me!”

“Ah.” Vincent pulled the boy to his feet. “Learn to obey, and I will tell you all I know.”

Geoffrey’s expression soured. - Excerpt from pages 134 and 135
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Nestled behind a tall air vent on the roof of an apartment complex, Geoffrey found his spot. It was rather far, but he could see practically the whole park from here. He pointed his binoculars at the moving glimmer in the sky, and he saw the reaper. Hector’s reaper.

Geoffrey grinned. “Aha. I thought it might be you two who helped Mr. Colt.” He panned down across the park. “Now where is Hector...?”

He saw the dark figure below a streetlamp. Geoffrey touched the sore lump on his chest. It was no more than an occasional nuisance, so he had never bothered to get it looked at by a doctor, contrary to Desmond’s wishes. Rather, Geoffrey enjoyed the feeling, enjoyed how it reminded him of Hector--his very special friend.

Honestly, he wasn’t sure if he even wanted to kill Hector. Thinking about all the potential hostilities that they could have, the violent clashes and innocent casualties and long sessions of torture, Geoffrey couldn’t help but smile. Hector seemed like someone who could amuse him for a very long time.

But at the same time, Geoffrey knew that he could not let things draw out too much. There was one insurmountable obstacle that would surely end all the fun sooner or later. His grandfather.

Damian was rebuilding the family business. Hector was an active hindrance to that effort. Their clash seemed inevitable. And obviously, stopping Damian was no kind of option. So the more he thought about it, the more Geoffrey realized that even if he didn’t exactly want Hector dead, he *certainly* didn’t want someone else to get the kill. That was, after all, why he had told Feromas and Damian nothing before coming here. If Hector had to die, then Geoffrey had to be the one responsible for it. Simple as that. - Excerpt from pages 250 and 251
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Colt at once remembered why he loathed this person. “Whose hand is that?”

“Oh, do you want it? I was thinking about giving it to you, actually. I have the other one, as well.”

It was a small hand, thin fingers with long nails and pallid skin, preserved, likely taken from a corpse. “Who does it belong to?" he said, even less patient now.

“The girl you killed. Melissa Mallory.”

Colt ground his teeth and glowered. “Why do you have it?”

Geoffrey tilted his head, confused. “Because I wanted it, obviously. It makes a nice souvenir, don’t you think?”

“How did you even get it? You’re not allowed out of the building.”

“That would be telling.” - Excerpt from page 69
9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 “Oh, wow! What a pleasure to meet you! My name is Geoffrey. What is yours?” When Hector did not reply, Geoffrey’s face scrunched up. “Why are the interesting people always so rude to me?”

Upon a second look, Hector noticed an unusual décor in this room. Not more than a meter to Geoffrey’s left lay a row of objects encased in glass. A foot, a hand, a nose, a little finger, a pair of eyes, a hairy scalp, a shriveled heart, a blackened brain. Various sizes and skin colors. All bloody. - Excerpt from page 91
10. ↑ “I’m not afraid of your uncle, idiot.”

“Oh, I know. Honestly, that is the most annoying thing about being his nephew. Everyone thinks they should be afraid of *him*. It tries my patience, sometimes. People are afraid of you, though, aren’t they? How do you manage that, exactly?” - Excerpt from page 69
11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 11.5 11.6 Hector’s expression darkened beneath his helm. He eyed the vacant-eyed man in the chair. “Who is that person?” he said.

“Oh, him?” said Geoffrey. “He is my new fetcher. My old one was starting to smell.”

“...Fetcher?”

“Yeah. I use him to bring me stuff. From the outside. My uncle does not want me to leave, and I want him to be happy, so I use fetchers.” - Excerpt from page 92
12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 “What about Geoffrey’s parents? Are they dead?”

“No, they are alive. But they entrusted him to me. They struggled with him as a child.”

“I can imagine.”

“I do not think you can,” said Rofal.

Colt raised an eyebrow.

Rofal downed the rest of his whiskey and rested the glass in front of him. “There are very few people in this world who frighten me,” he said. “I am all too glad to have that monster’s favor.” - Excerpt from page 91
13. ↑ “Yes.” The bullet splattered Rofal’s brain all over the floor.

He didn’t have long to feel satisfied, however.

“What have you done?!” someone yelled. It was Geoffrey. The red shadow boiled around him. “What have you DONE?!” - Excerpt from page 99
14. ↑ The anger dissipated from Geoffrey’s face and became a frown. “I did get him, yes.” He brought down one of the red tendrils. Colt’s coat hung from it, dripping with blood. Geoffrey peeled back the cloth to reveal the man’s still-beating heart. “But he was not supposed to die that quickly. I wanted to torture him much more, first.”

‘*Aww. I’m sorry.*’

“And he hid his children from me, too! How did he do that?! I was going to make him watch them die! But no! Mr. Colt, you were a real bastard!” - Excerpt from page 236
15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 “Curious.” Desmond eyed him again. “How old are you?”

“Nineteen. Why?”

“Ooh, older than I thought. How many people have you killed?”

“I have not been keeping track, honestly. A couple dozen, perhaps?”

“Not bad,” said Desmond. “Maybe you haven’t realized yet, but your power grows as you consume souls.”

“Oh! That would explain why I feel stronger lately.”

“Yeah, aberrations are great that way. But you should be careful not to kill too many people too quickly, or you’ll end up drawing the attention of the Vanguard.”

“What is that?”

“Our enemies. They know about aberrations. They fear you guys, and rightly so. If they realize you’re here, they won’t hesitate to send one of their strongest people to kill you.”

“Sounds like fun.”

“Oh, it can be, but only when the time is right. Aberrations are all about momentum. You can grow in power much more quickly than we can, but you have to kill a lot of people while still staying hidden. Otherwise, you’ll be stomped into oblivion before you ever get a chance to become a genuine threat to the enemy.”

“Hmm, I see. I suppose killing the Queen of Atreya would be doing exactly that, then.”

Desmond laughed. “You’re here to kill the Queen?”

“Yes.”

“No kidding! We came to kill the Queen, too!”

“Really? Oh! Are you the ones responsible for all that destruction over there?!”

“Yep! Sadly, though, she managed to escape. Some other servants got in our way.”

“Servants?”

“People with reapers. We’re a bit outnumbered, actually. Why don’t you join us in hunting her down? If you stick with us, we’ll keep you hidden from the Vanguard. Or protected, at least.”

“That sounds wonderful!”

“Excellent! I really like your snake by the way.”

“Thank you! They were upset when I took him, but the hat was simply not enough of a prize for me.”

“Entirely understandable.” - Excerpt from page 175
16. ↑ “Mr. Colt! I was hoping to see you!” Geoffrey was a strange creature. Not yet a grown man, but he often wore tailored black suits and ties with even blacker undershirts. His dark hair was always sharply cut and combed, and his pointed eyebrows made him look perpetually and indignantly attentive. - Excerpt from page 68
17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Geoffrey’s green balloon-hat waggled as he ogled the mass of rubble and abandoned vehicles behind the line. “What happened?”

“We can’t disclose that information,” the officer said. “Please turn back.”

Geoffrey frowned, but obliged.

The prince’s advisor, whose name Geoffrey had still not bothered to learn, was waiting for him at the nearest street corner--as was an enormous yellow-and-green boa constrictor. The man was clearly a wreck, and having the snake at his feet was doing him no favors.

“It seems we missed all the fun,” Geoffrey said sadly. “Maybe we shouldn’t have stopped at that amusement park after all.”

The advisor watched the boa slither up Geoffrey’s body and coil around the young man’s shoulders. “I still don’t understand w-why that thing listens to you...”

“Oh, it does not listen. It simply has no will of its own anymore.” He scratched the snake’s head. “Normally, animals tend to dislike me, you see. I was never very good with pets, but they did provide valuable practice.”

Abruptly, a red-haired man turned the corner. “Over here, you said?”

‘*Yeah. Should be--ah, there it is.*’

Geoffrey’s brow rose as he spotted the reaper approaching from behind the stranger. “Why, hello.”

The stranger returned a wide smile. “Wow, it really is an aberration! Hello there, little fella. How’d you get all the way out here to Atreya? Not lost, are you?”

Geoffrey tilted his head. “Excuse me? Who are you?”

“Ah, I’m Desmond Grantier. This is my friend, Ezmortig. I assume you can see him, yes?”

“I can. Why do you seem to know about me?”

“Oh, we belong to Abolish.”

“Abolish?”

Desmond blinked at him. “Don’t you even know where you come from?” - Excerpt from page 173
18. ↑ “What a disappointing day this turned out to be. Lost my balloon-hat. Lost my snake. And I didn’t even get to kill the Queen. That advisor-guy will be upset, if we ever see him again. I wanted to feed him to the snake after he paid me, but I suppose that won’t be happening, either.” - Excerpt from page 187
19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 “Have a seat, boy,” said an older gentleman on the right.

Geoffrey approached them, and the reapers all edged away from him. To his eyes, each reaper looked very human, except a bit blurry and flickering like an old video recording. “Why did you invite me here?” he asked.

“Because I liked your uncle,” the same man said. “Now be quiet. You haven’t earned the right to speak at our table.”

Geoffrey’s smile tightened. “I do not like being told what to do.”

The man held up an open hand and clenched it into a fist. “I said *be quiet*.”

The air escaped from Geoffrey’s lungs. His eyes bulged as he struggled for breath and found none available. He glared at the man and ran forward, but an invisible pressure held him back, sturdy as if a wall had been there.

Geoffrey lashed out with red, snaking around the room and across the table at the man’s reaper.

The man stood and speared the shadow through the center with only an index finger. The shadow crackled and died. “I didn’t know you were a monster when I invited you here,” said the man, “but it changes nothing. You *will* learn respect, boy.”

Geoffrey fell to his knees, able to breathe again. He scowled at all of them, but they paid him little mind. - Excerpt from page 131
20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Hector made a fist and punched him in the face with all his strength. The wall cracked behind Geoffrey’s head.

But the red shade was there again, and when it vanished, Geoffrey’s face remained untarnished. “Your attacks hurt,” said Geoffrey, “but they do not *wound*. Not like *this*.” He speared Hector through the chest with a red-coated hand. Blood flew everywhere. Geoffrey’s hand stuck out of Hector’s back, clutching an extracted heart. - Excerpt from page 94
21. ↑ Colt opened fire. The shadow deflected each bullet, causing Geoffrey scarcely more than a momentary grimace. The magazine soon ran out. - Excerpt from page 99
22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 Geoffrey waved his hand. When his puppet man did not immediately leap forth, he turned to see why.

Small cuts riddled the man’s face, and his leg was bent the wrong way. He struggled even to stand, collapsing after a moment.

Geoffrey frowned. “Broken already? I just made this one.” He sighed. “Oh well.” A red flash cleaved the man in two. Blood didn’t start spraying until his body hit the ground. - Excerpt from page 95
23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 23.2 23.3 Back on his feet, Geoffrey’s wild eyes searched frantically. He pointed to a few of Rofal’s lackeys. “You three!” A surge of crimson shot forth and enveloped them. They quickly panicked, began screaming like they’d been set on fire, then all too suddenly, fell deathly silent. “Kill him!” They all bounded toward the kid, splitting up to attack from different sides. - Excerpt from page 98
24. ↑ The double doors flung open, and the kid ran into the room, metal helm looking between everyone. A red streak followed him in and struck at him. He dodged the first couple strikes before it pierced his leg, dropping him to his knee. Red coiled around the kid like rope, swung him up, then smashed him into the floor. The kid struggled in his bindings as Geoffrey entered the room, the red source.

“Pardon us, Uncle.”

“Who the hell is this?” Rofal asked.

“He refuses to tell me,” said Geoffrey. “You should stand back, Uncle. He is rather dangerous. And very protective of--” Geoffrey choked the word back as the kid started pulling on the red streak, dragging Geoffrey towards him.

A jagged red blade grew from Geoffrey’s other hand, and he slashed the kid. It cut into the helm and got stuck there. The kid pulled him in the rest of the way and smacked him in the jaw, freeing himself. He launched Geoffrey across the room, collapsing a table as he landed. - Excerpt from page 98
25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 Hector gathered his focus and punched Geoffrey in the chest. He broke through the shadow and felt a rib snap. Geoffrey cried out in pain. - Excerpt from page 183
26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 Hector mounted the bike, and everyone else gathered in the black truck with Lynnette at the wheel. She went first up the ramp and disappeared outside, and when Hector rode up the ramp himself and saw the truck again, it was flipped and skidding across the road.

The big man was there. As was Geoffrey.

He didn’t need time to process or question it. Hector barreled into Geoffrey with complete resolve.

Red tendrils sprung forth, wrapping around the motorcycle and Hector both, slowing them down, and as the force of the impact pushed Geoffrey back, the two young men came face to face.

Geoffrey’s eyes widened, and he grinned as their tangled mess eased to a stop, the bike’s front tire still grinding harmlessly against his red shield. “It’s *you*!” - Excerpt from page 182
27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 27.2 27.3 Geoffrey’s return to the Rofal mansion had been a decidedly quiet one. Desmond had wanted him to stay in Sescoria, but Geoffrey thought he should be in Brighton in order to continue the family business. To his great disappointment, however, no one was here to meet him. For the past few days, he’d had the entire house to himself.

So he fixed that.

Dozens of living puppets wandered the corridors. He made a game of it, controlling them all from his office, seeing through their eyes, rifling through their minds, and putting on a veritable play by having them interact with each other in various ways--sometimes peaceably, most times not. - Excerpt from page 210
28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 28.2 Battonburg was a quiet little town. Buildings were architecturally ornate but never more than three stories. The small roads remained quiet, even in the middle of the day, and as Geoffrey looked for a place to park, he spotted a familiar reaper waving him down. He pulled into a diner and got out of his sleek, white sports car.

Ozmere floated over to him, with Moss lumbering not far behind. ‘*Hello again*,’ the reaper said.

“Hello. What are you doing here?”

‘*We wanted to make sure you didn’t wipe out the entire town.*’

Geoffrey pouted. “Aww, but that is the easiest way. I do not need to ask around about Colt if I just consume all their souls and read their minds.”

‘*Geoffrey, please. That sort of thing will attract the attention of the Vanguard’s aberration hunters. And trust me when I say that would not be fun for you.*’

“Bah.”

‘*Don’t be like that. We’ll make a game of it. We’ll talk to various people and if someone seems like they know something useful, THEN you can eat their soul. Agreed?*’

“Oh, very well.”

‘*Good.*’

“Is Desmond here, too?”

‘*No, he and Ezmortig are still in Sescoria. There is still much that needs overseeing. Our reinforcements arrived the other day, and Desmond’s been trying to help everyone get situated without drawing too much attention.*’

“How is your plan going, by the way?” Geoffrey asked.

‘*Well, Prince Gabriel has been cooperative, though he doesn’t know the full extent of our plans, of course. The King, though, has been resistant. To his credit, he didn’t concede any ground until Desmond ripped his arm off.*’

“Ooh! Can I have the arm?!”

‘*Um. I’m not sure what we did with it. Sorry.*’

“Aww.”

‘*If you’d stayed, you could’ve torn it off yourself.*’

“There is no need to rub it in.”

‘*I’m pretty sure we’ll have to kill the King sooner or later. You can still come back and be a part of that, you know.*’

“Hmm. Let us find Mr. Colt quickly, then.”

They visited the diner first but found no useful information. Geoffrey immediately wanted to kill the last person they talked to out of sheer disappointment, but Moss hoisted him over his shoulder and left the diner.

It would be some hours before they finally found a candidate. The elderly receptionist of a ratty motel paused to think a moment when Geoffrey asked about a man with two babies.

“Hmm.” The man smirked. “Perhaps if I had something to refresh my memory...” He tapped the wooden counter in front of him.

“That will not be necessary.” Geoffrey looked at Ozmere, who nodded. He grinned as the red shade poured forth.

The man’s scream died in his mouth, and his eyes hollowed out into flaming shadows.

Geoffrey could see the memories. An entire life--dimensioned and complicated, sad and happy, regretful and grateful.

It bored him.

He searched for the face he wanted to see, as simple as if the memories had been his own. “Ah!” said Geoffrey. “Hello, Mr. Colt.”

‘*Do you know where he went?*’

“I know who to ask next.”

‘*Lead on, then.*’ - Excerpt from pages 218 and 219
29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 The city of Delroy was not known for its impeccable weather, and the past few days had only furthered its reputation for gray, drizzling skies. Colt had come to this coastal town in hopes of finding someone who would sneak him out of the country via watercraft. So far, he had found no prospects. - Excerpt from page 228
30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 30.2 Ozmere frowned as well. ‘*I suppose I could go find the body, if you want, but we really should be leaving now. You’ve made quite the stir here. We need to get you back to Sescoria where Abolish can protect you.*’

“Really? But I was holding back. I only killed a few dozen people.” - Excerpt from page 237
31. ↑ 31.0 31.1 And Geoffrey caught a grenade with his face. The explosion knocked him back, making him release both Colt and the car at once.

A gaping hole in his chest, Colt still managed a bloody smile as he fell into the rolling waves.

-+-+-+-+-

Geoffrey scowled through the smoke as it cleared. He ran up to the guard rail and looked out. He couldn’t see the man in the water.

Ozmere and Moss approached from behind.

‘*What happened?*’ the reaper asked. ‘*Did you get him?*’

The anger dissipated from Geoffrey’s face and became a frown. “I did get him, yes.” He brought down one of the red tendrils. Colt’s coat hung from it, dripping with blood. Geoffrey peeled back the cloth to reveal the man’s still-beating heart. “But he was not supposed to die that quickly. I wanted to torture him much more, first.”

‘*Aww. I’m sorry.*’

“And he hid his children from me, too! How did he do that?! I was going to make him watch them die! But no! Mr. Colt, you were a real bastard!” - Excerpt from page 236
32. ↑ “By the way--” The red shadow expanded out, much larger than Colt had ever seen, and shot back behind Geoffrey, disappearing over the side of the ship. After a moment, it returned. With Colt’s car. “I believe you forgot this.”

Colt’s eyes widened at the sight of the vehicle there, held in place as if stuck in a crimson tree. - Excerpt from page 236
33. ↑ Geoffrey kept his distance, bounding between rooftops, splashes of red carrying him along as he maintained his view. And it wasn’t long before he saw the reaper slow. He looked through his binoculars again and watched the reaper disappear into a two-story house. - Excerpt from page 251
34. ↑ He walked in on a scene of three people crouching over another. Crimson stains were everywhere. Hector recognized the dead body on the floor. Micah Chamberlain. The three people on top of him looked up in unison. All obviously puppets. Bloodied, ripped flesh hung from their lips. - Excerpt from page 264
35. ↑ She was still alive. Geoffrey hadn’t gotten to her yet. Hector ran toward her. She seemed frightened of him, too--or of the helm at least--but she couldn’t see the puppets stalking her from behind.

Four of them. The closest one leapt at her. Hector tackled it to the ground. - Excerpt from page 265
36. ↑ Another puppet sprung out at Sheryl as she passed an intersection. It grabbed her and dragged her to the ground as she shrieked and tried to pull herself away. - Excerpt from page 266
37. ↑ 37.0 37.1 Hector placed Sheryl behind him and pulled the helm’s jaw back down. He tried not to acknowledge the face of Geoffrey’s puppet, but he had known Jenny Friedman for years. He had never been friends with her, scarcely even acquaintances, but still. Seeing her like this, blank-faced and mindless, was enough to make his stomach turn.

“I already know where Gregory and Janine live,” she said for Geoffrey. “And you will not be able to reach them before my fetchers do.”

“You’re lying,” said Hector.

“How do you think I know who your friends are? Everything Nathan knew, I know. And Micah. And Samuel. Everyone I have taken has provided me with a wealth of knowledge.” - Excerpt from page 267
38. ↑ Hector coated his own body, focusing the iron with his soul. From his chest, a metal spike tore through the red shade, but a moment later, the shadow cut it off and filled the hole back in. He could feel it tightening around his body, digging through metal and scratching his flesh. - Excerpt from page 271
39. ↑ Hector had to destroy his metal. It only weighed him down, and Geoffrey was already faster, able to ride the red shadow like a wave through the corridors while carrying Jenny at his side. - Excerpt from page 273
40. ↑ The problem was Geoffrey’s mobility, Hector knew. A mere iron coating had proved useless, but thick barriers had not, so that was what he went for when he saw more red snakes reaching for him. And with another wall in the way, he couldn’t see Geoffrey, but he didn’t need to. He only wanted to limit the aberration’s options. He steadily placed more barriers around the room, soon creating a small maze, and each time the shadows managed to find him again, he hacked them down.

“I see what you are trying to do!” Geoffrey said from beyond a wall. “It will not work!” An iron pillar shot out at him, and he narrowly slid out of the way, going right. Another pillar appeared, this time blocking the path rather than attacking, and Geoffrey ducked under it, only to find still another metal beam there. He turned around, and abruptly, Hector was at his side, replacing the wall that stood there a moment ago.

Geoffrey reeled back and barely avoided the sword. “You will trap yourself before you trap me,” he said, bringing his shadows to bear. A red cluster whirled at his side, forming a spinning drill. It dug into the wall next to him, expanding the hole quickly. - Excerpt from page 275
41. ↑ 41.0 41.1 Geoffrey was decidedly *not* his uncle. Joseph Rofal understood that killing his employees for failure served no purpose. Geoffrey did not. Or perhaps he did and just didn’t care, because simply fleeing was also out of the question. Two men tried to leave the city the other day. Geoffrey had their heads in his office now.

The search for Colt had not been much better. Of the three men that Swank sent to retrieve Colt’s personnel file from the police station, only one returned, delivering a message to stop looking for the man. Geoffrey killed the poor bastard anyway.

He had no idea what to do at this point. The Rofal empire was a sinking ship, and its new captain didn’t give a shit, because he was a fucking shark. - Excerpt from page 129
42. ↑ Beneath the city, below the pipes and sewers and miles of cable, lay the mansion. Old wood and cold stone sat stark against the lamplight along the path to the entrance. Its turreted roof bore a pillar at the center which led up into Brighton, but the elevator therein was reserved for the Rofal family. Jeremiah Colt had to use an entrance hidden beneath a liquor store, a staircase into a lift the size of a broom closet. - Excerpt from page 67
43. ↑ “Oh, stop your shrieking,” said Geoffrey. Only, it wasn’t Geoffrey. It was one of his expressionless puppets. This one was a girl, and she might have been cute before, but now her sickly pale skin and listless eyes just made Swank want to run away. “I am not going to kill you, Mr. Swank. You are much more useful to me alive.” The rest of her face didn’t match the words coming out of her mouth at all.

He swallowed the lump in his throat and tried to shrink into the brick behind him. “You can make them talk,” he said, trying not to tremble too visibly. “You weren’t doing that yesterday...”

“Yes, I know.” The puppet girl’s smile made Swank cringe. - Excerpt from page 128
44. ↑ The first thing he noticed was the stench. And then he saw the body. It was human, limp and mounted on the wall. It had been eviscerated. Blood and entrails spilled onto Hector’s bed.

And perhaps it was because he was too appalled and disgusted, but at first, he didn’t realize who it was. It just looked like a mutilated corpse. But then the face registered.

It was Geoffrey.

He didn’t understand. Geoffrey was already dead? Hector’s head spun, trying to figure out how. Or why. Or anything at all. What the hell had happened here?

And then he noticed the message scrawled next to the body in blood. It read:
> ~For Hector~
> I finally got myself a new body. You can have my old one. ~Love, *Dad*
>
>

 - Excerpt from page 262
45. ↑ 45.0 45.1 “Yeah. I was there with them. It was a lot of fun.” Geoffrey tilted his head. “Though, I suppose I am curious as to why I am only meeting you just now. If you knew I was an aberration all this time, then why did you not tell me when I was younger?”

Feromas nodded. ‘*That’s because of this asshole. He created you without me knowing and then completely forgot about you. It wasn’t until your aunt visited him a couple days ago to inform him of Joseph’s death that your name came up.*’

“And I suddenly remembered!” said Damian. “How is your mother, by the way? I haven’t seen her in ages.”

“Neither have I,” said Geoffrey. “But wait a minute. You *created* me? How?”

“Oh, did your friends in Abolish not tell you?” said Damian. “It’s a delightful process, see. First, you have to capture a reaper. And make sure they don’t have a servant’s soul attached to them, or it just complicates things. Then, you need a man and a woman, and they both need to possess the reapers’ genetic trait. And then, after the woman becomes pregnant, you perform a soul-transfusion, carving out the emerging soul of the child and replacing it with the reaper’s soul you captured earlier. If all goes well, the resulting soul will be reborn with a new mind and a new body, and you will be rewarded with a wonderful little aberration baby.”

Geoffrey raised an eyebrow. “Reapers’ genetic trait?”

 ‘*The trait that makes us live on after death*,’ said Feromas.

“Yes, it’s a recessive gene and terribly rare these days,” said Damian. “Luckily, I’m a carrier myself, as are some of my children, including your mother. The real trick was getting her to have a child with someone who was also a carrier. She’s rather headstrong, you know, and was determined to marry for love. I had to orchestrate events extensively so that she fell in love with just the right man.”

‘*That’s what you were doing? Why didn’t you ever tell me? I thought you were just being a dick when you sabotaged her relationships.*’

“I wanted to surprise you!” said Damian, grinning. - Excerpt from pages 213 and 214
46. ↑ “I suppose I did,” said Geoffrey. “The *soul*, as your friend called it, is always destroyed when I take them for my own. Now out of my way. I wish to inspect your phantom.” He tried to push past, but Hector held him back.

“I don’t think so.”

“Hmm. Interesting.”

In an instant, something red flashed across Hector’s vision, and suddenly, his forearm was gone, flesh and bone cut so cleanly off that it took a moment to start bleeding. Geoffrey held the severed limb by the wrist. - Excerpt from page 93
47. ↑ Hector flung him off, but not before Geoffrey ran past. There was nothing between him and the reapers. They split up, and Geoffrey went after Bohwanox. Hector pursued, but they were too far ahead. Geoffrey reached out, and it seemed like Bohwanox was still far enough away, but from Geoffrey’s hand, the same red shadow flew forth, jagged and fast, and it slashed the reaper’s backside. - Excerpt from page 94
48. ↑ Geoffrey tilted his head as he laid eyes on the lone pancake house. He hadn’t been sure what to expect. Having to leave Brighton for some little town called Chesterville was strange enough to pique his interest on its own, but when he had also seen that the invitation was from the CEO of Boulder Inc., Geoffrey had been positively brimming with curiosity. Alone under a luminous moon, he entered.

Five people sat around a pair of joined tables. They all turned to look at him--as did the five accompanying reapers.

Geoffrey gave an open-mouthed smile as he looked over everyone. - Excerpt from page 130
49. ↑ Geoffrey was not in the most amiable mood. Mr. Vincent Boulder had told him to go home and talk to his family, which in itself was no terrible thing, but even so. Geoffrey was being told what to do again. And perhaps worse, he couldn’t actually refuse.

So when he set his sharp eyes upon this strange man, the first thought through Geoffrey’s head was that he would very much like to torture this person. So he did.

There was no need for a chair. Geoffrey pinned him to the floor with a blanket of red and stood over him, smiling and trying to decide which body parts he wanted next. Swank, of course, had left the room shortly after the agonized screaming began.

“Why are you doing this?!” the man kept saying. His face looked much better now, Geoffrey thought. Replacing the eyebrows with bloody gashes made him seem much less condescending. “What *possible* reason could you have for doing this to me?!”

“Hmm.” Geoffrey stroked his own chin a moment. “How much do you like your nose, exactly?”

The man shrieked. “Please! Stop this! I’ll do anything you want! Just--! Please! I only wanted to talk!”

Geoffrey’s brow perked up. “Oh, right. What did you want to talk about, anyway? If it is something boring, you will not be leaving this room alive.”

The man whimpered. “I-I’m an advisor to Prince Nathaniel... and I was asked to find someone who w-would... u-um...”

Geoffrey placed a red blade under the man’s nose.

“Kill the Queen!” he said. “He asked me to find someone who would kill the Queen!”

“Aha.” Geoffrey smiled curiously. “And you want me to do it?”

“I-I think we thought you’d just, ah, s-send someone else to do it...”

“Oh. Well, no deal then.”

“Y-y-you can do it yourself, if you like! It’s fine! Do whatever you want! I’m sure Prince Nathaniel would appreciate that kind of can-do attitude!”

Geoffrey thought a moment. “By chance, did you ask anyone else to do this before me?”

“Uh, y-yeah, I did. But they refused. So I came all the way out here to Brighton, because I heard of the Rofal family’s reputation--and might I just say, you have lived up to it *most* admirably. You certainly have. Why, I’m sure you’re a much better person for the job, anyway. I don’t know why I didn’t come to you first, in fact. How silly--”

“Please stop talking.”

The man just nodded.

Geoffrey frowned. “I suppose I should not kill you, then. My dear uncle said it was bad business to kill your employer, unless you wanted their job, and I certainly do not want yours.” He released the red shadow and used it to prop the advisor up on his feet. “When do you want me to do it?”

The man hesitated. “You don’t want to know why he wants her dead?”

“Not really, no. When do I kill her?”

“Ah--as soon as possible. Preferably before her press conference two days from now.”

Geoffrey just grinned.

“W-we tried to kill her before, you see, but we failed, and now Prince Nathaniel is worried, um, that-that she is going to expose him, so--”

“Yeah, whatever. Do I only get to kill the Queen, or can I kill some of the other royals, too?”

The man’s eyes bulged. “J-just the Queen, please...”

“Oh, very well.” - Excerpt from pages 143 and 144
50. ↑ It was Geoffrey’s turn to blink. “Where I come from?”

‘*Oh, Heavens, child! Don’t tell me you think you’re human!*’

“No, I know I’m not. But I can’t say I know what I am, exactly, either.”

“You, my delightful friend, are what is known as an aberration. You are the offspring of the Void.”

“The Void? What are you talking about?”

“It’s a place,” Desmond explained. “The Void is what we call the space between this life and the next. It straddles the line between realities. Ezmortig here, he always has one foot in the Void, so to speak.”

‘*But it’s also a consciousness*,’ said Ezmortig. ‘*People might tell you otherwise, but don’t you believe them. The Void has a silent will of its own, and it spawned you and all your kin. With a little help from Abolish, of course.*’

“There are others like me?”

“Of course. You thought you were alone this whole time?”

Geoffrey just shrugged, making his balloon-hat bob.

“If you’d been born into Abolish’s care, that never would’ve happened.”

‘*Interesting. I didn’t think aberrations could be born in the wild. Perhaps you were simply separated from Abolish by way of some mix up.*’

Geoffrey cocked an eyebrow and chuckled. “Are you saying I was switched at birth?”

‘*That’s possible, too, but not quite what I meant. While I don’t understand the finer details of the birthing process, I do know that aberrations are created after the fetus has already started growing in the womb. Maybe your mother received the treatment without her knowledge.*’

Desmond smirked. “You think the research divisions have taken their work to public hospitals?”

The reaper paused. ‘*Actually, now that you say that, I don’t think so. I doubt R&D would have been deployed to this country without a combat division for protection. There must be some other explanation for this boy’s presence here.*’ - Excerpt from page 174
51. ↑ Geoffrey turned away from Lynn to look at Hector. “Why did you bring this normal girl here?” he said. “Is she a friend of yours?” He held up an eyeball, freshly removed. “Please tell me she is.” - Excerpt from page 184
52. ↑ Geoffrey watched the explosion leave a crater in the street. He used his shadow to fan the cloud of dust away. Body parts littered the lawns on either side of the road, but Hector’s metal head remained in the crater. “Aww, are they dead?”

“Don’t think so,” Desmond said as they approached. “Yeah, see? The reaper’s barely alive, still. Kid got in the way.”

The sound of a vehicle drew their attention, and they saw the truck returning in reverse. Roman and Lynnette stood together. She glared at them with her one eye.

“They’re actually coming back for him?” said Geoffrey.

Desmond dug into his chest. “I’ll handle--”

A sword flew into his face.

Geoffrey watched Desmond fall over, dead again. “Wow. No wonder Hector wears a helmet.”

The truck screeched to a halt. Geoffrey lashed out with red.

Roman took the cuts and stopped the streaks that went for Lynnette. He gripped two tendrils, one in each hand, and made them tremble. They burst apart, and their remains shrank back to Geoffrey. Roman jumped out of the truck, smashing the pavement with both feet.

The ground flung Geoffrey up. He tumbled through the air.

The big man caught him. He set Geoffrey down and ran for the truck, spitting as it started to drive off. The acid would have reached the girl if Roman hadn’t shielded her with his back.

And then they were gone.

Geoffrey walked over to the big man and patted him on the shoulder. “Good effort, Mr. Giant.”

He returned a pat of his own on Geoffrey’s head.

“What a disappointing day this turned out to be. Lost my balloon-hat. Lost my snake. And I didn’t even get to kill the Queen. That advisor-guy will be upset, if we ever see him again. I wanted to feed him to the snake after he paid me, but I suppose that won’t be happening, either.” - Excerpt from pages 186 and 187
53. ↑ “What do you want to do now? We have a mission to attend to, but if you come with us, we can introduce you to some fun people. They’ll help you grow your powers more quickly and safely than you can on your own. And they’ll definitely keep you entertained.”

“That sounds amazing!” Geoffrey’s grin lessened, however. “But there is something else I want to take care of first.”

“Oh?”

“Perhaps you can help me. How good is Abolish’s information network?”

“You won’t find better. Why?”

“I would very much like to find someone. A man named Colt.”

“Tell me more.” - Excerpt from page 189
54. ↑ ‘*I am Feromas, and this is Damian Rofal. He is your grandfather.*’

Geoffrey blinked again. Then a few more times.

“Howdy, Grandson! How’s the business?! Not so great, by the looks of things! Aha! Did you kill all your subordinates?! That’s not a very smart thing to do, you little scamp!”

“You are truly my grandfather?”

“Of course!”

‘*I hope you’ll forgive us for not attending Joseph’s funeral. The family doesn’t usually tell Damian things anymore. They think he doesn’t know what they’re saying.*’

“They think I’m a lunatic! Aha!”

‘*Which is only half-right.*’

“Shut your hole, Feromas! I’m sharp as a tack, I am!”

The reaper eyed Geoffrey. ‘*We figured you’d need some help running things. The family doesn’t have any other willing participants who aren’t also scared shitless of you, and Damian’s been restless lately, anyway.*’

“I’m like a caterpillar!”

‘*Oh, he’s gone again. Don’t mind anything he says for the next twenty minutes or so.*’

“Would you like to see a magic trick, young man?! Bring me ten rabbits, ten hats, and one machete!”

Geoffrey smiled. “I like your style, Grandpa.”

Damian returned a quizzical expression. “I like your style, too, Grandma. Your eyebrows are pointier than I remember.”

‘*Seriously. Don’t mind him. Please.*’

Damian looked at Feromas. “So who do you want me to kill?”

‘*No one, right now, Damian. Please just relax.*’

“Okay, Boss. You’re the boss, Boss.” And he stood next to the reaper, rigid as a wooden plank.

“You want him to run the family business?” said Geoffrey. “Is he capable of such a thing?”

‘*...Please don’t ask me such difficult questions. Do you want our help or not?*’

Geoffrey scrunched his mouth together, thinking a moment, and then shrugged. “Sure, okay. Everyone else already ran away, though, so I’m not sure what you plan on doing.” - Excerpt from pages 211 and 212
55. ↑ Abruptly, Geoffrey heard the phone ring. He rushed back to his office to pick it up. “Yes, hello? Desmond?”

<“Heya, Geoffrey. Got some info you might like. In a little town out west, we got a report of a man going around with two babies.”>

“Excellent!”

<“Town’s called Battonburg. Info’s a bit old, so he’s probably not there anymore, but you might be able to get a lead on him if you pay the place a visit.”>

“Thank you, Desmond! I will do just that.” - Excerpt from page 212
56. ↑ ‘*Nice place you got here*,’ said Ozmere. Moss followed close behind as usual, marveling silently at the mansion’s spacious corridors and ornate woodwork.

“Thank you.” Geoffrey had kept Colt’s heart and coat both. Even if the whole affair had proved a disappointment, he could at least expand his collection of souvenirs.

He was a bit surprised to see the mansion’s halls full of people again. He hadn’t even been gone a week, but apparently, his grandfather had been busy. Most of the people were obviously new hires, as they did not scurry out of his way whenever they saw him coming. One of the lackeys even bumped into him. The guy made a face, as if about to say something quite rude, but when he saw Moss’s hulking form stop behind Geoffrey, the mook seemed to think better of it and apologized instead.

The three of them found Damian and Feromas in the main study.

“Hello, Grandpa!”

“Hello, Grandson!” Damian returned a smile, which waned as he saw Geoffrey’s guests. “And who are they?”

“My friends! Ozmere and Moss. They’re from Abolish! Neat, huh? I am going to go with them so that they can help me get stronger. There are a lot more members in Sescoria, too! Ozmere said they would feed an entire town to me. Can you imagine that? An entire town!”

Abruptly, Geoffrey noticed the tension in the room. Damian’s face held none of its earlier mirth, and Ozmere’s expression was one of confusion. Even Moss had become attentive, and for a time, no one said anything.

Feromas broke the silence. ‘*Dozer or Morgunov?*’

Ozmere hesitated. ‘*Morgunov.*’

More silence.

Geoffrey looked between everyone again. “Why did you all go quiet?”

‘*Because your friend Ozmere recognizes me*,’ said Feromas. ‘*Isn’t that right?*’

‘*You are Feromas...*’

‘*I am.*’

‘*And is this...?*’

‘*His name is Damian Rofal, now. But he is the same servant, yes.*’

Ozmere floated back toward the door, and Moss stepped in front of him. ‘*L-look*,’ the reaper said, ‘*I have nothing but the greatest respect for someone of your caliber. We have no quarrel with you.*’

“That’s too bad,” said Damian.

‘*No, please! St--!*’

Damian raised a hand. There came a sudden flash and a great *crunch* as Ozmere and Moss were both obliterated.

Wide-eyed, Geoffrey could see the air visibly distorted in the spaces where their bodies used to be. A shockwave passed over Geoffrey as the air refilled the vacuum, and all that remained was a thin vapor. After a moment, that too disappeared.

It took Geoffrey a second to even begin understanding what had happened. “Grandpa, what the hell?!”

“I’m sorry, Geoffrey. I know they were your friends. I should have told you before not to bring any members of Abolish here.”

“Why did you kill them?!”

‘*Because no one can know that Damian and I are still alive*,’ said Feromas.

Geoffrey eyed the empty space again. “But! What did you even do to them?!”

“I reduced them to little more than dust particles,” said Damian. “Though, I suppose in the reaper’s case, there is genuinely no trace left, as there was no body mass in the first place.”

Geoffrey just stared at him.

“If you like, I don’t mind you going to Sescoria to play with the other members of Abolish,” the old man said, “but they can never know of what happened here. In fact, don’t even tell them that you have a grandfather.”

‘*But it may be difficult to explain why those two never returned*,’ said Feromas. ‘*Perhaps it would be better if Geoffrey simply stayed in Brighton with us.*’

Damian gave a shrug. “Eh. Geoffrey can do what he likes. He’s old enough to make his own decisions now.”

“Grandpa, who are you, exactly? Why were they so afraid of you?”

Feromas answered before Damian could. ‘*No offense, Geoffrey, but you don’t seem very good at keeping secrets. I think you already know more than enough.*’

“And besides,” Damian added, “the porcupines would be upset if I told you their baking recipes. Very stingy creatures, they are.”

Geoffrey blinked dully.

‘*Well, at least he’s lucid when it matters.*’

Sour-faced, Geoffrey left them alone. He returned to his room and tossed his keepsakes of Colt on a bedside table. When the coat hit wood, however, it made a hard sound, harder than mere cloth should have made. He rifled through its deep pockets and soon found a variety of objects. A few coins, some spare bullets, bubblegum, a handkerchief, a granola bar, a flick knife.

And a cellphone. - Excerpt from pages 241, 242 and 243
57. ↑ And abruptly, a broad grin split the reaper’s face. *‘Now that is more like it.’* He eyed Samuel Goffe’s body. *‘Don’t forget to scrap Geoffrey for parts, too.’*

“Right.” Damian turned to the coroner. “I need a body bag for this one.”

The man blinked at him. “E-excuse me?”

“I’m taking--what was it, Mr. Goffe? I’m taking him with me.” - Excerpt from page 297
58. ↑  “Right!” said Damian, rummaging through his pockets. He retrieved a fistful of pearly white rings--identical to one he was already wearing, Cisco noticed. “Now, these are only rings, so they’re not as strong as they might otherwise be, but they’ll help keep you safe. And choose your finger wisely, because once you put it on, it’s not coming off unless the finger comes with it. Everybody take one. Come on. Don’t be shy now. I made sure there were enough for all of you.”

When Cisco received his, he examined it more closely. It had a polished sheen to it on the outside rim, but the inside was much plainer. *‘Is that... bone?’* thought Cisco.

*‘I believe so,’* said Dennex privately. *‘This ring is the remains of an aberration. I can sense its sinister power.’*

Cisco watched as everyone else was putting theirs on. ‘*Should I really wear this?*’

‘*I don’t think you have much choice, right now.*’

‘*Ugh...*’ Cisco frowned as he stared at it. He’d wanted to become an aberration hunter, but was this the end result of that? Or was it just some twisted approximation? Would the Vanguard have made him wear this thing, too?

Maybe so. The Vanguard had certainly demonstrated that it wasn’t nearly so noble as he’d hoped it was.

‘*You can cut your finger off later, if you really hate it that much*,’ said Dennex.

Cisco took a slow breath and put it on, choosing his middle finger on his right hand. It felt like any other ring would, at first. Then a sharp pain bit into his finger, and he could feel it go all the way to his bone, like it was attaching itself to him.

But there was no blood. And it didn’t look like his skin had actually been broken. It just *felt* like he’d been cut into. But that, too, was fleeting. After a few more moments of agony, the pain was entirely gone.

The others were already manifesting shadows around themselves. A deep and dark red, each one was, which suggested to Cisco that all of these bone rings had come from the same aberration. Though, perhaps not. Surely, there were repeated colors among aberrations. Perhaps they’d all just come from the same *type* of aberration, assuming there were such classifications. - Excerpt from page 1476