Was Atticus simply stupid and overconfident? Or was he simply stating the truth? That despite the fact that the beings standing at the peak of this universe could snuff out the entire middle plane with a sneeze, he simply didn’t care?
’Time would tell.’
It didn’t matter, at least not now. The Archive was entertained, and when he was, there was no stopping him.
"Alright. A fair bargain I must say. Head to the Gilded Debt. I hear they’re about to let go of some interesting things later today. The code, I’d like to settle my debt in gold."
Whisker smiled. "Thank you, old man."
"No. Thank you." The Archive said, then glanced back at Atticus. "If you’re ever in need of information, don’t hesitate to find me. I’m sure we can work out a deal."
Atticus only nodded. The Archive vanished and the screen went blank.
"Who the hell was that?" Atticus asked, more disgusted than curious.
"He’s called The Archive." Whisker laughed, patting his shoulder. "Don’t worry, he’s like that to everyone he finds interesting."
"That doesn’t make me feel better."
"Pfft. It wasn’t supposed to."
Atticus sighed. "You didn’t have another information source? We had to rely on a pedophile."
"He’s the best information source in the entire middle planes."
Atticus was taken aback by that. The man didn’t seem like much. ’Could be because I’m seeing him through a screen?’
"Besides, we do what we must to survive." Whisker suddenly sounded profound. Atticus narrowed his eyes.
"Don’t tell me..."
Whisker burst into laughter. "Of course not! I’m all for the puss, never stick, Urg."
Atticus gave him a deadpan stare. Shaking his head, he said.
"Do you know where he told us to go to?"
"Of course." Whisker thumped his chest. "I’m the greatest tour guide on the planet. There isn’t a place I don’t know."
"I’m sure of that." Atticus didn’t look impressed. "Come on, we’ve wasted too much time as it is."
As they left the pod, they were both assaulted by Ozeroth’s barrage of questions. Since Atticus had blocked his mind from being read, Ozeroth had no idea what had occurred in the pod.
"It’s grown up stuff." Whisker said for the umpteenth time, sighing. "You won’t understand."
That only made Ozeroth flare even more.
During their banter, a thought suddenly struck Atticus and he released the block, allowing Ozeroth to read his thoughts, especially the one where he spoke about Ozeroth.
’Punishment.’ Atticus said with a smile. He caught himself, shocked by the sudden feeling of happiness at Whisker’s plight. He shrugged. ’He deserves it.’
Throughout their movements, Whisker went through hell. Atticus had known Ozeroth to be a petty man, but even he hadn’t expected it to be to such extent.
There was nothing he didn’t do to annoy Whisker. From shouting in his ears, to tripping him as they wandered the paved streets. It went without saying that Whisker had been thoroughly annoyed.
A much thorough punishment, Atticus would say.
Eventually, they reached their location. The Gilded Debt was located on the center part of the mid parts.
The building was larger compared to that of the Archive’s. It stood alone from all other buildings on the street, with multiple floors.
He couldn’t help but ask. No two people can ever be the same. They may look identical, but the inside was another thing entirely.
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Atticus's Odyssey: Reincarnated Into A Playground