Chương 14: 014

Karma rubbed the back of her head, fingers tangling in crimson waves.

"Unfortunately, I don't have much more information to give. Time and I have been so focused on the looming apocalypse that we haven't paid much attention to mortal affairs. Anything I know would be decades out of date." Her mouth twisted faintly.

"Time was asking around about that exact problem when I left. He might have answers for you." Well. At least there was that.

"I guess I'll meet up with him once I'm over there," I said.

"Figure the rest out as I go." A thought sparked, dragging me back to the beginning of our conversation.

"Wait. You said there was more than one thing you'd need from me as your Chosen. What's the other?" Her grin snapped into place, sharp and delighted, the grim weight lifting from her shoulders.

"Ah. That's the fun one." She jerked her chin toward the frozen thug.

"On top of investigating the apocalypse, I'd need you to handle useless sacks of skin like him." Her eyes gleamed.

"Nexus is crawling with power-hungry monsters whose karma is absolutely putrid. My usual method of dealing with them isn't working anymore." I hesitated.

"…What's your usual method?" Her smile stretched wide, too wide.

"I turn them into cockroaches." Of course she did.

"There's no better punishment," she continued cheerfully.

"They spend the rest of their miserable lives scuttling around while everyone tries to squash them." … At least that explained her determination to turn my mother into a cockroach. But her expression sobered quickly.

"Unfortunately, the number of cockroaches is becoming a problem in its own right. Which is where you come in, my potential new Chosen." I blinked. Once. Twice.

"You… want me to kill cockroaches while stopping an apocalypse?" I mean, it wasn't the worst thing I could think to do, but it seemed weird to pull someone in from another universe to play bug exterminator when things like the world ending were very real threats. She shook her head.

"No. Killing them would negate the punishment." She paused, thoughtful.

"…Though it would solve the overpopulation issue." I watched her visibly consider it, then dismiss it with a sharp shake of her head.

"No. Bad Karma. That's short-term thinking." Turning back to me, she explained, "As my Chosen, you'll give the scum of Nexus a choice. They can be turned into cockroaches… or you decide their fate." I stared at her. This couldn't be real.

"You want me to play judge, jury, and executioner?" My voice cracked as I gestured weakly toward the wall, where my framed degree still hung.

"I'm a doctor. I took an oath not to harm anyone." Digging up information was one thing. Ending lives, choosing who deserved punishment, was something else entirely. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. Karma laughed, utterly unbothered.

"That oath will be the first thing to go when you leave here. New life, new oath." She shrugged.

"And you don't have to kill anyone. Punishment is usually more effective if they're alive." Her gaze flicked to the thug.

"What would you do to people like him? Those who hurt innocents for profit, or pleasure?" Her smile sharpened again.

"With magic, nearly anything is possible." Anything at all. Turning monsters into cockroaches honestly sounded ideal… but if Nexus was already drowning in them, then clearly something else was needed. Something that didn't directly result in me killing them. Karma waved a hand, snapping my attention back to her.

"You can think about that later. Time will walk you through the spell." Her tone hardened.

"Focus on now." She straightened, power coiling tight beneath her skin.

"If you accept, you'll be the Chosen of Karma. My instrument to uncover the root of this would-be apocalypse, and the hand that delivers my judgment to the worst of Nexus." Her eyes locked onto mine.

"Do you want the oath to last past today?" I didn't hesitate.

"Yes," I said, voice steady despite the blood slicking my lungs.

"I accept. As long as the people I'm hunting are abusers and murderers, I'll carry out your punishment." Her grin returned, bright and fierce, and she reached out, cupping my cheek with surprising gentleness.

"Good. Then let's get this show on the road." The moment her last word fell, the power around her shifted. It flowed toward me, wrapping around my body like a living thing, sinking through skin and bone, chasing away the cold and the dark. Then, in a blink, she was gone. The power remained. It pulsed inside me, violent and immense, like a storm trapped beneath my skin, clawing for release. Every bone screamed under the strain, as if it might split apart from the force alone.

It had to be the power she'd left for me. Which left just one thing to do. I focused on the thug as time lurched forward again. The ticking clock resumed, loud and merciless, and his body twitched as the pause unraveled. He couldn't leave this room. I gathered the power and hurled it at him. Agony tore through my nerves, white-hot and absolute, like the magic physically ripped its way out of me. Blood surged up my throat, and the darkness clawed closer, eager. I shoved it back. I had to see this through.

The blast struck him square in the back. He staggered, clawing at his chest, then collapsed face-first against the door, lifeless, like a puppet with its strings cut. Sirens wailed in the distance. I exhaled shakily, relief washing through me. The police were coming. Anna and Dennis would be safe. That was enough. Whatever waited for me next, I could leave this life knowing I'd done what mattered. And, apparently, I'd be saving a whole lot more lives in Nexus too.

The thought carried me gently under as the world faded away, until there was nothing left at all.