The Achievement Junkie

Chapter 682 - Trapped and Tortured

"Himself?" Halmut blinked, startled by that question.

12-13 nodded. "Despite your intel, Halmut, Sterfen's energy shows traces of illusion, water, and mental skills."

"WHAT?! And you never told me--"

"I'm not your aid nor your security guard," 12-13 coldly stated, glancing at Halmut through the dark mist surrounding his face. "I have no need to tell you everything I learn or to help you perfect your plans. So long as you're on course to fulfill what I need, then that suffices me. Helping you with Kylon was already beyond my station."

"But that helped you too!" argued Halmut. "Without that--"

"Enough."

The calm yet cold statement wasn't shouted or roared yet Halmut immediately stopped speaking. 12-13's influence and control over Halmut was evidence of his strength, again proving to Sterfen that he had made a grave mistake.

"Sterfen, don't be so sad," chuckled 12-13. "You were right to believe that Halmut was going crazy. I even tweaked his mind to make it more believable, allowing you to gradually lower your guard the longer you waited to strike. And though you knew it would be risky, you understood that tonight should've been the best opportunity to attack, an admirable quality in an assassin. You had the will to strike during an appropriate risk, even confident that you could fight Halmut by yourself in a fair fight. Though that may be possible, I can't have that happening.

"Why not work with me? We can also use such a marvelous talent like yourself!"

But Sterfen remained quiet, unnerved and unswayed.

"Always the hard way… But that makes you even more desirable, Sterfen." Shaking his head with a chuckle, 12-13 stated, "Give it time. You'll be working with me, guaranteed."

"Would you mind making your presences scarce? I need to rest for tomorrow and I don't want either of you two being seen by the Flood Dragons before I leave."

"Sure thing, Halmut. I need you in tip-top shape tomorrow," agreed 12-13, making both he and Sterfen invisible. Then, he brought Sterfen to the side of the room and placed his hands on the Assassin God's head. "This will hurt. A lot. But don't worry, I'll keep your mouth from moving so shouting won't be a problem."

Suddenly, Sterfen's entire body tensed up and the pain of a thousand needles puncturing his brain overwhelmed him. He wanted to pass out but found himself unable.

12-13, on the other hand, was smiling under his cover of darkness and invisibility. The man sneaky man made sure that Sterfen was unable to become unconscious, forcing his mind to endure everything while wide awake. It was a common tactic to help exhaust and weaken the mind while extracting information. Also, 12-13 was quite curious how long Sterfen's mental fortitude would last compared to others he had tortured in the past.

*****

YAAAWWNN

Jack stretched his body, making sure to get up and get his blood pumping after a good night's sleep. He was welcomed to find a cold breakfast of various sushi plates, mostly vegetarian via the hydra farms, and all were delicious in their own right.

After finishing his morning meal, Jack was more relaxed than ever. Finally, his plan was about to go into effect. No plan was ever perfect but Jack was confident he could make it work.

Jack left his room and made sure to leave nothing behind. He wasn't planning to come back, at least not until after he conquered Glacier Keep. The hero didn't go far though, finding his way to Jinbe's master suite. After knocking, Jack unlocked the door and made his way into the grand room built for the hydra head, the room that Raztol had always refused to use. Since it was the one best sized for the behemoth Mantis Leviathan, Raztol offered it in order to keep Jinbe from constantly being eyed by hydras in public.

'Jack… You're entering Glacier Keep today, right? What will happen to me?' Jinbe asked, struggling to relax on his giant sofa.

Smiling, Jack replied, 'You'll wait here. I'm sure the hydras will be happy to have you here very soon.'

'Why?'

'Did you hear about the four Flood Dragons that left last night? Apparently, they made a fruit delivery but never came back. In the case that they come back after I enter Glacier Keep, I'm sure you'd be welcome to help fend them off,' reasoned Jack.

'But Jack… I can't--'

Placing his hand on Jinbe, Jack passed over a tidbit of energy. It surprised Jinbe but Jack explained, 'Now you'll be able to reach lv. 90 and beyond. You already managed to fight a god one-on-one, I saw the injured wing. So why worry? You'll have the elders fighting as well and I've made sure that you won't get overwhelmed.'

'Really… How?'

'Don't worry about that. Just trust me. Everything is going according to plan after some minor adjustments. You'll be fine, and this will prove to the hydras that you're better as an ally, not a foe.'

'Alright… Thank you, Jack.'

'Don't thank me yet. At some point, I'll have to help you breathe out of water so you'll be able to travel with us beyond this planet,' added Jack.

'That… That's hard for me to fathom…' Jinbe sighed.

Chuckling, Jack encouraged Jinbe, 'Don't worry about it. You've been struggling to survive and adapt your entire life. Have you ever had a friend or ally?'

'Long ago… I don't remember how long ago…' replied Jinbe. 'I've been alone for a while…'

'Well, not anymore. Want to see something cool?'

Without warning, Jack's human form suddenly began to change. Before Jinbe's eyes, he was astounded to see Jack assume a form similar to his own, only much smaller and with four arms instead of six.

'From now on, thanks to our seal, I can share your bloodline. That should prove that you're an important companion to me and I can be important to you too. So, can you trust me? For real?'

Jinbe was silent for a moment, touched to see Jack catching his true thoughts. 'I… It's hard to trust others so suddenly… but I trust you more than others since you've proven worthy of trust so far…'

'I'll take that as a yes," laughed Jack, hopping off the sofa. 'I've got somewhere to be, so I'll see you after going through Glacier Keep. If the necessity arises, you can trust Raztol and fight alongside him.