Page 65 of Tapeworld Induction

He could hear Dylan’s voice in the back of his mind. Telling him to rest up, to take care of himself, propping and hyping him up.

She’d been brilliant today. The sheer power with which she’d run with him through the woods, and Sacha liked her too. Who wouldn’t? She pushed him when he needed pushing, reassured him when he needed reassuring. What had he done to deserve that? He was just a loser.

He buried his face in his hands. He thought of her smell, like strawberry and peach. An unexpected delight of the Tapeworld, that it carried through your scent. She’d smelled the same at the coffee shop in real life.

He grabbed his phone. Struggling with what to say, remembering how much he’d enjoyed hugging her and holding her, he typed out a message, each tap heartfelt.

@isaak: i’m home. hope you are too? sleep well xx

Send.

She replied almost immediately.

Good. She was safe.

He turned his lights off, pulled off his jeans, and landed in bed.

24

Absolute

Isaak

Midday. Goddess.

He got up for a shower. The heat of February was starting to make itself felt. It hadn’t always been so warm this early in the year, apparently, but seasons had stopped being the same a few decades ago. Part of the impulse that had pushed the Apocalypse Revolt to action.

Cold water ran down his body, a welcome respite. Looking himself in the mirror afterwards, his long black hair wet and stuck to his shoulders, he realised how, despite still looking quite muscular, the last year had taken its toll. Aimless, then shunted into doing gigs for Astrid. What was he thinking, getting roped into that?

He went to the trash bin, regret wrapped around his heart. The London Lazarus t-shirt he’d thrown away. Rescuing it from the used-up bits of tape and other rubbish, it was straight to the washing machine with it. Despite all the shit he’d been through, he was proud of having been team captain, of seeing the team through all the good times and bad.

When he went back to his desk, he had another text from Dylan.

@dylan: Be careful out there today xx

He liked to think of her thinking of him. She probably wouldn’t be too keen on him going back into the Tapeworld so soon after everything that had happened yesterday, but he needed answers. Leaning back in his chair, his hands fumbled with the roll of tape, and he stuck a piece on his head.

First, he went to his personal tape-space, back to his volcano-based fortress of solitude. He summoned a heavy and complex safe, and stored the Gunkatana there. If Astrid knew where he lived, which she almost certainly did, it wouldn’t be safe there in the real world. And after thinking long and hard last night, this was the safest place he could think of.

“You don’t mind, right, Gunky?” he found himself saying. Dylan had that effect on him, easily convincing him to do things that at first he wasn’t into.

“You’re asking me if I mind you leaving me alone in a safe for the near future, possibly even forever?” the Gunkatana asked in a razor-sharp voice, still in hilt form.

“Yeah, I guess?”

“No, I don’t.”

Isaak shrugged. “I’ll come back for you.”

He unsummoned the safe after securely closing it.

The Boulevard was busier this afternoon. Isaak marched straight for the Emporium.

He found Astrid at her usual booth, Jewel standing guard beside her.

A bald man was speaking with her, and Isaak saw him hand her something. The man looked over his shoulder, spotted Isaak, nodded to Astrid, and made his way towards the door. As he passed Isaak, the man looked dead ahead, giving no indication he’d even noticed him as he left the pub.

“Astrid.” Isaak nodded as he sat down in front of her.