Defiant: Quantic Dreams Book 2 by Elizabeth McLaughlin (reading list txt) 📗

maybe even run away, but the confrontation felt like a game. My vision felt remarkably clear, my breathing even. Gabriel’s stolen body was more powerful than mine by an order of magnitude but it was slow. Being short and fit gave me the advantage of speed and I utilized it to the best of my ability, dancing out of the way of Gabriel’s mad grabs and punches. That isn’t to say that I was winning. More than once I had to shake off the pain as Gabriel’s fists connected with existing injuries and burns. The best medical treatment in the world couldn’t completely erase the ill effects of my ordeals from a body this old. I switched tactics, preferring to use Gabriel’s power against him. More than once he charged me, head down and huffing like a bull. Each time he stumbled as I grabbed him behind the head and forced him towards the ground with his own momentum. Following his trajectory I placed myself directly in his path and brought a knee upwards. My kneecap crunched into his nose and I was rewarded with a shower of blood and a yelp as Gabriel instinctively brought his hands to his nose.

We tussled on and on, neither of us giving or gaining much ground. The adrenaline rush I had enjoyed was starting to wear off. I was growing a half second slower and a hair weaker every minute the fight continued. Because he wasn’t human, Gabriel was skilled at ignoring the protests George’s body had to be screaming at him by now. He could—and would—fight until one of us dropped. Judging by the rage afire in his eyes, he wouldn’t cease until he felt my heart stop under his hands. I had to figure out another strategy fast. It occurred to me that I had the opportunity to bolt. The safest way to outrun an overpowered opponent was to find a populated place, after all. If I could make it back to the infirmary it was unlikely that Gabriel would pursue me that far. I ducked out of the way as he threw a haymaker at me. His fist connected with the concrete and metal, the skin ripping open as the wall crumbled beneath his fist.

Shit. His host body should have been in agony. Even willpower doesn’t take away a broken hand, but Gabriel didn’t even seem to notice. His plans had crumbled in front of his eyes, not once, but twice. The only option left was to kill the man responsible for it all—me.

I backed up, dancing on my toes and holding my hands up to guard my torso. I glanced around me, trying to see if there was something, anything I could use as a weapon. Sadly the hallway was kept neat and clean. It was imperative that nothing stood in the way of the infirmary doors lest someone in an emergency had to be slowed down. Ease of access could make the difference between life and death in the right situation.

“You’re not running from me this time!” Gabriel snarled and kicked me in the chest hard enough to knock the wind from me. The pain from the blow dazed me and I twisted as Gabriel landed on top of me and drove his fist towards my face. His hand smashed into the floor and I could swear I heard the concrete crack a little bit. Pushing a foot up against his massive form earned me enough leeway to scramble backwards. I danced away from my adversary, shifting my weight from foot to foot as I waited for his next move.

“What are you going to do?” The voice of the robot broke though human vocal cords. “You gonna kill me, Jacob? Even if you could win in a fight with this body, what about your friend Geoooorge? Are you going to kill him too?” Gabriel’s mocking enraged me. It was one thing to kill your enemy. Hell, I’d even call it justified. But hijacking someone’s mind was a violation like no other.

“He’s already dead.” If I could keep him talking, I would buy myself time to formulate a strategy. Formulate a strategy? Who was I kidding. I was buying myself time to take a few more breaths before the killing blow struck.

“Are you sure about that? For all you know plugging this body back into a pod might free your poor old friend. In fact, I guarantee it. Give me back my mainframe and I’ll be happy to leave the human unharmed.”

That gave me pause. I had to kill Gabriel, that much was true, but did that give me the right to also murder George? I could picture his consciousness in some form, alive and aware, trapped in a body that he would never again control. That was it. A body he would never again control. If I were in the same situation, I know what I’d want. Put me out of my misery.

“Sure…” I trailed off. “Just come on over here and we’ll have a good old talk about it. I’m an old man, Gabriel. I’m exhausted. I’ve watched too many people get sick and die to want to go on. So you win. I’ll plug you back into the mainframe and get started on having some folks rebuild your server. You might have to run a little slowly until then, but you can manage, right?”

“You know what Jacob? I take it back. You and I both know how this is going to end. After all, you attacked me in a fit of rage. After I convinced people that they should be re-inserted into the virtual world, you lost your mind. Your hopes dashed, you chased me down and confronted me. We fought for a good while as I tried to calm you down, but ultimately you gave me no choice.”

What a load of bullshit.

I had settled on trying to bolt into the infirmary when I felt something pushing into my thigh. The scalpel I had secreted away