DP Episode 109
by BrieDeep Pivot Episode 109
His body, unable to adjust to the time difference, complained of fatigue. However, this was not a trip, so there was no time to rest.
In the outdoor park of the research center, Seo-joon sat alone at a table with a parasol, drinking a strong latte prepared by the researchers, waiting for someone.
It was 2 PM. In Korea, 14 hours ahead, it was around 4 AM. Cha Yeon-woo would be sleeping now. Despite missing him, Seo-joon couldn’t call.
He sensed someone approaching from behind. Seo-joon stood up and turned to face the newcomer.
Gray eyes like his own, but clearly a Westerner.
It was Eric Donovan, the American No-named.
“Hello.”
Eric greeted him with a smile and a clumsy pronunciation. His impression was much more cheerful than what Seo-joon had seen on the tablet screen. Seo-joon shook his hand lightly.
[Can I call you Jun?]
TL/N: Raws「Jun이라고 부르면 될까.」
“Feel free.”
The two No-named finally faced each other directly. Silence fell for a few seconds. This was probably the first meeting between strangers who had never met in their lives, leaving a unique impression on both of them.
[My wife is really curious about you. Can we take a picture together?]
“You’re good at sharing confidential information.”
[My wife is my dedicated guide. You must have told your dedicated guide too.]
Eric was discovered near the Brooklyn Bridge on December 24, 2000, and adopted into a comfortable home. Six years ago, he married his guide and has a four-year-old daughter adopted from a third country.
Unlike Seo-joon, he had a living family, including his adoptive parents, siblings, and grandparents, forming a happy extended family.
When the Gates close and the Americans celebrate with joy, his family will feel as if their world is collapsing.
[These are my parents.]
He proudly showed Seo-joon pictures of his family.
[This is my daughter. It’s from her birthday party last year. She was so scared of the clown we hired that most of the photos are of her almost crying. Look at this.]
Seo-joon, looking at his phone screen nonchalantly and responding appropriately, suddenly stopped talking.
[My wife, Rachel. Isn’t she beautiful?]
The woman’s face and neck were marred with scars that looked like they had been torn by something. Seo-joon knew well where those scars came from.
“…She’s beautiful.”
They were similar to the scars on Cha Yeon-woo’s body. Seo-joon looked up at Eric.
He swallowed down the questions he couldn’t voice: How could he keep someone so wounded close? How could he marry and build a family?
But as fellow No-named, they understood each other without words. Eric answered readily.
[There were some… mistakes in the past.]
Mistakes. Seo-joon instinctively understood. If Rachel’s scars were Eric’s mistakes, his own mistake was Min Sun-wook’s death.
[Nowadays, we prepare a lot before pairing. Things like tranquilizers and muscle relaxants help. …Too much pleasure can be dangerous.]
Seo-joon wasn’t the only one with a story.
[In some countries, No-named have killed dozens of guides during pairing. Some went completely mad after losing their partners and had to be confined.]
Stories of No-named and their dedicated guides from around the world sent a chill through Seo-joon’s heart. There was no guarantee that he and Cha Yeon-woo wouldn’t become the protagonists of such stories.
[I’m very fortunate. I met someone more than I deserve.]
Eric leaned in and smiled.
[I’m actually one-eyed.]
Seo-joon frowned, looking at his gray eyes.
“What do you mean?”
“My right eye, Rachel made it for me.”
A deep sense of understanding and camaraderie passed between them. Despite their different backgrounds, they shared a unique bond as No-named, carrying the weight of their existence and the relationships that sustained them.
Seven Years Ago
Seven years ago, Eric nearly lost his eye while subduing a Phaser in the field.
His melted eye would start to heal thanks to the No-named’s regenerative abilities, but the Pasa’s poison had already infiltrated his eye, causing it to melt repeatedly. Rachel had to guide Eric with her whole body as he was on the verge of going berserk from the extreme pain.
[At first, the researchers thought I was going berserk just by looking at the bio-wavelength. But actually, that was…]
Rachel managed to reconstruct Eric’s right eye using only her guiding ability.
Hearing this, Seo-joon couldn’t help but grimace.
The healing from the No-named’s regenerative ability and the healing through guiding are definitely different. The former feels like forcibly stitching torn flesh back together, while the latter feels like filling in new flesh with warmth from the other.
However, “filling in” ultimately means taking something from somewhere to make it possible. Even a small eye would require an enormous amount of the guide’s biological energy to reconstruct damaged tissue.
[I might be the only No-named who has reached Deep Pivot.]
Eric smiled proudly. Seo-joon didn’t envy him at all.
To the general public, Deep Pivot can only be explained as a multi-orgasm with high intensity, but in reality, it’s a rare occurrence even among typical Awakeners.
Especially for No-named, whose essence is an unidentified organic monster, it’s extremely dangerous.
Over Pivot and Deep Pivot show very similar bio-wavelength patterns. Therefore, experts always warn that Deep Pivot and Over Pivot are like two sides of the same coin.
…Rachel’s scars in the photos were likely from that time.
In the end, No-named can only end up hurting their partners. The more affectionate the dedicated guide is towards the No-named, the more inevitable it is that they get hurt.
Some even lose their lives.
[That’s why I cherish this eye in the field. Rachel made it for me. If necessary, I keep it safe in my belly.]
You know what I mean, buddy? When we turn into tentacle slime monsters. He tried to make a joke, but Seo-joon couldn’t laugh at all.
[I can’t live without Rachel. And Rachel can’t live without me either. Whether it’s empathy or love, what matters is that we care for each other.]
“…”
[That’s why I don’t want to die yet.]
There are too many people who love me. By now, Eric’s smile had also faded. His world was too comfortable and kind. With so many people who cared for him, it would be hard for him to abandon his world.
“…There’s no one who wants to die, Eric.”
But Seo-joon couldn’t fully empathize.
At this moment, somewhere, a Gate is opening, and monsters are pouring out. Countless people are dying, and there are only twelve of them.
Only twelve.
Only me.
Compared to hundreds or thousands of lives, he felt incredibly insignificant.
Cha Yeon-woo
[Lieutenant]
[Are you still busy?]
2:46 PM
[I woke up from my nap]
[It’s scary without you next to me]
2:47 PM
Ji Seo-joon
[Try to get a little more sleep.]
[I’ll call you later.]
2:48 PM
For Cha Yeon-woo, it was a stroke of bad luck. He had the misfortune of falling for someone who unknowingly brought disaster to the world.
“…I saw the sample of ‘It’ for the first time here.”
Seo-joon, having put his phone back in his pocket, spoke.
He hadn’t expected to find hope here, but it was more despairing than he imagined. There was no way they could find a method to save just one No-named against such an overwhelming existence.
[Oh, the Cthulhu… it’s quite grotesque.]
Eric responded briefly. He seemed to call it Cthulhu, a term Victor mentioned in the video with Sergei.
[I read a few books from that series. The aliens there take on human forms and appear on Earth, coming off as charming beings to win human hearts.]
Eric’s words made Seo-joon smile wryly. It was an accurate analogy. He recalled what Sergei had said to Victor in the video.
[If they appear as five or six-year-old children abandoned on the streets, they can easily evoke human sympathy.]
Seo-joon made a biting joke as he finished the last of his latte.
The afternoon sun slanted across the lawn of the research base. The meeting of the two No-named was gradually coming to an end, confirming only unremarkable facts.
[…We were clearly outsiders.]
Extraterrestrial beings in human shells, ultimately that was the true identity of the No-named, including himself.
If only he had known a bit sooner.
It was particularly unfortunate to discover this truth at this point, right after meeting Cha Yeon-woo.