“Sort of. The symbol he warned me to watch out for. I found it tonight.” I told him briefly about the containment chamber, but didn’t give too many details. If he was stupid enough to haphazardly mention the existence of monsters in front of some random bimbos, talking about the Scary Zone was sure to put him on Agent Franks’ to-do list in no time. I had no idea how many witnesses Franks had actually murdered, or if his epic intimidation skills usually did the job, but I had no doubt if Mosh kept talking about monsters, one morning he would accidentally cut his own head off while shaving.

“So what does this mean? Is Dad going to just…croak?” He focused on a stain on the carpet and randomly rubbed at it with his boot. “Why does this have to be our family?”

I wish I knew. “It’s way bigger than us. I’ve got no choice. I have to find out.”

“He’ll die.”

“I know, but if I don’t, and something he knows could mean the difference between winning the apocalypse or not, what am I supposed to do? If I don’t do anything, everyone dies. Does Dad seem like the kind of guy to exaggerate about it being the end of the world?”

He looked up from the stain. “You’re supposed to be the Chosen One. You’ve done everything they wanted. Can’t you cut a deal with them?”

“I don’t even know who them is.”

“Find out then!” Mosh’s rage came back with a vengeance. “Find out, tell them you’ll kill whoever this new guy is, but they have to leave us alone! It’s all about you, but it’s everyone around you that suffers. Me, now Dad, even your wife—Yeah, I heard some of your people talking after your buddy Sam’s funeral. Even Julie, she’s got some kind of evil curse on her.”

I lowered my head. “It’s not like—”

“Fuck you, Chosen One. It’s all about you, but it was those poor orcs that got their village burned down and their kids murdered.”

He was right. Didn’t mean it didn’t hurt to hear it. I got up. “We’re done.”

“Run away then, hero.” Mosh stood up too. “You’re just going to let Dad die for you, too.”

“I’ll do what I have to.”

“You always say that. That’s so simple when it’s everybody else doing the suffering. You get to save the day but ruin everyone around you. You’re cursed as bad as your wife. Maybe when she dies because of you, you’ll understand how the rest of us—”

I punched him square in the mouth.