BooksBarbecue
Back The Abyss Surrounds Us
Chapters (37)
  1. Dedication
  2. 1
  3. 2
  4. 3
  5. 4
  6. 5
  7. 6
  8. 7
  9. 8
  10. 9
  11. 10
  12. 11
  13. 12
  14. 13
  15. 14
  16. 15
  17. 16
  18. 17
  19. 18
  20. 19
  21. 20
  22. 21
  23. 22
  24. 23
  25. 24
  26. 25
  27. 26
  28. 27
  29. 28
  30. 29
  31. 30
  32. 31
  33. 32
  34. 33
  35. 34
  36. Acknowledgments
  37. About the Author

But that wouldn’t have done any good, because the pirates would still have this pup, this equipment, and no one on shore would be the wiser. It’s on me to survive. It’s on me to get this information back home, even if there’s no place for me there anymore.

And then something comes to me, something I can use. These pirates don’t know what Reckoner pups are like. They’ve only been on the bad side of the fully-grown beasts.

I could play this to my advantage.

And the idea is so deliciously present that I can’t believe I didn’t think of it before. Anything this pup does will be blamed on his nature before my training. One little slip of the knife made it so that they see him as a wild beast that I’m taming rather than a blank slate that I’m programming. They gave me a shield when Santa Elena tied me to Swift. Now they’ve given me the sword. They want me to teach him to hunt.

But they also gave me the power to turn them into the prey.

9

9

That night, Santa Elena locks me on the trainer deck. I roll down the three massive doors to keep the sea winds from ripping through the space and make a small nest out of towels on the counter where I keep my tools. The pup watches curiously as I hop up on the ledge and curl up. “Go to sleep, you little shit,” I tell him.

If I’m not careful, he’ll start thinking that’s his name. I’ve already called him that at least twenty times today. I do actually need to name him, need to give him something that identifies and differentiates him. I’ve never gotten to name a Reckoner before. Usually that’s up to the shipping company that commissions them. The Nereid ’s owners were Hindu; they named their beast after a goddess famous for killing demons. But what do you name a creature meant to rip the NeoPacific apart, to upset the equilibrium we’ve worked so hard to establish?

My thoughts jump to villains, to demons and devils, to ancient monsters and evils that never sleep. That’s the kind of name this Reckoner deserves.

But I’m not going to give him what he deserves.

He’s small and fat and round, and my mind lands on the steamed buns my mom makes on the days when she needs to get out of the lab. A smirk twists my lips. I’ll name him something small and harmless. I’ll give him a name that will contradict every gene hacked into him.

“You’re Bao,” I tell him.

Bao snorts.