The Hidden Olympian

Not wasting any time, Ged approached the two Golden Suns bouncers stationed outside the Hidden Olympian.

"Chim, I'm here for Resh," Ged said to the larger of the two doormen.

Chim turned to the second doorman. "Bo, go check if he's able to see him."

Bo spat in protest, but a sharp glare from Chim kept him in line. Begrudgingly, Bo turned and disappeared inside the bar.

Inside, the Hidden Olympian was a den of pure degeneracy. Drug use and gambling dominated different corners of the space. The air hung heavy with the stench of cigarette smoke and other narcotics, while loud, droning electronic music reverberated off the cave walls of the underground bar.

In a private room, seated alone at an oversized table, sat a gargantuan body sorcerer. His massive chair resembled a throne, and his house-sized frame occupied a quarter of the spacious chamber. His sunken eyes glowed a vibrant blue, staring vacantly into the distance. With methodical precision, his hands crushed peanuts one by one, their shattered shells forming a growing mound of dust before him. Nearby, an overflowing bowl of cigarette butts teetered precariously. He chain-smoked without pause, releasing thick plumes of smoke in rhythmic bursts, like the exhaust of an industrial smokestack.

Resh's senses drowned in the vision of a vast, endless ocean. The sound of lapping waves filled his mind, and above the water's surface floated an indescribable blue orb. It twisted and distorted space around it, a presence so alien it seemed to defy existence itself. He reached for it, his hands trembling, yearning for connection.

"Resh," Bo called cautiously.

There was no response.

"Sector Leader Resh," he tried again, louder this time.

Still nothing.

Frustration crept in. Bo stepped closer, leaning over the table to place himself directly in Resh's line of sight.

He snapped his fingers sharply in front of Resh's unblinking gaze.

"Ged's at the door..."

The snap shattered the vision.

The ocean and the orb evaporated, leaving Resh adrift in the dim, smoke-filled room. His head tilted slightly as he tried to make sense of his surroundings, his glowing blue gaze narrowing at Bo's figure.

Without warning, Resh's hand shot out with explosive ferocity, crushing Bo's arm in an iron grip. The sickening snap of bones echoed through the room.

"You idiot! Do you understand what you've just done?" Resh shouted, tears streaming down his face. "The most beautiful vision—gone! Right when connection was within my grasp!"

He clawed at the air, desperate to reclaim the vanished vision. His voice rose to a fever pitch, trembling with frustration. "I saw it! I saw the Peak combining with the waters of the Absolute!"

Bo gasped, clutching his mangled arm. Terror choked his scream as Resh's words grew darker and more erratic.

"Concepts, shapes, sensations." Resh's voice softened into a reverent whisper. "They were all meaningless, useless in capturing its complete form."

He exhaled shakily. "It offered me something. A mere fragment of itself."

"A connection meant for me alone."

His tone turned cold, laced with accusation. "But you, with your jealous interruptions, you shattered my vision and severed the thread it had given me. Have you no shame?"

Bo's stomach churned with fear. His mind raced for a way to pull his superior back to reality.

Clenching his teeth, he forced his voice steady.

"You told us to let you know if someone was at the door," he said. "Remember?"

Resh's expression darkened.

He pushed himself up from his throne. Cigarette ash rose into the air like storm clouds, his eyes glowing like death itself, piercing Bo like blue lightning.

Bo stumbled back, fear flashing in his eyes.

"I did say that," Resh muttered, shrugging with a detached air. "But that was before I began my journey to understand everything."

"Things are different now."

He paused. "Who's at the door again?"

Bo trembled. "Ged."

"Ged?" A flicker of sanity returned to Resh's face. The glow in his blue eyes dimmed momentarily.

"Ha! How bold my friend has become, seeking me out while I'm so preoccupied," Resh said, rolling his eyes. "I gave him some small title and a piece of our drug operation to oversee because I thought he had some swagger. Yet he still hasn't sworn an oath in full to the Golden Suns."

He inhaled an entire lit cigarette in one breath.

Smoke curled from his lips as he spoke. "Perhaps I've been too soft on him lately…"

Resh gave a raspy cough, his mind drifting off into thought.

The room grew silent.

Bo clutched his broken arm in pain. "Resh… can you do something about my arm?"

Resh's eyes narrowed as he studied the injury with a detached curiosity. A strange glint appeared in his blue gaze.

Reaching into his abs, he pulled out a fleshy blue prism. A cryptic smile formed on his face as his large feet thundered towards Bo.

The fleshy prism alit with blue light, as heat channeled through his veins into his palm.

Bo took a step back, terror struck him. "Resh, what is that?"

The fleshy prism turned into molten plasma in Resh's large hot hands.

Sweat dripped down Bo's face.

Resh struck like lightning, tearing off Bo's arm with inhuman precision. Before he could even begin to bleed, Resh shoved the burning prism into his exposed shoulder.

Bo screamed. His body convulsed violently as his arm twisted into something monstrous.

The prism writhed, shifting and reshaping, until it finally hardened into a grotesque, claw-like appendage.

Resh stepped back, admiring his work with a sense of pride. "I had thought something was missing about you. This should fix things..." he spoke, nodding with satisfaction. "Consider this my gift. A small trace of my newfound enlightenment."

Bo lay panting on the floor, his grotesque claw twitching involuntarily. His hatred and fear for Resh burned throughout his entire body.

Resh wasn't finished. His eyes gleamed with inspiration as he studied Bo's trembling form. "No… you are still incomplete. This won't do."

Bo tried to get up off the ground, trying to leave, before Resh made another move.

Resh brightened with an idea.

"Aha! A new transformation demands a new name, one that transcends your old self."

Bo stopped struggling, looking up at Resh with anger burning in his eyes.

He pointed at Bo with his gargantuan finger. "From now on, you will be known as Crab. Remember it well, it would be best to forget your old name."

Crab stammered with exasperation. "Resh… you can't be serious. Change my arm back! You expect me to go by Crab? Everyone will mock me."

Resh's face darkened.

"You don't like the arm I gave you?" He took a few steps forward, rolling up his sleeves. His blue eyes shone like prison searchlights, spelling the word 'death' across Crab's chest.

Crab swallowed hard, his fear of death far outweighing his fear of embarrassment.

"Nope… never mind. The arm is fine. Crab... it's… uh… starting to grow on me." He backpedaled frantically.

"I see..." Resh knitted his brows, his mood improving. "Good. Then let me prepare another gift for you, to commemorate this grand occasion."

He brushed aside the mound of peanut shells, revealing a dusty stack of napkins. Muttering to himself, he began scribbling furiously.

"Claw curls… six to twelve reps… perhaps paired with forearm rotations…"

Crab stared at Resh, his rage simmering beneath the pain.

But his fear of Resh burned far stronger than his desire for revenge.

Clenching his fist, he exhaled sharply.

"Should I let Ged in? You never answered."

Resh barely looked up from his scribbling. "Ged? Yeah. Sure. Fine. Whatever."

Crab turned and stormed out, his new claw clicking against his side.

As he walked to the entrance, the stares of the patrons burned into him. Humiliation settled like a weight in his chest.

Crab.

The thought alone of his new name nearly made him faint.

He made his way back to the entrance, scanning for Ged.

Outside, Ged sat atop a jagged crystal, waiting patiently.

At last, the entrance stirred, and Crab emerged.

Ged squinted at him.

"Ged," Crab said through clenched teeth, his voice strained with pain. "Resh will see you now."

Ged didn't move, his gaze locked in on Crab's bizarre new claw.

"Why is your arm like that?" Ged asked.

"Resh did it... he's not himself anymore." Crab replied, tears hidden beneath his eyes.

Unease prickled at Ged's spine. He hesitated. A question burned in his mind, but he wasn't sure he wanted the answer.

"…What do you mean? What happened to Resh?" he finally asked.

The question sent a fresh wave of anger surging through Crab.

"He's a fucking lunatic!" Crab snapped. "He's completely lost it! The Sixth Sector's collapse is imminent. The other sectors are circling like vultures, waiting to pick up the pieces. It's a disaster."

His voice dropped to a growl. "He needs to be stopped."

"He's taking too much Blue Water. His madness is nearing the point of no return."

Crab exhaled sharply, his fist clenching. "I'm thinking of reporting him to his Killswitch."

Ged's expression darkened. "His Killswitch?" His tone sharpened. "Isn't that a little overboard?"

A vein pulsed on Crab's forehead. "A little overboard?" His voice rose in fury. "He fucking replaced my arm with this abomination! How the hell is that unreasonable?"

Ged shrugged.

"I saw him a few days ago. He seemed fine. Blue Water Madness is common in the underground. He probably just needs a good slap to the face and a bit of sunlight."

Crab seethed.

"You're a Golden Sun in name only. No tattoo. No loyalty. How would you know what he's like? You are just another parasite feeding off our influence." He clenched his fist. "You don't deal with him every day like we do. You don't care about what's best for the gang, you only care about yourself."

His gaze darkened as he glared at Ged. "Why the fuck should I consider your opinion?"

Ged smirked.

"You might regret those words."

"There's a reason I got as far as I did. My opinions hold weight."

He dusted off his clothes and stood up from the crystal he had been sitting on.

"When I speak, people listen"

Crab scoffed. "Your days are numbered. Your title of Drug Lord won't protect you forever. The only one vouching for you now is Resh, and when he's gone, do you really think anyone else will grant you the same privileges?"

Ged remained unfazed.

"Let's go see Resh." His voice was calm. "I'll find out the situation for myself."

Crab sneered.

Without another word, he led Ged inside the nightclub.

As they traveled through the derelict scenery, they arrived at the familiar private room.

"Good luck," Crab said, his voice grim.

"He's not the same person you once knew."

Crab peeled back the veil and gestured for Ged to enter.

Ged didn't hesitate. Ducking his head beneath the curtain, his vision was immediately engulfed in thick cigarette smoke.

In the corner, Resh's hulking form sat slumped in his throne, lost in another daze. His eyes glowed a bright blue.

He seems quieter than the last time I saw him.

Without a second thought, he strode purposefully toward Resh.

Activating Goat Walk, he vaulted onto the throne-like chair and brought his palm crashing down on the back of Resh's head, slamming him face-first into a pile of crushed peanuts.

Resh roared in anger.

"Resh, you look terrible," Ged said, shaking his head pitifully. "You need to take better care of yourself. Come, let's get you some sun."

Resh jolted upright, crushed peanut shells falling from his face. His fingers curled into a fist, his thoughts consumed by pure annihilation.

Spitting out the crushed cigarette from his mouth, he roared, "Ged! Since when have you become this bold?"

His fists swung like meteors toward Ged's retreating figure.

Still sluggish from his daze, Resh lacked his usual precision, giving Ged a brief window to dodge.

Bang!

Ged relied on quick footwork to evade, but as Resh's desk-sized fists shattered the floor around him and his awareness sharpened, the tides were turning against him.

"Resh, come on." He tried to reason with the raging giant. "It was just a tap to wake you up. Don't be so unreasonable. I'd expect you to do the same for me."

Ged's words did little to calm him.

Resh's anger only grew, his strikes becoming more ferocious.

With no other option, Ged braced himself.

Resh's fist slammed into him like a wrecking ball, launching him against the cave wall.

Ged gritted his teeth, coughing up blood onto the stone floor. Staggering, his knees nearly buckled, but he forced himself to stay upright.

He lifted his head and flashed a bloody grin.

"Good hit," he chuckled through labored breaths. "I let you have that one."

Taking a step forward, he wiped the blood from his mouth. "Now, come on. Stop this. I have things I urgently need to discuss," he said, his tone firm.

Resh didn't slow his advance. "Urgent? Discuss?" His eyes gleamed with cold fury. "What could be so pressing that you would dare wake me this violently?"

Ged didn't flinch at Resh's hostility.

"Not here. Let's go outside. I'll tell you in detail there."

Resh furrowed his brow, his feet slowing down. "Outside? Why? We will talk here." 

Ged ignored his question.

"Guess who I saw at the Abyssal Mouth today?" Ged asked, a hint of playfulness in his voice.

"Who?" Resh asked, his eyes narrowing, his feet finally coming to a halt.

"The Cumulus Gang. They were swarming the pit, and the Second Sector Golden Suns were in direct conflict with them."

Clarity returned to Resh's face. "Tell me everything," he said, his curiosity piqued.

Ged moved toward the doorway. "The sun is setting soon. It's beautiful this time of year. It would be a shame to miss it."

"Ged, don't fuck with me. Just tell me, and I'll reward you properly. I'm not in the mood right now." Resh stayed firm.

Ged didn't let him dwell on the thought for too long. Reaching into his abs, he pulled out a piece of Celestial Iron.

"Look what I snagged at the pit today." He dangled it in front of Resh.

Resh's gaze locked onto the iron. His fingers twitched. "How much?"

"Thirty kilograms," Ged said tauntingly.

Resh contemplated something, hesitation in his eyes.

"Come outside and I'll sell it to you at a discount."

Resh closed his eyes, massaging his temple.

Silence filled the room.

"…Fine. We'll continue this outside," he finally said.

He moved to the table, brushing away the shattered peanuts to reveal a dirty napkin covered in unfinished scribbles.

"Wait one moment, I have to finish something for Crab," he muttered, almost to himself, as he brought out his pen and continued to write.

Ged's brow furrowed. Crab? Who the hell is Crab? Then, realization struck. A slow, mischievous smile spread across his face.

Ged waited patiently for Resh to finish writing, and as soon as his pen lifted, he spoke.

"What's that napkin?" Ged asked.

Resh held the napkin high like a prized treasure. "It's Crab's new workout routine. I designed it myself," he said proudly.

"Can I see it?" Ged stepped closer.

Resh frowned.

"Make sure you don't ruin it. It's delicate." Reluctantly, he handed it over.

Ged scanned the poorly scribbled notes.

"Claw curls? Forearm rotations? What kind of nonsense is this?" he scoffed.

Resh's expression darkened.

"You wouldn't understand its intricacies. These notes are designed to maximize his body's unique anatomy. They're beyond the comprehension of someone as small-minded as you."

The grin on Ged's face widened.

"Aren't arm workouts supposed to be done in pairs? This workout is only for one side. Won't Crab have a lopsided physique if he works this out as written?"

Resh froze, realization creeping in.

Lopsided physique? He snatched the napkin from Ged's grip, scanning it over once more.

"…Damn it, why didn't I see that before?" He spoke in frustration, his eyes glowing a haunting blue. "That's no good. I'll have to think about this some more."

"What you have is fine." Ged didn't give him time to think. "No need for rewrites. As long as you mirror the exercise for both arms, I believe it will work as you intended. The problem might not be the workout... but his physique."

Resh nodded slowly, the gears in his mind turning as he studied the napkin. "I see... Crab... he might be due for another adjustment."

Satisfied, Ged pushed aside the veil and led the way out of the room.

Outside, Crab stood near the doorway, his expression grim, his grotesque claw twitching slightly.

Ged stopped beside him, a hidden smile curling at his lips.

"What?" Crab snapped, his voice sharp with irritation.

Ged said nothing. His mysterious grin only deepened.

Unease crept through Crab as the veil shifted once more, revealing the hulking figure of Resh.

His glowing blue eyes locked onto Crab like a predator stalking its prey.

Crab's knees buckled. He nearly collapsed in sheer terror, his fate all but sealed.