Endgame

CHAPTER 15: ENDGAME

The group navigated the catacombs for about twenty minutes in search of the last safe place in all of New Reiswald; the Don's bunker. Jimmy wasn't entirely sure if the bunker would protect them from falling bombs, but it was their only hope. There was no way they would ever make it out of town fast enough, even without the military quarantine in place. Along the way, Jimmy brought the group up to speed on what he had witnessed in the lab.

"So," began Louie, "If you killed the Alpha, then this nightmare should be over right? Why are we even still in this mess?"

"Because the Alpha created these things," Jimmy explained, "These 'Leapers' that go and find someone to replace him. As long as they're out there, this ain't over."

"You don't understand," Lenny interjected, "The Leapers have already found the Alpha. Don't you see? The Slime cannot function without a leader. The transfer of power is quick and calculated. The Alpha likely found its replacement while you were still in the lab."

"Well then," began Lucia, "Who could it be?"

"It don't matter no more," Louie said, "He's out there somewhere, waitin' for the military to drop bombs on his head and we ain't got any more time to waste!"

The group eventually reached the bunker but were horrified by what they saw.

"Jesus," said Louie, "What in the fuck…"

The bunker door was utterly destroyed from the inside-out. The room was filled with blood and slime, while the dismembered corpses of Vincenzo Bernucci Jr. and Joe Carozza both lay inside.

"Aw, shit!" Louie snapped, "They got the fuckin' Don!"

"Of course," said Jimmy, "It makes sense now…"

"What does?" asked Lucia.

"The leader of the city's most powerful crime family?" Jimmy began, "I shoulda seen it sooner."

"Y-You don't mean…" said Louie.

"Don Bernucci is the Alpha," said Lenny, "He's the one controlling the Slime now."

"What?" snapped Louie.

"The lab is beneath the city," Jimmy explained, "Beneath the catacombs. All those creatures had to do was climb their way up. The Don was never safe in this place. He probably got infested early on."

"That's just fuckin' great, eh?" said Louie.

"Actually," said Jimmy, "It is…"

Jimmy then ran to the side wall, where several weapons hung, and grabbed a Tommy gun with some ammunition.

"What are you doing?" Lenny asked.

"We all know exactly where the Don went," said Jimmy, "I'm gonna head straight to the compound, find the Don, and put a bullet in his fuckin' head to end this shit once and for all!"

"Jimmy!" Lucia pleaded, "You can't do that! It's too dangerous!"

"Yeah," added Louie, "Besides, the Air Force's likely warmin' up their engines as we speak! We stand a better chance of not bein' blown to smithereens if we stay down here."

"Maybe," said Jimmy, "But if there's even a small chance of savin' this city, I wanna take it."

"You're fuckin' nuts, kid!" warned Louie.

"Stay here," Jimmy ordered Louie, "Watch over Lenny and Lucia. There's no more door, so make sure the Slime doesn't get inside."

Lucia ran to Jimmy and hugged him.

"Please, Jimmy!" she begged, "Don't do this!"

"If my plan works," Jimmy began, "Then this will all be over and there'll be some hope for you. But if we just hide here, I can't guarantee any of us'll be safe. You have to trust me."

Lucia stared up at Jimmy with tears in her eyes. Jimmy pulled her close and stroked her hair gently.

"You'll be fine," he assured, "I promise."

"But you…?"

Jimmy delivered a long kiss to Lucia's lips before turning to leave. Before he could step out the door, Louie called out to him.

"Kid," he said, "Wait!"

As Jimmy stopped and turned around, Louie approached him.

"With everyone dead," he began, "And the Don turned into one of those things, I guess that makes me the highest-ranking guy left in the Family, right?"

"I guess it does," Jimmy replied.

"Good. Gimme a sec."

Louie searched through his wallet for a moment before pulling out a portrait of the Virgin Mary.

"Gimme your hand, Legs," he requested.

Using a small pocketknife, Louie pricked Jimmy's thumb and drew blood, before pressing it onto the picture.

"I don't have my lighter no more," Louie said, wiggling his fingers over the portrait, "So just pretend it's on fire, alright?"

With that, Jimmy cleared his throat.

"As this card burns," he began, "May my soul burn in Hell if I betray the oath of Omertà."

"Alright, kid," he said, "You're now officially a Made Man. Whatever happens from here on out, at least you'll die a Bernucci."

"Thanks," said Jimmy, "But a joyous occasion like this calls for a celebration, don't you think?"

"You survive this, and I'll buy you a fuckin' steak dinner to celebrate, alright?"

"Good. See you on the other side."

With all that said and done, Jimmy left the bunker behind and began his trek through the catacombs. The Bernucci compound was close now.

---

After navigating a brick tunnel for some time, Jimmy came across a number of pods hanging from the ceiling. Each of the pods was made of slime, which dripped continuously to the ground.

"Ugh," Jimmy thought, "Fuckin' shit. He must be breedin' the bastards. I can't let these things…"

Before Jimmy could finish his train of thought, he heard a low growling in the darkness ahead and pointed his gun towards it.

"Mr. DeSantis," a hoarse voice echoed through the cave, "You walk right into my arms, and for what? To save a city you know is beyond saving?"

Jimmy swallowed hard and worked up the nerve to respond.

"Ya know," he said, "This used to be your city once. You were the head of the most powerful crime family in town and had everyone in your pockets. After all that, you really wanna see it die?"

"No, Mr. DeSantis," the voice continued, "I want to see it flourish! Restored to life by the hands of my children!"

"Won't be so lively once the bombs fall!"

"Your pathetic military still believes it can outsmart me? How amusing!"

Jimmy clutched his gun tightly as he made his way down the tunnel slowly.

"Yes, I know all about the lab and what my predecessor went through – Memories passed down from generation to generation. Your 'Hammer Protocol' does not frighten me. The destruction your military rains down upon this city will be but a minor inconvenience in my plans."

"That's why I came down here, asshole – To personally end your miserable fuckin' life!"

"Your bravado amuses me, child. If you wish to claim my life, then perhaps I should first reveal myself…"

Jimmy heard a noise behind him and immediately turned around to fire several shots. In the light of the muzzle flash, Jimmy caught a brief glimpse of the infested Don. His skin was pale, and slime leaked from both his mouth and his eyes, which were stretched impossibly wide. As quickly as he appeared, the Don was gone again.

"Shit," Jimmy muttered, "He's fast!"

Every few seconds, the Don would charge at Jimmy from a different angle, then suddenly disappear.

"Son of a bitch," Jimmy thought, "He's toyin' with me!"

Just then, one of the ceiling sacks began to tear open. Jimmy pointed his weapon and but hesitated to fire as he heard the other sacks tearing open as well.

"Er," he said, "Not good…"

Jimmy bolted from the tunnel as dozens of Leapers burst out of their sacks and fell to the ground. After running for some time, Jimmy found himself in the sunken remains of an old apartment building that had been destroyed in the earthquake decades ago. Though it was intact, it had sustained heavy damage and was likely to collapse at any moment.

"Get the fuck back!" Jimmy warned, firing several shots at the Leapers behind him.

With nowhere else to go, Jimmy climbed a small mountain of rubble to reach the second level. Parts of the ceiling were collapsed and the floors were littered with old furniture and debris from the walls. After running through a corridor, he took cover behind an exposed column to catch his breath.

"It seems my children have taken a particular interest in you, Mr. DeSantis," said the Don.

"Yeah? Maybe it's 'cause I killed so many of 'em."

As Jimmy searched through his pockets, he found he still had one remaining grenade from the SOAL armoury.

"Precisely!" continued the Don, "You are a killer my son, always was. Once…'converted' however, you will prove a most valuable addition to my army. There, you may kill to your heart's desire!"

"I don't think so, pal," Jimmy replied, clutching the grenade, "I'm done takin' orders from you!"

"Is that so?"

"After nearly dyin' on that suicide mission you sent me and my pals on the other day, I learned its better not to be a fuckin' drone who keeps his mouth shut."

"Funny, your friend felt the same way when I first converted him…"

"My friend?"

Suddenly, Jimmy was pulled from behind the column and hoisted up into the air.

"M-Manny?" Jimmy said, bewildered.

Manny Tritto, now fully infested, glanced up at Jimmy and smiled maniacally.

"Good to see you again, pal," he growled, "Miss me?"

Manny pulled Jimmy in close and licked his cheek with his inhumanly long tongue.

"Manny," said Jimmy, "Ya gotta remember who I am – Who you are! This is not you! The Don, he…"

"That's right," Manny said, "I ain't me no more…I'm so much more. Soon, you will be too!"

Manny then hurled Jimmy behind him. As Jimmy struck the ground, he rolled to his side and watched as tentacles sprouted from Manny's spine, just like with Roark. The mobster slowly advanced on Jimmy with a crowd of Leapers behind him.

"Ready to join us?" Manny taunted.

Jimmy said nothing as put his hands over his head and looked down. Confused, Manny turned around and saw that Jimmy had dropped the live grenade next to the column he was standing behind. Manny barely had time to let out a roar before the grenade went off, killing several Leapers and destroying the column. As Manny stumbled to the ground, Jimmy immediately stood up and began running.

"HEY!" Manny yelled, "Where do ya think you're…"

With the support column gone, the ceiling came crashing down on Manny's head, burying him. Jimmy, meanwhile, continued to run until he reached the east wall. Because the building was on a slant, the second floor was closer to the ground on that side, allowing Jimmy to leap out of the window and land safely, though he still took a tumble.

"AH, SHIT!" Jimmy cried, cradling his injured arm.

As Jimmy looked up, he saw his troubles were far from over, as the building was beginning to collapse from the explosion he set off. As tons of rubble came crashing down around him, Jimmy got back to his feet and fled the area to safety.

"Gotta get to that compound," Jimmy thought.

---

In an Air Force base far outside the city, a B-50 "Superfortress" was warming up its engines. Its payload included a massive airburst bomb that, when dropped, would detonate over New Reiswald, laying waste to the city. The giant plane exited the hangar and approached the runway.

"Baker-6," said a voice over the radio, "Your orders are to deliver the payload to the assigned coordinates and await further instructions. Do you copy?"

"Roger," said the pilot, "Taking off."

The plane sped down the runway for a few seconds before taking off. Time was running out for the city.

---

It was not long before Jimmy was back on track and at the Bernucci compound. Jimmy climbed the ladder leading to the backyard and saw that it was now daylight. Jimmy mused he had less than fifteen minutes before Hammer Protocol was enacted.

After making his way inside via the rear entrance, Jimmy looked around the giant house for a moment. Almost every wall and floor in the mansion's interior was coated with slime and several more of those breeding sacks hung from the ceiling of the foyer.

"Jesus Christ," Jimmy said.

Jimmy wasted no time heading for the compound's basement. In a large storage area, Jimmy found shelves filled with weaponry, including several deactivated pipe bombs, like the one they used to blow up the Hiromoto warehouse.

"This should do the trick," Jimmy said, picking one up, "Just gotta wire it."

As Jimmy fumbled with the bomb, attempting to connect the wires, he heard a noise coming from above and immediately set off.

"Mr. DeSantis," the Don's voice echoed throughout the room, "You have survived the voyage to my home. I am impressed."

"Save it old man!" Jimmy called out, "I knew you'd come crawling back, so I came here to finish you off!"

"Is that so, my child?" Bernucci chuckled, "If that is the case, then why do you hide?"

In reality, Jimmy was trying as hard as possible to stall the Don while he prepped the bomb. As he navigated the basement, he kept an eye out for any surprises.

"Why don't you come on out and kill me?" the Don continued, "I am exposed and weaponless. I should be far easier to kill than even the lowliest of my children."

"You and I both know that ain't true. You got plenty of nasty tricks up your sleeve. For example, siccing my undead friend on me? That's fuckin' low, man. 'Course, I wouldn't expect anything less from a lazy, fat fuck such as yourself!"

"Enough of this! You will respect me!"

After successfully evading the Don, Jimmy reached the stairs leading to the main floor only to come face to face with Manny.

"Shit," said Jimmy.

"Surprised?" Manny laughed.

Manny then shoved Jimmy, sending him flying into a shelf and causing him to drop the pipe bomb several feet away.

"ACK!" Jimmy cried.

"Ya almost killed me back there!" Manny growled, "Good thing I ain't a fuckin' weaklin' no more!"

Manny and the Don gathered together in front of Jimmy.

"By now," began the Don, "You are aware that the ones you call 'Leapers' grant far higher strength and intelligence to its hosts than my other children. This is a privilege granted to a select few. Along with your friend, Manny, you will oversee the conversion of Earth while I travel the stars in search of the next planet to convert. Come now, do not resist."

Jimmy struggled to get up as Manny approached.

"Listen to me, Manny," Jimmy pleaded, "Don't do this!"

"I already made up my mind, kid," Manny replied, "No use in…"

"You didn't make up shit! You're just doin' whatever the fuck the Don tells you to do!"

"So what?"

"You said you weren't a fuckin' weaklin' anymore? I beg to differ, pal. Last I checked, only bitches take orders without askin' questions!"

"You callin' me a bitch?"

"I'm callin' you a hypocrite, Manny! You remember when the Don nearly sent us to our deaths, and for what? Revenge against the Hiromotos? Why didn't Bernucci go to war with the Russians then, when they killed my uncle? Oh, right! It's cause it wasn't in his best interest to do so!"

"Stop listening to him!" the Don intervened, "And finish the job! Convert him!"

"He ain't loyal to the Family," said Jimmy, "He only gives a shit about himself and his business. I, on the other hand, always had your back! The only reason you're even alive now is because I didn't shoot you in that lot!"

"ENOUGH!" snapped the Don, "If you will not the finish the job, then I will do it myself!"

With that, Don Bernucci began to approach Jimmy, but was grabbed by Manny.

"What are you…" began Bernucci.

"I ain't takin' orders from you no more!" Manny declared, "From now on, the Slime is mine to lead!"

The two creatures roared loudly at each other as Slime-coated tentacles burst from their spines. Bernucci threw a hard punch that knocked Manny back. Manny retaliated by tackling the Don and locking him in a grapple.

"Great," said Jimmy, clutching his broken ribs, "Time to vamoose!"

Jimmy collected the bomb and his Tommy Gun and limped his way out of the basement. As he returned to the foyer, he fought both Leapers and infested mobsters before running out of ammo. Jimmy discarded his Tommy gun and took cover in the dining room.

"Come on," Jimmy grumbled, as he tried to wire the bomb, "Piece of…"

The battle between the Don and Manny grew increasingly intense as they burst through the basement floor and carried the fight throughout most of the main floor. At one point, they burst into the dining room, forcing Jimmy to hide under the massive table.

"YOU!" yelled the Don, "GET BACK…"

"RAAAAAGH!" Manny shouted, "I AIN'T DONE WITH YOU, OLD MAN!"

Manny grabbed the Don and slammed him onto the table, then slammed his fist down so hard that the table cracked in half. Fortunately, Jimmy managed to roll out of the way on time.

"Christ," Jimmy said, fleeing the room, "Can't a guy get work done 'round here?"

Jimmy continued to wire the bomb, even as he ran up the stairs leading to the Don's office. Once inside, he took cover behind the Don's desk.

"There," he said, as he finished setting up the bomb, "That should do it."

Meanwhile, in the dining room, Don Bernucci gained the upper hand against Manny. First, he lashed at Manny with his tentacles. Then, as Manny reeled back, the Don grabbed Manny by the arm and delivered a massive blow to his face that sent him crashing into a nearby cabinet and knocking him out. The Don snarled wildly and burst out of the room.

"YOU LITTLE SHIT!" he yelled, running up the stairs, "WHERE DID YOU GO?"

The Don kicked down the door to his office and looked inside. There was no sign of Jimmy but the window behind his desk was wide open and a ticking noise was audible. Realizing he had been tricked, the Don let out a massive roar just as the bomb exploded, killing him, and obliterating much of the mansion's second floor.

Jimmy had reached the mansion's yard by climbing the vines running down the rear wall. Jimmy ran as fast as he could from the blast, though the shockwave still knocked him down. Pieces of rubble landed all over the yard.

"Is it…" Jimmy began, "Is it over?"

A silhouette emerged from the ground floor of the mansion. It was Manny, still slimed and gravely injured. After taking a few steps, he collapsed onto the lawn.

"MANNY!" Jimmy yelled as he ran to his friend's side.

"Y-Ya did it, kid," Manny said, "I feel like me again, 'cept…"

Manny then began to cough violently.

"The Slime inside me's dyin'," said Manny, "I ain't got much time."

"It's alright," said Jimmy, "You can rest in peace now. It's done."

"Say 'bye' to my sister for me, alright? And you better take good care o' her, or else!"

"I will, I promise. Thanks for everything, Manny."

Manny smiled and nodded, then closed his eyes and slumped his head. Jimmy watched as several Leapers emerged from the mansion, though they appeared disoriented. In moments, each of them collapsed to the ground and dissolved. All of the infested mobsters in the mansion dropped dead as well.

---

Elsewhere, Louie fended off a horde of Slime creatures that had stumbled upon the Don's bunker. While Lenny and Lucia stayed inside, Louie stood outside the door, blasting them away with his Tommy gun.

"I need more ammo, goddamnit!" he cried.

"There's hardly any left," Lucia sobbed, grabbing a drum, "Oh God, what do we do?"

"We're gonna have to make a break for it," Louie said, gunning down a Leaper, "On my mark…"

Just then, one Leaper leapt towards Louie's head but fell to the ground before it could reach. Louie, Lucia, and Lenny stared in confusion as all of the creatures abruptly dropped dead before them.

"What the…" said Louie.

"J-Jimmy did it," said Lenny, "Kill the Alpha, cut the strings…Save the city!"

"So the kid managed to kill the Don, eh?" said Louie, "Fuckin' A!"

"Aw," said Lucia, "I knew he could!"

Just then, the trio heard a loud rumbling come from the surface.

"W-What was that?" asked Lucia.

"Brace yourselves," Louie said, sternly, "It ain't over."

---

In the skies above New Reiswald, the Superfortress had reached the city centre.

"Payload is a-go," said the pilot, "Ready to deploy on your command."

"Negative Baker-6," said a voice over the radio, "You are not clear to deploy. Repeat, do not deploy."

"Sir?"

"We have numerous unconfirmed reports of anomalous lifeforms dead or dying by unknown means. Teams are being deployed to investigate."

"Copy that. Returning to base."

As the plane changed course and returned to the hangar, New Reiswald was spared from destruction and had survived the day.