62.i A Fry Cook Knows Hunger Too Well

Bodhi

Sun Seven sang the tune to his favorite game show as loud and obnoxiously as he was capable. He did this so that no one would hear Bodhi throwing up in the very last stall of the public restrooms.

As they headed back to the stands, Seven threw his arm around the monk and said, “C’mon, Sifu. You gotta stay strong for our boy out there. What would he say if he saw you getting this freaked out over him going next?”

“I know, I know.”

The two didn’t make it very far before they were stopped by a wall of a very pungent odor. Bodhi did their best to hold it together as they came before the spirit to which the smell belonged.

“Excuse me, but are you er…” the spirit checked his notepad. “Bodhi the Monk?”

Still covering their nose, Bodhi nodded.

The spirit held out his hand. “Hi. I’m –”

“A garlic spirit?” Seven sneered. “Yeah, we can tell.”

The stranger narrowed his eyes and gestured to Bodhi. “Their parole officer.”

Bodhi quickly dropped their hand. “What do you want?”

The officer made a quick assessment of the monk as he replied, “I want to make sure that you’re meeting the terms of your pardon.”

Quickly, Bodhi responded, “The only places I go are here, the hotel, and our training grounds… sir.”

Seven added, “Officer, I’m the eighth finalist’s manager and I can vouch for Sifu here. They’ve been on their best behavior. Also, sorry I called you garlic.”

“That’s all right, son. I am garlic.” He wrote in his notepad as he spoke. “Everything sounds like it’s going good. So that’s good. Very good.”

The garlic spirit paused and looked up. “And are you aware that if your champion fails to win the Sevenfold Peach, you will be detained by the Rabbit Province until your sentence is fulfilled to their satisfaction?”

Bodhi crossed their arms. “Yeah, I get it.”

“Okay then. There’s one other thing I want you to be aware of.” the officer handed over a pamphlet. “A series of contractually linked construction projects will be opening up in the coming seasons. They’ll need labor. I can assure you, it’s completely safe. Participation means a shorter sentence. Also, it will give you chance to get some fresh air, see some interesting sights –”

Bodhi didn’t even have to look at Seven to know that he was angry. The sun clone smacked the folded paper away. “Hey! Is this construction project funded by Next Dimension by any chance?”

The officer hesitated. “I’m not at liberty to say.”

“Well you can just forget it. Because we’re winning this thing.”

“Fine, but I think you’re mistaking this for a friendly suggestion.” This time the officer bypassed Seven to make sure Bodhi got the pamphlet. “Monk, it’s like this. If you’re in the system and you’re chosen to work, then you’re working. End of story.”

The horror behind the news didn’t take long to sink in. Bodhi fought to keep their fists from trembling as they accepted the folded paper.

The garlic spirit shot the monk a doubtful look. “Besides, I’ve been watching your champion this whole time. And I’m… just trying to be realistic.”

Bodhi tried to swallow the lump in their throat. This wasn’t what they needed to hear. Not right now.

Seven stepped between the two of them. “How’s this for realistic? You stink. Go back to wherever it is you came from if that’s all you’ve got to say.”

Clearly the garlic spirit was used to comments like this because he was not phased by Seven’s rudeness. He took his time pulling out a breathalyzer from his jacket.

“No, I’m not done yet. Open your mouth, monk. I just need to check your BAC and then I’ll be on my way.”

On the way back to their seats, Bodhi made it very clear that they didn’t want Seven saying anything about what happened to Ham Song and especially not to Ritsu.

Seven shot them a hurt look. “I think Ritsu’s at least going to want to know about that sketchy construction project. We both know it’s Next D behind it. Who’s to say they won’t drop another bridge on top of their fresh batch of slave labor –”

“Seven.”

Bodhi glared Seven into submission.

Sighing and rolling his eyes, Seven relented. “Fine, Sifu. I’ll keep my mouth shut. But only because you should be the one to tell him. You wouldn’t want Ritsu finding out your new assignment to the bridge by accident. Trust me.” He gave the monk one last meaningful look before ripping into a bag of cool ranch chips.

Somewhat at ease that Seven had backed off, Bodhi took this time to think back to their days in prison and their old cellmate – Billie. The monk remembered the little gaming chip that they carried with them at all times.

Billie the Shiba Inu had told them that her Lucky Dungeon program worked much like a paper space. But, Bodhi wondered, could it be moved? Paper spaces had to be stationary in order to function. Would it be possible to disappear inside of the game and have someone stay outside to carry them to safety?

If things went sour with this tournament, it was worth a shot to see. Until then, Bodhi guarded their secret as they practiced the Iron Stomach technique in order to make it through this last test.