Acts of Senseless Devotion (short story)

Acts of Senseless Devotion was the fourth story in the Bernice Summerfield anthology Something Changed. It was written by Pete Kempshall.

Summary
Benny awakens in a hospital after Doggles’ history machine exploded, releasing a strange form of temporal radiation. Many have been killed, even more have been injured. Benny has been permanently blinded and Peter has so severely injured that he will surely die in the coming days.

Struck with grief and stress, Adrian Wall ends his relationship with Bev Tarrant in order to concentrate on his family. In a furious rage, Bev begins to pack up and leave the Collection. She feels out of place and frustrated that everyone seems to idolise Benny even when Bev worked so hard to lead the members of the Collection during the occupation by the Fifth Axis. But Benny soon asks for a favor: she needs to contact Avril Fenman and obtain a mind-swapping crystals so that she can trade bodies with Peter.

Jason Kane arrives at the hospital, trying his hardest to help his ex-wife out. He bumps into Bev just as she is leaving, and she tells Jason about the errand before rushing off to catch a shuttle off the collection. Jason rushes to the hospital room, and is angry at Benny for approaching Bev for help when he was practically begging to make Benny's life easier. Benny claims that Bev is the only person who disliked her enough to let her trade her life's for Peter’s, however Jason realises that Benny was planning on Avril switching bodies at the any opportunity due to being stuck inside of a man's for so long. Jason attempts to dissuade Benny from using the crystal, but she refuses to give it to him, and he storms off in frustration.

When Benny tries to find the crystal however, she realizes that it has been taken. Adrian, who had been listening nearby, took the crystal and sacrificed his own life for Peter's. Benny then vows to hunt down Fenman.

Characters

 * Bernice Summerfield
 * Peter Summerfield
 * Irving Braxiatel
 * Bev Tarrant
 * Adrian Wall
 * Jason Kane
 * Avril Fenman
 * Doctor Wt'hlm

Continuity

 * When Adrian approaches Braxiatel for help, Brax is staring at a mirror. This may be related to the artefact in AUDIO: The Mirror Effect or to the mirror in AUDIO: The Crystal of Cantus, which Braxiatel uses to communicate with his future self.