[Chapter 1] Predator

"Chapter 1" of The Immortality Protocol, Vol1 - light novel by Robert E. Parkin Full E-Book on Amazon. Link Below. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01JWLPIU4#navbar "

 

[Chapter 1]

Predator

 

 

 

 

 

 

            When I opened my eyes, all I could think of was why there was sand in my mouth. I quickly sprang to life and took to standing, hacking up buckets of the grainy stuff like I had just been on the verge of drowning.

            “Perfect, where did I end up this time?”

            I put up a strong front, but it was always after I just woke up that I felt the most vulnerable. I got the feeling that patients coming out of comas had similar experiences like mine. However, they didn’t have to return from oblivion after seeing that horrid nightmare.

            Regardless, as part of my ritual, I always felt the need to reconfirm who I was and what defined me before I moved forward. It allowed me to settle, and collect myself after being rattled from that white world.

            My name is Tepes. Female. I’ve long since forgotten how old I am, but, I’ve been told I look seventeen, and as old as twenty-four. It varies from person to person.

            I’ve also been told I lack “grace” and “charm”, but I find such notions rather pointless. I guess many consider me to be a little too assertive�"or was it brash? Still, that observation mostly came from my run ins with the male gender. Apparently men don’t like a strong woman that takes charge in this day and age. Though I confess that my “take charge” is a bit extreme at times.

            Oh, and lastly�"It’s so obvious I sometimes forget myself�"I’m an android.

            People seemed to be surprised I’m not human. Apparently I’m quite animated for someone that is made of metal, gears and wire. I guess I do have one of those “personalities”, and I can “feel” and “express” myself like any other human. I suppose I’m pretty amazing in that regard. However�"much to my personal displeasure�"I’m made to be quite the beauty. Most women I guess would scowl at me for being ungrateful, but frankly, I hate it. If it didn’t enhance combat functionality, it just got in the way. Not only that, my appearance always seemed to bring unwanted attention. It didn’t matter the sex, they only needed to have those disgusting, lecherous eyes. Naturally, I’d soon rather eat my own arm than use my figure to charm some lowly human, even if it got me what I wanted.

            I let out a sigh, feeling a bit down. Though I ended on a low note, I had at least gotten myself squared off and optimized. I rolled my head and shoulders working out the joints in my body as I began to take in my surroundings. No sense dwelling on negative thoughts.

            With a glance I could tell that where I landed were Badlands�"though that was what most of the world was covered in.

            I looked up to the cloudless sky as a low wind rolled over me, swaying my hair gently. It was high noon. The sun was blazing, and no life could be seen�"which was standard. Plant life and wild life were scarce within the Badlands.

            Another gust of wind shot fresh sand up around me. I brushed away the sand on my black armor and tapped my hip, paying the grainy bits and breeze no mind. A compartment sprang open and allowed me access to a small pole. I retrieved the metal rod and held it outward in front of me. The top of the device flickered red.

            That’s not a good start.

            I began rotating with my arm still held out for almost 180 degrees before there was a change in my readings. The rod quickly lit up green. I smiled in relief.          

            “Looks like I’m not too far from the nearest Sky City thankfully.” Just beyond the hazy horizon I could see the sharp formations of a tall cityscape after I enhanced my vision to a 300% zoom.

            “Good, no more than a few kilometers out. The faster I start gathering intel on my search the better. After all, he always leaves a trail.”

            My gaze lingered among the desolate plain. The rolling sands, mixed with protruding structures of a decayed era, littered the landscape, making for a dreary atmosphere beneath the scorching sun. It always left me with a dark sense of doom.

            This was Earth, almost everywhere today. No one truly knows the date anymore. Not even my logs could produce a definitive calendar�"it could only give me estimates based on the broken timeline of the planet’s history logs. Apparently my data figured it was somewhere in the twenty-third century.

            I sighed. Would have been nice to see it in its prime.

            From what my Data Library could dig up in my memory files, this was the third rendition of the world. Two greater catastrophes already wiped the planet before now. Details pertaining to the Cataclysms were broken and scattered. I only had a few pieces, but it was a boring story I cared little to fully read. Just a quick scan was more than enough to get the important bits.

            Today, the world is desolate and the population is small, and what remains of the population hold themselves up in the large, but few, Sky Cities that have been constructed around the world. Anyone not in a Sky City, just died in the wasteland that was planet Earth. That, or they suffered greatly until they met with their unavoidable demise.

            Enough of this topic, I groaned as I moved to shift my thoughts.

            I tapped my neck and my eyes of gold turn bright red as my vision scanned the vast area I was standing in. It only took me a few seconds to ascertain my location.

            “Old New York, huh?”

            It didn’t matter frankly where I was. I could have landed in Russia and it would’ve just been colder, but no different. Still though, I’ve always had to stop and wonder just how I ended in the random locations I’d wake up in. I never understood it myself. I rarely slept. Being an android did away with that weakness. Still, whenever I had that nightmare, it always followed with me waking up in random areas around the world. I could never recall everything before the nightmare. This time though, my logs showed that I had been in New Texas last. Although, not that I’m proud to admit, my data was never reliable on this information.

            Though I may end up scattered around the world from time to time, my purpose and goal never changed. It was simple, and I didn’t care where it lead me, so long as I accomplished what I set out to do.

            “Find the Man with the Red Grin, and save my sister.”

            My memory of her was foggy, but my desire to find her had never waned. Though foggy, I could recall her small body standing poised and elegantly in a sky of mist. She always wore white, and didn’t look older than eleven. She also had those small glasses she would constantly push up as they slid down her slender face. I always thought that was cute.

            However . . .

            My expression faltered. “And yet, why can’t I ever remember her name?”

            I shook my head trying to snuff out such depressive notions. In the end, all that mattered was that the memory of her remained with me. I knew what I had to do.

            I don’t care. I will find her. I will save her, and . . .

            I clenched my fist tightly as my eyes burned hot yellow.

            “I will put him in a grave.”

            I placed the black pole in my hand alongside my back and waited for it to latch in place. With a hiss and a clamp, my armor secured the device firmly. I then tapped the yellow sphere below my collar as golden lights lit up along the cracks in my armor. The only bear skin that was touched by the scorching sun above was my face and arms�"from my shoulder to my elbow�"while the rest of my body burned like a black meteor, wild with yellow flames.

            I bent my knees and prepared to spring forward. In an effortless dash, I was already racing across the Badlands at one hundred twenty miles per hour. If anyone had caught a glimpse of my blazing form, they would have surely thought a massive sandstorm spitting fire was rushing their way.

 

∞

           

            I hit the Sky City less than five minutes later. It never ceased to amaze me how man’s engineering and architecture, despite having the world reduced to such an extent, was able to stand strong and proudly. Even so, while the cities stood to be the last stand for humanity’s survival, they always reminded me how vile the human race was deep down.

            I curled my lip as I gazed up. “Tall walls to keep everything out . . . including people themselves.”

            In the end, Sky Cities were massive cities for the remaining population of humanity, but were more designed to keep things out. The cities typically were constructed with two hundred foot walls of solid steel and had specialized climate regulators that worked in the form of force fields to keep the Badlands they were surrounded by at bay�"kind of like an invisible air filter.

            The actual number of cities that had been constructed escaped me. My logs only confirmed twenty-two in existence, but that hardly accounted for the entire world. They normally housed close to a million people given their size, but for some reason . . .

            I paused. That’s strange.

            I looked along the massive wall before me. Something was odd about this Sky City.

            “The walls, are those, perches?”

            Along the massive wall above me, several spiked towers lined the top of the metal blockade. The towers continued all down the side of the city, looking to break up every four hundred yards.

            That’s when I noticed it. There was something else that didn’t match my previous experiences with other Sky Cities.

            “This city is, huge.”

            It was unordinary. Sky Cities were naturally designed to be large, but not only was the city large in sheer length, but tall skyscrapers appeared to reach all the way to the city limits. That almost was never the case. Sky Cities normally were just basic residential housing along the outer rim of most cities. So why was this city built differently?

            I shrugged trying not to think too much on it. “Whatever, not like it matters in the end.”

            I crouched and pulled all my strength into my legs. The hot lines of yellow soon returned as I readied my jump.

            “Just another hurdle I have to clear.” I couldn’t help but smirk at my own strength.

            I pushed off from the ground, dispersing the sand beneath me where I stood. With a deafening boom, I propelled up along the wall, kicking up it as I climbed higher to continue my speed and power. With one last push I breached the wall and landed perfectly. My legs smoldered and hissed as the yellow lines began to fade and cool. As I fully rose from my poised state I basked in the sheer magnitude of the city before me.

            Whoa . . .

            It was breathtaking. The massive city sat in a circle with a circumference of one hundred and fifty-four miles, and encased by seven hundred foot steel walls. At its center, a massive, white citadel rose into the sky like a giant castle made of swords. A large bridge of white stone and steel connected the large spire from the opposing walls as the structure towered over the lower levels of the city. It was imposing and powerful looking. However, what stood out the most though was the city’s format.

            The city is layered?

            This wasn’t normal. Sky Cities were typically built in the design where the closer you got to the heart of the city, the large the buildings grew. This city was different. While the buildings did grow as they reached closer to the center of the citadel, what was different were the layered rings that encased and broke up the buildings as they grew in size around the citadel. There were three huge, white rings that encircled the citadel as the buildings continued to grow in size. However, even the highest building, only scraped up to half the size of the large citadel of swords.

            “What a strange�"”

            I cut myself short as I looked down. There was more to the city than I realized. As the city grew, getting closer to the center, another unique feature came to my eye. The city went deeper than the ground level. The city sloped and continued to descend into the dark abyss, where barely any light could reach. There was something very dark and murky about the design.

            “I can barely see the bottom.”

            This bothered me for some reason. There was this cold, splintering feeling the city gave me. No Sky City I had been to ever looked like this, nor did it feel so oppressive. Something just felt off, but at the same time, I couldn’t help but want to know what was down there.

            I reached around my back and detached my rod. With a flick of my wrist, the rod spun around my hand and extended to the length of five feet. Once fully extended, a black spear head shot out from the top and latched down tightly on the one end of the pole. It’s golden orb at the base of the blade glimmered while basking in the radiant sun above. I then pointed the spear downward and flicked my wrist, firing the spearhead like a harpoon, piercing the wall floor I stood on. A thin cable was attached to the spearhead and pole that would allow me to propel down the wall easily.

            “Well, don’t have much of a choice. It’s either the city, or the Badlands�"”

            My body stiffened suddenly. I clenched my spear tightly as I gave a full look around suddenly feeling the need to guard myself. My body arched in warning as I detected hundreds�"no, thousands of eyes focusing on me.

            I’m being watched . . .

            I did find it rather odd how there was no response to me scaling the Sky City wall, but this warning I was picking up on my readout, was nothing I was expecting.

            That’s when I heard the all too familiar sound of fluttering wings. My body twitched as I whirled in the direction of the sound. Then I saw it. Perched no more than twenty feet away from me.

            “A . . . dove . . .”

            No, this couldn’t have been a normal dove. Very few creatures lived in the Sky Cities, and it went without saying that it could never survive in the Badlands. I looked closer. I scanned it over, accessing its internal components.

            “It’s, a machine . . .”

            Its red eyes darted and zoomed in on me as it jerked its head oddly, never taking its eyes off me.

            My body grew rigid. An odd sensation came over me. I knew the bird before me wasn’t the one from my dream, but despite that, I longed to hold it in my hands. Perhaps I saw the dove as a literal manifestation of my sister in her purest form. I could feel my whole body getting tense, wanting to lunge out and capture the creature. I could no longer hold myself back.

            “I must, attain it.”

            As if sensing danger, the bird leapt off the wall and propelled down the side, rushing into the darkness below. I acted out of reflex, not even questioning why the bird wouldn’t have just flew into the sky, but down towards the abyss. I didn’t care at the moment though. I wanted to catch that dove. It almost felt like I was possessed as I propelled after it with such zeal.

            I didn’t know how long I raced down the steel wall, diving to catch the bird of pure white. Its wings flapped strongly as it torpedoed further into the darkness.

            I no longer cared for slowing my decent as I jerked my pole and unhooked the spearhead fastened above. With one powerful kick off the wall, I dived for the dove, reaching out to catch it. It was so close. I could feel its wings blasting air back at me as it moved to increase its decent and escape my grasp.

            I won’t let you escape!

            With one final thrust of my arm, my hand clamped down on the bird. I reveled in my success and triumph, but the sense of victory quickly vanished as my hand crushed the small bird like it was made of glass.

            Whoops . . .

            I frowned at my actions as the pieces of the mechanical dove splintered out of my hand as I fell. My blunder had to be attributed to the machines fine and frail design. That, and me not knowing how to control my strength at times.

            I sighed heavily to myself. Way to botch that up Tepes.

            My thoughts ended abruptly as I noted the incoming ground below. Visibility was poor, but the outline of the buildings were lit just enough from the sun above to aid me sufficiently.

            I retracted the wire connected to the spearhead of my pole. I quickly aimed and fired off the spearhead once more into the nearby skyscraper besides me, and engaged stabilizers from my feet and free hand. My landing was still rough as the wire went taut. The spearhead instantly buckled and burst out from the building with the sudden pressure applied from my weight, resulting in my body taking a rather large hit with the ground. I tucked and rolled as best I could to minimize the impact, but lost my spear in the fall as I smashed along the hard concrete of the city floor. After about fifty or so feet, I finally came to a rolling stop.

            Well, that was graceful, I criticized to myself.

            I was a little slow to get up, but not before the smoke and kicked up debris had a chance to settle from my unruly entry. Even the ground I landed in was cracked open from my point of impact.

            I brushed myself off as I did a full scan over my body.

            Right elbow fractured. Minor damage to left leg. Self repair engaged, echoed a mechanical voice within my head.

            I clicked my tongue in annoyance. My Restoration System wasn’t very fast. The fracture alone would set me back five hours in repair time while I was still operating. If I reverted to a Stasis Lock, I could finish the repairs in a third of the time, but shutting down now wasn’t a good idea. I knew I had been seen, and I couldn’t be sure of potential hostiles, so I needed to move. Luckily, the damage to my arm wouldn’t hinder standard motor function, but anything extensive would prove difficult.

            “Great start . . .” I sighed with disappointment. I soon turned and located my spear off to my left and held up my hand. The spear and my hand lit up like the sun as my weapon sprang to life and slammed into my open palm. I flicked and spun the weapon around and over my hand. With this display, I was able to note my hand’s sensitivity and flexibility was not impaired due to my fractured elbow.

            I nodded pleased. “Good, my accuracy hasn’t dipped.”

            I finally stopped to survey the area I landed in. The first thing I noted was how alarmingly quiet it was. That, and how hollow it felt.

            “Strange, I didn’t even see a flicker of light from any of these buildings during my decent.”

            I stared upward. The bright sun only graced the very tops of the massive buildings above, while more than eighty percent of the building was cloaked in shadow. At the floor level, everything looked deserted and grave.

            “Odd, even for a Sky City. This vacancy isn’t normal.”

            That’s when I heard it. The sound of metal scraping along concrete.

            My vision flashed and alerted me of three incoming signals about four hundred meters out. I quickly readied my spear as I took a defensive stance.

            “So, they finally decided to greet me, huh?”

            I smiled as I gripped my weapon tightly. My body began to glow white hot as the cracks of my armor lit up. The central sphere below my neck burned as my eyes pierced the dark veil of the desolate city floor with golden light.

            The screeching and clanging of metal intensified as the three units closed the distance quickly.

            100 meters . . .

            Though unwise, I was always rearing for a little excitement when I first touched down. There was a chance that what I was detecting wasn’t a hostile threat, but in this harsh world, it was best to assume everything was coming at you with lethal force.

            30 meters . . .

            Six red eyes split the darkness in front of me. They were airborne, but keeping low to the ground. I could feel their sights being trained and locked on to my signature as I was alerted of deadly force.

            I chuckled lightly. “Now, gift me with a warm welcome.”

            I kicked off the ground, cracking the surface beneath me as I raced toward my adversary. As I closed the distance, I quickly realized that what I was fighting was not a typical security drone you would find in any Sky City. Far from it actually.

            They look like . . . birds.

            My thoughts quickly were derailed as one of the metallic drones rushed me. It’s bladed wing swiped at me from above. I was quick to parry, but I underestimated the speed of the other drones as they rushed me at ground level.

            “Damn, if only my leg wasn’t damaged,” I cursed as I dove to the right just narrowly dodging the two bird drones. I was lucky they only had a wing span of six feet. Anymore and I would have lost my arm for sure.

            Missing me though seemed to alert the drones that they weren’t dealing with your average opponent. They quickly took to higher elevation as they began circling above, like a pack of vultures. Their crimson eyes radiated intensely as I noticed an alarming increase in their heat signature.

            Wait . . . they’re reaching five hundred degrees Celsius!

            The metal creatures above turned blazing orange, like a trio of flaming phoenixes. Sensing they had reached their goal, they broke from their formation and dived down at me.

            Very bad! At the temperature these things were heated to, along with their speed of decent, I would be cut in half as if I was made of tinfoil.

            The first one rushed by, barely missing me as it dashed to my left. I could feel the heat from the beast even after it missed. The bigger problem was that now I was off balance, and the other two drones were right behind the first.

            “Yeah, this is going to hurt.”

            I had no choice. I engaged my stabilizers from before and put everything I had into my feet. The result was very satisfactory in dodging my attackers. The flip side was, I was sent head first through the building next to me at an angle that put me some thirty floors up in the vacant tower.

            With a deafening crash, I smashed open a huge hole, rocketing through the building as if I was jumping through a sheet of paper. Even after that, I still kept going before I rolled to a stop. Sadly, I was never good with fast calculations in a pinch.

            “Well, that wasn’t so bad,” I uttered sarcastically.

            I spoke too soon as a hellfire of bullets rained down on me from the outside. It came as no surprise that the drones would be armed. What did come as a surprise was the caliber of rounds used.

            “Those are 30mm. Armor piercing. Seriously?”

            A couple of the bullets managed to find their marks as they scuffed my armor’s right shoulder and lower torso. I staggered from the hits and took to running the length of the building. My armor was stronger than most, but that still didn’t mean I could take these hits lightly. If I let them have their way, they would shred through it in no time. In the end, it didn’t change the fact that the building was acting more like a coffin rather than cover.

            I need to draw them out one at a time.

            I was outnumbered and outgunned. I needed to thin the pack if I was going to get any ground on these flying death machines.

            “Seriously though, what the hell is up with these things? I’ve never seen security drones with such advanced weaponry.”

            As I ran, I searched my files regarding Sky City security measures. It came as no surprise to me that every city I had data on, paled in comparison to the level of technology that these drones were made from. Armed police were considered a luxury in most cities as both resources and people were hard to come by. This on the other hand, was light years above any other city’s technology, let alone budget.

            They’re smart too.

            The drones seemed synchronized and well suited for combat. That right there was another thing that set them apart. Drones were never used for combat. Most cities lacked the resources to make it so. Add that to the uncanny ability to adapt and react quickly, I was fighting state of the art machines�"military grade for sure.

            I felt my body grow hot as a small smirk slipped across my face.

            “It wouldn’t be a fight if it were just one sided.”

            Another flurry of bullets burst through the walls of the building as I dived for the staircase at the end, managing to tuck and roll to the floor below without getting more scuffs in my armor.

            “Persistent little tin cans!”

            I didn’t even touch down on the next floor before the stairs I just rolled down exploded. I could feel the heat of the explosion as the debris shot into my back and head.

            Jeez, don’t get a moments rest do I now!

            Despite the chaos, I had a plan. It was clear as day that they were tracking me through thermals. It was rather dark to begin with, so visibility was pitiful from the start. In the end though, what I was fighting was a brainless machine, easily outwitted.

            I gripped my spear tightly as my arm began to glow hot, heating my weapon to sheering temperature levels.

            Warning. Warning. Armor integrity compromised. Exceeding heat threshold, wailed my onboard computer.

            My expression turned smug. “Perfect.”

            I sprung into action, rushing down the building the opposite way I came. As soon as I was given the warning of an incoming hostile on my right, I leapt as hard as I could, smashing through the ceiling. Mere seconds after I leapt up, the floor’s wall I had just left burst open as one of the metal birds rushed me. Its razor wings hummed as it easily sliced through the scattered debris, aiming for its target.

            “Looks like you win the prize!” I shouted below.

            The drone didn’t have time to correct itself as it failed to notice that the object it was targeting was just my spear.

            Stupid bird.

            Before the other drones could provide back up, I pulled my spear to my hand as I leapt down with a boost from my stabilizers as the drone swooped through the building. It was over in a second as my spear slammed into its head with the force of a wrecking ball. The impact from the attack smashed it through floor, after floor, after floor, until finally resting ten levels down.

            I pulled my spear out of the twitching drone as its wings and body sparked and jittered like a squirming insect.

            “That’s one.” I looked up noting the remaining two drone’s location. They were hovering just outside the building. The odd thing was, they didn’t seem to be making any advances.

            I groaned. “Great, now they’re being difficult.” I kicked some random debris near my foot out of frustration. As I did, I couldn’t help but notice that the building I stood in was completely devoid of any interior furnishing. It was bare, like a deserted store house.

            What is the purpose of this? Why even have something like this built if people aren’t going to live in it?

            I didn’t get much further on the thought when a new development soon plagued me.

            With a shriek so loud that my vision and sensors flared, the two remaining drones howled like two banshees. I was convinced it was an attack to impair and render me vulnerable while one of the drones swooped in and got me while I was distracted. However, I still detected the two drones still hovering above.

            “Not good. This can only mean one thing.”

            My fear was soon realized as a new signature blipped on my radar about a thousand yards out.

            Reinforcements.

            It only got worse from there. Right away, I noticed that there was only one signature. It made no sense that they would only call for one additional drone. Whatever was coming, was bigger and stronger than what I was already fighting.

            I bit my lip while taking a full scan of my body to get a read on the damages.

            Lower torso, internal fracture. Elbow, fracture compounded. Right leg, minor joint damage, alerted the computer.

            I leaned up against one of the support beams in the center of the floor as I tried to mask my presence as best I could.

            “Not good. Whatever is coming, I’m not going to be able to take it.”

            I overexerted myself in the last attack. It wasn’t like I didn’t think that reinforcements were not going to come, it was just that I thought these machines were going to be a lot dumber than this.

            My vision suddenly went wild as I was signaled of a rapidly approaching signature to my right.

            What? It’s here already?

            I didn’t get a chance to act as the entire wall caved in. Had it not been for the impact of the attack, I would have still been standing up straight, and not kneeling. Good thing, because otherwise I would have been cleaved in half as the massive metal beast rushed me with its wings roaring like a chainsaw.

            I barely was able to avoid decapitation, but that didn’t stop the force of it shooting over me from throwing me out of the building along with it.

            This raw power . . .

            The new drone far outclassed the other two completely. I only caught a glimpse, but it looked like it had a wing span of nearly twenty�"no, thirty feet. That, and the massive gale force it whipped up, showed it was terrifyingly fast. Too bad I didn’t have a lot of time to revel in its power as now I was falling fast with very little room to work with.

            I’m too low. I can’t grapple at this distance in time.

            I had only one option left. I fired my stabilizers in a hope and prayer to slow my fall and minimize the damage.

            Okay, I can do this. Now, just angle it right and I should be in the�"

            A searing blast of red shot from above and smashed into my back. The detonation blew open my armor and sent me spiraling to the ground hard and fast.

            Error. Error. Lethal hit to back. Function under seventy percent.

            “Thanks for that!” I howled.

            I am always thankful I couldn’t feel pain, but what came next I would image would make anybody cringe. I tried to brace my fall as best I could, but all that resulted in was my arms buckling and my facing grinding in concrete for what felt like ten miles as I became quite intimate with said concrete. That wasn’t even the best part either.

            As I continued to grind into the jagged turf, I eventually hit a rough patch in the ground and sprang up in the air, only to smash into the edge of one of the protruding buildings around me. The result was my exposed spine being snapped in three places before my mangled carcass finally came crashing against the adjacent building.

            Mangled and broken, I was shocked I could even still see. My vision was like looking through a cracked windshield with flaring red lights. All I could hear was alarms and sirens, along with this insufferable blipping sound.

            Well, this sucks.

            I tried to move my head. I was lucky enough to be sitting upright, by some miracle, against the building behind me, but that didn’t solve anything. It just gave me a clean view of how screwed up I was.

            “Computer . . . status . . .”

            Complete paralysis to lower body. Critical fractures and internal damages in abdomen, upper chest, and shoulder joints. Armor integrity compromised. All sensors offline. Minor exterior damage to facial region. Weapon status: Lost. Engaging Recall function . . . Recall function inoperable.

             I sighed. Wonderful, I can’t even retrieve my spear.

            In a wasted effort, I tried to move my legs. They didn’t even budge. An image tried to enhance in my vision, showcasing a full spec feed on my body. The highlighted image was my spine. Half of the column was blacked out, confirming visually my paralysis.

            I tried to move my fingers. I was blown away that both my hands were operational and still functioning. That, and my head and upper body also were responding. Not that it amounted much.

            I tried to smile, but noticed that half my face was missing when I noticed only the right side of my face had lips. I let my head fall back and just went limp.

            “Computer. Estimated time for repair?”

            Error. Restoration program damaged. Self repair imperfect. Resurrection Mode offline. Estimated repair time: forty seven years, replied the voice through distorted static.

            I groaned. “Just say impossible will ya?”

            Seconds later the ground shook like a mini earthquake as the massive drone from before landed about twenty meters from me. Its black talons dug into the ground as its metal body rippled with heat and electricity. Its massive wings folded under, like it was sheathing a hundred blades at once. The sounds of a revving chainsaw grinding on metal never ceased as it made its approach to my defenseless body.

            Why isn’t this thing finishing me?

            Something was odd. The two other drones from before could no longer be seen. All that was left was this massive one. If it wasn’t going to finish the job, why was it even here?

            The drone stopped mere feet from me. Its looming head shimmered with flaring eyes of white, lighting up its sharp beak. It then leaned in, gazing at me intensely.

            “Since when does a bird of prey play with its food?” I joked.

            The drone’s eyes flashed as a ray of light scanned over my body. It quickly stood up right, and spoke.

            “Target identified. Unclassified citizen. First time offender. Doctrine #21: Destruction of government property. Unlawful actions waived. Moving target to Registration Hall.”

            I just stared at the looming monstrosity in disbelief. I’m sorry, what?

            The drone took a step forward and appeared to be leaning in to pick me up. That is, what I thought it was going to do, but it suddenly ceased its action and snapped its head to its left. As it did, an explosion lit up the darkened city no more than a few hundred yards out.

            With speed that rivaled the sound barrier, the drone flung open is wings and dashed toward the disturbance. It must have been confident I wasn’t going anywhere.

            I chuckled. “If only my legs could work, I could’ve taken you.” My empty boast was only meant to cushion my wounded pride.

            “Confident words coming from someone mangled as bad as you.”

            I would have turned my head faster to see who suddenly had appeared beside me, but all my neck was able to do was jitter and creak until my splintered vision laid eyes on this new player.

            His smile quickly faded when he saw the other side of my face.

            “What? Do I have something stuck on my face?” I asked caustically .

            The male before me seemed a bit taken aback by my snarky remark. I couldn’t get a full look at him, but he didn’t seem to be much older than twenty at best, and had a head of scruffy hair the color of maroon.

            The male shook his head coming out of his silence.

            “That aside, you’re lucky you’re even in one piece after taking on a Raptor squad and a Falcon.”

            I let my head swivel back and hit the wall. “One piece?” I gave my body a quick once over. “You’re either incredibly stupid, or hopelessly charming. Either way, you’re an idiot,” I snapped at him with cold eyes.

            Another explosion ripped through the city. This one was further away than before.

            I raised my one eyebrow remaining as I realized what was happening.

            “You’re helping me? Why?”

            Again, the male seemed taken aback by my words.

            “Couldn’t help it when we saw you during our perimeter check. The outer layer of the city is the most dangerous since it has the largest streets for the drones to patrol and maneuver in after all.” The boy then smiled obnoxiously. “Besides, do I need a reason to help a girl in trouble?” he replied.

            I looked up at him again. “No, but in my experience, no one does something for another without an ulterior motive,” I said firmly as my eyes started to burn yellow.

            The male didn’t waste any more time as he grabbed my arm and hoisted me up and over his shoulder. I personally felt utter humiliation from the act.

            Please, just let me die.

            “You know, you probably don’t have many friends with that attitude of yours,” he said cheekily.

            If I was able to wind my arm up hard enough to hit him, I would have. Instead, I went with a simpler approach. I pulled my face close to his ear and whispered in my best sinister voice.

            “Keep talking, and you won’t either.”

            Despite how mangled my body was, my vital scan was still operational. It made me smile to know that his pulse quickened alarmingly from my threat. That was, until he managed a reply as a black van drove up alongside the building.

            “Oh, before I forget. My name is Ryan, and you can thank me for saving you later, little lady.”

            My half face twitched as my eyes grew hot white.

            This guy . . .

            The door to the van flung open, and before I could retort, the male named Ryan heaved me off his shoulder to be caught by two other males that looked Ryan’s age. He then quickly leapt up into the van as I was dropped on the steel bed of the vehicle. I didn’t even have time to sit myself up right before the van lurched forward. The sudden acceleration caused my body to topple over, resulting in my face smacking hard against steel.

            No laughter came from anyone in the van as I tried to prop myself up again, my gears and joints cracking, and wheezing with every motion.

            “This is bold, even for you Ryan. Taking the prey of a Falcon is suicidal. The colony will be put at risk for sure,” said one of the males next to me.

            “Don’t pretend you didn’t see it. She took out a Raptor. It has been almost twenty years since someone has done that in Exsul City,” Ryan replied back strongly.

            “Well, yeah, but . . .” The boy gazed over at me. He too found my face rather revolting from his cringed expression. This only fueled my rage further as segments of my body started to flicker with yellow light.

            “Got a problem?” I shifted my body quickly as I leered up at the meat sack. The boy pulled away as he smacked into the other male next to him. I could tell he wasn’t fearful, he just found me disgusting looking.

            “Buckshot, trade seats with me,” the boy said to the individual next to him.

            The other boy scowled at him. “Like hell I will,” he shot back.

            I rolled my eyes. “How very, predictable.”

            Ryan laughed. “See Bruiser? The girl’s got spunk and a fire inside. We need that.”

            “I won’t disagree with you Ryan, but how can a mangled android do us any good?” came a female voice from the front of the van.

            “Focus on driving Clare. Details later,” he finished as his eyes fell on me once again.

            I didn’t like him. He gave me the “Spry Young Leader” vibe. The type was always the same. Ambitious, over confident, and above all else . . .

            “Naive.”

            Ryan burst out laughing again. “I like you. What’s your name?”

            I glared up at him. “Stop talking. Your voice is grating on my ears.”

            Ryan held up his hands, still grinning. “I will see what I can do.” He then leaned back and crossed his arms, looking at me as if checking me out. “Perhaps after we patch you up, you will be less volatile.”

            I stared dumbfounded. Death would have been kinder than this boy’s charisma.

            Suddenly my arm sparked and gave out as my chest churned and creaked. As I craned over myself, I noticed that I was now spitting up black liquid.

            Oh crap, that’s not good. I couldn’t help but snicker though. If I was coughing up Null-Gel, that meant my core seal had been ruptured and I was losing coolant. If they thought my attitude was volatile now, just wait until I told them what my power source was.

            “You guys better hurry, if you want to live.”

            Even Ryan’s grin faded upon hearing my words.

            I pushed myself up again. “Any of you know what Anit-Matter is?”

            The woman driving at the helm must of known, because her pulse skyrocketed to two hundred BPM.

            “Jesus Ryan! That android is a walking time bomb. We need to get rid of it now!”

            “Keep the course Clare!” Ryan bellowed as she moved to alter their direction.

            Even I found this a little amusing. Naturally the best course of action would be to dump me as far away from the city as possible. My search for my sister had turned me rather cold and bitter, so the thought of helping others never found its way to me�"The world as it was now didn’t help matters. It was kill or be killed if you wanted to survive. And yet, despite certain death, this boy wanted to help me.

            The cynic in me knew there was a play here, but I had to commend the boy’s strong will despite me thinking he had an agenda in mind. Despite my brash attitude at times, I did value respect highly. This boy, while annoying, had a certain flare about him that got me interested. I couldn’t help but feel the need to return a little respect to him.

            “Ryan you said your name was right?” I asked with a crooked grin.

            Ryan turned to me with wavering eyes and slowly nodded. I could read he was tense, and fearful now. However, I got a feeling there was more to his character than just the spry and witty leader. He reminded me of a dandelion in a sea of roses. Funny thing about weeds though, they always spring right back up.

            “You asked my name before. Still care?”

            Ryan tried to put on a brave face. “Only if you are offering.”

            “Tepes.” I said proudly. “My name is Tepes.”           

 

∞

 

            I don’t know how long we were driving, but when I felt the van start to descend I quickly realized why the above buildings were all empty.

            So, they live under ground?

            This was very odd for any Sky City. Never had I even heard of citizens being forced to live below the surface. The design and atmosphere made me think of a graveyard. Slowly, I was starting to feel as if I was being oppressed just from breathing the air within these steel walls.

            I was jolted out of my reverie by the shouts of the girl at the wheel.

            “This is nuts Ryan! We should have just dumped it instead of risking everyone like this,” blared the harsh words of Clare as she evened out the van after it leveled off from the steep descent.

            “Enough Clare! Trust me on this, okay? I need you on my side,” Ryan urged back.

            I noticed this Clare act flustered as her face turned a shade of pink from Ryan’s stern, yet pleading words. I also noted a sudden skip in her heart beat. I put two and two together quick. Best part was, I was already vomiting.

            “You have time,” I reassured them. “My seal is very durable. Even with a crack like this it will take a few hours for it to decay enough to cause any real damage.”

            My words didn’t seem comforting as the two boys next to me inched further away like I was riddled with some kind of disease.

            “I’m glad time is on our side, but I’m not taking any chances. Are you able to repair yourself at all though?” Ryan asked as the van hit a large bump.

            I braced myself from the shifting vehicle as I eyed the girl driving. She had straight black hair and looked to be the same age as Ryan.

            I turned back to Ryan. “I have a function that grants me access to advanced restoration abilities, but it utilizes my core as a major power source. It normally requires me to go into Stasis Lock, but with my seal cracked, I’m afraid the strain could cause it to rupture.”

            Ryan nodded understanding. “I see. We have an expert engineer back at our colony. He’s a bit loopy, but he knows his stuff.”

            Yeah, but he hasn’t seen me yet.

            I was worried to say the least. My design was leagues above any technology a Sky City would have access to. Though this particular city was quite the exception, I still had my doubts. I myself didn’t fully understand my own composition. Much of my design was a mystery. Information tied to my origins didn’t exist in my files, and whenever I tried to search, I would get a searing headache. In the end, I never gave it much thought, but with my core ruptured, I couldn’t help but worry if this “loopy” individual they spoke of would be able to handle the job.

            Feeling safe already, I joked to myself as I shook my head.

            “We’re here,” Clare said as the van came to a sudden stop at a large, steel door.

            I couldn’t see outside the van, but I could hear Clare talking to someone. A few seconds later the doors slid and screeched open, allowing us to pass. The first thing I noted was the sudden glare of light.

            “Welcome to Colony 7, our home in the Netheryard.”

            I looked to Ryan slightly perplexed. Netheryard? I thought curiously.

            I didn’t get much time to think on the name before the van’s door slid open and I was hoisted up by Ryan once more.

            “Please, just don’t drop me okay,” I said feeling exhausted now.

            The van door slammed suddenly behind me after Ryan and the rest of the passengers disembarked. I glanced to my right and noted Clare’s scowl.

            “What, I can’t make demands to my chauffer?” I said playfully as I patted Ryan’s head of scruffy hair.

            This seemed to only tick Clare off more.

            “Keep your hands to yourself,” she shot angrily.

            I laughed. “How? I can’t walk, so I have little choice,” I argued teasingly as I clung to Ryan tighter.

            It was funny. Normally I would have been completely humiliated being carried around like this, but for some reason, I just wanted to see how red I could get this girl’s face to go. Also, now that I could see her more clearly, I noticed I gave the girl more years than she deserved thinking she was the same age as Ryan. Rather, the girl didn’t look a day over eighteen, much less in her early twenties. She further confirmed my new assessment by showing her maturity in her words that followed.

            “Y-you hussy! Stop that!”

            Ryan finally felt it was time to break things up.

            “Ladies, we can fight over me later okay?”

            My attention quickly shifted to Ryan. Now I felt like teasing him.

            I pulled myself close to his ear and whispered quietly. “Careful now. I’ve been known to bite.”

            Ryan laughed wearily. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

            It was odd. I despised most males, and would never entertain leading them on, but between the delicious reactions from Clare, and Ryan’s calm, yet witty remarks, I felt like I could be a little careless. It was a first, and certainly something I wouldn’t make a habit of, but I couldn’t refute the enjoyment I got out of the act.

            “As enjoyable as it is to ride on your back . . .” I began while glancing back at Clare conceitedly. “. . . How much longer must I endure this humiliation?” I added with a thinning eye and a half a frown.

            “We could always just drop you here,” shot Clare as her eye twitched.

            “Easy Clare, that would just waste time.” He glanced up to me. “Besides, we wouldn’t want to give our guest a bad first impression.”

            I almost laughed. “Too late for that,” I said averting my gaze.

            Though this little sideshow was fun, it was getting old. We had time, but I didn’t want to waste anymore time while Null-Gel dripped from my mouth. The more I lost only made my seal that much weaker.

            I then suddenly coughed and spewed a sudden blast of fresh gel on Ryan’s shoulder. I tried to play it off so not to alarm, but Ryan’s expression had quickly switched from calm, to deep concern.

            “Let’s move! Hurry and alert Tesla Clare!”

            “R-right!”

            I found it amusing as he rushed with me still slung over his shoulder and held my dead legs firmly. Part of me wanted to believe he was doing all of this because he cared, but I knew better.

            This world isn’t that kind.

            As Ryan rushed on by several people, I was able to get a clear look at the colony I had been brought to. It was, how do you say . . . very underwhelming.

            This is quite a . . . dump.

            The “colony” was really just an underground cluster of rusted metal sheets and beams welded together to look like some tower of scrap. In addition, dozens of these little scrap huts littered the area which I assumed the rest of the inhabitants used as dwellings, sadly.

            The only thing the colony had was good lighting. Large light fixtures and spot lights lit up the expansive area enough to feel like the sun was shining overhead, but all that really did was illuminate how rugged and trashy the overgrown garbage dump looked.

            People actually live here?

            There was one last thing that stood out to me. The inhabitants. I noticed it before, but now I was convinced. Everyone in the colony looked like they were in their mid teens to about mid twenties�"some were children even as young as eight to twelve.

            There were very few adults, and most of them looked like they were pushing seventy. Only a handful looked to be well built and in their mid forties to early fifties. This discovery was enough to make me wonder why such a range was found here.

            “Clare, did you get a hold of Tesla? You know he isn’t a fan of his space being invaded without some notice,” spoke Ryan with odd trepidation.

            Clare and Ryan came to a sudden stop as we now stood before a giant door of steel. I noticed right away that what I was looking at was a large door to a bank safe. Somehow it had been mounted to serve as a point of entry beneath a tower of scrap iron three times the size of every other dwelling in the colony.

            “I did radio him, but you know how he gets,” Clare replied sheepishly.

            I grew annoyed with us just standing there waiting for this “Tesla” person to let us in.

            “Okay, why isn’t this door opening? Kind of a ticking time bomb here,” I added with a half smile laced with sarcasm.

            The vault door suddenly hissed and lurched as the metal bolts disengaged. With a deafening echo, the door grinded to the side, followed by the insufferable screeching noise of metal on metal. Even I saw my vision distort from the painful noise.

            “Well, looks like he got the message,” Ryan said a bit hesitantly. He then glanced up toward me and whispered.

            “A word of caution. Tesla is a bit of a nut case. A genius easily, but in his old age he has developed certain quirks that make it difficult for him to associate with others.”

            I groaned, unsurprised. “Great,” I replied flatly.

            Ryan and Clare quickly escorted me in, allowing the giant vault to close behind us. Once the door shut, I quickly became aware of the alarming temperature difference, and white smoke billowing along the floor.

            No, not smoke, dry ice?

            My attention didn’t focus long on the floor as I was soon introduced to this Tesla guy. To be frank, I wasn’t ready for it.

            “Ryan! Clare! So happy to see you!” cried out an old man in his mid sixties. His erect hair of snow and pointy beard to match made me think of a drugged out Santa Claus if he lost three hundred pounds and wore a white lab coat.

            Way . . . too . . . happy . . .

            Tesla quickly rushed Clare and smothered her in a hug before I could process the rest of the man’s bizarre appearance. I did take a certain satisfaction in watching Clare squirm like she was being hugged by a python.

            “So, how are my star pupils? I hear you got me a present. Where is it?”

            I wanted to gag at how hyper the man was. He had to have some chemical imbalance in the brain because he couldn’t seem to keep his attention on any one thing for long.

            He is pushing seventy right? He’s so lit up you’d think he was five and it was his birthday.

            “Right, let’s get this moving,” Ryan replied as he walked over and sat me down on a large metal workshop table. I was thrilled to no longer be riding Ryan, but what I was subjected to next made me yearn to be on his back again.

            “Ah! So this is it huh?” Tesla beamed with overwhelming enthusiasm.

            Each time he came close, I pulled back as far as I could. The small spectacles the man wore felt like microscopes as he probed me with his eyes of sky blue. Even his eyes jittered and bounced in his sockets like there was a constant earthquake inside his head.

            “Clare mentioned an Anti-Matter core, is this true?” he asked, directing the question to me.

            “That is correct,” I replied looking quite concerned.

            “Marvelous!” he proclaimed while clapping his hands together. “Lay her down and strap her in,” he asked Clare and Ryan as he rushed off to his work station behind.

            I turned to Ryan. “He does know what he’s doing right?”

            Ryan smiled. “What, is the great Tepes scared of some old man?”

            I frowned the best I could with half my face. “Joking aside, has he ever worked on anything like me?”

            Ryan nodded. “He was one of the lead engineers in the Capital before the Adjudicator stripped him of all material and title, casting him down to the Netheryard. Rest assured though, he was the head designer of the Falcon drones you ran into.”

            I looked at Ryan confused. “Wait, Adjudicator? What is that?”

            Both Clare and Ryan’s faces turned solemn and cold.

            “More on that later. Right now, we need to get you fixed.”

            It was hard to hide my dissatisfaction. Now it was confirmed: they helped me for a reason. It was tied to this city in some way, but I couldn’t be sure what they wanted from me. In all likely hood, it would be something regarding my strength, but I had no basis to stand on regarding that hypothesis.

            I closed my eyes disappointed. I wonder what these people will demand of me . . .

            “Alright, is the specimen ready for operation?” hummed Tesla delightfully as he rolled over a large table with neatly placed cutting tools.

            My attention swiftly was brought back to Tesla. Despite my wariness in the man’s abilities, I couldn’t help but take in that his little hovel was well equipped and looked very well put together considering how it appeared from the outside. The room seemed quite sterile and clean, along with being organized too. I was starting to wonder though where he was drawing the power from to fuel all this equipment as I was fastened down on the table.

            “Don’t be alarmed now, but I’m going to cut you open,” Tesla warned as he shuttered with excitement.

            “Not my first time,” I reassured him as several large lights turned on above me.

            Tesla picked up a cylinder no larger than a pen and gave it a quick click. The tip extended outward to produce a blue blade that hummed as the laser crackled lightly. Despite his obvious enthusiasm, I had to compliment his steady hand as he slowly began to cut my torso open.

            “Such impressive craftsmanship. The armor is made of material I’ve never seen before! And the design, it’s refined and uniformed. It leaves no unwanted space. Amazing!” exclaimed Tesla as he finished carving around my armor. With the help of Ryan, they both pulled off my chest plate to reveal my exposed under armor.

            Tesla gawked in awe. “Incredible. Beneath the hardened exterior I was expecting a standard exoskeleton, but this, this . . . words fail me!”

            Clare and Ryan looked over with intrigue. “I’ve never seen an android with such an advanced framework on the inside. It looks like it’s . . . alive,” Clare noted almost seeming disturbed.

            Tesla peered in closer. “I see the breach,” he affirmed, now rather serious.

            “Can you fix her?” Ryan asked a little bit concerned.

            “Naturally,” he replied confidently. “The chemistry is vastly different than what I’m used to, and mending the damage will feel like being submerged in water, but I can crack it.”

            I chuckled. “Glad to hear. So, can we speed this up already? Having my chest exposed like this is rather awkward.”

            Ryan smirked. “What, you embarrassed?”

            I’d kick him if my legs were functioning. Instead I went with a thinned eye and a light smile.

            My gaze soon wandered to Clare though. Her eyes seemed to be held up on my exposed chest cavity. I tracked her line of sight and noticed how she subtly looked downward on her own chest. The resentment that appeared on her face was adorable.

            I couldn’t hold it in as I snickered.

            “Size doesn’t matter sweetheart,” I teased with a wink.

            Clare’s face flushed bright red. “I-I have no idea what you’re talking about!”

            Ryan leaned in a little close as I tried to hold back my laughter.

            “Try not to tease her too much,” he pleaded.

            I rolled my eyes. “I’ll try, but she makes it so easy.”

            “You two better not be whispering about me behind my back,” Clare said with a skulking look.

            Tesla coughed loudly. “Excuse me, but you’re crowding the specimen and I can’t concentrate with your prattle.”

            Ryan stepped back with his hand behind his head as he chuckled lightly.

            “How long do you think it will take Tesla?”

            “Not sure,” he said as his blade lightly pierced under my right breast. He was very skilled and delicate with how he shaped his incisions into my body to gain access to my Anti-Matter core.

            “My best guess would be a couple hours, but this advanced matrix of bio mechanics is new to me. It will take time to effectively repair the core.”

            Clare moved to my other side as she watched Tesla carefully making his way to the cracked orb at the center of my chest. The actual damage to my seal didn’t captivate Clare. No. I could tell she was mesmerized by the swirling chaos at the center of my core. The best way I could describe it was a giant lightning storm that never ceased.

            “Just that small amount, could easily wipe out the entire city,” she muttered gravely.

            Ryan rested a hand on her shoulder. “It’s okay, that won’t happen.”

            Clare continued to stare. “This thing is dangerous.”

            I scowled. “I have a name.”

            Ryan pulled Clare aside as he whispered to her rather harshly. It was funny how they thought I couldn’t hear them.

            “I don’t care. What makes you think she will even stick around once she’s repaired?” Clare shot in a stern whisper.

            “We need her. You saw what she could do. If we have her on our side, then maybe we can stop�"”

            “Got it! Ah yes! Bathe me with your praise! Shower me with triumph!” exclaimed Tesla.

            Even I looked at him alarmed. I know he isn’t done yet, but . . .

            “What is it Tesla? Did you find something?” Ryan asked, breaking away from Clare.

            My gaze shifted to Clare. I couldn’t fault her entirely for thinking me dangerous. It was the truth after all. What didn’t sit well with me was her attitude. I was no charmer, but the level of resentment I was getting from her was starting to grate on my patience.

            Tesla’s excited words drove me from my thoughts as I looked back toward him.

            “There are multiple layers of shielding that cushion the core, and I was able to get through the first one without making it explode. Great progress indeed if I do say so myself.”

            I sighed hearing the reason beyond his joyful cries.

            “Congratulations, only twelve more to go.”

            Ryan seemed tired from my declaration. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.”

            I decided I would comfort him and give a little positive piece of info. Besides, he reminded of a wounded puppy dog when he looked down and distraught.

            “If Doctor Happy over here can fix my seal, I can take it from there. Shouldn’t take me any more than a couple hours to be fully restored,” I assured him.

            Ryan did seem a bit relieved from my news, but I could tell he had a lot of other things on his mind.

            “So, are you going to tell me why you helped me yet?” I asked directly.

            Ryan pushed off the operation table and began walking towards the exit.

            “Ryan,” I said forcefully.

            He stopped, but kept his back to me.

            “I don’t like being strung along. It would be wise not to hide anything from me.”

            Clare took to standing beside him. Her disapproving scowl made my stern expression turn ugly with irritation�"and I was still missing half my face.

            “After you are repaired, I’ll bring you up to speed. I promise.”

            I let my head fall back on the table. “Suit yourself.”

            They both left without another word. Now, it was just me and Tesla.

            “So, what do you make of those two?” I asked trying to pass the time with needless conversation.

            Tesla chuckled. “You need work on your subtlety when probing.”

            I frowned. “I’ve never been much for words.” I let my head fall to the side. “Besides, there was never a need to associate or seek the aid of others. Being alone suited me better.”

            Tesla’s tone softened. “Funny, I remember Clare being a little similar.” He smiled pleasantly. “Though now I think she’s gotten a bit too rigid,” Tesla added as his face lit up with another bolt of excitement.

            Guess he got through another layer.

            I turned my head to look over toward Tesla. “You seem to hold those two in high regards. Would you entrust your life to them?”

            Tesla hummed cheerfully before answering. “They’re good kids, but they carry large burdens.” He glanced over to me, peering intently through his small spectacles. “However, I get a sense that what you are carrying weighs much more.”

            I looked up toward the ceiling as I exhaled deeply. “That’s my problem, not theirs.”

            Tesla moved his hands gently over my chest as he leaned over me. He was fully focused, but still managed a short reply.

            “I’m old, so take a small sip of wisdom from this cook.” His smile grew genuinely. “The greater the cross, the greater the need to share the burden, or the weight will flatten you.”

            I huffed dismissingly. “Don’t lecture me when you don’t know the first thing about me.”

            Tesla snickered. “Excellent deflection. Guess I struck a nerve in more ways than one,” he finished as he made another cut into my chest.

            Snarky little . . .

            I didn’t waste my breath after that, and just stared up at the vibrant lights hanging over me. As I counted the seconds to distract myself, I thought I saw the image of my sister smiling so purely in the hanging lights. I closed my eyes feeling a bit melancholy, though a small grin crept onto my face.

            She likes to appear at such ill mannered times.

            My face went slack as my grin vanished.

            At least when she appears in my mind . . . she is happy . . .

            I soon nodded off to the sound of Tesla’s humming as I slipped into a dark lull, preparing for my restoration.