Betrothed Episode One (8 page)

As soon
as the security guards saw him, they took off after him, and he
began to run.

The
alien – a large Borgolian warrior – pulled out a flip rifle, and
started firing.

A flip
rifle was a compact weapon that could be worn around the finger as
a ring until you needed it. With a flick of your hand, it would
transform into a long-nosed powerful pulse rifle.

The guy
got off a shot, and a security guard slammed into my side, knocking
me out of the way.

Everything happened so fast.

... And
yet I kept up. Not because I was used to danger, but because I
somehow knew what was going to happen.

My left
eye felt like it was burning.

“
Get those civilians to safety,” someone shouted.

I
recognized the voice: Captain Fargo.

Sure
enough, he came powering around the corner, a personal shield
flickering over his body.

As soon
as he saw Mark, he threw him a gun and commanded him to go after
the Borgolian.

For a
split second, Mark stood there and stared at me, his hand visibly
twitching over his gun.

“
Move,” Fargo
yelled
.

Mark
darted around and followed the other security officers down the
stairs.

The
security guard who’d saved me shepherded me and the other civilians
to safety, then erected an emergency shield.

I had no
idea what was going on my – my body was a tangled mess of
nerves.

And yet
at the same time I knew exactly what was going on.

In
approximately 2 minutes and 45 seconds they’d catch the
Borgolian.

Sure
enough, in precisely 2 minutes and 45 seconds there was a loud
explosion and a sharp scream.

Seconds
later, Fargo walked up the now trashed steps, the Borgolian
attached to him in a containment field.

Fargo ordered his guards around, handing the Borgolian to a
fresh new detachment who came tearing around the corner.

Then he
moved to walk away, but he saw me.

He
walked over.

I knew
what he was going to say before he said it.

He was
going to thank me then question why I was here.

It
wasn’t a guess – it was ... I ... I didn’t know.

I winced
and clamped a hand over my left eye.

“
Thank you. My guards said you pointed out the Borgolian.
Things could have gotten ugly if he’d managed to reach the basement
levels.”

I didn’t
respond.

“
... What are you doing here, anyway?” Fargo’s gaze darted
over my face.

“
I ... where’s Mark?” I forced my hand to drop.

“
Helping clean up the mess down there. That Borgolian is not
the only person we’re after. But don’t worry, I’ll have one of my
guards take you some place safe. You must be very
confused.”

“
I’m not confused,” I said automatically in a remarkably
toneless voice.

It
wasn’t a lie and at the same time it was.

The
fight hadn’t befuddled me – I’d kept up with every shot and
shout.

But why
I’d kept up was a mystery. Why I still knew, even know, what would
happen next was terrifying.

“
You’re clutching the side of your face,” Fargo said in a kind
tone, “are you in pain.”

“
I have a headache,” I said.

“
What’s your name?”

“
Anna Carter.”

Fargo’s
eyebrows crumpled but he managed another kind smile. “You’re
confused. You saw Anna Carter on the news in the bar, didn’t
you?”

I shook
my head.

“
I saw you in the bar,” he continued in a patient tone. “Do
you remember watching the telecast?”

I shook
my head so sharply I heard a click in my neck. “No, I’m Anna
Carter. I’m betrothed.”

“
No, you’re confused. Don’t worry, I’ll get you some help.
It’s normal to confuse memories when you wake up as a newfound.
I’ll get you the help you need.” Fargo took a sharp step away from
me and ordered one of his guards over. He explained the situation
to the alien woman, and directed me to be taken away.

I didn’t
resist.

The pain
behind my left eye was finally starting to subside, and it left me
feeling numb.

Before I
knew it I’d been taken to a clinic, and from there to a
room.

I lay
down on a bed and I slept.

I dreamt
of a future bathed in green light.

When I
awoke, it took me a long time to remember. My mind was filled with
a dense cold fog.

It felt
like I’d been hit in the head with a brick.

The room
I was in had a small round window above the bed that showed a
startling view of the towers around me.

I had to
be high up, because I could see the clouds creeping by at
eye-level.

I stared
at them, looping my hair over my shoulder as I pulled my legs up
and hugged them to my chest.

I was
confused ... and yet calm.

I didn’t
know why I was calm – I had no right to be. Considering what had
happened to me yesterday, I should be a wreck.

And yet
I wasn’t.

For
now.

I looked
up as I heard a beep from the door.

After a
polite pause, someone walked in.

It was a
doctor. “You’ve been cleared, newfound Miranda.”

“
Sorry?”

“
You are fit and healthy, Miranda.”

“
... Why are you calling me Miranda?”

“
That is your name.” The doctor was an alien of indiscriminate
gender. They had a barrel chest and spindly legs, but a kindly
face.

I shook
my head. “My name is Annie, Annie Carter—”

“
It is normal after waking up from stasis from a long period
to be confused.”

“
I wasn’t in stasis, I was cryogenically frozen for 400
years.” Though I still felt calm, it was starting to be chipped
away by alarm.

What the
hell was going on here?

“
Ah, perhaps you are still confused. You had a slight brain
event yesterday, and I imagine it coincided with your current
confusion.”

“
Brain event, current confusion? What does that
mean?”

“
You had a mild stroke in your left hemisphere.” He quickly
put a hand up. “All damage has been healed, and all weaknesses in
your blood vessels corrected.”

“
I had a stroke?”

“
There is nothing to be alarmed about. However, you will be
confused for a while yet. You may find yourself incorrectly
remembering events.”

I stared
at him, dumbfounded.

This
couldn’t be happening to me.

“
You will stay here until you are recovered.”

“
How long will that take?” I clutched at my covers with sweaty
hands.

“
Approximately three months.”

“
Three months? I thought this was the future. I mean, you said
you’d already healed my brain, so—”

He put
up a hand quickly. I swore there was a slight shake to it. “You are
a recent newfound one, and you must be monitored. Your confusion
will pass, and you will remember your life correctly, however you
must be monitored until that occurs.”

“
And that’s going to take exactly three months, is it?” I
asked, incapable of modulating my tone, the surprise tearing
through it and shaking my every word.

The
doctor offered me a calming smile. “About that, yes.”

“
Isn’t that the time
frame for
Illuminate
Hart
to
marry
Annie Carter?” I asked. I’m not sure where that question came from,
but I found myself asking it before I could think it
through.

I also found myself keenly
observing
the doctor for his
reaction.

The man
didn’t make a movement. He kept that same calming smile locked on
his lips. “A coincidence.”

I stared
at him.

My calm
shattered.

Suddenly
I felt in danger again.

It
rushed into me like a river breaking its banks.

I
gulped.

Then I
thought of Mark.

I
practically jolted out of bed.

“
Where’s Mark? Lieutenant Mark Havelock? He’s a friend, and I
need to see him,” my voice shook, but not as badly as my hands as I
clutched hold of the hem of my bed sheet.

“
He came to see me last night,” the doctor said.

For the
first time, I swear the doctor’s calm façade cracked. But only for
an instant.

It was
long enough to see something akin to fear playing in his purple
eyes.

“
Your friend is worried about you and eager for you to get
well,” the doctor continued, clamping his hands behind his
back.

From the rustle of fabric and the strain reflected in the
alien’s shoulders, I could bet the guy was clutching his hands so
tightly they were about to atrophy.

“
I want to see him,” I blurted.

“
You will,” the alien promised through a swallow, “soon. But
for now, rest.”

He
turned and walked out of the room before I could say anything
more.

I stared
at the door as it closed then disappeared into the wall.

I was
suddenly very aware of my heart as it beat like a drum in my
chest.

With a
stiff back and sweaty hands, I repositioned myself and stared out
of the tiny window beside me.

Suddenly
the view wasn’t beautiful – it was intimidating.

I was in
a future I didn’t understand.

I
brought my shaking hands up and stared at them.

People
were trying to tell me I wasn’t Annie Carter, but I knew I
was.

How
couldn’t I?

These
were my hands.

That old
scar across my thumb was from where I’d trapped it in the car door
as a kid.

I shifted back and pulled up the light white fabric of my
tunic. Sure enough, the scar from my appendix surgery was still
there. I tracked my thumb across it just to check it was
real.

Then I
turned my hands over and stared at my knuckles. Then down at my
wrists, then up my arms.

I slowly
and progressively stared at every inch of my body.

It was
me, alright.

Annie
Carter.

And I
could remember my life just fine.

I would never forget my family crowding around me in the
hospital, my mother sobbing as the doc told her there was no
cure
for
my
virus.

I even
remembered my dad’s decision to freeze me.

I could
still see his worry-lined face.

Christ,
I would never ever be able to wash those memories away – they were
etched into my bones.

I pulled
my arms around my middle and hugged myself.

Then I
squeezed my eyes tightly closed.

Something terrible was happening and I was so confused -
running only on instincts. .

It was
everyone else who was confused. But with grit, logic, and a calm
mind, I’d be able to make them see sense.

All I
had to do was get to Mark. He knew I was Annie Carter. Then he’d
help me contact the institute on Earth, and they’d be able to
confirm it too.

My eyes
suddenly shot open.

I
brought my hand up and clutched the implant in the side of my
neck.

It would
be able to confirm my identity.

...
Except it wasn’t there.

There
was a tiny scar instead.

My eyes
jerked wide and my fingers froze as they groped at the point under
my left ear.

What the
hell was happening? Why had my implant been removed?

Just
when I’d thought I’d be able to get through this with a calm
rational mind, fear flooded back in.

I let my hands drop to my lap as I stiffly turned to stare at
the view.

Then I cried, unashamedly.

...

When
Mark came to see me, I was curled up in a ball on my bed. I was
like a frightened animal trying to remove themselves from danger by
making themselves as small as they could.

As soon
as I heard the door open with a strange pneumatic hiss, I curled up
tighter, sure it was the doctor ready to assure me for the
umpteenth time that I was just confused.