The Cyber Chronicles - Book I: Queen of Arlin (20 page)

How could he
ever explain to this naive girl what it was like to be a back seat
observer to his actions, unable to do so much as yawn? He had only
ever seen other people do that, but it looked interesting, and he
wondered what it was like. What was it like, to yawn? Or sneeze? He
had always been fully aware of his movements, and the sensations
that accompanied them, which was why, when he had regained control,
he had little difficulty adjusting.

Occasionally,
he experienced slight tremors, which were probably due to an
intermittent firing of motor neurons still under the cyber's
control. Doubtless the little mechanical monster was on a full time
mission to reclaim control of its host, but for now, he was in
charge. He had endured far more, in the screaming silence of his
skull, than he could ever tell anyone. For twenty years, he had
thought the inner prison would be his tomb, and never hoped to
escape it, until now. He had suffered indescribable agony and been
unable even to give vent to his pain. No matter how brief his
freedom was, he would make the most of it, and cram as much
enjoyment into the time as he could, so he could live on the
memories for the rest of his life.

Sabre sighed
and opened his eyes to study the girl beside him. She was only a
girl, albeit a queen, young and spoilt, but beautiful. Although
brave, she was also wilful and selfish. The way she had treated the
cyber told him that she scorned the lower classes, which she
obviously considered him to be. If he stayed with her, he mused,
his life would not be much fun, but would continue to consist
mainly of hard work and servitude, which he longed to escape.

Sabre wondered
if he was going to be able to get along with her, and perhaps wean
her from the aristocratic scorn on which she had been raised.
Otherwise, he could find little reason to remain with her. His
short spell of freedom was far too precious to waste. Still, she
had shown anguish at his suffering and even tried to offer
sympathy, so perhaps she could be moulded into a better person yet,
for she was still young enough to change.

His vision went
black, and pain exploded inside his skull. He writhed, gripping the
brow band as flashing lights filled his eyes and parts of his body
went numb. He fought to stay in control as the blackness tried to
swallow him, sucked at his mind and strived to hurl it back into
the dark corner it had occupied for so many years. The cyber's
hooks, deep in his brain, sent lances of agony through his cerebral
cortex, striving to overload his mind with pain and send him into
shock.

Tassin recoiled
as Sabre convulsed and clutched the brow band. Flashing red lights
filled it, more than before, and brighter. She resisted the urge to
try to pry his hands from it, knowing how he might react. Now that
she knew he could not harm himself, she did not worry too much when
blood oozed from around the struts once more. She longed to help
him, for he seemed to be in a great deal of pain. The battle lasted
only about fifteen minutes this time, and she sagged with relief
when the lights went off. Sabre opened his eyes again.

"That was a bad
one," he muttered. Sweat beaded his brow and his eyes looked
sunken, but that might have been due more to the deprivation he had
suffered. Digging in his pouch, he swallowed more of the white
things, then sagged back on the blankets.

"Will it
stop?"

"I hope so.
It'll accept defeat, or take over again. Either way, it will stop,
I suppose."

She leant
forward to wipe away the fresh blood with a cloth. "I hope you
win."

Sabre managed a
weak smile. "Thanks."

"Is there
anything I can do to help, when it happens?"

He shook his
head and winced. "No, stay away from me."

Sabre closed
his eyes, and Tassin studied him again, noting the lines of fatigue
around his mouth and eyes, and his unhealthy pallor. A massive
bruise covered his forehead, and angry red flesh ringed the brow
band's struts. The rest of him must be just as badly bruised, she
reflected. After a few minutes, she realised that he had fallen
asleep again, exhausted by his battle with the cyber. Moving away a
little, she pulled together all the packs and took stock of the
remaining dried rations. With two of them eating now, the food was
being consumed rapidly. There was only enough left for another two
days, maybe. They would have to leave soon, but Sabre was still too
weak.

That night, the
temperature dropped, and Tassin woke shivering. She knew she would
be unable to go back to sleep, and in desperation she crawled over
to Sabre. He woke as soon as she moved, his head jerking up.

"What is it?
What's wrong?"

"I am
freezing," Tassin stated, somewhat peevishly. She had to grit her
teeth to stop their chattering.

"Uh." Sabre's
head thudded back. "You want some more blankets?"

"You are
warm."

He chuckled.
"Oh yeah, the cyber was your heater, wasn't it?"

"I do not think
I can warm up on my own, and I did give you most of the blankets
because you were sick."

Sabre pondered
the situation. The unexpected and unwelcome turn of events
disconcerted him. Palpable waves of indignant expectation emanated
from her slight form, and clearly she expected him to keep her warm
as the cyber had done. He was reluctant to enter into the
situation, however; it was just too strange. Apart from the night
when she had slept with the cyber for warmth, and he had dimly
sensed her closeness, he had never been in contact with another
person. The prospect of being inundated with all the sensations he
had so long been denied held a bittersweet dread.

"So take some
blankets, there's lots," he suggested.

The level of
tension rose as she drew a hissing breath. "I said I will not be
able to warm up on my own."

He played his
trump. "If I have another seizure, you could get hurt."

The tense
silence grew more pregnant, and he was sure he could hear the
thudding of their hearts. Her voice dripped with accusation. "Do
you want me to freeze?"

"No, I don't
want you to freeze, damn it," Sabre said, annoyed by her
persistence.

"So what is the
problem?"

Sabre sighed
and lifted the blankets so she could crawl in, which she did with
alacrity. He grunted and shivered as her icy hands found their way
to his skin, fighting the urge to push her away and avoid the alien
contact that made him so uncomfortable. The strange sensations
disturbed him, but he found he was able to ignore her presence more
easily than he had expected.

"Lie still, and
don't wriggle," he growled.

Tassin sighed
as his warmth soaked into her, defrosting her extremities. He
remained tense, and prevented her from getting closer, but she soon
fell asleep.

Sabre stared
into the darkness and listened to her soft breathing, remembering
the time when the old lady had owned him. She had taken him
everywhere, as her bodyguard, even into the women's recreation
centre, where women stripped nude and indulged in hot spas and mud
treatments. A cyber was considered to be a machine, so he had been
made to stand guard over his owner while naked women relaxed all
around him. Some had found it amusing to poke fun at him, giggling
with their friends when he had been unmoved by their taunts.

Their comments
had been graphic and derogatory of men, giving him an insight into
the feelings of women that few men shared. Fortunately, cybers did
not allow anyone, apart from their owners or those with command
privilege, to touch them, and the women had known better than to
try. He drifted into a light sleep, but was jerked awake every time
Tassin shifted or sighed, which increased his exhaustion to the
point where, after several hours, her movements no longer disturbed
him.

Sabre woke at
dawn, to find that Tassin had made herself more comfortable during
the night. She had draped an arm across his chest, pillowed her
cheek on his shoulder and thrown a leg over his hips. His eyes
sprang open, and he quelled the reflex that almost made him leap up
in alarm. His training and conditioning urged distance around him,
while a lifetime of sleeping alone, under a computer's control,
filled him with a longing for forbidden intimacy. Hoping not to
wake her, he eased her leg off, then her arm. She replaced them,
forcing him to extricate himself again, and she muttered and
squirmed when he shifted away. Just when he thought he would escape
without rousing her, she opened her eyes.

"Where are you
going?"

Sabre's brows
rose at her possessive tone. What did she think, that he was her
personal foot warmer? "Out."

"Why?"

"Because I want
to, okay, Your Majesty?"

Clearly
startled by his testy tone, she sat up, rubbing her eyes. "It is
cold outside. Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah, I feel
fine," he muttered, crawling from the cave. She joined him moments
later, squinting in the sunlight while she finger-combed her glossy
hair, then plaited it. He looked away when she glanced at him, and
gazed at the vista. In the distance, the dry brown expanse of the
badlands spread out before them, vanishing over the horizon. Only
blackened patches of melted sand relieved it. This was a
post-holocaust world, he realised, and wondered which one.

"What's the
name of this world?"

Tassin looked
startled. "Earth, of course."

Sabre smiled.
It was amazing how every world that humans colonised became known
to them as Earth. "It must have another name?"

"Oh, yes, Omega
Five."

Nodding, he
accessed the cyber's information stored in his brain. Omega Five,
solar system HL714. A G-class planet, colonised two thousand years
ago. Nuclear war, five hundred and fourteen years ago. Indigenous
life mostly wiped out and replaced by Terran stock at the time of
colonisation, then further decimated by the holocaust. The
survivors had been left to fend for themselves, and pay for their
mistake. The world was classified as restricted, off-limits to
spacers. Someone kept an eye on Omega Five, however, and
particularly on Queen Tassin Alrade of Arlin. Whoever it was, he
evidently had enough money to buy a cyber, but his motivation
remained a mystery.

"We'll climb
down today," he announced.

"Really?"
Tassin raised her chin in a regal gesture.

Sabre sighed.
"With your permission, of course, Your Majesty." He performed a
mocking bow, and she glared.

"Do not mock
me."

"Then don't act
high and mighty."

Sabre returned
her glare, and she looked away, making him wonder at the tension
that had sprung up between them. He knew why he was on edge and
snappish, but she had no reason to be testy, as far as he could
ascertain. Tassin shivered as she contemplated the drop before
them, and he realised that she was afraid.

"Why
today?"

He tried to
soften his tone, but the words still sounded harsh. "We're running
out of food, and besides, I'm not acting as your foot warmer for
another night."

Tassin scowled
and stomped off to the cave. When he followed, intending to
apologise, he found her sulking, instead of packing the bags.
Making a sound of disgust, he packed them, finding them much
lighter now that most of the supplies had been consumed. When he
finished, he tossed them out into the snow and turned to the Queen.
She was no more than sixteen, he guessed, a mere frightened
child.

"It'll be okay,
Tassin. It's probably not as bad as the first cliff, and you
managed that alone. This time I'm with you. I won't let you
fall."

"What if you
have a seizure and fall?"

He shrugged.
"I'll bounce. Anyway, I don't think the cyber will attack me on the
cliff. It's counterproductive, and would endanger you, which goes
against its programming. Besides, we can't stay here forever;
you'll have to do it sometime."

Tassin crawled
out of the cave, her expression determined. He followed, picked up
the bags and tied them to his harness, then slung them over his
shoulders as the cyber had done. Waves of weakness washed over him,
warning him that his strength had not returned, and he still needed
days of rest before he was restored to health. A flashing amber
light deep in his brain told him that his bio-status was
dangerously low, but he was unable to access the information to
find out just how bad it was. It was not red, at least, and he was
stronger than he had been the day before. The light was virtual,
part of the cyber's interface programmes, to which it was currently
blocking his access, apparently. Tassin stood close to the cliff
edge, trying to peer over it. He gripped her arm and pulled her
away.

"Don't look
down."

"I want to
see!"

He shook his
head. "I'll look; I have no reaction to heights."

Leaning out as
far as he could, Sabre studied the cliff face. A few metres to the
right, a ledge ran down it, quite wide, but steep. He beckoned to
Tassin and walked along the edge of the cliff, his feet dislodging
showers of snow that cascaded down to the ledge far below.

"It's easy,
come on."

Tassin followed
him to the path, where he instructed her to hold onto the packs and
look at the rock face. Loose chips of stone made the path
treacherous, and in some places he had to avoid patches of ice. He
kept a hold on the rock face, which was fortunate, for twice Tassin
slipped, only her grip on him saving her from going over the edge.
Sabre moved cautiously, testing each step before putting weight on
it, and the sun was overhead by the time they were halfway down.
His stomach rumbled, but the ledge was too narrow to permit them to
stop and rest. His vision went black, and he froze. Surely the
cyber was not going to attack him now?