The Cyber Chronicles IV - Cyborg (32 page)

The ship
shuddered again as Tarl injected Sabre, then he set up a drip for
Tassin and gave her a sedative. Rummaging in the cabinet again, he
took out two adhesive dressings and stuck them on Sabre's wounds.
He found another drip, gripped Sabre's arm and dragged him towards
the door.

"You need to
rest. She'll be fine. You should also eat."

Sabre allowed
Tarl to lead him to the nearest empty cabin, and stretched out on
the bunk with a sigh. Tarl set up the drip, and then brought him a
sealed package of cyber rations.

Sabre frowned
at him. "I had some at Gaylor's place, while I was waiting."

"Have some
more, you need to build up your strength. Sit up."

Sabre obeyed,
taking the package. "Why do you have cyber rations?"

"For
Alpha."

"Right. I
can't believe I still have to eat this crap."

"I'll try to
make something more palatable for you."

"Thanks."
Sabre tore open the package and frowned at the brown, gruel-like
food. "I failed."

"You
what?"

"I failed.
Tassin's wounded."

"And just how
exactly do you think you could have prevented that, surrounded by
armed men taking pot shots at you?"

Sabre shook
his head. "I don't know."

"Neither do I.
You saved her."

"A cyber is
supposed to protect his owner."

Tarl sat on
the end of the bunk. "Let's get something straight, Sabre. You're
free, and she's not your owner."

"I'll always
be a cyber, and she does own me, she paid... a lot of money for
me." He frowned. "I'm not sure exactly how much."

"She paid to
free you; that's not the same."

"No, she
bought me; then she freed me."

Tarl sighed.
"You've still got a problem with this, even with your memories
back, don't you?"

"I always did.
You can't deny that I'm a cyborg."

Tarl
hesitated. "No, technically, you are a combination of man and
machine. But that makes you superior to the rest of us, not
inferior."

Sabre snorted.
"I'm a manufactured man, made in a machine; one of thousands of
clones, with no rights. Until Tassin gave me one, I didn't even
have a name."

"What was done
to you and all the others is criminal, and none of us had names
until someone gave us one."

"But your
parents named you, not... a stranger."

"Actually they
didn't,” Tarl said. “I was an orphan, and I don't even know who
named me. Probably some clerk at the orphanage."

"But you had
parents. And you got your name when you were just a baby, not when
you were twenty-seven years old."

"You had
parents too, a long time ago. Okay, your DNA was changed, improved,
but the base code came from a normal man. And a name is not that
important. People change their names all the time, at all
ages."

Sabre toyed
with his food. "It's not just that. Those things bother me, but
they're not the real problem."

"Then what
is?"

"I'm a
freak."

"You're not a
bloody freak. You're just different. Better. Hell, most guys would
give their right arm to be able to do what you can do."

"And I would
give mine to be normal."

Tarl nodded.
"I understand; I really do. But you can't change what you are. The
best you can do is learn to live with it, make the most of it, and
try to live a normal life. At least you have that chance now,
thanks to that little girl."

"I know."
Sabre put down the half-eaten rations. "She's another problem I
don't know how to deal with."

"How could she
possibly be a problem?"

Sabre
hesitated. "She's... grown attached to me."

"Ah." Tarl
looked confused. "And this is a problem because... You haven't...
grown attached to her?"

"No. I have,
but how can I be sure if I feel the same way she does? I don't
really know what she feels, or whether... But that's not the issue.
It's going to get her killed. Already she's almost died twice."

"Don't count
this time. She's in no danger of dying."

"But she could
have been killed. She was hurt because of me."

"Really? I
could have sworn she was hurt because that prick Gaylor kidnapped
her."

Sabre shot him
a frown. "If not for me, she'd be safe on her home world, happily
married by now."

"No, from the
story I heard, she'd be married to a bastard of a king, and
probably being beaten and abused now."

"Okay,
but..."

"Stop blaming
yourself for everything," Tarl said. "How is any of this your
fault? You saved Tassin from a terrible fate. She freed you from
the cyber, and if she put herself in danger to do it, or because of
it, that was her choice. The best you can do is to keep her alive,
and I know you can do that."

"I'm not so
sure."

"All you can
do is your best. Chances are, if you two get into a really bad
situation, you'll get yourself killed before her."

"How is that
supposed to comfort me?"

"It's not. You
just won't be able to blame yourself for it." Tarl stood up and
turned to the cyber, placing his hands on Sabre's shoulders. "She's
doing this because she loves you. It's what she wants. You can't
stop her, so... just do your best."

"I don't want
her to be hurt, or killed, because of me. I wish...."

"What? That
she hadn't freed you? I know you don't wish that."

Sabre bowed
his head, and Tarl pushed him back, forcing him to lie down. "Get
some rest. I'll take care of Tassin."

Sabre sighed
and closed his eyes.

Tarl left him
to sleep, checking on Tassin on his way to the bridge, where Kole
sat gazing out at the swirling light. Tarl flopped down in the
command seat, adjusting a few instruments.

Kole turned to
him. "The frigates have given up."

"I thought
they would once we got into the corridor. It’s hard to shoot at
something when you're going faster than your ammunition."

Kole chuckled.
"Yeah. You were with Sabre for a long time. Is he all right?"

"He'll be
fine, once he gets over his killer inferiority complex and acute
guilt syndrome."

"He's pretty
messed up, huh?"

Tarl nodded.
"So would anyone who's been through what he has."

"What's he got
to be guilty about?"

"Tassin,
rescuing him."

"That's one
gutsy girl. But I don't get it."

Tarl adjusted
a knob. "He can't understand why she cares for him. He still thinks
of himself as a killing machine. Tassin put herself in danger to
save him, and to him that's just plain wrong, because he's the
killing machine, and she's just a girl, whom he loves."

"Does he? Is a
cyber capable of love?"

"Well, he
calls it 'grown attached', but he's a man, so why shouldn't he
be?"

"He’s a
cyborg,” Kole said. “But that’s why he can keep her safe better
than anyone."

"That’s
exactly his problem. A cyber is a killing machine, and he hates
killing, but that’s what he was designed to do. So, he hates
himself. He doesn't really know how to do anything except fight,
strategize, and kill. His brain is full of combat information,
without a single scrap of data on how to deal with girls. He has a
warped self-image, so he’s only really comfortable doing what he
knows. He doesn’t understand why she loves him, or why she risks
her life to save him."

"And that's
where the inferiority complex kicks in."

"Exactly."

"He should be
counting his blessings, not questioning them," Kole said.

"Try telling
him that."

****

Tassin drifted
up from the soft, dark arms of sleep, becoming aware that her
shoulder and thigh throbbed in unison and her mouth had a bad taste
in it. Sensing a presence close by, she opened her eyes and turned
her head, expecting to find Sabre there. Tarl sat in a chair,
reading something on a silver device similar to the one Kole used
to have.

He smiled at
her. "Welcome back. You gave us a bit of a fright."

"Where's
Sabre?"

"Resting, as
you should be," he remonstrated when she tried to sit up.

"I want to see
him."

"He's fine.
There's nothing to worry about."

Tassin gasped
as fresh pain lanced from her shoulder and thigh, sagging back.
Tarl injected something into a tube beside the couch, which she
discovered, to her horror, was attached to a needle in her arm.

"What's
that?"

"Painkiller.
You should try to get some more sleep."

"I must see
Sabre."

Tarl shook his
head, adjusting the drip. "I sedated him."

"Why?"

"So he'll
rest, and if you're not careful I'll do the same to you."

"Where are
we?"

"In orbit
around Vygon Four."

She smiled.
"We made it."

"Yeah."

"Now we just
have to buy a ship and go home."

"I'll take you
if you tell me where home is."

Her smile
faded. "I'd like to, but I don't think that's such a good
idea."

"Why not?"

"You might be
questioned, perhaps tortured, if they think you know where we
are."

"Kole knows,
doesn't he?"

"Yes, but when
I told him, I had no idea we would be hunted like this, or that it
would put him in danger. Now I hope I've persuaded him to stay with
us, where he'll be safe."

Tarl nodded.
"I understand, but I'm a wanted man anyway, under sentence of
death, so I'm not going to let them catch me. I would be more than
willing to give up this wonderful existence for a peaceful life on
a nice backwater planet. Besides, I'd really like to... stay with
Sabre, if that's okay."

"Why? He
doesn't even like you."

"I want to
help him, however I can."

"You feel
guilty for what you did on Myon Two?"

"That, and so
much more,” Tarl said. “He needs guidance, which I'd like to
provide. He's never had a chance to live, apart from the year he
spent with you, and, from what you told me, that was mostly spent
in dangerous situations, which is what he was trained for. He can
deal with almost any situation, but he has a lot of questions and
even more issues."

Tassin stared
at the ceiling. "I remember how he became very withdrawn when we
returned to the castle and there was no more need for him to
protect me. I thought it was because he knew Manutim was coming for
him."

"I'm sure that
was part of it, but he also has no way to deal with his feelings.
It's all very confusing to him."

"I know." She
glanced at him. "If you're sure you want this, then I'll be glad to
have you stay with us."

"I'm
sure."

She smiled.
"Then you'd better set course for Omega Five."

Tarl stood up.
"Thank you. I will, as soon as I've sold this shipment."

"Dump it."

He stared at
her, and then nodded. "Yeah, you're right. Bugger it, let's
go."

"Before the
enforcers find us."

He headed for
the door. "Good idea."

Tassin closed
her eyes as he left, wondering if they would ever make it back to
Omega Five. How many more travails they would face along the way?
The main thing was that she had freed Sabre, and all that remained
was to find their way home across the vast reaches of space. She
hoped it would be easier now that they had a ship in which to
travel home. Then she and Sabre could settle down and work out
their problems in peace. That was all she wanted, and she allowed
herself to dream of it as she sank back into sleep's peaceful
midnight folds.

****

The
Cyber Chronicles
saga continues in Book V,
Overlord,
Book VI,
Warrior Breed
, Book
VII,
Sabre,
Book
VIII,
Scorpion Lord,
Book IX,
Precipice
, and many more as yet unwritten.

About the
author

T. C.
Southwell was born in Sri Lanka and her family moved to the
Seychelles when she was a baby. She spent her formative years
exploring the islands – mostly alone. Naturally, her imagination
flourished and she developed a keen love of other worlds. The
family travelled through Europe and Africa and, after the death of
her father, settled in South Africa. T. C. Southwell has written
over forty novels and five screenplays. Her hobbies include
motorcycling, horse riding and art, and she earns a living in the
IT industry.

All
illustrations and cover designs by the author.

Contact the
author at [email protected]

Acknowledgements

Mike Baum and
Janet Longman, former employers, for their support, encouragement,
and help. My mother, without whose financial support I could not
have dedicated myself to writing for ten years. Isabel Cooke,
former agent, whose encouragement and enthusiasm led to many more
books being written, including this one. Suzanne Stephan, former
agent, who has helped me so much over the past six years, and
Vanessa Finaughty, good friend and business partner, for her
support, encouragement and editing skills.