Breeze Corinth (Book 1): Sky Shatter

by Olson, Michael John

  “Why so high?” Ray asked.

  “It would be best for all of us. As you humans would say, I have a hunch. Flying higher translates into fewer people seeing us.”

  Sally stiffened. “We are not in any danger, are we?”

  “No mistress, be tranquil. Merely a safety precaution. These are troubled times, after all.”

  They passed over the central section of town and approached the landing area. Below were row upon row of hovers and other vehicles.

  “Do you want me to land?” Ray said.

  “No need, we make the hover come to us.” Achilles tapped the console and a light began to flash. The scout ship vibrated and shook amidst the distant sound of hydraulics whining.

  “Check it out!” Breeze shouted and pointed out the window.

  A tiny speck approached them, and it climbed higher and higher until it was level with the scout ship. It was the hover car and it swooped across the bow and looped around to the stern of the ship.

  “Just like your hover truck, it’s a dog that knows its way back home,” Ray said and looked over at Achilles. “I guess you’re not that bad after all, tin can.”

  “Thank you, Ray. I gladly imbibe any and all compliments,” Achilles replied and tapped the console again. The whir of hydraulics whined throughout the cockpit as the garage doors closed. “Hover car safely secured in the landing bay,” it announced, then turned to Ray. “I would like to declare that this sea trial is performing splendidly.”

  “Whatever,” Ray scoffed.

  “Come now, Raymond, and try to display a modicum of enthusiasm. Now, may I suggest we traverse over the mountains?”

  “Why not.” Ray mashed down the throttles and the scout ship shot forward as the ground below became a blur.

  “Slow down!” Sally shouted.

  “We’re doing a sea trial, remember?” Ray retorted.

  Breeze squeezed her hand. “It’s okay. The ship is fine. We can trust Achilles.”

  She smiled. “I know. You’re a good friend, Breeze.”

  He sighed tiredly. “Yeah, I guess I am.”

  She pulled his hand to her chest and leaned her head against the window.

  Ray eased back on the throttles as they flew over the Appalachian Mountains and began swooping through the valleys as he followed its meandering rivers.

  “What brought you here, Achilles?” Breeze asked.

  The robot swiveled in its chair to face him. “These mountains, this land, became a refuge for many. It was here that all castaways could find a place for themselves.”

  “Like a giant freak show,” Ray said.

  “Raymond, not everyone possessed the good fortune of being brought up in a family such as your own, and in a community where paranormal gifts are treasured and nurtured. Many found themselves chased out, hunted down and persecuted during the regime of the Elephim.”

  Ray gripped the helm tightly. “I don’t have a home. Not anymore.”

  “No, this is not true,” Achilles said and shook its head.

  “Why do you say that?” Sally wondered.

  “If I have learned anything from humans, it is that all things happen for a reason. The three of you did not arrive here by chance, or intersect with me at Hammer Jack’s by sheer coincidence. I believe, with all of the integrity of my programming, that we must stay together.”

  If only they truly knew what you know, the second voice whispered from within.

  Breeze raised a hand. “Sorry, but I want to go home. I don’t have a clue as to what happened to my father.”

  “Breeze, I admire your devotion to family, but one must consider the truth. You are being hunted, as it appears all paranormal are. The Elephim have been revived and are waiting for an opportune moment to strike. Stay here and allow me to train you in the proper execution of your abilities.”

  “You? What do you know?” Ray said.

  “I have spent much time in the company of paranormals, and one cannot discount my many years of service at Perihelion. I served directly with Oslo and Raza, and of course, Bram, and I possess a vast amount of knowledge that has been retained in this rusty head of mine. ”

  “Bram, that poor man. Oslo told us how he went out into deep space to seek the source of the Elephim and never returned,” Sally said.

  Achilles nodded its head. “Yes, Bram did take it upon himself to do just that. He was a projectionist of the utmost skill and quite possibly the most arrogant. In the dying days of Earth’s civilization, he did what he could to stem the tide of destruction.”

  “Yeah, but he failed. He never came back,” Ray said.

  Achilles whipped its head toward Ray. It was silent for a moment before responding. “Yes, Raymond, I concur. He failed.”

  “Achilles, we appreciate the offer. But what makes you think you can help us any more than Oslo could?” Sally said.

  “Yes, an excellent point, but what I propose is nothing permanent. Think of it merely as an opportunity to spend time together and allowing me to impart my knowledge to all of you, before you carry on.” Stalling for time won’t keep them safe, it heard the voice say.

  “Look, I really need to go. You guys can stay if you want and I’ll take the scout ship myself and make my way back home,” Breeze said.

  “Young man, even if this ship possessed the necessary quantity of fuel to get you to your destination, do you not realize the possibility of ambush along your journey? What of mechanical breakdowns should they occur? Where would you procure the parts needed? How would you perform the repairs?” Achilles asked.

  “It doesn’t matter. I’ll fly by myself if I have to.”

  “You wouldn’t leave us, would you?” Sally gripped his hand.

  “Sally, look, you know staying here holds nothing for us. You can come with me.”

  “How? Are you going to fly her in your arms? You crash all the time,” Ray laughed.

  “Master Verhesen, in his unique style, is right. Breeze, you are the one who needs the most instruction. Allow me to train you.”

  Sally rubbed his shoulder. “Please, stay.”

  He relented. “Fine, but just for a little while, then I really need to go.”

  Sally whispered in his ear, “thank you.”

  Achilles slapped its thighs with a loud clink. “Excellent, it is settled. Raymond, change of course. Return to Mount Pleasant, I have an idea.”

  “Okay,” he replied as he shifted the throttles and threw the helm hard to port. Engines whined as the ship banked and headed back toward town.

  “What do you have in mind?” Breeze asked.

  “Young man, this old bucket of bolts is experiencing the sensation of progress for the first time in many cycles. I have decided to push our collective luck even further. Let us pay a visit to Raza.”

  Sally stood up. “Breeze is right, it’s time to go. You have got to be malfunctioning if you think we’re going to go back to that crazy woman.”

  Achilles chuckled. “Duly noted. Based on what you have told me, you first encounter with her was less than ideal. I assure you the circumstances will be different this time around.”

  “Sally is right. That old lady lost her mind while we were in her kitchen. She just snapped and we were all heading for the front door and running away,” Breeze added.

  Achilles nodded its head. “Understood, though I do believe my presence will be the mitigating factor this time around.”

  “I don’t get it. You say you served with her and Oslo at Perihelion, yet the whole time you’ve been here, you never once visited her? Does she even know who you are?” Sally said as she sat down and leaned against Breeze.

  “Sally, I departed Perihelion before her, and spent quite a bit of time roaming the land before settling here. I only became aware much later that she
had returned to Appalachia. And to answer your query, no, I did not reach out to her as many come here for the anonymity. I must confess, so did I.”

  Ray snorted. “So, I just park this thing on her front yard and we all just step out and say hello?”

  “No, Raymond, we shall land at a respectful distance and walk to her door, then allow me to explain to her what has transpired. Raza will be critical to your training. She possesses knowledge and insight that is rare amongst people today and her experience is invaluable. Besides, you are the one who insisted we wait for Oslo to arrive. And I must say it would be a pleasure to see him again.”

  “You know, she mentioned something about Oslo bringing their daughter, Nina,” Sally said.

  Achilles’ eyes brightened. “Fascinating. They had a child together, this I did not know.”

  The scout ship skimmed over the river that led back to their original landing place. Ray slowed the ship upon arrival and brought it to a hover over Achilles’ truck.

  The robot was in a trance as it sat in its chair when Ray leaned over and rapped it on the head. “Hello, what do we do? Got to her place in the ship, or do we use the truck?”

  Achilles blinked rapidly, then swiveled its head to face him. “Excellent suggestion, Raymond. I propose a new strategy.” It toggled a switch on the console, and then typed in a series of commands. Immediately, the ship shuddered as the cabin was filled with the whine of hydraulics. “I am opening the garage door to retrieve my hover truck, and then we will land at a distance not far from Raza’s farm and travel the rest of the way in it. I fear that seeing this ship may prove to be disconcerting to her and she may assume Oslo has arrived with their daughter.”

  The hover truck floated up to the ship and settled into the garage as Achilles’ console flashed indicating that the doors had sealed themselves shut. It then pointed forward. “There, Raymond, over the mountain, where we shall land slightly downriver from her property.”

  Ray pushed forward on the helm and the ship sailed over the mountaintop and glided down the other side. He brought the ship to a landing along the shoreline, downriver from the farmhouse and throttled down the engines.

  Breeze leaned into Sally. “Here we go again.”

  Sally sighed as she turned and gazed out the window.

  TWENTY-ONE

  ACHILLES BROUGHT THE TRUCK to a stop at the foot of the driveway that led to Raza’s farm. The engine idled as the robot slowly slid its hands around the steering wheel.

  “Second thoughts?” Breeze said, “Because I know I sure do.”

  Achilles turned and gazed at each of their faces, then chuckled. “Negative. This is the right course of action. As young ones, you will require the guidance needed for the journey ahead but you must not rely solely on a rusty old robot that fights in arenas for this task. You must be with your own kind.”

  “Yeah, humans,” Ray said.

  “No, Raymond, paranormals,” Achilles responded and threw the truck into gear and headed up the driveway.

  “Shouldn’t we be in hover mode? It would be a lot quieter,” Breeze said.

  “Negative. Anyone in the home can easily hear us rolling up the drive, which is what we seek to achieve, for we are merely neighbors paying a visit. Nothing more.”

  “I really don’t think she gets many visitors,” Sally quipped.

  Achilles brought the truck to a stop a few feet from the porch steps and cut off the motor, then stepped out and walked around to the front of the truck and stood staring at the front door of the farmhouse.

  Ray stood next to the robot. “Is the big, bad Robot Fighter afraid to walk up the steps to the crazy lady’s front door?”

  “No, Raymond. Merely contemplating how I will explain our presence to Raza. I must formulate an explanation as to why we require her assistance, and how it would mutually benefit us all.”

  “You sound like a guy who’s in love and doesn’t know how to say it to her,” he needled.

  Achilles head swiveled to face him. “What have I said to give you such an idea? Robots mating with humans? Highly inappropriate.”

  “Just teasing, tin can, relax.”

  The front door creaked open and a woman stepped out. She drew the coat that draped her delicate frame closer to her as she walked to the porch railing.

  Sally gasped and took a step back while Ray and Breeze stared at the woman in stunned silence.

  Achilles took a step forward. “You have not changed much since I last saw you, and it brings this old machine much joy when I declare that you are just as beautiful as you were so many years ago.”

  The woman smiled, then put a hand to her throat and nodded. “It has been too long, but how could I forget you, our favorite robot assistant. 51? Isn’t that what we used to call you? Forgive me, my memory is not what it used to be.”

  Achilles chuckled. “Yes, 51, which is the shorthand for my serial code, 5150, and is the nickname that Oslo had given me. He was always fond of nicknames. I could never forget when he rescued me from being scrapped and took me under his wing during the purge. Those were dangerous times indeed, and still are, I am afraid. I must inform you however, I now go by the moniker of Achilles.”

  “Who are you?” Sally blurted out as she stared at the woman.

  Achilles swiveled to address her. “This is Raza. Did you not inform me you younglings had met her earlier? Was your story a fabrication?”

  Sally’s eyes were wide. “She’s…so much younger. The woman we met was old. And mean.”

  Raza nodded as she descended the steps while Sally stepped back with her arms across her chest.

  Raza held out a hand. “Sally, please take this as my heartfelt apology to you,” she turned to Breeze and Ray, “and to all of you, for I’m afraid my behavior as of late had been less than stellar.”

  Sally was mute.

  Raza’s hand went to her chest. “I must confess, seeing the three of you showing up on my doorstep was quite unnerving for me. Your arrival brought back a flood of memories I have not thought of in so many years—”

  Sally interrupted. “How did you get so young? You were old and mean just a couple of days ago!”

  Raza smiled. “Child, there is so much to tell you. You must believe me when I say the woman you met before is not the person I really am.”

  Ray confronted her by standing inches from her face. “You stalked us then attacked with some weird creature that made us see moments from our past. How do you explain that away?”

  A tear rolled down her cheek and she immediately wiped it away. “I can only ask you now for your forgiveness. Please, come inside and allow me to offer you the hospitality I denied you before while I try to explain my actions of late.”

  She held her hand out and Sally hesitantly took it.

  Raza then patted Achilles on the shoulder. “51...no, Achilles, please come inside.”

  “Of course.” He swiveled around to face Breeze and Ray. “Gentleman, please accompany us,” it said, then pointed a finger at Ray. “Now young man, you have two dangerous individuals to monitor.”

  “Yeah, a crazy robot and his crazy lady friend,” Ray said.

  Raza laughed as Achilles chuckled.

  “Come in, all of you.” Raza beckoned to them.

  They climbed up the steps and into the house while Achilles trailed behind, gingerly testing each step as the boards buckled under its weight.

  They settled down in the living room as Sally and Breeze sat on a couch while Ray stood behind them. Achilles scanned the furniture, but never sat, instead choosing to stand next to a window.

  Raza was bustling in the kitchen and soon emerged with a tray full of refreshments and cookies. “I have not baked in quite some time, so please be gentle in your critiques,” she said and settled the tray on the table that fronted the couch
. “You young ones awakened something inside me, and I decided to search for your ship the day after that encounter in the ravine, to apologize for my horrible behavior. I found the ship empty and I feared the worst. It-,” her voice broke as she wiped tears from her face, ”—it brings me such happiness to see you here together.” She sat down but couldn’t face them. “I’m so ashamed of what I’ve done,” she whispered.

  Achilles stepped toward her and lowered itself onto a bent knee, then carefully took her hand and patted it. “Raza, we must be grateful whenever possible. We are all here now and in one piece. There is no need for tears, only joy.”

  Raza smiled as she wiped her face. “You’re awfully sentimental for a robot.”

  Achilles tapped its head. “Artificial intelligence plus many decades of reading books of human adventure and romance can alter even a crusty old robot such myself.”

  “There is nothing crusty about you, neither is there anything artificial. I consider you an old friend. I must confess, I should have sought you out long ago. I heard the stories about a robot with extraordinary capabilities fighting in the arenas of Mount Pleasant. I should have known it was you.” She took a sip from her cup. “Whatever did happen to you? I do recall a training session involving you, Bram, and several RF and after the session was over, you were missing. We searched, but you were nowhere to be found. We had always thought that perhaps you wanted your freedom and you disappeared to find your own way in this world. You were always so precocious.”

  Achilles shook its head. “Mistress, what had happened—”

  “Sorry to break up the reunion,” Ray cut in, “but what exactly are we doing here? What’s the plan? I’m not going to sit around here drinking tea and eating cookies while you two talk about old times.”

  Achilles stood up and placed a hand on the headrest of Raza’s chair. “Of course Raymond. Always the military man in need of a plan and no time for sentiments.” It leaned down to Raza, “we can reminisce later, when a window of opportunity presents itself.”

  Raza smiled and nodded.

  “I miss my parents!” Sally wailed.

  Raza rushed from her chair and pulled Sally close to rock her back and forth as the girl sobbed. “There now, there now,” Raza whispered.