Future Reborn Box Set

by Daniel Pierce

  “Hold him,” Andi said, iron in her voice.

  Six hands gripped me as I felt pressure on my back, then the needle punched through as my jaws locked on the cable like a pitbull on a rival.

  I fought the urge to beg, tears streaming from my eyes as Andi’s face came into view, broken into jeweled panes. She spoke, and I had to focus on her lips to understand what she wanted. It took her three tries to get the question across, the last attempt slow and deliberate.

  “Do you feel anything in your neck?” Andi asked.

  I tried to think, but the world was on fire and I surrounded the blaze with my body, eating the pain of each licking flame with my flesh. When I had taken a breath and could consider speaking, I uttered one word, and only one, because anything else would have put me over the edge into death itself.

  “Yes,” I groaned.

  Andi reached behind me and withdrew the needle, her eyes dark with worry as I tried to clear my vision, but just then the new ‘bots hit my brain with the fury of an oncoming storm. For the second time in as many hours, blackness reached for me, and I had no way to fight back.

  16

  It didn’t take me an hour to recover, as Andi suspected. It took two.

  In that nightmare of dreams and sweat and pain, my body became a battleground for three armies—venom, ‘bots, and the newer nanotech that meant to sweep them all aside in the name of making me better than ever.

  The new ‘bots won out, but it felt like a close thing at times, with shapes and images streaking through my mind’s eye in patterns never meant for humanity. When my eyes fluttered open, they did so slowly, as if the light above could scorch them into ash.

  “Hey,” Silk said, first to see me wake. It was a nice sight, thought there were lines of worry on her forehead, and she looked tired in her soul, not just body.

  “Hey. How—” I began, but she put her hand on my chest, shushing me gently.

  “Not long. A couple hours, but no more.” When Andi came into view, they shared a knowing look, then Silk spoke to me again, this time with a sense of wonder. “Long enough to discuss more about your time and the ‘bot technology, and what it might mean for us.”

  “Where’s Chloe and Mira?” I asked, my throat dry with disuse.

  “Next door, sleeping. It’s a secure room and there’s a bunk. We didn’t know how long it would take, so we slept in rotations to stay alert. How do you feel?” Andi asked.

  I took stock of myself yet again, realizing the act was getting old. I had to fight smarter if I was going to survive in a world where giant spiders were real. “Okay. Sore. Legs are gassed, but it feels like after a hard run with no recovery.”

  “That’ll pass,” Andi said, adjusting an intravenous bag I hadn’t noticed. “You’re dried out from the changeover, need certain things that the ‘bots have been using. Your diet will have to change from now on, or you won’t recover as quickly. When we make it out of this, you’ll have to eat some exotics.”

  “Exotics? Like what?” I asked, not sitting up but definitely interested.

  “Mostly pig assholes, and they’ll have to be raw. I recommend eating them fresh,” Andi said, then her lips twitched in betrayal as Silk doubled over in laughter.

  “I’ll just die, if that’s okay with you,” I said, but I took her hand, thankful for the joke.

  Andi moved closer, peering into my eyes. “Pig ass aside, you’re going to need a lot of water and electrolytes to recover from this. Medical has powder for it, but we’re going to need a source down the road.” She cut her eyes at Silk, who gave a small nod. “There are enough ‘bots here—and in other sites—to dose a lot of people. Since the new generation of nanotech is self-replicating, we could begin improving the people of the Oasis, and it would last a lifetime, as long as they didn’t have catastrophic blood loss.”

  I considered that, then struggled to my elbows, letting the room stabilize around me. “Are you asking me for permission? Because all I care about is bringing back the good parts of the world. I’m not an emperor. I’m the—” I thought about it for a minute, because even though Rowan was coming, we needed to have something like a plan for what happened after. If I didn’t plan for success now, then we would have chaos later when individual jealousies and grievances came out to play, and they always did.

  “You’re the what?” Silk asked, then took a long look at her body, smirking. “Other than one lucky bastard?”

  “I’m the leader for as long as you’ll have me. If I’m not doing what I think is my very best, then I don’t want anyone following me,” I said.

  “Then you’ve got my vote,” Silk said, squeezing my hand.

  “Mine too, unless you try to bring back lawyers. Then I’ll shoot you myself,” Andi said. Judging by her expression, she was only half joking.

  “Fair enough. With giant spiders and rats, I think the world has enough villains,” I agreed. “Help me off this slab, will you?”

  A moment of grunting and hissed complaints later, I was standing, if wobbly.

  “At some point, the new colony of ‘bots will begin muscular work. It doesn’t hurt like the first gen, but it will cause irregular movement, if only for an instant. You’ve got to be ready for that,” Andi said.

  “How long will it take?” I asked.

  “A day, tops. You’re a combat spec, so I’m not entirely sure,” Andi answered.

  “There are different kinds?” Silk asked.

  “Sure. The ‘bots are self-adjusting to a point. If—sorry, when we dose you, they’ll probably work most on your cognition and speed, rather than muscle mass. The ‘bots detect your strengths and play to them, rather than try to build something up that’s too much of a long shot for enhanced survival,” Andi said.

  “What are the top effects? For combat, I mean?” I hoped for more of everything but would take what I could get.

  “Strength, hand-eye coordination, and speed, but most of all, you’ll gain stamina,” Andi said.

  “You could use it,” Silk deadpanned.

  “I thought you said you were the one who was tired?” I asked, feeling more steady by the second. The ‘bots worked fast.

  “I lied,” Silk said, grinning. “Glad you’re back. What’s next, unless you wanted to talk about our sexual habits? I’m game, though it seems a bit like putting a ribbon on a corpse. Waste of time in this setting.”

  “Speaking of corpses, we need to check the bird and see what’s new in the neighborhood. Then we can pick how many rooms to clear, even though the bottom level has to be drained no matter what,” Andi said.

  I stretched my legs, feeling the lingering pain and stiffness despite the obvious efforts of my shiny new colony of ‘bots.

  Andi watched me for signs of distress. “What’s it feel like?”

  I scratched my thigh, considering how to answer. “Like I had a kickass migraine in my legs, but it’s gone and now there’s just that leftover ache. Sore, but I can sense it fading.”

  “Good. Down the road you’re going to need to put your body through some challenges, if only to feel where your limits are—as well as your abilities,” Andi said.

  I looked at her with a grim determination, then began to tug at my pants. “This is hardly the time for it, but if you insist—”

  “For fuck’s sake, stud, pull ‘em up,” Andi said, laughing. “I’ll make you a deal. Clear the pests out and you can have me six ways from Sunday. You don’t mind, do you?” She addressed the last question to Silk, who watched with her lips curled in a half smile.

  “I’d be glad of the rest. I can’t imagine what he’s going to be like with the—what generation nanobots did you say these were?” Silk asked.

  “Fourth or thereabouts,” Andi answered.

  “Then there’s no telling what I’d be getting into with him. Took all my tricks to get him to sleep last time,” Silk said, then put a hand on my shoulder when I began to bristle. “Not that I wasn’t happy to lose the rest.”

  “If we’re don
e discussing my need for healthy sex, shouldn’t we check the Condor?” I asked.

  “Hey, you’re the one who tried to take his pants off, but yeah, we should,” Andi agreed, thumbing her tablet to life. “I need the main CC and the big screens for this to really see the outer range. We can send the bird out on a circular pattern when it goes back up.”

  “I thought it was airborne?” I asked.

  “It went to roost. Automatic when the juice is low and it’s been flying lazy eights all night and then some. I’ll send it back up now and we can—wait, there it is,” Andi said, moving her fingers with rapid, confident motions. “It’s up again. Now let’s wake the girls and get control of this place. I want my fucking base back.”

  “Your base?” I asked her playfully.

  “Ours, then. All our bases belong to us,” Andi said, and I knew we were meant for each other.

  17

  “This a lot less complicated than I expected,” I said, sweeping the command center with my gaze. We were two rooms down, free of any giant insects, and relatively safe for the moment while Andi booted the system. It took a while, despite the constant power, but it worked. A screen the size of a small movie theater flared to life, gray at first but soon resolving into an overhead view of the base.

  “We pared the system down, because nothing was installed with profits in mind,” Andi said, working her tablet to engage a second, smaller screen on the opposing wall.

  “Profits? Why would that matter?” Silk asked.

  “Defense contractors used to complicate things in order to guarantee their contracts. They would add needless bullshit to a system when the opposite was what we wanted. From ’94 on, the entire network around here was built with simplicity in mind. Once the pocket reactors became a reality, the power redundancies weren’t needed, either. Just like that, we cut the profiteers out of the loop and built something that could last—well, 2000 years. Or more,” Andi said. Her voice was ringing with pride as she finished, bringing the second screen to life with a final swipe of her thumb.

  The room was big, but well-lit and now filled with two views of the outside world, bathed in daylight and somehow distant. Just knowing there were spiders and rats and scorps overhead made the sunlit desert seem like another planet. I pushed that thought away with an effort. I’d have time for fear later. For now, I needed intel, and Andi had given it to us.

  “Can you send the, um, drone to the east?” Chloe asked, uncertain about her choice of words. She pointed off screen, past where the view ended at a washout filled with debris from the storm that nearly killed us. Dead trees and rotting cacti were piled like jackstraws among broken rock that gleamed sharp in the bright light. If there had been access to our base from the east before the storm, it was gone now. Nothing larger than a squirrel could traverse that landscape, at least not at any speed. That was good. Natural barriers meant a slower approach when Rowan finally got around to his attack.

  “I can do better than that. I can send up a second Condor, if you want to spread our range?” Andi asked. When I nodded, she pulled a dropdown menu up on her tablet, launching the second bird with a worried intake of breath. “It’s up,” she said after a minute, and I felt myself exhale with her. “Sending bird two to the west. I’ll preselect a pattern that will—hello, who’s this?”

  I stared at the screen, adjusting my mind to the overhead view. Below, two figures crept along a gulley, staying low and barely visible in some kind of desert camo. The gleam of rifles on their backs revealed they weren’t stopping by for coffee. “Scouts, I’d say, and experienced. They’re moving low and fast, but from here it looks like they would be more or less invisible from ground level. Those aren’t rookies.”

  “Not by any measure,” Chloe said.

  Mira nodded as well, knowing what it looked like to be comfortable in the harsh Empty.

  I didn’t take my eyes away from the screen. I couldn’t. The enormity of an airborne presence would take some time to filter through my head. The scouts neither saw nor heard the drone. It was a stunning advantage. I finally turned to Andi, who held the tablet like a musician ready to play. “Can you take them out, but bring the other drone close enough so we can see the Condor operate?”

  Andi grinned, wicked and quick. “Damn right I can. You’re my kind of guy. Want to see the weps in action?”

  “Just right. I know what you say they can do, but this system is from the time after I went on ice. I’d like to judge what it can do for myself,” I explained.

  “Say no more. Retasking second bird. Give me sixty seconds,” Andi said, her fingers moving with confident strokes. When she was done, she stuck her tongue out in concentration, leaning to one side as if she was wishing the drone into position. “Done. Split screen coming. Watch the main monitor,” she said.

  The giant screen broke in two, revealing the first view of the scouts and a second, wider angle view of the first drone. The Condor’s belly opened to reveal a small set of barrels, locked side by side. “That’s all there is to it?” I asked, dubious.

  “Trust me, these little fuckers punch way above their weight. We’ll record the shot, because it’s going to be too fast for the eye. Even ours, with the ‘bots,” Andi said. “Ready?”

  “Take them,” I said.

  “Firing.” Andi touched the tablet once, and the barrels spat a silver flash lasting less than a half second. “Two targets down.”

  “What—holy shit,” I muttered.

  Below, the scouts weren’t just dead. They were unzipped from head to toe, like a bag of guts torn apart by a chainsaw.

  “Right? Vicious little bastards, these Condors. I’ve seen them leave impact craters a meter deep. We’re lucky the bodies didn’t liquify.” Andi peered at the screen, then shrugged. “Actually, they sort of did. Might want to clean them up after we secure the site.”

  I said nothing. No one even breathed as we looked over the images from the feed. The scouts were alive one second, and the next, they were paste. It was that simple.

  “How many rounds have you got for these?” I asked.

  “Not enough for a company, but enough to take out a couple platoons, at least,” Andi answered.

  “Can you fabricate more ammo? Not now, but in the future?” I asked, thinking down the road for larger concerns. Like building a stable state. And beyond.

  “Sure, given time and material. Like I said, everything is on the table except some medicines, and even then, we can drastically improve the quality of life here,” Andi said.

  “Can you stop consumption from killing people?” Silk asked.

  “Like—in the lungs? Tuberculosis, we called it. It was wiped out, more or less. You’re telling me it’s back?” Andi asked.

  “You wiped it out?” Silk asked, a touch of awe in her voice. To her, the disease was a killer. To Andi and me, it had been a relic.

  “We did, and we can do it again. For now, though, we have to clear this land and get loverboy here in position to raise his flag,” Andi said.

  “He certainly likes to raise something,” Silk said, a smile on her full lips.

  “You didn’t complain,” I answered, but it wasn’t the stony answer I intended.

  “No, I didn’t. And I won’t next time. If we live. What are you going to do about it?” Silk asked me.

  “We are going to start by doing distant recon with the drones,” I said.

  “Then what? Hand to hand with Rowan?” Andi asked.

  “Not if I can help it. I have some ideas about how to take them out, but it starts with thinning the herd like you just did. Get me an idea of where Rowan and his people are, and we’ll go from there. How long do you need to put birds out in their max circuit?” I asked.

  “Two minutes to program, and then we let them fly, but slowly. They’ll conserve juice and extend their range by a third. I can have data back by tonight,” Andi said.

  “Perfect. In the meantime, show me how to run the CC. Start with the tablet and go from there. I wan
t everyone in this room able to operate drones, boot the system, and shut it down if necessary. Can you do that?” I asked.

  “I was born to teach this shit. I built it. I can show you all how, but we have to be fast. You need to clear those drains and find out why my reactor is dying,” Andi said.

  “I’m a fast learner, and we can take the time for this. If anything happens to you . . . ” I let the nightmare scenario trail off. Andi merely grunted in agreement. She was ballsy.

  “Let’s start with the tablet. I’ll need everyone’s thumbprint. We’re going to add you all as sysadmins, and then you can learn how to jumpstart the system. You with me?” Andi asked us all. When we all nodded, she turned the tablet around to show us. “Good. Let’s begin.”

  18

  It didn’t take an hour to learn the system basics. It took two. As for me, my background made the process simple. For everyone else, it was akin to magic. Still, Silk proved the most receptive to new technology, followed by Mira and Chloe, who used dogged determination to break through their inexperience with things from my time.

  As we wrapped up a final lesson on passcodes and system restore, a bell chimed in the speaker system linked to the main screen.

  “The drones have found sign of our new friends,” Andi said.

  “Range?” I asked. Numbers mattered less. Time and distance were my first concerns.

  “Let’s see . . .” Andi pulled at her lips as she swiped across her tablet with deliberate motions. She was trying to grab data from both drones in an overlay. After a minute of pasting, she produced a glowing series of lines on the area map. “Three squads. Moving slowly. Whatever Rowan’s military experience might be, he’s not charging in without caution.”