Savage Planet Cyborg

by Cheyenne Hart

  "Do you know what happened to her? And there's something wrong with her voice too, right? It's so gravelly," said Bree with a sense of wonder that was seldom found in adults.

  Jaxxon shook his head and started speaking more quietly. "I'm not exactly sure, but they say she used to be beautiful. And on top of that, she wasn't nearly half as twisted."

  "I guess going through an accident that could cause that would seriously mess with a woman's brain," replied Bree. The two of them were facing each other again and talking almost like Simone wasn't even if the room.

  Or, maybe she was just imagining that. There was no way for her to tell, so she tried to tell herself to stop acting like a high school girl. Get back on topic, she thought at last. "Okay, so let's pretend that you really are a cyborg—"

  "Because I am," snapped back Jaxxon, cutting Simone off rudely. He was not dealing well with these questions, and his people skills seemed to be quite out of practice. "I think you know it too. You're fishing for something though, information you think I might blurt out if you keep poking and pushing with these questions. Which planet did you say you're from again? Urf? I have never heard of it. It would make sense if you were actually from somewhere on this planet, or one closer to us. That's probably how my translator has your language, and yours has mine. See, I can come up with bullshit interrogation tactics too." He smiled at her like he'd just won the fucking Super Bowl or something, with that typical male look of smugness that was oh-so infuriating.

  "Okay, you must be part machine."

  "I agree," added Bree. "Just try to calm down, okay?"

  "Fine," said Simone, breathing deeply and wondering if she'd been concussed back there in the tunnel. Bree had checked out her vitals for her, and there was nothing obviously wrong, apart from a sore head and some nasty cuts and newly forming bruises. "Well, what the fuck do you suppose this place is?"

  "I don't know what to tell you," said Bree, shuffling around inside a large container that appeared to be made of some kind of wood or plastic. "I don't get it either. From the outside, this place looks like some kind of ancient structure. Y'know, the tunnel and everything where we came crashing down in that stupid escape pod. And now? In here, it looks like something that I'd expect to find in a sci-fi movie."

  "A what?" asked Jaxxon.

  It was always tough for people to ignore Bree. Simone could name countless occasions where she'd at once wanted to slap the brown haired firework, while also deeply admiring Bree, and even being moved to change her mind about a topic that was close to her heart. That was just the kind of dynamic, if not abrasive and rash, personality that Bree was.

  Then, watching them discuss this together, Simone started to feel pangs of that old green monster, and not the one with three eyes who was stalking around out there in the main part of this underground facility. No, it was jealously. But what did she have to be jealous about? This guy was a bit of a prick, not to mention being far from human or even completely organic like a normal guy. Maybe you're not looking for a normal guy, her mind taunted. Shut up, she told herself. No, why don't you just admit that you're at least sexually attracted to him? Are you such an ice queen that you're even colder than a half machine man?

  "Shut up," she said out loud. Simone gasped and turned around to face away from both of them, pretending to be doing something over at the first aid bed where she'd given Jaxxon the medical attention.

  "Are you feeling okay?" asked Bree. "You did get a nasty knock down when that thug pushed you into the wall. Maybe you should lie down for a bit?"

  "I'm fine," said Simone, quickly shutting her eyes tightly, tensing her whole body so that she could regain her composure, and then turned around with a smile on her face as though nothing was wrong at all. "I'm not the one who took that horrible beating though. I mean, if you are really a cyborg, and the city uses you for special operations or whatever they call it—how did you let a group like that get the drop on you? They have a whirring, humming robot with them for heaven's sake. That thing could wake the dead when it's moving, and I'm sure it's only worse trying to go along the sand of that desert above us."

  "Wow, Simone, what's gotten into you? You sound like you did when we were students," said Bree. She was standing beside Jaxxon, as they'd moved closer to each other while they were talking.

  They had been friends for a long time, that was true. And Simone knew that Bree would see right through any attempt to cover up her stupid feelings of lust for the alien man. It was just that she couldn't help herself. Something had pissed her off and there was no trying to deal with the true root of that issue in the heat of the moment. She sat up on the first aid bed though and thought about lying down for a little. "Seriously, why would a cyborg with such amazing skills and senses get caught unaware like that?"

  "Shut your mouth," said Jaxxon. It was totally unexpected and he didn't seem to mean what he'd said. "I just got unlucky. There you both were in that thing you say came from so far away, and I was distracted by y—"

  "By us? What, haven't you ever seen two pretty girls before?" said Bree quickly and with a look of great satisfaction on her face.

  "What? No. Well, maybe." He stopped and turned to look at Simone, and their eyes locked again but only for a brief moment this time. "Maybe I got caught off guard."

  "Wow…" said Bree, then quietly went back to what she was doing, rummaging through the supplies that were on the tall shelves in that small first aid room. "I'm just going to be quiet for a while. I think that's for the best."

  "What are you talking about?" asked Simone. She had to know for sure if he'd really almost gotten killed just because he was caught up in her eyes. If that were the case, it would make her feel like less of a childish fool for having gotten so carried away just now with her randomly rising jealously. More so, and this was a thought that was barely above the surface of her subconsciousness—it might mean that there was a chance she could find out what the rest of that alien cyborg body felt like.

  Jaxxon walked over to her and stood so close that she could smell the musk of his masculine body. It wasn't like the guys she'd been with back on Earth, or any that she'd even smelled in passing. He was somehow deeper, more masculine, and yet he had this clean kind of aroma to him. The idea that he was a machine underneath that flesh and blood, at least part of him anyway, wasn't so hard to believe when she drew in his scent through her petite nostrils.

  "Are you going to put your shirt back on?" she asked. Drawing attention to his naked upper body was not something she'd intended to do, but it was hard for her to resist. Simone was fairly sure that he'd noticed her staring at him. Maybe that was why he'd walked over to her, where she was sitting and trying to rest on the bed.

  "I'm not going to catch a chill or get sick," he said. "That's one of the benefits of being a cyborg. You really don't have to worry about that sort of thing."

  Simone couldn't stop staring at his eyes, except for when she would steal glances of his chest and abdomen. If there were a race of men made by the best designer in the world, they might come at least somewhat close to being as hot as Jaxxon. But there would probably be something off, or maybe they'd just be too perfect. Reflecting on that while she was caught in those deep, dark eyes of his that were not quite the same as an Earth man's, she realized that he was in fact made by a designer. At least, part of him was. The exterior must have been mostly there though, surely, when he was born.

  "I really wish you had some knowledge about your origins," she said. "If I can't keep you healthy and alive, we are all going to be in a lot of trouble." Then, even though she was lying, "That's what has me acting strange, I'm sure. The stress can really get to you when someone's life is in your hands." Even though she'd been lying about the cause for her strange behavior, this last statement was far too true. And it hit way too close to home for her to keep talking about it.

  "Have you ever been in a hostage situation that was combined with a medical situation?" Jaxxon asked.

  8

>   -Jaxxon-

  "I'm finished!" Bree called out, possibly too loud to be sure they couldn't hear her from outside the room. They might not have been keeping a close watch, or listening, and the door did look fairly thick. However, the woman was far from cautious, that much was painfully clear.

  "Hey, keep it down," said Simone.

  Bree shook her head and smiled that mischievous smile again. "You can thank me for providing a distraction and getting you out of that cringe-worthy conversation. Damn it, I have never seen such an awkward pair of people in my life. And that's coming from me, so you know you're both pathetic."

  "You don't know what you're talking about," said Jaxxon, feeling a sting of frustration.

  "Oh, I know exactly what I'm talking about. They say that I have a kind of extra sense for these things."

  Jaxxon laughed. "Look, I am a real cyborg. I do have extra sensory capabilities. You don't."

  "She doesn't even have good regular senses about that kind of thing. Bree, you're talking nonsense now." Simone didn't seem to be the greatest at joking around like that, but her earnest nature was appealing to Jaxxon. He wasn't exactly known for being a jovial cyborg criminal hunter.

  "And you can also thank me for this later," Bree said, lifting up a small construction from behind the box that sat on the bench she'd been working at. It was covered in wires and bits of what looked like some kind of tape.

  Jaxxon couldn't figure out what it was meant to be, but he had a sinking feeling that this thing was going to end up getting them all into some serious trouble. And that meant that this woman, Bree, was going to get them killed. "You should not mess around with the stuff in here," he said. While he knew that it made him sound like a nagging father figure, he did not care. As far as he knew, he had never had the chance to be a real father, and he was rightfully more than old enough to be acting in such a manner anyway.

  "This is nothing special. Just a bunch of leftover electrical supplies, wires, plastic casings and some other things like that. Oh, and these batteries. I'm not sure exactly what the material inside of them is, but the reaction it gives should be more than enough to cause a bang."

  Simone stood up from the bed. "Are you insane? Please, Bree, just stop what you are doing and put that thing down now. I know you want to get us out of here or help, but you can't seriously think that building an explosion is the way?"

  Bree was laughing, and there was nothing sinister about it. She was so far removed from the evilness of Starota in that regard that it was almost uncanny. Jaxxon found himself staring at her face as she delighted in her creation, and also in taunting her two fellow prisoners. He walked over to her. "What are you doing with this?"

  Again, with her face lit up like a kid in a toy store, Bree held it up to him as he moved closer, like it was some kind of sacred offering. She said, "It's nothing serious—I am pretty much ninety-nine percent certain about that. Maybe more like eighty percent, but you get the idea. This is not a real explosive, but the bang should be enough to cause one hell of a distraction. I guess when could also use it to blow something open, like a lock on a door or something."

  Simone walked closer now, her intrigue apparently making her less fearful of the possibility of being blown sky high. "Or maybe some kind of vent or something? I know, I know, that sounds cliched as hell. But there has to be some kind of air flow through this place, doesn't there? If we are able to find it, maybe we can get out of here."

  With her she brought her divine womanly scent, and it made Jaxxon's whole body quiver mildly. He hoped that neither of the Earth women was picking up on that, or he might have been embarrassed. He was quick to reclaim his focus though. "I don't think getting trapped in a vent would be to our advantage. It would be a good way to get out, if we didn't have to worry about these psychotic scumbags coming after us."

  "I think he's right," said Bree. "It would be awful easy to take us out or just bring us back here. I was thinking that this thing could be more of a, you know, distraction. Then, our cyborg muscle man here could do his thing and take down whoever comes through that door to see what all the noise about. What are you two staring at me like that for?"

  With a shrug and shake of her head, Simone put her hands out like she was giving in. "Okay, you're right. I think it's crazy, but this is all pretty damn crazy, right? So, I vote we try your plan, Bree."

  "I think it might be the best one we have," concurred Jaxxon.

  9

  -Bree-

  "Ready?" asked Bree. She'd jammed the explosive on the wall just beside the door handle. That way when someone came in, the explosion would be right beside them and give them a serious headache. If they were lucky, maybe it would even knock them down or injure them.

  "What if they have the girl come in to investigate?" she asked suddenly.

  "What?" Simone was crouched down behind the medical bed on the other side of the small room. "Why didn't you think of that earlier?"

  Jaxxon interrupted them and he sounded annoyed. "They're not going to send her in, trust me. She's worth far too much to them alive and in good health. Also, if we were to get her behind us, they would have nothing to use as collateral to trick me into backing down this time."

  "Oh that's right, you were too taken aback by Simone's luscious womanly charms to let her perish, or something like that?" Bree chuckled and just as both Simone and Jaxxon were about to tell her off, pressed down on the makeshift trigger she'd rigged to the wad of hacked up batteries and wires that should most likely cause an explosion. "Jaxxon, don't get too close to it for now. I'm not totally sure that it's going to be tiny.

  "Alright," she said, moving over to take cover beside Simone. Do it now!" She began to scream for all her might, and so did Simone.

  "He's dying, he's dying!" they both cried out in unison, along with horrified cries that they needed help right away.

  Sure enough, the door swung open with extreme force, like it had been kicked instead of just opened normally. It was the robot who'd been sent in to answer their cries for help, or just to make sure it wasn't a trap. The battery bomb fizzed and then let out a very loud explosion, which was only as powerful as a serious firework. Only all of the force was contained in one incredibly rapid release. That would have been more than enough to do some damage to any of the living criminals. But the stupid robot barely even noticed it.

  Sending Blood Bucket in was a tricky move, and Bree hadn't been counting on it. "Shit!" she yelled out. "Uh, oh yeah!" She remembered that wonderful shutdown code and was amazed that the scarred bitch out there was willing to risk it being used against the rust bucket again. "Override one seven nine two! Shutdown!" she gasped and waited to see if it would work again.

  Jaxxon shouted out, "Ha!" with a fast release of air. He was getting excited that their plan might still work, and started to move forward to push the robot out of the way. Only—it didn't shut down. In fact, the ancient machine didn't show any sign that it had noticed Bree's command.

  From outside the door, there was that laugh, which was really starting to grow into a fear trigger for Bree. Starota was just behind the robot, and her other two goons were probably not far away either. The thought of them out there, about to come in and do something terrible as a form of revenge and punishment to Bree, was too much to bare.

  "Please don't let them hurt me!" she shouted to Jaxxon.

  He looked at her then nodded, before charging at the robot even though its sharp mechanical claws were pointed out and ready to rip him apart.

  But Starota slipped through the door, holding that shiny pistol in her hand that Jaxxon had dropped. "Stop right there, metal dick. I bet you thought we'd forgotten about this after you dropped it back there, right? This is a nice looking laser, and I would love to test it out."

  "Go on, use it on me. Send out reinforcements to see why my signal's gone out."

  "So, it's true then. Or maybe you're just a terrible liar when you are desperate," said the scarred woman. "No, I'm not as reckless as yo
u appear to be. I still have my real life to live, not some ghost-like parody stuck inside a robotic corpse, posing as a real person. So, a makeshift bomb? Not very effective, especially against Blood Bucket here. And you, skinny little bitch," she said to Bree. "You thought you could just take out my robot again so easily? I'm hurt by how stupid you think I am. Of course I changed the pass phrase." She pointed the gun at Bree now.

  Bree had been wondering what became of that gun. Mostly, she'd just been glad that it wasn't in the hands of these thugs. Now, she was waiting to die and shaking like a leaf in the wind.

  "No! I made the bomb. This was my plan. Do you think an alien would know anything about our planet's technology to make something like that?"

  "An alien bitch who's savvy enough to shut my robot down with a few words in the first place? Yes, I do think she did this. Tell you what—she can live, but Drydee has been begging me to give him some alone time with her."

  "What?" said Bree. Oh, no, please no!

  "That's right. He seems to be quite taken with you. Oh, how I do not envy you." Starota started laughing—it was more like cackling than anything though—and then held the laser on Jaxxon while Drydee took Bree away kicking and screaming.

  Simone tried to fend him off but was swiftly struck down by the scent shifter. And of course Jaxxon tried to intervene but when the laser pistol was trained on Simone, he backed down yet again. Bree didn't blame him for doing that though, not at the time anyway.

  10

  -Simone-