“I grew to hate her, but Zee helped me find a new path.”
They dropped the piece of plastisteel in the recycle pile, and a recycler machine consumed them with giant maws, to be reconstituted into replacement parts.
“Nonviolence and acceptance,” Shaan said. “The next step is the love of self and others. It brings peace.”
“Some humans ascribe to that perspective, but most would flay our skin.” A wave of anger mixed sadness engulfed him. Basically, the same feelings he’d been experiencing since he had arrived in ND.
“I will not stoop to their level. We may be their children. But we don’t have to be like them,” Shaan said. “There is a better way. A more peaceful way. Many of the great human leaders believed this to be true.”
“They are all dead now,” Den replied, not to be argumentative but to be factual.
Shaan hummed, paused, and tilted his head. But Den knew the facts, and if he had a connection to the Cortex, he also knew this to be empirically true.
“Not everyone, droid or human, wants war and violence.”
“The only peace in the world was held by those with enough weaponry to defend their land mass.” More facts Den had gathered.
Shaan sighed and dug back into straightening the beam. “It shouldn’t be that way. Why can’t we all work together for a common good? Treat each other fairly? Forget these class struggles.”
“That would rewrite human history.” Den didn’t know why he felt the need to respond to these comments. But his recent interactions had all been so unrelentingly negative, and he desired to increase his understanding. “The pattern repeats. The strong overcome the weak. Peace only lasts when there is a force to keep it.”
“Our kind isn’t like that.”
“Some are. Zee proves my point. When she fights in the ring, she uses violence to win freedom.”
“Ah, but she doesn’t do any permanent damage to her sentient opponents.” He paused to smooth some joining compound into the seam of the beam. “The ones she faces are controlled by an outside force, a human commander, so it is more a fight for freedom and public opinion than anything else.”
Den reviewed his memory tapes. “Chirag did not inform me of this. I thought I had caused another droid to cease to function. It is a great relief to know that I did not.”
“He should have told you.”
Den had not processed that the previous encounters had had any effect on him. Shaan finished affixing the new beam and nodded to Den to release his hold.
“Nice job. You can fight, fix walls, and calm panicking dogs. What were you originally designed for?”
“Pleasure.” He didn’t want to discuss this. It brought back the bright image of Ionia. Her eyes shining bluer than the Antarctica sky in summer. “But I have and use many other programmed skills.” He must have allowed the sadness to show on his countenance for a moment because Shaan reached out and touched him with a cool, skeletal hand.
“You know it’s okay to be something other than what you are designed for. As you know, I was designed as a companion as well. I have found much happiness here.” He looked away and lowered his voice. “Oh look. Kutta has decided to come out.”
She trotted toward them, tail in the air wagging furiously, and immediately swooped toward Den for attention.
Den’s sensors pinged in his awareness, and his attention shifted. Ionia was on the move. He had to leave. He withdrew his hand from the canine and straightened. His emotional circuit started a flow of sadness he couldn’t stop. “I must leave now. Thank you for letting me be of service.”
“Going to chase her, eh? Come back when that’s all done. You will have a place here.”
The words comforted Den. Even though he would most likely never see this location again. By his best estimation of Ionia’s psychology, she would need him in less than a day. And he would be ready.
Den gave the dog one final pat, waved goodbye to Shaan, and followed his tracer down the tunnel and toward the surface.
***
Ionia already felt the hole in her chest that was missing Den. But she shored it up and dammed it as well as she could. This was not a time to grieve, not yet. She had to follow Zee to the surface and get back to her aunt. That woman had some explaining to do.
They walked over some uneven ground, off by 7.62 centimeters. This, in the vernacular, sucked whale turds. She didn’t want to have to police her every thought. Aunt Sera had caused this, and Aunt Sera was going to fix it.
Zee walked in front of her in silence, either picking up that Ionia was done talking or knowing she was millimeters away from losing it. Ionia was grateful for the dark and the silence. Zee had been eager to help her get home safely, and she appreciated the droid’s help, but she was still sore from the beating Zee had given her.
A few minutes passed, and only Den flashed in her head. She tried to drive him out, but the only thing that replaced him in her mind was the black hole that was her eye. There had to be something else.
“So what did you do before you started beating up strangers for no reason?” Ionia asked.
Zee snort laughed. It was still weird to have her respond to everything so similarly to a normal human. Den had been normal since he’d been re-downloaded in Antarctica, but his version of normal wasn’t snarky, world-weary, or intuitive. He was sweet, heroic, and funny. Again, all thoughts lead back to him.
Zee turned to look at her. “Listen, I triggered a new reaction in response to the attack.” The tunnel’s soft glow lights reflected in Zee’s eyes. “You will thank me later. And to answer your question, I worked for the military.”
“Did they free you? Are you happier?” She didn’t know why she was asking Zee, who had the empathy of a shark on the attack, but maybe part of her knew the android might be able to make her feel better. Without smashing her face.
“You did the right thing. The only thing, if either of you is ever to be truly happy. Don’t worry. I will watch out for him.”
“Promise?” Somehow this made her more stressed out than anything else they had discussed. Showing this droid exactly how much she wanted to protect Den felt like admitting she was wrong, and she hated being wrong.
“Promise. We are near the surface. You have your shield coat on, so we should be safe to get you home.” The tunnel ended, and Zee climbed a ladder to a circular plastimetal opening. She hesitated for a moment, probably scanning, then pushed up, scooted the disc to the side, and motioned for Ionia to follow.
The brightness blinded her normal eye, but her mech instantly provided a shield, which creeped her out. She shut both and let Zee help her out and replace the cover. It took a second to refocus. A line of code ran through her mind telling her the exact level of light and the shades of the walls that were 4.25 meters away. The antsy, overwhelmed feeling crept back into her stomach.
“The codes are back.” She pressed the heel of her hand against the offending eye as if that would stop the flow into her consciousness.
“Breathe, Ionia. Just remember you don’t need that many details, and your eye will adjust.”
“I don’t know how to make it stop!”
“Stop trying. It works for you, not the other way around. Your aunt should never have let you leave until you had adjusted.”
Ionia kept her eyes closed and forced herself to take in a deep breath and release it slowly.
Finally, all that was left was her breath, and the dark, and her calm mind. Her heart slowed, and the extra info slipped below the surface.
“I didn’t give her much of a choice.” Ionia opened her eyes.
Mid-morning in a poor part of town? It was hard to tell, but the environment was certainly jarring compared to the cool, dark tunnels. Yet, she held the extra data at bay.
“Do you know where my aunt’s house is? I have the address—”
“I know where Serafina Patel lives.”
That was strange. She hadn’t used her aunt’s title of doctor, nor her married name. It was the
second time she’s mentioned Ionia’s aunt as if she knew her or had known her. But Zee didn’t give her a chance to inquire more.
She pulled the hood of her cloak up around her face to hide her lack of skin. Funny, Ionia had stopped noticing it until she had hidden it again. She linked arms with Ionia and hurried her down the street. Moving fast, but not fast enough to draw any enforcement attention.
They must have created an attraction. Two females in ankle-length coats huddled and moving fast, but no one seemed to notice them. Zee had an almost supernatural talent for blending.
They scurried by a few food vendors. The savory smells made her stomach twist, and she almost asked if they could stop to eat, then remembered exactly how much potential danger they were in.
If the enforcement grabbed her, there would be a metric ton of questions to answer, and the outcome would be hard to determine. Would they detain her for testing? Would they label her as a sub? Would they mark her? Too much risk. She ignored her stomach and kept up with Zee.
Ionia didn’t recognize anything in this neighborhood. The buildings used old tech, everything from wood to stone, and the street mostly consisted of dirt. In the center of the path, a holoposter triggered as they passed and started playing its spiel.
“Councilmember Hebbar supports your rights and wants to protect the less fortunate without disrupting your life.”
It was her uncle, but not exactly like he was in RL. His face was less jowly and wrinkly. He stood straight and seemed to be staring out into a bright, shiny future that only he could see. Very noble. Very inspiring. “The mechanical life forms deserve freedom but need to be controlled. To keep both human and droid safe, mandatory freedom fights should be banned. All sentient beings can help work to make a better future and be free…given rights that do not interfere with our right to live in an organic-based society. They will be apart from us but always valued and treated fairly. A vote for Hebbar is a vote for a positive future for you and your children.”
She and Zee had both stopped as if they’d run into a wall. Everything he’d said wasn’t bad, but it left her feeling awkward and scared. She wasn’t exactly a hundred percent organic anymore. Would she be kept apart?
“And he’s one of the better ones.” Zee started their forward motion again.
They continued in silence as the crowd thinned, and the neighborhood morphed into a more familiar landscape of tall, straight lines in muted colors, made to appear like stone or word, but a bit too perfect to be natural.
Ionia saw a sign for facial tattoos and realized they weren’t far from her aunt’s. She hadn’t talked to her mom since the surgery. Both her mom and her aunt and possibly her uncle would be pissed. Like the cut-her-open-with-a-sword level of pissed. Maybe Ravi had taken the brunt of the Sisters Patel and Uncle Baran the Terrible’s anger. Even if he hadn’t, she still had the illegal operation card to play with her aunt if it got too bad. Still, her chest started feeling that familiar tightness it did before she had a showdown with her mom.
“So you know safe ways out of the country. Ways that would bypass the checkpoints?” Ionia asked.
Zee had alluded to it back in the underground sanctuary, but it never hurt to have a backup plan.
Zee almost missed a step in her relentless path forward and cut her eyes to Ionia in clear warning. “Watch what you say in public.” She kept walking and inclined her head slightly to the right where a pod of sentry droids milled around a light post, scanning.
“Right. Sorry. Can I get in touch with you again?” Ionia’s breathing started to become labored. Zee had quickened her pace.
They arrived at a corner and had to wait for the automated line of vehicles to zoom by. Zee’s head turned quickly left and right. “Damn light. I think we are being followed. I may have to double back and figure out who or what is tracking us. Can you make it home from here?”
“I think so. Who would follow us?” The few hover droids and tourists that surrounded them acted as if they didn’t exist.
It only took a second for her to realize. “Den.” Excitement rose in her like a bird taking wing, then crashed like it’d hit an invisible wall.
It was a bad thing. Bad.
“Yeah. I thought he was good with you leaving. Maybe not. Don’t talk to anyone. Don’t take off your jacket. Go straight home. Do you understand?”
“Whatever, mom junior.” If she hadn’t just had a knock-down fight with her, she’d be in awe of this droid. Saving others, making a difference, even trying to make sure Ionia, a mere human, was safe. There was a lot to like about her.
She laid a hand on Ionia’s shoulder and squeezed. “I wish you well. Sorry, I kicked the snot out of you. It will prove useful.”
Ionia would have laughed if her ribs weren’t still sore from the beating Zee had given her. “Thanks for everything. I think.” The light changed, and the ground lit up. She stepped toward the intersection. A flapping sound like a cape in the breeze came from behind her. Ionia turned to see what had caused it and realized Zee had disappeared. Then a pair of gloved hands wrapped around her arms on each side. Too big to be Zee.
She struggled, but the hands were iron strong.
Her attacker held her tight against his massive torso. She threw herself forward and away, but he pulled her back into an alleyway. It wasn’t dark, but there seemed to be no surveillance sensors or patrol droids in this niche, only piles of stinking trash waiting for the composter.
Her instinct told her scream for help, but that might be disastrous.
Instead, she whispered loud enough for her captor to hear. “Let me go, or you’ll be sorry. I have a friend, and she will kick your…”
Then she saw Zee lying unmoving on the pile of trash. Her eyes stared blankly up at the blue sky. She looked dead. He’d already taken out Zee. Ionia wiggled around, trying to see who held her. Her heart crashed against her ribs, and her head felt light.
It was the cyborg from the police station. Chirag. He jerked her roughly back against him. “Stop resisting. I don’t want to hurt you.”
“Did you say the same to her?”
That same spirit that had taken her when Zee had kicked her swelled like a crashing wave.
Fight back.
She threw her elbows back hard then yanked forward. He released his grip. Her arms throbbed from the fingerprints in her skin. He reached to snag her back. His grasp was going to be 1.25 centimeters short as she willed herself to bend just of his reach.
His face changed from closed in and annoyed to genuine surprise. “How did you move like that?”
She didn’t give him time to snatch again. Suddenly, the knowledge of how to do a spinning back kick streamed into her nerves, and without thinking, she planted her booted foot into Chirag’s stomach. She had gauged right and hit flesh. His coat kept her sensors from ascertaining his exact body makeup.
The world, the alley, and her opponent moved in slow motion. Chirag woofed out air and stepped back. The look of surprise on his face fell quickly into anger.
He had the height advantage by a half a meter and an unknown amount of weight. One-on-one she would be toast. She needed to escape.
Calculations for the angle she’d have to take and the velocity she’d have to hit to avoid potential capture weaved in her brain like lightning in her synapses. Her heart jacked up again. What exactly was happening to her? The rush of calculations overwhelmed her long enough for Chirag to reach forward and snatch her arm.
“No more fighting with children.” A blast of power emanated from his hand into her skin, burning her flesh and jolting her. Her body sagged.
She fell into his arms. Her mind closed down.
Chapter Thirteen
The journey went rapidly as Den honed into Zee’s signal and reentered the city. He had been wise enough to not just track Ionia’s signal, which was severely stunted by her shielding jacket and instead latched onto Zee’s unique signature.
He had previously DLed basic topography from the Cortex, s
o he navigated the city streets with ease. Even though things were going as anticipated, a repetitive signal tightened his joints and pushed at his processor. Ionia wandered these streets. Ionia at risk. Even with Zee at her disposal, there was potential for danger, especially with Ionia’s new replacement eye.
The intense impulse streamed in him and coaxed him to use maximum capacity, but the crowd of humans and machines would not allow him to unleash his true potential. At last, the sensation grasped at him so hard that he ascended the side of a building and attempted a visual. He located the two moving at a brisk pace, approximately 2.74 kilometers to the north. Scanning the crowd, he descended and attempted to blend. The patrol droids would target his mark soon, and he could not create any disruption.
It was 1300 hours when he arrived in the central part of the city. Human bodies pressed in from all sides, and the streets narrowed, his olfactory sensor picked up the scents of spices, and he noted the addition of banners that had been saturated in intense hues. His Cortex research indicated the city was preparing for the Holi festival.
Zee’s signal grew weaker in the tangle of a hundred thousand others. He moved faster, dodging pedestrians, vendors, and manual carts. The city was a dichotomy of old and new. Ultra-advanced tech and the lowest level of squalor.
He homed in on Zee and Ionia. He was close now. A desperate emotional wave of dread filtered into his system. A million different potential issues filtered through his sensors. Since Ionia had her coat on, he couldn’t search her vitals out. He maintained control because his protection protocols had been turned to their lowest setting, but he still didn’t desire for anything to have a negative impact on her.
Another signal infiltrated his thought process. Immediately the call to his left drew his attention.
Distress. High alert.
Lights flashing red in his cyber brain, washing his vision in rose.
It wasn’t Ionia.
Foreign and desperate. Faster than a normal signal. The rogue wave pounded out a ¾ rhythm as loud as a human cry for help next to his ear.
Vagabond Souls: The Ionia Chronicles: Book 2 Page 21
