Though I couldn't be entirely certain without proper circumstances, I suspected he was right, and it was yet another odd realization which didn't even seem motivated by my tumultuous emotional state. I realized I liked Ivan and further I discovered I didn't want to see anything terrible happen to him.
We stood and moved over to the door, which opened upon approach. The stern features of the acting governor glared at me from outside. "Are you finished?" Bethel asked.
Ignoring the question, I turned back to Ivan and extended a hand. "It has been a great pleasure to have sought, found, and spoken to you, Afanasi Sergeyevich Lukyanov."
The enormous man tossed back his head and laughed. He threw his massive arms around me in a crushing, one-sided hug. "Oh, my good and dear friend. Call me Ivan!"
Archivist Sid
Assignment:
Seeking information regarding the truth and whereabouts of Ivan.
Location:
Vapaus Colony
Report:
Spoke with the man known as Ivan. Discovered true nature of Atropos Incident.
Probability:
99%
Summary:
Ivan was not responsible and has no knowledge regarding the concrete how or why of the incident. A GCG researcher by the name of Olga [Lukyanov?] may have been responsible, but she and her team were killed. Nothing more can be gained from Ivan.
Chapter 14: Demise
Ivan's tale continued to weigh heavily upon my mind as I went through the motions of wrapping up the long search.
I hardly paid attention when Minerva slid out of the asteroid field and away into the night. The long flight to the Daedra-Tech research station, a monstrosity of engineering near the core, passed in the blink of an eye. My meeting with the Senior Manager of the company was a shambling affair of anger and yelling on his part.
Even as I provided proof by displaying vids recorded with my prosthetic eye, the Senior Manager remained upset. Disappointed, the company was, by the end result. Even so, they abandoned the avenue of inquiry and agreed, upon my recommendation, to leave Ivan and Vapaus Colony alone. Ivan was correct; there was no profit to be had in disturbing them.
After receiving my payment, I was sent on my way pending any new assignments, and my pondering did not cease. My next stop was the Cassander and efforts to mitigate the charges of state secret theft among other things. Daedra managed to smooth things over and handle the trickier pieces even before I'd even met with Ivan, so dealing with Captain Onnels once the job was finished became a formality.
He was upstart, arrogant, and I only listened to a few pieces of what he had to say. Since I was a victim during the incident at Dei Lucrii XVII as much as the station itself, he focused his efforts on asking questions about Cain. It appeared my aggressive Archivist brother had overplayed his hand.
Onnels didn't even mention my murder of Dana, and the vestige of her in my thoughts almost seemed sullen because of it. However, as Archivists, our natural and murderous reaction to one another is well enough known for certain leeway to be granted. At least, it is when we direct aggression only to each other.
Assaulting an entire station full of civilians was not quite as forgivable, and the GSA was digging to find out who hired Cain and why. I was glad to hear it; if Cain would be on the run, my life could calm somewhat.
Even with Onnels' good news, I could not shake Ivan's tale from my thoughts. Never before had I clung to any assignment, and I still held no disappointment regarding the results. The discovery of Ivan and the truth behind his tale provided exhilaration beyond measure; it became my greatest achievement as an Archivist. Yet, something about it, some emotional reaction I remained unable to comprehend kept my mind preoccupied.
Even with a galaxy filled with people, entertainment of all shapes and sizes, and uncountable sights to see, I had nothing to do but think. Part of me wished for a new assignment, something to take my mind away from this old search, but a greater part knew nothing could match it. I wondered if this was how Traverian Grey felt, an obsession or longing darkening his remaining days.
Dana's vestige tittered in my thoughts, amused at my unending consternation. I blamed her influence above anything else. I could not determine if my systems, no matter how long I dug through the programming, had been compromised by her initial intrusion. They appeared undisturbed, but I knew it equally possible they were altered along with my own memory to mask the changes.
Still Dana's ghost laughed as I sifted through her memories, trying in vain to find some answer as to why my mind abandoned rationality. I felt sorrow on Ivan's behalf. His tale, his fallen love, and his constant reminder of the despair with every mention of his legend...
I returned to Dei Lucrii XVII, seeking the advice of the man who hopefully still considered me a friend. The station personnel regarded me with a wary attitude, not overly-assured I wouldn't bring more trouble upon their heads. As a result, I hovered outside, waiting on docking approval for hours. Numerous individuals who knew me on the station, including my still good friend the librarian, raised several varieties of hell when they discovered my plight. Administration had no choice but to allow my entrance.
Marqyni met me with a broad grin and a bone-crushing hug when I came inside. "Sid! Thank goodness you're okay!" He pounded me on the back. "When that madman attacked the very station, I thought we were all done for!"
I didn't say much while he half-dragged me back to his library. He rattled on for a few moments about the thrill and excitement of the Cassander's presence in system. He spoke for quite a while before realizing I had hardly responded.
"Sid, you're rather quiet. Is there something wrong?"
I explained how I couldn't shake the Ivan story from my mind.
"You've done it? You found him?" Marqyni grabbed my shoulders. "Why didn't you say so? This is wonderful news! We have to celebrate. Come now, let's get down to the bazaar and toast to this amazing accomplishment!"
His enthusiasm faded when he saw the lightly pained expression on my face. "Sid, what is it?"
Shaking my head, I told him about Dana, Cain, and Ivan's last tale. Through the course of the story, the exhilaration slowly faded from his face, replaced by a troubled expression.
"It really wasn't his hand which caused the devastation." Marqyni blew out a sigh. "Amazing how these things can snowball, but I don't understand why you're so worked up over it."
"Neither do I," I replied.
The librarian rubbed his round chin. "No, not like that. What I mean is; why are you so concerned about feeling something? The story you heard is a tragedy of galactic proportions. Even you, as an Archivist, still retain emotional regard." He waved his hands back and forth, laughing. "Sorry, not to express this like a children's morality vid." He broke into song. "Eeeeveryone has feeeeeelings, even Godlike machiiiines..." He trailed off, grinning at me.
I cracked a smile.
"There we are!" Marqyni clapped his hands. "Even robots can cry!"
"All right, enough," I chuckled, trying to hold a scowl. "I understand emotional attachment, but why can't I forget about this job? It's done, finished. I've succeeded in finding out everything about Ivan. No one was hurt along the way," I almost felt Dana's vestige scowling in my thoughts, "but still something feels off."
The librarian set a hand on my shoulder. "Very well. Let's see if we can't dissect that hyper-intelligent brain of yours. First-"
"Exactly what I was thinking." A voice came from the open office door, and Marqyni's eyes went wide. A bolt of fear jammed into my chest, as I recognized the voice without a moment's thought.
I turned. Cain, in all his metallic and overpowered glory, stood in the doorway. "No escape this time, Sid."
Clenching a fist, I checked over my subsystems. Green lights across the board. "How... how did you get here? You're wanted in half of-"
"If you even think about going for your intercom to call security, you fat bastard," Cain interrupted, "I'll break you and whoever shows up into kindling." M
arqyni froze, half-reaching to his communicator. "And you," Cain grinned at me, that same eerie and malevolent expression, "it would seem you can smuggle anything these days."
Grimacing, I replied, "So what, you dismantled yourself and packed everything into crates?"
"Something like that, yes." He waved a hand. "But how I got here is less important than why I returned. My employer would like to speak with you. Against his better judgment, he's requested I not pound you into tiny pieces, though I'd very much like to and will if given a reason."
A thought struck, and I scanned him. The energy weapons were stripped out. One cargo scan would have easily revealed the firepower he normally brought, so his employer had to have made him go without. Cain had nothing but brute strength on his side, but I realized it remained enough. My teeth clenched; even without weaponry, I stood little chance.
Let's show him something. I blinked, hearing a clear voice in my mind. I diverted attention only to hear the ghost of Dana skittering away. Tiny laughter echoed not as a product of my imagination but something real.
"It's over Cain," I said, stalling and firing up the intrusion software. I wondered if I could maybe trap him in one of the library files. "I found Ivan. He doesn't know anything about the Garden. It wasn't him who did it." My intrusion bounced off his locked down systems; it appeared he wouldn't be dumb enough to fall for the same ploy again.
Cain continued grinning, as much for my failure as other reasons. "Oh, really? I find it amazing how much I and my employer don't care about the silly incident. There are bigger fish than a destroyed planet, my friend."
"What?" I asked, startled. I couldn't conceive of an avenue of inquiry not relating to the Garden's destruction. It was everything to the galaxy.
He won't see it coming. Another whisper trickled in my thoughts, and I tried without success to shove the voice away.
My opponent gave a mock gasp. "My, my! Our favorite Archivist is shocked to discover he missed something in his grand search! Oh, the shame, the sorrow! Certainly, it comes as a welcome surprise to not have to figure out that whole Garden mess as well." He gave a dismissive wave. "Assuming you're telling the truth, but you wouldn't lie to me, would you, Siddy-boy?"
He grinned again. I wondered if he kept the lower portion of his face as flesh in order to be able to smile, to unnerve his opponents. Again I thought about simply tearing loose the jaw, as it was likely the only real damage I could do to him. I also considered ramming my fist down his throat and yanking out anything organic, but such a tactic didn't seem plausible without a serious incapacitation.
"Why? What can he give you?" Marqyni piped up from behind me. My muscles clenched in surprise; I had all but forgotten he was there.
"Shove a ham in it, tubby. I don't want to hear another peep out of the food trap you call a gullet." I didn't take my eyes off Cain, but I heard the librarian gasp.
For some reason, the insult to my friend lit a fierce anger inside me. Yes, yes! the voice encouraged.
Without Cain, Marqyni, or even me expecting such an action, I launched myself into the metallic titan.
A heavy clang resounded as the metal of my shoulder impacted his chest. Not braced or prepared, Cain was knocked sprawling. In an instant, I bore down upon him, pinning his arms with my knees. I thrust out my hand, jamming four syringes of tranquilizer into his chin.
With a scream of pain and a black substance, synthetic blood, dribbling out of tiny punctures, Cain thrashed around. His strength far outweighed my own, and he freed one arm. With a near effortless motion, he seized my wrist and yanked me to the side. I rolled and quickly sprang to my feet, watching as he awkwardly clamored to his own.
As he recovered, my synthetic eye scanned over nooks and crannies in his mechanics, seeking out some vulnerability: an exposed gear or servo to be exploited. With weapons systems hastily removed, there had to be something left open and unsealed. I found one such weakness as he gave a roar and charged.
His movement held the slightest lilt to it, a tiny sluggish reaction from the tranquilizer. I whirled to the side and planted a chop with my mechanical hand to the back of his head. He went down again, crashing through one of the computer terminals. Patrons in the library screamed, some fleeing and some too frightened to move.
I swooped down on Cain and jammed a knee in his back, yanking one arm behind him. In spite of my strength, I couldn't bend or break the material, so I switched tactics. I located his elbow joint, where a tiny gap lay from his removed weaponry, and dug into it.
Yelling curses, he jerked to the side, and I dodged under his heavy swipe. As he flexed the elbow, the hydraulics ground over and crushed the end of my metal finger. I tore myself free, leaving shards of the disrupting fingertip in his elbow joint. I backed off, waiting for his next attack and searching for more weaknesses. Kill him, kill him! the voice urged.
He stood. His teeth were bared and eyes, though synthetic, burned with hatred. Screeching issued as he flexed his arm, labored and difficult. A low growl issued from Cain's throat. He started a slow approach.
Cain swung his good arm. I ducked, planting an ineffective strike to his midsection. A hollow clang resounded as I spun, kicking out one of his legs. Cain stumbled, and I pressed the attack, trying to bring my elbow down upon his neck.
Lightning fast, he seized my arm and wrenched downward. He brought his face close to mine, grinning.
I angled my head and smashed my skull plate into his face. As our heads collided, I fired my sonic emitter.
Only meant for mild incapacitation, the emitter had an unexpected result. The pulse resonated inside his metallic skull and all throughout his body. Cain bellowed, clapping a hand to his head as he fell to his knees
During his moment of disorientation, I kicked him to the ground and planted one foot on his damaged arm. With full torque, I wrenched as hard as I could. An audible groan resounded as the limb bent, mechanisms screeching and snapping inside.
Even still, I couldn't quite tear it loose before Cain recovered and rolled over. Again I dodged, waiting for him to rise and planning my next attack.
"I don't care what he wants." Cain cut loose a low growl. His one arm was bent backwards at the elbow, useless and immovable. "You're dead, Sid. I'm going to rip you into a thousand pieces. I'm going to drag your squishy carcass around this station while I blast holes in the walls and let the death of space seep in and kill everything you care about."
I didn't feel like correcting him on the particulars of why his statement was folly. He's weakening; keep fighting! the voice whispered. Scans continuing, I saw something near the base of his neck. It had been part of a shoulder mounted weapon, also removed.
As his living tissue essentially functioned as a brain with heart and lungs to power it, all heavily mechanized, a few veins were still present. Since there weren't many, even more pressure was placed on the vital arteries. A plate near his throat overlapped one at his shoulder. I saw it and realized, if I could dig in there and pry both plates loose, it was possible I could damage one of the veins in his neck.
There was one more protective metal skin underneath serving as his flesh, but I thought a hard enough strike could transfer the force through and rupture one of his major arteries. I doubted it would kill him, but the lack of his blood, oil, or whatever it was would certainly incapacitate him until repairs could be made.
Which I didn't intend to allow.
I sprang forward, feinting a strike to his eyes. As he recoiled, I spun around and gripped his shoulder, wrenching with everything I had. The plate bent an inch, and I deflected a punch and backed off. Not much damage, but a start.
Charging again, I dodged another haymaker and rolled behind him. I planted a square kick to the back of his leg, and he stumbled and fell to one knee. Gripping the shoulder plate again, I yanked. A light creak resounded as it bent.
I jumped back as he threw an elbow, missing yet again. Before he could rise, I chopped at the side of his skull, clanging metal against metal.
He recoiled, undamaged, but it gave me the opportunity. My fingertips gripped both sides of the overlapping plates, already bent slightly, and I pulled. The flesh hand did very little, but it anchored for my metallic one, which bent the neck plate back two inches.
He flung his hand out and caught my non-metal wrist. With a casual pull, I went sailing over his shoulder and crashing into another terminal. From his grip, the augmented bones of my human wrist strained. They held, but a bright flare of pain shot up my arm. Releasing me, he raised his fist.
I rolled out of the way as he punched, leaving a heavy dent in the floor. Gaining my feet, I weakly flexed my hand. It hurt but would function. Glancing back, I saw Cain's neck and shoulder plates blossoming outward, exposing the inner protection and my foolish hope at ending the fight.
In the lull, I took stock of my surroundings. Marqyni crouched behind his desk, peering with wide eyes at the altercation. Other individuals had fled or scattered to the corners, trying to stay out of the way. Broken computers, chairs and desks were strewn about. Though less than a minute elapsed since the start, I wondered if security was on its way.
You're almost done, the voice whispered. Finish it.
I sprang forward again.
As I charged, Cain did something unexpected. He turned the usual vicious left I slid by every time into a feint. As I moved to dodge, he hooked the bent portion of the useless arm around my neck and twisted downward. I staggered, thrown off balance, and did not block or dodge his next hit.
Three of my ribs gave way as he rammed his fist into my midsection. I dropped like a stone, wind knocked out and black spots dancing in my organic eye. On my knees, I saw a shadow overhead, and I rolled. Cain pounded his fist into the floor, not denting but this time punching through it. As his hand lay caught, I swept my leg, tripping him. With a heavy thud, Cain fell to the ground.
The Legend of Ivan Page 25
