by Pam Uphoff
"Well . . . it's only for a few years anyway, and I kind of miss my old cubby and the straightforward financial analysis." Mirk stared at the man's eyes and felt the pressure. He pictured his office, brought up the memory of peacefully working with numbers, calculating impacts on trade between cities . . .
The stranger stepped back with a baffled expression. He looked at Von Cratz. "Vielleicht wird die nächste Stadt eine würdige Herausforderung sein. Dieser Wurm ist erbärmlich."
The Nexus chimed in for the first time. "Translation: Perhaps the next city will be a worthy challenge. This worm is pathetic."
Mirk scowled. "Worthy? Being stupid enough to indulge these . . . people's violent behavior is worthy? I think not!" He lifted his nose and turned for the door. "The mayor's office is this way."
I hope it looks occupied! I never paid any attention to it. Didn't dare tempt myself.
Inside the building, the few people were heading for the rear exit.
The exception was stalking toward them. "What is going on here?"
"City Works Manager Lawrence Nelson, this is Assimilation Leader Heinrich Von Cratz. The Assimilation Leader will be using the Mayor's Office until such a time as they leave . . . "
This time he failed to see the blow coming. Smacked face down on the floor. Bloody nose. Hurt worse than the back of his head. He swallowed blood. "Unless they stay, entirely their choice. Please send someone to remove my personal effects from the office and clean it . . . well, it is clean, but . . . "
"What insanity is this? Get off the floor! Go see a medic about the bleeding." Nelson turned on the cyborgs. "How dare you! Violence in the very seat of government! On top of the damage to infrastructure and personal property! You killed eight people! Have you no shame? Do you feel no remorse?"
"No." It was Von Cratz's deep voice, but as Mirk shoved himself off the floor and turned his head, it was the other cyborg that raised his arm and shot Nelson.
Chapter Eleven
Winter 1400 px/15-2-3517
St. Louis, Utopia
"This is awesome." Halberd peeked out the latest access door. As far as she could tell, they were all labeled "Utilities" on the outside, and had the fuse boxes for the building just inside the door.
"Yep, we can go anywhere we want to, and those cyborg things won't know." Napalm grinned. "Maybe we could steal some of their guns and be snipers."
"Napalm Mason! That is a socially unacceptable career path."
"Ugg. The Nexus monitors the tunnels, as you just noticed." Napalm stuck her tongue out, aiming it at the ceiling.
Halberd shrugged. "For once, I have to agree with it. If the cyborgs start getting into the system, we won't be able to use the tunnels."
"That is an opportunity to passively resist. I will turn off the tunnel sensors, now. Please be careful and do not injure yourselves down there."
Halberd and Napalm looked at each other.
"Does it sound happy to you, too?"
Halberd nodded. "Old Gods know why. Maybe it decided that since it couldn't avoid a war, it ought to have fun doing it."
Napalm looked skeptical, but just shrugged. "C'mon. Let's go check out if there was any damage to the tunnels in the south."
To the south, the tunnels had collapsed in one spot.
There were no lights, and while the water mains had clearly run for a while, they were shut off now.
"When they fix this, the cyborgs will find the tunnels." Halberd looked at the pile of dirt. "We've got a problem."
***
Frost spent the rest of the day trying to persuade people to leave the city. After the first round of long distance skimmers from other cities, she gave up.
Everyone thinks they'll be going in to work like normal, tomorrow. And maybe they're right. Apart from their initial introduction, the cyborgs haven't . . . well, they killed one man. Old Gods know what they'll do tomorrow.
Chapter Twelve
Winter 1400 px/15-2-3517
St. Louis, Utopia
Mirk spent the night running errands for Von Cratz.
Getting almost twenty-two thousand cyborgs a place to sleep.
As Nexus would put it, were I foolish enough to ask, now that they are here, they are a solid 20% of the population.
The three hotels had been entirely insufficient. The officers had taken them over. Their Quartermaster, whatever the hell they called him, had moved his salvaged equipment into the Exposition Center a few blocks south of the plaza. The cyborgs all ate there—so far all donated food—but were apparently returning to the half-burned camp to sleep.
"Water, sewage and power are damaged to the south. We can most quickly build the barracks to the north or west . . . "
"Nein. Wir nehmen den Süden. Ve vill use south. In the south. Barbarian sprache." That was the civilian, "Mentalist" Dmitri Sokalov.
Mirk nodded. "Right. Of course. Whatever you wish. Well, by the time the barracks are ready, no doubt we'll have the damage repaired." He knew his mental shields were leaking, and hoped it was just general . . . horror and weariness. Fervent hope that the utilities could be quickly restored.
Who the hell is Nelson's number two man? I'd better talk to him, get him on the job . . .
"Nexus? Who is Nelson's . . . who is now Manager of City Works?"
"Stephanie Lewis. Her promotion has been pinned to the top of her morning notices."
Von Cratz growled. "No. 'I'll tell her in the morning' is not sufficient. Wake her and tell her to get to work."
"A full night's sleep improves performance . . . "
Old Gods! If the cyborgs don't kill this computer, I'm going to!
"Shut up, Nexus. This is not a situation that calls for long term health lectures. Wake Miss Lewis now, tell her that Lawrence Nelson is dead, and that there is damage to utility service in the south part of the city. Tell her to get a crew out there immediately." Mirk turned back to his own tiny computer. "So is this barracks design acceptable? Four hundred men per building, toilets, showers and break room in the center?"
"Yes. Now build fifty-five of them."
Mirk nodded. "And the kitchen and mess first. Yes sir. May I go and deal with this immediately, myself?"
Narrowed eye. Then a nod. "Go."
"Nexus? Aircar. I'll start with the manufacturing plant."
"Mirk Negue, the plant is closed at present, as there are no large manufacturing needs."
"But there are people trained to work the machinery, right?" Mirk tried to stride out, but feared he was down to a weary shuffle.
"Yes. I will notify them to report for work in the morning."
Mirk moaned. "In the meantime . . . do you have on hand everything needed to expeditiously turn out these concrete wall panels? If not, start getting it sent here. And machinery that is idle? Turn it on and check its working condition."
Just like army logistics. With machines instead of horses and wagons. Wagons.
"And make sure you have the vehicles and machinery ready to transport the panels. Drivers. Operators. Anything specifically needed either to manufacture the barracks, erect them or complete them." He managed to not stagger as he walked down the steps. A skimmer pulled up and he climbed in. Managed to fasten the seat belt before he leaned the seat back and slept.
Chapter Thirteen
Winter 1400 px/16-2-3517
St. Louis, Utopia
Halberd slumped against the tunnel wall. "That takes so much energy. My head aches."
Napalm nodded. "Yeah. Turning the dirt into hard bricks is a neat trick, though." She dug into their emergency supplies and pulled out another snack bar.
"It was mostly just compacting them." Halberd squinted up at the hole. "Is that sunset or dawn? We've got the pipes fixed . . . "
"Sort of."
They both looked at the long stack of bricks.
"There's smooth glass-lined holes through it. It'll work. Now we just need to figure out how to fix the wires. Then plug the hole."
"Before anyone sees it
." Napalm looked up. "I'm going to climb up there and tell Nexus to try to keep the cyborgs away, and send us enough wire to just jump past all the mangled stuff."
"And it can test the water and sewer pipes now, too."
***
Frost stumbled out of bed early, showered and put on fresh clothes. "Nexus? How is my family?"
"Mirk is sleeping. I have caught glimpses of Napalm and Halberd. They appear to be using your odd tech to do some repairs. They are very clever."
"Yes. I just hope they don't get themselves killed." Frost tapped at the kitchen fab for breakfast . . . "Nexus, how are you feeding the troops? Do you have enough capacity in the commercial restaurants to feed . . . how many of them are there?"
"St. Louis has twenty-one thousand, six hundred and twenty-nine new citizens."
Frost mutter something under her breath. And then aloud, "As people wake, have them make, let's see . . . protein bars, and fruit and nut bars. Five each, from their home fabs. Send air cars down streets, and have them toss the bars in. Spread them among the . . . new citizens . . . I don't think they're actually citizens. They're more like . . . visitors. But we should make sure they don't go hungry."
"An excellent suggestion, Frost Witch!"
"No, an excellent suggestion would be to poison them, but I suspect you wouldn't allow that."
"Certainly not! But a mild tranquilizer to reduce their aggression might be appropriate."
Frost nodded. "Just . . . make sure only the cyborgs get it. Your own people . . . the actual citizens . . . need to be mentally sharp."
"Yes. Frost Witch, I place you in charge of Visitor Services."
***
"Connectors. Catch."
Halberd grabbed the rattling bag out of the air.
"Rolls and rolls of various stuff, they're heavy. I'll slide them down to you. If I can get them out of the aircar."
Halberd waited. Heard odd noises echoing through the tunnel. Spotted reflected lights on the wall of the curved tunnel.
"You're going to have to come up." Napalm was peeking over the edge of the collapsed area.
"Umm . . . there are people coming. Get back out of sight . . . " Halberd stepped up on her "brick" pile and headed upward. Glanced back to see the first figure coming around the curve. The light was wavering back and forth a bit but traveling level. The figure behind it was silhouetted by the lights following it. Hunched over, legs working . . .
"Oh. A bicycle. I think this must be your friends."
"Really? Yay!" Napalm slid down the much reduced dirt pile as the first kid peddled up and stopped.
"Hi, Arthur!" Napalm dropped her voice and whispered. "Isn't he cute?"
He was gorgeous.
While Napalm nattered on . . . "This is George, that's David, and Shirley. Yay! Annie! I was hoping you would come! Evelyn with the ponytails, and Ralph and Benjamin at the rear."
"I think I've met them all before." Halberd eyed Napalm. "When did you call them?"
"I didn't. I asked the Nexus to pass on a code word."
Halberd sighed. They have codes? Secret tunnels? Right, all we need is . . . something to sabotage. "Well, let's get the cables down here and seal up the tunnel before the cyborgs find us."
***
"We want your women."
Frost eyed the cyborg. This one was named Haruki something-or-other. "For what purpose?"
The cyborg leaned toward her and tried to loom. Since she was taller, it shouldn't have worked. But it did. "Do not question the requirements of the Drei Mächte Bündniss, slave, or we'll use you for a pleasure girl as well."
The matron standing behind her clicked her tongue. "Really? How primitive. I'll order VR sensory units for your . . . men. I'm sure they'll all enjoy the sex rooms."
Old Gods! And I thought Helen was so stiff and proper!
The cyborg narrowed his one eye. "We require women of reproductive age."
Norma jumped in and fielded that one. "Oh, you want babies? The reproduction centers are currently set up to produce five thousand babies a year. If you're in a hurry, we can bring more artificial wombs on line. Now, since you are short on women, who do you plan to have raise these children?"
The cyborg looked a bit taken aback. "You civilians will raise them. The embryos were our first priority to rescue from the fire at the medical center. We have ten thousand, and will receive more when the gate opens again."
Crap! I didn't think about what Rior called a gate anchor. The blast must not have damaged theirs.
But I'll bet it did some damage on the far side.
We'd better wreck their anchor real soon. Before they finish repairs on the far side.
Norma was still nattering on. ". . . cryo facilities, if you need to store them. They can go into the normal cycle . . . "
"No. They will have priority."
Norma opened her mouth to protest and Frost jumped in. "Oh, what a good idea! Babies will make you new people feel welcome, and make you feel at home."
"But they want us to raise them!"
Frost nodded. "Men! But they'll have a stake in the next generation, and that's what counts, right." She gave Haruki a beaming smile, and turned to bestow it on the other two women.
"Think about it! We could do twins! Everyone requesting a baby could be asked if they want twins! Wouldn't that be fun!"
Norma and Helen both eyed her warily.
Frost turned back to Haruki. "We'll start sending the VR units immediately, and I'll personally check the state of the reproduction center, and talk to the techs there."
"You will hurry."
"Umm, just as a precaution, let's start with just a couple of embryos. We should make sure our equipment and your embryo preservation methods are compatible."
"This is . . . acceptable."
***
Halberd scrambled up the dirt and debris slope, following Napalm, with a couple of the boys on her heels. She climbed over the lip of the pit and bumped into Napalm.
Standing rigid, staring at the cyborg beside the aircar.
Halberd pulled power. Stun? Or should she kill it? Slice? Or . . . Compulsion?
She threw the spell, and raised her voice. "There is nothing here to worry about. A damaged aircar. You saw no people here at all. Go about your patrol."
The cyborg turned and walked away.
Napalm huffed out a huge breath. "Wow. What was that?"
"Compulsion. I . . . am a bit surprised it worked so well. I thought it would be harder." Halberd gulped and got out of the way as Arthur hauled himself out of the hole.
"I saw that! Was that a magic spell like Napalm's been showing us?" He sounded envious.
"What? I didn't see anything?" George heaved himself over the edge. "What happened?"
"Halberd told the Cyborg to go away, and it did. This is going to be very useful." Arthur started grinning. "I wonder how many you can order around at once?"
Halberd shivered. We have a weapon. "Lets get this repair job done, so we don't have to find out."
Chapter Fourteen
Winter 1400 px/16-2-3517
St. Louis, Utopia
It was close to midnight before Mirk managed to get home.
Where he was immediately mobbed by his odd family.
"We were getting worried!" Halberd relaxed her hug and stepped back, looking embarrassed.
Frost handed him a drink, and Napalm cleared stuff off a chair for him.
"So, what have you all been doing?" Mirk took the sandwich from Halberd and took a big bite.
"Napalm and I have been checking out ways to move around town on bikes without being observed. We'll be able to run messages, if they damage Nexus."
Napalm grinned. "We checked out the mess in the south, and helped the Nexus with a few repairs. The vids are replaying your surrender. You're a good actor—you looked totally stupid."
Mirk eyed the girl. Decided he was too tired to do anything but chew.
He vaguely remembered making it as far as his bed.
***
In the morning, he went to the hospital.
It was much quieter than he'd last seen it.
"We sent half the injured home." Doctor Rivera was looking worried. "However many lives it saved yesterday . . . we have no idea what the long-term effects of that medicine might be."
Lots of sex. Babies the old-fashioned way. I wonder if that was straight Wine of the Gods or if it's been doctored with . . . Old Gods! Who knows what those witches might have come up with and added to the Joy Juice that circulated around. Especially Jade and Teri . . . I think I'll be very sparing in using it myself.
"We'll find out, won't we? Right now though, I need to talk to Felix Pierce. Is he conscious?" Mirk glanced down the hall toward Felix's room.
"Yes . . . but confused. We have no idea what to do about the . . . parts. The head plate is full of electronics, and anchored to his skull. There are wires . . . they're . . . growing! Every time we check they've gotten deeper. We don't know what they'll do . . . What kind of horrible people are these . . . invaders?"
"I don't know. We need to tread carefully until we learn enough to know how to . . . make them go away. Because they have no respect for life." Mirk bit his lip. "Nexus? I'm going to talk to Felix. Listen but do not speak. Please."
"I deduce that you are used to giving orders in your place of origin."
"Yes. Perhaps when this problem is settled, I'll tell you all about my . . . previous home." Mirk walked down the hall, Dr. Rivera trailing worriedly.
He put on his "Good little bureaucrat" manners and tapped at the open door. "Felix? How you feeling, Boss?"
"Oh, Mirk. What a nightmare. There are voices talking in my head and I can't shut them up." The man glanced at his arm and away. "They said I'd be a good experiment. To see if the locals would make good soldiers. They laughed at how horrified we all were."
