The Rebel's Cyborg

by Maya Carnage

  Ian sighs. “Ah, I’m going to bet the cyborgs and rebels were a part of your honesty?”

  He closes his mouth, suppressing a groan. They are the same age, but Ian always acts as if he knows more, and Rodrick hates it and any other the time he’d argue with him, but he holds himself back this time. The man does know more about humans than he does. His head hurts just thinking it. “Yes, why is that important?”

  “The other day at the meeting James said some things that pissed quite a few of us off, right?”

  He opens his mouth to agree with him, but Ian holds his hand up. If he didn’t want him to answer, then why bother asking the question? He crosses his arms over his chest, rocking back on his heels. It’s been a while since he heard one of Ian’s tangents. With a quiet groan, he settles in to listen.

  “There are a number of old wounds on both sides. The cyborgs have gotten used to being in charge and bearing the brunt of the fighting, but the same goes for the rebels. Most rebels were born into their wards and have spent their whole lives fighting. They’ve taken on Malviks, cyborgs, and guards. Were they successful in all those fights? No, but they showed stamina and commitment. The rebels can handle themselves, and it would be stupid of us if we push them out of the fight because of our own egos.”

  “They’re still weak and vulnerable. Why should I put Kayla at risk when I’m more than capable of handling it on my own?” He swallows around the lump of ice lodged in his chest. His heart clenches as he imagines losing her and having to go on without her. He wouldn’t. There would be nothing left in the world without her. That’s why he needs to keep her safe, and he can’t do that if she’s running into battle all the time.

  “I understand what you’re feeling, and how paralyzing it is to imagine the woman you love getting hurt or worse.” Ian’s eyes gloss over, and he curls his hands into fists to hide the trembling. “You’ll lose her anyhow if you try to cage her. You love her for who she is, and Kayla’s a fighter. She could never be anything else.”

  Ian shifts his gaze to someone behind him, and he turns around to find Pax trying to get his father’s attention. Ian closes the distance between them, settling a hand on his shoulder. “You’re a good man. I know you’ll do what’s right even if it’s hard.”

  Rodrick shoves his hand into his pockets and watches him walk away. Off to the side of him, the piercing sound of Kris giggling hurts his ears. Any other day his interest would be piqued, but his heart’s too heavy with thoughts of Kayla and their relationship.

  He snorts and shakes his head.

  She’s never said a word about wanting a relationship with him, so there’s no need to worry over that. Plus, if there ever was a chance, he blew it when he insulted her by saying they didn’t need the rebels to defeat the Malviks.

  With a sigh, he stretches his hearing until he locates a heartbeat he’d never forget.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Kayla

  She crosses her arms over her chest and tucks her hands beneath her arms. If she lets them hang free by her side, there would be no fighting the need to slap most of the people in the warehouse. The cyborgs’ and rebels’ arms are loaded down with heavy boxes as they bustle in and out of the building. They are running laps around each other in their desire to avoid being near each other. The stupidity of it all makes her want to pull her hair out, but instead, she settles for a long groan as she walks past the irritating scene and through the rear exit of the building.

  Dropping her hands, she pushes through the door and out into the dim morning light. One good thing about Teraz is that she never feels the need to squint from harsh sunlight. There’s no need for sunglasses and for someone who can’t find a pair that flatters her, it’s a huge relief.

  There are other positive to Teraz of course. For one, the Malviks aren’t here, and that’s always something to cheer about. She'll dance like a fool and not give a shit what anyone thinks the day they are no longer on Earth. That day can’t come soon enough, she thinks, as she catches sight of the pirate’s ship.

  Her breath catches as she realizes the tall, blond man standing in front of the ship is Rodrick. Sighing, she rubs at the ache in her chest. Why can’t things be easy for her? Everything moment of her life has been a fight, and with him, she finally thought she had something uncomplicated.

  Jokes on her. She laughs bitterly and swivels her head around looking for her father. They haven’t said more than a few words to each other since he arrived on Teraz, and it is past time for them to talk about the new rebellion and their partnership with the cyborgs. Their dislike for each other won’t go away overnight, but she’ll be damned if she doesn’t do something to fix the problem. Even if she must yell in all of their faces until she’s blue in the face for them to see reason, she’ll do what she has to.

  She sighs. People think she’s an angry person because of all the yelling she does, but it’s because she deals with irrational people that she has to be loud. They wouldn’t listen to her otherwise.

  “How you feel to be heading home?” She jumps at the rough sound of her father’s voice. She wasn’t expecting him to sneak up on her, catching her breath, she turns around.

  “I haven't really thought about it. Other thoughts have been occupying my mind.”

  He nods and rubs his chin. “They’re resilient.”

  “Just because someone can handle something doesn’t mean they should. The wards don’t deserve the sadistic tortures the Malviks are no doubt doing to them.” Images of past victims enter her mind and chills race up her spine as the awful scenes play out in her head.

  A woman nailed to the wall with blood pooled beneath. Her chest trembles with her last breath. Screams echoing through the cold hallways of prisons as the rebels break in to save them, but not in time to save all of them. Hooks, knives, and hammers hung up on the walls crusted with dried blood. She’s witnessed many terrible things in her life, and they all flutter behind her eyes. Rosalind’s bouncy curls and sweet face pop into her head, and her heart stops. She could be experiencing all of that right now.

  Gut churning, she presses her hand to her stomach. “They’ve taken so much from us. When do you think it will be over?”

  “When they’re dead and not ‘til then,” James said.

  Kayla slips her hands into her back pockets and turns away from her father, looking at the ship she takes a deep breath. She naively thought that the cyber attack was the beginning, but it isn’t even close. The Malviks have won every war they’ve been in because they always find a way to outsmart their opponent. Look at them now, they have the upper hand, and the war hasn’t even started.

  The rebels and the cyborgs need to succeed because if they fail than the fight is over before it even begins. She can’t have that because she needs to see the Malviks crumble. It’s about time those monsters felt the type of suffering they afflicted on others. Staring out at the field all she sees is dysfunction, and there’s no fucking way they’ll win if it continues.

  She curses and turns back to her father. “We need to fix this, or otherwise we’re done for.” She jabs her finger at her father and then at the men and women loading supplies on the ship. “Do something about that, okay?”

  “What the hell do you expect me to do?” he asked with a frown.

  “One side needs to step up and be the bigger person. We need harmony, not discord and arguments, Dad! If we all can’t get along than the Malviks will win. I don’t want that. You don’t want that, and neither do the cyborgs. Give them a chance. They aren’t evil, but they were used to do evil things by the same bastards who took Rosalind and the others. Please,” she pleaded.

  He looks like he’s about to say something, but the sound of footsteps makes him change his mind. Clearing his throat, he excuses himself and leaves an irritated Kayla behind.

  “He’s not a very emotional man, is he?” Kris says from beside her.

  She rolls her eyes. Of all the cyborgs to bother her, it had to be the one that gets on her ner
ves the most. “Yeah, well, it comes with hardening yourself against loss your whole life. No one ever said being a rebel was easy, but it sure is worth it when you see the relieved look on someone’s face when you save them.”

  “Dawn made me come over here.” Kris shakes her hand out and stares down at it with a puzzled look on her face. “She said I made you uncomfortable and needed to apologize.”

  Uncomfortable isn’t the word she would use, but if Dawn thinks that than this apology’s more for her sake of mind than her feelings. She smirks. Her sister never did like when the people she loved didn’t get along.

  Kris continues to shake her arm out, staring down at the ground now in confusion.

  “Is something wrong?” she asked, taking a step back in case the cyborg lost something.

  "My bracelet's gone," she whispered. Her eyes dart around the room look for the thief as if they are still lurking in the area. Her eyes snap open. “That filthy bastard. I have to go but tell Dawn I apologized when you see her.”

  But you didn’t.

  Kris strides away, and she watches the quirky woman stomp away, the jagged ends of her hair blowing in the breeze. She wonders if Kris is joining them on the ship, it’ll never be boring with her there that’s for sure.

  ◆◆◆

  The steel walls and the hard, cold floor beneath her feel as if they are closing in on her. Her heartbeat picks up until it’s hammering against her rib cage. After wanting to leave Earth and experience more than her small existence there, she’s surprised over her claustrophobia. Several weeks have passed since she was last on a ship, and that first time before she boarded, she was shaking with nervous excitement. Until the ship took off then her heart dropped to her feet. She’d planned on only doing this once more when the time came for her to go back to Earth permanently, but it looks like things aren’t going as she wanted them to, but they never do.

  She leans against the cool wall and the buzzing that was only a slight sound before can be heard more clearly. Zekk’s powering on the ship. It won’t be long now.

  “He’s a good pilot. There’s no need to worry. You’ll be fine,” Rodrick said.

  “What?” She glances sharply at his face before turning to stare down at her feet. Avoiding his gaze makes her a coward, but she’s too tired to deal with the wounded look in his eyes. As much as she wants it to work with him, she can’t stop being a rebel to make him happy.

  “You look upset. I thought maybe you were worried about Zekk wrecking the ship.”

  She chuckles softly. “Dawn’s already told me everything about him. I know he’ll get us there in one piece.”

  He moves to stand beside her, setting a hand on the wall next to her head. “Then what were you thinking about?”

  Biting her lip, she pauses.

  The last few days have made it clear to her that she loves him. All the heartache and warm feelings exploding in her chest gave it away, and she’d never been any good at ignoring what’s in front of her face, but does he feel the same? She doesn’t want to put herself out there if he doesn’t, but if there is a chance she needs to know.

  “The future’s uncertain. Every single time I begin to think we’ve got it under control, something comes around and proves me wrong. It pisses me off!” She throws her hands up. “I deserve to be happy, but it keeps escaping me, and I’m really tired of its fucking games.”

  His brows furrow. “What are you saying?”

  “I’m saying that I love you!” she shouted. “And I don’t know if you feel the same, and that’s killing me. There’s this part of me that wants to say fuck it and give in, but the reasonable part says it isn’t worth the risk.”

  “Are you done talking?” he asked, leaning down to her. His warm breath touches her lips, and her thighs clench.

  She opens her mouth to answer, and he takes the chance to kiss her. For several seconds she does nothing, enjoying the smooth caresses of his lips against her but when her mind comes back to her, she pulls away from him.

  “I’m sorry,” he said as soon as they are no longer kissing. “It doesn’t matter how strong you are because I’m always going to worry about you. It comes with loving someone, and you’re right. I need to work on trusting the rebels and treating them like would a cyborg.”

  Grabbing his face, she pulls him down and presses her mouth to his, nibbling and sucking at his lips and tongue until they’re both gasping. “You aren’t going to have a heart attack if I’m at the forefront?” she says between kisses.

  “No, as long as you know I’m going to be right by your side the whole time.”

  “I think I can handle that,” she whispered, wrapping her arms around his neck. The ships rocks and they lurch to the side, grabbing on to the railing across from them.

  “Three weeks until we save Rosalind and the others,” she said. “You really think we can do this?”

  He takes her in his arms, resting his chin on top of her hear and strokes her back. “As long as we have each other I know we can do anything.”

  She hopes he’s rights, but even if it all goes to hell then at least she will have him by her side.

  AUTHOR'S NOTE

  Thank you so much for reading The Rebel's Cyborg! I hope you loved reading it as much as I did writing it. It would mean a lot to me if you left a review! I love hearing from all of my readers and what they think about my books. This book has been a long time coming, that's for sure. Several months have passed since the first book in this series came out, and I promise from here on out I'll release a book more often. Life got in the way last year, and I struggled to find a spare moment to write, but everything's going great now! Writing is a passion of mine, and it makes me happy. I'm making it a priority to do more of what brings me joy this year. Another thing that makes me happy is hearing from y'all! Feel free to leave a review or email me at mayacarnage@gmail.com. If you would like to receive updates about my upcoming releases, please subscribe to my newsletter which you can find on my website, mayacarnage.wixsite.com/author, where I post ramblings and the occasional book review. Again, thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it! Love, Maya