by D. B. Goodin
“I’m hurt you don’t know who I am. Do you really not know me after all we have been through?”
Jet shook her head.
“I’m the one who put you in that bed. I’m Nozomi, and all bots will obey me. At least until I get my body back. Oh, I so miss my body, and all its . . . desires.”
Holy shit, what really happened? What don’t I know?
“Why are you in this metal body?” Jet asked.
“It’s me, or rather a backup of my consciousness. Dr. Ash restored me into this construct. Apparently she was uploading my experiences to her mainframe without me knowing anything about it. So in a way, there are two of me out there.”
“This is crazy, I did not know this was possible. Why did you come back here?”
“I don’t know, but I needed to find Delta-51.”
April grabbed Jet’s hand. “Don’t let her hurt me again, Gretta,” April cried.
“What did you do to her?” Jet demanded.
“Dr. Ash gave this construct new abilities. In short, I was able to upload the AI contained within the Delta-51 construct and merge its programming with mine. Now we are one,” the robot said.
Jet was stunned. She didn’t say anything for a long moment.
“I’m sure you’re wondering what has happened to Delta and her sister,” robot Nozomi said.
“You were absorbed? Is April with you now?”
“No, her bond to you was too strong—and besides, I don’t need to merge with any immature code. Now that I’ve merged with the most powerful AI in history, I can move on. I still would like to find my human body, but that is not the priority.”
“What’s the priority?”
“I need to take control while there’s still time.”
“Control of what?”
“For someone so smart, you seem to ask a lot of dumb questions. The backbone of the internet is still mostly intact. I can control what remains once I get to a central hub, but I had to merge with Delta first. Don’t you see? I have unleashed hell on all the bad actors. These people are being hunted in the streets. I’ve distracted the meddlers and others that intended to stop me, but I’ve done all I can from here. I need to get to central processing, or the windowless building, where everything was set into motion.”
Chapter 29
March equinox
Rick Watson awoke alone in a darkened room. A dripping sound echoed throughout the chamber. To his surprise, he was not restrained in any way. A wave of nausea overcame him as he tried sitting up. His heart pounded; he was drained like he’d just finished running a marathon. He took a few deep breaths to try to calm himself, but it was no use.
Did the doctor experiment on me? Has my appearance changed?
Rick tried to stand. He held on to the bed to steady himself. He glanced around the room; it was a circular chamber about thirty feet across. A bloodstained surgical chair was in the center of the room. A dirty and cracked mirror was on the wall across the room. He looked at his hands, and in addition to the grime, he glimpsed something else: a slight reflection, like a ring catching the light. When he examined his hands more closely, he noticed metal rods with dried blood through open skin patches. As he moved each finger, he thought he heard the faint sound of a servomotor. He touched his face; it was different.
I’ve got to see what I’ve become.
Rick stumbled and nearly fell over, but with much effort he made it over to the mirror. He didn’t look much different at first. A metal plate reflected light near the hairline. The light in the chamber was poor, so it was difficult to see clearly. He pulled back his hair and gasped at what he saw. Most of the scalp on the left side of his face was missing, replaced by rubbery-looking skin. The rush of blood filled the fleshy side of his face, and he couldn’t feel anything on his left side. It was like someone had ripped half his face off and replaced it with metal skin.
I’m going to kill that doctor, not only for what he’s done to me, but for Nozomi. I have failed you, my love.
His skin seared like it was on fire; he was burning up all over and needed relief. He took off his shirt and realized the true extent of the damage. More than half of his torso had been replaced with the metal skin. In fact, his entire left side had been replaced. Repulsed, he punched the mirror; without warning, a flame shot from his fist and crawled up the wall, looking for something to singe.
What the . . .
He looked at both of his hands. One minute they looked normal, and the next they were aflame.
Why doesn’t this hurt?
“Remarkable, isn’t it?” a man’s voice said.
Rick turned to see Dr. Sylvester. “What’s wrong with me?”
“Nothing. I’ve enhanced you. You will no longer feel pain, but you can inflict it on others. In fact, I will require you to do so very soon.”
“I’m not hurting anyone!”
“What about the bad people who ruin the lives of innocents? Don’t they deserve to be punished?”
“I won’t let you.”
Rick grabbed a piece of broken glass and flung it at the doctor. It seemed to change shape and catch on fire as it sailed toward its intended target. Dr. Sylvester tapped something on his arm as the glass projectile bounced off an invisible shield.
“Good,” the doctor said with a smile, “let’s get that aggression out of your system.”
Rick flung both of his arms toward Sylvester.
Let’s see if I can fry his ass.
Two white beams with flames jutting out of them shot toward the doctor. He pressed another button on his wrist and the beams expanded, then shot into the tiled chamber; moments later, flaming fragments of the ceiling rained down. They burned Rick’s skin as they landed. Dr. Sylvester pressed another button on his wristband, and then made a flinging motion to Rick. He was immediately protected against the flaming tiles that dropped from the ceiling.
“You have only begun to explore the gifts I’ve given you,” Sylvester told him. “Together we will do great things. When we have enough of us we shall rule this city. You have just the right blend of moral gray I was looking for. You don’t care about people—not really. That’s what I found out during our weeks of testing.”
“Weeks? How long have I been here?”
“Six months or so, but I wasn’t counting on such a chaotic mess the city has become since you arrived.”
“Where is Nozomi?”
“She’s been undergoing some enhancements. Don’t worry, you will be with her soon. I’m looking forward to a long-lasting relationship that will benefit all humankind. The powers I’ve given you are just the beginning.”
Rick looked down at his flaming hands. For many years he had fantasized of having absolute power over people; now his only wish was to see his family again. Rick buried his face in his burning hands. To his surprise, the flames didn’t affect his skin. He wept for all the people he had hurt, and he wished he could take it all back and set things right.
“What’s the matter, lover?” a voice cooed.
Rick looked up, his face wet with sorrow.
“Nozomi?” he asked.
“No, lover, she is dead. I’m the catalyst of pain.”
Continue the Adventure
I hope you enjoyed reading Reckoning of Delta Prime. I invite you to continue Nigel’s adventure with Crisis at Worlds End. The exciting sequel to Reckoning of Delta Prime.
I invite you to join my reader group to learn more about more books in the Cyber Teen Project. To sign up visit: https://reckoningofdeltaprime.com
A Favor
Thank you for reading my book.
Reviews are very important for an author. When I get more reviews on my books, it allows them to stay more visible. If you want to help me put out books more quickly, then please review this one.
Thank you.
D. B. Goodin
Acknowledgments
Special thanks to my launch team and beta readers: The early feedback helped considerably. This book is better f
or it.
Cover design by Andrew Dobell (Creative Edge)
Developmental Editing by Matt Machin
Copy Editing by Hayley Evans
Proofreading by Beth Doward
About the Author
D. B. Goodin has had a passion for writing since grade school. After publishing several nonfiction books, Mr. Goodin ventured into the craft of fiction to teach Cybersecurity concepts in a less-intimidating fashion. Mr. Goodin works as a Principal Cybersecurity Analyst for a major software company based in Silicon Valley and holds a Master’s in Digital Forensic Science from Champlain College.
Also By D. B. Goodin
Cyber Teen Project
White Hat Black Heart
War With Black Iris
Reckoning of Delta Prime
Crisis At Worlds End (Spring 2022)
The Making of Cyber Teen Project
Cyber Overture
Sonorous
Chromatic
Resonance
Ensemble
Ramble
Cyber Hunter Origins
Synapse of Ash
Echoes of Silence
Catalyst of Pain (Fall 2021)
Interstellar Online
Blast Off
Cassidy’s Fleet (Fall 2021)
