Acer

by Kelsey Nicole Price

  Acer would make sure my son knew me.

  A cry filled the room and my soul rejoiced.

  That was my son. He was here.

  The world started to dim, blackness seeped into the corners of my vision. Dax’s frantic voice broke through the haze. “We’re losing her!”

  “Do something!” Acer screamed, his fingers clutching my cheeks. “Stay with me, Marley. We need you! Don’t go.” His words filled with anguish.

  I wanted so badly to follow Acer’s command, but my eyelids fluttered. “Love him for the both us.”

  The world went dark.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  *Acer*

  I paced, my eyes locked on Marly’s still and pale form laying on the bed. Her chest rose and fell, the steady sound of her breathing matched the cadence of my steps. It assured me my female still lived. It had been close. We nearly lost her. Her body on the verge of giving out. Her spine fractured, a few ribs broken and a cracked pelvis. Dax’s formula her saving grace. The upgrade made it, so her body began to heal itself at once, trying to repair the damage the small cyborg inflicted while trying to be born. The pain must have been excruciating. How Marley survived it was a miracle.

  New procedures were now already being discussed if another couple wanted to have a child. The female would have to accept Dax’s formula and the unborn cyborg would need to be watched; once fully formed, removed before damaging the mother.

  I gazed at Marley; my hands curled into fists. Those procedures came too late for her. What my female endured made a sea of rage flow through my circuits. I tried tempering it with the knowledge that what we went through would help others, but my heart wasn’t forgiving like Marley’s.

  When Marley made me promise to choose the small cyborg’s life over hers, I felt the power inside my processors dim. I didn’t want to exist in a world without her.

  How could I hold our child and try to explain to them how their mother gave her life for them without breaking into parts and pieces?

  A loud cry sounded, and a set of tiny, yellow fists flayed in the air. My pacing halted as I went over and scooped up the small bundle, drawing it close to my chest. Green eyes peered up at me.

  She was the reason I would have continued to live. My daughter.

  Our daughter. I couldn’t wait for Marley to awaken and learn she had a daughter, not a son. I snuggled the tiny bundle closer to my chest.

  My daughter gave a soft coo, her eyes scanning the room and stopping once she found her mother. Her face scrunched up as she let out a wail.

  With one hand, I tugged down the sheet covering Marley’s body until it fell to her waist. Gently, I laid our daughter next to her, the small cyborg pressing her frame as close as possible. The touch seemed to soothe her, and her little frame relaxed.

  Marley began to stir beside her, as if she could sense the baby now nuzzled beside her.

  I ran my fingers along her cheek. “Wake up, lovely and meet our daughter.”

  Her eyes snapped open. “The baby! Tell me he’s okay!” Her gaze pleaded with me, and I once again cursed what Marley had been through. The look of fear and worry on her face almost enough to bring me to my knees.

  “Look down.” Emotion choked my frame, the lubrication in my throat dried up when I watched Marley see our daughter for the first time.

  Her green eyes softened, all the worry and fear vanished as pure love filled her gaze. “He’s beautiful, Sunshine.” Wonder threaded through her voice. “And he’s yellow!” Tears gathered in her eyes. ‘Happy tears’, Marley would call them. Joy radiated off her frame from the incredible fact our child had my color.

  “She’s beautiful and yellow,” I softly informed her as I gathered our baby in my arms and placed her in Marley’s waiting ones. The little cyborg settled into her, seeming to know she was right where she belonged.

  Marley’s lips parted, a wide smile spreading across her face. “We had a girl?”

  I nodded, words failing me; the sight of our daughter in her mother’s arms reduced my processors to nothing but bits of fragmented code.

  “She has your green eyes, as well.” I said, love and awe filling my voice.

  Marley’s fingers gently caressed the top of her head, marveling at the tiny wisps of honey-colored hair. “How?” Her brows furrowed. “How is this possible?”

  I sat on the edge of the bed and added my fingers to Marley’s, gently caressing our daughter’s head. “Dax and Dr. Shaw believe that the bond allowed her to pull images from us, your brain and my processors. Whatever model type she had been, she completely disregarded, changing her color to match mine. She also matched her eyes and hair color to you, not wanting her design to only resemble me.”

  Pride laced through my voice, and my chest tightened. Our daughter was the perfect mix of my female and me. My yellow-colored skin and her mother’s eyes and hair. She looked like we had created her together, the way humans do. “Both Dax and Dr. Shaw are awed by what she did. A cyborg shouldn’t be able to rewrite their programming and design themselves, but that’s apparently what our daughter did. Dr. Shaw has a theory that the bond allows a cyborg to evolve even further than she predicted.”

  Marley lifted her and kissed her tiny cheek. “Smart girl. You wanted to be like your mommy and daddy, didn’t you? Do you know how special you are?” She peppered her face with more kisses.

  Our daughter didn’t know how special she truly was. A miracle. A gift. Looking at her in her mother’s arms, I vowed to love and protect her the way she deserved until my circuits died and my processors stopped.

  A sharp pang of guilt struck at the thought of how I viewed her when I learned of her existence. I believed her nothing more than a sick science experiment. My shoulders hunched as the taste of something heavy and thick filled the back of my throat. I swallowed hard, fluid burning inside my eyes.

  A hand grabbed mine. “Don’t Acer. I forgave you.” She looked down at the tiny miracle cuddled within her arms. “She forgave you.” Her hand squeezed mine with as much strength as she could muster. “And our daughter knows how much you love her. Do you think she would have chosen to model herself after you if she didn’t?”

  *Marley*

  I saw the slow smile creep across Acer’s face, and I knew my words got through to him. My cyborg still wanted to punish himself for the way he acted when he first learned I was pregnant. It hurt. I wouldn’t lie. But from the moment he dropped to his knees and promised to take care of us, he had. Acer did everything in his power to keep me safe and happy.

  I gave his hand another squeeze and gazed at our daughter. I struggled to believe this was real. Things like this didn’t happen to girls like me.

  But here I was.

  I had a happily-ever-after.

  And Acer was my Prince Charming.

  I looked at him then back down at our daughter. “Sorry I kept calling you a ‘him’.” Her eyes snapped to mine, the green I saw every day in the mirror gazed back. She peered at me as if she was memorizing and cataloguing my face in her tiny, little processors. “Do you forgive me?” I asked. Her eyes flashed, lighting up the room.

  I laughed. “I’ll take that as a yes.” My eyes found Acer’s. “It appears she’s inherited your conversation skills.”

  Acer’s eyes flashed in response. Our daughter let out a coo happily staring at his face, almost waiting to see if he’d do it again. He did and she granted him with her very first smile.

  It brought my fearless cyborg to his knees.

  The wires in his arms lit up with quick bursts of gold. “Did you see that? She smiled at me!” The wonder and joy in his voice threatened to overwhelm me as more tears swam in my eyes.

  I lifted her up to better see her precious little face and nuzzled my nose against her soft cheek. “You’re already bringing cyborgs to their knees, little one. Use your power wisely,” I whispered into her ear. I pulled back, and this time, she smiled at me. I swore I could see her circuits spin, her eyes full of what appeared to be
mischief. Our little girl would bring the rebellion to its knees. Cyborgs would drop left and right.

  I patted the bed, and Acer climbed up. He carefully settled his frame behind me, wrapping his arms around both of us. I leaned back, relaxing into him, cuddling our small, but mighty, cyborg in my arms. I basked in his embrace, trusting in his strength to protect us. Acer hadn’t said anything, but the pain and exhaustion still lingering in my body told the story of how wrong things had gone with the birth of our child. When I was ready, I would ask him about what happened. But for now, all I wanted was to be loved and to love the two most important beings in my life.

  I brushed my fingers through the tiny bit of soft hair on her head. Our daughter was absolutely perfect, she needed the perfect name. Acer and I had discussed a few, but those had been for boys. Kind of back at square one here. “We are going to need a name.”

  I felt Acer’s warm breath on my ear. “I’ve been thinking of one.” His finger gently traced her cheek as she cooed happily. “Ever. Her name should be Ever because forever is how long I’ll love her. It’s how long I’ll love her mother. Her name would be a reminder and a promise. A reminder that I am the luckiest cyborg in existence. A promise that no matter what comes, loving both of you is the reason for my creation.”

  And cue the waterworks yet again. Tears streaked down my cheeks as I turned my head to stare at the cyborg who always knew exactly what to say without even trying. He wasn’t programmed to. His past was a list of abuses and horrors. Things that would make hating the world far easier than loving anything in it.

  I shook my head, sending messy strands of hair flying over his chest. “No. It’s us. We are the lucky ones, Acer. We have you.” I cupped his cool cheek, never tired of feeling the metal under my fingertips. I loved that he was different. That his unique frame was all mine. Well now he was all ours. “Ever and I have the smartest, handsomest, most incredible cyborg to call ours. We love you, Sunshine.”

  He sucked in a breath. “Say it again,” he commanded.

  “We love you, Sunshine.” I repeated.

  “Again,” he growled.

  “We love you, Sunshine!” This time, I repeated it even louder and Ever joined in, waving her little hands, a huge grin on her little face as she stared at her father.

  Acer’s grin rivaled hers, breaking out across his face as joy shone in his eyes. “Mine.” He decreed as he tugged us tighter into the circle of his arms.

  I snuggled us closer. “Always.”

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  *Acer*

  Marley sat in bed, Ever in her arms as she hummed a song. It was the one she would hum for me. You are my Sunshine. My chest constricted, warmth spread through my frame as I listened to her hum it to our daughter.

  “I thought I was your Sunshine.” I teased.

  She stopped humming, and a smile lit up her face. “Now, I have two.” She covered Ever’s face in kisses. “I still can’t believe she has your coloring. It’s incredible.” She held her up and nuzzled her cheek. “You look like your daddy, don’t you pretty girl?” Ever batted her face with her little hands and giggled. “You’re as beautiful as your daddy is handsome.” Her voice filled with love and conviction.

  Ever reached out her arms to me, and I scooped her away from Marley cuddling her close. Her tiny fingers grazed my metal cheek, her eyes locked on mine as they flashed. “I know, princess. Your daddy is a bit different. Your momma is the only one who finds me handsome.”

  She scrunched up her face, her little green eyes narrowed, and her hands landed on my cheeks. She held them there as if to challenge my assessment of myself. Love and acceptance flowed through the bond, an emotional nudge to let me know my daughter didn’t find me lacking.

  “Our daughter definitely disagrees with you.” Marley laughed; reaching out, she captured one of Ever’s feet and tickled the bottom. “Daddy’s perfect, isn’t he?”

  Ever laughed as the love between us exploded along my wires, and I struggled to catch my simulated breath.

  I felt complete.

  Whole.

  My processors spun with the knowledge. For the first time, I felt gratitude to Dr. Shaw for pulling me from the vat that day. She could have given up on me and let the MechTech’s destroy me to use for scrap. Instead she saved me, and all my life, I had hated her for it. As I held my daughter and gazed at my beautiful female, I knew the truth. I would gladly suffer everything all over again for this moment right here.

  With care, I returned Ever to Marley’s arms and smiled as I reached into my pocket. “I have something for you, princess.” I pulled out Quackers. Ever’s green eyes locked onto the yellow duck and flashed quickly before her hand shot out to capture it, pressing it to her frame. She cooed happily, patting its soft head.

  I did the exact same thing when Iris gifted it to me. Great processors think alike. I grinned. “Take care of him, princess.”

  Marley watched Ever with Quackers, and I didn’t have to guess what was coming. Her green eyes filled with her ‘happy tears’ before grabbing my hand. “I love you.”

  I leaned over and kissed her. “And I love you, lovely.”

  A sudden knock on the door interrupted us, and a low growl came from the back of my throat. Ever laughed. I was halfway convinced my irritation amused her. She showed no fear, just smiled and looked towards the door, waving Quackers excitedly.

  I sighed. “I’m going, princess. Unlike your daddy, you like visitors.”

  I opened the door to see Dax. “Just here for my daily check.”

  Marley let out a groan. “I’ve told you, I’m fine. It’s been a week!” I could practically feel her give an eye roll behind my back. Marley had not been happy I effectively made her stay in bed and refused to allow any visitors except Dax and Dr. Shaw.

  Other cyborgs tried, but I sent them away. I wanted time alone with my female and my child. I also wasn’t over nearly losing Marley for a second time. I felt the circuit-crushing need to stay with her twenty-four seven. The first time she tried going to the bathroom by herself with the door closed, I broke it down in a fit of panic. Ever wailed in her crib; that’s when I realized maybe I had gone a tad overboard. Marley rushed to comfort Ever and gave me a circuit-lashing lecture that she should be able to pee without me freaking out. I hadn’t done that since.

  “You are as bad as he is,” Marley grumbled.

  Dax stepped into the room, his green eyes immediately landed on Ever, and his face lit up. He walked over and tickled her under the chin. “How’s the prettiest little cyborg I know?”

  Ever giggled and held out her arms for the Science Model to pick her up. Dax gently lifted her, Quackers and all and began to rock her. His eyes went to Marley. “At least I have never broke down a door when you were reliving yourself.” He winked.

  Marley’s face flushed pink. “Not something I want to think about, Kiwi.”

  “Stop teasing my female and get on with why you are here Science Model.” I ordered.

  Dax leaned down and made kissy faces at Ever. “Your daddy can be, what’s the word Theo always uses, oh yes, asshole. Your daddy can be a major asshole.” Ever’s eyes flashed and a yellow fist struck out, hitting Dax right in the cheek.

  Surprised green eyes shot to mine. “She hit me!”

  Laughter bubbled up from my chest as I took Ever from Dax’s arms. “Good girl,” I praised, showering her with kisses. “Don’t let that evil Science Model talk bad about your daddy.”

  “Sorry Dax. She’s really protective of her daddy.” Marley chimed in, a bit of laughter in her voice. “She didn’t mean it.”

  Dax looked at Marley. “Oh, she meant it, Miss. Marley,” his eyes softened as he rubbed Ever’s head. “Sorry, little one.” Ever smiled and cooed at Dax; that quick, she had forgiven the Science Model.

  Dax took out a scanner and ran it quickly over Marley, he looked at the screen and nodded in satisfaction. “It appears you were correct, Miss. Marley. You are indeed fine. This scan revealed you
are fully healed.”

  Marley crossed her arms over her chest. “Then, I’m getting out of this bed.” She shot me a ‘don’t argue with me’ look. “Today, Sunshine. I mean it.”

  I sighed unhappily. I knew the day was coming. I didn’t have to like it. “Fine lovely, but if you get tired or it gets to be too much, I will put you right back in there. Got it?”

  “Yes, sir.” She gave me a salute.

  “Before that happens, I have something else I need to discuss with both of you.” Dax pulled a needle out of his lab pocket. A strange, blue-colored liquid swirled within it. Marley visibility flinched. “Don’t worry, Miss. Marley. It’s not for you. It’s for Ever, but only if you want it.”

  I snarled, pulling Ever closer to my frame. My chest expanded, my shoulders hunched over to shield her tiny form from whatever Dax held in his hand. “You will not touch my daughter with that, Science Model!”

  Dax huffed. “You don’t even know what it is. Do you really think I’d do anything to hurt her?”

  When I didn’t answer right away, Dax’s shoulders fell. His eyes shot from me to Marley. He shook his head. “Never! I would end my processors before I hurt her!”

  The hurt across Dax’s face caused my frame to relax. I knew he spoke the truth. I grimaced, my chest tight. “I know, Dax. I’m sorry. You could never hurt her. You vowed to take care of my female when I left. You saved Marley after the birth nearly killed her.” I held out my hand and waited to see if Dax would take it. Dax reached out, and I clasped his arm holding it against mine. “Thank you, Dax. For everything.”

  Dax gave a quick nod, and for the first time, I hoped the Science Model found someone to call his own. From the day I came out of the vat and knew I wasn’t like him, I had harbored a dislike for the model that seemed to have it so easy. It had been no secret Dax had been the favorite. The brilliant one, the only one of his kind which made him special. I had been the only one of me too, but no one thought I was special.