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Reaper gripped the handle of his battle axe. “Last time I checked, I was in charge of the cyborg rebellion, female.”
“Look around, the cyborg rebellion is gone! We don’t have time for this. I have been watching you. Knowing one day you would push too far and bring the wrath of the Global Allegiance down on your heads.” She snapped her fingers. “Quantum, remove your helmet.”
Following her command, gloved hands snagged the bottom edge of the helmet. Tugged upwards, it slowly revealed the face of a blue Service Model wearing a grim expression.
Reaper stumbled backward, shaking his head. “That isn’t possible.”
“What? You thought the only cyborgs that were free were the ones with you? Ion, Vault, Zero, helmets off.”
In unison, the three pulled off their helmets, revealing a Military Model, a Technology Model, and a Medical Model. Gasps echoed through the forest.
They stood there, their eyes locked on Lennox as they completely ignored Reaper and the sounds of shock filling the woods around them.
Reaper’s shoulders sagged. He held out a hand towards the one called Quantum as if he wanted to touch him to see if he was truly real, but he dropped his hand at the last moment.
Lennox’s expression softened slightly. “This wasn’t how I planned to tell you. But I needed you to know that the people who came to save you were other free cyborgs. And they did so onmyorders. Now, there will be plenty of time to ask questions and yell later, but I’m risking my family to save yours so I would appreciate it if you could just get in the damn transports when they arrive.”
“But,” Dax protested.
Lennox cut him off. “Once all of us are safe, we candiscusssending a small team back to try and see if anything can be salvaged if, and only if, the structure is deemed stable enough to enter without risking anyone’s lives. Things can be replaced.” She looked right at Dax. “You can’t, got it, Science Model?”
Dax’s frame slumped and he nodded. Theo moved away from me to put his arm around Dax. “Do you have room for all of us?” he asked softly.
“Of course, we do,” the new Medical Model said as he smiled, stepping closer to Theo, his helmet tucked under his arm. “My name is Zero. What is yours, little warrior?”
Theo’s chest puffed up at the Medical Model’s question. “Theo,” he stated proudly.
The sound of engines rumbling cut through the forest and all of us froze.
“Hey, boss lady, the transports are waiting at the edge of a clearing about a half a mile from your location. Unfortunately, we can’t make it in any further. The trees are too thick and the transports won’t fit. Are those with you good to make the trek?” The words came through Lennox’s comm, and she sighed in relief.
She turned on her heel to face Reaper. “Anyone in your group too injured to walk? My men can help carry them if need be.”
Reaper’s frame stiffened. “A lot of us have sustained damage but none of it severe enough to require assistance.”
Reaper didn’t want any more help from her than need be. I understood. While part of me was grateful that they had come to our rescue, a larger part of me wasn’t sure about the arrival of Lennox and her cyborgs.
Why hadn’t they come to the rebellion? Had she forced them to stay with her? To fight for her? Would we simply become more cyborgs to add to her collection?
Trust in our ‘saviors’ was tentative at best. But we had nothing else. Nowhere to go. No supplies. Just thirty or so cyborgs, six upgraded human females, and two cyborg children. None of us were safe here any longer.
The only thing left to do was take the shelter Lennox had provided and hope that she didn’t betray us at our lowest moment.
Nara
Ihad refused to look at Brone…at any of them except for Core, Caliber, and Chaos. I needed my cyborgs somewhere safe.The mantra replayed on a loop inside my head. I’d worry about the rest later. After more walking, this time through the forest, my guys glued to my side, we made it out of the clearing to see rows of transports lined up, one right behind the other.
It made sense. There were a lot of us. And cyborgs definitely took more room than humans. For a moment, I had to wonder how they had made it this far, but then I caught sight of a worn dirt road that snaked through the woods, standing out merely because it seemed out of place among the forest.
I sighed, tilting my head back so that the sunshine warmed my cheeks. For a moment I let it all go. The nearly dying, the running for my life, the fact I was now homeless with three cyborgs to take care of. Closing my eyes, I let the heat wash over my face, willing it to cleanse away all this worry and tension.
A finger tapped my shoulder. “We are up next,” Core stated.
Opening my eyes, I saw that most of the rebellion had already climbed into the transports except Brone and the human female who had come with a team of her own cyborgs.
When the dust settled, stuff was going to hit the fan.How the hell had there been a whole other group of cyborgs that Reaper hadn’t known about? And could we trust her?
I followed my guys to the last transport and climbed inside, pleasantly surprised to find large seats meant to accommodate larger than life cyborgs. With smiles, Core, Chaos, and Caliber settled into their seats, and I found one that wasn’t quite so big. Securing the safety belt, I snuck a quick glance at Brone.
