The Cyber Chronicles Book III - The Core (17 page)

Sabre eyed it.
"Well, well. It seems we're closer than I thought." He urged the
donkeys into a trot. "Let's get to it before it thinks up a new
strategy."

Tassin was
puffing by the time they reached the mist, and the Changes swept
through the land at an alarming speed. A world of black rock
streaked with gold replaced a landscape of scarlet grass dotted
with obscene pink mushrooms. As they drew near the mist, the air
parted and a guardian stepped forth. He was an old man, thin and
bent, his grey hair and beard wild and unkempt. Unlike the others,
he wore a tattered robe of dirty white cotton. He held up a
claw-like hand.

"Stop!" His
eyes glowed red, and the yellow power shimmered under his skin.
"You seek to challenge the Core itself, fool, you will die."

Sabre stopped
and eyed him. "Getting scared, is it?"

The old man
almost smiled, then his face stiffened. "Turn back now, and you
will be spared."

"I didn't come
all this way to give up now," Sabre retorted.

The ghoul
pointed at Sabre, and a brilliant bolt of yellow light arced from
his finger into the cyber. He stiffened, his jaw clenching. The
brow band flared as it shed the neosin in a blazing conduit that
arced into the ground. The old ghoul's glow dimmed, and he lowered
his hand. The world Changed to a bleak vista of twisted grey trees,
and an icy wind plucked at them.

Sabre glared
at the old ghoul. "You'd better run along and get charged up again,
old man."

The ghoul
swung and pointed at Tassin. Sabre reacted in the instant before
another bolt of neosin, weaker than the first, flashed towards her.
He hurled the sword into the fire's path, and the neosin arced into
it, drawn to the metal. It fell to the ground with a clang, tongues
of fire crawling over it. The old ghoul lowered his arm, drained of
power, his eyes a dim red glow.

"You will die,
and if not you, she will." He vanished.

Sabre glanced
at Tassin. "Great, it's figured out my weakness. A certain stubborn
female, if I'm not mistaken."

"If it kills
me, so be it."

"Don't give me
that fatalistic crap." He stepped closer to her. "It hasn't even
noticed Dena, because she's kept out of the way, but now you're a
target."

Tassin
glowered at him. Sabre walked over to the sword, which was still
bathed in fire. He winced when he picked it up. The neosin flashed
into his hand, making the brow band flare. A world of grey,
slashing rain washed over them in a freezing downpour, drenching
them in moments while thunder roared and lightning crackled. They
hunched over for the brief time that it took to pass, emerging into
the next Flux-reality dry but chilled.

Changes flowed
through the land, jungle, desert, snow, volcanic, forest, pampas,
cultivated, ruins. Each one was different, some alien, some
ordinary. They were only a few seconds apart now. Faint tugs pulled
at her as she shared space with the ever changing Flux-realities.
It was no longer alarming; the Changes were so fast that it was
impossible to avoid the brief entrapments. There was also a faint
pushing sensation, barely noticeable, as if whatever lay within the
mist repelled her.

Sabre faced
the mist wall, his expression grim. "This is it, I guess. Time to
see if the spacer who brought me was right in thinking that a cyber
could defeat this thing." He turned to them. "Tassin, I want you to
stay here with Dena and the cart, will you do that?"

She raised her
chin. "No."

"I thought
not. But you're not coming; it's too dangerous now." He shook his
head. "It always was too dangerous. I must have been mad to let you
come. I should have taken you to Arlin and had them lock you in a
dungeon until this was over."

"You had no
choice, and they wouldn't have done it. I'm their queen."

He fingered
the sword's edge, testing its sharpness without looking at her.
"Well, I'm making a choice now, and you're staying here, where it's
safe."

"It is not
safe! What if something attacks us?"

"If not for
your stubbornness, you would be on your way to Arlin now. How safe
do you think you'll be in there?" He gestured at the mist with the
sword. "Purr said that the monsters don't come near the Core, and
it has no reason to attack you if you're out here; it'll be too
busy dealing with me."

"No! We should
stay together."

He studied the
sword again, his words slow and weary. "If I succeed in destroying
the Core, it will probably be fatal for anyone close to it. That
means me, and you, if you're there. Stay here with Dena where
you'll be safe, and once the Core's gone, the Death Zone will
collapse and you'll be able to get home."

"No."

With a sigh,
he turned to face her, stabbing the sword into the ground as he
finally met her eyes with his guarded grey ones. "You're the
damnedest, most mule-headed female I've ever met, do you know
that?" She gulped when he raised a hand to stroke her cheek. "I
can't allow you to put yourself in danger. Hopefully, I'll be back.
If not, you'll have to make it on your own, and use the weapons to
reclaim your kingdom, but for now, I'm sorry."

Sabre took
hold of her arms, and his sudden change of tactics stunned her. Her
heart leapt and started to hammer, and her mouth went dry as he
leant closer. He solved the mystery of his intentions when he
pinned her wrists with one hand and pushed her back against the
cart. Reaching past her, he pulled a length of material from the
packs. Tassin struggled while he twined it around her wrists,
trying to kick his shins. He dodged her kicks and held her easily.
Realising that it was completely idiotic to try to fight him, she
resorted to verbal abuse, which he ignored. He tied her ankles
together, and in moments she was trussed. Lifting her into the
cart, he placed her on the hay.

"Damn you,
Sabre, you'll pay for this!"

He turned to
Dena. "You know how to use the lasers, don't you?"

The little
girl nodded, her eyes wide.

"Good." He dug
out some power packs, reloading his laser and the sonlar. "It's up
to you to guard Tassin, but I doubt you'll have to. When the
Flux-reality fades, untie her, but not before, understand?"

"But she's the
Queen."

"I don't care.
Don't listen to her, okay? It's for her own good. You don't want
her to die, do you?"

The child
shook her head.

"Good girl."
He tousled her hair and turned to Tassin. "You got your wish.
You're at the Core, but you'll not come any closer."

"You bastard!
You can't do this! I order you to release me at once!"

Surprisingly,
her words brought no reaction from the control unit. Apparently in
this instance it agreed with him. He picked up the sword and
sheathed it across his back. "Sorry, Your Majesty, but I can't
oblige."

"Sabre!"
Tassin shouted as he turned and walked towards the mist. "Sabre!
Don't leave me!" She struggled, hurting her wrists. "Sabre!
Please!"

The mist
swallowed him, and Tassin turned on Dena in frustrated fury. "Untie
me, now!"

The child
shook her head, stepping back. Tassin strained at the bonds, but to
no avail. Why did it not surprise her that Sabre was an expert at
securing prisoners? At that moment she almost hated him, for
leaving her, for denying her more time with him, but most of all,
for sacrificing himself. She rolled onto her side and curled up in
a ball of misery, unable to stem the tears that stung her eyes.
Dena climbed into the cart and stroked her hair.

"Don't cry,
please. He's only trying to keep you safe."

"He needs me!
He'll be killed!"

Dena shook her
head, looking wise beyond her years. "He doesn't need anyone. He
never has, and never will."

Tassin stared
at the child, shocked. "What do you mean?"

"He's used to
being alone, and he's very sad, deep down." Dena touched her chest.
"He doesn't want you hurt."

"How do you
know?"

Dena shrugged.
"I can sense it. He doesn't care about himself."

Fresh tears
leaked from Tassin's eyes. "That's what I'm afraid of, Dena. I
don't want him to die!"

"You can do
nothing."

"I can!" She
glared at the girl. "If he has to protect me, he can't let himself
be killed. Don't you see? Without me there, he has no reason to
survive."

"So you know
too."

"Yes." Tassin
sniffed. "He's convinced that Manutim will come back and take him
away; make him a prisoner to that... thing on his head again."

"And you don't
think so?"

"I don't know.
It could be a while before Manutim returns, anyway. I'll try to
save him. The wizard is my friend."

"Maybe you
can't." Dena stared at the changing landscape, her soft voice
filled with pain. Flux-realities swept past like a lighthouse's
beam, the brown and green flashes constantly lighting the
ground.

"But I have to
try!" Tassin cried. "Untie me, Dena, let me go after him, then he
will have to survive."

The child
gazed at Tassin's tear-streaked face. "Or you'll be killed too, and
I'll be alone."

Tassin slumped
as a passing world of pouring rain drenched her. Moments later she
was dry when a hot, arid Flux-reality swept through, then a
transient snowy landscape chilled her.

Chapter Eleven

Sabre walked
towards the mist, refusing to glance back even though the despair
in Tassin's voice made his chest ache. She would be all right. Once
the Core was destroyed the Flux-realities would fade and they could
travel safely to Arlin, where they could use the weapons to fight
Torrian. He did not allow himself to think of what would happen to
her if he failed. He would not fail. Cybers did not fail.

Sabre entered
the mist's damp silence. Flux-realities, obscured by the vapour,
flashed past. The tug of trees and rocks catching him momentarily
within their substance slowed his progress. The Changes speeded up
as he drew nearer to the Core, and the tugs became more frequent.
The force that pushed against him grew stronger, and he leant into
it as if walking in a strong wind. The mist took on a purple tinge,
and he became aware of a faint, disturbing sound, like the harsh
cry of a raven mingled with the pealing of a distant bell. Musical,
yet discordant, sweeping past like a rotating beam of sound.

The mist
thickened into a damp cloud that swirled about him, reducing
visibility to less than a metre. He tripped over a ruined wall and
sprawled on sharp-edged rubble with a curse. The Changes did not
affect the ruins, so they were Real-reality. Broken concrete
streaked with rust from twisted reinforcing littered the ground. He
walked on, and floundered when the terrain turned to bog as a
Flux-reality swept through. Almost immediately it changed to soil,
and he was embedded knee deep. He struggled to free himself from
soil, then rock, then soil again. He tried to dig at it with the
sword, but each new Flux-reality erased his efforts.

Another marsh
world swept through, and he pulled one leg clear, but the other
sank to mid-thigh. Cursing, he strained to pull it free, clutching
at rocks and trees that vanished under his groping hands. For an
instant a tree trunk impaled him, stopping his breath, then it was
gone. The mist swirled, and he caught a glimpse of an ancient sign
lying on the ground a few feet away. Corrosion pitted the
aluminium, and the blistered, peeling paint bled white powder. The
ragged black letters said ‘Anneril Power Station’.

"Anneril," he
muttered. "So that's what you were called."

A desert world
swept through, and he was able to pull his leg from the sand. Soil
replaced it, and he stood up. Walking past the sign, he groped
through the mist, occasionally bumping into trees or rocks that
appeared in front of him. Twice, trees shared space with him for a
moment, a disconcerting sensation.

His boots
crunched on the ruins of the power station as he avoided rusted
wire and girders. Something red caught his eye, and he bent to
examine it. A child's doll stared up at him with painted eyes, its
tattered red dress damp and mildewed. A little girl must have
dropped it when this monstrous alien had torn her from her world,
killed her and changed her into a zombie, then forced her to serve
it. Undoubtedly her bereaved parents still wondered how their child
had vanished without a trace.

Sabre walked
on, leaving the pathetic toy to rot. A movement ahead made him stop
and raise the sword. A ghoul appeared through the mist, its red
eyes aglow, its skin bright with yellow power. Sabre stepped
forward and swung the sword as the ghoul raised its hands. Twin
streams of yellow fire burst from its fingers and struck his chest.
He staggered back as pain lanced through him, making him gasp.

A cool wave
swept over him as the cyber dispersed the neosin, but it continued
to flow from the ghoul. Struggling with sluggish muscles, Sabre
swung the sword, glimpsing the umbilical of golden light that led
away from the zombie. The ghoul fell, its legs sliced through, and
the umbilical vanished as its power drained into the ground.
Seconds later the creature vanished too, and Sabre was alone again,
aching from the attack. When the pain in his muscles eased, and he
walked on.

"Try again,
you radioactive piece of shit," he muttered.

Sabre waded
through the mist and pushing force, only the tugging of the
Flux-reality hindering him. The harsh peals grew louder, sweeping
past at regular intervals like an audible lighthouse beam. The
mist's purple glow brightened to pink, and he strained to see
ahead. He knew the Core must be close now, for it was becoming more
difficult to push through the repelling force. Then the force
vanished, the mist parted, and he stumbled into a clear zone. A
column of pure air rose into a brilliant blue patch of real sky.
The Flux-realities had been left behind in the mist. Smooth
concrete stretched away, and he stopped to stare at the amazing
sight that confronted him.