Tassin gave up flapping her arms and squatted with her back to the spray, hugging herself to try to preserve her warmth. The wind plucked at her clothes, slicing through the leather dress as if it was cotton. Sabre looked around and beckoned her over, and she noted as she approached him that the cyber's lights were normal once more. Dena was curled in his lap, but he put an arm around Tassin and drew her close. She smiled at him, meeting grey eyes that sparkled with humour.
"Don't get the wrong idea," he said.
She raised her brows. "Have I ever?"
He looked away with a soft laugh. "Of course not."
"Are you okay now?"
"Yeah. I fell asleep, huh?"
"I couldn't wake you up."
Sabre nodded, his eyes distant. "It was the spider venom. I'd have neutralised it eventually, but it was alien, like so much else around here. Lucky you didn't get bitten."
"Yes," Tassin agreed, leaning against him to soak up his warmth.
The monster on the other rock roared and howled, pacing its tiny island. It had seen them, and Sabre knew that when Flux-reality changed he would have to deal with it. For the moment it was loath to leave its haven and brave the frigid sea again, and he did not blame it. At this distance, he could see little except that it was brown, shaggy and spiny. He watched it while they waited for the next Change, trying to ignore Tassin's slender form huddled against him.
By the time the Change came, Sabre was dozing. The monster had fallen silent, probably hoarse from hours of roaring its rage and defiance at the odd world in which it lived. Tassin and Dena had fallen asleep, and, when the brown and green flickers appeared, he woke them. The Change washed over them, and a world of spiny succulents shimmered into being, hot and arid. The monster roused and gave vent to guttural roars, abandoning its boulder. The donkeys slid off the rock and turned to the prickly sustenance around them.
Certain that it would attack them, Sabre drew his laser and waited for the monster to put in an appearance. The growls turned to squeals of pain as the beast discovered the prickly nature of the new terrain. Tassin took Dena to the other side of the rock, clutching her laser. Sabre winced at the crashing in the thorns, wondering how even a monster could inflict such torment upon itself. The beast howled with pain and rage while it blundered through the spines towards them. The succulents in front of Sabre were smashed down, and the huge, shaggy creature appeared. Dagger-like claws tipped its paws, and black, shiny spines bristled in its pelt. Its maddened red eyes glared from a pushed-in face with too many whiskers. Sabre blew its head off. The corpse collapsed, dead before it hit the ground. Behind him, Tassin heaved a sigh.
They made camp and settled down to slake their thirst and hunger while Sabre surveyed the spiny barrier with resignation. It would take a lot of work to move in this terrain at all, since he would have to clear a path with the sword, and even then the thorns might penetrate their shoes. He watched in amazement as the donkeys chewed the plants, their delicate lips skilled at avoiding the thorns. Postponing the onerous chore of moving, Sabre sat on the rock and pondered the situation. If the Changes had been coming more quickly, he would have waited for a new Flux-reality and in the hope that it was a better one than this. It could not be much worse. With a sigh, he rose to his feet and hefted the sword, heading for the nearest thorny barrier.
"I wouldn't do that if I was you," a soft voice said behind him.
Sabre whirled, the sword ready. A cat-sized, black-masked creature regarded him from the rock, its yellow eyes twinkling with mischief.
"Purr!" Sabre and Tassin exclaimed in unison.
The mosscat gave a purring chuckle and preened his whiskers.
"Where did you come from?" Sabre asked, lowering his sword.
"I've been tracking you since you entered the Zone. You've been walking in such an erratic path I thought I'd never catch up with you."
"We're glad to see you, Purr. We need a guide." Tassin grinned.
Purr regarded her. "Oh, so you no longer suspect me?"
"No. You didn't lead us astray last time."
"How did you know we were back in the Zone?" Sabre enquired. "Did we pass close to you?"
"No. You forget, the Zone is my home. The moment you entered it, I knew you were here, and where. I just had to reach you before you fell prey to something, like those poisonous thorns you were about to plunge into. One scratch and you would have been dead. Change would not have saved you, since you're heading towards the Core, instead of across the Zone. It's too slow in coming."
Sabre glanced at the thorns with a shudder. "Thanks. How do you know?"
"I sense things like that."
"Lucky for us. Will you guide us again?"
"Why do you think I tracked you down? Of course I will, even with all the extra baggage." He eyed Dena and the donkey cart.
Sabre introduced him to the mutant girl, and the two regarded each other somewhat suspiciously.
Purr settled on the rock and groomed his belly fur. "So, friend Sabre, didn't you realise something was wrong when the Changes slowed?"
"I'm going in the right direction. We're going to the Core."
The mosscat looked up, his yellow eyes wide. "Are you crazy?"
"No. When we came out of the other side of the Zone, we found out what all those beasts that leave the Death Zone are doing outside. It's not a pretty story. I'm going to destroy the Zone."
Purr chuckled. "You are? How?"
"I'm not sure yet. I'll figure it out when I get there. At the moment, I haven't the foggiest idea what the Core is."
"You and everyone else." Purr tugged at a matted knot in his fur. "I don't know what it is either, but it's got to be pretty big and powerful to create all of this, don't you think?"
"Sure, but that doesn't mean it can't be destroyed."
"You'll never even get there." The mosscat teased a burr from his pelt and tossed it away. "Take some friendly advice, forget the Core and go home. I'll guide you."
Sabre shook his head. "I can't do that, I have to try. The Zone's getting bigger and more powerful all the time. The monsters are wreaking havoc outside. Soon they'll destroy everything, and the Zone will expand to swallow up the whole world."
Purr fluffed his fur. "But this is my world."
"I know, and I'm sorry, but you'll be welcome outside, you're not a monster like that." Sabre gestured to the slain shaggy beast. "I think you'll like it better outside, it's terribly predictable."
The mosscat sighed, shaking his head like an aged professor faced with a particularly dim student. "Maybe so, but you'll never be able to destroy the Core. I'll be leading you to your deaths, and probably mine too. But if, as you say, the Zone is swallowing the world, something must be done." He glanced at Tassin and Dena. "Although I hardly think this is a likely bunch to do it with. We need another five of you, Sabre, not a girl, a child, and a donkey cart."
Tassin scowled. "I'll have you know I'm not some helpless female, Purr, I'm a -"
"Warrior queen," Purr finished for her. "Is she still convinced of that?" he asked Sabre.
"She seems to be." Sabre grimaced. "I tried to talk her out of coming already, but she's determined."
"So I see." The mosscat clasped his chubby hands around his belly, staring into space. "It's a crazy idea. The likelihood of succeeding is nil, I would say. If the Zone's growing, it would seem to indicate that whatever is creating it is growing too, and therefore alive, not some ancient machine as I believed. If that's the case, then it's probably intelligent, or sentient, at least, which increases the danger too. Once it deduces your intent, the Core will strive to stop you, and it has many weapons."
Sabre considered this. "It's not necessarily alive; it could be a machine that's growing more powerful as it draws more energy from its surroundings. The ancients had machines that drew power from the air, wind or sun. Have you ever known it to do anything deliberate?"
"Well, it creates the creatures that live here, if that could be called intelligent."
"How does it create them?"
"I don't know." Purr looked thoughtful. "I have a vague memory of being near the Core, but it was a long time ago, and I moved away quickly. Being near the Core is very nasty."
"How so?" Tassin asked.
"Well, my memory of it is hazy, but it seemed that the Changes were very fast, very dangerous and disorientating. A mad whirl, really, and a tugging... pushing ... like wild magic... very wild."
"But you survived," Sabre pointed out.
"Yes, most of us do, I suppose, but we move away as fast as we can; we're pushed away. I think to approach the Core would be far more difficult."
Sabre glanced at Tassin, then back at the mosscat. "I guess we'll just have to try. If we don't, this world is doomed, or at least, the world outside is, and maybe this one too, since there's not enough food in the Zone to feed the monsters it creates. Once there's no more normal world outside, what will they do? Hunt each other? Starve?"
"They hunt each other now, though not with much zest, I must admit. Most leave, as you know," Purr said.
"Yeah. So you'll guide us?"
Purr blinked, gazing around while he considered. "It seems wrong for me to help you destroy my world. I should be trying to stop you, you know. The world outside means nothing to me; I've never seen it, never wanted to."
"It's nice, Purr," Tassin said. "It's like one of the nice Flux-realities; like the one where the monster was attacking the village, remember? Only it never changes, and once this place is destroyed, there will be no more monsters. You'll be safe all the time."
"It's like that? With trees and grass, and animals?"
She nodded. "Yes, and people, houses, castles, all sorts of wonderful things."
The mosscat twiddled his whiskers. "I guess it sounds better than this place. Anyway, I still don't think you'll be able to destroy the Core. I'll guide you as close as I can, and still be safe, after that you're on your own."
Sabre smiled. "It's a deal."
Purr picked up his striped tail and began to pull burrs from it. "In the meantime, have you got food? I'm starved."
On Purr's advice, they settled down to wait for the next Change. They discussed the Core, speculating on what it might be. Sabre questioned Purr about what he had seen when he had been close to it, but the mosscat's explanation was vague.
"You don't want to remember it, do you?" Sabre asked.
"Would you like to recall the details of your birth?"
The cyber winced. "Not particularly, no."
"And you intend to destroy the Core, my creator, one could say, my mother." The mosscat glared. "How would you like to aid the death of your creator?"
"I'd love to."
Purr hissed, and Tassin said, "Sabre was not born normally, Purr. He also has no parents.
Sabre studied the mosscat. "How do you even know about mothers and fathers, since you were created by the Core, which is certainly not a small fluffy creature like you? It didn't raise or nurture you. You don't even know what it is. How do you understand the word 'mother'?"
"I'm not sure. I seem to remember something..." Purr shook his head. "A very faint memory, of another like me... a burrow... a warm nest."
Tassin frowned. "How is that possible?"
"I don't know. It's not; it must have been a dream."
Sabre shook his head. "A creature who has no concept of such things couldn't dream about them. Is that all you can remember?"
The mosscat shrugged. "I have a vague memory of grass and trees, that's all."
"Whatever it is, you can't regard the Core as your mother any more than I can call my creator my mother. You can't love it, Purr. It doesn't deserve it. Evil spawned us, but at least we can put an end to this one. It brings these creatures into the world to suffer, and to inflict suffering on others, just like I was. It's got to be stopped."
Purr huffed. "I don't believe you can stop it, friend Sabre. I believe I'm leading you to your doom, yet I suspect that you'll go anyway. So my help makes no difference to the outcome, that's why I'll guide you. Whether you die at the Core or on the way there makes little difference, but I do enjoy your company."
Sabre glanced at Tassin. "If I fail, will you guide Tassin to safety? She insists on coming with me, but if I die, I hope she at least has the sense to leave, if she can."
"Sure. I'll guide her from the Zone if she wishes it."
Tassin glared at them with equal ferocity. "You're not going to fail, Sabre."
He shrugged and sighed. "Nothing's certain."
The mosscat looked sad, apparently as convinced that Sabre would fail as Tassin was that he would succeed.
Chapter Eight
Many hours passed before the next Change came, by which time the party was resting. Purr raised the alarm, and they huddled on the rock as the world warped. Dena gave a cry of joy when a vivid new vista took shape around them. Tall golden-barked trees with bright red leaves towered over them, their fiery foliage rustling in the breeze. Long, deep blue grass swayed in a nearby meadow that slumbered beneath a garish green sky.
Tassin pulled a face. "Weird!"
"Certainly colourful." Sabre jumped down and caught up with the donkeys as they headed for the meadow. Purr followed, sniffing the air with appreciation.
"A better world for travelling."
They set off through the forest on a carpet of leaves rotted to a deep bronze hue. Fungus-like growths of the most unlikely colours sprouted from the damp humus, some sporting brilliant flowers. Dena skipped ahead, exploring, and Sabre fought an urge to call her back, trying to pin-point what it was about this world that filled him with unease. The land was eerily still, as if they walked through a mad artist's painting, realistic, but lifeless. He cursed the non-functional scanners, wishing they worked, for his senses clamoured with alarm and the hair on his nape bristled.
Purr too seemed uneasy, judging by the line of bristling hair that stood up along his spine. One by one, it affected all of them. Tassin was the next to start looking around apprehensively, then Dena gravitated to the cart, her face pale. Even the donkeys became jittery, their long ears swivelling like antennae. They plodded on, the tension rising. Dena held Tassin's hand and gripped the laser tucked into her belt. A soft thud nearby made them jump, and Sabre caught a glimpse of something small and bright yellow vanishing into a burrow. Nerves twanging, they walked on. Another yellow flash flitted high in a tree, but whatever the creatures were, they were extremely furtive.
The terrain was easily traversed, and for the next few hours they made good progress in spite of the oppressive, nerve-jangling atmosphere. A rumble of thunder made Tassin gasp and Dena squeak, then relax with nervous giggles. The sky was a bilious green now, dark and threatening.
Purr's whisper grated on raw nerves. "Something terrible stalks this land."
"Let's hope we don't encounter it," Sabre husked back.
"I wish it would Change," Tassin murmured.
A silent, flitting yellow flash made them look around, but it vanished into the earth before anyone could get a good look at it.
"I think talking is unwise," Purr whispered.
Sabre nodded, hoping the donkeys would not have a sudden urge to bray.
They continued in silence, ears and eyes straining for signs of danger, but the world remained quiet and still. As they passed a tranquil blue grass meadow on their right, their heads jerked around at a distant sound, a soft shuffling as something moved through the fallen leaves on the far side of the meadow. Sabre looked at Purr as everyone froze, even the donkeys.
The mosscat resembled a pompom, his fur on end, his tail a bottlebrush. His large ears swivelled and his nose sampled the air while his eyes scanned the surroundings. Sabre followed Purr's gaze as it became intent, and found the source of the noise. A horse-sized, dark grey monster ventured into the meadow, its thick legs armed with long spurs at the ankles, a single horn growing from the centre of its misshapen, four-eyed head. It huffed as it moved with an awkward, swingi
ng gait to avoid the long spurs on its forelegs. It seemed unaware of them, crossing the open ground at an angle to pass in front of them.
"Real-reality?" Sabre whispered to Purr.
The mosscat nodded, his yellow eyes wide, then flung himself flat on the ground. "Down!" he whispered. "Get down! Everyone!"
Tassin dropped, pulling Dena with her. Sabre turned to the donkeys, reached under the closest beast and gripped the startled animal’s far foreleg, dragging it down. It thrashed as he climbed onto its neck to repeat the procedure with the other donkey, then he lay across their necks, pinning them. After an initial struggle they quieted, and Sabre looked around for the danger. Only the soft scuffling of the monster, now heading across their path into the trees, broke the forest's silence. Sabre glanced at Purr, who looked like a thick rug, hugging the ground as if it was his long lost mother.
Sabre longed to ask him where the danger was, but heeded the mosscat's advice. He shivered, and goose bumps rose on his skin. The temperature seemed to have plunged ten degrees. Something was close by, but still he could see nothing. Tassin gave a sharp hiss and Dena a muffled whimper, then the chill ebbed, and Sabre gathered that it was moving away, whatever it was. The monster, which still shuffled across their path, stopped and looked around, its ears twitching.
Something that looked like a heat shimmer, about a metre above the ground, moved towards the beast. The monster sensed it and backed away, snuffling, then turned and ran. The shimmer descended on it in a flash, and the beast reeled with a scream of agony. Its grey fur turned white as if covered with frost, and the monster collapsed, thrashing. Sabre watched with growing horror as the creature was consumed. Its hair vanished, revealing pink hide, then that seemed to fade, turning red as the meat beneath was exposed.
Tassin and Dena gaped at it, and he whispered, "Don't look."
The Cyber Chronicles 03: The Core Page 9