by Prax Venter
The augmented centaur Collector named Ari rolled her eyes.
“She didn’t ask for your entire history. The mewling Pureheart obviously meant that she’s never seen an Endocite Construct before.” The bionic horse-woman started trotting diagonally so she could keep pace while focusing on Mark behind her. “Under which rock did you find this quaint little doe, Lover?”
Sasha’s tail snapped once. “Keep your eye on the hills, Fighter. I thought the mission was all that mattered?”
The centaur’s quiet, dark-skinned Enthralled turned her head and snapped at her partner.
“The succubus is right, Ari. Would you focus for fuck’s sake?”
Ari sucked her teeth as she narrowed her eyes at Sasha before turning to face the massive transport trundling ahead of them.
“Let’s just say that all four of us came from under a rock,” Mark said, and Iona turned to smile at him.
“Sorry,” Jezebel said, “I’m just very interested in non-biological intelligence. I can honestly say I’ve never met an Endocite Construct before and that I am thrilled to be doing so now.”
“It must be so neat!” Gwenthwip said from across the road. “You know, to experience amazing things for the first time. Ignorance is opportunity!”
“Ha!” Abby let out a sharp, honest laugh. “I vehemently concur.”
“Non-biological intelligence,” Iona repeated as she rubbed the smooth metal of her fingers against the flawless surface of her chin. “The term might fit, yet my void-dredged soul could have been biological for all I know.”
Jezebel remained quiet, hoping for further explanation, but none came.
“I hate to celebrate my ignorance again so soon,” she said, “but… void-dredged soul?”
“Are we really having the how babies are made talk?” the big elephant-woman said, finally showing some interest in the conversation.
The human named Bann lifted his open palm to Torf, and the big elephant-woman sighed and returned to scanning the hills as they walked, her thick armor clinking with every heavy step of her flat, gray feet.
“I’m with you, warrior,” Tar the tiger said. “I was hoping this mission would have more combat and less... philosophy.”
“You’re all free to leave,” Ari shouted without turning around. Her Enthralled partner shot her a disgusted look.
“What?” the pink-haired centaur said, pointing ahead. “I’m focused, shut up.”
Iona thought about her answer before she spoke.
“When enough Endocite fragments fall from the heavens and are harvested from the magnet towers, the next approved breeding pair of existing Constructs deactivate The Shroud long enough for a soul to gather in the Final Basin where a preconstructed shell awaits engraving. Then- boom! Here I stand.”
Mark felt a half-smile grow on his face as Jezebel got both answers and nonsense. At least that high-fantasy madness felt more like The Crystal Heart world he was used to than did anything he found in the Centaur Technocracy.
“Mmm,” Jezebel nodded in mock understanding. “But-”
All she got out was ‘but’ before a small, sharp explosion detonated on the right side of the transport, and it came to a screeching halt as everyone searched for the origin of the attack.
But there was nothing but quiet and still grasses all around them. A larger hill about fifty yards away on the right could be a perfect place for someone to be launching an ambush, however, and he kept his True Sight focused for any threats.
Twenty seconds passed, yet nothing appeared to assault their cargo, and Mark started to hear the voice of Overseer Derurto yelling at someone up near the front.
“I’m going to check it out,” Mark said. “You three wait here, but come to me if there’s danger.”
“Right,” Sasha said, her tail snapping once.
“I’m going too,” Ari said and galloped ahead of him.
Mark swung wide around the back of the container and saw a group of soldiers standing by one of the front treads. He jogged along the length of the giant metal box to join them.
“Idiots!” Derurto yelled.
“Fuck you, Overseer,” a guard yelled back. “I checked this vehicle three times mysel-”
“Then, next time- check it four!”
“What happened?” Mark asked as he approached.
“Tread link snapped, Collector. This transport mission just grew a few hours longer. We’ll have to wait for a new hauler to be dispatched and then-”
“Hold up,” Mark said, putting up his palm. “Let me see if I can restore it.”
“What, you think can Heal military vehicles?” Ari said from behind him as she turned from searching the hills.
He ignored her and focused on the twisted piece of metal that was intended to bind one length of looped track to another. The whole transport had six of these smaller tread “wheels” on each side, and this one tiny cylinder of metal brought the whole thing to a stop.
Mark flexed his newly unlocked ability to restore inanimate objects and dove into these simple interlocking bits of metal. The thing moved like a bicycle chain, and he could almost see the complete shadow of the broken part. The bit of metal was whole only moments ago, so he followed that wispy trail of existence back in time and discovered a comprehensive data library with simple-
“Uhg,” Mark moaned as he put a hand to his throbbing head. He opened his eyes and saw that the twisted shaft holding the tread tracks together had been restored, and it felt as if someone put out a cigarette directly on his brain.
“This is astonishing!” the blue-armored Overseer said. “I’m sure the higher-ups will find many uses for you, Collector.”
Mark looked around the group of centaur soldiers and Ari looking down at him with wide eyes, and he gave them a shrug.
“Just doing my job.”
Derurto held up his arm and then tapped a few times on a holographic projection. An instant later, the transport dug its tracks into the soft dirt and began moving forward again.
As it did, Mark’s mental antenna picked up a flash of frustrated anger from the group of Collectors at the rear, and his magic eye whispered traces of ill intent. He was now fairly certain that this was an intentional accident.
Apparently, Ari felt the same way.
“Does anyone else find it convenient that this Mark is suddenly here to fix this problem the moment the transport fails?”
Mark’s head cocked to the side with genuine confusion as he walked among the heavily armed centaurs.
“Are you saying I somehow caused this breakdown, but then also repaired it?”
Derurto crossed his huge metal arms and locked eyes with Ari.
“Yes, what exactly are you saying?”
“I’m saying it’s suspiciously convenient.”
Mark shook his head, trying to understand her logic. Did he get the sabotage vibe from her? The throbbing in his head made it hard for him to get a good, deep read on her, but all he felt was frustration at not being recognized as the hero.
“Welp,” Mark began with a sigh, “if you’d rather everything be inconvenient, why don’t you just shoot that metal piece I restored. It’s currently a moving target, but I’m sure you’re capable of hitting it.”
“Enough of this,” Derurto said. “Back to positions everyone, and let’s get this done.”
Mark simply stopped walking and let the transport move alongside him, and he watched the pink-haired Fighter holster her weapons as she turned around too.
“Hey!” Mark said as she began to gallop away with disgust twisting her pretty face. Ari skidded to a halt and turned to face him, her pink tail flipping behind her. “What’s your damn problem with everyone?” Mark asked.
“My problem is that this was obviously sabotage meant to delay the transport-”
“I agree,” Mark cut her off. “But why the hell would you think it was me? I got it moving again in less than five minutes. Pretty stupid thing to do if I were trying to delay the mission.”
“I don’t trust any of you,” she said finally.
Mark sighed and started walking back toward the group.
“Ari, I’m not sure who fucked you over in the past, but not everyone is your enemy... unless, we all are, and you’re only pissed because I conveniently ruined your ambush.”
He watched her reaction carefully as she trotted up next to him. Within the mists of her mind, he found mostly unending arrogance, but like the cabbage-armored Cel, Ari was a new Collector from a wealthy family. Not politically powerful, but just super rich. There was no desire to hijack the cargo there. She really wanted this to succeed, and the reward would allow her the opportunity to be as important to the universe as she thought she was.
“You’re right,” she said with a sneer. “Maybe I am responsible.”
Mark gave her a genuine smile. He didn’t expect her to respond with her version of humor.
They were only a short distance from the others, and both rejoined the group together.
“Well?” Iona asked with her palms up as she sashayed along behind the transport.
Ari spoke first. “Someone sabotaged the mission, and apparently, this human Lover would be able to Heal you.”
“Explain,” the elephant-woman said, her beady eyes glinting under her thick iron helmet.
Mark answered. “A bit of metal broke, and I Healed it. Sabotage is only a guess right now.” He locked eyes with Sasha, Jezebel, and Abby after he said the word ‘guess’, and each of them now knew that it was sabotage and that they were now possibly in danger. After he made sure his loves were on the same page, he extended his mind and began scanning the collection of odd Collectors and their Enthralled, starting with the only other human.
He was also the only one who hadn’t said one word the whole time, but that certainly wasn’t a crime. Mark had to struggle to pull anything from him and wondered if the spiked crown was causing resistance. He got through eventually but saw that Bann was a secretive man, and his mind was a well-ordered collection of iron boxes. On the surface, the patterns that swirled there fit more of a man who lived by the law. He loved and depended on his two Enthralled, a meaty elephant-woman and the… Pixie- that’s what her race was called.
“This would have been a suitable spot for an ambush,” Iona said, searching the hills to their right.
Mark turned to see what he could pick up in this strange Construct’s mind, but he was shocked to find nothing. He’d been holding back his probing magic blind eye with the intent to learn better control, but even with the self-imposed shackles off and his focus dialed past the maximum, Mark could see absolutely nothing but an empty void where the metal woman’s mind should be. Maybe she was just a robot and all that craziness before about souls was… no, everyone else around them seemed to already know this and it had to be the truth.
His focus pulled over to Sasha’s sauntering hips and realized that “just a robot” was a phrase that no longer meant anything.
He shifted his piercing gaze to Iona’s two Enthralled, the tiger twins, and they both held primal drives to eviscerate living things. The male desperately wanted an ambush to happen while Sar was split between that and making her Collector happy. And both were equally disappointed that the transport was moving again.
“So, Mark,” Iona called his name and broke his concentration, “you can Heal flesh as well as metal?”
He nodded. “Looks that way. I only recently unlocked the augmentation to my normal ability and still don’t quite have a handle on it.”
Her glowing white eyes turned down to watch Sasha’s chrome legs.
“You certainly are a handy one to have around. Any other tricks up your sleeve, Lover?”
Maybe it was the absence of detectable emotions from this robot-woman, but the way the smooth plates on her face pulled inward when she asked about his abilities felt off to him. Was he acting over-suspicious, or was his cheating ability to feel emotions making him generally better at reading people?
“You should see his dirty tricks between the sheets,” Sasha answered for him, catching Iona watching her thighs over her shoulder. “The three of us are barely sane after a night in his arms.”
“Mmm,” the metal woman moaned. “I would love to compare essence transfer techniques. Perhaps after we reach our destination you could give me… a few pointers?”
Mark’s eyes wandered down to Iona’s wide hips and noticed that portions of her pelvis area were made of a white rubbery substance. She started to remind him of a sex bot back in the real world- the type that cost ten times what he paid for his total immersion rig. The thought made him wonder what they did to their owners after the Update hit them.
“Perhaps,” he said with a half-smile.
“Maybe I could watch, too?” Bann’s enthralled Pixie said.
“Of course, sweetie,” the blonde bombshell of a sex-demon said. “Everyone here is free to watch the show if they want. Maybe some audience participation will be encouraged as well…”
Ari looked over her shoulder at Sasha, and he expected her to say something mean or condescending, but a hot flash of desire struck his magic eye instead. This female centaur was only into other ladies, and she was now very interested in his succubus.
But he wasn’t the only one to catch her gawking.
“Seriously?” her blue-haired partner said with contempt clear on her face. Ari’s enthralled centaur shook her head and quickened her gait to a fast trot.
“Jocia, wait! I didn’t do anything, damn it!”
The pair of horse-women moved closer to the transport and began arguing as quietly as they could. Their emotions flared into a bonfire before his sightless eye. Apparently, this wasn’t the first time Ari had strayed into someone else’s arms, and Jocia hated her for it. Watching them, Mark got a better insight into the differences between the Collector classes. With only two people in the relationship, it seemed as if sharing was more problematic for Fighters. Mark could see that no matter what happened during this mission, Jocia would ask to be disavowed after it was over. They’d only just started out as a team, and she had advanced a few nodes into her sharpshooting ability tree, but the blue-haired centaur didn’t want to waste any more time on their dysfunctional relationship.
Mark puffed out a breath and left them to their issues. He was glad the three women in his virtual life got along and had no real problem sharing him with each other, or others. They were proud, in fact, to show him off.
Remembering there was still a potential enemy in their midst, Mark ignored the angry couple and refocused on trying to figure out who it was.
The elephant-woman was almost as single-minded as Iona’s tigers. She owed some deep personal debt to Bann and protecting and loving him was all she lived for. Both of them were reserved in public, but… but Mark pulled back from the bubbling cauldron that was their private nightly passions. In the end, he was certain Torf was here to get the reward for this quest.
The same thing went for the size-shifting Pixie. Her mind was a chaotic swirl of glitter and universal gratitude just to be alive. There wasn’t a deceitful or hidden mote in her mind, and Mark crossed her off quickly. Although, he did learn that Gwenthwip’s current max size was about twelve feet tall.
Maybe the short blackout that happened when he tried to hack the system was messing with his other abilities, and he hallucinated the burst of anger he felt after he had fixed the transport. It was still better to be safe than sorry, so he passed his blind eye over Tar and-
And he saw that both of the cat-people were currently picking targets. The male focused on the best way to take down Bann without dealing with his protectors, and the sleek muscled female was sure she’d have no problem slicing open Mark’s soft throat in the blink of an eye. Both of their primal hearts were perfectly synced war drums beating out an undeniable warning.
They were only moments from atta
cking.
Mark stopped on the spot, and his Enthralled stopped immediately after.
“Uh, Iona,” Mark said, broadcasting danger to his three bonded loves. “Can you hang back with me for a moment. I’d like a word with you- you know, about tonight.”
- 26 -
“What is it?” the metal woman asked once they were off to the side and out of earshot. Mark, as always, decided to simply lay his cards on the table.
“I know it was you, and I know your ‘little bundles of joy’ were seconds away from eviscerating the two nearest Collectors. You seem like a nice lady, and I can tell you three love each other. I’m here to give you a warning not to underestimate us.”
They walked in silence for a while, and he still felt absolutely nothing from her. Up ahead, it was hard not to feel the worry and confusion from her two tiger twins. Their tails started flipping behind them like Sasha’s when she was angry, and he was happy to see his armored Druid and his badass Destructor move to cover Abby while also pulling away from them.
“Very good, Mark,” Iona said eventually. “You really are full of tricks. Point taken about the underestimation. Yet, you wouldn’t be a Lover if you didn’t come here and try to talk me out of it, would you?”
Mark looked over at her. “I’m glad we could come to this understanding.”
“The truth is,” she said in her smooth, slightly distorted voice, “I’m doing this for my people. You don’t know what it’s like back in my home on the cliffs. These potent power cells will help us survive for generations. Perhaps you could help capture them instead? We don’t have much, but my village will celebrate you as a hero, and I and my talented Sar will be extremely- uh, how should I say it? Appreciative...”
She winked at him, and Mark looked deep into the pure-white lights that were her eyes. He almost burst a blood vessel trying to pick up the slightest whisper of a lie, but there was nothing. Mark shook his head.