Aneka Jansen 3: Steel Heart

by Niall Teasdale

  ‘So we continue to see trade with other parts of the world, despite there being no way for it to get here,’ Gillian commented.

  ‘Uh-huh. Right now, I’m more interested in drinking real tea.’

  ‘The bedroom is nice,’ Ella said. Obviously she had gone upstairs. ‘More of this flowery paper on the walls…’

  ‘It’s called wallpaper,’ Aneka supplied.

  ‘Oh, right. The bed looks comfy. Sheets and blankets. I’m guessing this place isn’t that well insulated. The bathroom is… Well, there’s no shower, and the bath isn’t especially big, but there are two taps marked H and C.’

  Aneka laughed. ‘You really sound like a girl from the future. This place is not really much different from any house from my time. We got by fine.’

  ‘Huh. Did you notice she seemed a little uncomfortable about a same-sex relationship?’

  ‘Yes. Well, I’d have said it was more like surprise. She’s not used to it. She expected us to use one bed though.’

  ‘More contradictions.’

  Aneka turned at the sound of the door opening in the lounge and stepped out of the kitchen. ‘Abigail’s back.’ Aloud she said, ‘Hello again.’

  Abigail glanced around the room and then gave Aneka the most genuine smile she had seen so far on a townsperson. She put the wicker basket she was carrying on the table and began taking plates out of it. ‘Uh, there’s cheese, some fresh butter, and bread baked this morning.’ Aneka’s nose was detecting the last of those already and she sighed. ‘I hope that’s good enough for some lunch…’

  ‘Anything is better than travel rations. Ella will be pleased. She’s upstairs.’

  The girl blinked and lowered her voice. ‘She lets you use her first name?’

  Aneka kicked herself. ‘Insists on it. Wait for her to tell you to, but she will. You might want to warn your father.’

  ‘Oh… A-and you and her… I mean they hate being alone so she’d want you to sleep with her, but do you… It’s just that some of the men have wanted… If she likes girls I…’

  Aneka stepped forward and put a hand on Abigail’s shoulder, stopping the stream of steadily worsening gibberish. ‘I’ve been with her for a while. What she wants here is to gather her data and move on. You don’t have anything to worry about, and neither does anyone else here.’

  In the kitchen, the kettle began to whistle. Abigail smiled uncertainly. ‘You were making tea? I’ll do that, you cut the bread.’

  ‘Okay,’ Aneka replied. Inside her head she said, ‘You hear that?’

  ‘Uh-huh,’ Ella replied. ‘This is going to be a lot harder than I thought if none of them trusts me.’

  Aneka found the bread knife and cut into the cob loaf; the smell of fresh bread filled the room. ‘We’ll work on it. I suggest you get down here and try this food because the bread smells wonderful.’

  There was the immediate sound of footfalls on the stairs and Ella let out a sigh. ‘Oh, that bread smells wonderful,’ she said, repeating Aneka’s words. ‘I am really going to enjoy this.’

  Abigail walked in from the kitchen carrying a tray with a teapot and some cups on it. ‘Thank you, Citizen.’

  ‘Please call me Ella. If possible, I’d like to talk to your father this afternoon, about my survey.’

  Abigail put the tray down, gave a little curtsey, and started for the door. ‘I’ll tell him, Cit… Uh, I’ll tell him, Ella.’

  Ella watched her leave before sitting down with a frown and accepting the slice of bread Aneka handed her. ‘This is really going to be hard.’ She bit into the cheese and bread, chewing thoughtfully. Then her face relaxed. ‘This is… At least the food is good.’

  Aneka chuckled. ‘We’ll think of something to make it easier.’

  ~~~

  Abigail was a chatty drunk, which was useful. The conversation with her father had been full of agreement with whatever Ella wanted to do, and also very stiff and formal. So when Abigail had returned with the evening meal, and it had included a bottle of wine, Ella had insisted that the girl stay to have a drink and talk. She had been a little reticent until half the glass had gone into her; she had worse alcohol tolerance than Ella.

  ‘We’re quite proud of our flocks,’ Abigail was saying. ‘You’ll see tomorrow. Best sheep in the country, we think. It’s our main income, though Dad is trying to expand a little. We’re building a cattle herd down near Carsington Water. It’s a bit of a distance away, but we’re working with the villagers in Wirksworth. We’ve got the market, see? And they’ve got the land, so it’s a good match.’

  ‘That’s very progressive,’ Ella said. ‘You seem to trade with a lot of people too. For tea, for example.’

  ‘Oh that’s traders up from the Prime City. You’d know that, of course, cos you’re from there. They come through every month and we trade for what we want.’ She giggled. ‘Tea is a favourite. Everyone likes tea. And fuel for the tractors comes in monthly. Bridger can handle repairs mostly, but he can’t make parts or fuel.’

  ‘Bridger?’

  ‘He runs the garage. He’s a good mechanic. Best in the area.’

  ‘And what do people do for entertainment around here?’ Aneka asked. ‘It seems very quiet.’

  ‘On a Sunday, in summer, we all meet in the town square.’ Well, that confirmed that that had been Sunday then. ‘We have books, music… I like singing.’

  ‘She was the one singing at the party,’ Aneka said silently. ‘I thought I recognised her voice.’

  ‘Sing for us,’ Ella said, smiling.

  ‘Oh, I’m terrible, especially without accompaniment.’

  ‘I bet you aren’t. I’d really like to hear you.’

  Blushing, Abigail sat up straight, lifted her head, opened her mouth, and sang. It was a soft, almost melancholy song, perhaps a lullaby, and they sat there and listened to it in silence. Aneka did not recognise it, either the tune or the lyrics; people were composing new music still it seemed. Abigail had a clear, strong voice, maybe a soubrette. It was really quite beautiful, and the silence when she ended lasted long enough that she was starting to look a little worried when Ella spoke.

  ‘That was amazing. You’ve got real talent, Abigail.’

  Abigail’s eyes dipped and she went scarlet. ‘Oh, I don’t…’

  ‘Yes, you do,’ Aneka said. ‘I don’t recognise the song…’

  ‘It’s something Mum used to sing to me when I was younger and scared of the ogres in the hills.’ Her face went still. ‘And then they took her.’ Looking forlorn, she finished her wine. ‘I should be getting back… We’ve an early start in the morning.’

  ‘You’re coming with us?’ Ella asked. They had arranged to go out to see one of the flocks in the morning, but there had been no mention that Abigail was coming.

  ‘Yes. It’s my job to make sure you’re tended to and, well, the others aren’t used to talking to citizens. I’ll be back in the morning to make breakfast and get you up.’

  ‘I’m looking forward to it,’ Ella replied.

  ~~~

  ‘Do you know what an ogre is?’ Ella asked.

  Aneka gave a little shrug and the bathwater shivered around them. The bath was big enough for two if they both sat up or, as in this case, one lay in the other’s lap. ‘An ogre was a fairy tale creature. Big, strong, not very nice. I think they’re supposed to eat babies. Unless you believe in Shrek. Uh… don’t ask about Shrek.’

  ‘Okay, so Abigail thinks her mother was taken by monsters.’

  ‘Well, there are those groups of Humans in the hills that the Hyde spotted moving around at night. The dead sheep with the crushed skull. I’m guessing that there are bandits out there who dress up and scare people by playing on the ogre myths.’

  ‘Makes sense.’ There was silence for a few seconds. ‘You know, I think I could get used to this.’ She was currently using Aneka’s breasts as a pillow. ‘Maybe I should get a bath put into the apartment.’

  ‘There’s no room, love.’

  �
�It’s warm and comfy, and a bit weightless. I’ll see if I can make room.’

  14.9.526 FSC.

  Aneka opened her eyes, making out the shape of Abigail edging through the dark room, guided by a tiny torch. Assuming the usual twenty-four-hour day still applied, it was four-thirty in the morning and Aneka was glad she had insisted on Ella going to bed early.

  Abigail stopped at Aneka’s side of the bed, started to reach out, and then stopped. ‘You’re awake,’ she whispered. ‘We need to get going soon. They’ll be heading out as soon as the sun is up. There’s breakfast downstairs.’

  Aneka nodded and turned to Ella, giving her a light shake. ‘Time to be up, Ella.’ The shaking and the words probably would not have worked, but the signal to her embedded computer was not something her brain could ignore.

  Groaning, Ella reached out to turn the bedside lamp on, pulled the sheets aside, and climbed out of bed. ‘Don’t get in my way. I’m going to the bathroom before I change my mind and go back to bed.’

  Aneka grinned and slid her legs free of the sheets. She looked up to see Abigail staring. ‘What?’ Aneka asked.

  ‘Uh, you’re both… very attractive. And naked.’

  ‘Thank you. Does it bother you?’

  ‘Uh, well, no. I’m just not used to… I’ve never seen a Citizen who looked so fit and you… the muscles…’

  ‘She believes in keeping her body healthy. I’m sorry, we’re not very modest.’

  ‘It’s all right. Really. I should go down and put the breakfast on plates.’

  Aneka rose to her feet and started for the door. ‘And I’ll make sure she hasn’t fallen asleep in the bath.’

  ~~~

  The three shepherds they were out in the fields with were named David, Mark, and Marie. David and Marie were brother and sister, and there seemed to be something going on between Marie and Mark. Ella figured that they had been working together for a few years, which would either breed contempt or the opposite. It made some sense. Aneka got the feeling that the trio had been bribed to take on the two outsiders and Abigail by virtue of the large amount of food the Reeve’s daughter had brought along, apparently for all of them. Aneka had taken the heavy basket off Abigail almost immediately. The complaints lasted until it was noticed that Aneka seemed to be barely feeling the weight on the end of her arm.

  They had reached the field in which the flock had been penned the night before about half an hour after sunrise. It seemed to surprise the shepherds that they had not been slowed up by the two visitors.

  ‘David,’ Ella said as they walked through the flock towards a set of wooden poles which were set up in the corner of the field, ‘what are you planning to do today?’

  ‘Uh… Well that depends. Lambing’s done, shearing too. We check the flock, see if the ogres got any in the night. Open the next field up to them. Then it’s mostly just watching. Before nightfall we’ll pen them up again.’

  ‘So you rotate the fields they feed on?’

  ‘Yeah. We’ve got eight fields. We move them around one every day. It keeps the grazing fresh, but next year we’ll need to move them onto the second pasture.’

  Ella nodded. ‘That sounds efficient. Everyone here follows the same pattern?’

  ‘Yeah. Have done for generations.’

  ‘What do you know about animal husbandry?’ Aneka asked silently.

  ‘Right now I’m pretty good at it,’ Ella replied. ‘I slotted a skill chip before we came out here. Animal husbandry and farming.’

  ‘Oh. You got many of those?’

  ‘A few. I’ve got basic chips for several skills none of us have. Gillian figured it was worth the expense since we got way over our required budget.’

  ‘It’s looking like rain,’ Marie said, looking up at the sky. ‘We should set up the shelter first. Make sure our guest doesn’t get wet.’

  Ella opened her mouth to protest, and then obviously thought better of it, frowning instead. ‘I’ll do it,’ Aneka said, partially to assuage Ella’s guilt. ‘You get started on your flock.’

  The three shepherds looked at each other, unsure, until Abigail said, ‘Go on. We can handle it.’ Looking distinctly unhappy, Ella put down her own small rucksack, extracted a sensor unit from it, and went out after the shepherds.

  The shelter was basically a tarpaulin, hidden for the night under some rocks, which went up on the poles to form an open-sided box which was likely at least waterproof. Abigail started to help as Aneka lifted the fabric up, and then stopped trying as the robot woman just yanked the sheet into place with very little apparent effort.

  ‘Tie it off,’ Aneka instructed. ‘I’ll hold it.’

  ‘You’re, uh, very strong.’

  ‘People tell me that, yes.’

  ‘Did, um… Did they do something to you?’

  ‘Who?’

  ‘The people from the city. Ella.’

  Aneka laughed. ‘No. No, they didn’t do anything to me. What makes you think that?’

  ‘Well… We hear stories. They all have these plugs at the back of their head, and they do experiments all the time.’

  ‘Ella just collects data. No experiments. And none of them experimented on me.’

  Abigail tied off the last of the cords and looked around. ‘What’s she doing now then?’

  ‘Sensor analysis of the sheep. She’s checking blood oxygen levels, nutrition, temperature… Basically she’s checking their health.’

  ‘You seem to know a lot about it.’

  ‘Sometimes she needs help.’

  ‘She doesn’t look very happy,’ Abigail said, nervously. ‘Do you think she’s found something wrong?’

  ‘No, she just isn’t really happy about not being liked.’

  ‘What?!’ It was almost a squeak.

  ‘Abigail,’ Aneka said. ‘It’s pretty obvious that everyone’s nervous about her. You seem to have eased up a little after last night, but these three had to be bribed with food to be happy about us coming along. She’s not stupid. She’s just here to take some notes, not hurt anyone, and she doesn’t think she deserves the hostility. Not that she entirely blames you, but it doesn’t mean she has to be happy about it.’

  ‘Oh. She seems quite nice, but…’

  ‘She’s from the city?’

  ‘Yes.’

  Aneka tried not to sigh. Obviously her idea to have Ella be one of the smart visitors had been a really lousy one.

  ~~~

  The rain came mid-morning. It was not actually too bad; large, warm, summer drops fell, making an impressive sound on the tarpaulin. Aneka raised her face to it, smiling. Marie looked up from where she was checking one of the ewes, shook her long, dark hair, and then went back to work. Ella was almost pushed into the shelter by Abigail and Mark.

  ‘I bloody hate this,’ Ella grumbled into Aneka’s head.

  ‘I’m sorry, love. If I’d known we’d have both come in as locals.’

  ‘No… If they’d seen my implants they’d have been suspicious, and this is probably making it easier to get the data we want. It was a good idea, even if I hate it. David’s looking a little tense.’

  David was a slim man with a lot of corded muscle, probably from manhandling sheep, and short, dark hair. Right now he was holding the shotgun he had brought with him as though he might have to use it. His eyes were on the sheep, more specifically on his sister out among the sheep.

  ‘You expecting trouble?’ Aneka asked.

  ‘There have been a few reports of ogres moving about in the day.’ His voice carried the same tension as his body; ogres were real, it seemed, and something of a threat. Aneka glanced at her rifle case on the ground just inside the shelter. ‘They usually stick to night raids, but every so often they get bold.’ She flicked open the straps on her holsters, just in case. ‘They like the rain. Harder to hear them…’ He stopped, reeling back and to the left just as Aneka registered the sound of the shot.

  In-vision Al popped up a directional indicator showing where the shot had c
ome from. Aneka was already drawing her pistols and turning to the right. Targeting images showed in her vision field, the right one zooming in as she saw the figure in a classic shooting stance over one of the low stone walls which divided the field. He was shifting his aim, but not towards her.

  ‘He’s lining up on Mark,’ Al said. ‘He wants the men dead.’

  ‘I’m affronted,’ Aneka replied, and pulled the trigger. A stream of needles shredded the air and then the chest of the man with the gun. He jerked violently, staggering backwards and then falling behind the wall. Aneka was pretty sure that he was dead, but she was not going to get the chance to check immediately.

  There was a roar from her left and she swung Clara around ahead of her body, the camera picking up three more men in rough clothing charging towards them from the next field. Her overclocked brain took in details even as she was swinging herself around to bring both pistols to bear. Abigail was screaming. Mark had not moved yet, but he was starting to react. David was still moving; at least he was not dead. The three men running towards them had melee weapons: two carried little more than thick tree branches, the third had a knife. Their clothes were not just rough, but tied on, and their skin looked odd, sallow, thick, and rough. They would be on her in a second…

  The air filled with bullets as the horrendously powerful machine pistols swept in twin arcs across the space occupied by the three men. They looked, if anything, surprised and they did not seem to have time to register any pain before they were sprawling onto the grass. Aneka registered the fact that the sheep were starting to panic and Ella was screaming something as she grabbed for her rucksack. Then something that felt like a sledgehammer crashed into the back of Aneka’s head and she staggered forward a pace, turning as she did so.

  Another of the strange men was behind her, recovering from swinging what was actually a sledgehammer at her. There were messages flashing across her vision indicating that she had taken damage to her dermal layer, but her skull was living metal, very thick, and pretty much immune to hand-powered weaponry. This close she could see the thickened brow, heavy jaw, dense muscle structure, and skin that looked like greyish orange peel. The ogres were Human, she was sure of that, but there was something wrong with them. It really did not matter. She rammed Bridget’s muzzle into the ogre’s belly, angled her upward, and pulled the trigger. Blood, flesh, and bone fragments exploded upward as his body thrashed and jerked on the stream of hyper-dense plastic and force pulses.