Redx

by Jessie Rose Case

  “It err…. has been broken twice before,” she whispered and looked up at him. His cool eyes seemed to wash over her taking her all in. Her mouth dried and she swallowed. He nodded slowly.

  “I can see that. Who do I kill?”

  She tried not to smile. “What’s a new skull graft? Never heard of it.”

  Part of him wanted her answer but he let it go. “It is not something this world can do, but we can.”

  “You’re not from here?”

  “No.”

  “That’s explains a lot. It would be tough to miss you. So who are you?”

  RedX had the impulse to hold her to him and take her pain away. A smile crept across his face and let it happen. “We are Cyborg. From the Cyborg Empire. We were invited here to look at trade, update this world, work with you as you wish. We can offer security, food and other provisions, like updated medical equipment if it’s wanted. If not, that is ok too. We work with who we can and help those that need it.” He couldn’t help himself, lifting his hand he gently passed his thumb over her chin. “This has a fracture to. An old one. It can be fixed as well.”

  His thumb was so gentle and soft on her skin. His words almost a whisper for her ears only. He was trying to comfort her…. A lump formed in her throat. She couldn’t afford to be vulnerable and moved out of his hand. She swallowed again trying for some moisture and gave a half smile. The feel of him on her skin way …… too nice. A sweet move for such a large man. Jamie looked at him properly for the first time. Through all that haze of ignited interest that her body was reacting to, she saw him for what he was. A thoughtful and caring one. She frowned. Were Cyborgs able to be thoughtful and caring? He moved and poured some water in a cup passing it to her retaking his seat. “Thank you.” Jamie drank the cool water and felt immediately better. Unsure if it was the space she now had or the water itself.

  RedX watched the tide of emotions filter across her face. He could see each one as it washed over her. She had desire for him. He could taste it in the air around them, but she also had a moment of panic and fear, burnt essence took over the desire. It was why he’d moved to get her some water. She needed the space and was calmer now having taken the water.

  “We,” he spoke quietly, “have the facilities to be able to fix the human body of injuries old and new. It is called a med bed. It can scan as I did. Then run a diagnostic on what is wrong and how best to put that right. It then uses the building blocks of life and your own system to do that.”

  Jamie knew she was staring but couldn’t help it. What he was talking about was the stuff of miracles. “You can do that?”

  “Yes, your Medical Director is undergoing the treatment now.”

  “It doesn’t change us? Like…. make us like you? No offence.”

  RedX smiled and shook his head at her. The sound of her voice warmed him. “None taken. It was a logical question. No. Only Designers can do that, and they are long dead. We do not make Cyborgs. We will be the last and only ones of our kind.”

  They were dying out? “Are your people dying?”

  RedX registered her concern for him and his people. A tightness formed in his chest. She cared if they lived or died. “We will expect to die in time as everything does but we are not dying out. Our DNA lives on in our children.”

  Jamie stared again then nodded. For a moment there she’d thought they were dying. Then the bombshell, they had kids. “You a good Dad?”

  RedX shook his head slightly. “I’m not gifted with that joy, I hope to as we all do but finding our female’s is not easy.”

  The thought of no more weird pains or getting up and down at all times of the day or night for some relief, sounded damn good to her. “Ok sign me up,” she yawned.

  “I will. But first I will give you a sleep draft and you will rest awhile until the bed is free. Then we will take you to it. You may want to let your people know you will be unavailable for a day or two.” The female lifted her own datapad and sent a message.

  “Good to go,” she told him putting the data pad down. “Knock me out. I could do with the sleep.” She yawned again. The female was very direct. His sensors told him he liked that. RedX had been taking her readings the entire time he’d been in her presence. His system also told him he didn’t like what he’d seen. Exhaustion, dehydrated, malnourishment. Like most on this world. Plus, it was clear that this female had been physically abused. For many years. Many of her injuries would have been life threatening. RedX fought the impulse to kill someone and pulled out the injector again and loaded it with a sleep draft. The Director had another 12 hours to go. He’d make sure she slept that time before he put her in the med bed. He moved to inject her and helped her to lie back down as she started to drift.

  “Sleep now. You are safe. I will protect you.”

  Jamie heard him. He seemed to be getting further away and murmured. Not sure if he would hear her. “I protect myself.”

  ***

  He found it difficult to stay away. Thoughout his time in their equivalent of medical, he would gravitate towards the sleeping female and check her status. She was in a deep sleep brought on by the injection. It was more than the medication itself. Her own body had needed it. He could tell that from her levels. The moment he was alerted by the med bed that the Director was waking, he called for assistance to move the female to the waiting room. On entering the med bed lid was open and the Director was waking. The med bed had replaced the original medical wrap he’d been wearing with a new one. The old would have been broken down and reused in some way as the machine was made to do.

  The Director blinked and looked up at him. “I’m done?”

  RedX gave him a sharp nod moving to the panel requesting a printed record of the Directors condition before and after the treatment. Turning back to the Director he gave him a hand up and helped him out to a chair giving him the print out. Going back to the bed he closed the lid and started the sterilisation process. It would be ready for the female in 8 minutes.

  Turning back to the Director he watched him as studied the print out. Eventually he looked up. “That’s amazing.”

  “It is technology. You can check the results for yourself.” He handed him a scanner. The Director scanned himself then looked at the results.

  RedX watched the smile crawl across his face. Then he looked up at him again. “Thank you. Our people will want this.”

  “There is no reason why they cannot have it. Put in your request.”

  The Director got up and held out his hand. “I will.” It was a human thing. A handshake could mean many things but, in this case, RedX believed it to be a thank you as the words indicated. He took the hand and gave it a shake. He watched as the Director walked out the room, and called for the female to be brought in. The machine bleeped to indicate the sterilisation process was over. Uploading the scan he’d taken of her, the machine ran a diagnostic against over several thousand human females of her age, weight and DNA make up. It would make its final decision once it scanned her for itself and compared it to his. The female was brought in and they placed her in the machine.

  RedX closed the lid and let the machine do it’s thing. The readings soon displayed across his optic. All his systems went red. She was in poorer shape than he’d thought. She must have been living with constant pain in one place or another. He’d not seen her walk and many of the injuries would have shown up in how she held herself and walked across a room. He’d not seen it because she was sitting down. RedX clenched his hands as he gave permission for the med bed to start the healing process. The female would be in there for 5 days. Far longer than he’d firs thought. There were things that needed to be broken and reset. A kidney needed removing and regrown. It would have failed soon putting too much pressure on the other one. Numerous fractures and scaring. The bed would fix them all. And when she woke, he would be asking for names.

  ***

  She kept hearing his voice. In the distance, somewhere around her. Not frightening or scary, just there.
Comforting and reassuring. She couldn’t quite remember who he was or why he was here. But it didn’t matter. It was familiar. He chased the nightmares away and that was all that mattered. She was grateful for it. She knew the voice but couldn’t quite place him. An image of a very good-looking large male came to focus. She liked him which was a surprise. She didn’t like many men. To much history with them that hadn’t been good. She didn’t want to think about that. It only brought the nightmares on. There was his voice again. Telling her everything would be well. That he would protect her. Her natural instinct to tell him she’d protect herself didn’t happen. And in that moment, Jamie realised she was glad he could take that burden from her. Maybe she could let it go at last…….

  ***

  He’d been unable to stay away once more. His duties called for him to start his investigation, but he held back. The female seemed to need him more even though she was in a med bed. He’d checked on her every hour or so. Spoken to her though the canopy. Told her she was safe, that he was here for her.

  For his kind it was illogical, but he knew there were data on humans in comas that could hear voices. Although the female wasn’t in a coma, she was in an induced state that had a level of consciousness. The need had been strong, and he’d given in to it.

  Now it was part of his routine. His lack of sleep no problem, he didn’t require it like humans did. Cyborgs could go days without sleeping. And when they did, it would be for 2 or 3 hours, 4 max.

  He found himself talking about his day to her. About his people. What they had been through since their creation. He wasn’t sure how much she would remember if any at all, but it felt right.

  Even with his emotions turned off, he could feel how important this was to him. There was no logic to his actions, and he chose to ignore it. The female needed him somehow and that again was illogical. The med bed did everything she needed. She did not need him hovering over her. But he did it anyway. Was he malfunctioning? His diagnostic flowed across his optic. His systems were functioning normally. His emotion and pain sensors remained off and yet, emotions were bleeding through.

  RedX looked down on the female and placed a hand on the canopy. “You are safe now female. Rest and be well.”

  He couldn’t wait any longer. He had a job to do. Checking the reading, it told him she would be out for some time yet. His research had brought up a number of concerns. Logic told him it was time to go. RedX checked his equipment. With one last look at the female sleeping, the cover started to obscure as it started the mor serious healing process. He’d waited with her for as long as he could. Moving quickly away he headed out. There were places he needed to see, and he had the perfect reason to go looking. Accessing the visiting list from their computer, he informed he’d be doing the home visits. While connecting to a map of the community on his system he over laid those visits on his list across his optic. Locating his first visit and route thereafter.

  It gave him the perfect map of the area without needing anything else. As far as the people could tell, he was working. The people would see the white coat and equipment and take him for what he was. A medic. It was the perfect cover. He’d be making several detours, but no one would think anything more than a new arrival trying to find his way. His system automatically directed him to his first stop. Then he would check the routes and delivery points for all the hospital supplies.

  As he walked, in the background of his optic flashed the information he’d requested from this world. He’d wanted to know the female’s history. She wasn’t from this Sector. She’d travelled around alot and never mentioned where she’d been before or where she’d grown up. Only that it was a long way away. The humans here didn’t ask too many questions. They worked with what they had. Logic told him it was likely the furthest place possible was where she’d started if she’d been abused. That would be Sector 43. What she’d been through, likely the motivator to get out.

  RedX suddenly had a burning itch to go visit Sector 43 and bring some justice. But that would have to wait. He had no right to take that power from the female if she chose to do it herself. He registered that he’d happily help her do it as he recorded the information of her age, name and where she lived and worked. That would be useful. It was probable that it wasn’t her real name or age but close. If the bar she worked in was like all the other’s all over the universe, it was a bed of gossip, loose tongues and hard drinking. Information would be easier to find. Conflict showed on his sensors. He couldn’t deny that. She wasn’t part of his mission. Was he worried by the connection of the female and doing his job?

  He didn’t have enough data to go on. Recognising he would have to watch that, he couldn’t afford to let the female get in his way. Conflict showed again. His system didn’t like what was going on between his mind and body. He would have to tread carefully logic told him and the conflict on his sensors eased.

  The logic was clear. He would do nothing that harmed the female.

  He moved through the community with ease. The people he visited were naturally wary but welcomed him in once they understood the reason for his visit. Most had illnesses that couldn’t be fixed by this world. Those that could be saved he directed to the hospital, made arrangements for the use of the med bed and transport and went on his way to the next.

  His system constantly scanning the surrounding area for signs of being followed. Nothing alerted his systems. Moving silently, he made his way to his first investigative stop. The route taking him from the fringes of the community to the warehouse district. He only had time for quick surveillance. Walking around he hoped to pick up conversations and check what was going on. Take a look inside, infiltrate records on their computer systems and withdraw before anyone saw him. If it proved to be of interest, he’d pass it on to the Commander.

  The night moved towards dawn as he made the stops he needed to. As the sun came over the horizon, he finished his last patient and made his way back to the hospital. He’d already called down another med bed from his ship on the next Off-Worlder rotation. There were too many people on this world that had too many problems for one med bed. His system told him the world needed more than 12 and then it might not be enough.

  That wasn’t his decision to make. But he would pass his findings on to the Director. It would be up to this world if they traded for them or not. In the meantime, the Empire would do what they’d promised to do. Save as many as they could.

  ***

  She was dreaming. There was something strangely comforting about it which was unusual in itself. On some level she felt alive and awake which couldn’t be right. She remembered going into the med bed and normally, when sleeping try not to dream. What came to her, were often the nightmares of her past. Things she rather not relive or remember. But those memories were not with her now. She felt calm and warm. Safe on some metaphoric level. It was a welcome thought. A dream state of existence where she could feel safe. When was the last time she’d felt safe….? She couldn’t remember. Not really. She’d felt safer since she’d made it here but before that…… No, she’d not felt safe since a small child and things turned ……

  She would not think on that. Not now. She welcomed the warmth seeping into her. No tension or pain. It was wonderful. Anything seemed possible. Life, future, it was all out there, if she could embrace it. The image of the doctor who’d treated her came into her mind. He’d been kind and gentle. He could have pushed for information on her injuries but had held back. Not wanting to scare her, she guessed. It was thoughtful. His presence had been inviting in more ways than one. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been attracted to a male…… That, often ended badly.

  Jamie drifted. It had been a very long time…..

  Chapter Three

  His optic told him the female had another 12 hours, 34 minutes and 8 seconds before the repairs were completed. The optic display giving him a continual update while he went about his work. He could see it as clearly as he could the other diagnostic information being dis
played on his optic. His system was functioning at 100%. No red flags to drive action. Not that either of those displays prevented him from seeing perfectly. His vision held the images and allowed him to see through them to what was all around him. If he needed to focus, he could magnify any images in real time and everything he saw and did was recorded by his computer and stored in his data banks.

  Retrieving that information whenever he needed it.

  RedX made his way to the Directors office. Checking in with him was a logical action. He would check on his improvements, update him on the house calls he’d made and see if the med bed was a success. Building such bridges helped in the assimilation process. If they trusted him, he’d have more freedom. More freedom meant he could get more surveillance done. He wouldn’t mention his findings on their records yet. He needed more information to go on but something was wrong. Far too many patients over the years died for no reason.

  The female’s injuries flowed across his optic. She had been attacked more than once. All the injuries were during her growth period. Some had healed badly. She would have had a continual underlying pain running throughout her body. Were such abuses allowed on this world? It was something the Empire would not tolerate.

  He knocked as expected to do on the Directors door. “Come in.” RedX pushed open the door and walked inside closing the door behind him.

  “Good morning, how are you feeling?” he asked.