Vagabond Souls: The Ionia Chronicles: Book 2

by Pamela Stewart

  “But we don’t know that. He could be hurt? In trouble?” Ionia struggled to rise.

  “If we go back now we will be captured or killed,” Zee said.

  “Once you’re safe I will find him,” he said. He would go back and ensure the boy’s safety but only after Ionia was out of immediate danger.

  Ionia opened her mouth to protest but closed it again and laid her head back on Den’s shoulder.

  “Listen,” Zee said. “I will go first and get a place prepared. Then, after five minutes, you can help Ionia into the next one. Then after another five minutes, you can follow. It has amazing speed, 400 kmph unfettered. No humans know or use these paths so we can open the throttle.”

  “I want you to trust me. I’m not going to do anything to hurt her.” She stepped back and motioned to the compartment. “You can go first, but they won’t be prepared. The shielding we have keeps most messages and scanners out. “Just trust me.”

  Ionia, even though she was awake and aware, was non-responsive and lay, eyes closed, against him. She had left her safety in his hands, and now he had to decide whether he could trust the other droid. It made sense if she really wanted him to join her cause that she would not harm Ionia, but she could have an undisclosed agenda.

  He calculated the odds and did a quick review of his experiences with her. And his emotional circuit supported the decision. He could not determine why his emotional circuit leaned toward believing Zee. But that was the nature of emotion. Illogical.

  Yet he had no other choice at his disposal at the moment. The level of risk was acceptable.

  “I will allow you to precede as you suggested.”

  Zee’s shoulders relaxed, face softened, and she smiled. She must have been a companion droid for a very long time.

  From his quick scan, the transports, although aged, were operable and mechanically safe. They looked remarkably like the container he had been sent to NAR in, except a viewing window on the top. Zee hopped into a third, set the coordinates, and laid back. “I have preset the next two to follow. You only need to allow a five point two minutes difference in launch times to ensure safety.”

  “Understood.”

  She looked like she would say more, but then she clinked her hand controls and sped into the dark tunnel.

  “Ionia, do you want to go on this transport? I believe we will find a safe haven if we follow.”

  “I trust you, Den.”

  And that was his burden.

  He had to decide for both of them. A small spark of negative emotion jostled his processor, which he disregarded. Naturally, his emotional circuit would be disjointed after all the traumas and their current situation.

  “Using the transports will get us closer to ND and perhaps assistance from your family. Zee has proven to be reliable thus far, and I can protect you in most situations.” The tightness in his emotional center unwound slightly. Working through the logic out loud to Ionia almost felt like she’d agreed, or at least had not disagreed.

  He placed her into the silver capsule and pressed the launch sequence. When she was gone, he quickly leaped into his own, applied his safety harness, and waited the minimum safe amount of time before he hit his own button.

  From the coordinates he DLed from the console, they should be at their destination. He allowed himself to go into standby mode to recharge before they arrived. He needed to be ready for anything.

  ***

  His sensors jammed him back to awareness. His transport would be arriving in moments. These capsules were efficient for human needs and very comfortable. He just hoped that Ionia had used the time to gather herself and they could now make a plan of action together.

  He had no data concerning why she had agreed to the implant. When they had discussed it, she’d been against having an automated replacement. Something had changed. And he had no method to determine what her status was with her family. Perhaps she had had another rift with her maternal unit. The potential options spun out before him until he shut down his speculation function. The facts would present themselves soon enough.

  With a low-frequency hum, the deceleration began until the transport smoothly halted. From his viewing window, he saw a tunnel that appeared to be illuminated by actual flame. He depressed the exit button, scanning as quickly as his sensors would allow, and determined that there were no immediate threats. He homed in on Ionia, who was 2.7 meters ahead of him and jogged over to her. Zee stood speaking with another droid, smaller than her and fleshless and humanoid in structure.

  He gathered Ionia into his arms. “How did you fare during the journey?”

  She looked up at him with hooded eyes that widened as she looked around. “I rested. This place. What is it?”

  His connection with the Cortex was cut off, but he had DLed most of the current and historical maps of the territory. This place did not appear in any of his research. A series of more than a dozen tunnels met in a large hollowed-out, underground cave, all created from the red soil compressed and mixed with concrete and polyplasic to create a warm color that was laden with patterns, like mandala designs layering one against the next. The preciseness told him that some mechanized hands had built this sanctuary.

  “It’s breathtaking. The candlelight against the designs make it look like it’s moving.” Ionia said excitement colored her voice. He did a scan to assess her condition. Her white blood cells were still unusually active.

  They would have time to explore this place later. Now she should be examined. He approached Zee, carrying Ionia like a child.

  “Where can I take her?”

  “Here this way.” She led the way down one of the smooth tunnels. “Sorry, I should have taken you straight away.”

  The interior functioned very like the encampment on the mountain. Droids sped around focused on doing tasks. Strangely, their tasks were widely diverse and did not consist of battle preparations. One former refuse-collecting droid stood on the edge of his treads, wielding a paintbrush and adding designs to the wall décor. It was an unusual sight.

  Den located an unused table in a whitewashed room set away from the honeycomb of the main complex. There were no pillows or soft material. He guessed since most of the droids were not flesh endowed and did not need survival gear, warming, and healing materials were unnecessary. No food or beverage either.

  “Ionia, I am sorry. There don’t seem to be many human comforts here.” He had made a mistake trusting the droid. This was not sufficient care for Ionia, and he could not determine what was wrong without more advanced medical assistance.

  “Hold onto your hover board, mi amigo. I just have to gather the materials.”

  “Hurry.”

  “Den, I’m cold.”

  He was having a hard time determining Ionia’s health status. One moment all her readings were normal, but .5 seconds later he picked up the unusual cell activity and undulating temperature and hormone level.

  He laid her on one of the tables and lay next to her, turning up his internal warmer so he could give her some physical comfort.

  She cuddled into his side and laid her head on his shoulder then looked up at him through her lashes. “I really missed you.”

  His emotional center tightened. She did still want him. The words rubbed a balm on his ragged processor.

  “It took some effort to get all the way up the mountain and through our defenses. How did you achieve this feat?”

  “My cousin helped me. Den, we have to find him. Make sure he’s okay.”

  Den nodded. “Once you are cared for, I will inquire.” He faced Zee. “Do you have anything for human first aid? Antibiotic ointment and some sort of field dressing?” Den’s scans showed nothing. Perhaps more sensor blinding tech shielded this area?

  Zee placed a palm against one a wall, and it slid open. Connecting to the local net using touch—archaic but useful if seeking to avoid detection. A small square kit fell into her open arms, and she stood by the table side and gave Den a pointed look.

&nb
sp; “I have a full download from St. George’s Medical School and multiple practical certifications in both Western and Eastern medicines.” She locally streamed her credentials, which were impressive, to Den. Even if she had been a devoted med droid, it would have taken decades for a companion droid to acquire this much information.

  “I am perfectly capable of administering first aid. We need to locate Ravi and determine what is happening in the external world, and you are ideal for that assignment as coms only work from the main entrance hall.”

  He looked back at Ionia. A feeling on a par with losing a primary body part shot through his system. He didn’t want to leave her ever again.

  “Go. Find Ravi. I’m sure Zee here can help me.” As always, he bowed to her wishes but first leaned forward and touched the flesh of the back of his hand to Ionia’s cheek and allowed the sensation to drench his sensors.

  Alive, healthy, and here.

  He could ask for nothing more. He spun on his heel and exited the room. His mission became to locate her family. Then they could leave this place and maybe even leave this territory. He’d had enough of separations and judgments.

  ***

  Ionia’s fingertips were numb as if they were scarred by frostbite. Low noise, like a bee buzzing, hovered next to her ear just out of sight. Probably left over from the pod journey.

  Zee clicked open the box and pulled out a tin of burn ointment.

  The android was even prettier and stranger without the cloak. What remained of her face was smooth with perfect black almond eyes, long silky hair pulled back into an attractive high ponytail. Her pants clung to her shape, and a simple top covered her torso, designed for combat but form fitted and eye-catching. Her exterior was both attractive and off-putting at the same time.

  “So you are Den’s mistress?” she asked.

  “I am sick to death of that question. He’s my friend.”

  “A friend who is bonded to you.”

  The old seething anger flushed Ionia’s cheek, and she pushed up. A pinch like a wasp sting pushed in her fingertips. “Crap.”

  Zee’s face was a mask of concern and contrition. “Sorry, I know it hurts. I shouldn’t bait you. Let me see your hand.”

  Ionia let her have her hand but didn’t like it. The sooner they found Ravi and got out of this Country of Crazy, the better. She just hoped that he’d at least escaped and wasn’t being prosecuted for hijacking public transportation.

  For a second, she let the guilt of getting him in trouble pull her heart into a pit. She shook off the feeling. At least she had found Den, and they were together again. That familiar sense of peace flowed over her. She had her Den back. Her rock. Her superhero.

  “Merely a first-degree burn.” Zee was a pro, and the ointment sucked all the pain from the burn. “What are your plans?

  Ionia didn’t know how to respond so quirked her eyebrows and pursed her lips.

  “With Den I mean.”

  “We’re going to leave and get out of this ass-backward country.”

  “He could fit in here. He can earn a place of honor and be the face of our cause. I would, but you know…” She motioned to the swipe of flesh missing from her face. “I’m not as vidclip friendly.”

  Even though she was sympathetic to their cause, it wasn’t her concern. And why was Zee pushing her about Den? He didn’t belong here. “Can’t they just fix you?”

  She averted her eyes and turned to put the kit back in the wall unit. “Some wounds can’t be fixed.”

  Was Zee being esoteric? Really? Ionia let the pain drain away with the ointment, but the weird feeling in her chest didn’t subside. She wanted to punch this droid in her super pretty face.

  Zee swiveled back and continued the examination. Ionia pushed her lips together to keep from saying something that might offend. Zee was being helpful. It had been a long day, and she just wanted it all to end.

  “You really care for him, don’t you?” Zee’s words came out as more of a statement than a question.

  “Of course I—” She’d almost said it out loud, to this stranger. Her relationship with Den was none of the droid’s concern. It was between Den and her and no one else. “Anyway, where is he?”

  Zee ignored her, forehead scrunching. “Your readings are extremely unusual. Have you recently had a replacement surgery?”

  “Yes. My eye.” She had almost forgotten because the replacement worked so perfectly. Her brain had just accepted it.

  The table was getting more and more uncomfortable in the chill of the open room.

  “There seems to be a heavy amount of activity in your, I want to say white blood cells, but the droid in me won’t allow that. They are not white blood cells. White blood cells don’t act like this.”

  “Like what?” Fear inched a taloned foot into her chest.

  “They don’t build things. Let me take a closer look.”

  Everything in Ionia rebelled. This was what her mom and aunt had warned her about. Her weird blood cells and now added artificial eye would trigger interest. Then she’d be labeled. There would be no way out.

  “So do you know what is happening, or do I need to dig?”

  “I-I-” Ionia didn’t know how much to say, so it was better to say nothing. “I can’t say.”

  “I’m not going to turn you in. By the maker, you are high strung. I can’t turn you in without outing myself. So do you know what is happening, or do I need to dig?” Come on. Den trusted me.”

  They were kind of at this droids mercy, and Den seemed to like her. “Nanobots that are supposed to be acting as white blood cells. That’s and I have an artificial eye replacement. That’s all I know.”

  “Ah. Ravi’s mom?”

  “How did you know?”

  “We use her services on occasion.” She seemed to be watching a vidclip that Ionia couldn’t see and nodded slightly. “Fine then. They are most likely healing an irregularity that occurred when you got zapped, but you should be monitored.”

  Ionia’s heart rate calmed. She hadn’t outted Aunt Sera. Zee had already known. This droid knew so much.

  Too much.

  But Ionia knew she should probably trust her. Ravi and Aunt Sera did. Den did. Zee had gotten her and Den away from the enforcement unscathed. But something in her gut didn’t want to. She didn’t want to talk to Zee anymore. If only Den get back.

  The cold hard table was making her back ache, and the silence stretched between them like a bottomless chasm in a broken glacier.

  A deep boom sounded. The table wobbled and nearly threw her to the floor. This was it. They were being attacked. An explosion rocked the walls. Old-fashioned gasoline smell filled the air.

  This was just like before. A wall of ice would fall, and without Den, she would die.

  Her throat closed completely. Feinstein’s fist crushed her windpipe. Her eye burned.

  A grid outline flashed over the room for a moment. Ionia blinked hard trying to clear her sight. His fingers burrowed into the socket, and the white-hot spike of pain made her stomach clench. She fought him. Pushed against him. Her vision blanked.

  Not again. He wouldn’t do it again.

  “Ionia. Ionia.” A female voice. Hands pressed on her, pinning her left arm. She pushed out and connected with something. It was soft but immovable.

  She wanted to scream and cry and not let him win this time.

  An object pressed against her skin and a cool feeling like mercury coated her entire body smoothed away the terror. Her vision cleared, and her heart slowed. Her breath came in halting gasps as she returned to her body.

  Zee hung over her with a creased forehead, hands on Ionia’s upper arms, holding tight enough that she couldn’t move but not tight enough to hurt.

  “Wh-Where? What?” She tried to sit up, but the android held her flat on the metallic bed.

  “Let me up. Something’s burning.” Ionia’s voice sounded like sandpaper, dry and hoarse.

  “Wait for the meds to take effect. How long have
you had panic attacks?”

  Ionia fought to focus on the words. “There was an explosion.” She still sounded like five klicks of bad road. Where was Den? He never came anymore when she needed him.

  “Noise from above. They are looking for us, but they will never find us here. We are shielded, and we move.”

  “Who’s looking for you?”

  “Chirag’s goons are fishing for responses. As usual. More droids to swell his gaming ranks. And the enforcement ignores them because they love to wager.” She looked up and shook her head.” Listen. I gave you something to help you relax. I’ve had my share of flashback episodes. I’m sorry for whatever happened to you.”

  This girl, this android, had figured out what everyone else had either not noticed or had ignored and hoped would go away. And she was responding with pity.

  Which was exactly why Ionia hadn’t told anyone.

  “I don’t need therapy. I’m fine. I just had a lot of crap happen to me, and it was hard. Just leave me alone. Where’s Den?” She pushed her voice louder, hoping his enhanced hearing would pick up on her need of rescue.

  “I understand,” Zee said. “Really. I can help you.” She didn’t release Ionia’s arm. Didn’t release her stare. The crease across her brow deepened.

  Zee sounded sincere, but she couldn’t be. No droid was made like that. “Oh, because you’re a droid who knows real messed up human feelings. Why would they put something like that in your programming? You’re just responding like you think you should. Let me go. I’m fine.”

  Zee’s lips pressed together. She looked truly pissed for a moment, but took a breath and a beat. “I am an early model. When they were still trying to fully replicate human brains.” She rolled her fingers off of Ionia, slowly, one finger at a time, as if it took great effort. “I experienced a lot of crap as well. I had to deal with it as if I was human. The full gamut of emotions. And no one took pity on me. Well—almost no one. Just know, I am willing to help.”

  She finally removed her hands, and Ionia sat up too fast. Her head did an internal 360 before she could see Zee again.