by Aline Riva
Lynch left the bar and took a walk over to the mansion house owned by Blake Riley. He glanced over at the guards on the main door and asked where the King was, and one of the guards, recognising him as Riley's friend and also the freedom fighter Felix Lynch, saluted and said Med Centre, sir. Felix thanked him and made his way to the entrance to the medical centre, he went through the main doors, up a corridor then took the elevator to the next level. The doors opened after a short descent and he made his way to Riley's office and on arriving, saw the door was open so walked in.
“...And I'm going to start you off on a small dose of the Trizinaq which I can inject later on today,” Riley was saying softly, “It's nothing like the large doses you'll be hit with when we start the treatment but I just want you to get used to the stuff being in your system. And if you can handle the main doses I see no reason why you can't have the treatment at the house. Joy's a trained medic, she can keep an eye on you...”
“I'd prefer that,” Jekel replied, “I'd feel a lot better if I wasn't stuck down here.. I'd rather be at home.”
And suddenly as Riley looked up and Joy and Jekel turned their heads, Lynch felt in the way. Joy was sitting beside her husband, Jekel was pale and looked visibly shaken and their hands were linked tightly.
“No, its okay,” Jekel said to Lynch,“ You're not interrupting. You might as well know – everyone will soon... I'm starting cybernetic drug therapy to try and save my major wiring when the booster cable burns out.”
Lynch stepped closer and looked to Jekel with compassion in his eyes – Riley was putting him on cyborg meds, fed into his human blood stream to combat the effects of the burnout? His heart went out to the man who he had once pushed to pick up a gun and fight, telling him to earn his stripes. Jekel was about to go through hell...
“You'll get through this, Tiger,” he said, and patted his shoulder.
Then as Joy thanked Riley for his help and she and Jekel got up, Riley looked to Lynch in surprise.
“I hope you're here to see our new mutant friend...I hope that's the only reason you're here!”
“Mutant?” said Lynch.
“Travis found a partly mutated human male in the grounds of my mansion,” he replied, “The guy is literally one in a million – probably more... a rare individual who didn't mutate fully with the Howler virus. He's physically human with altered skin tone, he looks a bit...alien in appearance, and he's not contagious. He had an issue with his vocal chords so while he was tranquillised I fitted him with a cyborg voice box with human speech tones, that should do the poor bloke a huge favour. He's going to recovering here for quite a while. Then I intend to introduce him into the community. He's been through a lot, he needs a place to call home, poor devil.”
“I would imagine he does,” Lynch agreed, looking to Joy and Jekel.
“Sorry, but I need a word in private with Blake.”
“This had better not be about that broadcast this morning!” Joy exclaimed as fire rose in her eyes, “Josh is trying to trap you, can't you see it?”
Lynch kept back the urge to launch into a quarrel, purely because he knew Jekel looked utterly shattered by all he was about to face and right now, that gentle man who was about to go through a hell many shades worse than he realised, didn't need to hear a heated disagreement.
“Joy,” Lynch said, trying to imagine Fi was in the room so that he didn't fly off the handle, “This is a political matter. And I have no intention of losing my life because Riley will be at my side negotiating with the Premier. Now please, leave us to it?”
She nodded reluctantly, turning away as she caught the worried look in Jekel's eyes.
“Good luck with it, mate, fight it all the way,” Jekel said to him.
Lynch felt a surge of warmth in his heart as he looked to Ash Jekel, who was about to take on a fight of his own.
“You too my friend,” he said quietly, “You keep fighting, Tiger.”
Then he watched as Joy and Jekel left the room and walked off up the corridor, Joy keeping a tight hold on her husband's hand.
“You seriously want to negotiate with that prick?” Riley said as Lynch closed the door and joined him at his side of the desk, pulling a chair around and sitting beside him.
“They'll never drop the charges - and I do want the offer of liberty for the Valley. Everything else comes down to negotiation and how light a sentence I can expect in return for a deal. He knows I won't walk into a trap.”
“And I'm right beside you,” Riley replied, “I give you my promise to back you all the way.”
Then he turned on the monitor, tuning in the grainy, scrolling channel on VIP frequency, until the call was answered and the Premier looked through the screen.
“Before you say a word,” Riley warned him, “This is being recorded. No dirty tricks. You want Lynch? He wants a lesser sentence. A much lighter sentence.”
“Of course that would have to be arranged after he gives himself up.,” Josh replied, looking to Lynch, “If you surrender in two day's time when my troops leave your Valley, we have a deal, General.”
“I guess I'll just have to trust you on that,” Lynch said, regarding him darkly.
“And there will be consequences if the death sentence is carried out,” Riley added, “Make no mistake about it.”
Josh stared at him as the static prickled at his image.
“You're threatening war over one man?”
“No, Premier,” Riley said, smiling as something wild and dangerous glittered in his eyes almost as brightly as the diamond stud in his ear caught the light, “I'm a peace loving man. I'm a father figure in this community. So consider this: If all cyborg people are my brothers sisters and children, accept that if you harm a brother of mine, I will take appropriate action and believe me if that happens, I know for a fact half your city will rally to my side.”
Josh swallowed hard.
“Two days, Lynch,”he said, “Or the liberty deal is off the table.”
Then the screen shut down as the call ended.
Riley looked to Lynch and shook his head.
“You're a fool to do this. But I'll back you all the way.”
“Thanks,” Lynch said in a hushed voice as his thoughts turned to Elise and Fi.
“Now get out of here,”Riley told him, “Go and see your wife and your daughter. You've got two days before they take you away in chains.”
“And before you know it, I'll be back home in the Valley,” Lynch replied, then got up and left the room. Riley watched him leave as worry clouded his eyes – he didn't trust the Premier of Freedom City, never had, and never would...
Much later as the sunset gave way to dusk that quickly beckoned nightfall, as Jekel said goodnight to his son and turned out the light, he hoped Travis had believed him when he had promised that he intended to survive all that lie ahead. Then he closed his son's bedroom door and walked down the palatial upper floor, reached the bedroom he shared with Joy then paused, his heart heavy and his nerves in shreds.
“Come on, Ash,” he whispered to himself, “Pull yourself together...”
Then he opened the door and walked in, wanting to cry as he looked at Joy and she smiled gently and told him to sit down on the bed.
“I hate needles,” Jekel said as he took off his jacket and handed it to Joy.
“Your suit can wait,” she told him as Riley prepared the injection.
“No, it can't,” he told her, and Joy took the jacket over to the wardrobe and placed it on a hanger. As Jekel took off his tie and shirt, she laughed softly as he held them out to her.
“Laundry,” she said, holding up the shirt, “And yes, I know to put the tie back with your others.”
Jekel caught his breath and she turned back to see Riley swabbing his outstretched arm.
“Can you wait a second?” she asked and Riley nodded, knowing Jekel had broken out into a cold sweat. Joy put away his tie, then put the shirt in the laundry basket, then she returned to his side and held his hand.<
br />
“Ready?”
Jekel's eyes were slightly glazed but he held back on weeping and instead laughed nervously.
“I'm going to be crap at dealing with an IV if I can't even take a tiny needle...I hate needles...”
“It's over in seconds,” Riley assured him, “Close your eyes, mate.”
Jekel turned his head away as he felt a sharp sting in his arm, followed by a vague and brief burning sensation.
“It's all over,” Joy said softly .
As Riley dressed the puncture wound, Jekel breathed a relieved sigh.
“I hardly felt it,” he said hopefully, “And I feel absolutely fine, by the way – no side effects!”
“That's good,” Joy replied as she exchanged a worried glance with Riley – of course he felt fine, this was a small dose and he was a cyborg, so the true effects of the drug would take a while to hit him...
Riley closed up his medical bag and picked it up, turning back to Jekel.
“If I finish formulating your dosage tomorrow, you can start on the treatment in twenty four hours,” he said, “I think if you take the doses in the morning for three mornings in a row, its a lot kinder on you because you can take time out to rest and sleep it off.”
“But I have the rehearsals for the festival,” Jekel replied.
“No.”
“What do you mean, no?” Jekel demanded, “The Valley Festival is important and I'm a big part of it!”
“You'll have to put off rehearsals until later in the week – if you feel up to it by then,” Riley told him, “If they need someone to take your part for the other acts to work around you'll just have to ask Kade Silk to do it, he is your stand in.”
Jekel's eyes widened.
“Him? He makes the tea for the newsreader over at the studio! He works back stage at the festival, and he copies my look, he's a wannabe!And he's never had to replace me!”
“But this year he might have to help you out a bit,” Riley replied, “You're not well, Ash. You will need to think about making some kind of announcement soon – just so if you do make some of the festival, the fans know why you're not feeling too good.”
Sadness shaded his gaze as he nodded.
“Okay...I'll see how I feel after the first few sessions.”
And Joy looked again at Riley, holding back her tears as her heart ached for all her husband was about to go through...Jekel really had no grasp of how rough this could get...
“I'll say goodnight now,” Riley said, “You get plenty of rest, Ash.”
Then he left the room and closed the door behind him.
“I think this is going to get bad,” Jekel said quietly as he looked his wife, “I can see it in your face, you're scared for me.”
Joy nodded.
“You're right,” she replied.
Then Jekel surprised her.
“Might as well make the most of now,” he said softly, “We can't be sure of tomorrow... come here...”
And he drew Joy into a tight embrace and pulled her down on to the bed, taking her in his arms to make love to her with the same passion they had shared their first time around, all those years ago in a cramped room in the motor home.
In the bedroom at the back of the upper floor of the Wired Circuit, while Fi slept soundly two doors down, having been brought up above the pub and oblivious to the sounds of merry drinkers as she dreamt the night away, Elise was breathless in her lover's arms as Felix Lynch gave a sigh of satisfaction and drew her hand away from the steel plate where beneath, sensors he would forever be thankful to own made him feel as if nothing was missing.
“Look at me,” he said, and Elise met his gaze as love tinged with sorrow reflected in her eyes.
“Day after tomorrow they take me off in chains,” he said to her, “And if this goes wrong, don't grieve for me.”
“But I love you!” Elise insisted, running her fingers through his hair as her part android mind wished pain was a program she could simply erase.
His gaze remained steady, in that moment she knew she was seeing a part of Felix she had not seen for years, not since before Fi's birth: He was becoming General Lynch again, the tough military man...
“I'll take what ever comes my way and fight it all the way, please have faith in me. I need you to be strong, I need to know you can carry on without me if this goes wrong.”
She recalled the day they had raided that factory together, and she nodded as her gaze locked with his.
“For you,” she promised, “I'll be strong, and for our child.”
Finally his gaze softened.
“That's what I needed to hear, thank you, Frankie,” he said softly, turning out the light and embracing her, closing his eyes and waiting for sleep to come, while Elise stayed awake, staring into the darkness as her old fears of losing Felix tormented her hybrid mind.
Mandy One, who now lived at the house formerly owned by the late Dixon Featherstone, liked to help out at the pub, because even thought the place had changed it still held fond memories for her of the days when Dixon had been Peace Keeper. She wasn't sure who the Peace Keeper of Bullet was now, Flynn had laughed when she asked him and said Anyone who owns the pub I guess...
But on this evening, Mandy was not working the bar. Mandy was at home, and she was not alone as Kade Silk, who she had summoned from the studios, stood in the front room looking at her with interest.
“What's this about, Mandy?” he asked.
He didn't know her too well, he'd heard she was a former plaything of King Steel, built for his pleasure and of course everyone knew the story of the key to Sanctuary, but as he looked at her he felt sure he preferred Steph to this Barbie type woman who was clearly made for pleasure... And that thought worried him, because Kade like to think of himself as a free man, yet he never really wanted to be free of Steph, she had become a part of his life and was there in his heart, so much that cheating on her with this living doll was a thought he instantly dismissed, and that came as a surprise...
“I've got a business proposal for you,” Mandy said, and opened up the door to a smaller room,where the lights were dim and a comfortable padded chair sat in the middle of the room, with a camera in front of it. He looked at the equipment beside it, and saw a display panel and a button for accept or reject.
“I don't know what I'm looking at. This is nothing like the basic equipment they have over at the studio.”
Mandy smiled.
“I thought this might be right up your dirty little alley, I've hacked the VIP line to Freedom. Built up a clientele of Robo fetishists. You know, people who have a thing for cyborgs...”
Kade started to smile.
“How much profit can we make?”
She smiled too as she rubbed manicured hands together.
“As much as we want! My clients want to see parts...metal and flesh. They want to hear the reason for the conversion, in detail. For some of them, that's enough. And they will trade anything from diamonds to fine clothing to wine or cosmetics or even some new basic technology like TVs and phones... Don't accept fuel or weapons because everything comes in on a shipment by truck once a week and the guards at the border check it...No blades or guns or combustibles. So, are you up for this?”
Kade smirked.
“What's my cut?”
“Fifty percent,” she replied, “You can trust me – I got Riley to run me a basic business programme as well as channel tuning maintenance. The rest was easy.”
“And you heard I'm damned hot so I was a natural choice as business partner?” he wondered.
Mandy blinked spidery lashes.
“No, not at all...I heard you're shagging the Culture Minister. You're her play thing, so I thought you'd be up for it!”
Kade's smile faded.
“Oh...okay. And here was me thinking it's because one day I'll be the new Ash Jekel...”
“You don't look that much like him,” she said, with a little too much honesty.
“Thanks a lot!” he repl
ied flatly, sitting down in the chair.
“I'll leave you to get on with it, then,” she told him, and switched on the machine as a light flashed and the screen displayed a message : Incoming call.
“See you soon, partner!” said Mandy brightly, closing the door.
“What have I got myself into?” Kade muttered, and he hit the button, answering the call as the camera activated and the lights dimmed, obscuring his face.
“Hi,” said a soft female voice.
He looked to the smaller incoming camera which showed a woman in shadow. The curtains were closed behind her and only the light from her camera showed her outline.
“Hi,” he replied, “Please state your trade intention.”
“Diamonds.”
He raised an eyebrow as he wondered what he would be expected to do for this kind of payment...
“Perfect,” he told her, watching as the screen showed a replica of her booking transit for three diamonds to the old world value of £700...
Then Kade sat back and relaxed, looking to the camera.
“Okay,” he said, “I'm all yours. What's your pleasure?”
“Tell me about your cyborg parts.”
Kade suppressed the urge to giggle as he put on his best showman's flair and continued.
“You want the true story?”
“At first...”
“Something else after?”
“Yes please,” she whispered in breathless anticipation.
“Okay...I have a partial metallic skull plate with wiring underneath...it's only ten percent...I was shot...wounded...in battle....I'm a war hero...” the lies were getting bigger, but as she gave a gasp of surprise he smiled, knowing he was on track as he wondered if she would offer more payment.
“Right, thanks for that info,” she said, “Now for what I need...Tell me you're that famous cyborg General...Be Felix Lynch for me!”
Kade froze.
“Lynch? I've seen him down the bar locally with his partner... and with a couple of his friends...I think I can do Lynch... okay, I'll give it a go.”