Betrayed Hero
An Atramento Novel
Nix Whittaker
Other books by Nix Whittaker
Atramento Series
Halcyon’s Hero
Wyvern Chronicles
Blazing Blunderbuss
The Mechanicals
The Jade Dragon
Wyvern’s Trim and other stories
Ruby Beyond Compare
Wyvern Mysteries
Lady Golden Hand
The White Lady
Lady Doctor
Betrayed Hero
An Atramento Novel
Nix Whittaker
Reshwity Publishers
https://reshwity.wixsite.com/publishing
© 2015 by Nicola Pike
This book is a work of fiction and, except in the case of historical facts, any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission of the author.
This book is written in my native English so if you are American you might notice more U’s and less Z’s but that is as intended. Also, a warning to those who love the oxford comma, you might see less of those as well.
Previously published under the title You Can Run.
Dedication
To my siblings both new and original.
Preface
The world ending wasn’t what people expected. They knew global warming was an issue although they thought it would get hotter and people would scorch. The scientists knew better. They knew everything was connected. People had become complacent in their blinkered world. Even in their most conservative model, scientists predicted a world thrown into chaos and anarchy never known before.
What they predicted came true. First came food shortages and economic breakdown that cascaded through countries at an alarming rate. Any currency pretty much turned into fancy toilet paper, and whole governments crumbled while the basis of their own little worlds disappeared. War descended as people thought they could do a better job or were just plain greedy and wanted what the former leaders had.
Then there were refugees, fleeing ahead of war, famine and drought. This of course put pressure on countries, and nationalism reared its ugly head in the worst way. Wars erupted in almost every country, leaving nowhere to hide from the turmoil.
And like a fierce fire, the war and chaos burnt itself out. Eventually.
Then the ashes fell and the world sighed with exhaustion. The people were finally able to build a semblance of society. Some scientists had constructed a weather shield that created a stable climate in localized areas. Instead of selling it, they gave it to what was left of the world.
This was the start of the City States, and life went on.
Chapter One
Whatinga August 2087
The city was cool though Natasha knew the cold weather outside the weather shield would be around for longer. The shield allowed a temperate climate inside. Natasha lay awake as she listened to the rain on the roof. Though insulated, they still made the warehouses out of tin and the rain was loud. Not that Natasha could sleep, anyway.
For months now she had been kept awake by recurring nightmares. Always the same thing. A man being stabbed and left in an alley to bleed to death. He was dressed in fine clothes which said he came from a much better neighbourhood than this one.
Eventually, exhaustion pulled her into sleep. Only to drag her back into her nightmares. Natasha came awake gasping. She sat up in bed and rubbed her face. The rain had stopped and all she could hear in the room was her harsh breathing and the heavy thump of her heart.
Natasha fisted her hands in her hair. She wondered if she was crazy. She shook her head. No, not yet.
If this went on any longer, she really would go crazy. She had thought a hundred times she would tell Hal what was happening. Unsure it had anything to do with the atramento and if it did, she didn’t want to burden Hal with another disaster. Last month when Natasha had moved in with her cousin, she had discovered he had moved in with a brilliant scientist who used symbols to give people powers.
Her cousin Misha could bench press a car now if he wished. Hal had given her a tattoo as well but hers was for sight and all it had achieved was her to now able to see the aura of others. And also driving her crazy. All of this happened while a drug lord was on the war path for Hal.
Hal had taken Marcus’ death hard. Even though the man had forced Hal to place the atramento on him and she had warned him of the consequences, she blamed herself for his suicide.
Natasha reached behind her and rubbed her back. The tattoo on the small of her back was meant to give her better sight. At first it was weird, but intriguing as it allowed her to see people’s auras. Hal was ecstatic as she now had someone who could help her with the atramento. To tell Hal there was something wrong with the atramento could crush her.
Natasha gave up on sleeping and went to the kitchen. She poured herself a glass of water. There were a few lights on from the workshop which was on the other side of the lounge. There were other things hidden in the warren which was Hal’s workshop and home. Natasha had explored them lately when she realised Hal had some sophisticated things in there like a 3D printer and got distracted.
Before global warming, it was common technology. That was almost seventy years before and now technology like that was rare as diamonds.
War had erupted all over the world and it forced manufacturing companies to close. Then, when the wars really got hot, the manufacturing plants were destroyed in an act of scorched earth.
How Hal had managed to get a 3D printer was still a mystery. Natasha wouldn’t be astonished if Hal had made it herself. Hal certainly made her own plastic ribbon for the small 3D printer. Hal amazed Natasha, but she was a mystery. A mystery which was now Misha’s job to figure out.
Natasha’s cousin had always been a quiet self-contained man. Misha though shone when he was with Hal.
Natasha leaned against the counter and rubbed her eyes. She wished she could sleep in peace without any dreams. When she opened her eyes, she had a few after images in her eyes. When they didn’t fade, she looked closer.
It appeared as if someone had dribbled their aura on the floor. She hadn’t been seeing auras for very long but she could tell the difference between the auras of people and inanimate objects. This aura she only saw on humans. It wisped from the floor like footprints in the sand; they led away.
Natasha followed them. When they led out into the courtyard she hesitated. Either she saw something important or she was going crazy. The not knowing was worse. One thing was for sure, she would have her answer at the end of those prints.
Natasha returned to her room and threw on clothes. She shoved her feet into some shoes and put on Misha’s coat as hers was still at home in the Edge. She would ask her father to send it out to her. Especially if she planned to stay longer. She had been reluctant to set down any permanent roots in the city. It was unlikely she would ask for the coat even when the weather got truly cold. She still wanted to go back to the coastal town outside of the weather shield. Only there was nothing there to go back to. They had forced her father to sell her mother’s house to pay the bills. Her father barely kept the business and was staying at his girlfriend’s house. She would end up sleeping on the couch and that was no life.
She picked up the trace of aura on the floor from where she had left them off. The footstep dribbles were fluorescent pink casting an eerie glow on the ground. They led her out of the courtyard. She was cautious when she went on t
he street as it was well past curfew. There weren’t many policemen on the street, but if they saw her, they would arrest her.
The dribbles of footprints led a few blocks away to an alley. Her heart shuddered as the alley looked eerily familiar. She swore when she realised where she was. She was in the alley from her dream. If it was exactly like her dream, then there should be an injured man.
Natasha rushed into the alley and crouched on the ground. Sure enough, there was a man half-buried under cardboard boxes. She shoved them aside. He was in the same clothes she had always seen him wearing in her dreams. The tweed and patch elbows of the fashionably academics who ran the city. He groaned. He was still alive. She turned him over, his front was covered in blood.
Natasha patted his cheek. “Hey, wake up.”
He groaned in response. Barely conscious, there was no way he would be able to walk the three blocks back to Hal’s place.
Natasha was glad she had remembered her phone. She called Misha. He answered quickly, “Natasha? Where are you? I thought you were asleep downstairs.”
Natasha answered while she studied the man in front of her to see if he would regain consciousness but he didn’t move. “I’m a few blocks away. I had a dream―It doesn’t matter. There’s a man here and he’s been stabbed and he’s bleeding to death. I don’t know what to do.”
She could hear Misha moving around on the other side of the phone. There was a thump and Hal spoke on the phone. “Hey, there Natasha. Can you tell me where the wounds are?”
Hal’s calm voice was enough that it even calmed her as Natasha answered, “His chest.”
“Is he conscious?” Hal asked.
He groaned softly. Natasha moved the phone to her shoulder and pressed her ear down so she could place her hand on his cheek. His skin was clammy and he was cool to the touch. “Not really.”
Hal let out a breath before she spoke. “Okay, we’re on our way. What you need to do it put pressure on his wounds. Make a pad out of clothes or something and press down on them as firmly as you can. Here’s Misha. You tell him exactly where you are and we’ll be there very soon.”
___
He woke up in pain. He blinked for a few seconds to try to figure out where he was. Reaching up he groaned. His chest hurt and so did his face. He touched his chest first and found he was bandaged up. There was a scab crusted on his cheek. That one did not feel like a wound.
He sat up very slowly and turned so he could sit up. He lay on a bed in a rather pleasant room though the walls looked strange. When he looked up, he could see metal beams in the rafters.
The door opened and a woman came in. She went still when she saw he was sitting up. She breathed out. “Oh, thank goodness. I thought you were going to die. You always seemed to die in the dreams. I was sure you were going to die.”
He tested out his voice. “Well, I’m in too much pain to be dead. Got any painkillers?”
She put the tray she carried onto a table by the bed and poured him a glass of water. She passed over a couple of painkillers.
“Hal always said the healing worked fine, but it does nothing for the pain. I’m afraid this is the strongest stuff I have. I could take you to a hospital, but then I’d have to explain the atramento.” She waved to his cheek.
He reached up again. “What is it?”
She took the empty cup from him and fussed for a while. “I put a healing atramento on you. I didn’t know if it would work as it usually has to gather energy before it works, but I didn’t think you would survive, so I tried it anyway. It wasn’t going to hurt you and as you can see, well, it saved your life.” She pulled up a chair and sat in front of him. “Besides the pain, how are you feeling?”
He took another check of himself. “I think there are bruises as well. Otherwise, I’m not too bad.”
She asked, “What happened? How did you get to that alley?”
He reached his hand up to his head and pressed lightly on the lump there. He must have been hit on the head as well. “An alley? What was I doing in an alley?”
He vaguely heard in his memory a woman’s voice chiding him about being in dangerous alleys. He wondered if it was his mother. Something in him told him no. Then, he tried to think of his mother and he couldn’t. The more he thought of it the more the pain in his head increased.
The woman interrupted his thoughts by asking. “Well, then let’s start with something easy. What’s your name?”
He reached for his name and he couldn’t find it. Memory slid out of his mind like sand between his fingers. He looked at the woman in horror. “I can’t remember.”
She leaned over him and ran her fingers through his hair. He winced when she hit upon on a lump. “Ouch.”
She winced in sympathy. “Sorry. I think they hit you on the head.”
She sat down and spread her hands. “I suppose the atramento should fix that in time. The EM field around you looks like it is feeding the atramento at capacity, but all the energy is going to healing your stab wounds.”
He gasped and reached for her hand. “What! Stab wounds? You’re saying I was stabbed?”
A soft smile touched her lips and her eyes warmed. “Yeah, several times. Misha says that means it was personal. So, one thing you do know is that you have an enemy out there.” He wondered how close he had come to dying. He rolled her words around in his head. Who was Misha?
His jealousy shocked him and he wasn’t even sure if Misha was a guy or not.
“Misha?” he asked.
She said, “Oh, yes. My cousin. This is his and Hal’s place.”
Hal. Oh, he was gay. That was better. Cousin was just as good.
He looked the woman over. She had dark hair and a friendly face rather than a pretty face. But that drew him stronger than any beauty. “What is your name?”
She smiled warmly. “Natasha.”
She was Russian.
He grinned. “I know you must be Russian. Both Natasha and Misha are Russian names. I knew that. Obviously, I haven’t forgotten everything.” He laughed relief that he hadn’t lost everything.
Natasha joined with him and chuckled. “You’ll get it back.” She gestured to his cheek. “That will heal whatever is wrong, but I suppose it has enough work to do with your other wounds. You should rest a bit.”
He wanted to convince her to stay longer but he felt the heaviness of his fatigue and only muttered consent before easing back into the comfortable bed.
___
He leaned on Natasha as she helped him to walk into the living area. The house merely a part of a large warehouse. That explained the metal beams in the rafters and the strange walls.
A small pixie woman with short hair came up to him and looked him up and down. She then went to a computer at a worktable just outside the living area.
He turned his attention to sitting without causing himself pain. He had just settled down when the woman with short hair turned towards them. The short haired pixie said, “Your real name is Warren Nasser.”
He jerked. “What? How did you find that out?”
Natasha chuckled. “Hal is super smart.”
He said, “Hal?” He had thought it was a man. So this was her cousin’s partner.
Hal said, “You won’t recognise me.” She waved a hand around her head to indicate the memory loss. “But I remember you. You are older than me by a few years, but your parents used to come over for dinner.”
Warren tested out his name in his head before he asked, “So, you know who I am?”
Hal nodded. “I don’t know if you want me to tell you the rest or if you want to let your memories come back on your own.”
Warren hesitated, then asked, “Is there any bad stuff?”
Hal answered quickly. “Mostly no. You are one of the good guys. You have a pretty good life. Your mother died last year though. You don’t want to find that stuff out at a crucial time.”
He gasped as fragments of memory came back and he blinked back tears.
Hal nod
ded. “Let the rest come back normally. It might be better for you.”
Warren couldn’t just leave it at that. “Wait, where do I live? Where do I come from?”
Hal paused, then answered, “You used to live with your parents when I knew you. I’m pretty sure you’ve moved out, so I’m not sure. But you are an academic. A doctor of anthropology and languages.” She picked up a paper-bound book next to her and flicked it to him.
Natasha caught it out of the air with ease which told him the two women were used to each other’s habits. She placed it on his lap. Warren flipped open the book and awe filled him. These were hand drawings of ancient symbols. The lettering system was different from anything he had ever seen lately. He ran his fingertips over the pages.
Natasha asked, “Do you understand them?”
Warren nodded and asked Hal, “Where did you get this from?”
Hal turned back to her computer and said over her shoulder, “You. I got the book from you.”
___
Warren watched Natasha as she worked. She polished pieces of metal and placing them on a towel laid out on the coffee table. Lounging with the book in his lap he resisted moving as his wounds still pained him.
He tapped his fingers lightly on the cover of the book as he thought.
He asked curiously after a long while of watching her work. “What are you making?”
She didn’t look up as she answered, “This is a servo motor I found out in the courtyard. It is in pretty good nick, but it has been left outside for too long. I’m just cleaning it up and it should work once I put it all back together again. I’m thinking of using it to put in a new gate mechanism on the back door. Though I still have to find a controller. Mmm, I wonder if I can just throw something together on Hal’s printer. I’ll check her computer to see if she has the specs for the right module. But first I have to put it all back together. I’d give my left arm for Thingiverse to still be around.”
Betrayed Hero (Atramento Book 2) Page 1