The Virgin’s Cyborg by Candice Gilmer

16

Eleanor's hand trembled, but she held it out anyway.

She was doing this. On faith. Trust. And whatever else she had. Though the only reason was because of Jedriek. He had to be the conduit. Because he would not hurt her, not on purpose. She knew that. She trusted him.

With everything.

One look in his white eyes, and she knew she would be okay. He would make sure of it. She wished her sister was here, holding her hand. Her sister, or maybe Bianca, but mostly her sister. She had a vague recollection of being in this position before, but she couldn't remember why. That the Rhimodians had given her medical treatment after her mother had died. Which made sense, of course. That was a logical conclusion to draw.

But the moments were gone. Moments before, with her mother, were gone. Playing with her. Being a family with her. All that was gone.

And now, Master System promises to bring it back?

She had very little faith it would work.

But she wouldn't be out anything--if her memories didn't work, then she would only be down the time. She was used to not remembering.

At least Jedriek was here.

"I am here," he said. "I promised I would protect you."

Eleanor nodded. "Monitor my life signs. Make sure that nothing strange happens," she said.

He stroked her head, feeling her hair. "I will." He stroked her hair again. "I like it like this."

"What? Down?"

He nodded. "It suits you." He let a strand tangle around his finger, and she loved how his big hands could be so delicate with their touches. Her heart hammered, and she felt absolutely terrified about what was coming. Though she also wanted to remember her mother again. She wasn't a baby when her mother died. She was plenty old enough to have memories of her. Yet all of them were gone and had been since she died.

The idea that the Rhimodians could give that back to her.

That Master System could return her mother to her? Well, it seemed too good to be true.

"You don't have to do this," Veta said.

Eleanor glanced at her. "If you could get your parents back, would you want them?"

"My parents were--"

"If you loved your parents, and they loved you, and they were gone, would you want them back?"

"Well, sure, I guess."

"Then I have to do this."

She turned and looked back at Jedriek. "I am ready."

He held out his hands, and the gauntlets on his wrists started to glow.

Eleanor took his hands. Threads of silvery metal grew and came toward her like an organic plant looking for food. It slithered along her hands. She didn't feel them penetrate her skin, but they had to because she felt the rush of nanites.

More nanites.

Like they were swimming under her skin. The strangest sensation she had ever felt.

She opened her mouth to say something, but everything went black.

"Come on, come to Mama!"

Lights flickered, unfocused but there, spots of shine all around. The sun rays flashed through the trees. The grass was green, and it smelled of outdoors and playtime.

And she wanted to sit in it.

"No, Eleanor, come. Come to Mama!"

She looked up.

There was her mother. The lights flickering all around her, and sunshine making that smile the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen.

She laughed.

A child's laugh. A baby's laugh. High and filled with joy.

She was filled with joy.

There was her Mama.

With the same blue eyes as she had.

Eleanor woke with a gasp.

"Eleanor, are you well?" Jedriek asked.

The thin fibers that had been connected to her were gone.

But it didn't matter.

None of it mattered.

Because she felt the memories--all of her memories of her mother. Every single one, unlocking.

She could see her birthdays with her mother. Times when she was happy. When she was sad. All the things that made moments. Her mother coming to her room when she was little. Talking to her. Reading stories to her and Caoimhe when they were children. Every motherly moment she had.

And now, through an adult's eye, she could see how unhappy her mother was. Every moment her father was in, her mother was less glowing. Less alive, and, well, just less.

Tears rolled down her face.

"Are you okay?" Veta asked. "What did you do to her?" she yelled at the ceiling.

"I remember," Eleanor said.

"What do you remember," Veta asked.

"I remember everything."

And then one memory came back.

The attack.

What truly happened the day her mother died.

Eleanor had seen it all. She had been right there.

Surrounded by an honor guard, her mother was in the center, dressed in white with red embroidery. The rest of them, including her and Caoimhe, were dressed in red overdresses, and they surrounded the Empress. She looked like a diamond in a sea of red blankets.

Beauty personified.

Eleanor could feel the memory--the pride and adoration she had for her mother that day. How beautiful she looked and how she would change the Terran Empire forever because they would be friends with the Rhimodians, and everything would be fantastic.

They had talked about it on the way. The Empress explained how important this mission was and that they could not fail, that the Terrans had to make friends with the Rhimodians so they all could live as one great people.

"It will be wonderful," she'd said.

Eleanor also saw the truth. And the memory came back, clear and perfect.

A Terran soldier walked away. Eleanor had watched him walk ahead of the group and step to the walls, where the pillars were.

He did something behind a pillar.

Then walked to the flowers and did something else.

The Empress had seen it as well. "Is everything well?"

"It is perfect, Imperial Majesty."

As the procession walked past the pillar he had been near, the explosion went off. The pillar started to fall.

The nearby Rhimodians tried to stop it, but they could not. The flowers exploded like a chain as soon as the blast wave hit them.

And Eleanor saw the soldier standing to the side, watching.

Everything was hazy, but she heard it clearly enough. "It is done, Your Majesty."

Everything was still and quiet. Bodies were strewn about. Debris floated in the air. The sky was black and ashy. Smoke created walls where there hadn't been any.

It was funny how after the explosion, there was silence. No one spoke. No one moved.

It made hearing the rest easier. Even for an almost-dead child. "Yes. Even the girls are dead."

She closed her eyes to wait for death.

And then woke again, to lights and cyborgs.

Eleanor gasped. Seeing it again was like reliving it. Except for this time, she had Veta at one side and Jedriek on the other.

She shook her head.

"He killed our mother," Eleanor whispered.

"What are you talking about?" Veta asked.

"The Emperor. He killed Mama."

"Surely not--"

Eleanor looked at Veta, and her expression stopped the bodyguard cold. "I was there. I saw it happen."

"And it was the Emperor?"

"He ordered it. And he wanted us all dead."

"I cannot--"

"Believe it," Bianca said as she came into the room. She walked in the room, leaning on a cane. Mostly. She thumped the cane on the ground hard as she walked, Harbin at her side. "He absolutely tried to kill the entire party before, and he's tried it again. This time, he's more determined than ever."

Eleanor rubbed her temples. "And you didn't mention this before now?"

"I had no proof. But I do now."

"Which is?"

"The records from Rhimodian systems. And now you, of course."

"How did you know that Master System was going to restore her memories?" Veta asked.

Bianca blinked. "Master System and I had quite the chat while I was in the medical ward. We watched videos, attempted assassinations, and other interesting things Master System felt the Terrans needed to know about."

"Is there more?"

"Now is not the time," Bianca said. "We need to find Caoimhe first."

Eleanor nodded as she rubbed her temples.

"Do you have a headache?" Jedriek asked.

She glanced at him. "You would think that I would, but no. I feel fine. Just a lot of data the system is collating." The information was unlocked, but she was sorting it all through her mind--like she was opening a bunch of files that she'd thought she lost. It was all there, and part of her wanted to sit in a corner and just let it all unfold, but she knew she didn't have time for that right now.

They had to find Caoimhe.

And Freya.

"I think I may have an answer to where Freya is," Harbin said.

"What have you been doing back in the medical bay?" Veta asked.

"Working. You?"

She shrugged.

"So, how do we find Caoimhe and Freya?" Eleanor asked.

"With these," Bianca said and tapped her earrings.

Veta stroked her bracelet. "What are they? Some kind of trackers?"

"Of a sort. Evidently, Freya had been working on decoding their signals before she left." Harbin displayed a map in the air. On it was some red dots. "You can see where the signals are coming from."

"What are the red dots?" Eleanor asked.

"The jewelry. There's something in them that Freya was able to track." He zoomed in on Sol-3. "If you look, there are two dots here on Sol-3. I'm betting one of those is Freya, and the other is Caoimhe."

Eleanor nodded. "Okay. So let's go get them."

"That might be a challenge," Bianca said. She glanced at Harbin. "Show her the rest."

"What is the problem?"

"That," he said and flicked another switch. There was a massive series of more red dots exploding all over Sol-3.

Eleanor blinked. "Is that, uh, Terran forces?"

Harbin nodded. "They're manifesting between where Freya is and where Caoimhe is."

"Do they know she's there?"

"They know someone is. Look at how they've moved in the last six hours."

Sure enough, the group had been working their way toward where one of the singular red dots was.

But Eleanor noticed something else. The other singular dot--she assumed it was Freya--was moving that direction as well.

"By the stars," Eleanor said. "Freya is going to rescue her."

"Looks that way," Harbin said.

Veta smacked Wrathin in the arm. "Suit up. We've got to rescue some girls."

Wrathin nodded. He glanced at Jedriek. "Wanna come?"

Jedriek turned to Eleanor. "What do--"

"Go," she said. "Save my sister."

"As you like."