Author's Note: OKAY so this chapter switches straight to 004, in what will become a pattern in the future. Not that four chapters is a long time to establish that, since that's only as long as this'll last. Notes at the bottom will explain some cultural things? AGAIN I'M NOT EVEN CLOSE TO AN AUTHORITY ON THIS STUFF feel free to correct me if you know better.
The Mechanism of War
Chapter Two: Ally?
At first, I didn't realize I was free. I was lost in the crush of the water, the pull of the tide. Lights shimmering above drifted farther away each second, but they were clear and close enough to touch. Something brushed past my arm, and I flinched. It was the first movement I had made by myself in years.
I forced my fingers to twitch, closing them into a fist. Bringing my hand up close, I marveled at the ability to move as I wanted without restrictions, without resistance. There was no fog clouding my mind, and my thoughts were mine alone.
My head hurt, and even in this body I could feel the chill of the water, but I had never felt more alive. Everything had become much more detailed, more real.
I had control again.
Remembering in alarm that I wasn't alone, I could see something else suspended in the darkness. A person? I caught a glimpse of her face through the tendrils of her long black hair. Her face was pale, her eyes were closed, and she didn't appear conscious. Reaching out to grab her, I pulled her closer. She was completely still, despite the fact she must need air, and I had no way of knowing how long we'd spent below the surface.
The light was so far away now. I grit my teeth, pushing her towards the light. I just needed her to hold on a little longer…
We broke the surface, and I tilted her face up as high as I could above water, taking a deep breath myself before I focused on trying to revive her. I needed it to speak. "Hey, wake up."
My voice sounded unfamiliar. Raspy and hoarse, like it hadn't been used it years. When there was no response I started to panic, and I had to force my straining vocal cords to a louder pitch.
"Come on, live!"
She coughed, and I felt relief. Seeing the shore in the distance, I started swimming towards it, trying to keep her head elevated so she could breathe. We were making slower progress then I would have normally liked, but I was focused only on keeping her face away from the water.
When it came to the point where I could let the current guide me the rest of the way, I felt my boots touch the shifting rocks of the shore. We emerged from the water wet and shivering, and I kept a lookout for searchlights, waiting for the sirens that would give our escape away. They never came.
I slung her onto my back and carried us through the waves, lowering her down gently when the stone shores gave way to smooth, bare rock. Sitting down, I took a deep breath. Now that immediate survival was no longer a priority, I could relax.
The air was chilly, but there was a warm breeze. I could hear crickets chirping. Under any other circumstances, this would have been a pleasant summer night. Was it even summer? I had no way of knowing how much time had passed.
I wasn't even tired; my shivering felt more like a nervous reaction then a result of the cold. Looking down at my hands, I could recall dim memories of an operating table. Scalpels. Electric wires that seemed to go on forever. The worst kind of pain imaginable.
I tried to put it from my mind. It was just too disturbing.
From our position on the shore, I could see the circular outline of the base we had managed to escape from. It appeared unnaturally symmetrical and out of place against the jagged rocks and treetops surrounding it; dark and intimidating, but far enough away that it would take time for a search party to find us. Assuming they sent one at all. We had a head start, and it was reasonable to assume the guards thought we had been on the plane.
The perfect setup for a surprise attack, I immediately thought. I couldn't have asked for better circumstances. They outnumbered me, but I had the advantage of time and stealth on my side. I even had a vague working knowledge of the base layout, if I found a way to access those memories in fuller detail.
I glanced at the woman. Her features were easy to make out despite how dark it was, and she appeared peaceful and completely relaxed. I had no idea how she could sleep for so long, she showed no signs of having a concussion, so I didn't worry too much. The events from earlier had obviously taken a toll on her, even if I had a feeling that wasn't the only reason.
More out of habit, I checked my radio link, a clammy feeling settling in my chest when I realized no one was in range. Even if I hadn't expected anything different, it was difficult for me to accept I was alone in enemy territory and I had no clue where the others were. Assuming they were even still alive.
Wincing, I knew I didn't want to think about that any more than I had to. At least not for now.
She rolled over, and I could hear her yawn, stretching one arm. I wondered if the woman would she notice if I left, considering how deeply she was sleeping. I couldn't take her with me if I was planning to infiltrate a Black Ghost base, that much I knew, but leaving her here asleep and vulnerable didn't seem safe either. I crossed my arms and tried to avoid looking at her. This wasn't the time to get sentimental. Lives could be at stake, and my concern for one person's wellbeing could result in other people's deaths.
She opened her eyes before I had a chance to make a decision, sitting up with a wary, fearful look on her face that reminded me of a cornered animal. It went away as soon as she saw me, and before I had a chance to react she was right in front on me.
"You aren't hurt are you?" She asked, and then laughed nervously. "Look at me, talking as if I expect an answer."
She reached forward to grab my arm, and I pulled back. "I'm fine."
Her mouth parted once, and then she closed it again, sitting back to stare at me. "You…you can talk now?"
I shrugged, nonchalant. "I guess so."
She looked away from me and adjusted her torn jacket, obviously trying not to lose her temper. "Mr. Cyborg, I have no clue what's going on, except that it's very dangerous and I could die, so I would appreciate it if you didn't act like this was one big joke to you. Because I don't find it funny, especially since you never said anything before!"
After that outburst, she seemed suddenly hesitant to continue. "You were acting like a mindless robot, and I thought after what the doctor said you were…brainwashed. I mean, after what happened at the beginning when you nearly…"
Trailing off, She looked away, clutching her hands tightly enough for me to see the whites of her knuckles. I didn't know how to react, feeling helpless when I saw tears start to dot the rocks next to her. What could I say? That I didn't even remember what had happened? That I was relieved it hadn't gone any farther?
She sighed a wavering sigh. "I apologize, I know that wasn't helpful. It just…slipped out. Thank you for saving me."
Standing up, I looked back at the base in the distance and I knew we had to start moving. An early start didn't mean we had all the time in the world.
"If you're quiet and you hide yourself well, they won't find you." I slowly crossed my arms, something telling me she wouldn't receive sudden movements well. "It's me they're after."
I heard the sound of rocks shifting and I was surprised by the anger in her eyes, which were still shining brightly with tears. "So you're going to abandon me, just like that? I don't know how to start a fire, or find food and water. I can't even begin to think how I'll get home."
She reached into her purse, and dug out a small pink machine. "My phone is probably dead, and I know there's no way my paper money could survive that much saltwater."
"Look, I'm going back into hostile territory and the likelihood that an ordinary human could survive that is slim." I replied, trying to be patient. "I don't know if I'll come back alive, do you really want to trust those kind of odds?"
There was a long, awkward pause, and I could see she was deep in thought. Finally, she answered.
"I don't…know, but, well, there isn't much of a choice is there? Either I die here alone from starvation or the elements…assuming those people don't find me and then kill me…or I come with you and I die trying to get home?"
Shaking her head, I could see her confusion. "Man, it's like I'm living one of those foreign drama films. This is just too complicated for a simple woman like me…maybe if I flip a coin like they do in the movies, I'll feel satisfied with the outcome?"
I was skeptical. "You would really leave a decision like this up to a coin toss?"
Nodding with enthusiasm, she pulled a small coin out of her purse. "Here, I've got an old won coin! If it lands with the hibiscus flower face up, I'll come with you. If not, I'll stay here and I won't complain. But this is my lucky coin so that won't happen."
Under normal conditions, I wouldn't have agreed. She obviously had no idea what she was signing up for, and I didn't want to be responsible for leading her to her death. But…even if it wasn't the ideal solution, it was better than an argument. I wasn't sure she could have one without passing out. Her jacket and skirt were torn and soaked, and her hair was dripping. She was still shivering from the cold.
Sighing, I nodded my consent. "Alright, but make it quick, and you can't go back on the results."
Winding up like she was about to make a winning pitch, she tossed the coin up high and caught it smoothly on the way down, checking it before holding it out to me. A hibiscus flower.
"I win, guess we're stuck together." She laughed, waving her hands and accidentally dropping her coin. I watched her scramble to find it in the rocks with an uncomfortable feeling of dread. If she died, that would be more blood on my hands.
Finally, she sat up triumphantly with the coin. "There's a weird scratch on it now, but I'm glad I found it!"
Did she even have a chance at surviving this? I found myself suddenly annoyed at her.
"You need to take this more seriously if you're coming with me. We're going to be up against armed guards and more. I can't promise to protect you, just to try."
She seemed a little shaken up by his sudden change in mood. "Yes, I…I suppose you're right. I apologize."
Rising to her feet, she buckled and in that split second of panic I remembered she was hurt. I moved forward to grab her, but she stumbled back and regained her balance, giving me an apologetic smile.
"I'm sorry, I appreciate the concern, but I can get up myself. My ankle is much better now anyways!"
She straightened, then stood up on one leg and balanced on the other, giving me a bright smile. "See? All better now!"
"Just be careful."
"Yes, sir." She replied, bowing and then offering her hand. "My name is Su-Bin Tae, pleasure to meet you Mr. Cyborg."
I twitched, already bothered by the nickname, but I shook her hand anyways. "Just call me 004."
"Right, sorry! So, what's the plan?"
Using the blade in my hand, I took a minute to size up the plants blocking our way into the forest, and within seconds carved a decently-sized opening. "Ladies first?"
"…Thanks." Su-Bin said, with stiff politeness, as if unwilling to admit she was impressed.
"After you." I smiled only when she wasn't looking.
Within minutes I was far ahead of her anyways, slicing as clear a path as I could manage. It felt effortless with my improved night vision and strength, and I only stopped to give her time to catch up, wary of how light my body felt and how cleanly the blade cut. I had to wait for quite a while, but then Su-Bin appeared, leaning against a tree and panting with exertion.
She was going to make it difficult to keep up a fast pace, that much I knew, and losing her would be painfully easy…but doing it on purpose didn't feel right to me. Even if it took me longer, I would have to slow down. She would be virtually defenseless if I didn't keep a close watch on her.
Suddenly, the dark forest seemed to melt around me into blobs of blue and purple that seemed to bleed into each other. They surrounded a bright haze of red and yellow I recognized with horror as Su-Bin. My senses seemed focused on her, I could hear every breath she made. The sound of her blood flowing and heart beating. Her feet shifting, the crunch of dried twigs.
Two bright circles surrounded her, and suddenly calculations started running past the edge of my vision. Her estimated maximum running speed, the exact time it had taken her to walk from the beach, a long list of potential weakness and suggested methods to terminate. I closed my eyes, not even daring to breathe.
"Are you okay?"
"It's nothing." I said, a little sharper than I intended. When I opened my eyes again, the circles were still there, but the text and colour coded heat patterns were gone. I had the feeling I could call them up at any time if I wanted, and somehow I could still sense her body heat.
They had installed a targeting system in me.
Even though my body felt fine, there was no physical reaction at this thought, I was sickened by it. What else had they done trying to 'perfect' me into the ultimate weapon? I had a feeling I would find out sooner rather than later.
She scoffed, and I tried to keep a blank expression, even if I knew she could barely see it. "These bugs are awful! How can you stand them?"
"Artificial skin. To them, I'm just a walking chunk of synthetic plastic and metal. Not very appealing." I tried to breathe slowly, naturally. I couldn't let her see how frightened I was.
She looked at me with curiosity. "That's right, you're a cyborg, aren't you? I'm sorry, I forgot. You just seem so normal."
I raised my right hand as an answer, the metal gleaming even in the moonlight. She smiled apologetically.
"Well, I mean, besides the obvious. When you were being controlled, it was like watching a machine or a hit man or something. But now you're just normal, just another person."
I didn't know how to reply to that, and thankfully, I didn't need to. I could sense something coming closer, moving at rapid speed, and the heat signature felt strange. There was the unmistakable temperature of a living creature, but I could feel the heat from machinery mixed together with it, as if melded into a single entity. I quickly moved next to Su-Bin, lifting my right hand and aiming it in the direction of the heat signature. I could see my targeting system split focus between the human next to me and the approaching threat. Within moments, I knew I would have a clean shot and an estimatation of what I was up against.
"Is something coming?" Su-Bin's voice wavered, and I could feel her heat signature quickly change to a confused swirl of red-hot fear.
"Yes, don't move." Even with an obvious threat, it seemed like my targeting system was only able to suggest options instead of forcing me to use them, but I didn't want to take any chances.
I could feel it drawing closer, and tensed, right until the moment it passed us by without a sound. Wherever it was going, there was a good chance it might lead us straight to Black Ghost, and I immediately starting hacking through the undergrowth at a fast run, hoping there was still time to catch it.
"That could be our only lead! Keep up!"
I heard muttered curses and a whack that sounded like a branch hitting something, followed by a frustrated yell of "I'm trying!"
There was a clearing ahead, and as I sliced through the last remaining branch I stopped. In front of me was the Dolphin, rusted and barely recognizable past the huge hole ripped into the hull. Su-Bin ran straight into me with a startled cry, but I barely noticed, memories coming back to me at an alarming speed.
"What's the matter?" She said, her words muffled as she massaged her nose. Peering over my shoulder, Su-Bin gasped, walking around me to touch the corroded metal.
"What is this doing here?"
"It's the ship I came here in, with the other cyborgs."
She quickly turned to look at me with an expression of sympathy. I crossed my arms, feeling a surprisingly sense of calm detachment as I surveyed the wreckage of the Dolphin.
"The mission wasn't supposed to end this way. We'd already defeated the Black Ghost, this was just a routine check. We had to wipe every last one of their hideouts from the face of the earth, in the hope that they couldn't recover."
"Then what happened?" Su-Bin whispered, but I was just starting to remember the past.
I could still here 007 reciting a humorous passage from The Tempest…003's laughter, strained but still cheerful despite everything that had happened…006 excitedly discussing plans for dinner with 008 and 005, who politely humored him with conversation…Professor Gilmore whispering something to 001 as we landed…
A noise more painful than anything I'd ever heard before. Fire followed by darkness, brief flashes of memories filled with light and colour that refused to coalesce into something that made sense. A series of tests with frightened humans and near deaths. That look of absolute terror mirrored on so many different faces, and the screams that sent chills up my spine.
I had to sit down, shaking as I remembered that unnatural compulsion to carry out my orders, even as I tried to fight for control. How many deep wounds I'd left, in some cases barely avoiding important arteries and organs. How close I'd come to killing them.
"They must have captured us…"
Gritting my teeth, I curled my metal hand into a fist and punched the hull. The loud ringing sound from the strike hurt my ears, but I felt an odd sense of satisfaction when I pulled away and saw a large depression in the steel.
Leaning against the Dolphin, I looked up at the sky, feeling suddenly tired. A deep, emotionally draining exhaustion. Something that went beyond my limitless body but felt very human. I smiled bitterly. Were there even human parts still left in me?
Looking back at the dent, I wondered how much time had passed since we'd first arrived. If it turned out the others weren't even alive, why was I still fighting?
"What year is it?" I asked wearily.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Su-Bin lean over to better see me. "2015."
"It's been fourteen years…" What were the chances the others had escaped or still alive after fourteen years?
"That long? I was eleven years old the last time you were active." Su-Bin said in amazement.
"I was in cryogenic stasis for thirty-seven years before that." Her jaw dropped, and I managed a tired smile.
"You're from the early sixties?! But you're-"
"Thirty years old."
"Can you even still age?"
"I don't know. Probably not." I was beginning to feel a bit uncomfortable with the direction this conversation was going.
Thankfully, the feeling seemed to be mutual, as Su-Bin awkwardly changed the subject. "Should we move on, or do you want some time alone with your thoughts?"
I already knew the answer. "I just need something from inside the Dolphin."
Pausing, I remembered the strange heat signature from earlier. "You might want to follow me."
"Okay then," Su-Bin responded nervously, "Then maybe I'll let you go first?"
Despite the grimness of the situation, I smiled and nodded.
Inside, the Dolphin looked even worse than I had expected. What wasn't swallowed under the dust was covered in cobwebs, and as I started forward into the hull, I heard the floor groan beneath me. I took another step forward, testing it. Silence. That was a relief.
There was another creak behind me, and glanced back to see Su-Bin cautiously following my lead. She picked her way through the wreckage as if she expected it to attack her. I could only think that it was a good thing we didn't have far to go.
Stopping in front of a dilapidated wall, I pulled out a drawer. Ignoring the cloud of dust that filled the air, I reached in and pulled out the false bottom, revealing a small chain and ring that I grabbed immediately. Even in near darkness, the ring still shone brightly. I felt strangely peaceful holding it, even after so much time had passed.
Part of me had wanted to bring it with me after the crash, but wearing it had stopped feeling necessary after Black Ghost's final defeat. I didn't have anything to remember any of the other people I'd lost, I needed to protect what I had left, or so I recalled thinking. Putting it on felt strange…but reassuring.
"Hey, umm…it looks like…somebody's been here recently."
Su-Bin was pointing at the floor, and even from a distance away I could see a footprint barely outlined in the dirt. The print looked distinct, but recognizable. Glancing down, I moved and saw the same print underneath my own boot. Examining both of them, I noticed one difference. The older print had been made from a narrower boot.
"It's standard manufacture for Black Ghost soldiers. Probably a patrol." I said, trying to fight a newfound feeling of hope. "There's no way of telling how recent it is, we should get moving."
Looking up, I froze when I saw Su-Bin's terrified expression, following the arm around her neck to the cold eyes glaring from the woman next to her. How had she managed to avoid my targeting system or set off any of my other senses? There was a mistrustful look in the woman's eyes, as if she was assessing any and all threats I could possibly pose.
"You're the rogue cyborg, aren't you?"
I could hear a faint accent in her voice. The bizarre question seemed out of place, and I responded with care. "Let her go first, and I'll tell you anything you want to know."
She nodded curtly, removing her hands and raising them as she backed away. Su-Bin darted over to my side, picking up a piece of rebar and glaring at the woman, who was regarding us with a serious expression on her face.
"No attempt at lying, and I didn't have to shove the little miss to the side to avoid gunfire. I guess that's useful information. If you're one of Black Ghost's operatives, you're not as stupid as the usual idiots."
She crossed her arms and gave us a searching look. "If you want a place to stay the night, come with me, or at least allow the little miss back for a change of clothes. You're not under surveillance and I'm not interested in reporting you. Home's this way."
Without any ceremony, she ducked through the gap in the hull. The surprised silence was only broken by the sound of her fading footsteps.
"Should we follow her?"
My eyes narrowed, and I looked over at Su-Bin. She was still shivering; I had completely forgotten that she was still soaked from the dive we'd taken into the ocean earlier. I didn't feel the need for sleep, or food, or any other basic necessity, but I knew she would. Depending on the situation, this could even be an opportunity to help her leave…without taking her on the suicide mission into the heart of Black Ghost's major base. The risk was high but the choice seemed obvious.
Without a word, I ducked through only to see the woman facing me from a distance, expressionless but calm. Almost as if she'd been waiting for us. Catching my eye, she turned and headed for a surprisingly clear path through the forest. The machete strapped to her back was well-worn, and I wondered what her purpose in being here was. Finding a local this far into the wilderness seemed strange, but if she was allied with Black Ghost, I couldn't disregard anything.
She gave me a pointed look. "Your names are?"
"Su-Bin Tae and 004." I replied, bowing hesitantly. "Yours?"
"Yindi Kneebone." She paused, as if weighing the dangers of saying more. "I'm the Lower East Side Watchmen, with three sectors under my jurisdiction. I don't know what you've been told, but you're currently in Sector 9 of Bi-myeong Island, North Korea."
Notes:
Won = a type of coin used in South Korea. The one won coin mentioned here (first released in 1983, not the earlier 1968-1992 issue) is apparently harder to find in circulation nowadays, and as of this writing, ten won coins are worth about one penny in American currency. Look at me being the Canadian who assumes mostly Americans will read this, ha.
