Chapter VI
"---AND I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO HER AFTER THAT," RAY SAID QUIETLY, TIREDLY gripping the mug that Matrix had brought him. He took a sip and swallowed it hard. The face he made suggested that there might have been something a bit stronger mixed in with the java. Not that he seemed to mind.
"It's so long ago," he whispered, shutting his eyes.
AndrAIa was seated beside Ray's bed, with Matrix standing behind her. Bob was leaning against the wall, his arms folded. Dot wasn't here---he'd come instead, somehow convincing her to get another few cycles of sleep before hauling herself all the way across the city in the middle of the night. He still was amazed that she'd listened.
"But that wasn't very long after you left," Bob said. "Where have you been since the attack?"
"Sloshing around the fringes of the Net, mostly," Ray sighed, rubbing his chin. "You guys wanted to know about the Guardians, well, I've got stories for you. Six hours' worth. And they ain't going to be pleasant."
AndrAIa pursed her lips. "That bad."
"That bad, and then worse," Ray said bitterly, taking another swig. His nose wrinkled. "Matrix�what did you put in this stuff?"
Matrix's mouth twisted. "Trust me, pal�you need it."
"That I do." Ray shrugged, coughing a bit. "I was already on the Guardians' most wanted list, so I stuck to the smaller, remote systems when I could. If you think it was bad, Matrix, when you and me first hooked up back in that two-bit port system, it's gotten a lot worse. They've got whole garrisons in every major system, at least a dozen Guardians each�not to mention a few hundred viral troops to back them up�"
His voice trailed off for a moment. "Well, anyway, I didn't want to risk jumping directly into Mainframe from the Web, in case the Riders were tracking me, so I went for the first system I came across. I didn't realize until later that trying to get back here from the Net was going to be so tricky. That's basically what took all this time�trying to find a way back with the ports locked."
Matrix unfolded his arms, resting one hand on AndrAIa's shoulder and gesturing with the other. "So how'd you finally make it back?"
Another sip of the java started Ray coughing again. He balled a fist at his mouth, clearing his throat. "About a minute ago I ended up in a system called Pavilion�not too big a city. The Guardians had just started moving in, imposing their 'glorious New Order'�that's how they usually do things, is come in peacefully if they can. They only start shooting if the locals put up a fight."
He emptied the mug and set it aside. His tensed muscles seemed to be easing. "I think the Command.com figured they'd stand a better chance if they went along quietly. A lot of people disagreed, and the more courageous ones went underground. I met up with their cell, and once I told them where I was going, their hackers agreed to help try and crack through the port locks to get me back here."
Bob frowned. "They know about Mainframe?"
"A few of the resistance cells," Ray shrugged. "Mostly they've heard from some old friends of yours, Guardian, who knew you were in Mainframe before all this started going bad."
Briefly Bob wondered what "old friends" he could have still had in the Net. All of his old Academy buddies would either be deleted or infected now. His father, maybe, but not likely. His sister perhaps?
"They've kind of worked Mainframe up to be their last hope," Ray continued, "since they heard it locked down. Everyone here is safe from the Guardians' control�that's really why they helped me in Pavilion, because they thought I'd bring help back and free them. And of course there's you, Bob. Since you're the only Guardian who hasn't gone completely insane."
"Not quite the only one," Bob mused, his mind drifting back home. Not just to young Enzo, but also to little Jaric and Jana. Their childlike dreams of becoming Guardians seemed innocent enough now, but if they decided they were serious, they certainly had the opportunity and potential. But it would have to be their choice. Bob would never dream of forcing them into this kind of a life.
"Doesn't anyone else know about Daemon?" AndrAIa asked. "The way you've described it, it sounds like everyone thinks the Guardians just suddenly�snapped." She snapped her fingers to illustrate.
"A few of the rebels have their virus theories. But I think the only people who know Daemon exists are the Guardians themselves," Ray replied. Absently he ran his fingers over the bandage patches that covered the cuts on his face. "Whatever she wants, it ain't fame."
They all started as the doors to Ray's room hissed open suddenly, and Dr. Cursor strode in, carrying a datapad under one arm. She smiled pleasantly. "Excuse me. I'm just here to check up on the patient. It won't be a minute."
The four sprites fell immediately silent, as Cursor pulled up a chair beside Ray's bed and stood on it. She seemed to pick up on the sudden quiet, but discreetly chose to act oblivious. She whipped out a scanner and passed it over the side of Ray's head, checking energy levels and other vital signs.
"Looking good," she nodded approvingly, peeling back one of the patches and glancing at the wound beneath.
"And it looks like those lacerations are healing up just fine. A few more seconds and you won't even have any scars."
"At least no visible ones," Ray whispered, shutting his eyes tightly, trying to chase away the ghosts of the last six hours.
Bob felt a sharp pang of sympathy. He'd known Mouse for a long time, seen a lot of rough scrapes and wild adventures with her. He considered her one of his closest, most trusted friends. But to Ray, she'd been something different entirely. She had never known it. Ray himself might not even have known it, until she was already gone. Bob swallowed. He knew what that felt like. He knew very well.
Cursor again chose to politely ignore. "How does your head feel?" she asked, sticking the bandage back into place.
"Like a herd of nulls is stampeding through it," Ray muttered through a tight smile.
Softly Cursor laughed. "Well, no wonder. That bumpy ride through the portal left you with a mild concussion. Nothing too serious, but you'll probably feel a little dizzy for a few seconds." She reached for a hypo and gently pressed it into Ray's arm. "There. That should help ease the pain. And far more effectively, I might add, than whatever it was Mr. Matrix put into your java." She turned and glared at Matrix, who threw up his hands innocently.
"Well," Cursor said, turning back to Ray. "I'd like to�" She spun at the sound of the doors once again opening, and she straightened abruptly. "Commander Matrix."
Bob glanced toward the doorway and scowled. "You never listen to me, do you," he chided.
Dot ignored him completely, pushing past him towards the Surfr. Obviously, she'd come over in quite a hurry. She was dressed, but her violet eyes were still lined from sleep and she was smoothing her black hair into place.
"Ray!" she cried, rushing over towards him. All those thousands of questions that Bob knew she had been dying to ask him seemed to instantly vanish, and all she could say was, "It's�it's good to see you again."
"It's good to be back," the Surfr replied, with a shadowed version of his old carefree smile. He nodded towards Bob, Matrix, and AndrAIa. "I was just telling these guys about my pleasant little vacation."
Dot tried to smile, a tight grin that barely veiled her nervousness and fatigue. "You'll have to tell me sometime."
"I'd be happy to, as soon as these blokes let me out of the Infirm�" Ray's voice trailed off, as he gave Dot a good look over for the first time, and then a second time. His gaze kept coming back to her rounded stomach. "I've been away for a long time, haven't I?"
One corner of Dot's mouth curved upward. "Just wait until you meet the twins." She waved a hand, shaking her head. "But for now, I've arranged some guest quarters for you here in the Principal Office."
"Already?" Ray said, astonished. He was the only one, however, who was the least bit surprised. Bob just smiled. That was Dot, all right. One step ahead of everyone.
"It's temporary, of course," Dot continued. "Just until we can set up something more permanent for you. That is," she added, glancing at Dr. Cursor, "if he's allowed to leave the Infirmary?"
"Well, I'd rather he stayed another second or two so I can monitor his recovery more closely," Dr. Cursor said, but she quickly caught the look Dot was giving her. She amended, "Still, I think he'd probably be more comfortable in a private room. If I can have him back here next second to check up on those lacerations."
Done," Ray agreed, hastily hopping down off the biobed. He seemed to regret it immediately. "I'm, uh�I see what you mean about dizzy spells," he muttered, as Cursor hid a grin behind one hand. "A little help, here, Matrix?"
"No problem," Matrix grinned, sliding his arm under Ray's. The taller sprite's smile faded into a confused frown. "What's this?"
"Oh. That." Leaning back against the bed's edge, Ray loosened his arm and reached around to something hooked on the back of his belt. With a click, it released. He held the object out to Bob. "One of the rebels in Pavilion said he found this after the Guardians invaded. I'm surprised it made it through the portal with me---I thought you maybe you'd want to have it."
Frowning, Bob extended his hand, and the Surfr placed the object in his palm. The metal felt cool, and pockmarked from battle, scored and pitted from shrapnel. He looked down at it.
It was a keytool.
She slipped past the defense grid effortlessly. The sensors, apparently, hadn't been changed much at all since she'd installed them during the war, and it was almost insultingly easy for her to hack in and convince them that her ship wasn't even there.
She'd dropped in a fair distance from the city, in case this didn't work, and now she veered her ship around, plotting a course towards Floating Point Park. Her monitoring of the system's sensors didn't even show a tremor as she approached the park and landed amidst the trees and reflecting pools.
Shutting down the engines, she pulled the main power offline first, pulling her restraints loose with one hand while the other continued to work the console, eventually powering down the entire ship. If she'd left even the food synthesizer running at half-power, it might've come up on a routine sweep, and that'd bring an abrupt end to this little party. Her equipment had been kept to minimal. Holding her glow cube in one hand, she pulled out a case of emergency energy capsules, clipping a few seconds' worth to her belt. She stashed her sword and pistol away, and deactivated the glow cube as well. She wouldn't need much---once everyone knew she was here, she'd have access to all the supplies she needed.
Sealing the ship's hatch shut behind her as she stepped off, she fingered the remote activator for a moment, then pressed a switch. A faint shimmer in the air, and the ship vanished, hidden behind a cloaking field. She tucked the remote away, and headed on foot towards the heart of the city.
A thousand memories came flooding back painfully as she looked around. Images of this place, snatches of memory that flickered behind her eyes and then disappeared, still vivid even through all of the mental blockers. Images of people she, through all the fog, realized that she had once known and cared about.
Bob�Dot� A flash of pain lanced through the back of her neck up into her brain. She squeezed her eyes shut, clenched her teeth, and tried to shake the thoughts away. She wasn't in control here. She had no choice.
Bob�Dot�please. Forgive me�