Gadget Read online

  “Okay, so I will have to make an appointment at the groomers before that particular image becomes reality. At least I have time. Do you know which diplomat I will be transporting?”

  “One of the Nyal royal family. Prince Naroz. You know, they have dozens of princes, but he is well thought of as a decent man and better diplomat. You are being upgraded from transport to mobile embassy.”

  Gadget rubbed at the back of her neck. “Wow, the Dark Fairy suddenly got all fancy without me doing a thing.”

  Frisk smiled. “It is an elegant ship. Are you fully wired to it?”

  “I am. The Nyal will do a full cyborg setup while the Alliance won’t. It wasn’t too big a decision when my body had never been mine to use before I got here.”

  “Did you want to go for that caf?” Frisk smiled. “We can let the Guardians get acquainted.”

  Gadget grinned. “I would love to. Is there a place nearby?”

  “There is. Come on.”

  Shatter was standing next to the ramp, and he blinked as Gadget passed him. “Where are you going?”

  “The last time I was here, Frisk offered to take me for caf. I am just obliging her.”

  “She will be back, Shatter. Don’t worry. We just need some Terran girl time.”

  An hour later, they were sitting at an outdoor café in Feural, and Frisk asked, “What kind of genetic disorder was it?”

  Gadget flexed her fingers. “Okay, it was misleading to call it genetic. I suffered from dystonia. I would try to move my hand and my foot would jerk, or try to write and my arm would shoot out. All of my wiring was crossed.”

  “You were fixed when you came out here?”

  “Of course. The Nyal were willing to go along with all changes that I requested and even suggested a few extras that had never occurred to me. I am a fully functioning cyborg with defense and attack capabilities.”

  Frisk sipped at her caf. “Isn’t it amazing that out here we can say things that would have sounded insane back on earth?”

  Gadget laughed. “I think that every time I link with my ship and prepare for a mission. It is all so surreal, but then, so is having my body obey my commands.”

  “Are you happy?” It was a direct question, and Frisk looked very sincere.

  “I am happy. I like my life, but then, it is so different from life with braces, crutches and whatever else they thought to strap me into, I can’t help but enjoy it. Out here, I get to live, but back home, I just existed. My parents supported me, but they couldn’t afford everything I needed to make my life resemble normal. I was glad to leave and take the burden from them, I just wish they could see me now.”

  She was wistful. Every time she clenched her fist without her hand jerking, she wanted to tell her parents. Each effortless stand or walk that she took, she wanted to tell her parents. It was lonely out here, but she had friends. Four other ladies from earth who had similar stories to her own were each wired to their transports in a symbiotic relationship. They even had a clubhouse at a tiny space station out in the far reaches of space where their ships were repaired and their own maintenance was carried out. Having circuitry inside living tissue made for regularly scheduled check-ups.

  Frisk nodded. “I know that feeling. I wanted to introduce Lance to my parents but that is impossible. I never minded the contract until this one thing came up.”

  “The one thing being the love of your life?”

  “Yup.” Frisk sighed and stretched. “Well, they are probably going insane by now, so we should get back to them. The prince is patient but only to a point.”

  Regretfully, Gadget got to her feet. It was time to return to her ship and her life among the stars. The odd thing in this case was that she would not be going alone.

  She wasn’t sure how she felt about that, but she had time to work out her feelings. Space travel was rarely quick.

  Chapter Three

  Prince Naroz was in quiet conversation with Shatter when Gadget and Frisk returned to the Dark Fairy. They both looked up suddenly as the women approached.

  “Transporter Morris, how lovely to see you again.” Prince Naroz Garrz took her hand and bowed over it.

  “Thank you, Your Highness. I am gathering that you are my new guest and that Shatter is your bodyguard?” She smiled at him fondly.

  Nitza’s younger brother had met her over a year ago when she visited her dispatcher at a family event. Hanging around with the imperial family had not been her idea of fun, but it had turned out to be a fairly enjoyable few days before duty called her again.

  “You have it precisely right, dear Tobitha. The food has been delivered, so we are able to depart whenever you are ready.” Naroz smiled.

  It was a not-so-subtle prod, and Shatter waited behind the prince with an attentive expression.

  Gadget turned to Frisk and gave her a hug. “I will see you again when I am back this way. I promise.”

  Frisk laughed. “Send the other altered Terrans by as well. I am always up to reminisce about cultures past and foods barely remembered.”

  “I will spread the word. You will be in heavy rotation as soon as one of us passes through this cluster.”

  Frisk grinned. “Excellent. It will serve Lance right to have to share me now and then. I don’t want him getting complacent.”

  Gadget snorted and hugged Frisk again. “See you soon.”

  She watched wistfully as the other Terran walked toward the skimmer where the rest of the Guardians were gathered. It was like watching the departure of a long lost cousin. They had only just met, but now, they had to part.

  Shatter stepped forward with his bag over one shoulder. “Shall we go?”

  The prince lifted his own bag. “Ready if you are.”

  Gadget sighed. “Then please, welcome to my home, my prison and my body.”

  She gestured grandly for them to enter, and they inclined their heads as they stepped into her domain. “The lower levels are designed for cryo storage. If you are down here, you are in the most heavily reinforced section of the Dark Fairy. No blast, no impact and no chance of escape.”

  Toby triggered the door closure and began running the tour. “The connecting passage between hold and the upper level has to be triggered by me. No one gets to the private areas of the ship unless I authorize it.”

  Shatter asked, “How do you keep prisoners from breaking into your space?”

  “In a word, acid. I do acid flushes of the ship every time there is a danger of incursion. I recharge the tanks at regular intervals.”

  Naroz winced. “Brutal but effective.”

  “When you are alone in the ship, you do what you can to protect yourself. I will register your bio-signs with the ship so you won’t be in danger of me giving you that treatment. If you are registered, the systems won’t activate deadly countermeasures until you are clear.”

  Shatter snorted. “Good to know.”

  She grinned and kept leading them past the cryo chambers.

  “How many can you carry?”

  “Forty in the cryo tubes. It is preferable to having folks rattling around down here. They get noisy.”

  She summoned the stairs and led the way up to the second level. It was the actual guest level. “Your rooms will be here, on this floor. Prince Naroz, your rooms are here, on the left, Shatter, yours are on the right.”

  Shatter raised his brows. “Rooms? How much space do we get?”

  She shrugged. “Well, I don’t know how much you were expecting, but I only have two first-class accommodations and you have them. My quarters are attached to the command deck above.”

  Naroz grinned. “So, where do we register to be recognized by the ship?”

  “Drop your bags in your rooms, and we will head up to the command deck. I will do it there.”

  Toby waited in the hall while they entered their rooms, and she summoned the next set of steps up to her deck. She scooted up to her floor, and the two men followed her. Finally, she was back where she belonged. The lights came
on as she moved through the ship, and in the command centre, she coaxed the Fairy into producing the authorization key unit.

  “All right, boys. One palm at a time. You are on my turf now, and here, there is no rank, no formality. Shatter, your name protects your family, so you can keep it, but Naroz, you are going by your first name now. You two, in turn, may call me Toby.”

  Naroz grimaced. “You sound like my sister.”

  “You know why, now palm down, scooter.” Toby put all of her authority into her voice, and the young noble pressed his palm to the scanner.

  She watched and he jumped. She laughed. “I didn’t think to warn you. Sorry.”

  “What the hell was that?” Naroz cradled his hand against his chest and scowled.

  “It needs a bio sample as well as a standard scan. We don’t want anyone simply mimicking your bio-rhythm.” She shrugged.

  Shatter flexed his hand as the light authorized his scan. His muscles jumped as the ship bit him, but he didn’t jerk away. He simply removed his hand calmly from the unit. “Do we need audio or video recordings?”

  Toby smiled. “No, the Fairy does that for herself.”

  Shatter looked around. “It is alive?”

  Toby inclined her head. “She is. She doesn’t speak in words, but she talks through the instruments and readouts. We are linked.”

  Naroz nodded. With Nitza in service as dispatcher, he was privy to many secrets of the Guardians and their transport flock. Being bonded to a ship was a strange job requirement, but it is what the Nyal had asked for in exchange for their body mods.

  Five Terrans had been chosen for the remodel project by the Alliance. They did not do that kind of modification to a new species unless it was for restoration after an injury. The five women chosen all suffered from damage inflicted by their own natural environment or biology. The Champions of Terra had not existed, so the five were not privy to the more exotic healing techniques that were now on offer in the Alliance. The Nyal experimental sciences division had greeted them with open arms, and after transmuting them into cyborgs, they had been given all the necessary treatments and therapies to turn them into the Guardian Transport Division.

  Toby didn’t regret one moment of the pain for the body she was now able to control.

  The Dark Fairy was her partner, her guardian and her home. The mind was cultured from her own cells mixed with those of a Nyal donor. The brain had a neural net that ran throughout the ship, controlling everything with a combination of impulses and wiring.

  Shatter frowned. “Can you leave her?”

  “Not for long periods. She gets lonely, and when she gets lonely, she gets creative with the route maps. Last time I took more than three days off, she took me on a two-day voyage for a six-hour trip.” She grimaced.

  Toby straightened. “Now, I will show you the first-aid bay and the kitchen. The rations have been loaded in, so you can simply select them from the dispenser. If you want fresh food, you are on your own. I never managed to learn how to cook.”

  She showed them the galley and the small first-aid kiosk just large enough for two, but easy enough for a single person to use comfortably. She should know, she did it frequently when it came to tuning up her wiring and weaponry.

  “My quarters are here, knock if you don’t find me in the throne room.”

  Naroz laughed. “I thought you said we didn’t have ranks.”

  She chuckled and patted his cheek. “No, I said you don’t have ranks. I am queen of all I survey and ruler of this life-supported shuttle in the vastness of space.”

  Shatter snorted. “That was very politic.”

  Toby winked at him. “Speaking of politics, Naroz, do you have a destination for us?”

  “Yaviilianika. I need to talk trade routes with the emirate.”

  “Gentlemen, you have the run of the ship. I will be in my throne room.” Toby turned and left them in the galley. She had a course to lay in.

  Chapter Four

  Toby leaned back as the clamps closed over her forearms, hiding her wrists and the jacks from view as the ship joined with her in the most basic way. The subtle notes of the ship were suddenly crystal clear, and Toby relaxed in the technological embrace of her other half.

  Yaviilianika was laid in, and she checked the pressure on the ship as she lifted off. All systems were white, and it was with a sense of anticipation that she pulled out of the atmosphere of Jennila and headed for open space.

  The first jump was the hardest. The gravitational forces of the nearest stars tugged at the ship, and it took all of her concentration to propel them through the fields and to the next jump. Time didn’t matter when you were flying a star ship.

  The ship fed her and took care of flushing out her nervous system while she flew. When her stomach rumbled, she put the ship on automatic and headed for the galley.

  Naroz and Shatter were sitting and sharing a meal. They looked surprised to see her.

  “Sorry to interrupt. I got hungry.”

  Shatter scowled. “I would think so, it has been days.”

  Toby smiled weakly. “It feels like it.”

  She dialled up something that was similar to spaghetti and meatballs. It was blue, but the flavour was right.

  She took a bag of water and her heated meal over to the table. She pressed her hip to Shatter’s arm. “Scoot over.”

  He blinked in surprise, but he scooted.

  Toby sat with her thigh pressed to his while he sipped at his caf. She made it through her meal and drank her water, rubbing at her eyes with her free hand. “I think I may need a nap.”

  “Can the ship continue without you?” Naroz cocked his head.

  “She can, but she won’t. The programming is set so that she will only coast in a straight line without my direction. Since we haul a lot of captured criminals, it only makes sense to have a dead man’s switch.”

  Shatter frowned. “A what?”

  “It is a device that will enact a response or deactivate one if the operator is no longer able to complete the circuit. If I go dead, the ship does too.”

  Naroz blinked. “So, Shatter and I would be stranded?”

  “Well, sort of. The Dark Fairy would head to meet her nearest sister ship. You would have to deal with one of the other Fairies. I am pretty sure they would kick your butts.” She smirked and jolted as she realized that she was exhausted.

  “I am sorry to run off at the mouth like that. I will just pop in for a nap, and after I get some rest, we will be back underway.”

  Shatter got to his feet as she rose. “I will help you. You don’t look very steady.”

  Toby lurched and tipped her head up. “I am fine. Or I will be. You can help if you like though.”

  It was as close as she ever got to drunk talk, and she would be embarrassed in the morning, but for now, his warm arm around her waist was welcome assistance.

  Her room was locked when he tried to open it. She giggled and held out her hand, stroking the metal panel. It slid aside at her touch. “You just have to ask her nice.”

  Her room was large but utilitarian. No small bits of home decorated her quarters, she hadn’t been able to lift one and hold it to bring with her. It made her homesick, but she was muddling along.

  Shatter helped her to her bed, and he grinned, “This is not how I imagined getting you into bed.”

  She snorted. “Tough. I may be your destiny, but you still have to court me.”

  Light gleamed in his eyes. “You would welcome such courtship?”

  “Of course. I haven’t given it much thought because work keeps me busy, but it keeps you busy to, so I guess we could have a few days together here or there.”

  His smile got closer as he leaned in. “I think acting as bodyguard to dignitaries on board your ship will keep me busy for quite some time, and there is plenty of time together to be had between worlds.”

  She felt the caress of his fingers, and she smiled as the lightest of touches coasted over her lips. His breath mingled
with hers as he stroked his lips across hers, and she smiled softly as she dozed off.

  Toby only hoped she wasn’t snoring.

  * * * *

  Shatter watched his lady with the unlikely hairstyle as she surrendered to sleep. Dark circles were under her eyes, and he was glad that she knew when to call it quits. Her body was not completely depleted. She had taken care of herself with remarkable rationality given her fatigue.

  How many times had she driven herself to the edge of collapse for an assignment? It wasn’t right that she spent so much time alone. Fortunately, his transfer to duty on board her ship meant she wasn’t going to be alone again, but convincing her that he was here to stay was going to take some doing.

  He got to his feet and looked down at her. She slept in her suit. His curiosity about her body caused an endless ache in his groin whenever he looked at her. He had been right, it was this woman’s scent that told him she was perfect for him. It was similar to Frisk’s but with a distinct ozone-like tang. It was more distinct than unpleasant, and moreover, it was the scent of his mate. The slightest hint of it and he was eager to take his chances with the contents of that suit.

  The lights in the room dimmed, and he was treated to another shock. Circuit-like patterns marked a mask around Tobitha’s eyes and trailed down her cheeks to her throat. It was the mark of the cyborg that Frisk had first seen on the portrait. He had been too dazed by the image of the woman in his arms to look at details, now he wanted to memorize every inch of her.

  The door lit up with a soft lavender glow, and he took the hint. He left Toby alone, sleeping heavily and snoring softly, her black bodysuit gleaming in the darkness.

  Outside her room, after the door had closed, he spoke, “There will come a time when I stay in there for the night, dear ship. You had better get used to the idea. I will be willing to share her if you are.”

  The lights in the hallway dimmed, and he stumbled as he made his way down to his quarters.