Ally or Alien: A Sci-Fi Novel (17 page)

"It is not lethal," eKazumi said.

"Because of your damn anti-firearm demands. I would have brought a smart assault rifle with a holo-stabilizer."

"Maybe next time."

"There won't be a next time."

He marched faster.

Stomp, stomp, exo on overdrive.

Dr. Rao, aching under Bellrock's left arm, leaked a blood trail, which was soaked up by the ground. Not a single drop remained on the surface.

Bellrock swallowed.

"Where's the nearest medstation?"

"Medstation?"

She hesitated.

"Oh, you mean a repair bay."

"Where is it?"

She pulled the trigger again when the biomorph creature threatened to creep closer.

"It is next to the hub intersection."

"Good. Let's blitz."

During the getaway march, he looked at the ammo counter of the PEPS gun eKazumi was firing.

"Only three shots left."

"It is good. We will shut down the section now."

Right the second they traversed the corridor frame, the shutter mechanism closed and separated the escapees from the predator.

Close timing.

eKazumi said,

"Aggressor successfully detained in lab section E-2."

She put the PEPS back into Bellrock's side-holster. Bellrock realized every shot she had fired was a direct hit, probably aided by her internal aim-assist. Now she looked at Bellrock pushing his exo-legs and said,

"Do you need help carrying your partner?"

"Aren't you supposed to take care of your compeer first?"

Her eyes remained neutral.

"Oh, eLoom will be alright. It is your friend that is facing death."

42

Bellrock walked with determination. Made every step count and avoided rash movements to lower the vibrations. Every hefty move could have had fatal consequences for the doc.

Couldn't let that happen.

eKazumi danced next to him. She almost tiptoed over the floor with a humming silence.

Bellrock said,

"Where's the station?"

"Over there."

A hole in the wall opened up sideways. The light inside the chamber switched on. Medical machines came alive with mechanical sounds, followed by a symphony of beeps.

"Put him in one of the pods," the asset said, "we're going to scan his injuries while I produce the right amount of tranquilizer fluid to keep him quiet." 

"Are you are a doctor as well?"

She narrowed her eyes.

"Of course."

"Ah right, you guys know everything."

With her one arm left, eKazumi helped put Dr. Rao into one of the pods. Three cybernetic arms extracted from the tech table and circulated over the wounded scientist. One seemed to scan him, the other cut open his suit while the third took a blood sample and sprayed his wounds with some kind of disinfectant. eKazumi explained the process.

"The system is going to evaluate his damage and will repair him under my watch.”

She looked up at Bellrock.

"Do you mind putting eLoom into the adjacent repair pod?"

Bellrock averted his glance from Rao.

"Sure, sorry."

"Oh, please do not feel guilty. You humanoids are often distracted by your emotions."

Another one of these off-putting remarks, but the Newtype female was the only thing that could save his partner's life.

"Right."

He put eLoom into the second pod and watched its three arms unleashing the same spiel as with the doc. eKazumi joined his side and elaborated on the process.

"She has received only minor injuries that are 100% repairable."

At least some good news.

Bellrock paid attention to his doc and remained less optimistic about his state.

"What's his injury?"

"Three broken rips, one broken shoulder blade and a fracture in the clavicle. I'm also detecting heavy internal bleeding in the solar plexus area. Wait there is more— his spleen was penetrated.”

Bellrock swallowed.

Seeing Dr. Rao in the pod, bleeding out, it tore at his psyche. Half an hour ago, the young man was on fire, ready to analyze the alien. Helping out Earth with his sharp sense and curiosity.

And now? Facing death.

The fragile fate of humans?

No, Bellrock couldn't even think about it.

The next words stumbled over his lips.

"Can you fix him?"

"We try our best."

"That won't be enough. You need to do more."

Like, everything even remotely possible.

Half-assed measures wouldn't do.

They never did.

eKazumi eyed him with curiosity. She looked like a little Japanese girl when her white hand stroked his.

"I know you are upset. What happened to your partner is mostly unfortunate. But when I say we are doing our best, that is a 100% correct statement."

"I guess I have to trust you on this one."

"That would be sound."

Meanwhile, eLoom regained the ability to talk and spoke from her pod. 

"Do not worry, Bellrock. Your friend will receive state-of-the-art treatment. He will be fine, it is only a matter of time."

Her head tilted inside the pod, while the bionic arms worked on her body as if they were building an auto-ride in the factory. There was warmth in her voice, and her blue eyes seemed to ooze empathy. Or maybe it was the first time Bellrock had noticed it.

"What happened back in the lab?"

"The extra arm must have been corrupted when we approached the biomorph structure. It was shortly swallowed up by the life form, which seemed enough for the assimilation process. We have found out that the biomorph is using a smart liquid consisting of millions of programmed nanobots to infiltrate the tubes and cables from our electronic equipment to manipulate its functions."

She paused. 

"Then, when I and Dr. Rao were working on the footage samples in the lab, reprinting a 3D model for the analysis, the nanobot-infected arm detached itself from the tool showcase and attacked us."

She paused but kept her eye contact.

"It dismantled the lab and assimilated the electronic tools. Unfortunately, both I and the doctor were in the way."

"Well, the thing's contained. I hope it stays that way."

eLoom smiled through the semi-transparent pod hull.

"Do not worry about that. Our quarantine protocol has wiped out the aggressor."

Quarantine protocol? Sounded like bureaucrat jargon again, but whatever killed the creature was a plus in his book. Bellrock let the thought linger on his mind when eKazumi's squeaky voice sounded from behind.

"I will now survey the repairing process and overtake control where I see fit."

She walked toward a monitor that was connected with the repair pod and its three cybernetic arms.

Bellrock thanked her in silence.

"Is there anything I can do?"

"Unfortunately, your mindset is too limited to assist me in any medical venture. You can take a pause in the community center. The couch ring awaits you."

"Gotcha."

He rotated around a 180 degrees but kept his head pointed at eKazumi's direction.

"Please. Do your best."

"I will. It is a guarantee."

Bellrock switched to eLoom's position and gave her two thumbs up.

"Same goes for you—get well soon."

She narrowed her eyes till her glowing blue orbs disappeared. Her smile seemed warmer than the light from the centered source on the ceiling.

eLoom said,

"I will. Double-promise."

Bellrock nodded before he left the repair station. He faced the central area with the couch ring where eVax awaited him. The shell tried to smile but it couldn't have looked any more fake.

Plastic face, plastic grin.

eVax to the max.

Probably the only 'person' Bellrock wished the biomorph creature should have killed. 

The anger surged inside the captain. 

Rage pushed into his fists.

"Which hole did you creep out of?"

"I was looking for a way to be useful."

"BS. You ran away like chicken shit."

"Please, watch your mouth. Vulgarity is of no use to anyone. Besides, I have some bad news to share."

Bellrock nodded.

"Yeah, me too."

He marched toward the Newtype and gave him an uppercut...

43

Thanks to the HULC exoskeleton, Bellrock's punch brimmed with primal power. Felt like he owned a rocket arm.

Aim, fire, forget.

The Newtype flew five meters over the ground floor and rolled sideways upon impact. Pushed himself back up and brushed off invisible dust. His facial expression remained neutral.

"That is such a typical human response."

Bellrock had it with this guy. 

All spiel and no substance.

He marched toward eVax and prepared for another hit.

Locked and loaded, baby.

"You stood around when my partner was slaughtered by the creature. You didn't even care about your own kind. You sicken me."

eVax shrugged.

"I told you, there was nothing I could have done. The Exec put the lab on lockdown."

"You weren't even trying."

eVax tilted his head.

"When failure is guaranteed, every attempt is a waste of resources."

Typical Newtard logic. 

Leaving their own kind killed in order to save energy.

Such a despicable turd tribe.

The only waste of resources was a hit that missed the Newtype's head.

Thankfully, Bellrock was good with guns and fists. 

He launched from his position and rammed eVax into the rear. He didn't even try to evade. Upon impact, the Newtype slammed against the slick walls of the corridor and slid down. Bellrock heard some squishy sound and hoped he broke some of the shell's body structure. The Newtype kept mumbling something under his breath and squeezed his face.

"Maybe beating up your allies is not the best strategy for peace keeping."

"Don't worry, this is going to be over soon."

eVax voice shivered.

"You are not going to kill me, are you?"

"You're already dead inside. I'm just bumping the hull."

eVax got back up as if he had just slipped on a banana peel. Even his voice sounded monotonous. 

"Just what exactly are you trying to accomplish here?"

"Letting some steam off and teaching you a lesson or two."

eVax wanted to say something but Bellrock sealed his lips with a hit. He followed with a left and a right jab.

It was frustrating.

The shell didn't seem to feel any pain, or maybe he suppressed it. Instead, he offered more throwaway one-liners.

"Yes. Unleash that primate inside of you. Go full Tarzan."

Bellrock went full warrior instead.

Kicked the Newtype to the ground and fired another exo-framed boot into his ribcage. eVax' face contorted, exactly like a human when beaten to bits.

Finally a sign of pain.

Bellrock looked down at him and grinned.

"Don't tell me you can actually feel."

"We do. More than your kind, actually. But we can divert our ache. Right now, I want to see how a savage feels like."

The shell kept sputtering nonsense. 

Bellrock wasn't getting any of this.

"How about you divert this?"

He launched his exoskeleton-enhanced boot into eVax' ribcage. He flipped over and sprayed the ground with glowing blood squirts. Their body was much more resistant than a human's, but with Bellrock's exo power, even the Newtype crumpled. eVax crawled away when Bellrock knelt next to him and grabbed his head from behind. 

"You know, I could smash your empty skull into the white wall and no one would care. Do you know why?" 

The brightened blood leaked from the Newtype's nose.

"Please enlighten me."

"Because you were never alive in the first place."

"I see errors in that theory.”

"Soon, you won't see anything anymore."

He was about to smash the Newtype's head into the floor when a sharp female voice cut through the thickened air.

"That is enough."

It carried enough gravitas to halt Bellrock. His head twisted around toward the voice's direction. eLoom stood on the other side of the central section. She spread her legs and posed like an alpha. Her eyebeam burned.

"Bellrock. Please do not demolish eVax' body. This violence is not going to help anyone."

"Neither is this Newtard that doesn't care about his team members."

She walked toward him in calculated steps.

"That is his choice, not yours. Please let go of him."

Bellrock swapped attention back to his 'catch'. He still grabbed the artificial hair strings of eVax who sported a tired face with fake blood. This sucker deserved a beating for two lifetimes, but eLoom was right.

The danger lurked elsewhere.

For now. 

Bellrock moved his face close to eVax' ear channels.

"You know the real pain? Living with the realization that you are one big, fat coward."

"I will manage just fine, thanks."

Bellrock let go of the head and made it splash into the artificial blood lake. Moved up and walked toward eLoom whose facial muscles relaxed.

"I thank you. That was a wise decision."

She reached out her hand but he ignored it.

"Shove your thanks."

Her head tilted to the right. The eyes narrowed, while the blueish lips pursed.

That could only mean one thing.

"We have a new problem. And I do not mean your injured friend."

Bellrock's right eyebrow cocked. This planet was the mother place of all problems.

How could this situation get any more worse?

44

Seriously, one problem?

They had dozens, tendency: rising. 

Bellrock exhaled his frustration.

"What is it this time?"

"The biomorph," said eVax from behind. 

He looked like a dented plastic model and seemed to have mechanical problems with his left arm that dangled down. Bellrock didn't feel bad for the shell. One session in the repair pod and eVax would be as good as new.

Unfortunately.

"I was going to tell you but you were too busy beating me up."