Torchworld: Outsiders Collection (4 page)

Psycho.

The walls here were a little more interesting than the cells in Opalesk. Damp and grungy, just how I like it. Flexing my foot made me wince at the blinding flash of pain shooting up my leg. My scorched ass was faring better. Running a hand over it produced only minimal pain. More like a bad sunburn. Much as I could tell through the bindings anyway. Worth some lost cells for complete freedom. Painkillers reminded me of booze, that same groggy feeling when I sat up. Left leg fine with just a few scrapes. Right leg splinted and bound. Grasped the bed railing and pushed up onto my feet. So far so good. Ventured out my shaky right foot. As soon as I put weight down it screamed. Or more accurately, I screamed and fell on my ass.

“Drone fucking shit!”

Must have echoed down the hall, as a young woman came running down the corridor and peered in the door with a raised brow. Splayed on the floor like a damn banana peel. She looked familiar but the meds had me foggy. Who the hell knows, she could be my mother for all I knew!

“You ok?”

Grabbing my leg around the calf, I lifted it a bit. “Yeah, just a little crippled. I’m fine.”

She gritted her teeth. “Still mean. Lucky for you, I like mean. Sit here a sec while I get something.”

The girl disappeared down the hallway again.

“It’s fine, really, I’ll just sit here being useless as tits on a droid!”

Shuffled back with an uncomfortable grunt so I could lean on the cold concrete wall. After a few minutes I heard booted footsteps reverberating off the concrete. Her faded blue hair was now pulled back in a messy heap on top of her head, and she’d grabbed two pairs of gloves. She slipped on a pair, and handed me the other. Some sort of folded up frame was sitting on a hover-pallet behind her.

“Kharl, right? These should be about your size. You’ll need these for the exo, it’s easier to get a grip on the controls. It’s a little worn down. Kinda ancient but it’ll do the job until you can walk independently again.”

Pulling the frame off the pallet, she set it on the floor.

“You’re the one that dragged me from the grip of perdition right? Never did catch a name, I’m sure you parents didn’t name ye Psycho.”

Stopping, she stared down at the half assembled exo frame. “Lilith.”

“Can I call ya Lil?”

“No.” Her face was cold and blank.

“Ok then,” I replied.

Reaching out to her, I gripped tight and Lilith yanked me up while staring out the door. Deceptively strong for her size. The baggy uniform was likely hiding lean muscle. Shouldn’t be thinking about what was under her uniform. Little too young for my tastes. Bit screwy in the head too, like I needed more crazy in my life. My own crazy was more than enough.

Lilith opened up the assembled exo in front of me. There was a skeletal leg frame, I’d seen those before. Would allow me some exercise and reduce muscle atrophy until my shattered leg healed up in a few days after the regeneration injections.   Knowing I wasn’t one to sit on my ass in a chair, she’d brought me some measure of independence. Lilith held her arms out as I stepped into the leg frames. I gripped her shoulders while she closed it around my splinted leg.

“It’s up to you if you want to use it on both legs. It can be strange to get used to, but you’ll have more freedom if you only use one. Just use a boot with more heel to even out your stride.”

Grunting, I tested my other leg, tapping it on the floor and leaning forward. “Nah, should be right with just one. You can laugh when I fall over and bruise my manly pride.”

That elicited a smirking grin from her. Covering her mouth with one hand, she sat there crouched and shaking with mirth.

“I probably would laugh my ass off,” she replied. She motioned me to sit back down as she stood up. “I’ll find some more suitable clothing so you can walk around without the entire compound seeing your butt.” She smiled and shook her head before leaving the room.

“I bet you’d like to see that!” I yelled after her.

“I already did!” she called back, laughing.

My beard itched again. I hope someone had some razors around here so I could shave. Lilith walked back in with an armful of assorted clothing and towels and dumped it on the bed next to me. There was a small satchel on top.

“There should be something that fits in there. I brought toiletries, there’s a bathroom down the hall to your left. Thankfully we have the standard shower pods here, and the exo is waterproof so don’t worry about it.”

Grinning, I stroked my ragged stubble. “What about this?”

“There’s a razor set in there. Among other useful things, like soap.”

“Are you implying I stink?”

“I’m not implying it. You smell like a burning mountain goat,” she replied, wrinkling her nose.

“Hah!”

Lilith rolled her eyes. “Can you make it down the hallway?”

“How far is it?”

“Maybe thirty metres,” she said. “I’ll carry this stuff. Be right behind you.”

The strain of standing under my own power made me groan. The exo took my weight, despite some initial creaking. Couple steps forward, wobbling like a toddler. Lilith stood behind me watching my legs.

“Try to step forward with your left. The frame will take some weight but too much will unbalance you.”

“Alright. I know how to walk, woman!”

Lilith shrugged and stood back. I waddled out the door and leaned on the wall. Looking down the hall I could see it wasn’t far. Doable. Thirty metres. An awkward waddle hop got me moving like a dizzy penguin. I made it down to the bathroom in one piece, however. Lilith dropped the clothing and satchel on a bench.

“Have fun, I’ll be down the hall if you need help. I can send one of the guys if it makes you feel better.”

The pod had railings I could hang onto. “I should be fine darling. Don’t worry yourself, I’ve done worse.”

“I have no doubt about that. So just scream if you’re dying or something.”

Nodding, I began to pull my shirt off. Lilith paused for a second looking me up and down, then turned on her heel and left. Interesting girl that one. Most women were terrified of me, seeing just the soldier in me and not the human underneath intimidating black armor. She didn’t seem to be bothered by my appearance. Or my dazzling people skills.

Stripping my bindings off was going to be harder. Hmm. Digging around in the satchel, I found a knife. That would work. Shimmied it under the bindings and sliced downward, cutting through the layers. Left with the splint frame, I could pull off the scrapped bandages. Felt so good to peel them off, my skin could breathe again. Lilith was right though about the smell. All that sweat trapped in body hair under the bindings had fermented the issue. With the absence of a trash chute I left the scraps where they fell on the floor. Couldn’t really bend over to pick them up, regardless.

Time to tackle the shower. Grabbed the soap and a cloth from the bag. On second thought, I placed the bag nearby just in case I needed anything else. Like a toothbrush, maybe? Damn, those meds still had me foggy and dopey as a child. There were plenty in there so I plucked out a plain blue one.

Soon I was in the shower gripping the railings tight, while hot steamy water pounded on my aching back. When was the last time I’d had a proper bath? Last week more than likely. Droids didn’t care how I smelled, they just fed me enough to keep me from passing out. Actually did pass out on arrival here due to shock. No idea if they’d fed me while I was knocked out, it’s likely I was given tube food with the regen. Felt a little peckish though.

After a nice scrub down I smelled much less of a mountain goat, let alone a burning one. Fishing out the razor, I did a quick trim in the mirror. Decent. This face has seen a lot of action for my thirty-two years. The scar across my cheekbone stood out pale against my flushed skin. Could have regenerated that right out in the city. Somehow I preferred keeping it. A badge of honour.

Sifting through the clothing I noted the distinct lack of variation. Mostly uniform pieces. Not a fussy man in terms of fashion, but some choice was nice. A pair of heavy techskin trousers and a simple shirt would suffice. Lilith had obligingly provided me with neatly folded boxers too. Smart woman. The trousers were thankfully the type that had a strapping up the side, to allow access to military exo frames underneath. A familiar design for me. With some twinging pain and patience, I got everything on ok. Taking it slow was a good idea as I didn’t want a nursemaid. Already felt like a pampered baby.

Alright, time to meet the crew. Markin probably expected an appearance sooner or later so I may as well get that over with. Then I could figure out what the fuck I was going to do now that I’m out. Lilith said she’d be down the hall, I reckon there’s a common hall or something there. Ok, one foot after the other. More waddling. Tap. Tap. Fucking frame echoed like a damn elephant doing a jig. Tap. Tap. Shook my head and continued down the hallway. There was an open door at the end and I could see the back of Lilith’s blue hair, a semi-organized mess on her head she’d pinned back to hunch over a work table.

“Hey Lil!”

Lilith stood up and her shoulders dropped. Turning around, she glared at me. “I told you not to call me that.”

It was fun to poke her a bit. She did like mean, after all. Hobbled into the room and hunkered down on a bench nearby. This looked more like a workshop or an office. Maybe a combination of both. Either way, she had it to herself right now.

Lilith sighed inwardly. “I see you survived cleaning yourself. Boss wants to see you.”

Nodding, I shifted my weight a bit. “Markin, was it? He a friend of yours?”

“I wouldn’t put it like that,” she replied. Her jaw tightened and she played with the multi-tool in her hands.

“Family then?”

“Sort of. I’m an orphan.”

“Ah. Sorry to hear that.”

“It’s fine, really. Ready for your interview?”

“My what?”

“He likes to make sure you’re not a spy. Really paranoid. Just don’t be a smart ass.”

“Hah! I can only be myself darlin.”

“Like I said, don’t be a smart ass.” Lilith walked to a door across the room and pressed a button to the side. It slid open and Markin stood leaning against the wall behind it. He gave Lilith a quick side-ward glance before walking in, and she stalked off the the opposite end of the room to her workbench. Markin leaned against a bench in front of me.

“I see you came through ok. How are you feeling?” he said.

“Fine. Can’t complain. Hungry, but it can wait.”

Markin nodded. “Lil, can you grab some snacks for our guest?”

Lilith stood up with tense shoulders. Dropping the device she was working on, she marched silently into the next room to slam open a crate. Arms full of apples, she dumped them on the floor in front of Markin. One bounced off his foot and rolled to a stop in front of me. Lilith stomped back to her bench and resumed her hunched position over the tech-screen.

Brows raised, I looked at Markin for a reaction but his face was impassive. The man barely showed any emotion at all. Clearly he’d done something to piss the girl off. What ever it was, I felt uncomfortable asking right now. Didn’t know what I’d stumbled into. Picked up an apple and shrugged, dusted it off on my pants and took a bite.

“Still good.”

Lilith’s shoulders shook as she snorted with laughter. Grinning, I chomped away happily. Food was food and I’d done worse.

Markin was picking up the remaining apples in dead silence. Carefully placing them on the bench behind him, he sat down.

“As I was saying. It’s standard for me to interview new refugees upon intake. First of all, you don’t have to stay here. All we ask is that you rest up and see if you like it here. If you don’t we will provide you with a pack of supplies and you can leave. As a rule, we don’t generally take people back if they decide to return to Opalesk, though.”

“Second, a fairly obvious question. Why did you leave?”

“I don’t like being treated like a second class citizen.”

“Fair enough. Are you second or first gen? You’re about the right age.”

“Yeah.” Crunching down on the apple I split it in half. I sighed and tossed the rest in my mouth, swallowing the core whole while Markin watched me.

“I may not look it, but I’m a First.” Markin pointed to his weathered and scruffy face. “Was lucky enough to be a teen before the Restore. Only a few greys now, at the ripe old age of fifty. Not that old these days huh? Regen makes me look about 35, or so I’m told. Maybe it’s just flattery, what do you think?”

Looking the man over he looked about forty to my reckoning. Fit but not overly so. Body of someone on their feet all day. Some streaks of grey at the temples, some lines on his face. Likely more so from stress than age. Reminded me of another weathered soldier.

“Yeah. Pretty close,” I replied.

Markin snorted. “Flattery then. Didn’t believe it myself. As for you, Kharl, you seem like a decent sort. Did you have a profession?”

“Sec-Zone.”

“Not bad. Could use more trained soldiers around here. If you decide to stay that is. Rank?”

Shifting again I leaned back on the hard wooden bench. My neck stung from the recent trim. “Just a grunt.”