Eric and the Quantum Dragon
Chapter 27

St Helens Private Hospital, 7th District, Pan City

Sunday December 23rd, V26 (2046)

Sofia woke up and saw a beautifully painted ceiling overhead, a copy of a riverbank scene by someone famous a century or two ago. She had no idea which artist it was, since she was an English teacher with no artistic ability of her own, but the image was serene and calming.

If they had printed some poetry or some pages from a well known author up there she could have identified it, she told herself that anyway. Movement to her side got her attention and she tilted her head to face that way, seeing early morning sunlight gleam from metal first as the figure came closer.

“You’re awake, So-So” her friend and room-mate Fiona commented and came to stand beside the bed. Her metal right arm was visible up to where it joined her tan flesh, the simple singlet the woman was wearing on her torso doing little to hide the muscular body that lay beneath.

“Uh-huh” Sofia croaked and the other woman placed a straw connected to a cup of water in between her lips. She sucked down the cool fluid eagerly until the ex-Guard pulled it away.

“Not too much, So-So” she warned her. “The doctors are still considering if you go back into surgery so you can’t drink a lot just yet”

“Surgery?” she mumbled and Fiona nodded agreement.

“They are awaiting approval to fit a prosthetic mounting, but it depends on whether it will be a basic model or powered” Fiona replied.

“Aah” Sofia finally realised what she meant. She tried to lift her head to look down at her body but it required way more strength than sthe currently possessed. Fiona took hold of her shoulders and pushed her gently back onto the pillows, her face creased with a frown.

“I guess it wasn’t just a bad dream then” Sofia said, her voice a little louder than the earlier pained croak. “My left leg is missing, isn’t it Fi-Fi?”

“From just below the knee” confirmed Fiona in her flat tone. “The lower calf and foot was found by a search team but the damage was too extreme. The surgeons were unable to reattach it to your body”

“Okay” she acknowledged with a calm acceptance that surprised her friend. “From what I saw in the Atrium, I got off easier than many people did” Sofia paused and twisted her head to meet Fiona’s eyes. “Are the kids all Okay? Did any of them get hurt?”

“Not significantly. The group got separated in the confusion and it took a while to locate everyone”

“Thanks, Fi-Fi” Sofia said and lifted her right hand to lay it on the clone’s left arm. “For everything”

“For what?” Fiona replied in confusion.

“For protecting us all” Sofia told her. “And for showing me that” She raised her hand to point at the replacement arm, the metal limb that she had always kept hidden from view.

Fiona looked shyly at her friend and held it before herself, flexing the metal fingers.

“I know it sounds strange for an Enhanced, but I still struggle to accept this is part of me” Fiona admitted. “But I wanted to show you that even the worst losses can be replaced. You can still be useful to those who care about you”

“I know, Fi-Fi” she agreed. “You can tell the doctors I will only accept an unpowered leg though. As fancy as that thing is, I still want to fly which means no powered cybernetics for me!”

“That’s what Jericho-Two thought you would say” Fiona agreed. “We just needed to be sure”

Sofia’s face clouded and Fiona regarded her with sudden worry.

“Are you in pain, Sofia?” she demanded. “Do you need anything?”

“Sorry, Fi-Fi, I just kind of hoped he might be here when I woke up” Her eyes blurred a little and she wiped her face angrily with the sleeve of her hospital gown.

“He is here” Fiona answered with a hint of amusement and directed her gaze to the other side of the hospital room. A familiar blonde headed man was sprawled uncomfortably in a visitor’s chair, his dark grey suit rumpled and his glasses sitting askew on his face.

“He has been with you all of this time, not allowing himself to fall asleep until about thirty minutes ago” Fiona explained. “He has been running all of his tasks using the Quantum Network so that he did not have to leave your side”

Sofia regarded the sleeping Avatar with a swelling emotion in her chest. The medical monitors linked to her pinged in response, bringing a nurse rushing into the room to check she was Okay. Jericho-Two must have been getting the same alerts sent directly to him as he jerked awake and looked in her direction, the motion dislodging his glasses so they fell into his lap.

Her own dark eyes met his blue ones across the intervening space and he surged to his feet with almost machine speed. The forgotten glasses fell somewhere to the floor with a clatter then he was at her side, his strong pale hands gripping hers tightly.

All he said was her name, “Sofia”.

Fiona was astute enough to recognise the moment and took the nurse in hand and ushered her from the room. The open door for a moment gave a glimpse of armed Guards in grey standing sentry then it closed, leaving the two of them alone.

“You look like hell” Sofia told him and he nodded agreement, still clasping her hands.

“You look wonderful” Jericho told her and gave her a tentative smile. Somewhere she heard the medical alerts going off once again, but the Avatar did something she thought as they fell quiet.

“I thought you could not lie?” she teased him, giving him a smile of her own. “I am sure I look awful right now”

“I can’t lie to you Sofia. I have lost that ability all together. You are more beautiful to me now than you have ever been”

“Uh-huh” she answered in a tone of disbelief. “There is no need to lay it on so thick. Don’t worry, I won’t abandon the kids and the Project. Once I am fixed up I will still keep an eye on them for you”

The Avatar looked perplexed.

“Sofia, I don’t care about the Project. I care about you!”

She cocked her head on the pillow and searched his face closely.

“Are you being serious right now?”

“Never more so” he asserted. “Sofia, I need to tell you something. I lov....”

He did not get to finish his sentence as Sofia laid a finger over his lips, silencing him. Her eyes were intense in their regard, looking deep into his own.

“No, don’t say that” she demanded.”Not until it is true!”

Jericho-Two leaned back, letting go of her other hand as her finger fell away from his lips.

“I see” he said softly. “And when will I know it is true?”

“When I tell you it is” she answered and beckoned him closer. He leaned in once again and her hand snaked out to wrap around his neck, pulling him towards her face. Their lips touched and she kissed him gently, pleased at the warmth she felt in his body.

Sofia released him and he stood back, a look of mixed emotions on his face.

“Is it true now?” he wondered aloud and Sofia had to laugh.

“For an Avatar you really are impatient!” she snickered.

Nata’s Apartment Building, 8th District, Pan City

Carmody yawned widely, scratching at her rump beneath an oversized T-shirt as she wandered into Nata’s living room. She had left a gently snoring Angelina in the warm blankets as she sought out their host, hoping for some news about the rogue butler. Or maybe a nice cup of tea, white with two sugars.

“Good morning, sleepyhead!” said the Sister, cross-legged on the floor and drinking from a large mug. A waft of exotic spices drifted out, meaning she was enjoying her usual Chai tea.

“Morning Nata” she mumbled. “Any chance of a cuppa?”

“Kettle just boiled and your favourite black tea is in the cupboard” her host replied with far more energy than a Sunday morning demanded. “Do you want something to eat?”

“I’ll wait until her majesty is awake” Carmody answered, heading into the small kitchen. She had been a guest a few times now so she knew where the essentials were stored. A minute later she came back into the living room, cradling her own large mug of milky tea.

“Did you sleep well?” Nata asked, sipping at her drink. It looked to Carmody like she had some printed plans in front of her, with her phone and a datapad to the side.

“Uh-huh” she responded. “Angelina kept stealing the blankets though and she snores as loudly as you” She sat herself on Nata’s big chair and drank deeply of the tea, sighing in pleasure.

“What do you mean I snore?” Nata demanded. “Do I really?” she added with a genuine look of dismay on her face.

“Err, yeah. Hasn’t anyone mentioned it before?”

Nata looked down in embarrassment, her dark skin flushed a little darker the younger girl thought.

“I’m a Sister in the Order” she declared primly. “I don’t have other people in my bed”

Carmody laughed and waved her free hand at the Sister.

“Sorry, but I meant when you lived at the Orphanage. Didn’t you all sleep in a dormitory?”

“Ah, I see what you mean” Nata said with relief. “When we were younger all the girls did but when I turned your age I moved into a shared room”

Nata was silent, thinking hard for a moment.

“Now I know why Sister Sinceritas always slept with those earphones in! She told me it was because she liked to listen to music”

“Glad I could help solve that mystery” Carmody assured her. She lifted one bare leg to point with her toes at the collected items in front of the Sister. “What is all that for? Have you got a plan for dealing with Hammers?”

“I think so, but it will be risky. It will put Angelina directly in harm’s way but I can’t see any alternative”

“If Angelina will be in danger, I am going to be there too!” Carmody insisted to Nata, “You know I won’t leave her side!”

“I know, I expected that from you” Nata agreed. “I am calling in some favours but with your help I think we can pull this off. I had to force a promise from Eric not to interfere, but this is not a problem he can shoot or punch his way out of. The less people involved the better and the ones we have should suffice”

“Thanks Nata. Without you I don’t know what I would have done. Do you think we can stop whatever Hammers wants from Angelina?”

“With my Master behind us I don’t see how we can lose!” Nata told her with a grin.

“Can’t he be in front of us?” Carmody wondered and Nata laughed aloud.

Brackenridge Summer House, Pan Ocean City

“Welcome home, Mr Hammerton” said Lucy the Cook from the doorway to the kitchen. The butler regarded her impassively from the living room, his dark eyes looking over her stocky frame, the woman’s black hair cut short close to the scalp and covered in a brightly patterned head scarf.

She was an Indonesian chef, acquired by the Brackenridge family on one of their many visits to Jakarta. Her talents in the kitchen were outstanding but she had been hired primarily due to her skills as an Elemental Adept.

“Thank you, Mrs Truong” Hammerton replied. “Is Angelina home yet from her excursion?”

“Why no” the Cook answered. “But Mrs Brackenridge is home with Miss Shaw” She paused and looked at the stained and torn suit the family butler was wearing and made a sound of disapproval. “Since Monique is busy, would you like me to fetch one of your spare suits?”

“No need, Mrs Truong” he declared. “I shall retire to my room and change my suit immediately”

“Of course” Lucy answered with an approving tone. “We must keep up appearances, after all”

Hammerton’s eyes bored into hers yet she looked back without a shred of fear.

“Are you hungry, Mr Hammerton?” she ventured. “I have some chicken curry and rice left from lunch that I can re-heat”

“No thank you, I have eaten already” he replied and turned away from her. Lucy listened as he crossed the main living room and heard the door to the servant’s wing open. She let her breath finally out of her lungs, a small tremor passing through her body.

Lucy went to the intercom in her kitchen and keyed the button for the basement. There was a brief pause and the flat voice of Monique Shaw answered the alert tone from the device.

“What is it, Cook?” the Witch’s Familiar demanded.

“Mr Hammerton has returned to the house. Please advise your Mistress”

“Thank you, Cook. I shall inform her” The intercom clicked off and Lucy was about to start preparing some afternoon tea when the device summoned her back.

“Yes?” Lucy asked as she answered the intercom.

“How did Mr Hammerton look?” Monique enquired on behalf of her Mistress.

“Like he always does” Lucy replied after a moment’s consideration. “Annoyed with the universe and ready to punch it in the face”

“Very well. You may return to your duties” Monique said in dismissal and ended the connection.

Lucy looked at the intercom for a few seconds, a faint scowl visible on her lined face.

“Maybe he will give you a punch in the face too” she said to no-one in particular. The thought brought a smile to her lips and with that she commenced making the snacks she had planned.

=====

Hammerton adjusted the plain black tie in the mirror of his room, satisfying himself he was once again properly attired as the Brackenridge family butler. He cared little for the opinions of the mortal creatures who inhabited this house, but he was determined to look immaculate when next he laid eyes on his dear Angelina.

With a final visual check, a habit he had adopted from the man whose body he now wore, Hammerton left the small living quarters and re-entered the main living room. With silent footfalls on the wooden floor he crossed to the simple door that led to the basement.

He felt the eyes of the Cook on him as he crossed the open room, yet he did not spare a glance for the old Adept. She was an Elementalist, an experienced one he grudgingly admitted, yet far beneath him in power. Whatever ill-intent she harboured him she did not represent a threat to his plans.

The butler found it ironic that the woman’s hatred for him was born from love for the family’s only daughter. Mrs Truong cared for Angelina too, having fed the girl most of her life. The young girl had become a replacement for the daughter she had lost in her home village. As spoiled and arrogant as Angelina had been, the cook loved her without question.

It was all part of Yolanda’s own plans, Hammerton knew that. She surrounded her only child with people who would risk their own lives to save the girl. Just like she expected the new friend, Carmody Brentwood, to do. Everybody was expendable to ensure Angelina was safe and protected.

Hammerton himself was expendable in the eyes of Yolanda, he was under no illusions to that fact. The Witch had sworn her own soul to him and her power as a Witch came from his mastery of magic. Yet she would throw it all away in an instant to spare her daughter the fate she had doomed her to.

The doorway led to a narrow set of stairs, plain wooden ones lit by a single bulb. He descended them with confident steps, the dim light having no effect on his vision. At the bottom landing was a second door, this one made of modern Ceramite and Titanium and rated to withstand a nuclear firestorm.

It was Warded as well, potent spells woven into its surface to repel magical assault. The door yielded to his touch, the Ward a servant to him just like the Witch who had placed it there. Beyond lay a high ceilinged space, walls lined with shelves of supplies both mundane and magical. It was a refuge for the family if ever they needed to take shelter and it was intended to keep out nearly every weapon and creature of this world.

Nothing would keep him out of course, since it was his magic that Yolanda used to create it.

The Witch sat cross-legged in the centre of a protective circle, eyes closed as she searched the world above with her magic. Monique her Familiar stood alertly outside of the circle, a pistol in her left hand.

“Master” the Familiar acknowledged him and bowed deeply. Hammerton ignored her and focussed his gaze upon his servant, the Witch Yolanda.

“Harken to me, Servant” he said in his deep voice. Yolanda’s eyes snapped open and she locked her gaze with his.

“Welcome Master” Yolanda replied and moved to a kneeling position, her head bowing to the concrete floor of the chamber and then lifting once more. She did not move from the protective circle and her Master stayed carefully at the very edge, unwilling to break the barrier she had raised.

“When dusk falls this day, I shall take my Chosen One and transport her to a safe place. This City is no longer secure and I shall not risk her life” Hammerton finished and regarded his servant with flat grey eyes.

“Surely she is safest here with her family, under your divine protection, Master?” Yolanda entreated him. “There are dangers in every corner of the world, so nowhere is truly safe anymore”

The butler was unmoved by her words.

“At dusk I shall take her from the Sword who dares to oppose me. She has tried to hide her with a charm, but the bond with my Chosen One will let me replace her anywhere!” he intoned. “You will not interfere, Servant, lest I break the Pact between us and strip you of your powers”

“I understand, Master” Yolanda said slyly and bowed her head once more. “Once you have my daughter, where will you take her? She has three more years until she can be taken from this world”

Hammerton’s eyes narrowed, observing the Witch closely.

“That is the Pact” he agreed. “She shall accompany me to another residence, one I have kept prepared in the Northern Bloc. My servants there will ensure no danger can threaten Angelina until her sixteenth birthday”

“The Northern Bloc?” gasped Yolanda incredulously. “A nation of Puritans and Zealots, Master? My daughter is an Awakened and they still burn such people in some of their States!”

“None the less, I have many loyal servants there in positions of power and wealth” Hammerton told her. “You should know better than anyone that a fair face can conceal a foul heart”

“Of course, my Master” she relented and bowed deeply once more. “When it is done, will you allow me to visit my daughter in her new home?”

“Perhaps” Hammerton said thoughtfully. “I would not want my bride to think of me as a monster”