Epilogue

My maker!

I’d been told to take it easy, get used to my quarters, explore Mighty Edda and ask all the questions I needed to ask. I got a lot answered during my first week aboard. I spent a lot of time on the Spectacle, which was a quiet deck that offered a stunning comfortable view of space as we left 04.C12.

I found out that I apparently did volunteer for the Tetcon Life-link upload. When I pointed out that they didn’t warn me about the risk of fatality, Captain Silas and his lieutenants simply shrugged. They just didn’t care.

Nikola and I spent a lot of time together. For such a bulky fellow he had a very soft disposition. He operated from a place of empathy first and foremost, but he wasn’t shy from bossing his subordinates around. I was a marvel to him and he was constantly running tests on me, scans, and asking questions on my stats and wellbeing. I was happy to oblige him. The more he could make sense of what it meant to be Cymech and Cyborg, the more I would know too.

Frankie was the second person I was spending a lot of time with. She’d been quieter than normal around me. She only came by to ask me questions, and to have me approve drafts she was composing for my mech suit. She mentioned she’d been having a lot of problems with Orion’s Mech Core.

“Did you ever fix that by the way?” I said after letting her into my apartment. I was shirtless, having been roused up by her incessant knocking. She tried to brush past me to go straight for the coffee maker. I blocked her with an arm. By the look on her face, she did not like that.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

“I’ll make the coffee this time,” I said.

“Hey, I make good coffee too!”

“Did you fix your issue with the Mech Core?” I said again.

“Yup. yup. Yea. Sure, I found someone to help me,” she said. It wasn’t her answer that gave me pause. It was the way she’d said it. Her tone had lightened and it seemed that she was avoiding something. As though she were keeping something from me.

“You’re not changing the Mech Core are you? Nikola told you-“

“Yea-yea, he told me it could kill you. Which means that you have to do everything I tell you to, or else—ehhkk!” She mimed slitting her throat.

I scoffed and rolled my eyes. I threw on a large shirt while the coffee was being made and poured us some as we sat across from each other on the couches.

“Don’t you have work to do? Somewhere to be?” I said, rubbing my sleepy eyes.

“This is my work. I have to work with you to build the perfect mech for you. You’ve already made it hard enough, you know.”

“Ok. Sure,” I said, “So what’s next on the list?”

“Color.” She looked out the window facing the empty space of my habitation and said, “Orion should be arriving any minute now.”

This was exciting! I couldn’t wait to see it. While I properly woke up and we downed our coffees, I listened to Frankie blabber on about— I don’t know—I wasn’t at the brain capacity to really follow her.

From the corner of my eye I saw a big piece of equipment roll into my habitation. I rushed out my quarters and marveled at Orion. He was clad in white armor from head to toe. The helmet and gloves were the same, repaired, but they were white now. It was a full suit. I was speechless as I approached.

A latticed framework was holding Orion upright and it was being remote controlled by… I gasped, recognizing the face I’d gotten to know so well during my mission.

“Frye! What are you doing here!”