Series: Zandian Brides Series by Renee Rose
Total pages in book: 61
Estimated words: 57939 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 290(@200wpm)___ 232(@250wpm)___ 193(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57939 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 290(@200wpm)___ 232(@250wpm)___ 193(@300wpm)
He turns to Daven. “The imaging scans that Dr. Daneth did found no evidence of implants. But the doctor indicated that there might be novel techniques for brain surgery using materials that align more closely with human tissue, rendering the chips nearly invisible to our current tech.”
“Sia. Did they ever outright tell you that they were going to implant anything?” Daven looks at me.
I summon all my courage and lie. “I don’t have any memories of that. No.”
The two warriors exchange a look that could mean anything.
“Are you sure?” Master Seke raises a brow. “You call tell us, Sia. Just like you shared the lab and formula information.”
“I trust you. But no,” my voice is fast and high, “they never said anything about an implant.”
“Okay.” They both look at me. Their faces are somber, and Daven is obviously disappointed. My heart aches, and I almost tell him the truth. But I hold back. Not yet.
Seke turns to Daven. “Oh, and Drayk said to remind you that the techs picked up a lot of interstellar chatter, and the one thing that stood out was this: Planet Larew.”
As he talks, my brain buzzes again, that weird feeling. And this time it doesn’t stop.
Seke continues, “It’s associated with Project Alpha. Beyond that we don’t know much. See if you can get the techs to refine their searches using best parameters.”
Mother Earth, I can’t let my head record these kinds of conversations! I need to stop my chip. Even if I’m far out of range, I don’t like the idea of something being stored inside me without my control or permission. Because someday, a planet rotation I don’t want to think about, what if some being comes to retrieve me and my recorded information?
I clench my core down hard and make myself think about pleasure. Just pleasure. Daven’s body and mine together. If I could make the brain chip stop before, in Daven’s domicile, I can surely make it happen again.
My whole body resists, and there’s a sudden flash of pain, and then my head eases up, and the buzzing stops. I made it stop! I’m ridiculously proud but also suddenly exhausted, and I flinch at nothing and slouch down, eyelids fluttering.
“Sia?” Daven hovers over me in a flash. “You’re sweating. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” When he leans in closer, unconvinced, I add, “I, um, had another memory surface.” I pull up something to share. “It’s about Project Alpha. They said they did want to control us eventually. I don’t know how, though. But the surgeries were about making us more compliant.”
I figure I can give them bits and pieces of the important info, and hopefully I’ll fill it all in soon. Very soon.
“Okay, good.” Daven touches my face. “Good job, Sia. I know how hard it is for you to talk about it.”
“It’s just that they always threatened us if we talked about it at all, Daven.” I’m floaty right now and disclosing more than I probably should. “They could kill us, you know. They did kill one slave just to teach the rest of us how it could happen.” I shudder. “So I’m nervous.”
“How did they do that?” His voice is lulling, gentle.
“They…fried her. Smoke came out of her feet. Electricity of some kind.” That’s not untrue, and right now my inhibitions are so low. “She was so sweet. She didn’t deserve that.” Tears well. “None of us do.”
Daven strokes my hair. “Shh, I know. You’re safe here. Tell me more about the lab. The surgery.”
I can see the other one–Master Seke–listening with a stern expression. But I don’t care. I allow some lesser memories to spill. He deserves to know some truth, and at least I can give him something, even if I don’t mention the chip and what I think it’s supposed to do. “Some of us were meant to become smarter, better at lab analysis. Faster. Others were meant to be more powerful, better muscles and tendons. Reflexes. They were just starting on us. New tech, they said, for me especially. It would be a new generation of humans to serve them better than ever, especially if they deployed us.”
“Deployed you?” Seke’s voice is sharp. “How and where?”
My vision clouds with a pinkish fog, as if I’m looking at things through a dream. The chip buzzes again, and I clench my entire body and focus to make it stop, if I can. Is it possible that the chip can notify the Ocretion masters that I’m overriding it?
“To other places, I guess.” My voice is dreamy because I’m so distracted, as the head stuff stops. Once again, I did it! “They said off planet eventually. But not yet and not us. It would have to be the next batch because we, the trial ones, were sort of inferior, not strong enough yet. Not right for the op. We kept dying when they tried retrieving…” oops. Is that something I shouldn't have disclosed? Too late now! My head aches abruptly.