Children of the Virus

9: Drone Teaser

Toshiro's heart hammered in his chest as the bounty hunters leapt from the bed of their pickup truck, one pair at a time, their boots hitting the dirt with heavy thuds. Juno burst from the tent, plasma rifle in hand as she tossed a smaller sidearm to Baz. Jeremy and Alexa ran for cover, guns already in hand.

The air crackled as plasma bolts sizzled past Toshiro's head. He ducked behind a boulder, pulse racing. This was it—the moment he had feared since escaping prison.

"Citizens," boomed a metallic voice from the truck's loudspeaker. "Surrender now or face assimilation."

Assimilation. Toshiro shuddered, bile rising in his throat. He had seen the vacant eyes of the assimilated, their minds hollowed out and filled by Zo's parasitic consciousness. Assimilation was worse than imprisonment...worse than compulsory rebirth.

No. I won't let it end like this!

Without Kura, he was literally unarmed, but he could still fight.

The attackers stood in formation and began firing lasers just as a hand tugged at Toshiro's shoulder. It was the young woman who first spotted the bounty hunters. In one smooth motion, she pulled Toshiro to his feet until he nearly fell on top of her.

With an impish grin on her face, she cried, "On your feet, soldier!"

"What are you doing?" he yelled over the laser fire.

Toshiro gawked at the stranger. Her eyes glinted with mischief and confidence, despite their dire circumstances.

"Gosh, I don't know—saving your life!" She laughed and pointed toward the sky.

Toshiro looked up and saw several drones fighting on their side.

She put her mouth to his ear. "You'll be safe here with me," she said with a wink.

The girl was petite with short black hair dyed red at the tips, light brown skin with a faint scar across her forehead, and hazel eyes that glimmered. She carried a meter-long gun over her shoulder and another smaller one on her belt. She moved amidst the bushes with decisiveness.

Toshiro cupped his hand around his mouth and shouted, "What's your name?"

The girl hollered back, "Ren Fujisaki—I'm the drone teaser."

Toshiro never met a self-proclaimed drone teaser. Enthusiasts reserved the title for masters of the art. Maneuvers often required remarkable dexterity.

A plasma bolt sizzled past them, jolting Toshiro back to the present. Ren gracefully dodged it, not a hint of fear in her eyes.

"C'mon, let's take these tin cans down!"

With that, she tapped at a control pad on her forearm with frightening speed. Then she raised her arms up high and waved forward. Toshiro watched in astonishment as a swarm of small drones descended from the sky, peppering the bounty hunters with laser fire, as Ren continued to make gestures he didn't understand.

But then, a hulking synthetic barreled towards them, plasma rifle blazing. Ren reacted in an instant, sending a volley of drones to intercept. But the hunter was too quick—it smashed through the drones and lunged at Ren.

She cried out as its fist collided with her shoulder, knocking her gun loose and her backwards. Toshiro's heart seized. If she went down, they were finished. Rolling toward her, he grabbed Ren's gun with his one good hand, then threw himself in front of Ren as she struggled to her feet.

The bounty hunter loomed over them, weapon raised for the kill shot. With no time to think, Toshiro fired directly into its chest. The hunter staggered back, circuits sizzling. Before it could recover, Ren's drones swarmed it from all sides, ripping through its artificial flesh until it collapsed in a heap.

Panting, Toshiro turned to Ren. "You alright?"

She rotated her shoulder gingerly. "I'll live. Nice shot, by the way."

Ren knelt to examine the fallen synthetic. Brushing aside torn wiring and shattered armor, she revealed a tattoo on its forearm—a stylized 27 with the word "Eden" arched above it.

"Eden 27," she yelled. "Supposedly the best bounty hunters Zo can manufacture. They're not human."

Toshiro knew exactly what she meant. These bounty hunters were more than just a hybrid of biology and machine—Zo redesigned life itself. No DNA, no brains. The organs were optimized. The creatures had augmented senses and beyond that, extra senses: sixth, seventh, eighth—no one knew how many.

Toshiro hollered back. "Oh yeah, I've heard of them. They're synthetics—a precision strike group!"

Ren rolled her eyes. Another bounty hunter began hacking and slashing at her smallest drone, but the machine flew too fast. One blast to the chest, and the enemy died instantly.

Toshiro chuckled. "Precision strike, my ass."

The laser fire was deafening. Ren asked, "What'd you say?"

Boom! "—ike, my ass!" Toshiro yelled.

Ren stood back, raised a brow, and smirked. "Do I like your ass?"

Toshiro shook his head as he blushed.

"Sure, you've got a great ass, Toshiro!" she laughed before putting on a serious face.

More rebel drones zipped through the forest, dodging trees and blasting the enemy. The battle was fierce, but Ren glared onward with a look of determination as she teased her way to victory.

As she fought the synthetics, Ren's youthful, almost playful attitude fascinated Toshiro.

The other rebels were just as busy shooting. The bounty hunters were systematic and relentless, but Juno and the gang kept them guessing with fast improvisation.

Another bounty hunter fell to the ground dead, but then one of the remaining three tossed several small ball-shaped objects near the campfire at the center of the campsite. Juno cried, "Bombs! Masks on!"

Toshiro didn't know what to do. He looked at Ren. "Bombs?!"

Ren nodded. "Viral! Put this on." She handed him a gas mask as she slipped hers on.

While Toshiro fumbled to secure the straps, Ren stared at him intently until an Eden drone torpedoed straight at her head.

She ducked out of the way, but when she regained her footing, her embarrassment at having been caught off-guard turned to fierce rage. She shot back, and it exploded into pieces.

Baz whooped, blasting away with reckless abandon. Juno rolled behind a boulder, plasma scorching the ground where she had stood. She popped up, teeth gritted, and fired her weapon in quick, steady succession. But it was Ren's drones that were doing most of the damage. A fourth bounty hunter fell to his doom as the last remaining two took cover behind trees.

With only two bounty hunters left standing, it didn't take long for them to flee the campsite in their pickup truck, but not before Baz could zap one square in the rear.

One by one, everyone took off their masks.

"Ha! Gotcha right in the keister!" Baz bellowed, laughing.

Ren laughed hysterically and cheered. "Don't come back, cowards!"

Baz looked around at Juno, Ren, and Jeremy with his arms raised up in the air and a huge grin, but his elation quickly waned. "Where's Alexa?"

Toshiro was on it. He darted over to where he had last seen her. "She's over here!"

Juno rushed toward him with a panicked expression.

Toshiro looked up and shook his head. "She's hit."

Juno stopped above Alexa's lifeless body. Her voice trembled. "Is she gone?"

Toshiro checked her pulse, then nodded. "I'm sorry."

Juno turned away, her face twisted in pain, tears filling her eyes.

Baz dropped his gun, gripped his hair, and let out a loud wail.