New Elysium: Weapons of War (Book 2)

Before the Dawn Part 22

"Alone I pray for something I know will surely comeIs this the dark before the dawn?I hear a voice that's calling, says not to be afraidFears that surround me fade away" - "Before the Dawn" DJ Zardonic featuring Celldweller

"They patiently circle around us, as we hold out..." - "Against the Tide" - Celldweller

Dex moved slowly down the halls carrying Juni in his arms. His ears strained for any sounds of the infected, any hint of disjointed movement but they heard nothing. Even Juni was in a deep sleep. The tension in her little body gone and she hung limply in his arms.

"Something has changed," Calliope whispered."The child isn't fighting the implant." Her metallic fingers clacked against the wall and they both froze. Nothing moved in the hall in front of them.

Relief flooded through Dex. It meant he might not have to remove the eye. He wouldn't have to return Juni to a world of darkness again. He'd started his training with Jack with the idea that he would be helping people.

"Do you think Jack stopped it?" He breathed. "What if the infected, still act... well, infected?"

"I don't know how it works," Calliope continued in a lower voice. "But I do know, it's no longer currently affecting the little one."

Dex nodded guilt flooding through him. He would make this right for her. Get her another eye, even if she wanted two black eyes as Amy had. Thinking of Amy again only made him feel worse. He hated how he and Jack were on opposite sides now. Jack had been the closest thing he'd had to a father for years when they'd first gotten here. He'd been the first to recognize that Dex had a true gift, even insisting that Cyril train him when the cyberneticist was hesitant. Jack continued training him as well, carefully instructing him on cybernetic-organic theory, and the best ways to combine augments into flesh to build a strong connection between both.

He was the father Dex hadn't asked for but he was there when his own father couldn't be.

Dex sighed as he moved forward. He loved his own father dearly, and he knew it wasn't Dagony Doran's fault that he'd ended up on Helion 7. That blame he placed squarely on Red. And while his parents had been quick to forgive Red, Dex hadn't. He was still angry at the lost time. Not to mention the tension between himself and Jack.

Dex had been shocked to see Red drop Jack the first day he'd arrived. Jack who had always seemed so strong and always knew what to do. Jack who had been his protector and created the place they now called home.

He hadn't forgiven his father for not being around. He hadn't come out and said it yet to Dag, yet, but he'd felt he'd already had a father figure in his life.

One he was now completely at odds with.

Emotions churned inside of him, but he pushed them aside. He would have to deal with them later. He needed to figure out what was going on with the immediate threat. He and Jack would have to work out their differences later. He hoped.

He heard Calliope move behind him. Maybe if I touched up on her parts she'd move a little quieter.

He briefly wondered if he'd get the opportunity. There was no reason to tear the AI apart or even blame her for what was going on. Dex had been all over her hardware and software. She was sentient. It would have been like murdering another human and he simply couldn't let them pull the plug on her just yet. He barely knew her. He was taking Amy's word that she was the good guy. It was a huge risk but in his mind, Jack was wrong this time and just couldn't see it.

Jack understood things about the world around them. Especially when they'd had to flee from Neo-Tokyan authorities. For a time he'd thought his mother and Jack would get together and they'd have a family. Jack had always looked at her with kindness and more, but his mother had never wanted another man. "I had one great love," she'd told him when he'd asked her about it. Besides she'd gone on then, "Jack doesn't love me, he loves power. And maybe you. He loves teaching you things."