Invader’s Bride

“Please.”  Darius indicated the bench. “Sit down.”

Silently, Rebeka obeyed.

“We’ve much to discuss,” he went on.

He sat down beside her.  Rebeka slid several feet away.

“Sit at the end of the bench if it makes you feel safer, but I assure you I can’t hurt you in any way. If I did, my systems would suffer a massive malfunction.”

She wondered exactly what that meant. Would he fall to the ground as if having a seizure, or simply cease movement and sit there immobile, looking like a beautiful statue?

“You’re really an android?” She still couldn’t believe it, would’ve preferred he told her he’d been sent by the gods.

He nodded that glorious head.

Without warning, he stretched and yawned, arms going over his head, hands fisted, muscles contracting. The tunic was sleeveless; his underarms as hairless and smooth as his chest.  Accustomed as she was to the bearded, fur-chested warriors among whom she had grown up, she found her face getting hot at a thought she’d never had before. It would be very enjoyable, she thought irrelevantly, to sit and look at Darius—minus his tunic—for an hour or two.

Rebeka felt a startling and very agreeable wave of pleasure sweep over her.

To do more than simply look…

Today was definitely becoming a day of shocks and surprises.

The untied front of his tunic fell open and she swallowed quickly as she saw how smoothly the muscles of his chest moved as they tightened and relaxed. When he opened his eyes and his mouth quirked into something that could only have been the faintest of smirks, she understood.

The creature’s showing off his body!

“How did you survive?” She forced herself to ignore his actions. “Taryn said they killed you, smashed in your head with rocks.”

“That would’ve killed me, if my central control unit had been in my head.”

“It’s not?”

He shook his head and placed one hand on his ribs, below his heart. “It’s here.”

Rebeka allowed herself a little quirk of a smile. “You mean, what my mother told me about men’s brains being in some other part of their bodies is true?”

That made him laugh. “You’re quick. Philip will like that.”

“I don’t understand.”  She ignored that. She didn’t want to think of Philip Hamilcar just then.  “How did you get here?”

“Master Martin. He dug me up, brought my body back here—not very gently, I should add. Tied ropes around my ankles and dragged me over every shrub and bramble between here and Mount Scar, I swear.” He looked a little rueful, placing a hand on one hip and rubbing gently. “Really tore up my backside.  He repaired it, of course, but it’s not too pretty now, I’m afraid.”

Rebeka had to bite her tongue to keep from telling him she’d like to see his backside and judge for herself. As far as she could tell, its shape, under the tunic’s thin covering, was very pleasing. She thought again of the vague outline between his thighs.

Why would a mechanical creature be given organs he’ll never use?

Ignorant of her thoughts, Darius went on, “Master Martin reconstructed me, and activated my guardian program. It wasn’t very detailed, was fairly rudimentary, in fact.  Only added as an afterthought since they didn’t believe my type of ’droid would ever need it. He reprogrammed it adding more factors and details to make me your protector.”

“How could the Master rebuild you? He’s no scientist.”

“That’s true,” Darius agreed,  “but he is a doctor, and he has books giving him enough insight into how I was constructed. Apparently, your own engineers have been working with artificial intelligence for quite some time.”  He touched one of the scars on his arms. “He also sutured all my cuts and repaired my cranial damage, though he’s no surgeon. I think he did a fairly good job.”

He turned his head, giving her a look at his profile, which was as well-formed as the rest of him.

“Don’t you?”

He’s as vain as a human, Rebeka thought, but she answered, if a little grudgingly, “I do, a very good job,” because except for that scar, there was no evidence anything hard, solid, and deadly have ever touched Darius’ beautiful skull.

“A good many of my memories of Terra were destroyed, though most of my knowledge of the palace and my life there is still intact,” Darius went on. “The only thing changed is my loyalty.”

He turned that blue gaze on her, and she would swear it held the adoration of a faithful hound.

“It’s to you, now, Rebeka….and only you.”

She had completely forgotten the reason she came to the garden, curiosity about this odd and wonderful creature chasing it from her mind. His statement brought it back with a jerk.

“What did you do for the Earthmen? You said your type didn’t need a guardian program?”

“I was an information ’droid. Within my memory, I once held the entire history of the Earthmen and all their achievements…from the first days when they huddled together in caves. After Lieutenant Hamilcar’s son was born, the governor chose me to become his tutor.”

“You taught the governor?” She didn’t want to think of her potential victim as a schoolboy.

He nodded. “He was a very good pupil—bright, inquisitive, always asking questions.” He

paused, looking at her sharply. “Will it upset you if I speak of him with fondness?”

“Yes. After all, I’m supposed to kill him.” Rebeka was a little surprised by her own answer. “I’ve never even seen him, you know.”

He shrugged.

“It doesn’t bother you to know he’s going to die?”

“I told you, I’ve been programmed—re-programmed, actually—to protect you, Rebeka.”

He was unconcerned. “If anyone—the governor, a Ulean shopkeeper, your own brother…

anyone tries to harm you…I’ll stop him.”

She didn’t ask how, didn’t want to know.

“Still, it’ll be a pity.” His voice was pensive. “Philip always said he wanted me to teach his own children. I suppose that’ll never happen now, since you’re going to end his life.”

“What about me?” Rebeka drew in a breath, tears stinging her eyes. “What about my life and my children? They’ll never be born either, if I do what my father wants—and you aren’t the mighty protector you think you are.”

“Rebeka…” Abruptly, Darius slid from the bench, falling to his knees before her.

Taking her hands, he pressed them against his forehead. His synthetic flesh was soft and warm and that startled her

“I swear to you. As long as I’m near, you’ll be in no danger, and after you’ve done what you must do, I’ll bring you safely back to your father.” He looked up. “He has a husband picked out for you, you know. One who’ll be honored to marry the woman freeing her people. His name’s Cillian.”

Rebeka knew Cillian.  He was one of her brother’s friends and she liked him. It could be nice being married to Cillian, she thought.

If I survive.

“Will he also mourn me as a proper husband should, if I don’t come back?”

The question was sharp and bitter.  She blinked quickly, not wanting to shed tears in front of this beautiful creature  with his synthetic flesh, this being who could never experience any of the emotions she now felt.

“I don’t want to do this,” she whispered.

“I know.”

With a sigh, Rebeka got to her feet. She waited until Darius was standing, then took one of his hands, looking at the long, slim fingers, the wide, strong palms.

“Your hands are warm.”

“There’s a thermal network between my outer and first internal dermal layers.  There’s a small—I guess you could call it a generator—keeping it heated, as well as sending an intermittent rhythm through it so I appear to have a pulse.” With his free hand, he touched his sternum. “If you were to put your ear to my chest, you’ll hear what sounds like a heartbeat. But you didn’t want to know all that, did you?”

He looked down at the hand Rebeka held.

“You could kill someone with those hands,” she said, quietly.

“Only if I have to.” His voice was as quiet.

“If you can’t bring me home, don’t let them capture me.”

“I promise.”

There was a short, silent pause. Darius looked into Rebecca’s eyes, and she could swear she saw pity.