literature

Summer

Deviation Actions

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     “I’d duck if I were you.”

     “…and I’m fed up to here with you—“ The weighted staff that slammed into his back made finishing that sentence impossible, whilst serving its main purpose of pitching the thirty year-old freelancer forward. Years of experience, and no small amount of luck, allowed Martin Barsona, more commonly known as Rona, to tuck his shoulder and roll to his feet on the soft forest loam to face his assailant.

     “I told you to duck.” Kerry said, her voice carrying the suggestion of a smug grin. Rona decided to ignore the Artificial Intelligence that had recently – and illegally – been built into his head. He was much more concerned with the willow thin figure before him, wielding a knotted staff and a distinctly unfriendly expression on her narrow, high cheek-boned face. Today, Rona had to admit, was definitely not going well.

     The string of cursing was not only colorful, but loud and impressive in its variety. Having spent most of his life in space, Rona had picked up on the odd riot of languages that was the patois of every port there had ever been, so when he got on a run, it tended to last a while. The volume suddenly increased as he kicked the source of his frustrations. This was understandable as said source just happened to be his ship, the “Rollin' Star”.

     His ship that had currently locked him out, and was ignoring his remote-overrides.

     Today was not a good day.

     “Kick it again! I think you’re making progress!” Kerry said with a laugh.

     “I don’t see you helping any....” Rona replied acerbically, sitting down and pulling off his boot to check his foot. He grimaced at the ugly color of his big toe and reached over to grab the med kit out of the nearby backpack.

     “And what exactly should I be doing, Rona?”

     He pulled out the bandage tape and started taping his injured toe to the one next to it.

     “Well, you could try and convince the ships computer that I’m its owner for one.” Rona sighed as he snapped off the tape he’d used, let the adhesive seal itself, and put it back into the med kit. “Why didn’t you come with intrusion software?” he asked. Kerry was, for once, silent. After several minutes, she gave a mental shrug.

     “Could be worse, Rona. ‘Least you’ve got the survival pack.”

     He snorted. “Yeah, good point.” He sighed and pulled his boot back on before standing up.

     “Maybe a little exercise would help…” Kerry suggested.

     “Yeah… might as well have a look around ‘fore I break my fraggin’toe… We saw some ruins coming in right? To the north? They looked pretty promising…”

     “Sounds like a plan to me.” Kerry agreed.  He walked over to the pack and pulled on his HUD unit, a simple monocular affair that plugged into the jack behind his ear. Instantly a swarm of information began scrolling over the screen. It wasn’t there for very long as Kerry took it over, spreading her program onto its system. In a moment, the monocular went completely clear, until a young woman in her early twenties shimmered into view about five feet away. It was over by the time Rona had shouldered the pack.

     Kerry gave him an amused look as he straightened. “Ready to go?”

     A year and a half ago when she’d first been installed, it used to make his brain hurt when she put herself on his HUD, putting her image over his right eye, but not his left. However, in their time together, he’d grown quite accustomed to it. Even if she could be annoying on occasion – ‘endearing’ she called it – he was almost always glad of her company.

     “You did remember to pack an extra pair of socks, didn’t you?”

     Almost.

     “I seem to remember something about being locked out of my ship?”

     “Ah well, in that case, you might want to turn a few degrees west.”

     “…Reason being…?”

     “A very toxic set of vines. Their excretions cause swelling of the upper respiratory system.”

     “Oh….”

     “Now if you’d remembered your extra socks, you could have worn them on your hands to help brush them out of the way…”

     “That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”

     “You’re obviously forgetting that night you got drunk with Tess…”

     He rolled his eyes. “You’re aware of the fact that the direction you’re pointing me in is rather rough territory?”

     “Oh, it’s not so bad.”

     “You’re not the one with the legs…”

     Despite her more annoying tendencies, she was very useful to have a round. She could tap into all five of Rona’s senses, an ability that had gotten him out of trouble on several occasions. Right now, she was concentrating on sight, for looking though his eyes, she could focus on his entire field of vision at once, spotting objects and patterns Rona may have missed, or misinterpreted.

     He was starting to enjoy himself, with the clean air of an undeveloped world running through his lungs and the friendly banter he was keeping up with Kerry’s avatar. She was walking ahead of him, enjoying the sights. If it weren’t for the way she occasionally floated above certain objects or actually moved completely through something, he could almost believe she was real. He wasn’t gonna knock it though; he was glad of her company. He made a mental note to avoid Braxis Corp. for the next century. They probably wanted her back after that job he ran for them, but he’d grown much too close to her company to give her back.

      “Aw, are you thinking about me again?” She had turned around and was walking backwards, a playful smile on her lips, her dark brown braid trailing over her shoulder and down her front, almost to her waist. It contrasted well with her clear green eyes and pale skin, the dash of freckles over her cheeks and forehead. He was pretty surprised when he found out that she’d designed her avatar. He smiled back.

      “Maybe.” He stepped over a large tree root that was protruding a foot over the ground. “How could you tell?”

      “You were staring at me.” She said with a laugh, turning her back to him and continuing to lead him through the forest. Before he could deny it, she waved him forward and pointed through a clearing in the trees up ahead, towards the peak of what could have passed as a small pyramid on Terra. “We’re almost there!”

     Kerry almost sighed; carefully keep her avatar the picture of friendship and happiness. Sometimes being artificial was a major drawback, especially when one was advanced as she happened to be. She was, she knew, probably the only artificial intelligence that actually used the unused portions of a hosts’ brain for memory storage and computation. She’d been innately programmed to be able to partition off sections that she used to prevent any sort of bleed over. There were two people in Martin’s head, though that wasn’t the case a year and a half ago. Kerry had expanded from what was obviously an artificial entity into a fully functional being, just one sans a body. It was vexing. Pushing away depressing thoughts, she devoted a couple moments to examine Rona, from his lightly muscled body, skin the paleness achieved only through spending too much time on a ship, to his bleached hair, cut short and spiked. Her mental image of him had a clarity that belied how human-like she’d become. She decided that he was fine and went back to observing the world again.

     Rona had found a ledge overlooking the ruins, which he now realized were in a small valley. They were currently standing on one wall of it, allowing them to look down on the majority of what looked like a small city. The standing part of the ruins covered about a mile and a half in front of him, probably another mile or so through the valley.

      “Looks clear.” Kerry noted. “It’s really kind of pretty, isn’t it?” she asked, taking in the occasional shaft of light that broke through to cloud cover to illuminate a section of the thin mist that hung throughout the valley.

     Rona smiled. “That it is…” With one last glance at the vista, he took a deep breath and began the trek down into the valley.

     The city was amazing, oddly reminiscent of ancient Greek ruins, except carpeted with emerald green vines and mist. As Rona passed between a pair of pillars, their grey stone decaying under the weight of centuries, he spotted the first wildlife he’d seen since landing, as a pair of what had to be herbivores darted up the side of one of the smaller pyramids.

      “Hey, Kerry?” Rona asked, interrupting her search for information on the deer like creatures.
      “Yeah, Rona?”

      “Do me a favor, and start searching for a way to get the Star open.”

      “Not a bad idea, I’ll see what I can find.” Of course, she’d started on that as soon as the damned thing had sealed itself. She wasn’t about to admit how long it was taking her however. “How ‘bout I work on that and you sit down and eat something?”

     Rona paused and blinked up at the sun as his stomach growled agreement. Grinning sheepishly, he said, “That sounds like an excellent idea.” He walked a little bit further and then took a seat on a mossy step that led up to what used to be a raised gazebo, but had become a more or less rough collection of fallen pillars. Kerry sat on the edge of a small pool of water, trailing her toes through it without a ripple or a trace. Her face had gone more or less blank, a sure sign she was in deep thought.

     By the time he’d opened a protein bar and brought it up to his mouth, focus came back into her visage. “I think I found something…”

      “Is that a fact?” Rona asked, looking up with interest.

     She nodded. “Looks like something got into the external air vents, so it went hermetic to prevent contamination.”

      “Do we know what got caught in the vents? And can you open things up yet?”
      “Working on it.”

     He nodded, biting into the flavorless all-in-one bar of protein, carbs, vitamins, etc. that was standard in survival packs, washing it down with a swig of water from his canteen. Someone had once told him that they were an acquired taste, but he’d never grown accustomed to their chalky flavor. He glanced at the wrapper and almost choked. Survival treats? My ass! “Keep me posted then.”

     She rolled her eyes. “No, I was thinking maybe I wouldn’t tell you until after you’d kicked it again.”

     Rona blinked at her in surprise, but decided against commenting on her outburst, choosing to finish his meal in silence. As he was chewing the last bite, Kerry shimmered out of his monocular, to be replaced by the constantly shifting numbers of a range finder and compass, and the small inset of a rough map sitting in the corner. He accessed the map, allowing it to take over the small screen as he stood up. The ship was sitting a twenty minutes walk to the south, while he showed up as a small white dot on the south eastern edge of the ruins. After a few moments of study, he chose a nearby pyramid as a way point, and followed the arrow that popped into place. He wasn’t going to let Kerry’s snarky attitude get in the way of his exploring.

     If Kerry could, she would be kicking the ships computer, but the lack a physical body, rendered such feats impossible. If she was reading the system right, the vents were clear. She muttered an expletive she’d picked up from Rona. Computers... she thought in disgust. Maybe if I do this…

     It took Rona all of ten minutes to grow bored of the pyramid. He was sitting on a ledge fourteen feet from the top of the thirty-plus foot structure, looking out over the decayed city. At least his foot had stopped hurting. Sighing, he tried to stand up, but the damp moss made for treacherous footing, and he felt Kerry’s concerned presence in his mind as he started to fall. His right hand shot out on instinct and caught the lip of the ledge he’d been sitting on, but that only succeeded in swinging him over to the structure’s ‘front’ slope. With a yelp of surprise and fear, he shot down the slick, but very bumpy incline, gaining momentum before he landed on a large wide shelf hard enough to knock the air out of his lungs and leave him in an ungainly heap. As Rona lay gasping for breath, it took him a moment to realize that Kerry was giggling. It took him another moment to realize why, and he rolled away from the broken body of one of the herbivores he’d seen earlier.

      “Good aim!” she said with a laugh. If her avatar were present, he was sure she’d be rolling with mirth.

     He growled at her and stood up slowly, making sure everything still worked. “Don’t you have work to do?” He dusted himself off, and looked around, surprised at how well he came out of it.

      “Yes, I do.” Kerry said, still a tad amused. “You might be wanting to head back towards the ship soon.”

      “You got it open?” He asked hopefully, carefully making his way to the ground.
      “Not quite, but I think I’m close.”

      “All right, I’m on my way then.”

     Kerry was tapped into his senses again when she first heard it. Something was shadowing them, moving closer, quite obviously sneaking up behind her host. They were very good though, using the forest to cover the sounds of footsteps and breathing. The creature suddenly braced.

      “I’d duck if I were you.”

      “…and I’m fed up to here with you--“He really should have listened to me… Kerry thought as Rona caught the staff across his back, pitching him forward. Kerry had to admit she was impressed by her host’s agility as he tucked and rolled, coming up crouched and ready for the next attack from his opponent.

      “I told you to duck.” She said smugly, before looking at the figure before her. She almost gasped in surprise. “An elf?” She wondered. The next blow caught her completely off guard, coming from behind and knocking the Freelancer out. Kerry cursed vividly as her world went dark. After some quick thinking, she decided they obviously wanted him alive, or they’d have killed him already. She closed herself from his senses and started working on the ship again. If he escaped, they’d need a way out, and they’d need it fast.

     Rona groaned and tried to open his eyes, but the evening light filtering through the trees was too bright, and he clamped them shut again. This was definitely the worst hangover he’d ever had. He tried to move his hands to clutch his head, only to find them bound behind his back. A quick experiment proved them to be tied to a thick post in the ground, a couple of feet away. His ankles were tied as well, leaving him almost hogtied, lying on his side with a throbbing headache.

      “Try not to move, Rona. I think they’re still nearby.” There was a pause as Rona suddenly remembered what had happened.

      “…and don’t you dare say anything either!” Kerry added as he started to open his mouth, which he shut sheepishly. “Slowly open your eyes a little and let me have a look around, alright?” Rona swallowed, ignoring the dry feeling of his mouth, and very carefully opened his eyes again. He couldn’t see anyone and Kerry didn’t say anything, so he opened his eyes further and took a look around. Still clear. It took him a moment to recognize his monocular, but Kerry was ahead of him, her avatar already in place, looking around pensively. “I can’t help you Rona, you’re gonna have to find a way out on your own… you might want to hurry.”

     “Why? You think they’ll be back soon?”

     “Ever thought about being canned tuna?”

     “No…”

     “Because it looks like you’re about to become the local equivalent of cat chow… or sacrificed to the gods, I didn’t quite catch that part of the conversation.”
     “So… would that change anything about my situation?"

     “Not that I’m aware of.”

     “Oh joy…“ Rona said as he twisted his arms around behind him a bit, finally finding the hilt of a small knife. He it tugged from its hiding place under his belt, nimbly flipped the knife over in his hand and started sawing through the ropes.

     “Not the first time.” He muttered matter-of-factly as he worked.   
     “Uhm... Rona?”

     “The last one was before I came across you, ‘bout two years back.” he went on blithely, concentrating on not cutting himself. “I got captured by these natives on Rysa. Thought I’d be pretty tasty or something… I think… Anyways, if Jarvis hadn’t realized what had happened, and rescued me…”

      “No, Rona, why the hell do you keep a knife there!”

     With a quiet snap, the bindings on his hands came free, and he started on his ankles, hurrying and ignoring the pain in his head. “I’ve always been afraid of getting tied up.” He sawed a little more before elaborating. “I had mean siblings.” His ankles were free, and he kicked the ropes away, getting to his feet. Kerry faded out to be replaced by an arrow pointing to his left.

      “I can hear them coming, move!” Rona didn’t need any further urging as he took off at a run, following the arrow.

      “You wouldn’t happen to have the ship open yet would you?”

      “Uhm…”

      “Figures….” He panted as he dodged around a tree. He heard an angry sounding yell behind him and put on a bit more speed, running hard. “You could work faster you know!”

      “You think I’m going slow on purpose!?” she ground out. Rona grimaced and ducked under a low hanging branch, only to have to suddenly jump over a fallen log.

      “Yes!” He retorted quickly, “You’ve been working on this for THREE FREAKING HOURS! THREE! You’re LOSING IT, sweet-cheeks!” The trees suddenly thinned, and Rona put on a last ditch effort to reach the door, even as a spear flew past his knee and dug itself into the ground.

      “Think I got it.” Kerry announced. Rona, expecting the door to open, looked over his shoulder, and slammed into the solid wall of the ship.

      “Ow! Kerry?!”

     ”Oops, I guess I lost it.” She sounded very annoyed. The natives hadn’t yet broken into the clearing, but he knew they’d be coming soon.

      “Kerry. Open the ship! … Please?”

      “Not until you apologize!”

      “OPEN THE SHIP!” He could see figures running through the woods and started hammering on the door, not expecting it to work, but starting to panic.

      “Absolutely not!” she answered. Her avatar took over his monocle, standing to the side, arms crossed petulantly.

      “Crazy woman! LET ME IN!”

      “Apologize.”

      “If I die, you die too! Remember?”

      “I guess I’m just going to have to die then.”

      “Oh for-“ He yelped and ducked as a sharp looking stone flew past his head and shattered on the hull. “OK! I’M SORRY! LET ME-“ He yelped again as his hammering fists suddenly met thin air, and he fell face first into the airlock, which slammed close just behind his feet.

      “Apology accepted.” The ship shuddered as the engines flared to life and started lifting it off the ground. “That wasn’t so hard, now was it?”

     Rona groaned and rolled onto his back as the inner door of the airlock cycled open. “It’s like I’m married…”

     Kerry left his monocular, taking over the ships projectors instead and leaning against the doorframe. She smirked down at him.

      “No, if we were married, I would have told you to ask for directions. Next time you want a summer vacation, I’m driving.”
A reposting of Summer. I'm really proud of this story, and believe it or not, I'm sort of working on a prequel. Anyways, enjoy Mr. Barsona's misfortune.
© 2007 - 2024 Koeryn
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MissMetalyssa's avatar
Ahhh! I loved it! I was a bit confused with the names at first, but I did really, really enjoy it. XD