Heaven Saga 2: Sands of Aquarius (34 page)

Valis
smiled before stepping onto the transport. “I’ll do that.”

“I
can’t believe how much damage this thing took,” Jesela said. She looked at the
half destroyed Mjolnir.

“Well,
it’s our job to repair, no, to make it better,” Daes said. She headed into the
cockpit and touched the computer panel. “We’ll make you as good as new.”

Please,
it hurts like hell.
The Mjolnir answered in text on the screen. Daes laughed.

“Not
as much as your pilot friend,” she said.

Make
sure he’s taken care of as well.

“Don’t
worry my giant robot, Celi and Mira can take care of that,” Daes answered.

“Who
are you talking to?” Jesela asked from outside.

Daes
poked her head out, smiling. “The black box system is functioning Jesela.”

“The
Mjolnir’s learning?” Jesela asked with excitement in her voice.

“Not
just that, it seems to have Brian’s sense of humor,” Daes said.

“I’m
so glad!” Jesela shouted, jumping up and down. “I didn’t think that system
would ever work!”

“You
did great Jesela, even better than I thought you could,” Daes said. “Let’s get
back to work.”

I’m
glad you and Jesela made me.

“Is
there a reason we should know about?” Daes asked.

I
get to enjoy the company of attractive young women.

Daes
laughed again. “You really have his personality down.”

I’m
trying my best with what I have.
The mobile suit wrote with a smiley
face after the text.

* * *

Trai
Gor stood alone in the ancient temple with his falchion glowing. He stared at
the statue of Brian with a strange smile on his face. The light flickered for a
moment as a short figure in a grey cloak stepped out of the shadows.

“It’s
been awhile Lord Gor,”
Myden said telepathically.

“Twenty
years or so,” Trai Gor said. He turned to Myden. “Tell me, how did you pull it
off? No matter what scan I run the statue comes out as genuine.”

Myden
laughed.
“It’s not difficult to change the memories of a single man. As for
the statue, well, that was the easy part.”
He pulled out his black staff
and spun it a few times. The rock around the statue took the shape of a solid
block.

“I
see,” Trai Gor said as he watched. “What would have happened if Brian didn’t
appear?”

“The
Warrior is not tied to a specific individual or species to be honest,”
Myden answered.
He spun his staff a few more times and the statue changed to the visage of
Kivi. A moment passed and he spun his staff again, revealing the statue as
Dreka.
“You’re the only one who knows this secret Lord Gor. I waited for an
eternity to see the plan come to fruition. Even if my name is cursed for the
rest of time I’ll see it through.”
He spun the staff once more and the
statue changed back to Brian. He stepped back into the shadows and vanished.
Trai Gor stood alone as the light flickered once more. He gazed at the statue.

“I
won’t say anything old friend,” Trai Gor said before leaving.

* * *

Brian
sat in the side room of the sickbay while Celi checked her scanners. His right
arm had a replacement that looked exactly like his original arm. He flexed the
fingers on the cybernetic hand.

“It’ll
take a few months to integrate the replacement arm and eye with your nervous
system,” Celi explained. “How does it feel?”

He
opened his right eye and looked around the room. “The arm feels like my old
arm. It’s a bit sluggish on the reaction time, but this eye is something
different.”

“I
integrated a few systems from your exoskeleton into the artificial eye. If they
don’t take well with you I can always trade it for a standard replacement eye.”

He
blinked number times. “I think I can get used to this. I just need to learn to
turn it to standard sight mode.”

“Are
you sure about this?” Celi asked. She pointed at the scar above and below his
right eye socket. “I can fix this if you want me to.”

He
brushed the scar. “No Celi, this is a reminder of how close to dying I was. For
the last year I’ve been looking for a place to die. It’s time I start looking
at the reasons I have to live.”

“Are
the scars of Delne fading?”

“A
little bit,” he answered. “That’s the reason I need this,” he pointed to his
eye, “I need a reminder I can see in the mirror every day to keep me going.”

Celi
took his hand tenderly. “I’m glad.”