The Battle for Sanctuary: The Titan's Legacy: Vol: 2 (Volume 2) (9 page)

The entire group became
very quiet as each one considered their alternatives.

“
Look,
guys, I think we're jumping to conclusions here,” Dominic said.
“I mean, we don't even know if this thing is hostile, do we?”

“
Not
hostile?” Aaron exclaimed in disbelief. “You do remember
those killer eels from a few hours ago, right?”

Dominic looked stubborn.
“Of course I do. But you and Justin said yourselves that the
servitors on the first level were helpful. And this...monkey-thing,
whatever, is just collecting fruit and taking it back to someone. We
don't have to assume it's some kind of killing machine.”

“
No,
that's true Dominic,” Justin agreed before Aaron could start an
argument. “But the eels were just cleaning algae before they
attacked, weren't they? So that's really what I'm worried about.”

“
Exactly,”
Aaron said with a glare at Dominic.

“
However,”
Justin continued. “I think that there might be a way to check
to see if it will turn hostile or not.” He grimaced slightly
“Hopefully without me getting killed in the process.”

“
What's
your idea, Justin?” Maria asked. “And let me say this
before you tell us; I'm not backing any plan that exposes you or
anyone else to too much risk.”

Justin started to object
but Maria cut him off. “No, Justin. Your rune is our only
weapon against these machines. And since it happens to be attached to
the rest of you, we need you intact. This could be a long journey and
who knows what other dangers we'll face before we make it to safety.”
She looked stubborn and Justin could not think of a good argument
against her statement.

“
Okay,
I agree,” he said. Justin heard Aaron's quiet sigh of relief.
However, he suddenly felt tired and leaned back against the nearest
tree trunk. “But I think my plan is, well, fairly safe. Unless
someone can come up with something better, that is.”

“
Okay,
Justin. Let's hear it,” Maria said with a smile.

“
Well,
before I tell you, I think we should go back to the clearing and you
can get a look at the thing for yourselves. You can make a better
evaluation of my plan then, or maybe think of some others.”

“
Good
idea.” Maria looked around at everyone. “Okay, let's go
take a look at Justin's monkey, shall we?”

There were a few snickers
at her comment, but they all got in line and followed Justin as he
headed back toward the center of the island.

There were no sounds of
clanking this time, but when Justin thought they were getting close
to the clearing, he motioned them all to quiet down and walked slowly
ahead, listening closely with every step.

Only a few dozen yards
further on, he came to the clearing. Justin waved the others forward,
but put a finger to his lips to emphasize the need for silence. The
other teens spread out around him and crouched down, staring in awe
at the staircase that reached up to the ceiling.

“
How
is that thing even able to stand there without falling over?”
Maria asked in a whisper.

“
No
idea, Maria,” Justin murmured. “Titan technology at its
best, I suppose. I'm more curious about where that machine is.”

“
Maybe
it only comes down the stairs once a day? Or only once in a while?”
Dominic wondered.

Justin watched him
looking up at the various trees around the border of the clearing.
“Hey Justin, did you say that the machine harvested mangoes
from around here? That would be a nice addition to our food supply.”

With a nod, Justin said
“Yeah, Dominic, it would. But I'd wait a while to see if that
thing shows up before going mango picking.”

The other boy nodded a
bit impatiently, then sat back on his heels with a sigh. “You're
right,” Dominic said. “But if we wait for an hour or
more, it might be worth the risk to grab some.”

Justin turned and looked
back at the staircase. Maybe they're right, he thought. Could be
hours or maybe days before that monkey shows up again. We could be up
the stairs and gone before we even see it. He frowned in thought,
trying to decide what to do.

Fortunately, maybe, it
wasn't long before Julia spoke up.

“
Guys?
I think I hear something,” she squeaked.

The teens had sat down,
whispering and joking quietly at that point, but the entire group sat
up at her comment.

The tension mounted
quickly as each of them finally heard the distant clanking, high on
the stairs, of the monkey machine returning.

“
That's
it, Just?” Aaron whispered anxiously. Justin nodded,
tight-lipped. He stared up at the sound and went through his options
in his mind again.

Should I risk contact or
not, he thought. Maybe if we wait until it returns to the next level
and then follow it up, we could avoid the damned thing entirely. It
was certainly a possibility.

When the machine finally
lurched into sight, its limp very obvious as it trundled down the
stairs, there were a chorus of gasps from the teens. Justin simply
watched the monkey machine intently.

Now that he was getting a
better second look, Justin realized just how badly weathered and
beat-up the machine really was. The screeching of gears was even more
evident and he thought he could detect a smell of burnt wiring. He
almost felt sorry for the thing.

How long, he wondered,
had it been doing this tedious labor? Years? Centuries? It was sad
really. And why? Was there a group of Titans above that it was
gathering fruit to feed? Or some other people? Or was it simply
rerunning a program over and over again? Well, he'd soon find out.

When the machine was up a
tree on the far side of the glade, Justin turned to the others.

“
You
can see how slow and worn out that thing is,” he said in a
whisper. “I doubt if it could catch me even if it did turn
hostile.” He looked straight at Maria. “So that's all
there is to my plan. I'm going to let it see me and wait to see if it
reacts. If it doesn't, then we take it from there.”

“
That's
it? That's the plan?” she replied in disbelief. “Justin,
there must be another way. Yes, it looks old and clunky. But that's
because it's doing the same routine that it's been doing for ages. If
it turns on you, like those eels, you won't have anywhere to run.”
She glanced at the machine across the clearing. “I mean,
climbing a tree wouldn't help, would it? And we're too far from the
water to retreat there, even if that would stop it.”

“
I
know, Maria, I know. Like I said, if anyone has a better idea, I'm
all ears.”

Everyone looked at
everyone else. Justin glanced at Aaron but his friend just gave him a
rather desperate smile and shrugged. “I wish I had a better
plan, Just. But I don't.”

Finally, as the
discussion was getting nowhere and the monkey-bot was climbing a
second tree, Justin cleared his throat and everyone looked at him.

“
I
think it's the only option. Not the best one; the only one. And I
still have this,” he held out his palm with the silver rune,
“as a last-ditch effort in case it all goes sour. So, if there
are no objections?”

“
I
have a million objections, Justin,” Maria said with a hopeless
note in her voice. “But I have no better ideas. So okay, if you
are determined, then the decision is yours.”

“
Okay
guys, here I go. Everyone stay hidden, just in case.” Justin
took a deep breath, winked and smiled at Aaron, who nodded solemnly
at him, and walked into the open.

I'd better move away from
the others so that thing doesn't spot them, he thought and walked,
not too quickly, a few dozen yards along the edge of the undergrowth.
Then he stopped and stared at the machine as it slowly made its way
down a tree toward the net lying by the stairs.

Justin knew the moment
the monkey had spotted him. It was just dropping some fruit into its
net and then froze in mid-gesture. The gleaming, dented head turned
as if on a swivel and Justin found himself fixed in the glare of
burning red eyes. The machine jerked around and the eyes widened in
seeming shock and then narrowed as it focused on him. The monster
reared up, suddenly standing more than nine feet tall, and raised its
long, metallic arms above its head.

It roared! It was the
sound of thunder mixed with the scream of an engine squealing. And
then the monkey dropped down on to its arms again and, moving now
with the speed and ferocity of a freight train, barreled straight at
Justin, its open mouth filled with titanium fangs.

Justin didn't move. Even
if he had had the chance to run, there was nowhere to go and no time.
The machine just moved too fast. So much for it being old and slow,
he thought wildly.

If the watching teens
made any sound, Justin couldn't hear it over the roaring of the
monkey. He hoped the machine couldn't hear anything either.

As it raced toward him,
Justin did the only thing he could. He held out his right hand, palm
out so that when the machine hit him, the rune would strike it as
well. He would never know if it stopped the metal monster, of course,
because he would be trampled to jelly as soon as it slammed into him.
Then he closed his eyes tightly, turned his head and waited. I hope
it doesn't hurt too much, was his last thought.

Justin waited, hand out
and eyes shut. And he waited. And waited a bit more. But nothing
happened. Finally, after about a minute, he carefully opened one eye
and took a peek at the monster.

The monkey machine had
come to a complete stop no more than six feet away from him. It
wasn't staring at the rune on his palm, which was Justin's first
guess as to why it had stopped. Instead, the thing was staring
straight at Justin and...sniffing.

It sounded like a bellows
as the machine sucked in air and then snorted it out again. The
expression on the surprisingly mobile face was one of confusion. The
monkey looked baffled at Justin's appearance. It actually raised an
arm and scratched its dented metal head, the metallic screech setting
Justin's teeth on edge. After what seemed like an eternity, the
monkey-bot reached behind its back, raised its hand and...held out a
mango.

Justin heard a soft,
inquiring cough from the machine. It apparently wanted him to take
the fruit. With a visibly shaking hand, Justin reached out and
accepted the mango. The monkey seemed pleased. It nodded its head,
cocked it to one side for a moment and gave him one last long look.
Then it headed back toward the far side of the clearing where it
continued its interrupted harvesting.

Justin stood alone and
tried to make sense of what had just happened. He looked over at the
monkey and then down at the slightly bruised mango in his hand. Why
am I still alive, he wondered. He was dazed and confused but also
felt a small stirring of hope. Maybe we're safe, he thought.

“
Hey
Justin!” he heard and spun around, almost falling over. He saw
Aaron and the others peeking out of the bushes. “Is it safe to
come out?”

Justin looked at the
monkey machine and then back at his friends. “Yeah,” he
called. “I think so.”

The seven teens quickly
made their way over to Justin. Aaron's face was white and he looked
shaken. He got close to Justin and stared into his eyes. “Are
you okay, Just?” he asked breathlessly.

“
I
guess so,” Justin replied and then wiped off his forehead. His
laugh was a bit shaky, but he felt a sense of relief.