He'd killed them.
They were dead and it was all his fault Kellen thought, fighting back tears.
He should never have allowed his younger sister, Lysa, to talk him into exploring. He knew the risks! He was eight and knew better; he should have put his foot down and never allowed it.
They'd been told time and again not to wander too far from their hab block.
But Lysa, at six, was always so cheerfully curious and wore him down. So he'd agreed to show her some of the close tunnels. Things had been going so well, Lysa's face lit with a smile as she walked from one thing to another, each time as excited to see something new as the last.
They were nothing special. Metal tubes with pipes and cables snaking through them. This close to the hab, the air was still okay, but they couldn't move too far, or they would need to go back for gasmasks.
They were three turns away from home, a small bunkhouse that they shared with a dozen other families. Their father had his own bed, but he shared with his sister, which Kellen hated. She always had cold feet!
Their dad was on shift at the time, so it came to him to look after Lysa, keep her out of trouble and help teach her. More and more of that responsibility fell to him since Mum died a few years earlier. He'd shielded his sister as best he could from the worst parts and helped his dad as best he could.
But he could see the strain on him. The happy, cheerful man from his childhood was long gone; all that was left was just a tired, quiet man. Almost a shadow of his former self. But he relied on Kellen to look after his sister.
And he had gotten them killed!
He had just been about to turn back when, with no warning, the door behind them slammed shut. A hissing filled the corridor as vents along the ceiling started pouring smoke and gas into the corridor.
Knowing the risks, Kellen grabbed his sister's hand and ran for the distant still-open door. A rotten smell filled the air, pushing them both for safety. That meant death if they were stuck in there. They'd just passed the door, panting, when it buzzed and slammed shut behind them, locking as it did.
No amount of pleading or begging the servitor embedded into the door controls did anything.
He'd slammed his hand into the door angrily before remembering his sister was there and started to fuss about her. They'd stayed there, in the quiet dark corridor, for hours, hoping it would open. Sitting there, Lysa in his lap, hugging each other for comfort. Kellen tried to reassure his sister to stop her sniffles and tears.
When it was clear nothing would change, he did the only thing they could. Find another route. They were only a few corridors from the hab; they should be able to find another way. It sounded hollow even to him. But Lysa bought it. That was all that mattered.
They walked hand in hand, searching for corridors to the left. Before he knew it, he didn't recognise any of the corridors and couldn't remember the corridors to retrace his steps.
The corridors were darker, hotter, and narrower. Refuse and scrap littered the floor, and a fine coating of dust and chemicals covered everything. No one had used these corridors for a very long time. There was also a chemical taste to the air, worse than normal, and a fine swirling mist that moved to unseen currents.
That's when the sinking feeling settled into his gut. He clenched his fist angrily, fighting back the tears that threatened to fall. Why had they wandered off? He knew better!
"Kell." Lysa whispered, tugging at his sleeve. "Are we going to be okay?"
"Yes of course." He said, pulling her into a tight, fierce hug. "Everything is going to be fine. I think I recognise these tunnels."
"I'm hungry." she said, her voice barely audible.
Desperately ignoring his own rumbling tummy and cracked, dry lips. "When we get back, you can have an extra portion of mine."
"Really?" she said, her face brightening.
"Pinky promise." Kellen said with a small smile.
Their father would be home by now, Kellen realised, his heart clenching. He'd be finished with his shift and would arrive home to find them gone. He should have kept her safe! He had promised mum.
Kellen pushed the worry away and plastered a smile on his face, then grabbed Lysa's hand again and gently pulled her along. To distract her, he started one of her favourite games.
"I spy with my cog blessed eye something beginning with—"
---
They were dead.
Kellen fought back the sniffles trying to leave him as tears trickled down his face, leaving streams in the grime covering them. He was sat, nestled against the wall, his sister in his lap, curled against him having sobbed herself to sleep. He stroked her hair, rocking backwards and forwards, desperately trying to think of a plan.
Anything that might save them.
He had no idea how long they had been lost now. But it had been a long time. Hunger and thirst had become a constant companion. He was pretty sure he heard the sirens for shift change pass them several times.
Another spike of pain flared up his leg.
They'd been exploring another tunnel when the metal plates gave way under them, having rotted away. They fell several metres, he protected Lysa as best he could, but they had landed funny. Something in his ankle had given way, and a sharp knifing pain shot up his leg.
He'd forced himself on for a couple of steps, pretending everything was fine, but the pain was too much, and he had to call for a rest.
Maybe he could send Lysa ahead one tunnel at a time?
He couldn't give up. He had to keep her safe.
Metal scraping against metal snapped his attention to the end of the corridor. It was hard to make out through the mist, but he saw movement. A holy tech priest moved towards them, their face hidden in the shadows of the sacred red robe.
The priest passed one of the few lights in the corridor, flashing light across one side of his face.
His face was set, cold and closed off, but human-looking. Far more than he expected. He looked like a younger blessed priest. He rarely interacted or even saw the elder ones, but they were always blessed with heavy modifications.
He had always dreamed about gaining access to their augments. To be able to bask closer to the Machine's Gods light must be heavenly.
His eyes were clearly bionics, but had a passing resemblance to humans. His left hand was also bionic, with its silvery colour glinting in the light. But it too was of human proportions.
He froze, the countless tales and warnings of the priest's attention ringing in his ears. But he might be their only chance. Maybe he could offer himself to get Lysa to safety?
He called out.
It came out as a whisper.
Summoning his courage, he called out again, louder this time. "Divine One!" He shifted his sister to one side, out of the way.
The tech priest was just turning into another corridor, deep in thought, when he heard the call. His head snapped sharply round, his bionic eyes scanning the corridor. He stood there motionless for what felt like an age. The hairs rising on Kellen's arms and neck.
He pushed down his rising fear. "Can you help us get back to Hab Block LFT12314664-M1136235?" It was always best to be precise with the Holy ones. Or so his father said. "If we get my sister back, I am more than happy to volunteer for any ongoing experiments?"
The tech priest released a crackling hiss of static and started walking toward them, the smoke billowing around him.
"Most Holy Magos?" Kellen asked again, his voice shaking with fear. Pulling Lysa tighter against his chest, he shifted her further to the side in an attempt to shield her.
It was enough to start her awake. Blinking, she looked around sleepily before she caught sight of the advancing tech priest. She screamed before bursting into tears. "I want daddy." she sobbed.
The priest stopped dead at this. Something flashed across his face, too fast for Kellen to see what it was. He desperately tried to calm Lysa down, not wanting her crying to offend the priest when he spoke.
He pulled off his hood, a smile tentatively on his face. Forced and unpractised, but genuine. "Sorry to startle you. You have travelled quite the distance from Hab Block LFT12314664-M1136235."
He approached slower now and went down to one knee in front of them.
His sister had stopped crying and was only sniffling and hiccupping. "Yeah. We walked weally weally far. But Kell will get us home." She said, brightening and said with complete faith in him.
His heart twinged at the misplaced faith.
The man's smile softened into something warmer. "Well, he found me, so I'm sure he will. Shall I take you home?"
"Yes please, Divine One."
"Yes Daddy will be worrying." Lysa said happily. Still cautious but more hopeful.
"Come on then. It's this way." He said, pointing down another tunnel. A tunnel they just came from.
Kellen helped Lysa to her feet before clambering to his own. They started to follow the tech priest, Lysa holding his hand. With each step, he fought through the sharp, jagged pain that shot up his leg. He could almost taste metal in his mouth, it was so painful.
After less than a corridor, he could barely see through the tears in his eyes. He didn't want to give the priest an excuse to leave them. Or to be converted into a servitor. Then who would look after Lysa?
"Pause." The priest said.
Startled, Kellen looked up and saw that the holy priest was staring at him intently. "Messed up your leg, have you?"
"No." Kellen said, too quickly, blushing at the blatant lie.
Leaning down, the priest scooped them both up, startling a shout from them. He planted them on each hip and set off again. His stride lengthening.
Kellen could feel the power of the metal bionic through the priest's sleeve. It was slightly warm to the touch.
"That's better. So your father is waiting for you?"
"Not entirely." Kellen said as he clung to the man's robe. He was conscious of how clean it was and how dirty he and his sister were. "He is probably on another shift."
"Another shift… I see."
"Yes." his sister spoke up. "He is very clever, working in the forge".
"Ohh is that so? Is that what you want to be?"
She nodded happily. "We are going to help him. Like mommy did before… before she went to stay with the Machine God." Her face fell, and her voice was almost a whisper when she finished.
"Would you like to do something else? What about learning more about technology?"
"Ohh yes. I would love that. That would be amazing." She said, perking up, and started to chatter excitedly all about it. "But you have to be special for that. Daddy says—"
She loved learning things; she had devoured the puzzle games while growing up. And that curiosity had never left her. Kellen had worked hard to keep for her to keep that happiness.
As his sister kept on nattering, he heard the priest mutter. "Maybe I can talk to your father about them."
Kellen was caught between fear and hopefulness at hearing that. If his sister could become an acolyte, it would be a significant step up and might help keep her safe.
After almost no time at all, they reached the door that had slammed on them.
"Wait, it's filled with gas." Kellen couldn't help but shout. Freezing when he did so. Why had he said that? As if an honoured one needed him to say that.
"Good to know." Rather than reaching for the controls, he released another static hiss, and the door hummed and sprang open. A powerful hissing sound came from the corridor as the vents greedily sucked the gas from the corridor.
Once clear, they walked the last few hallways into the hub.
It was just how he remembered. A room filled wall to wall with hab blocks, all so tightly packed there was barely room to squeeze between them. Kellen pointed the way through the maze of narrow buildings until they came to their block.
They went up several flights of stairs and a lift before they arrived at their room. Stepping in, it was almost empty, and those who were in there were fast asleep. There were hundreds of bunk beds crammed into the room.
Theirs, like a few others, were heavily decorated. They'd done most of them years ago, in happier times. Although there was artwork from recently. Their family had shared the two bunkbeds for generations.
Their neighbour (Aunt Brenn) came bustling in. On seeing them, she gasped and hurried over. "Where have you two been!" She came to a screeching halt when she realised a tech-priest was holding them. Filled with awe, she bowed. "Most Honoured Magi."
"I found these two wandering the tunnels."
"Thank you Honoured Magi, for taking the time to bring them back."
Kellen flinched as he was jostled slightly when the priest handed over his sister to Aunt Brenn, who'd had her little arms held up in the universal sign to be picked up. Once in Aunt Brenn's arms, Lysa snuggled deeper.
He released a hiss as he was set on the ground by their bunk. Aunt Brenn glanced down at his twisted ankle with concern, knowing better than him that an injury like that wasn't good. Maybe it was just twisted and not broken, Kellen thought hopefully.
Although the feeling of bone grinding on bone didn't fill him with hope.
"Let's get you laid down. I'm sure you are both hungry and thirsty." Aunt Brenn said, helping them to their bed. She placed Lysa onto it, who bounced slightly before snuggling under the thin covers, scooping up her favourite teddy to hold as she did. Kellen on the other hand, carefully flopped down onto the bed and shimmied into a comfortable position.
Finally safe, he felt exhaustion suddenly overcome him, and he released a huge yawn. Kellen desperately tried to keep his eyes open to listen to the priest and Aunt Brenn speak, but it was a losing battle. The worry and stress of the last few days catching up to him.
When he felt the warm weight of his sister snuggle up next to him, the last of the tension left his body, and he started to drift off to sleep. As he did, he caught one last exchange.
"Their father won't be back for another seven hours, correct?"
"Yes."
"Okay. I will return then. I have released you from your shift today, so you can look after them until then. I will be holding you responsible—"
---
He was woken up by his father crying as he hugged them both tightly to his chest.
"Daddy!" Lysa shrieked, hugging him back.
Kellen sighed with relief. His dad was here; everything would be okay now.
He looked tired, with new worry lines on his face, but his steady heartbeat Kellen could feel through his chest, reassured him.
After a long time just hugging each other, their father pulled back, his face hardening. "Where did you two go—"
They were interrupted as Aunt Brenn arrived and pulled their father away. They huddled a few bunks down. Kellen strained his ears but couldn't hear what they were whispering. It wasn't helped by Lysa, who, now rested, was back to her energetic self and shifting antsily next to him.
They were both gesturing widely with their hands when Kellen's father started in shock. "What?" He snapped his head to look at them, before turning back to Aunt Brenn and leaned closer, whispering once more.
Kellen watched as his father squeezed Aunt Brenn's hands, thanking her and then hurried back to them. He lifted himself to stand on the ladder at the end of their bed he pulled them both into another hug. "What's this about a Divine One—"
"Techy." Lysa whispered, interrupting them, pointing over their father's shoulder.
Sure enough, there was the tech priest marching towards them; this time, his hood was up. Kellen felt a spike of apprehension at seeing him. Both fearful, wanting him to stay away from them, but also desperately hoping for his sister to have a better life, which might be possible if she went with him.
Over his shoulder floated a servo skull. A gasp escaped his mouth when a monster appeared from around the doorway. A giant armoured cyber mastiff padded towards them, its bulk filling up the room. It had to be careful walking between the bunks, it was so large.
"Oh." Lysa gasped slightly, shrinking back in fear, hiding behind their father.
Despite himself, Kellen felt himself do the same.
"You are back. Good." The priest said as he reached them. Their dad stepped down off the ladder and bowed. "Honoured Magi, thank you for rescuing my children. If there is anything I can do…"
The priest chuckled slightly, sweeping back his hood as he did. "Not a Magi quite yet, but it was my pleasure." he held out a hand and Kellen's father automatically returned the gesture and shook it, a bewildered look on his face.
Kellen had never seen a tech priest shake hands before, especially not with menials like them.
The rest of the bunk house was silent, like it was holding its breath. Many were asleep still, but those awake had moved a respectful distance away. Respectful and fearful.
The tech priests were holy beings following out the Machine Gods' great vision. But they could be capricious in nature, although Kellen wasn't entirely sure what that meant. He'd heard his mum and dad whisper it when they thought he was asleep.
"I want to take your children as apprentices."
"Apprentices?" Their father whispered.
"Yes."
"Wh… what would that involve? I can volunteer if you need help with any experiments."
"No need. I have been looking for apprentices for a while, and I think your children will do perfectly. As to what it would involve. I will take care of them and train them in the ways of the force." He seemed to smirk, but it vanished so fast Kellen couldn't be sure he saw it. "Motive force that is. They will become tech priests as long as they work hard."
"Kellen's father hesitated, looking torn. "You'll look after them."
"You have my word." The priest said, his voice changing slightly, getting deeper, more gravely.
"Good. Do you need anything?"
"Just them, I will supply anything they need. Wait… unless they have any items with sentimental value." He added almost as an afterthought.
"Just these." Dad said, hurrying over to the nightstand, pulling out a few items. There was a flower, which brought back fond memories of his mother, of the time they made it as a family. Happier times. The others were two rings attached to a chain.
The rings their parents used to show their commitment to each other. Both rings had been passed down for years and years.
"And Snuggles!" Lysa said, holding out her teddy to show the priest before pulling it into a tight hug once more.
"Snuggles? What an excellent name." The priest said, a smirk crossing his face as he glanced over to the mastiff, which chuffed at him.
Before he knew it, they were ready to go. Now it was time; he suddenly didn't want to leave his dad and he could feel tears start to cloud his eyes. He tried to fight them back, to stay strong.
"Daddy?" Lysa said, her lips trembling, tears threatening to fall.
He scooped her into a hug. "You're going to go with this lovely man and train to be the best tech priest ever. I just know it."
"I don't want to leave you."
"I am sure you can come and visit. Now go with your brother. Be strong for me, can you do that honey?"
"Yes Daddy." With another tight hug, she allowed their dad to pass her over to the adept, who settled her at his hip once more. Her little hands clutching tightly at his robe.
Then their dad made his way over to Kellen, kneeling to his level, and squeezed his shoulder. "Look after her okay. And be safe as well."
"Yes Dad." Kellen whispered, tears running down his cheeks.
"I'm proud of you and so would your mother be." Dad said. Kellen was pulled into a fierce hug before their father stepped away, sniffling slightly.
Careful not to shift too much, still very aware of the painful throbbing in his leg. Before Kellen could protest, the priest scooped him up as well.
"Here. You two get to ride Snuffles."
Snuffles? Who was that? And why did it sound like one of Lysa teddys? His mind froze as he spotted the mastiff moving closer. Before he could say anything, he was placed on the mastiff's back, his sister placed in front of him.
Turning back, the priest squeezed their father's shoulder one last time and whispered in his ear. "I'll bring them back to see you in a few months."
"Thank you." Their father choked back, fighting to hold it together.
Spinning round, the priest clicked and Snuffles perked up. Kellen could feel the power of the beast beneath him. The way the metal plates shifted as the mastiff moved, or the slight hum and warmth of the metal from whatever powered it inside.
"Are you both holding on tightly? You are? Good. Let's be off then."
Twisting round, they waved to their father until they vanished out of sight around the corner. Once they reached the streets, the priest lengthened his stride, Snuffles trotted to keep up.
Even though the mastiff was trotting along, the ride was so stable, it only occasionally jolted his leg. Each time, it sent a wave of pain through him. He bit back the pain each time, but tears still streamed down his face from the pain.
Kellen missed most of the journey, just focused on staying upright and praying they would be there soon.
Finally, they entered a well-maintained corridor. Far better than where they lived, it didn't have the constant smell of decay, sweat and greasy chemicals. Here, there was only a slight hint of that chemical smell. They stopped in front of a door which opened to let them in.
"Here we are."
They entered a huge home. As big as their bunkhouse. Far tidier and cleaner and with no smell at all, Kellen noticed with awe.
Was this how others lived?
"You two will be sharing this bed." The priest said, giving them the tour of the place. He pointed to a large mattress in the corner of a room, near another mattress. The priest's Kellen expected.
"This lab you can never enter. Not until I allow you to. It would be too dangerous otherwise. Rest for now, we will go out to get you some things and get your leg looked at when I am back from my shift. You both must be hungry."
At the mention of food, both their tummies rumbled.
The priest, still with his hood down, grinned crookedly. "I will take that as a yes. Here." Going over to a cupboard, he pulled out some food, far nicer looking than their normal fare and several bottles of water.
"This is all for you. There is plenty more where that came from, so have it all. Snuffles will stay with you."
When he heard his name, the mastiff released a deep rumble from the corner where he had curled up, head pointing at the door.
With that, the priest turned for the door.
"Wait, sorry, Most Honoured Tech Priest." Kellen said. "But what do we call you?"
He turned round suddenly looking sheepish. "Have I not introduced myself?" He cocked his head. "Huh, I suppose I haven't. I am Servitor Overseer Aleric-007. But you will call me Aleric. Now I must be off."
When Aleric had left the room, they eyed the dog warily but couldn't resist and scarfed the food and water. He felt like bursting from all the food. There was still some left over.
He sat back on their thin mattress, trying not to move his leg as he watched Lysa wander around the room, investigating everything, chattering as she did. While she did this, she kept glancing at the mastiff in the corner. He knew his sister, and she was plucking up the courage to go over and pet him.
She had always loved stories with animals in them.
Finally, with nowhere else to investigate, she hesitantly walked over to Snuffles. Kellen could feel himself get wound tighter and tighter as Lysa approached the dog and almost called her back when she clambered onto him to give him a big hug.
The dog's ears pricked up. He turned his head and huffed at her in amusement and settled back down. With far more confidence now, she started petting him. They both startled as a deep rumble filled the room. Looking around widely, it took a second for them to realise Snuffles was making the sound.
Lysa stopped, looking scared and Kellen tensed, ready to leap up.
Before they could, Snuggles lifted his head once more and looked at her. With a huff, he nudged her hand with his nose.
Slowly, but with renewed confidence, she started to stroke him once more. Again the rumble filled the room, but Kellen now realised it was a purring sound. He fell asleep to the sound of his sister's giggles and Snuffles' purring.
Maybe things would be okay.
---
Kellen stirred awake, a ball of warmth curled up next to him. Reaching out, he brushed his sister's hair and rolled over. He recoiled, letting out a startled yelp as he stared into the face of the monstrous cyber dog, until he remembered it was Snuffles.
Slumping back, his heart still pounding, he stared into the eyes of the mastiff, almost real-looking, and showed far too much emotion and intelligence.
Snuffles cocked his head at him before huffing and put his head back down on the bed next to Lysa, whose hand had been feeling around for him, even in her sleep. She found Snuffle's face and started to stroke him, with a quiet murmur, slowly stirring.
Kellen got up, careful not to wake her and walked over to the food and water. There had been so much yesterday that there was still lots left over. He made sure it was out on the table, ready for Lysa. He knew how sleepy and groggy she would be when waking up.
She always was slow to wake.
Once she was up and about, she decided to explore once more, showing Kellen all the things she had found yesterday while he fell asleep. She would vanish off, then come rushing back to the bed where he sat, excitedly show it off before rushing off once more.
He had no idea the time, but tried to focus on Lysa to distract him from his leg. The knot of worry in his gut had yet to go away. Nor had the pain, which now that the adrenaline had worn off was constant. He tried to move as little as possible to not jostle it, which sent a shooting pain up through his leg, making him feel sick.
Lysa had clearly noticed something was wrong because she was very careful around him. Even when bringing things to show him, rather than running and jumping into him as she would have normally.
Pretty soon, Lysa started to play a game with Snuffles that Kellen just didn't understand, but they seemed happy. After the fourth cycle of the game, Snuffle paused, cocking his head towards the door.
Yipping, he sat, looking expectantly at the door, his tail wagging a mile a minute. Kellen eyed the blurring tail with apprehension. Getting hit by the metal tail could do serious damage. Luckily, Lysa was nowhere near and moved to hide behind him cautiously.
Kellen's hands started to sweat, the pain fading.
The tech priest. No, Aleric, stalked in, hood up and his face set in a cold mask. The door slammed behind him, and he swept into his labs to check on his experiments. He came out a few moments later, nodding to himself, his face still set in stone.
Kellen could feel the tension in his shoulders and Lysa clutching tightly at his clothes. This was not the priest they had met earlier.
Aleric marched into the room and caught sight of them. He almost seemed surprised they were there, as he pinned them under his piercing eyes. They stayed like that for a heartbeat, the tension rising, before it was shattered.
"Woof." Snuffles barked, bounding over to Aleric and bowling him over, licking his face as they both ended up on the floor.
The cold mask shattered as Aleric burst out laughing, holding out his hands to try and keep Snuffles away from his face. His hood fell back as they were play-fighting and the priest's face had relaxed into a far warmer expression.
"Alright, alright, get off you!"
He finally managed to clamber to his feet and turned to them once more. Before any of the tension could return, he grinned, a bright smile lighting up his face. "How are you both, full and well rested I hope?"
Lysa was still nervously holding onto him, although her little hands were no longer clutching quite as tightly. Kellen swallowed. "Yes honoured--."
"Ah, ah, ah," Aleric said, cutting him off, an eyebrow cocked at them. "I distinctly remember telling you to call me Aleric."
"Yes Aleric."
Grinning he nodded. "Good. So first order of business is to get your leg looked at. And then it is to gather some supplies and tools for you. They should all be waiting for us, as I have called in some favours. It's quite the distance, both of you okay with riding Snuffles again?"
Kellen nodded, relieved, but was surprised to see his sister shaking her head. She was now standing next to Kellen, shifting from side to side nervously, her teddy clutched in her hands.
"What's the problem sweetheart?" Aleric said. Seemingly surprising himself at calling her a nickname.
Pulling up the teddy to hide her face, she mumbled, "Can you carry me?"
"Me? Of course." He said with a soft smile. "Right then."
He helped Kellen onto Snuffles first and once he was sure Kellen was secure, he scooped up Lysa and placed her on his hip.
As they walked he just listened in as Lysa chattered away happily at Aleric. And it was at, he barely got a word in edgeways.
Kellen was soon lost in the corridors, but they were unmistakably climbing higher. They reached a heavily secured corridor and at the far end, Kellen saw the largest servitors he had ever seen. Massive, with thick tracks and large guns.
Both servitors spun, focusing on them.
Kellen glanced nervously from them to Aleric, who seemed completely confident around them. To Kellen's relief, they turned off before reaching them and entered a large circular chamber. With a high vaulted ceiling and the walls decorated with iconography. In the centre was a column of metal, several metres tall, ending in a cog.
Within it, Kellen could see a torso and head, all heavily augmented, cables and pipes covering the man. A metal plate was bolted over the body's face, and Kellen guessed that allowed it to breathe as the body was floating in some green, blue fluid.
Before the pillar was a stone table, marks and scars cris-crossed it. Like it had been slashed at.
Goosebumps broke out on Kellen's arms; the room was almost cold. He had never felt the cold before, only less scorching.
Aleric placed Lysa down and helped him off of Snuffles.
"Here we are. Sit on here." Aleric said, leading Kellen over to sit on the table. Kellen looked up at the pillar of machinery. It was all silent until Aleric released a static burst.
The Servitor twitched, the pipes and cables snaking into him, vibrating slightly. All around the holy machine came to life, intricate cogs started turning and a puff of coolant hissed around it, decreasing the temperature further.
"Identification Confirmed. Proceed with scan?" a raspy robotic voice came from several speakers.
"Affirmative." Aleric replied.
The metal pillar twisted, arms and mechadendrites and dozens of other implements spread out and hovered around him. His heart rate spiked.
"It's okay, this is it just scanning you."
It was an agonising few minutes as Kellen sat there, not daring to move, then the arms folded back into the machine as suddenly as they had appeared.
"Scan Complete. Provide breakdown?" The machine stated.
Aleric released another burst of static, which the machine replied to in several electronic pulses.
"Hmm." Aleric hummed, looking off into the distance. Kellen had seen it enough times to know that the adept was reading something that Kellen couldn't see. "Good, more or less as I expected. We will need to replace the leg."
Kellen nodded, having expected it, looked forward to it in fact.
"Good. I will take Lysa outside and wait. Snuffles will stay in here with you."
Nervous but putting on a brave face, Kellen nodded again.
"Good, see you on the other side."
"Bye, bye Kell." Lysa said, waving somewhat reluctantly, before taking Aleric's hand and trotting out of the room. Just as the door was shutting, the machine sprang to life once more, the arms folded out of it, more this time and with a different configuration. While he was distracted by the moving arms, something stabbed into his other leg.
Kellen looked down, startled. Another arm with a needle and a syringe attached was pumping a liquid into his good leg. "It's the other leg." Kellen started to explain in a panic before the world tilted and darkened.
He came too on his side with Lysa standing in front of him, biting her lips. As soon as she saw him stir, she started to bounce in place, a bright smile lighting her face. "He's up!"
"Give him some space. Let the holy chemicals wear off."
Is that what caused him to pass out? He had never heard of an operation like that. All the ones he had heard about from the other menials were being wide awake for the implanting of bionics. Unable to move, and if you were lucky, unable to feel anything, but still awake.
He carefully swung himself up to sit on the table. The machine behind him was slumbering once more. Glancing down, he saw his new metal leg. He admired its sleekness. All the ones he had seen were blocky and seemed to stick constantly.
Rolling his foot, he watched as the sacred servos and pistons hissed, moving the metal where his foot once was. Grinning slightly, he looked around. He saw Aleric in the corner, sitting with his back against the wall. It caught his attention because he was leaning against some iconography of the Machine God. Kellen would have thought that blasphemous. But he was sure the tech priest knew better, being closer to the machine god.
Kellen stood, carefully testing his leg. He tensed, expecting some pain, but nothing. He was slightly clumsy from the new leg, but it functions perfectly. Grinning, he walked around the room trying it.
"Adequate." Aleric said. "We will get you a proper replacement soon."
A better replacement? But this was already amazing? The best he had ever seen… ever.