Infinity's End

Chapter 9

 

Peacemillion II

 

                Colonel Une stared down at the girl lying on the examination table.   Sally and Heero stood on the other side of the table, watching the Preventer Chief's facial expressions. 

                "She's still loyal to Infinity?" 

                Heero nodded. 

                Colonel Une brushed back a lock of hair lying against her cheek.  "Wake her."

                "But..."

                Colonel Une raised her head and glared at Sally.  "I told you to wake her.  We can't leave her unguarded in the medbay if she is an enemy."

                "Arys is not an enemy."  Heero looked ready to leap over the table and throttle his superior.  Sally put a hand on his arm, stilling him.

                "If she can still hear commands from Infinity, she is a potential enemy."

                Sally let go of Heero's arm.  "The voice she hears in her head is only a residual memory of Infinity's voice.  It isn't real."

                "But it can stir her to action.  An action that would be dangerous to this organization."

                Sally shrugged.  "I suppose."

                Heero glanced at Sally, surprised at her agreement with Colonel Une. 

                "Transport her to the brig.  You can check on her periodically."  Colonel Une turned on her heel and walked out of the medbay without looking back.

                Heero watched her leave, his blue eyes filled with silent rage.   Sally sighed as she began readying Arys for the move down to the brig. 

                "I don't want to do this as much as you do, Heero, but she is in charge."  Sally pulled out Arys' I.V.   She touched Heero's arm.  "Can you carry her for me?"

                Heero nodded and gently picked up the unconscious pilot in his arms without any trouble.  Her head lolled limply against his shoulder.  Heero looked down at her closed eyes.  Ignoring Sally for the moment, he bent down and brushed his lips against hers.  She remained quiet and still.  Sally gathered up the equipment she needed and motioned to the door.

                "After you."

                Without a word, Heero headed for the doorway, cradling the burden in his arms with a gentleness that Sally had never seen in him.  Sally followed, her arms full.

 

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                Arys woke up to find herself on a hard cot and in a room with gray walls.  Disoriented, she sat up, wondering where she was.  Her confused gaze landed on the boy sitting by the wall.  His blue eyes were fastened on her face.    Blushing slightly at the intense look he was giving her, Arys pressed a hand to her cheek. 

                Heero stood to his feet and walked to her bedside, moving the I.V. hanger out of the way.  He crouched down next to her, his eyes never leaving her face.  He took the hand pressed to her cheek in his, rubbing her cold fingers with his warm ones.  Arys closed her eyes at the contact.  She wondered at the feelings his touch stirred in her.  She did not understand why this boy affected her so much.  Who was he?

                "You still don't remember me, Arys?"

                Arys shook her head.  Her gray eyes opened to see that Heero had moved closer.  At this proximity, the look in his eyes was even more intense and Arys ducked her head to avoid his gaze.  She could not bear to return his gaze. 

                "Don't do this to me, Arys."  Heero tipped her chin up so that she was looking at him.  "You've done it before."

                "When?"  she whispered. 

                "You'll soon find out."  Heero leaned forward.  Arys stared at him as if hypnotized.   Without another word, Heero kissed her, and Arys found herself lost in a sea of unfamiliar thoughts.   After the kiss, Heero kept his arms around her, drawing her head to his chest.   Arys listened to his heartbeat beneath her ear.  He was human.  As human as herself.  

 

                Humans are weak...

 

                Arys gripped Heero's collar and leaned against him, scrunching her eyes closed.  That voice.  When would it ever go away?

 

                You could be so much more powerful, Arys.

 

                Heero drew back to look at her.  "Is something wrong?"

                Arys opened her eyes.  "I can still hear her, inside my head."  She put her hands over her ears and shook her head.  "I wish she would stop." 

                He pulled her hands away from her ears and held them gently.  "If I can get you a connection to the Net, do you think you can find your memories?"

                Arys nodded.  "I can hack into anything.  I had a good teacher."  Her mouth lifted in a wry grin.  Infinity's voice had gone silent again, for the moment. 

                Heero knew that she spoke of Infinity.  "I'll be back."  He smiled at her before leaving the cell, locking the door behind him.

                An hour later, Heero walked into the cell.  He held a hand out to Arys.  "Come on."

                Arys had been sitting on the cot, tracing the texture of the wall in front of her with her eyes.   She had found that if she kept her mind occupied, Infinity's voice became less insistent.  She could ignore it.  "I can leave?"

                "I convinced Colonel Une to let you out of here."

                Arys stood to her feet and took Heero's hand.   He led her out of the cell.  

                "Where are we going?"  Arys asked as they left the brig and went down the hall. 

                "The bridge.  We can use the computers in there."

 

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                Heero introduced Arys to the other pilots on the bridge.  They all acted nervous around her, unsure of how to handle having to introduce themselves to the sixth pilot they all knew so well.  She nodded silently to each of them.   Immediately, Arys' eyes were drawn to the computer at the front of the bridge.  On instinct, she walked across the bridge and slid into the chair in front of the console. 

                Heero followed her, peering over her shoulder.  He had to smile as Arys expertly tapped the keyboard, accessing Colony X-000001's network.  Within five minutes, Arys had the network's file directory up.  She glanced up at Heero and then back at the screen.  With one slender finger, she pointed to a folder in the file directory.  It had the inconspicuous name of "Mem."  Underneath the folder was a compressed file.  Its filename was "Arys."

                "Here.  It can only be opened from the computer it originated from."  Arys' tone was matter-of-fact. 

                "That shouldn't be a problem."  Heero studied the directory path, memorizing it instantly.  He put a hand on Arys' shoulder.  She turned away from the console screen to look at him.  "Think you can help me write a virus in one hour?"

                Arys grinned at him.  "If it means Infinity's end..." she shrugged. "Sure."

               

 

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