[The Tempest trilogy: Book 2] After the incident in Ostrava's Neoclash arena, Zoya faces dangerous challenges. Nightingale's uprising threatens to destroy the whole Europe, the racist Yeomen movement steps up their campaing against Castaways and Rya...
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His back with bulging muscles look quite unsightly rather than hot or attractive. They're furrowed by numerous scars, silent mementos of fights he had been into. However, it's the left part of his back that shocked me. A part of the organic tissue has been basically hollowed out and replaced by flexible, skin-like polymer frequently used for prosthetic limbs reinforced by a solid metal frame.
"They saw a chance to make me even more efficient Champion and to raise my market price - and so they took it. The steam cannon I sometimes use... it's not something any Champion can have. There has to be a space for water containers from which the steam is produced."
I open my eyes in shock. "They didn't..."
"They did," Isaiah nods slowly. "Come on, try and open me."
With my eyes fixed on the artificial replacement on his upper back, I reluctantly approach him. I see there is a small button-shaped hole in the machinery, just the right size for a finger. I take a deep breath and press the button. With a quiet hiss, the part of Isaiah's back fortified by a rectangular metal frame opens like a small door. "Oh God..." I voice as I take a look inside of him.
As I presumed, the whole left side of his upper back is hollowed out. I see no blood or gore since the chamber built to replace the organic tissue has "walls" made of the same flexible polymer as the outside. The ribs have been replaced by hardened metal rods and behind them, I see a fist-sized metallic object with several tubes emerging from it, emitting a soft buzzing sound.
Isaiah's new heart.
The disturbing showcase continues with two can-sized containers wedged between the ribs with another set of tubes disappearing into Isaiah's body. This must be the containers fuelling the scary weapon engraved in his artificial hand. Isaiah was right. They changed him into an efficient battle machine.
I can't look at this any longer. I close the "door" to Isaiah's body; the rectangular frame falls into its place and, with another hiss, hermetically closes. Isaiah puts the hoodie back on and turns to me with a grim smile on his face. "It's not nice, is it?" he says.
I'm unable to say a word.
"I hope you finally understand better why did I change so much. How would you react if they just ripped your heart out of your chest and replaced it with some cybernetic nonsense? It was the heart that knew you, Zoya. Now it's gone forever. And so am I."
And here, we can finally get to another point. "Okay, you don't have a heart," I say with culminating anger in my voice. "But does it justify you joining Nightingale's army? How do you think I feel, seeing you in the ranks of the enemy? Can you even feel anything at all now? I'd prefer you to be dead than... against me."
"I'm not against you, Zoya, you have to trust me..."
"Anyone who's with Nightingale is against me!" I interrupt him, tears already streaming down my eyes. "How... why? She's a lunatic, Isaiah. I'd never guess you'd be able to join forces with someone like that. This is... this is a nightmare! Isaiah, how could you abandon me like this? And don't try to feed me more nonsense about my own safety!" I'm already screaming, but I don't mind at the moment.
