Castle of Cyborgs by Adrian C. Bott

Author:Adrian C. Bott
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: ebook
Publisher: Hardie Grant Egmont
Published: 2017-11-21T05:00:00+00:00

The face was human. He could see that now. It might have metal ribs bulging from the forehead and a coppery stub where the chin should be, but it was still a person. Or had been, once.

‘Oh no,’ Axel said, feeling faint. ‘It can’t be you.’

‘Hnnn?’ said the creature.

‘Is that … is that you, Dad?’

The creature’s face broke into a big, kindly grin. ‘Oh, no, young man. I am not your father.’

Axel hesitated, taken aback by how well-spoken the creature was.

‘Are you the monster, then?’

‘Monster?’ It chuckled, and the sound was like the wheezing whumps of a car trying to start on a cold morning. ‘They think so. Those fools in the upper castle. But then, I think of them as monsters.’

It took a step forward. Axel flinched, and then felt bad about it. The creature might look scary, but it wasn’t acting scary.

‘Please do not be afraid,’ the ‘monster’ said.

Axel swallowed his fear as best he could, strode over to it and held out his hand. ‘Axel Brayburn. Pleasure to meet you.’

Delighted, the creature took his hand in his huge, misshapen claw. ‘Likewise! I am called Gustav. But you probably know me as the Baron von Donnerstein.’

Agent Omega’s words flashed into Axel’s mind. ‘Fusing man with machine. Some twisted freak called the Baron von Donnerstein started the trend a hundred years ago …’

‘THE Baron?’ he said in awe. ‘The original? So you’re what … a hundred years old?’

‘One hundred and sixty-three,’ said the Baron, turning his attention back to BEAST. ‘When my body parts wear out, I can simply replace them. That is the advantage of being mostly mechanical. So, Axel, why have you come to this terrible place?’

‘I’m trying to find my father and bring him home. He’s a prisoner here.’

‘I see,’ rumbled the Baron. ‘Now, whatever happened to your poor companion?’

BEAST was in a terrible state. His power was off, and one of his arms had been wrenched out of his body. Axel had never seen him so bad. ‘He wouldn’t listen to me,’ he said, feeling bitter and sad and angry all at once.

‘Hmm. Let me see now. Perhaps a little boost would help.’ The Baron found BEAST’s power socket and plugged the cable from his own body into it. Immediately, BEAST’s eyes lit up.

‘Luckily, I have energy to spare,’ the Baron explained.

Axel ran to his friend’s side. ‘BEAST, are you okay? Can you hear me?’

BEAST’s voice was weak. ‘AXEL? DID WE FIND THE MONSTER?’

Axel looked up at the Baron. ‘Yes. And you were right. He isn’t what he seems.’

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