“Time to go to work, Roland,” she said, reaching for him. To her relief he immediately abandoned Z-542’s shoulder and jumped into her arms.
“You’re going to have him dig beneath the surface?”
“Yes. Just so I can place an additional monitor underground,” she added quickly. “If there is something there, I don’t want him confronting it.”
“He could also be creating a path to the surface. I’m not sure?—”
“As you pointed out, whatever is under there—if there is anything under there—is large enough to affect the readings. Roland will only create a small shaft.”
Roland’s tail whipped back and forth in an eager rhythm, and she couldn’t help laughing as he scurried ahead of her towards the airlock.
“You’re always ready, aren’t you?”
“You are not going outside,” Z-542 said immediately, rising to his feet and towering over her.
Damn, he was tall. But she refused to be intimidated.
“Of course not. But the floor in the hangar is only packed dirt.”
He was still frowning, but he finally gestured towards the airlock in what she assumed was permission.Not that I need his permission.
Roland chirped and scampered into the entry hall, then waited as the two of them followed. She reached for the control but a big silver hand intercepted her. So that’s what his hand felt like—not cool, but warm and smooth, almost silky against her skin. Andincredibly strong. He wasn’t hurting her but she had absolutely no chance of escaping his grip.
“Not without a breathing mask,” he said firmly.
The atmosphere on Mars had been stabilized to the point where pressure suits weren’t necessary, but full humans still needed supplemental oxygen when outside of a controlled environment.
“The hangar is airtight,” she reminded him, gesturing to the green safety indicator.
“Right now it is, but that could change when Roland starts digging. Take the mask.”
She winced, knowing he was right and annoyed that in her eagerness, she hadn’t considered it.
“All right,” she agreed, but he didn’t immediately release her and she was suddenly conscious of how close they were standing in the small entry hall. He was so big, his chest a solid wall of muscle barely inches from her own smaller body, and she could feel the heat radiating off of him. Her breathing quickened and her eyes dropped involuntarily to his mouth.
The hard lines of his face softened and his eyes flared with a silver light that made her heart beat even faster. For a moment she was sure he was going to kiss her, but instead he stepped away.
“Your mask,” he said gruffly.
She stared at him, a dozen emotions warring inside her, before she managed to give him a stiff nod and take the mask. What had she been thinking? She wasn’t even sure if he was interested in her, and she certainly wasn’t going to make a fool of herself over him.
Lifting her chin, she turned away to fasten the mask over her nose. She certainly didn’t wonder if he’d chosen one of the smaller ones that left her mouth free on purpose.
“Let’s go, Roland,” she said, ignoring the look on the big cyborg’s face.
They passed through the airlock into the hangar and Roland immediately scampered over to the big silver horse standing next to the rover, his nose twitching. The horse bent his head with equal interest, his nostrils flaring as well.
She’d seen the horse before, but only from a distance, and she paused to admire him. The silvery metal that covered his body gleamed dully in the dim light, the mechanical joints a harmonious complement. His mane was a mass of thick silver cables, and even his ears were metallic, the ends gleaming.
“He’s beautiful,” she breathed, and the horse came to join them, nudging her hand with his head. She laughed and ran her fingers through the cables that made up his mane. “And you know it, don’t you?”
“He’s functional,” Z-542 said stiffly, and she looked up to find him watching them, an odd look on his face.
“You can be both.”
She wasn’t sure if she meant the horse or the man, but he only frowned and nodded at Roland.
“Where do you want him to dig?”
