A Theft in the Dark

Chapter 5

"So, remind me again. How are you any different than them? Because to me, I just went from one captor to the next."

Joy sat bound to a chair in the middle of the room. She had stirred awake in the midst of the rebels' plotting. She tugged at her restraints lightly to test them. They were crudely fashioned, easily escapable for her. However, she played the game, acting strained as she tugged just barely on them.

"We aren't going to kill you like they would. The restraints are for everyone's safety, until we can deem you not a threat." Orion answered.

"Oh?" Joy laughed. "Big bad bots are scared of a human girl half their size? A blind ol' bat like me?" She teased with a grin.

The three men looked at each other, whispering for a few moments. Unfortunately, Joy could hear them all too well despite their attempts at secrecy.

"What if she runs away and tells them where we are?? Oh, we should've never taken her!" Orion grumbled softly.

"She'd be foolish to go back. They're after her now too." Another man whispered.

The men paused in thought for a bit. She could hear that annoying clicking sound again.

"You are free to go. We don't wish to be your captors. We're not the bad guys here. We welcome you to join our cause, if you would be interested. I am Aries. These are my brothers, Cygnus and Orion."

The three men sounded so different from each other. Is that common for bots? She wondered.

Aries had a soft demeanor to his voice. He seemed kind, almost trustworthy. She recognized that tenderness from before. It was the man that had saved her, while the others had wanted to leave her for dead.

Whereas, Orion was a bit gruff. He seemed hotheaded, yet passionate. It was obvious he cared deeply for his fellow Ionans; but he was quick to action, a trait not suitable for a great leader.

Cygnus was a mystery. He hadn't said much, aside from calling her foolish. His voice was cold, more robotic than the others. Maybe he wasn't a man at all.

She stayed seated once Aries untied her. Cygnus was right. She couldn't go back to Alexandria now. Not only were they after her for the murder of whomever had been in that vault, but now she was associated with these goons as well.

"So, what are your plans? What are you going to do about all this 'tyranny' you speak of?" She asked curiously.

"Does that mean you'll join?" Aries asked.

"I can help. But, I don't work for free." She said, folding her hands together as she leaned back more comfortably in the chair.

"What do you want?" Orion chimed in as he stepped forward. His voice was skeptical. She imagined his brow furrowing. Did he even have brows?

"I need you to find someone for me. You seem like just the top notch bunch of kidnappers that I need." She joked at the end, but she was very serious about her demands.

More clicking. God, she hated that clicking.

"What can a 'blind old bat' do for us though?" Orion spat back her own words venomously.

Joy smirked and rose from the chair. She stepped up to Orion boldly. With her face inches from his, she trailed a finger down his exposed chest. There was a slight friction as the roughness of his skin clashed with the ridges of her fingertip. "Even I can tell you're not human. How do you suppose you'll get close enough to take out your competition? Looking like that?" Her hand reached up to touch his face.

As she felt over his features, she was actually stunned by how real he felt. Of course, she could not reveal that. She had to play her cards just right to get what she wanted, as she always did.

This time when she heard the clicking, she could feel it too. His jaw moved, like a tic of sorts. It seemed to get stuck in rotation, producing that obnoxious clicking. She gripped the side of his face, to hold his jaw closed firmly, and the noise stopped.

"Mmph!" A muffled grunt passed through.

"Shhh... That's enough out of you." She whispered in his ear.

Then she turned to Aries. He seemed to be a more reasonable victim.

"She's right... The other humans will be more willing to listen with her on our side." Aries agreed.

"And with her impairment, we could gain sympathy as well. She could be the face of our cause." Cygnus said in a very matter-of-fact way, as though he had deeply studied the subject.

"She could pose as your wife, Orion! A Human-Ionan relationship could show this city that we are not so different." Aries suggested.

Joy stepped away from Orion instantly. "Wife?" She choked on the word.

"Yes! We could stage a wedding, somewhere everyone can see!" Aries sounded very excited at the thought, perhaps too excited.

"Why me though? Why don't YOU marry her? She's so... squishy." Orion said in a disgusted tone, finally able to speak now that she had released his jaw.

"You look the most human out of all of us." Aries said.

"All the more reason I shouldn't be the one in the spotlight. We should have Cygnus do it. He's the most Ionan of us all. We should show we're not afraid to look the way we do. We shouldn't have to conform ourselves to the likeness of these meatbags." Orion scoffed.

"Statistically, humans relate more to things that closely resemble themselves. If we want to get elected as Mayor, then you're our best option." Cygnus said.

"Run for Mayor? We're all fugitives. How will the people vote for you when they learn we're criminals? This plan is ridiculous!" Joy interrupted.

"We state our case. The people will understand. Orion was arrested for simply being Ionan. We were protesting peacefully in front of the Mayor's mansion that day. He decreed that all Ionans were to be melted down. They need the metals for 'expansion'," Cygnus explained. He then paused for a moment before asking,"What were you there for?"

Joy hesitated for a second. If she told the truth, they would undoubtedly refuse to help her. A murder suspect would definitely hurt their political ambitions. But if she played along, maybe they could help her. Maybe she could finally see her love again.

Her heart twinged at the thought.

"I was trying to get a meeting with the Mayor, to go through his archives. I am looking for someone, and I think the archives will know where he is. At least, they'll tell me if he's still in Alexandria. The guards refused, and I may have gotten a little... rough with them."

"He?" Orion asked.

"My son... Milo."