The Cyborg's Queen E-Book

Nova Edwins

• Herausgeber: Black Umbrella Publishing
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Serie: Royal Cyborgs
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 96

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024

Beschreibung

While my friends have been forced to marry cyborgs, my father has prepared me to take the throne alone—no husband needed. Unfortunately, that quickly changes when my father falls victim to an assassination attempt. To hold on to power, I need a husband, and I need him now. Preferably someone who is big, strong, and—ideally—ruthless. The cyborg named Killer seems like the perfect candidate, but he hates humans with every fiber, screw, and circuit board of his being... Historical romance meets space.* Princess meets cyborg. Completely over-the-top with all the best champagne flutes, fanciest ball gowns, and shiniest crowns you could wish for.   (*No actual history or science involved.)

Leseprobe

THE CYBORG’S QUEEN

ROYAL CYBORGS 3

NOVA EDWINS

A SCI-FI ROMANCE NOVELLA

CONTENTS

The Cyborg’s Queen

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Epilogue

About Nova Edwins

THE CYBORG’S QUEEN

While my friends have been forced to marry cyborgs, my father has prepared me to take the throne alone—no husband needed.

Unfortunately, that quickly changes when my father falls victim to an assassination attempt. To hold on to power, I need a husband, and I need him now. Preferably someone who is big, strong, and—ideally—ruthless.

The cyborg named Killer seems like the perfect candidate, but he hates humans with every fiber, screw, and circuit board of his being...

Historical romance meets space.* Princess meets cyborg. Completely over-the-top with all the best champagne flutes, fanciest ball gowns, and shiniest crowns you could wish for.

(*No actual history or science involved.)

1

LYLA

I watched as Marcia left the ballroom in search of her newlywed husband. The gleam in her eyes did not bode well, and I was pretty sure she was anything but happy with the marriage. Eden, on the other hand, seemed to have come to terms with her marriage by now. I also had to admit that her husband Diesel was actually quite nice.

Only, I still didn’t know what to make of this sudden wave of marriages. My best guess was that the intention was to unite the cyborgs and the humans on Asaverra, but there had to be a more diplomatic way than forcing the princesses to marry the first cyborg that came along. I didn’t even mind that the men were cyborgs—rather, it was the kidnappings and blackmail that ultimately led to the marriages that I didn’t like. Ace’s charming smile and Diesel’s attempted polite chit-chat did nothing to change the fact that they had behaved barely better than pirates on raids.

My communicator beeped, and I pulled it out while I sipped the champagne I had intended to drink with Marcia.

My father’s name popped up on the display, along with a notice that the message that would follow was for my eyes only. I looked around and decided to read it on the deserted balcony.

The air was pleasantly warm and scattered Meyhlang gliders fluttered gracefully across the sky. It had been a long time since I had last seen several specimens of the pink insects together, and for a moment the sight distracted me from the incoming message.

I swiped my thumb across the display, and my heart promptly beat faster. My father had merely written that he wanted to meet me in a standard hour in supply tunnel 3. The request was enough to make my stomach shrink to the size of a speck of dust. Apart from the king and me, no one knew that we had converted isolated supply tunnels into escape routes. To make sure that no one would find out, we had agreed to use them only in case of emergency. Life-threatening emergencies. So it wasn’t exactly surprising that my father’s request alarmed me.

I tried not to panic. There could be countless reasons why Father wanted to see me. Maybe it was a drill. A drill for a real emergency. My stomach tightened because I knew that Father would have at least let me know that he was rehearsing for an emergency.

I was aware that we had an agreement when it came to the supply tunnels, but I couldn’t ignore the gnawing in the pit of my stomach.

As quietly as possible, I returned to the hall. Eden and Diesel were standing in a corner talking to each other. I eyed the cyborg. Hopefully I wasn’t making a mistake, but if Eden trusted him, then I probably could too.

My friend noticed me and hissed something else in her husband’s direction before putting on a bright smile. “Hey, Lyla, what’s up?”

“I need help.”

Diesel’s entire attitude changed. It was obvious that he and Eden had been arguing, but at that exact moment it no longer seemed to matter. “With what?”

He sounded calm, collected, and hyper-focused—exactly what I wanted in such a situation.

“My father has informed me that he wants to meet with me. In an hour at a secret place that we have previously discussed. The whole thing worries me because something like this has never happened before. Would you maybe accompany me?”

“Of course.” Eden took my hand and squeezed it.

“We should get going right away,” Diesel said, letting his gaze roam the room as if he suddenly thought everyone here was a potential threat. “An hour can be ah’tze long when you’re in danger.”

“All right.” I nodded, whereupon Diesel put his hand on his wife’s back. The two of them walked ahead, and I followed them, nodding kindly to the right and left, a broad smile on my face as if everything were fine.

I couldn’t find any trace of Marcia, but today was her wedding day, and I didn’t want to worry her unnecessarily. I was already on the verge of a nervous breakdown and didn’t need to drag her along. Apart from that, she probably had enough problems of her own.

Diesel’s cruiser was ready when we left the palace. “Where do we have to go?” he wanted to know.

I took my communicator, and with a swipe of my finger I sent him the coordinates.

He frowned. “A meadow outside your father’s palace?”

I looked at Eden because I was so afraid of making a huge mistake.

She nodded encouragingly. “You can trust him.”

“This is the entrance to one of the supply tunnels. My father started converting a couple of the tunnels into escape routes some time ago. Only he and I know about it.”

“Did your father say what the threat was?”

“He didn’t talk about a threat at all.”

Diesel slightly bowed his head. “He is the king and has the entire royal guard at his disposal, Princess. If he wants to meet with you alone in a secluded place that no one knows about—then there’s a threat in your father’s eyes. That much is certain.”

My stomach sank because, of course, he was right. I got into the cruiser after him and Eden. Thoughts raced through my head. What had happened? And why hadn’t I heard anything about it?

In my mind, I went through all the horror scenarios—from a virus outbreak to an attack by a hostile species from another planet to treachery within our own ranks, every worst case imaginable crossed my mind. Although the trip didn’t take long, I was a broken-down mess when we finally arrived.

The cruiser hadn’t quite taken up its parking position when I unlocked the doors. Eden gathered up her skirt and followed me to the entrance of the tunnel. Security was up-to-date, and time seemed to stretch endlessly while my retina was scanned and I confirmed the access code using my communicator before we could finally enter the tunnel.

The motion sensors picked me up and bright light filled the entire hallway.

“Father?” For the first second, I couldn’t move, the horrifying sight stopping me in my tracks.

Diesel reacted much faster than I did, pushing past me and running to my father, who was lying motionless on the floor in the middle of the hallway.

I finally pulled myself together and followed him. The cyborg was kneeling next to my dad with one hand under his head and scanning him with his communicator.

“Multiple organ system failure,” he said matter-of-factly. “The king doesn’t have much time.”

My entire world came crashing down. “Dad!” I shook my father and sobbed as his eyelids fluttered.

“Lyla.” His lungs rattled with each breath. “I think I’ve been poisoned. The...Senate. They wanted to pass laws forbidding anyone in the royal family from marrying a cyborg. I refused. I...thought I had more time…” He coughed, and I panicked as blood speckled his lips. His eyes rolled back, and he lost consciousness again.

I looked helplessly at Eden and Diesel. “What am I supposed to do now?” I knelt beside the cyborg, resting my hand on my father’s chest. He seemed to be burning up.

Diesel frowned. “At this stage, only a cyborg doctor can save him. The dead organs will have to be replaced, certainly some of his blood. He has a few hours at most, probably less.”

“How do we get to your doctors?” I asked, my voice quivering.

“Are you sure?” Diesel looked at me intently, concern written in his light blue eyes. “By your definition, your father wouldn’t be a ‘real’ human anymore.”

“I’m sure. The definition is ah’tze bullshit anyway, and I want him to survive.”

Diesel’s fingers slid over his communicator. “I can get to a specialist from here in...six and a half minutes.”

“I’ll go with you.”

The cyborg had already stood up, bent over, and lifted my father in his arms as if he weighed nothing.

Eden grabbed my hand. “You can’t go with us. We have to hide you.”

“What? No! I want to be with my father!”

Diesel shook his head. “I’m sorry, Lyla, but Eden is right. If your father was poisoned, then someone wants his throne. But they can’t have it without you, because you’re next in line of succession.”

The blood drained from my face as I realized everything he had said was true. A first tear ran down my cheek. I had always known that my future was to one day ascend the throne and rule Ask’or. But not under these circumstances. I had been prepared for all kinds of situations, but not for my father to be forcefully removed. Of course I had a target on my back now.

“Okay, I have to hide somewhere.”

Diesel nodded at his wife. “The club you visited the night I confronted you—rent a suite under a false name there, take Lyla, and wait for me. We’ll find a solution.”

“We will.” Eden gave him a quick kiss and glanced at my lifeless father. “Hurry up.”

“I will. You have my word, Lyla. We will do everything we can to save your father.”

I pulled myself together until Diesel had left the tunnel. Only then did I burst into tears and sob uncontrollably while Eden pulled me into her arms.

2

KILLER

The holograms appeared, and with full precision I fired the projectiles while avoiding the oncoming obstacles. It didn’t even feel like a challenge.

A beep sounded three times in a row, and the exercise was over.

Bolt whistled appreciatively. “Not bad. Hit rate one hundred percent, accuracy 99.9 percent.”

“What?” I frowned. “The machine made a mistake.”

“You hesitated for a moment. Before the seventh hit.”

“I did not.”

Bolt tapped his communicator. “I can’t help your bad mood, my friend.”

I clenched my fist, toying with the idea of proving to him that there was nothing wrong with my precision, when my own communicator beeped. “Whatever,” I grumbled.

Bolt laughed. “Come on—you’re still the best around, top-ranked on the leader board. Don’t let that tiny fraction spoil your mood. In a real fight, nobody stands a chance against you. Isn’t that enough?”

I allowed myself a small smile. “Yes, you’re right.”

“There you go.” He walked past me, patted me on the shoulder and started the cleaning robot.