Dying Sickgirl Transhumanism

Chapter One:

It was four forty nine AM by the digital clock next to the bed when the sound came. Mei was too hot, her body damp and slightly feverish. She stuck her legs free of the covers, feeling the cool of the room. She tried to lift, but found herself shivering and replaced it.

Waking at this hour left her the least uncomfortable of any time of the day. She didn't intend to wake up. Being woken by the alarm would leave her feeling sick and addled. Later in the day after she'd slept and woken again she'd feel awful too. Now she merely felt hot and relatively alert. Too much so to go back to sleep.

Eyes closed she began to tell herself a story. A prince would come, from a magical world... he'd...

And then there was an incredibly loud sound, an engine like the distant airliners she'd sometime's heard at school but louder, much louder. Mei jerked, sitting up with a start at the volume of it. Wincing she looked over at the window and after a moment pulled herself up, her feet touching the rough carpet Her heart thudding wetly, a spray of migrainal flashes like the static on an old television rippling across her eyes. For a moment Mei felt she might fall, the heat rising off her, too much, too much.

The sound came again. Mei took a step forward and pressed the switch which would open the blinds. The slats opened with a click and then rolled back, a shadow on the dawn light extending into the room. Mei's mouth fell open as she saw a massive metal helm seemingly inches from hers on the other side of the glass.

The helm was like that of some metal lion, it's eyes glowing fiercely at her. Mei gasped, unable to look away. The lion broke her gaze first, swinging around too fast to follow. The window quivered with jets and the lion head rose, Mei realizing it was mounted on a humanoid frame like a giant knight.

It had to be some kind of military robot. A combat frame she thought they were called. What was it doing in front of her window? Mei yelped and covered her ears as the sound grew intolerably loud, the lion hurtled forward almost too quick to follow. It grow brighter as it lunged, a glowing energy rapier forming in one hand to connect with a streaking object she barely saw: a fighter plane!

The fighter burned and began to fall, disintegrating as it went down. The lion knight raised a hand and a beam of intolerable brightness connected it to something distant which exploded loudly in turn.

The lion knight turned to depart then suddenly snapped around and lunged back to cover her window. Mei saw a bright flash around it, and realized that several missiles had struck it. It had saved her! It had got in the way of missiles which would have struck the building! Her heat was a squishy thunder in her chest now, and she felt like her ribs would burst.

Another robot came into view. This one white and blue. Mei thought she'd seen one's like it on TV a few times. It fired another pair of missiles at the lion knight, but the suit was ready this time, hurtling forward and slashing both from the air then impaling the other suit and sending it spinning away towards the ground. Turning it flipped around to face her again and the chest hinged open.

Mei gasped as a handsome man jumped free. He had long hair down to his waist, and was clad in a tight fitting white suit that covered him from his shoulders to the tops of his high heeled boots. His body was tall and finely proportioned, long legged, elegant. He looked like a dancer. The lion knight turned and hurtled away at high speed. The prince looked in at Mei, standing now on the wall of her balcony. He bowed deeply, eyes never leaving hers, then stepped back off the edge. Mei gasped, grabbed the door key and tried to turn it. It stuck for a moment, then turned and she stumbled out onto into the air. The cold hit her like a punch but adrenalin got her over to the edge and she looked down at the dizzying expanse of air below.

There was no sign of the prince. Mei stumbled back in, pulled the door closed and tried to lock it. It didn't quite catch properly, but it was closed and somewhat locked, even if you couldn't get the key out. She fell back to the edge of her bed, shivering, pulling the covers around her, too exhausted to get back in. She was still sitting there when her mother came in a few moments later.

A prince had come, but he hadn't taken her away from her tower.