Chapter Seventeen

The Blind Leading The Blind

As far as car journeys go, this one was tense. Susan was in a heated debate with Shiels over the delenser and who should go first. Neither of the two wanted to go first as to do so would leave them completely at the mercy of the other, at least for a short period. The procedure itself was a daunting prospect. The use of a high energy beam to burn the Lens within the eye at the risk of partial or total loss of sight was something that would spell certain death considering the circumstances. To do it with an improvised device was another layer of crazy but it was the only way. “Shiels, you are the one that needs your eyes back in action first. If things go south you are the better shot. We will be there in an hour if you do it now while I drive, in thirty minutes or so your eyes should be usable. Then we swap over. If we stop this car we are dead, and they are dead too”. Shiels was annoyed at how right Susan was. He wanted to pull in for both of them to do it together. He didn’t want to be blind without Oculus in a car with someone who could trade him for their freedom. He was also more reliant on the Lens than he thought. It was part of him, his sense of self. It made him godlike. He was conscious that he would be more vulnerable in the case of a CIB ambush and it made him nervous but there was no time to dwell on it because leaving the Lens in was a death sentence. He opened the backpack and took out the delenser. “Susan I want you to know that I have never allowed a fellow Operator to dictate to me like I have allowed you to do. This is the last time that happens”. He placed the device on his head. The backpack had a portable battery which showed a good charge level. True to form he did not stand on ceremony. The light blinded him and lit up the inside of the car. He groaned and winced in pain grabbing the interior door handle and Susan’s arm and squeezing hard. Susan held her tongue and allowed the moment to pass. The light went out in the delenser and Shiels was panting heavily. “You ok?” She asked him as he released his death grip on her arm. Between gasps he formed a broken sentence. “I don……. I don’t know…..I’m fucked up….it’s fu….it’s awful”. Susan allowed him to recover without the pressure of talking. She continued driving, praying that Shiels eyes came back quickly.