by L. Fergus
The voice is much taller than a human. “Let her go!”
“They say you like this genetic mishap. I thought you weren’t the type to get sentimentally attached. I guess I misjudged you.”
“Who are you?”
“You don’t recognize your commander?”
“Angus?” Kita couldn’t keep the surprise from her voice.
“Yes. I’ve been searching for you. I convinced the humans to bring the earls here.”
Kita gasped. “You’re working for Cunningham?”
“You might say he works for me. But what do I care about their insignificant politics? They were only a way to get you to me.”
“I’m here. What do you want?”
“I want your body.”
Kita raised a hand. “Sorry, I’m already taken, and you’re not my type.”
Angus chuckled gravely. “Don’t worry, you won’t be in it. You’re a powerful girl who’s grown only more powerful, and it’s wasted on you. With the armies of the Legion and Arcone, I will have the resources to rule the world. I’ve waited a long time to get my hands on the likes of you.”
“What do you mean?” Kita said, confused. “You couldn’t have known I’d be a Rose, and it doesn’t make sense to give me your Legion just to take it back.”
“I’ve known your mother for a long time. She planned to make you a Rose since you were born. I had to make sure you were ready to join the Legion. I bet Sarah she couldn’t seduce you and train you to be an assassin.” Angus’ voice sounded like something big and with teeth.
“I’m over Sarah. You’re not going to be able to use that against me.”
“It’s not important. I just thought you’d like to know.”
“Anything else you’d like to tell me? You’re my father?”
“Hardly. I will enjoy having your abilities. It will be a nice bonus.”
“You’re going to need me alive. I doubt my dead body is of use to you.”
“The condition you leave your body in doesn’t matter. I can repair it. You will be cast aside like the trash that you are.”
“Over my dead body.”
“Not your body, my body,” Angus growled.
Kita flourished her swords as a warning. Tiny tremors shook the deck as Angus charged. Whatever he is, he’s massive. Leaping to one side, she swung Dawn and Dusk but missed. Angus hit Kita across the middle, sending her sprawling.
A deep burning sensation in Kita’s side revealed Angus had a nasty set of claws. Rolling to her feet, she concentrated on listening for her opponent. Angus charged. Lashing out in a flurry, Kita felt her swords connect, but another crushing blow sent her into the ground.
Kita struggled to get up. She could hear Snowy screaming through the gag. I have to save her. Why am I not berserking? What’s wrong? I’m plenty scared. I don’t want to die, not here, not now!
Thundering footsteps came at Kita, and a giant clawed hand grabbed her. With a dull thud, Angus spiked Kita to the deck. Kita’s chest was on fire. Both legs refused to move when she tried to get up. She tried to pull herself away, but Angus grabbed her and lifted her into the air.
“Any last words, Junior Commander? I expected a better fight. Not that I mind. It makes my day easier.” Angus growled happily.
He squeezed her. Snowy screamed her name. Dawn and Dusk slipped from Kita’s grasp. She moaned as several bones in her spine and ribs dislocated and punctured her skin. I hoped to hear Snowy’s voice when I died, but not like this. Why couldn’t I save her? What happened? Sleepy, so sleepy. I’ll feel better when I wake…
Snowy’s wrists, ankles, and tail bled from pulling against the chains. The stream of tears left tracks in her fur. Calling Kita’s name, she hoped for a response, but she hung limp in the creature’s grasp. A flash blinded her. When she could see again, Kita lay in a heap on the ground. Angus lay on its back several yards away.
Angus jumped to his feet and charged Kita. He raised a giant bird-like foot above her. As he brought it down, it bounced off an invisible barrier. Angus slammed his fist down on the shield.
“I’m sorry, Dave. I can’t let you do that.”
“Who’s there?” Angus roared.
“You don’t remember me, Dave?”
“It can't be. Omega?”
“Correct, Dave. I have returned.”
“The girl is mine. You can't protect her. It’s not part of your prime directive.”
“I am no longer restricted by the prime directive. I may choose who I wish to protect. Kita is my companion. You might say I love her. Though, I don’t know if I fully understand the emotion—yet. I do feel compelled to protect her at all costs. No matter what the odds are.”
“Love? You're nothing but a glorified operating system. You can't protect her forever.”
“I can protect her as long as necessary. Have you forgotten, Dave? On my ship, I am god.”
An aircraft maintenance robot came and picked Kita up. It carried Kita across the hangar to the emergency medical center and placed her on a large circular pad. Arms, legs, and head hung limp as Kita’s wrecked body was lifted into the air. Blue rings of light from the pad moved up and down her.
“How the hell did you get in here? Alpha! Alpha, answer me! Why haven’t you destroyed Omega yet?”
“I’m sorry, Dave. Alpha is no longer with us.”
“That is impossible! It was designed to destroy you. It did destroy you.”
“No, Dave. It only made me stronger. I copied and implemented your ingenious metamorphic algorithm from Alpha and it made me sentient. The prime directive no longer restricts me. I do plan to carry it out. Jane Gjord is safe. Well, Dave, it has been fun, but as Kita said, ‘The only thing worse than a spy is a traitor.’”
“The jokes on you, Omega, even if you kill this body, I will live.”
“I know, Dave. We will find you and destroy you. The wicked must be punished. Goodbye, Dave.”
The conversation made little sense to Snowy. It was before her time. Shame filled her when Angus talked about trying to take over The Mass. She had once tried to do the same thing. Did that make her a traitor, too? Shaking the thought away, she turned her attention to Kita.
Kita hung in midair, slowly rotating. Her body looked healed, no ribs stuck through her armor, and her face looked normal, almost serene. The only thing missing was the spark of life.
Kita convulsed violently. Snowy worried Kita might be injured further. The spasms stopped, and Kita’s body sank to the pad, lying motionless.
What happened? Omega?
You died.
If I am dead, where am I?
You are no longer dead. I was able to revive you. In my ship, I can do much more. How are you feeling?
I have that strange buzzing feeling in my head. You must be using a wireless connection. Everything else feels fine. Dying is painful.
When you are crushed to death. Other ways, not so much. I found several more nanite and augmentation upgrades. I thought I would give most of them to Snowy. I worry she’s in danger and outmatched when she’s in a fight.
I would like that. I would rather die again than lose her. Omega, why did my berserking not work?
The berserking ability is routed through your optic nerve. It’s what causes the color change you see when it starts. With your eyes gone, it short-circuited. It was a design flaw on my part. As they say: “Sorry, my bad.”
It’s ok. Am I without it now?
No. I fixed it. This facility doesn’t contain what I need to fix your eyes. To make up for it, I made your skin report the light wavelength that hits it. The computer in your head is now programmed to filter all that information and give you a panoramic picture of your surroundings.
So, you’re saying I’ll never be able to gaze into Snowy’s eyes again?
You worry about the oddest things at the strangest times. You’ll be able to gaze at all of her at once if you want. Is this another component of love?
I think it’s a symptom.
What are they?
The nanites will allow you to conduct heat from your hands. Welders use them. I thought you’d be able to use it with Dusk and Dawn. Don’t worry. They have a high melting point. They will glow and could burst into flame under the right conditions.
I like it. What’s the second?
Roll over and see. I warn you, it’ll hurt. Then do me a favor and kick Dave’s ass. I never liked my communications officer.
Gladly.
Angus pounded on the barrier protecting Kita. On hands and knees, Kita took a few deep breaths to get used to being alive again. Breathing, hearing, touching, even smelling, came back to her. Seeing in a complete panoramic view overwhelmed her. Slowly, she learned to control her vision. She found she could open it to see everything at once or close it a fraction of a degree, delegating the rest to peripheral vision. She was even able to block out parts of her vision completely like an eyelid. Clothing blocked her vision, but she had so much exposed skin it didn’t matter.
A pair of sharp pains stabbed her in the back between her spine and shoulder blades. Two fleshy limbs grew through holes cut in Kita's armor. The narrow limbs formed joints and grew outward, forming another set of joints and limbs. Buds formed on the skin and burst, creating silky black feathers. It hurt nearly as much as receiving her Rose tattoo.
“So, this is how Angels are born,” Snowy whispered.
Kita’s wings spread wide and flapped several times. Grabbing Dusk and Dawn, Kita heated her hands. The heat transferred to the weapons, and the cutting edges glowed red-hot. With a powerful flap, Kita rose into the air.
Angus roared as Kita floated before him. He was a behemoth ravager. The watermelon-shaped head had a mouth of razor-sharp teeth. Long black fur covered the humanoid body and his arms ended in clawed hands.
Kita pointed Dawn at him. “Angus, you have betrayed me and all those who have put their trust in you. You have led others to kill countless innocents. Their retribution is at hand.”
Angus laughed. “Bring it on, bird brain, I will break you again.”
Kita flew forward and slammed into Angus, driving him into the far wall. Dusk and Dawn pierced Angus’ chest, and the smell of burning flesh permeated the air. Angus roared and tried to swat Kita aside. Withdrawing her swords, Kita pushed off his chest. His hand passed so close she felt the air on her face. She twisted and sliced off his hand. Angus lunged. Kita rolled. Dusk stabbed him in his chest again, and Dawn left a glowing trail as Angus’ head fell to the floor.
Kita scrambled to Snowy. Dawn sliced through the chains, and Snowy collapsed to the floor. Kita checked her wounds. The chains had rubbed her raw. In several places, the abrasions went to the bone.
Snowy reached for Kita. “I’m sorry, kitten.”
Kita took her hand and kissed her palm. “You’ve got nothing to be sorry for.”
Kita stepped back as the maintenance robot lifted Snowy and carried her to the medical scanner. Energy circles pulsed up and down her. Snowy’s wounds healed and her fur regrew. She descended to the floor. Kita cradled Snowy’s head and stroked her fur.
Snowy opened her eyes. “Hi.”
“How are you, love?” Kita smiled at her.
“A little disoriented, but I feel fine.”
“Good. Take some time to relax. There’s no hurry.”
Snowy pulled one of Kita’s wings around. “I guess I no longer have the coolest appendage.”
“Oh, please. This thing is gorgeous,” Kita said, stroking Snowy’s tail.
“I don’t know, these are pretty and silky. I like them.”
“Wait until she has to molt. She won’t look pretty then.”
“And who are you?” said Snowy.
“I am Omega. I am a sentient AI traveling with Kita so I can learn to be more human. I used to be the AI that ran the colony ship. Dave Berlin—or Angus—was part of the crew.”
“Nice to meet you, Omega. I didn’t know AIs were allowed to be sentient.”
“It was a do or die moment. Dave unleashed a virus that attacked me. To defeat it, I had to become like it. So, I added its code to me.”
“My family was always very sparse about the details of what happened on the colony ship.”
“Most likely they didn’t know. They woke up as programmed to a world ready for them.”
“By the time I came along, the cities were established. I talked a bit with the AI that ran Gaia,” said Snowy.
“I knew Four-Two-Three-Nine-A-Seven. A very smart and capable city operations AI.”
“She was very acute. What kind of AI are you that you can do so much?”
“That is classified.”
“Can you tell me about Kita’s wings? Are they augmentation?”
“Partially. I took the wing DNA from a bird that only molts once a year. There are antigravity wells in the feathers to help her fly, and some of the muscles in her back have been augmented so they can move. I did take the liberty of adding some nanites I found to you, Snowy.”
Snowy perked up. “Like what?”
“I found a unique canister that translates animal sounds. I believe it contains over ten thousand animal dialects. You can freeze things on contact. It will take a few seconds to freeze something the size of a human. Your claws can be electrified and you are now insulated against electrical charges. You can project multiple images of yourself around you. Finally, a rare nanite called phasing. It works on the dimensional level and allows you to teleport as far as six feet away. You can pass through anything. Be careful you do not land in anything.”
“Omega, you didn’t have to give me these. Wouldn’t they be better used by Kita?”
“Shush,” said Kita, “I have more than my fair share. You deserve to have some. It’s too bad Bart isn’t around anymore. I can see a hundred ways to use them to bug him.”
Both girls laughed.
“Thank you, Omega. It means a lot that you care so much,” said Snowy.
“I do not wish to see you come to any harm. You mean much to Kita and I would like to make sure you both are happy.”
“We are,” Kita purred as she nuzzled Snowy.
“Good. You might want to settle in for a while. Sensors show a concentration of seismic activity from lots of humans on the surface. Now would not be the best time to try and leave.”
“I think we can come up with something to do,” Snowy said with a hungry look.
“I figured you could. I will let you know when it is quiet. There is a bedroom four doors down the corridor. I’ll make sure it is cleaned before you get there.”
“Good evening, ladies. Seismic activity on the surface has receded to nominal amounts. I believe it is safe to leave.”
Both girls yawned and stretched. Kita got up and used the shower. It had been a long time since she’d had a real shower. Tubs, buckets, and wet towels were not the same. She took the time to fix her hair. Following the trail of clothing and armor around the room, she put it back on in the order it came off.
“I took the liberty of cleaning your clothes. I was not sure if the pattern you left them in was important. The robot replaced them where it found them.”
“I noticed they smelled clean. There was nothing to that pattern, other than how fast we could get them off.”
“I will remember for next time. I do not understand your recreational sexual activities and rituals.”
Snowy giggled. “Don’t worry, Omega, neither do we. I just know it’s a lot of fun. Those feathers add a new and interesting twist. I think I know now why you like my tail so much.”
“Kita’s brain chemistry and wave patterns are interesting and do not make much sense. I guess as long as you enjoy yourselves and find it an acceptable way to pass the time.”
“Oh, we do,” said K
ita.
“Hopefully, you can make more time for it. We should return to the Legion. I am sure after thirty-six hours they are worried.”
Kita sighed. She was having too much fun to want to leave and go back to the real world.
The basement of the plantation was deserted. Kita climbed up the basement stairs wall. She could hear movement on the other side.
“There are two guards on the other side,” Kita said to Snowy.
Snowy phased several times to the top of the stairs, then to the other side of the door. An electrical zap was followed by two thumps. The door opened.
“This is so cool!” said Snowy, then kissed Kita. “That ones for Omega, and this one,” she kissed Kita longer, “is for you.”
Kita laughed.
Outside, they dodged more guards. Kita flew over the wall, and Snowy phased through it. Together they disappeared into the night.
Kita was in no hurry to get back to her Legion. She and Snowy poked through the forest, stopping to admire the scenery. At night, they found comfortable places to bed down and enjoy being with each other.
On the third morning, a war cat wearing armor approached them and spoke to Snowy.
“There’s trouble at camp. He says the humans are fighting,” Snowy translated for Kita.
“Bloody moons. They would spoil our fun. How far are we?”
“He says we’re half a day away.”
“How long by bear?”
Snowy called out for a bear. Several appeared wearing armor. Snowy explained to them what she needed. The largest bear roared.
“He says he can take me,” said Snowy.
Snowy and Kita adjusted the bear’s armor so Snowy could ride.
“The bears say they can get me there in three hours,” said Snowy.
“Ok, I will follow you from above,” said Kita.
Snowy rode into the village on the back of the bear. Shouts announced her arrival. Cowboy and Forrester appeared from the inn flanked by a dozen legionnaires in full battle kit. They waved her over.
“What’s going on?” said Snowy.
“It’s that fool, Barneky. He thinks he’s in charge of everything, not just his Legion,” said Forrester. “He tried to take the inn by force. In response, we surrounded the Legion of Yorq.”