Once the boots of her flight suit were in place, a toe piece glided back, covering her toes and the front portion of her foot. Her calves touched the back pieces that Cyrus had actually molded to the back of her lower legs, prompting the greaves to enclose her shins. Both the front and back sections had open spaces to reduce weight and allow breathing. Kendrick lowered her to a sitting position in the skeleton, her thighs resting in the channels of the upper legs. Like her calves, her thighs were soon enclosed as the front portions glided into place. The upper and lower legs were connected by sleek mechanical joints, which had soft knee caps that lowered into place, locking to the inner joints.
Her back pressed into the back-plate, and her waist and floating ribs were encircled by the side and frontal portions of the exoskeleton. Her arms were placed into the outstretched arms of the skeleton, and the chest and shoulder pieces lowered, as her arms were enclosed by the skeleton’s arms. The chest piece was a small plate that rested against her upper chest, but her breast was covered only by her flight suit. This was not a suit of armor, though she imagined that with the flight suit, it would afford her some protection. She found herself wondering if her encounter with Velos would have turned out different.
The skeleton had sleek vambraces and open gloves that covered her hands. The wrists and each finger had its own powered joint, which would enable her to use both hands with augmented strength.
“It fits you well,” Cyrus noted.
“Indeed,” Lena remarked. “We duplicated her measurements perfectly.”
“Of course, we did,” Cyrus said with mock annoyance. “You are an Ai, Lena, and I’m, well, me, so …”
“So there’s no chance for failure,” Kendrick finished.
“Exactly,” Cyrus confirmed. “So without further-adieu … Fiona, once you step into the foot pads, the exoskeleton senses you and activates. As your limbs and torso come into contact with the surfaces of the skeleton, it attaches to you. Each piece continuously adjusts the tension as you move, so there is no need to make any periodic adjustments for fit or comfort. Now … stand.”
Fiona nodded and pressed her hands into the table. Without aid, her arms had no strength, but with Cyrus’ exoskeleton, they lifted her body from the table. Her useless legs were now lifting her body to a standing position and the system’s gyroscopic mechanisms were keeping her perfectly balanced. She felt as strong and agile as when she was on Mars.
“Woah!” She grinned as she felt the skeleton’s strength. “This is really amazing, Cyrus! Say what you will about it being old hat to you, but this is amazing.”
“I suspect that our Chiropteran friend has a combat exoskeleton, which would explain his insane strength,” Cyrus mused. “This is not a combat exoskeleton, but it should give you a fighting chance if you’re ever assaulted. Certainly, it makes you stronger and more agile than you were, even before your incapacitation.”
She nodded. “I feel like I’m twenty again!”
“Damn, Fiona,” Kendrick exclaimed. “Now I’ll have trouble keeping up with you!”
“I seriously doubt that,” Cyrus remarked. “I didn’t have the raw materials to make anything with that kind of power. She’s about as strong as an Escort-7.”
Fiona laughed. “I never was strong or athletic, Ken. Even in my youth, I was only ‘almost’ as strong as an Escort-7.”
“Now walk,” Cyrus instructed.
Fiona took her first step. She thought perhaps she would be shaky, but the exoskeleton enabled her to walk with confidence. She walked the length of the Med Bay and back again, then jumped up and down a couple of times. “Woot!” She giggled, unable to contain her joy. “Cyrus, come here.” She hugged the big merc, kissing his cheek. “Thank you! You too, Lena. You’ve given me back my life!”
“You’re welcome,” Cyrus replied. “I’m surprised, though; I thought you would have credited your deity with that.”
“He raised me from the dead,” Fiona explained. “But this? This was all you; you and Lena.”
Lena hugged her spontaneously, holding her tightly. “I am glad you came back to us, Fiona. More than you can know.”
Fiona enfolded the gynoid in a close hug and kissed her forehead. “I love you, Lena. Thank you … for everything. Without your efforts, I would not have had a body to come back to.”
Kendrick sat in his chair on the bridge, an hour before the rest of the bridge crew was scheduled to arrive, looking out at the majesty of space, admiring the grandeur of it all. The hymn, “How Great Thou Art,” came to mind as he contemplated the awesome wonder of the solar system; and the miracle of his bride. A few weeks of marriage had changed Kendrick, as much as Fiona’s rebirth had changed her. In a way, it was as though he too had been reborn. When Selene died mere weeks after their wedding, he had retreated into himself, walling off his emotions and entombing himself in the ship his wife had designed. Fiona had, step by loving step, undone his self-imposed emotional exile. She died, only to awaken and marry him. It was as though death was the beginning. Now that they were finally married, he sought each and every opportunity to be alone with her. In spite of being more than a decade older than him, the older doctor made him feel young once again. The sparkle of her eyes, the brightness of her smile; everything about her had awakened things in him that he had long thought dead. In fact, Kendrick felt more alive now that he had ever been.
He no longer castigated himself for betraying Selene’s memory by loving Fiona, something that he had done right up until he took his new bride into the marriage bed. In making love to Fiona, all doubts faded. Kendrick at last understood. When Selene was near death, he married her out of love, knowing that she would soon be gone. There was no life with her to look forward to and the only future plan they made was her funeral. He had long sought answers to how such a thing could happen, but God was silent. Why had Selene been taken? What was the purpose of her death? Now, those questions were answered.
Selene had been the one to teach him to truly love deeply; and to remain with a spouse as she deteriorated and finally died. She had been the only one who could teach him that lesson and he had been the only one who could have helped her to come out of her shell and experience love. Both of them had learned what love truly was; and it was a lesson for which he would be forever thankful to his first wife.
Fiona was the beneficiary of that lesson. The five years of relative seclusion and emotional distance from, well, everyone had made him open to the love of the older, plainer Fiona. After his relationship and brief marriage to Selene, his experience with women was no longer limited to high school sweethearts and groupies. He knew what real love was and how to return that love. It was Selene’s gift to him, a wedding gift to Kendrick and Fiona, one for which he would be forever grateful.
Kendrick heard the bridge doors open and caught the sweet scent of perfume. A moment later, he felt a pair of soft hands massaging his shoulders. He felt his wife’s warm breath on his neck, followed by soft kisses. He took hold of her right hand and drew her around to sit in his lap. Fiona kissed him deeply before coming to rest on his lap, her eyes closed as she savored the moment. It was a sight that he loved and he found himself keeping his eyes open as she kissed him so as to better take in her beauty.
“Good morning, my husband,” she finally said in a low, breathy voice.
He kissed her before replying. “Good morning, my bride. How is the exoskeleton working out?”
“Mmmm, very well.” Then, she winked. “It brought me to you. It also keeps me from getting tired out; and now that we’re married, even though I’m going to bed earlier, I seem to be getting less sleep …”
He kissed her again, pulling her close, savoring the feel of his bride in his arms, the scent of her perfume and the warmth of her soft skin as she rested her head on his shoulder, her forehead against his cheek.
“You can expect that trend to continue,” he said with a laugh. “I only hope I can offer you the kind of life that’ll make you happy. Believe me, I’l
l do the best that I can.”
She lifted her head and looked into his eyes. “Kendrick, you were in a position to offer me any life I could have wanted; then I went and screwed it up by stowing away on your ship and holding out on you. I should have told you the truth right away, but I was selfish and self-righteous. The position you’re in now is my fault, one hundred percent.” Then she added sternly, “Don’t ever forget that.” Before he could answer, she pressed her lips against his in a sensuous kiss. “Any life I have with you is a thousand times better than what I deserved and I will be at your side no matter where this all takes us. I am yours, my love.”
“You know …” He paused and kissed her. “I think you holding out was part of what made me fall in love with you. You made me mad as hell, but you stuck to your guns for something you believed in and I respected that. It don’t matter now anyway what was whose fault. We’re together now.”
“Till death do us part,” Fiona said with a smile.
“Yeah, let’s not hasten that,” he warned. “I been through ‘death do us part’ once already; twice if you count your run in with Velos. Not in any hurry to do it again.”
Fiona shuddered. “Believe me, neither am I.”
They spent the remainder of their time alone holding each other, staring out at the vast expanse of space. For at least the next ten months, the Selene would be their home. While it seemed immutably tranquil, they both knew that tranquility could be shattered at any moment. This moment was one that they could savor, a sublime break in the chaos that had consumed their lives since Fiona’s boarding at the O.S.P. over a year ago.
They barely noticed as the bridge crew began reporting to their posts. Mun and Keyes arrived first, followed by Lena, completing the bridge crew. Even they are a miracle, Kendrick thought. Ronan was right; the hand of God is truly at work; it just took Fiona to make me see it. In this moment, all was right with his world. The reactivating transponder was the only thing bothering him.
“Captain,” Keyes said, bringing him from his silent musings. “Cyrus and I have double and triple checked; there’s no sign of any stowaways. Heather’s turned off the transponder, but it may be too late. It’s been going long enough that an ambush may already be laid for us.”
That was consistent with what had been happening to them. But why let their pursuers call the shots and set the pace? It was time to take control of the fight. It was time to be proactive.
“So, let’s stop reacting and take matters into our own hands for a change.” He rang engineering. “Heather, divert all available power to the sensor array.”
“Mmm, I love it when you take charge,” Fiona purred. Apparently, she knew where this was going, as she floated from Kendrick’s lap to the vacant science officer’s chair and proceeded to buckle herself in.
“Diverted, sir,” announced the engineer.
“Thanks,” he said. “Keyes, look for any other transponder signals, energy signatures and scan for any stray communications.”
Keyes did as he had asked, and within a few moments, she responded. “Sir, the U.S.S. Liberty is on an intercept course with us; which makes no sense; she has no chance of capturing us. The A.M.S. Icarus is also in pursuit.”
Kendrick nodded, then keyed up the mic again. “Heather, prepare for maximum acceleration.” He then turned to the gynoid helmsman. “Lena, initiate a maximum burn and hold it until I tell you to cut.”
“Yes, sir,” Lena replied.
Moments later, the ship surged ahead as her engines fired, leaving their pursuers even further behind. He had Lena hold the burn for a full five minutes before instructing her to back off.
“The Liberty and the Icarus are out of sensor range, Captain,” Keyes announced.
“Good work, Amanda, Lena. That should more than buy us the time we need.”
Lena turned to face him. “You seem much happier now, Captain. Taking your bride has made a regular improvement to your emotional state.”
“Taking my bride,” he mused. “I’m not sure if I took her, or she took me, but regardless, we’d all be dead if it weren’t for you.”
Lena smiled. “It is my privilege, Captain.”
“I’m ready to take my bride anytime you’re willing to officiate, Captain,” Amanda reminded him. She held up a hand before he could respond, saying, “I know it’s not legally binding, but you leave that part to me.”
Mun raised an eyebrow “You have some connections that’ll validate it?”
“Yeah,” Keyes boasted. “Any internet connection. And Captain, if you two are ever up for a couples’ night …”
“I’d like that,” Fiona said. “It would be a new experience for me.”
“Yeah, me too,” Mun said, then added self-consciously, “Well, at least since being aboard the Selene. I’ve had girlfriends before. I thought things might pan out with Heather, but the chemistry just isn’t romantic.”
“Don’t sweat it, Kang,” Kendrick said. “You’ll find your someone soon enough. Even if it ain’t Heather, she’s a great friend to have.”
Mun grinned and added, “Say, you could have rescued one of those other Escort-7s from Venus for me. I’d have treated her like a lady, I swear.”
Lena turned to him and said, “We did rescue one; me.”
Kang turned red and looked down self-consciously. “I didn’t mean …”
“You need not worry, Kang,” Lena assured with a smile. “You always treat me like a lady.”
Mun smiled at Lena’s words, but the entire exchange got Amanda thinking. She had not given it any thought at the time, having just gotten Terri back, almost losing Fiona and barely escaping Mars alive, but the mention of Venus reminded her that at the meeting where they had decided on going to Earth, Royce had mentioned spending a day on Venus.
“Captain, what were you doing on Venus?”
Mun looked nervous, looking at Kendrick with a deer in the headlights look, but Kendrick was cool as a cucumber.
“Lena had a different platform,” Kendrick explained without any waver of his calm. “She was a G.A.I.S.F. Don’t remember what it stood for; generic assassin infiltration something female.”
“General Application Infiltration Synthetic Female,” Lena clarified.
“Never was any good with acronyms,” the captain confessed. “Anyway, Velos shot her on Atlas with some kind of electro static nano-flake rounds. She took a couple to the spine and she was paralyzed. Her body began to deteriorate and we were out of options. We went to Venus in hopes of getting her fixed.”
That explained a lot. Ronan mentioned facing Velos before; but there had to be more to it than what Kendrick had just said. Mun was too anxious for it to have been just that and there were very few scenarios that would end in a person escaping the facility on a shuttle.
“So … what happened?”
Kendrick laughed mirthlessly. “Everything went wrong. Doctor Vignare agreed to see us, but then he tried to kill Lena. Shot her in the head and in the gut, rupturing her power cells. We barely escaped with our lives. Lena migrated her consciousness back to the ship, then transmitted it into one of the inactivated Escort-7s that was in the lab.” He paused, pulled out his flask and took a swig of his whiskey. “I won’t lie to you; when he shot Lena, I put a hole in his chest. We shot our way out through two V.I.D.A. gynoids; one of which put Kang into the coma he was in when you came aboard and shot and beat the tar out of me. Fiona, Lena and I shot our way out through a raft of security guards, hauling Kang back to the ship. Then we punched it and got the hell out.”
Mun’s mouth had dropped open, the gunner seemingly shocked that Kendrick had been so open with Amanda about a shootout at a secret NessCorp facility and Kendrick’s admission to killing Vignare. Keyes had to laugh; Mun need not have been nervous.
“Too bad the Alliance burned their bridges with me,” she remarked. “We’ve been trying to confirm the existence and nature of that place for years. Based on what you just told me, Captain, they were producing assassin
androids. Illegally, too, so you did us a huge favor.”
“Booyah!” Mun exclaimed. “Maybe Lorgens’ dead too, after the Orion and all.”
“I hate that bastard,” she spat. “Captain, if he survived and if we catch him, I will need a room, a table, a lot of rope and some of that unlimited water supply this ship has.”
Kendrick nodded. “Waterboarding?”
“To start,” she replied.
“I don’t ever see us catching a U.S. Starfleet captain with the resources of the United States behind him,” Kendrick noted. “But if that unlikely scenario should ever come to pass, he’s all yours.”
“You don’t want to kick his ass first?” Mun asked, surprised.
“I’m with the woman I love,” the captain explained, smiling infectiously. “Can’t ask for more than that. I never wanted vengeance against him anyhow. All I wanted was a life; with her.” He reached over and touched the now beaming Fiona’s arm.
No desire for vengeance. Amanda liked that in him. If only the Alliance had not turned out to be something repugnant. She would have pulled out all the stops to bring Royce and the Selene’s crew into the fold.
The voice shook Kendrick from his sleep. “Captain, there is a security breach.” It was Selene’s Ai and her imperative was voiced with great urgency. He shook the sleep from his eyes and looked at the clock; it was three in the morning. Fiona was still entangled in his arms, apparently oblivious to the Ai’s summons.
“I’m up, Selene,” he groaned. “What’s going on?”
“Security and monitoring systems in Pod Alpha, the Nexus and engineering have been deactivated. Lena is in in distress.”
“Lena?” This got his attention, bringing him fully awake.
“Lena’s diagnostics indicate that she has been disabled. She is alone in her cabin.”
“On my way.”
As he disentangled himself from his wife’s arms, she finally stirred. “Ken …” her voice was groggy. “What’s going on?”
No Safe Harbor: The Silver Liner Page 17