by E. R. Torre
As one, the ARWs’ heads turned and faced the building at the end of the street.
Inquisitor Damien looked past them and followed their gaze.
Before that building stood a woman. She carried a man in her arms and walked toward the ARWs. Behind her and following was a driverless hovercycle.
The woman was young, no more than twenty eight years of age. Dust covered her clothing and body. Her black, shoulder length hair blew in the breeze. When she was fifty feet from the group, she stopped. Her hovercycle did the same.
Despite her human appearance, the fact that she carried a man without any effort suggested she too was an ARW. Unlike the others, she wore a mask of flesh. It was incredibly lifelike.
“You wanted us,” the woman said. “Here we are.”
“Identify yourself,” Unit 1 said.
“My name is Laverna DeCastillo.”
“Incorrect,” Unit 1 said. “That name belonged to a Phaecian soldier on Gehinnom.”
“I was on Gehinnom.”
Unit 1 was silent several seconds before saying:
“You are not Laverna DeCastillo. You are one of us. The one tasked to kill her. The one we lost. Unit 6.”
The woman who called herself Laverna DeCastillo did not react to this.
“Unit 6 malfunctioned following taking damage,” Unit 1 continued. “You were found in the battlefield protecting enemy combatants, including the soldier named Laverna DeCastillo. You were taken in for assessment. We returned to duty and were informed you were irreparable. You were sent to be disassembled. You were not.”
Unit 1 cocked its head.
“Did you bring us here, Unit 6?”
“No.”
“The one in your arms?”
“He did.”
“Who do you carry?”
“He goes by many names. At one time you knew him as Catherine Vulcan. Saint Vulcan.”
“What?” Inquisitor Damien exclaimed.
He quickly realized he wasn’t the only one having a strong reaction to this revelation. Even more weapons emerged from the ARW bodies. Each and every one of them pointed at the woman and the man she carried. Energy crackled. Enough energy to level the Megacity.
Unit 1’s eyes glowed bright.
“You carry the Primary Unit?” it said.
“Primary?”
“You do not know?”
“I have much to sort through,” Laverna said.
“Put the Primary on the hovercycle and step away,” Unit 1 said. “Do this now.”
Laverna laid Elias on the hovercycle’s seat.
“Now step away from the vehicle,” Unit 1 said. “Walk forward ten feet. No more.”
Laverna did as told and moved exactly that distance.
“Stay very still, Unit 6,” Unit 1 said before addressing another of the ARWs. “Unit 8, approach.”
The identified ARW retracted its electrified weapons and stepped forward. For a moment an electronic sheen covered its body before disappearing. Laverna sensed Unit 8 had disconnected itself from the other ARWs.
Unit 1 addressed Laverna. It said:
“Do the same, Unit 6.”
“Do?”
“Sever your links,” Unit 1 said. “All of them.”
Laverna did not understand. She was about to say so when the information came to her.
She had it all along.
Laverna closed her eyes and the same electronic sheen momentarily covered her body before it too disappeared. Laverna no longer felt connected, even minimally, with the other ARWs or the world around her. Her essence was sealed within her body’s space. There would be no way she could interfere with anything outside it, including the other ARWs.
Unit 8 approached Laverna and raised its hand.
“Remain still,” it said.
Unit 8 laid its hand on Laverna’s forehead and, in that instant, she felt the creature penetrate her. Nano-probes worked their way from it and past her artificial skin. They merged with the nano-probes that made up her body.
She and the Unit 8 machine, Laverna realized, would interact with each other and no one else. By doing so, Unit 1 could assess Laverna’s being while protecting the remaining ARWs from a virus or any hidden mechanisms designed to infect and weaken them. If any such defensive mechanism existed, it would be transferred only to Unit 8 and, upon the realization it was there, the other ARWs could rid themselves of Laverna without hesitation.
For a moment, Laverna feared Elias had inserted something into her with the idea of transferring it to the other creatures. Had he done so, his plan was anticipated by Unit 1.
Had he done so, Laverna was in mortal danger.
Yet she had no choice but to submit to the creature before her.
She felt Unit 8’s hands upon her forehead and then felt five pinpricks enter her skull.
The creature was doing the same to her that she did to the ARW in the foundry.
Laverna felt Unit 8’s tendrils move from her head down through her body. They unlocked information and assessed her threat level.
As the probing continued, Laverna looked away and found herself staring at Inquisitor Damien. He stood away from the other ARWs and near the bloody and headless corpse of another. For a moment she feared the body belonged to the Inquisitor’s female companion but realized it was that of another man.
“I saw you, Inquisitor,” Laverna said.
“Me?” Inquisitor Damien replied.
“Yes. You were with your companion. Lieutenant Chandler. You’re a good man, Inquisitor. You and your crew shouldn’t be here. They, you, shouldn’t be a part of this.”
“Where did you see me?” Inquisitor Damien asked.
“In a vision,” Laverna said. “A memory dream. Another mystery.”
“No mystery,” Unit 1 said. “You were a part of us, Unit 6. At a molecular level you remained connected with us even if not fully.”
“My visions came through you?”
The glow in Unit 1’s eyes brightened.
“Do not speak any more, Unit 6.”
Laverna felt Unit 8 tighten its grip on her. Its tendrils felt as if they were drilling through bone.
Laverna’s mouth opened and she tried to scream. She couldn’t. Unit 8 rooted through her and violated her most intimate thoughts. She could not fight this mental rape. She could do nothing.
Less than nothing.
The pain grew until it was more than Laverna could bear. It sliced her body and soul yet continued mercilessly as the creature dug deeper and deeper.
Still Unit 8 continued its assault, trampling through her mind and body and reveling in uncovering her most private thoughts and feelings.
Just when Laverna felt she could no longer take it, the creature abruptly released her.
The disconnect was just as harsh as the creature’s violation and Laverna yelled out in agony before falling to her knees.
For several seconds Unit 8 was still. It processed the information it stole and, finally, faced Unit 1.
“There is no threat hidden within Unit 6’s body,” it said.
Unit 1 accepted the information.
“Proceed with the Primary,” it ordered.
67
Unit 8’s attention shifted to Elias’ body.
It cautiously approached Laverna’s hovercycle and extended its arm. Powerful electric arcs sprung from that arm and, after taking another step, the full charge slammed into Elias’ body. The hovercycle’s power cell blew out of its casing and fell, smoking, to the ground.
Elias didn’t move.
The electric charge tore through his clothing and burned his artificial skin yet he remained completely still.
The attack lasted a full minute.
Two.
The flesh from his chest, arms, and face caught fire. Parts of Elias’ artificial skin blackened and burned away. Revealed beneath it was a dark Sentinel body.
Laverna thought his entire flesh disguise would be roasted away but Unit 8 finally lowered its arm.
&n
bsp; “Proceed,” Unit 1 said.
Unit 8 stepped directly before Elias while ignoring the smoke from the damaged hovercycle power cell and charred flesh. It again raised its arm and, after hesitating a moment, placed its hand over Elias’ face.
Laverna hoped Elias would spring to life and take on these foul creatures. She prayed this was part of his plan and would now go on the offensive.
Nothing happened. He did not move.
Elias did not move as Unit 8 pressed its hand against his face. He didn’t move as more crackles of electricity emerged from under the creature’s fingertips. Unit 8 probed Elias as it did Laverna. This exploration, however, was much rougher.
Unit 8’s hand pressed down hard until a metallic grinding noise echoed through the street. Talons shot into Elias’ body. The noise they produced was the harrowing screech of metal scrapping against metal.
While the creature did its work, Inquisitor Damien’s attention alternated between Unit 1 and Laverna. He was transfixed by the sight of her and Laverna noticed his stare.
“Sorry,” Inquisitor Damien said, not quite certain what to say to this creature. “I… I can’t believe how…”
Inquisitor Damien cleared his throat and said:
“What difference is there between humans and ARWs when you can look and act so much like us?”
“You already suspected this was possible,” Unit 1 said.
“I found pieces of flesh on planets your group visited,” Inquisitor Damien admitted. “They were in a state of decay and didn’t last more than a few days before dissolving. Even the full flesh suit you left on Davilia was in the process of rotting away.”
“Did you ever wonder why we left those things behind, Inquisitor Damien?” Unit 1 said.
“You left them?” Inquisitor Damien said. “You wanted me to find them?”
“We wanted you to follow us, Inquisitor.”
“Why?”
“What reason does the hunter lay bait?”
Inquisitor Damien’s face went pale.
“To… to trap their prey.”
“The Salvo was our prey,” Unit 1 said.
Inquisitor Damien bared his teeth. He could barely keep his anger in check.
“By the Gods,” he said.
“It was a matter of time before we’d be far enough, and isolated enough, from the Empire to take over your ship. The mission to Arcadia presented the perfect opportunity to do just that.”
“What do you want with my ship?”
“Come now, Inquisitor. What do you think we could accomplish with one of the Empire’s most powerful battleships at our command? Perhaps a better question is: What can’t we do?”
Unit 1’s eyes brightened.
“Once we control the Salvo and return to Phaecian space and Davilia, it is our intention to close off that planet’s Displacer. Then we begin extraction of all the planet’s ores.”
“The Davilians will fight you,” Inquisitor Damien said. “Inquisitor Torano is on his way there. He –the Empire herself– will fight you!”
“They will certainly try. Inquisitor Torano presents a real threat but we will deal with him when we return to Davilia. We have but to clear the area and shut down the Davilian Displacer. Once this is done, it will take one hundred and sixty two years for any Empire ships to make it through normal space and to that planet. We’ll have all the time we need to mine Davilia and use her raw material to build our own fleet of ships.”
“It will take years to build up a fleet capable of taking on Phaecia,” Inquisitor Damien said.
“We require neither food, air, water, nor rest,” Unit 1 said. “We’ll have factories pumping out new battleships very quickly. In no time we’ll have a force capable of taking on all of Phaecia.”
“What… what about the Davilians?”
“Like you and the crew of the Salvo, they too are expendable.”
Unit 8 finished its examination. Its tendrils spooled back into its body and the creature released Elias. It walked past Laverna and stood before Unit 1.
“This body is the Primary’s,” Unit 8 said. “It is from the time before the Exodus.”
“Status?”
“There is technology within it as we have never seen. Far beyond anything either Empire has to offer. The weapon schematics alone will make us invincible.”
“Can the Primary recover?” Unit 1 asked.
“No. The Primary Unit is dead.”
68
Unit 1 addressed Laverna DeCastillo.
“Did the Primary intend to destroy us?”
“It was one option,” Laverna admitted. “But I sensed… I sensed at one time he wanted to connect with your group.”
“Really?” Unit 1 said. There was heavy sarcasm in its reply. “How long have you known the Primary? Hours at most?”
Laverna didn’t say.
“And in that time, what did he tell you of the war waged between us? What did he tell you of his own ruthlessness?”
“He told me much,” Laverna said. “He told me about Pomos.”
“It was one battle of many,” Unit 1 said. “Our purpose in infecting that planet was to destroy the Primary. The mission failed.”
“Billions of people were killed,” Inquisitor Damien said.
“Irrelevant. For there to be victory in war, one side has to be destroyed. The Primary survived and therefore the war did not end. Annihilation is victory. This is logic.”
“No,” Inquisitor Damien said. “It’s madness.”
“I tire of you, Inquisitor,” Unit 1 said. “It is time you were silent.”
The creature’s eyes flashed and the ARW closest to Inquisitor Damien grabbed him by the throat. With a speed Laverna didn’t know she had, she rushed past everyone and grabbed that ARWs’ hands. Laverna’s grip was solid steel and the creature was unable to rip Inquisitor Damien’s tongue out.
“Why do you still fight us, Unit 6?” Unit 1 said.
“Because I’m not one of you.”
“But you are. You always were.”
Laverna ignored Unit 1’s comments and said:
“You can’t kill any more humans from the Salvo. Not until Inquisitor Damien’s destruct mechanism is deactivated. You know this will take at least a month to do, if not longer.”
“How did you know this, Unit 6?”
“Perhaps my visions are more vivid than yours,” Laverna said. “As is my understanding of humans.”
“Go on, Unit 6. Say what is on your mind.”
“The humans know the only thing keeping them alive is that destruct mechanism,” Laverna said. “They will not sit back calmly and wait while you and your soldiers work to deactivate it. They will fight you and they will do whatever they can—”
“They will not win.”
“—to delay your actions. You know Elias –the Primary– buried something under the sands of Arcadia. If I can sense it, so too can you. I don’t know what it is and you don’t either but we can guess. It’s Elias’ failsafe. Should he die, what he buried under these sands was meant to finish what he could not. The only reason this failsafe has not activated is the very same reason Elias didn’t kill you the moment you arrived through Arcadia’s Displacer. He doesn’t want the humans hurt and the machine he left behind follows his wishes. The question is, for how much longer?”
Unit 1 considered the words but said nothing.
“You will spent at least one month working on the Salvo’s self-destruct mechanism while the humans do everything they can to interfere with you. They’ll be bold with their actions. They know that one more fatality will end you, so you’ll have to be very cautious with them. One month working on the destruct mechanism could easily become two. Even three. Will the machine below the sands remain passive all that time, or will it act? Each second’s delay might prove to be a second too many.”
“What do you propose, Unit 6?” Unit 1 said.
“An exchange,” Laverna said. “Allow Inquisitor Damien and his crew safe passage to A
rcadia along with all the nourishment and survival gear they can pack. The Salvo will be yours and you and your soldiers will have the freedom to work unhindered on deactivating the destruct mechanism and leaving this place.”
“You expect me to give this homicidal machine the Salvo in exchange for the privilege of being stranded on this planet?” Inquisitor Damien said.
“If the machine is what we think it is and it adheres to Elias’ desire for no human to be hurt, your crew will be very safe planet-side,” Laverna said.
“I can’t give up my ship,” Inquisitor Damien said.
“Inquisitor Damien, you have two choices. Either you keep your people on the Salvo and they slow the ARWs until their task is done then face certain annihilation, or you give up your ship and accept being stranded but alive on Arcadia.”
Inquisitor Damien drew a sharp breath and shook his head. Laverna approached him. She said:
“I had another vision not so very long ago. Someone told his people he’d rather take freedom and survival with the chance, slight though it may be, to see home space again rather than live their final days imprisoned or executed. The choice, as always, is yours Inquisitor.”
Unit 1 looked at Inquisitor Damien and then at Laverna.
“Your offer is acceptable,” Unit 1 said. “Inquisitor Damien, your crew may leave the Salvo. They may take whatever necessities they can carry but no energy weapons. You will face a difficult life but you will live.”
Inquisitor Damien shook his head. He was silent for several seconds before motioning to his communicator.
“May I?” he said.
“Go ahead,” Unit 1 replied.
Inquisitor Damien activated the device.
“This is Inquisitor Damien calling the Salvo. Do you hear me?”
“This is Lieutenant Chandler,” came his reply. “We hear you, Inquisitor.”
“Good. Listen carefully: The crew is to stock up on all perishables, medicines, and survival gear and board the shuttles. You are to evacuate, I repeat, evacuate the Salvo and come down to Arcadia. You are to leave all weapons behind. Do you understand?”
“Sir, I—”
“Do you understand my orders, Lieutenant?”
There was a long pause.
“Yes sir.”