"They're being taken to an airlock, and will be flushed into space."
Sabre dropped the glass and sprinted for the door. As he reached it, a flash of cold blue light revealed a network of glimmering lines, and he was flung back with a crackling hiss. Rolling to his feet, he scowled at the force field that barred his way, then swung to face the woman.
"What would it take to stop it? My life?"
"Your life is already forfeit, but you might gain the upper hand if you kill me."
"Why?" He shook his head in confusion.
"It's a test."
"And I have to kill you to pass?"
"Yes."
He approached her with long strides. "Who are you?"
"Does it matter?"
"Why does the Overlord want me to kill you?"
She frowned. "So many questions. Soon it will be too late to save your friends."
"You're an innocent."
"So is Tassin. Would you not kill one innocent to save another, especially one you care about?"
Sabre stepped closer, and she took a pace back, a flicker of doubt and trepidation crossing her face. He clasped her shoulders and his fingers brushed her throat, where a rapid pulse beat.
She nodded, as if to encourage him. "Save her. Kill me."
His hands closed around her throat, and her eyes widened as she gazed deep into his.
"So few emotions. You have far less than a normal man. You have much pain, deep-seated trauma and scarring, but only a little bitterness and pent-up rage. You have none of the ugly emotions like hatred or vengefulness, malevolence or malice. And there, deep down, so well hidden behind walls of conditioning, is your love for Tassin. It is strong."
"You can read my mind?"
"No. I'm an empath. Do it. Kill me."
With a low growl, Sabre shoved her away, sending her staggering back. He swung and sprinted across the room again, this time straight for the wall. Tearing away the silk to reveal the black velvet panelling, he punched the wall with a terrific bang. The panels smashed and fell away, exposing a metal bulkhead with a deep dent in it. Blood oozed from his knuckles as he smashed his fist into the metal again, deepening the dent. His third strike tore through the two-centimetre thick wall, and the sharp edges sliced into his hand when he yanked it free and punched the wall again.
"Stop," the woman said.
He hit the wall once more, enlarging the hole.
"Sabre, stop. Your friends are in no danger."
Sabre glanced at her, stepped back and kicked the hole, the resulting bang making his ears ring. The metal tore, and he gripped the edge and yanked, almost pulling himself into sharp rim as his feet skidded on the smooth floor. His action tore a hole large enough to crawl through, and he started to do just that, then paused as her words sank in.
Turning to her, he frowned. "Show them to me."
She gestured, and another holo-image appeared. Tassin reclined on one of the chairs in their quarters, talking to Kole and Tarl, who sat opposite.
"This one is real," she assured him.
"You tricked me. Why?"
"As I said, it was a test."
"To force me to kill you."
She nodded. "To see if you would."
"And I failed."
"No, you passed. If you had tried to kill me, you would have been prevented, and then condemned." She smiled, dimples appearing in her cheeks. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Sheriana Travarin, but you may call me Overlord Ravian."
Sabre stepped back, his eyes raking her. "You put yourself in danger to test me?"
"Did I?"
"You had no way of knowing what I would do."
She shook her head. "I was never in any danger. While you were unconscious, my engineers made me this." She drew a hand from the folds of her gown and showed him the tiny black box in it.
He frowned at it. "An override. How could you have found my frequency and codes?"
"I used the enforcers' database. They know your serial number, and Myon Two supplied the rest."
"An override is keyed to a specific brow band. It cannot be duplicated, or the enforcers would have done so already, to capture me."
"Normally, yes, but I have many resources, and a good deal of knowledge even Myon Two does not possess."
He hesitated, considering her. "Could you deactivate the control unit?"
"No, that is beyond even my powers. My engineers tell me it is impossible. There's just too much hard wiring involved."
"So what is your judgement, Overlord?"
"You have shown yourself to be a gentle and honourable man, but I have not yet reached my final judgement." She considered the hole in the wall. "Your abilities are impressive. I did not think a man would be capable of punching a hole through two centimetres of duronium."
Sabre glanced at the hole, then down at his hand, which dripped blood from split knuckles and deep gashes where the sharp edges had sliced into it. "I'm not a man."
"Ah, but you are a man, and so much more. You are a man with so many advantages now. One who has been combined with machine to the extent of being almost invincible. Only this can defeat you easily." She held up the override. "When I planned this meeting, I considered placing snipers around the room with poisoned darts, but your scanners would have detected them, and even trixophan, the most deadly poison available, will take several hours to kill you. I thought about using a personal force shield, but the cyber is capable of interfacing with other systems and deactivating them. You could have deactivated the force field on the door, but it would have taken too long, and you thought you had mere minutes to save your friends. Had you decided to kill me, however, I have no doubt you would have overcome all my defences. I came to the conclusion that the override was the only way to stop you. I could not even lie to you, so I had to use the hologram and avoid any direct duplicity. I learnt a great deal about cybers. Allow me to tend to your wounds while you tell me about your youth. I want to know all you have suffered. Sit."
Sabre went over to the chairs and sank down on one, surprised when Ravian took a box from a shelf in the refreshment counter and sat beside him. She took his hand and wiped off the blood with a sterile swab.
"Tell me everything."
Sabre left nothing out this time, as he had done when he had told Tassin, who would not have understood the technical parts. Ravian ministered to his wounds, her touch so light he felt almost no pain. He ended the tale with the details of the electronic shock training he had received to speed up his reactions, his voice becoming husky with the emotional stress of recalling the agony he had suffered, even though he had been the best of his class and therefore received the least shocks. When he glanced at Ravian, she gazed at him with wide eyes that glimmered with tears, his hand clasped in hers. Her extreme youth struck him as incongruous, for she could not have been more than twenty-five years old. She looked down at his hand, stroking it.
"What was done to you is shameful. I was unaware of the extent of the torture to which cybers are subjected, as are the rest of the Overlords. It is unacceptable."
"Then you'll stop it?"
She tilted her head, studying him. "After meeting you, I think I shall. I expected you to be hard and cold, a man of steel inside and out, yet I find you to be warm and gentle. I understand why Tassin cares about you so much. You are a warrior with the soul of a poet, and I have shared your pain."
He glanced down at the hand she held. "You have to touch me to read me, don't you?"
"Yes."
"Are all Overlords empaths?"
"Yes. It ensures that we're always fair and just, but also compassionate. An empath is incapable of inflicting unnecessary pain on others, even if we don't share it." Ravian turned her head and said, "Set course for Myon Two."
"You're going to stop them from making more cybers?"
She lowered her gaze. "No. I cannot do that without causing suffering to all those who rely on that unwholesome trade. What I will do is order them to ensure that the hosts do
not suffer."
Sabre glared across the room. "Is your judgement finished now?"
"You're angry."
"You could stop it altogether. You care more about those butchering bastards than the helpless children they torture."
"No, I don't. Unfortunately, those butchering bastards have families and children of their own. Millions of people make their livelihood from the cyber trade, directly and indirectly. The sudden collapse of the trade would cause starvation and poverty on two planets. The unlimited power of an Overlord must never be used to do such harm, and, even though we strive to be fair, many hate us. I hope you don't hate me for not stopping it."
He frowned. "No. But you could order them to phase out human hosts, and make robots instead."
"You know full well that a robot could never match a cyber."
"If there were no cybers, robots would suffice, if Myon Two had the motivation to build better ones."
"They have tried, but it's simply not possible. I'm sorry."
Sabre nodded, and she released his hand, rose and crossed the room to put away the medical kit, returning with a glass of the green beverage and a bowl of the nuts he had sampled earlier. She handed him the glass and placed the bowl on the table before him.
He glanced at her. "What more is there about me to judge?"
"I have concerns. Your mental state is lamentable. Your self-esteem is non-existent; you're depressed, bitter and suicidal."
"What does that have to do with anything?"
"If I'm going to save you from the enforcers, I want to know that you're not going to throw it all away in a fit of bitterness."
He sipped the drink. "If I make it back to Omega Five, I'll be all right."
"What will you do there?"
"Live in peace, hopefully."
"Become a farmer? Raise meat animals and grow vegetables?"
"Or be a woodcutter, perhaps a carpenter. Who knows?"
She shook her head. "That's a waste. You're capable of so much more. You could do so much good."
"What are you suggesting?"
"Work for me. You could spend most of your time on Omega Five, but sometimes I would have missions for you. Spying, mostly. I hear much of what goes on in the universe, but a lot escapes me. Subtle plots are hatched that cause a lot of suffering, and all too often the Overlords can only clean up the mess. I hear rumours, but without proof or intelligence, I can do nothing. I have spies, of course, but none with your capabilities. Many die. You would be very useful to me."
He considered. "Is this a condition?"
"No, it's a job offer. It would afford you some adventure and excitement, as well as the satisfaction of doing good."
"What has this to do with your judgement?"
"Nothing. I have decided to spare you and your friends. I shall rescind Tarl's death sentence and pardon Kole and Tassin. If you choose not to accept my offer, I shall release you, and you'll be on your own. If you accept it, you'll become my agent, and, as such, you'll have my protection. The enforcers will not be able to touch you."
Sabre stared at his drink for several moments, aware that Ravian watched him. Her offer surprised him, and the prospect of having the protection of an Overlord filled him with a strange warmth he was unable to identify. "Would I have to pretend to be a cyber?"
"No."
"But..." He raised a hand and fingered the brow band. "What about this?"
"You'll surprise a good many people, but eventually you'll become known as my agent, and people will know you for what you truly are. When you go on missions, you'll have to be disguised, of course."
He turned to face her. "What about Tassin? Can you protect her as well?"
"Of course."
"Will you?"
"If you want."
"I do."
"Very well. If you agree to work for me, I will protect her."
He nodded. "Then I accept."
"Good." She smiled. "You will tell no one of my true identity. You may return to your quarters for an hour. New clothes will be sent to you, and then you'll be summoned. Be ready."
Sabre put down his drink and stood up, and Ravian rose with a smile. She placed a hand on his cheek. "I think we will become good friends, Sabre. I'm glad you sent that distress message."
"So am I."
Ravian nodded and lowered her hand, glancing down at the override she held, which was half the size of a standard model. Sabre wondered what she was going to do with it. She looked up at him again and smiled, then held out the instrument that could render him unconscious in an instant by sending a powerful stun pulse into his brain from a special node on one of the implants. She took hold of his hand and placed the override in it.
"Do with it as you wish. Its purpose has been served."
"You trust me?"
"Of course. I have shared your feelings. The only time you would even consider hurting me is if I was to harm Tassin myself, and even then you would do as little harm as you could."
Sabre nodded, frowning at the instrument, then closed his hand with a brittle crunch and dropped the bits into an empty bowl on the table. Ravian inclined her head and stepped aside.
A crewman waited outside, but he merely turned and led the way back to the rooms where the others waited.
Chapter Four
Tassin, Tarl and Kole sat on the sofas in the lounge area, and looked up when Sabre entered. Tassin jumped up with a glad cry and approached him. Kole and Tarl rose too, studying him. Her welcoming smile faded when she noticed the bandage on his hand.
"What happened? How did you get hurt?" Her brows drew together. "Did he torture you?"
"Who?"
"Overlord Ravian, of course."
Sabre hid his surprise. "No. You're all free. Tarl's death sentence is rescinded; you and Kole are pardoned."
"That's wonderful! What happened to your hand?"
Tarl came over to inspect Sabre's hand. "Somebody did a good job of bandaging it."
Sabre tugged it free. "It's fine."
"How did you hurt it?" Tassin demanded again.
"I punched through a wall, okay? It doesn't matter."
"Why did you do that?"
"I'm not allowed to tell you."
Tarl said, "Unless my eyes deceive me, these walls are duronium, probably a centimetre thick."
"Two centimetres; that’s why I hurt my hand."
"Right."
Tassin took Sabre's uninjured hand and tugged him over to the chairs. "Tell us what you can."
"I passed the test, and Overlord Ravian has given me a job."
Her brows shot up. "A job? Doing what?"
"As his agent, and spy."
"Was it a condition?"
"No."
"And you accepted it?"
He nodded, sinking into a chair. "I now have his protection. Myon Two can't touch me."
"That's wonderful," Tassin murmured, looking uncertain. "But doesn't it mean you'll be travelling all over the universe?"
"Sometimes. The rest of the time I'll be on Omega Five."
"Oh. Good." She still looked unhappy. "Why did you accept it? I thought you wanted to be left in peace."
He shrugged. "It seemed like a good idea at the time. Overlord Ravian agreed to protect you as well."
"You did it to protect me?" Her eyes flitted over his face, and he looked away. "You didn't have to do that. We would have managed. We don't need his protection."
"Yes we do. Myon Two knows our ship and where we're going now. What chance do you think we'd have of reaching Omega Five?"
"We could have left the ship and bought passage; used disguises."
"We can't buy passage to Omega Five, and if we'd bought another ship the enforcers would have been waiting for us. We'd never have made it."
Tarl nodded. "He's right. Now that they know our destination, we'd never have got past them."
"He blackmailed you," she said to Sabre.
"No, he gave me a choice,” he replied. “He would still have let u
s go if I hadn't agreed."
"Knowing full well that you knew we'd never make it home on our own. What choice is that? If he'd really wanted to help, he could have ordered the enforcers to leave you alone, but he didn't offer to do that, did he? Not unless you worked for him."
Sabre rubbed his brow. "Why should he?"
"Because he can! He must know now that what was done to you was wrong, and you deserve his help without conditions attached to it."
"Everyone who's helped me wanted something in return. Tarl wanted to assuage his guilt and examine me, Kole wanted to impress you, and you..."
Tarl snorted, Kole shook his head, and Tassin scowled. "Yes? What did I want?"
"Me."
She opened her mouth, probably to argue, then closed it, clearly stunned. Tarl grimaced, and Kole, who leant against the back of a chair opposite, shook his head again. "That's a bloody cold way of looking at it."
"It's the only way I know."
"Then you should learn a different way, a human way, instead of analysing it like a damned machine."
“But I am part machine, and this is how I think."
Kole stepped closer and bent to glare into Sabre's eyes. "Well, you're wrong. I did it because I liked you and I wanted to help you, no other reason."
"As did I," Tarl said. "I didn't know you well enough to like you, but helping you had nothing to do with assuaging my guilt, which I knew it wouldn't. As for examining you, I'll admit to some curiosity, but that wasn't what motivated me. Sometimes people do things simply because they want to. We don't always require some form of reward."
Tassin said, "How could you think so little of us? What's happened to you? Did the Overlord do something to you? Did he poison you against us?"
"No." Sabre bowed his head and ran his hands through his hair, clasping the back of his neck. A long, pregnant silence fell, and Kole flopped down in another chair, frowning. The cyber raised his head, his eyes sweeping over the three of them. "I don't understand."
"Understand what?"
"Why anyone could like me, or would want to help me without getting anything out of it."
"You asked for my help, remember?" Kole asked.
Sabre nodded. "I knew we needed it."
"You have such a low opinion of yourself that you have to find other, more believable reasons for our help, don't you?" Tarl asked, frowning. "You just can't accept the fact that we would do it purely out of kindness or generosity."
The Cyber Chronicles V - Overlord Page 4