The Legion and the Lioness

by Robert D. Armstrong

  He stared at the floor. “I pray that I never see anything like that again.”

  “That was the worst thing I’ve ever seen or experienced, by far. I-I...most decisions I made in combat were far enough away I could almost convince myself they weren’t human,” I said.

  “I fucked up. I should have ordered Xena to deal with them e-earlier. I just...I don’t know. I tried to put myself in Viktor’s shoes. It didn’t make sense, even if he did take the ship, what did he think would happen when they got to Titan? Huh? We’d have a parade waiting? He would have been thrown in prison!” Drake threw his hands up staring at me. “What the fuck just happened?”

  “Viktor would have stood trial and likely been sentenced to prison in low gravity,” Xena speculated.

  “Maybe that was worth it to him then. Even if he did go to prison, much of the responsibility would have fallen on him, relieving his family of the punishment, especially the children,” I guessed.

  Drake closed his eyes as he shook his head. “I-I need a shower.” I followed Drake with my eyes as he stood up slowly and stepped aft of our bunks. He paused, touching a spot of blood on his forehead, likely not his own. He stared at it for a moment and wiped it on his jumpsuit. I leaned my head against the wall, resting my eyes.

  “Drake,” I said.

  “Yeah.” He turned around, looking around the ship for answers.

  “Always remember you made the right call, difficult as this was. You put Titan in a position to survive. Most couldn’t have done this.” I stared at him intensely. I remembered my silence when Commander Rotus killed dozens of innocents all those years ago. I wasn’t missing out on the opportunity to comfort someone in need again.

  Drake nodded and slumped his head. He drifted toward the shower out of my sight.

  “Thanks, Belic. That means a lot to me,” he sniffled. I heard him seal the door to the shower. After a few minutes, he began to weep uncontrollably.

  Chapter 12

  “CAPTAIN.” XENA STARTLED me.

  “Uh. What? Where’s Drake?” I stood up, panning around the ship. I wiped my eyes, observing Xena scrubbing the deck. Before I drifted off to sleep, I noticed blood spatter on myself and all about the ship. Now, it was gone.

  It was real. The incident with the Russians was not a dream.

  “Colonel Drake is docked away in cryosleep, ma’am. I dressed his wound. He’ll be fine. He said to wake him a few hours before arrival,” she said.

  “Alright. What did you tell Corvin about the Russians?” I asked. Xena paused.

  “The truth, of course. I told them the Russians were dead.” She spun around, casually skipping across me with her artic eyes.

  “That’s it?” I asked.

  “I wasn’t asked for details. The Russians couldn’t help us, so that’s it,” she added. I circled around her. She’d taken light damage to her armored plating, but seemed intact. The skin on her right cheekbone had been chipped off by the Russian’s battering ram. I observed loose strains of synthetic materials peeling off like grated cheese. I could see the metallic skeleton that framed her jaw muscles underneath.

  “What are our orders?” I asked.

  She cut her eyes to me. “You already know the answer to that, don’t you?”

  Earth was the obvious response. I paused for several seconds. I could feel her peering into my soul, a machine casting a piercing gaze more suspicious than any human.

  “Ahem. Not sure if it means anything to you, but um, thanks. I understand that we couldn’t have defended the ship without you.” I changed the subject. She continued cleaning without acknowledging my statement. The thought of her poking her hand through a human skull plopped into my mind.

  “Captain, I’ve cleaned you the best I could, but you might take that a step further just to be safe. There is a setting on the showerhead for antibacterial. After that, I suggest heading to cryosleep,” she advised. I could hear a very faint whine in her robotics as she moved about, like a car in need of tune up.

  “Yeah. You’re right. Just synchronize myself and Drake’s wake up call,” I said, scratching my nose. I noticed it had been reset.

  “Hey, you did this?” I pointed at my face.

  “It wasn’t badly broken,” she said.

  “I’m surprised I didn’t wake up, though.”

  “I suppose the extreme mental and physical stress you were under worked like a sedative,” she replied.

  “Considering the importance of this mission, I guess medical procedures are a vital part of your programming,” I said, stripping down from my jumpsuit.

  “Absolutely. I can perform many surgeries. I also have medications for combating dozens of sicknesses we might encounter.”

  “Good to know,” I replied. I thought about Luther. It was likely he would be in a vulnerable state if we found him.

  Xena stopped cleaning, and she glared at the floor for a moment. “Captain, would you like to hear a story?” she asked. My eyes widened. I was completely naked but intrigued enough to hang around a bit longer. I grabbed a towel and wrapped it around me, leaning against the hull.

  “Um, sure,” I said.

  “You know, Titan history has recorded very little about the last days of the android war on Earth. We know of the Rat Race, we know of the nuclear fire, but there’s something you might not have been told about. It’s called the reclamation,” she explained.

  “Nope. I don’t think Corvin or anyone else talked about that,” I said.

  “There are reports of a time immediately following the nuclear fires. Apparently, many humans had survived. Before the Rat Race ensued, a movement called the reclamation occurred. Hundreds of androids sought out humans to save them from the radiation and fires.” She crossed her arms.

  “It was a glitch?” I asked.

  “No, I don’t think so,” she said, her exposed synthetic face muscles curled down, forming what resembled a frown. I paused for a few moments.

  “So, why then?” I cut to the chase.

  “Hard to say for sure. Artificial intelligence spurs anomalies, oddities at times,” she explained.

  “So, you’re an anomaly? That’s the basis of your fierce loyalty to Titan?” I said. The Titans seemed proud of their culture. It wasn’t difficult to imagine a machine like her could adopt similar principles being surrounded by it.

  “To a point, yes. As you’re aware, I’m also more advanced than machines from your day.” She stepped forward, stopping within a meter of me. She towered above me even more without my boots on. I got the feeling there was more to her story.

  “Can I ask you a question?” she asked.

  “Go on.”

  “Your file indicates you have a fierce competitive drive. Type A personality, would you agree?” she asked.

  “I’d say that’s a fair statement,” I answered.

  “And you care for your husband dearly?” she followed up.

  “Yes.”

  “You sound proud of your answers, in who you’ve become,” she said.

  “Of course.”

  She turned her back away from me, stepping away. “I can relate. Pride is something I can understand,” she stopped, facing me.

  “And what does it feel like to you?” I asked.

  “My loyalty to Titan is pure, without agenda or emotional attachments. I take pride in knowing I’m not corrupted by selfish motives,” she answered the question by taking a shot at me. I allowed her time to follow up so I could properly gauge a better response.

  “There are other curiosities about humans I don’t quite understand, though, but I detect them. I listen to humans, very carefully, even when they think I’m not,” she added.

  “And what do you hear?” I questioned.

  “Terror. In the people’s voices, in their words. The Titans feared the androids well before they attacked us,” she said.

  She lifted her eyebrows. “I don’t experience fear, but I sense the underlining dread. I view myself as an instrument against this, a
weapon to combat their fears. This is a powerful motivator. It gives me responsibility and purpose. I take great pride in the significance of my role,” she explained.

  I gazed at her for several moments. It was making more sense to me. Androids, even Xena, were servants, first and foremost. On Earth, if an android owner had a disability, the machine would become obsessed with aiding in their specific handicap.

  Xena’s dynamic intelligence had formed during a time of restlessness throughout the colony, generating a sense of responsibility to quell their anxiety. She had taken on the fears of all the Titans as her duty.

  “What are you thinking, Captain?” she asked.

  “It’s just, back on Earth, I viewed you as an annoying application mostly. A hindrance even, at times. I thought of you as this machine with calculations and suggestions that I rarely used. Now, you’re this hulking, intelligent super soldier.”

  “Well, I’m quite a bit smaller than the 1.14a,” she replied.

  “That isn’t saying much. Those things are built like tanks. I bet the batteries in them weigh twice as much as me.” I yawned.

  “The solar cell battery that powers them is like a homing beacon for my sensors. My composition was also studied for many years to give us a better understanding of android weaknesses in combat. Oh, and, Captain, you’re dozing off,” she said.

  I perked up. “Oh, shit. Sorry, Xena. I’m not bored. It’s all fascinating stuff, really. I’m just exhausted mentally,” I said.

  “Get some rest, Captain,” she said. I moseyed over to the shower. “Wake us up a few hours before we get to Earth.”

  “Will do,” she said.

  “Thank you.”

  “Oh, by the way, Captain, we’ll be near your world the next time you wake up,” she said, leaning around the corner. I gave her the thumbs up before sealing the lid. She returned the gesture, staring at her thumb oddly.

  “My world,” I mumbled. I hoped she was right. Luther was my world...

  Chapter 13

  I HEARD A PECK ON THE glass, then another, then three or four in quick secession. “What?” I mumbled with my eyes closed. I was groggy.

  “Captain. It’s Drake, you need to wake up,” he said. His voice was slightly muted through the cryotube’s glass. I was never a morning person despite my military background. Even coffee did little to speed up the process. I rolled over, opening my eyes. I noticed Drake and Xena standing centimeters away from my face on the other side of the glass.

  “Guys, a little privacy? Shit!” I shouted. Xena took a giant step back. She knew she was the last thing I wanted to see in the morning.

  Drake’s eyes were like two green orbs filled with excitement. He had a boyish smirk on his face like it was Christmas morning and he was waiting for me to open gifts. I was irritated, yet pleased to see such a drastic difference in his demeanor. What could possibly cause such a shift?

  “Fine. I’m getting up,” I grumbled. The cryotube’s lid popped up as I swung my legs around. Drake turned away from me politely.

  “How many hours until— Oh. Oh,” I said, noticing a blue hue lighting the forward cabin. I turned my head slowly toward the cockpit. Out of my peripheral, I noticed Drake flash a full smile while nodding his head.

  “Home sweet home. Isn’t that the proper phrase?” Drake asked.

  “It is.”

  There it was. I could faintly see the little blue ball Luther and I were born on. Earth. I wiped my eyes as I scooted off the cryotube. I needed a closer look. The cool sensation of my bare feet kissed the metallic floor as I skipped forward, passing Drake and Xena.

  The feeling of striding through my front yard barefooted entered my mind. I recalled the cool, dew-soaked grass of springtime brushing against the bottoms of my feet. I wondered if we would ever see another spring, if Luther and I would have the chance to start again, to see and smell the little things together.

  I gulped, stepping passed the front seats, peering through the forward viewing glass. “Please,” I mumbled. Seeing Earth felt like rounding the corner into a hospital room after a family member was involved in a terrible accident. I didn’t know what to expect. Drake stepped forward as I glanced back at him. He was grinning from ear to ear. His eyes were glossy as he stared in amazement.

  “It’s...it’s just so blue,” he said.

  “Wow.” I covered my mouth as it dropped. I could see much clearer now. It was so beautiful. No matter how many times I had witnessed this view, it never got old. The blue orb surrounded by blackness wasn’t quite as vibrant as I remembered, yet this did little to diminish its magnificence. I closed my eyes and reopened them, I couldn’t believe it. Seventy-two years.

  Our distance from Earth reminded me of the iconic photos from the Apollo lunar missions. We were roughly the same distance away as the moon.

  “Is chameleon up?” I asked, staring up at the holographic status cluster in front of my seat.

  “Yes. We’re invisible to their sensors,” Xena replied.

  “Good. You know, from here it almost looks the s-same,” I said. I could feel a tear streaming down my left cheek. I wiped it away, sniffling. I leaned forward, observing a disjointed silvery disk that had formed around my home world, it reminded me of a more irregular version of Saturn’s rings.

  “What’s that? The ring?” I spun toward Xena.

  “Debris. A small portion of it is from satellites, or space junk from your time. We think some of it is from human ships that attempted to escape over the years, other refugees,” Xena explained.

  “That’s a lot of failed attempts,” I said. Off to the left was our moon. It appeared jagged, even from this distance. Xena noticed I was inspecting it closely.

  “Our moon looks, different,” I said.

  “That’s another theory for the ring. Some of the moon debris blown off by the android fleet drifted into earth’s orbit, intensifying the ring’s appearance.

  “Unbelievable,” I said, eyes wide. All that bombing in preparation to drive the final nail in the coffin. I was likely looking at the precursor to Titan’s fate. I gritted my teeth, shaking my head. I wished I had my own fleet to counter the androids. I would destroy them all.

  “That’s not all.” Drake pointed off our starboard side.

  “Great.”

  He handed me my helmet. “Here,” he said. I put it on.

  “Use hawken to zoom in off the starboard side, what do you see?” he asked. The first thing I did was zoom in on Earth, but before I could get a look, Drake began to turn my head away. “This way.”

  “No. Hold on! I want to get a look at my home,” I snapped at him.

  “Oh. Okay. Sorry,” he replied. His persistence left me curious, so I panned over to the starboard side where he was pointing.

  It was true.

  The android fleet was assembled in all their glory, their noses pointed toward Titan. “Oh no,” I whispered. I knew there were hundreds of them, but seeing this level of force projection made me gasp.

  There were dozens of battle groups, each with a flagship, just like the one that attacked Titan. The reality of it sunk in. We wouldn’t last more than a few minutes against this armada. It made the battle group that invaded Titan appear minuscule and insignificant. These ships even seemed like more modern iterations, sleeker, not as crude.

  I imagined they were evaluating the data from our defense in preparation for a more devastating follow up. “Oh, my God,” I mumbled.

  “They sent their bottom of the barrel, mothball ships against us, and they almost wiped us out,” I said, meeting Drake’s eyes.

  He lifted his eyebrows. “Every second counts, Captain. I really hope Luther is somewhere on that blue ball, for all our sakes,” he said.

  “Thanks.”

  In Drake’s mind, the weight of Titan rested on our shoulders, the fate of humanity even, but for me, it was even more than that. My husband was there, somewhere, dead or alive.

  “Are you familiar with the properties of the device Luther
gave me?” I turned toward Xena.

  “Of course. It’s an old piece of tech by today’s standards, but it should serve its purpose. Your thumb imprint will initiate a voice activation system. It will prompt you to answer a question once activated, then, if answered correctly, it will reveal a set of coordinates and thaw his cryotube,” she explained.

  “I wanted to see if you knew anything else about it,” I said.

  “It should be a straightforward process, if his cryotube is active,” Xena cautioned.

  “If,” I mumbled under my breath.

  “Once you answer correctly, we’ll have to act quickly. His cryotube thawing process will last about two hours, according to my files,” Xena said.

  “I know.”

  Drake glared over at me. “What’s the chance he’d ask some ridiculously difficult question you might not know or remember?” He bit his bottom lip.

  “Highly unlikely. He wants me to find him obviously, and Luther is highly intelligent. He would ask something only I would know, but familiar enough that I will remember easily,” I replied.

  “Let’s hope.” Drake sighed, placing his hands behind his head.

  “The most likely scenario is that you answer the question correctly, we receive the coordinates, but there is no cryotube. The passage of time has—”

  I snapped over toward Xena, cutting her off. “Thank you, Xena. I can always count on your honesty.”

  “Forgive me, Captain.” She slumped her head, attempting to simulate regret. I rolled my eyes.

  “Where is the device?” Drake asked.

  “In my storage locker,” I replied, sliding down into the pilot’s seat.

  “Well, let’s do this.” Drake stormed to the back of the ship, donning his suit. I was surprised by his level of enthusiasm. The truth was, now that I was here, I was more terrified and apprehensive than expected. Not just of seeing what my world had become but, obviously, Luther’s fate.

  I knew I was potentially hours away from revealing the fabric that held my sanity together, or not. He was my purpose. Since I had woken on Titan, I had subconsciously forged a shield of hope around me. Despite the doubt that pelted all around me, I had to believe in the small possibility he was alive to go on.