“You did, Creator. ‘She’s not as fast as she used to be after all these years…I’ll have to clean out her memory banks sometime and see if I can improve performance,’” ADIM quoted, imitating Cassius’ voice. “There were countless other updates necessary to ensure the White Hand remained worthy of the creator’s will.”
So that was what he meant earlier? Cassius thought. A complete merging.
He’d grown used to hearing Gaia’s voice whenever he entered his ship. She was one of his earliest creations, the basis for what had eventually evolved into ADIM’s programming. In an instant ADIM had removed her from existence, to be just another file in his always-developing artificial brain. The White Hand had already been one of the most advanced ships in the Circuit, so ADIM’s improvements had surpassed what even Cassius was capable of. His pride far outweighed his sorrow.
“Are you dissatisfied, Creator?” ADIM asked. “This unit is assured that the performance of the White Hand is now at full potential. And do not be concerned, Gaia’s memory logs have been completely transferred into the ship’s backups with no loss.”
“Dissatisfied?” Cassius said. “No. Never. You’ve done an incredible thing, ADIM. It’ll just be something else I’ll have to get used to.”
Cassius stared up into the dark cargo bay of the White Hand. At the exact moment ADIM was sneaking Sage up to him, he was apparently regulating the ship. Cassius wondered if that meant ADIM was only in control of what the ship did, or if he had truly become a part of it, if he had evolved beyond the metal shell of the physical body.
The human body is little more than a vessel for our mind, Cassius thought. Could ADIM understand that? Again, his creation astounded him. And as he stepped up the ramp into his ship he realized that ADIM was no longer just in his ear, but all around him.
Footsteps behind him startled Cassius. As expected, Sage approached. She wore blood-stained Tribunal armor and had her fiery hair trimmed even shorter than when last they met. An armed Morastus guard walked next to her. What he didn’t expect to see, however, were two men beside them, gawking in Cassius’ direction like they were looking upon a ghost. There was a bearded Vergent with an exo-skeletal suit attached to him that Cassius recognized from a few of the corpses he’d stepped over on the Amerigo. The other man was a Ceresian Cassius swore he’d seen before. Both of them suffered from the Blue Death, though it was far more apparent in the former.
“You brought others with you?” Cassius narrowed his eyes.
“You can trust them, Cassius.” Sage stepped out in front of the rest. “They won’t tell anyone you’re here as long as you hear us out.”
Cassius put on a smile. “I’m putting my trust in you then, Sage. I hope it’s not misplaced.” He extended his arms to embrace her. She didn’t seem too eager to do the same, but after an uncomfortable few moments she wrapped her arms around him as reservedly as one possibly could. “I like what you’ve done with your hair,” he whispered into her ear.
Sage reached up to her head as if she’d forgotten about it and ran her fingers over her ear.
Cassius gazed over her shoulder at the rest of her companions. “By the Ancients, I’ve never seen a more peculiar group in my entire life!” he exclaimed. “A Ceresian, a Tribunal, a Vergent…and an android.”
Suddenly, the Morastus guard’s body began to flicker, then it vanished, revealing the dark, metal chassis of ADIM that had been shrouded by the hologram. His glowing red eyes pierced the dimness of the hangar.
Horror riddled the expressions of the Ceresian and the Vergent. It wasn’t the reaction Cassius had expected. Ceresians were no strangers to androids and Vergents often traded with them. All he thought he’d see on their faces was surprise. It was then that he realized who they were.
The Ceresian was Talon Rayne, the man he’d seen through Sage’s Executor Implant and with whom she raided the Tribunal freighter. Apparently he had been aboard the Amerigo when Cassius’ androids struck. Talon and the Vergent were the two who had escaped. They had looked into the red eyes of one of Cassius’ creations before, only it wasn’t ADIM.
The two of them lifted their rifles once they had their bearings and took a few frightened steps back. “You have one of those things here?” the Vergent exclaimed. Raising his voice caused him to slip into a fit of coughing.
ADIM effortlessly tore the rifles out of both of their hands. He then turned to Cassius, presenting them as if he was waiting for instructions. “Relax,” Cassius said. “He won’t harm anyone in this room so long as you keep your guns stowed. Isn’t that right, ADIM?”
“Yes, Creator,” ADIM answered in his always steely tone. The assurance didn’t appear to put Talon, the Vergent, or even ADIM himself any more at ease. The android snapped both of the weapons in half before positioning himself between Cassius and Sage, his spinning eyes fixed on her. She couldn’t relinquish her weapon, as he knew from experience.
“How are you still alive?” Talon questioned. “I watched you die.”
“You witnessed an illusion concocted by Zaimur Morastus, ADIM and myself,” Cassius clarified. “Nothing more.”
“Why the hell is Zaimur working with you? That seems below even him.”
“We’re in the business of winning this war, that’s why. With his father finally passing away, he and Yara Lakura are now the leaders in this conflict. I have pledged my support to eradicate the Tribunal plague I foolishly helped rise to prominence. My death was a necessary deception to maintain order.”
“Zargo is dead?” A shade of sorrow passed across Talon’s face, but it blended with relief.
Interesting, Cassius thought. So he knew the former Morastus leader well enough to feel some happiness that he’s finally done suffering. There’s more to this miner than I imagined.
“Unfortunately, the Blue Death finally took its toll on him,” Cassius said. “Despite what anyone may believe I had a great deal of respect for the man, and there are very few who earn that. Zaimur is proving to be his son, however. He had foresight to see the wisdom in my advice despite our history, and if you were stuck on Eureka with the others, then you owe us your lives…or what little is left of them.”
“Owe you our lives?” the Vergent spat. He stormed forward, his strange suit creaking loudly with every step. ADIM promptly leapt in front of him. He held one arm aimed at the Vergent, and kept the other aimed at Sage.
Cassius placed his hand on ADIM’s shoulder. The android’s eyes spun wildly. “That’s enough, ADIM. I’m sure he meant no offense.”
ADIM lowered his arm, but he was now positioned firmly between Cassius and all of the others.
“After what you did to my brother and sister Keepers on the Amerigo, how dare you lay claim on our lives!” the Vergent said. “They gave theirs to serve the Circuit!”
“And they died fulfilling their duties. An honorable end, and a necessary sacrifice. The Tribune couldn’t be allowed to buy their loyalty and they wouldn’t forsake their vows. The Solar-Arks exist to disseminate supplies throughout the Circuit, ignoring creed and class. I merely ensured that would continue so that we have a fighting chance in both this war and what comes after. Don’t forget, Vergent, that if the Tribune is allowed to succeed here they will swallow your people next.”
“That doesn’t give you—”
“Enough!’ Sage said, cutting him off. “We’ll have time for bickering later. There are far greater powers than us who will decide Cassius’ fate, but for now we came here to ask for his help.”
“Indeed,” Cassius said.
He stared into Sage’s beautiful green eyes. They had regained their luster since he removed the Executor Implant—that spark which he noticed all those years ago when Caleb asked for her hand in matrimony. She might not have realized it yet, but slowly and surely she was beginning to be freed.
She took a deep breath. “We want to infiltrate the Ascendant and extract a prisoner.”
Cassius’ eyelids opened wide. He had to suppress the laugh festering in his throat in
order to not offend her. “Raid a New Earth Cruiser?” he asked. “This prisoner better be the key to winning this war.”
“She’s a child, Talon’s child, and she’s being kept there to bait me. She was hidden on the ship you sent me to Titan on. A refugee from Kalliope.”
“Wait, she was there? Are there more survivors?” Talon asked excitedly, suddenly snapping back into focus.
Refugees? Cassius wondered before he noticed ADIM’s eye rotation speed. By some chance, Talon’s child must have been the gift ADIM had brought back from Kalliope for him. She’d been with Sage the entire journey to Titan and still Sage wasn’t any wiser about what had really happened on Kalliope. Again Cassius found himself surprised. ADIM was wise enough to plant their intended lie blaming the events on the Tribune in the young girl’s mind before she escaped and it worked. There was no telling how much ADIM’s ill-advised gift could now benefit them. Nobody would suspect him of being behind what happened to Kalliope if he himself had ordered ADIM to rescue a survivor.
“No,” Cassius said. “We were too late. According to ADIM, nobody else made it.” He shot a glance toward ADIM, hoping that after so many years together that would be enough to know what he wanted.
ADIM’s eyes again began to twirl. “This unit found her in the cockpit of a mining Mech and did not have time to salvage anything larger than a human child before the blast,” he said.
“Mining Mech…Was she alone?” Talon questioned.
“The Mech’s operator was deceased.”
“What did he look like?” Talon was no longer fazed at all by the android. He grabbed ADIM’s arm and shook as if trying to will the answer he wanted out of him.
“His skin had a dark pigmentation and he weighed approximately two hundred and thirty pounds.”
Talon’s head sunk and his features darkened even more than they had when he learned of Zargo’s fate. He looked beaten. The Vergent placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. It didn’t appear to help.
“So he is gone…” Talon whispered to himself.
The uncomfortable silence which followed made Cassius itch. He gave it as long as he could manage then asked, “Why would they have any need to bait you, Sage?”
“Because they think I know what you’re up to,” she growled. “They think I was working with you when you murdered all those innocent people on Titan.”
“That I murdered?” Cassius sounded appalled. “What happened on Titan was as much their fault as it was mine.”
“It’s always their fault isn’t it?” she retorted. “It doesn’t matter anyway. I’ve joined you in exile all the same, just like you’ve always wanted.”
“Sage, my dear. I never wanted—”
“Stop. I don’t want to hear it. Everything I was is gone, and I won’t blame it on you because I was the one foolish enough to trust you. I should’ve realized I couldn’t mend the hatred that burns so brightly inside you. So enough lies and pretending that you’re my father. I’m offering you a chance to use me in a strike against Lord Benjar’s flagship.”
“You would attack your former master?”
“I would save a girl who has no part in this war. I’ll infiltrate the Ascendant and I’ll cripple the vessel if that is what you want, but I will not kill anyone who doesn’t need to die in order to get her out. You didn’t want me to be a killer after all, so those are my terms. If you want Benjar dead you’ll have to do it yourself. I serve only the Spirit now.”
There she is, Cassius thought. Despite the harshness of her words he couldn’t help but feel a tinge of pride. “It’ll take more than you to penetrate the defenses of a New Earth Cruiser,” he turned back around and said. “But I suppose that’s why you came to me.”
Sage diverted her attention to ADIM and held her rancorous gaze there.
“I see,” Cassius said. “Well you’re wrong about one thing. I don’t want Benjar dead just yet, but the idea of hampering his ship is very appealing. I’m sure you remember when he shot mine down in an attempt on my life.”
“Who could forget?”
“Crippling the Ascendant would give the Ceresians more time to scrabble up a fleet.” And give my androids more time to finish construction on the bombs. I’ll just need to think of a better reason to convince Zaimur to support this besides earning time. “But the ship is filled with Tribunals. This isn’t like raiding a Solar-Ark. You’ll need a small army.”
Talon wiped his wet eyes and took a step forward. “You’ll have me,” he proclaimed weakly. “I was an enforcer for Zargo Morastus for years. But I swear if you’re lying about her I’ll make sure the next time someone puts a bullet in your head it sticks.”
“You’ve got me, too,” the bearded Vergent said. He looked to Talon and shrugged. “I’ve come this far already. What’s one more mission, even if it’s with a monster, right?”
This time, as Cassius observed the peculiar group in its entirety, he couldn’t hold back his snicker. “I admire your bravery almost as much as I loathe foolishness,” he said. “You won’t have the element of surprise after Eureka. Benjar will be expecting you brash Ceresians to be consistent and act brashly. Zaimur and I planned on doing just the opposite.”
“I might be able to convince Zaimur to send troops in with us if taking down a New Earth Cruiser is on the table,” Talon said. “If he really is anything like his father. Or even Yara Lakura. She seems eager to have me on her side after I knocked out the Gravitum Generator.”
Cassius’ brow lifted. “That was you?” he asked. “Impressive. I would’ve done the same.” Cassius noticed Sage staring at Talon. When he caught her she blushed and looked toward the floor. For a few seconds her gaze lingered there, until it lifted and locked with Cassius’. His chest got tight. He’d seen that hopeful expression before. No matter what Sage thought of him, he’d known the woman standing before him since she was as tall as his hip. He was as close to her father as anyone ever was. He almost was her father. Sage Volus was always meant to be a part of the Circuit he planned to build.
“I don’t want the clans involved personally,” Cassius said. “We have a strategy to win this war and I intend to stick with it or I’ll risk losing Zaimur’s trust. However, I’ll happily show Benjar that even in his nest he isn’t safe from me. I offer you the service of the White Hand and ADIM. He will help you rescue your daughter, and you will help him ravage the systems of the Ascendant.”
The faces of both Sage and Talon lit up like lightbulbs. The Vergent wasn’t nearly as enthused.
“What about the small army?” Tarsis posed before anyone could answer.
That was the one thing Cassius didn’t have an answer for yet. He knew stray Morastus soldiers could easily be acquired if he wanted them, but he couldn’t risk Zaimur getting a taste of success with bold, offensive strokes. Then he might forsake the plan Cassius had concocted, and lose the war in a hurry. There were also his six other androids back on Ennomos. Together with ADIM they would likely be enough to slaughter every Tribunal on the ship. There was work to be done, however, and wasting their time would make the entire effort fruitless for him. The options were limited.
“It may take some time, but Talon will have to scrounge up another mercenary crew from the depths of Ceres,” Cassius said. “Miners, beggars, I don’t care as long as they’re suicidal. We just need bodies to distract the Tribunals from Sage and ADIM.”
“That is not necessary,” ADIM said.
“Excuse me, ADIM?” Cassius asked.
“Creator, if all you require are bodies to be used as a distraction, this unit can assemble a larger force far more quickly. By this unit’s calculations there are over four thousand working androids left on Ceres Prime. A portion of those would serve as a much more efficient army under this unit’s command, and would not require martial training.”
“Might as well lob a giant hunk of metal at the ship,” Talon said. “They’re worthless in a fight.”
“He’s right, ADIM,” Cassius agreed. “They a
ren’t like you, remember?”
ADIM twisted his head toward Cassius. His rotating red eyes came to a halt. “Not yet.”
CHAPTER FIVE—ADIM
Army of One
“What could possibly be so urgent that you summoned me out of a meeting of the clans?” Zaimur questioned. After some days of travel, they were back on Ceres Prime, on the command deck of the White Hand which was docked within a private hangar. “Even with Yara pledging her support there’s some resistance to allowing this Tribunal push.”
“I’m certain you’ll be able to convince them,” Cassius replied.
“What is it then?” The exuberant demeanor ADIM had watched Zaimur display throughout the journey back from Eureka had been supplanted by exhaustion. There were no women on his arms. He was alone, hours of discussions between the clans to determine the course of a war that could no longer be avoided painting dark circles around his eyes.
“ADIM, tell him.”
ADIM stepped forward into the sight of Zaimur. “This unit has located the prototype Gravitum weapon used to split open Kalliope aboard the Ascendant,” he said, spinning the story Cassius had instructed him to. “Against the will of the rest of the council, Tribune Benjar Vakari seeks to use it to bring this war to a swift end and avoid Tribunal losses like those at Eureka.”
Cassius said that the attack would provide an excuse for them having the Gravitum Bombs, plus Elisha could support the fact that he had nothing to do with Kalliope. On top of that would be a chance to cripple Benjar’s flagship. Yet ADIM wasn’t sure if his creator was more interested in those strategic benefits or in helping the former Executor Sage Volus. Cassius’ heart rate tended to pick up when he was around her, just as it did when he watched the last recording of his deceased human son. She was not a member of his family so ADIM didn’t understand why. He had to trust in the wisdom of his creator, but they were placing their faith in too many other people.
Zaimur’s face drained of its color as he looked to Cassius for verification. “You said the battle would infuriate him, not turn him into you!”
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