Mac came up. “How are you feeling?” She asked getting straight to business. Hawk guessed he didn’t look good.
“I’m taking the trank but I’m still dreaming,” he told her. Hawk knew Mac understood Cyborgs, she’d know, he wasn’t lying to her. Cyborgs didn’t lie, it wasn’t logical.
She nodded back at him. “I went over all your tests. There’s nothing to indicate your systems are compromised right now. As we don’t know what information was loaded into your systems back then, I think my first thoughts are correct. You’re experiencing a connecting to a possible mate. Which, for the fleet is fantastic news. I will need you to upload your experiences and emotions to the main frame and send that to us. We will use it, to see if whatever you did, can be replicated in others with exposure to other known worlds. It could make finding mates a lot easier. Rage thanks you for this, it could be a turning point for the Empire but he knows how difficult this is for you right now.”
Hawk nodded. He knew how important it was for the Empire to find mates. Without them, sooner or later, probably much later, the Cyborgs would start dying out and they wanted family, progeny.
“I’ll plug in after this and have the download sent to you.” He told her, Mac nodded.
“How’s it affecting you?” She asked.
He told her. It was interfering with his thought processes. His bursts of anger were getting worse. The need to secure is mate overriding much of his functionality. His temper was short, his men were staying out his way. He was isolating himself as much as possible and beating the crap out of the training bots. His system ranged from having too much energy to not having enough and all that, was with his emotions turned off.
Mac nodded hearing him out. “That’s all expected when you are under the mating call and your emotions are turned off. You are suppressing your own needs and the logic of doing that, seems wrong to you, so your system is over compensating in other areas. It is likely to get worse, until you find her. I want you to try something we’ve had some success with here. Meditation. I’ve arranged for one of the Monks to work through it with you. Once you have it on file, you can copy it. I’d suggest going through it every morning. It will help to calm you, to stay focused.”
Hawk shrugged at this point he’d try anything. “Sounds good. When?”
“Do the download, let me know when your free after that and I’ll get him on line.” She told him.
Hawk blew out a breath and ran his hand through his hair. Then looked up at the screen and gave a nod. The screen went black. Hawk sat back in his chair. He didn’t have enough information to run a programme on this ‘meditation’. He would have to take Mac’s word for it. He didn’t have a problem with that, just hoped, it worked.
Hawk connected via his neuro net to the ships computer and created a file, then downloaded every file he had, since being given his orders. His central computer buried deep in his brain stored daily records of his life in his archive. How he worked, what he did, what information came in, how he functioned was all there. It was the same for all Cyborgs. Mac would be able to compare it to other records on file and find out what was different, if anything was.
Logic told him this was an important move. He would help other Cyborgs and himself. He kept his mind clear and positive while copies of his files uploaded. He didn’t want anything to damage the transfer or be corrupted with his own thoughts and feelings. Logic was what he needed. Mac was right, he realised, he needed to remain focused.
The upload completed, he sent the file to Mac. Then a message before disconnecting. He was ready.
***
Franny jumped down from the truck on her good leg. They’d decided to leave them half a mile from the camp in a cavern. It made sense, if they could be tracked, it would give the camp time to move on. Franny knew they’d put a guard on them just to be sure.
She moved off with everyone else, the prisoners were split off and would go to the holding area until they’d been interviewed. Franny knew her father had records on most of the soldiers that had come here and the newer generations, on what they’d been accused of over the years and witness testimony. Every now and then, they found one that had kept to himself, been ridiculed by the others for not participating in things and they found them a home in another encampment.
They were guarded and allowed to make a life for themselves. The others, went for trial.
Twelve good men and true, as her father called them. They weren’t actually all men, but the saying was an old one. She moved slowly on her leg and suddenly an arm was placed under hers and she was lifted off her bad leg. Franny turned to find Blue supporting her. “Thanks, it’s starting to hurt like a bitch.” She told him. Blue have her a half smile and moved with her. He wasn’t much of a talker and it had never much bothered her. He was a good fighter, that was all that mattered.
Fifteen minutes later, Franny had been holding back a groan for a good ten minutes. Every movement was causing her more pain. She was soaked in sweat with the effort to keep going. She felt light headed and realised her leg had to be bleeding out, her foot felt wet inside her boot and started to slip as she moved. Looking up, she could see the concealed entrance to the encampment and faltered. Blue grabbed her and lifted her into his arms. “I can walk,” she told him. Blue huffed and kept going. “Ok, maybe I need a bit of help.” He gave her a half smile. He was the only older civilian on her team and worth his weight in gold.
Blue took her straight into medical and left. Her trousers were ripped up to expose the damage. She had blood running down her leg, a lot of it, her boot was covered in the stuff and loads came out as they peeled it off her. Franny gritted her teeth, without the tourniquet holding the skin together, feeling came flooding back. Franny moaned aloud. There was no way that was staying in this time.
They worked fast around her to clean her up. The medic cleaned the wound and stitched her up. She’d been lucky no arteries had been nicked. She didn’t need anything more than a local and pain relief. She was told to stay off the leg for a week or two and sent packing. She took the stick offered to her to help her walk and made her way out in search of her father.
He was standing and talking with Kiumo. She caught the end of the conversation. Her father wasn’t happy and by the look of it, nor was Kiumo. She hobbled over to them. “How’d they know where we were?” She asked. Her father rubbed his chin.
“That’s exactly what we’re discussing. No one knew that route but Kiumo and it wasn’t him,” her father told her.
“That leaves two options as far as I can see,” she told them, “someone told them where we were heading or that someone, was with us and signalled where we were. I don’t believe it was a lucky coincidence coming across us.”
“There are no coincidences.” Kiumo told them. Franny nodded, she agreed with him. Someone had contacted the soldiers and told them where they’d be, it was the only thing that made sense. They hadn’t come full force so, they weren’t sure the intel was good. Next time, they would.
“We need to find the person.” She told them both. “And no one should go out until we do.” Her father nodded.
“We need bunk searches, start with your team Kiumo, everyone in, no one goes anywhere, Franny your team is next, I’ll have Peters’ team back you both up, then work your way through the campsite. Anyone asks, routine check. Whoever it is, has to be able to communicate with them.” Kiumo gave her father a nod and walked off.
“How’s the leg?” Her father asked.
Franny nodded. “It’ll be fine. I’ll be more careful next time. I saw the gun and kicked it away and thought he was done, but the knife was hidden under him. I know better than that.”
“Your off duty for two weeks. Get some rest.” She gave him a nod and headed back to her bunk. She needed a shower and a nap. As she walked passed the barracks area, she could hear Kiumo giving orders for a bunk search. The cave system was extensive. It held all their needs. She walked passed the communal kitchen area and headed to the
showers. There were separate male and female camping showers. The water re-filled and pumped into buckets that had holes in them. It held enough water to have a 1m shower. You got good at washing and showering off quickly before it ran out and cut off. The floor was a roughed surface of rock, common in this part of the planet. Her father told her it was like a ‘granite’, it stopped them slipping in the water and that’s all that mattered to her.
She entered the area and took one of the full buckets, stripping quickly and dumping her clothes to be washed. She picked up a towel and walked into the shower, turning it on, she wet herself all over, then turned it off again. Soaped herself up and turned it back on again to wash everything off. She was out again in minutes.
Franny wrapped the towel around herself and limped out to her bunk area. Her team were all in there cleaned up. Their one rule, don’t go in their bunk area dirty. She pulled on clean underwear and a T and put her leg up on her bunk. Resting sounded real good to her right now. She knew Kiumo would be in soon but till then, she’d take 5.
***
Hawk gripped the seat of his chair as his ship took another hit. “Get me firing options on that vessel,” he called out. Some of his men had been badly damaged in the wars or brutalised and didn’t have neuro net, so he had to call out orders on his Bridge. Some of them, had limits to what they could do now, but they were still Cyborg.
He got a nod from his second. “Fire.” They hit the ship broadside, it bounced off a shield. Dam it. “They have shield technology. Get us linked to their computer and find out where it’s located, then blast it in that section of their ship.”
Hawks men moved swiftly around him doing their jobs, as he looked through the vid screen to the image of the vessel that had appeared and started firing on them. One minute, his ship was keeping an eye on the vessel coming into their range, then next, it powered up and headed straight for them. Hawk had turned their ship and put up a defensive shield. Not many ships out there had one, this one, clearly did.
The ship rocked again as the enemy came closer. Another hit. Hawk gritted his teeth. Who the fuck were they? They wanted a fight? He’d give un one! “Open communications with that vessel,” he roared, then started speaking. “This is the Cyborg Empire. You are in violation of Intergalactic Law and the sovereignty of our space. You are about to feel the full force of the Empire. Stand down, or we will be forced to engage.”
The ship stopped firing. Hawk waited. “We have a communication request.” His second called out. Hawk nodded, and the vid screen came on.
What was clearly a Cyborg stared back at him. There were several others around him. Well well, thought Hawk. He’d not expected that. “Hello brothers,” he told them smiling.
Their leader stared back at him for a moment, Hawk noticed several glazed over looks between them, they were communicating via their neuro net. Their ship was a good match for his. It was smaller, but it packed a punch.
“Cyborg, you talk of an Empire. A Cyborg Empire. We do not know this. Explain.” Hawk smiled.
“Are you free brothers? Or are you still bonded in contract to a handler or company?” He asked.
“We are free Cyborgs, I am the highest ranked here.” The Cyborg told him.
Hawk smiled wider and opened his arms out in greeting. “You should join me for dinner. We have fresh produce from one of our worlds and a lot of catching up to do. Many things have changed since we were set free brothers or fought our way free, depending on how it went for you.”
“We fought and died,” the leader told him. Hawk realised it was merely a statement of fact, he showed no emotion, Hawk knew it to be likely, that this ship contained Cyborgs with their emotions turned off. They were all logic. They didn’t appear to have many human mannerisms and their humanity seem….. stunted. Hawk wondered if that was how all Cyborgs had been, when set free. They were so different now. Had personalities, choices, formed relationships. It would explain why it took so long before they started being more human.
Memories surfaced of his early years, the mistakes he’d made, and others had made, he understood, that if these Cyborgs had been so isolated, that they had not interacted with any humans but those that had controlled them, it was going to be an uphill struggle for them for some time.
“As did we all brother.” He told them. “But now, we live and live well. Control a sector of space, have a Space Station that our Admiral runs our fleet from, have planets, under our protection that provide fresh food, we have ships that are under contract for minerals and resources on trading routes, we have learnt much from the humans over the decades, and we have learnt much about ourselves because of them. We protect them, they help us, and we are all free. Earth Corp didn’t just screw us, they screwed with a lot of humans too. Left them to die out here. And, many of us, are finding we have mates to call our own, human female mates and some of us, even have children.”
No emotions crossed the faces of the Cyborgs facing him. Hawk didn’t like it. He knew they were all processing the information. They’d know he wasn’t lying to them. Cyborgs didn’t lie. It was like the words meant nothing to them, when it should have meant everything. Hawk frowned. Logic would dictate that it was better to pass on their genes to another generation, that it would benefit all of them, than just die out. Hawk waited.
“I will allow your access to a singular upload. Send us the information on this Empire and we will look at it.” The vid screen went blank.
Hawk shook his head. Had they been that …….. difficult? “Send the information on the Empire. No locations just in case.”
Affirmative, came over his neuro net.
***
Kiumo had been through their bunk room and nothing. Franny had a good idea that whoever it was, wasn’t stupid, he or she, had probably hid it outside somewhere, somewhere he could get to it without being seen. Franny thought they should check all the areas where soldiers would be expected to go. She picked up her tray and joined the que for dinner. Her mind going over scenarios. They needed to find that person and fast. Sooner or later they were going to know the jig was up and make a move. Franny suddenly lost her appetite and put her tray back, she hated to think one of their own would betray them, she turned with her walking stick, heading out to look for her Dad. She wondered if he was checking their own records. Looking for anything that was off. Franny realised that she might not be able to go on missions, but she could sit on her butt and look through files. She increased her limping pace, she needed a chat with the old man.
***
Hawk ran the latest reports over his neuro net. They’d sustained no damage during the fire fight and no reported injuries. His net pinged, he opened communication.
Commander, we have a vid request from the other ship.
Put it on screen.
The same Cyborg appeared on screen. He was in a conference room with many other Cyborgs crammed into the room. Well, thought Hawk, he’d peaked his interest if nothing else.
“I am D923, your designation?” He asked Hawk.
“We no longer use numbers to define us in the Empire. That was our handlers doing and we are free. We take names, normally four digits and something that means something to us. My name is Hawk and I am the Commander of this ship and a Councilman on the Cyborg Empire Council.”
“Why did you choose Hawk as your name?” One of the men asked.
“I was a point man back in the wars. Over lord sharp shooter. Needed eyes like a Hawk I was told, Hawk stuck and sounded right.” He told them.
“You do not own the humans in your world? The humans do not own you?” Another asked.
Hawk shook his head, “no, no one owns anyone, other than emotionally, being bonded to each other.”
“You are not ordered to service the females?” Another asked.
Hawk frowned, that brought up memories he’d rather forget. “No, that is not allowed in the Empire. That’s slavery and would be an abuse of power. We do not allow anyone to be victims of others behaviour, an
d we punish those that do.”
“What do you do in this Empire?” Another asked.
“We clear out the rubbish from our space. Take care of any pirates we find. Help those that need our help. Offer sanctuary to those that need it. Police worlds and trading routes and get paid well for doing it. We sell ships we capture, our Admirals mate, has a unique ability with engines, can make them go faster than anyone we’ve ever met. We have mates that can research our history, that can take out Earth Corps programming, so they can never shut us off again, mates that lead worlds, run their laws, lead warriors and many others, that live peaceful lives now that we are in them.”
“Do you get paid for that?” D923 asked.
Hawk nodded, “we do. What we salvage goes to the ship that takes it. It’s sold to the Empire at salvage value, made good or improved and sold on, the Empire takes the profit and improves infrastructure. What’s created goes to whoever creates it. Who makes a deal, takes the share. If you are working for the Empire, you are paid for your services. In turn, you will pay for what you want from the Empire. It works.”
“Who sets the price on our work?” D923 asked.
Hawk looked at him. Not sure what his concern was. “You do.”
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