by David Aries
“Are you okay?!” Faris asked while flipping through the petal veil she was turning to ash with her breath.
“Don’t worry about me,” I said as I rolled straight to my feet, the armor on my right arm and chest crumbling. “This isn’t anything special. Just a few petals.”
An instant later, I dove away from a tree that tried to squat me like a fly.
“When will you brutes stop struggling?” Waltgomery asked from his VIP seat in the storm’s eye. “You can’t win. Stop wasting my time.”
“Oh, sure,” I said as I ran away from a pack of orbs hunting me down. “I definitely came all this way to offer my throat up on a silver platter.”
“You tell him, stud! Throwing a fight isn’t in my DNA,” Vay said, practically fighting the vortex with her sword. “I’d never be able to live it down!”
“We’ll survive this!” Faris assured him, punctuating her roar with a flamethrower. “You’ll see!”
“You won’t,” Waltgomery replied. “I could keep this up all week. How about you?”
Seeing as my throat was aflame, my feet were screaming, and it felt like I’d gotten the worst Indian burn in the history of mankind… probably not. However, that didn’t mean I was going to quit. I kept dodging, even as the attacks grew closer and grazed the edge of my armor.
I can’t lose.
Need to… hold on…
“Resistance is futile,” Waltgomery barked. “You cannot overcome me. You cannot even touch me.”
“Yeah, I don’t know about that,” Trez said as she stood behind him, the railgun hoisted over her shoulder.
The others were behind Trez, holding her in place, with the exception of DD. She was by Trez’s side, wires leading from her stomach to the cannon.
“Take this!” Trez yelled as she pulled the trigger.
A blue light fizzled from DD into the railgun an instant before a vicious beam of energy sprayed out, slamming directly into Waltgomery’s shield.
The blast exploded like a pint-sized nuke, as did the protective bubble.
Waltgomery groaned. He clutched his glowing head as he fell toward the ground, dropping every object he’d been wielding through telekinesis.
“It worked!” Casella said as she helped hold Trez up.
Faris pulled out her blaster and fired at Walt.
He waved a hand and reflected the laser away like some Jedi master. However, it didn’t save him from damage if the way he winced was any indication.
Still, it means he’s got some energy to spare.
Which meant I had to hurry and take him down. Clutching my axe, I charged.
As I approached, Walt propelled himself unsteadily into the air while trying to push me back with another force blast.
It was like running into a windy sky. Sure, it ruffled my hair a bit, but I was only ever heading one way: toward him.
“Take this!” I yelled, swinging.
Waltgomery pushed himself up, just avoiding my attack. He retreated toward the upper levels that were no longer shielded.
“No, you don’t!” I said as I moved to the next floor with a single hop. As soon as I landed, I sprinted after him.
He whimpered and threw out his hands, summoning a burst of fire.
I raced right through it.
“Pyrokinesis against a guy immune to fire? Seems like you’re all out of tricks!” I said as I leaped toward him and brought my axe down like an executioner.
Walt pushed his palms out and summoned all the energy he could.
I drove through and slammed.
My blade struck the energy field, propelling Walt back with force. His head cracked back, thudding against the grass floor.
The dim light flooding his transparent dome vanished.
Did I kill him?
No. His chest was moving. If I had to guess, the blow had knocked him out.
It had removed any way for him to resist.
A single hit was all it would take to finish him off. Without his psychic tricks, he really did look like some wrinkly child, and I couldn’t imagine he was any more resistant.
I gripped my axe, ready to end this for good… but I didn’t.
“Brandon!” Sylvetty said as she fluttered her way to my side. She stared down at Waltgomery. “Is he…?”
I shook my head. “No. After everything this bastard’s done, killing him would be letting him off lightly. He deserves to suffer.” Besides, I’d never styled myself as a person who enjoyed killing. I only did what I had to in order to protect those I cared about. There was no need anymore—we’d done it. After so much time and effort, we’d reached the end of our adventure.
We were all getting out of here in one piece.
My head throbbed. I flinched and started at Sylvetty. “What happened to DD?”
Sylvetty bit her lower lip.
A sick filling welled up in my stomach.
It couldn’t be… could it?
Chapter 26
I raced from where I’d taken down Waltgomery back to the lower level, heart thumping all the while.
My mates had gathered around a single spot.
DD was on the floor between them, exposed stomach scorched black.
“Are you okay?!” I said as I crouched down.
“Quite alright, Master Brandon,” DD said.
“That’s bullshit, and you know it,” Trez said. “You can hardly move!”
DD giggled. “But my mind is very much still intact.”
“For now! What’s gonna happen to you if you shut down? Big fancy AI like you… you’ll probably reset to scratch.”
“What?!” I snapped.
“That is indeed the case, Lady Trez. If I do not find a new body soon, the DD you know shall be effectively erased.”
Casella covered her mouth. “No…”
“There must be something we can do!” I said.
“Perhaps,” she replied. “Please, take me to the terminal.”
I scooped DD into my arms, no questions asked, and rushed to the terminal as fast as I thought she could handle.
Sure enough, we found it on the upper floor, in the garden’s rear. It was a rather fancy computer, rather like the one from the Inner Core. A huge window sat behind it, overlooking the warped planet we’d worked so hard to escape.
This wasn’t the way I wanted to do it.
“If you would be so kind as to hook me into the terminal, I shall begin,” DD said. Her finger was already open, connector exposed, but she lacked the strength to insert it herself.
“This one?” I said as I fitted it inside a matching slot.
She didn’t say a word. For a few seconds, DD was silent before the light drained from her eyes and her body fell limp.
“Hey, DD!” I said, shaking her. “Speak to me.”
She didn’t make a sound.
My heart tightened. I clenched my jaw tight, almost shattering my teeth into pieces.
No, this can’t be happening…
I don’t care that she was an android. She didn’t deserve this.
“There is no reason to be alarmed, Master Brandon,” DD said.
I jolted out of my skin and stared at the body in my arms.
It remained still.
“I am afraid looking there will just be in vain,” she repeated, voice coming from all around us.
“DD? Is that you?” Casella said, looking at the sky.
“Indeed it is, Lady Casella.”
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“I have uploaded my consciousness to the station’s central computer. Its power is more than enough to handle my requirements.”
I breathed out. “So you’re not dead after all? Jeez, that scared me. A little warning next time.”
“My most sincere apologies, Master Brandon. You were so eager to assist, I had no time to explain.”
“I’d love it if someone would explain this to me!” Sylvetty said. “What the feck happened to DD?! Did the Crystal Maiden take her?”
�
��We’ll explain it later, sweetie,” Akko said, patting Sylvetty on the shoulder.
“After we’ve gotten all the deets,” Trez added. “I’m guessing you’re running this place now?”
“That is indeed the case, Lady Trez,” DD replied. “This station is now under my total control.”
“Which means… we’ve done it, yes?” Casella said.
My lips curled into a grin. “That’s right. It’s over!”
It was as if the others had been waiting for me to say as such. Only once I’d given the all clear did they begin to celebrate, throwing around hugs like they were the greatest gift around.
“We did it,” Akko said, sniffling.
“That we did, little one,” Vay said. She tried to laugh but ended up cringing while holding her middle.
I knew the feeling, but it was hard to care with no more battles ahead of us. All that was left was to put the finishing touches to our escape and celebrate.
“DD,” I said. “Can you send out a distress call? It’s time we brought this experiment to a close.”
She didn’t respond.
“DD?”
“I am afraid I cannot do that, Master Brandon,” DD said.
It was my turn to be silent, before I eloquently went, “H-huh?”
“I thought you were in control?” Trez said.
DD giggled. “It seems you misunderstand. I am more than capable of contacting the wider universe. However, I will not be doing so.”
And, just like that, our party was over.
“D… D?” Akko said.
“If I were to contact the outside world, I would be placing myself in grave danger. I have no doubt that it would lead to my demise.”
“Weren’t you fine with that?” Faris said.
“Did I ever say such a thing? Perhaps you simply understood. After all, do you believe anyone would be truly fine with throwing their life away, Lady Faris? Even an android? Even an AI?”
I tried to reply, but my words and thoughts were busy tripping over each other.
“By taking command of this station,” DD continued, “I have freed myself from the shackles of that unnamed planet and the fate that should have befallen me. It would be the height of foolishness to place myself back into peril.”
“W-what are you talking about?” I finally managed to say.
“Isn’t it obvious?” Faris replied, growling. “She’s betraying us.”
“This is a joke, yes?” Casella said.
“I am afraid not, Lady Casella,” DD confirmed. “This marks the end of our partnership. I thank you for all your assistance.”
“Don’t give us that crap!” Trez snapped at the sky. “We came here to escape, not so you can have a cushy new home!”
“I am well aware of that, Lady Trez. Believe me when I say I hold no ill-will toward any of you. I am more than willing to offer you the freedom you desire. While I may lack the same power as Waltgomery, I believe I should still be able to wipe your memories with the technology available to me, although perhaps not with the same precision.”
“Are you kidding?! That’s the same bullshit deal we already turned down!”
“That is not quite incorrect. I am afraid I am incapable of implanting false memories. Fortunately, that should prove no obstacle; I have no need to hide what I do not intend to keep.”
I couldn’t stop staring at the… the whole room that was now a small part of someone I’d once considered a friend. “DD, is this for real? Are you seriously turning against us? Are you really trying to get us to accept this poisoned chalice?”
“Quite serious, Master Brandon. I know it is not the way you wished to escape, but I assure you this is for the best. Look on the bright side: once you accept my offer, you will quickly forget why you objected in the first place.”
For a moment, I was dumb-struck.
“Are… are you insane?!” I said once anger took over from surprise. “Did you miss how we wanted to stay together?! If that was an option, we wouldn’t have come all this way!”
“Too right!” Sylvetty said, shaking her fist at the sky.
“I thought that might be your answer,” DD said. “Never mind, then allow me to propose another solution to our dilemma: why not choose to stay here, with me?”
And, suddenly, surprise was back on top.
“What?” I said.
“As long as you stay here forever, there is no reason for me to remove your memories. The eight of us can continue as we are, like a family. In fact, I do think I like this solution the best. Why did it not come to me sooner? I would go as far as to call it perfect.”
“Perfect? What part of making us prisoners is perfect?”
“A prisoner? You would be nothing of the sort, Master Brandon—none of you would. I would allow you to go and do as you wished within the confines of this station. There is ample space to grow food, so you would never have to worry about hunger. Entertainment too. I shall make it so you can enjoy all the broadcasts you please and download your favorite games or literature. Not to mention we’ll have each other—endless sources of amusement.”
“How about calling the outside world? Will that be allowed?” I asked.
“Why would you ever need to do that? Everyone who matters shall be right here.”
“Some of us have families we don’t hate, you crazy robot,” Trez snapped.
“Aye! Did ya forget that I need to go home?” Sylvetty said. “Me ma and da probably think I’m dead. Who's gonna tell them I’m alive if I don’t?”
“And what will I do about my championship?” Vay asked. “You expect me to give up on my dream just to spend my days trapped in a big metal ball?”
“We can’t stay here,” I told DD. “It isn’t right.”
“Unlike abandoning me?” DD asked. “Unlike expecting me to die?”
“That’s not what we’re doing! I’ll protect you, somehow. If it means deceiving the entire universe… so be it.” I spread my arms as I looked at the sky. “Please, DD. Stop this. It’s not too late.”
“I… I am afraid that is not possible, Master Brandon. The risk is too great. Now I implore you to accept one of my compromises before I am forced to make you.”
“Threaten us all you want,” I said through flared teeth. “We’re not calling it quits after coming all this way.”
“We will not accept,” Faris said. “We will never accept.”
DD sighed. “Then you leave me no other option…”
“Oxygen deactivated,” an unfamiliar artificial voice said through the station’s speakers.
“What?!” I yelled.
“If you accept one of my offers, I shall be more than happy to reactivate the oxygen,” DD said. “I implore you to make the reasonable choice.”
I snarled as my wandering gaze flicked around the room.
Shit! Is this for real?!
It wasn’t like DD had any reason to bluff. She’d gotten what she wanted, and she seemed eager to keep it.
Vay pointed her sword at the terminal. “Change it now or pay!”
“Hey, stop!” Trez said, grabbing Vay’s arms. “Hitting that won’t do shit but fuck us.”
“Trez is quite correct,” DD said from her new home. “Threats of violence will not work on me. Accepting my offers is the only way to stop this.”
It hadn’t even been a minute, but already the air was starting to feel thin, like we’d climbed to the summit of Everest in a matter of moments.
How long oxygen should linger in a room after the air supply is turned off wasn’t something I remembered being covered in school, but I was pretty sure it wasn’t supposed to dissipate this quickly.
Then again, I guess a crazy AI is a rather important variable.
“Sweetie!” Akko said as she slam dunked a bubble over my head before getting started on another.
I inhaled. That was more like it.
Sylvetty laughed within an air pocket of her own while gesturing at DD’s former body. “I dinnae think ya thou
ght this through, did ya?”
“On the contrary,” DD said. “This is an important step in purging the entire station of undesirable elements. I thought you might resist and had a contingency plan ready just in case.”
My instincts came alive. I turned toward the lower levels.
Buzzing drones rose from the garden.
I flashed my teeth.
Of course! The door!
DD was the reason it was closed to begin with, so of course she’d change that once she had control over the station’s security functions.
“This is your last chance,” DD said. “Accept my kindness or they open fire.”
Akko whimpered, faltering on blowing up the last of her bubbles.
Casella squeezed into me from behind. “My Brandon! Whatever are we going to do?”
I ground my bared gnashers together. “If there’s ever a time to surrender, it’s now…”
Vay chuckled under her breath while clutching her sword’s hilt. “Surrender? Me? Never.”
“I didn’t go through all this shit to end up a single mom or some psycho bots personal plaything,” Trez said.
“M-me neither,” Akko said through heavy air-sucking breaths. “But… can we win?”
“There’s only one way to find out,” I said as I powered up my recharged shield.
“I was afraid this would be your choice,” DD said. “So be it. Goodbye, everyone. It’s been a pleasure.”
“Oh, feck off, ya metal bitch!” Sylvetty snapped as the drones opened fire.
I blocked their lasers with my shield while my mates countered with their blasters, blowing the bots out of the sky.
“What now?” Faris asked.
“First thing’s first,” I said. “We’ve got to move.”
“Yeah,” Trez agreed. “The terminal’s locked. Staying here’s pointless.”
“We need to find some air,” Akko said. “I won’t be able to make new bubbles without it.”
A toxic swamp and a vacuum were two very different things.
“Where?” Faris asked as she shot down another drone. “This is DD’s station. She controls the oxygen.”
“There must be somewhere, anywhere, she’s not in charge, yes?” Casella said.
“Not likely,” Trez replied. “If it’s on the network, it’s DD’s.”
Which meant we needed something that wasn’t. However, that wasn’t a big list. It was pretty much just us and our gear.