“No. Stop.” Silva reached out and put her hand on Rika’s gun. “I’m sorry, Rika. If you can beat Discipline, you can’t tip your hand now. Besides, I saw you hold out for half a minute with Stavros cranking it up on you. I know you can do it—I just don’t want to admit that he’s had me under his thumb for so long, when I could have broken free.”
<Even though they all think no one listens, is this wise?> Rika checked in with Niki.
<Don’t worry. Barne hooked me up with a few of the Marauders’ scrambling techniques. I think they’re working,> Niki replied.
<’Think’?>
<Well, if the goon squad knocks down the door, we’ll know.>
Rika decided to brave it. Worst-case scenario, she’d have to kill Stavros now, and then rampage through his upper echelon; if she could convince the other mechs to join her, it would be a breeze.
“Well, it’s not like it’s easy,” Rika said. “And even if you kill the person who has triggered your compliance chip, it doesn’t stop the Discipline.”
“Shit, really?” Silva asked. “Now I’m glad I didn’t fight it.”
“So how did you manage, then?” Aaron wanted to know.
“Someone else showed up with the codes,” Rika admitted. “He shut it down after I killed the bitch who had cranked it up to eleven; it was sort of a complicated scenario. Then I got unchipped and everything—until this.”
“Well, welcome to ‘this’,” Aaron concluded. “Stavros doesn’t share the codes, so if you kill him, you’re screwed.”
“Yup,” Wyona agreed with a winning smile. “Screwed just like the rest of us. Why don’t we deal you in, and you can tell us all about what it’s like on the outside these days?”
CRACKING THE CODE
STELLAR DATE: 04.02.8949 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Mech Bay #3, The Isthmus, Sparta
REGION: Peloponnese System, The Politica, Praesepe Cluster
The other mechs had all racked themselves and were in enforced sleep cycles, but Rika still sat at the table, thinking about how to solve the problem the other mechs posed.
Or, at the very least, the problem Silva posed.
Chances were that when Rika went after Stavros, Silva would be nearby. He would use Discipline on her, and if Rika killed Stavros while Silva was in its throes, she might as well sentence her friend to death.
It was also likely that other mechs would be nearby. Aaron said that he and John often guarded Stavros.
She needed a way to counteract Discipline for all the mechs on The Isthmus.
<You wouldn’t happen to have a few hundred other AI friends out there?> Rika asked Niki, her mouth twisted in a wry smile. <We could just plop them into everyone, and then no more Discipline.>
<Not that I can get here in short order. Plus, most of these mechs can’t take an AI; there’s no override system built into their compliance setups.>
Rika wondered who Niki was that she could draw in hundreds of other AIs to her cause. That thought led to another, and then something came to mind that she had been meaning to ask.
<Niki, why is it that you ratted us out to Captain Sarn when we were on the Persephone Jones? You said you were there against your will…we could have been allies.>
To her surprise, Niki laughed. <It was a crazy gamble; one I still can’t believe paid off. I had been trying to get off that ship for months. Problem was, Sarn didn’t really deal with a lot of savory types; it would have been out of the frying pan and into the fire.>
<I suppose I can see that,> Rika allowed.
<So when your team came aboard, I spotted an opportunity. I let Barne circumvent me, and then reported him to the captain after the fact. When the captain shifted to Kestry, your knowledge of me prompted your team to yank me so I couldn’t cause more problems.>
<You played Barne?> Rika asked. <Does he know that?>
<No, and I’d appreciate it if you kept that to yourself. He has a fragile ego,> Niki replied.
<We talking about the same Barne? Nevermind. Wasn’t there a risk that we’d just destroy you?>
<There was,> Niki granted. <But I hoped that you weren’t the sort to just kill a defenseless sentient. I made sure that Leslie could make it to me, and then before she yanked my core, I set a number of subroutines to run amok and kept the captain busy during your exit.>
<Huh,> Rika grunted as she considered the implications. <So you landed us on Kestry? Nice going.>
<Well, it was the obvious choice. Sarn couldn’t land on Baqara because of the inspections, and Kestry was nearby. I suppose, in hindsight, your friend Silva probably had a hand in orchestrating that bit—making sure we couldn’t land on the moon.>
It made sense. Silva had needed a scenario she could control. Kestry Station would have been easier than the moon. It gave Rika hope. Though her old friend was worn down, she was still a smart woman and a cunning warrior. When the time came, she’d do the right thing.
Silva, please do the right thing.
<I’ve been examining how Stavros triggers Discipline,> Niki continued after a moment. <I’d hoped that when he used it on you I could decrypt his codes and work out a way to stop it for all the mechs.>
Rika hadn’t even considered that possibility. <I was just thinking if I could take him by surprise and kill him before he triggered it, we’d all be OK.>
<I wouldn’t count on that. There are failsafes, and I wouldn’t put it past someone like Stavros to have a deadman’s switch; he dies, then so do all the mechs—plus his goons.>
<Well, the nano you dropped on Silva has led me to believe that each mech has a distinct code,> Niki replied.
<That sounds like a bad thing. Very much the opposite of good news.>
<I thought so, too, but then I realized that there’s a common decryption key.>
Rika gave a wan smile. <A master access code. That sounds more like it. Now where would it be?>
<I have a suspicion.>
Rika threw her head back and stared at the mech bay’s overhead. <Stars, Niki! You’re killing me, here; spit it out.>
<I think it’s built into Stavros’s DNA.>
<How did you work this out?> Rika asked.
<Well, I ran a paternity test for Amy after Stavros…used you.>
The memory triggered Rika’s gag reflex. <I think I need to rinse my mouth out a thousand times. Ugh. Does this mean you have a good sample for decryption?>
<Close. I need the other side of the system—the part that sends the right codes to the right mech.>
<Don’t tell me it’s some other bodily fluid.>
<No, that would be easier. It’s his hair; those little curls are his transmitters. I would imagine that he has the biomarkers in the roots. That’s how he decrypts and encrypts.>
Rika rose from the bench and realized that there wasn’t a sink in the mech bay. “Dammit, I really need a glass of water.”
<There’s a crew galley down the corridor.>
<So I need to grab some of Stavros’s hair…wish I’d known that earlier.>
<Well, not just any hair; it’ll need to be the stuff on his head.>
Rika paced back and forth across the room as she considered how she could get her hands on Stavros’s hair—other than the obvious. <Once I get it, how long will it take you to analyze it?>
<I won’t be able to,> Niki told her regretfully. <I don’t have the tools in here. You’re going to need to get it to Barne when he arrives.>
<Shit, so I can’t just yank out his hair and have the codes in short order?>
<No, it’ll probably take a day. It’ll have to be fresh, too; seal it up, once you get it. If he is using biotech, the markers will degrade quickly.>
Rika couldn’t imagine any sure-fire way that she could get Stavros’s hair, secure it against decay, and deliver it to Barne in short order without being ridiculously suspicious.
<I think I have an idea about how we can get it,> Niki said. <But you’re no
t going to like it.>
<Niki, so far there’s absofrickinlutely nothing I like about this mission.>
<Prepare to find a new cuss word.>
CATCHING SOME TAIL
STELLAR DATE: 03.29.8949 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Jentoo Station, 75 AU from Peloponnese star
REGION: Peloponnese System, Politica, Praesepe Cluster
Four days earlier…
Chase was pouring a cup of coffee in the pinnace’s small galley when Leslie walked in, returning from her visit to the mod-shop on Jentoo Station.
He gave Leslie an encouraging smile. “It looks good on you.”
“Which: the tail, or the skimpy outfit?” Leslie asked with an uncertain smile.
“Pretty sure he meant the ears,” Barne supplied as he walked past in the passageway.
“When we’re done with this op, I’m getting this shit removed,” Leslie said. “I really thought the tail would help with balance, but it’s throwing me off instead. And the ears look stupid.”
“You just have to get used to it,” Chase coaxed. “And try not to hunch over; it doesn’t look very attractive.”
“Why, you…” Leslie muttered. “Why don’t you try being the sexy performance artist for once?”
“You were the one who said you can sing and dance. I can’t sing, and Barne can’t do either; that puts you on the spot,” Chase answered.
“I’ll show you ‘the spot’,” Leslie grumbled as Patty walked into the room.
“Oh, wow! You look great, Leslie.” Patty appraised her with a mischievous smile. “You never looked quite right before—like you were only halfway through a change. You should grow your hair into a mane too, get the sides removed. Or fur! Yeah, just go all fur.”
Chase covered his mouth, uncertain if Patty was messing with Leslie, but loving the look on the scout’s face: it was pure horror.
Leslie shot Patty a dark look, and Chase realized something else was going on. <Is this a fetish of hers or something?> he sent privately to Patty.
<Oh, yeah, totally. She confided it in me awhile back and swore me to secrecy.>
Chase shook his head. <You’re not doing very good at the whole secrecy part.>
<Me? I didn’t start this. It came up on its own,> Patty replied innocently.
<No, I’m pretty sure you started this. You suggested the tail.>
<No,> Patty claimed. <Get your memory checked. It was you.>
<Well, you still told me it was a thing for her when you weren’t supposed to.>
A look of consternation crossed Patty’s face. <Oh, yeah. Damn.>
“No fur,” Barne chimed in from the galley’s entrance. “It gets stuck in your armor’s actuators. It’ll also chafe and wear off in spots.”
Chase snorted. “If Rika were here she’d ask how you know so much about fur and armor, Barne, but I’m too nice for that.”
“She could wear some sort of soft gel layer over top,” Patty suggested.
“I’m right here!” Leslie loudly reminded them. “And I’m not getting fur.”
“Shame,” Patty sighed as she left the galley, slipping past Barne and turning back to grin at Leslie. “You’d look good in fur. I’d do you if you had fur.”
Leslie carefully pulled her tail to the side and sat at the table, shaking her head. “What’s gotten into her?”
Chase took a sip of his coffee. “Probably thinks we’re not coming back from this one.”
“Plus, she’s totally into you,” Barne stated. “Anyone with eyes can see that.”
“She is?” Leslie asked. “I always…. Huh.”
Chase hid his smirk behind his coffee cup. “For being the sneaky scout on the team, you sure missed some pretty big signals, there.”
Leslie put her elbows onto the table and lowered her face into her hands. “I was kinda occupied with Jerry, Chase…and then occupied with not having Jerry. I haven’t been paying attention to who’s been…” Leslie paused and gave a soft laugh. “Chasing my tail.”
“There are so many delicious euphemisms in our future,” Barne said conspiratorially, winking at Chase.
“Careful, big man,” Leslie warned. “Or I’ll tear your arm off and beat you with it.”
“That’s Rika’s schtick,” Barne replied. “You’ll have to do something new, like whip me with your tail.”
“Oh!” Chase exclaimed. “Now that would be cool. You should get it weaponized! Make it so that it can extend way longer, and then equip it with razor-edged spikes or something.”
“Chase, seriously,” Leslie voiced condescendingly, rolling her head to the side and peering up at him. “If I’m close enough to the enemy for that to work, I’ll just be shot full of holes. We don’t tend to fight unarmed opponents very often.”
“Yeah, I suppose you’re right,” Chase agreed sounding disappointed.
<Ten minutes ‘til we lift off,>
“So, you gonna wear that little two-piece dancer’s outfit the whole trip to The Isthmus?” Barne asked Leslie.
“I guess,” Leslie shrugged. “They didn’t have time to give me a detachable tail, and I don’t feel like cutting holes in my pants.”
Barne grinned. “Sweet.”
That was when Leslie threw the pepper grinder at him.
AMY
STELLAR DATE: 04.02.8949 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Philip Kirkus Academy, The Isthmus, Sparta
REGION: Peloponnese System, Politica, Praesepe Cluster
“Amy,” Rika whispered from a shadowed recess in the corridor.
The girl stopped and turned, looking about for the speaker.
“In here, Amy,” Rika directed, reaching an arm out to beckon the girl closer.
“Rika?” Amy sounded confused. “What are you doing here? You left.”
She had expected Stavros to have told Amy that she was on the Isthsmus. Just like him, lies and double-speak to play everyone off one another.
Rika was crouched down in a shadowed alcove, her armor’s camouflage hiding her from the teachers and students at Amy’s academy. As Amy drew closer, Rika could see that the girl was upset. “I did, but I came back. I came back for you.”
Amy’s eyes lit up. “You did? For me? Is it just you?”
“Right now it’s just me, but the others will be along soon.”
Amy looked back down the hall. “Are they coming here? To The Isthmus? How did you get into the Academy? If father finds you here, he’ll be upset.”
“That’s a lot of questions, Amy.” Rika reached out a hand and took the girl’s. “It’s OK. Your father knows I’m here; I’m working for him right now.”
Amy snatched her hand back. “What? Why? You left me, Rika! You and Leslie and Patty, you all left me!”
“Hush, Amy,” Rika soothed. “You’re right, we did. But we had no choice; you must know that. Your father was going to win no matter what we did. But the moment we got back to our people, we started working on how to return for you.”
“To do what?” Amy wanted to know. “Will you take me to your Marauders?”
Rika smiled and reached out to touch Amy’s cheek. “Far better than that. I know where your mother is. Do you remember your mother?”
Amy’s eyes filled with tears, and she nodded quickly. “I do…I was young, but I still remember her from before the war. Father has a picture of her too; he doesn’t know, but I copied it. I always keep it close.”
After a furtive glance up and down the corridor, Amy reached into her shirt and pulled out a small, rumpled picture. The image it portrayed was barely discernable anymore, but Rika could make out Silva, standing in the restaurant she had worked in before the war. Her two boys were on either side of her, and a young girl was in her arms—only one or two years old, but clearly Amy.
They all looked so happy; it broke Rika’s heart to think of what had befallen the small family.
But that was her mission. To save what was left of it, and stop people like Stavros from destroying it any more.
“Where is she? Why hasn’t she come for me?” Amy demanded.
“She’s been trying,” Rika promised. “I only learned where she was very recently. Soon I’ll take you to her.”
“But father…” Amy worried aloud, looking back into the corridor. “You can’t just take me, he’ll be very angry.”
Rika grinned. “You got kidnapped not too long ago. It can happen again.”
Amy nodded slowly, a sad but determined look in her eyes.
“I’m sorry I brought you back to your father. I couldn’t stop it…I wanted to. But we’re going to fix this; we’ll make it right. Don’t be sad.”
“It’s my fault,” Amy said in a small voice. “I’m so used to not telling…maybe if I’d told you sooner—”
“No,” Rika interrupted firmly. “This is not your fault—it’s your father’s fault. Now, I need you to do something for me. I need you to get one of your father’s hairs. It has to be fresh, so get it from a comb or a brush after he gets ready in the morning. I need one with the root attached. You’ll have to seal it up too; put it in something where air can’t get to it.”
“Like a little vial?”
“That would be perfect,” Rika approved.
“What do you need it for?” Amy wondered.
“I’m going to free everyone he has enslaved,” Rika revealed with a broad grin. “Can you meet me back here tomorrow? Around the same time?”
Amy nodded. “I can. I should go, though; I’m just supposed to be going to the bathroom. My instructor is going to wonder what’s taking so long.”
Rika nodded. “OK. I’ll see you tomorrow. Stay safe.”
LITTLE THIEF
STELLAR DATE: 04.02.8949 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: Basileus Residence, The Isthmus, Sparta
REGION: Peloponnese System, Politica, Praesepe Cluster
Amy had barely been able to concentrate for the rest of the day. Her instructor had scolded her twice for not paying attention, and then a third time for failing to understand the equations they were to practice.
She was lucky that her father was the basileus, or she may have gotten a beating. The instructors held a very firm belief that pain made the mind sharper.