“I said we would talk when we got somewhere safe, now is the best time.” A muffled sound she couldn’t understand, then Bash responded. “Stop using her as an excuse!”
Loud voices yanked her from the peacefulness she’d found. Blinking, she realized they weren’t at the colony anymore. A quick glance around the room, taking in the neutral colors and minimalistic styles, told her she was in a Resistance safe house. Pushing herself up in the bed, she stretched tight muscles.
Her right cheek throbbed, and a memory of the fight with Lieutenant General Rok’Sha slammed into her. Freya remembered pinning her in an arm bar hold, but not much after that. Somehow she’d escaped and then a shock of pain shot through her chest as darkness engulfed her. Glancing down, she pulled the collar of Bash’s t-shirt down, revealing large purple welts. If she didn’t know better, she’d think Rok’Sha hit her with stun blasts, but how?
“ERIC, I know you can hear me. Get the hell out here.”
Was he really arguing with his own AI? With a heaving sigh, she slid her legs over the edge of the bed and stood. Not bothering with clothes since she couldn’t sense anyone else in the house, she headed out to see what the fuss was about.
The wall display in front of the couch had blue numbers and letters scrolling down it. Bash stood with one hand clenched in his messy hair. His beard jutted out in all directions like he’d been running his fingers through it. Standing with his face several centimeters from the screen while squinting at it.
Numbers swirled and reformed until a blue face appeared. “Freya, you’re awake. How are you feeling?”
Bash’s head snapped around to look at her, then shot a glare at the AI. “Seriously? You are literally inside of me and couldn’t be bothered to answer my questions, but she shows up and there you are. You suck.” He joined her, taking several seconds to look her over. ERIC ignored his theatrics and remained focused on her too. “Are you okay? How is your pain?”
“Manageable, what’s going on here?” Her finger pointed from him to the screen and back.
“ERIC and I have a difference of opinion.” Growling, he stomped over to the replicator then returned with an enormous plate of food. “If I get fat, you’ll have to make more upgrades.”
Mouth agape, she dropped on the couch and rubbed her temple.
“I already told you, because of the energy expenditure, that’s not possible. Analyzing how your body is responding to the upgrades, you’re burning energy reserves at a higher rate than you’re consuming.”
A low growl rumbled through the room. Bash pointed to his stomach with his free hand. “This is what I’m talking about. I’ve eaten three meals since we got here and my stomach is demanding more.” Taking a bite of bread, he sat next to her. “Go ahead, tell her what you did without warning me.”
This was like a lover’s spat on the daily drama broadcast shows most civilians watched. She’d learned about them recently when entering the condo that O’Paka stayed in. Every night O’Paka watched them. It was like an emotional addiction for her friend.
“I made necessary upgrades.” ERIC’s response made sense to her.
“No, don’t play it off like you did a tiny programming update. You changed my skeletal structure and didn’t give me so much as a warning.”
“It’s the only reason you survived.”
“Okay, both of you start from the beginning.” Freya cut them off.
Bash recounted the changes ERIC made at the colony, then added how he’d absorbed the blasters and taken over her fight after hitting her with a stun blast.
“You blindly shot at me during a fight with a blaster?” Freya accused him as she glared.
“Oh no, don’t you start too. He told me to, citing a ninety-seven percent chance he would hit the lady’s ass you were kicking and not you.”
“I didn’t anticipate her telekinesis. In my original analysis, it wasn’t noted in any personnel files.”
“Honestly, I didn’t know of another confirmed instance.” ERIC’s eyebrows were closer together than she remembered. Wait, was that a wrinkle between them? That stun blast must have hit harder than she realized if she was hallucinating emotional expressions in an AI face.
“And why is he so hungry?” Rubbing her eyebrow, she tried to process everything they told her.
“The amount of energy needed for the nanites to adapt in the moment is astronomical. Combine that with the nutritional properties of replicated food, your appetite must increase to sustain the new adaptability. I haven’t mentioned the supplements you’ll need yet.”
His hand halfway to setting his plate in the reclamation unit, he spun on ERIC. “Supplements? What else are you hiding?”
“Nothing, but this is unprecedented. When you created the nanites and me, there wasn’t much information outside of theory. The result is a learn as we go process, and my latest conclusion is the need to add specific elements.”
This was what she worried about. They had the knowledge of using artificial intelligence, but nothing on what could happen as it learned. The Government outlawed technology like this and most women were against the idea because of the current power struggles and injustices.
“What else does he need to sustain his current level of functionality?”
“I absorbed enough trulium at the colony, but there were a few I didn’t locate.”
ERIC listed off several compounds and elements, one which would be required routinely since it facilitated the breakdown and rebuild process. Scratching her chin, she thought about where they could procure them from. “I’ll be right back.” She patted Bash’s leg, then returned to the bedroom. Fishing through her clothes still lying on the floor, she pulled out her handheld and tossed them into the cleaning drawer.
Sitting on the bed, she pulled her legs underneath her and scrolled through Resistance locations ARI hadn’t compromised. ERIC’s face popped up on her device as her finger poked his nose. A yelp escaped her as she dropped the device on the floor.
Bash appeared in the doorway, a look of concern on his face. He picked up her device and rolled his eyes when he noticed the display. “Seriously! She said she would be right back.”
“You hit her with a stun blast. There is a thirty percent chance of adverse effects and a point five percent chance of concussion. Per medical guidelines, she shouldn’t be alone for the next twenty-four hours.” ERIC’s face appeared on the small screen on the wall.
“This is exactly what I was talking about. He’s being overbearing, which I’ve warned him you don’t like.” Bash pointed his finger at the screen. “I caught him watching you sleep!”
“She wasn’t sleeping-“
“That’s enough from both of you.” Shooting both of them death stares, she snatched her handheld from him and resumed her search. Only one colony contained manufacturing processes. They could get it from there. Waves of ice ran through her. “Is my chip transmitting?”
“From the best we can tell, yes. We disabled the location services inside the safehouse, but if we get near a network amplifier, they’ll pick your signal up again.”
At least her thoughts were her own again, but the irony wasn’t lost on her. A telepath who didn’t like her thoughts being listened to. Holding up the handheld, she showed it to Bash and ERIC. “That’s inconvenient. If we go here, we won’t have long to get the supplies we need before ARI or Crimson shows up. I don’t know if we can lose another colony, especially not the last stronghold. Is there a way to get a message to Nova for a last stand?”
“Not without giving up our location. The best we can do right now is monitor movements and the occasional broadcast.” Bash sat beside her, wrapping an arm around her and pulling her into his side. Setting his chin on top of her head, she melted into him. “I’m glad you’re okay.”
Pain constricted her chest at his words. Her eyes itched as tears welled up. Wrapping her arms around him, she hugged him tight as more negativity rained down on her. She didn’t deserve him. They couldn’t hide out at this safe house forever, even if they wouldn’t drive each other to insanity. The enemy could find them and everything they’d worked for would be in vain. Besides, neither of them could stand by while the government violated a citizen’s basic rights.
“What do we still need as evidence for the epic reveal?” She needed to think about something else. Right now, the idea of staying with him seemed impossible. She couldn’t see a future where they could live in peace and happiness. A thread of guilt ran through her. What was she thinking when she’d vowed to do her best to make this work? The best thing for him was impossible, and the second best meant he needed to stay far away from her.
“The virus we unleashed at Gu’Lani should give me access to anything I need. If that doesn’t work, I can always walk into Ray’Nia Base and unleash ERIC on them.”
“That’s a last resort. If anything goes wrong, we won’t make it out of that, and everything has gone wrong lately.”
Secure Safe House: Bash
A rumble echoed through the compact room as his stomach growled. If he kept eating at this pace, not only would he gain a million pounds, the replicator would run out of resources. While the reclamation unit could recycle many needed elements, the smart house’s ability to source requirements from the environment wouldn’t be able to keep up.
“At this rate, I’ll have to start eating the house.”
“I would have to advise against that.” ERIC’s face was distorted from the awkward angle of the wall display across the room.
“That was sarcasm, again.” The AI was picking up new concepts all the time, but understanding the finer side of language was still beyond him.
“Freya’s been in there for a while. We should check on her.”
“Trust me, she’s fine. She’s probably taking extra time because she needs a break from you.” Guilt flashed through him at the words as ERIC’s face swirled then disappeared. “I didn’t mean it like that. You’re just coming off a little strong.”
He didn’t reappear, and Bash chided himself even though ERIC could hear it. It was Bash’s fault he’d gone into overprotective mode. The tab next to him lit up. Pulling up the alert, he read through the orders.
“ERIC, you should go get Freya.”
A few minutes later, she sat at the table near him. “What happened?”
“The Sovereign just put out an alert for all combat soldiers to report for battle. I think you upset your mother when you didn’t stay put like she wanted.”
“So she’s going full scale attack?”
“Since we were worried that revealing the location to another colony would give her reason to attack, we might as well go now. At least we have a chance of warning the leaders there of the impending attack.”
Her face darkened for a minute, then she spoke. “ERIC, what kind of protections do you have for Bash and yourself?”
The blue face materialized on the tab. “It might consume the majority of the resources at the safe house, but I can upgrade weapons with anything replicated. More cartridges for the blaster would be first. For defense, there is one element required that isn’t available here, but it is at that colony.”
“Then your first task is getting that and making the upgrades. How long will it take?”
“A minute or two. If Bash isn’t being attacked, then I can do the upgrade as he focuses on other things.”
Freya walked over to the replicator and started making weapons. “What do you need to access the information your virus collected?”
“Five minutes and a console, or ten with my tab.” Another growl rolled through his stomach. Slamming his fist on the table, he glared at ERIC’s face on the device. “And third dinner.”
At this point, his brain was screaming at the idea of eating another meal. He’d made too many decisions about food already. With cement in his feet, he joined Freya at the replicator and she handed him a bowl of soup. Looking at it, he saw sausage and potatoes. A smile broke out on his face, matching the one on hers when he glanced at her. She remembered the soup he’d made her. Warmth spread through his chest
Setting the bowl securely on the table, he reached out to embrace her. Instead, she hopped into his arms, her legs wrapping around his waist. With everything going on, sometimes it felt like they didn’t have a moment to themselves, a minute out of the day to focus on each other. Mine! Only Freya found a way to soothe him, they were meant for each other.
“You’re hugging, aren’t you?” ERIC’s voice had both of them pulling apart.
“Yes, we were.” He rubbed the back of his neck.
“Why?” the question floored him. He’d suspected that ERIC was trying to understand human interaction and emotion with his recent stalker-like behavior with Freya.
She answered for him as her arms tightened. “It’s for comfort and affection. There’s so much going on right now that makes the future uncertain, and an embrace like this brings a lot of wonderful emotions. That and I like touching his muscles.”
A snort escaped at her words. “I like it when you touch my muscles, but with all this food, you might have to resign yourself to feeling a new type of curve on me.”
Freya playfully smacked his chest as she climbed down and returned to replicating an arsenal. Resigned to eating another meal, he went over the plan in his mind. If they hadn’t lost Deja and Em’Ra in the same raid, they could have leveraged them. Or failed miserably trying to. The Sovereign might be beyond that point right now.
After he finished eating, ERIC incorporated the weapons Freya created. Reviewing their plan of attack, they both ended up in the bedroom. Freya slipped on her usual fighting garb, all black with a long dark grey vest that had hidden pockets. Unlike her, he didn’t have an ass-kicking outfit, so he grabbed well-fitting black clothes. He was glad he’d prepared this safe house as a backup in case the other one was compromised. Since Freya was unconscious when he brought her here, he’d driven them in a small transport, but there were two hover bikes cloaked around back.
Dressed to kill, they made the drive to Gu’Tana Colony. If they were lucky, Nova would be at the other colony, and they would be able to slip in, grab what they needed, and then warn the leaders of the impending attack if they didn’t know already.
Bash cloaked their hover bikes as ERIC worked on getting into the colony’s system. A few minutes later, he got the all clear, and they approached the entrance. Holding his breath, he expected alarms to sound or shouting, but the door opened as they approached. Red transparent lines formed in the vision of his right eye and arrows lit up, revealing the path he needed to take to the supply storage.
Freya tapped his shoulder and headed in the opposite direction. He didn’t know what she was up to aside from warning the leaders of the impending attack. Focusing on his own mission, he followed little arrows until he arrived at the room. Waiting for ERIC to open the door, he felt an itchy sensation. A round piece of metal protruded from the back of his left hand. About to poke it, he heard a soft hum surround him and his hand changed size right before his eyes. It was a disguised cloak.
Once inside the massive room, Bash took in all the products they were producing. The research alone was staggering. They slated blasters that were twice as efficient to start production soon, and they were trying to reverse engineer the cloaking devices he’d designed.
A yellow circle flashed in his vision, and he headed that way. Tall shelves full of containers of colorful liquids and powders filled the length of one wall. On the other side were gigantic labeled containers. Nearing the one ERIC indicated, the skin on his arm pulled apart and the robotic tendril shot out, removed the stopper on the bottle, and sucked up the contents.
A shiver ran through every cell of his body as the nanites reacted to the element. Not wanting to disturb his process, Bash strolled through the supplies, looking for anything that caught his eye.
We can proceed to the next stage of the mission. He nodded and followed the red path in his vision to the control room. The door opened, and a woman stood at the console. Bash walked in like everything was normal and plopped into a chair in front of another display.
“You’re late, my break started twenty minutes ago.”
“Sorry, I started my period.” He used a line he’d heard before, hoping it worked.
“Whatever.” The woman rushed out.
“That was too easy.” Bash muttered to himself. Pulling up the pathways from the virus, watched as ERIC scanned the information, pulling out anything of importance. The information pulled from Crimson’s personal devices during the raid was almost enough alone. Sitting back, he watched as the AI hacked through firewalls and broke down their encryptions. Code scrolled down the screen faster than he could read.
I’m in. Thankful that ERIC could hack at lightning speeds, he watched as documents and images appeared on the display. Because of his eidetic memory, he caught mental images of several things. One image showed an industrial-looking transport on a black background with tiny white lights behind it. Next to it showed the same machine on grass near a water line. Schematics on the bottom of the page revealed it was a vertical lift craft. Uneasiness crashed into his stomach as the evidence confirmed their fears. They weren’t alone.
Darkness engulfed him as the power in the room died. What happened?
I set off a trap. The connection is severed and I believe they shut down the network amplifiers.
Shit, that means we can’t leak the information to the public.
Correct and ARI is about to breach this colony.
Bash growled as he kicked the console. This kept getting worse. The emergency lights flashed on as he jumped out of his seat. He got a few steps before a strange sensation on his left side made him stop. A grey liquid was erupting through his cybernetic skin. It covered his arm and hand, then flowed up onto his shoulder. Panic seized his chest as the material quickly engulfed him until it covered his nose, mouth, and eyes.