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“What’s wrong?” She bit her lip.
He hesitated, staring into her eyes. “Tweak went to inform Flint what we just learned. A large group of pirate ships grouped together isn’t normal behavior. Nor is attacking stations, but they just attacked the Zippo. It’s noteworthy, and it tells us there’s a hell of lot more pirate ships around here than just the two we saw.”
“Oh.”
“It tends to make us nervous. The last thing we need is to fly into a trap. The Star has great defenses but a dozen or so ships swarming us would be a problem. I’m certain we’d still win, but our vessels are important to us. The last thing we need is for the Star to take heavy damage. We use it a lot to haul the larger vessels we find back to Garden. That won’t be possible if the Star needs months of repairs.”
“Got it. Your life sounds very dangerous at times.”
“Says the woman who strapped herself into a digger rig.”
He always knew exactly what to say to amuse her. “True enough.”
He leaned in to brush a kiss on her lips. She wished they were alone; she could almost feel the other cyborg watching them. Sky eased back and smiled at her. “Don’t look so worried, Mick. I promise that we can handle whatever comes at us. Cyborgs are tough.”
“I believe you.”
“Good.”
Sky turned to the coms again, reaching out to another station located in sector seven in the Yornton System. She listened, amazed at how he seemed to know just what to say to make the communication officer open up to him. Then again, she thought ruefully, it worked with her. Within minutes he had the stranger chatting with him as if they were old friends.
A part of her wondered if he’d reached out to her looking for information. Not that she could have told him much, unless he’d wanted to learn about mining a dead planet with hellish storms. In the end, she decided it didn’t matter why he’d taken the time to talk to her. They were together, married, and she wouldn’t have it any other way.
“Say that again, Denny.” Sky’s tense tone tore her from her thoughts. “I don’t think I heard you right.”
“We had a carrier come in three days ago that suffered a cyborg attack. Can you believe that shit? At least that’s what the only survivor reported. The ship was banged up to hell and back, five crew dead, and he had to be rushed to the medical bay. Security interviewed him while he was being transported from docking to Medical, because the doctors didn’t know if they could patch him well enough to keep him alive for long. He ended up dying. Like it isn’t dangerous enough with pirates and those escaped defective androids, and now we’ve suddenly got fucking cyborgs?”
Sky cleared his throat. “I call bullshit. Everyone knows cyborgs were all killed on Earth. Maybe he mistook Markus Models for cyborgs? They’re both killing machines, right? I probably couldn’t tell an android from a cyborg. Could you?”
“Maybe.” Denny didn’t sound convinced, though. “I can only tell you what I heard. The captain taken off that carrier was ranting about a few cyborgs who’d boarded his vessel, and he said they started killing everyone. He blew out the cargo they were hauling, trying to get them to go after that instead of him. He had to set a self-destruct order on the computer to make them detach. There’s talk about Earth Government sending us a battle cruiser, since it happened in this system. Why the fuck would they think about doing that if it’s not true? The military even contacted the station owner to speak to him directly. Earth Government is taking it seriously, friend. The entire station is on red alert. We’re all scared. Everyone knows cyborgs only come after humans for spare body parts. And I want to keep my dick.”
“That’s fucked up,” Sky muttered. “Did you see the attack on sensors?”
“No. There’s twelve planets in this system. It happened in a blind spot on the outer edge, behind a moon. We got a response from the military not five minutes after that report was sent to Earth. They fucking ignored us when a pilot spotted dozens of pirate ships near the farthest moon two days before that! They weren’t going to do shit about pirates amassing, but once the cyborgs were reported, they were all over it. That proves that cyborgs are still alive, right? I guess that promise from EG that all of them were destroyed had to be a cover-up. Not that it’s surprising. I was also ordered to contact the three colonies stationed on the planets here to put them on red alert, also. Avoid this system, my friend. We’re supposed to shoot first and ask questions later.”
“Will do. I’m going to go tell my captain and have him change course. Thanks for the warning, Denny.”
“Any time. I wish I was on your freighter heading away from here.”
Sky ended the call and shot to his feet.
Mick stood, too. “Do you have cyborgs in that area?”
“No, and we sure as hell wouldn’t attack like that. I need to go talk to Flint.” He glanced over at Hoover. “Keep Mick company, but if you touch my wife or flirt with her, I’ll kick your ass. Got it?”
She wanted to protest, but Sky fled the room before she could.
Hoover grinned at her from where he sat. “We’re finally alone.”
“Behave, Hoover. You heard Sky.”
“I did. I think I could take him a fight, though. Are you sure you don’t want two husbands?” He lifted his hands and wiggled his fingers. “Two words for you. Foot rubs.”
She chuckled, amused and pleasantly surprised that he had a sense of humor. “One man is more than enough for me.”
He let his hands drop. “Fair enough. I’m on the Star for a reason. I’ll find my own Earther one day. You think I chose communications without a motive? This shit is boring.”
“Can I ask you something?”
“Sure. Anything.”
She hesitated. “Why was Sky so certain that it wasn’t cyborgs who attacked that carrier? Do you always keep close tabs on where your other ships are?”
“It’s not that. It’s how it was attacked. We don’t kill without provocation. It also sounded sloppy, and a self-destruct order on a computer wouldn’t be a problem for our kind. We’d just hack into it and shut it down.”
She nodded, letting his words sink in. There was a lot about cyborgs she still needed to learn, but she to agree they came across as smart, organized, and pretty reasonable.
“Hey, don’t look worried, Mick. Sky was right. We can handle anything that comes our way. Do you want to listen in on authority alerts? That’s what I’m doing right now.”
“Sure.” The distraction sounded nice.
She got up and sat closer to Hoover. He switched something on his control pad, and then voices came from a speaker. Some random guy with a bored tone, listing off arrests made at some station.
Chapter Ten
Sky sat grim-faced in the Star’s conference room with Flint on his left. The monitors before them displayed the council members at their various locations. He wished he had brought Mick with him, but it wasn’t a good idea to put her before all of them just yet. They didn’t trust her, and this was a tense meeting already.
Zorus had paled at the news. “We didn’t attack a carrier, and we aren’t in that sector. It must be lies or a misconception. It wouldn’t be the first time it’s happened. Remember that human who fell into some type of fluid and it turned his skin blue? Humans thought he was a cyborg.”
Councilmen Coval and Rais sat side by side, transmitting from their shared home. “Perhaps more cyborgs escaped detention. We were able to get away from Earth with the help of Rora. It’s likely other humans sympathized with cyborgs still locked away in secret locations, and perhaps helped them escape.”
Rais nodded. “In that case, they may not have been aware most cyborgs successfully escaped from Earth, and therefore didn’t send out signals to find us. That’s how Coval and I reunited with our race. Earth Government wanted everyone to believe all cyborgs were executed. We may have believed that lie if Rora hadn’t known otherwise.”
Their human wife came into view, standing behind them. “I had friends who worked
security for the main facility you escaped from. They were the ones who told me the truth. That’s why I knew so many cyborgs had made it off the surface alive and got away.”
Blackie and Krell sat next to each other on another monitor. Sky wasn’t certain why they were together in the same room, but he knew Krell’s job involved threat assessment. He was called in when they had a situation where cyborgs might have to plot something major. Hunting for lost cyborgs would certainly fall under that category.
Krell leaned forward. “What kind of cargo was targeted? Do you know?”
Sky shook his head. “I didn’t ask. I was unnerved by the information, and after hearing how the military had responded… I wanted to share what I’d learned as quickly as possible.”
“It could be the Markus Models attempting to get our attention.” Blackie reached up and rubbed his temple. “They could have staged an attack pretending to be cyborgs to draw us to them, but instead have gained a military response.”
“They aren’t gray-skinned, which is what usually identifies our kind to humans.” Krell paused. “But they could have manipulated their appearance to fool the crew of that carrier. The Markus Models haven’t been able to find us. It stands to reason falsifying a cyborg attack might make us come to that location to investigate. A single crew member surviving long enough to report the attack is suspicious.”
“Cyborgs aren’t that incompetent,” Sky agreed. “If actual cyborgs had attacked a carrier, they would have taken control of all systems immediately. It would have been simple for our kind.”
“The Markus Models can also override the computer system of a carrier,” Councilwoman Atlana stated. “It makes sense that they likely staged a cyborg attack in the hopes we would come to their location. I vote to ignore the issue. Problem solved. They may have set a trap, but we won’t fall for the bait.”
Zorus didn’t look pleased. “What if it was cyborgs?”
Atlana arched her eyebrows. “Not our problem.”
“How can you say that?” Zorus stood, glaring at the monitor. “They could be our people, who may believe they are alone. If there’s even a slight chance, we must attempt to find them and bring them home. You replaced Jazel on the council to be a fairer voice, but you sound utterly heartless.”
“You’re being irrational,” Atlana sighed. “We’re not certain of the facts. Regardless, whoever they were, they murdered Earthers, drew the attention of the military, and are nowhere near Garden. We have enough current issues to deal with that have stretched our resources thin. I believe there’s an old Earther saying, ‘they made their beds and now they must lie in it’? We are not risking the safety of our people on only the possibility that the human survivor wasn’t misled.” She shook her head. “The risk is too great, even if we had absolute confirmation that they were our race. Earth military may already be involved. We don’t need that complication or to be anywhere near that kind of fight. I’m not heartless, Zorus. I wish to save lives. But we must do everything to avoid a conflict with EG military.”
“By leaving cyborgs out there alone to be slaughtered?”
“Unconfirmed cyborgs,” the councilwoman snapped back at Zorus. “Look at the few facts we’ve been presented. I’m doubtful they were cyborgs, and if they were, they are clearly unstable ones with a lack of intelligence.”
“Please cease. Arguing with each other is pointless,” Coval sighed. “The risk of going head-to-head with a battle cruiser isn’t appealing to anyone. We all want to find any cyborgs who survived and may be out in space alone, but not at the cost of what we’ve built. If they exist, I don’t know why they would attack that type of vessel. They are too large and owned by the government, which would draw military involvement. It wasn’t a smart target. It was very unlike something cyborgs would do.”
Sky nodded. “I agree.”
Flint turned to him with a scowl. “Then why are we holding this meeting? You implied it was possible. That’s why I reached out to the council.”
“Everyone always tells me to think more like a cyborg. So I did. This is also highly significant information. Earth is worried enough that they put the entire system on red alert and have them reporting directly to the military. The male I spoke to implied they were willing to send a battle cruiser. The time, expense, and headache of getting supplies to a vessel that large implies the EG are prepared to go to extremes to take us out.” He locked gazes with Zorus. “I don’t think they believed you when you told them you were the sole survivor of our race, when you were held in their prison. No offense.”
Zorus shot him a look. “It was more of a laboratory.”
Atlana rubbed the bridge of her nose and sighed. “What is your point, Sky? Do you think it was a cyborg attack or not? It sounds as if Earth Government is prepared to send battle cruisers now anytime a cyborg sighting is made.”
“My point is that Earth obviously wants to capture or kill our kind badly to take the attack seriously.” Sky hated to admit that. “That is alarming.”
“What is the soldier count on a battle cruiser?”
Krell answered Altana. “Without knowing the specific name of the vessel, anywhere from five to fifteen hundred military personnel could be aboard. It would be extremely difficult for Earth Government to send such a large vessel that far out into space without repeated resupplies. There are no stations large enough to be of service to accommodate their needs.”
“They would require a fleet of cargo carriers to follow them,” Rais stated. “Remember, they don’t know where we are, or how long it might take to find us. But as Sky said, they seem to be willing to go to extreme measures if we’re sighted.”
“They could put the soldiers in sleep stasis, cut down on the need for supplies.”
Zorus shook his head as Atlana spoke. “They wouldn’t be that stupid. Earth knows we could attack while only limited crew is awake, take over the vessel, and cease all life functions in the sleeping pods. Their troops would die without even putting on their uniforms.”
Krell nodded. “Murdering people while they sleep in pods is something Earth Government itself has done in the past. They would almost certainly reject that plan. It’s something right out of their own playbook.” He curled his lip in disgust. “They’d easily believe we’re capable of something that cowardly, as well.”
“We agree that this cyborg attack is likely false.” Atlana took a sip of something from a glass. “I vote that we don’t send any of ours to investigate. No good could come of it. As you stated, Sky. That entire system is on red alert. We need to avoid it.”
Zorus grumbled something under his breath but nodded. “I don’t like it, though.”
Sky sucked in a deep breath and blew it out. “I requested this council meeting for another reason, besides making you aware that Earth Government is willing to send battle cruisers for a cyborg sighting.”
“Now isn’t the time to lodge a complaint about your female being accused of spying for Earth.” Zorus narrowed his eyes, staring into the screen. “You were let off easy for the rules you broke to acquire the female. Otherwise, you’d be confined to quarters still.”
“Mick has nothing to do with this. This attack report had also gotten me thinking about the possibility that some cyborgs may have escaped Earth.” He glanced at Coval and Rais. “As you said, you knew to look for us, but other cyborgs may have believed the rumors that our race had been annihilated.”
Flint turned to him. “What’s your point?”
“The pirates have been unusually organized lately. Think about the facts we’ve learned so far: dozens of pirate ships amassed in that system, then days later, a so-called cyborg attack. The swarm pattern isn’t normal for them, and they’re not known for their intelligence. It’s almost as if they’ve had help…perhaps from someone who’s helping them think smarter and organize more effective attacks. I believe it’s something to consider and investigate.
“Then there’s the Zippo Station. Four of the pirates wore matching uni
forms and were going after the station’s main computer. That’s way beyond anything they’ve ever done before. They also looked different. And they shot each other to avoid being captured. It implies they had important information they were willing to die to protect. It got me thinking about all the pieces of this puzzle…
“What if one or more of our kind have joined with the pirates?” he asked quietly. “It’s possible the pirates were dressed in uniforms to imitate cyborgs, if they’re being led by some.”
Silence reigned as Sky took in the stunned expressions on all of their faces. He knew that suggestion go over well.
“No!” Zorus slammed his fist on his desk. “I refuse to believe cyborgs would work with pirates.”
Krell held up his hand. “As detestable as it seems, it is a possibility.”
“Why would you think that?” Blackie gawked at the man sitting next to him.
“The history of pirates comes to mind. They were once law-abiding Earth citizens who finally stood up to the government. Then they were labeled criminals, it became illegal for anyone to assist them in any way, and that’s why they couldn’t make repairs or obtain spare parts for their aging ships. It took years for them to accumulate enough resources to become what they are now, and they’ve grow in numbers over the decades by stealing women to breed more of their kind. Cyborgs might view them as allies if they believe they are alone. After all…our situations aren’t so dissimilar.”
Even Krell didn’t look happy about that, but he continued. “The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Pirates cover their bodies to blend in on stations. They aren’t often successful, everyone realizes what they are, but they still attempt it. They did have some form of communication, even before they began linking their ships and attacking in swarm formation. Four of them wearing uniforms during this latest attack indicates they were trying to emulate someone. It makes little sense as far as tactics go, but considering their history of behavior, some are crazier and more damaged than others.”
“I see where you’re going with this, Krell.” Coval scowled. “Pirates may have been attempting to dress like cyborgs, but as you also said, they aren’t successful in that kind of deceit. Zippo Station also reported being attacked by Markus Models, not cyborgs. Explain that.”