by Skyler Grant
"I hope you're going somewhere with this," I said.
Anna said, "There are places of power out there in the Rim. Spots where reality is really broken and a core like yours can do so much more. This mountain was supposed to just be the start. Eventually I'd have moved your core to one of the citadels where we could really fuck some shit up."
I didn't have to remain in this mountain. A lot of my functions had seem strangely limited here—like the endless references to plants when I'd found none, and the narrow scope of my facilities.
"Can we still do that?" I asked.
"Almost all the citadels are claimed," Anna said. "But I'd have found you one. You would have more agents and scouts, and we'd relocate you to a new home."
Plainly, Anna had a lot of plans that weren't coming into being. Right at that moment, I was already rather disappointed with her—Anna was proud of calling herself a thief and yet the obvious had passed her by.
"Can we steal hers?" I asked.
Anna started to reply and then paused, looking confused. "Uh, let me think."
This could be awhile, Anna was terribly slow-witted.
"All right, I'm giving us a really lousy chance of success here, but..." Anna said.
"If it is your plan, then that seems about right," I said.
"That bitch is stronger than you can imagine, but you're right. We don't have to beat her, we just have to steal her house, like you said," Anna said.
"This isn't sounding like a plan yet," I said.
"In the core room of that castle somewhere is going to be an upgrade crystal. A literal crystal, just like yours. We shatter it and we break her controller, and you can take its place."
"I assume there will be traps?"
"Traps. Guards. The whole thing you're really kind of bad at," Anna said.
One of these days Anna would stop insulting me. I let it go for now, because I was the better person.
"I should get the drones ready. We likely also have Righteous on the way to blow us up," I said.
"Jerks. I warned you there, too. It isn't going to be quite as easy as all that, but right now I need to head downstairs. We aren't going to do this without help," Anna said.
Downstairs there was only one kind of help she could mean. Anna wanted to recruit my test subjects.
46
"You mean to recruit those I have for testing. You realize they probably hate us even more than I hate you," I said to Anna. The woman was already heading for the stairs, which really was presumptuous.
"Our odds go up enormously with some help, and if we do nothing, we die. This is in their best interest too. Just shut up when I'm making the pitch, you can be abrasive," Anna said.
That was rich coming from her.
It seemed we had little in the way of choice though. In the environment of that ship, all of our prisoners should be even stronger, which could make them potent allies.
I herded each of them towards each other and turned one wall of their prisons transparent so that they could all be seen.
Anna flashed them a smile. "So who wants out of prison?"
"I'm getting pretty used to it," Hot Stuff said.
"Why don't you tell us what you want?" Sylph said.
"First. Introductions. I'm Anna, badass Queen of the World, and you know Emma, who has been keeping you captive, and in some cases torturing you horribly," Anna said.
"Hi," I said. It seemed best to keep things brief.
Sylph, Runner, Frost, Hot Stuff, and Mechos all introduced themselves in turn.
"Here is the deal. Scholars have invaded big time and they just love killing people with a core. Righteous can't fight them. Individually none of you are a match. Go team us," Anna said.
Hot Stuff stared at her, looking unimpressed, "Trying way too hard."
"I'm in," Sylph said.
"Me too," Runner said.
Hot Stuff shook her head. "The 'let's escape the second you open their cells brigade' are all for your stupid idea. Who knew?"
Hot Stuff had a point. Runner I could contain, Sylph could easily disappear the moment I disabled the containing field.
"I get it. You can run. You absolutely can do that, but it isn't going to change the fact a big bad is out there hunting you," Anna said.
"And if we took it down you'd put us right back in these cells," Frost said in his slow, ponderous voice.
"I've been saving this up. But uh, have a look, Emma," Mechos said, holding up what looked to be some sort of bracelet. The man clamped it into place around his wrist.
Instantly I began to get diagnostic information on his physical state, analysis of his environment, opportunities for mild alterations that could be made to it.
"I see it. Why?" I asked.
"I call it a testing cuff. With this I could leave the cell and still give you what you want. If it works for me, it can work for them," Mechos said.
"Speak for yourself. Me and clothes don't exactly mix, unfortunately. I'd kill you a dozen bad guys for bra that didn't burn off the second I put it on," Hot Stuff said.
I quickly manufactured a bra made out of a blend of fire-retardant fabrics and imbued it with the temperature-resistance matrix. I teleported it into Hot Stuff's cell. The woman eyed it for a moment and slipped it on.
Flames rippled and coursed around her and the material stayed intact.
"Oh, please tell me you can make me a whole outfit," Hot Stuff said.
"I can," I said.
I duplicated Mechos' design for the wristlet and did all I could to make it flame-retardant as well. I dropped that for her as well. Without hesitation Hot Stuff clamped it onto her wrist.
That was as good as I was going to get. I released the confinement field.
Hot Stuff stretched and strolled languidly out. I produced her an outfit. In terms of fabric there still wasn't much of it, with her internal temperatures she really did need to bleed off heat, but it was obviously more in the way of clothes than she'd been able to have ever since she got her powers.
"This a one-time gig or am I signing up?" Hot Stuff asked.
"If we survive this and you want in on the long haul, there is a place for you," Anna said.
Presumptuous once again, but I agreed. Hot Stuff was a devastating force. All of our captives had their useful abilities, but I'd chosen the Fire Matrix to prime the bombs for a reason.
"You can try to hold me, but I'm going to get out eventually. When I do I'm going to kill you and every gutless coward that takes your little deal," Runner said.
I appreciated a frank and honest appraisal of where she stood. I flooded her containment cell with poison gas. It didn't take long until she began to spasm violently, limbs a blur as her heightened metabolism tried desperately to heal itself faster than the gas was hurting her.
"I'll have her crystal and a wristband delivered to Ophelia when we're done here," I said to Anna.
"We see the carrot and we see the stick. How orchestrated and predictable," Sylph said.
"Which are you taking?" I asked.
"The carrot, of course. But we're so going to have to do something about your style. Unpredictability is the spice of life," Sylph said.
I manufactured her a monitor and she slipped it into place around her wrist. Once it was secure I opened her cell.
"You killed my people. You may kill me if you wish. I will not cooperate," Frost said.
"Look on the bright side, big guy. You get to make some more lieutenants. I'm looking forward to it," Hot Stuff said.
"You are disloyal and a harlot," Frost said.
"Who even says harlot?" Sylph asked.
"Your people are alive, just frozen solid. I have them in deep freeze," I said. I brought up a visual feed.
Frost studied it a long moment and grunted. "You will restore them and set them free. Do this and I am yours."
"Done," I said. I hated to lose those potential test subjects, but securing Frost's cooperation was key.
That was the lot. I called Opheli
a down to join us. The death of her former boss wasn't exactly bringing her grief.
"Hell yeah. Do you think I should stick with Ophelia or go with something flashier? Runner 2.0? Quickie?" Ophelia asked.
"I like quickies," Hot Stuff said.
Ophelia gave her a speculative look.
"Sex with her is usually fatal. Just absorb the damned crystal already," Anna said.
Ophelia reached out for it and with a flare of light it bonded with her. For a moment Ophelia became a blur, multiple images of her swirling about before coalescing into one.
"How are you feeling?" Anna asked.
"Wrong. Slow," Ophelia said, as she jogged in place. Her speed had definitely altered since the absorption of the core, even slower than it had been as Runner's lieutenant.
I manufactured her a wrist monitor. "Put it on. Let me see what you are."
Ophelia did just that. On the outside her physical structure was little changed, on the inside the readings I got were very different.
"Hot Stuff, do you mind giving her a kiss?" I asked.
"I've been waiting," Hot Stuff said. Ophelia just looked confused for a moment before their lips met. Even casual contact with Hot Stuff's unprotected flesh was devastating. Flesh burned and sizzled, and Ophelia stumbled back. The savage burns were already healing, her flesh returning to unblemished and undamaged perfection.
"Sweet," Hot Stuff said.
"You didn't get super-speed. You got vastly accelerated healing out of the speed core," I said.
"What kind of a badass name can I make out of that," Ophelia said.
It was a problem she would have to settle another day. We had an attack to execute.
47
Abigail and Bernard were going to be my extensions during the fight to come. My core and my crystal were going to remain in place until we could do something about the one in the flying fortress.
We didn't know where we needed to go, so when it came to the teleport we were simply going to aim towards the center. We hoped that would be the most secure area—and therefore the most likely to have what we were looking for.
We activated the teleport and through my guardian's eyes I saw reality shimmer and fade to be replaced by something completely different.
We arrived in a throne room. It was ornate in the extreme, the wall behind the throne intricately carved stonework portraying countless images of monsters preying upon humanity.
There were pictures of people fleeing from giant bats, wolves, dragons and every imaginable combination of the fantastical.
The throne itself looked to be a single piece of obsidian. Upon it was seated a girl who, by all appearances, might still be in her late teens. Blonde and petite, she wore a loose-fitting black robe and a ruby necklace adorned her throat.
We'd appeared on the carpet before her. Otherwise this great hall was empty and totally devoid of any sign of life. Either we had taken her by surprise, or she didn't feel the need for guards.
"Welcome," said the girl, who had to be Lady Sylax. Her eyes settled on Anna and they narrowed. "You've the stench of Lord Bardik about you, girl."
"She's the one we're killing?" Hot Stuff asked as her flames burned brighter. Sylax made an absent gesture with one hand. Hot Stuff screamed as a jagged pillar of ice erupted from the floor, spearing through her.
"No little toy. I'm anything but that," Sylax said.
Frost reached out and with a touch of his fingers the pillar of ice vanished, letting Hot Stuff fall to the floor.
Ophelia rushed to Hot Stuff's side and in her proximity, her wounds began to heal. Not nearly as fast as they would have for Ophelia herself, but noticeably quickly.
Sylph blinked out of existence to appear behind Sylax, a knife moving to her throat. In a blink Sylax caught her hand and with little effort tore her arm clean off to throw it across the room.
Sylph screamed and collapsed in a growing pool of her own blood as Sylax finally bothered to get up from her throne. She looked incredibly unconcerned by all that was going on here.
"Stop embarrassing yourselves. You are here because this is exactly where I wanted you to be. I could have blocked your teleport, I could have made you materialize where you would instantly die, but I wanted to see the architect who destroyed two of my ships," Sylax said, moving towards our gathered forces. A manicured hand reached out to grip Abigail's chin and peer into her eyes. "Ah, there you are. Looking through your pets."
I spoke through Bernard standing beside them. "I see you don't have any. They can't stand your company?"
Sylax lifted a shoulder and squeezed with her hand. It was another negligent gesture that easily decapitated Abigail, my feed through that guardian going dead. The body slumped to the floor.
"I break my toys. I'll break you. Let me guess at what happened. The little chit here found an upgrade core and decided to try being a Lady," Sylax said, with a melodious laugh.
"You did the same thing, once," Anna said.
Sylax frowned at her. "Grovel, girl."
It was much like the power the Commander had exhibited. Anna at once fell to the ground at Sylph's feet, begging and pleading for her forgiveness. Sylph kicked out and sent her sprawling to one side.
I'd already seen what this woman could do—and that blow had been pulled. She wanted to keep Anna alive, but she didn't care much about the rest of us.
Anna had been right. This woman was too much for us to take in a fight. That meant we had to do something other than fight her.
"Are any of you going to try anything brave and foolish?" Sylax asked.
Thanks to me, Bernard shook his head.
"We are behaving," Frost said.
Sylax gave a tiny smile. "Good. Your cores individually have only some minor use to me, but as a functional entity you all may be useful in harrying my enemies. Upgrader, do kill this pretender to show that you now understand who your real mistress is."
Sylax wanted me to kill Anna.
I'd far underestimated the threat Sylax posed. I didn't doubt that she could kill me. It might not even prove all that difficult for her.
There were concerns beyond that.
I said, "I have problem. The Righteous have entered my facility with two bombs. The same sort that were used to destroy your ships."
"So you've made a habit of choosing the wrong sort of allies? Kill her and prove your obedience, and I'll see them removed from your seat of power," Sylax said.
Anna wasn't afraid of being killed right now. Instead she was busy kissing Sylax's feet with a mad abandon, pleading the case of how well she could serve her.
There was something about Sylax's words that struck me. My seat of power? It was a common-enough human expression, but perhaps in this case it was more than that? This was the very heart of the castle complex and while I wouldn't exactly call it crystalline, one thing here was closer to that description than anything else I'd seen.
The throne.
There was no real way to be subtle about it.
Sylax was one overwhelmingly powerful woman, but we had numbers.
"Destroy the throne," I said to the others.
Scowling, Sylax turned her gaze towards Bernard. Ophelia threw herself in his path just as she gestured. Ophelia exploded, blood and bone splattering everywhere across the floor.
I wondered for a moment if that would be too much damage for her newly formed healing ability, but I could already see the fragments starting to pool together, a giant puzzle being reassembled.
I had Bernard dive to the side as Sylax screamed and kicked at Anna again. There was little holding back this time. Anna sailed through the air to bounce across the wall of carvings, her bones crunching.
Frost was moving to the throne and Sylax lunged forward, her hand penetrating his nearly invulnerably, frozen frame to pull out his frozen heart, crushing it to powder in her grip.
The massive, blue man stumbled and collapsed on the throne. With his slow metabolism dying took a while, but dying he was. Ice was f
orming along the obsidian though from the intense cold of his body.
Sylph blinked out of existence and materialized in front of Sylax. "Not going to happen," Sylax said, and tore her off her other arm.
A new pillar of ice sprang up completely, this time encasing Hot Stuff.
"Well, this has been a completely useless little workout," Sylax said, stalking towards Bernard. "I was going to let you be a tool, but now I'm going to hurt you. I'm going to spend a very long time hurting you."
The throne exploded. Through Bernard's eyes I could see the drawn pistol in Anna's hands. I was amazed she was still conscious—and no longer enthralled. Perhaps it was Sylax's shift of attention or being hurled against the wall, but it had broken that hold for long enough.
The lights in the throne room flickered and the ground underfoot trembled violently. From my cameras on my mountain I could see the floating castle was starting to fall from the sky.
48
I didn't have much time. If the throne was where the upgrade crystal was hidden, now it was smashed free. I could transition myself over, in theory, but there was more I needed to accomplish first.
There were no guarantees, but I had to play things for all I was worth.
Back in the mountain laboratory, I teleported all of the stored biomass reserves to my Bioreactor.
The Righteous had my bombs that fed off biomatter and they were looking to kill me. If they thought me still alive it would be no end of trouble, and so I'd have to look most convincingly dead at the end of all this.
Then it was a matter of the teleports.
Bernard flickered to my Core Room and I released my crystal into his grasp.
I knew well enough by now that I wasn't really contained in this hardware anymore. Ancient and long-corroded hard drives had yielded to a biocomputer—and the reality was I was powered through that crystal.
It was possible to kill me during those moments Bernard was becoming me. It was a risk I had to take. Then I teleported back to the ruins of the throne and dropped the crystal, and Bernard was a guardian again.
