Peyton took two steps in Dan Masterson’s direction, wanting to knock the cynicism out of him the hard way, but stopped himself when the man flinched in anticipation. “Norton needs to amend it’s employee application. All they ever seem to hire is screwed up assholes. Make it happen, Dan. Do something decent for once.”
“Are you going to keep me here all day? I told you what you wanted to hear.”
Peyton felt his jaw tighten. Power corrupted and copious amounts of money could convince a person like Dan Masterson to ignore the pain of others. He had sold out to Norton and the UCN long ago. The man wasn’t capable of real redemption, which made him not worth their time to try and save.
“King wanted to talk to you, but I don’t think you’d make it home today if I let him have a go. However, there is one more person waiting a turn. We’ll see what he says before we cut you loose.”
Peyton manually coded out of the lab. He didn’t look back, but he felt their captive visibly wilting in the chair. Men like Dan Masterson were the reason the UCN had succeeded in enslaving the Cyber Soldiers. Who knew how many other weak-minded versions of him existed?
He shook his head as he walked to the kitchen where Kyra and the others were watching Dan on a monitor.
***
King held a weeping Seetha in his arms. What they’d heard had only cemented his determination to marry her. And it explained his sense of rightness in being with her. He was glad as hell to hear how hard he had fought against their efforts. This time he’d do more than rampage. This time he would kill any Norton dickwad who dared try to interfere.
He wasn’t sure what Seetha felt about it all, but she was clutching him like she was never turning loose…which was fine with him. He tightened his hold on Seetha as he looked at the pacing woman across the room.
“Doc, are you okay? You’re breathing kind of heavy over there.” He was learning all kinds of polite ways of informing people their stress indicators were off the charts.
King’s eyes widened as she lifted an antique ceramic teacup from her sink and hurled it as hard as she could into the hallway. It smashed into a thousand pieces on the composite tile floor. As fucked up as watching Doc get so angry was, he still wanted to laugh his ass off when an equally wide-eyed Peyton carefully stuck his head around the corner.
“Any other teacups heading my way?” he asked.
King snorted at his quiet question and shook his head. “No teacups, but I think the tea kettle is next. Doc’s still looking pretty pissed.”
King smiled when Peyton tiptoed into view.
“Those manipulating sonofabitches…” Kyra screamed. “It was always a lie, Peyton. The constant code was a smokescreen for what the military was doing. Plus, it was only temporary…and it was breakable. There was never any reason for any of the soldiers to suffer. If Jackson was still alive, I’d kill the bastard all over again. He knew about this—I just know it. It was one more freaking side deal he made with his fellow dickwads at the UC-fucking-N.”
She paced by a counter and shoved two storage canisters against the wall before smacking a cabinet door.
Peyton crept into the kitchen and softly came up behind her. He saw Kyra’s latest pet project scoot down the counter he leaned against to give Kyra more pacing room, and him room to maneuver around to his irate wife. Finally, Kyra put her face in her hands and sniffled. Seeing the lightning and thunder recede to let the rain fall, Peyton knew it was finally safe to turn his hurting wife around until he could tuck her against him.
His gaze went to the wide stare of Captain William Talon. “If you want a chance to talk to Masterson, this is the time. What I told him wasn’t a joke. He’s going to be a dead man the moment he’s set free. Your attempt to kill Seetha went automatically into Norton’s database from the security camera in the lab. If he was the one who programmed you, his failure is now on record.”
William nodded. “What if I can’t keep from killing him?”
Kyra sniffled and lifted her head from Peyton’s chest. “I have an organic recycler on speed dial. We’ll mail his ID chip to the other side of the planet before we get rid of the organic body.”
Startled by her immediate response, and clever planning, William snorted. He rubbed a hand over his head. “After the assimilation, I was scared of nearly everything. Now I think all I’m really scared of is your wife, Captain Elliott.”
Kyra blinked. “I’m not really scary,” she said, sniffling hard. “At least not usually.”
William felt a grin stretching mouth muscles that hadn’t been used in years. He rubbed a hand over his face to massage it. All he’d been allowed to feel was anger which fed the fear and aided the pain response.
The only good thing—if you could call it good—was that large chunks of time were missing from his recall. Like Kingston West, much of his past was simply gone forever. God only knew what had been done to him during those blank times. But from what he’d been discovering, his fucked up story was just one of many.
And he still hadn’t contacted his family. He couldn’t conceive of it until he knew his mind wasn’t going to snap again. After the atrocities he’d committed, they might not want anything to do with him. He could barely tolerate himself.
Kyra sniffled. “Don’t kill him, William. He’s not worth becoming that kind of memory.”
William snorted, but Kyra Winters was correct. His confirmed kill list was long enough.
“There’s still some shit we don’t know that I bet Masterson does. Let me in, Peyton. I’ll try my best not to do Norton’s dirty work for them.”
Peyton kissed Kyra on the head and turned loose, so he could let William into the lab.
***
William walked into the space and felt his stomach plummet to his feet. It’s sterile white walls and metal surfaces made every muscle tighten. He was probably going to hate these places for the rest of his unnatural, cybernetically extended life.
He slowly walked to face the man tied to the chair who looked at him with wide eyes.
“William 874.”
William lifted his chin. “No. I’m William Alexander Talon. Army Captain. Newly restored cyborg. You were lying to Captain Elliott.”
“Only partially…I’m not Creator Omega…but I’m still authorized to give you orders.”
William narrowed his gaze. “Don’t think so, Dan. You’ve been demoted.”
“Emergency override authorization Z11JM5. Protocol DRJ-780. Command is as follows...you will release me from this chair and help me escape.”
William raised hands to his head. There was a fierce buzzing sensation in his brain. It was quite strong, but it wasn’t painful any more. His eyes winced at the annoyance.
“No Dan…I won’t help you. Now stop this damn buzzing in my brain before I beat you to death. You helped Norton turn me into a heartless bastard. Do you want me to prove to you I am one?”
He watched Dan Masterson’s eyes get wider, but the man remained silent. The buzzing continued. He reached out and smacked the man’s jaw lightly. Of course, lightly for a cyborg was like a slow punch from a normal guy. The resounding tap echoed loudly in the silent lab.
“Fuck you—that hurt,” Dan said, his head swinging to the side.
William grinned. “I know. You bastards made me an expert on what hurts. Are you trying to make me kill you, Dan? Because I can tell you…it wouldn’t take much. Now stop the damn buzzing in my head before I forget my promise to Kyra Winters to spare your fucking life.”
Dan’s silence almost sent him over the edge, one he was too used to walking. They had made him an unfeeling machine in every way possible. He’d killed dozens of people on their orders. Violence felt natural to him. He grabbed Dan by the hair of his head and pressed his foot down on top of his outrageously expensive leather shoes.
“Dan, you’re making me very angry.”
“Orders rescinded…orders rescinded,” Dan yelled.
Just like magic, the buzzing stopped. So the bastard did h
ave control of him.
William turned loose and walked away, before he did something to cut his interview time short. “Now Dan, if you want to walk out of here, and not crawl out, don’t try that shit again. Understand?”
When Dan nodded, William got a workstation chair and rolled it over so he could sit.
“I don’t know how you were raised, but my mother and father did a pretty decent job of instilling right and wrong in me. What you…and others like you…have done to cyborgs like me is very wrong, Dan. It is so wrong that if it ever got out to the world, there would probably be a cyborg revolt. Think of what a cyborg revolt would be like, Dan. All the members of the UCN would be killed. Norton would be blown the fuck up during the first hour it was known. And men like you would be turned into dust for the simple pleasure of indulging the violence you so thoroughly programmed into us.”
“I’m sorry…sorry, Captain…Talon…”
William nodded. “As you well should be, Dan. A reasonable fear of consequences is very healthy. Sometimes it might even keep you alive. But if you’re not willing to do the right things, then your life is already not worth anything to me…or to Dr. Winters, who seems to be the only non-cyborg person worth a shit. Well…maybe Engineer Harrington…but you bastards made damn sure I got on her shit list. If I’d killed her, Kingston West would have killed me, but then…oh wait, that’s what you bastards wanted all along, wasn’t it?”
William stared at the frightened man. “Dan…it’s rude not to answer my question.”
“Yes. It was all part of the plan. Kingston would have been declared rogue. The world would have believed cyborgs were uncontrollable again. The military chips would have been used to bring them back under UCN jurisdiction and Norton control.”
“Sounds like a pretty involved plan for code monkeys to have come up with. I’m thinking there is a strategist behind you guys. There were only two original creators. Who’s Creator Omega, Dan?”
“I don’t know. No one does.”
“Oh, someone does. He visited me in the lab. I don’t remember him, but I remember the orders. They’re still in my chip and coded to him. Didn’t you let the man in?”
“No. I didn’t. I swear.”
William nodded. “Okay. I have one more question. What kind of ore are they removing from the mine where I was being held?”
“I don’t know for certain,” Dan said.
“Then fucking guess,” William ordered.
Dan hung his head. “Titanium. It’s being used on all the new cyborgs. It’s lightweight, weapon worthy, and titanates convert electricity into sound.”
“Broadcast amplification—an even better way to torture our brains, eh Dan?” William leaned back in his chair. “I heard you say new cyborgs? What new cyborgs?”
Dan shook his head. “Please don’t make me tell you. They’ll kill me for sure.”
William leaned forward. “Pssst…hey stupid….they’re going to kill you anyway. You’ve been captured and grilled by rogue cyborgs. It doesn’t matter if you talked or not. They won’t care.”
Dan looked to the side. “If I tell you, will you keep me alive?”
William snorted. “No…not that I’m inclined to, but I can’t take on Norton all alone. Face it, you’re in deep shit, Dan. All you can do is run and hide and hope they don’t have any mechanized way of finding you. Now tell me about the new cyborgs before I break your feet and make life even harder for you.”
Dan swallowed. “Prisoners—all prisoners. It doesn’t matter what the crime is. They’re being converted.”
“Been happening for years, Dan. That’s old news.”
Dan shook his head. “No—not like this. They’re being…customized…for the right price. Some get military enhancements. Some just get programming for specific tasks. It saves rehabilitation costs for the prisons and makes the convicts valuable to our society.”
“So the people you work for think it’s okay to turn a person into a cyborg, program them any way they see fit, and sell them as custom slaves for a huge profit? Does that apply to weak dicks who code military chips for the bad guys? Where exactly does your secret boss draw the line about who should receive that fate?”
Dan stared and blinked.
“Your brand of stupidity should be illegal,” William declared. He rolled his eyes as he stood. “I can’t take any more of your nonsense without ridding the world of you. But I’ve had enough of you bastards making me kill people, so I’m not taking you out. Enjoy the rest your short life, Dan. I hope whatever you got for selling your soul was worth it.”
Chapter 21
Nero handed over the chip to Kyra with a sigh. “See how this one works. I’m not a military coder, but William and Peyton both helped me determine what to remove and what to keep. The override wasn’t even cloaked. It was just there. They were pretty sure no one would look. Kyra, if I don’t get some sleep soon, I’m going to fall to the floor. Other changes will have to wait until tomorrow.”
Eric patted his shoulder. “No worries, Nero. I can carry skinny dudes like you all day long. I’ll make sure you and your sweet ride make it home safe and sound.”
“No, you will not. My airjet has been worked on twice since you drove it,” Nero said.
Eric lifted his hands. “I was just testing its limits.” He laughed as Nero glared before dropping his worn out body into the nearest chair he found.
Kyra inspected the new military chip as she carried it to Seetha. “What do you think? Are we ready for a test?”
Seetha shrugged. “Ask William. He’s the guinea pig.”
Kyra’s sharp gaze fell on the squirming man in the chair. “Well…?”
“A well is a hole in the ground to access a water source. Why are we playing twenty questions, Doc? Switch out the damn chip,” William ordered, closing his eyes.
Seetha took a reading and saved the calibration settings. She lifted out William’s old military chip and inserted the new one Nero had created. Each man they found wired this way would have to be individually re-programmed so they kept their particular service records. Nero was looking for a coder to help him when the recalls started returning in greater numbers. So far, they had only found five or six out of the first fifty they checked. Hopefully the number would remain small.
She slid the new chip into place and made a face. “Grit your teeth, William. This is going to hurt a little.” She touched the code transfer tool to the manual restart on his processor.
“Sonofabitch…” he yelled, pounding the arms of the medical chair as the amount of pain made his back arch.
Kyra shook her head. “It is either that burst of sharp pain or eleven hours in the cage. If it’s too much, we’re just going to have schedule overnight stays for those we fix.”
“I was faking the pain. It never hurt a bit,” William denied.
Kyra fisted a hand on her hip. Seetha grinned and bent down. “I would advise against lying, William. Cyborgs get headaches when they lie.”
William closed his eyes. “Master Sergeant West, will you get your smart-ass wife-to-be away from my head. She’s a dangerous woman with those tools.”
“She’s a dangerous woman without them too, Sir,” King said, walking closer. “How to do feel now? Any different?”
William closed his eyes again and ran some checks. Nothing came up wrong. His gaze popped open and immediately looked for Kyra Winters. “No. I feel…fine,” he said, pleased when relief appeared in her gaze.
Kyra nodded. “Good to hear, William. Looks like we have a winner, Nero. Go home and get some sleep now.” She watched Nero nod, but smiled when her tired assistant made no move to leave.
They all turned when Peyton walked through the lab door. He was just one of those people who commanded all the attention when he appeared.
Seetha turned her attention away from Peyton and back to her patient. William was looking around the room and studying the people. It wasn’t long ago she’d felt that same sense of disbelief about their goo
dness.
She smiled as she stepped away from her operating chair. “I have a question. What happens now?”
Peyton smiled. “Captain Talon gets to spend ten years of back-pay. The credit transfer should be completed in the next few days. In the meantime, he’s staying with me and Kyra.”
Seetha snorted and looked at him. “That’s great, but not what I meant.”
She turned as she heard King laughing.
“Now we get married and start our happily-ever-after all over again,” King declared. “I was thinking a week from tomorrow. How does that sound?”
Seetha sighed in exasperation. “Too damn fast. How am I supposed to get everything done in a week?”
King shrugged. “I’ll take care of the arrangements and we’ll have dinner after at the restaurant. All you have to do is buy a dress. I’m sure Annalise would love to help. How hard can it be to shop for clothes?”
All the male groans in the room had his gaze sweeping across grinning men. “What? What did I say wrong?”
He looked at Nero accusingly.
“No,” Nero replied. “You don’t need it. You’re doing fine. Just stop being…dense. Get some women’s mags. They have good advice in them.”
Seetha grinned when Eric’s wicked laughter got the evil eye from both Peyton and King. She patted King’s arm. “It’s okay, honey. You didn’t say anything wrong. We’ll look at the calendar later. I may need a little more time than a week to plan our wedding. But that’s still not what I was talking about.”
All eyes turned to her, including her confused future husband’s.
“Aren’t we going to do anything about what we learned?” Seetha asked. She had figured out talk needed to be kept general while at Norton. Everything around them had eyes and ears tuned to what they were doing and saying.
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