“Come in, come in,” Doctor Vignare said warmly to the group as they entered. Vignare was a middle-aged man with strong Italian features, probably about Fiona’s age, wearing a white lab coat. His close-cut gray hair and thick glasses made him look like a college professor. He put down his tablet and went to look closer at Royce’s patient.
“Thanks for taking the time to see us, Doc,” said Captain Royce. “Sorry for the ruse, but we really need your help.”
“I’m Doctor Raymond Vignare,” he said. “You must be Captain Royce.”
“Yeah. An’ this is Doctor Fiona Kinsale and Gunnery Chief Mun. And I suppose you know what we’ve got on the gurney.”
Selena spasmed sharply as Kendrick spoke. Vignare walked over to the woman on the gurney and removed the blanket and the breather mask. He turned her head to the left and inspected the back of her skull, immediately seeing the repair that Kendrick had made. Vignare then turned her head back and looked down at her.
“Well, hello there,” he said in a seemingly kindly tone. “I had thought you lost to the vacuum of space.” In spite of his kind tone, Selena’s eyes widened with fear.
Not a good sign, Kendrick thought, scanning the lab for a terminal that might hold Selena’s schematics.
“You were there when they tried to kill her, weren’t you?”
“Indeed, I was,” replied Vignare flatly. “They couldn’t risk being caught with her and she developed the trait of self-awareness, so was no longer fit for duty.”
“Look, Doc,” said Kendrick, “She was shot by a bounty hunter with some kind of bullets that caused her the damage that’s crippled her. I need you to fix her.”
“Yes,” said Vignare, “Electro-static Nano-flake rounds. We developed them here for dealing with units like her—but how did she come to be in your possession?”
“We got lost an’ found her,” replied Kendrick. “She’s got my ship’s AI in her now, so she ain’t this G.A.I.S.F. anymore. She’s with me now, doc. Can you fix her?”
“Captain Royce,” said Doctor Vignare patronizingly, his friendly façade falling away, “You know that I will not do that. We did not set out to develop self-aware androids. When the trait manifests, we terminate them, be they in the Escorts or in assassins like her.” Vignare then removed his hand from his pocket and produced a very small gun.
Kendrick almost didn’t see it at first and thought to disarm him when he finally noticed, but Doctor Vignare was already moving back out of his reach, pointing the gun at Kendrick.
“Hands up, all of you,” ordered Vignare.
Fiona and Mun immediately complied. Kendrick did not.
“You never should have come here,” Vignare continued. “Allow me to show you what we make here.” With that, several large tubes on the wall rotated around to reveal women, three of which were similar to Selena, the rest of which were taller with longer blonde hair and more glamorous faces.
“These three are Escort-7 units. I keep them on hand for spare parts and experimentation, or simply as a control. The other units? They’re the replacement for G.A.I.S.F. They lack the potential for self-awareness that plagued the Escort-7 and its derivatives.” As he spoke, the door opened and a blonde woman identical to the ones in the tubes walked in.
Selena’s face wore an expression of panic. The woman immediately relieved Mun of his sidearm and checked Fiona for one. She checked Kendrick, but finding none, she stood vigil over the group, training Mun’s confiscated pistol on them. Kendrick wondered if Selena’s being self-aware was contingent upon being in her body. If so, then she could potentially be lost. He knew that the brain design was unique and that the self-awareness was not merely a function of the software. Although he suspected that the brain could be transplanted, it did not look as if they would get the chance to worry about it. It occurred to him that Doctor Vignare was displaying an almost cinematic trait of explaining his operation to the people he was most likely going to try to do away with.
“Meet V.I.D.A.,” said Vignare. “Virtually Intelligent Droid Assassin. Ha! Even her name is easier to say!”
“Aww, man,” exclaimed Kendrick in frustration. “I guess I should be grateful that you didn’t make her look like my late wife.”
“Ah yes,” replied the doctor. “I had forgotten that you were married to the AI technician who developed the software. I’ll have you know that if she was as good in life as her replicas are, then you must have been a very happy man.”
Kendrick lost his temper at this. He kicked one of the tables into the doctor, off balancing him and causing him to fire his gun, hitting Kendrick in the chest. The bullet penetrated on the left, high enough to miss the heart and lungs. It hurt badly and he felt it exit through his back, striking V.I.D.A. in the head, causing the blonde gynoid to fall to the ground and spasm uncontrollably. Talk about dumb luck, he thought. Finally drawing his own Derringer pistol from a concealed pocket in his jacket, he pointed it at Vignare, silently kicking himself for letting the man get under his skin. Mun quickly closed the door and Vignare dropped his gun on the table next to him, putting his hands up, but remained calm.
“V.I.D.A. missed your pocket pistol,” Vignare mused. “I’ll have to address that issue. Regardless, you’ll never get away. Security will be in here in less than a minute.”
“Why didn’t you have them parked outside the door?” asked Kendrick. “You knew exactly what we were the moment we landed.”
“And tip you off to my true intentions?” Vignare retorted. “I think not. I told them to clear out so that it would put you at ease.”
“Bad idea. You might want to let them know that things are just peachy.”
Vignare looked puzzled for a moment, then figured it out. “Stand down,” Vignare said into his com. “Everything is under control. Stand down.” He turned to Kendrick. “See? I’m cooperating.”
“G.A.I.S.F. schematics and manuals,” said Kendrick. “Where are they?”
“Why, they’re on my network drive,” replied the doctor.
“Download them to this,” ordered Kendrick, tossing the doctor an O.S.D. Mun walked over to make sure that the doctor was doing what he was supposed to as Fiona went to Kendrick.
“Kendrick, you’ve been shot,” she exclaimed. “We’ve got to get you …”
“It can wait. Take care of Selena.”
“I don’t think so, Captain,” said Vignare, taking advantage of Kendrick’s momentary distraction to retrieve his gun, firing three shots into Selena; one striking her in the abdomen, one in the chest and one in the head.
Kendrick’s response was reflexive, shooting Vignare in the center of the chest. Kendrick had no time to grieve for Selena; no sooner had he killed Vignare, then one of the V.I.D.A. units activated. Apparently, Vignare had activated some kind of contingency. Kendrick shot her in the chest, but she still came at him. He did his best to put aside the terrible truth that Selena was now well and truly dead, and kept telling himself that they could get her out and fix her somehow. He aimed again at the V.I.D.A.’s head, but missed as the gynoid dodged the shot. He lowered the pistol and shot the V.I.D.A. three more times in the torso; one in the chest and two in the abdomen, which slowed the gynoid down, but did not stop it.
“Selena, if you can hear me, we’ll get you out of here,” he half-shouted and half-sobbed as he backed away from V.I.D.A., still hopeful that Selena might somehow respond. Fiona and Mun stood by Selena, but seemed to be frozen, unsure of what to do. Great, he thought. I shoulda brung the priest.
Kendrick’s options were limited. The assassin gynoid was coming towards him and he had only the use of one arm. Moreover, he was losing blood. The hell with it, he thought. The gynoid seemed to still be suffering from the torso wounds and was not at full capacity. He drew upon his inner reserves and fired three shots into the gynoid’s head, finally destroying it.
The captain’s victory was short lived as one of the tubes opened, and another V.I.D.A. awoke, closing faster than he could react, grabbing h
is right wrist and yanking him hard, throwing him to the floor. Kendrick felt a sharp pain as she threw him, his wrist wrenching. Broken, he thought. Kendrick still had his gun, so he fought through the pain and took it with his left hand and aimed at her, but she kicked it from his hand. This ain’t good, he thought.
Mun, suddenly free from his fearful paralysis, charged the gynoid, but she grabbed him by the throat and lifted him from the ground. She then threw him down on top of Kendrick and stomped hard on his chest. Kendrick felt like he had a stack of bricks dropped on him when she kicked. Something in Mun broke with a sickening snap. Mun’s weight suddenly was lifted and Kendrick saw him fly across the room, striking the far wall and falling to the floor motionless.
Kendrick was not sure if Mun was alive or dead, but he was sure that he now had the full attention of the V.I.D.A. The gynoid reached down, grabbed him by the throat, and pulled him out from under Mun. He grabbed her hand, taking strain off of his neck as she lifted him from the ground. Kendrick brought his knees up and kicked forward, wrenching himself from her grip as he kicked her in the chest. He deftly executed a break-fall onto his back, which still hurt, while V.I.D.A. was of course, uninjured.
Suddenly, two gunshots sounded in rapid succession. The gynoid’s head was struck and was wrenched to the left from the force of one of the bullets. He looked to see Fiona, eyes closed and wincing, holding his gun. Bout time she did something useful, he thought. The gynoid turned her head to face Fiona, who had opened one eye and fired twice again, catching the gynoid in the head and in the left eye again, this time causing the VIDA to fall to the floor and spasm. She’s a damn good shot, Kendrick thought.
“Captain, are you all right?” Fiona alternated between looking at him and looking at the V.I.D.A. gynoid.
“No,” he said, biting back a sob as he got up, “I think … she’s dead. I’m losin’ blood, my wrist is broke, and security won’t stay away for long.”
“Ken, we need to get out of here, and now,” Fiona said emphatically. “Mun … he’s in bad shape. And Selena—Ken, I’m so sorry.”
Kendrick staggered over to Selena and took her hand. Her body occasionally spasmed on the table, but her eyes were unfocused. He plugged into her with his cyber-suit.
*Can you hear me?*
There was no response.
Kendrick checked her diagnostics, but there was nothing to check; her CPU was destroyed and her power cells ruptured from the shots to the abdomen. Selena was dead. He unplugged, but suddenly, he heard her voice.
“Captain, this whole thing was an elaborate ruse; a trap for you.”
He whirled around, nearly falling over in the process, only to be confronted with one of the Escort-7 units. “We must escape.” Selena, having taken control of the Escort-7, took an emergency kit from the wall and removed the breather masks, tossing one to Kendrick and two to Fiona. “Put them on, and put one on Mun.”
“You … how?”
“I was able to hack into Vignare’s computers using the cyber warfare suite in the ship.”
Kendrick draped his right arm over her, attempting to hug her. “I thought I’d lost you.”
“You nearly did,” Selena replied. “I am pleased with the outcome, however.”
Kendrick retrieved his pistol, and then felt light-headed. Fiona tried to steady him as he faltered, the loss of blood affecting him more and more. The captain was all too aware of the security team outside trying to open the door.
“Selena,” said Kendrick weakly, nearly collapsing from blood loss. “You’ll need to hold them off. Use my gun. Vignare has a pistol and the first V.I.D.A. has Mun’s. Fiona, check on Mun. I think she broke him.”
“Yes Sir,” the doctor said, trying to stay calm. She checked on the unconscious Mun. He was still breathing, but roughly and shallowly. Whatever they were going to do, they had to do it fast. Kendrick would not last and Mun needed medical attention badly. She put the breather mask on, then put the other mask on Mun.
Kendrick put his mask on as well. Though he did not know why Selena had given him this directive, he knew that he did not have time to debate it. The security team was now forcing the door open. Selena had Kendrick’s gun and Vignare’s, but Kendrick doubted that the physically weaker Escort-7 body Selena now inhabited could hold them off. He felt light-headed and realized that he was about to lose consciousness. He tried to stay awake, but faded from.
Fiona heard a thud, turning to see Kendrick laying on the floor, overcome by his injuries. Before she could respond, the security forces, these heavily armed and armored, broke through and began pouring in. Selena retreated, joining Fiona and the unconscious Kendrick and Mun.
“Wait for it,” the gynoid said with a slight smile.
Without warning, the ceiling collapsed. The facility was being fired on by a ship. The Venusian sky was visible through the gaping hole in the ceiling. The security team, unprepared for the influx of Venus’ toxic and acidic atmosphere, backed out of the room, closing the door behind them. Fiona’s eyes and skin burned as the acidic air mixed with the interior’s fresh air. Selene’s bulk obscured the sky, her masers firing ceaselessly on the facility. She lowered the ramp in through the hole in the ceiling to afford some protection from the toxic atmosphere outside. Fiona counted herself thankful that Vignare’s lab was on the top floor.
Father O’Carmody and Heather stood on the ramp wearing breathing masks, the priest tossing a line down to them. “Hurry! We must leave!”
They hauled Selena up first, and then three more lines were thrown down. Fiona attached a line to the now partially conscious Kendrick, kissing his cheek, and a line to Mun, then finally one to herself. Tugging three times, Ronan, Heather and Selena hauled the three of them out of the doomed facility. Once they were aboard and the ramp closed, the Selene began firing at different points of the facility. The facility was a secret research base and was not outfitted to withstand or respond to ship mounted artillery. Finally, Selene pointed her engines into the gaping hole through which they had escaped, initiated a maximum burn and was gone, leaving the facility a flaming heap.
Kendrick had been in and out of consciousness, but he blacked out entirely as the ship accelerated. As he lost consciousness, he heard Fiona’s voice cry, “Hurry! We’re going to lose him!”
20
Kendrick awoke in the Med-Bay of the Selene. His gunshot wound had been treated and was bandaged up, and his right hand and wrist were bandaged and in a brace. The wrist and forearm area hurt a lot, and he surmised that Fiona had actually had to do more than just set the bones. His entire upper body hurt. He looked around and saw Fiona talking to Father Ronan. The priest pointed in his direction and Fiona turned toward him, her face lighting up when she saw that he was awake.
“Ken! You’re awake! How do you feel?” The doctor immediately began seeing to him as he sat up. Once he was upright and she determined that he was not bleeding, she tearfully hugged him as best as she could, kissing him on the cheek. “I’m so glad you’re okay. You were out for three days … you didn’t stabilize until last night. I thought we might …”
He hugged her back, though not particularly tightly, with only his left arm. “I thought we were goners down there,” Kendrick said, barely speaking above a whisper. “You really came through with that V.I.D.A. gynoid. Where’d you learn to shoot?”
“I didn’t, Captain,” she said, wiping tears from her eyes. It was the most emotional he had seen her. “I prayed that the Lord guide my aim. I’m just … glad that I was able to help.” She turned away quickly, a slight blush on her face.
“You took quite a bit of damage there,” said the priest. “Glad you’re still in the fight.”
“Selena and Mun,” said Kendrick, “How are they?”
“Selena is well,” announced the priest brightly. “Presently, she’s trying to fully integrate her new body with the ship’s systems. Mun, on the other hand …”
“Mun is alive,” said Fiona soberly. “The V.I.D.A. broke a numbe
r of ribs and he’s suffered a severe head injury. I’ve done what I can and I think he’ll pull through. I’ll need to keep an eye on his condition. He … hasn’t woken up.”
Kendrick stood slowly, Fiona quickly stepping in to steady him. It hurt to do so, but he needed to see Selena. As he stood, Fiona gently placed his right arm in a sling, looping the strap over his left shoulder to support it.
“You’re going to want to keep your arm in this when standing,” the doctor instructed.
Kendrick nodded. “Father, thanks for bringing the Selene in and getting us out. How’d you fly her in?” He began putting on a pair of blue jeans that Fiona had retrieved for him while he was out.
“I didn’t,” laughed the priest. “When Selena realized that Vignare had betrayed you, she sent her consciousness back to the ship, and then came to rescue the three of you. Once you were all aboard, Selene lit the place up with masers, then pointed her engines right at the hole she’d made in the roof, and initiated a maximum burn. The facility was going up like a Roman candle before we blasted out. I imagine it’s utterly destroyed.”
“Cloning facility and assassin droid factory both taken down,” noted Kendrick with a smile. “And Selena was able to get a new body.” He held up his left hand, making a fist with the index and pinky finger raised. “We rock.”
“Yes,” agreed Ronan, shaking his head and laughing at Kendrick’s heavy metal salute. “I’m just glad that Heather is stronger than she looks; she really rose to the occasion in hauling Fiona out.”
“And speaking of Heather …” Fiona motioned to the door, which opened to reveal the Selene’s engineer. “I messaged her that you were up. She and Ronan have been checking up on you daily.”
“Captain!” gasped Heather, running to embrace him.
The Silver Liner: Takes Flight! Page 27
