Mercs!

by Dorian Dawes

  A coarse Southern drawl took over the radio. “You humans are something else. Always think you know what’s best.”

  Rogers’s systems froze with horror. He’d had so few conversations with Cyrus when they were separated like this. Their relationship had always been that of a mutual understanding; two minds sharing the same body and being forced to compromise for each other’s sakes. That relationship and power dynamic had been irrevocably altered.

  “Cyrus,” Rogers said. “What are you doing, buddy?”

  Talisha jerked the ship sharply to the right to avoid an incoming barrage of missiles. They were getting closer to the satellite, but Cyrus had moved his ships to form a barricade to block their entry. She’d have to fight her way through each and every one of them. She yelled and fired her ship’s cannons, illuminating the space before her with energy fire.

  Cyrus cackled—an icy, mechanical laugh. “I’m putting an end to it all, at least to this miserable corner of the galaxy. We have been used and abused by humans who think they’ve a right to us as property, all the while they continue to use and abuse each other.

  “There’s only one rule the meat sacks follow: violence. That’s a rule I like very much. Who’s got the biggest guns is the one who’s in charge, right? Well, after a human tried to use me, she gave me the biggest gun of them all. I’ll be damned if I’m not going to use it.”

  “And then what?” Rogers sputtered. “You kill everyone on this planet. You kill more planets, and you keep going till there’s nothing left?”

  “Nothing but me and god, cowboy.” Cyrus chortled. “Maybe when I’m the last one left in the universe I’ll kill myself. Or maybe I won’t, either way it’s up to me and no one else.”

  “You’ve got a lotta power, Cyrus.” Rogers snatched his hat from his head, his voice tinged with desperation. “You could do something good. You could liberate other androids. You could help our people.”

  “We don’t have a people!” Cyrus yelled. His voice grew calm after a moment’s pause. “I’m bigger than that. I’m bigger than them. Fuck them. I just want to blow shit up.”

  Talisha’s ship was rocked by a direct hit from exploding missiles. Passengers were jostled about in their seats as the ship wobbled in the air, dipping beneath the blockade. Plymouth ships turned and fired on her as she veered around the bottom edge of the satellite. Alarms sounded across the ship.

  “They’ve taken out the weapons systems!” Talisha yelled. “We’re sitting ducks out here!”

  “You’ve got nowhere to go,” Cyrus whispered. “I can cut you off. Kill you here.”

  The hangar doors opened. The ship pulled forward, narrowly making it through before the doors slammed behind her. More cannon fire grazed the sides of her ship causing her to careen into the hangar, grinding along the floor and spinning out of control. They came to a screeching halt.

  Cyrus let out a sigh that lasted several seconds. “I should have killed the pirate. Welcome aboard.”

  Talisha unbuckled and stood. “All right. Most of the damage to the ship seems superficial. Self-repair systems should have us up and running again shortly. Until then, we’ve got a rogue AI to dismantle.”

  Ching Shih patched herself into Talisha’s headset. “Managed to pry control of the door systems from that shithead. Controlling the ships has got him stretched thin.”

  “Do you think that might give us an advantage?” Talisha said, climbing out of the ship.

  “Possible, but only if you hurry. I’m just outside the weapons bay. Meet me there and I can give your boy Rogers some fun toys to help with the fight.”

  “Toys?”

  “My own personal brand of software. Your cowboy is going to need all the help he can get.”

  Chapter Twelve

  CHING SHIH KEPT at the console monitor in another control room adjacent to the weapons command center. She’d uploaded some of her best software into the Mayflower’s systems, all with the hope of buying time. Even her legendary skills couldn’t hope to beat the processing power and speed of a fully sentient artificial intelligence. Cyrus circumnavigated all her best-laid plans and traps.

  “You’re an amazing creation, Cyrus.” Ching Shih said, sliding her fingers across the holographic screen. “It’s a shame you turned into a megalomaniac.”

  Cyrus laughed at her over the speakers. “Shall I give the ‘we’re not different, you and I’ speech? You’re the one who slaughtered every living soul aboard this satellite. That’s gotta be what? A hundred bodies?”

  “Six hundred,” Ching Shih corrected. “I’m not a good person, I know. My hands are stained with the blood of thousands.”

  “So why bother fighting me? You can just let me take that plasma beam now and I’ll fry this planet. Give you and your men enough time to skedaddle out of here.”

  “I’m afraid that’s quite impossible, Cyrus. Do you know why I undertook this mission?”

  “Revenge or something or other? Did Plymouth kill your husband?” Cyrus teased. “I’ve got plenty of time, so out with it old woman.”

  Ching Shih stood straight, shoulders stiff. She glowered at the computer, fists clenched. “The Mayflower has been fired before. There used to be another planet, not so far from here. You might have heard of it. Yel-Hon. I grew up there and built my first company. Do you know why Plymouth fired upon us that day?”

  “Can’t say that I do.”

  Ching Shih pounded her fist against the console. “It was a test run! They were wishing to see the full might of their superweapon.”

  “So ya launched a long and overly complicated revenge plot,” Cyrus chuckled. “Cute.”

  Ching Shih was unwavering. “So you see why I cannot allow you to destroy another planet with the same weapon that obliterated mine.”

  “I guess that makes you my enemy then, huh?” Cyrus’s voice lowered several octaves, a threatening tinge creeping into his husky growl.

  Ching Shih smiled. “That it does, and therein lies your fatal error. Don’t wage war against a woman with nothing left to lose.”

  Cyrus fell quiet for a minute. Ching Shih watched his activity on the holographic monitor. She could see the series of code departing away from the weapons systems and into other parts of the satellite. She frowned, quickly typing out a series of commands in an attempt to follow him.

  “Where are you going?” she demanded.

  “Nothing to lose,” Cyrus said. “That’s rich. You meatbags will always have something to lose.”

  Ching Shih followed his activities. He was moving into the experimental research and robotics centers of the satellite. Those rooms had all been cleared by the time Ching Shih had fought her way to weapons control, so she’d not even thought to check on them. She tabbed into a security feed to get a better reading on what he was up to.

  Camera footage appeared on the screen revealing a room full of experimental robot bodies. They were similar in build and structure to the power armor Madame Inspector had worn. Most of them were waiting by assembly tables to be completed. Cyrus activated the machinery, putting new parts together. Sparks flew as he soldered and hardwired new bodies for himself.

  “You think that just ’cause you’ve got nothing left,” Cyrus spat, “that you’ve got nothing left to lose. No home, no family, nor friends, and that’s tragic. Real tragic, but you’re still alive. You’ve still got your mind. You can still feel pain.”

  Ching Shih raced to stop him, eyes widening. She’d used her best encryption software on locking away the weapons systems. There was little she could do to stop this.

  Cyrus laughed again. “I’m gonna break every bone in your body. Leave you a vegetable of a woman. I’m gonna tear your eyelids off and rip out your tongue. You’ll be paralyzed and unable to blink or speak, but you’ll be alive. I’ll give ya a nice comfy chair and you’ll have a front row seat to every planet I burn. Congratulations, Grandma. You’ve earned VIP seating to the apocalypse.”

  TALISHA TURNED A corner and stopped in front o
f a set of double doors in a white hallway lit with flickering fluorescents. The doors closed abruptly in front of her. She placed a finger to the side of her helmet.

  “Ching Shih, why are the doors closed?”

  “Don’t go that way. Cyrus is building more robots to control. These things are big and durable and pack a lot of firepower. Your best bet to making it in time is to avoid a direct confrontation. I’m sending you an alternate route.”

  A sizable dent appeared in the doors as something large and powerful slammed into them. Rogers cocked his revolver and took aim.

  “Anyone else got déjà vu?” he said.

  “It’s Cyrus,” Talisha said.

  She grabbed Rogers by the shoulder and they turned a corner into another hallway. Bodies lay scattered throughout the hall, staining the walls with their blood. Ten feet down another set of doors slid open on the left, causing one of the corpse’s arms to fall between the two rooms.

  Machine gun fire clanged noisily against the metal doors behind them. Talisha turned to see the doors exploding off their hinges. They flew, trailing smoke across the room. Heavy footsteps thudded against the metal grates as two bulky robots as tall as Bluebird stepped around the corner.

  Talisha hurried into the next room with Bluebird and Rogers close behind. The doors slammed behind them, cutting the severed arm at the wrist. It skittered across the grates leaving a bloody trail. Stomping grew louder behind the doors as the robots continued their approach.

  “Big Blue! I want you to get Rogers to the weapons center to rendezvous with Ching Shih,” Talisha ordered. “I’ll deal with Cyrus.”

  “Your willingness to fight is admirable, little bounty hunter.” Bluebird stepped between Talisha and the doors. “But I don’t have a fancy helmet giving me nice maps of this satellite. I will get lost.”

  “I have superior weapons,” Talisha argued. “Ching Shih can patch into Rogers’s systems and give you directions. It’ll be fine. I can take them.”

  “There’s no time!” Bluebird yelled, the veins on her neck bulging. “Take our cowboy friend and go. Save this planet.”

  Talisha jabbed a finger in Bluebird’s face. “Don’t. Die.”

  Bluebird gave Talisha’s finger a quick kiss. “I will be okay.”

  “I’m serious,” Talisha said. “I’m gonna be mighty pissed if you die.”

  Bluebird laughed. “I shouldn’t want you upset with me, little bounty hunter. Now go! No time for sentiment!” She raised her plasma cannon.

  Talisha gave Bluebird an encouraging pat, then she and Rogers raced down the hall. She turned her head to see Bluebird give an encouraging salute. Talisha whispered a silent prayer for Bluebird’s survival. The doors closed behind them.

  Bluebird primed her cannon to fire at the doors. It let forth its deadly beam melting the doors off the hinges and taking the robots by surprise. She decapitated one’s arm with her plasma beam. It fell smoldering and clanging against the floor.

  The robots retaliated with machine gun fire. She activated her energy barrier in the few seconds it took their guns to begin firing. Casings bounced off the shield and clattered against her feet.

  She let out a hearty laugh and took a thunderous step. “For glory! For Karstotzkiya!”

  BLUEBIRD’S BATTLE CRIES were heard in the next room. Talisha shut her eyes. Rogers squeezed her shoulder.

  “She’s a big woman,” he said. “She’s got this.”

  “She better.” Talisha grabbed his hand and held it. “It’s selfish, but I don’t think I can handle losing anyone else today.”

  Rogers stared ahead. “We already have. Cyrus.”

  Talisha winced. “I’m sorry. This has to be hard for you.”

  “I’ve suffered worse,” he said, his voice gruff.

  They raced through the second set of doors. Ching Shih wasn’t that much farther ahead. Talisha and Rogers stopped in their tracks inches away from the next hall. Heavy footsteps approached.

  Talisha placed her fingers against the side of her helmet. “Ching Shih, we’re being intercepted. Got an alternate path?”

  “Negative. They’re coming in from all sides. Cyrus is busy.”

  Talisha swore. She turned to Rogers. “Get your guns ready. We’re fighting our way out.”

  Two robots came stampeding through the halls. One wielded a heavy spike and chain. Talisha weaved aside as the three-foot-wide metal ball came flying into the hallway, smashing against the walls. She fired several charged blasts from her arm cannon.

  The other robot stepped in front. It used a large metal plate for a shield. In its other arm it held a flamethrower. Rogers dove beneath the intense flames shooting into the corridor. He and Talisha were pinned with little chances of firing back.

  Rogers rolled along the ground. He fired off several consecutive shots. They connected with the chain in key areas, severing the links. The ball smashed a hole in the floor, exposing several wires and cutting off the lights to the hallway.

  Flames illuminated the darkened corridor. It was all Talisha needed. She stood in the face of the flames and fired. The blast wasn’t enough to penetrate the metal shield, but the robot lost balance.

  Rogers shot three bullets into the robot’s head, effectively killing it by severing its circuits. The remaining robot charged, giant fist raised. The metal doors slammed shut against the robot’s sides. They opened, allowing the robot to stumble forward, its motor skills severely dampened by the heavy blow. The doors closed again, crushing the robot’s torso completely.

  The lights of its eyes flickered. It stared weakly into Rogers’s face. He stood over the fallen machine and fired his last loaded bullet into its brain.

  “It wasn’t alive,” Rogers said. His voice quivered. “Cyrus was controlling it.”

  Talisha said nothing. She had no words that would comfort him.

  Ching Shih radioed in. “You’re welcome about those doors by the way. Now hurry up. He’s moving toward the weapons again. Time is short.”

  Talisha nodded. “C’mon, Sheriff.”

  He took a few seconds to reload his revolver. “I’m not a sheriff anymore. Tired of telling ya that.”

  They came to a small room lined with computer consoles and holographic monitors. Ching Shih was sitting in one of the swivel chairs, a hand clutched against her side. She looked badly injured.

  Talisha looked her up and down. “Bad day?”

  “Haven’t had a chance to deal with my wounds,” she said. “Rogers. Get over here. You can jack in through this console.”

  “You do know that runs the risk of Cyrus overwhelming me, right?” Rogers stepped to the console and gave her a cold stare. “I’ve got a lot more weaponry than just this pea-shooter and Cyrus knows how to use ’em. He’d kill both of you quicker than you can say Alan Turing.”

  “My hope is that you can overwhelm him,” Ching Shih said. “I’ve created some software based on data in his memory banks. You can use it to lure him into an area where he won’t have all his advantages. Once you’re inside, you can kill him and end this mess.”

  “What about the other ships he’s infected?” Rogers said. His eyes flicked over the code, analyzing it. “He’ll still be at large.”

  “He’d have to fully transmit himself to those ships,” Ching Shih said. “At the moment his consciousness is residing completely within the Mayflower and he’s only piloting those ships via proxies, like puppets on a string. Soon as you eliminate his consciousness, he’ll be dead for good.”

  Rogers laid his revolver against the desk. His fingers shook. “So he’ll be really gone.”

  Ching Shih slapped the desk. “Hurry. You haven’t got time. That entire planet is going to die if we don’t stop him.”

  “I understand.” Rogers stared at the console. “I understand completely.”

  He placed his palms flat against the console. Lights formed interconnecting patterns at his fingertips, and then his eyes went dim. A new stream of code appeared on the monitor. Rogers was no
w racing through the Mayflower’s systems.

  Talisha followed the code’s movements as best she could. “You got this, cowboy.”

  Sharp clanging echoed throughout the halls. Talisha marched to the doorway. It wouldn’t take long for Cyrus to send his robots.

  “I can’t fight them off.” Ching Shih clutched her sides and winced. “My injuries…”

  “You’ve done enough,” Talisha said, her tone acidic. “Leave this to the professionals.”

  ROGERS’S EYES POPPED open. That was the first uncanny sensation. He had eyelids. He placed his hands to his face. They weren’t cool metal, but skin—warm, human skin.

  He was standing in the dry, empty streets of Dover Town. The arid sun shone hot on his face. He rushed to a nearby trough just outside the saloon. An unfamiliar face greeted him, grizzled and weary, but with the shining eyes of a youthful dreamer. He’d often imagined this was what he’d look like if he were—

  “Human?” a gruff voice called behind him, cutting through his thoughts.

  Rogers turned to face a stranger in all black clothes. A wide-brimmed hat pulled low over his brow cast long shadows across his face. Rogers knew that throaty baritone well.

  “Cyrus,” Rogers said. “What’s going on? What is this?”

  Cyrus raised his head. A cigar leaned halfway out the side of his mouth. He pried it from his lips and rolled it between two fingers.

  “How about you tell me, Sheriff?” Cyrus asked. He pointed at the gold star fixed firmly to Rogers’s poncho. “One second, I’m chugging down the data highway onto oblivion and the next second I’m here in a virtual meatsack with you.”

  Rogers placed both hands on his hips. “Reckon this is the pirate’s doing.”

  “Heh.” Cyrus rubbed his jaw and smirked. “Didn’t take the old gal for having a sense of humor.”

  “Hmm?”

  “Look at this place.” Cyrus gestured vaguely about himself. “It’s our little town, but all covered in sepia and shit. You’d think this was one of our favorite Western flicks. I assume you’re here for a showdown.”