June 3, 2361 AIA

Supremacy Military Base 049478

Adan Vas was unloading weapons from the various ingenious hiding places he had designed and installed in his ship.

“You’re sure those are her coordinates?” He tucked Reyer’s tactical knife into his belt, beside one of the extra e-pistols.

“As sure as I can be,” his brother said. “We know the major is here. Or, at least, his jacket’s here.”

“This isn’t a joke, Ciro.” Vas shoved an XM4 at Lynx.

“I only have the information I have. Her name is nowhere in any records, but there’s one detention cell being held in reserve for Major Tennama and a Colonel Harlan.”

“But there are no guards assigned to it?”

Ciro held his shrug until his brother finished putting his sword in its sheath and turned to look at him.

“We know whatever she’s involved with is classified,” Ciro said. “Maybe they’re trying to keep as few people from knowing as possible.”

“How hard is it going to be to get in?”

“Not hard. We’re damn lucky this is a small base and not some huge city or a secured planet. Things could have been a lot worse.”

Adan stopped what he was doing and walked over to his brother. “She’s been in there for three days.”

“She won’t be in there much longer, Adan. You and Lynx will be able to get her out quickly—hopefully without being seen. I should be able to take down the base force field if they put it up, but it would be much easier if you could get in and out without raising any alarms.”

Vas tossed Lynx a machete. “Is your connection solid and secure?”

“Yes, Captain,” Lynx said. “While I don’t anticipate any break in communication between myself and the ship, Master Ciro has already downloaded all maps, diagrams, and relevant files to my memory in case anything should happen.”

“Then let’s go.”

Ciro had used the connection the button transmitter had hijacked to get into the base’s system. This allowed him to get them on planet without being noticed by the scanning system, but they still had to approach the base low to avoid being seen by any sentries. Vas had brought them as close as he dared. The rest of the distance would have to be taken on foot.

That part of the planet seemed to be mostly forest. The trees were wild and tall, bent around in curious curves. The grass was thick and tough, like closely grown bamboo. It reached up to Vas’s waist. He had Lynx search for the magnetic poles and orient himself to the Golondrina before he led the bot toward the base.

Fifteen minutes later, they were within eyesight of the place. It only took Lynx a moment to analyze the layout and compare it to the diagrams in his system. He led Vas over to the base of a large tree.

“There should be a ventilation outlet for their underground construction here, Captain.”

Vas stomped where the robot was pointing. They heard the hollow echo of reverberating metal. Vas dug around the edges, then Lynx crushed the lock and lifted the porous hatch. The floor was only eight and a half feet down. Adan jumped.

Lynx lowered himself as far as his arms allowed to minimize the sound he would make when he dropped the rest of the way. As the echo of his landing faded, he pulled the XM4 back from where he’d slung it over his chest plate and retrieved the machete from his hip.

“Light, Lynx.”

The robot obediently brightened all his external lights. “Is this adequate, sir?”

“Yes. I don’t want anything brighter.”

Lynx led Vas down the long tunnel and past several storage rooms.

“Where does the tunnel lead?” Vas asked.

“It’s an evacuation tunnel. It leads to a secret port, sir.”

“Does it run any closer to the ship?”

“No, sir.”

They found the steep metal steps that led up to the main level. Lynx walked up them, removed the panel over the security console, and hooked himself into the system, port to port. The door opened.

Lynx dodged his head out and scanned both directions.

“There is no one in the halls, Captain.”

Vas nodded for the robot to go first.

Lynx checked each corner. It wasn’t until the third passageway that they ran into someone. Lynx raised his XM4 but Vas pushed the muzzle of the gun down.

“Has he seen us?”

The robot shook his head in a precise left-right movement.

“Watch him. See which way he turns.”

They waited.

“He has turned in the opposite direction from the way we need to go, Captain.”

“Good. Give him a minute.”

They went on.

The empty halls began to grate on Adan’s nerves. “Where is everyone?” he grumbled.

He was covering the robot’s back as Lynx worked another security panel.

“Unknown, sir. Would you like me to try to ascertain the relative positions—”

“No. Get me to Reyer.”

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The door opened, and they slid into the security wing.

There was a checkpoint that should have had at least one human guard, but no one was there. As they were walking down the hall, Lynx suddenly froze.

“What is it?” Vas whispered.

“I’ve had a communication from Master Ciro. When we went through the last security door, a hidden alarm was tripped.”

“What kind of an alarm?”

“Searching now.” There was a series of soft whirring noises. “It was a private notification sent to Major Anthony Tennama and Colonel Jack Harlan.”

“How long until they receive it?”

“Their machines have already received it. When they will notice is unknown. Master Ciro is trying to retract it as we speak.”

“At least we know she’s here. Come on.”

Lynx looked around the next corner, then jerked his head back. “Robots, sir. Two of them.”

Vas swore. “Are there any alarms or signals they could trip as we approach?”

“Only if they are wirelessly connected to the system.”

“Are they?”

There was a pause as Lynx looked up the information. “Yes.”

“Take it down.”

“What?”

“Take down the entire wireless system. If you can’t, I know Ciro can.”

“Sir, that will disable my ability to contact Master Ciro until we’re within—”

“I don’t care. Take it down now, Lynx.”

“Yes, sir.” A moment later Lynx raised his head. “They are now disconnected.”

“Let’s go.”

They went around the corner. Lynx spread his body wide, taking a myriad of shots from the e-weapons the bots had been given. The blasts disseminated when they struck his inorganic form. Vas only stepped out at the last moment, closing in on the second bot while Lynx tore the first apart with his machete. Adan used his sword to remove the second robot’s head from its body.

Lynx once again forced the door with a direct link. As it was sliding open, Vas stood ready. The robots inside were waiting. He drove his dao through the first one before the second bot started firing. Lynx picked Vas up with one hand to pull him out of the line of fire while using his free hand to throw the remains of the first bot at the one still shooting. They both clattered to the floor.

The second bot threw the maimed body of his fellow guard away and rose up, but Vas was there, waiting to drive a knife through its head.

Lynx retrieved the captain’s sword while Adan turned to where Reyer was sitting.

She was curled at the edge of her berth, her knees up and her arms folded across her shirtless chest.

“Oh my god,” he muttered. He took off his jacket as he approached her. He was about to throw it over her shoulders, but then he saw that her back was a jumble of welts and slashes. He knelt down in front of her. The abuse was all along her upper arms as well. He gently placed his jacket over her knees and shoulders. “Alix…”

She said in a shaky voice, “Are you Adan Vas?”

“What?”

“Are you Adan Vas?”

“Alix, what are you talking about?”

Her hand lashed out. She grabbed one of the e-pistols tucked in his belt as she kicked him away. By the time he got back to his feet, she was standing, his jacket clutched over her shoulder with one hand, the gun pointed at his chest.

“Are you Captain Adan Vas?”

He held up his hands. “Yes! My god! What have they done to you?”

“Prove it.”

“Dammit, Miss Reyer! Are you going to threaten me every time I come to rescue you?”

“Prove it,” she repeated. Her finger tightened over the trigger.

Lynx stepped forward, putting himself between the gun and the captain. “Miss Reyer, this is Captain Vas.”

“Do you know that for sure, bot?”

The robot had to stop to process. “No, Miss Reyer. But I know that I am Lynx. That is my name and what I am. I was created by Ciro Vas. I am most likely a titanium alloy, and I almost have a soul. Do you recognize me?”

“Yes.”

“I am unique.”

“Yes.”

“Then will you trust me?”

Reyer lowered the pistol. “You won’t hurt me, Lynx?”

“No, Miss Reyer.”

She nodded to the corner of the room. “My shirt is over there. Please get it.”

While Lynx went to fetch the garment, Reyer felt Vas’s eyes on her. She didn’t look at him. “They beat me. With machetes.” She sounded dispassionate, almost hollow.

Adan looked away as she dressed. When he turned back, he caught a glimpse of her stained and shredded shirt before it disappeared under his jacket.

He had to swallow down the lump in his throat before he could speak. “Can you walk?”

She didn’t answer.

“I advise you to allow me to carry you, Miss Reyer,” Lynx said. “It will not be comfortable, but I will be much faster, and there is some urgency for a quick departure.”

“Do they know you’re here?” she asked the bot.

“They might,” Lynx admitted.

Vas took the machete from his bot. “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of anything that gets in our way.”

When they left the room, Vas was leading. Lynx followed behind with Reyer curled in his arms.

They made it out of the security wing and down several halls before the bots found them.

They had e-weapons, but none of them seemed willing to fire until it was too late. By then Vas was in the middle of them with a sword in one hand and a machete in the other. By the time Lynx gently put Reyer down, there were only a few left to dispose of. Lynx slammed two robots against the wall, mashing their metal faces into the ungiving brick. Then he reached out and grabbed the middle of an XM4, squeezing it until the metal gave out with a horrible creaking, grinding noise. Lynx seized the skull of another bot with one hand, pressing the tips of his five fingers together until it was crushed. The one he had disarmed tried to come after him, but it was stopped when Adan shoved a knife in the side of its skull. Sparks jumped from the place of impact. It fell to the ground with its arm still outstretched.

Lynx looked at Vas. “Are you all right, Captain?”

Adan was breathing heavy, so it took him a moment to answer. “I’m hurt but not shot. Get Reyer. They know we’re here. We have to run.”

The bot went back to pick up Reyer from where she was still leaning against the wall. Once she was settled in his arms again, he jogged back.

Vas turned and began running down the hall. He could hear the metal footfalls keeping perfect pace behind him. “Lynx, how far out does the force field of this base extend?”

“From the center of the base or the perimeter?”

“Perimeter.”

“Four hundred meters.”

“So the ship’s outside that zone?”

“I estimate by as much as eight hundred and eighty-seven meters, sir.”

“Lynx, how far out does the evacuation tunnel go from the perimeter of the base?”

They ran three more paces before Lynx answered. “Seven hundred meters, Captain. But if you’re thinking of using it as an escape route, I must remind you it lies in a different direction from the ship.”

“Could you find the ship once we’re on the surface?”

“Yes, sir, but—”

“We can afford to run, Lynx. We can’t afford to get caught.”

“Understood, sir.”

They made it down to the storage rooms without running into anyone else. The underground structure was still dark and empty. They ran through the tunnels with Lynx occasionally announcing which way to turn.

“Stop here, sir.”

Vas halted. He put his hands on his knees and took a second to breathe.

“Support Miss Reyer, please, Captain.”

Lynx put her on her feet beside Vas. He wrapped his arms around her, trying to hold her up without pressing on her back. She grabbed his shirt.

Lynx looked up at the ventilation portal above him.

“Lynx, this isn’t the end of the tunnel,” Vas said. “Where are we?”

“We’re at the point nearest the ship that is still outside the range of the force field. Proceeding any further in these tunnels would only delay our departure from this planet.”

“Lynx, you’re amazing.”

“I’m glad you find me useful, sir.” One of his metal fists shot up toward a spot on the rim of the portal. Whatever had been sealing it gave way with a metallic snap. Lynx hooked his fingers over the ridge, pulled himself up with one arm, and used the other to push aside the cover. When he had pulled himself out, he put his arms back down.

Vas was already standing under the opening, Reyer still leaning against him. She reached up and grabbed the robot’s arms. He pulled her out with a slow, smooth motion.

Adan jumped and pulled himself out. It took a lot more effort and was far less graceful. Once he was above ground, the captain lay in the grass, looking up at the early stars, trying to get his breath back.

“Captain?”

Vas got to his feet. “I’m ready.”

He and Lynx ran side by side until they reached the Golondrina.

Ciro had already prepped the ship to depart. He jumped to his feet as the three of them came storming up the ramp.

“Shut it,” Adan yelled.

Ciro slammed his fist over the button. His brother was already at the pilot’s seat.

“Lynx!” he cried. “I need you!”

Lynx said, “Master Ciro, take Miss Reyer, please. Keep her steady during take-off.”

After handing her off, the bot went and sat in the copilot’s chair. “Ready for command, Captain.”

“Pick a random bit of nowhere in space, ten minutes outside of velox. Enter the course and destination as I fly.”

“Understood, sir.”

Their departure started a small forest fire that smoldered in the damp woods for an hour after they left. Vas dropped them into velox as soon as the computer allowed him to. Lynx had barely finished entering their destination.