Nigel examined the makeshift prison that he and his female companions had occupied for the past several days. Their limited rations and horrifying situation had not been able to tarnish the beauty of the three female assassins. If nothing else, his feelings for all of them intensified. If the guards hadn’t been so attentive, Nigel would have shown his companions how he really felt. Their disappearance was not only troubling; it was downright heartbreaking. He felt as if a piece of himself was missing. He shook the cells, testing their tensile strength—they were locked, but a person-sized hole was in the far wall. He tried to imagine what had happened. Had someone broken them out? Had they been abducted?

“Nigel, we need to go,” Aiko said.

“They’re gone,” Nigel said in disbelief.

Aiko opened the cell and examined the hole in the wall.

“This was blown inward,” Aiko said, pointing to some rubble on the floor. “My guess is someone used a half stick of dynamite. Otherwise, the hole would have been much larger.”

“What’s on the other side of this wall?”

“This building bordered the outer perimeter of our encampment. If they left through this hole, then they’re likely out in the wilds of New York. You need to come with me. Our patrols found someone asking for you.”

“Who?”

“Henry, I think he said his name was.”

Nigel had all but forgotten about Mr. Henry. He had lost track of him during the windowless building heist.

“He can probably help us. Professor Paladin has captured his family. We can use that to our advantage,” Nigel said.

“How?” Aiko asked.

“He had some inside knowledge of the professor’s plans. He can help me put everything together,” Nigel explained.

Nigel followed Aiko through the chaos of the breached encampment. Her enforcers had repelled the incursion. Most of the attackers were dead or being interrogated.

“I thought we were done for,” Nigel said.

“This was only a mild skirmish. We get these attacks several times a week. They are always testing our limits.”

Moments later, Nigel entered Aiko’s tent. Mr. Henry was tied to a chair. He had aged since they last met. He looked like he’d lost everything he cared about. Nigel felt sorry for him. He’d tried distancing himself from his secret government work, but it had come back for him anyway.

“Nige, it’s so good to see you,” Mr. Henry said.

“Can you remove his bindings?” Nigel asked.

“Not until I get some answers,” Aiko said.

Mr. Henry sighed. “That’s okay, I will cooperate.”

“How did you get in Professor Paladin’s debt?” Nigel asked.

“That’s not his real name. Paladin is his callsign. He’s responsible for getting the last two presidents elected. His organization is far bigger than the Cabal.”

Mr. Henry looked Nigel in the eyes and a wave of nausea overcame Nigel. Bile bit Nigel’s throat. He couldn’t speak for a long time. Nigel only thought he had experienced terror until that moment. Pure terror radiated off Mr. Henry like an oven. The thought of someone that powerful taking an interest in him—of all people—meant that he was a controllable puppet waiting to get his strings pulled. Nigel tried to swallow, but his mouth was bone dry.

“Water. Can you get us some?” Nigel said.

“He only gets water when he tells us something,” Aiko said.

Nigel stared at Aiko. Everything bad that had ever happened to him rushed in at an instant. The hit from Ioann, the attack by Hunter. Watching the look on Natasha’s face as she fell in battle. It all came back, and its pain was deliciously raw and pure. It cut into him, but he endured it.

“Jesus, Nigel, take it,” Aiko said, holding out two bottles of water.

He didn’t know what look he gave her, but it was effective. He opened one of the bottles and drank it in a few gulps. He opened the second bottle and offered it to Mr. Henry. He opened his mouth and Nigel poured.

“Enough!” Mr. Henry said, spitting out and choking on the water.

An image of Nigel’s mother unconscious in the hospital emerged. The memory latched onto his throat and it wouldn’t let go. The simple sound of a flute overcame him. Its sweet melody was intoxicating. He blinked as someone knocked the bottle of water from his hand. Mr. Henry choked, then coughed. He tried raising a hand as much as the rope would allow.

What the hell is happening to me?

Aiko gave him a look of horror. “Nigel, calm down. We’re not at the waterboarding stage of negotiations.”

“I’m okay, I know what you’re going through, Nigel,” Mr. Henry said.

“What just happened? The last thing I remember was drinking the water. Did I—”

“You did, and that’s okay. That bastard Paladin must have gotten to you as well,” Aiko said.

Mr. Henry chuckled ominously. “Listen carefully, my boy. The Jet you lost flies to the watchtower as your brother’s lights dim at Appleton’s hands.”

Nigel raised his hands as high as he could, then rested them on the top of his head. It was like the weight of the world was set upon him. A memory of Natasha and his brother Ralphie emerged. She was trying to convince the boy to go with his father so she and Nigel could infiltrate the island and stop Jeremiah before he unleashed anarchy. The frightened look in his brother’s eyes, the wrenching of his heart as he let his brother fall into the hands of that maniacal son of a bitch. A flash of pain shot through his skull. He forced himself to stop pulling his hair. He pulled a clump out before he caught himself. Nigel put his hands over his face. “What the hell is happening to me?”

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

“You’re his now,” Mr. Henry said, laughing.

A surge of energy washed through him, biting him as it coursed through his system. It was like someone had poured acid down his throat. He screamed in agony.

“What did you do to Nigel?” Aiko asked, ramming a finger into Mr. Henry’s chest.

“Oh, nothing. I’ve activated Nigel’s programming. He will now accept instructions like any computer.”

“It hurts, make it stop!”

“Giving birth to a new life is painful, but you will be—reborn like I was.”

Aiko removed her katana and pressed the blade against Mr. Henry’s throat. “Make it stop—now!”

He smiled, then she decked him with the hilt of her sword. Blood oozed from his lips, and he laughed. The sight was horrifying.

“Dark tidings will bring you to the control center,” Mr. Henry said.

Nigel barely heard the words, but as soon as the last syllable was uttered, the pain stopped. It was like Mr. Henry had flipped his pain switch. Nigel blinked tears from his eyes. He had never experienced pain like that. He took a moment to compose himself, then pulled himself upright. He thought of Delta, the cyborg consciousness that took over the body of April, before Nigel spoke the words containing her control phrase. She was a cyborg. He was human. He hadn’t undergone any surgical procedures, so he had no idea how he would have been affected.

“How is it possible that I’m affected by a control phrase? I’m not a cyborg.”

Mr. Henry smiled menacingly. The look gave Nigel chills. This wasn’t the Mr. Henry he had known a couple of years ago.

“Answer him!” Aiko demanded.

She increased pressure on the sword. Blood trickled down Mr. Henry’s neck. He swallowed, then sighed.

“While it may be true that you didn’t undergo any surgery to become a soldier of Paladin’s empire, you must have come into contact with something. Did you eat or drink anything before your mission?”

Other than snagging some supplies and weapons from Professor Paladin’s storehouse and armory, Nigel didn’t remember eating anything. Wait—he did drink some soda. But he saw one of the professor’s men open the bottle.

“We didn’t have anything to eat while at the compound, but I had a bottle of Newport’s Finest. But I saw his men open it.”

“You should have stuck to the water. That soda is one of Professor Paladin’s control mechanisms. One of his shell corporations has been buying up soft drink and energy drink companies for years.”

“How is it possible to control people from a drink?” Aiko asked, astonished.

“Professor Paladin’s network makes the Cabal’s operation look like a kid’s lemonade stand, quite literally in fact. He knew that Doc Chop’s methods were brutal and crude and would only affect a small number of people.”

“After analyzing the data that I retrieved from the windowless building, I discovered that Doc Chop’s gas attacks are temporary. He needs to operate on the affected before it becomes permanent,” Nigel said.

“Right, but Paladin’s formula is quite different. He has outfitted his sodas and power drinks with something special—nanites, living machines that settle in the frontal lobe of the brain.”

A wave of anxiety overcame Nigel. How could a drink get into his brain? He remembered an extracurricular project he did for Mr. Levinson’s class. He researched nanites and how they could be used to help people with loss in brain activity. He was impressed with the advances that some organizations made.

“Is there a way to reverse the process?” Aiko asked.

“Not without a brain surgeon,” Nigel said.

“The boy is right. Once these critters settle into the brain, they are impossible to eradicate.”

“Unless...” Nigel trailed off.

“What are you thinking?” Aiko asked.

“I wonder... power surges kill computer equipment. And just enough power could fry the little bastards.”

“That’s not going to happen,” Mr. Henry said, chuckling. “The sun is setting for the host as the ghosts in the machine actuate the heart of the one.”

Blood flowed from both Nigel’s nostrils. A wave of realization overcame Nigel. Mr. Henry’s nonsensical phrases were control phrases. I need to find a way to block these, but how? His mind raced, trying to find a solution, then something came to him—and it was gone. It was like someone had plucked it from his head.

“It’s trying to...”

Nigel couldn’t formulate another word into speech. His mouth moved, but no words came out. He had volumes to say. He had the solution, but it remained elusive. His condition was similar to the problem he had after Hunter slit his throat open. A centimeter more, and he would have been killed. It was a long time before he healed physically and mentally from that attack. His current speech impediment was caused by something else, something biological.

“He won’t be able to speak for a while,” Mr. Henry explained.

“Why not!?” Aiko demanded.

“Once a level of toxicity is reached within the body, the nanites introduce a virus which affects the subject’s ability to speak.”

“Is this permanent?”

Mr. Henry shook his head.

“It’s a side effect of the process. It should wear off anywhere from a matter of hours to days. Everyone reacts differently.”

Nigel’s vision blurred, and a vision of his would-be assassin entered his mind. Hunter Garrison, Dahlia’s only child, was cutting into his throat with the soiled blade the psycho used to carve up two officers of the Milford Police Department. Nigel questioned his sanity as he relived the nightmare. The mists of memory cleared. Mr. Henry was saying something that he couldn’t quite make out. A laugh that he didn’t recognize overcame his consciousness.

“Debar the courier,” Mr. Henry said.

Nigel’s vision turned crimson. His vision was normal, other than the red tint. A moment later, a compulsion to hurt Mr. Henry overcame him. It was more than a suggestion; it was a need. He punched Mr. Henry, and the blow threw his head back; blood flowed from his mouth. Another blow followed. Pain shot up his arm every time he connected with his target. Aiko caught his fist with hers. She was saying something, but it was muffled. It was like he was underwater.

“Stop,” Aiko screamed.

Erik, and another man whom Nigel didn’t recognize, grabbed Mr. Henry and pushed him toward the door. He went limp and fell.

“Devastate,” Mr. Henry said.

Nigel pushed Aiko aside like she weighed nothing. He grabbed Erik by the throat, then propelled him across the room. The man bounced off the wall and stopped moving. The other man charged and knocked the wind out of Nigel. To Nigel’s surprise, he pushed him so hard that he threw the man into the desk, which shattered as the man came into contact with it. Aiko assumed a forward stance and dodged Nigel’s advances. He stumbled, leaving him open for an attack. She kicked him in his left side. He went down.

“Shirr the messenger.”

Rage engulfed Nigel. His desire was to kill everyone inside the room. He flipped the desk, grabbed one of the pieces, and threw it at Mr. Henry. Before the projectile could connect with the man’s head, Aiko intercepted it and tossed it behind her. Nigel didn’t understand how she could have moved so quickly.

“Kramp the enforcer.”

It hurt to breathe. It was like someone was on his back, forcing his jaw open and shoving a lion down his throat. He tried to speak, but only choked. It felt like he was carrying a small mountain. His grip slipped and the desk fell.

“Flay the courier,” Mr. Henry said.

“Nigel, stop!” Aiko screamed as she punched and slapped him continuously.

Nigel’s vision was blurring even more. He could hear Aiko yelling at him and slapping him, but he didn’t understand why. He could barely move, and it was hard to breathe. Then, as a gust of fresh air entered his lungs, he drew upon a newfound surge of energy and lifted the desk. Aiko opened the door and ordered Nigel to stop. He ignored her. Mr. Henry was on the ground, blood pouring out of his mouth. The remains of the desk and chair crashed into his body. Mr. Henry wasn’t dead, but should have been considering how much blood he had lost. Erik was moving, barely. Nigel couldn’t tell if he was coming to attack him or help Mr. Henry. He needed more time to finish the job.

Aiko was behind him. She was going to stop him. She knew how to control him.

“Leave,” he gasped.

“No, resist! You’re better than this,” Aiko said, hugging Nigel from behind.

“Nigel! What happened here?” Blanka said, rushing to his side.

He tried saying something but couldn’t get the words out. His vision blurred and he felt the soft embrace of his women as he collapsed.