18

Eventually I slept, revived myself, and headed to the observation deck to meet Tom. Elise’s idea about the haptic feedback glove intrigued me.

“What time is it, X?”

“It is approximately 3:30 a.m. standard time,” X-37 answered. “There are other people awake on the Bright Lance, but they are assigned to their posts for the most part. There are few patrons at the observation deck bar. You should have a reasonable amount of privacy.”

I did a quick scan of the room when I entered, then went to Tom where he was reading from a tablet. He put it down as I took a seat.

“Good to see you, Hal.”

My friend knew how to relax.

“Perhaps you should develop a reading habit as well,” X-37 suggested.

I gave him a hand signal, watching Tom to see if he noticed what I was doing. There was a better than average chance that the man suspected I had a nonverbal way of communicating with X-37. He understood my LAI monitored every aspect of my biometrics, including proprioceptive mechanisms. This allowed X to understand more than just heart rate and blood pressure, but also my balance, physical coordination, and force generation. In short, the LAI knew what my hands were doing at all times.

“Did Elise talk to you about the glove?” I said, producing two cigars and motioning for the bartender to send someone with whiskeys.

“She mentioned something. It shouldn’t be that hard to figure it out. When we’re done here, I’m heading to my workshop anyway and I can tinker with the idea a bit.”

The holo view wall loomed above us, while soft music played on the intercom. A young woman in a meticulous jumpsuit took our order for two whiskeys.

“Thanks. I figured you could handle it,” I said. “We’re going to have a much bigger problem with the mutant test subjects.”

“The best course would probably be to destroy them,” Tom said. He didn’t exactly look happy about the idea and I knew him well enough to know he still saw the monstrosities as people who had been involuntarily modified.

“But you know that probably won’t happen,” I said. “For a variety of reasons.”

“Are you going to let Ayers continue his work?”

I could see that Tom was nervous, worried about my answer.

“No, the man can’t be trusted. But we will need him if we intend to save any of the early-stage hybrids,” I said. “I’m not sure what to do with those who no longer appear human.”

“They might be more human than they look,” he said. “There’s no way to know until we revive one of them and find out.”

“You’re right, but it’s risky. We barely managed to assemble this fleet. You saw how chaotic the slip tunnel passage was. If we have a monster crisis, we could undo everything we’ve worked for,” I said.

“What’s really on your mind, Hal?” Tom put down his cigar next to his whiskey glass and his book. Leaning forward slightly, he touched his fingertips together to convey earnestness. “I’ve known you long enough to realize when something is eating at you.”

“It’s one thing to see humans turned into experiments,” I said. “It’s another when you recognize them. Briggs wasn’t my friend, but I would never wish this type of fate on him.”

“He’s one of the more human versions, right?” Tom asked.

I nodded. “But like you said, there’s no way to know what’s happened inside. His brain could be a soup of chemicals. I’m afraid to wake him up and find out.”

Elise walked into the observation area, past the bar and the two or three people talking quietly there, and joined us.

“You started without me,” she said.

“You’re too young to drink,” I said.

“That’s stupid, but I don’t want to anyway.”

“And I’m not going to be responsible for you smoking,” I said.

“Good, because smoking is gross. I came to talk and watch the view. Sorry if I’m ruining your boys club.”

“It’s good to have you here,” Tom said. “Hal and I were just discussing your idea for the haptic feedback glove and other things.”

“Like what to do with the human alien hybrids?” she asked.

“Yep.” I put out my cigar before I realized what I was doing. Tom’s was already extinguished.

“Did you make a decision or figure anything out?” she asked.

“Nope.”

She crossed her arms, thinking intently. The days of her teenage chatter were long behind us. There were moments when she reminded me of the kid I rescued from the cage, but our adventures were forcing her to grow up too soon. I made a mental note to start a prank war to lighten the mood on the ship. It wasn’t my strong point now, but there had been a time when I had been a force to reckon with—full of mischief and other good, clean fun.

“I guess there are never easy answers,” she said. “At least the view is nice.”

We watched a dozen ships practicing docking maneuvers in the distance. In another part of the holo-view, one of the greenhouse ships faced the sun and increased the transparency of its shields to grow crops.

“I always knew I would escape the Union someday,” Elise said. “But I never suspected it would be like this, with so many people starting over and working together.”

* * *

Elise had abandoned the conversation after an hour or two. Tom gave me a bit longer and then retired to his cabin to finish reading his book. I stayed watching the stars, sipping, and holding an unlit cigar until the midmorning crowd arrived.

“James Henshaw is sending you a coded message,” X-37 said.

“What do you mean coded? I thought all of our communications were secure.”

“That is correct, Reaper Cain. My struggle against Necron definitely upped my game in regard to security. Additionally, Mavis has not made attempts to violate our private links.”

“Then why the hell is Henshaw complicating things?” The ocular engineer had been reclusive lately, rarely showing up on the observation deck, and according to the logs, he’d stopped going to observe the hybrid alien test subjects.

That was the most unusual thing about his behavior. He was one of the most curious people I’d ever met and had shown great interest in all of the work Ayers had done. Now, he was like a ghost.

“Apparently, he takes extra precautions whenever he’s not on the Lady Faith,” X-37 explained. “Presently, he is awaiting your arrival at an infrequently used storage bay on one of the aft decks.”

“Fine. Give me a map.” I attempted to clear my head of the whiskey I’d sipped for too long.

“I am relaying directions to your HUD projector.”

An image appeared as a projection slightly in front of me. This made it larger than a helmet display. The illusion worked.

“Apologies, Reaper Cain,” X-37 said. “Henshaw has changed the rendezvous point.”

“Is someone following him?” I asked. “He’s acting like he’s trying to lose a tail.”

“I have used one of the security networks Mavis has granted me full access to and can detect no one following Henshaw,” X-37 said. “For the record, my job is much easier with such a cooperative ship AI.”

“That’s great, X.” I picked up the pace, hoping to reach the rendezvous point before Henshaw changed it again. Because I knew he would.

“I should tell you, however, that it is not perfect. Even Bug struggles with the system from time to time,” X-37 said.

“Sure, X. Nobody’s perfect. Not even an LAI.”

After four very frustrating attempts to find him, we finally met inside of a maintenance tube that was barely tall enough for me to stand in.

Henshaw looked more disheveled than I’d ever seen him. His hair was unkempt, but what made him look especially out of character was what he wore. Since we met on Roxo III, the man had always paid attention to fashion, sometimes pretending not to care even though everyone knew better. Casual chic was normally his thing.

Right now, he was wearing a jumpsuit that had been stolen from a laundry room. There were still folds in the fabric from where it had been stacked inside of a locker.

“What the hell are we doing here, Henshaw?” I demanded.

“Are you certain you weren’t followed?” he asked.

“Positive,” I said, biting down on the word. “Can you believe this guy, X? When have I ever allowed someone to tail me?”

“I have no record of anyone following you without your knowing,” X-37 reported.

“That’s good, really good” Henshaw checked over his shoulder. “What about the ship AI?”

“Don’t worry about Mavis,” I said. “What’s your problem?”

“I thought you would understand,” Henshaw said. “Ayers couldn’t have built a research project like this without being politically sophisticated. You have to consider that Nebs might’ve been working for the doctor and not the other way around. Everything I’ve seen suggests that Ayers was manipulating him, and wasn’t just another Union scientist with an unreasonable boss.”

“I never really trust anybody,” I said “You should know that.”

“That’s why I’m surprised you’re not being more careful,” Henshaw said.

“I’ve compared his behavior to previous behavioral patterns. I’m detecting a clear trend toward increasing paranoia,” X-37 said.

“I’m always careful, Jimmy.”

His lip curled at the nickname, which I knew he didn’t like. “That’s not enough. We have to get rid of him, and all of the test subjects. If we shut off the cryo-pods, we can learn what they were through autopsies and other analysis.”

“You’re serious,” I said.

“I hate losing such a huge scientific discovery, but if I think they’re too dangerous to study, then you should be paying attention. This will not end well. Get rid of Ayers, euthanize the hybrids. It’s the only way to save this fleet you’re so fond of,” Henshaw said in an aggressive tone.

“X?”

“I’m already contacting Mavis to restrict Henshaw’s access to the research facilities,” X-37 said.

“What are you waiting for?” Henshaw demanded.

“Proof. I’ll have the guard doubled and restrict access to the area. That’s the best I can do right now,” I said.

Henshaw shook his head almost hard enough to hurt himself. “That’s not enough!”

“It is if I say it is. And it’s not your problem,” I said. “If you go near the research area, I’ll put you in a cell right next to Ayers.”

“You’re making a mistake, Reaper.”

“Listen, Jimmy, I’ll be the first person to put those monsters out of their misery if it’s the right thing to do.”

* * *

Elise and I waited for half an hour, but Path didn’t show up. We had the training area to ourselves.

“Did you tell him we were going to spar?” I asked.

“He’s normally here at this time,” she said. “I didn’t think I needed to call him.”

“X, can you check on Path?”

“Right away, Reaper Cain.”

“We might as well get started,” I said.

“Conditioning first, or fighting first?” Elise asked.

“Your choice.” Admitting how bad I felt wasn’t a good idea. She would use my weakness against me, probably shouting and making lots of noise to aggravate my pounding headache.

“I think we should run first. The Bright Lance has a track that goes all the way around the outer concourse. There are even some holo screens along the way with a pretty good view of the fleet,” she said.

I wasn’t excited about pounding my feet around the fitness concourse, but I needed the exercise. With luck, I could even keep up with Elise. My confrontation with Henshaw, when I’d finally caught up with him, had driven me to drink too much. I knew what I wanted to do but was struggling at what I thought was the right thing to do.

Once we’d warmed up and stretched, we started jogging.

“Have you talked to your mother or sister today?” Elise asked.

“Not yet.”

We rounded a long curve that followed the contour of the ship in this section.

“You need to spend more time with them,” Elise said. “If we have to go on a mission, you won’t have a chance to, I don’t know, do all that family stuff.”

“I’ve been busy. This problem with Henshaw and the hybrids is serious business,” I said.

“There’s more to it than that, and you know it. Tell me the truth, Reaper. What’s wrong?”

I wasn’t sure what I should tell her.

“Why are you so nervous?” Elise asked.

“I’m afraid I’ll let them down. And not because of a failed mission, but because of who I am.”

“They know you are a Reaper. Don’t overthink it. Isn’t that what you always tell me?” Elise asked.

We finished the lap and kept going on a second lap.

“What’s wrong with Henshaw?” Elise asked, breathing harder than before.

“He...thinks...the hybrids are dangerous.”

“Oh my God! You’re winded.” Elise laughed. “I think we should always run before we spar in the future.”

“Fine, I’m not scared.”

She laughed again.

“He’s not wrong about the hybrids, I just don’t agree with what he wants to do about them. Most were tricked into being test subjects or had the DNA splicing done against their will. I don’t think they deserve to be put down like dogs,” I said.

“Well shit,” Elise said. “You had to make it ugly. Maybe we’ll think of something while we’re beating each other with practice swords.”

“Path has followed Henshaw to his cabin and is standing guard outside of his door,” X-37 interrupted. “Under other circumstances, it might seem that Henshaw had ordered him to do this. Given our recent conversations, I think he is trying to keep track of his old boss.”

“Keep me updated,” I answered. “Elise is going to try and convince me she knows how to sword fight,” I said.

“Good luck with that, Reaper Cain.”

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