She twisted her body upward, drawing in her arms and legs to alter her center of mass, once again instinctively knowing how to utilize the lighter gravity of Ganymede to her advantage. The change caused her to spin.
As she continued toward him, her body spiraling like a bullet, she slid the X2-59 before her so it led the way. She centered the small tunnel that remained of her vision over the tip of the blade and aligned it with her target.
The spinning weapon slammed into the Scorpion’s face, just beneath the right eye, and she felt the momentary resistance as the thick armor opposed the weapon. But then the plasma-enveloped blade slid through, passing into the brain within. But it stopped after traveling only twenty more centimeters, checked this time by the inner portion of the brain case at the back of his skull.
The weapon jolted in her hands, passing the impact up into her arm and torso. Momentum carried her forward, and the base of the lodged blade broke away. She plowed into the Scorpion, and her body crumpled around his face and chest before bouncing away. She landed hard on the snowy roof before him.
She looked up, and through her tunnel vision, watched with satisfaction as the Scorpion staggered backward. From his eye, the blade protruded, bent, broken, and no longer glowing. He finally collapsed, and she felt the rooftop shake when he hit.
Her vision was fast fading. She let her own head drop and closed her eyes.
Rhea! came Will’s voice in her head.
She opened her eyelids a crack, and saw a dim form emerge from the rooftop stairwell shed.
In moments he was kneeling before her.
Rhea hang on! He lifted her into his arms and fumbled with something on his suit. A moment later he shoved an oxygen mask over her mouth and nose. He pressed it hard, sealing the edges.
Breathe, Rhea, breathe, Will sent.
Rhea did so, taking a deep inhale. He shifted again. She felt something wet on her cold face. Fluttering her eyes open, she realized he was spraying expanding foam from the suit repair kit around the edges of the mask. The foam quickly expanded and dried, securing the mask to her face.
As vision and cognizance returned to her, she sat up. A tube from the mask ran down to his suit. He would have to carefully regulate the O2 release for her cyborg body, since the pressurized air was designed to be released into a suit, not directly into the delicate machinery composing her air extraction unit.
How are you feeling? Will asked mentally.
Good, she replied with a grateful smile. Thanks to you. Horatio?
She searched the rooftop for the robot. The mask and the solidified foam that held it blocked the lower half of her vision, so she had to tilt her head forward slightly to look over it.
He’s all right, Will sent. He landed on the street below. A bit beat up, but nothing I can’t fix.
Her eyes alighted on the Scorpion, and she stood. Will offered his shoulder as a crutch, but she waved him off. My legs aren’t damaged.
Guess I thought you’d be wobbly after what happened, he sent.
She nodded and bounded toward the Scorpion. She moved slowly, so that Will, tethered to her by the O2 line, could stay close. It would not be a good idea to snap that line.
When she reached the Scorpion, her enemy’s chin tilted upward slightly, and his left eye opened to gaze upon her. His right eye remained sealed shut, courtesy of the broken blade lodged underneath.
She received a comm signal.
It was from the Scorpion.
She accepted.
You’ve won, Dagger. I lay dying before you. My brain injured. Hemorrhaging. I have moments to live. This is what you wanted, isn’t it?
What I wanted? she returned. I only wanted to be left alone. It didn’t have to end this way. You forced my hand, Sebastian. When he didn’t answer, she asked: Why do you call me Dagger?
It doesn’t matter, he replied. It is from a time even I have forgotten. You want Veil, am I right?
She nodded slowly. You will betray your master to me?
It’s not a betrayal, he said. Veil left specific instructions. If I were to fall, my last words were to guide you to the Scourge of the North. You will find Veil on Earth. Here.
She received a share request, which she routed through to Will so that he could scan it for viruses.
Will sent her a mental message. I’ve got coordinates to a location thirty kilometers to the northeast of Aradne. The Emerald Highlands.
You will find Veil there, the Scorpion said. She will be waiting for you.
With that, the signal disconnected, and her arch enemy closed his eyes.
Will leaned on the broken sword with the heel of one boot and jiggled it around.
What are you doing? Rhea asked.
Remember what happened the last time we left him like this? Will explained. Lying there, presumed dead? He came back. Well, I’m just making sure he’s not going to do that.
Flashing lights drew her attention to the southern side of the city, where a swarm of police shuttles from Centaar flew through the damaged geodesic dome.
“As usual, the cavalry arrives when the fighting has already ended,” Will remarked. He gave the embedded blade one last kick, and then stepped away from the Scorpion.
Rhea turned toward the shuttles. She was relieved, because she had only just been wondering how she and her companions were going to return to the city.
Rhea raised a hand and waved.
11
Rhea resided in the back of a police shuttle with Will and Horatio. Because of the damage the robot had taken, Horatio was unable to sit, and Rhea and Will had to rest their friend’s twisted form on the cabin floor.
The craft was carrying them back to Centaar. It was pressurized, but Rhea kept the mask on her face as a safety precaution. Still, the atmosphere meant they could communicate over a
