She was a little irked that Fix had been destroyed, after the trouble she'd gone to reprogramming it. But since she'd already memorized the list of override codes for the facility's combat androids, she supposed she could always do the same for Fix's replacement.
Or replacements. She cleared her throat. “Since there are a bunch of combat androids here, should we fill up our crew with more of them?” She needed to know what assets she'd have to work with.
And, it had to be mentioned, the Blank Slate liked the idea of having plenty of fighting robots around so the gunner wouldn't have to put himself at risk anymore. Not that she particularly cared what her dominant consciousness thought, but it was less aggravating to work around her when she wasn't fretting.
Aiden shot her a startled glance. “That's an idea,” he admitted. “They might also make valuable cargo. People are always looking to buy combat androids for security, although smart people are leery of getting secondhand ones, since they can't be sure the override code is still a secret.”
Duh. “So we might have two or three Fixes?”
Ali spoke up, sounding slightly distracted to convey that she was still working on processing the facility's databanks. “Since we're being hunted by this Deek task force, it's likely they'll send more boarders at us via mini rift. It wouldn't hurt to have more security aboard to repel them.”
The captain nodded. “And it would be nice to be back up to the standard light cruiser complement of ten crew, even if four of them are combat androids. How long would it take to get them safe to bring aboard?”
“Not long,” the companion assured him.
Aiden grunted, pausing at a security door as Ali and Belix in the control room worked together to get them through. “All right, then. I guess we'll also have Fix 2, Fix 3, and Fix 4.”
The Dormant receded, and Lana rolled her eyes. “With those kinds of unoriginal names, I should probably be happy with the one you gave me.”
“Indeed you should, Lana Ensom,” the captain replied, ducking through the security door as Ali finished opening it. Then he stopped, staring off to his right.
Lana followed Ali through the door to find that they were in a small observation room, with one entire wall made up of a single pane of glass that allowed a slightly overhead view of a much larger room. This one looked to be a combination of lab and workspace, with dozens of cubicles in one half and tables full of gadgets related to robotics in the other.
“Um, Ali?” Aiden said quietly. “I thought Elyssa's intel said this facility only had fourteen people on staff.”
He was looking at the few dozen people in the cubicles, some standing and looking around anxiously, but most huddled fearfully beneath their desks; even though the lights were no longer flashing and the warning klaxons weren't blaring, they still looked spooked.
To Lana's surprise, the adult companion didn't reply. She was staring through the large observation window, the watery hazel eyes of her disguise wide with shock. It was obvious she knew the people inside, or at least one of them. Which wasn't terribly surprising, considering her memory contained a healthy chunk of all the information on the allnet, including more than a few census reports and population lists.
“What is it?” Aiden demanded. “Who's in there?”
Ali turned to look at him. “My . . . parents.”
* * * * *
Aiden stared at his companion blankly, noticing that Lana looked equally confused. Even the new Fix seemed to be regarding her quizzically.
Ali noticed their reaction and finally turned away from the window, looking equal parts excited and saddened. “More accurately, the people most influential in the development of the adult companion prototype. Some of the most brilliant minds at HumanAssist Enterprises, which only employs the best.”
“Except they're hard at work in an Elson Robotics Initiative facility,” Lana said slowly, furrowing her brow. “Did they change jobs?”
Aiden stared down at the couple dozen men and women below, ranging from around Lana's age to a few decades older than him. They didn't look like some of the smartest people in the universe; there weren't even any Ishivi down there, although he certainly wasn't complaining about that.
Looking at them, huddling down there in their high security room, he felt a sinking sensation in his gut as an unpleasant realization dawned. They were obviously prisoners, forced to work for the competition against their will, and he had a feeling Elyssa had sent him and his crew to pick them up.
Only, if she'd simply meant for him to rescue these people from ERI she would've told him, since who doesn't like a rescue? Especially one that paid so well.
But she hadn't. She'd been closemouthed and vague about what they were picking up here, and had referred to them as cargo. Someone else referred to people as cargo as well: Deeks, with the slaves they took.
Aiden grit his teeth. His old crew member had to have known how he'd react to this. Which meant the Last Stand probably wasn't here to free these people from ERI or the Movement, but to kidnap them and take them to a new group who wanted them. Possibly even Elyssa herself.
He turned to Ali. “What do the records say about these people?”
She hesitated. “They were working at a small production facility back in our home galaxy, making the final preparations on the adult companion line for official release. Elson Robotics Initiative, using the Movement Fleet, has declared war on HumanAssist Enterprises, and this was one of the first blows they struck. They're calling companions abominations, an offense to humanity's peak civilization. Although ironically enough, they also collected dozens of companions to take apart and reverse engineer for their own use, and are forcing my creators to do the work
