Dalar briefly wondered if these were display models, since HAE's advertisements for their upcoming adult companion product line was that they could be customized to a person's exact preferences. Maybe that was something the companions could do at any time after purchase, and these were just an example of what was possible to draw the attention of initial buyers.
They'd certainly drawn his; before he knew it fifteen minutes had passed. He hurriedly turned back to return to the room where the facility's scientists were being gathered, hoping the process had been going smoothly in his absence.
It seemed to be. There were now three more combat androids working alongside the three in his strike team, watching twenty or so scientists huddled together nervously in a corner. The scientists ranged in age from late twenties to old enough to have gray in their hair, and after spending the last quarter hour looking at human perfection they all seemed ugly and dumpy.
Three more prisoners were being brought in as Dalar entered, and he went over to watch as a combat android smoothly took the first one's arm and sliced a shallow line on his wrist.
The scientist winced as the blade bit, red blood swelling out of the cut. Dalar relaxed and was about to order him sent over to join the other prisoners, but before he could the combat android holding the man abruptly slashed its blade in again, cutting much deeper.
Dalar opened his mouth to protest, wondering if the AI was glitching; ERI's androids were notoriously inferior to HAE companions, even if they were good enough for the fighting they'd been built for. He'd never heard of one going haywire, aside from the sort of unverified BS the technophobes among his peers whispered about, but you could never be sure with AIs.
Then the android shoved a pincher attachment into the enlarged wound, prying the flesh apart to reveal composite structures, wires, and gleaming metal. They'd all been hidden beneath the welling blood and, apparently, synthetic flesh of the companion's outer layer of skin.
Its true nature revealed, the companion tried to pull free, nearly tearing its arm off at the elbow in the attempt. But two more combat androids, likely communicating silently with the first, had already raised their arms. They fired off a barrage of shots from their cauterizer attachments, blowing the HAE android to slag.
Screams rang out from the huddle of scientists, as well as shouts of protest. A few were even yelling a name, apparently the destroyed companion's, with such genuine grief you might've thought the abomination had been a real human murdered in front of them.
Dalar turned to the android that had discovered the imposter. “How could you tell?”
“Analysis confirmed the blood as synthetic, with no living biological components,” the android intoned.
So, for all HAE's boasts about their abominations being nearly indistinguishable from humans, they were that easily found out. “Don't bother with extra cutting on any more you find, just slag them,” he said.
“Acknowledged,” the combat android replied, turning to the next scientist waiting to be processed. The mousy woman cringed, looking sick as she was dragged up beside the half-melted remains of the companion. She was apparently human, though, and the combat android quickly ushered her over to join the huddle of prisoners, where she stood clutching the cut on her wrist and keening softly in pain and terror.
An older man wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulders. “What right do you have to attack us like this?” he demanded. “We're loyal to the Movement, working in service of humanity!”
Dalar stepped forward and backhanded him hard enough to send him to the ground. “You want to pretend you were serving humanity?” he said with a sneer, staring down at the stunned scientist, who seemed too intent trying to staunch the blood flowing from his nose to really hear him. “You're creating abominations to turn your “customers” into helpless babies, making them completely reliant on your product and your corporation.”
He spat off to one side. “If you were free to pursue your dream, you'd have every human in existence saddled with a companion to pleasure them and pamper them and control every waking moment of their lives. And HAE would be the unquestioning rulers of the universe.”
“Maybe we're not the same sort of power hungry monsters you Deeks are!” a tall woman near the back of the group spat. She had glasses, actual corrective lenses on a frame attached to her face, as if she'd come from a colony world too poor and low tech to give its residents the benefit of advanced medical care like simple eye corrective procedures.
And considering she was still wearing the things, either those glasses were decorative props, some odd vanity, or she'd refrained from having the procedure even though she was clearly successful and wealthy enough to afford it. Especially since a scientist relied on their eyes as much as anyone, more than most probably.
Some might view the lenses as a harmless affectation, but to Dalar they stank of stagnation. In fact, considering her defiant words he wouldn't have been surprised if she was a Stag in hiding.
He pushed through the scientists, who backed away to clear a path to the woman. She stood her ground, although some of her defiance bled away as he squared off in front of her. Especially when he suddenly reached up and flicked her name tag, making her flinch slightly.
It read “Terra Sarr. AQUA Project Leader.” Whatever that was. “Miss Sarr, are you aware of your situation?” he asked politely.
In spite of the woman's bookish air, she straightened with impressive composure. “Considering that you shot your way into this facility and are herding us up like cattle, I'm guessing it's not good.”
Garridy sniggered at that. “You got that right.” He eyed the scientist, who in spite
