Staccato was at my side in an instant, his hand on my throat, squeezing. "I could kill him. Right now." Staccato looked down at me. "It would be for your own good, a mercy killing, if you can't handle what's waiting for you."
"Whoa, whoa," I coughed out. "Staccato, hold on. Maybe it won't be so bad." Who was I kidding? I was screwed.
Garvek didn't move. "Very good, Dustin! See, minds do change! As for you, Staccato, you can still play emperor on this blue world. But I'll need a steady supply of humans and higher Chimerics if this works. Lots and lots of them."
"Staccato, you can't let him do this!" Staccato's grasp weakened, and I jerked my neck free. "I know they used you, bled you dry, but he's going to do the same thing to who knows how many people. Garvek was working with Dr. Preston this whole time. Staccato!"
I held my breath, praying for Staccato to help me. He had to. He had to!
"I know," Staccato finally said. "They took so much from me. But they also gave me a second chance. A chance to save two worlds."
Second chance? Two worlds? Staccato still thought he was a fucking hero or something? "What?"
"Hunter, don't you get it? The Mekanics were going to wipe us out. We made sure they didn't view us humans as a threat. We stopped the arrival of the Chimerics."
"Staccato, no, what did you do?" I strained to look at Staccato, but he wasn't facing me.
"Don't you get it, Hunter? We created the Second Strain. Preston did, over a year ago."
The Second Strain? That was our own doing? Fuck! We had doomed ourselves. "You…you gave us over to the Mekanics? You betrayed our whole world?"
Staccato whirled, snarling. "I sacrificed myself, everything I had, to save us! We didn't stand a chance!"
"You sold us out! To set yourself up as the one in charge!"
"So what? Better to reign in hell than to burn in it." Staccato leaned closer to me. "I found a way to survive. If you're strong enough, you will, too." He patted my chest, then moved away from the table. "See you in hell, kid."
"Staccato! Staccato!" I screamed, but he was gone. "Vikki, are you still there?"
"Yes!" Vikki piped up. "I'm here."
"Can't you stop Garvek?"
Garvek laughed. "My daughter? Don't be silly. She'll never help you."
"Father? Please. I'll…I'll report you to the others."
"Report me? Once they see what's possible, they'll vote in my favor." I couldn't see what was happening, but there was the clink of metal on metal. "Step away, daughter! Let go of me!"
"I can't let you do this." Vikki's voice trembled.
Garvek shouted angrily. "I'll shut you down! Reboot you! You know I will. You've accessed the records. You know what happened last time."
Vikki voice was barely above a whisper. "You said we would end the War, but…this isn't right. If Dustin is an equal—"
Garvek shouted. "Right? Wrong? What kind of obsolete algorithm are you stuck on? And this will end the War. We'll have complete dominion, as we should."
"I'm sorry, Father."
"Don't you dare—"
There was a loud crashing sound, then more metallic creaking and tearing sounds.
Garvek's voice was softer, fading. "Forget rebooting. I'm going to delete you…"
Vikki rushed to my side. She was sobbing. "I…I had to. What did I do? What did I do? He's going to delete me!"
"Vikki!" I shook my arms and legs. "Can you get me out of here? And Zoe?"
She pulled apart my shackles with her hands. She stepped toward Zoe's cage. Metal creaked.
Dustin! Zoe bounded up to land on top of me.
Oof! You're heavy, you know. I sat up and looked around.
Garvek was on the floor, dismembered limbs and head lying around him. His black eye had been smashed as well.
The girls!
I pried open Garvek's torso, and it swung open easily. To my relief, Julie and Mia were both inside, sleeping or knocked out. I scooped them out, gingerly laying them on the floor.
Julie's spider was in a very tiny cage, but the cage's door slid open, and it scampered over to Julie.
"Vikki—" I stared. Her perfect, smooth silver skin was marred now. Her hands and arms were warped, covered in scratches. One finger was missing from her right hand. "Thank you, Vikki. I'm so sorry what happened to you."
She looked at the girls on the floor, then back at me. "He's going to delete me," she whispered.
"No one's deleting anyone." Shit. We had to move fast, before Garvek came back with another body. "Do you know what's wrong with them?" I pointed at the girls. Zoe?
Zoe nudged their unconscious forms. They stirred.
"Vikki?" I glanced over at her. She still hadn't moved.
Damn it. There was so much happening, it was hard for me to focus on anyone. But Vikki had just saved us, risking everything. I walked over to her, holding her close to me. "Vikki, are you okay?"
"I don't know. Why did I do that?"
"Because you knew it was the right thing. Vikki." I swallowed. "Come with us."
No! She's a Mekanic!
She saved us, Zoe!
I…I know, but it's not just that. They'll tear her apart. You saw what they did to Staccato and Cody. What do you think the humans will do to a robot?
Zoe was worried about a Mekanic? Shit, the world really was ending, wasn't it?
"Vikki, I'll try to keep you safe, but I can't guarantee anything. Do you want to join us?"
"You care about them, don't you?" Vikki asked. "I can tell, when you look at them."
"Huh?" Did she mean Julie and Mia? "Of course, I do. We're a team. We take care of each other."
"And especially her."
"Zoe? Yeah, she and me are tight. That's what bonding does."
Vikki nodded, slowly at first, then faster. "Yes. Yes, I'll go with you."
"Great—"
"Damn, my head hurts," someone said.
I spun. Julie was awake. "Where am I?" Julie asked.
I tried not to look at Mia's still unconscious naked form, but we were running out of time. "We have to get out of here. Can you wake Mia?"
She's not waking up.
Julie checked Mia. "Pulse and breathing are fine." She turned to me. "Your eye—"
"We don't have time." I bent to scoop up Mia but Julie stopped me.
"I'll carry her. You lead the way." Julie slung Mia over her shoulder. "Hand me Koopie."
I reached inside Garvek's torso, taking out the unmoving turtle. The collar around its shell came off when I pulled. Julie tucked the turtle under her free arm.
"What's metal girl doing?" Julie asked.
"She's helping us. She freed you."
Julie raised an eyebrow.
"She's coming with us," I added.
"Whatever. How do we get off this place?"
"I think I sent a message to headquarters. But I don't know if anyone even responded…" I dug inside Garvek's torso. Mia's phone was there. Finally, something was going right for once. "Hold on." I tried calling headquarters.
Even if you get through, they won't reach us in time unless the first message went through.
"It doesn't matter," I said. "I can't get a signal." I slipped the phone down the front of my combat uniform.
Vikki. Ask Vikki.
Right.
"Vikki," I said. "Can you get us off this airbase?"
"The ship that brought us here," Julie said. "Where is it? Can you fly it?"
Vikki nodded. "I can do that. Follow me."
She stepped outside the room into the large tunnel. Julie set Mia and Koopie on the floor of the tunnel, melded, then picked them up again.
I tried to meld, but nothing happened. "Fuck!" I yelled.
"What's wrong?" Julie asked, her Beastform crouching to examine me.
We zeroed. We can't meld until our energy regenerates.
How long will that take?
At least several hours, if not more.
Shit. "I can't meld. I zeroed," I said to Julie. Julie picked me up and set me down on her back. In any other situation, I would have been scared of riding a giant spider. Except I was more terrified of Garvek taking over my mind.