There were arms-sized spider hairs on Julie's back. I grabbed two clumps to steady myself.
Zoe climbed up one of Julie's arms on her own, landing besides me.
"Get up here," I said to Vikki. She jumped onto Julie's back with one smooth leap, sliding into position behind me.
"Go right," Vikki said.
Julie immediately sprinted down the tunnel. A whining sound grew louder from the distance behind us.
"Hurry!" Vikki cried. "They're coming!"
CHAPTER 22
Julie sprayed webbing across the width of the tunnel as she ran, sticky nets spanning the entire diameter.
I doubted they would slow down Garvek, but anything to buy us time would help.
"Up!" Vikki shouted.
I clung tightly to the spider hairs on Julie's back as she crawled up another branch that was almost completely vertical. We continued until the tunnel leveled out.
The noise behind us grew louder.
I see it. One of the flyers from before!
"It's one of those flying Mekanics, the angel kind!" I shouted.
"Shit," Julie muttered as she skittered further along the tunnel, spraying more webbing behind her. I doubted even Nikki could outrun the flyers, and Julie wasn't exactly one of the faster Beastforms.
There was a tearing sound. The Mekanic had broken through the webbing.
"What about Garvek? What's he doing?" I asked.
"That is Father!" Vikki cried from behind me. "He's controlling them!"
The Mekanic fired a series of laser bolts at Julie. The explosions sent her tumbling. She caught us with her arms, drawing us inward toward her midbody as she bounced hard off the tunnel walls.
"I'll slow it down," Julie said, setting us down and turning to face the Mekanic. "Go."
It was suicide. There was no way Julie could face one of the flyers alone. None of us could. I tried to meld again, but nothing happened. Fuck!
"No," Vikki stepped forward. "Father, stop it!" she screamed.
"Vikki, watch out!" I yelled as the Mekanic peppered her with laser blasts. Julie shoved me backward, firmly, with one of her spider legs.
Vikki danced lightly on her toes to evade the attack, whirling like a ballerina. She ran up the curved wall of the tunnel halfway before launching herself at the hovering Mekanic.
"Foolish daughter!" the Mekanic, or rather, Garvek, roared.
Laser bolts blasted Vikki's torso, ripping her in half. Her upper half landed on the Mekanic, hugging it tightly.
"No!" Garvek screamed.
Arcs of electricity blazed around the two robots. Then, they fell, smashing into the ground.
Julie ran forward and stabbed her legs into Garvek's form, but it didn't move.
"Vikki!" I ran towards the pile of metal. I coughed, waving away the acrid smoke. Then, I saw Vikki.
She only had one arm remaining, her chest sheared in half, machinery and wires jutting out of the remains of her single metallic breast. Her face was marred but relatively intact. Her eyes were open but not moving. I pulled her away from the Garvek's wreckage.
"Leave her," Julie said. "We don't have time."
"No!" Vikki had just sacrificed herself for us. There was no fucking way I was leaving her behind. "We still need her to get off the airbase."
Dustin. She might be gone.
"Vikki!" I slapped her face. Her remaining hand grabbed my wrist sharply. "Ow!"
Vikki immediately let go. Her eyes moved. Then, her lips. "Sorry. That was quite a…shock."
"A Mekanic!" Mia was awake now, standing next to me, naked. She melded, then lunged with her beaked mouth.
I waved frantically, shielding Vikki with my own body. "Mia, stop it!"
"What?" Mia unmelded, then fell over, unconscious. Her head hit the metal floor, hard. I winced, hoping her armor ability was still working.
"Julie!"
Julie scooped us up with her legs. I clung to her back again with Zoe and what was left of Vikki, while Julie carried Mia and Koopie.
"Straight," Vikki said softly. "The vessel's up ahead."
"Go straight!" I shouted more loudly to Julie.
Julie responded by skittering forward down the long tunnel.
"Your recovery charges," Julie said. "I had to use mine already. Can you use them to recover and meld?"
I should have thought of that. Zoe?
I can sense them, but I can't access them unless we meld.
"No, we can't use it without melding." If Julie had already used her recovery charges, she must have been low on energy. We needed more help, desperately. "Send me Mia. I'll try to wake her."
Julie reached around with her legs, placing Mia and Koopie in front of me.
Zoe! Grab Vikki. I don't have eight arms like Julie. I pushed Vikki behind me to Zoe, who bit Vikki's arm.
Got her.
I wrapped one arm around Koopie, the other around Mia's torso, trying to still hold the spider hairs with my hands. I shifted, pinning Mia's body with my own to keep it in place. I had to lean forward awkwardly, pressing into her bare chest.
"Mia!" I shouted. "Mia!"
Her eyelids fluttered. Mia opened her eyes slowly. Then, they widened sharply. "Dustin! What are you doing?"
She must have realized she was naked at that point because she tried to cover herself with her arms.
"Don't, Mia. We're on Julie."
I felt Mia's body tense underneath me, then relax. She moved her arms, holding onto me instead. "Koopie?"
"Here. In my hand." Mia reached for her turtle. I wedged Koopie in between our two bodies.
"What's our situation?" Mia asked, now calm, despite our awkward situation.
"You were captured by the Mekanics. Julie's here, too. Um, we're trying to get away, but we need a way off an airbase that's floating in the sky."
"Next right," Vikki said from behind me.
"Next right!" I shouted more loudly. Julie shifted directions.
"Who's that?" Mia asked. She strained to see past me. I felt her body tense again. "A Mekanic!"
"No! I mean, yes, but she's helping us! We need her."
Mia gasped. It was as if she had seen me for the first time. "Your eye! You're…you're one of them now?"
"What? No, of course not. I'm still me."
Mia pursed her lips. "And not to be rude, but there's something hard pressing into my stomach. That's not you…?"
"No! It's your phone. Take it!"
Mia reached deep down the front of my uniform, grabbing the phone with her free hand.
We turned, and the tunnel opened up into an enormous chamber. In the center was a disc-shaped ship. A goddamn flying saucer.
Julie ran up to the ship, then set us down. "How do we run this thing?" She pointed a leg at Vikki.
Mia's long hair was artfully flowing down the front of her body now, hiding most of the important bits. She had something in her hand. The phone. Her expression was strange. Determined.
"Mia?" I asked.
"I'm sorry, Dustin. I have my orders."
"Orders?" I stared as Mia opened her phone. She tapped on it quickly.
Dustin, move it! Zoe rushed past me, knocking the phone out of Mia's hands.
Mia melded, easily kicking Zoe out of the way. Zoe shrieked as she flew through the air, but she landed on her feet.
"What the hell? Mia?" What's wrong with her? Did the Mekanics brainwash her?
I don't know.
Julie moved in front of Mia. "Mia! What's going on? We need to get out of here before more of them show up."
Mia unmelded and picked up the phone. Julie swatted at her lightly with a spider leg, but Mia rolled away, still clutching the phone.
Julie unmelded. She tackled Mia, but Mia immediately melded. Julie leaped away, but she threw something at me. The phone. I caught it.
Julie melded and wrapped herself around Mia. "Mia, cut it out."