I filled one of the unused cabins with a deadly neurotoxin and aerosolized a bit of Thomas, who I had borrowed for the day after Hot Stuff had finished killing him. A hastily constructed 'Armory' sign was placed outside.
It worked well. The Slidekicker teleporting down the hall saw the sign and spared a brief glimpse inside. It was all that I needed. Thomas filled her lungs at the same moment as the deadly gas, hindering her powers long enough for it to fully take effect.
A few seconds later she overcame the neutralizing power and materialized back outside in the hall, but by then she was vomiting up blood and bits of her internal organs.
That was one down.
After killing her, hours passed and I knew that the others must be formulating their plan of attack, or deciding if they would attack at all.
Two of their own, including their leader, had come into this place and not come out.
When they appeared, it was a far more surgical strike. Three materialized simultaneously on different sides of the containment field holding Sylph, flickering away a moment later and leaving explosives behind.
The blasts shook the level. Through my cameras I could see tools falling off the wall in Mechos' workshop and Hot Stuff stumbling on her way to incinerate another target.
The containment fields held for the moment. Sylph, in response to the blasts, began to flicker faster than my sensors could track her, rapidly translocating between positions. My cameras blurred and distorted. Was she bending space itself in some way? I couldn't discount the possibility.
Whatever she was up to, Sylph was still in my containment field and I was in control. I blasted a sonic wail through the area. It was intense enough to rupture eardrums. It worked, the woman collapsed screaming to the floor. That was all I needed to let me deliver a tranquilizer.
The facility was rocked by more explosions. One hurt quite a bit—my reactor—and the bioreactor hadn't yet finished healing from the freezing damage. A teleportation into that room was an attack that triggered the fire sprinklers. The Slidekicker responsible had already transported himself back to the hall outside. His clothes were on fire as he screamed, trying to get them off. However, he'd accomplished his mission of dropping a bomb. Base power was down to about fifty percent and I had to cut off non-critical systems.
Another hit like that and I might lose containment of all my guests downstairs. I couldn't let that happen.
They obviously had some way of locating Sylph. Perhaps they were also aware in some way of how many of their number had fallen. Regardless, even with just two of them left they could do unacceptable damage to my core. I had to give them another target.
I activated a quick fabrication in my testing labyrinth. Then, after a few seconds, I had every screen in the facility go live with an image of Sylph. I'd restrained her beneath a mass of razor-sharp blades. If they dropped, it would cut her into a good two dozen slices.
Flickers. One on the testing level and another in Hydroponics. The other Slidekickers stopping, watching the screens.
"Those blades are being kept aloft by a generated force coming from the local grid supply. She's been neutralized and can't help herself. Cut the power and you'll kill her," I said.
The two Slidekickers glared up at my cameras.
"You want to save her? Do your best, the clock is ticking," I said, and let one of the blades drop. It only removed about two percent of her body. It was nothing I couldn't heal, but it drew a roar of rage from one of the Slidekickers.
Anna had broken under torture. But there really were only two vulnerable areas she could have told them about. I'd just taken my reactor core out of the equation. That meant they'd be coming for my Core Room. They'd know it was risky and a trap, I just had to motivate them to try anyway. I let another of those blades drop. It made for a gory sight.
They appeared on different sides of the Core Room. A man and woman, both dressed in colors as bright and cheerful as Sylph. Better fed than most of the humans I'd seen, but then with their gifts they could steal food. That was the point.
My mole warrior flung itself onto the back of the man, its body flaming to life even as claws dug into his flesh. The man screamed as he began to burn.
The woman looked torn for a moment, but then she flickered and was plunging some sort of sword into my core. The blade shouldn't have penetrated, but it did. Her body flickered away to the other side of the room before an explosion of energy cascaded out.
I was feeling sluggish. Spacey. They'd hurt me, they'd really hurt me. I tried to trigger the sound tracks I had set up in the room, but they just weren't working.
I felt myself fading from consciousness. I set the containment fields of the testing labs to automatic, disengaged the tranquilizers the Infirmary had Anna on and watched the mole rip out the throat of the last Slidekicker.
Then I went under.
31
Warning
You have suffered major structural damage
Repairs are underway and will take two weeks.
Upgrading your core will consume 0.5 core points and take two weeks.
The following options are available.
Organic Computer:
Your operations will be shifted over to an organic platform. While slower than your current mechanical systems an organic mainframe would allow application of genetic upgrades and self-repair. It would also allow for better interfacing with organic specimens.
Quantum Computer:
Your operations will be shifted over to a quantum platform. Far faster than your current systems you'll be able to process much higher volumes of data. This can be particularly useful when analyzing high grade research data.
My thoughts were sluggish, but I could think—even now during repairs. Two possible upgrades then, although I had to accept neither. I'd already upgraded to a bioreactor for my power needs, but that didn't mean it was necessarily best for my mind to follow suit.
I was surrounded by organic computing platforms in the humans, I could see firsthand all the mistakes they made. Still, they did manage to function.
Given my focus so far on organics, in many ways it would make sense to go all in. Although, to date none of my genetic upgrades would be particularly useful for me.
Going Quantum on the other hand would hold some long-term benefits if it did help with high-grade research data. While it was outside of my track so far, if the systems continued to interface, it would have some real promise.
Ultimately though it came down to the state I was currently in. I'd been damaged, and while Anna seemed to have triggered a repair sequence, I didn't want to have to rely on anyone. With a biological system I'd be self-repairing.
I triggered the upgrade and waited.
When I came to again, two weeks had passed. Anna was back in the Infirmary and the base looked to be clear of threats. I sure looked different, a lot more ridged and pulpy, and distinctly more organic than I had before. I didn't like it.
I shifted my focus to the Infirmary cameras. "Well, if this isn't the worse repair job ever. You made me as squishy as you are," I said.
Anna cracked her eyes open and grunted, "Welcome back, Emma. You're welcome. I know you triggered that change yourself, so don't blame me. Do I have badass teleportation super-powers yet?"
Anna was always so needy. "Another two weeks. You shouldn't be out of here until then anyways."
A bit longer than that—I checked her file. Anna had added another gunshot to her injures since the last time I saw her.
"You got shot. Did one of the Mechanites finally decide they'd had enough?" I asked.