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The woman who had spoken stepped forward, removing her helmet. She had sharp features and cold, calculating eyes. "You don't have a choice, soldier," she said. "You're Krixon property. The enhancements you've received here are classified technology. We can't allow them to fall into enemy hands."

My blood ran cold. They saw Norn as nothing more than a piece of equipment, a weapon to be reclaimed.

Norn's eyes darted around the room, and for a split second, they met mine. I saw the conflict there, the struggle between the warrior he'd been trained to be and the man he was becoming.

At that moment, I made a decision that would change everything. I couldn't let them take him. Not just because of my feelings for him, but because it went against everything I believed in as a doctor. Norn wasn't property. He was a person with the right to make his own choices.

I took a deep breath, steeling myself, then stood up from behind the cart. "He's not going anywhere," I said, my voice steadier than I felt.

All eyes turned to me. The Krixon commander'sgaze was cold and dismissive. "This doesn't concern you, doctor. Stand aside."

I lifted my chin, meeting her gaze defiantly. "It absolutely concerns me. Norn is my patient, and I have a duty to protect him. He's not property, and he's certainly not a weapon. He's a sentient being with the right to self-determination."

Norn's expression softened for a moment, gratitude and something deeper flickering in his eyes. But then his warrior mask slipped back into place as he addressed the commander.

"You heard the doctor," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "I'm not going back. Krixon has no claim on me anymore."

The commander's eyes narrowed. "You leave us no choice then," she said, raising her hand in a signal to her team.

What happened next was a blur of motion and sound. The Krixon soldiers attacked en masse, their movements a deadly dance of precision and power. But Norn was ready for them. He moved with an otherworldly grace, his cybernetic enhancements giving him an edge even against these elite warriors.

I ducked back behind the cart, my heart pounding. I felt utterly useless, a doctor in themiddle of a battlefield. But I couldn't leave Norn. I wouldn't.

The fight raged on, the sounds of combat punctuated by the whine of energy weapons and the crash of bodies against equipment. I risked peeking out again, just in time to see Norn take a glancing blow to his organic shoulder. He stumbled, and my heart leapt into my throat.

Without thinking, I grabbed a nearby sedative injector and darted out from my hiding place. The nearest Krixon soldier was focused on Norn, paying no attention to me. I jammed the injector into a gap in his armor and depressed the plunger.

The soldier went down hard, and I felt a moment of fierce satisfaction. But it was short-lived. The commander's cold eyes locked onto me, and I saw fury there.

"Big mistake, doctor," she snarled, raising her weapon.

Time seemed to slow. I saw the energy blast leave her weapon, a bolt of sizzling blue heading straight for me. I couldn't move, couldn't breathe.

And then Norn was there, his cybernetic arm raised to shield me. The blast hit him square in the chest, and he went down with a grunt of pain.

"Norn!" I cried, dropping to my knees beside him. My doctor's instincts kicked in, and I quickly assessed the damage. The blast had overloaded some of his cybernetic systems, but his organic parts seemed unharmed.

I looked up to see the commander standing over us, her weapon trained on Norn's head. "Stand aside, doctor," she said, her voice cold. "This is your last warning."

I met her gaze, feeling a steel enter my spine that I never knew I possessed. "No," I said simply, placing myself between her and Norn.

For a long moment, we remained locked in a silent standoff. Then, suddenly, the sound of multiple footsteps echoed down the corridor. The commander's eyes widened in alarm.

"Commander!" one of her soldiers called. "Durmox security forces incoming. We need to abort!"

The commander's jaw clenched in frustration. She looked down at Norn, then at me, calculation in her eyes. Finally, she lowered her weapon.

"This isn't over," she said. "Krixon doesn't give up its assets so easily."

With that, she and her remaining soldiers retreated, disappearing down the corridor just as Durmox security forces rounded the corner.

I sagged in relief, turning my attention back to Norn. His eyes fluttered open, focusing on my face.

"Imogen," he said, his voice rough with pain. "Are you okay?"

I let out a shaky laugh, tears pricking at my eyes. "Am I okay? You're the one who just took a blast to the chest, you idiot."

He managed a weak smile. "Worth it," he murmured, before slipping into unconsciousness.