Page 27

M ira paced the engineering bay, boots thudding against the metal plating. Her fingers tapped her comm unit for the fifth time in as many minutes. Still nothing from Davis or Covak.

"They're fine," she muttered, pushing hair from her face. "Just running late."

The knot in her stomach tightened anyway. After the failed mission to find Laaer and Davis's ongoing changes, worry gnawed at her. It felt stupid to fret when he'd survived years with an alien mercenary unit before meeting her.

But this supply run was taking too damn long.

A soft chirp sounded near her feet. Spot circled her, optical sensors tilted upward with what looked like concern.

"I know, I'm being ridiculous." She crouched to Spot's level. "They can handle themselves. Probably haggling over prices."

Spot chirped again, nudging against her palm. The cool metal pressed against her skin, which was strangely comforting. She smiled despite herself.

"You always know how to make me feel better." She ran her fingers along the robot's smooth surface, then frowned. "I still don't know what you were before the scrapyard. I know you're a Drakeen core, but what does that actually mean?"

Spot danced in a small circle, chirping and waving his front arms.

"Yeah, that's helpful." She laughed. "Maybe we should research you while we wait. Give me something to focus on besides imagining those two in trouble."

She straightened and tapped her comm. "Jex? You busy right now?"

"Just finishing diagnostics on environmental systems." His voice came through clearly. "Need something?"

"Could you come down to engineering? I want to research something, and I could use your expertise."

"On my way."

She cleared space at her workstation, pushing components aside. Spot trotted around, chirping at equipment as if greeting old friends.

The door hissed open. Jex stepped in, helmet tilted toward her. "What are we researching?"

Mira froze, blinking. Someone had drawn a simple smiley face on Jex's blank faceplate two dots for eyes and a crooked curve for a mouth. The childish doodle stood out against the featureless surface.

She cleared her throat. "Jex, have you done a full shutdown recently?"

"Yes." His head tilted in confusion. "I required one last night to debug interface issues. Why?"

"No reason," she said, struggling to keep her expression neutral. Covak had been suspiciously cheerful at breakfast. "Just curious."

Jex continued staring. "Is there something wrong?"

"No! Nothing!" She gestured to Spot. "I just want to know more about Drakeen cores. What they were for, what they could do. Everyone freaked when I brought Spot aboard, but I never understood why."

"Interesting project." Jex moved to the console, metal fingers flying over the interface. "The ship's database should have some information, but I might need to access restricted military archives."

"Can you do that?"

"Please." His voice carried a hint of mischief. "Who do you think you're talking to?"

She watched him work, impressed by how quickly he navigated security protocols. Spot climbed onto the counter, chirping curiously.

"Here we go." His fingers paused. "Drakeen Combat Units, Latharian Military Division. Full schematics and specifications." His helmet turned her way. "Ready to see what your friend was part of?"

She nodded. "Show me."

He tapped a command. A holographic display sprang to life in the center of the bay.

Her jaw dropped.

The hologram showed a massive battle unit, eight legs, and at least eight feet tall, bristling with weapons systems. Its sleek, armored body was designed for power and speed, with articulated limbs that could transform into combat configurations.

At its center glowed a processing unit with the same optical sensors as Spot.

"Holy shit," she breathed, eyes wide. "That's what Spot was part of?"

"Not just part of," Jex corrected, enlarging a section. "The Drakeen core is the heart and brain. Everything else is hardware that the core controls."

She circled the hologram, taking in details. Weapon specifications scrolled alongside plasma cannons, projectile launchers, sonic disruptors, and more she didn't recognize. Damn, Spot was hardcore.

"These were walking arsenals," she murmured. "No wonder everyone freaked when I brought Spot aboard."

"According to this," Jex said, scanning data, "Drakeen units were piloted via neural link by Latharian warriors.

The interface requires years of training before effectively controlling one.

" His voice carried respect. "They're extensions of their pilots but had autonomous capabilities in specific circumstances, mainly to rescue their pilot if they're injured or separated. "

He brought up another section. "The only time they function fully autonomously is when assigned to sentinel warriors patrolling Krin space.

Even then, they follow strict protocols.

" His helmet tilted as more details were revealed.

"Advanced tactical AI, adaptive learning systems, battlefield analysis.

.. all supporting the pilot, not replacing them. Spot is serious military tech, Mira."

She looked at the little robot, who had crept closer to the hologram, sensors fully lit and fixed on the image.

"Spot, you were an utter badass!" Admiration filled her voice.

Spot chirped softly.

"The capabilities are incredible," Jex continued, pulling up more data.

"They analyzed enemy tactics in real time, predicted movements, even hacked opposing systems during combat.

" He whistled low, the sound echoing through his helmet.

"Top-of-the-line military units. The Zodiacs could have done with some of these. "

She crouched beside Spot, watching the little robot study the combat unit. There was something almost wistful in how its sensors tracked the rotating image.

"Can you tell if it's the same model?"

Jex tapped more commands. "Hard to say without running diagnostics on Spot's systems, but the base specifications match. This appears to be the standard model. There were variants, but this was the most common and seems to match Spot's configuration."

She watched the little core walk forward, stopping beneath the hologram. The contrast struck her... the tiny, cobbled-together robot she'd rescued facing the towering war machine it once was.

"He recognizes what he was," she murmured.

"Fascinating." Jex leaned forward, helmet angled at Spot. "His core memory must contain recognition algorithms, even without combat systems attached."

Spot made a low, warbling sound she'd never heard before. Not the happy chirp she knew, nor the alarmed beeping that signaled danger. This was different. Almost mournful.

"Hey," she said gently, touching Spot's casing. "You okay, buddy?"

"We might recover more original programming. Memory banks are likely intact, just dormant." Jex's voice quickened with excitement. "We could learn where it was deployed, what missions it participated in. Maybe restore some functionality."

Spot jerked backward so suddenly that she nearly fell. The robot emitted frantic, high-pitched beeps, scuttling away from the hologram as fast as its legs could carry it.

"Spot?" she said, alarmed. "Hey, it's okay."

The robot darted behind her legs, casing vibrating in fear. The chirping continued, desperate and pleading.

"I think that's a no," she said, touching Spot's back. The vibrations subsided under her touch, but Spot remained behind her like a shield from Jex.

Jex's helmet tilted in confusion. "But the data we could recover -"

"No." Her voice was firm, surprising herself with its authority. "Spot doesn't want to remember."

"But-"

"Jex, look at it." She gestured to the trembling robot. "Whatever happened when Spot was part of that unit, he doesn't want to go back there. I'm not forcing him to."

She knelt, coaxing Spot into her lap. The robot crept forward hesitantly, settling against her with a grateful chirp.

"It's okay," she murmured, stroking the smooth metal. "Nobody's making you remember if you don't want to."

Jex stood motionless, his helmet shifting between them. Finally, his posture relaxed. "You're right. My apologies. I got carried away with technical possibilities."

He closed several invasive diagnostic programs. "It's just... this is unprecedented. A Drakeen core with distinct preferences and what seems like emotions."

She nodded, comforting Spot. "Maybe that's why it ended up in a scrapyard. Too different from what they wanted in a combat unit."

The thought made her bite her lip. She knew all about being discarded for not fitting expectations.

"I wonder if-" Jex began, but the engineering bay door slid open and cut him off.

"Honeys, we're home!" Covak's booming voice filled the space as he leaned against the doorframe, grinning. "We come bearing gifts of fresh steak and chocolate cake in the galley."

Her shoulders dropped as relief washed through her. "About time. You were supposed to be back hours ago."

"Blame Ryke," Covak said, rolling his eyes. "Diverted us for some special order. Something about specific spices for his 'culinary artistry.'" He made exaggerated air quotes. "But we have real food. Not protein packs. Actual meat."

Her stomach growled in response. "Davis is back, too?"

"Already in the galley setting things up." Covak's gaze shifted to the hologram. His eyebrows shot up. "Whoa. That's intimidating. What are you two doing?"

"Just research," she said, scooping Spot up. The robot seemed content in her arms, earlier distress fading. "Learning about Spot's origins."

"From terrifying death machine to cute helper. Quite the career change." Covak whistled, studying the hologram. "Remind me not to piss it off."

She laughed, worry melting away. "Spot's more interested in following me than conquering worlds."

"Lucky for us," the Vorrtan said cheerfully. "Coming to eat? Can't promise leftovers if you dawdle."