Altered Design (Mechanical Advantage Book 2) Read online

  She snorted. “There are handheld weapons only. I am just heading to the command deck to arm the interior systems. If they catch us, they are coming aboard.”

  “Do I have access to the weapons’ vault?”

  “I never closed the door, so I will say yes.”

  He grunted and passed her on the way to the deck.

  By the time she got to the deck, he was gone, so she grabbed a few guns, a belt, and a backup charge pack and headed over to the cradle.

  She would have used the array on the command deck, but Lexo had torn it apart during his renovations.

  She set the weapons to the side of the cradle and breathed deeply to put her into a receptive state. The guys were with her as she sent her senses into the stars.

  The satellites told her the same story over and over. There was only one ship nearby, and based on its speed, it would be latching onto their ship in the next ten minutes. The big question was where would the entry point be.

  The interior systems of the ship were armed for any non-human or nanite tissue. Lexo should be fine.

  Remain with us. You require protection.

  Alphy blinked and sat up. “No. Lexo is not my protector, he is my pilot. I am not going to leave him out there to defend me.”

  We need you.

  “I don’t care, and I don’t plan on dying. I need to defend what has become my home.” She got out of the cradle and strapped on the guns. She was much more comfortable with pistol-style weapons than the long-range rifles.

  “Guys, I will ask you one thing. Please let me know where they are coming in when they get here.”

  There was silence before the chorus of, We will.

  She exhaled slowly and went to stage for defense near the shuttle bay. She was almost hoping that the Splice ran into Lexo first, seeing the patchwork aliens again was not something she had ever imagined. It was a bit cowardly, but she was practical. Surviving the Splice one time was unlikely. Twice would be impossible.

  She locked her senses to the station, opened the link between her and the Triad wide, and she waited.

  They are coming in through exhaust vent thirty-seven. There are only three of them, and their ship is attached to the hull.

  She closed her eyes for a moment and nodded when she opened them, taking off at a run and heading toward the oxygen farm. The vent was only opened in emergencies. If the umbilical to their ship was lost, the plants would be in danger. That was definitely something that Alphy was willing to act on. She liked breathing. It was a hard habit to break.

  The fans blew the scent of the Splice to her before she saw them. The musky mix of a dozen species was unmistakable. If they hadn’t been assembled in a horrific patchwork, it might have even been an intriguing mix.

  Her stomach churned, and she got her weapons ready. The Splice didn’t speak. They communicated on a frequency that no human could hear, but it was effective. She listened for the slight scuff of boots approaching down the hall near her ambush point. When she heard that slight signal, she swung into the open expanse, sighted, and fired.

  The first Splice was a walking horror. She shot it in the shoulder, the chest, the neck, and the thigh. It collapsed without a sound.

  She dodged behind her corner as the other two fought back.

  The sound of the stun pulse sent a chill down her spine. It set off a cascade of memories that slowed her as she ran for better cover.

  The steady pounding of boots behind her got closer as she approached her goal. When she skidded around the corner, she fell to the floor, but the searing crackle of burned Splice was worth the road rash.

  She got to her feet and bolted for cover. The third member of the party wouldn’t be as stupid as the other two. The footfalls behind her were more cautious now but no less relentless.

  When a bolt shot past her and to the defense node, her hope sank. She had been counting on the Splice to pursue her into one of the death alleys that were dotted around the vessel, but it seemed that he had caught on to what delivered the charge.

  She focused on running, and when a figure stepped out in front of her, she hit the deck and slid past it as Lexo lifted his rifle and blasted the Splice.

  “Is that the last one?”

  She lay face down on the decking and grunted. “Yes.”

  “Is their ship still attached?”

  Alphy pushed herself up. “Yes. It is in a sensitive place, so it has to be detached with care.”

  “I can do that. Do we have a disposal for the bodies?”

  She shuddered. “No. We need to get them onto their ship and dump it.”

  “Dump it?”

  “Set it on course and launch it into a star or something.”

  Lexo helped her to her feet. “Do you know of one conveniently located?”

  She grimaced. “No. But I can find one.”

  “Can you read Splice? I haven’t flown one of their vessels before, so I don’t know if they have autopilot.”

  Alphy shuddered. “I can find out. Can you handle the bodies?”

  “Yeah. Not the best way to start the day, but yeah.”

  She shuddered again and stiffened her shoulders. “Good. Let’s go.”

  A maintenance bot pulled up with a stack of bags on it.

  Alphy swallowed slowly and grabbed the top bag. “I am guessing that the guys want us to bag them up for transport.”

  “Can’t you ask them?”

  She shook her head. “Nope. They shut off when I am freaking out or ill. Right now, I am both. I really hate these things.”

  “They are conscious, thinking beings.” It was amazing that he could be so analytical as he took the bag from her and flipped it out next to the corpse.

  “Who are trying to hunt humanity to extinction.”

  “Right.” He grunted as he grabbed the Splice and rolled it into the bag. There was a dark bloodstain on the decking, but the small army of maintenance bots was standing by to do their work.

  It was only when the bag was closed and the Splice was hidden that Alphy realized she was clutching herself. She was literally holding herself together.

  She went to a panel and summoned a carrier. It seemed easier than hauling corpses through the ship.

  “The carrier will be here in a moment.”

  Lexo nodded and settled his weapon comfortably at his hip. “You took out two of them on your own.”

  She grimaced. “You could call it that.”

  “Are they dead?”

  Alphy nodded. “Oh, yeah.”

  He nodded. “Good. Any chance of any more?”

  “The guys said there were only three, and I trust their access to the scanners.”

  The transport platform arrived, and she helped Lexo heave the body onto it. She gagged and straightened, grabbing the two folded bags from the maintenance bot before leading the way to her second victim.

  “He’s this way.”

  Lexo shook his head as he kept step with her. “You really are repulsed by them.”

  “Oh, yeah. Just an image makes my skin crawl.”

  He blinked. “Is this a long-standing issue?”

  She kept walking. “Just since they carved up my entire workgroup piece by piece. Seeing them coming and wondering if I was next was only second to the horror of seeing those taken coming back in pieces. If they came back at all.”

  He didn’t say anything, just moved slightly closer to her.

  They walked the halls and finally found the second body. It was still smoking.

  “Huh, I ran faster and farther than I thought.” Alphy looked at the Splice who had run into the defense system.

  “What the hell did that?”

  She quirked her lips to hide the bile that was rising. “My rapier wit. Bag him up.”

  Lexo started to move the corpse, and he paused to look over his shoulder at her. “Huh, this is an interesting first date.”

  “Whoa. Date?”

&nb
sp; “Well, we have been brought together by the Triad. I thought that we should date before anything else happens. This is a weird couple’s activity, but I am willing to work on expunging the Splice with you.”

  Well, she was so speechless that her shock drove out her distaste at the thought of the Splice. That was new.

  Chapter Eight

  The Splice ship was mercifully empty.

  Alphy hummed to herself as she read the controls. She paused and said, “I think I have it. You enter coordinates here, set propulsion here, and then, the ship will go through its detachment sequence.”

  Lexo was watching over her shoulder. “That’s it?”

  “Yup. It is very point-and-shoot.”

  Alphy rubbed her hands together and looked at the small cockpit of the scouting vessel. “Right. We should be able to launch this sucker by delayed response, or at least a remote.”

  “Do you have a remote?”

  She shook her head. “No, but the guys are good at this kinda thing. I am pretty sure that the fabricators are already assembling what we need.”

  They are. The bots will be delivering it in five minutes. Please, link with the Splice ship for data absorption. Duss’s words were calm, but they were an order.

  Alphy looked to Lexo. “The control unit will be here in five minutes. In the meantime, I have to get to work.”

  “What?”

  “I need to scour the systems for information. I just wanted to give you a head’s up in case you wondered.”

  Lexo put his hand on her shoulder. “Is that safe?”

  She chuckled. “Definitely not. Here I go.”

  She pressed her fingers to the active screen, and her nanites filled the system.

  The alien information flowed through her and into the Triad. Alphy remained still as her nanites retrieved all they could and then returned to her in a rush.

  She gasped and staggered back. “Right. Got it. Is the remote here yet?”

  Lexo straightened from his position next to her. He held her steady while she fought for balance. “I installed it an hour ago. What were you doing?”

  She blinked slowly as the real world took up its place around her. “I was working. Data sorting.”

  “How? Your fingers didn’t move.”

  She sighed. “Can we discuss this over lunch? It has been a very trying day.”

  “Right. Of course. Sure. Come with me.”

  Alphy smirked as he led her back to her home. It was as if he was the senior staff and not just the pilot, or she was an invalid. Either way, it was not flattering.

  “I know the way home, Lexo. You don’t have to hold me up.”

  They walked through the narrow halls of the Splice ship, breathing as shallowly as possible. The stench of fear mingled with the alien musks produced a smell so strong she could taste it. She knew that smell. She had spent time in that smell.

  Alphy bolted for the hatch that connected the Splice ship to her station. The moment she was safe, she doubled over and dry heaved onto the deck.

  “Are you all right?”

  She waved at him and croaked, “Get that thing out of here.”

  “Right. Sealing the breach.” Lexo slammed a sheet of metal against the hole in the hull that had been carved by the incursion.

  She shivered and leaned against the wall as the maintenance bots whirred and welded the hole closed.

  When the seal was confirmed, Lexo went to the nearest control panel and keyed in a series of commands. “Do you have the coordinates?”

  She nodded and stood next to him, typing as quickly as she could. “That should do it. It is on the other side of this station, so aside from the slight pause, there should be no indication that they found anything at this position.”

  “Why is that important?”

  She smiled slightly, “Because they didn’t report finding us, and their ships are all interlinked. That is how they can attack entire planets once they are sure of compatibility.”

  The flood of information in her mind had left pools of data that her conscious thoughts could access. She saw species with wings, tails, and other adaptations that the Splice wanted. Humans were just filler for the special bits and pieces that they wanted to hold together, and as such, they were valuable. She knew that already. She had been on the frontlines of the first harvest.

  The hiss of the umbilical releasing was a relief. The ship would float a safe distance away, and then, the engines would fire.

  “It is set to go. Are there satellites that can monitor it?”

  Alphy nodded. “Yup. The guys are on it.”

  “Are they speaking to you now?”

  “Not in a manner that counts as speech. I get flickers from the direct feed of the ship’s satellites.” She started to head for the dining hall when he grabbed her arm.

  “Are you sure you are all right?”

  She paused and linked her arm with his. “I will be fine after I scrub my hands, eat, and then go for a swim in the oxygen farm.”

  He brightened. “Swim?”

  “Yup. There is a freshwater tank embedded in the floor. It is almost like a lake.”

  They walked in step down the hall, the dried blood of the Splice still on their skin. The sonic scrubber was waiting for them, and Alphy stuck her hands in the machine near the door of the dining hall.

  When it was Lexo’s turn, he admitted, “That is a handy thing.”

  “It is. I am pretty sure it was a tech with small kids that put it in all the mess halls of the Earth forces.”

  “It seems likely.”

  With their hands and forearms clean, it was time to get something to eat. A scan of her palm resulted in the ship preparing two trays for her. She took one in each hand and walked to the tables before returning to the dispenser for some coffee, water, tea, soda, and anything else that the unit could come up with. She was parched.

  The tray wobbled as she walked, but Lexo was busy with his own meal and didn’t have a free hand. She set the tray down with a sigh.

  Lexo eyed her selections. “That is quite the meal.”

  “Yup, but apparently, I need it, so I will work my way through it.” She settled in and lifted her spork. She had a lot of work to do.

  When she cleared the first tray, Lexo took it away for her. She continued on through the second and finally sat back with a sigh. Everything was gone, but she felt like she had eaten a light snack and not an entire buffet.

  Lexo was staring at her, his chin resting on his hands, his elbows on the table. “Wow. That was hot.”

  She looked at him and grinned. “You have strange tastes, Lexo.”

  He shrugged. “I have been away from home a long time. A woman with an appetite is the most encouraging thing I have seen recently.”

  She stretched, thrusting her arms upward, pulling at the muscles of her shoulders. “Right. Now a swim.”

  He chuckled and blinked. “Well, now that stretch is the most encouraging thing I have seen. Aren’t you supposed to wait at least an hour after eating before you swim?”

  Alphy smirked and took care of her final dishes. “That is an old wives’ tale, and it only applies to wearing a suit.”

  Lexo was on his feet in an instant. “Lead the way.”

  The interior arboretum was gorgeous, as always.

  “Why would the Triad have this installed on their vessel?”

  Alphy stripped. “I neither know nor care. All I know is that it feels almost like I am back on Earth. It makes me feel like I am home.”

  The ceiling above was fifteen stories away. The huge central spoke housed the trees and the lake that was central to the water-processing and oxygen systems.

  She didn’t look at her companion, just waded into the lake and started to swim. The splash behind her spoke volumes.

  She turned, and he was gone.

  Shrugging, she continued to swim back and forth, occasionally seeing his head above the surface as
he cruised around the open water.

  She was floating on her back and sculling slowly through the water when he appeared at her side.

  “You really do like the water.” He swam next to her as she slipped slowly across the surface.

  “I really do. You seem to be having fun as well.”

  He grinned. “I am. I confess I wasn’t sure I could swim with the adaptations, but they don’t hold me back.”

  “If you didn’t get a shower warning, they wouldn’t be a problem. Hell, your family perfected this technology. You should know that water isn’t an issue.” She smiled and kept looking up at the distant ceiling.

  “Knowing it and testing it are two different issues.”

  Alphy chuckled. “Yeah, it took me six months to work up the nerve to go for a swim. Once I managed it, I never looked back.”

  He floated next to her. “It is a pity that you can’t see the stars.”

  She sighed. “And a little weird. This entire area is domed in.”

  She let her legs drop and treaded water beside him. “So, how much retrofitting did Stitch give you?”

  He snorted and matched her position. “She went over all the empty weapons casings and set me up with some new personal defense systems.”

  “Why didn’t you use them against the Splice?”

  He blinked and smiled. “Because I had a gun?”

  She laughed. “Right. I forgot about that.”

  “The defense system is only good twenty feet and closer. I don’t like the Splice getting that close.”

  They were less than two feet from each other, the water around them was crystal clear, and she could see every inch of him below the rippling surface.

  “You were badly damaged.”

  He quirked his lips. “Not flattering but accurate.”

  “How?”

  “Not all at once. A crushing impact ship to ship, an explosion on board. And the injury that started it all, a vehicular accident back on Earth.” He shrugged.

  “So, that is where they injected you with nanites to begin with. Did they make you want to join the fight?”

  “No. Seeing humanity at risk, knowing how vulnerable we were to alien attack, and knowing that I loved to fly sent me to the stars.”

  “Despite what your family wanted.”