The command centre of Last Hope was as run-down as the rest of the station. Most to blame for its sorry state were its new occupants. What the archaeologists had not stripped or disassembled, the security staff had rigged and modified to make it work. Exposed cables and data-stores cluttered the floor and had almost trapped the twenty technicians at their individual monitoring stations. In the centre of the large circular room was a rotatable dais with a connection half-pod placed on it.

The thing allowed its user to have a hard link to the mainframe and all the systems, at least, those that the security staff had managed to turn back online. Usually, that was where Chief Rex would be sitting, though the man had an aversion to getting hooked to the machine. Instead, he preferred to get all the info from the techs. But now he was not here and because the night shift had started, only King and a couple of techs were present in the room.

It was a painful reminder to Zoë, that the posting was a dead-end for her carrier. But the brass at the Academy were colossal asses. They had thought it necessary to punish her because of her great grandparents. How was she responsible for them being imperial army staff? She had not even known this until she was dragged in front of an Inquiry Committee.

Zoë realised her mind was wandering off. She had to think of a way to get the security codes from Felix. But her thoughts were in a sorry state. It was the fever and the pain. Those idiots Kodiak and Zheng had made the forty-five-minute trek back to HQ an ordeal. Combine that with her broken elbow and wrist and the neuro-toxin coursing through her and it became a torture worthy of a hardened and paranoid Commodore.

On top of that, she was having trouble breathing and her heart was beating in a way it was not supposed to. At least, the pain was not that bad. Although, if she thought about it, that was not a good sign. The hiss of the door stopped the dangerous line of thinking and forced her to focus on the newcomer. It was Doctor Hiroshi Saiko and Zoë would have rushed to him if her legs were willing to listen to her commands.

“What happened to her?” The doc asked without stopping for a moment to look at the guards.

“She done and broke her arm, doc.” Kodiak shrugged.

“Chief wants her patched up.” Zheng added with a grimace telling he did not really care about anything.

“Second officer Kurtz, can you hear me? You are sweating profusely and my readings inform me that your internal temperature is 314.18°K.” Saiko spoke in his usual emotionless voice.

The entire left side of the doctor’s head and face was replaced by an advanced medical array. It made him look like a cybernetic construct rather than a man. It made Zoë chuckle.

“Second officer Kurtz?” Hiroshi flashed a serious of lights from the projectors that had replaced his eye.

“Stop that…” She shook her head trying to avoid the blinding light.

She knew her condition was worsening and that she had control only over her inner thoughts. She needed help. With a significant effort, she tapped her chest and managed to voice a coherent sentence.

“Arc-emitter… Implants malfunction. Heart went out.” Zoë hoped the doc could piece it because she was about to pass out.

“What is she talking about?” Saiko turned to the two guards.

“No idea, doc. Our shift started two hours ago and she is day shift.” Zheng shrugged.

“You morons!” Felix boomed from the comm-station he was connected to.

The man was huge. His obsession with physical training and muscle growth substance abuse had made him a three hundred kilogram monster of a man. It also meant he was unable to fit in any uniform and no one was willing to pay for a custom fit one for a lowly communication’s tech. As a rule, the security staff avoided angering him. His face was scarlet now and the veins on his shaven head looked ready to pop.

“Officer Kurtz got hit by an arc-emitter mine. She was MIA for four hours, that’s all I can tell you doc.” Felix’s weathering gaze was locked at the two men who had backed away.

“I see. She was involved in the same accident that cost Sergeant Lemetal’s hand and was the reason for the death of security guard Kenny Hunter.” Hiroshi gave Felix a quizzical look.

“That’s right, doc, an accident.” King focused on Kodiak and Zheng. “Do you two understand that? It was an accident.”

“Riiight…” Zoë wanted to join the conversation and found it a challenge because her mouth had forgotten how to form words.

“Second officer Kurtz, I am going to administer a mild sedative…” Saiko turned to her and spoke slowly.

“No!” She managed to grab his wrist and look him in the eye. “No… drugs… Fix me…”

“I need to move her to the medical unit.”

“I’m sorry, doc. You can’t. Chief’s orders.” Kodiak loomed over him, his hand resting on the pistol at his hip.

“Second officer Kurtz has completely non-functional adrenal gland implant. I detect high-toxin build up in her sweat, which indicates her Matellii enzyme implant has collapsed, taking her liver with it.” He placed his hand off her chest. “Her right ventricle is collapsed and the left one will be gone soon.”

The doctor looked at Kodiak. “The third ventricle is the only thing preventing a complete cardiac arrest. She needs an emergency operation.”

“Again, doc. Can’t move her.” The man stood like a rock.

“Very well. However, I will be logging this in my report.”

“You got to do what you got to do, doc.” Kodiak backed a step and removed his hand from the pistol.

“Second officer Kurtz, this is going to hurt. I really advise the use of a sedative.” Hiroshi looked her in the eyes with what passed as a pleading expression.

“No… more… drugs…” Zoë managed and leaned into the chair she had been dropped on.

Without saying anything more, Saiko pulled a long transparent hard-connection cable from the doctor’s compartment attached to his waist. Expertly he jammed the thing in the port behind her ear and allowed a bright blue liquid to flow through it.

Zoë screamed. Everything else she had felt so far was nothing compared to this pain. The feeling was so intense, it prevented her nervous system from shutting down. Several agonising minutes later and she could think again. The burning fever was gone.

“That’s a neat trick.” Zheng leaned in to get a better look.

“It is something I learned while I served with the 21st Jäggers. Their cerebral implants were prone to overheating and this was the fastest way to cool them.” The doc’s eyes never left Zoë’s face as he spoke.

“Second officer Kurtz, your body temperature has dropped to 310°K. I am going to inject you with refined adrenaline now to attempt to restart your heart. Please understand those are all temporary measures. You will need to undergo surgery and most likely will need to have your replacement heart transplanted to make a full recovery.”

A large needle was jammed in her chest before she could protest. Her heart spasmed and sent a new wave of pain through her. After what felt like ages, she felt her heart-rate normalise and her breathing had become softer. Zoë had to give credit to the doc, he certainly knew his craft.

“Thank you, Hiroshi…” She managed to utter in between long breaths.

“Alas, I have done nothing but stabilise you for the next three to four hours. I will need to fix your arm now.” He grabbed the broken limb and explored it with his hands.

“The shoulder is dislocated, easy to fix. Wrist bones as splintered at the first, second and fifth digit. Surgery will be required.” He looked at Kodiak and Zheng to see them both shake their heads. “I can use a cast for the moment.”

Saiko stood up and motioned for Felix to come to him.

“Technician first class King, please assist me.” The large man obeyed and walked behind her. “Please keep Second officer Kurtz steady, while I reset the joint.”

Two massive hands took hold of her shoulder and Zoë shivered. She completely missed the pain from having her shoulder pop back into place. If she was honest, after all the doctor had done so far, this was almost pleasant.

“Doc, don’t get this wrong way, but next time – just shoot me.” She gave Hiroshi a faint smile and chuckled.

“Trust me, Second officer Kurtz, these are not the conditions I would like to work on you under.” He returned the smile, though his looked odd and mechanical.

“I can hear you are coherent again, Miss Kurtz.” Helix’s voice in her ear startled her.

“Yeah.” She masked the replay the best she could.

“What is your status?” Her captor asked over the feed.

“Guys, do you mind giving me some space. I mean three people around me is a bit too much. It’s not like I’m going to harm the good doctor.” Zoë wanted it to sound as strange as possible, to warn them, that she was controlled.

However, neither Kodiak nor Zheng were smart enough to catch on. As for Felix, the man was too busy marvelling the sight of her cleavage from under her damaged armour. Only Hiroshi raised an inquisitive eyebrow, for what good that would do.

“That’s good to hear. And Zoë, thanks to some good fortune, you will be getting your reward sooner than expected.” The feed went silent, but she had no illusion that the bastard was still listening from his side.

She was faced with a dilemma. On one side, she really wanted the antidote, but it meant she would have to betray her comrades. On the other one, she really wanted to stick it to them all for the way they treated her. Zoë had made every attempt to fit into the unit, but she had been an outcast. Only the Chief offered her some semblance of friendship, however, he treated her as if she was on the same intellectual level as Zheng and his shadow Kodiak.

To make things even more complicated, Helix had admitted he was a loyalist to the Holy Terran Empire and that he had been in cryo-sleep for who knew how long. The only reason she had any knowledge of the legendary human domain was because the only thing the Third Empire had not purged from its records was the fact that Constantine V Rütter, the last Holy Emperor had stopped the Xith invasion and had saved the human race.

And cryo-sleep; that was Lost Technology. Virginia would kill to learn more about that. Damn, there was a hefty bounty for any viable snippet regarding things like that. Zoë could just betray these bastards, get the antidote, get some info on some Lost Tech, pocket the money and book the first ship to make a run for the Uther system. She did not owe the UR anything anymore.

“We’ll have to make a small detour Dr Werner.” Lucas stopped the ebony woman in her tracks.

He had been monitoring the feed for quite some time and heard that the physician was called to the command centre. That made going to the medical unit a waste. Without the man, Lucas would not have a way to break the gene locks of the equipment in the lab.

“Where to?” She sounded irritated.

Her breathing was heavy and her face was flushed. Small beads of sweat covered her forehead. And he could see her hands were shaking, while she looked at him with unhidden desire. Lucas was afraid he might have used a bit too much of the neuro-relaxant. The drug had been made with the idea of lowering the combat readiness of Gen 3 and Gen 4 personal during prolonged real-space travel.

Only by accident had he found out that it could put an unenhanced human in a subservient state, however, there were some side effects. The main one was that it worked as a strong aphrodisiac in females and placed males in an almost vegetative state. The other major side effect and the one Lucas was most worried about, was that a wrong dose could lead to complete organ failure in the subject.

In the case of the security girl, he had used half a vial, because her system could take the punishment and because he had to simulate a massive heart attack followed by heart failure. But the doctor here was a civilian. Getting the dosage right was tricky and the sweating and breathing could be signs that he had messed up. On the other hand, they could be just signs that she was in a state of arousal and there was nothing to worry about. Lucas had no other option but wait for a seizure, only then would he know for sure.

“Security HQ.” He gently nudged her with the tip of his pistol, keeping her an arm’s length away. “Lead the way Doctor.”

“You could just call me Virginia, not need to be so formal.” She smiled at him, a gesture that a mix of playfulness and disgust. She was fighting the effects of the drug.

“Doctor Werner, you made it quite clear you cannot do informally.” Lucas pressed the gun in her abdomen. “I would rather not shoot you right now. So, if you would be so kind, move.”

The next ten minutes were spent in silence as they walked through empty corridors. Thanks to the new arrival at the docking area, all the guards were gone, otherwise, the place would be swarming with them. At the same time, he kept tabs on what was happening around the security girl. Once they reached, he ordered Virginia to wait and he listened carefully to the background sound of Zoë’s feed. A few moments later he heard the girl make a poor joke, that was all he needed to hear.

The man Saiko was a competent one if he had countered the adverse effects of the drug overdose. And to do it without knowing what he was dealing with, Lucas felt respect for the man and a little professional jealousy. If his insane plan came to fruition, there would be plenty of time to get to know the physician better.

He listened closely to Zoë’s responses over the feed. She, might not be officer material or command, but she was smart where it counted. Thanks to her well-placed line, he knew that there were three armed guards and the doctor. There could have been more men inside, but he doubted they would be armed with anything that could pose a danger. The girl had earned herself a reward for her hard work. He would give her the counter agent he had developed for the neuro-relaxant. It had enough enhanced cells in it to fix her collapsed heart.

Lucas placed his helmet back on his head and stood right behind Virginia. He pressed his combat knife in her spine, as a precaution and made sure his there was a clean fire line for the pistol in his right hand. He would have preferred to use his Mark 7 rifle, but that would not be possible when he had a hostage.

“Ladies first.” He urged the doctor to open the door with a slight poke of the blade.

He could not see her face, but he could picture the sour expression she had on it. Her hand gently touched the secure lock allowing the genetic scanner to confirm that she had access to the area. The sensor plate flashed green and the door opened with a hiss.

Lucas could see the two guards standing next to Zoë and smiling, their heads turned slowly to look at who it was that had entered. If he thought the girl was slow, those two men were the definition of incompetent idiots. They smiled at Virginia, their brains taking too long to process that a man in full combat gear and a nearly a head taller was standing behind her.

The hulking monster of a man that had his hands placed firmly on the girl’s shoulders was a lot quicker in his reaction. His eyes opened wide and his hand darted for the holster at his hip, to find it empty. Lucas noted that the man was quicker, but any smarter, to have had left his weapon at his station.

Saiko was the man who was kneeling in front of Zoë if the red lab coat was any indication. From his position, there was no way for him to guess what was about to happen. Lucas scanned the room and noted there were three more men inside, but they were techs, easily identifiable by the extensive cybernetic augmentation on their heads. At the far end, there were a man and a woman, who had the same green uniforms as Dr Werner, who tinkered with one of the data stores. He dismissed the pair as non-combatants.

Time slowed as his body was flooded by copious amounts of neuro-stimulants, refined adrenaline and a potent cocktail of combat drugs. Unlike when he woke up in the cryo-pod, this time he was very aware he was entering into a fight with an enemy. He might be a medic, but he also a Gen 3 soldier. These men stood no chance.

His right arm extended and he squeezed the trigger, while he watched the faces of the guards shift from cheerful laughter to horror. The heavy gauss pistol fired the tungsten projectile at a speed of three hundred meters per second. The near sonic boom startled everyone, but before they could react, the slug caught the guard on the left in the knee, obliterating the joint and severing the leg.

Lucas shifted his aim and pulled the trigger again. The second round destroyed the right guard’s chest armour and turned his lungs into perforated paste. Chunks of the man’s flesh splattered the floor and wall behind him. The man collapsed like a ragdoll.

By the time the physician Saiko turned, Lucas had his pistol trained on the large man behind Zoë. His message was understood. No one in the room moved. Quickly he returned his combat knife into the sheath on his chest and pulled out the auto-syringe.

“Doctor Werner. Please take this.” He gave the tool the shaking woman in front of him, placing it in her trembling arm. “Miss Kurtz, why don’t you come and join me.”

Slowly, Zoë stood from the chair and with measured steps made her way to him. All the while her mouth repeated the same word over and over again – Sorry. There were tears in her eyes that rolled down her cheeks and her face was frozen in a mask of utter despair.

“Now, please inject Miss Kurtz in the neck, aim for the artery.” He gave his instruction when the girl was just a step away. “She has earned her reward. Don’t worry, you will get yours, once we are done here.” He gave the woman a gentle push to get her moving.

“Virginia, what have you done?” The man at the back asked with a mix of and anger and disbelief in his voice.

“I’m so sorry, Anton.” She said trying to keep herself from sobbing. “I don’t have a choice.”

She jammed the injector into the girl’s neck with a surprisingly steady hand.

“Good. I would like that back now.” Lucas commanded and shifted his aim at the head of the large man his finger gently pressing on the trigger of the pistol.

“No!” Zoë’s scream stopped him from firing and he quickly scanned the room for danger before she continued. “Felix is just a tech! He’s been kind to me!”

“Miss Kurtz, this is not a negotiation.” He paused for a moment. “However, you’ve been quite helpful.”

Lucas lowered the pistol but kept it at the ready as he addressed the large man.

“Felix, right.” He asked in a neutral voice.

“Yes… That’s right… mean correct… sir.” Seeing such a monster of a man stutter because of fear was enough for Lucas to shake his head.

These men were no combatants at all. At best they were just thugs that liked to play dress up.

“Well, Felix, I am trying to make some new friends. What do you think? Can the two of us get along?”

“Yeh… Sure… I have nothing against you man.” The man moved his hands away from his body so that Lucas could see them. “I just… want to tinker… nothing more.”

“That’s nice. Tell me, big guy, do you happen to have the security codes for the mainframe?”

“That… That I do… ah… sir.”