Chapter Text
Those last several months on Panta were the best I could have ever hoped for. I worked, but then at night I could have whatever kind of life I wanted. When Summer was home I spent as much time with him as possible, and while he was gone I did my best to follow his advice and hang out with other guys, most of which I had negative experiences with. Adai and Yu let me read their textbooks and homework so I could learn more about how the world worked. When I was free, I helped Ma get our sector to come together as a community, which I saw in real time begin to improve the lives of people around us. It really was a magical thing.
The first time I saw them was at Ma's first potluck. I spotted them glaring at my drones: two men in traveler's clothes who were not on my guest list. Of course, this was not an exclusive party, all were welcome to I approached to invite them over to get some food. They just sneered and left, and I stayed with an uneasy feeling.
I saw them again eight more times over the next two weeks, always the same man with up to four extra people with him in different combinations. They were always just watching me from a distance. I was grateful when Summer came back from a survey so I could tell him about it, and also maybe ask him to see if he could dig anything up on these guys. Which he technically wasn't supposed to do, but he did have a secretary friend to ask. Unfortunately whoever these people were, they weren't with B-E, so there wasn't anything there to dig.
We decided I'd just keep avoiding them, and if anything happened then I would run because they couldn't keep up with me even if they were heavily augmented. Everything was planned just right.
My work crew had a new construction project. We were working on building a mining facility out in the mountains. That day I volunteered to go up the headframe so no one else had to. Also I was the only one strong enough to make it up while carrying the wheel. So I climbed up the 50 meter steel tower and began installing the wheel that would attach to the hoist via cable. It was a little nerve wracking because I didn't have a proper platform to stand on, but I at least had a safety rope.
I finished installing the wheel, attached a pulley to my safety rope then began to lower myself down the tower.
I heard the sound of an energy weapon, and had enough time to process that information, before the shot hit my safety rope. Then I watched as if in slow motion, just above me and out of reach, as my rope burned and then snapped under my weight and I fell. I was halfway down the tower already, but it was still dangerously high up. I twisted around and reached out for a handhold, and grabbed a beam. This slowed my down, sent me tumbling a little bit, and pulled my entire wrist out of place which was very painful. I fell right through into the mine shaft we had been digging, but before I hit the bottom I was caught by a net stretched across the wide hole. I groaned and rolled over to curl around my dislocated wrist.
"Told'jya she could handle that shot," a voice said behind me.
I startled and staggered to me feet on the wobbly footing. There was what looked like a natural cavern intersecting the shaft, and two of the people I had seen following me standing and pointing weapons at me. I tried to call for help on the feed, but something was blocking me. I couldn't climb back up the shaft, and I'd die if I jumped the rest of the way down.
The woman pointed a weapon at me, and I dropped to a crouch just in time to avoid an energy blast to my face. I ran full force toward them and shoved right past. Unfortunately I hadn't seen the two extra humans just inside the cave and was tackled and knocked to the ground. They were not strong enough to keep me down, but they were fast. One of them managed to shove something into the data port on the back of my neck and my entire body locked up and began to cycle into recharge mode. Not even my drowning fear was able to keep me awake. I silently prayed someone would be able to find me.
I came back online slowly. First I could see, then hear, then feel, then think. I wasn't restrained, but my body couldn't move. I tried to call out, but I couldn't even talk. My insides squirmed with anxiety and I tried to figure out what I had done wrong to have this happen. I was so scared and helpless and I didn't know why! I wanted to cry, or scream, or at least breath faster because I felt like I was suffocating but something was stopping my body from reacting and it was like I was being smothered from inside my own mind and body and I couldn't even scream out on the feed.
It took me several full minutes for my silent panic attack to subside a bit. And really, I knew if I let myself think about my situation again I'd go right back into it, so I focused on data collection.
Fact 1: There was foreign code in my system immobilizing me.
Fact 2: I was in a big cavern with a large open mouth that let me see the starry sky, and inside was a non-company shuttle landed next to a makeshift camp.
Fact 3: There were six humans here, five of them I recognized at the ones who had been spying on me.
Fact 4: I could hear running water echoing off the walls, so the river must run through this cave.
Fact 5: About fifteen hours had passed from my fall down the shaft to now.
Fact 6: I was lying on the ground, just kinda haphazardly dropped on my side.
Fact 7: I was alone and very afraid.
I overheard the humans debating on how high they should set their price for how much they should sell me for. I didn't know who was talking at any given moment.
"Just saying, it's easily worth a hundred thou. So we gotta aim bigger than that so when B-E tries to haggle us down we got more wiggle room!"
"You're a dumbass. If we try to get more than the set bounty they'll knock us down even lower. Maybe refuse to pay at all."
"The set bounty is wormhole robbery!"
"Guys?"
"The set bounty is what we work for! If you didn't want this job you should've stayed in orbit."
"Guys."
"Who died and made you captain?"
"GUYS!"
"What?!"
"Who's fuckin drone is that?"
In the mouth of the cave, one little light moved in a way that set it apart from the stars and satellites in the sky. And I realized I knew that light! That was my drone! And the rest of them appeared and the humans took shots at them, and the drones led the humans out of the mouth of the cave just leaving one guard here with me. One guard who took promptly a stunning energy shot to the back.
Someone knelt behind and hovered a moment before resting hands on me and trying to arrange me into a more comfortable position, then whispered over me, "Please... Pleasepleaseplease be okay." That was Summer's voice! I was so relieved I could have sobbed. "Oh gods, okay, I'll get you out of here. Just hang tight, everything will be alright when you wake up. We'll be okay. Everything is okay."
He pulled me up to sitting, and tried to lift me, but a SecUnit is heavy for even an augmented human to carry alone. He ended up just dragging me over to the short cliff that stood over the river bend. He cradled me and looked out into the night. "Ameca, now would be a fantastic time to wake up. I don't know if I can jump with you. Or, I don't know. I don't suppose you have a manual startup access?" He looked down to me, with my half lidded eyes I supposed I must have looked pretty pathetic because his eyes got super wet and shiny.
He tilted me forward so he could check my access port for, I assume, an on switch. Which obviously didn't exist, but he did remove the data stick that was holding me hostage, and the relief from the heavy pressure suddenly being gone made me sob out loud.
Summer wrapped me in a hug with my mouth against his jacket, "Hey, shhh, I know, I know. I got you, but we have to be quiet a little longer."
My hands felt mostly numb and alien as I reached up and gripped his clothes. His smell was already starting to make me feel safer.
Summer pulled us up to standing, and my legs also felt numb and wobbly, but at least I had minimal control of my own body again. "That's the boat down there. You ready?"
I needed to be. "Those guys are coming back."
The bounty hunters fired shots at us as they got back into the cave, and a boat passed below piloted by Adai, and me and Summer jumped off the cliff. It was a good sized boat, but even at that it still tipped dangerously when a heavily augmented human and a SecUnit landed on it.
"Get down!" I shouted. My legs had slightly crumpled just a little (I had all but fully collapsed) when I landed, but I still reached for Summer and Adai and pulled them close so I could cover them with my body as the river swept us away. I don't know how many projectile and energy shots I took before we got out of range, but after a quick check I found that the other two were okay, although they both looked horrified.
"What were you thinking?!" Adai was the first to get loud, "Shit, Summer, the MedKid is by the engine."
Summer looked paler than usual, "On it."
For the rest of the ride they focused on making me stop bleeding everywhere, and bandaging me up. We would fix me up better after getting home. We stopped the boat when we got down to the red hills, then began the walk back to our house with me leaning on Summer for support. I didn't regret being a living shield, but I'll be damned if it didn't hurt.
We staggered into our home as a tired, bloody mess. Ma covered her mouth, and Yu started to run up to give me a hug, but aborted mission when she registered the state I was in, then she went to grab a kitchen chair a brought it to me, "You gotta sit! We... We're gonna fix you up like last time." She looked like she wanted to cry, but she was doing a really good job of holding it together.
I smiled for her, "Thanks, I don't know what I would do without you."
As if on cue, a projectile weapon fired and exploded right through our front door. I yanked Yu to me and shielded her. One of the bounty hunters kicked our door in.
I shoved Yu towards the kitchen, which was just around a corner where she could hide, "Run!" I hissed, then I stood and spun around to face the intruders.
"Nuh uh uh," the leader tutted, he was pointing his gun at us.
I heard Adai gasp, "Ma....."
I turned my eyes and saw Ma on the ground with gritted teeth and blood spilling from her hip. My heart dropped and my vision went red. I lowered my body and raised my fists.
"Give it a stand down order," the leader warned. His backup pointing guns at Summer and Adai.
I froze. I wouldn't be able to stop them all before someone I cared about died. "Why are you doing this?!"
He ignored me. "Do it," he told Summer with a threatening growl.
Summer inched forward, gradually putting himself between me and the guns. I didn't want that. He spoke in as calming of a voice as he could, "I think you're mistaken. She doesn't belong to us, she's a free person, a part of our family. Whoever you're looking for, it isn't her. Please just leave."
The bounty hunters snickered, the leader stepping right up to Summer and putting the gun against his face and I swear my heart stopped at the sight. "You must think I'm stupid, huh boy? I've heard of freaks that fall for their sexbots, but I know you don't expect me to believe you made this murder machine act like one of you."
"STOP!" I cried. The leader finally looked at me. "Don't hurt anyone else, and I'll go with you willingly."
[Ameca don't!] Summer begged me.
The leader backed off from Summer to actually face me, "Well I'll be damned. A fuckin rogue that's not on a murder spree."
[If we don't move now Ma is going to die! If I don't get these guys to walk out willingly, we will ALL die! Summer I am begging you to let me protect my family!] My voice trembled as I addressed the bounty hunter, "I surrender, so leave my humans out of it. Okay?"
Adai and Summer both spoke over each other in the feed. I had never fully understood what humans meant when they said their hearts broke, until this moment. Because it felt like something in my chest was breaking, and I could barely breath and I only knew that my heart must be falling apart in there.
The hostile leader stepped aside and motioned me to the door.
I stepped around summer, and he put a hand on my shoulder, [Please, slow down.... We need you. I need you! I... can't let you go.]
I looked into his eyes, one last look into his crystal gaze before I gave myself up to the world that despised me. His were the first eyes I really looked into when I started my life. He was the one I remembered being kind and warm and encouraging. The memory of him holding my hand in a sunny field is what I knew would give me the strength to do this. [You can take your hand off, it's okay. I'll probably be gone a long time, but I won't just disappear. Now and forever, I'm free. YOU gave me that. You have given me so much, love, trust, family. I'll miss this, but I promise I'll always find a way back. You have to let me go, but remember you won't be letting go of me.]
[What if I never see you again? What if something happens to you?] his feed voice sounded desperate.
[It'll be okay. It's okay. Let go. No matter what happens, you have to believe I'll be safe. You've given me your strength, love, and everything. Trust me.]
He made a tiny little nod, and let me go. I hoped this hurt him less than it did me. The bounty hunter hit me to make me stumble through the door, anf I force myself to leave my home one foot at a time.
I looked over my shoulder once before the door closed behind us. Adai was calling for medical help and trying to stop the bleeding. Summer looked as bad as I felt. Tears ran down his cheeks, and his eyes looked like they were pleading for some kind of miracle to keep me from going. The last I saw him he turned away from the door and made his way to our home's simple med kit.
I was walked away from my house, my arms and wrists clamped together in metal binds. I silently prayed to the figures from the stories I Whispered with the bots to protect me, and to eventually carry me home, and to free me from this weightless fear.
That is how I started my life. I knew peace, and friendship, and love. And I have given it up to protect my family, but I will still carry this in my chest forever, and I will be heartened by the time I had with those I left behind.
I don't know what will happen to me now, probably the same that most constructs experience, but I ensured my humans' safety and that's all any SecUnit could ask for. I did what I needed to do, and I will do my best to survive what comes next for them.