Chapter 1 Evo #3
The Rogue’s Mother Beacon summons us home with a gentle pinging tone that comforts me. I want to give in, let her take my body and carry me into her warmth and her light and feel like I belong with her again.
But I don’t.
Each Mother signal was unique, so we knew which ship called us. Aegis 189 has detected us and will snatch us up in her gravity beams if we become unresponsive. So I must willingly walk away. And it nearly breaks me.
Or it could just be residual destabilized energy from my recent fracture.
“One last time?” Fracture asks. “We can jump the gap between ships, and see our Brothers before the Relics. You must be eager to dock in one of Mother’s recuperation chambers.”
I look through the sealscreen at the nearing ship and our Rogue brothers, waiting beyond Mother’s blue shield.
There are still many ship spans between us.
And while I dream of such rest, I will never dock with any mothership again.
It is my sacrifice to not risk infecting our host vessel and every other Brother.
“Evo.” Fracture stays with me. “You are still punishing yourself, Brother. Why?”
I do not understand his confusion. “I did not foresee the threat that proceeded to infect me. I terrorized and killed those we were built to protect because Solcrue were able to control me like…like a cyborg. Like a machine.”
All these emotions make no sense when I am clearly no more than a subpar piece of equipment.
“I do not function like a CyberTitan. I cannot call myself one. I have no place among the other Rogues.”
“Evolution...” Fracture’s pale blue white eyes swing away and back again.
“I know the feeling of being trapped for years inside a body that’s betrayed you.
Quris was a corrupt Creator and kept me in a frozen tomb in a cloud of pieces.
But someone else did those things to us.
Accept that. Learn from it. I know you can adapt.
It’s your design. And the fact that it upsets you so much proves you are more than a cyborg. ”
“Then how do I solve this knot in my chest and this perpetual notion I should leave?” I ask. “How do I feel worthy again?”
Fracture is a patient unit. “If the Solcrue left a sleeper cell in you, it would’ve awakened during our escape from Ellipsis. They were desperate to stop us. But nothing happened.
“You fought with us. You killed many of them, hundreds with the blue bomb. The Solcrue may have infected you, but you broke free on your own. You can do it again if that becomes a problem.”
My armor suddenly feels too tight. I sense every armored case, seal seam, and weapons holster rubbing against my body.
“I did a lot of damage before I figured it out. It wasn’t even that I figured it out.
I saw what was missing. I saw the human females fighting to save each other as they ran for the escape pods. That’s what freed me.”
Fracture tilts his head as the ships align and close in for docking.
His faceted synthflesh shimmers under Ravenger’s lights.
“Perhaps CSP’s betrayal broke you free of your protective programming.
It did with the Relics. I got the recording from Menace, who heard Eon’s call as he was lost in space.
I was in the ice prison when it happened.
But that could be the reason the Solcrue were able to hack you. ”
The reminder that my twin has been adrift in space for years haunts me. “Perhaps I let them.”
Fracture visually dissects me.
“I was…angry with CSP for what they did to Eon and so many more of our Brothers. What if that anger with humans was the Solcrue’s way in? Because it is how they feel.”
He stays calmly at my side like he does not fear corruption from me.
Maybe he should. “I don’t know. Esthi is the one to talk to about CyberTitan coding.
What I see is that you did what you had to in order to survive.
And when you got the chance, you helped free the females, and then took many Solcrue lives. That proves you are loyal to us.”
My ultromotor shudders and beats in a chaotic pattern. I still betrayed humans. The reason doesn’t matter. I became the opposite of my purpose. I became CSP, Solcrue…the enemy. How can I face my Brothers after that?
I am tired of excuses. “It shouldn’t have happened. There is nothing that can convince me that I was not at fault in some way. I am Evolution. I am supposed to be unstoppable.”
“You are not a god. Even raw energy can be controlled.” Fracture looks away, like he is disappointed. “You weren’t coming down here to greet our Brothers, were you?”
“No.”
“But we protected our Rebel and Relic fleet together. I thought…”
I cringe inside at the idea of being in the middle of a crowd. I want to feel akin with Fracture, and I do, like with every Titan I have fought battles with. But my Brothers are all important to me. And because they are, I cannot go with him.
“If I was any other unit, I would. But every touch of another can change me. A simple accidental brush is all it takes. I cannot be among hundreds of Titans. If I were to bump into Supercharge and then Flashbomb, it could be devastating for Aegis. And I am fragile until I get time to decompress.”
He nods slowly. “That is…understandable.”
“I am sorry, Brother. I am already a danger by design. And my loyalty to our kind was not strong enough to fight malware for a long time. So I am going to patrol to make myself useful.” It’s what I deserve. “It’s what I can do.”
I turn and continue toward the distant hangar with a small, modified Solcruean Skysprinter. If anyone can fly one, it’s me.
Fracture calls after me as I pass the dock hangar doors and lower the ship’s ramp. It hums as it exposes the interior of the ship. “At least contact Eon. He’s here.”
“I know.” My twin has repeatedly pinged me since we broke into Iridithatium space. “He will find me if he wants to talk.”
I consider myself less of a threat if I stay as far away from my Brothers as I can and return only when they need me.
We made it. They are safe. I have every intention of keeping things that way.
I settle into the pilot’s seat, close the ramp, and coordinate with Navi for an appropriate exit.
Navi>>Evo: Opening hangar. But I can’t help thinking this is a mistake.
Evo>>Navi: Explain.
I hover the ship up and guide it through Ravenger’s main hangar, past Relic Titans and humans eager to meet up with the Rogues. As I leave, and the stardust of the nebula greets me, Navi replies.
Navi>>Evo: I can hear your thoughts, even when you think you are locked, Evo.
You are not the only one who has been broken by this war.
We have specific purposes by design. Do you really think the Creators made you adaptable without considering all the possibilities of what you might come in contact with?
I sigh. Craze’s mate is a gentle female forced to become a soldier like so many other innocent humans.
Evo>>Navi: I see no benefit to being corrupted by Solcrue.
Navi>>Evo: I do. I now have the ability to access Solcruean systems and control them. I am certain you have the same.
Evo>>Navi: You did not betray your own.
Navi>>Evo: Maybe not in your numbers, but they forced my compliance, too.
You are not alone, Evo. Please monitor your thoughts for productivity.
As a “head case” myself, it is easy to let possibilities spiral out of control, unchecked.
I know you want time alone. I often need it.
Just know we are here. We all know the situation.
And if you get infected again, we are ready.
We will fight for you as you have fought for us. Navi out.
Navi Disconnected.
I do not deserve such loyalty.
I switch off my telepathic coms and fly out to the edge of the nebula, where I can monitor the rest of the galaxy from the cloak of the Iridithatium. It is quiet here and lets me process what Navi has said.
Not everyone is on my side. Relic Rebel is not.
Another Titan’s ping nears the ship, despite the fact that I’m far out in space, away from the others. I do not hear him land on the hull, but the exterior airlock registers as open on my screen.
Once the ship is sealed and the room has pressurized, the internal door opens, and a pale, watery silhouette of a Titan walks out.
Eon, my twin, Chameleon, slips into the co-pilot’s seat without a word and just gets to work, monitoring the stars with me like there haven’t been years and voids between us.
Eon>>Evo: Request to send recorded data since last meeting. All of it. Encrypted too.
There is only one Titan I trust to understand me. But even now I hesitate.
Eon>>Evo: You are my brother. In life. In death. In Titan form. I will never betray you or abandon you. Across fields and galaxies, I will find you. I will fight for you. And I will die for you. I heard of your capture and corruption. I care only that you are here now, Brother. Are you with me?
Eon rests a gloved hand on my armored shoulder and uncloaks. His face has new scars. And his eyes are brighter and more narrowed than I remember, like he’s planning some deep dark revenge.
He does not know how his presence calms me or reminds me of who I used to be, before battles turned sour and Solcrue won.
He has not come out unscathed either. And I desperately need someone to tether me to reality.
I may hold the energy of galaxies inside me, but I feel much more akin to a black hole, siphoning life and light instead of being the beacon I was built to be.
I’m not sure he will be enough to hold me together this time. I feel like I’m on the edge of collapsing under the weight of everything I no longer control.
My mistakes are unforgivable.