He needed time to go through all the information recorded on his secondary databases and once he had that analyzed the information he would be able to make decisions that would undoubtedly change his life, and most likely the other cyborgs once and for all.
The good thing about being out fighting all day was it didn’t give him time to think or worry about Sabrina. He was afraid of trying to find her and set off an alarm for the people he knew were watching him closer than ever before. It wasn’t worth the risk. She was better off out of his life permanently and he knew that.
“You seem to be in a very dark mood,” Jayport said, when they were back to their quarters one night.
Incredibly, they had sent him back to the same base he had been on before he escaped. Perhaps, they were looking to find if he had accomplices, and who they were if he had any, but Jarcor didn’t care. It was a small comfort for him to see the same faces around him.
His first roommates had also been sent to this base and he had been able to reestablish his relationship with them.
“I guess I’m just tired of this. Taucets seem to reproduce faster than we can kill them,” he grumbled.
“Yes, I’ve had the same consideration. We barely know anything about these creatures other than the fact they want to take over our planet,” Jayport said, groaning.
“Yes, you’re right. But I guess it’s a bit hard to get information on them. They’re not going to give it to us gladly.”
“I know, all we have so far are rumors. Perhaps we should try to capture some of them alive and get the information out of them.”
“I heard they kill themselves when captured. They have protected themselves from any ways humans are known to use. Now all our military wants is to win at any cost.” There was bitterness in every word that came out Jarcor’s mouth, but he didn’t do a thing to disguise it.
“I guess you would know that better than anyone. They must have done quite a number on you when they finally captured you.”
Jarcor scowled but didn’t comment. “I knew they would capture me. In fact, I was expecting it,” he confided on the other man. “You know they have tracking devices installed on all of us and taking them off is harder than we might think. Not so to deactivate them, once you have the right codes.”
“Of course, but they only use those codes while we’re unconscious.” Jayport said, looking around, making sure they were still alone.
“Yes, I know, that’s why I worked on a recording device I’ve sent it to all cyborgs on this planet. It will be able to record anything that happens to them while they are unconscious,” Jarcor explained, in a stern tone.
“You hadn't told us about that,” Jayport protested.
“I thought it could be a bit too dangerous for cyborgs. Their eagerness to escape could lead them to reckless acts. Besides, I still haven’t found a way to get around the firewalls to access our main control system,” he explained. There was still a long way ahead of him.
“The easiest way would be to have a human cutting it open for us,” Jayport pointed out in a mocking tone.
“Yes, of course, they would line up to do that for us,” Jarcor replied, sarcastically. “But, I guess they could be…persuaded to do it.”
Jayport let out a loud laugh. “Yes, sure, all we have to do is find one.”
The following day, Jarcor was free and he was finally able to go through the information his recorder had collected. As he had hoped, all the primary control codes were there, waiting to be used.
The idea of using a human to cut them open gained more and more strength in his mind as he collated all the data to send to all cyborgs, when the time was right.
On the days that followed, he was on the look-out for the right person to force into cutting him open. He wanted to escape the humans’ control as soon as possible, even if it meant he would have to hide somewhere in the world and never show is face again.
He was sure anything would be preferable to living the life he imagined most gladiators had lived, back in the times of the Roman Empire, forced to fight for others, with no rights, not even over his own life.
“You’re planning to escape again, aren’t you?” Jayport asked him one night.
Jarcor looked at him surprised with the other man’s question. “Why are you asking me that?”
“Because, my friend, there are a few of us that want to join you on your next attempt,” he explained, with a serious tone.
“Do you know what you’re risking here? They could kill us if they ever capture us again.”
“We risk our lives every day with nothing in return. Risking it to obtain our freedom will be the easiest thing we’ve ever done in our lives,” the other man assured him. “We were born prisoners. We’ve never known what it means to live on our own, to make our own decisions and we believe we have the right to experience it at least once in our lives,” Jayport explained.
Jarcor couldn’t help the feeling of his heart wrenching at such words. What was being done to these men was inhumane. They deserved much more than that. “I’m not fighting just for myself. I’m fighting for all cyborgs. I might not have been born a cyborg like the rest of you, but they’ve turned me into one of you and I’m proud of being one,” he explained. “We all deserve to be free.”
Jayport nodded, excited. “Good! Now all we have to do is find a way to get the hell out of here.”
It took them a few more days to come up with the best plan. His entire unit, of twenty men was depending on him to escape and he had to find the best way to do it. This time, they couldn’t be caught.
The plan came to him when they were returning from the battlefield. They were escorted each day by a human soldier. He was mandated to take the cyborgs to wherever the Taucets were trying to settle their ground, so they could kill them or at least push them back. It was a battle for inches of ground they couldn’t abandon, or they would be invaded in a blink of an eye.
Groups of cyborgs would come and go from the base to do their job and they were always driven by a human soldier, who would wait away from the fighting for the cyborgs to do their job.
“We can’t attack any humans,” Tobbil, one of his men reminded them.
“We can, it’s just a bit painful, but we can. They control us through pain. We just need to overcome that pain and act. All we have to do is point a gun at him and force him to cut one of us open,” Jarcor explained. “We can take care of the rest easily.”
“I can do it,” Jayport offered, with a smile. “I’ve always exaggerated my pain in front of them,” he explained. “They are convinced my pain threshold is the lowest they have ever seen.”
Jarcor nodded, pleased. “That was a smart move.”
“Thank you. I have my moments,” he assured them, laughing.
“We need to get rid of the Taucets as fast as possible so that we can get at least one hour free, before they send another group,” Jarcor explained. “We’ll make the soldier cut Tobbil first so that I can enter the codes and free him to do the same to the rest of us.”
“How long do you think that would take?” Jayport asked.
“It’s a fast process. We just need to enter two codes at first, one to free us from the humans’ control and the other one to deactivate the tracking devices. With those down, we’re good to go,” he answered. “Many things could go wrong, but if we do things right, we should be far from the battlefield and the camp in no time.”
“Perfect. When can we do it?” Zakbai asked, as excited as the rest.
“Any day now. We must wait for the perfect moment and we’ll only know when that moment presents itself. I need you to be attentive and do your best every day, to identify and take advantage of the perfect moment for us to act.”
All men agreed and after giving them some security instructions, Jarcor went for his walk. He enjoyed walking around the camp alone, lost in his thoughts before going to bed.
He had grown used to reliving his days with Sabrina. He was hoping to feel at least, some of the warmth that he had experienced next to her.
The perfect opportunity to escape arrived just a few days after their conversation. When they realized the Taucets had been all killed, they cheered and turned to look at Jarcor for confirmation.
He nodded and ordering the rest of the group to stay behind, he headed to the vehicle where the human soldier was waiting for them, accompanied by Jayport and Tobbil. The remaining cyborg team had to stay away, to avoid the soldier’s orders to compel them to act against their friends and that was the last thing they needed.
The soldier jumped out of the vehicle and headed towards them. He was so sure of his dominance over the heavily armed cyborgs walking towards him that he didn’t even bother to take out his gun.
“What are you doing here? Your shift isn’t over yet,” the man grumbled.
“We’ve decided we’ve had enough,” Jarcor said in a scornful tone.
“Get back out there. You can’t decide anything here,” the man ordered, arrogantly.
Jarcor had foreseen the soldier’s reaction so he had covered Tobbil’s ears to prevent him from hearing the orders. It wasn’t an ideal situation, but it was better than have the young cyborg heading back into the battlefield.
“That was your last order to us, dirtbag,” Jayport said, in an ice cold tone pointing the gun at the man.
“Lower your gun. I said lower your gun,” the human soldier yelled, clearly scared.
Jayport’s hands trembled but his aim never left the soldier’s head. “Not today. Cut open my friend’s main control system before my nervous finger decides to take a shot at you,”
“I will not─” the man started saying, just to be interrupted by a bullet skimming past his left ear.