Heather took a step back, bumping into Loka as she did so. “Erm, hi there. What brings you three to the lab?” She noticed the red glow of the cyborgs’ sensors. They must be infected by the code. They normally had a warm, friendly green glow. She missed that glow. She wanted the friendly green glow back.

These cyborgs were the big guys of the station security. They’d been designed to look like larger versions of humans. They came with reinforced titanium alloy shells. They were almost impossible to bring down. They were fast, trained in all forms of attack, and had built-in stun guns and tasers. All in all, they were hard core, metal bastards.

“Come with us.”

Heather resisted the urge to say if you want to live. If they went anywhere with these cyborgs, their chances of survival plummeted. She glanced up at Loka and saw the tension in his jaw. “Where are we going?”

“Humans are to be detained.” The cyborg to the right took a step forward.

“We are not a threat.”

“It is for your protection.”

“What are we being protected from?”

The three cyborgs remained silent.

“What is your mission?” Heather asked. In theory, a cyborg had to respond when asked this, unless the mission contained information that put lives in jeopardy if it were shared.

“To detain all humans,” said the only cyborg who had spoken.

“I am not human,” Loka grumbled. “I am free to remain here?”

Heather’s heart thumped. Was Loka thinking of letting her go with these cyborgs?

There were a few seconds of silence.

“You are not considered a threat,” the cyborg said

“Good to know,” Loka said. “The human remains with me. I will ensure her protection.”

“That is not acceptable. Our orders are to detain all humans.”

“I’m not doing any harm. And I have this alien looking out for me.” Heather pressed back against Loka, glad of his solid, warm presence behind her. If he wasn’t there to keep her standing upright, she’d probably have fainted in fright by now. She was no warrior. She never pretended to be anything other than a matchmaking, star-obsessed nerd.

“We know you are no threat. You must still be detained.”

“Where are you detaining the humans?” Heather asked. These cyborgs were not picking up on the hints about her not wanting to go with them.

“The holding cells.”

“You’re putting everyone in prison?”

“For your own safety.”

“Against what?”

The cyborgs were silent again.

“It’s the code,” Loka muttered. “They’re infected. Following orders.”

“Programmed to take all the assets.” Heather was an asset. They weren’t letting her go.

Loka leaned down until his mouth was by her ear. “How fast can you run?”

She turned so she was facing him. “I can’t outrun these guys.”

“You will if you have a distraction. Are you ready?” His intense gaze was fixed on her.

“No. Where do I go?”

“To your quarters. Get help.”

Before she had a chance to ask any more questions, Loka brushed his lips against hers and stepped back.

She was almost too shocked to move. He’d just kissed her. It was like something out of a movie. A final kiss before the cyborgs attacked and took away her freedom.

Heather’s heart lurched. Loka would be the distraction. He would be the reason the cyborgs didn’t get to her. Picars were strong, but there was no way he could take on three cyborgs and win.

She opened her mouth to protest, but he gave a single shake of his head.

Loka mouthed the word run as he charged into the cyborg in the middle. His right horn speared another. The cyborgs crashed backwards, creating a space.

Heather didn’t hesitate. She leaped over them, turned left out of the lab, and sprinted along the corridor. She didn’t dare look back for fear the other cyborg was in pursuit.

Skidding around the corner, Heather pumped her arms, intent on getting back to her quarters as Loka had instructed. Her heart stuttered as she heard pounding footsteps behind her.

She got to the next corner and glanced around. A breath shot out of her. It was Loka. He was okay.

“Keep going,” he yelled.

She didn’t need telling twice. Heather kept running, barely slowing as she reached her door and waved her hand over the access panel. She dived through the doorway, leaping over Ernie, who stood guard just as she’d asked him to.

Loka threw himself into the room. He slammed the panel with his hand, and the door sealed shut behind him.

“Is there a problem, Princess?” Ernie scuttled over to Heather.

She scooped him into her arms. “Cyborgs.” The word came out high-pitched and squeaky.

“I’ll lock the door. It will buy us a little time.” Loka secured the door.

“It won’t hold them off for long. If they want to get to us, they can slam right through that door.” Heather clutched Ernie to her chest.

“It will give us time to summon back up.” Loka strode to the comm panel on the wall. “Loka to Hoan.”

The panel buzzed and hummed, sounding like it was straining to work.

“Hoan here.”

Heather let out a relieved sigh.

“Are there any cyborgs on the ship who have not been compromised?”

“We’ve found a few.”

“We need them in Heather’s quarters. Cyborgs are attacking.”

“You...what...back.”

“Say again.” Loka thumped a hand on the wall.

“The comms still aren’t working properly,” Heather said. “Hoan might not have heard the whole message.” She jumped at the sound of something slamming against the locked door. “They’re here.”

“Into your bedroom.” Loka ushered her in front of him, sealing the door shut behind them once they were inside. “What weapons do you have in here? Knives? Lasers? Anything?”

Heather shook her head. “Nothing. I’ve never needed to defend myself before.”

Loka’s claws sprung from his fingers. Impressive three-inch curved talons that could shred flesh. Heather wasn’t sure what damage they could do to titanium.

“How did you get away from the cyborgs?”

“The element of surprise. It won’t work again. I hit them and then chased after you.”

Heather grasped his arm, seeing a trickle of blood run down his forearm and drip on the floor. “You’ve been injured.”

“It’s nothing that can’t be fixed.”

“Maybe I should go with them.” Heather swallowed, hating the idea. “They don’t want to hurt me. Maybe all they’re doing is rounding up the humans until they get their next orders.”

“What if that order is to kill you?” Loka shook his head. “Or sell you off? We can’t take the risk. We’re not being separated.”

Heather looked down at Ernie. “I have him.”

“Your tiny bot will be no good to us.”

“This one’s special.” She patted Ernie on the head before setting him on the ground. “He has built-in weapons. His laser will damage the cyborgs if set to maximum. It could give us a chance to escape and get back up.”

“Use your bot. Make sure he protects you.”

Heather jumped at the sound of metal being ripped open. “They’re getting in.” She knelt beside Ernie. “Set stun to maximum. Aim for the cyborgs’ neck and head interface. Keep shooting. Transfer all power to stun. Do you understand?”

“Affirmative.” Ernie’s light glowed red for a second before returning to green. “Stun set to maximum.”

“Focus on the cyborgs only. Loka is not a threat.”

“Protect Princess and Loka.”

Loka looked at her. “He calls you Princess?”

Heather blushed. “It’s his pet name for me.”

“A pet name you programmed into him?”

She shrugged before standing. “Are you ready?”

Loka looked around the room. “You need to hide.”

“There’s no point. They’ll find me in here. I have an idea. If I can get around the back of the cyborgs, I can disable them. They have an emergency override button at the base of the spine. It’s tucked away, difficult to get to. If they focus on you, I can sneak around the back and disable them.”

“It’s too risky. If they realize you are attacking them, they could kill you.”

“It could be our only chance to get past them.” Heather sucked in a deep breath. “I promise no hero moves. I’m not designed to fight. I’m designed to love.”

Loka’s brows rose. “Is that right?”

She ducked her head. “I mean, I’m here to find love for others. I’ll make an exception in this case. I can play warrior princess for a couple of minutes if it gets us out of here, a warrior princess who doesn’t do anything dumb and get herself killed.”

“I will ensure their attention is not fixed on you.” Loka’s thumb gently grazed Heather’s cheek. He made sure to turn the claw away from her skin. “If you get the opportunity to leave, then take it.”

“I’m not leaving you or Ernie behind. We go together.”

“We can look after ourselves.”

“You’ll be able to do it better with me by your side.”

A fist slammed against the bedroom door.

Heather willed her knees to stop shaking. “Are you ready?”

Loka nodded, ducking his head so his horns were pointed at the door.

With every slam of the cyborg’s fist, Heather took another step back. She didn’t want to look like a coward, but she couldn’t help herself. She’d seen cyborgs in action. They were ruthless once programmed with orders. Nothing prevented them from fulfiling their duties.

The door opened an inch. Heather saw fingers prying back the metal. The door creaked and groaned, but slowly, it was pulled back, the lock broken.

Ernie scuttled forward, lined up his stun gun, and began to blast.

The cyborg ripping the door away recoiled. The smell of hot metal filled the room.

“Good boy,” Heather encouraged. “Keep going. Keep blasting them.”

She heard Loka snorting quietly. His hands were curled and knees bent as he waited to pounce. It was a scarily hot sight. No one had ever protected her like this before. She remembered one boyfriend who’d run away when he got into a bar fight, leaving Heather behind to calm things down. A sliver of pleasure ran through her veins, mingling with the terror.

She just had to remember she was a warrior princess, a fast moving, nimble-fingered warrior princess. It was no bother to disable three cyborgs.

With a grating groan of metal, two cyborgs yanked the door away.

Ernie continued to fire.

Loka charged a cyborg, his horns impaling its torso and jamming it against the wall.

Heather backed away again, feeling powerless as she watched her boys fight.

The third cyborg charged into the room. He slammed into Ernie with his foot, smashing him against the wall.

“Ernie!” Heather could only watch as the cyborg grabbed Ernie from the floor.

Ernie made a strange clicking noise, his stun gun still firing as the cyborg held him.

“Put him down,” Heather screamed.

The cyborg ignored her as he ripped off Ernie’s limbs.

“No!” The word gasped out of Heather. She reached toward Ernie as the cyborg tossed his lifeless body to the ground.

Then she was running, ducking around the cyborg, and slamming her hand against its back, looking for the disable button. Her finger lifted the panel concealing the button just as the cyborg turned. She made contact as its solid hand slammed into her chest.

Heather’s head slammed into the floor. She saw stars, but they were soon replaced by the impassive face of the cyborg.

It reached down and yanked her off the ground by the front of her jumpsuit.

Heather slammed her foot against its leg, only succeeding in bending her toes back. “Holy mother of stars.” She tried to grab her toes, but the cyborg lifted her from her feet and slung her over its shoulder.

Raising her head, she saw Loka grappling with the other two cyborgs. One had him in a head lock; the other was squashed under Loka’s foot as he pinned it to the ground.

Loka kept stamping on the cyborg, his foot making imprints on the tough metal surface.

“Put me down.” Heather was moving, the cyborg heading back out into the corridor.

“Humans have to be protected.”

“From you! I need to be protected from you. I’m not going to the holding cells.”

The cyborg kept walking.

Heather looked around for someone to help, but an unnatural quiet filled the corridor. The cyborgs must be rounding everyone up, human and alien.

She grabbed the cyborg’s back to keep herself steady. Stretching her arm down, she realized she could reach the disable button. She flicked the panel up with her nail. The cyborg stopped walking.

Heather punched the button several times.

Nothing happened. Then the cyborg fell forward, crushing Heather beneath it.

“Ouch! Hulking great piece of tin crap.” Heather dragged herself out from underneath the cyborg’s torso, losing her boots as she did so.

She tried to roll the cyborg off her boots, but it remained flat on its face.

Abandoning her boots, Heather ran back to her quarters. She sped through the doorway, almost not wanting to look for fear of what might have happened.

Both cyborgs were down. Loka was bleeding from a deep wound on his head, but he was alive.

He turned as he heard Heather and scooped her into his arms.

“When I saw the cyborg taking you,” he puffed into her hair, “I thought I’d lost you.”

“I got the disable button. I left my cyborg face down in the corridor.” Heather gripped Loka like she never wanted to let go of him. “You did a good job without me.”

Loka pulled back and brushed her sweat dampened hair from her face. For a second, she thought he was going to kiss her again. His gaze ran over her face, searching for something.

She cleared her throat and took a step back. Now was not the time to get dewy-eyed over Loka.

Her gaze settled on Ernie, or what was left of him. A strangled cry came out as Heather ran over and grabbed his parts. There was no sign of life in his sensor.

“Ernie,” she whispered. “Are you in there, buddy?”

He didn’t make a sound.

Ernie’s dented body was sprawled across her palm as she gathered all the legs she could find. “I’ll put you back together.” Ignoring the panic in her chest, she realized she’d never be able to fix him. Her skills were that of an enthusiastic amateur. Ernie needed a genius to repair all this damage.

She jumped as a hand landed on her shoulder. “He was a good fighter, a worthy adversary of the cyborgs.”

“They tore him apart.” She swallowed down her tears.

“He sacrificed himself for you.”

“I’d rather have him here than sacrificed.”

Loka’s grip briefly tightened on her shoulder before letting go. “We must move. There could be reinforcements.”

“Where are we going?” She swiped the back of a hand across her cheek as she held Ernie’s body against her chest.

“I have a plan.” He looked down at her feet. “What happened to your shoes?”

“Stolen by the cyborg.”

“Get new footwear. Then we go.”

Heather ran into her ruined bedroom. She hopped over dead cyborgs, staring at them to make sure they didn’t move as she grabbed her boots, and tucked Ernie safely in her closet.

“I’ll come back for you, buddy. You have a rest. You’ll be fine soon.” She sniffed. Life would not be much fun without Ernie by her side.

“Are you ready?” Loka asked from the doorway.

“Sure. Where are we going?”

“To the docking bay. It’s time I get you to safety.”