Chapter One

Thunder was ready to kill.

He scanned the surrounding prairie, keeping his eyes unfocused and looking for any movement that didn’t belong to waving wheat or prairie grass. He wasn’t sure if he would ever get used to living in the country, but the big house in a rural area of Colorado had suited the needs of the cyborgs. No humans lived for miles around. They needed time to gather together, think, and prepare.

The silhouette of an elk broke the horizon, slowly walking as it ate grass. It occasionally paused to listen for predators. Thunder brought a rifle to his shoulder and peered through the scope. He was lucky enough to keep the plasma gun that had been installed in his arm when he first became a cyborg, but it was too loud for hunting. The thin air could have carried the squeal of its discharge for over a mile. Any other animals around him would be scared off by the noise. Even if he managed to squeeze off a shot, it would have obliterated the beast and left the meat inedible.

He lowered the weapon again. The elk was out of range. He would have to wait for it to come closer or get lucky and have another one come along. On another day, he might have tried to approach the animal. The kill would satiate the bloodlust he felt inside, and the cyborgs in the old farm house needed the meat. But it was approaching Savage’s scheduled meeting time. Thunder turned and went inside the house.

Savage, a massive cyborg with blazing red hair and brown eyes that dared anyone to challenge him, had quickly taken control of the group. It had been his idea to find a remote place where cyborgs could gather safely. Considering his size, vigor, and rage, nobody had bothered questioning him.

They were cyborgs, and they had been soldiers. Something inside them wanted someone to command them. Savage had risen to the occasion.

“Any luck?” The cyborg looked up when Thunder came through the door. Savage sat in a rickety old chair in the middle of what had once been a living room. Looking at the broken windows, peeling wallpaper, and creaky floorboards, it was evident that no humans had lived in the home for a long time. The cyborgs didn’t mind roughing it, as long as it meant they didn’t have to deal with daily persecution.

Thunder shook his head. “No. Not this time.”

“It’s just as well.” Savage laid aside the gun he had been cleaning and stood. His short hair nearly touched the ceiling. “It’s better for everyone to attend our meeting instead of being outside skinning and quartering game.” The cyborg leader had been trying to get everyone in one room for some time now. Thunder wonder what was so important about it. The cyborgs had regular gatherings to introduce new members who had made it to their refuge, to share incoming news, or to discuss supplies that were running low.

Savage didn’t want to talk about any of those things. Something bigger than everyday matters was on his mind.

Thunder followed Savage into the back room of the house. It was narrow and still held a long wooden table that humans had used for dining. In the beginning, the cyborgs had used it when they were eating, but they soon had too many bodies for the available space. Now they ate wherever they wanted to, but the room was still useful for meetings as long as most were willing to stand.

Savage called out to his fellow cyborgs. The roar was unintelligible but carried meaning. The soldiers quickly filtered into the room and assembled in rows to hear their leader speak.

“We have many things to discuss today.” Savage sat at the head of the table. He gestured for Thunder to sit next to him, on the right. “The reports we intercept from the humans are becoming more troubling. The eradication project is ahead of schedule. Cyborgs are being destroyed all around us. It’s time for us to do something to stop it.”

The group cheered. The dull yell was a dark and angry sound that rattled the remaining glass in the windows. Thunder refrained from celebrating, choosing instead to recall the sequence of events that led him here.

Cyborg Sector, the government group in charge of turning humans into cyborgs and dispatching them into the field, lost its funding once it became apparent that implanting a computer chip in a human body didn’t always make them obedient. The next phase in cyborg history was the rehabilitation program. Sympathetic human scientists upgraded the cybernetic firmware to help them regain their humanity. The ex-soldiers went through rigorous training, and some of them even found jobs. After many years, everyone hoped that cyborgs and the humans would be able to live together in peace.

But the software upgrades didn’t always work. Some of the custom biochips weren’t compatible with the new programming. A minority of cyborgs became uncontrollably violent. The staff at the rehabilitation program weren’t able to stop them. The renegades were tranquilized and kept unconscious until someone in a higher pay grade figured out what they wanted to do with them. Eventually, the only solution was termination.

The current plan for cyborgs was unofficially called the eradication project. Humans cried out for the destruction of all cyborgs, regardless of how well they took to rehabilitation. Protestors flooded into the streets, carrying signs and screaming, throwing bricks through every window, and demanding the removal of the non-humans who had infiltrated their society. The politicians didn’t have to debate for long before they formed Purity Force, a select group of mercenaries specially trained on counter-cyborg tactics. The cyborgs had gathered in the old country house for their own protection.

Savage continued. “Things are only getting worse out there. You’ve seen the news videos showing humans congratulating each other for turning in their friends and neighbors. If the rumors are correct, soon they will declare open hunting season on cyborgs.” The soldiers muttered and grumbled obscenities. “What you need to understand is that there is no hope of improving our relations with the humans. Yesterday, a woman was raped by a cyborg in Chicago. We are no longer a nuisance to them. There are no more allies to help us. We are on our own.”

“That’s fine by me.” A slim, young cyborg stood up in the back and charged his plasma gun. The dull whine of the weapon filled the room. “It’s about time they started to hunt us. I’ve been waiting to hunt them.”

The swarm erupted in whoops and cheers. Thunder watched them carefully. He knew that humans were their natural enemy. But a group of cyborgs that were barely under control could be just as dangerous.

“We’ll let them know what it’s like for someone to get pulled out of their home and executed.” Against his will, Thunder’s voice was growing louder from the front of the room. “If they intend to treat us like barbarians, we’ll act like it. All we have to do is prove they were right about us!” He thrust his fist into the air to drive his point home.

The roar in the room was deafening. The floors and walls shook as the soldiers pounded their fists and screamed for revenge. Thunder gladly joined them, welcoming the pain in his throat as he let his voice come out at full blast. He had spent too much time running and defending himself.

Savage waited patiently for the din to subside and was ready to speak again when the cyborgs could hear him. “My comrades, there is one thing we must do first. It will be the perfect start to our new path in life and set the tone for future interactions with the humans. We cannot risk going into the streets alone and letting them pick us off one by one.”

The cyborgs were silent and attentive now, eyes gleaming and computer systems firing at full speed. Thunder could tell by the way they watched their makeshift commander that they were clinging to every word he said. They would willingly follow all of Savage’s orders. So much for autonomous cyborgs.

“Purity Force took their last group of captives to New York City. Although I’m sure they would happily kill them without any further thought, a few humans have demanded an investigation into their supposed crimes. The humans are soft and weak. Twenty of our brothers are rotting in an underground holding cell while they decide what to do.” Savage’s face looked grave as he explained the situation.

The crowd remained silent. Thunder didn’t fully understand what was happening. “Why are they detaining the cyborgs? That hasn’t been their way for years.”

Savage’s jaw looked square and hard, and he ground his teeth together. Thunder wasn’t sure if the reaction was because of his line of questioning or because Savage was so angry about their predicament. “From what we can tell, they think they can learn why the cyborgs committed their alleged crimes before the execution. Apparently, the humans imagine this will make them feel better about murder. We should be thankful. It gives us an opportunity to rescue them.”

Savage emerged from behind the table, pacing up and down the rows of cyborgs as he spoke. “We’re going to get to New York City. We’re going to find that holding cell. Then we’re going to tear them apart limb from limb and save our brothers.”

The cry from the group was a crescendo that resonated through the rickety old structure. Thunder joined them, feeling the heat deep inside him rise to the surface of his skin at the thought of getting back at everyone who wanted to erase cyborgs from existence. They would no longer need to hide from the world as they watched, waited, and occasionally starved. They would free their comrades. The newly rescued would join their ranks. Cyborgs across the country would see their success and choose to fight their way to a better future.