Chapter 24

The energy field barring the prison door shimmered, painting ghostly lines across Chigs's skin as he paced the length of his cramped cell. How could I have been so careless?

The test subjects in the room had all looked fully denaidan, and he'd instinctively raised his empathic shielding to protect them, a practice ingrained in him since youth. Denaidan females were sensitive to emotions, especially from strangers. He'd known they'd be able to sense Emmy's nervous agitation, but figured at least he could protect them from his own.

He'd never considered he might need to protect Emmy from them.

I should've anticipated some might be hybrids.

Rashana, the human-denaidan hybrid they'd rescued from one of Dollard's labs, could bend others to her will with nothing but her thoughts. Luckily, Rashana now fought for the rebellion. But these test subjects had been misguided into serving Syndicorp.

Now Emmy was brainwashed, too, being forced to do Ellam Cua knew what against her will. He glared through the energy field toward the control panel across the room on the other side, its glowing blue and yellow lights taunting him. He'd tried using his ionic powers on the barrier, but the electronic restraint cuffs emitted some kind of dampening field that suppressed his abilities.

Chigs threw his bound fists against the invisible barrier, a gesture more out of frustration than any belief it would yield. A numbing jolt raced down his arms and made his hearts hammer fast enough to make him feel sick. Not only was Emmy a prisoner, the team from the Icarus was on its way, walking straight into what was likely a trap. If only he could disable these damn cuffs.

With a hiss, the far doorway slid open and a denaidan female in a Syndicorp medical uniform stepped inside. Her gleaming copper skin and flowing brown hair reminded him of his mother, and a pang of loss twisted his gut. Then a sinister nudge wormed its way into his thoughts, urging him to relax. Snarling, he struggled past the numbing power of the cuffs to raise his ionic shield, drawing enough of it around his mind to silence the invading thoughts.

He met the woman's eyes, breathing hard from the exertion. "You're the one they called Dr. Dollard."

She smiled, teeth bright against her copper lips. "And you're the rebel called…" she glanced at a data pad in one hand. "Chigs. Served with the troopers for three years before going AWOL with the rest of your wretched breed."

Chigs scowled, but tried to keep his temper. This poor female was most likely another of Dollard's hybrids, duped into serving her late "father's" purpose. He had to make her see reason. "You're denaidan, too," he said. "One of us. Syndicorp annihilated our race, but there are a few of us left. Join us in the fight for justice."

She sneered and stepped gracefully toward his cell. "The continuation of my project is far more important than a race that is already all but dead."

This female had obviously been warped by her years in captivity. He wished more than ever that Emmy was here. She'd be able to show the woman that she was fighting for the wrong side. If Chigs kept trying to convince her, he'd probably just make things worse.

"Where's the human who was with me?" he asked instead.

Dollard waved a hand dismissively. "No longer your concern. She's been returned to her original purpose."

Uminaq. What did that mean? He wanted to grab this woman by the throat and throttle answers out of her. Since that wasn't an option, he tried to think like Emmy. Be gentle, he told himself. Use your words, not your strength.

"Was Dr. Dollard your father?" he asked, his voice sounding strangely hollow in his attempt at reining in his anger.

The woman laughed, the sound ringing off the metal walls and making the energy shield shimmer. "Oh, my, no. You are looking at Dr. Dollard—the original—given new life in this denaidan vessel."

The room seemed to tilt on its axis, making Chigs weak in the knees. Mind control was one thing, but moving an entire consciousness from one body to another? "Impossible," he gritted between clenched teeth.

She tapped the data pad against one palm. "The mind is but a living computer coded with cognitive patterns—memories, personality, knowledge. And the Synaptic Alteration Chamber I developed has turned out to have more applications than even I dreamed of. My team began tests using my consciousness as a prototype just before my initial body's untimely departure." She grinned. "Lucky for me."

"Ellam Cua," Chigs muttered, thinking of the foreboding laughter in his dreams. Dollard was still alive, not merely a haunting product of his subconscious memory.

The new Dr. Dollard leaned closer, apparently gleeful to continue bragging about his—her?—work. "We tested our methods on prisoners first—behavioral modifications, simple commands implanted into their minds, a cocktail of nanites to ensure the changes would take hold at a cellular level. Each species has a unique response to the treatments. Cyber sensitivity. Mind control. Telekinesis. But imagine my delight when we discovered that denaidan females could hold an entire consciousness. A perfect imprint."

A chill crept down Chigs's spine, his hands clenching into fists. "What happened to the female who actually owns that body?"

"Oh, she's long gone. The physical requirements of your barbaric breeding process erased her mind during our tests. But I've discovered a way to repurpose the flesh." Dollard gave her new body an appraising look, stroking her free hand over a breast and down her upper thigh as if stroking an animal she was considering for purchase. "Such a lovely host."

Chigs wanted to vomit. "The other denaidan females I met… are they like you, too?"

She smiled coldly. "I'm one of a kind—the first to have been fully integrated."

"You're an abomination!" Chigs's muscles tightened, urging him to spring for the doctor's throat, but he knew better than to try to breach the energy shield.

"I'm a pioneer," Dr. Dollard countered. "Evolving beyond the limitations of my flesh. With this technology, I shall live forever. The only problem is that hybrids don't offer a clean transfer, and my supply of pure denaidan females has grown woefully thin." She narrowed her eyes and looked at him like a predator assessing its prey. "But you've given me an unexpected solution."

"I'll die before agreeing to help you," Chigs vowed.

"Now, now. Don't be such a pessimist, Chigs," Dr. Dollard murmured, almost affectionately. "I think you'll quite enjoy what comes next for you. As the first male denaidan to join the project, you've opened up the possibility of producing more purebreds. Together, we can restore your race to a glory unlike any you could ever imagine."

Chigs recoiled, backing away until he hit the cell's rear wall. She wanted him to produce children for her to exploit? "Never!"

Dr. Dollard released an exaggerated sigh. "I advise you to reconsider. It took me years of trial and error to discover that denaidan females require an ionic pulse from a male to conceive, and although I developed a modulated frequency that will induce ovulation, my process leaves the female brain dead and sterile after just one birth. I have less than a handful of fertile females left. But now, with you here?—"

"Stop!" Chigs shouted, his voice echoing off the walls. The thought of being used as a tool in Dr. Dollard's sickening experiments twisted his stomach. "I won't be a part of your atrocities. Even at the expense of my race."

Dr. Dollard reached into a pocket and removed a hypo-injector, regarding it critically, lips curving into a cruel smile. "There are ways of lowering your inhibitions and bending you to our will."

Chigs crossed his arms, every muscle in his body taut as he thought of Emmy. "denaidans mate for life, and I'm already bonded. Even with your drugs, my body is incapable of emitting the mating frequency with another woman."

Dr. Dollard huffed. "Don't try your lies with me. There are no denaidan females left outside this lab, and your mating frequencies are deadly to other species."

"Wrong." Chigs smirked, glad to finally have the upper hand. "Your own nanite experiments gave us the ability to mate with humans."

Interest flickered across Dollard's features, and she looked down at her data pad. A haughty smile curved her lips as she tapped something on the screen. "Ah, yes. The nanites I injected into that denaidan who broke into my cyborg lab. Noatak, I believe his name was. How fascinating. I always regretted not being able to follow up with that test subject."

Chigs watched Dollard scroll through items on the data pad, suddenly aware he'd made a serious blunder. Dollard hadn't known about their ability to mate with other species.

"This could open up new possibilities for our breeding program." Dollard speared Chigs with an avaricious look that sent chills down his spine. "How many of you have produced viable offspring?"

Thinking of Rashana, with a baby due any day now, Chigs shook his head. The previous Dr. Dollard had known about her pregnancy—had accelerated it, in fact. But this Dr. Dollard might not have that piece of memory, or assumed Rashana had perished. "I said mates, not children."

"Too bad." Dollard rubbed her chin, staring thoughtfully into the distance. "Though I can think of several things that might help facilitate reproduction. I've also been developing a dampening frequency that allows mating without solidifying a bond. I just need test subjects." Her gaze sharpened on Chigs once more. "But you say you're mated. Perhaps to that human we captured—the one you were so intent on protecting?"

Chigs's hearts began pounding a double drumbeat of impending doom. He focused on strengthening his empathic shield. His mother had been able to detect a lie even through his shielding, but he hoped this new Dr. Dollard wasn't as adroit at using the denaidan female ability. "Do you think I'd be foolish enough to bring my mate on a dangerous mission?"

Dollard raised an eyebrow. "I thought I was finished questioning dear Dr. Voss. I guess I was wrong."

With that, she turned and exited the brig.

Chigs stood breathing raggedly as he stared at the glimmering energy shield. He had to find a way out of this cell immediately.