Chapter 3

CHAPTER

THREE

C herie

I jolted as Egni's body convulsed on the conversion table, his muscles straining against the restraints. Alarms blared, bathing the chamber in an eerie red glow. My heart pounded as I frantically scanned the holographic readouts, searching for the source of the malfunction.

"Egni!" I shouted over the barrage of noise. "Can you hear me?"

His eyes snapped open, those piercing green orbs locking onto mine with an intensity that made my breath catch. "I endure," he growled through gritted teeth.

I swallowed hard, forcing myself to focus on the task at hand. This was exactly the high-stakes situation I'd trained for, but theory and practice were worlds apart. Especially when the patient was a legendary alien warrior who could probably snap me in half without breaking a sweat.

"Neural interface destabilizing," the AI assistant chimed in, its robotic voice infuriatingly calm. "Recommend immediate shutdown."

"No!" Egni's voice was a rasp of pain and determination. "Continue... the process."

I bit my lip, my fingers hovering over the emergency shutdown. Every instinct screamed at me to abort, to play it safe. But I'd glimpsed something in Egni's eyes, a fierce will to live, to be whole again. Could I really take that away from him?

"Cherie," he said, softer now. "You spoke... of rebuilding cores under fire. Show me your strength now."

His words hit me like a punch to the gut. He was right. I'd faced down solar flares and rogue nanobots. I could handle one stubborn alien warrior.

"Okay," I muttered, more to myself than to him. "Let's do this."

I dove back into the holographic interface, my fingers flying across the controls as I recalibrated the neural pathways. The alarms continued to wail, but I tuned them out, losing myself in the intricate dance of biology and technology.

"Your pain receptors are off the charts," I said, frowning at the readings. "I don't understand. You said you'd mastered pain."

Egni's laugh was a bitter sound. "Physical pain, yes. This... this is different."

I glanced at him and saw something raw and vulnerable in his expression before it vanished behind that stoic mask. What kind of pain could break through centuries of iron control?

"Talk to me," I said, trying to keep my voice steady as I worked. "What are you feeling?"

He was silent for so long that I thought he might not answer. When he did, his voice was barely above a whisper. "Memories. Faces of those I've lost. Battles I should have won."

My heart clenched. I'd known, intellectually, that Egni had lived through countless wars. But hearing the weight of all that loss in his voice... it made him suddenly, achingly human.

"The cyborg process isn't just about rebuilding your body," I said softly. "It's integrating your mind, your experiences. All those memories are part of who you are."

"And if I don't want to remember?" he asked, his voice rough with emotion.

I paused, my hand hovering over the controls. This was dangerous territory, far beyond the realm of engineering. But something told me that this moment was crucial, not just for the conversion, but for Egni himself.

"Then you wouldn't be you," I said finally. "All those battles, all that pain – they've shaped you. Made you the warrior you are."

His eyes met mine, and for a moment, I saw past the legendary soldier to the man beneath. Wounded, yes. But also strong, resilient, and undeniably alive.

"Perhaps," he said, "there is wisdom in your words, human."

I smiled, feeling a warmth spread through my chest that had nothing to do with the chamber's environmental controls. "I do have my moments."

Turning back to the interface, I noticed something odd in the readouts. A subtle fluctuation in the cybernetic implants that didn't match any of the standard patterns. Frowning, I zoomed in, my blood running cold as I realized what I was seeing.

"Oh, no," I breathed.

"What is it?" Egni's voice was sharp, all trace of vulnerability gone.

I swallowed hard, trying to keep the panic out of my voice. "There's a flaw in your implants. A hidden one. It's causing the instability in the neural interface."

"Can you fix it?" he asked, his tone maddeningly calm.

I ran a hand through my hair, my mind racing through possibilities. "Maybe. But it's going to be risky. One wrong move and I could fry your entire nervous system."

Egni's laugh was surprisingly warm. "Then it's fortunate I have the best engineer in the galaxy at my side, isn't it?"

I looked at him, startled by the compliment. There was a glint in his eye that might have been amusement, or something more.

"You barely know me," I said, trying to ignore the flutter in my stomach. "How can you be so sure?"

His gaze softened, just for a moment. "I've fought alongside the greatest warriors in the galaxy, Cherie. I know strength when I see it."

I felt my cheeks flush, and I spun back to the controls. Get it together, Cherie. You're a professional, not some love-struck teenager.

"Alright," I said, squaring my shoulders. "Let's do this. But I need you to trust me completely. Can you do that?"

Egni nodded, his expression solemn. "With my life, Cherie."

The weight of his words settled on me like a physical thing. I took a deep breath, centering myself. I could do this. I had to do this.

"Initiating deep scan," I announced, my fingers dancing across the holographic interface. "This might feel intense."

Egni's body went rigid as the scan penetrated deeper into his neural pathways. I watched the readouts carefully, searching for the source of the flaw. There was a tiny irregularity in the cybernetic mesh, almost invisible unless you knew exactly what to look for.

"I've found it," I said, relief flooding through me. "Now comes the tricky part."

I began the delicate process of rewiring the faulty implant, hyper-aware of every movement. One slip, one miscalculation, and I could cause irreparable damage. Sweat beaded on my forehead as I worked, the chamber falling silent except for the soft hum of machinery and Egni's labored breathing.

Time seemed to stretch, each second feeling like an eternity. I lost myself in the work, my world narrowing to the intricate dance of neurons and circuitry. Finally, after what felt like hours, I stepped back, my hands shaking slightly.

"It's done," I said, my voice hoarse. "How do you feel?"

Egni was silent for a long moment, his eyes closed. When he opened them, the intensity of his gaze took my breath away.

"Whole," he said simply. "For the first time in centuries, I feel whole."

The relief that washed over me was so intense it made my knees weak. I leaned against the conversion table, suddenly exhausted. "Good," I managed. "That's... that's good."

Egni's hand found mine, his touch surprisingly gentle. "Thank you, Cherie," he said softly. "You've given me more than just a new body. You've given me hope."

I looked down at our joined hands, feeling a spark of something I couldn't quite name. Something dangerous and thrilling and utterly terrifying.

"You're welcome," I whispered, knowing that in saving Egni, I might have just lost a piece of myself.