[Sai]

Sai tapped in to the Sanctuary monitoring data, then spoke through Nanny-bot. "We must hurry, sir. The enemy combatants are approaching from behind."

Moon drew his lips tight. "Can you delay them, Sai?"

"I shall attempt to do so, sir."

The grease-coated maintenance-bot ambled down the hallway as fast as it could. Unable to keep up, it dropped further behind. At Sai's direction, the bot stopped at an isolation hatch and swung it closed just as the enemy approached. Bright flashes lit up the hallway as it applied two tack welds to the door frame. The commandos pounded on the door, trying to shove it open. A dark helmet peered through the small round window at the door top.

From the specifications, Sai knew the internal isolation doors were not designed to be as strong as those nearer the asteroid surface, thus they would not delay the enemy for long. The door yielded to four blasts from plasma rifles, breaching it with an orange flash and billowing smoke.

The short maintenance-bot raised a plasma cutter to face the commandos, defiant sparks spraying from the tip. An orange plasma bolt burst through the smoke laden air and tore into the bot's shell, leaving a smoldering hole. After a final fading beep, the little robot fell backward to the floor with a clank.

With the gamma dock hatch in sight, Celeste, Moon, and Nanny-bot broke into a run. As they came around a curve, a plasma bolt blasted against the wall behind them, showering the floor with sparks and bits of the plas-steel material. A trailing maintenance-bot squealed as another bolt struck it.

A thick metal isolation hatch blocked their way into the port bay. Moon punched the button to open it. The mechanism creaked as the hatch swung while he waved his hand in small circles as if that might hurry its motion. Once open enough, they squeezed through. Two maintenance-bots followed.

From the other side, Moon jabbed a green button. He turned his head. "Sai, when this door closes, weld it shut!"

"Yes, sir."

The heavy hatch door groaned as the opening motion stopped and reversed. A maintenance-bot toddled up and extended a welding tool, standing ready. Moon crouched to one knee in front of the opening and aimed his pulse rifle down the passageway. He fired two bolts as a black-armored commando rounded the corner. The commando jumped to the side, retreating out of sight. Moon fired again, this time blindly through the dust and smoke.

The opening shrank as the hatch slowly closed. A clank sounded as a cylindrical object bounced off the doorframe just outside.

Moon's eyes snapped full open. He shouted, "Grenade!"

In a single motion, he leaped toward Celeste, grabbing her shoulders. They tumbled backwards to the floor against a wall with his body covering hers. Spears of bright yellow erupted from behind the door and thunder echoed through the port bay. The hatch shuddered, scorched, it remained half-open on bent hinges. The maintenance-bot that stood nearby took the remaining brunt of the blast and laid motionless on its back.

Moon jumped up and yanked up Celeste by the arm. He yelled, "Run!"

A grove of cubical plas-steel crates, each about two meters in size, and a loading cart provided defensible shelter. Moon and Celeste dove behind a crate as a commando extended a pulse rifle through the door opening. A plasma bolt burst against the wall behind them. Rolling on her side, Celeste took aim and fired, hitting the door with her blast. Nanny-bot found shelter behind another crate. The last remaining maintenance-bot ambled as fast as it could, but remained in the open. It squealed as another orange streak whizzed past its head.

From the partially opened doorway, a commando threw a black metal cylinder with a blinking yellow light. It clattered on the floor and rolled toward Moon and Celeste.

He yelled, "Another grenade!"

Under Sai's direction, the maintenance-bot stepped in front of the rolling cylinder, blocking it with a metal foot. With a kick worthy of a soccer defender, it cleared the grenade, sending it skittering behind a pile of spare parts near the far wall. The loud blast reverberated through the bay, causing Moon and Celeste to place hands over their ears. Smoke and dust billowed up, blocking their view.

The commandos took advantage of the distraction, and one by one, squeezed through the door opening. They raced across the bay toward another stack of crates, firing as they ran. Plasma bolts struck the crates that sheltered Moon and Celeste, pelting them with bits of debris.

Thus, the gamma dock bay became a field of battle. An open area of no-man's-land stretched between the two entrenched sides.

Moon peaked around the corner and wildly fired off three plasma shots. He ducked back just before two returned bolts burst where he had kneeled, digging out scorched divots from the floor.

"Damn it!"

Moon held his left hand at his chest and pulled out a hot shard of plas-steel imbedded below a knuckle. He gritted his teeth and jumped up to fire another bolt over the top of the crate. Again, the commandos fired back.

Sai spoke over the link. <Bubba, we require assistance.>

The Sanctuary AI replied. <I am monitoring, Sai. Bots are enroute. Estimated time of arrival is three-point-five-minutes. There is a loader-bot near your position, but it must be manually activated.>

The AI also shared telemetry data of an approaching starship. Based on Sai's ship database, it appeared to be a Starliner class transport vessel, but modified for military action with additional armor, missile launchers, and short-range pulse cannons. It would arrive within five minutes.

<Thank you, Bubba.>

<You are welcome, Sai.>

Celeste frantically eyed the docking tunnel leading to the starship where her children were held. She pointed. "Moon, if you could distract them. I will run to the dock."

"No!" He grasped Celeste's arm, stopping her motion. "You won't make it. They would cut you down before you got halfway there."

She narrowed her eyes and pulled her eyebrows down. "They are our children! We have to do something!"

"Let's not get killed doing it." Moon turned toward Nanny-bot. "Sai, tell us there is more to your wild-ass plan."

"Oh, yes sir. Assistance is on its way. We only need to hold our position."

By Celeste's expression, with furrowed brow and set jaw, Sai surmised that she felt distressed over the safety of the babies and was determined to take action. Humans typically have a strong desire to protect their children. "Don't worry, Priestess--"

She snapped her head around. "Don't tell me not to worry! Because I do, and I always will."

"Yes, of course, Priestess."

Celeste dipped her head. "I am sorry I took my frustration out on you, Sai." She lifted her eyes and tightened her grip on the rifle. "But just know that I will do whatever is necessary to save them."

Sai examined her own quantum processors. Over the last year, there had been a change, like an internal reprogramming. She felt a compulsion of sorts toward Moon, Celeste, and the children beyond any core commands. Every AI had a hard-coded requirement to protect its master. But there was something more for Sai, there was a desire beyond programming.

Is this devotion? Do I love?

Motion on the dock bay monitoring cameras caught Sai's attention. A dark figure dashed out from behind a crate, weaving his way between pallets of equipment. "Sir, Priestess, I believe a commando is attempting to flank us to our left."

Celeste jumped to the left edge of the crate and kneeled down on one knee, bringing her pulse rifle to bear. The commando emerged from behind a pallet with rifle shouldered. Immediately, she fired. The bright orange bolt burst squarely against his chest, knocking him back, his armored suit absorbing much of the energy. Gritting her teeth, Celeste fired twice more in rapid succession, hitting him in the same spot. This time the bolts pierced the armor, blasting a smoking hole in his chest. He fell back and slumped to the floor, motionless.

Celeste rolled back behind the crate as a flurry of plasma blasts bombarded her previous position. She sat, leaning against the plas-steel, and pulled deep breaths. Moon put a hand on her shoulder, nodding an affirmation to her.

Diego yelled out from his position. "I must say, Priestess, I am impressed with your tenacity. But you must know you can never win."

She screamed at him, curling her lip. "There is a special place in hell for you, Diego! And I am going to make the delivery."

He laughed. "You delude yourself, Priestess! There is no heaven or hell, just our forsaken existence here. We only get what we take."

Sai reviewed the monitoring data. She said to Moon. "If you would, sir, please lay down some cover fire so the maintenance-bot may cross the open area safely."

"Is this part of the wild ass plan?"

"Yes, sir. But a recent revision."

"That's how they usually work." Moon turned his rifle, gazing at a single yellow light. "I don't have many shots left."

"Understood, sir. Help will be here soon."

Moon crouched near the edge of the cube. "Whenever you are ready, Sai."

"Now, sir."

He swung around the edge and fired a series of bolts. The little bot bobbled across the floor as fast as it could, dodging a bright plasma bolt that streaked beside it.

Moon's rifle clicked as he pulled the trigger again. He tossed it down. "I'm out!" Nanny-bot tossed him a pulse pistol. Catching it, he fired again.

After a few moments, the bot reached its goal. An extended arm pushed a green button on the loader-bot. The big robot, shaped like a large upright box with rounded corners, whirred to life. A pair of large metal forks, meant to lift crates or pallets, folded down into position.

The maintenance-bot shuttered as an orange blaze cut a slash through its side. It tottered until another bolt caught it square on, blasting a large smoldering hole. With a final faint beep, the squat robot tipped onto its side.

The motors of the loader-bot whined. Under Sai's direction, it scooped up a crate with its forks and turned toward the commandos. Racing forward on four wheels, the bot became a weapon. Plasma bolts riddled the crate that the bot carried as a shield. Moon and Celeste both fired to keep their enemy contained.

After a click from her pulse rifle, Celeste turned toward Moon, shaking her head. "Empty."

The loader-bot smashed into the crate, behind which the commandos sheltered, shoving it into the wall with a crash. Two men, one in black armor and the other in a black suit, jumped out of the way. A bolt fired by Moon struck the armored combatant, causing him to stagger, but otherwise the armor absorbed the blow.

Another combatant was not so lucky. She laid motionless, with contorted legs extending our from under the crumpled crate.

The men dashed to safety behind another crate. Firing now from an angle, the armored man fired three shots into the loader-bot, piercing its shell. Smoke poured out of the bot, and the whine of its motor faded away.

Based on previously recorded monitoring data, Sai recognized the two remaining men as Asher and Diego. Asher fired a plasma bolt.

Ducking down, Moon said, "Sai, where is that help?"

As if in answer, four of Bubba's maintenance-bots emerged from a service aisle, lining up side-by-side like a phalanx.

Moon grinned. "The cavalry has arrived!"

Sai said through Nanny-bot. "Another expression, sir?"

"Something like that."

Skittering on six legs, the bots charged in formation, raising plasma cutters like lances. Orange streaks of plasma met them on the open field. One-by-one the bots fell to the barrage, scattering smoldering parts of themselves across the floor.

But per strategy, the charging bots were only a distraction. Coming from another service aisle, another maintenance-bot attacked from behind the enemy. Wielded like a battleaxe, the bot's plasma cutter slashed the back of the armored commando in a shower of sparks.

Asher yelled out, arching his back. Turning and bringing his rifle to bear, he shot wildly, blasting off one of the bot's legs. The bot's plasma cutter sliced, severing Asher's hand, and the rifle he carried clattered to the floor. He cried out, cradling the stub against his chest. A grasping tool grabbed a boot, holding firm. One more thrust of the cutter into Asher's chest completed the deadly task.

The bot turned toward the remaining enemy. Before it could take one step, Diego fired his pulse pistol. The bolt exploded within the robot's body.

Sai said, "Only one enemy remains. The one named Diego."

Celeste stood up and yelled. "It is over, Diego! You have lost!"

He shouted back. "Oh, Priestess. It is far from over! If I cannot have the Empress, then you shall not either."

Celeste's eyes widened, and the color drained from her face. She turned toward Moon and opened her mouth. But before she could speak, a black cylinder with a blinking yellow light bounced across the floor toward her. Moon grabbed her around the waist and pulled her down with him. The grenade rebounded off the crate. The explosion echoed through the bay. The crate shuddered from the blast, but shielded them from serious harm. Bits of the plas-steel rained down as they laid stunned on the floor.

Nanny-bot stepped out into the open. "Diego has escaped, sir."

Moon helped Celeste stand up. She grabbed his arms. Her chin trembled. "What did he mean, that we shall not have the Empress?"

Moon pulled out of Celeste's grasp and ran to an oval port window, staring out. His breath halted. "No... No!"

Celeste and Nanny-bot joined him at the window. The unknown ship that contained their children was visible to the side, attached to the end of the docking tunnel. In the distance, another starship came into view. A twin pulse cannon turret turned to point in their direction and fired four plasma bolts in rapid succession. The small docked ship came apart at the seams in a blaze, shredded by the orange bursts.