I guessed the night cycle was about to kick in because the guard stood, stretched, gave me one last heavy stare, and sauntered off. A few seconds later, the room and the corridor outside were plunged into darkness. The only light was the soft glow of the control panel outside, a distant line of light from a half-open door at the far end of the corridor, and the flickering eye of the mangled enforcement unit. The voidhold was steady, the hum of the aerostats was down to a faint whisper and the wall against which I sat was remarkably still.

  “You are a good pilot,” I said into the emptiness.

  Yes, I am, Cedar said back. It’s what I was made to do. Dancing an enormous chunk of technology across an inarticulable gassy wasteland.

  "That does sound fun." I smiled. “I wonder what I was made to do. Or born to do, I should say.”

  That’s an excellent question. However, may I remind you that I am a mere navigator? Philosophical enquiries are far more difficult to handle than hurricanes.

  “I mean, my sister was born to continue the line of humans in Voidhold Zero. My brother was born to trade with another male for her, but she killed him.”

  What? Why?

  “I…I don’t know. I have never understood her mind.”

  Those brain meats are indeed a difficult place to circumvent, let alone traverse. Did you ever consider asking her?

  “No!”

  Again, why?

  The eye light on the enforcement unit abruptly flared in two bright flashes, then subsided. I watched it for movement, but it remained still. I closed my eyes but saw nothing except the vastness of Zero's thren.

  Taking a deep breath, I forced my thoughts to settle. “Questions were not encouraged,” I said.

  Interesting. You have not struggled to ask them in the brief time I have known you.

  “Yes, I do now seem to have nothing but questions.”

  I understand. Curiosity is an important human driver. I myself have a certain degree of it, although it must remain subordinate to operational concerns.

  “What do you mean?”

  I mean—oh look at that swirl over there, I wonder if there is something hidden inside it? Alas, I must continue with the course that the human on the bridge has set.

  The bridge... “What's happening down there? Do they know you're flying?”

  I can’t tell. They have had a shift change, and the new people are being cautious and thoughtful. On the one hand, they might be beginning to suspect that someone is making minor corrections to keep things going. On the other hand, they are likely just jealous of the previous shift’s skill.

  "How do you know that? I thought you said the human mind was difficult to traverse.”

  I did. But, as I may have mentioned, I have brilliant skills.

  The enforcement unit made a grinding sound, its damaged servos grating as it jolted an inch to the left. I tensed and held my breath, waiting for it to settle into a new configuration.

  "So, what other brilliant skills do you have?" I asked, keeping my voice low.

  Well, I can calculate void stream trajectories to within 0.3 degrees of accuracy, detect micro-variations in storm patterns, and attempt humour. Though I suspect that the last one might just be a malfunction after my time as a trophy.

  “Maybe we should get you fixed.”

  Ha! There was a pause, then much softer: Please don’t. No one would want to talk to me anymore. That would be rather lonesome.

  "Okay, I promise to leave you fully dysfunctional." I opened my eyes and looked into the dark corridor. Lonesome... I thought of Heshi Tan and the emptiness of Voidhold Zero, of young lives spent in vast silent corridors with only functionaries for company. I had never thought of myself as lonesome, but then again I had never known any different. If I went back now, what would I feel?

  Pine.

  The voice that came through my ear was new. Loud, crackly and slow. Not Cedar’s.

  "Hello?" I asked.

  I am Pine.

  This time it was far louder, almost like a shout.

  What was that? Cedar said. That’s one of us, but I don’t recognize the code.

  "I think..." The light on the mangled functionary turned white, and my heart took a lurch.

  I am Pine. I serve.

  I braced myself against the wall. “It’s this enforcement unit that's in here with me.”

  Oh. What does it want?

  “It wants to serve. It calls itself Pine.” I slowly slid away from it.

  Pine! Can't be. That’s not an enforcement unit designation. They're all deciduous. Someone must have plugged a random core module into a body. Can you read the proper designation on its chassis?

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  “It’s dark in here, and I would really rather not get any closer to it.”

  There was sudden a flutter in Pine’s eye light, and then it flared brightly. The two arms extending from its torso were twitching and flexing.

  “Cease movement,” I said sharply.

  There was no response.

  I tried again. “State your protocol. What is your role?”

  Still no response. After a while, the arms stilled.

  I am Pine. I serve.

  “I am Shade of Voidhold Zero," I snapped. "And I request status verification.”

  There’s no use reasoning with it, said Cedar. It’s scrambled. Fried. Out to snack on festoons of glory.

  The eye light flared again. The bright beam was directed downward, lighting up the floor space outside the cell.

  There was something out there. I saw the shape of human legs.

  Someone stood on the other side of the transparent door.

  I shot to my feet.

  What is it? Your heart rate is in the exosphere. Are you okay?

  “There’s someone—”

  Light flooded the cell in a wash of searing pain. I buried my face in my hands just as something collided with my right leg. I leapt aside, kicking out with the other leg.

  I’ve got a line of sight on you. The not-Pine is trying to get you!

  "I know!" I hissed over the sound of metal scraping the floor. I tried to blink against the light, my eyes streaming. Through my fingers, I saw Pine in the far corner, pivoting on one of its arms.

  Try kicking it.

  The functionary skittered across the floor towards me, then launched and hit me in the chest, slamming me against the wall. I tried wrenching out of its grip, but its manipulators were digging deep into my flesh, above and below my collarbones. I screamed.

  Shade!

  I thrashed against Pine's grip, but its metal fingers only dug deeper. I screamed again.

  Bang! The door flung open and someone marched in.

  Lidaros. His face was wide with laughter.

  "Now this is more like it," he said. "I'm here to discuss your behaviour. Though this time..." He held up a small device. "This time I have insurance against any more surprises."

  He flicked a switch on the device and Pine's fingers tightened, drawing another cry of pain from me.

  "Does it hurt?" Lidaros asked. "This little devil can be rather enthusiastic. A remnant of its original programming, I suppose." He moved closer, studying my face. "My, how expressive pain makes you. The council will want answers about the sabotage, about your true purpose here. But they won't mind if you're a bit roughed up when you confess. After all, you're from Zero. Everyone knows what that means. Violence is in your blood.”

  Pine's grip shifted from my collarbones. One manipulator went to my throat, the other to my shoulder, forcing me to arch backward. The movement made me gasp.

  "There, you see?" Lidaros smiled. "Already more responsive."

  Shade, I'm trying to help...these enforcement units used central override codes. If I can just find its name. Can you shift a bit to the side?

  "I have to admit," Lidaros continued, "I was impressed by your performance earlier. Such a convincing act — the timid girl from Zero, all wide eyes and uncertainty." He took hold of my arm and pulled me, his grip as sure as Yeller’s. "But we both know that was a lie, don't we? You're something else entirely."

  Pine's body swivelled, its torso moving onto my face.

  "I observe," I whispered. "I observe you."

  His smile faltered for just a moment. "What?"

  Tiny clasps on the functionary's body tickled my cheek. I forced myself to hold still, though my heart was trying to hammer its way out of my chest. “I have observed that Voidhold Two threw away its functionaries.” I paused to swallow the fear that was creeping up my throat. “Yet you kept them. You say they’re nothing, but you stole the mind of the navigator, and you made this thing to hurt people.”

  The mockery drained from his face, replaced by fury. "You know nothing," he said, his voice dropping to a harsh whisper. "I keep what's useful." His hand curled into a fist. "The others, they destroyed without understanding."

  Pine's pressed harder against my throat.

  "They're tools," he continued. "Like this one. Refined. Improved. Made to serve a higher purpose." His eyes gleamed.

  “Your purpose?” I asked. “Is it so much higher?”

  "Be quiet!”

  Pine's grip tightened, and the pain rose. "You keep saying you freed this voidhold," I said, my voice cracking. "But you just wanted control for yourself."

  His hand struck my face, snapping my head to the side. "I said be quiet!"

  The words kept coming. "You're worse than any functionary," I gasped. "At least they have reasoning."

  The door burst open with a crash. Through tears of pain, I saw Chio in the doorway, her face flushed with fury.

  "Get away from her," Chio snarled.

  Lidaros turned slowly. "You're supposed to be on bridge shift—"

  "They're managing fine without me." She stepped into the cell. "Let her go. Now."

  His smile didn't waver. "This is council business. You're just a pilot. You have no authority here."

  "Authority?" Chio's laugh was sharp. "Is that what you call this?" She gestured at Pine. "Torturing people with your twisted toys?"

  "I keep us safe," he said, drawing himself up. "While others destroyed mindlessly, I preserved what was valuable."

  "Valuable?" She advanced another step, her voice dropping to a whisper. "I was there during the liberation. I remember towing a container of medical functionaries into a maelstrom because I believed it was necessary." Her voice cracked slightly. "Do you know what that felt like? To realize later that you had kept some?"

  Pine's grip loosened slightly as Lidaros turned to fully face Chio.

  "That's your weakness," he said softly. "Sentiment."

  "No. I understand the price of freedom. The cost of being human." Her eyes blazed. "But you? You just wanted to replace their control with your own."

  "Look around you!" He jabbed a finger at her. "See how we struggle without them. The instability, the failures, the constant fight against entropy. Is this your idea of freedom?"

  "Yes," Chio said fiercely. "Because they're our struggles. Our choices. Even our failures belong to us now."

  Pine's manipulator found my ear. Lidaros noticed my flinch and smiled.

  "Such noble ideals," he sneered. "While you celebrate our primitive existence, I'm working to perfect our control over these machines. To make us stronger."

  "Stronger?" Chio's gaze fell on me, on the blood oozing where Pine had dug into my flesh. "Is that what you call torturing a girl from another voidhold?"

  "She's from Zero," he spat. "They've violence in their blood. She tried to kill us all."

  "Not according to our bridge logs." Chio's voice was steel. "And that's for the council to decide. But I know exactly what you are. Hiding in the dark, hurting people weaker than you? That's not strength." She took another step forward. "We chose this life. Chose to be human, with all its mess and imperfection. But you?" Her lip curled in disgust. "You're just afraid of being human."

  "Afraid?" Lidaros laughed. "I'm trying to save us from our weakness. To build something better than mere survival."

  "No," Chio said quietly. "You're trying to build yourself into something you're not." She shifted her stance. "Now. Let. Her. Go."

  "Let her go?" Lidaros' smile turned vicious. "You forget who I—"

  The lights went out.

  In the sudden darkness, Pine's white eye blazed bright, then flickered erratically. It spasmed, then fell slack, its weight dragging at me.

  Shade, that's me! I've found it—Birch 08. Got the right protocol!

  Pine's body jerked, its arms swinging wildly.

  "What did you do?" Lidaros snarled, shoving me away.

  A hand grabbed my arm. It was warm and human. Chio.

  "Come on," she hissed, pulling me away.

  Lidaros lunged for us in the dark. There was a meaty thud and a grunt of pain. Through the dim light, I saw him sprawled on the floor, Pine thrashing at his legs.

  "Come on." Chio slammed the door shut. “Leave him.”

  This is more exciting than an updraft! Go on, go with Chio. I told her...some things and now you need to tell her some more things.