Loving Deviant (Cyborg Seduction Book 9) (9 page)

“You got all that from your hand touching the wall?”

“Yes. Did my son tell you about our cybernetics?”

“We didn’t really discuss that.”

“We were created the way clones were but they added chips and technology into our bodies so we could perform certain functions.” He drew closer and showed her his hand. “I have sensors under my palms that send information directly to the chips implanted inside my brain. We can connect to computers by touch.”

“That’s handy.” She smiled.

He didn’t smile back.

“That was a joke. Get it? Handy? It’s in your hand.”

“Ah. A pun. I like your humor.”

“You didn’t think it was funny.”

“I appreciate that you would try. My mood isn’t the best today.”

“Because of me?”

“Things have just been stressful lately. I don’t want to discuss it. No offense.”

She didn’t pry, returning to their original topic. “So Deviant can do that too? Touch the panel and connect to the computer?”

“Yes. He was born instead of grown inside a vat, but the technology is easily copied to pass down to our children. He was implanted at the age of two. We discovered the younger the age, the easier they adapt to the technology.”

She frowned.

“You have an issue with that?”

“That sounds so young.”

“I was created on Earth in a factory. I never had parents. Deviant was born. His mother and I are both cyborgs. We didn’t want our son to have fewer abilities than we do. But didn’t emotion cap him.”

“Emotion cap?”

“Earth Government gave us an implant that shuts off emotions. I didn’t want that for my son, so that was one chip he wasn’t given.” He came closer and resumed his seat on the other end of the bed. “My wife didn’t agree. Some cyborgs do emotion cap their children so they have the choice to feel or not. Fortunately, the decision for Deviant rested with me. My son likes you.”

She decided not to ask any more questions about what cyborgs could do with their hands or why. “I like him, too.”

Mavo hesitated, his expression wary.

“What? Just spit it out. Are you worried that I’m still a spy? I’m not. I really hate Earth Government and I know they screwed cyborgs over. I totally believe that. They do that to everyone. I’d never want them to find out where you are, or that so many of you are alive.”

“Why would you care about cyborgs?”

“I’m as dead as you are if we’re caught. Isn’t that reason enough? I’ve already pointed out that I’m not a fan of EG or the things they do. That’s the truth.”

“Deviant has had a difficult life.”

“I gathered that.”

His gaze locked with hers. “He cares about what you think and say. You could hurt his feelings. I wanted you to be aware of that.”

She let that sink in. “I never want to cause him any pain.”

“I would hope not. He’s risking his reputation and honor, vouching for you. He really will fight to protect you if the need arises. He broke the law to bring you onto this ship. They may punish him for it. It won’t be severe, but he might lose some rank and privileges. I will make certain they take his unique situation into consideration. You’re a woman who has welcomed his touch. That is a first.”

“I still don’t understand that.”

He nodded. “We were created to be judged. First by Earthers; it was our way of life until we escaped. Some of that thinking just stuck. It’s a matter of pride to produce perfection. Deviant was considered a failure. Not by me.” Anger filled his voice. “Others viewed him that way. I’ve spent my life attempting to shield him from the worst of it but I could only do so much.” His eyes narrowed. “Don’t hurt my son. That’s all I’m saying. You won’t like the consequences.”

It was a threat, pure and simple. “You love him.” She could appreciate that. “I never want to hurt him. I give you my word, for what that’s worth. You don’t know me, but you’ll learn that I’m a straight shooter. It means I don’t lie.”

“I hope not.”

“Your son saved my life, Mavo, and I wish
he’d
been the one who’d contracted to marry me instead of that station owner.”

Mavo cocked his head, staring at her intently.

She swiftly regretted admitting that. It was probably too much.

“I see.”

She wondered what he was thinking but didn’t ask.

* * * * *

Deviant couldn’t get Venice off his mind. He ran another scan of the system, looking for any threats to their vessel. “It’s clear.”

Stag nodded from the captain’s chair. “There has been pirate activity in the vicinity. Keep continually scanning. They’ve been known to use the moons to hide behind.”

“Understood.” Deviant pushed back his irritation. He knew his duties well. He’d been on plenty of space missions. He didn’t blame the male for being cautious though. It was his first mission aboard the
Varnish
.

He scanned the area again, before addressing Stag. “May I ask you something?”

Stag turned the chair to face him. “What?”

“Why do you hold so much resentment for Earthers?”

“I was assigned to the engine room of a military battle cruiser. They treated us as if we were androids. The commander harshly punished us when anything failed. He enjoyed bringing us before the crew to make us an example of what happened when things didn’t run smoothly aboard his ship. He killed some cyborgs when they didn’t react to his orders fast enough, or if they pointed out when he made errors in judgment. Of course, he would have made us suffer anyway if we kept silent, after he realized he’d been wrong. It was a no-win situation. He hated cyborgs but was forced to have us on his vessel due to orders. We were the ones who paid the price.”

Deviant had selfish reasons to be curious, of course. He was attempting to estimate just how angry Stag would be if he learned Venice was aboard. “Not all Earthers are bad. Some of us have joined into family units with their females.”

“I’m aware.” Stag tilted his head, peering at him with a look of almost suspicion. “Why are you discussing this topic?”

“It’s a long shift, and we’re alone right now while the rest of the crew is on break. I like to talk.”

“Fair enough.” Stag stood and stretched. “You were born on Garden. Earthers looked upon
us
as
you
view the machinery around you. You’d tear that console apart to fix anything that didn’t work the way you expected it to, or rip out faulty circuits to replace with new ones. That’s how we were treated. We were interchangeable to them. Destroy one, and just order another to take its place. It’s in their nature to disregard anything they see as inferior. Add in a grandiose ego, and you have an Earther.”

“The females our males have taken into family units aren’t like that. They view cyborgs as equals.”

“I don’t believe that. Earthers
pretend
to see us as people, then use the trust they gain to cause harm.”

“That can’t be the case with all of them.”

Stag grunted. “You were never around them. I was. Some of the crew on the battle cruiser befriended cyborgs, or seemed to. I lost three of my friends and crewmates who were lured by Earthers to sections of the vessel not monitored. They walked into traps, and were surrounded by dozens of crew and beaten to death.”

Deviant stared at him. “Why would the crew do that?”

“They were bored; watching cyborgs die became a source of amusement. Some of the females flirted with us, attempting to use us as sex bots. One of my friends fell for it. Someone saw him leaving her quarters weeks into their involvement. She said he’d sexually assaulted her, rather than admit she’d been the one to seduce
him
. They made all cyborgs witness his execution.

“That lying Earther smiled at the commander and thanked him for giving her justice, and all I wanted to do was break her neck. The commander threatened to castrate every cyborg so it could never happen again. Larx was innocent. I saw that female beg him to fuck her. She pursued him every shift, but no one would believe the word of a cyborg. Barely two weeks later, she tried to lure other cyborgs, attempting to get them back to her quarters. Larx’s death meant
nothing
to her, but he told me he was falling in love. It cost him his life. Earthers can’t be trusted.”

“Not all of them can be bad. What if you grew lonely? Would you consider finding someone to share your time with if she were an Earther?”

Stag shook his head. “No. I wouldn’t trust one of them.”

“I’m aware of your status on Garden. You’re like me in some regards. You’ve been deemed unworthy to join into a family unit.”

“The women don’t like my attitude.” Stag smirked. “I won’t take their shit.”

“Wouldn’t that ever make you rethink your stance if you found an Earther who wished to share your bed?”

“Never. I’d have to restrain her anytime I wanted to let my guard down, otherwise she’d attempt to slit my throat. Earthers wish to kill cyborgs, Deviant. It’s their nature. They are vicious and cruel. I’ll acquire a sex bot if I wish to have regular intercourse. They can be programmed and trusted.”

“They aren’t real.”

“Exactly. They feel no emotions. They do what they are designed for. I could close my eyes around one without worry that she’d attempt to kill me.”

“What about joining into a family unit? Don’t you wish to have a female in your life who you could produce children with?”

Stag grimaced. “The price is too high. While Earth had control over my life, the crew kept me in one of the cargo holds on that battle cruiser with some of the repair and cleaning androids. I shared everything with them. Clothing, the living space, and we worked as a unit. The last thing I want is to purposely become one of many again. Our women treat our men almost as the commander of that cruiser did. They give us orders and demand total obedience. They punish us by voiding the contract if we show any resistance. My child would become her property in that case, and I refuse to give anyone that much power over me ever again.”

“But it’s not that way with Earthers. I know some of our males who’ve joined into family units with them. They don’t have to share the Earthers with other males and they aren’t similar to our females. They seem docile in comparison to cyborgs.”

Stag chuckled. “It’s an illusion. Earthers are conniving.”

“Have you ever considered that your judgment of them might be flawed or tainted by your experiences with the ones you were assigned to work for? That was a long time ago.”

Stag shrugged. “Perhaps.”

It wasn’t much, but it gave Deviant a small hope that the male would understand if he found out about Venice being on his ship.

Then that hope was quickly dashed when Stag spoke again.

“I’d never trust one. I think all Earthers are devious and deadly. There were three hundred and seventy-two Earthers aboard that battle cruiser. Not one stood up for cyborgs or cared about the suffering we endured. You have a mother, correct?”

“I do.”

“What was that like? I take it that you have a close association to her? It’s difficult for me to wrap my head around family units and having a mother. I was grown inside a vat.”

“We aren’t what you’d perceive as close, but she has high ranking on Garden and believes my actions and words reflect upon her.”

“You view her as a superior? Does she rule your life in the same way females do to the males they contract with?”

“It isn’t worth the trouble it causes if I disappoint her.” Deviant thought about how his mother would react when she found out about Venice, and suddenly wanted to change the subject. “I almost envy you not having a mother figure.”

“I don’t blame you. Cyborg women are controlling. As for your question about being lonely, I have made many friends.”

“I hope you count me as one of them.” He’d need the male to be forgiving if Stag discovered Venice was aboard the
Varnish
before they reached Garden.

“I do.” Stag faced the front window, staring out into space. “Run scans again. I have a feeling something is off. I’ve had it since we left that station. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone attempted to follow us to attack the
Varnish
.”

“Running scans,” Deviant acknowledged, focusing on the task. He just wanted to return to his room and Venice.

Venice was happy when Deviant returned to their room with food. He handed it to her then addressed his father. “Any problems?”

“None. They corrected life support without having to reset the system.” Mavo inclined his head. “I must go on shift. Have a good evening.” He left.

Deviant removed his boots and crossed the room, taking a seat near her. The tray of food sat between them. Venice picked up the fork and offered the first bite to him. He leaned in and opened his mouth for her, taking the meat. She tested the protein herself, liking the flavor.

“I enjoy when you feed me.”

She smiled. “I’m glad. I like to do it.”

“I thought about you all shift. How did you get along with my father?”

“He’s worried about me hurting you in some way.”

He chuckled, surprising her.

“What’s funny?”

“You’re so threatening.”

She got his joke. “You outweigh me by over a hundred pounds and I’ve never been in a physical fight in my life.”

“What did you do on Earth?”

“I worked at a food manufacturing plant in quality control.”

“You stated they did thorough scans, to make certain you didn’t steal. Is the theft of food an issue on Earth?”

“Yes. I worked where they produced vegetables and fruits.” She paused. “It wasn’t my job to actually grow them, but I examined the finished products before they were sealed into containers to be sold to the ones who could afford the real stuff. Android sense of smell isn’t as reliable as a human’s. That was my job. I was quality control, along with a handful of other people. It’s always tempting to pocket a few things, since we couldn’t afford to buy what was sold. We got the artificial stuff on our salaries.”

He glanced down at the tray between them. “We grow our own food on Garden.”

“I hope I’m not causing you financial distress. You don’t have to feed me fresh stuff. I’m used to paste and cubed substances.”

“All cyborgs are given access to fresh foods. Garden is nothing like Earth.”

“What about the meat? That’s got to cost you a lot of hours.”

He smiled. “The red substance isn’t meat.”

“It tastes like it.”

“That’s queltis. It’s a fleshy plant that grows on Garden. You might find this amusing since your tasks on Earth involved agriculture. We assumed it was a sentient life form at first because of its appearance. We scanned it extensively and ran tests on it, not wishing to cause it any harm. It turned out to be a plant. It tastes a bit like pork, doesn’t it? It can be flavored to also taste exactly like beef. Stag, the commander of this shuttle, prefers pork though.”

She took another bite, chewing it slowly and enjoying the taste. “Amazing.”

“It grows quickly so we have an abundance of it on Garden. We don’t hunt the animals on the planet. They are sentient. We avoid taking life whenever possible.”

“I can’t wait to see this place.”

“I did two years of duty in our agriculture gardens in my youth. My father felt it would give me an appreciation for our planet, and it was peaceful work. I’d be happy to give you a tour.”

“I’d like that.”

“I’ll make arrangements when we arrive home.”

“Tell me about this planet. I admit I’m curious.”

“I would be as well. I’ve never been to Earth since I was born on Garden. My father assures me it’s vastly different. There’s only one established city, as you would know it. The rest of the planet is lush with vegetation and a lot of ocean. The natural inhabitants of the planet are amphibian. They only dwell in the water, or the land surfaces near it in caves. We don’t know that much about them since they don’t seem eager to interact with us. We built our city farther inland, where they don’t seem to visit often or wish to live.”

“An amphibian race? That’s so cool. What do they look like?”

“Humanoid with some aquatic qualities.”

“You said they don’t interact with you? Why not?”

“It could be a culture thing, or perhaps we frighten them. We built walls to enclose our city to avoid conflicts. Some have approached our walls in the past, but took off quickly when we tried to peacefully greet them. We’re hoping in time they might wish to communicate with us and form a friendly alliance. We study them from afar and are always learning more about them. Our main goal at the moment is to show them we mean no harm, and wish to share the planet in peace with them. It takes time to establish trust.”

“Your people are so not like Earth Government.”

“No. We are not.”

“Earth Government found a planet several years ago that could support life. It was all over the news that they’d cleansed the planet to make a new colony. That’s the polite way to say they took over the planet and killed anything that stood in their way. They were actually selling animals from that planet to the wealthy who wanted unique pets.” She shuddered. “But they weren’t really animals. I mean, they didn’t look like animals to me, regardless of what the government labeled them.”

“I don’t understand.”

She spaced her hands about two feet apart, one over the other. “They were about this big, and I think they were the residents of that planet. They were like mini winged bird people, with two arms and legs. They looked as if they understood what was being done to them, and it was clear they were terrified. They reacted like people do, clutching at each other when they were being shown off to sell. It broke my heart. They were cute though, so Earth Government figured they could make a profit off them. I can’t imagine some asshole race coming to our planet, then grabbing people and selling them off as pets.”

Deviant shared her anger. “Those poor aliens.”

“Yeah. That was how I felt too, especially when it came out shortly after that they didn’t survive in captivity. They probably died of broken hearts after being locked up in cages and separated from their families. I hope Earth Government never finds your planet. They’d steal your neighbors and try to make them into pets too. The rich could put them in large fish tanks or something. That’s so messed up.”

“We’d defend them.”

She reached out and took his hand. “I believe you would. You saved
me
.”

His features softened. “You saved me as well.”

His words surprised her. “From what? You’re the one who risked your life by smuggling me off the station. And even now, I know it’s going to cause you a bunch of trouble if other cyborgs find out you have me inside your room.”

“I was lonely. I’m not anymore. I have you.”

Heat blossomed inside her chest and she knew his words had created that pleasant sensation.
Probably my heart melting
, she deduced. He could be really sweet. “I’m so glad I worked up the courage to rush inside that brothel room. I was terrified to do it.”

“I regret pointing a weapon at you.”

“You didn’t fire it. That’s all that counts now.”

He reached out and ran his fingertips down the side of her arm. “I’m glad you came into that room as well. You turned one of my most humiliating moments into something life altering.”

“Why were you so embarrassed? Lots of men visit automated brothels. They’re very popular on Earth.”

“I wasn’t aware there was a shortage of women on that planet.”

“There isn’t.”

“Men choose to live alone?”

“It’s not a marriage breaker, legally, if a person pays for the use of a sex bot. A wife or husband could file for divorce if their spouse sleeps with another live person, but sex bots are considered more of a sexual aid than anything else. Bots can’t result in a pregnant or expose a person to any diseases. It’s a loophole a lot of couples use if they don’t enjoy having sex together anymore.”

He frowned. “Our males contracted into family units are forbidden to touch sex bots. The females would take offense and end the contract. It’s rare to get permission from a female to use an automated brothel. I’ve only known one cyborg whose female allows it. He is her fifth husband, so she rarely has time to spend with him. He has high status in our society and it was probably prearranged by them before signing their contract, since he also spends a lot of time in space. For the rest of us, using sex bots usually means we couldn’t obtain our own female.” He dropped his hand away from her and color darkened his cheeks. “It’s a source of shame to some.”

It was obvious to her that he spoke of himself. “You have a real woman now,” she gently reminded him.

He nodded. “And I don’t have to share you with other males.”

“Thank you for agreeing to my terms.”

“I must be honest, Venice. I would fight any male who attempted to touch you. I like that you belong to only me. We’re not contracted into a family unit but I promise you’ll be the only female I touch. No loopholes, Venice. I don’t want a sex bot.”

In that moment, she knew she was falling in love with him. “You’re the only one I want too.”

He smiled. “We’re in total agreement.”

“We are.”

“I will provide well for you. I don’t want you to worry about being mistreated or what your future holds. I have mentally gone over any concerns you may have. You will be safe on Garden, and I’ll keep you by my side when I travel on my next mission into space. I would never leave you for weeks alone on a foreign planet with strangers.”

He glanced around his quarters. “I apologize for the lack of space we currently share. This is my first mission on the
Varnish
. It’s a small ship. I am usually assigned to the
Star
. It’s much larger. But my father and I volunteered when we learned the
Varnish
needed a few replacements for this mission, because some of Stag’s regular crew was required to spend a month on our planet. Our council demands we stay home at least that long, for our males who work on ships. They feel it helps us keep connected as a society. I can request couple quarters on the
Star
once I legally establish that you belong to me. They will be more comfortable for you, and you’ll be able to accompany me around the ship.” He peered deeply into her eyes. “How are you at withstanding confinement? Please tell me the truth.”

“I’m okay. I didn’t leave my quarters when I traveled to that space station you found me on. It was too dangerous because there were only two women aboard. Men can get stupid, as the captain pointed out. The room was a bit bigger and I had a space port, but there wasn’t really anything to see. I do wish I had access to some entertainment vids.”

“I can arrange that for you.”

“Cyborgs make entertainment vids?” That excited her.

“No.” He looked amused. “We do not act out plays the way Earthers do to amuse others. We do, however, have an extensive library of Earth-made vids.”

“Do you have any vids of Garden? I’d love to see some footage of it.”

“No. We purposely scrub our computer logs of anything associated with our home planet when we are on missions. It’s always possible we could be attacked and our ship taken over. Someone could discover Garden’s location if we don’t take precautions. We must protect our people. We store the coordinates inside our minds only. All cyborgs are prepared to fry our internal chips if we are compromised.”

“What does that mean?”

He reached out and stroked her cheek. “It means we’re willing to die if an enemy captures us and there is a real threat that they might acquire Garden’s location. We can cause the chips inside our minds to malfunction and cause brain hemorrhages. It will damage the brain tissue around those devices so they aren’t able to obtain any useful information.”

“That’s horrible.”

“Every cyborg aboard this ship would die with honor to protect our family and friends on Garden.”

“Why do you leave Garden then?”

“We patrol our space to make certain no one gets close to finding our planet. Sometimes we also need to trade for things we need, which is the reason we were on that station where you found me. Have you ever heard of Marcus Models?”

“No.”

“You were held captive for years and probably didn’t have access to news while you recovered from your ordeal, before leaving Earth. Marcus Models were produced. They are androids with flesh exteriors that appear human. Earth Government created them to replace us as a workforce. They probably thought they’d corrected their error by making them androids beneath flesh instead of growing them. It was another mistake. They became self-aware, too—and they believe their race is superior to all others.

“Some of those models escaped and sought out cyborgs. Some council members believed they wanted to form an alliance and were just looking for a safe haven from being hunted by Earth Government. We met with them off-planet.” He paused. “They are not sentient beings, but instead, more of a single linked computer mind in many bodies. They have no emotion, no compassion, and their plan was to capture cyborgs to exchange us for more of their models being stored on Earth. We fought them and won. It made us their enemy. They are a threat to our existence
and
to anyone from Earth. Sometimes they attack space stations, murdering all aboard. We must find them before they track down Garden.”