Based on the images from his precognitive flash, Amir quickly spotted a black-robed figure lingering inside the crowd.
"Of course not. We won't harm a senator," the assistant said. "But illegal mercs who trespass on our territory? We won't ignore them."
He gestured. The drones raised their muzzles, targeting the armed mercenaries clustered around the senator.
"Drop your weapons, or we'll be forced to take extreme measures!"
Instead of panic, the group exchanged glances—and laughed.
"You might want to check who those droids actually answer to," the senator said, lifting a hand and giving a casual wave.
At his motion, every security droid and drone in the area—like they'd rehearsed it—betrayed their handlers and swung their guns toward the clinic entrance.
The assistant and the guard's faces changed instantly. They hadn't expected their entire security net to be hijacked.
A mid-rim senator couldn't pull this off alone. Someone stronger—someone who understood this station's systems far better—was backing him.
"Now bring Kaharman out," the senator delivered his final ultimatum.
The assistant and the guard exchanged a look. Both hardened.
This was an invasion planned in advance. With their primary weapon gone, if Kaharman stepped outside he'd be a lamb on a butcher's block. They had no leverage left to negotiate.
All they could do now was warn Kaharman and trigger the station's last line of defense—hold as long as possible.
Fortress mode: lock down the key structures under shields, bring the station's concealed fixed emplacements online, and either counterattack hard or buy time until allies arrived.
Either way, Eternal Ark was about to take a brutal hit—maybe even a fatal one. But there was no alternative.
The assistant subtly reached behind his back and pressed a button on a micro-communicator.
In the heartbeat after, red alarm lights flooded the entire station. The tourists finally understood this wasn't entertainment anymore and started running for the docks.
Seven critical structures across the station lit up under shimmering shields. Their armored exteriors unfolded like overlapping scales—like a sleeping beast waking up and baring its claws—rows of weapons blooming into view.
The assistant drew his blaster pistol.
The cybernetic female guard, meanwhile, charged straight into a cluster of mercenaries. Blades snapped out from compartments in her augmented limbs. At this range, close-quarters violence was far more lethal than guns—especially with a body built for strength several times beyond baseline.
Seeing the station shift fully into defense posture, the senator snarled and waved again, trying to order the hijacked droids to open fire and erase every threat in sight.
But this time, the droids didn't obey.
Just as the assistant was about to shoot, the hundreds of droids around them abruptly pivoted their guns again—reacquiring their real enemy.
The senator and all his people froze.
Under the aim of hundreds of barrels, their earlier swagger evaporated. No one dared move.
But one person didn't stop.
The cybernetic guard hit them like a predator in a pen of sheep—fast, brutal, efficient. She dropped every merc in her path and closed the distance to the senator, who was now openly panicking.
She crouched slightly—
Then her alloy leg became a silver blur. A heavy kick slammed into the hover-chair, flipping the whole rig. The senator screamed as he tumbled and crashed onto the deck plating.
"What are you doing?! Shoot her! Attack her! Fire, you stupid—damned—droids!" he screamed, clutching his bleeding nose.
The mercenaries' will had already broken.
A hard foot came down on his head, grinding his face to the floor. He couldn't speak anymore.
Only then did the guard register the change. She'd been ready to die—yet the expected hail of fire never came. It was like time had stopped.
She looked around in confusion and realized the droids had somehow returned to their side.
Then, from the distance, a familiar figure approached—carrying an unconscious person in one arm and holding a datapad in the other. A little girl hurried after him.
"Why did you hit him?" Millisyn demanded from behind Amir. "Hitting people is bad! It hurts!"
"It's fine," Amir said patiently. "He didn't feel pain."
"But he screamed."
"He was scared."
"Oh."
Amir reached the assistant, who was still holding his blaster at the ready, and tossed him the datapad.
The assistant dropped his pistol and fumbled to catch it.
"He's the one who was controlling the droids," Amir said. "I don't know if there are other fail-safes. Get someone to the master control unit—now."
Security droids weren't like free-roaming civilian bots. They weren't fully independent; they ran under centralized control for stability and efficiency—meaning once the control layer was compromised, the whole system could be turned into a weapon.
"We already sent a team," the assistant said. "Who are you?"
"I'm a patient," Amir replied, pointing toward the clinic.
"I've seen him," the cybernetic guard said as she hauled the senator up and dragged him over. "My name is Euphemia Warner."
Her face was too mechanical to read, but her voice was flat and direct.
"You did this?"
Amir lifted the black-robed man he'd grabbed—still unconscious. "Yeah… he was acting shady."
"Thank you," the assistant said, finally exhaling. "Without you, we would've taken a catastrophic loss. What compensation do you want? If it's within my authority, it's yours."
"No need," Amir said. "Just helping out. Kaharman's a friend."
"Then maybe he can buy us Kuraka desserts!" Millisyn said seriously, looking up.
Euphemia stepped forward and handed Millisyn a card. "With this, you can eat anything for free."
Amir stared at the card, genuinely impressed.
That exists?
…He immediately revised his internal stance. He wanted one too.
"Core staff have one," Euphemia said. "I don't eat. It's wasted on me."
Millisyn looked at the card like it was a holy relic, mouth hanging open.
"And personally," Euphemia added to Amir, "I owe you one."
"Don't worry about it."
The assistant didn't linger. He seemed to receive an update, thanked Amir again, then rushed out with a black wave of droids. After something like this, they'd have endless fires to put out.
Amir didn't stay either.
He turned and walked into the clinic.
-
-
-
-🌌 Star Wars: Relics of the Past
📢 The Force Calls! 📢
This series has 100+ chapters ahead on Patreon! 🌠
Uncover ancient Jedi relics before the galaxy does.
🛑 Also on Patreon:
Star Wars: The Rise of Mandalore
Cyberpunk: The Relentless
Cyberpunk: Lucy Adopted Me and I Got a System
My Cyberpunk 2077 Simulator
My Girlfriend's a Cyberpsycho—Who Knew?
Game of Thrones: Secrets Beneath the Dreadfort
Dragon King of Ice and Fire
The Rebirth of Harry Potter
R18: Reincarnated in Her World
🔗 www.patreon.com/c/MrMagnus👤 SrMagnus🐦 https://x.com/SrMagnusBook
⚠️ Let the Power Stones guide future updates!