A SHORT DETOUR TO COLLECT one of the defense units was worth the additional risk of being seen, Jas decided. If she encountered something dangerous, she would need all the help she could get.
No one crossed her path in the ship’s corridors on her way to the unit storage room. The defense units were all exactly as she’d left them, facing each other in two rows on either side of the room in the dark, as they always were when not in use. She’d often wondered if they ever spoke to each other while they were alone.
“AX10, come with me.”
One of the figures turned and moved toward her.
“Close the door,” she said over her shoulder as she left. The unit’s footfalls were heavy as it followed her to the shuttle bay.
She was in luck. The door to the hold on the shuttle had been left open. She cli
