Page 40 of Aliens Love Curves
For me.
"Striker?" Zara's voice cuts through my thoughts. "Give the word."
My claws extend fully as I bare my teeth. Below, Casey begins her second lap, still flying like a machine rather than the warrior I know her to be.
"Take them down," I growl. "Take them all down."
The words ignite chaos. Enforcer teams breach multiple entry points simultaneously. Alarms blare across the complex. Through it all, the race continues – must continue – until Casey crosses that finish line.
And then... then Harlan learns what it means to truly fear an Enforcer's rage.
I watch Casey's glider approach the final lap, my heart breaking with each perfect, soulless turn. "Hold on, love," I whisper. "I'm coming."
The finish line beckons ahead as enforcers storm the complex. Soon, very soon, this ends.
One way or another.
Chapter 19 - Casey
The world blurs at the edges as I pilot the glider through another turn. Everything feels distant, muted, like I'm underwater watching life happen above the surface. Harlan's serum pulses through my veins, trying to turn me into a puppet. But somewhere beneath the chemical haze, I'm screaming.
Fight it. Fight it. Fight it.
My hands move over the controls with mechanical precision. Bank left. Adjust stabilizers. Compensate for wind shear. Perfect execution, no creativity, no joy. Just programmed responses flowing through altered neural pathways.
Through the glider's canopy, I catch glimpses of movement below. Dark-clad figures moving with military precision. Part of me recognizes them as Enforcers, but the serum tries to blur the knowledge, make it irrelevant.
Focus. Remember who you are. Remember you are doing what you’ve always dreamed of—you're racing.
"Excellent performance," Harlan's voice purrs through my comm. "You're everything we hoped for, my dear. One more lap to go."
My fingers tighten on the controls – a tiny rebellion against the chemical restraints. The real me is still here, fighting with every heartbeat. I think of Stryker, of his face when I injected the serum. Use the pain to stay present.
An explosion rocks the western complex. Through my serum-hazed vision, I see Enforcers breaching the medical facility. Alarms blare, their sound distorted by my altered consciousness.
"Maintain course," Harlan commands. "Nothing else matters but finishing the race. I have a lot of credits tied up in this."
My body obeys, but my mind screams in triumph.
They're coming. They're finally coming.
Another glider cuts too close on a turn. Without the serum, I would have executed one of my signature rolls to avoid it. Instead, my hands make textbook adjustments. Safe. Boring. Not me.
Remember the pilots in the pods. Remember why you're here.
The finish line approaches. Below, chaos erupts as the raid continues. I catch a flash of pink in my peripheral vision – Stryker, moving with lethal grace through the complex. The sight sends a jolt through my system, helping me push back against the serum's control.
"Almost there," Harlan's voice holds an edge of tension now. "Just a few more—"
Static cuts him off as I cross the finish line. My glider touches down with perfect precision, even as my mind wages war against chemical bonds.
Hands pull me from the cockpit. Guards, their faces tight with strain. They start leading me toward a secured exit, but sudden violence erupts around us. Enforcers appear like shadows come to life, engaging the guards in close combat.
In the chaos, different hands grab me – cerise ones. For a moment I think it’s Stryker come to save me, until I hear the voice. It belongs to Harlan.
"Come along, my dear," he hisses in my ear. "Time for your next treatment."
The serum makes my body compliant as Harlan drags me through service corridors. Inside, I'm clawing at the chemical chains binding my will. Each step is a battle between programmed obedience and desperate rebellion.