Bleeeeeeeep.

Both Picard and Urosk turned to Batok.

The young Hidran spun around.

Captain, one of their communicators signals.

Bring it here.

Batok rushed over. He held the comm badge in the palm of his right hand. The gold tips were wet where hed touched it.

Bleeeeeeeep.

Activate it, Urosk ordered, then turned to Picard.

Answer, but take care in what you say. You will tell your people to disengage your communications jammer.

Tentatively, Batok tapped the face of the comm badge.

It chirped to the open frequency.

Picard opened his mouth to speak, and Urosk thrust the phaser into his gut as a reminder.

Picard here.

Lieutenant Worf here, sir. We have a situation in the Klingon delegates chamber. There has been another murder.

Chapter Twelve.

TAKE COVER!.

Riker fired again but Deanna still hesitated. She stood there, motionless, as the roving machine grew closer. He upped the phaser another level and fired. A thick orange rod of fire spread over the machinethen dissipated, not fazing it.

A wicked bolt of white plasma launched from the robots middle.

Deanna shrank behind one of the machines thatwasnt trying to kill them, as Riker rolled in the other direction. He hurled himself into an alcove of equipment, and fired again as the robot sailed ominously closer.

It was a meter high and hovered off the deck, bobbing and weaving as Riker fired. The first ones werent like thatthey had taken their phaser hits squarely and crumpled into debris. And the potshots theyd firedsome sort of pulse beam that felt like a mild electric shockhad been harmless.

Had been.

Now the machines were getting stronger with every generation. Riker would destroy one, and another would appear within minutesbigger, or more adept at avoiding the phaser, or sometimes just able to take stronger and longer hits before finally succ.u.mbing.

The robot in front of them spat energy that sizzled over Rikers head and sparked against the wall behind him. Riker fired againconnecting for a momentbouncing the machine back. The steel monster swung quickly out of the way and recovered its floating course toward them.

Riker glanced hastily toward Deanna.

Stay down!

He didnt know if it would go after hershe didnt have a weapon and wasnt a threat to the other machines as he was. No way to be sure, though. Nothing about this ship was right. No peoplejust machines guarding machines. Not unheard of, but whatd it have to do with Velex? Were they even still in orbit. Or in the star system.

A p.r.i.c.kling charge skittered across Rikers skin as another bolt of energy carved out a dark blotch on the bulkhead behind him.

He chewed his lip and considered whether or not he should raise the phaser to its maximum level. One quick clean shot and the rover would be turned to dust ... but what would come in its place?

Rover. Thats what this devil machine was: a snarling, angry dog. Every neighborhood had a mongrel like thatsome barking, spitting, gnarled mutt that lived to swipe baseb.a.l.l.s and chew the pockets off kids b.u.t.ts. Rikers neighborhood especiallyAlaska and dogs still went hand in hand.

This dog was a new breed of Rover, though. It didnt want his pocketsit wantedhim.

Riker raised his head and fired. The beam plunged forward and caught Rover in its middle.

The robot tried to move out from behind the beam.

Uh uh, Riker grunted.

Bad dog!

He stood and aimed the phaser as Rover moved, making sure to keep the beam straight into its middle.

Finally a bright flash and a crashing sound: Rover the Fifth fell to the deck, disintegrating into chunks of smoldering, crackling debris.

Slowly Deanna lifted herself up.

Are you all right?

Riker stepped out from his alcove, nodding. He moved toward the debris, looking it over.

Deanna followed.

Hows your leg?

Fine, he said shortly. The bleedinghad stopped and he hadnt noticed the pain much until she mentioned it. Suddenly the leg throbbed with pain and the inner heat of the burn.

Riker knelt down to inspect Rovers carca.s.s. He pushed the charred remains back and forth with his phaser, sifting for something, he wasnt sure what. Some clue as to how it was made.

It doesnt appear to have a simple off switch, he said tiredly, pushing himself up with a grunt.

Deanna grabbed his arm, helped to steady him.

Where are we?

Riker shook his head.

I lost track three dogs back.

Deannas brows shot up.

Dogs?

The slightest smile shadowed Rikers face.

Rovers.

When her face still expressed perplexion he added, Never mind.

He looked around, keeping his phaser at hip level, and put his arm around her shoulder for support.

Lets try to find our way back to one of our floor marks. I want to know where were going. Especially if another of Rovers brothers shows up.

He motioned with the phaser toward the shards of computer and robot left on the deck.

Theyre getting harder to destroy, he added.

It took setting twelve this time. Thats five higher than the first onefive Rovers, five settings.

She pulled him forward.

Wonderful. Lets get out of here before we end up with more of them than there are phaser settings.

He chuckled nervously. That was a very real concern. There might be endless litters of little Roversthe ship was big, and whatever its purpose was, there appeared to be a wealth of material. Who knew? Maybe that was the ships full-time function: Rover fabrication.

He limped, she walked, and together they trod down the corridor, over the debris of the robot that had forced them off their marked trail.

Theres something odd going on here. All these machines ...

he said, testing his right leg with more and more strength every other step. He needed to be able to run again if chased. He couldnt lean on Deanna, that would drag both of them down.

Odd how?

She looped her fingers around his hand as it came over her shoulder.

It makes sense to me: an automated ship with automated machines and automated robots to protect them. And an automated transporter that brought us here.

Maybe, Riker said, trying to cover his fatigue with a strong voice, but I dont remember seeing another ship when we entered this system. And if we were somehow beamed right off the planet and out of the star system as well, that still doesnt explain what all this isor how the sensor readings back on Velex fit in.

She nodded, her soft hair pressing against his arm as she did.

Will, where do we go from here?

He almost liedmade up some tale about a plan he had in the back of his mind ... but he was too tired, and she was too smart. No foodno waterthey were trapped.

I dont know, he said.

Survive for now He stopped, pulling her back.

Listen ...

A flurry of sound rumbled up the corridor from behind them. The unmistakable vibration of metal and circuits: Rover number six. There was no place to take cover, and no strong legs to run on. Riker set his phaser on the next level and turned toward the sound, waiting.

Did he send Deanna to hide somewhere, behind a door maybe? Or would that put her in more danger? She had no weapon. If a Rover came up behind her ...

He looked up the corridor toward the sound, then down the other way.

Lets go.

He motioned toward the far corner where one hall forked into two.

Well get a little cover from the bulkhead.

Once there he pulled Deanna behind him.

Crouch low, he said.

Make yourself as small a target as possible.

The roving machine turned down the hall toward them, hovering, and about the size of the last five, Riker noticed this one was ... smoother in appearance, like a giant toolsomething for utility, not protection. Then again, Riker thought, a phaser looked just as benevolent.

Slowly Rover VI moved toward them. A ring around its middle was where the charges would come from.

Something told him theyd be even stronger than the last time.

He thought the Rover moved stalkingly, as if there was something personal in this battle. The robot didnt just want him to stop destroying the other machinerythat sentiment had been lost four Rovers back.

Hewas the goal: revenge for its roving brothers. Okay, maybe he was reading more into the ma chines motive than was there. Maybe there was nothing personal and it was just programming defend ship until threat is suppressed.

Something like that.

One thing was certain: the machines wouldnt stop until their prey was dead.

He fired and a flashing spike leaped from his weapon to the Rover. The blast was absorbed fully. The smooth metal casing glowed white, then orange, then dissipated, leaving the Rover still heading toward him.

A bolt spat forward from the roverand from farther than the other ones had been able to fire.

No time Powerful fingers of energy, luckily only the tendrils of the bolt rather than the full brunt, gripped Riker and tossed him back and into Deanna as it pa.s.sed close to them. They crunched together in a fl.u.s.ter of limbs. Riker rolled off her, reset his phaser to its highest, took careful aim ... and fired above Rovers head.

The ceiling over the robot exploded into a shower of spark and rubble. Riker kept the beam steady, and finally a heavy chunk of bulk slammed into the floor.

Crushed under the wreckage, Rover VI abdicated the throne.

Choking on the smoke drifting up from the debris, Riker pulled himself up with Deannas help. They nodded their okays to each other and stood a moment, gripping one another.

Well, I have to commend their ability, Riker grumbled.