Deathstalker 05 - Deathstalker Destiny

finally allowed him to think of something else, he turned and looked at Ruby. She lay on her back on the floor, gulping down air. Blood trickled from her nose and ears, but her gaze was clear.
    She flashed Random an unsteady smile, and he realized he still had her wrist in a deathlike grip. He let go, clambered painfully to his feet, and then stood still as Ruby used him as a support to pull herself up onto her feet. They stood together for a while, supporting each other, leaning against the wall by the open door. Air was still rushing into the wrecked room, but neither of them felt up to doing anything about it.
    "Tell you what," Random said hoarsely. "Let's go join Diana in the Hall."
    "Might as well," said Ruby, in a voice so harsh it could barely be understood.
    "Maybe we can be some use there."
    Still leaning heavily on each other, they headed for the great Hall.

    Alone in the great Hall of the Last Standing, Diana Vertue stood before the
    viewscreen showing the Shub fleet, and wondered if she'd have to carry out her plan alone after all. There'd been no report of Random or Ruby since he'd gone running off to save her. The castle map had shown that area to be almost entirely black, but she didn't believe they were dead. She felt sure she would have known, if they were. But even without the backing of the two Maze minds, she would still go ahead, alone, if she had to. It was too late for anything else.
    Am I really sure about this? she thought slowly, as though she had all the time in the world. No, I'm not sure. It is just a theory. One last throw of the dice, betting my Humanity against the cold logic of the rogue AIs. But when it's the only bet you've got, you might as well bet big.
    By the time Random and Ruby joined Diana, dust was falling in steady streams from the ceiling, and the floor was shaking like it was afraid. The walls groaned, as though the weight of centuries was finally too much for them. The sound of explosions and destruction drew closer as the outer layers of the castle were blasted away. Random and Ruby staggered into the main hall, still leaning on each other. Diana studied them dispassionately.
    "Welcome. You look like shit."
    "And you've got sticky-out ears," snapped Ruby. "Never mind the compliments; what's our current situation?"
    Diana gestured at the viewscreen floating before her. Random took in the vast armada of nightmare metal shapes, and swore tiredly.
    "If we get any closer, we'll be able to lean out of a window and hit them with a stick. And it might come to that, if the castle keeps cracking up. We've lost most of our weapons stations, and the shields aren't stopping shit anymore."
    Random shook his head slowly. "I hate to think what Owen's going to say when he sees what we've done to his Family legacy."
    "Any chance this dump has escape pods?" said Ruby.
    "None at all," said Diana. "And even if we could rig something up, I wouldn't recommend it. Shub would be bound to pick them up. And I don't know about you, but I have absolutely no wish to spend what's left of my life in a Shub vivisection ward."
    "God, you're a cheerful soul," said Ruby. "I knew there was a reason why we never let you hang around with us."
    "Let's try and concentrate on the matter at hand," said Random. "How much closer to the Shub fleet do we have to get, Diana?"
    "We're almost there," said Diana.
    "Almost where?" snapped Ruby.
    "Where we need to be. I had to be right here, right in the face of the Shub ships, so that when I finally did make contact, they wouldn't be able to shake us off."
    "What kind of contact are we talking about here?" said Random carefully. "Don't you think it's about time you let us in on your battle plan?"
    "Yes, Jack, Ruby. It is time. I'm going to make direct mental contact with the rogue AIs of Shub, and use the power of your augmented minds to maintain the contact, no matter how hard they try to break away. Then the Mater Mundi gestalt will use that connection as a stepping stone to force their own mental bond with the AIs.
    "And then… it's our Humanity versus the AIs' logic. A clash of two completely opposing thought processes, from which only one can emerge triumphant. I'm betting on us. We always said our minds were superior to mere machines; this is
    our chance to prove it."
    "And that's your plan," said Random.
    "Yes," said Diana.
    "Oh shit," said Random. "We're all going to die."
    "That's it?" said Ruby incredulously. "We came all this way, put our lives on the line,