‘As I live and breathe: Arian Pelter’s big faithful dog,’ she said. ‘Did he let you off your lead, then? Or have you been a very naughty doggy and just run away?’ She stood up and sauntered over, then stood in front of him with the pulse-gun resting against her breast.

‘He wants you for the trip back out,’ Stanton said.

‘Oh really? What if I don’t want to go?’ she said.

Stanton stepped forward, took the gun from her hand and tossed it on a thick rug nearby. ‘We’ve got two hours,’ he said, and then reached down and violently tugged open the belt of her robe.

‘You brute you,’ she said, and ran her hands down over her breasts, her stomach and pressed them into her pubis.

Stanton reached up and slid his finger into the seal on his shirt. He slid his finger down, undoing it, then pulled the catch on his trousers.

‘Jarvellis, just get on the bed,’ he said.

The Lyric’s captain shrugged her robe off her shoulders, then walked back and sat on the stone table, a cheeky smile on her face as she watched Stanton undress.

‘I rather thought we could start in the bath, then work our way gradually to the bed,’ she said.

‘You’re going to regret not turning that heating on,’ said Stanton.

‘Ooh, are you going to treat me roughly, big boy?’

Stanton chased her screaming towards the circular bath.

* * *

Pelter held the aug in the palm of his hand and inspected it. It could be the edge he needed, but how much trust did he have? None at all. On the back of the aug were three bone-anchors not much different from those on any other aug. The fibre-injector ring was no different either. Like standard augs it would connect through into his cerebellum, to the back of his optic nerve, and in behind his ear. He was not entirely sure of all the connections that augs made. What he was sure of was that the fibres were delicate and could be easily broken, and that this aug was soft as a mouse and could be crushed just as easily.

Pelter made his decision. Some might have thought it the height of idiocy, but he knew that it was by taking such risks that in the end he would win. While he studied the device he quickly constructed a program between Sylac’s aug and Crane’s command module. It took only seconds. He looked across at Grendel.

‘I will not be controlled,’ he said.

‘We did not think that you would, Arian Pelter. This aug is, as I stated, for you to receive the information Dragon wishes you to have,’ he said. ‘Take it away and have it studied, if you wish. I would not want you to go into this blind.’