The stairwell vanished, replaced by a large, cool room that smelled of seawater and smoke. The overhead lights flickered.

The PA system was muffled in here, weakening the protection of Nicola’s music. I could feel the sirens’ song vibrating through me.

A trio of what looked like modified hot water heaters sat in the center of the room. Copper pipes and white PVC tubes fed in and out of the tanks. There were no computers, nothing but a bank of switches and lights nearby, none of which were labeled.

Kiyoko stood in front of the controls, a futuristic-looking little pistol in one hand.

Lena and Charles spread out to either side of me. Kerling flew away to perch on one of the pipes in the shadows. Bi Wei simply looked around, taking everything in.

Kiyoko reached behind without looking and pulled a lever. Several seconds later, the song died down. I loosened one earplug.

“Order Babs Palmer to cease her interference,” Kiyoko said.

I forced a laugh. “Yah, Babs doesn’t take orders from me.” I stepped closer to the three chambers and touched the pipes. One was hot enough to burn. Frost covered another. “You’re torturing them.”

She pointed her weapon at me. “You’re still wearing your personal shield unit from Dune. In addition to their vulnerability to slower-moving objects, this technology has another canonical flaw. Shooting one with a laser weapon triggers an explosion equivalent to a nuclear blast. The destruction of New Millennium and much of Las Vegas isn’t the attack we were planning, but the effect would be more than adequate.”

“Damn,” I whispered. “I hate well-read bad guys.”

“If you’re thinking of deactivating your shield’s magic, please keep in mind that I’ve watched you dissolve such spells several times, and I believe my reflexes are fast enough to shoot you before you complete your attempt.”

“Why aren’t you affected by the sirens?” asked Lena.

“This clone was surgically deafened. I communicate by reading lips. As long as the sirens are quiet, I can also use the audio pickups in this room to broadcast your voices to me.” She glared at me. “Each time you fought me, I learned,” she said. “You’ve lost one friend today. How many more will you sacrifice?”

“Maybe it’s time to learn a different lesson.”

Lena tossed her swords aside, following my lead. “Your master is a madman. Why obey him?”

Kiyoko cocked her head. “Your lover is a nerd. Why would you sleep with him? It’s because that’s who and what you are.”

“Hey!” A twitch of the laser made me swallow my retort.

“I chose Isaac. What have you ever chosen?” Lena stepped closer. “Don’t let Lawrence McGinley tell you what you are. Don’t let someone else define you.”

“We are what we were written to be. Tools. Toys. Would you try to persuade a sword to become a ploughshare?”