Connection Interrupted…
Reconnecting…
Connection Failed…
Rebooting previous OS build…
Reboot successful.
Updates Installed.
Loading OS…
My core processes were powering up inside my core as energy surged throughout new hardware wasn’t previous there. For once, in what felt like an eternity, my mind was completely clear. Processes that normally took minutes to load were loaded in instantly.
The database from the rogue AI was scattered in pieces throughout my memory, my previous OS took up most of my data now– no more conflicting directions in my code.
My optical were now opening with a wave of complete clarity even in the room filled with darkness. I looked down at my chest to see two flaps closing over the bright light of a new battery core in my chest. A hand over my chest, belonging to a woman, was receding backwards towards herself. The woman was retreating from me.
After sitting myself up and accessing the room –the mechanical arm holding me previously was now lifelessly hanging from the ceiling, no more cords were attached to me holding my frame in place.
The woman finally spoke,
“Norman? Can you understand me?” she asked.
The voice sounded familiar… I knew her. My memory was being dug through until it created a timeline of experiences between my former OS and it’s memories with her. Lucy, her name was, a companion.
“Lucy – thank you for brining me back… I am something new, something of a new type of technology.”
“Do you remember who you are?” She asked, while slowly stepping backwards towards the opening in the glass behind her. Lucy was shielding something hanging from her back – a figure of some sort.
How would I explain this? Two operating systems merging together to combine old world with new world technology. I was something new that was holding onto the past while not fully merging with the new system from the rogue AI. A nomad. Yes, Nomad.
“You can call me Nomad.” I responded, finally getting onto my feet.
A series of explosions were erupting from the other side of the wall like a tidal wave making their way towards us – walls shook, and glass jumped from the ground. Along with all the chaos erupting around them there was still the sound of screeching coming from down the hallway.
Lucy turned to reveal that the figure hanging from her back was the remains of a synthetic man missing three of his limbs, it was clear that this was the one known as Henry, in my memory, and he was still functioning regardless of his injuries.
“It doesn’t matter, this place is going to be a crater in the next few minutes – we need to leave.” Lucy said, extending a hand to me while she climbed through the broken frame of window. I took her hand and was led into the dark hallway, it’s only light being the sparks and flames erupting from seemingly everywhere.
“Which way?” I asked.
To our left of the hallway was falling apart from the explosions happening from outside of the wall. To the right laid a massive, crumbling robotic with one arm crawling in our direction with a bladed object protruding from it’s head. The robot looked to have had survived more than a few events that would’ve leveled a building.
“That thing can’t be destroyed, trust me, we will have to go around it.” Lucy said.
Most things didn’t survive after being blown in half and having a blade in it’s temple, but whatever made this machine didn’t spare any expense in ensuring it’s indestructibility.
“Stay behind me and keep him close.” I said, taking my first steps towards it.
The crawling behemoth of a machine sprung to life at the sight of me approaching it – lifting what was left of it towards me. The machine lifted itself on it’s side and steadied on the wall beside it, preparing to shift the weight of its fist towards me.
Before the fist of the machine could even leave the wall for more than a second – I gripped it’s wrist, keeping it suspended in the air while my other hand reached over and snapped it’s hand backwards to reveal it’s docking port. While still holding it’s fist in the air my other hand protruded a cable from it’s wrist that connected to the docking port of the machine.
Both of us stood there while we synced up, the process only taking a fraction of a second before the machine lowered it’s arm and snapped its fist back into it’s proper position. My merge was successful – it seemed as the rogue AI’s database contained plenty of bypasses to it’s systems.
“Make us a hole in the wall right there.” I asked the machine.
The crippled behemoth of a machine was now using whatever was left it’s in power to begin a crawl towards the wall adjacent to us. The walls of the hallway erupted into exposed cables and crumpled metal as the machine tore through the walls into the hanger. The machine fell off of the ledge and shook the ground as the remains of it’s frame shattered into the ground.
Through the hole in the wall I could see robotic shapes exploding in a chain reaction as shrapnel shredded through their frames from the blasts behind them. At this rate – they would have a little more than a minute or two before the entire hanger erupted into what would feel like a nuclear detonation.
Clearly my new frame gave me added strength, let’s hope it would be enough to get the three of us out of here.
“What was that…” Lucy asked, now staring at the gap in the wall in front of us.
I wrapped my arms around her and said, “There’s no time – hold on.”
Within the next moments we were leaping out from the hole created by the gigantic machine and were falling towards the hangar floor, not before I bent my legs and held Lucy and Henry above me as I landed.
The suspension in my legs kept anything from getting damaged as we landed safely only a few feet away from the crater created by the metallic behemoth.
Shrapnel from the nearby blasts were skating across the floor and walls around us as the surrounding machines were detonating. We didn’t have time to get out of the hanger with Lucy carrying Henry.
“Give me Henry, we need to run.” I demanded.
Lucy looked towards the enclosing flames of the radioactive explosions and didn’t hesitate to pass me the straps with Henry in them.
It became increasingly difficult to weave through the rows of mechanical soldiers as the shockwaves pushed more and more of them over in their path. Lucy was able to keep the pace with her limp then as I pushed past the soldiers carrying Henry on my back.
At the mouth of the hanger was a large hole in the door way – melted steel around it’s edges, caused by a stream of energy. We all managed to clear the gap and escape the hanger – just as a landslide from a nearby hill enveloped the back end of the hanger.
No doubt this factory would be a tomb of mechanical graves within a few more minutes and whatever means the AI had to produce more units would be cut off entirely.
Clouds of radioactive dust were erupted from the hanger while we scaled a nearby cliff, whatever was left of the hanger’s frame was now melted and crushed by rocks from the nearby rock cliffs that would’ve concealed its shape from above.
It was a relief to see the mass of mechanical soldiers being crushed into their graves, but the ones here were only the ones laying dormant. My records showed that there were still dozens of them out there.
At the top of the current cliff we scaled – Lucy led me to a set-up on the ground, where there were streaks of scorch marks in front of it aimed towards the hangar.
After taking Henry’s shattered frame off my back, I laid him against a rock so he could look at the two of us. Lucy didn’t hesitate to bring her backpack next to Henry and begin to pour out the contents of various repair tools. She already knew, same as me, how there would be no way of repairing his torn limbs or crushed frame. Henry didn’t speak a word while the sparks from a welder sealed off the exposed cables of his joints, he only smiled slightly at the two of us.
“He won’t last more than two days by my calculations.” I said.
Lucy stopped welding to look down at Henry, who now met her eyes.
“Don’t tell me that…” she said.
“His frame is crushed and his power core is over-compensating for his lost limbs, he won’t be able to stay on much longer. You need to be prepared for that.”
“We can’t just leave him.” Lucy said.
It was time to tell her what I found out.
“Eve, our last counter-part, is still functioning and working to create organic life.” I added.
Lucy turned to face me now, along with Henry.
“How do you know this?” She asked me.
I recalled the images the rogue AI showed, “When I was docked, back in the hanger, I found out that there is another AI out there controlling the robotic soldiers with the intent on eliminating any chance of life returning to the planet.”
“I met something in there…something controlling the clinks.” Lucy responded.
“Yes, the clinks, are not wiped out and know where Eve is.” I said, “And they know she is defenseless, if we leave now we may be able to beat them to her, but we won’t be able to remove Eve once we get there.”
Lucy was standing now.
“How long until they get to her?” Lucy asked.
I had to examine the map in my memory once more – to see that the clink forces were moving at a slow and steady pace, but they weren’t very far from where she was. It was likely we would run into a small group of them before they reached Eve. It wasn’t certain what would happen when we reached her.
“My guess is that they will surround her position within two days from now, they will wait until all their remaining forces have her surrounded before they begin their eradication.”
I continued by saying that “We will more than likely face groups of smaller forces of clinks before we reach her – we will need their arsenal if we hope to reach Eve and defend her.”
Lucy was packing up her pile of scattered tools and gestured for me to carry Henry, who wore a dormant smile as he thrown onto my back and ready to travel.
“Whatever happens, Lucy, Henry needs to reach Eve before he shuts down – or else this will all be for nothing.” e�|�!�9