Julz opens her eyes to find herself lying on her sleeping bag, and looking up at the stars- She takes a deep breath and in doing so, awakens the surging pain in her body.
“Ah,” She grunts, opting to stay on her back and breathe a little softer.
She hasn’t stargazed since the Academy, realizing this as she looks up to the orb-filled space she could only dream of visiting. They’re so much clearer out here than anywhere in Vi, she knew light pollution was a factor but she would never have guessed it could have been hiding this many worlds.
Most of the ancient texts discuss thousands of galaxies, all filled with thousands of Stars and planets but considering she can see hundreds in her immediate field of view, this suggests far more than thousands… Millions? She can finally start using the star chart that Dante got for her last birthday, there were never enough stars in the sky for her to figure it out before.
I can’t believe my understanding of the beyond is still changing.
The warm crackle of the fire gives Julz a moment of peace amongst the glistening view- for a split second, she forgot she’s in the middle of a war thousands of kilometres away from home.
“You’re awake,” Atari says, standing over her and looking down with a big grin on his face alongside his collar-length hair, “Welcome back,”
“You did it, Recruit,” Thunder says with an unimpressed tone, “Good job,”
“Did we get it?” She asks, making another attempt at sitting up.
“Take it easy,” Captain Eddy says, kneeling beside her to help her up.
“Mission was a failure,” Prodigy says, taking a bite out of her MRE.
“Really?” Julz sighs in disappointment.
“Yeah,” Captain Eddy confirms, “It managed to slip away with almost as much HP as you,”
“Looks like you and your new nemesis are 1-for-1,” Prodigy chuckles.
“I’ve never seen a Humanoid take interest in a first tier,” Atari laughs alongside her.
“I didn’t even know they could speak,” Julz responds.
“The humanoids tend to be the most vocal,” Captain Eddy responds, going back to his seat.
“Why?”
“Atari-” Captain Eddy redirects the question.
“If I had to guess, any sufficiently advanced AI will find benefit in individuality and self-awareness. Thus, they all have different personalities, fighting styles and powers,”
“Powers?” Julz queries.
“Yeah, which is another reason I didn’t want to follow the bastard,” Captain Eddy says.
“It didn’t even use any of its abilities,” Thunder shakes his head, “If it didn’t let us catch it off guard, it could have killed us,”
The image of the humanoid standing above Julz, and the lifeless feeling of cold steel on her hand sends a shiver down her spine as she realizes the level of control the Krix had over the situation. “It said it would entertain our plan… Why would it do that?” She asks.
“Could be for a whole host of reasons,” The Captain says, taking a swig of his water bottle, “Updating its knowledge on Operator weapons and strategies could be good information,”
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“For all you know, it just wanted to have fun with us,” Prodigy says.
“Until it found out we don’t play no games,” Atari says with pride.
The humanoid had enough control over the situation to have killed Julz three times over. So, it isn't luck- it’s intention.
“But, why me?” Julz asks.
“I don't know…” Atari shrugs, “These things are smart, Julz. They know things that we don't,”
“Being on our team is a constant game of ‘catch up’,” Thunder adds, “We’re losing for a reason,”
“Losing?” The captain chuckles before grinning, “I'm just getting warmed up,”
The rest of the team laughs alongside him, knowing he’s full of it but hoping it’s true. The state of the war starts feeling grim when five highly skilled soldiers can't even take out a single, tier-three humanoid. They came close but that doesn't cut it- and if you consider the injuries and danger they would have been in if it fought back at full force, this is basically a loss.
They lost track of it once it left the building as if it knew they were tracking it and only went stealth the moment it felt the need. If it took the data they’re speculating then it gained significantly more than they did.
However, they did enough damage to be certain it's no longer within the relocation site, in fact- that must have been Captain Eddy’s intention in the first place. Killing it would have been great, but clearing the area is the mission.
Julz sighs, partially relieved at the thought it wasn't a total failure but still a little shaken by the result.
I nearly died.
“You should tell her about what we found,” Prodigy says, crumpling the packet in her hand and tossing it into the fire.
“Right,” Captain Eddy says, “Julz, are you familiar with what a ‘slum’ is?
“A slum,” Julz repeats as she thinks for a moment. It sounds familiar but, “No, sir,”
“A slum is an informal settlement, in which individuals live in areas that aren’t designed for residential use,”
Julz slowly nods before her eyes light up, “Wait,” She stammers, glancing at each member of the team and their blank expressions, “You don't mean…”
“Go on,”
“People are living out here? That’s impossible,”
“Not impossible,” The Captain shakes his head, “Just unlikely. The slum we found is beneath the building we just engaged in… That may have been why the Krix was there,”
“Beneath?”
“Underground,”
“Hiding away like cowards,” Prodigy scoffs.
“Our duty is to protect human life,” Eddy directs to Prodigy, “Regardless of opinions,”
“Fuck that, and fuck them,” She shrugs, raising a middle finger at the standing skyscraper, “Let's just drop the building on them all and be done with it,”
“Why are they there?” Julz asks, still bewildered, “How did they get here?”
“Humans are like cockroaches,” Captain Eddy responds, “Killing all of us isn't as easy as it sounds. Many humans preferred to stay away from major cities after the collapse of old Vi, so they braved the elements themselves,”
“Do they have weapons? An army?”
“Not likely,” Thunder says, opening up his third MRE since Julz woke up, “They aren't equipped to fight, they're equipped to hide,”
“They fashion together some impressive guerilla tech,” Atari compliments, “They were probably bouncing the humanoids scanners somehow,”
“Nothing impressive about fear,” Prodigy says.
“As you can see, Prodigy isn't a fan of them,” Atari Jesus
“Regardless, we must aid them. It wouldn't be the first time Preston has ordered us to protect a slum and allow them passage into our camps for food and drink,”
“Seriously?” Julz asks, she’s never heard of survivors outside of Vi and Chire. And with the amount of rubble filling the distance, she couldn't imagine anyone surviving out here.
It's a wasteland.
Captain Eddy nods and takes another bite out of his dinner. And the crew quietens down as the crackle of the fire snaps and pops in front of all of them as they glare into it.
There’s a brief silence before Captain Eddy lays down on his sleeping bag and gives his final order before bed, “Tomorrow, we'll negotiate with the slum leader. Julz and Atari, you’ll be joining me whilst Thunder and Prodigy continue scouting the area,”
“Yes, Sir,” They all respond.
“Sleep tight,” He adds, before shifting into a comfortable position and falling asleep almost instantly.