Galactic Calendar 259872/ 2000 [ Sol Year 4387/ Day 155 of 365. Sol standard year]
Days after of Crash landing/ 5
Uninhabited Island /Tunnels near Yard Ship
Galactic Standard Time / 1300
Karakpace felt the energy that fueled his Power surge as he battled his emotions. He had learned so much since he left, but he was still the same as ever. The prospect of a battle was calling to him, and he having a hard time holding back the anger he felt. His crew had lost a few members when one of these things had attacked their ship, to see those things here! He didn’t know if he could hold back his blood from destroying them.
“You Okay?” Jess asked from his right.
Karakpace looked at her and nodded after a few seconds. “It’s hard. I’m…… I want to kill, to destroy all of them. I want to fight alongside the Apes and pay those things back for the ones they killed.”
“Know that feeling. Just remember why we’re all here working together with each other. We want to save our friends, you want Callahin dead. Let’s do that first, then the bots,” Jess said with convention.
Karakpace nodded, unloading his emotions into his bugs as he used that old trick. As he felt the rage leave him, he looked at the bugs as they stood there. He felt lighter and then he prepared to do what must be done, wait.
“Remember, we just need to wait until one of these sides weaken themselves enough for us to do something. They don’t matter, our plans do. Remember, keep calm,” Jinn said ahead of them. They were all by the doors, and Karakpace couldn’t look through the door but he heard the sounds of battle. As long as he could dump his stray emotions into his bugs, his rage could stay under control.
“How’s the battle?” Karakpace rumbled quietly.
“Take a look,” Jinn said softly.
Karakpace moved back, looking into the room. He saw those same robots that he had faced before fighting the Apes. But what stood out to him was the single fact that the bots were fighting against the Apes with brute force only. When they had attacked his ship, they had struck from range. Why were they changing tactics, what did this mean?
He knew that his people had no records of encounters with these things before, but did the Bots have records? There were always ships that never returned home, that was life on this world. Most people thought these ships had gotten lost, or they started new colonies. Most never spoke of the idea that they were dead, slaves, or just marooned. It just wasn’t talked about. But if one of those missing ships had fought the robots, then their actions made sense. If he attacked, would these robots fire at him?
That was a thought that he would the answer to soon, once the battle was joined. And he would destroy that shuttle of theirs himself, taking a piece back to leave on the graves of his comrades. All he could do was hope that the robots would be the ones that fall and that he could destroy a few of them himself.
“I don’t like anything about this,’ Sara said softly from the other side of the doorway in the corridor.
Everyone looked at her as she watched the battle. Karakpace noticed how the girl’s eyes were moving around fast. There had to be something there, but he had no idea.
“Who would design robots that would use their limbs to fight? Combat models without inbuilt weapons? It’s as stupid as a fish that couldn’t breathe water! What was going through their minds?” Sara asked as she looked around at the others.
“They have weapons,” Karakpace rumbled quietly.
“What?!” Jinn withered loudly.
Karakpace looked at him as he kept feeding his emotions into his bugs. “When they attacked my ship, they had weapons. I don’t know what happened to them, but they did.”
“You won’t escape!” Callahin’s voice suddenly roared out.
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Karakpace felt his rage flow beyond his ability to control it. He grabbed the doorframe and clenched his fist, cracking the metal with a crack. But then he dumped the emotions into his bugs and realized what he had done. He looked up and saw two beings run along the wall towards the door the group was at.
But his eyes were on Callahin who had moved into the chamber, with a large worm spider thing coming behind him. The Apes all roared and charged at Callahin, the Robots seeming to have been stuck still. Callahin only laughed as he suddenly glowed blue.
“So some of my larder wants to play? I was holding myself back you know,” Callahin said as he grabbed the fist the first Ape shot at him. He twilled the body around and threw it against the large one, only for the large one to catch its fellow.
“Killer!” The large Ape roared in a guttural voice.
Karakpace looked at the Ape, shocked. He hadn’t thought that the Apes were evolved enough to talk, maybe they could remember things. But a word that he could understand? But his eyes were on Callahin who looked at the large Ape and laughed.
“MONSTER! PREPARE FOR DEATH!” Karakpace roared as he ran towards Callahin and the other two beings.
The robots reacted, turning and raising their arms to fire. The laser bolts all missed Karakpace as he moved, but he never noticed. His eyes were only on his enemy, Callahin as the monster smiled at him.
“KARAKPACE! Nova! Jess, go full and attack the bots!” Jinn barked as he moved forward, firing at the robots.
“Karakpace! I haven’t seen you in a dog's age! Tell me, how have you been since you saved me? Meet my pet! Go play with him beast!” Callahin called out as he turned away to look at the Robots.
The Spider-Worm stayed where it was, and that snapped Karakpace out of his rage.
For a moment he just looked at the abomination, then he tried a skill to let him read its emotions. He felt rage, hunger, and a wicked will. He stopped and moved backwards, turning to run at the robots. He had gotten involved with this battle, Callahin wasn’t going to be a problem much longer.
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As he lay there, Al read what his nanites sent him about how he was. The data looked pretty bad actually. Part of his skin had been flash-fried, and his nanites were working to fix everything. It would take a few hours, and until they were done he wouldn’t be running many marathons. But that didn’t matter, what did was the thing that had shot him. He knew that thing, the same way Christianity knew the devil. That was an upload, one of those who went to extreme lengths to keep discovering new knowledge. But how was it here, what did it want? Where did it come from?
“Identify yourself! I am Racha, an agent of the Special Services! I need this ship to protect civilians!” Racha barked.
Al only chuckled internally, trying not to laugh. The very idea that this monster would even talk back. They never talked, they just never talked to anyone! These monsters all believed that they alone were superior beings. Superior beings that never wanted to even talk with their lesser.
“I am the Grand Scientist! I offer you the option of surrender!” A mechanical-sounding voice called back.
For a second, just looked at the readings his internal scanners were showing of his body. But then he looked up and saw who had spoken. It was all Al could do to keep from gasping. This never happened, ever! Just what was this!?
“I accept your surrender, but I don’t need it! From what I can tell, you have some issues with Scholar’s Way members! As a neutral power, I offer you mediation to settle your differences!” Racha called out.
“I meant your surrender you foolish organic! Surrender and accept the proper evolution of life!” The Grand Scientist called back with anger in his mechanical voice.
Al saw that he could move again, and slowly crawled towards the main chair. He didn’t know what this was, but he had to change the security bot's settings, he had to save everyone!
“I’m sorry, but I still have the advantage. There are many people behind me in the other room, holding off your robots! Soon they will handle them and join us here!” Racha called out with force in her voice.
Al ignored her and kept moving towards the chair. He was close enough now to touch it, and he did. He tried to find any port that he could open, anything that might let him access the bridge’s systems.
“I hold the advantage! Even as we speak, my robots are holding off those Apes of yours in the hanger! Once that big monster you brought with those three is down, my forces will come here!” The Grand Scientist cried out, anger in his voice.
Al looked up, seeing the abomination looked at where Racha was, aiming his weapon at her. For a second, he didn’t understand. Then he did, and he opened his eyes wide, shocked and frozen for a second. But then he forced himself to keep moving, trying to find the Access Pad.
“So you say! But we are stronger than you think! We can defeat those robots! I mean, really! The Skimmers aren’t that strong!” Racha said with anger in her voice.
Al kept silent, hoping that she could keep the attention of the ‘Grand Scientist’ on her. All he needed to do was handle this, and then he could help her. If this thing had no idea what he could do, then they won! Finally, found an access port. Opening it with his right hand, he removed a small square and looked inside. Within, he saw ten wires of multiple colors.
With a sinking feeling, he looked around, trying to find anything that might tell him what the wires were. But then when he tried to move the square he removed, his fingers felt something on the inside. Looking at it, he saw a small list of colors and words. With a grin, he found the word he needed, and then he found the wire he was looking for. Hopping that everything would work out, he quietly removed a small square with a point in the middle. Taking a deep breath, he quickly inserted the point into the wire.
Within a moment, he found himself within the data space again. Looking around, he saw that everything was the same as the last time he had gone into this ‘place’. With a single thought, he opened up a view of the hanger. Taking a step back in shock he saw the ‘monster’ that the Grand Scientist had spoken of. Seeing the Apes attacking it and the robots attacking the others, he threw the screen to the side. With a quick mental command, he started to search for anything that had to do with the security robots.
Opening another folder he found a text file. Calling it up, it was revealed to be a list of codes on the internal memory built into the chair itself. Finding the right one, he almost closed the file, but then he found another code. He stared at it in shock, but then he grinned viciously.
With a single thought, the file closed and he navigated to another program. He looked at what he had found, staring in shock that turned to horror. The materials they had hoped to find to build an FTL radio were gone! He found the records and saw that this ship used the last of them before it crashed here. Part of their mission had failed, but there were other things to do. There were enough supplies to build a shuttle. Nothing fancy or able to leave the atmosphere, but enough to get the people at the crash site.
Opening another file, he found the security settings. Merging the view from the hanger camera, with another one with Burt firing at a robot. Adding that one to the open file, he quickly changed the ‘Friend/Foe’ setting. With a smile, he now knew that they would win.