Xiomar was forced awake with a gasp of pain as he was jostled in the pilot's seat. GLITCH had been struck by a nearby explosion.

"Guess I won't be taking a nap," he muttered. Sweat ran down his face and mixed with his blood. He was pale and out of breath, but there was no time to rest. He must've only been out for maybe fifteen minutes—GLITCH had barely even made it out of the hangar. He would just have to bear it for now.

Outside, sand and dust made it difficult to see. There were mechs and soldiers from both sides all over the place, and bombs kept throwing debris in every direction.

"What the fuck is going on?"

"Base has been overrun by Zynthian soldiers. General Dufault has given orders to 'bug out' immediately. Do not engage in combat unless absolutely necessary."

Despite the low visibly, GLITCH's sensors were still working, displaying the names and locations of mechs and soldiers. Xiomar couldn't tell who was on which side. He swallowed hard. They needed to get out alive.

An explosion nearly knocked GLITCH off its feet, and the mech stumbled back against the wrecked wall of Hangar 11. Xiomar didn't see Maddox's Valkyrie anywhere—he hoped he'd gotten away.

"Easy, GLITCH," he said, gritting his teeth through the pain in his shoulder as the mech steadied itself. "I can't really use my arm, so let's work together. Keep it in auto-pilot and I'll give you directions. Head for the canyons just beyond the edge of the base."

It was relatively easy for GLITCH to get to the edge of the base, where the air was clear. Out in the desert, more mechs and tanks were rolling in, along with Zynthian soldiers on foot. Farther away, he could see Emporian soldiers escaping in their mechs and vehicles, but the invading army didn't pursue anyone. What were they really after?

"Stop right there," a booming voice demanded. It had to be a mech's loudspeaker. GLITCH turned to face ir, and Xiomar couldn't help but laugh.

It was the tackiest shit he'd ever seen. It was huge and bulky, probably twice as big as GLITCH, with two huge guns mounted on it, like a tank with legs, and it was army-green. Across what Xiomar could only assume were its chest and shoulders, someone had badly painted the symbols for a five-star general. There were even dried paint drips.

"Surrender yourself peacefully and hand over the sentient mech," it demanded, aiming its weapons at GLITCH.

Xiomar's eyes went wide. Sentient mech? How would Zynthos know about GLITCH? Had the Emporian Army been infiltrated by Zynthian soldiers?

"GLITCH, tell this guy to go fuck himself."

"Pilot has refused your demand," GLITCH stated, and Xiomar laughed softly.

"I'm not handing you over to anyone. Ever."

The enemy mech rushed forward at GLITCH with a surprising amount of speed, considering how big and bulky it was. GLITCH ducked under its arm and moved out of the way, making it fall forward in the dirt.

"Let's get the hell out of here," Xiomar said.

GLITCH turned toward the open desert, but fell forward when the Zynthian mech grabbed its leg. Xiomar growled in pain as he was jerked forward in the seat and the safety harness dug hard into his injured shoulder.

"Fuck!" he spat, clutching his bloody arm. "Shake him off!"

GLITCH managed to break free, and rushed out into the desert, the enemy mech following close behind.

"Can't you go any faster?" Xiomar asked. "I know you have small jet boosters under the back of your shoulders. Do they work?"

"Engaging boosters."

There was a low hum that gradually increased to a roar, and GLITCH bolted forward towards the canyons. There were deep valleys and giant stone spires.

Despite GLITCH's increased speed, the Zynthian mech wasn't far behind. Pieces of the cliffs were blown apart by shots from the cannons on its shoulders, and Xiomar was jostled around while GLITCH tried to avoid falling rocks and debris.

GLITCH stopped when they came to a dead end at the end of a canyon. There was a path through the canyons, but it was barely wide enough for a human, forget a giant mech. He was forced to turn around and face his pursuer.

"Just give up," he demanded, blocking GLITCH's only way out. Could he climb the cliffs? They were relatively smooth, worn away from centuries of erosion. Could he jump high enough to get over it?

"Is there some kind of loudspeaker in here?" Xiomar asked, more to himself than anything, but the button lit up on the console. He pressed it and cleared his throat.

"What do you want?" He asked, his voice reverberating off the canyon walls around them. "Why is Zynthos invading Emporia?"

"I don't have to tell you anything," he said, moving in closer.

Xiomar growled in pain as the mech grabbed GLITCH by the shoulder, slamming him back again the cliffs.

"Your Mech is fast, I'll give it that," the enemy said while GLITCH struggled to break free from his grasp. "But that's because it's not wearing any armor. Its creator sacrificed safety for speed, and if you won't surrender, you'll die for his mistake."

The Zynthian mech started punching GLITCH in the chest, over and over, where Xiomar was sitting in the pilot's compartment.

"Come on, GLITCH!" With each blow, GLITCH's shell was getting weaker and weaker, and so was Xiomar. An alarm above Xiomar's head blared, a red light flashed, and the screens showed major damage to the front of GLITCH's body.

"This ends now!" the soldier shouted, his mech pulling its arm back for one final blow.

"Dammit," Xiomar growled, slumped over in the pilots chair, breathing heavily. He had no energy to do anything, and he couldn't move his arm, so he couldn't even use the Sync-Suit to try to get GLITCH free.

"Preparing for impact," GLITCH said. "Breakage of the outer layer inevitable."

"Do something," Xiomar demanded. His vision was starting to blur, and his breath came out in quick, labored huffs.

GLITCH caught the Mech's hand, just feet from his chest, trying to force the enemy mech back, but it was so much larger and more powerful. It struggled, and GLITCH's arm rattled. The hydraulics cracked and started to leak fluid, and Xiomar knew he couldn't hold out much longer.

"Not good enough!" the enemy shouted, and his mech shot forward, ramming it's shoulder into GLITCH's chest. The weakened plates immediately crumpled under the pressure, forcing the steel and the console back, on top of Xiomar.

Xiomar screamed in pain as the broken console crushed down on his legs, and he felt a hot searing pain just below his chest.

He slumped over, his hands shaking as he looked around the destroyed compartment, barely conscious.

There was blood all over the front of him and the wrecked console that had him pinned down. Was it his own blood? He couldn't move, he couldn't breathe, and darkness quickly overtook his vision.

"Pilot no longer conscious," GLITCH said. "Disengaging enemy to prevent further injury or potential loss of life.

The jet boosters on GLITCH's back roared to life again. The enemy mech tried to grab him again, but GLITCH shot straight up into the air, pulling free from its grip. He rushed off into the canyons and out of sight.

I never should have joined the Army, Xiomar thought. I don't have what it takes, not really. I can't lead anyone. I can't even take care of myself.

Despite being unconscious, all Xiomar felt was pain. He couldn't even tell where it was coming from anymore, he just knew it hurt.

He thought back on what had brought him to that point. His parents had both died. His father in the first of the Great Wars, and his mother had killed herself a few years later.

After his mother died, the Emporian government came and took him away. He was pulled out of school and sent to an orphanage, but it wasn't to take care of orphans or to find them new families—it was to raise soldiers. As soon as someone turned eighteen, they'd be shipped off to an army base.

"I am not a lamb to be led to slaughter for someone else's cause."

Xiomar remembered GLITCH's words. Lambs for slaughter... That's what they were. No one cared about them. They just needed bodies to put out in front of the enemy.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

What did I work so hard for? He wondered. To die for someone else? For something that I don't even believe in? What brought me to this point?

His vision came back to him, and he was still slumped over the wrecked console while GLITCH traveled through the desert, weaving through canyons and stone monoliths, trying to find somewhere to go.

"Building structure detected. Minimal traces of radioactive activity detected. Likely source: Valkyries or Reavers."

Valkyries and Reavers? Had they caught up to Emporian soldiers that had escaped? Xiomar tried to speak, but he was somewhere between consciousness and couldn't move his body.

Deep in a canyon, there was a hidden structure of stone. It was large, but not as big as the mech hangars back on the base. Xiomar just hoped it wasn't overrun with Zynthian soldiers instead.

Once inside, GLITCH scanned the inside of the pilots compartment while the red alarm continued to flash above Xiomar.

"Severe damage to the main console. Pilot has—"

"Hey!"

GLITCH's attention turned to a small figure standing in the hangar, looking up at him.

"Scanning now," GLITCH said, focusing a beam of light on the figure. "Lieutenant Adam Maddox detected."

"Your mech looks pretty damaged," he said, eyeing the mech's crushed chest. "We can fix it though. Are you stuck in the pilots compartment? I'm sure we can—"

"Severe damage to the main console," GLITCH repeated. "Pilot is unconscious, but alive. Major contusions to the legs, but not broken, three ribs cracked, four broken, signs of internal bleeding. Major laceration to the chest and losing blood. Blood pressure and heart rate dropping quickly, oxygen saturation dropping."

Maddox's eyes went wide.

"Pilot unconscious?" He gasped. "You're that old mech from the hangar, aren't you? But that means... No... Who is your pilot?"

"Major Xiomar Haydn is unconscious but alive. Major contusions to—"

"We have to get him out!"

GLITCH held out its hand to lift the soldier up to the outside of the pilots compartment. The entire front of it was collapsed in on itself. Maddox tried to pull the broken door open, but he wasn't strong enough.

"I need your help," he told the mech. "But we have to be careful. Can you pull the door off?"

Glitch pulled the door off with ease, and Maddox slipped through a space in the crumpled metal to get into the pilot's compartment.

The alarm made no noise anymore, but the red lights kept flashing, and it was the only thing Maddox had to see by.

Xiomar was slumped over the wrecked console, unconscious and pale and covered in blood. There was blood all over the console too, dripping onto the floor.

"Haydn!"

His legs were pinned underneath the crushed pilots console, making it impossible for Maddox to just pull him out.

"Okay," Maddox took a few deep, slow breaths. He needed to stay calm. He did his best to try to ignore the sensation of blood under his boots. "Mech, I need you again. You're going to have to pull your broken panels off, then lift the console up enough for me to drag him out. We have to be careful, or his legs are going to be torn apart."

"Scanning now for weakened areas."

Using its scanners, and with Maddox's guidance, GLITCH managed to get ahold of the console. It gave way just enough for Maddox to drag Xiomar out of the pilots chair.

He threw him over his shoulder and climbed back out onto GLITCH hand, who lowered them slowly. About halfway to the floor, GLITCH's hand slammed to the concrete, throwing Maddox and Xiomar to the ground.

"Sync-suit link compatibility disconnected. Faulty connection due to damaged console."

"Dammit," Maddox said, forcing himself to his feet, wiping Xiomar's blood off his hands into his pants. He groaned as he lifted him again, ignoring the pain in his own body. The guy was dying—he couldn't stop.

"Stay here and stay out of sight," Maddox said to the mech. "We'll do everything we can for him."

Xiomar's body was severely damaged in many ways. He needed multiple blood transfusions, and some of his ribs were fractured and broken. He'd been operated on for internal bleeding, and his chest had been stitched and bandaged. Xiomar was paler than usual, and he wore a grimace as though he could still feel his own pain even though he was unconscious, and they had to keep him sedated so he didn't wake up and hurt himself more. Most of the upper part of his legs were dark with major bruises, and his chest heaved with every labored breath, fogging up the oxygen mask each time he exhaled.

"I wish we could ease his pain... Our supplies are so scarce now... Even the surgery was risky. He could get a horrible infection and we've got practically nothing to prevent it."

"At least he's still breathing."

"How did you find him, Maddox?" Reina asked, standing next to Maddox while they watched the medics attend to Xiomar's injuries.

"I didn't," Maddox said, his eyes intense while he chewed his fingernails. "The mech brought him here for help."

"What? You mean he managed to pilot it here with those injuries? How would he find us? Xio's never been here—no one has. My grandfather shut down this workshop decades ago. Even the Emporian Army doesn't know it's here."

"Haydn was unconscious the whole time. The mech came here on its own."

"That's impossible. Mechs aren't sentient, Maddox."

"Do you have a better explanation for how it got here while Haydn was half-dead in the pilot's chair?"

"I don't know, but Xio is gonna be pissed when he wakes up and finds out that you helped save him. You guys hate each other, don't you?"

Maddox narrowed his eyes, then turned away to leave the makeshift infirmary.

When Xiomar came to, he had no idea where he was. He was laying on his back in the dark. His head felt a bit out of sorts, like he'd been medicated. What had happened?

He sat up slowly, rubbing his shoulder. It had been bandaged, and didn't hurt as much as he remembered.

He was on an old cot in what looked like an office that hadn't been used in years. The fireplace was full of old soot, and everything was covered in a thick layer of dust aside from some footprints leading to and from the cot where he lay and the desk, which was covered in medical supplies. There were other cots with unconscious soldiers, some wrapped up like mummies in bloody bandages.

He got up slowly, clenching his teeth from the pain throughout his stiff body. He wondered how long he'd been laying on the lumpy cot.

The doorway led out onto a platform at the top of a set of stairs, overlooking a hangar. It was big, but it definitely wasn't a mech hangar—the few mechs he could see were sitting down, their heads nearly touching the ceiling.

He nearly made it all the way down the stairs, breathing heavily, before one of his knees buckled and he slipped down the last few steps. He lay at the bottom and groaned in pain.

"What was that?" a voice asked, and Xiomar struggled to his feet, his heart pounding. He didn't know where he was or who it was. Had he been captured by Zynthos?

There was movement on the other side of a door at the bottom of the stairs. When it opened, despite the pain it caused him to move, Xiomar grabbed the man. He twisted his arm and shoved him to the floor, digging his knee into his back.

"Who the fuck are you?" Xiomar asked. "Where am I?"

Someone else grabbed him from being and dragged him off the medical officer. Xiomar growled in pain, struggling to break free.

"Get off of me!"

"Haydn, what the hell are you doing?" Maddox asked. "Just calm down. No one here is your enemy."

Xiomar stopped struggling, and he let him go. There was fresh blood soaked into Xiomar's bandages, and the medical officer sighed, rubbing his back where Xiomar's knee had been.

"I wish you wouldn't move around so much, Major. You're aggravating your wounds."

"What the hell happened? Where are we?"

"Some old workshop that Reina's grandfather owned before the Great Wars." Maddox's face was badly bruised and he had stitches in his eyebrow. "You shouldn't be up yet. You got shot, and your mech's console nearly crushed you. I'm surprised you can even walk—you're lucky you didn't lose your legs."

"I'm fine," he said quietly, rubbing his bruised thigh. "What happened to everyone else?"

A dark look fell over Maddox's face.

"It's a mess," he said, running his fingers through his hair. His arm was covered in bruises and scrapes, probably from being thrown to the ground when the attack had started. "The whole base is overrun by Zynthian soldiers--every Army base in the country is. The Emporian Army is scattered. I don't know who else got out except those of us who are here. There's you, Reina, two medics, and me. We just followed Reina, and your mech found us somehow."

"We have to get back to the base, find out what they're doing, and get any of the soldiers out if there's anybody left. What about Lotharing?"

Maddox and the medic shared a strange look.

"What?" Xiomar asked, looking back and forth between them. "What happened? Is Lotharing dead?"

"No," Maddox said with a sigh, shaking his head. "Lotharing is... Well... He's been working with Zynthos. They think he might have killed Dufault. He's after that mech of yours... That's why he wanted you to fix it."

"What?" Xiomar's eyes went wide, and his shoulders shook. That couldn't be true. Lotharing was... Well, he'd been like a father to Xiomar for as long as he'd been in the army. Lotharing would never betray anyone like that. "You're out of your mind. Lotharing wouldn't—"

"Think about it, Haydn... Lotharing has been the second in command at the base for over twenty years. He was the general to the pilot of that mech. He's been around since it was built, and he was the one who wouldn't let them destroy or recycle it, even after four people died. He never even let anyone try to repair it until after you were promoted to Chief Mechanic under his recommendation to the Board. And Zynthos didn't attack until after Lotharing had seen you demonstrate what that mech could do in the arena."

"Shut up," Xiomar growled, angry tears filling his eyes. "You're wrong. I'm going to take GLITCH and find him myself if you won't help me."

He tried to push past Maddox, who grabbed him by his uninjured arm.

"Don't, Haydn," Maddox said firmly. "If you find Lotharing, you'll be handing that mech right to the Zynthian army. I can't let you--"

"You can't let me?" Xiomar let out a forced, angry laugh. "Who the fuck do you think you are? I don't answer to you! I'm the superior officer here--you answer to me!"

"Haydn, just use your head," Maddox begged. "We're trying to protect you and your mech. If the Zynthian army gets their hands on that technology... If anyone gets their hands on it, even our own army..."

"Just get away from me!" Xiomar shouted. "I don't want to hear anymore!"

"Please, calm yourself, Major Haydn," the medic said. "You're still in critical condition. Lieutenant Maddox, please, stop upsetting him. His body isn't strong enough for this right now."

Maddox let out a loud frustrated sigh. Then, he got angry and punched the concrete wall.

"Fine then! Believe whatever the hell you want! Go ahead and get your dumb ass killed by the Zynthian Army. Don't say I didn't warn you."