There were people falling from the sky.
The Photon Cannons were reporting their targets and their hit ratio. 75%.
If I hadn't just covered the hills with a stupid number of defenses, or if the fire rate of the cannons was slower, some of the invaders might have survived to hit the ground.
The were no AV's in their detection range.
How did they get above us?
Then I remembered an article I read once.
HALO jumps, it had to be.
They were jumping from low orbit. From a station, an AV, or a shuttle?
Either way that's fucking insane. How kind of crazy fool does that?
But they would have ground forces moving in. Between having to target both forces, the cannons would be overwhelmed one by one. And from everything I'd managed to gather the Corps could just keep pouring people into the fight. There was no victory to be had.
Discovery was defeat.
I should have waited...grrr, not the time.
I ordered the cannons to target the buildings in turns. I left the first two Pylons and the cannons which would fight to the end. I couldn't allow any Corp to get their hands on Khalai tech.
The buildings were detonated, the explosions were massive. Worse, I could feel it. Inside.
I turned my focus to driving as fast as I could, in the dark and over uneven terrain, it required all my attention.
A report came through of the first ground forces coming in. As it was expected, I ignored it.
A few minutes later two AVs were on my tail and I couldn't shake them.
They kept firing at us, but I'd somehow avoided everything so far.
I heard the Probes communicating, but I couldn't focus on it enough to understand the rapid messaging between them.
Having to juke and weave, I didn't notice two more AVs cut across my path.
They forced me into a rock. No.
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The crash jarred my thoughts.
I slowly got out. I pulled the Omaha knowing I couldn't exactly hope to achieve much with it.
The Probes were surrounding me. Undetected in the darkness.
Spot lights hit me from four different directions.
"Stand down! Put the weapon down and lay on the ground, we promise you won't be harmed further."
The technology in my head was too valuable, I couldn't let them take me. I was pretty sure I'd never last under any kind of torture.
I put the barrel of the Omaha against my temple.
The Probes beeped furiously, "Executor, no!"
They had reached a consensus, "We have this."
My mind could sense their confidence, and I chose to trust them. the Omaha fell to my side.
"That right. Toss it on the ground." The Authoritative voice from before.
The Probes scattered one to each AV.
What were they doing? They attached to each Vehicle.
They all reached out to my mind, 'It has been an honor, Executor Ryan!'
I felt their resolve. Resolve for what?
Their Beeps rang out in harmony, four voices as one.
"MY LIFE FOR EARTH!"
A purity of purpose flooded the Psifield.
They detonated their cores. Their end resonated in my mind.
A hammer drove me into the ground, and darkness greeted me.
My eyes opened and the sun burned them, it had just peeked over the horizon.
Moments passed while I tried to gather my thoughts.
What?
Why?
Barry, Chuck, Fix and Scuff gone. My little robo buddies were gone.
The Corpo scum cost me my friends.
{They would pay.}
At the end, I felt how alive they were, their drives and purpose. Their hopes and dreams.
How could a robot have dreams? I didn't understand, but I couldn't deny that they were real.
I picked my sorry ass up. Grabbed my gun and started marching in the direction of those cursed towers.
Other assholes would be coming to search the area, and I needed to be gone before they did.
Eventually, I made it to the Sunset Motel.
For a second, I thought about going inside to get a drink or just rest for a few minutes.
Instead, I got in the Supron after patting each of the six unnamed Probes. They beeped greetings, "En Taro Adun, Executor."
A pall of sadness hung over me.
Meadran had tried to contact me several time on the trek here. I didn't want to talk about it.
But it could be important, and avoiding the issue would just make it fester.
Besides, last chance before heading back into the cesspit of NC.
'Meadran.' I tried to convey calm.
'Young One. I'm sorry.' His words weren't the important part, it was ages of loss. Watching his people burning, feeling the death of his parent trees. Centuries of war and death encapsulated into a few words.
He understood and that was a kindness, I didn't think I deserved.
'Any word of the others?' Focus on other things for now.
'Nothing definitive. The defenses of the outpost still hold for now, but a few gaps have been opened and the enemy has begun pushing harder.' He paused.
'No word of the Nomads has passed through the local Arasaka servers.' That was likely good news.
'All communications indicate a lack of understanding of our capabilities. Also any Khalai structure that wasn't fully formed was invisible to them.' Best news possible out of this mess.
I sighed.
'Alright, I'm going to go get a few things and I'll return as quickly as I can. We need to formulate a different approach.' A way to undercut them to destroy everything they own.
'Revenge can be a tricky thing, Young One.' That implied so much more, I could barely catch the edges of his thoughts.
'I know. I'll take it slow, dig the roots in deep, and wait for the right moment to strike.' I would practice patience.
'See you soon, Meadran' I started the Supron.
'Be careful, Young One.'
Once again I headed toward Night City, with a burning rage.
What terrible crap would I see this time?