The front and back doors of the house burst into splinters. Elias feels the light inside of him go haywire. The world seems to slow down. Something mechanical is climbing out of a suitcase from the front door. It has a dozen arms like black spaghetti noodles gripping both sides of the door frame. A single black eye in the center of its forehead snaps to each person in the house. It stands up on two metal dog legs to a height just higher than the top of the door. Black metallic ribs wrap around its plated torso.
Essence slams around from one extremity to the other as Elias quivers at the sight of the robot before him and the one stomping in through the back door of the kitchen. An officer stands behind the robot at the front door with a shotgun leveled at them. Elias hears another officer step in the back door.
Elias feels like a balloon about to burst as the frantic energy inside him screams at every appendage to move. His heart is pumping gallons of raw adrenaline through his system and his eyes flick to each movement of the tentacle arms, then the shotgun. He snaps his head around and sees the assault rifle behind him.
He looks at the old woman and remembers her words. Have they really come for me this fast? Angel is frozen in place her face pale as the full moon. The sight of her fear fills Elias with rage. Gerald looks furious as well. The old man steps forward and one of the arms from the bot snaps out smacking Gerald in the chest. The old man flies back toward the fireplace and nearly lands in it.
*
“Get down on the floor now!” Brad screams pointing his shotgun at Angel.
Hunter strafes to the side to get a clear view of the occupants. He scans the living room and sees the elderly couple first, then the homeless boy, and at last he sees Angel. The girl with the spiked hair. He recognizes her from somewhere and his mind tries to flick through his memories. She is holding something behind her back, a knife. Hunter raises his rifle toward her.
The old man lurches toward the lead Bunker Buster and is slapped out of the way with extreme prejudice. The secondary Bunker Buster crosses in front of Hunter and blocks his view as it scrambles into the living room. Hunter leans over to get his eyes back on the object Angel is holding when the homeless boy turns his head toward Hunter and looks him in the eyes, a chill runs down Hunter’s spine. The blue eyes that are looking at him are glowing bright and the boy's teeth are clenched tight.
Hunter tries to raise his rifle at the boy but the boy leaps over the lead Bunker Buster and tackles Brad back out the front door, all while staring down Hunter. He sprang in a moment, like a panther from the bushes on a gazelle. Brad, surprised fires his shotgun into the ceiling as he falls back out the door. The lead Buster responds to the higher threat by doubling back to attack the boy. The secondary alters course toward the front door as well.
The kid rips the shotgun from Brad’s hands and flings it over his back striking the lead bot right in the face. The bot stumbles to the side and before it can right its balance the secondary slams into it. Both bots crash into the wall and a rain of plaster comes tumbling down. The kid thrashes around on top of Brad landing a half dozen punches in a matter of a heartbeat but his feet aren’t planted, and Brad flings the boy off with a thrust of his hips. Hunter misses the shot and nearly hits his partner. Three rounds burst out before Hunter even realizes he has squeezed the trigger.
Angel, forgotten in the chaos shoves Hunter to the side as she slashes his cheek with the knife. Then she bolts out the door stepping on Brad’s crotch to make the turn. Hunter lands on his side and sees Angel disappear around the busted door frame then nearly gets stomped on by the pair of tangled robots. A metallic foot slams down an inch from his nose then another lands behind his head and he imagines the pumpkin he stomped on as a kid. Covering his face with both hands he scrambles out of the way.
*
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Elias hits the ground hard as the officer flings him off onto the sidewalk. His shoulder screams in pain for an instant and the light rushes toward it. He groans and holds his arm for a few seconds before the pain eases and he feels some of the light vanish. He climbs to his feet and Angel slams into him from behind.
They both stumble from the collision, “Run, get to the truck.” Angel yells running toward the garage. Elias looks back at the house and sees the officer he tackled holding his crotch and rocking side to side.
Angel turns at the front corner of the house and slides to a stop in front of the garage door. She grabs the handle and heaves the wooden door up. Scrambling around the side of the truck she flings herself inside and starts the truck.
The light has faded by nearly half inside of Elias, but he stands filled with a rage that makes his hair stand up. He can hear the robots inside crashing around. He can see in his mind’s eye the robot striking Gerald and imagines them attacking Ester now, all because of him. He feels as if he could breathe fire. He clenches his fist and is about to charge toward the house when one of the robots' peers out the door down at the fallen officer.
Elias is about to pounce when something hits him from behind and knocks him on his face.
“Sorry, sorry,” Angel says. “Get in, hurry.”
Elias spits grass out of his mouth and looks back to see a black Cierra Navigator where he had been standing a moment ago.
The robot lands on his back and he is engulfed by a dozen snake arms in an instant. It is squeezing him too tight. His ribs are cracking. His jaw breaks. He can’t move his arms and even his scream is choked out as the arms wrap tighter around him. The light is frantic inside him like a cornered mouse.
He sees the truck flinging grass up from the yard as Angel drives right toward him. He is going to die. He should panic, and fight like a badger, but he just stills and accepts his fate. The robot unspools several of its arms and holds them out to block the truck but the bumper smashes into the bot. The robot rolls off of Elias using all of its arms to resist the truck as it passes over them. Elias watches as the motor passes just above him and the front tire slides to a stop just in front of his face. The robot is wedged under the front bumper and twitches a few times.
Elias pulls himself out from under the truck. He sees the officer on the porch climbing to his feet. The second bot is coming out the door. A loud bang rings his ears and he sees the rifle behind the secondary bot. Elias feels three horse kicks to his stomach. He falls back against the side of the truck.
The other bot is coming now. Elias sees it but the light is moving slower now. He feels like he might puke and something hot is soaking the front of his shirt and pants. The bot leaps off the porch its dozen black arms whipping wildly as it runs toward Elias. Ester appears at the side of the officer with the rifle, striking him over the head with a cane.
Elias feels sluggish, like he's drowning in an overwhelming sea of emotions—shame, sadness, and an impotent anger. He collapses to his knees, his ears still ringing from the shots fired. He gazes at the house, the place where he had sought refuge but had brought turmoil instead. He feels like a helpless bystander in his own life.
Falling to his knees, Elias mourns the destruction of their tranquil home and contemplates the chaos he's inadvertently unleashed. He feels detached, as if he's watching a tragic play unfold before him.
As the charging bot leaps toward him with its myriad of writhing arms, Elias braces himself for the inevitable. He's filled with a profound sorrow, and he wonders if he'll ever see his friends again. His vision blurs as he accepts his grim fate.
Then, the world shifts. The robot attempts to block the path of the speeding truck, but the bumper slams into it. The mechanical monstrosity is crushed under the front of the truck, its limbs twitching in their final throes.
Elias manages to pull himself out from under the truck, gasping for breath, his body battered and bruised. He glimpses the officer on the porch, struggling to stand, while the second bot emerges from the house. A deafening gunshot reverberates through his ears, and pain courses through his abdomen as if he's been kicked by a herd of horses. He staggers back against the truck, his vision blurred.
The other bot is swiftly approaching, its multitude of arms flailing wildly as it sprints toward Elias. Time seems to stretch, and Elias feels an overpowering urge to vomit. He senses something hot soaking through his shirt and pants. The bot leaps off the porch, its dark, sinuous arms menacingly reaching for him.
Elias closes his eyes, bracing for the inevitable impact. In this moment of impending doom, he's consumed by a storm of emotions, wondering if this is the end. Then the blessed darkness wraps him up in its cold embrace.