Chapter 14: First contact.

All the synthetics were on the ground, struggling to get up amidst the mass. Each tried to stand up without crushing those close to them, with varying degrees of success. However, a voice from the loudspeakers interrupted them.

"We're going to make a detour, the first shuttle is no longer sending out a signal. Probable destruction."

Each android stared at its comrades. All were in a different position, but motionless, as if time had frozen for an instant. As the shuttle began to move again without warning, the synthetics were thrown to the ground again, then forced to stand up completely to avoid falling again, and crushing their comrades in misfortune.

The journey was made in thoughtful silence, interrupted only by the noise made by the imperfect electromagnetic gravity inhibitors, which allowed the shuttle to float. In addition to the occasional jets of pressurized oxygen and hydrogen, allowing the shuttle to maintain its altitude, lose some, or gain some, despite its small stature and lack of apparent engine or propeller.

* * *

The shuttle didn't start landing until much later. The doors through which the androids had entered opened wide. Beyond the door frames lay a desert dotted with prefabricated buildings and military tents brimming with energy. Ancient, archaic robots were busy transporting objects from the various tents to the buildings, all in the midst of a large number of military personnel moving in and out of the camp in a uniform rotation. Each wearing equipment more than suited to warfare.

A soldier wearing fatigues trimmed with several medals quickly approached the group of androids left to their own devices without instruction, and addressed them in a stern, authoritative voice.

"All of you, follow me, take your equipment and wait for instructions.

The soldier then put on his glasses, which lit up almost immediately after he pressed the side of them, displaying a few icons where his glasses should be. Although these icons were almost impossible to discern for Alice and the others, as he looked so small. The military man then began to advance in the direction of several tents without saying another word, passing by androids wearing dated equipment, rusty in places, and humans all looking alike, wearing equipment only slightly more recent.

These people stood in stark contrast to all the other soldiers wearing rank uniforms, or reinforced armour at the cutting edge of technology. Yet all these people were staring at them from nearby tents, obviously waiting for the newcomers. This uncomfortable atmosphere was broken by the military man pointing to the tent in front of him.

"Your equipment is in there, so hurry up and put it on.

All the androids entered the tent, removing the sheets covering the few crates containing old equipment similar to that worn by the other androids, creating in some a slight exclamation, or a hint of disappointment.

Nevertheless, each of them slipped on the equipment reserved for them over their clothes. They fastened the imposing torso tack plate with thick straps on the back, itself covered by a few very old Riftine plates barely as strong as diamond, covering the entire back once the straps were fastened to provide minimal protection in case of escape, while remaining light. They then donned the rest of the armor, covering almost their entire bodies apart from their heads, helmets being absent from the equipment available in the tent. All tried to keep calm, but this relative calm was interrupted by the crying of a child, screaming in the distance.

All the androids gradually emerged from the tent, staring at the child who looked to be no more than eight years old, crying in the arms of another android with purple hair, strangely reminiscent of Alice. She tried to calm him as dated equipment, too large for the child, lay at his feet.

"What's a child doing here?"

One of the black-haired androids asked in a voice filled with surprise and disbelief, staring at the child with his green eyes, as he emerged from the tent, his equipment barely adjusted.

The androids didn't know what to say, looking at each other in turn, before a military man in heavy gray integral armor was drawn in by the crying. He grabbed the child by the collar with one hand to force him to his feet, and threw down the equipment with the other, speaking in a deep voice modified by the thickness of the full body armor.

"Hurry up and put this on, or you'll be sent to the front with nothing. Don't you at least want a chance to survive out there?"

The child looked at the man in armor, crying even more than before. He tried to adjust the armor to fit his frail little body. Unfortunately, it fell again, leaving the child on the ground, holding a few pieces of the armor in his hands, trying to contain his tears.

Seeing this, the soldier sighed, pulling out a bright blue knife, which seemed to vibrate at every turn as it came out of its sheath, yet remained motionless. He then reached for the armor's torso, cutting a few straps with ease, albeit in an approximate manner. Once the straps were shortened, he stared at the child, then at the other parts of the amure, far too big for him, knowing that even if they shortened them it still wouldn't fit, before sighing again.

"At least try putting this on, the rest isn't that important to survive."

The military man then stepped forward into the middle of the tents, speaking in a strong, authoritative voice.

"Have all the clones and androids line up in front of me so I can see everyone! My name is Rakta, and you're all under my command for the time being, I'll be the one assigning you your roles and assigning you your units."

Rakta paused for a moment, letting the crowd of around three hundred gather in an orderly fashion, then pointed to several places where people with the same appearance were waiting. They all wore more recent equipment than the clones and androids gathered in front of Rakta, but still looked dated compared to Rakta's armor.

"I'm going to divide you into eight bodies according to your knowledge and usefulness. As you know, practice beats theory, so forcing knowledge into an android is only marginally effective until it's used to the task in hand, and the variables it may encounter. So this system is designed to separate you and not waste your talents."

Rakta observed the attentive crowd, then glanced briefly at the child who was watching him, tears in his eyes. Although the child tried to remain calm so as not to disrupt the speech, Rakta eventually looked away, his expression turning somber as he pondered, then spoke again.

"Let anyone with engineering or mechanical skills step forward."

After a few seconds' hesitation, fourteen people stepped forward in front of Rakta, who stared at them before forming three groups, and designating them in turn.

"You five will go to the abyssal colonies, we need engineers in case things get complex here, and the underwater abyss is one of the safest areas we've colonized."

Rakta then pointed to one of the areas where an armored clone was waiting.

"The other group of five, go just next door on the left, no real shelter has been provided for humans on Mars, so you go there, reinforcements are needed. And the other four, go to the right of the first group, you'll go to work in the underground shelters."

Rakta stared briefly at the androids lined up in their assigned slots, before giving a new order.

"Is there a doctor present? If so, bring him forward."

The crowd remained silent, no one moving, leaving Rakta to sigh before speaking again.

"For the rest, you'll be divided into three groups. Each group will have a specific mission, which I'll tell you about. Each group will have to work with the others. An army where each group fights alone is nothing more than a target group on a battlefield, so even if I don't mention your squad, listen carefully because you may need it later."

Rakta paused briefly, taking a deep breath before continuing her speech.

"I want fifty of the androids present as reinforcements in the Vanguard department. The possible presence of radiation prevents us from sending men deep into the field, and we don't have enough clones to send them. Your role will therefore be to confirm or deny the presence of radiation, and to let us know the enemy's positions. If there aren't enough volunteers, I'll designate who goes. It's the riskiest place on the battlefield, but also the most rewarding, and with the least amount of time in the field, it's far more interesting than you might think, I guarantee it."

A deep silence was the only response, barely broken by about thirty people coming forward, forcing Rakta to point with a reluctant hand to twenty more androids, leaving Alice in the mass without affectation. Immediately afterwards, Rakta spoke again.

"Right...All those remaining will go with the majority Clones to the front line, except the child, the purple-haired woman guarding him, and you three."

Rakta pointed to three people in the crowd at random, before speaking again.

"You'll go to logistics, they don't really need reinforcements, but if there's a problem we'll need extra hands. The other clones will go to the second line, you already know your assignments. Now, all of you, go to your ranks."

As soon as Rakta's speech was over, all the clones started marching, forming ranks, which created a crowd among the androids who followed them so as not to find themselves isolated. Alice also followed suit, joining the ranks of those going to the front of the line. She awaited instructions with remarkable calm, as did the clones. The clone commander at the front of the line, equipped with the best gear, quickly spoke up once the androids were positioned in front of him, preventing any trembling or frightened-looking synthetics from collapsing under the mounting stress.

"I'm serial number 231, and will temporarily be your leader. All clones prepare to leave, androids, you follow me, we'll teach you weapons handling."

The clone then left without even turning around, forcing the few androids who were late to run and follow him into one of the few buildings near the tents.

Matricule 231 stopped only after arriving in front of a machine similar to the android recharging stations, although the recharging cable was much thicker, and the stations were swarming with cables running into the surrounding walls. He then spoke, an inexpressive face characterizing him.

"Enter these stations, and they'll integrate the information you need via the memories of an ex-military man stored in our databases. Once you've got the knowledge you need, join me at the entrance. You'll assimilate your skills later - we don't have time for that here."

As soon as Matricule 231 stepped outside, the androids began to whisper, reluctant to enter the machines. Finally, Alice and a few others used them. They plugged in the cable by removing a cover in the middle of their spines. The machines began to glow green, causing the androids who had entered them to mechanically close their eyes, before a violent pain assailed them. The pain was such that all were writhing in agony, the least resistant even screaming.

Alice was no exception, tensing up in pain, barely holding back her screams, before everything suddenly stopped and she reopened her eyes, looking around in confusion. Alice staggered out of the now colorless machine, nearly falling several times as she joined their leader outside, closely followed by other androids. Some were perfectly calm, while others fell to the ground, unable to get up.

* * *

After arriving in front of a shuttle accompanied by the synthetics, matricule 231 stopped. He pointed at the transport shuttle already full of clones, staring at the androids who didn't know what to do.

"Enter, we're two minutes behind schedule."

"And you're taking us where?"

Asked an android with black hair and green eyes.

"To the front."

Replied the commander in an inexpressive voice, as other androids entered the shuttle, some staggering, others being carried by their comrades. Alice was among the first on board, settling into a corner where there were fewer people. But she was soon surrounded by other androids. The shuttle doors closed almost immediately after matricule 231 came aboard.

* * *

The journey passed in a silence just as heavy as the previous one. The androids tried to remain calm, and to regain their composure following the forced infusion of knowledge into them. They timidly introduced themselves to one another, while the clones remained perfectly impassive, simply waiting for the shuttle to land, apart from one who seemed to be chatting with the more stressed androids.

It wasn't until the clones had landed and opened the main door that activity began to show in their eyes. They were on the move before they were even ordered to, urging the androids to follow them into a deserted area if they didn't want to be left to their own devices.

But as everyone stopped in front of the shuttle, the clone commander spoke up.

"The front is close, and any approach by air would mean death. So we'll continue on foot. Just keep up with the clones, we're close to the front line."

The group walked for several long minutes, until several tents and prefabricated buildings surrounded by barbed wire, as well as trenches filled with soldiers posted in defense, came into view in the distance.

The interior of the camp resembled the last one they'd been in, except that it was much smaller, with an intense heat that seemed to completely cover it, and the smell of perspiration from its occupants. There were more tents and fewer buildings, in favor of the trenches and defenses surrounding the camp. All this almost made you forget the countless shell holes on the ground, and the traces of blood, mingled with bullet casings outside the camp that hadn't yet dried out, or the piles of broken and destroyed fences that had been left abandoned in every conceivable way.

Without a word, Matricule 231 made his way through the camp, straight into the only imposing building with an antenna on it, before stopping at the entrance to order his group to wait outside.

A few minutes later, he emerged from the building, accompanied by a man in a white coat. He stepped forward, handing a worn, sometimes blood-stained device to each clone, who nodded in return. At this point the man in the white coat approached the androids, a device resembling a cross between an android charging station socket and a USB stick in hand, before speaking in a tired, monotone voice.

"Please show me your ICR ports, and I'll insert a program so we can communicate with you."

All the androids then turned around, removing the torso from their armor before revealing their spines by slightly lifting the back of their clothing. Once this was done, the scientist inserted his device into their ports, causing a slight pain in each android once the device was removed.

Almost immediately after all the androids had put their armor back on, a voice echoed in their heads as Matricule 231 was silently positioned in front of the troop of clones at the camp's main entrance. All of them were carrying various bloody and unkempt old weapons from his hands, wearing a determined look.

"Unit 451, this is your Commander-in-Chief Jhon Shards. My role will be to relay your orders, and known enemy positions."

A silence was the only response to the commander's word, before Matricule 231 replied in a determined voice.

"What are your orders, Commanders?"

"I like that attitude, squad leader. Your first mission will be simple: to assist a squad in difficulty in the 3rd sector."

John paused slightly, catching his breath as only the frantic sound of his tapping on a screen could be heard.

"I'm transmitting the data to you. Your objective, then, is to rescue survivors and contain the threat before it reaches our camps."

"Received."

Matricule 231 replied, before gesturing to his group. He was soon followed closely by the clones, as they moved ahead of him with determined steps. He left all the weapons he was holding behind, while the androids, confused, followed him, picking up one of the weapons left on the ground. Some of the androids were even holding their heads in pain from the transmission of data to their databases.

However, the clones tightened their grip on the small bags each carried, containing only a few provisions, as they moved forward at a determined pace, while the androids, devoid of any equipment other than their weapons, felt the stress creeping up on them with each new step.

* * *

The squad marched silently through the desert surrounding them, where only dried traces of blood bore witness to past conflicts. Some tracks were fresher than others, although no bodies could be seen. Long journeys seemed to have become commonplace. However, just a few minutes later, the sound of gunfire, followed by bestial howls unlike anything this planet had ever borne, broke the silence of the journey. What's more, they seemed to mingle with the ever-decreasing human howls, a sign that the group had reached its objective. Matricule 231 tightened his grip on his weapon at the sound of the shouts, giving the group a quick signal to pick up the pace.

The squad quickly arrived at the scene of the screams, running between android corpses split in two, the other half of which was nowhere to be seen apart from a few severed arms and legs here and there, displaying the clearly severed mechanical structure of the bodies. Not far away, a small number of distant silhouettes struggled against several indescribably black shapes.

The scene stunned several androids, paralyzed by the fear of moving forward, as the clones continued without expression, rapidly outpacing those androids who had not followed them. Distant silhouettes became clearer as they approached, revealing a jet-black creature swallowing the upper half of one of the androids they were supposed to save, slicing its body clean through, leaving only its lower half inert on the ground, in what was now a heavy silence.