It looks like Sunny and the mining drones were already out and at it. He always did get up early. Gretta, my mech, stood behind the engineering trailer. In the inner circle was Alexandria’s hover RV, my unused RV trailer, and Miles’s hover exploration home/ RV. All three of them formed an equilateral triangle in the middle of camp. We had set up a campfire and seating area next to an outdoor kitchen. I moseyed to the campfire and outdoor kitchen and grabbed myself a cup of synkaf, no point in suffering without stimulants on account of my social anxiety.
With the caffeine starting to rush to my veins, I reviewed the progress I had made yesterday as I walked back to my workstation. The PPC engineering trailer computer reported that all systems were nominal on the Squad Leader borg-synth unit. ‘Course I had to hack the interface to even get it to recognize scavenged cybernetic equipment from half a dozen manufacturers, so I wasn't going to put that much faith in the simple computer’s analysis. The problem was, that while I refactored the primary and backup control logic on my synth yesterday, I had a sneaking suspicion that it would still crash after 12 hours of operation. Welp nothing to it but to get onto field tests. I closed my notes to Big Fe and got ready for a field trip.
I sent a quick μwave RF message to Sunny and Miles and told them I was taking a squad east to test out the new software. They didn't love it when I wandered away from camp but usually the fact that I took 10 fully kitted out synths with upgraded armor and weapons, mollified their fears. Plus I wasn't dumb enough to turn the tracker off in my armor suit. I issued mental commands (being born a psychic in this post war world had its advantages), and the doors on Kombi-bus #1 opened. Five BDwerks? Chaparralito Roadrunner suits of power armor and 5 Under All Inc. ? Grasshopper Interdictor suits tramped out in unison. The armor was primarily used to disguise the cybernetic based syths that we had captured or salvaged over the past 2 years. The great unpleasantness around California was a target rich environment for treasure hunters and salvagers. With a bit of the local Black Market help, we might have availed ourselves to a lot of post war ‘surplus.’ From the outside it would look like a professional squad of soldiers or adventurers. The Snyth has a ‘ganic setting that made them move and react in a somewhat natural manner. The Chaparralito Roadrunner power power suits were sleek, moderately armored and built to keep up with most land vehicles over reasonable terrain. They were dusty brown camouflage in color with sharp angles to, frankly, make it look faster. Alternatively the Grasshopper Interdictor suits were designed to mount full size jet packs and provide aerial support and cover. While I great idea I could only afford the version with jump packs, so these suits could hop, and hover only momentarily. But it was enough to provide better visibility and considerable mobility.
We had refurbished and turned over most of the gear we found to our BDwerks? Black Market sponsors. But we kept enough to provide a nice revenue stream, if needed, and camp security for the foreseeable future.
>>But that adventure is for another time. Right Big Fe?>>
The Grasshopper synths were equipped with modern Rosatom General Energy? Pulsed Particle Guns (RGE PPG) in 10mm rifle configurations. These Hopper-synths - I know, great name right Fe? - were designed for scouting and picket screening. The Chaparralito -not at all a black market knock off of a commendable Under All Inc. ? suit that I cannot legally mention- equipped synths were armed with older but reliable 20 gram gauss rifles. These synths were designed to guard & protect the camp 24/7. Another squad of 10 of them patrolled the outer camp ring constantly. That brought my fully functioning numbers to 20 combat synths with 2 additional ‘smart’ squad leaders.
As we set out heading east, I ordered the Hopper-synths to range ahead and search for, but not engage, any prey. I ordered the Road-synths to primarily protect me, and secondarily follow any commands from the Squad Leader synth. The idea, of course, was to have a more intelligent synth leader manage and order the more typical, dumb basic synths, and increase the lethality and survivability. It didn't help that I had no direct combat experience, but it did help that I had the best software that the various corps, the American Empire, and the Black Market had created. It didn't matter if I salvaged, borrowed, or purchased it, the combat routines were mine to tinker with. I hacked together a leader synth that would assess, prioritize and adapt to changing battle conditions, at least in theory.
We continued our trek east, a direction I picked for no good reason, and began to walk through the rolling foothills of the old Sonoran Desert. The skeletal cedar and mesquite trees provided minimal cover but added a morbid splash of necrotic color on the otherwise monochromatic rusty brown landscape. We patrolled for 2 hours before the squad leader issued a pause-all command. I knew that he had received a heads up from the Hopper-synths that ranged ahead, but I didn't peek at the payload, I wanted to observe and take notes.
I would upload my field notes to Big Fe when I got back to camp but for now I began to record and watch.
- Round 0: Squad-Leader-#001 to Road-synth#1-#5 move to the upper ridge at designated point Ambush A.
- Round 0: Squad-Leader-#001 to Hopper-synth#1-#4 move to loiter position flanking Road-synths at point Ambush A.
- Round 0: Squad-Leader-#001 to Hopper-synth#5 engage hostile and draw back to point Ambush A.
A loud grunt echoed from the next ridge line as the Grasshopper equipped synth sprung into view. A few blasts struck the face of a massive 4 legged monstrosity. It towered over 6m tall and nearly 12m long. It had 4 massive legs, a giant knobby shell on its back, and a massive tail that ended in a pair of fearsome spikes. The head was tipped by 3 massive spikes. “That’s a Tyrannosaurus ” I involuntarily gasped.
“Hostile engaged,” my Squad Leader announced, >>Note: perhaps unnecessarily chatter Big Fe? Do we really want to proclaim our intentions out loud?>>
- Round 1: Squad-Leader-#001 to Hopper-synth#5 lure hostile for flanking fire.
- Round 1: Squad-Leader-#001 to Road-synth#1-#5 && Hopper-synth #1-#4. Hold fire until hostile is 50% across the collective field of view. Target tagged vulnerability location Beta.
The lead Hopper-synth continued to lope, jump, and run across the depression in front of the ridge. I stepped back several steps behind the line of road-synths. The hiss from the luring synth continued for a few rounds before the remaining 10 bots all opened fire on the front right leg of the monstrous dinosaur. The snap-boom sound of the accelerated slugs joined the sizzling hiss of plasma as 10 weapons opened up as one. To be honest, it looked like only 60% of synths were able to hit the called target but at least 90% hit the beast. >>Note to Big Fe, need to work on individual and collective targeting.>>
- Round 2: Squad-Leader#001 to Hopper-synth#5 continue 50m forward and lure.
- Round 2: Squad-Leader#001 to Road-synth#1-#5 && Hopper-synth #1-#4. Cease fire.
- Round 2: Squad-Leader#001 to Hopper-synth#1 prepare to engage and reverse the lure for flanking fire.
The tyrannosaurus dinosaur limped slightly but was fixated on the fleeing Hopper-synth that had been antagonizing it. As soon as the fire stopped and the Hopper-synth had continued past the ridge line, it jumped and continued to hover well above the monster.The jets of air buffeting the dust and ground beneath the machine. A burst of plasma pulses began to hit the rear of the dinosaur and it immediately whirled around. Another, identical Hopper-synth was weaving low to the ground and continued to fire. The dinosaur shook its head and charged the synth on the other side of the firing line.
- Round 3: Squad-Leader-#001 to Road-synth#1-#5 && Hopper-synth #2-#5. Hold fire until hostile is 50% across collective field of view. Target tagged vulnerability Alpha.
As soon as the giant monster thudded across the chewed up terrain the synths again collectively opened fire: plasma fire, and larger but supersonic slugs raked the head of the charging beast. After fire analysis indicated a reduction in accuracy. It looks like 40% managed to hit the designated head, but this time 100% of all fire hit the beast, at least somewhere.
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
>>Big Fe, I will need to correlate burst fire, hip shot, and aimed accuracy performance.>>
As the second Hopper-synth to play lure surged up and flew out of reach, the dinosaur reared up on its 2 hind legs, and pivoted toward the firing line where the Squad Leader, Road-synths, remaining Hopper-synths and, gulp, I were standing. The beast hit the ground, lowered its head, and charged the ridge line. I began reversing perpendicularly away from the possible carnage. All the Hopper-synths took to the air, and 4 out of the 5 Road-synths managed to get out of the way. Their slick power armor greatly boosted their already cybernetic strength and 2 jumped down the ridge, 3 ran up the hill. The last to move was about to roll out of the way when the wounded leg of the dinosaur gave way, and the 12m long beast shoulder checked the 2m synth. It went flying right toward me! The road-synth’s legs closelined me, even as I stood back 5m from the scuffle. I went down and the air was knocked out of me. From my suboptimal vantage point I could see the beast lower its head, the giant bony battering ram was heading straight toward my Squad-Leader! And the synth appeared to be completely frozen. I was more bummed by the pending damage to my hard work than any minor injury I might have incurred. I can heal after all, and I was deadening the pain, psychically, anyway. The leader-synth’s left shoulder was sheared in half as the leading spike pierced clean through the machine. The dinosaur threw its head into the air and my precious synth flew straight up. As I continued to lay on my side clutching my ribs, I couldn't help but wonder if I should have made the Squad Leader a flyer synth instead of a ground ‘bot to start.
With a muted crunch the synth returned to earth, the limbs all pointed in different directions. But it looked like the sensors in the head and the control modules in the spine were still intact. More amazingly the synth began to issue orders.
- Round 4: Squad-Leader-#001 to Road-synth#1-#2 confirm functional check; retrieve Prime and retreat 300m. && Road-synth#3-#5 Ignore functional check, trail Prime and provide screening cover, Fullbore maneuver authorized.
- Round 4: Squad-Leader-#001 to Hopper-bot #1-#5. Confirm functional. Ascend. Engage hostile at will, Fullbore maneuver authorized.
The two synths picked me up by my arms and dragged me further down the field away from the rampaging monster. After 4 more rounds of continuous fire, this time pulses of plasma fire, and bursts of kinetic slugs and the dinosaur breathed its last. The beast had been furiously running back and forth between the flying Hopper-Synth and the quickly running Road-synth who were leading it away from me. It hadn’t been able to score any more direct hits on my synths. While others might complain that shooting from the air was unsporting or inhumane, I was more worried about the tactical changes that contaminated my data collection. Going Fullbore allowed the synths to go for full potential strength, speed, and weapons fire, things any humans in power armor or even partial-cyborgs likely couldn't match. I would have to evaluate the results back at camp…, after I had my chest checked out.
As the Hopper-synths fell to the ground to cool their ducted jets, I ordered the Road-synths to return to the corpse. I had limited need to butcher the beast but I know a few key pieces were worth our time. The synths quickly swarmed the body, using nano-knives they removed the 3 horns and several sections of less damaged hide. As they were wrapping up, I hobbled over to my experimental subject, and inspected my poor Squad-Leader. The damage seemed to be structural and, thankfully, could be easily repaired. The freezing behavior, however, was well ahead of the 12 hour window and as such was atypical, warranting further study. I might have a clue buried in its logs, somewhere. I ordered 2 Road-synths to carry my Squad Leader, and *ahem* one Road-synth to fireman-carry me back to camp.
>>Big Fe, promise not to tell anyone please.>>
The Hopper-synths resumed their screening picket and we tromped back to camp, arriving uneventfully at lunchtime.
I knew Sunny and Miles would be worried if I didn't check in, and mad if I didn't tell them I got banged up. So, I decided to head over to Miles’s home/ lab. With a thought I had the squad of synths drop off the Squad-Leader in bay #2, the dinosaur parts at the end of our largest Kombi-max truck, and return themselves to storage on the bus. They would stand down and run a self diagnosis that I could check later.
Miles’s RV/ home/ lab was out of this world. Literally. The sleek hover vessel was clearly alien and clearly far ahead of anything we could create on Earth. If he wasn't in the middle of this Quad-forsaken wasteland he might have to worry about corpo espionage or worse. He explained that he got it back where he originally came from, the so-called Concordat Assembly not to be confused with the Elven Kingdoms. Frankly it sounded a lot messier, and crazier than home here. ‘Course as a country girl, I couldn't imagine a city with a million people let alone nearly a billion! Being a long lived elf, Miles has served in the Assembly armed forces. After he had done his time, he returned to his research of bio-mechanical life and its disinclination to magical aptitudes, I think. Evidently, he was a bit of a rebel, his parents wanted him to follow in their prestigious magical lineage, but after a few years, he up and left, joined the military and never went back. But that was ancient history, as far as I know. He met my father on one of my dad’s field operations, when he wasn't busy leading the BDwerks? power armor division. So, yeah, my dad created all the original knock off’s as well as a few original suits of power armor that DBworks sells. People who say reversing engineering is easy and cheating, has clearly never done it. >>You know how proud of my dad I am, Big Fe, don't you.>> It was on one field op that daddy saved Miles’s life. They adventured together, for a while, and Miles will do some work for the Black Market on and off. He isn't a full member like the rest of us, but he does gig medical and scientific work, from time to time.
As I walked up, painfully, to the port-side airlock I keyed the call button. “Uh, Dr. VanBright, err, Miles. Can I come in? I got a little banged up and wanted you to check me out.”
I knew they were going to scold me, but really I was careful, and we all survived. Ish.
Both inner and outer airlock doors slid open and a tall blond-haired elf in a lab coat looked at me over his scientific multi-glasses. His skin was the lightest shade of green- orange, it really looked like tanned skin most of the time. And he was gorgeous for a supposedly viridiplantae based lifeform >>Yes Big Fe, I know it's pretentious to say viridiplantae and not plant like, but it’s more accurate, okay!?>>.
“Ohh Miss Gama, come in come in! What happened?” Without pausing, he turned and yelled back into the ship, “Estéril join me in science bay 4 please.” As soon as I walked into the ship the cool air soothed my face but my head felt a flash of pain. I started to panic. A concussion or worse was the last thing I needed. The flash went away quickly, but a dull, aching presence remained.
We made our way through the living room and kitchen area, past a library and master bedroom and into 1 of 4 labs. The two labs down the hall looked off-line and/ or closed but the lab we entered was clean, bright, and entirely too sterile.
“All right Miss Gama, go ahead and get out of your armor and lay down on the table, your suit liner is fine.”
As soon as he said that, the clomping from the hallway resolved into a beautiful cyborg Minotaur. Miles’s assistant, Estéril, was a cyber-Minotaur. A polis of fully cyborged Minotaurs from Miles’s homeland. Evidently they were a very authoritarian polity but she didn't talk about it much. Estéril had been Miles’s assistant since before he came to Earth.
“Hey Gabby, what did you do this time?” She asked with a smile. While the most dissimilar in looks- she was cybernetic, beautiful, had horns - Estéril was my closest friend in the camp, if I had any friends, which I don't, get off my case Big Fe.
Shaking my head, before realizing even that movement hurt, I finished removing my armor and slid onto the table. “Oh you know, field trials. Needed to see how my latest synth behaved.”
“Oh” she said with a gasp, “Did your creation do that to you!?” She asked.
“What, no, no, well, I guess yes, err no, but not deliberately.” I quickly explained my outing as Miles ran his multifunction medical probe over my body and murmured to himself. Estéril automatically handed him his tools and equipment before he needed it and in a few minutes he had finished his diagnosis.
“Well Gabriela, you are lucky, as usual. Nothing broken, a few bruised ribs and a kidney contusion. I would order bed rest but I know you wont listen to me. But please sleep in the RV trailer so you don't have to climb up that dang giant mech of yours. And stay around camp for a few days so you can heal. I could give you a few nano-knitters, but frankly it would be a waste, you just need time to heal.”
I managed to look sheepish and say, “Thanks Miles, I really appreciate it. And what about my head?” The throbbing had continued consistently during his inspection.
Grabbing his data pad, he looked at it and his multi-glasses and said, “What about your head, activity is nominal, no swelling, blood screen looks fine. Why, what are you feeling?”
I stuttered, “Oh nothing, I feel fine, I just wanted to make sure, it’s my livelihood afterall.” I lied and smiled lamely.
“Huh. Well if you feel worse or anything send me a message right away. Estéril can you help her back to her bed, please.”
The cyber-Minotaur gently reached out to help me sit up, and grabbed my gear. “Sure doc, I will make sure she takes it easy.”