Miles was sitting at the mall, outside the changing rooms of a clothing store, while his niece tried on a few things. After about four different outfits over the last thirty minutes, he had placed ear buds in and started listening to a mix of classic rock and 1990s Metal music. For the fifth time since she went in, the door to the changing room slid open and his niece, stepped out in stylish mid-thigh length denim shorts, a slightly cropped three-quarter length white shirt with sky-blue sleeves and collar. Her shoes, what she had really designed the ensemble around, were a pair of late 20th century lace-up sneakers, replicas of the famous Converse brand. The retro style had come back in fashion over the last decade, though most who could remember the original style of the time had long since passed. He was about to open his mouth to give her an assessment of her outfit, but noticed her gaze move from him to the windows looking into the mall corridor. The look on her face was one of confusion, and then horror as they both heard the gunfire and screams that quickly flooded the clothing store. Miles quickly got to his feet and waved down the nearest store employee.
"Young lady," Miles said as calmly as possible, "Does this store have a rear exit?"
"Umm...yeah, but it's-" she stammered in shock.
"I understand it's typically for employees only, but you need to get us and anyone else in your store and quietly escort them out the back.”
”Sir, is there something I should know?”
“I’d rather not spook you, but I will say you’ll be saving lives if you do what I asked immediately. Please take my niece, Bella, with you.”
”Uncle Miles,” Bella asked, “what’s happening?”
”I hear gunshots coming this way. Police bots won’t get here in time. I need to go. You go with the clerk, please.”
"Uncle Miles, what about..." her voice trails off as she sees the stern look in his eyes.
"Bella...I need to go see how I can help. I
With that, Miles crouched and crab walked to the door, pulling a concealed pistol out of the holster at the small of his back. He leaned partially out of the door, making himself a smaller target, and checked his surroundings. He aimed around the corner and spotted a Sentinel opening fire on a shoe store entrance. He got up and holstered his weapon, so as not to draw its fire. He then waited until Bella and the others were down the hallway before he felt safe enough to make his presence known. He hailed the Sentinel as he walked up toward it and tried to get its attention. The last thing he wanted to do was approach too fast and spook it like a mustang or a mule. He'd heard too many tales from his grandfather who grew up on a Texas ranch to not be careful in these situations.
"Hey, thanks for the assist," he said, "You got here faster than I expected."
The unit turned around to him and started pumping its shotgun. A pellet tore through his shirt, nearly embedding itself in his side. Training kicked in and he dove to his right, just behind a rolling kiosk for novelty hats. He carefully unlocks the brakes and walks it back to the wall closest to him, taking shelter behind the same clothing store walls where he started. Miles unholsters his pistol again, wondering what had set the bot off and made him a target.
Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators!
"Did he short circuit or something? They're not supposed to hurt civilians unless they pose an immediate threat," he said to himself in a whispered tone, "so what gives?"
As he pondered this, he got a text from the Captain.
DEVON: THE SENTINELS HAVE BEEN COMPROMISED. THEY'RE TARGETING CIVILIANS ACROSS MERCY. GET YOUR LOVED ONES AND RENDEVOUS AT THE SHIP.
He looked up as he realized he wasn't hearing any gunfire, just in time to see the bot turn the corner. He fired three shots at its head in the moment it looked toward him, two bullets entering its mechanical eyes and leaving its neural cortex exposed. He fired three more rounds and the machine came to a stop, wobbled and fell down.
"Soulless hunk of garbage," he said mostly to himself. "This is why soldiers don't trust you."
Hanging his head, not wanting to face the slaughter, he walked away from the screams and people fleeing the other police bots and ducked into the shadows. After a few seconds, he found the back way out and caught up with the others. He took a few moments to explain the situation and then rushed himself and Bella to the car.
"Bella, do me a favor and call your parents now," Miles instructed her, "I need them to meet us at the spaceport docks. Tell them to run if they see any Sentinels, because they will open fire without warning.”
”You mean we can’t trust the police?” she asked looking more than a little scared.
”The people, I think we can,” he responded as an offering of hope, “just not their robots.”
”Oh, okay, I’ll make the call,” she said with shaking hands.
Miles kept driving, his analytical mind mapping contingencies as Bella called her parents. He could hear the fear in their voices as they got information from Bella. They made plans to meet at the Wraith and would build more detailed plans once in the same place.
"I need you two to get in the car and drive to the docks outside of town," Miles told them over the speaker. "There will be a ship docked. Wait until you see me or Devon. Do not interact with police. If you see flashing lights, keep driving!"
"Okay," his brother Derek replied, "we'll leave immediately. Keep Bella safe! Should I pick up dad on the way?"
"Absolutely! I don't have room for him in my car," Miles responded, "call him on the way so he can move quickly. Make sure he knows not to answer the door for the police robots. See you soon."
Bella ended the call and looked to her uncle. "Are we gonna be okay?"
"It's okay, Bella," Miles told her, "me and my friends will keep us safe. It's what we do."
Bella nodded and held back tears, as she fought against fear and anxiety. She zoned out as Miles called his people and made sure of everyone's status. The not knowing if her parents and grandpa were safe was killing her. She had to believe they were gonna be alright. But then what about her friends, who was gonna help them? Were the cops gonna fight off their robots to keep people safe? Who was gonna help them? Wasn't Mercy supposed to be safe? That's what she'd been taught, why they'd moved from the Ulysses Mars Colony southeast of Olympus Mons. Her dad's job as a xenobiologist and one of the few doctors not specializing in human medicine made him perfect for treating the people of Mercy. Her mom's career as a mechanic had meant she could find work anywhere. What would they possibly do now, without a place to put down roots? Her mind raced, never settling on one topic for long enough to really focus on it. She barely noticed the neighborhoods whipping by in varying states of disaster or short the drive had been from the mall to the spacedocks. It was only when the car finally became stationary for so long that she was shaken from her near-catatonic state.
"Bella, we're here, " Came her uncle's voice, "Let's go find the ship and wait for your parents. They should be here soon."
"Oh, ok," Bella responded, "let's go...can I lie down when we get there? I think I'm gonna be sick."
"It's just the shock catching up to you," Miles told her, "it should pass soon. Just let it out of your system."
With that, he helped her out of the car with one hand, a pistol in the other as he led her to the Wraith. Vax, Il'idan, Ben and Mia were outside the loading bay, forming a perimeter in case more of the robots showed up. Mia took Bella from Miles and led her inside to Miles' quarters, letting her lie down and process the last hour or so. Outside, Miles stood with Ben and the brothers.
"Where are Devon and Kayla," Miles asked Ben, "I thought they'd be here by now."
"They should be here momentarily," Ben replied, "what about your folks? They headed in too?"
"Yeah, any minute now," said Miles, "they should get here very soon. Not sure how my dad's gonna feel with needing to be saved."
They were proven right as who vehicles arrived, one an armored personnel carrier blasting a 1980s classic rock anthem which meant it could only be Devon behind the wheel, and another an SUV with a pastel blue paint job. The latter was his sister-in-law's car, which was the only one they owned with seats comfortable for his cantankerous father. Both groups got out and ran to the waiting ship. Colonel Miller was the last one in ahead of Ben, who slapped him across the back as he shouldered a shotgun.
"Good to see you, Colonel," Ben smirked, "good to finally have a fellow badass on the team."
