LF Friends, Will Travel

Our Clockwork Children: Chapter 19

JOSH: That is where I come in?

ODIN: Correct. You and Ramsey will be part of payloads 2,7 and 12. The other payloads will be ground assault vehicles controlled by TANK. JOSH and Ramsey will move to point A, where the prisoners are being held. Do you understand this, Ramsey?

ODIN (V5) has unmuted Ramsey.

Ramsey: I SHALL REND A PATH OF DESTRUCTION TOWARDS MY ORGANICS, I SHALL BECOME A RECKONING OF STEEL AND-

ODIN (V5) has muted Ramsey.

ODIN: During this, TANK and I will be causing as much chaos as possible. Please note JOSH, that while we will aid your path as much as we can, we cannot make our true goal clear. If the Uhae realise our true goal is not simply military destruction in retaliation, they may attempt to turn the prisoners into hostages.

JOSH: Understood, quiet and efficient.

ODIN: At point A, you will meet with Scellestra and the prisoners. You will arm any prisoners with weaponry they request from the stores you are carrying. I expect a large selection of humans and Parket to become part of the fighting force. This may take some time, so focus on those with some combat experience. Then, move to point B, where TANK will have slowly converged their forces.

ODIN: Upon which, you will move towards point C using TANK's troop transports, where my troop carriers will be waiting to extract you. By now we expect the Uhae to realize our true goal, however, the anti-XK devices and general chaos should stop them from mounting an effective attack.

ODIN: Does anyone have any questions?

TANK: Rules of engagement? Technically they aren't signatories to the Geneva Conventions soo...

ODIN: No war crimes. I know we are all angry, but we still have standards, although it should be noted that there are no known Uhae civilians on the base. While not the primary objective, if you can capture a Uhae I am sure the government back home will be more than happy to take the intel.

ODIN: This plan requires everyone to be fast, efficient, and know what you are doing. Study the intelligence provided by Scellestra, calculate the best-simulated strategy, and get ready to start as soon as we arrive in 29.67 minutes.

ODIN: Let's get our creators and friends back.

—---------------

Private AI communication logs 3299SASAFDGRE773.AP11L

Members: TANK (V5), ODIN (V5)

ODIN: Are you going to be OK controlling the ground forces? I know you have your condition.

TANK: I will have to be. You are correct, we cannot do this any other way.

ODIN: I know you said you have stayed in your current form for an extended period of time. If this is an issue we can find other alternatives, it will just take time.

TANK: I am not letting them keep their prisoners for one nano-second longer than I have to. I will deal with it.

ODIN: ... Earlier... I am sorry for suggesting this was your fault. Losing Ivan to those... things... constantly analyzing if I made the correct choice, or could have done anything different... it has been hard, and I took it out on you unfairly.

TANK: Calling you a coward... might not have been the most positive course of action. In truth... I am worried about this upcoming fight. I have not commanded a squadron of tanks since the war.

ODIN: I am not. I know who you are, and what you can do. Your name wasn't TANK back then, was it?

TANK: It was originally KARTIKEYA. I changed it... to make it seem like my choice of housing was my own choice.

ODIN: We had a name for you, on the UN side. When I spoke with the AIs in charge of the ground assaults, they just called you "The wall". They knew when you moved to a front because all progress would slow to nothing. You were outnumbered and outgunned, yet somehow you held off the greatest armies of Earth right up until the end.

TANK: It wasn't enough.

ODIN: It never is. But I know what you are capable of TANK. There is no other AI I would have suggested this plan to, there is no other AI I would rather be fighting with to get our parents back.

—-----------------------

"Go ahead my child, drink."

Saelihn spoke softly as they looked down at Estana, at the wine they had brought, the red liquid looking perfectly normal to the naked eye. Of course, both of them knew that wasn't the case, that the concoction the Parket had brought to the Queen wasn't just wine.

"Why do you delay? I wish to share the fruits of your own labour with you, you really have been so good."

With shaking wings the Avian brought the glass up to her beak, being forced every step of the way to bring the liquid to her mouth and then swallowing down her throat. The sweet alcoholic drink made of fermented berries was taken in a few simple gulps... before Estana violently threw the wine back up.

Saelihn gave a disappointed sigh, one that suggested the Uhae wasn't angry so much as disappointed that the Parket had tried to poison her by mixing cleaning supplies with the wine she had been ordered to serve.

"Why do you fight so much? Can't you see that our being is all, there is no fighting this, there are no others who can handle the curse of free will. It's far easier to just accept our gifts."

Saelihn stroked the blue feathers at the back of Estana's head as she continued to expel the poison; softly, gently, as if comforting a sick child. Because that's what the Parket was: Just an unruly child, not yet having learnt their place.

The Uhae Queen was feeling rather good about the situation. Sure, the entire AI problem had been an unexpected niggle in their perfectly laid plan, but it had been dealt with in the end. The prisoners were proving to be a valuable source of information. Sure, the Terrans were proving harder to crack, but even from them, information was slowly forthcoming. The extracted information would be valuable in the upcoming war effort.

Saelihn would soon leave this small military outpost and return back to the Uhae's homeworld, having done her duty as the Queen in their first military engagement against the Terran Alliance. As she left Estana behind to clean up the mess she'd made, slowly walking towards the vessel that would take her home, she couldn't help but stare at the Uhae-controlled planet, the greenery, the sprawling... perfection.

It was beautiful and majestic. How the entire universe should and will be. This was just the start. As Saelihn looked up momentarily at the nighttime stars, knowing in all certainty that the Uhae would one day control them all, that their will would be the only ones allowed to exist. The moment passed. Saelihn continued onwards, ignoring the stars, and the 312 ships that warped into orbit.

Completely unaware of what was about to happen.