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  The valley floor was littered with pieces of bots that were still giving off a radioactive signature. The elders joked that it was what kept the citizens of Bot City healthy and strong.

  Duel couldn’t say either way, but in her estimation, they might be right. The most likely means of death for a citizen of the Bot City was a fall from equipment in their twelfth decade. Based on the histories that she had read, that was a definite increase in life span from the human standard.

  When the lift opened, she stepped out and stretched. “No offense, Kab, but that is a snug fit.”

  “It was created for the first pilots.”

  She grinned. “I suppose that men are just shorter.”

  “They can be. The engineers of Bot City are simply statuesque.”

  Duel laughed. “That is one way of putting it.”

  She wandered over to the command consoles and examined the details she had always been too busy to view before.

  “This is amazing. It is hard to believe that humans put this together centuries ago.”

  Kab chuckled. “It is. Now, I believe we are under an alert?”

  She blinked. “Oh. Right. I forgot where we were.”

  Duel walked over to the pilot’s area, and the cradle lowered itself from the ceiling. There were wires, cables and a few probes attached to it, but most came from below and were not visible once the cradle was settled into place.

  “Right. So, standard pilot authorization, right?” Duel looked at the wires and clamps.

  “Do you want access to my weapons systems?”

  She wrinkled her nose. “Probably.”

  “I will need full access to your mind and body for a seamless connection.”

  She looked at the cradle and the probes near the neck. “Right. My own fault for being the one on fuelling duty, I guess.”

  Duel sighed and climbed into the cradle. “I, Duel Aka, grant full access to Kab. Mind and body.”

  “Thank you.”

  She fought to keep her breathing even as the clamps locked around her limbs to bind her body to the harness. When she moved from now on, he would move.

  Duel was lashed tight to him and her head was held immobile as the probes entered her neck. The view of his history was just beginning to unfold when a bolt of energy ran through them.

  Duel screamed and lay there in the dark. “What was that?”

  Lights slowly began to flick on in the darkness. Kab’s voice came out of the shadows. “There was a projectile impact into the fuelling station next to Len. It has shorted out my access to the nanite systems, and we are effectively grounded.”

  She blinked and tears started to course down her cheeks. “You are grounded. I am paralyzed.”

  “Take it easy. Your vitals are strong, and the other bots are not going to leave without us.”

  “You are very sure of that.”

  He chuckled again. “Of course, I am. Not only are we a team, but we are one unit. We all have a speciality, and mine is knowledge.”

  “Knowledge?”

  “Yes, we all have access to the same information, but we were each given details that the others lacked. When one of our members fell, I gained their detailed knowledge. I know what the incoming army wants, and how badly they want to get it.”

  “I would look around suspiciously but that would probably kill me. So, instead of what the aliens want, tell me about why the humans came out to Hera.”

  “That is an interesting story.”

  “Well, we have nothing but time.”

  Kab agreed. “Excellent point. Well, the Terrans looked up to the sky one day and found something that hadn’t been there before. There was a hole between the stars, and within those stars were planets that could support human life. After some probes confirmed the information, a stream of colony vessels were created out of the orbital colonies that existed in clusters around the planet. The newest tech mixed with the old and they became the ships that headed out into the rift in space.”

  “Wow. That is new information.”

  Kab’s voice was amused. “I told you I was smart. Now, the first ships entered the rift and disappeared. It was believed that they were approaching Gaia, but we don’t have any reference points for it.”

  “Wait, there were other planets? Other colonies?”

  “At least four. Gaia, Hera, Athena, and Hestia. They were named after goddesses of hearth, home, prosperity, and family.”

  “Goddesses? They were religious?”

  “Goddesses of antiquity. I have some of the mythology available if you want to hear about that.”

  “That would be interesting, but what happened after the Heran ships went through the rift.”

  “A celestial storm tossed the ships but put them down on Hera, as if it could read their destination via their systems.”

  “That is interesting.”

  “Isn’t it? The assumption was that the Athena and Hestia projects had the same fate on their world. Instead of the planets being close together, it appears that they were actually located in other solar systems. Something folded in space and then opened it once they had passed through.”

  Duel smiled. “Thanks, by the way, this is helping.”

  “Excellent. So, upon landing on Hera, your ancestors began to create a city that was self-sufficient and a base for further explorations of their new world. The ships were scavenged for parts as needed and the seeds of the human species were planted.”

  “How many were there?”

  “Seventeen thousand humans landed with a majority being engineers and horticulturalists. There were other focuses dotted throughout, but their focus was to build and grow.”

  “So, there was a kernel of a society for Bot City.”

  “Correct.”

  Duel sighed and asked a question she hadn’t thought she could ever ask. “Why are we all girls?”

  “Population control. All the genetic material that was sent to the valley was female so that a rival city could not be established in a competition for resources.”

  “Well, hell. I thought that girls were just better engineers.”

  “That is very likely true, but when the bots came to rest in the valley, the city didn’t want to chance any disgruntled inhabitants of Bot City forming an army and coming to claim their more comfortable living.”

  “What happened next?”

  “Genetic material was gained from the pilots, and after it was filtered, it was sent to the valley to begin building a support population for Hera’s greatest asset.”

  “The bots.”

  “Correct.”

  Duel smiled slightly. “You are not really the AI from one of the ships.”

  “Why would you say that?”

  “You are way too amused and free with human information. So, what are you?”

  Kab remained silent. “There are bots on either side of us. I believe that they are going to solve the power problem.”

  Duel was going to ask another question, but power arced through her, and she screamed as the backed-up data ran into her mind and fire scorched her from the nerves out.

  She opened her eyes slowly and checked her connection to Kab. He really did have centuries’ worth of information in his mind and not all of it was human.

  She opened her mind and the com systems. “That really sucked.”

  The croak was enough to get her point across, and she heard chuckles of relief throughout the gathered bots. The six mobile bots were finally up and running, and Duel knew why they needed Kab. He was the communications hub. Through him, they could speak freely and quickly as if they were all in the same space.

  The bot that had been the deepest in the valley was the key to all the actions and reactions of the group. He facilitated it all.

  “This is Duel piloting Kab. Reporting for duty.”

  Chapter Nine

  Duel took her first steps, and the rest of the bots all gathered near the main
above-ground com tower.

  She used Kab’s systems, and she was suddenly standing in a room with the other pilots. They were all in a circle and all looked very surprised to be there.

  Nyvett looked at her. “Where are we?”

  “Kab’s template. He’s the communicator, so we can be here together. I believe that introductions are in order. I am Duel Aka, and I am piloting Kab.”

  A shy and pale-looking woman smiled slightly. “I am Hima Padu and I am piloting Len.”

  Duel watched as the other ladies made their introductions. From Kab’s records, it was easier to work with people if you had a face to go with the name. They were all from different clans, different families. They were now a new family, forged by their link to the walking weapons.

  If there was anything she could do, none of these women would end up in a sarcophagus at the end of their battle. She had buried enough friends and family to last a lifetime.

  * * * *

  Nyvett wasn’t sure about the meet and greet, but she understood the binding that it was providing them with. Once they had all been introduced, they looked at each other. She spoke, “Now that we know our faces and bots, I propose that we begin our journey. There is a supply station for us pilots at the halfway mark, so we should be fine until then.”

  Corbyn nodded. “My clan did a ration resupply two years ago. Everything should be fine.”

  Lido chuckled. “Ohh, two-year-old rations. Yum.”

  Xaia grinned. “They can be good for a decade. We don’t all have unlimited access to fresh fruit on a daily basis.”

  Lido shrugged. “Fair enough.”

  Nyvett turned and looked around. “Does anyone else have anything to say?”

  Hima spoke softly. “I am leaving my home, my people, and my job, and I hope it is for a greater purpose. I wish us all success, strength and focus. We are going to be facing an old enemy and our ancestors may have simply gotten lucky the first time.”

  * * * *

  Duel looked at Hima, and she spoke silently to Kab. “Something is wrong with her.”

  Kab showed her what was behind the projection that Len was offering of his pilot.

  “Holy... What happened?”

  Hima was burned, bruised, her limbs were limp, and her left arm was wrapped in a cast that seemed to be holding the flesh together. She was a wreck.

  “The explosion that hit us began on top of her.”

  “Oh...” Duel looked at the projection compared with the reality. No wonder Hima was a little depressed and not her normally bubbly and cheerful self. She was in agony or heavily sedated. Either way, she didn’t want others to know, so Duel was going to keep her secret as long as she wanted to have it.

  * * * *

  Corbyn looked around at the other ladies. “Can all of your bots run?”

  The ladies all took on vacant expressions while they spoke to their bots, but they all came back.

  “Yes.”

  “Yes.”

  “Affirmative.”

  “Definitely.”

  Hima nodded. “Ready when you are.”

  “Well then, Duel, please tell the tower that we are leaving. I think we need to check on the city. Those ships are getting closer.”

  All of the pilots looked skyward, and the statement was accurate. They were indeed getting closer.

  * * * *

  Duel contacted the com centre. “Bot City communication, this is Duel Aka piloting Kab. The bots are ready to depart. Bring Dif online and load him up. We don’t want you to be vulnerable. Keep an eye on the sky.”

  “Pilot Duel, I don’t understand.”

  “Tell the administration. They will know what I mean. We will be in contact with you when we reach the city.”

  “I will tell them. Good luck.”

  Duel smiled. “You too. Take care and stay safe. We built the city for this moment. Use it.”

  “I will pass that along as well. Good luck.”

  There was only so much luck that she could take. “Good bye.”

  She disconnected the call and reported to the others. “Good byes are done, and they have been notified that this isn’t a localized event. We were the first target and that means that they either consider the bots or the valley an enemy.”

  Nyvett nodded. “Are they activating Dif?”

  “I told them to.”

  Nyvett paused. “How did you know to mention him?”

  “I am a miner by birth. I know that no one digs under Dif, and as that is reason enough to know that he is active, even if he doesn’t have legs.”

  Corbyn cocked her head. “What are we missing?”

  Duel shrugged. “There are just more than the secondary guns under the soil of the valley.”

  The ladies looked at each other and slow grins began. It was one thing to run when the folks back home were defenseless, it was another to take the bots across the desert to the city, knowing that those left behind had means to survive. It was a critical detail.

  Duel grinned and looked out in the direction of the city.

  “I suppose it’s time.”

  It didn’t need to be said, but it hung in the air. Their linked minds slowly separated, and the bots turned.

  The first step that they took made the ground shake, but they walked in step out of the valley.

  * * * *

  Hima suspected the Duel knew what was going on. The look of concern in her eyes was unmistakable.

  “Len, can Duel see what I actually look like?”

  “Yes. Kab can, so can Ai if he wants to. Don’t worry. He rarely involves himself in other pilots. Kab is in communications, so he sees everything.”

  She chuckled weakly. “Good to know. Can I have a direct link with Duel?”

  “Link established.”

  The sense of someone listening was there. “Hello, Duel.”

  “Hima. How are you?”

  Hima chuckled. “I suspect that you know I am not well. I wasn’t in great shape when I got into Len, but he is healing me and working on rebuilding me.”

  “Can he do that?”

  “He is the nanite factory. I am not going to leave him in the same shape I went it, but I should be able to walk on my own two feet.” Hima grimaced. “Or whatever ends up at the ends of my legs when he is done.”

  “As long as you are good with that, I will do what I can to help if you need it.”

  “Thanks. You won’t tell anyone?”

  “No, but they might notice if you don’t come out at the rest stop.”

  “Can you think of an excuse?”

  “Only if you let me in so I can check on you.”

  “Do you have a medical history?”

  “Sort of. I work with the dead when occasion calls for it.”

  “Well, I am not dead yet, but you would know. Sure. When we get to the rest stop, I will make an excuse and welcome you on board.”

  “Say that you sprained your ankle during the blast. It is a good enough reason not to be running around. I will bring you all necessities.”

  “Thanks, Duel. It is a relief to be able to tell someone, even if you already knew.” Hima smiled slightly.

  “No worries. It is easier if someone else knows. I have met you before, and you didn’t seem like yourself. So, how many babies arrived this week?”

  Hima began to talk about the little lives she had brought into the world, and then, she talked to Duel about the dead. When the bots started to run, they were side by side and keeping pace. They might be running into war, but life went on. Those babies deserved a chance to live and grow into citizens. Hima kept the thought of new life in her mind as she ran through the desert with Len guarding her and Duel as her companion. If she survived this, she might apply to become a mother after all.

  There could be a future for her; she just had to defend her world against an alien incursion. How hard could it be?

  Chapter Ten

  Kiida
stood next to the head administrator and her sibling. It had been a harrowing day, and now, Lameera watched the bots on the monitor. The pilots had struggled to get into position, but they had made it. The cheers underground in the bunkers made the entire facility shake.

  “Have Morig get to Dif. I want a pilot in him at all times, scanning the skies and the desert around us,” she spoke over her shoulder.

  “Morig isn’t capable. She’s pregnant.” Kiida murmured it quietly.

  “Fine. Who is next on the roster? I want someone in Dif immediately.”

  Kiida flicked her braid over her shoulder. “That would be me.”

  Lameera whirled. “What?”

  “I am the next on the roster. I will man Dif and defend the valley against incursion, madam. I am sure that Penelope will be able to manage my duties.” Kiida set her clipboard down and inclined her head. “Wish me well.”

  “No.”

  Kiida chuckled and patted her sister’s shoulder. “I will be fine. Dif is a gentleman, and we get along well. Do excuse me. I need to get to my post.”

  Kiida didn’t look at her sister again. She walked out of the main com center and through the maze of tunnels fifty feet below the surface.

  It took her thirty minutes to reach the legs buried in the valley floor. Dif was their bot of last resort, and he appeared to be nothing more than a wreck from above. That was a carefully cultivated plan to surprise anyone who came looking for bots. Bot City was not going to part with any one of their precious survivors.

  The silver of his skin had been covered with matte grey to blend him in with the doors and walls of the tunnels.

  Kiida moved the rock that hid the panel, and she pressed her palm to it for access. “Requesting pilot authorization.”

  The secondary screen came up, took blood, and she gave it her name and clan. Otta was an assigned clan, not a birth clan, so it was her genes that let her step into Dif’s lift for a ride to his command deck.