The Planet 3.3

3.3 The task

“Listen up.” Duggan spoke without his eyes leaving the screens. “We are here because we are here. We are here…”

“Commander, you are repeating yourself.” The droid standing there voiced out.

“Screw you, Machete. You will speak to me by yourself but not through the droid ever again.” Duggan snapped back. “I don’t like to speak to droids. No offence.”

“None taken.” I voiced out in a cold manner. “But we are …”

“Constructs. So be one.” Duggan hit back. He was agitated with Machete. “Now where was I?  We are here to check on the damages caused by whoever it was that was not supposed to be here.”

We were brief on the task but it was nice to be reminded. We were the best, or among the best. Or we were the reckless ones. We were reckless due to our construct. It gave us replacement parts that we never could do as organics. The organic mercenaries cannot work on those tasks which we were better equipped. Of the constructs, we were the assembled best; the warriors with the electronics components that allowed us special abilities. We were volunteers so that we could be given the extras but everyone regrets in at one stage. Some of us never recovered and were blessed with a screw up during the battles that will end the organic life. We do die like the others, but maybe harder with the implants; they made us more droids every time we lose something organic unless it’s the head or heart shot. And if you get bagged, they may remove your droid parts. I guessed we have less to bury then.

Who cares? Death ceased our existence then.

“No intrusion detected?” Machete the organic voiced out. “That’s why we are here? The droid showed nothing.”

“Machete, speak once more and I will flush your innards down the disposal chute.” Duggan was getting more agitated. He then looked at us; one by one.

“Kingsley has only twenty four hours to explain it and we lost one hour horse playing here.” Duggan grimed his expression. “From Intel, we know the Corsairs are here. And so were the DODs.”

The Corsairs and DOD were rivals of ours, and if they are here, that means the other mining corporation paid them to be here. It was a competitive venture where one fails another will take over. In cases like here, they will make that a takeover by default. And sabotaging other mining plants was one way.

“The Corsairs? So Dmitri is here.” Peggy had a thing for the Siberian giant when she was once a member of their team. She left to join us when the emotional feels contradicted with their works. She never got over Dmitri.

“So screw your Dmitri. The DOD is bad to contend with.” Machete voiced. “The last encounter they left me one knee short. I was lucky the Healers have spares for me.”

“Don’t be so cocky, Machete. I may just not have any knees left for you.” Nguyen hissed back. He took sometimes offend to us as constructs in his view. Duggan saw the direction of the conversation and asked for focus.

“Peggy, tell me what you could see. Any Corsairs or DOD?”

“Nothing, Commander. All the cameras are normal. Droids and machineries; nothing extra ordinary.” Peggy replied. “I am replaying the clips where the machines broke down. Maybe the DOD got the stealth thing worked out so they can be shielded from the cameras.”

It was rumored that the DOD have developed that stealth device. They named it their Stealth Works but I am not overly confident of such devices. We have so many modes of detection from thermal to infra-red scans. We even hold vibrations for some works.

“Nothing out of the ordinary. All readings are normal.” I gave out my report before Duggan asked. I was accessing the production statistics to check for any abnormalities. None came up. All the machineries were working to requirement. “They seem to be in order and then popped at that moment when the circuitry burnt or the pumps blew. I don’t have any defects indication.”

“Machete?” Duggan frowned up his expression when the other did not reply. “Clam your emotional side. I want to know more.”

“Nothing, I read the droid chips. It did not register any abnormalities either.” Machete replied coldly.

“So that makes our task harder.” Duggan stood up. “I guess we have to do it the hard way. Gear up. John, you are doing flank. Machete will do the point. Nguyen and Peggy will stay here. It’s recon duty.”

We took our gear and marched out. Peggy was not happy but she took the order. Machete was at out there with his mind assimilated and directed the droid to walk the point. He held his energize blade in his left hand.