Murder Drones: Born from ashes

Chapter 8 : Homefield Advantage

Buildings that were once inhabited are laid in silence. The first wave of mercenaries had escorted the survivors out of the zone or had their bodies still dead on the floor. 2 hours had passed since all went quiet. The mercs had stationed themselves around a bright blue building. They were waiting for the Corporal's command. They never described war, all the fantasies she had never accounted for the long periods of waiting. She had forgotten they were mercenaries, they would need to wait for the call to action unless it benefited them. Uzi grew more sour by the day, they had all they needed, why couldn't they end this nightmare now? It was morning when the drones filed in for their oil.

"Bomber drones and murder drones." said another drone, "One is weak, the other one keeps coming the fuck back."

Uzi approached the mercenary wearing her beanie.

"Hey, want to go again?"

"A new arm isn't gonna help you." he said, looking at her dark red arms. They were reduced to 4 fingers with segmented joints. They wrestled arms, their arms were stuck in a single position, a stalemate.

Uzi felt her arm freeze as it slammed back onto the table; she lost again. The drone wearing her beanie laughed.

"Come on girl, throw in the towel, you're wasting time!" Laugo said. Uzi threw snow into her cup and downed it in seconds. She put her arm back onto the table.

"Again."

The drones sat around him, most of them ignoring his ramblings. Their arms didn't move, Laugo seemed almost relaxed.

"They all got tails, but those things are perverts, indexing tools under everything, even gender. The males are able to climb, like the xenos. They're fast, they can rip you to pieces in a single tick."
"You haven't gotten to the women yet Rook." said Laugo, "Rook is more familiar with the women, he likes to get stepped-"

"Hey! You didn't see shit okay?!" Rook retorted

"Oh yeah? Someone get Williams from her post, she'll-" Laugo was putting his energy into talking, Uzi took the opportunity.

She grabbed a cup and rammed it into his visor, making him recoil and letting her win. The drones stood in silence as Laugo pulled the cup out of his visor. Uzi held out her hand, grinning with malice.

"The arm wasn't meant for an advantage." she said

Rook froze. Noone said a word. Laugo looked back at her.

"Again," he said mockingly.

"You will get what's coming to you." Uzi said, pointing a finger at him and stormed away. Noone took it seriously and Rook continued.

Uzi scanned her surroundings. These mercenaries were using strategies used during the 2029 riots. Described in the documents, snipers were to be stationed inside buildings surrounding the target, people on ground would form a defensive perimeter with shield units at the front. A radar unit would stay behind a group of 5 shield units with 4 riflemen backing them up. She spotted Kale amongst the crowd, remaining laser focused on the radar.

"The women have these leg modifications, which makes them more aerodynamic... Remember, no matter how weak these things are, if you get any amount of nectar on you, don't waste anyone's time and do everyone a favor."

The drones stayed silent. The corporal came out of the building. He wore a large white jacket, the bunched up hoodie gave the illusion of a lump on his back. The purple armbands hugged the skinny arms, creating a pocket of air near the shoulder area of his jacket. He held onto his megaphone tightly as he weaved through the crowd. The mercenaries all took their positions. Uzi stood next to Rubid, close to the frontlines.