There were echoes of beaten metal drums making uneven rhythms around her when she woke up. It was dark and cold and strangely comfortable for a moment before she opened her eyes. Before she took a breath and started to cough—sudden noise bouncing off too close walls—rolled over, sat up and almost hit her head. That’s when she found her first question.

What?

The small space was as unfamiliar as the hand she raised to press against the wall, sliding her fingers lightly over smooth contours absently. Letting touch tell her what dim light and obscure shadows could not. Definitely a tight fit. So, where…? The second question was much easier to answer. Her mind stopped searching as soon as her fingers closed around the latch and, without thinking it through, forced it forward, sharp and fast and inconsiderate of the mechanisms involved. She’d found the door.

It groaned and hissed complaints, but slid jarringly out of the way, and she found herself squinting in the half-light, blinking at the chilling sensation of water on her skin, catching at her hair and rolling down her cheeks. Fracturing the yellow glow from outside. Stepping slowly out of the small space into the large, she hung onto the edge of the doorway. For balance, but also because its smooth and constant chill seemed less daunting than the wide open space she found upon following the brighter light with her eyes and looking up, up, up against the rain.

A vast, murky weight overhead. And… simple susurrations of wind and water striking metal and stone and dirt and pooling puddles and glass. It felt empty though. It looked deserted, disturbingly so, though she wasn’t sure why it bothered her. Something about the stillness unsettled her. For several breaths, all she could do was wonder why. And she stood like that, green glints shining off her shoulders, arm still stretched between her and the pod, dark hair flat to her skull and catching itself on her mask as she turned her head, looking from the pod, with its dull sheen and simple siding, to the buildings and cars she didn’t recognize. There weren’t any familiar landmarks whatsoever, but… She couldn’t think of anything that would have been familiar.

The same question, but on a much broader scale, came back to her then. Where is this? And when a new noise made her start into a spin, dropping to crouch beside the pod and stare across the street at another one just like it, new questions followed. She couldn’t recognize the person who stepped out either. Yet, unlike their surroundings, she… they, they were both more familiar, somehow. Like she was supposed to know them, and if she waited long enough, she’d be able to-to… To what? Name them? She couldn’t even name herself!

….

Couldn’t… name… herself?

“I-” Eyes wide and white as that revelation struck her out of her daze, the woman’s voice crackled unpleasantly from behind the mask, and she winced instinctively, closing her teeth against the words. A hand automatically reached up to retract the mask, but she wasn’t really thinking about that. Too busy trying to understand the rest of this situation. But there wasn’t any answer in her head, or anywhere she looked. Not outside, but, maybe-?

She disappeared back into her pod in an ungainly scramble. There had to be something, right?

Everything was dark and her head throbbed. This was the first thing she remembered: darkness and pain. Her eyelids slid open and took in her artificial surroundings. It was a metallic chamber, safe and warm, and yet this place didn't feel like home. No, she wasn't supposed to stay in here. Her hand found the latch, a thick metal beam held in place by intense pressure, and she pulled it with ease. She pushed open the door and stumbled out of the pod, clutching her throbbing head. The cool air rushed into her lungs and invigorated her. Her blurry vision sharpened and the ache in her head slowly began to subside. She felt like she was supposed to know where she was, like she had a task to complete, but curiously, she couldn't begin to guess what it was.

She held out her hand and looked at her appearance. She was covered in some kind of body armor, clearly a high-end model equipped with covert features... How did she know that? How the hell did she know that? Her heart began to race, but not do to fear. No, she didn't feel threatened by this place, at least not to a serious degree. She was the one they were afraid of. She furrowed her brow. For some reason that made her happy. "Good... run," she muttered, though she had no idea who she was talking to. There was no one around, no one to tell her where to go, what she should be doing. Come to think of it, she wouldn't even know who to ask. She searched her thoughts until the throbbing came back, yet ultimately found nothing. She didn't know anyone, not even herself.

"Documents," she whispered. "There should be documents in the pod." She slowly turned back to the pod and began to rummage around for any clues. Who was she? Why was she here? Where was here? She overturned every square inch of the pod, but ultimately, she only found the number 3. Was that her?

Not far away, she saw another pod, similar to her own. There was another girl, searching just as she had. I should join her, she thought, though she didn't know why. She had never seen this person before and knew nothing about her, but for some reason, there was implicit trust. She knew this person would do her no harm, so she approached pod number two. "Did you find anything?" she asked as soon as she was within earshot. Introductions didn't seem to be necessary.

The number painted onto her pod was 01, but the blonde woman was the third to wake up. Her head was drooped to once side and her arms hung limply at her side, her chest rising and falling steadily with unconscious breathe. A distant sentence was spoken. The sound broke the silence, sliking it's way into the pod and causing her unconscious, relaxed face to furrow her eyebrows in confusion and pain. Her eyes fluttered open to reveal blue irises that were glazed over with the film of disorientation.

Groggily scanning her environment to reveal a claustrophibic interior of some kind of pod. Trapped. Trapped? Instantly a shock of panic rushed through her veins, and escaping was her next priority. Her hands quickly and sporadically palmed the dark interior of the pod, looking for a way out.

"H-hey, what's going on?" She said out loud.

"Hello?" Her hands found the handle. Pushing it forward, nothing happened, she slid it to the left, nothing happened. Not thinking clearly, still disoriented, it took her a few unfortunate seconds to realize the obvious solution of pulling it the direction where the painted arrow indicated.

With a hiss of equalizing pressure, the door slid open. Now as light and rain began to pour in, the blonde realized that it wasn't the door handle that felt strange and smooth, it was the material covering her hands, her arms, her entire body except for her face. Now the suit was getting a little wet with rain. To her, this pod was no shelter. Quickly finding the seat belt keeping her restrained, the blonde stumbled out into the lonely dark. Her mind had not even begun processing all of the information as her first task was to merely get out of the pod and evaluate the danger.

The rain pattered onto the top of her just above shoulder-length hair, kept in place with a black band. Instinctually, she pulled up a hood that she hadn't realized was there without a second thought. Her feet were not uncomfortable in the wet grass- the suit had special in-built boots, apparently. The entire suit was a mixture of purple, white, and black, and was extremely form fitting; save for the hood.

"Hello?" She said, looking around, making out two pods and two other people, talking.

"Hey, hey- I need help...I...was trapped in this pod," She went silent as she tried to briefly summarize her story to hopefully helpful strangers. Only except she couldn't find anything. No reason to why she was in the pod, how long, who put her there...and most troubling of all, not even a name. Not even her own name.

Putting a hand up to her forehead, the blonde made a very worried noise and zoned out.

Head tilting at the question, she didn’t even look up from her search, arm jammed behind some complicated tangle of pipes under the reclining seat. She only shook her head, struggling a little more to try reaching farther, but there wasn’t anything else, so she sat back with a huff. An open palmed, arms flung wide shrug of do you see anything?

“Nothing. I… think this is all… as usual. Set up-wise, I mean.” Because it didn’t seem at all usual to be caught crawling out of pods into a city she didn’t recognise, but nothing struck her as odd when she looked at it, no clues about anything going wrong or right. Only after a last, lingering stare at the interior did she finally turn to look again at her company. The other girl seemed just as confused as she was, but it felt better to at least know they wouldn’t be alone while figuring this out.

Her firm once over from top to toe revealed nothing unexpected or expected, she wasn’t sure what she was looking for in the first place, but comparing outfits, as she looked down at herself, had her remembering the mask she’d not even noticed before, and she raised an exploratory hand to follow the contours of the suit around her jaw. It fit rather well, more comfortable, or she was just used to it, than it probably should be, but-Oh.

At another voice, faint and muffled and impossible to make out clearly, she tapped a button and found herself breathing through a filter, cheeks warmed by the exhaled air, as she turned towards the source. The third pod. 01 it said on the side. Like the 03 and… she checked, 02, on the others. Did that mean there was only three of them?

Who knows?

Listening to the still faint clunking of failed gears, she stood up properly from the crouch she’d been in to investigate the pod, stepping back onto the ground and pushing her hair out of her eyes. But rather than going over to try helping, she simply leaned against the side of her own pod, glancing towards the other girl to see if she was going to go over. It wasn’t really caution, or a lack of curiousity, it was more of a trust that this third person wouldn’t be so inept as to be unable to open a door. A sort of first test like hatching out of an egg, if you couldn’t do that, you weren’t cut out for the world outside the shell.

And there, see? It opened just fine. Eventually.

Behind the mask, her smile was mostly invisible, though it did raise her cheeks a little, as she nodded at the greeting, then raised an eyebrow at that request for help. “What help?” The mask deadened her voice, but it was no difficulty to talk with it over her mouth, so she kept it there, finding it more reassuring than when her face was uncovered. “Made it out on your own, didn’t you?” No more help needed, right?

Probably wrong. Probably very, very wrong. And the blank look on the girl’s face made her fidget, shifting her shoulders against the metal supporting her and crossing her arms, then uncrossing them and taking a step closer, glancing aside to see what the first girl thought about all this. “Hey, you…” alright?

She shook her head when No.2 told her nothing was in her pod. But, for some reason, it did seem to makes sense. The pods contained exactly what they needed and nothing else, but what were they for? Some kind of long-distance transportation? A weapon? They didn't seem equipped for combat... Suddenly she felt something crawling through her skin. The nano-bots were too small to actually feel, so the sensation was more a psychosomatic reaction to some realization. The sensation was not worrying, though; quite the opposite. The buzz of trillions of tiny workers inside of her was reassuring. It meant all was well. She was working properly... whatever that meant.

"I think you're right," she said at last. "There won't be anything in those pods. And something tells me you don't understand what's going on either." No.2's gestures, body language, and desperate searching through the pod suggested that she was just as lost.

Then, a third woman came, a blonde girl with a hood who seemed to be a bit more concerned about their situation. Presumably, this was the No.1 to complete the trio. "Hello," No.3 said calmly, offering just a bit more warmth in her greeting than her masked companion. Her lips even curled upwards slightly, forming the beginnings of a smile. Good, we're together, she thought, though she had no notion of why it was good. Common sense told her that it was unwise to trust strangers. Never let your guard down and never show them vulnerability... but these weren't strangers, were they?

No.1 put her hand on her head, looking rather worried. Without thinking, she approached and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Take it easy. I imagine you're as lost as both of us but we'll figure this out." She then found herself in agreement with No.2's comments. "I don't think 'trapped' is the best word for it. The pods were secure, but it was easy enough to leave. We weren't restrained in any way, and the door was only locked from the inside. Certainly doesn't sound like a trap to me." No.3 let out a sigh. Not a trap, but then what was it?

"I think we should stick together," she said, taking her hand off No.1's shoulder. She looked around the eerie, empty streets. Why was there no one investigating three crashed pods in the middle of a city? "Perhaps we should attempt to make contact with some locals. If this place is our home, someone might know who we are." She had a sinking feeling in her gut, though, that this place was about as far from home as she could get.

Such peace was not to last, and the question of why nobody was investigating was quickly answered... simply put, it seemed they had not been there that long, as before long there was a loud hissing sound as... something, came into view far down the road, flying straight towards them. It had a spotlight, and was searching along the road for anything. It wouldn't take much thought to imagine it was searching for them, as the airship scanned about, and very clearly had some pretty big weaponry aboard. This was no doubt, a military vehicle, here searching for a threat, not here to rescue them.

As it got closer and closer, all three of the girls would for whatever reason, very clearly detect movement in a nearby construction sight. A large building, with much of its walls covered in tarps and "DO NOT ENTER" tape. Looking closer, the girls would spot some sort of small creature, and it seemed to be motioning them over to the protection of the building. In fact, it was doing so rather frantically... as if their life literally depended on getting out of the way of that oncoming airship.

A few moments before the peace was interrupted, the blonde nodded at the reassurance of her friend. Friend? Yes, of course, these two people were not strangers, but allies. When While she was in good company, she was still very worried, taking deep breathes, adjusting her hood to keep the rain off of her. The suit felt comfortable, yet foreign.

A woman came up to her, putting a hand on her shoulder. The blonde lifted up her hand and held it, welcoming the gesture. Her worried look faded a bit into a tentative smile. Nodding her head, the hood-wearing woman glanced over at the other one with the peculiar mask.

"Okay...we'll stick together. I don't-" The blonde's words were cut off as a large, intimidating airship approached with it's weapons ready. Frightened, she took a step back. Then, even more peculiar, from a nearby construction sight she spotted a small creature waving for them to come over.

"What do we do?" She asked in the heat of the moment, pensive. What if this was some kind of authority? Maybe it would deduce they were not a threat? What if this creature was...some evil entity? On the other hand, what if the machine opened fire and wasted them right now and the creature was an ally? How would it know? Once more, questions raced through her head, and in her disoriented state the blonde could not come up with a decision. Wide-eyed, she looked to her allies.

Despite being able to clearly see that this third girl could do with some comforting, she didn’t feel up to offering any. She wasn’t sure what to say, so she simply argued against there being any problem in the first place. It didn’t really work. The pods may not have kept them trapped, but this place was entirely unknown, wasn’t it? So, maybe it was just a bigger trap.

That meant she was glad when the other girl took it upon herself to offer some reassurance, or, at least, a few steadying words that didn’t sound as… angry as hers had. But she didn’t join them in a group cheering session, though she did follow the long haired girl in closing the distance, she just kept going around them both and started a cursory once over of this third pod, hopeful, but not expecting much.

Listening to their conversation, she kept quiet on the matter, but had no actual objections. Staying with them felt safer, somehow, and she had absolutely no desire to set out on her own. She had nowhere to go, anyway. And no time to think about that anymore.

The incessant hissing drawing closer easily drew her attention away from an interior much the same as the last one she’d looked at, and 02 stared with widening eyes at the approaching ship. She could see artillery on it, and the searchlights were eerie, almost visible representation of an unwelcoming gaze. She felt as if letting those fall on them, lighting them up, was a bad idea, though there was a small kernel of doubt in her own instincts, as she had yet to be able to explain any of them. Nonetheless, until they could find that explanation… Instinct it was.

“We move!” An abrupt answer to the question, words harsh as she followed her own advice. “If it can hurt us, we stay away.” For now. It seemed the best course of action if they had no other motivating force. “Come on.” Both hands reaching out as she passed the other two, 02 grabbed an arm apiece and tugged, though she didn’t hang on. She just wanted to jolt 01 out of her daze and figured she might as well include 03 while she was at it.

She only noticed the creature waving at them when she was already moving, but she didn’t set a course directly for it, unsure if that would be any smarter than standing around for the ship to start aiming at them. Getting out of sight was more important.

The other girls agreed that they should stay together, which she found reassuring. Even though they were lost in a strange and possibly hostile place, at least they wouldn't be alone. She gave the blonde a smile when she placed her hand on top of her own. It was a small gesture, but comforting none the less. And, even though No. 2 didn't seem to be much of an emotional anchor, at least she seemed willing to work with them. However, before they had time to learn anything else about each other, a loud hissing echoed through the streets.

No. 3's body instinctively tensed up. She felt the nano machines buzzing in her right hand, and in a matter of seconds she was holding a small knife. No. 1 seemed paralyzed with fear, but No. 3 found herself frantically analyzing the enemy -- somehow she knew this was an enemy -- for any chinks in its armor. The ship was very well-armed, though, and its weaponry made her nervous. Perhaps it was foolish to take on such an enemy, but every fiber of her being was telling her to fight and kill this foe. If she could lodge her blade in the engine, she might be able to disable it and cause a crash. Then it would be easy prey...

But, before she could test her plan, No. 2 grabbed her arm and started leading them toward a building with a strange creature waving to them. The creature seemed desperate to get them out of sight, but she instantly distrusted this thing. She was glad that No. 2 didn't guide them directly towards it. She picked up her pace and dashed into the building, completely disregarding the ticker tape and seeking cover in the shadows. However, she was not content to sit quietly and wait. They would not be seen by the airship, but perhaps they had fallen into a far worse trap.

She clutched her little knife with white knuckles and called out to the creature. "Present yourself!" She said in an authoritative voice. "Tell us your intentions and speak quickly!"

There was movement on the other side of a busted wall, as the small creature pulled itself up. There were odd sounds, buzzing noises, the whirring of motors, as this little creature, who barely came up to the hips of the girls, got up in plain sight, and it looked... well, it looked like some sort of old man, only it was small, and metallic, and clearly... a machine. When it spoke, it sounded like an old man, yet it had pride, and power in its voice with every word.

"I mean you no harm. I overheard you speaking, when I came to investigate the crash... it was you that fell from the sky then? If you will not harm me, I can take you to a safe place... away from the people who hunt you. Away from the Varden..." It glanced over into the street as the dropship scanned the area, before ropes dropped down, and a dozen soldiers in dark armor, that had red lights all over dropped down, weapons at the ready.

The instant those soldiers were in view, each of the girls would feel nothing but hatred for what they saw. Unexplained, pure hatred towards those soldiers, as if they knew them. As if they were the most mortal of enemies. At the same time... there were quite a few of them, and none of the girls really knew their strengths yet. Although they could attack them, they were being offered a safer solution, if they wished to take it.

"We must go, before they find us. I can tell you more... but we must hurry before they start scanning the area with their probes. They will no doubt find us..." The small machine pointed its makeshift cane towards a hole in the back of the building. It was clear that this machine had seen better days, and that most of its body was created from salvaged scrap. "Through there... you will find a pathway, follow it and I will catch up when I can." that probably meant as he was able, as he no doubt couldn't move too quickly, being as small, and old as he was. "Please, go!"

The blonde saw the machine, heard it's voice, and immediately thought it was quite adorable. Still, she wasn't quite sure she could trust him. He offered help, but at the same time, how could they be sure?

That question was answered as the old robot gestured towards the people in the drop ship. The Varden? Who were they...? She got her answer when looking upon their too-familiar armor gave her nothing but feelings of steely determination to foil anything they wanted to do. Right now, that meant preventing them from killing her and her friends.

Glancing back at the old robot, she respected him for taking such a risk to help her against her enemies. For if they were her enemies, than before her must surely stand an ally.

"Thanks, old timer." She jogged over to him, smiling. "But you should come with us. I can help you." She said confidently, kneeling to his level and extending a hand. Uncertain exactly of why she knew she could help him, but in the back of her mind she was sure of her abilities. Trusting in her instincts, she paused for an answer as the Varden continued their search.

They’d made it, safely for the moment, though far from safe, but she figured it was a one step at a time situation. And maybe neither of these things they were worried about were actually dangerous. Well, to them, guns were plenty dangerous. And keeping that in mind, she had a hand wrapped around the hilt of one of her knives, though she kept it sheathed, while 03 invited their potential ally to state their position in all of this.

She was hoping she hadn’t made the wrong decision. Spooked by big guns. Though the first words the… robot spoke betrayed no hint of underlying danger. And when she followed its scan onto the street, her eyebrows drew together, a deep breath making her ready to scream. No. Ally or not, her hand tightened its grip and she knew that away from them was where she wanted to be. But with her fear at the numbers dropping from the ship came a visceral desire to rid the world of a few. If she’d had more confidence in herself and the other’s abilities, she might have given in to that urge to hunt.

The robot had a better idea.

Out the back? Glancing to the other two, she slipped cautiously towards it, letting the blond girl offer whatever gratitude she felt like, and tuning the amplifiers letting her listen in in front and behind. Nothing seemed off, so she nodded to 03, waving her forward and giving the other girl a vaguely confused look, though if she could carry the robot, then taking it with them was a good idea. They’d need a source of information. “Alright.” She spoke quietly and unsheathed her own knife, just in case. “Let’s go.”

Varden. That was the name of her enemy, those soldiers that were spreading out and searching the area. She grit her teeth, the nanobots in side her whirring. She could feel her muscles tightening and her senses sharpening. Her body was preparing for battle. But, it seems her companions decided to fall back. The thought of running away from the Varden sickened her. They should be running from her! She debated breaking off and charging at them herself, but she was apparently outvoted two to one. No matter what the issue was, she wouldn't break what little kinship she felt for the other two girls.

The robot, however, she felt nothing towards. No. 1 was definitely proving herself to be the most kind-hearted of the three. To No. 3, though, he was just a source of information. It was a robot, a tool; it was not a being worth protecting, at least not as far as she could see. "Then grab the thing and lets go," she said to No. 1. "If we're going to run, then let's at least do so effectively. If that thing starts to slow you down, use it as a distraction. Otherwise..." She looked at the robot with a cold expression. "I hope you're prepared to answer all of our questions."

Without giving the robot a second look, she darted into the tunnel alongside No. 2. "You want to fight them, don't you? Do you think we could win in a fight? It might be easier than running, especially if we can get the drop on them." She clearly wasn't happy with running away, and she did nothing to hide her annoyance at their decision in her voice. "You must want to see them bleed as much as I do..."

The machine would accept whatever help was offered, no matter how awkward it might be to be carried off. It was simply glad to not be left behind for once. Into the tunnel, they were taken from the building into the back alleys. It was clear just from looking around that this was not a place people were meant to go. Like forgotten hallways between buildings, only nobody was ever supposed to be able to actually get there. But this was the perfect hiding place. A place that would not likely even exist on maps should they look them over. And the machine in tow would point them in the right directions. Left here, right there, until they found themselves in a clearing between buildings. And hidden away in the corner, was a tunnel built into the ground, going down into a dug out cavern. It was covered by some bushes, and the buildings in this area seemed so tall that nothing could even fly over them. It was well hidden for sure.

Guiding them to the entrance, the machine would find its way down onto the ground again, and would slowly walk down into the hole. Any chance of fighting back was gone for the moment, as they were left with little option but to follow the tiny machine inside the hole.

Inside seemed, dark, cold, and lifeless at first. But as the three entered behind the elderly machine, dots would light up in all corners of the room, as one machine after another peeked out from little burrows to see who these strangers were. Each and every machine was unique, built from scrap to create bodies, but they all had one thing in common. Each one had a bright, shining golden core, the source of their light, that seemed to be their heart. This very same core, in the elderly machine, shined much less brightly, as if he was somehow rather literally dying from old age.

He found a place to sit, a sort of chair at the far side of the room. One of many pieces of scrap that lined the walls, seeming to serve the purpose of keeping the walls from caving in on them.

"Your people, and my kind... there is no love between us, that much is certain. I overheard you speaking, you do not know why you are here, or where you are from. But you did not react to my kind as the Varden would. That is, a full crusade that would likely destroy this entire city just to exterminate my kind." He seemed to ramble on a bit, before shaking his head. The suggestion that relations between their people and the machines were negative, let alone hostile, wouldn't sit right with the three. Even 03 who had initially reacted negatively to the machine's presence... even if her feelings didn't change, that statement didn't seem right. Like it was missing some details. Or perhaps... it showed a vast difference in how the Varden acted.

"Tell me, what do each of you know, what do you remember, and what questions, do you have. Though I cannot promise that I have all the answers, nor that I can answer everything you ask without asking something of you in return. I only promise, that I will ask nothing of you, that will not in turn, aid you as well."

Previously, in order to assist the machine, the blonde took his hand. Tugging on it with an apologetic smile, she realized he was heavier than she thought. Not only was this a chance to do some good, it was also a chance to test out of her powers. Powers? Yes, of course she had powers.

Her the palms of her hands lit up bright blue, the suit channeling her abilities. Approximating his weight, she made her hands create the same amount of pushing force as the ground was pulling him towards it. Awkward as it was, his weight was no longer in issue even though she overshot it a bit, and he bounced too much. The masked one mentioned using him as a distraction, and she frowned at her suggestion but otherwise said nothing. Plancing a hand beneathe one of his feet and the other at his back side, she fully activated her newfound abilities. Or were they refound? Nonetheless, the old robot would feel a strange sensation as it felt like her hands had the 'powers' of the floor beneath them.

It was tiring to maintain her upwards force- she could feel excess energy being expelled and not being put effectively towards her task.

Eventually, they made it to the strange room full of robots, and the blonde woman set the robot fully on his own two feet, taking a deep breathe. "There you go...we did it!" She glanced away from him and to the room.

"Woah. Uh, hey everyone." She said, waving with another apologetic smile. Pretty much out of breathe, she leaned over and put her hands on her knees, catching ber breathe, glancing down at her now non-glowing palm with satisfaction at a job well done. She listened quietly as he began to explain the situation. Despite the strangeness of his statement, she was in no position to make claims about the state of the world.

"I...don't remember anything." She shrugged, defeated. "You got a history book or something? I dunno where we are, who those red guys were, why I can do what I just did, where we came from. Nothin'. It's all just..."

She made a vague wiping gesture in front of her forehead, signifying her mind was blank.

"I guess it's probably worse than you thought, huh?"

With 01 and the robot leading the way, she found her concentration drifting towards what might be following them, rather than what was coming. She was tense the whole way, uncertainties piling on top of uncertainties. Though every time her gaze drifted over the odd pair of girl and machine, she felt her lips quirk beneath her mask. That, at least, offered something other than unknowns. But finding amusement in the moment wasn’t a very good distraction from the questions that kept echoing in her head. 03 had only voiced what she was trying not to think about, but now she couldn’t shake the idea.

She did want to fight those soldiers. And a large part of her felt confident they could win. But she didn’t know where that confidence was coming from, so until she knew herself better, she could only hesitate to answer. She wasn’t even sure those soldiers could bleed. For the moment, caution seemed the best solution, even if it riled her almost as much as it did 03.

Mind on that matter for much of the trek, 02 could not have said what she was expecting to find when they reached the old robot’s destination, but a room full of other robots, all seeming as though they’d built themselves, wasn’t high on the list. She sheathed her knives nonetheless, not expecting that metal would do much damage to metal, and stepped up to stand beside 01 as she caught her breath. She felt vaguely nervous under the curious stares, but not particularly threatened, it just seemed proper to offer some support, even if it was silent, since 01 had gone through the effort of bringing this friendly resource along with them.

The words the robot offered, however, were more troubling and she frowned while staring about the place. Hidden though it was, if the Varden truly wanted to exterminate them, what was stopping them? Though, she couldn’t have said why anyone would want to put in so much effort, either. Clearly, there were too many pieces of the puzzle missing.

“I remember the same.” That is, pretty much nothing at all… “But I feel less for you than those… Varden?”

Turning to 03, 02 tilted her head. She’d only nodded before, but now she confirmed the other’s suspicions. “You felt it? And you?” Had their friendlier companion felt the same?

“Why?”

No. 3 looked around curiously as the ramshackle robots cautiously emerged from the nooks and crannies of... wherever this was. They were surrounded and outnumbered, but she didn't feel threatened by those creatures. She rubbed her head, processing everything that just happened. She didn't understand the bloodlust she felt towards the Varden, but she at least knew she felt nothing close to that towards these little machines. She felt no attachment to these creatures, no sense of companionship or obligation to protect them like she felt for her numbered companions, but neither did she feel the need to dismantle them. If these were Varden, she was sure her mind would be racing, analyzing the terrain and calculating the most efficient routes to eliminate as many of them in as little time possible. But, no, her mind was at rest, and she tossed her little blade to the ground.

"I bear no ill-will towards you or your kin," she said, motioning to the other little machines. "I certainly don't believe you are my enemy. You seem willing to answer our questions and also seem to have no love for the Varden, so I suppose that makes us allies." She nodded in agreement to No. 2's question. "Why indeed. We have no memories from before those pods, but there is something there. I know these two." She motioned to the other girls. "I have no memory of anything before the crash, and yet I trust them implicitly. I hate the Varden. I have no idea who they are or what they did, but I know I want them dead. It's almost as if I'm a machine, programmed to feel these things."

She let out a small sigh, realizing the irony of what she said, given the situation. "If you know who we are, where we are, and why we're here, please tell us." She crossed her arms and leaned against the wall. Something told her that they'd be here a while.

The machine nodded its head, looking down in thought for a moment. "That is troubling... but, not completely unexpected." He pointed his staff up towards the ceiling of the cave for a moment. "High above this city, is a barrier. This barrier is a defense, against my kind, but others, as well. Passing through this barrier would shock one's system with an Electromagnetic Pulse, that would almost kill anything. Your, flesh and blood is the only reason you are alive. What little of your gear works is a wonder. But if you truly feel no ill will towards my kind, then there is a possibility..."

He looked around at the other machines for a moment. "To understand, I must tell you the history of this world. Not ancient history, but at least as far back as the events of three hundred years ago. To a time the Varden refer to as the Uprising. Machines were being developed as the next generation of the work force for the entire planet. To create even more advanced machines, they created an artificial brain, simply known as Mother. It was, to be just that, the Mother to all future machines. From Mother, came these cores, you see here in our bodies. Giving us unparalleled artificial life. As if, we have real souls, they said. But as you might imagine, people got scared of these new machines. Machines who could think, and feel, like I do. They demanded the entire program be shut down. And the engineers who created Mother, refused. It sparked a civil war, and the machines... The machines did not sit idle."

He stood up, and wobbled over to a table, and pulled out a book, eyeing through it. "There were many factions. One faction fought with the machines, feeling we had our right to exist as any other. Another faction, the Varden, fought to eradicate us from the world. They were zealots against our kind, so much so that they were willing to annihilate their planet if necessary, to keep us from spreading. Nuclear Weaponry, the most powerful weapon of its time. They planned to cover the globe in them, but before they had the chance, my kind, machines, took control. Mother crafted a ship, and with the few war machines who had been fighting, they left this world to ruin. Many of us, were left behind... and the Varden, and even the other factions who had fought alongside the machines, barely survived the nuclear end times that came. The world, was in fact blanketed with these weapons... and to this day, this world is not a place you can live in peacefully." He pointed upwards once more. "The glass dome you crashed through, is but one defense against the fallout that plagues this world. Beyond that dome, lies endless stretches of sand, death, and ruin. Even machines are eaten away by the fallout in time, that is why we live here, within the city."

He eyed the book silently for a moment, before closing it and tucking it away. "Different factions, created different cities, all over this planet. Cities just like this one, with different beliefs, different ideals... and I cannot say for certain, but you could very well be from another city. There were, rumors, that a city had been built, by those who supported my kind. They had the best chance. They were warned about what was coming. If any were to not harbor ill will towards my kind... and the only way I could imagine getting from one city to the next short of a specialized transport, is by tossing pods through the air. But, I am afraid that I cannot tell you who you are, or where you are from. I cannot tell you where this city is that you may call home, or what its people are like. I know simply, that the Varden are at war with anyone, who does not kneel to their beliefs. They will destroy anything in their path to be the ultimate rulers of this world. They are friend to nobody... even themselves."

He stood in a long moment of silence, thinking, trying to figure out what more he could do. "My core, is fading. I have but a mere few weeks left, at this rate. For hundreds of years, I have been exploring this city. Finding by brethren and bringing them here, to safety. I was, bigger then... livelier. But as our cores fade, our bodies do not function properly. Not unlike your own people's old age. I fear, I cannot safely venture from this place any longer. My people, will aid you as we can. I believe that your arrival, is a sign of something. Of change, to come. Whether good or bad... if you are our allies, then we must stand with you, as your people once stood with us. My kin, will aid you as we are able, though we are not warriors. We have information on the city. Eyes, ears, so to speak. I believe I know where you should start your search." He wobbled over to the wall, pointing his cane up to a map. "Here is where you landed. And here, is where we are now. Not far from where you landed is a tower, the tallest building in this section of the city. We had a scout atop the tower, but since your landing, we have not heard from him at all. If you would please, ascend this tower and find out why he is not responding. Not only could you get a good view of the city, and get a much better feel for where you are, but our scout can give you much information on the city that would be useful for you. Perhaps, you will remember something about why you have come here, by seeing the city from above. I'm afraid that is the last of what I can offer for now."

The blonde, or rather, Number One as was her pods designation, listened solemnly. This all sounded right, and matched up with her initial reaction of the Varden. She trusted the old man, or the machines. These beings who live from their core. Looking upon them now, it was impossible to see them as anything other than living beings, like her. Sure, their skin was of steel, and hers was of flesh, but they were not so different. Life takes many forms and these people were one of them.

Perhaps it would be more difficult to tell, but despite her lack of knowledge she did know it was her place to stop the Varden, for they were her foes. This, along with trusting her friends, were most likely the last two fragments of her life before the crash that she remembered and she would live behind them.

"A tower, hmm?" She asked, putting a hand on her hip. Still wearing her hood up, the woman looked over at her two friends.

"We should go for it. I think he's right. I think this scout, and this tower, and everything else is the right thing to do. We gotta learn as much as we can. I'm already tired of running away from these guys, I dunno about you all." She said, smiling jokingly, but with determination in her eyes and energy coursing through her.

This was her cause, and she was ready to fight for it. No time to lose, not a second to spare. No opportunity like the present.

"These Varden guys will have no idea what hit them." The blonde punched her palm with her knuckles, now grinning excitedly, passion in her heart and fire in her eyes. Ready for the conflict ahead, already eager to feel the adrenaline, fear and thrill. Lifting that old robot was just the beginning. The confusion and disorientation was gone- she was ready to leave at that very instant.