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Written by Nashmeira Soladat Wrekk
Edited by NONE FOR NOW.
Routines.
We all have them even if we don't realize it. For instance, the way we wake up in the morning. Some people might wake but snuggle up in bed for a while before they have to be up. Some might wait till the last minute, waking up in a frantic rush to get ready for the day. The list goes on and on.
The option that Menially preferred was to wake just before sunrise. Today for her was no different. At ten minutes before sunrise the lights in her bedroom began to illuminate at a very low setting. Then after the allotted time the curtains of the window would open exposing the room to the outside world. However, if one were to look outside they would not see the lush green of trees, nor the rugged landscape that was so common to this new era.
Instead they would see water. Crystal clear blue water that went as far into the distance as the eye could see till it tapered off to darkness. It made for quite the mosaic as the first rays of sunlight hit the water's surface high above.
It would be at this time that Menially would start to rouse herself from her sleep. The large king size bed was choice rather than a necessity. She found that it very comfortable and she enjoyed having the space to roll around in it.
Many time she would fantasize about lounging around and not get up at all, however that was not something she could do. She had a routine to maintain, there was work today. She would indulge in that practice on the sixth day of the week, Iceday. Today was Watersday so it was not to be.
She had decided that the old-world use of a seven-day week and a 24-hour day was inefficient so she had developed her own timetable to rule her life. A six day we at 25 hours per day worked best for her. This meant that one week for her were 150 hours long rather than the old-world standard of 168 hours. The concept of years had also been revamped to reflect the days and weeks. Years were made up of 50 weeks rather than 52, the old-world standard, giving the year only 300 days.
The concept of time based on the celestial bodies was an antiquated notion when living in the facility. Sure, you could see the sun thought the water or cameras of the outside but what did it matter. The facility had not been made to run this way it was just how she liked it.
To Menially this was more efficient. It worked better for an environment that was far removed from the outside world. Even farther removed from the old world. As for why she decided to name the names of the week using base elemental concepts, Firesday Earthsday Watersday Windsday Iceday - Lightningday, there was no logical or scientific reason for the names. She just thought it was cute.
Today the light shinned in the room Menially as woke. She took a few moments to enjoy the warmth of the bed before chiding herself and stretching.
First task of the day was to look over the nightly reports. Without a word spoken she reached over to the night stand and retrieved both her glasses and tablet. Without a word, she began looking over the reports of various projects that she had working. Each were chronologically spaced out in such a way that she could oversee all of them with only the minimal oversight. Leaving the minor tasks to the automated assistant robots that could handle the menial tasks, while she was free to work on more important aspects of her various projects.
Menially took her time looking over the reports with only a few mental notes for later. Nothing that couldn't wait till after breakfast. About 30 minutes later the daily reports were reviewed, updated procedures sent.
She pulled the covers off and reluctantly climbed out of bed. Since she was young she had always found that she did not like to be hampered by clothes when she was asleep. So, she had tent to sleep nude, she was not a nudist or anything like that, she just hated to be restricted when she slept.
She walked to the window of her room beneath the waves and smiled out to the abyss. Enjoying the site of the color mosaic created by the sun.
Her sight adjusted from the exterior and to her own reflection in the glass. She noted that her hair was frizzy from her tossing in her sleep. She took great strides to take care of the strawberry blonde locks. When first the decided to grow it out he didn't know what to do with it. She had kept it short for so long it was strange to have it growing past her shoulders. Then past her mid back, her waist and finally resting just at her knees. She decided that it was good there.
While she didn't not work out to the point of gaining a six-pack sit was obvious that she took good strides to make sure she was fit. Though Menially was only fifteen it was a source of pride to her to keep in shape. IT was never too early to prepare for the future.
Realistically letting her hair get so long was not a logical thing to do. It would take up more of her day but she decided that it was just something she liked and logic could be omitted in this decision. Being only five foot six it also made her look taller. So she turned to the other side of the room and proceeded to the vanity to begin her work of brushing out the tangled. This would of course need to be done again after her morning bath.
Like clockwork the door to the room opened and in walked a tall male with black hair, wearing a very none descript gray uniform. Ever step he made was gaged to an even stride stopping four feet from where Menially now sat. She didn't even flinch or try to cover herself from his view. She was very comfortable in her skin and its wasn't as if anyone cared but her.
"Lady Menially, good morning. Will my lady be eating breakfast before or after her morning run?" These were the same words ask of her every morning. It was not a break from routine, it was merely a shuffling of allotted time. One could come before the other. They were interchangeable.
"Breakfast. What's on the menu today?" She already knew the answer but for social interaction sake she asks anyway.
"Today is a selection of grapefruit, Greek yogurt and Eggs benedict." He answered in a monotone voice.
"That sounds great. In the atrium if you would." It was a statement.
"Very well Lady Menially. Do you require assistance with your grooming?"
"No."
"Then I shall see to breakfast." With one swift movement, he turned about face and left the room.
After finishing her hair Menially walked to her bath room. She had taken personal interest in the reconstruction of the room next to hers, turning it into a large bathing area. Walking to the chair in the room she retrieved the robe that was laid out last night for her. Slipping it on her then made her way out of the room. Her bare feet made soft noises as she padded down the hall.
To most people, it would seem eerily quiet, to Menially it was just another day. As she made it to the end of the hall she stepped into the waiting elevator. The doors closing, she was carried up four floors to the atrium level.
Upon exiting the elevator, she entered into a large room that was several stories tall. There were several levels each at one time used for the staff offices. The bottom level where she now was once a cafeteria. The square and round tables that once littered the room were now stored else were, there was no need to feed hundreds of people anymore. Now there was only one table in the entire room. Menially had always loved the view from the atrium. Just like her room she could see out to the underwater world outside. But it was on such a grander scale. While the inner portion of the ground floor was filled with various stalls once used for het cafeteria and the upper the various administration offices and rooms the opposite side was glass.
Hundreds of hexagon panes of glass made up the opposite wall. It was shaped like a bee hive with the various panes just having enough space between each so you could see the hexagon shape of it. Outside just like before was an endless expanse of water tapering off into darkness farther out. The view was much better here as well. The atrium was closer to the surface and outside the great glass window was a large artificial sea floor.
This artificial floor outside also ran the floor length of the room. The sea floor was teaming with life. A small coral reef ran most of its length. Fish of dozens of verities and the various aquatic animals that made the reef there home swam around darting here and there.
Being in the atrium was like getting to look at the world's largest aquarium. The sunlight was brighter here being closer to the surface, so there was no need for artificial lighting during the day, there was lighting in the room if it was an overcast day and for night time. It had originally been made to seat 181 people if the capacity limit sign was anything to go by.
Now however it only sat one.
A single table was set in the room. A single chair waiting on the single person to sit and enjoy the view and the food freshly prepared.
The same dark haired man pulled out the chair for Menially as she approached.
Sitting down Menially didn't even acknowledge him as she looked over the meal. Setting on the table beside the meal were a pair of glasses, black rims in a rectangle lenses. After putting the glasses on Menially blinked her right eye, then her left finally blinking both eyes together three times.
After a moment, she smiled and began to eat. Her gaze became unfocused throughout the meal, her eyes darting here and there from time to time. Blinking at rapid intervals as she ate. No words were exchanged between her and the dark-haired man.
After her meals, the removed the glasses and looked out to the world outside of the glass smiling to herself. She loved the atrium, truth be told it was her favorite place. She didn't want to eat every meal here, it would make the mundane so she abstained and ate at other places as well.
The meal over Menially put her glasses back on and stood. She took one last look out at the expense and smiled as she eyed a few small fish darts in and around the coral. Then she turned and made her way to the elevator. The dark-haired man that had not spoken since she came to her room earlier began cleaning up the table as she left.
The elevator door was open and waiting and she stepped in, the door closing on their own and carrying her down this time. When the elevator doors opened Menially stepped off to a long hall way. The walls had windows throughout however these did not have water behind them but rather exercise equipment. Each room seemed to be dedicated to one or two typed of equipment. Treadmills and bikes, machine weights and free weights on an on.
The lights of the room flickered to life as she walked down the hall finally tuning in the changing room. Just like her robe there was set of clothes set out for her on top of a towel.
The top today was the same as yesterday, only the color changed. Today her clothes were the color of the day of the week. Today her clothes were blue. The top was a mock neck top with a midriff, a pair of compression shorts that didn't even make it halfway to her knees. She pulled her hair up as best she could be holding it up with a hair tie and a clip. Now the thick locks only made it to her mid back.
She was disrobed and ready for a work out in minuets first making her way to a room with yoga mats and going through a warm up. After a fifteen-minute workout, it was on to the treadmill. Forty-five minutes later she changed to upper body. Her last exercise was abs followed by a few minutes of stretches for a cool down.
Then it was back on the elevator and to her room. She didn't bother retrieving her robe, there was no need it would be taken care of.
Once to her room she removed her excursive clothes tossing them into the hamper. Her glasses were tossed on the freshly made bed landing on top of the clothes that had been laid out for her. \
Entering the bathroom, she made her way to the far wall of the room where a shower was set up, she first washed herself cleaning off the seat from her work out then it was time for the bath.
It was better to first clean the body and then indulge in the bath to relax her muscles. The Bath was already heated and ready for her when she entered it. The bath tub was more of a small swimming pool, or a large hot tub. Deep enough that if sitting he would be just above the water line. Another part of the bath was a little deeper but nothing was more than meter and a half deep.
As good as it felt to relax she had work to do. Two of her projects were baring fruit the others were some weeks off before they would show any signs of success or failure. Exiting the bath she toweled off taking time to work the water from her hair, setting down. She retreated a brush from the table and began working to brush out her hair, finally began drying it, one of the more time consuming things about having so much hair. Then after several minutes she was tossing her used towels into the hamper with her gym clothes.
She exited the bathroom to her bed room. The bed had been made, and laying on it was her clothes for the day. To anyone she would come off very professional in actions, however in dress she preferred more of an everyday look.
Under garments were plane white garments. No one would see her undergarments so why care what color they were. Her top plain green v-neck, green being her favorite color. It matched her eyes. Followed by a fitting pair off cargo shorts cut just above the knee, ankle high socks and a pair of sneakers later she was almost ready.
She walked over to stand in front of her vanity. Taking a ribbon and tying it a few inches from the end of her hair so it would be a bit more controlled. Task complete she walked back the bed picking up the last garment and her glasses which she put on first. The finishing touch to complete her daily dress was her a white lab coat. It made her feel more professional and her under clothe gave her the laid-back look of a casual boss.
Her eyes fluttered, the right eye a few times then the left.
"Well this is interesting." She said to no one with grin. "Oh, this is good." She was off at a jog down the hall and to the elevator.
"MB change in plans. Clear my schedule for the rest of the day. Prioritize critical projects in a task list. I'm heading to Central make sure the different division heads are updated of the revised time tables." There was no need really to have them updated they had heard everything that was just said.
This time the elevator ride was longer this time and it took her down farther than any previous trips. Finally stopping Menially exited at a jog down the hall to a large double door.
Upon entering the light of the room spring to life. The room was actual like a theater but with desks and various computers about the room. At the very top was a single desk and when sitting behind it a person could see over the entire room. Large screens popped up in front of the room displaying weather, various readouts of the facility from power consumption, air filtration, the temperature of the various labs. Hydroponics, bio labs, compute labs and their various read outs. The last to illuminate was a large map.
As Menially made her way to the top desk and unofficial captain's chair she rolled her eyes. As she walked up the stairs she clapped her hands together.
"People come on what did I say? I'm on my way to Central is cue for everyone to get off their butts we have something interesting happening today!" The room suddenly started to come alive as holograms started to flicker to life around the room. The digital 3D models began to power on around the various tasker robots around the room. Giving there metallic frames the holographic image of a dark-haired male dressed in plane gray clothes.
"No time to dowel. I want to know the origin of that broadcast, and start decoding it as soon as possible. Give me a time frame!" The dark-haired hologram robots began working at their various terminal as Menially reached the top of the control room siting down in the captain's chair.
"Were do we stand on localizing where that signal originated from?"
"Satellite telemetry along with pings off the Focus network the signals origin is being narrowed down but it's only a general vicinity." Said one of the robots in it calm mono tone.
"Show me, put it on the big board." Seconds later the center screen changed showing a map various circles appeared on the screen. Two circles appeared on the screen. "Damn not enough points to triangulate. I thought we had satellite telemetry?"
"The signal was not strong enough to get an accurate reading. The probability is that it was an echo making it useless." Menially bit her lip.
"Crap on a cracker. Do we have it decoded yet?"
"Partial, it was using a deep AES32768 encryption, we do not presently have any know cyphers that are working to decrypt it. The header was not encrypted and only had minimal data that is usable.
"Show me. Send it to my L.E.N.S." Menially blinked a few times, her eyes scrolled back and forth. The inner lens of her glasses blinked to life. The text from the signals broadcast appeared in her sight. The L.E.N.S. acted much like a Focus, it could process data faster and allowed for faster and easier control of the facility's systems, and the service robots.
[PROTOCOL ZERO]
"That's it! Two words?" She leaned back in her chair thinking. Her left eye then the right blinked dismissing the text and bringing back into focus the usual readouts of the facility. The header of the message had been in an encryption that was easily broken but the rest of the broadcast would take time. Even with the compute network she had it would take six weeks to crack. It was different form the encryption used on the Faro robots and that had taken the facility 33 years to crack. In the long run six weeks was nothing but this was making her impatient.
"My Lady we have found a two Focuses in the vicinity."
"Really! Put them on the big board!" Two separate feeds appeared on the screen mostly looking around at the same view of the users Focus. The first of the two live images were just the back of a Strider robot, the user was obviously riding it, which was odd. From what she knew the machines didn't usually didn't obey humans. The second Focus showed the back of the first users head, a main of red hair fixed in various braids and beads hanging lose in it.
Over the next few hours the red head was talking about the world like her riding partner had no knowledge of the world at large. Strange, not that Menially was one to talk she had never been outside of the facility and that was just find to her. The outside world held nothing for her.
There was a bit of irony in the fact that the facility had been created to help further the human race and the strides in bio engineering and science would have revolutionized the human condition a millennium ago.
All the progress in so many fields that could have helped humanity and not one person had ever benefited from it.
Too Menially they were all just find projects and questions to figure out. Then they were filed away until they were needed or they could be improved upon.
Hours later there was still no useful information. There had been some glimpses of the red heads face but nothing that helped to figure out anything else. MB had come a few moments ago asking about lunch. She was too intrigued by this development to leave so she told the dark-haired robot to bring lunch to Central.
It was Turkey on Rye Bread with honey mustard and a cup of miso soup.
In a way, she felt it was almost sad that she put everything on hold for this but this was out of the ordinary. Sure, there were Focuses here and there that came online periodically but most of them were just people playing with something they knew nothing about.
These two people however were different. The red head look like one of the tribes in the western part of the continent.
Finally, two began to talk about taking a break to eat and rest up for a while. After finding a good place to stop the two dismounted and the video feed finally changed prospective. The two dismounted the Strider revealing their faces. It was sad this was so exciting to Menially but it wasn't everyday there was an encrypted signal sent out, but less one that was so encrypted so heavily.
After a second and the face appeared Menially was stunned and scooted to eh edge of her seat. She knew one of the people, well not really, she knew of her from her profile. She had been working on project DeepDive, but that was impossible. Records indicated she died before the world went dark.
"Bring up Nadia Odine's corporate profile." The large screen to the right of the video feeds changed to a personal profile of Nadia. Yes, the profile image and this woman were to close, she looked a few years younger than the profile picture, facial recognition soon confirmed the fact.
"Would you like us to also bring up the profile of the other female My Lady." Asked one of the dark-haired robots. Menially cut her eyes to the robot below her platform.
"She had a profile? Yes, bring it up."
Instantly to the left of the video feeds another corporate profile appeared. The face of an older red head graced the screen and Menially began to scan over the profile and her eyes widened.
"Elisabet Sobeck, how? There's no way. I mean the records we retrieved said she left that G-Prime place before it was lock down. There is no way she could still be live!" As if to prove her wrong the facial recognition software verified the identity of the red head. Still Nadia kept calling her Aloy not Elisabet. The though crossed her mind that she might be a daughter, but the odds of having the exact facial feature that could fool the recognition software was not an option. The genetic variation of the mother and father would see to that.
Quickly running some numbers in her head the odds were too high, a few other options were on the list but they too had to high of a probability to be feasible.
"A clone, that's the only explanation, no way could a child have that close of a resemblance to have an ID profiler her as the real thing." She said to herself. Menially grinned. It seemed canceling the rest of her day was a good choice. This proved to be most interesting thing to happen since finding a cure for cancer cells.
"I want them monitored at all times. Record everything, and send me updates hourly. If there is anything major to happen notify me immodestly. Day or night." A large smile spread across her face. "This is going to be fun."
She would check in on the progress of the two and just observe for now. This was interesting. As much as she would have loved to her could not abandoned her current projects but she would prioritize those that needed her imitate attention. Her top priority was finding out everything about the two females on the screens.
≧(´▽｀)≦
Having a traveling companion was interesting. Nadia could be very chatty once you got her started. She seemed to have no end of stories about the old world but as they went on I realized that there were only about four to five central characters. The most notable of them being Nadia, her mother, Hannah her life mate and later Dr. Sobeck.
I found myself wanting to know more, not just for the knowledge of the old world but about my new traveling companion as well. When talking about her younger life it was just Nadia and her mother. Nadia was very smart even as a child and her mother tried to foster her question for knowledge. However, her mother was the only person she interacted with. She made it a point in her stories to emphasize how much didn't interact with other people outside her core group.
Unless that is, she had a use for the person.
I had no delusions that in a why she was using me, but at the same time I was using her too. She had a skill set that was nonexistent, and might be the only real chance of saving GAIA. The situation was beneficial for both of us and hopefully in the long run forever one.
Right now, we were having a lull in conversation. When Nadia wasn't talking, she was looking around at the world. Granted they had forests covered in snow in the old world and Nadia played it off as just getting to see and experience a world she thought she would never see again I knew there was more to it. Nadia didn't say it but with everything that happened to her in her finally days before her long sleep and the attack by the Sabretooth just after waking up was taking a toll on her.
Last night as we were betting down it all really started to hit her. She tried to be strong and project an outward air of confidence but it was unrealistic for any human being to just be okay with what happened if they found themselves in her place.
She had incoherently babbled in her crying last night, apologizing to people long dead. First her mother for failing her in some way, then Dr. Sobeck for not being there to help her with Zero Dawn and finally Hannah her life mate.
As much as Rost had prepared me for life to survive and to be self-sufficient, he was not the most comforting type in many ways. Rost was more pragmatic. I fall and scrap my knee Rost did not kneel and tall me it would be okay, that I need to turn that frown upside down. Instead he would say the first thing you need to do is clean the wound. Then treat it for infection, if it gets infected it will make you weak and if your weak it's just a matter of time till your dead.
I said all that to say this. I had no idea how to comfort anyone. Last night was bad, tonight less so. During our good-natured conversation, it had turned to just a simple day in Nadia's life but the story had turned from a funny story about her, Hannah, Dr. Sobeck, and her mother into her breaking down. As the story started the four of them had been playing a game called putt-putt golf. The goal of the game was to get a small ball in a hole some distance away.
Nadia had only been seventeen at the time but she was already well known in her field and had become friends with Dr. Sobeck. The reason for the game was so Nadia got out of the lab and would interact with people.
Her mother had found at an early age that Nadia was smart, very smart just like Elisabet Sobeck. However, unlike Elisabet she didn't feel the need to interact with people. She was alienated as child and had more in common with adults then with children her own age. She at the age of seven rationalized that it was inefficient to have dealings with most people.
That had changed when she met Hannah. The girl was kind and kept trying to get thought to Nadia. Hannah invited Nadia over to her home for sleepovers, to parks, movies and more. Hannah would even sit quietly during Nadia's rants about science and technology and why everyone else was wrong. Eventually over years Hannah had worn down Nadia's aversion to people and had helped her to be more social.
The story had been nice, and easy going. It was also nice to have a story that involved Elisabet and see her doing something else other than science. It was obvious why Nadia had included Elisabet in her life, the two were in a why cut from the same boar skin. Hannah had demanded Nadia go to the play the game with her. At work Nadia had mentioned to Elisabet that she was going to play putt-putt, much to her chagrin. Off handedly Nadia had asked Elisabet to join them, something that she did not thing the old scientist would do. But to Nadia's surprise she did.
While both Nadia and Elisabet might have been the two of the greatest minds in the world in their respective fields. When it came to putt-putt golf they both paled in comparison to Hannah. Nadia could not understand how she did it. The game relied on having the slowest score. The score determined by how many springs with a stick you took to get the ball in the hole. The game must have been one of the most challenging sports of the old world and Hannah was a master of it.
There were 18 holes in all, meaning the least amount of points one could have was 18, assuming you could get the ball in the hole with only one swing. By the ninth hole both Nadia and Elisabet had a score over twenty-five points. Hannah had a score of eleven.
Nadia turned from thinking this game was dumb and a waste of time to taking it as a personal affront to her intelligence. This moment had been a turning point for Nadia. Nadia could not understand how she was so bad at the game to her it was math, geometry. She should be able to figure out a way to logically be better at the game and could not understand why she played so poorly. She was acting like a child, and it was Hannah that had reeled her in.
She had told Nadia that you can't always explain everything with science. True the game could be explained with math but the real question Hannah had asked Nadia was why do you need too? It was a game, it was meant to be fun, there was no reason to over think it just go with the flow. Stop trying to scientifically, math mathematically explains everything. Just have some fun and stop over thinking it.
Elizabet's excuse was she just sucked at the game. She wanted to come because it was something that she and her mother use to do. She still wasn't good at the game then but she enjoyed it. She also said she found a kind dark humor in watching Nadia in situations like this. She also found humor in watching Nadia eat because the younger girl would eat items in the order of smallest item to largest.
When she was explaining all of this I did my best not to but I to found her odd eating habit funny. Nadia had just rolled her eyes and muttered something about the evil redhead gene that was so prominent in the Sobeck women. We both had a good laugh at her joke.
But the reminiscing of a happy time in her life turned her mind to what and who she had lost. The tears started flowing and the laughing and slowly morphed in to sobs. So, like now I did the only thing I could and put my hand on her shoulder and let the tears flow and sobs spill out.
I couldn't say anything and there was nothing to say. This was something that she was having to work through, all I could do was be there for her. Would I have liked to tell her it would be okay, sure? Who wouldn't feel bad for someone that had lost everything and everyone they love. But I couldn't, all I could do was let her cry on my shoulder and be there.
Eventually she tired herself out. The rest of her story could hopefully be finished later. It was nice hearing about Elisabet outside of the bleak recordings I had of her so far. I lay Nadia down on the bed roll for the night hoping she would sleep the whole night this time.
We had to share the one bed roll, I hadn't planned on having a traveling companion. Once we got back to Meridian I would pick up another one for the trip to the Sacred Lands. At least it was warmer with two people. I gathered some more wood for the fire before I too decided to bed down.
At the rate, we were going we might be in Meridian sooner than I thought. Maybe three more days if the weather cooperated and the snow didn't start up again. I had been initially worried about Nadia's traveling attire. It seemed so thin and light but she assured me she was plenty warm and comfortable. It didn't have and padding so it was obvious it was made to fight weather, not machines.
I didn't foresee Nadia throwing down with a Thunderjaw anytime soon but we would have to do something about that when we reached Meridian. Maybe just keep what she had with a few modifications.
I did have one worry that was in the back of my mind and that was the Nora. When I had entered the mountain, and came back the same people that shunned me all my life had suddenly thought I was a god. Bowing like I was there just for them a sign from there goddess. But I knew I was far from it. The Nora told their children that I was daughter of the Goddess and the Metal Devil. I never believed that it could be true, come on be being the product of a machine.
But they weren't that far from the truth. I wasn't carried by a human mother, but a machine and in a many ways GAIA the AI was the new goddess of the planet that game me life. So, I guess from a certain point of view they weren't wrong.
I wasn't so sure what would happen when I got back there with Nadia, an Old One, and we entered the most holy place in the Sacred Lands. Part of me wanted to tell them the truth, but I doubted that most would believe me and who was I to destroy everything they believed in. Maybe if they were burring people alive like the previous Sun King yeah sure but the Nora for the most part were not overly violent people.
I threw another log on the fire before crawling under the furs next to my traveling companion. I looked up at the clear night sky and the full moon. Earlier I caught Nadia look up at the moon. When I asked her, what was so interesting she told me 'It's the same. The moon. The stars are the only witnesses of our existence.'
I think she took solace in the fact that at least one thing was the same. The moon and stars were the same one's from her time. She was a strong woman, I could tell that from short amount of time we had been together. She would make it through this and I had hope that we could succeed.
Even so I still have this nagging feeling that a storm was coming, that Nadia was only one part of something bigger then even GAIA and it was only a matter of time before the other shoe fell.
｡：ﾟ(｡ﾉω＼｡)ﾟ･｡
The world was a far different place then FAS-B345T had on record from previous operations. From high above the earth the imagery was filled with more forest than before. There seemed to be less civilized structures then previous operations and virtually no technological communications signals. There weren't hardly even any electrical signals at all.
There were still several satellites that it could be used to triangulate positions of assets, and pass along operations data but that was only after a target was positively identified and the situation was assisted. There were no satellites capable of spotting a target so a visual ID was need. Hence why FA134-CHIMERA was scrambled.
The CHIMERA series was similar in many ways to what was once known as a U.A.V. (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle). The most famous of them being the Predator series from the early 2010 era.
The sensor package on the CHIMERA allowed it to positively identify any target that was visible to in a mile radius. The infrared system allowed it to scan for possible targets within a 30 miles' radius. It could further narrow down its targets in groups by biometric data. Visuals, speech patterns, heart rhythms, even mannerisms.
In some operations collateral damage was to be kept to a minimum so being exact in its operations was a necessity. Even so CHIMERA's could be used to deliver large payloads that could level a building or more subtle payloads to take out only one living target. In the latter, however the margin for error was larger.
FAS-B345T however had armed the CHIMERA assets with mid-range Class A2 concussive payloads suited to level a small three-bedroom house. The rezoning was that was the CHIMERA assets would need to be in the air for a while if their current rouge assets was not found quickly. The search would start at the last know suitable location and spread out from there. Four CHIMERA's in all would work in tandem to search and pass along all relative data to FAS-B345T for assessment and further orders.
The CHIMERA's were not like FAS-B345T. They did not plan or think, they were soldiers that took orders and proceeded with objectives within their limited operations parameters. There's was not to question why, there's was but to do or die. It was FAS-B345T that made the tactical planning and order executions of strategies to carry out its orders.
Now the four CHIMERAS' and finally reached their destination. It was time to report in to the Operations Control Director FAS-B345T.
-BEGIN LINE-
[COMMUNICATIONS FROM CHIMERA ASSETS]
[AREA OF OPERATIONS REACHED = YES]
[BEGIN RECONNOCENCE OPERATIONS IN TANDEM WITH LOCAL UNITS = YES]
[COORDINATING SEARCH WITH LOCAL UNITS = YES]
[POLLING LOCAL ASSETS… WAIT]
[AF134 - CHIMERA = MASTER]
[AF135 - CHIMERA = SLAVE]
[AF136 - CHIMERA = SLAVE]
[AF137 - CHIMERA = SLAVE]
[COMMUNICATIONS LINK OF UNITS ESTABLISHED]
[COMMENCE GRID SEARCH AND WAIT FOR FURTHER ORDERS]
[IF ROUGE ASSET IS LOCATED MAINTAIN COVERT VISUAL RANGE UNTIL FURTHER ORDERS RECIVED]
[NEXT SCHEDULED UPDATE IN 2.5HRS]
[BEGINNING OPERATIONS]
[HAVE A NICE DAY ^w^]
-END OF LINE-
(。´д｀。)
Next Time…
"These are my lands-my home! If you want to come here, you're going to stay here forever! I'll bury you here!"
"Damn Aloy. Tell me how you really feel!"
.
::AN::
Hello readers, I hope you enjoyed. I have the next chapter also most done and we'll be getting to Meridian. I cannot see drawing this out unneeded. How are you liking the development of the characters and what do you think of having Aloy in first person and everything else in 3rd person?
Please let me know what you think.
I would love to hear from you, constructive criticism please no flaming that's not helpful.
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