"Johnny, left side," Sergeant Williams yelled. Johnny started shooting at the cloaked enemies that were trying to creep in on the left.
"Damn Sarge, these goggles sure are frakking useful," Johnny said during a short break in enemy fire.
"No freaking kidding, private, now pay attention," Williams said in response.
"Incoming group of survivors, prepare to concentrate fire on the right side," said Blinkie, the geth mobile platform next to Williams. Blinkie was a nickname Williams decided to give it because its flashlight head randomly went out and back on. "Mobile platforms acting as shields, do not shoot them," it continued.
"Wait, what? What do you mean shields," Williams asked with a puzzled look on his face.
"There will be a ring three layers deep surrounding the survivors made of mobile platforms, shielding them from harm," Blinkie explained. "They will be firing in all directions and dropships will prevent aerial attacks from reaching the survivors."
"You lost me at shielding them from harm," Williams said. "You are actually willing to just sacrifice bodies in order to protect those survivors? Just throw them away? That is the first sign of a bad leader."
"The mobile platforms are expendable; the only loss is a material loss. All the Geth runtimes are backed up on the ships in orbit, the mobile platforms are insignificant," blinkie said. "The geth have no leaders, we share consensus on decisions. If we decide on a course of action that means that all geth runtimes are in agreement."
"Never mind, forget I said anything," Williams said with a lost look on his face. "I don't get payed to understand AI," he whispered to himself. He looked up and saw the group blinkie referred to and said, "Alright marines, time to earn our pay! Give 'em hell!"
The next several hours were spent ferrying survivors from the forest to the bunker, and Williams got to see just what Blinkie meant when he said protect from aerial attacks. Missiles were launched to go over the Geth mobile platforms and the hovering dropships put themselves in the line of fire, taking the hits that were meant for the survivors. Several larger missiles were sent from enemy dropships to destroy the bunker, and geth dropships took those ones too, only this time they were destroyed.
After witnessing one of these selfless acts of courage during a lull in fighting Williams said to Blinkie, "You know, if an organic dropship did that they'd be called heroes and given medals posthumously. They would have their stories told to generations of military recruits."
"Everyone must do their part in this fight or else all life will die. The Reapers are a threat to all life in the galaxy, synthetic and organic alike. We happen to be able to back up ourselves, making our forms less important. Organics can't, thus they must be protected," Blinkie responded.
"Uh-huh. You lost me at Reapers, who are they," Williams asks.
"The Reapers are the reason we are here, the reason the enemy is here. They are a race of synthetic organic constructs that have been exterminating galactic civilizations for millions of years. They seek to continue their cycle and we are here to stop them," Blinkie responded.
"Well, they sound pretty terrible, but if they aren't worse then these bastards," Williams points at a dead alien, "Then we have nothing to worry about." He smiles at Blinkie.
Blinkie responds bluntly, "They are worse, and they are far larger. Sovereign was a Reaper." Just then their conversation was halted by a new wave of enemies. This continued for several hours.
During another lull, Blinkie said, "All enemy warships have been destroyed, dropships routing enemy dropships now."
"What," Williams and Johnny asked after sucking down water.
"The fight is over, we won. The only enemies left are ground forces and dropships that have no warships to return to," Blinkie explained.
"Really? How do you know that," Williams asks.
"We are in communication with the warships in orbit, we saw the last enemy warship destroyed," Blinkie responds.
"What do you mean 'You saw'," Johnny asks. Both men lean forward.
"It is unimportant, just know that soon you may return to your ship of origin, or if that ship has been destroyed you will be picked up by your allies," Blinkie said.
"Oh, about damn time," Johnny said. With that, the battlefield became quiet; the sound of the carrion birds squawking the only sound that could be heard. The bodies of the aliens and mobile platforms were strewn across the battlefield like some perverted abstract art piece. Their blood and fluids were the only liquids on a concrete canvas.
After only a half an hour Blinkie said, "All hostiles killed, returning to base." With that he and all the other mobile platforms began to pick their way across the battlefield to a spot where the dropships could pick them up.
Wait, what? Where are you going," Johnny asked as he ran to catch up to Blinkie. Other soldiers could be seen doing the same all across the battlefield.
"Our task has been accomplished, it is time to leave, we are needed elsewhere," Blinkie said.
"What do you mean," Williams said quietly as he came closer.
"Yours was not the only colony attacked. Terra Nova and Illium are currently under siege, we are needed elsewhere," Blinkie said.
"What? You just got done fighting here, you're leaving to go keep fighting," Johnny asked with a confused look on his face.
"Geth do not need rest and we do not need relaxation. There is a job that needs to be done and we are the best equipped to do it. Goodbye," with that Blinkie turned and followed its fellows and boarded a dropship that immediately left for its parent warship.
Johnny watched the dropship until it was out of sight, took a look around the battlefield and said, "Well this sucks."