I lead them to the mess hall and get some food, myself. Given our limited resources, the food is amazing. We sit down and eat. The blue crew eats so fast that it's obvious that they haven't eaten much, in quite some time.

"So," I start to say "Where were you guys when they took over?"

Justin sighs and says "I was a on a SWAT team and we were doing a big drug bust. In the middle of a fire-fight, there was a big explosion. It was outside. None of us were prepared for what would happen next. Cogs raided the building and killed everyone that they could. Myself, two other cops, a drug dealer, and a meth-head were the only ones who made it out of the building alive. The drug dealer looked me in the eyes, when the dust settled, and we shared a moment. Neither of us spoke, we just looked. At that moment, we knew that the world would never be the same."

I nod and say "Man, that must have been rough."

He nods and sheds a tear.

"I was ordering hot dogs from a hot dog stand." TJ starts to say "My wife was pregnant and craving loaded hot dogs. Plus: Bulkmeier's had the best hot dogs in the state. Anyway, I was just about to pay, when I saw people running down the street, screaming. Just a moment later, I see cogs killing as many people as they can. I took my wife to an alley and hid with her. Some cogs tried to get her, but I beat them. We both survived. She went into labor, right there, and we couldn't do anything but deliver in the alley. As soon as she began to scream, a couple of bigger machines came into the alley and killed her and the unborn child." He starts to cry. "They thought I was dead, so they left me alone. I went into hiding and almost killed myself, but Justin found me and he stopped me from putting a bullet through my head."

My jaw drops and I begin to cry, a little. "TJ, I'm sorry to hear that." He just takes a drink of coffee.

"I was showering, after a good night of swimming." Kevin says "They came into my house and tried to kill my parents, who were staying with me for the weekend. My father took out his sword and fought them off. I jumped out of the shower, threw on my robe, grabbed my sword, and joined him. All three of us stayed alive, but we had to go into hiding. We went to the Shiba house, which was the Samurai Rangers' base, and met up with the other rangers and their families. We defended the city for a while, but the Shiba House was overtaken and we realized that we needed to go protect other people. That's when I ran into Justin and TJ."

I nod, unsure what to say. His story isn't as sad or intense as the other two. "I was filling out paperwork in my dojo and heard a lot of noise, so I went outside. When I saw the streets filled with machines, I motioned for people to get inside until I could hold the cogs off. I thought that I could hold them off, but I was wrong. My dojo was blown up and I went into hiding, as long as I could. I'd try to take down machines, when I could, but they eventually got me and put me in a concentration camp. Captain Mitchell broke me out, years later, and now I'm here."

Everyone nods, finishes their food, and stands up. "I need some sleep." Justin says. The other two nod and I lead them to the bunk room. They go to sleep and I walk to the main room. On my way there, I see a door slightly cracked open. Captain Mitchell and the Blue Senturion are in there. I hear them and a female voice.

"Alternate realities?" the Blue Senturion says. "I never knew that such things existed."

"Now you know." the female says.

"Indeed, and knowing is half the battle." Captain Mitchell says. "Anyway, we have to try to figure this out. It may turn the tables in the favor of mankind."

I see him look toward the door and close it all the way. As he does, I hurry to the main room.