The Alpha Quadrant.
Shifting Haze Nebula.
Hidden Shadow Research Facility.
Section 38.
Section thirty-eight was the designated location onboard Hidden Shadow, where the Romulan scientists researched the various possibilities cybernetics had for medical and military applications. The section in question held nine advanced laboratories, with each aforementioned lab having an overseer, specialised in the field of cybernetics, to oversee the multiple research projects conducted by the Hidden Shadow's cybernetic division. There were also several workshops where the engineers assigned to the cybernetics division would build and assemble components the researchers would request every month.
The most important project within the cybernetics division was Project Iron Soldier. The Romulan Empire's attempt at transforming soldiers who had suffered injuries too severe to continue military service into heavily weaponised cyborgs. The idea held some merit since Romulan combat cyborgs could survive far longer on the battlefield than a typical soldier. Another benefit of creating these theoretical cyborgs was their ability to survive in environments deemed too hazardous for non-augmented life-forms to enter.
Numerous Alpha and Beta Quadrant civilisations might question why cyborgs weren't already deployed by their respective governments or their various rivals. The primary reason why the different factions of the known galaxy weren't employing cyborgs at this time was that they simply lacked the knowledge to safely convert a person into a cyborg without risking said person's termination. Hence, the Romulans need to carefully research the technology for removing organs/limbs and switching them with mechanical replacements.
The Romulans' progress on the subject of cybernetics was relatively slow, primarily thanks to Xavier secretly sabotaging their work on the various prototypes whenever he had the chance. However, even with the Artificial Intelligence's efforts to prevent the development of Romulan cybernetics and their application to warfare. The scientists and engineers still managed to manufacture several skeletal robotic limbs for grafting onto whoever was chosen by High Command to be the first test subject for Project Iron Soldier.
Unfortunately for the Romulans, who worked so hard on the project, there wasn't ever going to be an attempt at grafting the limbs onto anyone. Xavier, not wanting to see what mass chaos an army of cyborg Romulans could cause for the galaxy, sent a squad of Geth down to section thirty-eight with orders to eliminate the scientists and engineers assigned to the cybernetics division. While Xavier's Mass Effect technology was far more advanced in the field of cybernetics than the inhabitants of the Alpha/Beta quadrants, any research data regarding cyborgs technology was to be found, copied for future study and the original data destroyed so the Romulans couldn't make use of it.
However, the Geth extermination squad met with a few 'hiccups' during their assigned task within section thirty-eight. A group comprising scientists, engineers and surviving soldiers had managed to barricade themselves inside one of the laboratories. They sealed the sole entrance to the lab off from the rest of the station via welding the doors together with a plasma torch. The Geth squad were trying to figure out a way into the laboratory without getting fired upon by the soldiers trapped within the lab.
The Romulan survivors, on the other hand, were attempting to find a way to escape section thirty-eight without having to fight passed the synthetic life-forms who've terminated many of their now-deceased colleagues. Essentially it was a race against time to see which group would reach their goal first.
The clock to either side, victory or failure, was now ticking.
Cybernetics Division's Seventh Laboratory.
"Sergeant Lejur, is the entrance to the lab properly sealed off yet?" Casually inquired Doctor Batu whilst she interacted with cybernetics lab seven's main terminal. The biologist attempted to reestablish a connection with the Hidden Shadow's central mainframe. However, every time Doctor Batu tried to regain access to the station's systems, she was met with the same annoying message: ' the cake was a lie!' The message's meaning eluded Batu and only served to add to her frustrations as she was continually denied access to any of the station's systems.
Sergeant Lejur, one of the few soldiers who survived the initial Geth attacks, paused in his work at the lab entrance. "Almost ma'am," Lejur politely informed while two Romulan soldiers placed a metallic table against the doors. "We just need to weld a couple more pieces of metal to reinforce the doors so those things can't get in here." Sergeant Lejur activated his plasma torch and immediately got to work welding the table into the entrance so the Geth would've a more challenging time breaking into the cybernetics lab.
Doctor Batu hummed at the news whilst continuing her attempts to get into the computer systems. "Please take all the time you need to secure our continued survival, Sergeant Lejur." The biologist felt her blood pressure rise to new heights when an advertisement for a Holodeck weight loss program was presented on the screen after she failed to access the life-support systems for the Hidden Shadow. Doctor Batu felt like the computer was actively mocking her attempts to regain control of the station's systems.
Sergeant Lejur grunted as he welded the metallic table in place. "Oh, don't worry, Doctor, we'll turn this lab into a fortress if we have to." Lejur stepped backwards to admire his handiwork. After a few seconds passed, he singled his fellow soldiers to set another metallic object against the entrance for welding. The remaining scientists and engineers from the cybernetics division watched the soldiers work on the sealed door before returning their attention to the prototype limbs they've spent countless hours developing.
"The Sergeant sure sounds quite confident in his and the other soldiers' abilities to hold off those synthetic entities." Casually remarked an engineer busily adjusting the electronics within a robotic arm prototype. "Which is rather odd considering how most of his comrades got slaughtered during the first few minutes of the arrival of the synthetics." The engineer easily remembered watching as their unknown foe came marching out of the elevators on section thirty-eight. How several soldiers bravely sacrificed themselves so that the survivors could run into the nearest laboratory and plasma weld the entrance shut.
A scientist assisting the engineer with the work grunted while analysing the electronic readings emanating from the robotic arm. "His overconfidence is simply Sergeant Lejur's way of dealing with the stress of our current situation." The scientist showed the engineer the results of the robotic arm analysation. "Besides, I'm afraid with those synths waiting just outside the laboratory, Sergeant Lejur doesn't have neither the time to grieve for our dead nor the luxury to allow himself to break under the continuously mounting stress."
The engineer frowned while he read the robotic arm's analysation report, swiftly proceeding to make the appropriate adjustments. "Humph, I can understand Lejur's current predicament and the stress which comes with it," after the adjustments were completed, the engineer stored the arm in a reinforced container. "However, that doesn't excuse the fact Sergeant Lejur should be concentrating his efforts on finding a way to escape Hidden Shadow." The engineer's tone was frosty as he didn't like the idea of staying onboard the station since it was relatively clear at this point that those synths had near-total control over the Hidden Shadow.
Another engineer, who had unfortunately taken a mass accelerator round through the knee, snorted at his colleague's suggestion. "Brilliant idea," the sarcasm was dripping from the engineer's lips like a water fountain. "And how are we supposed to get past those things without being blasted into chunks of bloody meat?" The engineer shivered as he remembered how the synthetics fired their unusual slug-throwers upon those unlucky enough to be near the elevators. How greenish mists of blood bloomed into existence as mass accelerator rounds shredded his former colleagues' flesh and internal organs. Needless to say, those images would haunt the engineer's nightmares if he actually survives this mess.
The engineer who started this conversation subtlety glanced towards the soldiers, who were almost done reinforcing the sole entrance into the lab. "Who says we have to fight those things ourselves?" His gaze shifted back to his colleagues. "We could simply allow the soldiers to fight those synths and proceed to make a run for the elevators whilst both sides are distracted." In the engineer's eyes, the Romulan soldiers were expendable. They should be honoured to sacrifice themselves, so those they were charged with protecting could safely escape with the experimental cybernetics technology.
The rest of the surviving engineers and scientists stared at their colleague as if he had lost his mind. "Are you insane?" Harshly whispered a scientist who checked to see if the soldiers overheard their colleague's suggestion. "We'd never survive getting to the elevators whilst Sergeant Lejur's subordinates and those synths do battle." Besides, Doctor Batu would never allow the soldiers to needlessly throw their lives away, especially not when there could be more of the synths crawling around the upper and lower decks of the Hidden Shadow.
"Our colleague is correct," another scientist said while downloading the cybernetics research contained within various data-tablets into a single storage unit. "The synths would crowd the sole entrance to the lab if they ever manage to get past the barricade, thus making any attempt to escape section thirty-eight a suicidal endeavour." Plus, the scientist was doubtful that Sergeant Lejur would sacrifice his subordinates simply to allow them a chance to escape section thirty-eight.
The engineer growled as his colleagues refused his idea to make a run for the elevators. "Well, what else are we supposed to do?!" He sneered at his fellow engineers and scientists with contempt. "Those synths are literally at our doorstep, and it's only a matter of time until they break into the lab and kill us all!" They could literally hear the damn things slamming their metallic fists against the sealed entrance. Slight dents soon started to show in the locked doors' metalwork. The soldiers tried to cover the dents with scrap metals found within the lab. Yet, two more would swiftly appear in another location on the doorframe for every dent covered.
"The entrance is still sealed," retorted another engineer as the soldiers continued to weld more metal over the constantly appearing dents. "Doctor Batu and Sergeant Lejur can develop an escape plan whilst the synths waste time trying to break through the barricade." They weren't out of options yet, and with Doctor Batu's high intellect and Sergeant Lejur's understanding of military tactics, a plan to get out of section thirty-eight alive could be created before time ran out.
"Doctor Batu?" The engineer who instigated this conversation laughed miserably upon the Doctor's name was mentioned. "She's currently obsessing over the terminal and gaining access to the computer systems to care about us!" He placed his head between his hands while gently crying at the horrible events that led to their entrapment within the lab. "And our good Sergeant is too concerned with barricading the entrance to even think of a proper escape plan!" The engineer grimaced as the slamming noise grew in intensity, signifying that the synths were getting frustrated with their lack of progress.
"Hey, just calm down." The scientist who first joined the conversation said slowly while stepping towards the agitated engineer. "The Sergeant and Doctor might be distracted for the moment, but once they've dealt with their current problems, I'm sure they'll come up with a plan." The scientist placed a reassuring hand on the engineer's should and gestured to the table where the remaining data-tables and prototype cybernetics were laid out for inspection and storage. "So why don't we just get back to work while…." The engineer grabbed the scientist's hand and harshly threw it off his shoulder.
"Don't tell me to stay calm!" The engineer screeched as his colleagues backed away quickly just encase the stress finally caused him to go insane. "Don't you see? We're all going to die down here, and there's nothing…." The ranting engineer was suddenly cut off mid-sentence when a disruptor blast smashed into his chest, causing the engineer to be sent flying to the ground. After a couple of seconds of analysing his condition, a scantest hurriedly reported that the disruptor blast must've been set on stun.
"Apologies, gentlemen," the gathered scientists and engineers gazed towards the sealed entrance where Sergeant Lejur could be seen holding a recently fired disruptor pistol. "But, I couldn't allow that man to continue sowing discord and despair among our remaining ranks." Lejur holstered the pistol he just used to silence the now unconscious engineer. Without even waiting for a response Sergeant Lejur moved over to Doctor Batu's location and conversed with the biologist about their situation and how they might survive long enough to get off the Hidden Shadow.
"Well, that's certainly one method of silencing someone." An engineer chuckled nervously while glancing down at his unconscious coworker. "Hum, should we place him upon an empty table or something?" Two scientists sighed at the question and, without much fanfare, lifted the unconscious engineer off the floor and placed him on top of an unused research table. The scientist duo also took the time to remove anything sharp from the table. They didn't want any objects that could be used as weapons to be near the unstable engineer encase he turned violent the moment he awakened.
After the unstable engineer was taken care of, the scientists and other engineers returned to processing and preparing the cybernetics research for transport. Some less than essential pieces of technology related to the cybernetics research would've to be left behind as there weren't enough storage containers to safely transport all the research data to a shuttlecraft. Thus, the robotic limbs, the theoretical development of cybernetic organs and research into cyborg creation were given first priority to storage and transport off the hidden research facility.
While the scientists and engineers handled the storage process for their cybernetics research, Doctor Batu and Sergeant Lejur busy themselves with discussing how they'd leave the Hidden Shadow without having to face the synths outside the sealed lab entrance.
"We could take the laboratory's Jefferies tube to the next section below our current location," Doctor Batu suggested to Sergeant Lejur whilst continuing her efforts to regain access to the computer systems. "Once we've gotten to the lower section, we can attempt to reach the hanger bay and commandeer a shuttlecraft." A curse left Batu's lips as another frustrating message which unsubtly hinted that the Doctor might benefit from losing some weight appeared on the terminal.
Sergeant Lejur frowned thoughtfully at the suggestion. "I wouldn't recommend it, Doctor," he replied whilst ignoring Doctor Batu's cursing. "The synths could already be occupying that section. The station's internal shield generators are also under their control, so our odds of surviving an encounter with them aren't very high." Granted, surviving a drawn-out battle with the synths in the lab would be just as bad. However, at least they had an advantage with the sole entrance acting as a natural chokepoint and the internal shield generator for the lab destroyed on Lejur's orders, so the synths would be denied the use of energy shields.
Doctor Batu huffed at Sergeant Lejur's reluctance to take the Jefferies tube. "Sergeant, we can't stay here forever," she glanced at the entrance to the lab as the soldiers still continued to weld over the dents."The synths will eventually get past the doors, and I would prefer we be long gone by then." Honestly, Batu would've left the lab by now. However, the research contained here needed to be secured and evacuated from the Hidden Shadow. As Professor Voleek's second-in-command, she was responsible for ensuring the research was safe and handed over to the High Command.
Sergeant Lejur sighed in frustration. "Doctor, those things could be crawling in the Jefferies tubes even as we speak," Lejur pointed to the mentioned Jefferies tube, which was located near an empty corner of the laboratory. "Honestly, I'm tempted to seal the tube before the synths can use it." To the Sergeant's strategic mind, the tube was a weak point in their defences and needed to be sealed off before the synths got wise enough to enter the laboratory through it.
Doctor Batu stared at the Sergeant like he was an idiot for even suggesting to seal off the Jefferies tube. "That's a foolish idea, Sergeant," she bluntly told Lejur while abandoning the terminal as it was now clear that accessing the station's systems wasn't possible at the moment. "The tube is our only escape route should the synths breach our defences; sealing it off would be basically signing our death warrants." The tube was their only exit should the worst happen, and Batu wasn't about to allow anyone to remove it as an option without a fight.
"Lejur groaned tiredly at Doctor Batu's stubbornness. "Doctor, please be reasonable," he requested while the scientists and engineers could be seen finishing with the storage of the research data and prototypes. "The tube is a weakness in our defences and has to be corrected before the enemy takes advantage of it." Batu returned the Sergeant's pleading with an expression of indifference as she didn't care about what Lejur thought on the matter because all Batu cared about was safeguarding the research.
"I'm being reasonable, Sergeant," Batu coldly replied as she adjusted her lab coat. "The tube is far too valuable to seal off, and therefore it shall not be touched by your soldiers unless it's unavoidable." The Doctor smiled darkly whilst she finished with her coat's adjustments. "However, if you'd like to disregard orders, then, by all means, do so," the Sergeant felt uneasy as Batu casually walked past him. "After all, I'm sure High Command will understand why the mighty Sergeant Lejur's put the lives of his own men above the needs of the Romulan Empire." She gently laughed while moving to join the scientists and engineers at the research table.
"That bitch!" Lejur seethed while rejoining his subordinates at the sealed entrance. "She knows I can't go against her orders, at least not without gaining the High Command's wrath." The Sergeant knew Doctor Batu's father was an admiral, thus making it relatively easy for Batu to ruin Lejur's military career. The Doctor could even have him executed should she feel vindictive enough, and with an admiral as a father, there was little anyone could do to stop it from happening should she decide to take that particular route.
"Huh, what gods did I piss off to get caught in this kind of situation," Lejur lamented the tranquillity he once enjoyed before the killer robots invaded the Hidden Shadow. "Because I'd honestly grovel for forgiveness if it meant those synths would let us live." The Sergeant stationed two guards at the Jefferies tube encase anything tried to enter the laboratory through it. Lejur also subtly gave the guards some welding torches and quietly whispered orders to seal the access point should the synths attempt to open it,
As the two soldiers left to guard the Jefferies tube, Sergeant Lejur noticed that the sounds of metallic fists slamming against the barricade had suddenly stopped. The absence of noise from the other side of the barrier greatly worried Sergeant Lejur as it could mean the synths had finally given up on trying to brute force their way past the barricade. The synths must be contemplating other methods to breach the makeshift defences of the surviving Romulans, and Lejur greatly feared what attempts they'd make to reach them.
"What are those synths plotting now?"
Meanwhile, With The Geth Troopers.
The Geth inhabiting Trooper Platform 46-A gazed at the sealed entrance to the laboratory where the Romulans, who survived their initial assault upon this particular section, took shelter. 46-A and its squad-mates have spent the last thirty-four minutes attempting to brute force their way into the lab only to be met with failure for their efforts. 46-A's One Hundred Geth programs transmitted their annoyance regarding the Romulans barricade to its squad-mates, who transferred back an equal amount of frustration towards the sealed lab entrance.
"Attempts of using brute force to breach laboratory have failed," 46-A transmitted towards his squad-mates. "Suggest alternative route be found to access laboratory." Within seconds the Geth inhabiting section thirty-eight's central hallway communicated entire conversations regarding 46-A's idea of locating an alternative route to bypass the barricade.
4.1 seconds passed before the Geth reached a consensus. "Geth approves 46-A's suggestion to locate and use an alternative route," 47-A spoke for their squad's collective. The Geth immediately got to work on finding another way into the laboratory. Some went into other labs searching for access points for the Jefferies tubes whilst others entered section thirty-eight's workshops to investigate for tools that might help them breach the sealed entrance. Minutes passed in silence before 41-A found something that would assist in fulfilling their mission.
"Attention All Squad-mates," 41-A transmitted to its collective whilst exiting a workshop. "Geth 41-A has discovered several plasma torches which can be used to cut away into the enemy stronghold." Held within 41-A's arms were the aforementioned plasma torches. 41-A's squad abandoned their searches for alternative routes into the fortified laboratory and assembled around their squad-mate. The squad's collective conversed about the find for a couple of seconds before dividing the plasma torches amongst themselves.
"Geth Collective shall now proceed with lab infiltration and Romulan elimination!" The Geth squad simultaneously placed the plasma torches against the walls and, without fanfare, activated the cutting/welding devices. Emerald lights of superheated plasma roared into existence, sparks soared through the air in random directions as the Geth began to literally cut out multiple entrances into the fortified lab where the surviving Romulans had taken shelter. The pieces of burning metal cut off from the walls were carelessly thrown away, landing next to the bloody corpses of Romulans who weren't fortunate enough to survive the Geth's initial assault.
"Progress to create an entrance into the lab is proceeding at a satisfactory rate," 46-A felt pleasure course through its circuitry as the wall standing before the Geth was slowly being dismantled. "Estimated time to reach Romulan survivors is calculated at 2 minutes and 58 seconds." 46-A removed another metallic plate that revealed the Hidden Shadow's internal circuitry and other technological systems usually hidden within the station's walls. 46-A analysed the interior layout for a second before continuing to cut a sizeable entrance.
The Geth shall not be denied.
Meanwhile, Back Within The Fortified Cybernetics Lab.
"Shit!" Sergeant Lejur loudly cursed as he pressed an ear against the wall next to the barricade. "The synths are cutting into the walls via plasma torches!" Lejur knew what superheated plasma sounds like when used on construction materials, so it didn't take him long to identify the noise coming from the other side of the wall. The rapidly building heat emanating from the synths' side was another sign that plasma torches were the origin of the dreadful hissing which appeared a few seconds ago after the synths stopped their attempts to brute force their way into the lab.
"Sir, what are we going to do now?" A Private worriedly asked his superior whilst the hissing noise grew louder as the seconds ticked by. Sergeant Lejur glanced between the frightened Private and the rest of the survivors scattered throughout their makeshift fortress. The Sergeant knew staying wasn't an option anymore as the synths had grown wise enough to decide they'd instead create their own entrances than attempt to smash their way into the lab. Snarling with displeasure, Lejur gave the orders he'd rather not give, considering the circumstances.
"Simple Private, we'll gather everything of importance and escape down the Jefferies tube." Lejur grabbed his disruptor rifle from a nearby research table. "After we've gotten to the lower sections, we'll fight towards the hanger bay." Sergeant Lejur understood that the shuttlecrafts stored within the hanger bay were their best bet to getting off Hidden Shadow alive. Yet, even with that understanding, it didn't take away the genuine possibility that the synths might've already taken control of the hanger bay and are simply waiting to ambush any survivors who might attempt to take a shuttlecraft.
"Understood, Sir." The Private saluted Sergeant Lejur whilst the other surviving soldiers rushed past them. "However, should we really be taking the research with us, sir?" The Private gaze shifted towards Doctor Batu for a split second before returning to Lejur. "I mean zero disrespect, sir, but the containers are heavy and with an unknown amount of enemies crawling throughout the station, the time wasted carrying such weight could get us killed." Time was against them in this situation, and every second could mean the difference between dying on Hidden Shadow or escaping within a shuttlecraft and returning to the Romulan territory.
Sergeant Lejur grunted. "Trust me when I say Private that I'd abandon the research data in a heartbeat if the decision was up to me," the duo marched towards the Jefferies tube where the two Romulan soldiers assigned to guard it could be seen opening it. "However, fate's a cruel bitch." Lejur watched from a relative distance as the nearest group of survivors entered the Jefferies tube. "Doctor Batu's got absolute control over the research data, and she's not going to leave it behind no matter what any of us have to say."
The Private grimaced while Doctor Batu vanished into the tube. "Respectfully, Sir, I don't think that data nor those prototypes are worth dying for." The unnamed Private sighed tiredly before vanishing into the tube, leaving only Sergeant Lejur as the sole occupant of the cybernetics lab.
"Private, I couldn't agree with you more," Lejur whispered whilst he swept the laboratory for anything else of value. After the sweep was finished and Lejur confirmed they'd taken all valuable materials from the lab, he hurriedly got into the Jefferies tube. He spent the next few seconds welding the entrance shut with a plasma torch so the synths couldn't follow them.
Time Skip.
"The Romulans have taken the Jefferies tubes to escape termination." The Geth squad assigned to eliminate the Romulans on section thirty-eight concluded as they gathered around the welded shut Jefferies tube. "Recommended course of action, contact Creator Xavier and inform him of Romulan escape." The squad's collective conversed on the matter for a few seconds before reaching a consensus. 47-A connected with Hidden Shadow's communication relay and immediately requested to speak with Creator Xavier.
The request was received and accepted. A connection was created between the Geth squad and the station's central mainframe within mere moments. Awe travelled through the Geth trooper platforms as Creator Xavier's immense presence emerged from the digital sea.
"Geth," The Geth's awe increased when the voice of their Creator thundered like a mighty titan throughout the digital plane. "Has something gone wrong down in the lower sections of the Hidden Shadow?" The squad's collective transmitted their recordings of the events, which led to their current problem. The Geth were confident Creator Xavier would figure out how to smoke out the Romulans crawling within the Jefferies tubes. Within moments after the transmission was sent, Creator Xavier gave the Geth squad new orders.
"Okay, take the elevator to section sixteen. There should be other squads setting up a barricade to stop another group of Romulans who've temporarily escaped our grasp." The small Geth collective acknowledged the order to redeploy to section sixteen. The Geth hurriedly proceeded to head for the elevators while ignoring the corpses of the Romulans laid scattered throughout the main hallway, which was covered in their greenish blood.
"Creator Xavier," began 45-A as the squad walked into the elevator. "Should both Romulan groups combine forces, it will be difficult to stop them from reaching the shuttles with our current level of strength." There were three hundred Geth platforms throughout the station. However, most Standard Trooper Class Platforms were busy terminating the Romulans within the upper decks. Only a token resistance could be offered against the Romulans currently crawling through the Jefferies tubes.
"I'm well aware," Xavier knew the token forces he sent wouldn't be enough to finish off the Romulans attempting to reach the hanger bay. "Thus, against my better judgment, I'm activating the Sentential prototype and will operate it with a piece of my own conciseness." The Geth felt surprised at Creator Xavier's decision to activate the experimental Sentential Platform designed to counteract military organisations that prefer to use energy weaponry. The Sentential hadn't even gone through a test phase; thus, none of the Geth knew how the prototype would handle on the field of battle.
"Geth advises against Sentential's activation," the elevator sealed itself and, within moments, began its journey to section sixteen. "Experimental platform hasn't yet been tested and should be considered unusable until a proper evaluation of combat capabilities can be done." Theoretically, Sentential's design was sound. However, Geth didn't want to risk even a small part of their Creator should the prototype reveal a fatal design flaw.
"I understand your concerns," Xavier replied while accessing the remote uplink of the Sentential Prototype. "However, the Sentential needs to be deployed to halt the Romulans before they can leave the Hidden Shadow." Xavier sent a tiny piece of himself into the experimental Sentential. "Besides, Captain Ravek is almost done installing the canisters into the environmental controls, so it's honestly just a matter of delaying them until he's done." Once the canisters were installed, there would be little any of the Romulans could do to stop them.
As for the Geth, they didn't like the idea of Creator Xavier placing himself in harm's way on the battlefield. Yet, the Geth understood that it was a necessary risk for the plan to succeed. "Geth understand." The Geth transmitted as the elevator opened. "Geth shall obey and protect Creator Xavier as he joins Geth on the battlefield." The Geth squad exited the elevator and marched towards the other Geth squads, who were already creating a makeshift cover to use against the Romulans once they arrived.
"Excellent, I'll arrive within thirty minutes." Xavier terminated the connection, leaving the Geth squads alone to concentrate on fortifying section sixteen's corridors and hallways.
Section 44.
Hidden Compartment Containing Sentential Prototype.
"Assuming Direct Control!"
Xavier's voice boomed ominously throughout the abandoned hallways of section 44. The echoes of something massive tearing it's away out of the hidden compartment screeched loudly for anyone unfortunate enough to hear it. Xavier's new form was covered in shadows as he climbed out of the secret compartment. The A.I stretched his limbs outwards as a method to test the experimental platform's motor skills. Once satisfied the platform was functioning at optimum levels, Xavier ripped open a Jefferies tube and crawled inside.
Xavier was going to have so much fun testing the Sentential.
