The Nano Empire

Chapter 3: Martial Law

Meanwhile, at the Nano Planet, in the Planet's Global Council Headquaters, an important-looking robot a head and a half taller than Jenny professionally strode towards the Council's Board Room: Like other robots on the planet, he had a metal chrome body, but wore a dark grey cloak over a black, reinforced business suit.

When he was before some locked electronic doors with the sign overhead say 'Main Board Room', a security drone came to him and inquired via protocol "Authentication access required to enter Main Board Room… Voice Access and Registration Number required." The robot then cleared his vocal processor and replied "Designation: AA-001. Registration Number: 00156." The security drone processed the information, before it turned to the right corner and inserted its access rod into the electronic lock, opening the electronic doors before retracting the rod.

The robot then entered the Board Room as the electronic doors closed behind him: The Main Board Room was generally a darkened room, with a large, black oval table in the exact centre of the room, with 14 chairs of the same material and colour surrounding it; on the middle of the oval table is a Holographic Transmitter, with a cube Holo-Screen directly above it. The robot wasn't alone in the room, however; there were a dozen other robots present in the room waiting for him and they all wore hollow expressions.

As the important robot sat on the end seat to his left, one of the present robots said in a blank, bored tone "Your highness, thank you for coming on such short notice. Now that you're here, we can proceed with the emergency meeting." The Planetary Leader nodded cordially, before he gestured the meeting to begin without a word. Another member then began "As everyone in this room is well aware, the middle and lower classes level of violence in the riots had escalated, to the point that a rebellious citizen, in part of a rebellious organization, had stolen a shuttle and left the planet. We need a solution in order to quell the riots as fast as possible, with as little casualties as necessary."

AA-001 nodded passively at the predicament; even though he was aware of the riots appearing around the planet, he personally preferred equality over totalitarian rule. A third member then suggested after a few seconds of quiet thinking "We can initiate Martial Law on the planet… Personally, I dislike the fact that innocent citizens are in the crossfire, so inputting some Martial Law should be a logical solution." AA-001 pursed his lips in thought as a fourth member shook his head and responded "Nah, I have to disregard that… If we can install EMP walls and turrets in strategic points around the planet, it would assuredly bolster the security tenfold."

The members then began to argue on either choice, pointing out the pros and cons on one another's suggestion, when AA-001 cleared his vocal processor; it wasn't loud or throaty, but it managed to quiet the Board members down and direct their attention to him. He then looked at them with a stare and said "After some consideration, I decide that we shall put Martial Law into effect. Either choice isn't a proud one, but it's a choice that needed to be made." The fourth member gaped at AA-001 in disbelief at the less secure option, while the third member is pleased that their Planetary Leader is reasonable.

AA-001 then continued "Although the EMP security CAN enable heightened security, security equipment such as turrets can be hacked and turned against the patrols, possibly even harming a citizen. As far as the rebellion organisation goes, they are a bother, but I DO empathise their motives. With those facts pointed out, I strongly advise that we put Martial Law into effect as soon as possible." Knowing their Planetary Leader, when he says 'as soon as possible', he could not be swayed the other way. With their meeting adjourned, the Board members and AA-001 left their seats and left the Main Board Room shortly after, before the latter went to his office as his personal assistant caught up with him.

As they entered the Presidential Office, AA-001's assistant said while looking down his schedule "Sir, you have a meeting with the Flight Commander at approximately 1430 hours, before attending a charity dinner at 1800 hours on the dot." AA-001 then replied as he went behind his desk "Thank you for updating me, DX-13. I must put the Martial Law into effect, so if you have time to spare, could you inform the Captain of the Elite Guard on where he should station his men while it's in effect?" DX-13 bowed at his boss gracefully, before leaving the office towards the barracks.

A block away, in the recreational area in the Barracks, a group of Elite soldiers were either playing Darts, shooting Pool or reading through the profiles of the Rebellion members, when the commander came into the room: He was a head taller than AA-001 with a broad build, wore highly durable armour, a holster for his unique EMP pistol, a pair of retractable black lens just above his optics and heavy duty metallic boots. Despite his appearance, he made a small smile at his men while they were on their break, looking like they're having fun or were admirably focused on their job, when he heard a nervous cough from behind him.

He then turned around and saw the Planetary Leader's assistant looking up at him in uneasement, before he crossed his arms as he looked down at him. He then said in a deep, gruff voice "What d'ye want, little bot?" DX-13 replied with little confidence "Um… I was sent to inform you that Martial Law will be in effect shortly and… give you a list of locations where your men will station during the protocol." He then shakily gave the commander a clipboard, who took it in a gentle tug, before DX-13 bowed at him and left in a hurry.

The commander then scrolled down the clipboard, before he turned around and said in a loud, clear voice "Men! I need your attention, posthaste!" In a sound of cluttering and banging, every Elite soldier came into the Recreation Room and looked attentively at their commander. He then said while brandishing the clipboard over his head "I have been informed that Martial Law will be taken into effect shortly… Until further notice, each and every one of you will take positions written down on this clipboard I have here with me. Keep updates every half an hour and take a much needed break if it's necessary; worst case, you are allowed to use your EMP equipment if the situation calls for it." The Elite soldiers held their left fists on their chests in a sign of consentment, before they listened to the Commander on who goes where.

Minutes later, outside of the E-Book Store a few blocks from the Global Council Headquaters, the P.A. Announcer informed the populace as an Elite Squadron emerged from a dropship "Attention citizens, under orders from the Planetary Leader, Martial Law has taken into effect until further notice. Be sure to have your E-ID card on hand at all times; Do not pass the designated checkpoints if you don't have your E-ID card, unless authorised."

Nearby, a frail-looking female robot approached the checkpoint, holding a basket in her arms, when she was stopped by a pair of Elite Officers. They then asked her for her E-ID card, when she replied "Oh dear, my apologies officers, but my card is in need for renewal and the shop is beyond this checkpoint. Can you please see fit to let a frail old lady through so she can renew her card?" The left officer then replied regretfully "I'm sad to say, madam, but we can't make any exceptions until the Martial Law has been lifted. Please go back the way you came and don't disturb any law official." The old robot then slumped her head miserably, since she needed to renew her E-ID so she can purchase her weekly groceries.

She then walked back the way she came, pardoning a cloaked individual as she miserably returned home, when the latter slowly turned their head at the old robot, before crossing the busy road to an alley out of sight of the overhead camera and the patrolling Elite Squadron. The cloaked individual then stopped at a grate behind a dumpster, before looking left and right in case someone was watching; she then crouched down and entered the grate, coming into a maintenance tunnel that wasn't used often. After coming to a T junction, she turned to the wall on the left and made a series of knocks, when a piece of the wall disappeared digitally, revealing a metal door behind it.

When she entered, they came into a dimly lit room roughly the size of a mess hall, with a cluster of surveillance and computer equipment at the other end of the room. The cloaked individual then proceeded to the computers, when a robot with an analysis holo-screen on his left optic said "Nice to see you again, OY-34. How's it looking out there right now?" OY-34 took off the cloak, revealing herself to be the same robot that helped ZX-01 escape the planet. She then crossed her arms with a soft sigh and replied "Not great… There's a Martial Law currently under effect and I saw a poor elderly robot refused passage, all because of an E-ID in need of renewal." The robot hacker shook his head with his optics closed and his teeth gritted, irritated that it's getting worse out there by the minute.

OY-34 then asked her friend "DI-03, I don't suppose you have a connection to the shuttle, hopefully?" DI-03 shook his head with a reluctant look and replied "Unfortunately, no. I lost connection to the shuttle when it passed a Black Hole; best I can tell though, Zeke had most likely to evade the Fighter Jets." Although that was the best case scenario, OY-34 felt concerned for Zeke, since no-one left the planet's orbit for eons and hoped he wasn't captured or killed… or both for that matter.

DI-03 then checked over his shoulder for a moment, before noting "Look, don't worry Omega, we known each other since we first met at school. Zeke was the best pilot out of the school, so I'm certain that he would be okay… He always is." Omega smiled a little at that comment, though cannot shake the feeling that things are more complex than they are aware of.

DI-03 then said as he looked at one of the security camera's looking at the checkpoint "Anyway, it's probably best if you head back to the open; don't want any squadrons getting wind of this place." Omega nodded at her friend, before putting on the hood and leaving the resistance hideout, ensuring that the entrance was hidden before going out the way she came in. As she paced slowly onto the slowly emptying street, she then thought to herself "Oh Zeke, I TRULY hope you are alright…"