1

About ten minutes and a few dozen enemy corpses later, the squad was back at the wall, this time in full force with reinforcements and heavy armor. They also had the Oracle with them, who would act as a sort of liaison between them and the Sentinels. The Arbiter was gone, as were all the Imps. They had all boarded Johnson's Pelican after he dropped off Sgt. Stacker and his team.

Aside from Stacker, only two other Marine Sergeants were on the ground, Banks and Carson. Although the three of them were distinguished soldiers in their own right, it could be said that Mar, Falzud, and the Demon were the only true heavy hitters that remained.

"Please, use caution!" the Oracle cried after the three of them destroyed the last enemy and disembarked from their Scorpion. "Avoid collateral damage! While this facility appears quite durable on the surface, no doubt there are delicate facilities below the facade."

Banks, who was with them, got into the driver's seat and headed back down to the lower floor to link up with the other tanks.

The Oracle continued in a murmur, "Odd, for a door to require such brute-force security protocols. One moment, Reclaimer."

A few seconds later, he got the door open and everyone filed inside.

"There we are. Please follow me."

The door automatically slid and sealed shut behind them. While the others obediently followed the Oracle along the wall down the natural incline of the room, curious Mar strolled up a tall ramp that stood directly in the center.

Well what have we here?

At the top of the ramp where it flattened out, a smaller Sentinel than all the rest was powered down on the floor.

Take it.

What?

Go ahead, it's okay.

Mar looked down over the edge of the ramp and saw his teammates disappear into the next room. The mission would wait for no one. He quickly went over and picked up the inactive Sentinel and took it with him back down the ramp, but not before leaving behind an energy regeneration field emitter in its place.

He walked through the next door and noticed the Demon with his hand flat against a control panel. A loud, metallic churning sounded and down below on a lower level, a hard light holobridge blurred into existence. This allowed Stacker, Banks, and Carson, waiting in the Scorpions below, to cross to the other side of the facility, technically going through the wall.

"Excellent!" the Oracle cheered. "This way!"

On the way to the next door to be unlocked, the Oracle startled Mar with another outburst.

"Sudden clarity! These Sentinels were trying to deny access to the lower levels of the facility. A wise decision, given the Meddlers' preference for... destructive acquisition."

Mar exchanged a concerned glance with Falzud, who simply shrugged. Before anyone could offer a responding comment, or question, Commander Keys spoke up over the COM channel.

"Great work, Chief. Link up with our armor on the far side of that wall. Make your way down to the Cartographer."

They continued moving room to room through the building, the Oracle acting as a floating, talking master key. Tremors shook the whole facility as they went.

"I fear they have something a bit bigger than another Wraith," Falzud swallowed and muttered almost inaudibly, which was unlike him to say the least.

Mar cast a sidelong glance at his friend, then looked ahead.

It'll pass.

Let's hope so.

The Oracle opened the last door. All three warriors followed him through it and outside, but stopped dead in their tracks when they saw a humongous metal leg come crashing down less than twenty feet away. Mar stared in open-mouthed shock as a Scarab walked over them.

Oh great, they have one of those.

Yes. Yes they do.