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“Victor Actual for Violator.”
Finally, they were getting a signal. Wherever they and Travers were in relationship to each other, their communications had been reestablished. “Go for Violator.”
“We’re in U2, outside the Cluster Room, northeast side. The other teams are on the southeast side of U2. Be advised, Cuban mil is in the building, and they are engaging the LAWs.”
Court shook his head as if he hadn’t heard right. “Wait. The bots are fighting the Cubans?”
“That’s affirm. Where are you?”
“We’re directly above you, looking at the factory floor on U1. There are dozens of bots already produced, lined up by the ramp like they’re staging, waiting for orders, and we passed a group of them heading out of assembly. There’s even more going through fabrication.”
“Quads, bipeds, or drones?” Travers asked.
“Take your pick, we’ve got them all.”
“What’s the disposition of the bots?”
“About twenty of the quads are lined up two by two. Drones hovering above them. The astronaut-looking dudes have long guns on them, not like the ones we saw before. I also see a group stacking up to go out an internal side door on the south side with a couple of the Greyhounds. Looks like they’re moving out in combined teams.”
“Roger that,” Travers said. “That’s what we’ve encountered down here. The other teams report the same.”
Suddenly, Jim Pace’s voice came over the net. “Can you two find a way to shut down that production line?”
Zack looked up and down the length of the two lines, each churning out a new deadly weapon every minute. Right in the center was a raised workstation with two men sitting up there, some three meters or so above the factory floor. From this position Zack and Court couldn’t see the men’s faces, but several computer monitors were just visible.
Zack said, “Affirm. There’s a hub in the center of production; if we can get there without being seen, we can figure out how to shut it down.”
“Good,” Pace replied. “What about opening the bay doors? Can you do that?”
The doors were on the opposite side of the massive room, with a few security men and several dozen armed LAWs in the way. “Maybe. But why?”
“If that leads outside, it might send some of those bots in that direction. The Cubans are out there in force. Maybe we can extend the fight outside the building, get some of those platforms away from us.”
“Okay, we’re on it. You guys get Cyrus shut down, and then we’re out of here.” After Pace confirmed, Court said, “Everybody okay up there?” He was asking about Zoya, and that must have been obvious, because she was the one to respond.
“We’re all good. Be careful.”
“You, too.”
After the transmission ended, Zack and Court knelt down at the door and looked at the lay of the land.
To Zack, he said, “We need to split up. I’ll try to make it all the way across the room to that office on the left. There’s a lot of shit to hide behind over there, and there might be a bay door activation button in there. If not, I will scoot under those trailers by the ramp for cover and go up to the doors themselves.”
Zack said, “If those bots see you, they’re gonna kill you.”
“I know. Hope like hell I can do it from the office, and do it with stealth.”
Zack nodded. “I’m going right for that raised workstation in the middle of all those spinning robot arms. Moving through that line, I should be able to remain covert, put a gun on those guys up there, get them to turn off the machines, and we shut this whole thing down.”
The men quickly shook hands; Court checked the way forward again, and then he slipped out of the room and began moving low to the left along the wall, moving from object to object in the big noisy room to avoid detection.
•••
Captain Sarzo heard the transmission from the men in Antonio platoon announcing that their lieutenant was dead, and they had lost half their number combating the Americans. Enraged, he radioed to Barcelona platoon, who had the building encircled, and he ordered them inside.
When he received the confirmation from the lieutenant, he then broadcast to Carmen. “Move the gun trucks closer to the building, all sides! Be prepared for anyone who comes out.”
After this, he got on the radio back to the garrison, and he demanded that two more companies be roused out of bed, outfitted for battle, and sent this way.
