Ten gray shapes stood ahead, four ranks deep while covering the width of the tunnel.

Blue light cast by energy capacitors, or healing staves as Nick called them, in the rear provided the only source of illumination in the cavern. Green bars with a tinge of red floated above each of the figures, along with yellow names customized to their purpose in battle.

Silence reigned, and beyond the light awaited the unexplored depths of the mine.

Nick watched from behind the formation in his droid body. His senses were numb but he could still feel the tension of anxiety.

Beyond the light, another fight awaited.

“Legatus One.” Nick turned his head to the support droid standing next to him. “Proceed forward.”

“Acknowledged,” said the droid.

A symphony of creaking metal rose as the support droid, along with the rest of the formation, strode forward. Nick followed a few paces behind. Their steady clacking steps echoed through the tunnel walls.

And within minutes of their continued descent, the sound of scurrying feet and shrieking joined in.

Nick resisted the instinct to react. Instead, he observed.

A howling mass of fur and flesh barreled out from the darkness toward the formation. The first rank of droid footmen raised shields. However, before the kobold struck, a spear whipped forward.

The weapon stopped the monster two steps short of the formation. The kobold squealed as the spear pierced through its chest and out of its back. It squiggled and howled, as a droid standing a foot taller than the others heaved the weapon up.

Violet lines marred its body. Similar to the support droid, but distinct in the jagged cuts it made along the shoulders. Nick had one eye on its screen.

Label: Striker

Owner: NEZRA-14526181

Level: 5

Class: Offense

Description: Advanced Generation 1 Droid.

Ability: Imbued Strike. Able to expend energy to empower attacks.

Recoverable Resources: 50 Minerals

The original label was [Offensive Droid] but Nick changed it to [Striker]. Easier to envision conventional tactics with conventional names.

The droid smashed the kobold’s bulk into the cavern ceiling resulting in a final surprised squeal, before slamming it back to the ground with a thud.

The monster lay prone on the floor. Its body crumbling away as more of its brethren skittered out from the darkness.

The kobolds wailed and nipped against the shield wall, churning and pressing to break through. The droids however stood fast, keeping them at bay with swords and spears.

The striker lashed out with its spear, impaling another kobold before jerking it back to subdue more of the verminous monsters. The engagement lasted but a few minutes as the striker’s spear cut through them as wheat from chaff until all that remained of the attacking horde were agate gemstone or crumbling corpses.

Nick however stayed alert. The fight wasn’t over.

A roar rippled through the tunnel.

The response among the droids was immediate. The first rank and the striker slipped back as the third rank stepped forward, which rearranged itself into the shape of an arrow. A large droid stood at point, equipped with sword and shield.

It resembled the striker, but far bulkier. The violet shapes along the body included more circles than jagged lines and edges. A different nameplate blazed above its head.

[Tanker] Level 5.

The kobold juggernaut plowed into the light. A screaming plated hulk with a misshapen arm. It charged straight at the lead droid.

The droid braced itself for impact. A violet outline light flared as the juggernaut smashed against the shield.

Unlike before, the juggernaut’s charge came to a halt. The monster grunted, attempting to step back. However, not before the smaller droids on the tanker’s flank whisked around and rushed it.

They latched themselves to the monster’s limbs, grabbing hold and locking the arms and legs in place. As the monster yelped and flailed, the tanker stepped aside. The striker stepped forward, violet light streaming from its arms down to the spear. A humming chorus echoed through the tunnel. The wisps converged around the weapon’s tip, enveloping it in a violet outline.

The droid dashed forward, thrusting the spear forward and through the plated chest of the kobold juggernaut. Stone shattered and bile burst out, spraying the droids. Nick was glad he had no sense of smell in this body.

The monster gagged and gargled before hunching over. The other droids let go, letting the corpse fall to the floor and crumble away.

Anxiety and tension flushed away. If Nick could sigh, he would have. The battle was finished, and it appeared he had finally got his tactics down for dealing with the kobolds.

The droids moved back into their original formation. Blue wisps simmered out the healing staves to replace the energy expended by the combatants.

The green bars as it turned out were some kind of health meter. Health and nourishment. The droids needed to subsist on something, which turned out to be the energy resource he harvested from the gemstones.

On that note, several of the healing staves began to dim. It was of little concern. A courier droid would be here shortly to replenish them, following the standing orders he gave earlier.

Nick turned to the Legatus One. “Continue on down the tunnel. Stop and alert me if you reach an intersection or if you encounter anything.”

“Understood Mechanar,” said the droid.

“Thanks,” said Nick.

The droid didn’t respond, let alone show anything acknowledging the compliment. It moved ahead with the rest of the group. It was irksome.

“Legatus One.”

The entire column stopped. The support droid turned its face toward Nick.

“Yes, Mechanar.”

Nick began to say something but decided otherwise. He had to remind himself they weren’t human. No matter how human they seemed at times. It was off-putting. Creepy in a way.

“Never mind.” Nick waved his hand away. “Carry on.”

“Acknowledged.”

“Carry on,” thought Nick. It was something the Earl used to say. Both to him and the other servants. Maybe he had adopted more from the man than he thought.

However, now wasn’t the time to contemplate such things. The column continued their trek down the tunnel, while Nick focused inward. Feeling rushed back through him as his mind returned to his original human body.

He returned to the crackle of thunder, the steady clatter of rain and the creaking movements of droids.

When Nick opened his eyes, he was back in the tunnel entrance, sitting cross-legged by the arsenals.

A diagram scratched onto the ground lay in front of him. Lines representing the explored bits of the tunnel complex, branching out from his position. Two rocks representing the locations of the ten-strong droid teams.

Nick sighed.

So far, the entire tunnel complex was riddled with groups of kobolds. Valdric mentioned the key to defeating monsters with ease was recognizing their patterns.

After a few engagements, Nick figured out their pattern. Kobold groups consisted of five to eight kobolds and a single juggernaut.

The latest tactic had prevailed with no casualties. A modified version of conventional Bracer and Innatum fighting formations. First rank would take out the smaller kobolds. Once the juggernaut appeared, the tanker would step forward to block its initial charge. Regular droids would envelop it from the flanks and grapple its limbs. Striker droid would then move forward to finish the job.

It became a lot easier to envision once he started renaming the droids to the roles he had read of. Tanks. Strikers. Healers.

Monsters were strong, but were predictable, and a predictable opponent was an easy opponent.

Nick grabbed the sword by his lap, using its blade to scratch a swirling line to reveal more of the tunnel diagram.

The mining complex wasn’t large, which was surprising given the grand scale at which the First Civilization did things. Bit by bit, more of it was revealed by the two exploration teams, led by the support droids carrying out his orders.

As it turns out, they functioned as a type of commander. Instead of executing tasks directly, they corralled the droids under them to do so.

As long as he himself had the idea, it would propagate to the support droids and they would use it accordingly. In essence, just as the regular droids drew physical fighting techniques from his thoughts, so too did the support droids draw their tactics from him. A useful tool, as long as he kept the idea in his head and his intent clear.

Now, every single droid except a select few were routed under one of three support droids, or Legates as they were now labeled. The Imperial term for officer. Fitting and easy to wrap his head around.

Valdric was one once.

The Legates and their teams now cleared the tunnels of any lurking threats. If he was going to be stuck here, he may as well deal with any monsters sooner than later, and as far away as possible.

Nick looked back to the crude map before him when he felt a connection thrum. The second team in the tunnels had engaged something.

He double-tapped the box on the hierarchy screen, and felt his mind soar toward the sentry attached to the team.

The first thing he saw were two kobold juggernauts smash their way through the shield wall. Smaller kobolds scurried behind, swarming and finishing off the droids which fell and overwhelming the droids which stood. The juggernauts now pressed into the tanker in the second rank, while the remaining droids attempted to stem the ravenous tide.

Nick also made out the battered body of the striker amidst the chaos. He frowned. They were hard to replace. Like losing a strong game piece.

The battle was lost, but Nick had a contingency for this very situation. He turned toward the support droid in charge.

“Legatus Two. Fall back. Slow them until Legatus Three arrives. Keep the Tanker alive if you can.”

“Understood Mechanar,” said the droid.

Nick focused to return to his body. However, before he left, he noticed the tunnel beyond appeared to open up into a room. Beyond which, a dim pale light creeped out from the corner.

Anticipation flared, but first he needed to deal with the present issue.

Nick swept back to his body, returning to the noise of working droids, the rain, and the arsenals. He looked to the spare formation of droids behind him. It was time to commit his reserves.

“Legatus Three,” he said.

The support droid stepped ahead of his formation towards him.

“Yes Mechanar.”

“Take your team to reinforce Legatus Two. Alert me when you arrive.”

Nick felt an odd tingle from the connection with the droid commander as it sifted through his memories. A bit ticklish but necessary. It was one of the reasons why Nick had been drawing out a map on the ground in the first place. If he knew where to go, the Legates would know where to go.

“Understood,” said the droid.

“Thank you,” said Nick.

The support droid ignored his compliment, following the rest of its formation down the tunnels, Energy capacitor staves lighting the way.

It threw him off, but Nick shook his head and decided to just keep doing it anyway. A habit to keep for when he eventually returned to civilization.

A fact which raised an entire other set of issues. How exactly would other people, let along the rest of the world respond to this? He recalled the blue screen when he touched the musket, as well as the voice’s parting message. Were there more like him out there? Were they a threat?

Something he would have to figure out. Eventually.

Two level 1 droids appeared from the tunnel, stepping around the incoming formation. Their nameplates changed to [Courier]. One carried pile of agates. The other held bits and pieces of droid components. Spoils and casualties from the battles past.

They stepped past Nick, dropping them by their respective piles next to the arsenals. Two more droids stood by them, tossing the components into the refineries, churning them into minerals and energy. From there another droid stood by, waiting for the respective armory to produce weapons, and piled them atop the cavern wall.

A long chain of individuals working their part to create something new. Just like how Chef Morel used to run the kitchen hands. With draconian micromanagement and ruthless efficiency. One person prepared boiling water. Another cut the vegetables. Another prepared the meat.

Nick usually wound up cutting the vegetables. Mostly because he was immune to onions. As much as Morel liked to yell at everyone, it was an efficient process with each individual playing their part to turn raw ingredients into an edible work of art.

Nick smirked and scoffed. Cooking seemed worlds apart from whatever he was doing here. However different the substances were, the concept was the same.

The couriers grabbed two newly charged healing staves from the wall and stepped down the tunnel, to replenish the first team and collect more spoils from battle.

It got Nick thinking. Were the droids limited only to combat? They seemed to be doing fine with the menial tasks here. He wondered if they could do other things, like cleaning, cooking…

Nick felt the thrum of another mental vibration. Legatus One was calling for him.

It wasn’t exactly a pleasant experience but Nick owed it more to unfamiliarity. In fact, he kind of enjoyed it. Creating a plan, assigning tasks, being notified of anything important, and watching everything come to fruition while others did the physical and manual labor. There was a nice rhythm to it, like when he got into the zone while practicing swordsmanship.

He tapped a few buttons and delved into another droid body.

When his vision cleared, he came to the location of the first team, who were at the moment, dealing looking straight ahead at a dead end.

Relief surged through Nick. This was one section of the cavern complex he wouldn’t have to worry about anymore.

He turned toward the droid commander.

“Return to- Actually, go to the location of Legatus Three. Assist them upon arrival.”

“Understood Mechanar.”

“Good work.”

He returned to his body, only to be instantly pinged by the Second and Third Legates.

Nick sighed, and tapped the screen again. However, he was hopeful. The fact they were still alive meant things were probably going well.

He delved into a droid body again, and was greeted with the sight of dismantled droids and agates. Most of the second team had been decimated, left only with the support droid, tanker, and two footmen. The third lost a few from their ranks, though neither their striker or tanker.

They had won, but he hadn’t expected them to win so quickly.

“Mechanar Nezra.” Legatus Three walked up to him. “We have cleared the obstructions and are awaiting orders.”

“Looks like it.” Nick eyed the glimmering agates on the ground. “Both of you. Proceed into the room.”

“Understood Mechanar,” said the two support droids.

They maneuvered over the debris and into the larger room. Nick trailed behind them.

As they entered, Nick found what he was looking for.

A glowing white orb, with pale wisps flickering in and out of its surface floating at the center of a room full of stacked minecarts and other mining supplies.

Nick immediately returned toward to his body and stood up, grabbing the sword on the floor.

He had a spawn core to take care of.