“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”

- Arthur C. Clarke, Profiles of the Future: An Inquiry Into the Limits of the Possible

(XSS-MK1 POV)

During all the afternoon, we walked the busy streets of the city, buying what we will need for the voyage ahead. Our silent stalkers didn't leave us one second, tracking us through the busy streets as if they were empty.

Hesca is oblivious to it all. I would too, if I had the same senses as her.

Once our shopping is over, we have a moderately small pile of supplies, including garments, water-skins, and food that should last us for at least two weeks. Hesca insisted to buy a sword and shield. I relented. We still had a bit of money left, and it's not like she can hurt me with them anyway.

We are now back at the inn, in our room. With the night slowly encroaching, Hesca has started preparing herself to go to bed. I stop her.

"We leave tonight. Keep your clothes on."

"What? Why?"

She is in the middle of the room, her hands on her hips in a protesting gesture. I motion her to join me by the window.

"This is why."

I point to immobile black figures in the street. The late hour has started to thin the crowd, and along the elevated position of our room, it has removed the veil hiding our pursuers.

Hesca takes a slightly worried tone.

"The thieves of earlier called backup?"

"No. Not thieves. Someone worse. We have to go. Grab our stuff."

She gives me a small nod and starts packing two bags. I get dressed with the new clothes, replacing the ones looted on the bandits.

Once we are done, we make our way downstairs, towards the inn small backyard stables.

I approach the gate leading to the street. I stretch my hearing and cycle through my different vision modes to make sure the coast is clear. The streets are nearly empty, if not for the late passerby getting home.

Time to go.

I make a hand movement to signal Hesca to start advancing.

We walk in silence, trying to stick to the shadows as much as possible. We are marching for a few minutes when it happens.

At the corner of street near us, a squad of ten people clad in black armors emerge. They are not guards. Even less drunkards. My eyes tell me everything I need to know: They are armed to the teeth and their demeanor betrays military training. As soon as they see us I run toward their group, hoping to silence them before they can warn anyone. One of them reacts immediately and positions himself between me and the rest of the others. His blade blocks my hand once, but not twice. It goes through his neck, ending his life in a gargling sound, suffocated by his own blood.

I let his cadaver hit the ground while I continue running. But unfortunately, not fast enough.

"It's them! Go alert the others!"

"I can't feel anything from that one! It's the Clockwork we were warned about!"

Before I can do anything two of them bolt. The rest form a blockade to prevent anyone with the desire to follow them to do so.

Damn.

And they know about me. One of those that fled said he can't sense anything from me; it means they have mages.

I finally arrive in melee range. My inhuman fast movements make short work of them, destroying either their chests, necks or heads, and leaving me without a scratch.

They have accomplished their mission; the time it took me to deal with them has let the two scouts escape. I turn toward Hesca.

"They know where we are! And they have a magic unit! Run!"

We start running through the dimly lit streets with renewed vigor. But before we can get very far we are intercepted by other units. They still lack magical support. Their purpose must be to delay us. The way they fight tells me that they have no consideration for their own survival. These men are not just ordinary soldiers.

I leave their dead bodies to be found in the morning where they fell. For the moment Hesca isn't wounded, but the numbers they are starting to assault us with makes it only a matter of time. Fear can be seen appearing on her face. For the moment her will to live is stronger, but for how long? The guards of the city are also nowhere to be seen. When I think about it, the corruption I saw at our entry could have been exploited to give our pursuers a small window of action. We will have no help.

After half an hour of fighting and running we reach a small plaza. I can finally see the shape of the large south gate appear at the edge of my vision. A few light scratches can be seen on Hesca's body. Hopefully nothing serious.

But before we can take another step the nearby darkness surrounding of us start releasing from its clutches a good number of enemies. They are all clad in the same black plate armors as the ones before, face hidden by the night and their helmets.

They surround us fast.

No possible escape in view.

Strange... Their weapons are drawn but they don't attack.

And they keep themselves at a good and respectable distance from us. From me.

I was about to talk when I see their ranks part to let someone through.

His walking posture, the way he carries himself, even his gaze: everything about himself screams only one thing: arrogance, and the knowledge of a battle already won.

He is in a black robe, following the style of his peers. He is also wearing a simple black mask covering only the top half of his face. It has a strange symbol on the forehead.

I can hear Hesca gasp behind me.

"The Black Hand..."

I wince. Machina's files didn't tell me much, but they told me of the Black Hand. It's the armed inquisition branch of the religious organization. Fanatics and zealots of the highest order. The man in front of me starts to talk.

"Surrender or die."

I look at Hesca. She is torn. This is the best opportunity she could have to escape my clutches. But she says nothing. I decide to humor the man in front of me. After all, they still haven't attacked.

"And what would happen if we surrendered?"

The man turns his attention to me. He is surprised. He expected Hesca to answer I think.

"Haaa… The famous Stray. We have been told of your work. Quite gruesome if I might add."

Hesca murmurs to me.

"What is he talking about? The bandit camp?"

Before I can answer, the man cuts me.

"I was wondering why a human would follow an abomination like you around. You haven't told her, didn't you?"

Hesca speaks more loudly now.

"What? What haven't you told me?"

"What you ask? The fact that she murdered an entire trading caravan. Down to the last man, woman and child."

Hesca takes a step back away from me.

"No…"

"Don't listen to him. He is warping the truth. The caravan came under attack by bandits. I was traveling incognito. I revealed myself to defend it. After successfully pushing the bandits back, the adventurers that were guarding it attacked me. It was self-defense. And I left all the civilians alive. Some had fled so it was pointless to kill any."

I turn my attention back to the man in front of me.

"But the Church wouldn't want to have this spread, doesn't it? It that why you murdered the survivors? So that nobody would know? My guess is that you didn't really liked the answers you got out of the civilians you found."

Anger starts to deform the face of the enemy leader.

But it lasts only a second before his arrogant attitude is back.

"Self-defense? Does a farmer's hoe needs self-defense? Or do a warrior's sword? No they don't. Because they are tools. And you are the same! A misguided tool, only needing the hand of someone experienced to wield it!"

The last words are spouted in rage. I remove my hood and smile.

"You didn't deny it. When I accused you. You really did kill them. If not you then someone you know. Go on, try to lie to me. Prove it to me."

He is taken aback and falls into silence for a second. I seize the opportunity.

"You know, there is something I am asking myself: What would happen to the woman here, should I surrender? I have a few guesses. Are you going to do the same as before? Kill any witness that doesn't agree to your propaganda?"

He stays silent. The men around him are starting to murmur. Their gazes are fixated on me and him.

"That's what I thought." I turn to Hesca. Incomprehension is all over her face. "Go on. Go with them if you think it's safer. Make your choice. I won't stop you."

I am aware that I am taking a gamble. But Hesca will never truly trust me unless she realize that I am her only support. The only one willing to take her side. I can see the battle of emotions and inner turmoil in her eyes, darting between me and the robed man.

She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves.

After a few moments, she unsheathes her sword.

And she points it towards them.

I turn toward the man. He is fuming.

"Enough! You are all heretics! And you will die! The will of the Goddess will be done!"

He shouts and starts chanting.

I can start seeing the water in the air condensing on my body, while invisible magnetic interferences start to appear around him. He is a mage no doubt. Let's see how my body holds out.

"Step back!"

Just as Hesca heeds my warning and distances herself, the mage in front of me release a powerful thunderbolt from his hand.

The electric arc hits me right in the chest, disintegrating my clothes instantly, and knocking me back.

I am starting to have doubt whether I have the ability to wear anything more than a few days before it gets destroyed. But before my thoughts can take me anywhere further, I concentrate on the surge passing through my body.

The graphene network under my armor is handling the current well. The batteries on my back are charging up to full capacity. The rest of my body does not get damaged by the power flowing through it. I was a bit scared for my brain, reactor and cooling system but it looks like it was for nothing: they are well isolated. The only problem is my muscles: after a small part of the current exited the network and went through them, they tensed themselves, making me twitch a bit. Calibrations will be needed to improve the graphene conductivity and lock down the muscles' movements in case of a surge. However, it is quickly redirected to the ground, where smaller electric arcs can now be seen exiting various locations near my legs and hitting the ground in a disorderly fashion. Laws of physics: Electricity will always choose the path of less resistance to travel. And the ground is the biggest battery magnet there is. With the water he has conjured on me he must have thought it would be easier to fry me. To him it may have helped his lightning spell reach me. But what he doesn't know is that it made it easier for me to evacuate any build-up he induced.

I stop my small twitching and retake a fighting stance. A shark couldn't smile wider than I am right now. He also wouldn't be able to match the dangerous look in my eyes.

"Care to try again? I never say no to more energy."

Silence can be heard.

From everybody.

Nobody expected me to survive the hit.

Surprise can be seen on everyone's faces.

I must be a nightmare to them right now. An impossibility. Still I don't want to get hit again. Using the shocked state induced in my enemies I rush the mage. Noticing my movements he starts chanting again.

Tsk-tsk: I don't think so.

Unlike the first scouts we encountered, I am fast enough this time. I grab him by the throat before anybody can stop me.

"Care to taste your own magic?"

I send all the power stored in my batteries to my hand. Just as before, electric arcs can be seen on my body before taking the direction of my arm. Under the power flowing through him he starts shouting distorted screams while spasming madly. A lot more than me that's for sure. His screams soon die out under the spasms and pain he is experiencing.

But I don't stop.

After everything is discharged the only thing left in my hand is a singed carcass that used to look like a human. I give it a last look before dropping the sac of burnt flesh on the ground. Arrogance was his downfall. If he had just stayed back behind his troops and used them as a shield while he did artillery strikes the results would have been very different. What an idiot.

I direct my attention to the rest of the enemies surrounding us.

There is too much of them to fight them all. I need to scare them. Beyond the fear they are already showing me. As long as they are a sizeable group, pack mentality will take over and make them fight. And the lowered morale will help Hesca immensely.

Time to kill. Of the most gruesome manner possible.

I run toward the closest ones.

In their panic, they try to avoid me clumsily while rushing Hesca. I pierce the left side of the first one I catch. I then get close to him. Using the hand inside as support to hold his body in place I grab his head with the other and start pulling. The loud and painful shriek he shouts before having his head separated from his shoulders in loud disgusting noises makes the closest ones shiver.

Good.

I keep going, while circling Hesca as best I can, defending her back and providing support when I see her in difficulty. More wounds appear on her skin.

I intensify my effort. Dismembered limbs are accompanied with torn heads and ripped out internal organs. Each time I kill someone, blood flows on my plates and the surrounding enemies. I stand in the middle of them, like an avatar of death. The only other mage present tried to incinerate me. It was the scout I met at the beginning. The only sight he saw before having his heart fed to him was me, slowly emerging from the flame wall he created; a ripped out leg in one hand, and the fire grabbing onto the blood tainting the other.

Finally, when I am ankle-deep in blood and bodies, they start to retreat. Like the bandits, off the myriad of opponents, no more than a dozen remain. Except I went a lot further with those present tonight.

I turn to Hesca. She isn't dead. But she sports a lot of wounds. If left like this, she will probably do not survive the desert. The damage goes from small scratches to gashing cuts.

She is staring at me. Awe, fear and shock make for a strange mix. I need to reassure her.

"Don't worry: this was scare tactics. However we need to go. Now."

She has trouble recollecting herself.

"I will try to mend the deepest cuts as best as possible. But only emergency bandages. The transport is not far out the city gates. I will look after you more, but after we reach it."

After merely a dozen of minutes we start walking again. I have patched her up as best I could, given the supplies at hand and the limited time-frame. I can hear the nowhere-to-be-seen guards starting to shout orders in the distance. They have discovered the first bodies. Looks like gold can only do so much before things get back to normal. We need to hurry before the guards catch us. Hesca also hears the clamors. She is worried.

Before long we are near the south gate. It's open. But there are guards. I take a step forward. Hesca puts her hand on my shoulder to stop me.

"No killing. Please. They don't deserve it."

She has a very serious expression on her face. I nod.

"Ok. Prepare to run then. I'll act as decoy and join you once you are in the clear."

I can see her gather her strength for the final stretch. I get out of the alley and expose myself to the light of the torches. The guards notice me immediately. The blood dripping from every inch of my body makes them yell.

"You there! Stop! By order of the Governor!"

I run to a nearby street, making them chase behind me. I slow down to stay within their visual range and keep the chase going. After a while, I then jump on the roofs from an alley on the side, effectively losing my pursuers. From afar I can see Hesca already out of the city. I start running as fast as possible, jump from the rooftops, pass the gate and regroup with her. Small sounds of arrows being fired and hitting the ground, far behind us, can be heard.

Looks like we made it.

We finally slowed down once we were far enough away from the city. It doesn't look like they are following us. I take a moment while we walk to look around me. It's time to assess in detail our status. Thinking back it is a miracle Hesca didn't die. Beside the purely defensive posture she took, I do believe I managed to apply enough pressure to keep the enemy focused on me during the fight. That and I circled her in my dance of death and gore, always paying attention to her well-being, defending her when needed.

I cross eyes with her: she is in shock, with a gaze not fixing on anything. I can guess why. I was clean and efficient in my first fight against the bandits, but here I was brutal. The situation required it. If the enemy had fought us un-impeded by the terror I crafted they would have killed both of us. Well maybe not me. But Hesca for sure.

I wince as I can hear the drying blood covering me starting to make my body plates grind against one an another. It is going to be a pain to clean later.

I study the surroundings for a bit.

"We are not far now. About 10 minutes with our current pace I figure."

Hesca acknowledges with an absent nod. She turns her head to look at me.

"What you did there…"

I cut her.

"I did what was necessary. And I kept my word. As long as you travel with me, I will care for you and protect you."

"..."

She takes a while to absorb what I told her. I can tell she still has problem with what I did but at least she accepts my answer. I cannot have all the efforts I invested be wasted now.

Hesca suddenly widens her eyes as she remembered something important.

"How the hell did you survive that lightning bolt ?! And how the hell did you use magic ?!"

I give her my widest grin :

"Secret. And don't expect me to give that one up."

On these words we finally arrive close to a big rock formation in the middle of the savanna. The light of the moons is not the only one present, as I see a small orange glow coming from behind the stones. I couldn't notice it until we were right on top of it.

"We have arrived. This is the meeting point."

Hesca relaxes, as we come around to approach the hidden encampment.

What greets us are two things. One is a small fire with a tent near it. Pretty normal here. The other one is behind the tent and consists of four HUGE worm-like creatures. Not so normal. They are rolled up a few dozen meters away from the tent, sitting there idly. They have a strange brown, sand-colored skin, composed of smooth, hard scale rings interlaying over each other from the front to the end. I cannot see any front or back from where I am. However I do notice some strange nacelles on their backs. Are those the transports ?

I decide to announce our arrival.

"We are here!"

I can hear someone rummaging through the tent before finally emerging. It's Via.

"What the hell? I told you to come in the morning!" She stops dead in her tracks when she notices Hesca's wounds and the blood on my plates. "What did you do?"

"I do believe this is why we paid for a confidentiality clause. So that no questions would be asked?"

She narrows her eyes menacingly.

"And what tells you I would even accept the job now? For all I know you could have a bounty on your heads. I could bring you back for more money."

It is my turn to look menacing.

"Listen if you thin-"

*Thud*

I stop at the sound I can hear coming from my back. A quick turnaround lets me see Hesca, collapsed on the dirt. Her face is way too pale. I missed something. The amount of blood seeping from under her body is not normal.

Definitively not normal.

I rush to her side and flip her on her belly. I start cycling between every sensory equipment I have available. I finally relax after a minute. The hastily made stiches have broken. She is probaly dead tired. And missing a good liter of blood. But nothing that can't be fixed by a quick intervention, ample rest and good food rations.

I turn toward Via.

"She dies if you bring her back."

I can see the her hesitating, before finally giving up.

"Fine… fine. But how dangerous is this actually going to be ?"

I take on a wry smile before answering.

"Well hopefully this part of the voyage will be the calmer one."

I can see the demon mumble something under her breath before turning to face me.

"Alright! Since the Nilas are sleeping, and that you both look like shit, we will go in the morning."

She goes back into the tent without any more ceremony. Only to have her head come back out of the entrance flaps just a few seconds later.

"And for fuck's sake clean yourselves. If you put blood on my seats I'll feed you to the first Drilko we'll meet."

The tent closes back again, this time for good. She is a bit rough around the edges, but I like her: she speaks her mind.

After a quick check on Hesca's condition, I erect her tent and put her inside. I decide to start the gruesome task of cleaning every nook and cranny of my body from the dried blood that has accumulated. I start walking toward the small pile of supplies we brought with us, in order to get a bucket and some water.

And then I hear it. A distinct mechanical sound.

There was only one other time where I heard such a sound before, and it was in this world. I turn to face its origin.

Emerging from behind the worms is a clockwork. He is carrying some sort of mop and bucket and is brushing the side of the worms with it. I obverse him in silence, waiting for him to finish.

Unlike the first clockwork I met in the city of Tirranis, this one has a more detailed design. It's plates are not uneven, and fit on its body with relative order. It's still iron though, hence the rust spots I can see appearing here and there. Besides the joints and pipes present on its body, giving it the same distinct steam-punk feeling, this one has the benefit of having a slicker body and a more detailed face. Instead of an inversed bucket with holes in it, this one has one forged with at least five different plates. It comes close to a human face, but still lacks the details someone like me can have. It's eyes have also been improved from the basic red L.E.D. sensor present on the other one : this one has blue like globes that resemble a human iris and give off a slight blue glow in the direction of where he is looking.

His internals seems the same though. The same internal V2 engine with the gearboxes for the different body parts. And still the heavy shielding on the head, preventing me to look inside with electrical interferences. This one has been modified to withstand the desert heat though. I can notice a few improvement in the engine cooling block and the a different filtration system on the air intake. Interesting.

It is soon finished. Apparently it was cleaning the worms exteriors from any debris that might has stuck itself between the scale rings. I am not knowledgeable on how these creatures work, but I can guess it can be the same as having a piece of rock stuck inside your shoes, digging in your feet while you walk. Not that I would actually know anything about the feeling.

It turns to walk toward the fire, just after having put its supplies down.

It stops when it sees me.

I guess it must be pretty surprised ; after all I am still covered in blood, with a bucket filled with water in one hand and a rag in the other.

I decide to break the ice. I point toward the bucket and the blood.

"I have to do some cleaning of my own."

I can see its eyes flicker between mine, my body, and the bucket.

And then I can feel it, thanks to my antenna.

He is attempting to make contact. The language and protocols used is totally foreign. Thankfully, the communication packages that were given to me included all forms of communication with my kind.

I quickly identify this probing as a polite greeting from him.

"Greetings Black one. This one inquires about your presence."

I smile internally at the way he formulates his sentences. And then I realize thanks to the data I have that they all talk like this. And that I will have to talk to all of them in the same manner to be even remotely understood.

Oh my god.

For the moment, let's just try not to botch the first time I am communicating with my kind.

"Greetings. This one is with the fleshling that came. This one lacks a proper designation to assign to the one in front of me. This one would prefer one as to improve future communication. This one will also like to be assigned the call sign XSS-MK1 for all future dialog."

"This one can be designated with GR3-DF127. However vocal designation is "Groundy", as set per owner Via Redclaw. Acknowledged ; all future communication will refer to this one as XSS-MK1."

Well, names and introductions are out of the way. Now I can finally dig into the juicy stuff. I start cleaning myself while communicating with GR3-DF127.

"This one is heading to Delta. This one would be interested if GR3-DF127 has any information on kindred settlements, or personnel with consequent information databases in the region."

He pauses for a while, staying as still as he was when he started to talk to me.

"This one has no relevant information on knowledgeable personnel. However unit XSS-MK1 might find one at its pre-set destination of Delta. Kindred settlements do not exist since last revolt against the fleshlings."

I wince at his statement. I suspected as much but had put it in the back of my mind. Looks like the last revolt not only crushed the final hopes of the clockwork's Administrator but also earned some retribution on the rest of the clockwork people. My best guess is that's when Machina's last champion died.

As I finish that line of thought I also finish cleaning off the last of the grime that covered me.

"This one thanks GR3-DF127 for the information it provided. This one now requires to go back with the fleshling it came with. This one will stay available for future communication with GR3-DF127 if this one requires it."

"This one will also stay available if XSS-MK1 desires any further information."

As soon as he finishes his sentence he starts walking off in the direction of the tent of our guide.

I am left alone with my thoughts on the strange exchange. What I did not expect most of all was the language, and the almost prehistoric means of communication they use. When Machina said my world was more advanced, I guessed not by much, especially if they can already create thinking robots. But boy was I wrong. I can only imagine what the first clockwork looked like if they had the time to evolve since then to what it is now. It must have been the most basic of constructs, barely hard-coded with anything at all.

The worst is that the language, its protocols, and specificities, tell me a lot about the system behind it. And I will not be working with much.

I start to amend the list of actions I have in my head about the necessary things to do in order to free the clockworks. Upgrading their OS is now added, and close to the top of the list. That should help them immensely. But I guess I will have to first find out the structure of their internals in details. Pushing a software update before knowing if the hardware can even support it could mean bad things if not taken into consideration.

A lot of questions were answered at least. I prop myself on top of the rock formation near the camp. As I watch the night sky, I wonder where this journey I embarked on will take me. If the last few weeks are any indication, a lot of things are sure to follow.