A tension almost crushed all those sitting in the room. This was a dire world that was down on them. In just a few short hours, everything seemed to nose dive out of control and into anarchy and chaos. "Still no sign of the Legionaire robot," Col. Myers said with an exhausted frown across his face. The only wreckage we've found is that of our own rockets."
"What information are we getting from the field?" the General asked.
"Little. Lt. Col. Holmes is certain that any wreckage might have been forced down the mountain and into the inlet. As for the break-in last night, the store owner lists a CB radio, a few FM radios, screwdriver, soldering iron, and some solder as missing from his store. The volunteer for the program was Lt. Col. Davis. He is a Ranger with high marks in battlefield tactics, markmanship, first aid, and radio operations and maintenance. He's also performed many rescue missions in addition to his combat record."
Sitting back in his seat, the General stroked the tip of his nose in thought. "This coincides with the robot's actions since the crash. It's stayed out of site and attempted radio contact. Dr. Little's professional opinion is that there wasn't enough time to reprogram the machine's software for use against us. There is also the fact that, had it been armed by those who infiltrated the research facility up north, it would have fired at least in self defense against the Apaches. Where's Lt. Col. Davis now?"
"Redeployed to the Middle East," Col. Myers answered. "As soon as the project was shut down, he was assigned back to his unit and joined them in the field."
"Get him on SATCOM if we have to. If this thing thinks like him, I want to know what it might do next. I've now got to explain spending half a million dollars to try and blow up a $4 billion project. Also, seems as though there is an ongoing terrorist attack in LA. Be ready. The Pentagon will probably want us to deploy some of our National Guard units for clean up and law enforcement. Make everything ready, and I want boats out on that river. Get to it, gentlemen."
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The icy cold water stirred as a dented and scorched robot limped across the bottom of the river.
