A child sits on the bank of a slowly flowing stream. The suns hang low in the sky, burning beneath faint clouds like a pair of eyes watching her. Wind rustles the reeds and trees, accompanied by the chittering drone of hidden cicadas. It is a warm wind, tinged with sand and the scent of dry desert grass as it brushes the child’s hair around her face. She was comfortable, feet dangling in the water and watching the small fish swim by. Cradled in her hands was a stone figurine of a fish, worn smooth from years of handling. An old gift from her mother.

“Uzarex!” cries out a voice in the distance. “Come here, child!”

Uzarex looks up from the shallow water, turning her yellow eyes back toward home. Mother was looking for her again. “I’m coming!” she shouts, standing and brushing off her dress. The whining sound of a sentry drone quickly becomes loud as it flies overhead. She lifts her gaze to stare at the angular robotic guardian, sticking out her tongue in it’s direction. Dropping from the sky for a moment, the drone’s thrusters fire just before hitting the ground.

“You are late to return, child.” the drone emits in a deep, robotic tone. “It is too dangerous to remain outside without protection. This is your third warning this week alone.”

“Take me home, then!” Uzarex retorts, clambering atop the drone. It was just big enough for her to ride on its back, so long as she kept her feet out of the way of the thrusters.

“Very well.”

Staying close to the ground, the sentinel flies at an incredible pace; Fast enough to whip Uzarex’s short hair around her face and elicit an entertained giggle, but not enough to unseat her. Zipping around a rocky outcrop, home came into view: Angular stone buildings and various machines toiling in the fields. It was the small village of Raat Ahete - Warm Dreams - named for its idyllic scenery. The backdrop of the nearby rivers and trees in comparison to the arid desert surroundings certainly made it beautifully serene. To the east, the top of the Pyramid of Azan could be seen, it’s top glittering in the sunset.

Rushing over the farming fields, Uzarex maintained a tight grip on her robotic steed while she watched the others work. Large robots worked the fields, accompanied by their organic makers as they pulled grain and vegetables from the soil and replaced them. All of the machines carried the signature artistic stylings of their creators, as many were covered in intricate patterns and inlaid amber lights. Brass fittings and angular plating made for a striking silhouette indicative of classical Terezan craftsmanship.

        The entrance to the village proper was well fortified, supplied with defense drones and soldiers from the city. Massive gun emplacements and warmechs kept a steady vigil around the entire settlement, ever watchful for threats. The stories of what was happening in other parts of the world scared her... She overheard military reports of entire towns bathed in blood from conflict against monsters that came in the night.

        Approaching the gate, the guards turned their attention to the drone and the child mounted atop its chassis, cautious as they ever were against entry this far into the evening.

        “Hold it right there, Drone.” The guard captain held out a hand in request. His eyes were hidden by his helmet, but Uzarex knew he was staring at her.

        “This is the third time you’ve come back late, child. Are you so careless about the rules?”

        She looked up at him, her dress dripping slightly onto her drone companion. “No! I just got distracted by a fish...”

        A couple of the guards chuckled. Their warmechs watched on in silence.

        “That may be so,” replied the captain, “but it is far too dangerous to remain outside this close to dark. I know you’ve been warned. I know you’ve heard the reports.” He motioned to one of the warmechs, issuing a command. “You know the drill. Scan her.”

        The massive machine turned toward Uzarex, emitting a beam of light from what looked like its head. It always made her body tingle. “The child is clean, Captain.”

        “Good. You may proceed, but you better listen to your mother. One bad scan, and you won’t see her again.” He warned. His frown could be heard from beneath his metal helmet, betraying his attempt to keep a stalwart appearance. He clearly didn’t like the topic being brought up. The drone, after receiving a spurring tap from its young charge, slowly drifted into the village.

        Perhaps mother made something good for dinner, she hoped. Maybe.

        The suns beat down on a desert riverbed - a familiar stream long since dried. It was littered with shards of blackened bone and scraps of intricate metal, piled with sand from the desert surroundings. Where there was once hardy greenery - trees, reeds, and flowering cacti - there was now scorched sand. Much of the ground outside of the riverbed was turned to almost glass from repeated bombardment centuries ago, though to Uzarex it felt like it was yesterday. She remembered it almost like a dream.

        Her metal feet broke wind-smoothed pebbles of glass into powder as she stepped into the dried stream, sweeping her mechanical eyes over the ruined landscape. There was nothing left. No cicadas chittering on the wind. No fish to swim around her feet. No grass to wave against her back. It was all reduced to a husk in their bid for survival against the monsters she heard from the reports. She knew the truth about them, now. The horrible truth.

        The robotic woman pulled a bundle of cloth from a compartment in her side, unwrapping the object held within - a small fish, carved from stone and cracked from its age. Carefully, she places it on the ground at the bottom of the old stream, sitting herself on the edge of the riverbed. Hours pass with her staring at the figurine, with memories echoing in her mind of times long past. An auditory glitch overtakes her hearing sensors:

The sound of a woman in the distance calling her name.