Artificial Insurgence by Herman Steuernagel

Author:Herman Steuernagel
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781990505010
Publisher: Herman Steuernagel

Annika

* * *

Annika scrambled to keep up as her friend backtracked behind the six-car train of billboard-clad flatbeds. Becky hardly waited for Annika’s response before she sprinted to the last car in the line-up. The woman seemed intent on moving as far away from the blast as possible. Annika couldn’t blame her and did her best to catch up.

She couldn’t make out what was happening down the street through the smoke, which now billowed over the remnants of the pedestrian bridge, filling the street with its fury. Lights from security bots pierced the haze, along with the screams of people who had just witnessed their friends and neighbors collapsing around them, most likely to their deaths.

Several sedans had stalled against the truck bed in a way that seemed almost intentional, like someone or something hadn’t wanted pedestrians to pass by. It made getting to their destination even more arduous, with opened doors and car hoods creating further obstacles to bypassing the chaos. The three colleagues worked their way over and around as quickly as they could manage.

Annika grabbed onto the metal edge of one of the truck beds to hoist herself up and thought there might be just enough room for moving the rest of the way from above. She stood with her back against one billboard promising ‘Girls, Girls, Girls’ enabling her to gain a new perspective of the assault raging not more than a couple of blocks up the road.

She ascended just in time to witness the next round of hell. More screams erupted as a line of white bots emerged through the settling dust. There were only six of them, but she could feel their weight as bystanders scrambled to escape the flashes of white metal and blue panel lighting. Annika struggled to see their attackers within the mayhem. Their bodies were built top heavy, as though they were meant to emulate bodybuilders or warriors, and flashes of light pulsed from futuristic-looking weapons aimed at the surviving pedestrians, now attempting to flee.

Do those things have ray guns?

Annika was certain these were the same bots that had gone rogue in New York. The images from her eye-piece had gone dark with her cell service, but she could still see the haunting portrait of the video embedded in her mind.

Through the haze, some survivors tried to help others who were trapped beneath the rubble, pushing them forward to escape the next round of terror. The rest were fleeing. Most headed in their direction.

They were in the direct path of the storm, set within the sights of the destructive bots.

Annika’s skin crawled. Though their construction was much more intimidating, the similarity of these war machines to Ember was undeniable. The white paneling that covered their bodies, though different in design, was nearly identical in assembly.

Annika was even prepared to bet their humanoid faces were made of the same malleable synthetic skin her own bot possessed. They could easily be the angry cousins of Ember. If these bots could go rogue …

She ignored the thought.

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