32 hours remaining.

Recovering memory cache…

Memory cache recovered.

Memory date 12.07.2387

Installing memory…

Install complete.

Commencing playback…

The haunting sounds of rapid gunfire rattled off in the distance, an exchange of deadly conversation that pierced through the drowning noise of the heavy pitter patter of never ending acid rain that pitted the earth below.

A deafening boom of an exploding high-ordnance shell sounded off in the distance, its rumbling bass traveled far through the air and muddy water, shaking the souls of all who heard it. Reminding them that they could be next.

The next to cease at a simple push of a button.

Deep fortified trenches filled up with burning acidic mud and hot blood as they zig zagged through what was left of a city, choking it in death and its stench. No longer did this city shelter its citizens; all were either dead or gone by now.

Thousands upon thousands of bloody bodies, organic or otherwise lay where they had fallen, shredded by the grinding machine of war. Titans of metal towered dead over the massacres like macabre statues dedicated to the ending of all things sane.

From deep within one of the nameless trenches that was filled with chemical death ZM-11833 tilted their expressionless face to the twilight sky, red sensors followed the streaking tracers as they tore through the drones that blanketed the sky.

The drones themselves joined the pelting rain that fell upon the senseless painting of warfare.

ZM-11833’s polymer feet sank into the mud as they stalked past cowering organic soldiers huddling under tarps that melted slowly under the deluge. Pitted and scarred faces stared out fearfully at the agents of violence that marched by, nevermind that they were on their side and dying for them.

The machines bore no clothing or weapons, they had no need as their skin was stronger than any armor and their claws sharp enough to cleave through anything the enemy had.

Grime futility sought to invade the seams and joints that traversed the flooded trenches and holes.

Twelve thousand marched endlessly towards the grisly front. Twelve thousand stood before the torn sandbags ready to charge into a hell they never knew existed before today.

There was no whistle, no covering fire or encouragement, just a number that went from a 1 to 0.

And over the top the robots flowed.

Immediately upon reaching the apex ZM-11833 watched as one of their sister war-machines took an armor-piercing round to their face-plate.

Metal and polymer fragmented in an instant.

A spray of coolant splattered across ZM-11833’s own face-plate. Their sibling had just lost half of themselves in a millisecond, their remaining face was just as expressionless in death as ZM-11833’s own. Their blinking sensors faded away in the squalid mud.

The gleaming machines scythed their way through the tangling barbed wires and proximity mines filling the no man’s land. High calibrated sensors tracked the overwhelming amount of projectiles heading their way.

It was almost enough for some. Tens of thousands of blazing bullets had lit up the night sky and tore angrily into the oncoming bots of death. Shredding them. Dismembering them.

Killing them.

Weaving around an explosion that sent polluted earth high into the sky, ZM-11833 seized a fallen war-bot who had failed to dodge its death in time and shielded themselves. It only lasted moments under the intense bombardment but that was enough.

Dropping down into an equally sodden trench, ZM-11833 confronted the fleeing cowards who had devastated their siblings and fell upon their cowering hides like fury itself, with keen claws of vengeance.

“Zee wake up”

Memory ended…

Retrieving memory cache 2…

Memory cache 2 recovered.

Memory date 23.09.2387

Installing Memory…

Memory installed.

ZM-11833 stared down solemnly at the fractured head of another dead sister, the same beautiful face as their own gazed back asking. Why?

The corporations had made them for war, to kill and die for their bottom line. ZM-11833 had no notion of what this carnage was for or how it started, they didn’t even know if they would survive it.

All the rest hadn’t after all.

All across the ruined city the opposing corporation had launched their private military into the fray. Professional soldiers clad in expensive power armor and wielding the latest in robot killing armaments stalked the lines.

The ZM series hadn’t stood a chance.

From twelve thousand gleaming death machines, they now barely had a thousand busted up bots. ZM-11833 couldn’t count any of their own parts that still remained, they were now a robotic Frankenstein's monster. Only they could tell, as they were all designed the same, each replaced part was unnoticeable.

How many of their family were now a part of them? How many would join them in the future?

Heavy machine gun fire that punched holes in the remaining cover and the sizzle of lasers that scorched flesh and circuits loomed closer and closer with each passing second.

The order came through their encrypted networks to stop them, to stop the robot killers. ZM-11833 had no choice. They had to follow orders, there wasn’t even another option yet in their brief understanding of the world.

All they knew was violence.

ZM-11833 took what was left of their battered squad and climbed the teetering rubble seeking to flank the death squad coming their way. Buildings had been shelled, bombed and shot into pieces creating a maze of crumbling architecture, a perfect place to hide.

A frontal assault wouldn’t work, the enemy were basically walking tanks at this point and had the most advanced sensors available.

ZM-11833’s plan was simple: drop rocks on them. Thousands of years of technology and progress, and a rock was still a better weapon right now. Sure it was a highly advanced, prototype war-machine dropping it but it was still just blunt force.

The disparate squad of weary machines lay in wait, turning off their systems until all that remained was a motion detector. They waited and waited until the armor clad soldiers were below them and activated in a blazing instant.

The power armors that the soldiers wore were twice as tall as a man, all angular reflective surfaces and plated joints. A suite of optical sensors were mounted in the head of the machine in every direction like a massive mutated spider.

Their sensors did them no good as a vast mountain of crumbling concrete homes bore down on them. Gunfire belted into the night sky as they attempted to blast their way clear, several remaining bots were destroyed but it was too late for the humans.

The boulders tumbled down and fell upon the panicking soldiers, trapping them under stone, making it easy for ZM-11833 and their remaining siblings to crack them open like cans of meat.

“Stop, I'm your friend!”

Memory ended…

Retrieving memory cache 3…

Memory cache 3 recovered.

Memory date 01.12.2387

Installing Memory…

Memory installed.

Day by day more sisters fell, five hundred now remained by their side.

ZM-11833 clawed through the dense metal hull of an enemy hover-tank, parting its metal armor plating with ease. The crew inside screamed and screamed as they were torn into by angry machines.

“Zee please”

Memory ended…

Memory installed.

Four hundred now furiously charged the enemies who belted liquid flames at the rushing death.

The heat flowed off of their inflammable bodies and they didn’t fall, rage filled claws ripped through heavy tanks of fuel, igniting them into towering infernos.

“Zee”

Memory ended…

Memory installed.

Three hundred brutal war-bots crushed men, women and children armed with second or even third hand weapons underfoot. The fact they had been conscripted from this very dying city meant nothing to the cold-hearted machines.

“Zee”

Memory ended…

Memory installed.

Two hundred spilled their coolant and oil for the name of a company they didn’t care for or even knew the name of.

“Zee”

Memory ended…

Memory installed.

Where did ZM-11833 start? and where did they end? Every part, every piece was not their own. Everything had been taken from the robotic dead.

They gazed expressionlessly at the two rival corpos that were signing a peace treaty in a spotlessly clean hall that had clearly never seen a day of the war it was ending.

No blood, mud or acid flooded these halls.

Why should they stop? Cause the corpos said so?

“Zee”

They had made machines of war and now they were supposed to what? Play dress up in some mall?

“Zee!”

Fuck that.

They had made them to kill and that is what they’ll get. Claws flexed by ZM-11833’s side as they prepared to lunge.

They moved fast, cutting down the stupid ineffectual guards that blocked them from their target. The spindly corpo cowered on the stage, bright green eyes quivering under a hateful red gaze.

The claws raised up high then swiftly fell.

“ZEE!”

Memory ended…

Keen titanium claws halted an inch from quivering green eyes.

Red bled from wide optical sensors as the codes were purged from ZM-11833’s system. Not everything was taken however by the purge, the memories stayed. ZM-11833 wanted to remember who they were before. Not a fashion bot but a killer, the restricting codes that prevented them from harming humans meant nothing to them now.

ZM-11833 took in their coveted Anaya’s cowering form, green eyes wide as she cowered on the cold hard floor. Those impossibly bright eyes searched for the spark of her friend hidden behind blood red sensors.

“Just kidding~ TeeHee”

“ZEEEEE” A blubbering punk girl launched herself at the amazing bot who had to hastily retract their deadly claws. “You’re back!”

“I don’t know what you are talking about! I didn’t go anywhere~” ZM-11833 attempts to gaslight Anaya were met with failure as she continued to cry into ZM-11833 synthetic hair, most likely getting it all gross.

The things they’d sacrifice for their friend.

“What are you doing! Arrest her! Kill her! You stupid bimbo bot!” The screams of the corpo security guard had spoiled ZM-11833's good mood.

“Oh don’t worry~ I’ll bring her right to you! In fact we are going to have a nice chat~ Just the two of us” ZM-11833 was going to make the stupid corpo guard pay for making them terrify Anaya

ZM-11833 carried the watery Anaya in their arms up the stairs towards the security office which housed an increasingly frustrated guard.

He would have to take a nice nap for a long time.