Senjen took a few steps backwards, raising up both hands. “Hey, I’m just looking...for now. Besides, it’s not like they bring out big ticket items to buy right from the floor of the event. The most I could do would be to place an order, and I could do that anytime. I just want to see, you know?” He answered. It was not a lie; he did not expect to be walking out of here in a new body, but Ruknar could tell that there was more to his excitement than just longing for a hypothetical purchase. He had been thinking about this for a while.

Jess, meanwhile, smirked. “You don’t have to ask me twice. I already swung by here yesterday, but there’s a few things I didn’t have a chance to take a look at. There’s some good stuff coming out. Bunch of bullshit too, but...what else do you expect? Tteranduus Industries is trying to launch a ‘budget’ neural link line that can do neural control on smart appliances, vehicles, and all that, but has no native support for public interface ports. Who the hell is the target market for that? Folk who are too poor to afford a standard link, but somehow still have their own home with a full private network setup? I get that the hardware that translates neural patterns for a multi-species network is the most expensive part of the link, but it’s useless without it. Someone who is poor enough to want a budget link is going to be reliant on public services and networks.”

On topics like this, Jess was someone who could end up going on for quite a while about them without realizing it, so Senjen was quick to get them all refocused. He stepped in between Light and Ruknar and put an arm around both of them. “See, there’s plenty for all of us to do. If nothing else catches our interest, we can always laugh at some of the stupid ideas.”

Naturally, the streets were even more crowded than usual. The event was taking place in a plaza that was usually host to a sort of open air market for private vendors. Normally, just about anyone could set up and sell whatever they liked. No permits were required, and spots were simply first-come-first-serve. The only thing law enforcement tended to do was to make sure angry vendors did not stir up too much trouble if someone took “their” spot. Events like this one were not especially well-liked by local merchants, since it kept them out of business for a few days. Fortunately, the city did at least have the sense to limit how often they rented out individual public spaces to avoid too many problems.

Ironically, despite being so much more crowded, the plaza felt much more orderly than usual. The streets were organized, meticulously and intentionally, by the event coordinators instead of thrown together haphazardly by the public. While tightly packed, the paths around the plaza were wide enough to accommodate the expected crowd size, and all the booths were arranged to keep their products easily in view. Those selling consumer electronics tended to be “outside” and easily-accessible right where attendants tended to be walking. Salespeople would speak directly with passers-by, and since this was a more consumer-focused trade show, some products could be bought right at the booth, if they were not simply advertisements for upcoming product lines.

In the mid-levels of the city, being outside or inside tended to lose meaning. There was no sky above them, no weather nor natural wind, and all of the lighting was artificial anyway. Any street could become like a convention center. Still, there were some companies that brought prefab modules to have an even more private space. Senjen ended up stopping, staring up at the sign above one of them. There were no products on display that were visible from the street, just a name in big letters that said everything that needed to be said: Myrmidon.

“This one? Well, we can’t let you go in there alone. You hear stories of the tricks these new-fangled companies play on common folk.” Light said conspiratorially, eyeing up the people outside.

There was a stunningly beautiful Human woman with red hair and a sanguine dress standing before the inviting entrance with a holo-pad. A biped service droid holding a tray of champagne flutes hovered nearby. Either side of the passage was a bulky security droid dressed in a smart suit, hands clasped neatly in front of them. Their faceplate was unfeatured apart from the word ‘PROTOTYPE’ in the same font as the logo.

“Right?” He looked around. Ruk seemed less than enthused but nodded. Jess seemed down for whatever.

As they approached the woman in the dress smiled warmly, took their names and contact information and then offered them something to drink. She offered Senjen a free node which could simulate something approaching a massage for synthetics.

“Welcome to Myrmidon, please feel free to have a look around inside. If you have any questions, a member of staff will be happy to accommodate you.”

“Thank you. Ok, let's go.” Light said, uncomfortable with the prospect being waited on hand and foot but clutching his glass of champagne tightly.

Together they travelled through the entryway, decorated with exquisite Hellenic sculptures and lit through thin mist from the floor. Classical music gradually filtered in as the huge room opened up for them.

It was all white, interspersed with the occasional Doric pillar. Engaging display areas showed off various different types of Myrmidon droids and vehicles in action. Rugged outdoorsy models were demonstrating their skills at rock climbing or hand to hand combat. Others performed domestic chores, open heart surgery and everything in between.

The space didn’t feel overwhelming or cramped despite the wealth of products on offer, showing real thought had been put into the layout. There were even a few relaxation areas catering to different species, which a few guests were taking advantage of. Light noted that business appeared to be brisk, though there was no shortage of staff members mingling with the groups and standing ready.

What Senjen easily noticed right away was how different the Myrmidon showroom felt from the rest of the exhibition outside, almost certainly intentionally. Even this temporary showroom was consistent with their permanent locations, at least from what he had seen online. Myrmidon had a certain image that was universally known, and seemed almost impossible for other companies to approach. They offered the highest quality in robotics available. One would never see advertisements for them, but everyone knew who they were and what they did. It was simply...known.

Senjen politely refused the massage. He had at least some expectation for the tactics such a company would use for the presentation of their products, and his approach was to keep his mind focused on what he actually wanted out of all of this. The service was nice, but it was ultimately about the sale. He was prepared, and he had to remember that.

At least at first, Senjen did not pay too much attention to the displays he could see. Jess was idly observing one of the repair drones, but he instead stood close to his friends and accessed the digital catalogue. If they had something similar to what he wanted on-hand, he might be interested in looking closer, but for now he had to get that picture of what he wanted in his mind. A custom order was certainly what he would end up wanting, unless they had any Utaysi-styled frames as a standard model. There were a plethora of options for every type of utility under the sun, but Senjen focused in on what he needed. Annoyingly, none of the prices were advertised, but Myrmidon was top-of-the-line, and he could only possibly afford their lower-end offerings. Getting the costly additions out of the way first, browsed their private security product lines. Armor plating, light shielding, offensive options...he wanted to put something together that these sorts of companies would consider “acceptable” for private security duties.

From the moment the group gave their names at the door, a Myrmidon AI supervisor was discreetly collecting data points on each individual. It collated their known movements and web history to gain a picture of their interests; their entry into the horticulture contest was their most recent entry. Senjen’s activity on the catalogue was given particular weight.

It also conducted a soft credit search and cross reference of known purchases to gain financial data. It then studied each person in minute detail with an array of cameras and sensors. It didn’t just map every single muscle in their bodies for body language reading, It plotted their reactions and interactions with each other onto a vector space along with all the other information.

With this baseline in place, the supervisor created a sales strategy for each person and assigned them to the best-placed member of staff. These people didn’t immediately break off from what they were doing; they didn’t even let on they were being conducted. They just finished the conversation they were having at a leisurely pace before making their way over. There was enough to see in the Myrmidon showroom to be fairly confident that leads wouldn’t leave before being at least spoken to.

As Senjen locked into his fact-finding mission and was following them around on autopilot, Light meandered with the others around some of the closer display areas. He nervously sucked the champagne into his suit, which promptly assimilated it. He had spotted a QV-specific area in the back, but didn’t want to go alone. His brain instinctively knew there were QV nearby and couldn’t stop looking for them in this alien crowd.

Then he saw one. A female around his age, whirling animately around in her gelsuit while talking to a couple of Humans just a dozen metres away. She was healthy and adorned in pearlescent jewellery, with delicate beauty spots on her hide that precluded any colour change. Light stared, utterly captivated. He put his empty champagne flute down clumsily next to a bust of Athena, causing it to rock. The female looked his way and flashed good natured amusement.

“Wow! I never expected to see another Utaysi here. Welcome. Can I help at all?” Came a voice from behind him. Light looked and saw a staff member politely approach Senjen. They wore a sparkling Myrmidon branded Utaysi body-form.

Once he had pieced together the options he felt he was interested in, Senjen was ready to break his silence with his friends. Light and Jess had wandered off, but Ruk was still there with him. “What do you think?” Senjen asked, passing to her link the options he had chosen. It gave a digital mock-up of the completed frame that could be inspected down to the tiniest detail, inside and out. The base frame mimicked the Utaysi body shape and possessed the normal capabilities that were familiar to them. The non-standard options he had selected were almost all from the private security product lines. It had hardened internal components, protected by armored plating. The claws, which could also be used for climbing, were weapons grade, and its artificial muscles were capable of both exceptional strength and agility. Of course, none of those stood out in particular as far as a security droid was concerned. Plenty of competitors could do the same, even for industrial robots. The most expensive addition was the light energy shielding, and its required fusion core for power generation. A standard Utaysi frame did not have integrated power generation, but rather a battery bank that could hold a charge for between one and two weeks, depending on usage. The lifespan of a fuel cell for the fusion core also varied on usage, to a much greater degree. Under normal load, it could last over a year without replacement. With consistent usage of the energy shield, it would burn through a cell in just under a month, and they were much more expensive to replace than just charging a battery bank.

All of the options were available for Ruk to review, though Senjen did not seem as interested in talking about the combat options, for the most part. “What kind of frame do you think is the most ‘me’? The longer tail can have more utility, though it can get in the way at times. I’m not as worried about the color, since I would just get a custom paint job afterwards anyway. Let’s see, I could stay male, or go female this time. Oh, and I need to decide on the overall size. A smaller, sleeker form factor would be better for evasion, smaller target, but a larger frame leaves me more space for upgrades later on.”

Before Ruk’s reply, one of the employees chimed in to the conversation, and he did share their apparent surprise. The fact that Utaysi were rare to see outside their home territory had not changed over the last few years. Though, if he was going to see one anywhere, this was a place where it made perfect sense. “Oh, well...maybe. I guess you could answer some questions the catalogue couldn’t. Other species don’t always get the little things that make a body yours. What’s it like to actually live in these frames?”

---

Jess had been shadowing behind Light a short distance. She knew how these sorts of companies worked, and out of the group, she was the one with the best idea of what the company likely knew about them. They had turned sales into just as much of a science as the products they made. She had to imagine that she was a tempting target, if for no other reason than that she had the most money to spend. She also would have a lot of use for good repair drones, but she was not looking to replace her current set at the moment. And if she did, she would not be buying a Myrmidon.

It was easy to notice Light staring at the other QV nearby. In truth, there was little she could discern with her own eyes about the other QV. There were programs that could help a Human identify and describe alien physical traits, or even specific individuals, almost as quickly as one of their own species, but she did not like being reliant on them. Particularly with friends, she tried to be more intentionally observant, and she could draw her own conclusions on what Light might have been thinking at the moment. “Friend of yours?” She chuckled.

“A formidable question! Well…I was close to death when Myrmidon rescued me. Jumped by some xenos and scrapped for parts. The hospitals didn’t know what to do with me. They couldn’t rebody me because my mind rejected all the hosts. They were hours from pulling the plug.”

“But Myrmidon saw my potential. They put me in a pod with all the individual parts of my new body and just attached a few connector appendages to my core. I scraped and crawled for months putting myself together from scratch. They brought me back from the dead by understanding that for us a body is more than a hunk of metal. It's our masterpiece.”

The Utaysi spoke passionately and eloquently, the silence heavy when he finished clasped his hands back together. A few heads had turned from nearby groups to listen to his answer.

“So to answer your question, living in these bodies feels like being reborn. Wiser to challenges the galaxy gives us, and more secure in our ability to meet them. I hope that helps?”

---

Light regarded Jess skeptically, then sighed.

“No. Someone like that would never be friends with someone like me.” There was a tinge of sadness in his synthesised voice.

“She looks like the warrior priestesses we learned about as juveniles. I can’t believe she’d work…here.”

A soft announcement drifted across the room over the tinkling of music to them.

“Welcome all guests. We are seeking volunteers at the RepairX product suite to take part in a disassemble/reassemble timed competition. The winner will receive a Styx Four auto-tool chest and Myrmidon mascot.”

“Well…” Senjen began, a bit lost for words for just a few moments. “That must have been terrible to go through. We can stop the pain, but...well I don’t need to tell you what it’s like. How long ago did this happen?”

Without a doubt, it was a shocking story that grabbed one’s attention, but Senjen was still aware of where he was. If there was a Utaysi here, that could actually be quite helpful for him to make a few decisions, as long as he remembered that he was a salesman. There were just a few small holes in the story that Senjen had an inkling to prod. Just in case.

---

Jess gave a brief glance upwards at the disembodied voice. “Oh, they do know me so well.” She mumbled, mostly to herself.

In any case, Jess did not budge from talking with Light. “Ah, ‘she’. I get you now. They hire all types of people here on Korit to better...relate to the customers. Not hard to get the exact type of employees you want when you have Myrmidon’s money to throw around.”

Taking another step forward, Jess nudged Light’s side. “Today’s the first day of the rest of your life, remember? I’ll tell you what, I’ve got something to talk with you and Senjen about. Later, once we have some privacy. I think you might find it interesting.”

“About two years ago. So fair warning, I don’t have the experience that some of my colleagues have. But I think I'm uniquely placed to help you in particular. “Was there anything specific you were looking for today?”

A service droid wafted past with a tray of hors d'oeuvres. Ruk picked precisely at it like her ancestors may have combed a lawn for grubs. She was getting bored.

“Have you visited our Agora bar?” The droid asked, gesturing politely to an area fashioned after an ancient open-air theatre/market space. A few people stood talking loudly and sipping on cocktails.

“No, I’m here to help my friend. Besides, I’m trying to save money.” Ruk replied.

“Its all free, ma’am.”

---

“Are you calling my future life partner a prostitute?!” Light flashed colours of mock offense, then laughed and patted Jess’ face to hide his sadness.

“Oh? Well colour me interested.” It was a Human turn of phrase that had gained widespread usage among QV.

“You should go and win that Myrmidon mascot. It’ll look good adhered to your shoulder.”

Another tray of champagne flutes passed by; Light grabbed one and sniffed it.

Senjen became more suspicious with the Utaysi’s answer. Two years ago was recent, and he would have expected a company like Myrmidon to have learned how to prepare a computer core for a Utaysi personality matrix long ago. In his story, the company should have just been able to transfer the personality matrix without needing to retain the original core. Maybe the core was damaged? Or maybe this was not even a Utaysi? Honestly, he was not sure how much that would even matter in the end. He knew what he wanted, roughly speaking.

“I, well...I mean no offense, but I do hope Myrmidon computer core can be prepped for a normal personality matrix transfer. I would not want to go through that myself, if I can avoid it.” Senjen answered.

Before they had been interrupted, Senjen had wanted to get Ruknar’s input. “You didn’t get a chance to answer before. What do you think would make for the best version of a new me? I sent you the options I was looking at.”

Briefly, Senjen glanced back at the salesman. “Do you have any models here I can try out?” He asked. He was not actually expecting, nor wanting, to transfer his personality matrix. Rather, a remote control session was much like test driving a vehicle.

---

Jess gave a mild sigh and wiped away a bit of gel from her face. She was convinced that he only pretended not to understand Human personal space, by this point. Regardless, she stayed close to him and spoke a bit more softly. “You know how much they know about us? Wouldn’t surprise me if they’re throwing together a little contest just because I’m here. I am the kind of client they would want to make a sale to. I have money, and a legitimate business reason to buy their products on a potentially recurring basis. So...yeah.”

After a moment, Jess shrugged. “Still, if you’re bored, I could go win a contest that seems made just for me.”

“Well of course! I am just sentimental about my current housing. I didn't wanna give it up.” The Utaysi rapped a hand surreptitiously against his body.

Ruk studied Senjen closely. “I think I like you just the way you are, Senny. Are you sure you wanna ride this train?”

The Utaysi glanced quickly between the two of them before replying. “We do indeed. What sort of models did you have in mind? We have a good selection here, but I can also offer you a virtual try-on for almost every product in our catalogue.” He began leading them towards a quiet barrier containing the louder displays before Senjen had had a chance to answer.

---

Light pondered this for a moment. “Isn’t that a good reason to go and talk to them about it?” He seemed pleased with his reasoning skills.

“You don’t need an old codger like me cheering you on; you’ll win it blindfolded. I might go and check the QV area. Meet back in 5?” He peeked back at the female, who was finishing her conversation and was looking back at him now.

Senjen ended up following the Utaysi without much thought, as he was occupied in speaking with Ruknar. “It’s nothing unusual for us, Ruk. I mean, I know we’re pretty different in a lot of ways, and I think I understand why it wouldn’t make immediate sense to you. Your bodies are supposed to last you your whole lives. I know technology can replace and regrow a lot of things, but you evolved to keep yourselves going, right? Our creators did too, but that’s one way we’re different than them. Our bodies don’t self-repair. I mean...they do self-repair from damage and stuff, but it’s not the same kind of self-repair that an organic body does, if that makes sense? Our bodies aren’t meant to be used forever. We get them, use them for a while, and replace them when they wear down. Some people might get attached, but more like...a pilot whose really proud of their ship. People love making it their own, making it their home, but at the end of the day it’s still just a thing. It’s not me.”

As they started moving past the barrier, Senjen rubbed his neck somewhat awkwardly. “Admittedly, our frames usually last a lot longer than mine has. I’ve sort of been putting it through a lot that it was never designed to handle. That’s a big reason I really do need a replacement. If I get a body that is actually designed for what I do to it, then it’ll last longer.”

---

Jess sighed. “Well I don’t want to go if you don’t. These sorts of companies harvest all sorts of data for ‘personalized marketing’.” She noticed where Light was looking, and it did not take much for her to draw some conclusions of her own. “Look just...realize that they probably know a lot about you.”

Pausing a moment, Jess continued the conversation through messages instead. “I don’t have to be clinging by your side if you don’t want me to, but at least let me hang out nearby, yeah?”

“I suppose you’re right. I’ll just have to relearn all your card game tells again…” Ruk joked, clapping the Utaysi appreciatively on the back.

“Now what fresh hell is in here.”

As soon as they passed the quiet barrier the sounds of general commotion assaulted their ears. There was laser and shard fire mixed with the scrape of metal on metal and shield deflections.

It was a kill house, sunken into the ground with a viewing gantry around the outside. A collection of small rooms snaked around the edge, opening onto a courtyard with a few pieces of cover dotted around it. Half a dozen Utaysi mil-droids were simulating an intense battle, three on the red team and three on the blue team.

“Sorry about the noise! They are really going at each other.” The Utaysi explained, gesturing for Senjen to attend a console.

“Each of them represent one of our six base private security/personal military models. You can customise any of them to the spec you desire. You can also take control of any of them at will.”

The console’s interface was highly engaging to a Utaysi, including elements of gamification. For example, the act of bulking out a droid’s loadout also added it to the ‘shopping cart’. On offer for the next ten minutes were the backpack shield supplement drone, the active camouflage module and the Infiltrator’s shardrifle.

---

Light could tell Jess knew what she was talking about regarding this ‘personalisation’ thing from her voice and body language. It made him even more nervous about speaking to any of the staff, and he now felt bad that Jess’ participation in the contest was contingent on his presence.

“We need to win at least one stupid contest today, regain our dignity. Let's go.” With some effort, Light turned his back on the warrior-priestess and blobbed towards the workshop display area.

The member of staff calling for volunteers over the PA system was a lithe androgynous Human with a black bob, a tank top in Myrmidon white and arm tattoos. They waved Jess over as she entered the display area.

There were two Myrmidon hoverbikes resting on the floor. A Myrmidon workshop droid stood over one of them, examining it closely with its sensory array.

“We have our contender, ladies and gentlemen!” The cute salesperson called to the small crowd of onlookers which now included Light.

“The task is simple. Disassemble and reassemble this bike in working order quicker than my droid here to win. Think you’ve got what it takes?” They grinned cheekily at Jess, goading her.

Senjen gave a look through the windows into the courtyard. “Guess they realized what I’m here for…” He hummed to himself, observing the simulated fighting below. He supposed it was the perfect sort of place to get a feel for what he wanted to buy. “Well, if nothing else, it won’t be boring.” He chuckled, nudging Ruknar.

“I can tell you from the start that I won’t be ready to commit to anything today, but I am interested in seeing how they perform.” Senjen commented to the salesman as he approached the console. It was easy enough to figure out how to sort through the options, with how user-friendly the interface was. He kept the options he picked to what he actually knew he could afford. A standard, armored combat frame with light shielding. He did not elect to have extra additions, as he wanted to get a sense of the performance of what he was actually intending to buy. He preferred to choose an energy weapon, since he was more comfortable with them by this point. The pistol he had taken his first day on Korit had been his sidearm for years now.

---

“Hmm, hoverbikes.” Jess remarked to Light. “This one might get interesting, actually. I do ships and robots, mostly. Ground vehicles not as much. Eh, we’ll see, I guess. I can still disassemble one in my sleep.”

Overall, Jess seemed somewhat distracted as she approached and did not respond too strongly to the bait the Human was offering. It might have made her seem serious and focused, but that was only half-true. It seemed obvious that the point of all this was to try to sell the robot she was competing against, or a similar model. That would at least mean they were confident in it, though if she was being honest, quality was not one of the things she doubted out of Myrmidon. She knew they were capable, but she had different reasons to be suspect of an interplanetary megacorporation.

Jess did not end up being entirely silent. “More curious to peek inside the robot, if I’m being honest, but I guess I’ll see what I can do to the bike.”

Jess had not worked on this specific model of hoverbike before, but that part did not particularly matter. She had worked on other Myrmidon vehicles, and other bikes, so she could judge it by eye pretty well. They had all the tools she needed available, and it often looked like she did not even need to think about what she needed to do next. Attachments and parts of the frame came off piece-by-piece and were arranged nearby in a sort of organized chaos that probably made sense to her. Still, halfway through, even she had to admit she was not at her best. Her mind was split between her task and looking for all the little sales tricks she thought they might be pulling. More than once, she ended up watching the robot to see if it was keeping its best pace, or working as efficiently as it could be. She could disassemble the bike without her full focus, but she was not doing it quickly enough.

Granted, a lackluster performance by Jess’ standards was still solid and professional. Over the course of the whole task, there was not a single mistake from her. Every part came off properly, in sequence, and was put right back together just the same. She simply did not realize her pace was too slow until it was too late to catch up.

“Oh, naturally!” The Utaysi waved a hand dismissively.

“I just have to let you know that any prices discussed here today may not be available once you leave.”

Once Senjen had confirmed his choices, the fighting stopped at once. One of the droids loped over to a shuttered door on the lower level that opened to reveal an automated loadout station. As they watched, it deftly added and removed parts from the stationary robot frame while the others watched passively. They had returned to their rally points on either side of the kill house.

Once the droid was re-equipped it joined its teammates on the Red Team. The Myrmidon staffer handed Senjen an interface that could be plugged directly into his own body.

“This will let you remote control your avatar using your mind, to ensure you get the most immersive experience. The hard line prevents any griefing - you understand.” He also offered some viewing goggles to Ruknar, who took them with a skeptical look on her face.

Once Senjen had plugged in, the other two Red Team members looked at him. As soon as he made a move, the round would start.

---

“You’ve got this!” Light cheered from the sidelines, quaffing his new glass of champagne.

The officiant nodded their head appreciatively at Jess’ stoic riposte.

“Ahh, our champion is of the strong and silent type, ladies and gentlemen! Evidently getting focused for the task ahead.” They played to the crowd, who murmured excitedly.

When Jess did speak, they waggled a ringed finger at her.

“While I'm sure that’d be fun to watch, I’m afraid it’d void this beauty’s extended warranty.” The crowd laughed politely.

Once the two competitors got going, some cheering erupted from the spectators. Light joined in, forgetting his previous anxiety, until Jess began to fall behind the droid.

“Pick up the pace!” Light offered as words of encouragement, though he wasn’t sure individual voices were registering in Jess’ mind.

“Your friend certainly knows her way around a bike.” Came a message from his side. Light’s suit and eyes instantly decoded the flurry of colours despite no sound passing between them. He turned slightly to regard the QV staff member who had sidled up next to him. She regarded him.

“She is a mechanic?”

Light immediately felt nervous again, in such proximity to this stranger. It felt as though magnets were drawing them together.

“Yes. The best I know.” The reply that arrived on his hide was erratic and plagued with emotional tics.

“High praise indeed. And what are you good at?” This warrior-priestess turned away from the contest to focus all her attention on him.

“I suppose travelling safely is my special skill. I transport cargo…well, my friend, erm, body guard and I transport cargo. All over, really.” Light angled himself so he could reasonably say he was looking both at this female and his friend at the same time.

“That sounds very adventurous. You must see a lot of interesting things in your line of work.”

“I suppose we do.”

“I’d like to hear about them, some time. Maybe we’ve been to the same places at the same time! Imagine that.”

“Oh, I’m sure that's not the case. We mostly visit warzones and…precarious situations at the moment. We work for a medical NGO.” She positively lit up with intrigue upon seeing this response from Light.

“Not possible! Before joining Myrmidon I was with the Zeteticist.” Light had heard the name before, after a moment he remembered they were a QV group mind that rescued their kind from oppression and war crimes throughout the cluster. Word was that they were ruthlessly effective against the aggressors.

The crowd politely clapped Jess as she finished behind the droid. The tank-topped officiant raised the droid’s hand triumphantly by the wrist, before coming over and shaking hands with Jess. They presented her with a wooden spanner engraved with her name.

“Another round of applause for our valiant runner up!” The crowd duly complied. Some then dispersed, off to examine other displays. Others moved into the enclosure to examine the product range in closer detail.

“Unlucky there. You’ll get em next time, eh?” They grinned.

It was a very sudden shift to being in the arena, from Senjen’s perspective. Not a surprise, but jarring nonetheless. Remote control did not feel the same as a personality transfer, though it was hard to express exactly why that was the case. He could see through its eyes, feel through all its senses, while his own were suppressed from his perspective. On paper, it should have been indistinguishable from the real thing, but there was something at the back of his mind always letting him know it wasn’t quite right. Regardless, that did not matter for now. He could still get a good sense of what he wanted to know.

Senjen rushed forward and crouched down behind a piece of cover in the arena. Being that his movement initiated the fight, he got to it first and fired a shot at the middle robot. It tried to move, but the shot struck right on the chestplate. Unfortunately, it seemed like the armor took the full hit, absorbing and dispersing the energy. It rushed to cover and shot at Senjen’s ally to his left. That shot hit closer to the droid’s leg joint, which was enough to cause it to fall to the ground right behind the wall. It was still active, but it looked like the shot had done some damage, as it was taking a moment to get up. Not the greatest start, honestly, but at least he was in cover.

---

Jess had been so occupied with how they might try to sell to her that she did not realize until it was too late how they had actually ended up using her. It was not really about her at all, but rather how she could demonstrate their product. They knew what she could do, at least roughly, and that she could put up good enough of a performance to make the competition engaging. She showed herself as a professional, which meant the robot was being compared, in the minds of the audience, to a professional. If only she had been disassembling a robot, then she might have given them more than they bargained for.

With a sigh, Jess shrugged to the Human. “No sense in blaming luck. I just need to keep my head in the game and pay attention. Less chance of making...mistakes, that way.”

Jess had at least been focused enough that she could not pay too much attention to the crowd during the contest, so it was her first chance to look around for Light again, and...of course that other QV was here. Jess had to imagine she knew why she was here, though she supposed she had already been tricked once. It was probably best not to fixate too much on seemingly obvious conclusions.

“Excuse me.” She said to the Human, thanking him for the “prize” before heading out into the dispersing crowd.

“Was the contest what you hoped, Light?” Jess asked once she was close enough.

The enemy droid on the left hand side launched a stream of superheated plasma at the droid to Senjen’s right. Wise to an early salvo, they were already dodging and it sailed over their head to sear the simulated walls behind. Senjen’s ally made it safely behind cover; their assailant waited a split second for another shot. When none presented itself, they ducked down behind a concrete barricade.

The enemy on the right had taken their time aiming at Senjen and loosed a laser bolt at the top of his head peeking from behind cover. It was pinpoint accurate, bouncing aggressively off Senjen’s new shield unit with a satisfying Pzzang-krrrhhht.

The leader of the enemy team looked to the soldier on the Senjen’s left and ordered them to flank through the covered rooms off to the left of the killhouse. They weren’t much more than a series of walls with holes in them punctuated with flimsy doors and smashed windows.

---

“I’ve heard of the Zeteticist!” Light warbled.

“You stormed the Starveling Cult’s migdol on the Moon of Enduring Serenity to free those QV settlers, right? It made the news here on Korit.”

“That's correct! It was a terrible situation. The peacekeepers made a deal with the local warlords but it fell apart in a horrible fashion. We arrived too late to save them, but at least we could rescue some innocents.”

Jess may have heard the end of this exchange as she approached. Light went in for an enveloping, slightly slimy hug.

“Well done! It was fun to watch; shame about…well…you know. But it's taking part that counts, right?”

Light flicked nervously back to look at the QV sat by him for a millisecond, then back to Jess.

“Ermm, Jess! This is my friend Jess. And this is…” He looked to her for clarification. She gave it in spades - her name evoking a fever dream of orange, red and pink.

“Symphony-Of-Stars-Eternal-Lasting. Very pleased to meet you, Jess. You gave a good account of your expertise up there. Your friend said you were the best mechanic he’d ever met.”

“Oh, how rude of me!” Light cut in. I’m Into-The-Abyss-In-Search-Of-Light. My friends call my Light, mostly.”

Senjen, it seemed, had the same idea as his opponents. The covered rooms on the sides offered flanking opportunities. The opposing team directed one of its members to the left, and Senjen followed suit. He kept low, dashing under cover from shots flying above him until he managed to make it through one of the doors.

Meanwhile, both of the remaining two enemy robots moved up towards cover positions closer to the middle of the arena, keeping low the whole time. Senjen instructed both of his allies to keep their positions and establish a base of fire, especially since one was damaged. Both sides exchanged bursts of fire that lit up the room, striking cover and the walls behind, though there were no solid hits for the moment.

Senjen, though, got into the side room just ahead of his opponent, and did not stop his momentum for a moment. It was time to put some of his training to use. From where they were, he could close the gap quickly, firing while moving to keep the pressure on the robot. Getting up close and personal, he managed to push its barrel aside just before it fired with his own weapon, then swept its feet out from under it while getting his claws around the arm that was trying to guard its neck and jabbing them down into its torso from the gap in the plating. Amid all of it, he was impressed with how realistic the simulation felt. None of the hits were landing, nor causing real damage, but they certainly felt like they were.

---

Jess was not terribly enthused about getting her shirt wet, but she was used to Light by this point. Every species had their own ideas of boundaries, and QV were maybe the...closest. At least this time, she put more focus on their new acquaintance. “Ain’t so sure about that. Definitely not with bikes; I do robots. Ships too, but...robots are the interesting ones.” Jess shrugged.

While she might have been paranoid, it might have also been the case that there could be a lot to be paranoid about in a place like this. “I’m curious, what was that about rescuing people?”

The droid tussled wildly with Senjen, trying to dislodge the claws from its chest. They brought their gun back up and smashed it into his head to no avail. Senjen swiped the rifle away and dispatched the damaged droid with a swift stomp to the head.

The two remaining soldiers on the opposing Blue team conducted a tight fire and move sequence, gaining significant ground towards Senjen’s beleaguered opponents. The droid on the left was hit again, rendering it unable to support its teammate who found themselves quickly pinned.

Reaching the other side of the tall piece of cover, the blue team operator duked left but appeared right, putting an energy bolt straight through their opposite number’s head. They clattered to the ground, rifle falling from their limp hands.

The leading droid on the blue team directed its deputy to finish the damaged ally off while they themselves moved to take up cover overlooking the side rooms.

---

“Oh…I was just telling…Light…about what I did before joining Myrmidon.” Symphony blushed.

“She was part of this group mind called Zeteticist. They’re what Humans might call vigilantes?” Light filled Jess in helpfully.

“It seems we may have been eating from different sides of the same plate, as it were.” Symphony added. Light was tickled with endearment at her use of a Human metaphor; plates and cutlery were a most bizarre concept for QV.

Senjen only caught glimpses of what was happening outside after finishing off the downed droid. He knew it was not going well for his allies, and as soon as he rushed up to the door and peered outside, two shots flew past, one of which glanced against the energy shielding just in front of his face. He had expected both of the remaining enemies to be bearing down on him, though surprisingly, he was not out of allies yet.

The first robot that had been shot down twice now still had some life left in it. The other robot had moved around to finish it off, but found it laying on its back with a shot lined up. Despite some damage to its shoulder joint, it managed to fire off a shot that hit the opponent’s forearm, causing the opponent’s shot to go wide as it stumbled down on the other side of the very same barrier the robot was laying behind.

Since Senjen had no angle to help, he fired a burst at the opposing leader, though it ducked behind its barrier.

---

Jess raised her brow at Symphony. The fact that she used a Human expression was not lost on her; many people did the same, or at least attempted to, when talking to members of other species. It could help them relate to one another, or cause drastic misunderstandings, depending on how knowledgeable they were. “That’s quite a change. What caused you to go from that, to a relatively normal corporate job?”

Satisfied that they wouldn’t win a gunfight against Senjen from his fortified position, the Blue team leader unclipped their grenade. Leaning out from behind cover for a second, they activated it and threw it under arm straight through the right-hand doorway.

Senjen scarcely had a second to dive for cover before it detonated, filling the room with a fiery explosion and shrapnel. A solid wood dresser took the brunt, splintering into a thousand pieces. The rest crashed into Senjen’s shield bubble, lighting it up with a loud SHHZZZZZZZZZHHHHH. As soon as the grenade exploded, the Blue team leader rushed to take cover on the opposite side of the right hand door from Senjen, dodging flying shrapnel that exploded through every opening.

The damaged Red team droid crawled around the barrier towards its Blue team equivalent as they were still reeling from the damage to their arm and the fall. They slashed their claws at their would-be executioner, and would have decapitated it had they not thrown their rifle in the way. The claws bend the weapon so severely the Blue deputy discards it, launching themselves at Senjen’s damaged ally with claws drawn. Too weak to defend themselves, the claws slice through their neck, and take them out of the fight permanently.

---

“Myrmidon encourages a diverse range of viewpoints within our ranks. It means we can solve our customers’ problems in a balanced and empathetic manner.” Symphony explained. Light nodded sagely in agreement.

“I saw some gel-rooms back there. Is there anything exciting in them?” He asked.

“Yes of course! Would you like me to show you both?”