A few monts ago, Noli’s hands trembled as he bent over the rows of beans... His sweat was still dripping into the dust.
The Sentinels nearby scanned the workers or slaves with their sensors while holding their rifles. It was another day of endless labor... until the ground shook.
At first, Noli thought it was just another patrol... or worse, baited rescuers.
After all, he knew that one of the reasons why they were being kept alive was to lure other humans into rescuing them.
Furthermore, they also had a huge stack of food here, so any human resistance group desperate for supplies might risk attacking the base, only to be crushed... This was obviously a bait for the remaining Human Survivors!
But then he saw sothing impossible.
A Sentinel... No, sothing built like one but far stronger just charged straight into the machines guarding the towers!
Its armor was well-maintained and seed expensive. Its movents were a lot smoother than E-Grade Sentinels, and soon, they saw how its blade tore through the Spyders’ legs.
Noli’s eyes widened. ’Machines... fighting machines? What is going on here?’
The slaves froze, unsure whether to run or stay.
They glanced at each other, unsure whether to continue planting their crops.
"What’s happening?"
"Is this a malfunction?"
"Why are they attacking each other?"
But the shock didn’t end there.
From the smoke, figures erged, and they were humans.
They were not thin, weakened slaves like them, but warriors.
They had good combat gear, their movents were fast, and without a doubt, their bodies were enhanced. It could be body modification or perhaps gene enhancents.
Noli rembered about these humans in the shelter when he was still not captured as a slave... Augnted Humans.
He had never seen one before, but now they were real, fighting against the Sentinels!
One of them blurred across the battlefield, striking with an axe that cleaved through tal.
It was an incredible sight. After all, even if they were E-Grade Sentinels, they wouldn’t get easily cut with a normal axe swing!
It didn’t end there as they watched the man unleash a burst of energy that sent Sentinels flying!
None of them knew how that happened... Whether it was a weapon or mystical powers, it didn’t matter at this point.
Soon, they watched a mysterious shadow eliminate other Sentinels... They saw the figure vanishing and reappearing as machines fell silently.
And then... the woman.
She stord toward the Sentinels guarding them!
’She’s coming here... Be careful, miss.’ Noli worriedly thought. He was worried that she’d get hard after seeing the Sentinel point their gun at her!
The machines then turned their sensors on the workers as they lifted their rifles and pointed at them!
Noli’s heart stopped...
’No... Please...’ He thought they were about to be executed.
However, the woman reached them first. She seized a Sentinel’s head in her bare hands and crushed it like brittle glass.
Crunch!
Then, she slamd it into the dirt, snapping its neck joint before tearing out its core.
The slaves gasped.
"So strong..."
"Whoa..."
"Miss! Thank you!"
So cried out, others covered their mouths in disbelief.
Noli felt incredibly excited... These humans weren’t weak Survivors who had been baited by the A.I. Army! They were humans strong enough to crush the enemies!
Just like that, the battle continued, and the outco beca clear.
The Augnted Humans fought with terrifying strength, dismantling Sentinels one after another.
Plasma fire streaked across the compound, explosions followed, but the warriors kept advancing without hesitation.
Noli clutched the fence, his eyes wide.
’They’re winning... they’re actually winning.’
Around him, the other slaves cheered frantically.
"They’re definitely humans, right?!"
"They ca for us!"
"We’re being saved!"
Hope... It was sothing Noli and the others hadn’t felt in years...
His weakened body trembled, but not from fear. For so reason, he believed that escape was possible.
As the last Sentinel collapsed, silence fell over the compound.
Smoke rose from shattered cores, broken machines littered the ground as they all started at the humans who helped them...
Noli’s lips parted... "They... they’re the ones. The ones who’ve been thinning the patrols... No wonder the number of Sentinels guarding us dwindled. They must have been eliminating them outside this place over the past few days!"
Others nodded as everything finally clicked.
They weren’t just imagining that the Sentinels’ numbers had lessened. Soone had been fighting back, and now those sa warriors had co to free them.
Tears welled in Noli’s eyes.
He didn’t know their nas, didn’t know why they had risked themselves, but he knew one thing... they were fellow humans. And they had won.
The slaves couldn’t help but bow their heads, as they thanked the people.
For Noli and the rest... freedom was no longer a dream!
However, they suddenly heard sothing unexpected!
"Don’t thank us... You just gained new owners!"
The words hit like a shockwave...
Noli froze, his heart sinking.
Around him, the other slaves stiffened, their expressions changed from gratitude to horror.
’New owners? Had they just traded one master for another?’
Even Claire, Jonas, and i turned toward Kai in disbelief.
Claire’s eyes narrowed as she confronted him. "Kai... what the hell did you just say?"
Jonas blinked, lowering his rifle. "Wait... are you serious?"
i, on the other hand, just looked at Kai curiously.
For a mont, the silence was unbearable. The slaves looked terrified, the team looked stunned, and Kai stood there with a straight face.
Then he smirked.
"Relax. I’m joking. You’re free now..."
The tension broke instantly.
Claire exhaled, shaking her head. "You idiot. Don’t scare them like that."
Jonas let out a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Man, I thought you’d lost it for a second."
i sighed. "You really need to work on your timing."
The slaves blinked, confused at first, then slowly realized it had been a jest.
Relief returned, stronger than before.
So even laughed nervously with tears mixing with smiles.
Kai then raised his hand, gesturing toward the fields.
"Now... about these crops. I need to know what’s really being grown here."
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