Samuel was playing in the front yard with one of the neighbors, their miniature Exoskeletons were having a mock battle by walking around slowly and crashing into each other, when a few exoskeletons flew above their houses.
"Wow, So cool."
The kids didn't even think about it, they activated their headphones and started recording and transmitting to their friends and family. William got out of the house and looked up in the sky, he only managed to see a glimpse of the last exoskeleton that flew by, still, he called his old man.
"Dad, what the hell is going on?" asked William worried.
"I'm working on it. Give me a few minutes"
A few minutes later the old man had some answers.
"It seems MARTA predicted an enemy incursion a few kilometers away from your house, they deployed the twelfth brigade to take care of it"
"Do you think it will affect us?"
"It shouldn't, but you can never be to cautious enough with those things"
"Got it"
William hanged the call.
"Sam, get inside"
"But dad, there might be more exos coming"
"Samuel, get inside, now!"
"Oh men!" complained Samuel while he walked back home, the other parents where already coming out to take their kids back home.
William took Samuel to the underground shelter they had built in the basement years ago. A few minutes later they got a new call from Magnus.
"William, run, get out of the shelter, the Tenctopus are attacking from the underground, they are digging. Get out the shelter and run away as fast a you can"
The signal got cut, everyone knew what that mean. The fact that the enemy had the ability to mess with all human tech was common knowledge. In this case it means that all communication was blocked and all automatic locks in the house were shut. Luckily the electrical box was in the basement, William pulled a lever and the house energy was cut off. All automated locks in the house opened. They had just climbed out of the shelter when one of the monsters dug through the walls of the basement, William and Samuel ran out to the street, the fight was ragging in the sky. A red exoskeletons cut through one of the Tenctopus with his short sword, another pilot was giving fire support from the ground, the projectiles hit and one of the monsters dropped a meter away from the father and son that tried to scape. In that instant an armored vehicle stopped in the street.
"Get in!" Yelled a soldier.
William, Sam and a few of the neighbors got into the vehicle and were evacuated.
"Jim, do another sweep" said the soldier to one of their companions.
"Already did, there is no one left, this guys are the last ones, everyone else is evacuated or dead"
"Damn it!" cursed the soldier. Then he picked up the vehicle speaker.
"Pilots, we got the survivors, give them hell"
A second later the pace of the shootings and the explosion increased while the vehicle moved away from the combat zone towards a safe location. Away from danger the civilians started to calm down.
"That was the scarlet witch, wasn't it?" Asked Samuel.
"Thats right kid"
"Who was the one shooting?" Asked Samuel exited.
"Is a new pilot, transfered here from France, guy just got here yesterday and this happens"
"What the hell happened? Why they came from underground?" Asked William.
"We don't know either, Tenctopus had never dug before, is the first time we see this" answered the soldier.
A few hours later the fight was over. The residents of the neighborhood went back home, it was a mess. William and Samuel house was half destroyed. Tenctopus corpses lied around in the ground. The exoskeleton that was shooting from the ground had suffered severe damage, the rescue unit was tearing the machine down to rescue the pilot from the inside. The guy was wounded, his face was covered in blood and had a missing leg. The rescue unit lifted him up in a helicopter and took him away.
Samuel looked up at William.
"Dad, I'm gonna be a pilot"
"You don't know what you are talking about, this is not a game, this is dangerous, didn't you see that pilot? You are gonna get killed, get that stupid idea out of your head"
"At least pilots have a chance, we had to run like rats"
"Is enough Samuel, is enough"
Magnus came a few minutes later in his combustion engine car, a sixty years old red Ford Kuga . A classic from the olden times.
"This is a mess" he said looking at the house wreckage.
"The insurance will take care of it. Can we crash at you place for a while?" Asked William.
"Of course son, you don't even have to ask. Lets go home, your mom is worried"
Although it was noisy, the rumblings of the old engine had some charm to it. The three Terrence family members traveled in silence until William spoke.
"I'm sorry about what I said the other day. I don't really think the pilots waste their lives"
"I know son, I know, don't worry"
"Does that means I can be a pilot?" Asked Samuel.
"No!"
"Oh, come on! Thats not fair"
"Enough Samuel, not today, lets just go home and rest, your grandmother is sick worried, try not to mention anything related to the attack or being a pilot. She already had enough scares with me while I was in active duty"
William was surprised by Magnus words, he just looked at his old man and kept silent. An hour later they finally got to the old man's house.
A overweight old woman walked out the house as soon as the car noise announced their arrival. She was white, her dyed black hair was starting to get white at the roots. While her superior lip was starting to show a bit too much hair. A pair of thick glasses covered her blue eyes.
"Sam, are you okay?"
The woman started checking the boy from top to bottom.
"I'm fine grandma, I'm a big boy"
"Oh god! I was so worried. Come inside, you two, Magnus get the car in the garage and come home"
The woman took the kid into the house.
"She is as bossy as always" noted William.
"Yup. I was in the army for eleven years, still, she is the worst Sargent I ever had"
The two men laughed, after locking the garage they went into the house. Samuel was already eating the dinner.
"William, clean your shoes before you come in!" the woman yelled.
"Yes mom" answered William while him and his father smiled.
They sat to the table.
"Mom, Jesus, all this food"
"I know, but I was worried and you know I cook when I'm worried"
Magnus was filling up his plate when his wife stopped him.
"Oh no! Not you, you know your implants can't handle that much food, you gonna have cramps for two days if you eat all that"
"Oh come on Silvia, I will be fine"
"No. You won't!"
The woman prepared a smaller plate, with just the right amount of food necessary.
"Your next meal will be in two hours" the woman said looking at her husband.
"Sam, now you watch him, don't let him eat more that what is on his plate. I got to deliver this to our neighbor, I will be back in a minute"
As soon as the woman got out, Magnus tried to get some more food from the table. William and Samuel blocked him.
"Traitors"
A minute or two later, Silvia came back home and sat at the table to dine with her family.