Into The Machine

I knew the sound from the war. A machine drop ship had arrived carrying a group of their soldiers. For a moment I worried I was having a flashback, but the machines were new, not at all the previous versions I'd fought so no way could they be a dream or some kind of hallucination. They landed and did their normal fan out. They were always so methodical, in the army we'd hoped we could use that to their disadvantage, but the linked intelligence always accounted for any ambush no matter how elaborate, eventually we just gave up on the tactic all together.

I didn't know why they were there, but from the fan out they definitely were looking for something. It took me a terrifying moment to discover it was me. I had forgotten about their biological scanners, funny how things go when removed from a war for a bit. They found my fairly easily, but instead of annihilating me as they would have in the past instead of all things they wanted to talk.

"Anzi Lorentino." The voice was more human than I expected, though the AI supposedly had their own minds, its what they claimed when we'd kill one back in the war.

"Nope, I'm Delores Rathburn." The name was something I made up on the fly, from a book I half remembered. I heard the zap before I felt it, something that seemed weird, but maybe the electricity was on a delayed response to how my body was processing it. When I awoke I was naked without any weapons. I could figure the weapons was fair, but the nakedness seemed excessive. Not that I was aware the machines would do anything sexual or shamey, it just felt silly to be naked.

"Anzi Lorentino." A new machine more human form, I was on their ship or so I assumed and attached to some kind of metal cross, the cross inhibited my magic ability.

"Delores Rathburn never heard of a Lorentino." The machine smiled is the best way I could say what I could see of her face.

"Sure, well Delores you have the dna profile of Anzi Lorentino which makes for some interesting questions to say the least."

"My parents always said I had good genes."

"Dangerous ones, all the same Delores," The machine made sure to make it clear she did not believe me, "As someone with your profile, I need you assistance."

"And what makes you think I'd help a machine?"

"Your grandfather built me, I figured we can let bygones be bygones here, especially by helping me, I can help you." Against my better judgement I responded

"And what can I do for you?" She smiled again and I knew I should have just kept claiming to be Delores.