BRING IT BACK
 
It was decided to send out five R.A.T units to scout the areas ahead
and report back to us, while the soldiers took time to reload their
weapons and check their gear. A couple of men had miraculously
survived close encounters with the enemy, and long tears in their
armour were excellent souvenirs of their recent luck. 

However, this latest action was futile, as one by one, the drones
stopped broadcasting and we had no information about their possible
locations. They might have been lying motionless in the dark corridors,
their delicate circuits damaged or even worse. This worried me of
course, as a lack of proper intelligence could have jeopardised the whole
expedition. Once again, my squads feared that the Swarm could read
their minds, or at least predict their intentions.

Just then, the characteristic sound of those reconnaissance droids was
once again heard from the corridors ahead. Field sergeant of the Beta
squad advanced through the abandoned hall, and found the droid damaged,
but operational. He was just turning back to rejoin his unit, when his
deafening scream cut through the comm-link:

"AMBUSH!"
.
