The lights from the engines of the dropships cast long shadows in the twilight of Gran Canaria's night.
From the Island Hangar, Alan Kell watched as the small but powerful ships landed to unload their cargo near the lake. The ships lifted away leaving boxes behind on the ground. The boxes quickly changed aspect as legs unfolded and pylon mounted weapon systems emerged. The shimmer of shields around each machine was obvious as they began moving.
Alan shuddered as the insectlike machines moved around, hoping their frightening ordinance wouldn't be pointed his way anytime soon.
Two new ships approached the hangar, one being the familiar shape of an Outcast destroyer. Alan moved back inside and watched as the two ships were brought in to land.
The smaller of the two craft was a simple armoured transport, matching the shuttle already parked in the hangar.
Alan approached the shuttle to see a bipedal robot emerge. "Welcome to Gran Canaria."
"Thank you. My designation is Mersenne QB-400. Please excuse the show of force but it is perhaps best to err on the side of caution."
Alan glanced towards the closing hangar doors. "We are sorry about the attack on you earlier."
"Do not concern yourself about it. We have considerable experience with dangerous elements on Planet Gammu."
Alan nods and indicates a door to the side of the hangar. "Hopefully your visit will be free of further incident anyway. Whenever you're ready to begin, please come this way to the workshop. XM has already removed the nav computer core and is preparing the system for re-interfacing."
Another robot emerged from the shuttle behind Mersenne pushing a trolley with a robotic body on it.
