Cybernetic: Trump Card

The last of the deranged robotic security crashed to the ground. Talos wrenched his sword free from the rusted, synthetic corpse; he didn't even flinch at the terrible squeal of metal on metal.
Magnus stepped forward and peered into the hole that had appeared minutes before, he figured an active security system is a good sign that what he was looking for was here, he considered what course of action to take next.
He spoke into his comm bead, "Sergei? Thaw some marines and get them down here. An Anti-Armor Team if you could."
He received a slightly garbled "Affirmative" in response and waited for reinforcements.
Magnus didn't like the idea of bringing more into this, he had intended this mission to be for only his own eyes, but after seeing what his old friend had set up to keep intruders out? That was no longer a viable option.
Josef breathed deeply and ragged; his hand clutched a grisly stomach wound where a security automaton had buried its claws in his flesh leaving two bloody tears that threatened to burst, spilling the contents of his torso onto the floor. He wasn't at all certain how much more punishment he could take and he found it a small wonder he had been able to stand on his own. Probably due to being incredibly angry with the man standing contemplatively over a pit while Josef bled onto the floor.
Through clenched teeth he spoke, "What the fuck are we supposed to be looking for Magnus?" His tone was low and threatening; it demanded an answer, though none was offered.
"Answer me!" He took one menacing step forward and placed his unoccupied hand on his pistol, thumbing off the safety.
Finally, Magnus turned to face him, "My ace in the hole, my trump card, a weapon more potent than all the fleets of earth; subtler than a knife in the dark."
Magnus stared Josef down, "We can end our personal war with Kobayashi and reduce the collateral damage that is sure to follow in our wake to almost nothing." he turned to look back down the tunnel, "Earth can't handle another war. I can't handle another war."
Josef thought about this, though it was hard to think about anything while his gut throbbed with pain, and decided to see the mission through. He reluctantly holstered his gun and activated the safety. If this did turn out to be some wild goose chase, he would make sure there was hell to pay.

...

They floated down the shaft. Lilith stared at the script with rapt attention, mesmerized by the alien markings that covered the walls. It was beautiful; though some of it was obscured by thousands of years of rust and neglect. She thought that it must have been breathtaking in its day and longed to see it then, to experience it as its creators did. The enormity of the alien ruins was heart-stopping, these buildings were tens of thousands years old, yet stood tall and sturdy despite the incredibly hostile environment outside. Talos had said something of these structures being old even before their builders were murdered.
They landed at the bottom and prepared for the worst; Privates Elliot, Graham, Jacobson, and Vedoc ran forward, taking point with PF-36 Charge Rifles and EO-12 Anti-Armor Rocket Launchers poised to unload lead death on the first sign of trouble. Their movements were practiced and professional; they masked the apprehension and unease they felt in a combat environment so obviously alien.
Cautiously, Lilith moved forward with the group as they entered the large square room at the bottom of the shaft. Rows of columns ran from the entrance to the far end stopping at a heavy door; even from this distance Lilith could tell its armor was monstrously thick, like starship battleplate, and emblazoned on it was the same symbol that was proudly printed on the entrance to this place from the level above. It seemed to be a simple pattern, a series of rectangles arranged into a shape reminiscent of a figure with wings outstretched; the colors that once pigmented it all but lost to the ravages of time.
Lilith and the rest froze in place as the loud, unsettling cacophony of ancient mechanisms groaning to life filled the air.
Obscenely massive thresholds began sliding open on the left and right walls closest to the blast door at the other end of the room. Lilith looked on in horror as machines forty feet tall strode from their hiding spots, each rumbling footstep testing her balance and her bravery.
They stood bipedal, without arms. Instead, they had guns twice the length of a man; three of them, two on the right and one on the left. A head with no facial features save for glowing yellow eyes sat atop its torso. The abominations opened fire with every weapon at their disposal.
The world exploded as bolts of plasma and hyperfast projectiles erupted from the guns of the enemy machinery. Lilith scrambled to get out of the line of fire taking cover behind one of the massive pillars; she blind fired her weapon around the corner, if only as a token resistance. A missile streaked past her colliding at the southern most wall and her gut told her to move, to take cover anywhere but where she was.
It exploded but the expected shockwave never buffeted her, instead she felt a monstrous pull as reality collapsed into a miniature black hole.
She screamed but no sound could be heard as the warped gravity stopped the sound waves from reaching her ears.
She managed to put enough distance between her and the singularity to not feel its negative effects, taking cover behind another of the gargantuan columns. Others were less fortunate. Lilith watched as Private Graham was pulled into the center of the swirling black and saw his bloated image freeze at the event horizon, his face contorted into a scream that would be burned into her memory forever. She knew that he was gone and this image frozen in time was all that was left.
She breathed a sigh of relief as the others managed to find respite from the discharge; all except Talos who lost his grip on the pillar that was supporting him, he tumbled head over heels toward the miniature black hole as it began to collapse. It exploded with enough force that it rattled the teeth in Lilith's head and her vision swirled as she picked herself off the ground, remembering the metal monsters that stood menacingly at the end of the tunnel.
She refused to die just yet.

...

Talos was hurled forward from the blast, managing to land on his feet and after a quick internal diagnostic he concluded that this unit was still combat effective. Though for how much longer he couldn't say, the visual receptors were fading in and out and some of his lesser systems had ceased to function. He calculated that this unit would need to discard all defensive protocol in order to achieve maximum combat effectiveness before it was rendered inactive. He activated his gravpack and flew full speed, chainsword revved and crackling with electricity, toward the head of the nearest of the robotic mechs.
Talos swung his sword with all of his not-inconsiderable strength behind it, rending the armored hide of the mechanical leviathan and scoring a blow against what he had concluded, with 73% accuracy, was primary hardware. Satisfaction welled up in his code when he heard the hypersonic screams of the giant, though the apparent inability of his organic companions to hear the machine's agony dampened his glee. What fun was there to be had when one couldn't share the joke?

...

The last of the mechs fell to the ground with enough force to shake the floor beneath their feet. The survivors of the encounter began to search for ways to open the massive door that stood in their path.

...

The door ripped off its hinges, Talos limped into the vault stopping just inside the threshold and staring at the single object in the room. Magnus strode past the group stopping just behind a humanoid figure; Lilith peered in to see what they had all nearly been killed over and saw only a man...or was it a man? It looked humanoid, yet incredibly alien as well; the only part of the figure that she recognized was the tattered remnants of a 1st Fleet uniform, though it did nothing to ease her mind. It actually only served to sharply contrast and accentuate how very foreign this thing was. She looked away, watching Magnus intently for a reaction.
"Hello Oliver." He said simply, his face contorted into a sort of half-smirk.
The figure sat cross-legged facing away from the vault entrance; it turned its head to peer over its shoulder, its face devoid of any features. Seemingly liquid metal covered its body, a reflective sheen that made it difficult to perceive.
"That's no longer our name." It stated without emotion in a metallic, grainy voice spoken from nowhere; Magnus couldn't see any mouth or audio grill or whatever he/it was using to communicate.
He tried being friendly again, "I won't call you Zeerimus; I've told you once, I've told you a hundred times. It's just stupid." Magnus smiled, but it was a smile filled with apprehension and fear. Magnus had mentioned these two names purposefully, as if he was reminding the being in front of him that he is not hostile, that he is a friend.
"Our name is Remnant." It stated as if correcting a clerical error, "Why have you come here Magnus?"