Isolated (Red vs Blue)

10: Mechanical Problems

10: Mechanical Problems

Present Day: Somewhere on the Edge of Colonized Space

After Washington left, Grif came downstairs to Simmons and Sarge discussing the robot building kit they'd recovered from the crash. Sarge was all for putting the thing together; he was even already moving the crate towards the door. Simmons was help, of course, but he was also arguing how assembling the robot might not be necessary. Grif hung back by the stairs and stayed quiet — he wasn't about to get stuck helping with anything. Especially when it involved making another robot.

Once Sarge and Simmons were outside, Grif decided to move from his place by the stairs and join them. His C.O. already had the crate open and was beginning to take pieces out. Simmons stood off to the side with his arms crossed, watching their team leader go about his business. Grif walked over and stood beside the maroon clad soldier, joining him in watching Sarge work.

Simmons didn't look at his teammate when he spoke. "How nice of you to show up after I've already helped Sarge get this thing outside. You know, we could've used an extra hand."

Grif snorted. "Simmons, you must have me mistaken with someone who actually likes to put in effort with things. Not helping with things is kinda my thing; I'm not about to fuck that up."

"Yeah, whatever. You can't help us, but you'll go help Washington look for his toolbox. That makes total sense," Simmons commented.

"Hey, I'm lazy, not dumb. If I don't help you and Sarge, the two of you just yell at me and threaten me and life goes on," Grif explained. "I don't help Washington, he threatens me and then potentially kicks my ass for not helping. You never piss off the person that can beat you to a pulp, Simmons."

"I wanna try to argue with you on that, but at the same time, it actually kinda makes sense," Simmons said. "Though it still doesn't change the fact that I'm mad at you for not helping get the robot kit outside."

Grif turned his attention to Sarge, watching for a moment as his C.O. began assembling the parts he'd taken out of the crate. "You know, I get Sarge's need to stay ahead of the Blues — kind of — but does he not remember how well us having a robot usually goes?"

Simmons looked at him. "What are you talking about? Having Lopez around helped us out a lot. He always fixed all the vehicles and any other electrical issues we had around the base."

"Are you forgetting about the time he and the Blues' tank tried to overthrow and kill all of us?" Grif asked. "Or when he willingly helped O'Malley? Us having robots around is bad news, dude. If Lopez could do all of that, imagine what another one could do if it decided it hated us."

"Yet we still kept Lopez around, and he still helped us with stuff," Simmons pointed out. "You're a fucking idiot."

"Am I an idiot, Simmons? Or am I just the only one around here who's willing to ask the hard questions?"

"No, you're definitely an idiot. I'm pretty sure everyone else would agree with me on that."

"You're both idiots to me right now," Sarge interrupted, not taking his gaze off the robot he was assembling. "Now I need the two of you to shut up. I'm tryin' to focus over here."

Grif ignored his C.O.'s comment and kept talking. "Seriously, just think about it for a second. The Matrix, Battlestar Galactica, Terminator — you know what they all have in common? They all point to the inevitable robot domination of the human race."

"If you wanna get technical about it, some of the Cylons relied more on synthetic biology — not the conventional robotics," Simmons pointed out. "Though I guess that was only in the series reboot, and those are actually pretty rare."