Prologue

After more than five century's after the Great War the systems detected that the world was now back to normal, but it needed to send out The Scout to ensure that mankind was still alive and prospering.

The computers knew that there was life, the automated systems had captured and interrogated several groups that came too close to the island, so the language used was known and placed in the education units.

They also knew that the flora and fauna had established itself again, although on the island they had planted stocks of wheat and corn, repopulating the island from the stored DNA and RNA of animals. Although the fish didn't seem to survive too long in the sea as the evolved predators were grateful of the new food source.

The underwater bots were able to capture several of the new species of fish and after analysing the genetic makeup they had created a fish that thrived on the predators but was intelligent enough to keep the stocks within manageable levels.

The air was analysed and the radiation levels were back to normal ... in fact the systems worked out that the levels hadn't been as high outside the island as expected; it seems that the enemy had focused its powers against the island itself rather than the mainland bases.

The systems did a check on the staff ... none - except for the one, The Scout, who was held in cryogenic stasis. The base personnel consisted completely of robots, or androids, which were so evolved that they were nearly sentient, as their programming allowed for extrapolation and independent working. It was they who captured some travellers and implanted the knowledge of the Scout, but obscuring it within a rhyme; they also gave those travellers knowledge of tools and their uses, thus creating a sub-culture of technical people.

Papers on desks started to flutter as the air started to circulate and then the filters on the ducts reported more bacteria and dust than expected was being deposited, the androids were despatched and found that when the base went into lockdown several people were still inside, of course when the air went bad these soon died, but the bodies hadn't been removed.

The remains were soon cleared out and placed away from the base. The bacteria were checked and found to be useful so they were isolated and held in phials in the medical section.

Once the air was deemed safe the medical android in the cryogenic section started the procedure to revive the Scout, the android noticed that there was a discrepancy in the information given about The Scout and the person in cryo-sleep, but this was put down to natural causes when the body was frozen.

As the body was re-animated these differences were more pronounced, it was almost as if the person within the chamber was not The Scout. The android made a note on the computer system and carried on.

The occupant of the chamber slept on unaware of what the future would bring, and how much trouble would be coming his way.

The main computers in the planning office were in conference.

"We need to know more that the current inhabitants can tell us, they seem to have a fear of the collectors that we use." This one's intelligence was taken from Doctor William Hansaad, who was an expert on human development.

"What can you expect? We've made the island a place to be scared of, our robot-collectors have to spread deeper into the world than we programmed into them. We should have changed the parameters of the searching." This was the computer that held the mind of Sharon Watson, who was the Prime Minister at the time of the troubles.

"We should have nuked the lot of them, and saved ourselves the problem altogether." Field Marshall Angus R. Roberts spoke up; he was a worry to the other two as the Field Marshall was only imprinted while the man was unconscious, and so he wasn't actually prepared for this. (And the other two computers privately thought he was twisted in some way)

"You know why we couldn't; the command codes were removed from all computer banks and kept securely locked where only the Prime Minister could find them." Hansaad said.

"And that was after my memory was copied into this system, so I don't know what she did with them after she took them." Watson spoke up.

"We should find the body and make it talk!" Roberts said quietly, "So we're going to rely on that dammed scout to search out the area and try to find out what's happening outside in the real world?"

"We have to, Jenkins was trained in infiltration and covert surveillance, he's the type of person who can make himself invisible and sneak in and out of secure places. He was chosen as perfect for this and so given the title of The Scout." Hansaad said proudly as an image of Intelligence Agent Jenkins was electronically sent to the other three.

"Yeah, yeah. So he's going to work for us now, a bunch of wire and tubing. He's not going to decide 'sod the lot of you' and go on his way?" Roberts snarled thinking on how to ensure that this wouldn't happen.