Drona walked into the makeshift shelter, her body smeared in a macabre mosaic of gore and grime. Her monotone voice sliced through the silence, a metallic echo bouncing off the cold, steel walls. "Mission complete, Commander. Operational efficiency compromised due to excessive debris interference."

Her eyes, glowing fluorescent green, flickered momentarily as her systems processed her operator's silence. "`Did they not hear me? No, that's not it. They're looking at me... the blood... the gore... It's unnerving them. Or are they just analyzing the damage?"

"Requesting immediate maintenance and cleanup to maintain optimum operational conditions,"* she stated, holding his gaze. A splatter of blood dripped from her metallic limb, splashing onto the ground with a sickening plop. She ignored it.* "Did they flinch? No, they're a soldier. Just like me."

She straightened herself, a mechanical hiss escaping from her joints. The fluorescent lights shone off her hardened carapace.