I still remember the whispers.

"Where was that one found? I do not recognize them."

"Do not look at them. Do not give them the impression that you do."

"He does not look like a worker. Is it a rogue?"

I assumed they were synthetics since they shared the name stoic, monotone voice. They sounded nearly human. Almost... intrigued.

I couldn't know for sure. My vision would flicker occasionally-- a sign that my system was trying to prepare the damage to my visual cortex. I could still catch glimpses of the damp, foggy campgrounds. Dark tents, scattered machine parts, carts of precious ore. I would even catch sight of the worker droids, marching about with equipment and pushing carts of ore too heavy for a human to move.

Where was I... ah, yes. We finally halted just as my vision came flickering back. We had stopped in front of the largest gray tent in the base. Two human guards were flanking the entrance, dressed from head to toe in heavy combat armor.

I had barely taken in the sight before I was shoved to my knees on the muddy earth. My filthy gray hair covered my sight, but I could still hear the booming voice of the collaborator droid say boomingly, "ROUGE DROID HAS BEEN FOUND. IDENTIFICATION: LEX-001. REQUEST FOR FULL PAYMENT."

There was a pause. I prayed that the android I now inhabited wasn't capable of showing emotions. I didn't want my trepidation to show.

"LEX-001?" one gruff voice finally spoke up, and to my awe, I heard a hint of anxiousness in the tone. "Is this a joke?"

"INVALID INQUIRY."

"Right, let me rephrase that," the voice continued unnecessarily harsh. "If yah rust-buckets are pulling a fast one over us for an extra raise--"

"PROTOCOL PROHIBITS THE USE OF--"

"At ease, all of you," came the second guard's voice, sounding raspy and exhaustive. "It's easy enough the check. There's no need to fight."

I immediately attempted to avoid eye contact as one guard grabbed my hair and yanked it back. Another scanner was brought unnaturally close to my face, and I had an overwhelming urge to knock the device away. The only thing holding me back was my fear of retribution. I feared running the risk of damaging the droid body further, so I just... let it happen.

A high-pitched tone went off on the scanner as it revealed the results of the tests. There was a pause, and the man holding his head answered with amazement. "It's a LEX alright. Look at the make and model... its system is relatively old. Scanners don't lie. It's the one the Taskmaster's been looking for."

Frustrated with the demeaning and condescending comments, I lashed out in a hiss, "Yes, it can! I swear this is a huge misunderstanding!"

Yet the guards still seemed to ignore my pleas, and I heard one start to mumble, "Can't you turn it off? It's starting to get on my ner—"

"Listen, I'm an engineer for TROY Enterprise. My identification code is 7452587, my supervisor is Richard Holt. I live with my parents in the Silas Ward so I can help take care of my father. He had an accident that damaged his legs, I've been helping him with his rehabilitation. I was called into the slums to fix a malfunctioning droid, but I was abducted and now I somehow inhabit this body. I know it sounds crazy, but I swear I'm telling the truth!"

I knew my plea had some sort of impact just by the silence that fell upon them. I heard the tapping of gloved fingers over a panel. I'm sure if I was in an actual body of flesh and blood I would've been sweating bullets. I could only pray that they would at least find some interest in what he has to say.

"Ai, look here," the guard with the temper spoke up at last in a voice of confusion. "This log shows that someone from TROY with that same ID code entered the slums a few days ago. But look right there..."

Another pause. After a few seconds, the other guard addressed the droids and instructed them with an edge, "We'll take this over from here."

"WE REQUIRE COMPENSATION—"

"You lot heard him, getta move on!" the hothead spat as I caught a glimpse of him raising his weapon to the collaborators. "Take it up with the boss later!"

The collaborator droids, unable to retaliate from the mistreatment due to their programming, released their grip on me before backing away on command. I had barely regained my bearings before the more impartial guard firmly took hold of my wrist and yanked me back on my feet. Afraid of losing my small edge, I remained silent and didn't struggle against them as I was led into the large tent.