Story Reader / Arcade Anima / On the Brink of Abyss / Story
On the Brink of Abyss
>The sky is gray, the air damp. The surroundings reek of suffocating rust.
A lightning bolt flashes past the sky, cleaving the clouds. "Blood" pours from the "wound."
It is rain... Rain is pouring down.
The rain lands on her discolored hair, dripping down the synthetic fiber onto her face, blurring her vision.
Aimlessly she wanders in the torrential rain, unaware of the rising water level.
Hearing something faintly, she slowly awakes from her trance.
She looks up to find the source of the voice, and her faded memories come together.
You're Lucia? One of the top three students in the class? We're screwed, Murol. We'll be the ones holding the team back.
Today is the first day Lucia reports to her team. She has heard that it is a new squad named Gray Raven, comprised of all new members.
Two other Constructs have been waiting inside for a while before she arrives at the designated lounge.
Shut up, Xun. You're making it awkward for Lucia here.
Hi! My name is Murol. Smart mouth here is Xun.
We're teammates from now on! We'll live and fight together until the day we reclaim Earth!
Stop being so serious. This is just our first day! You're going to jinx it.
Xun. Murol. Nice to meet you. I believe we'll all see that day arrives.
You too, Lucia? Can't you... talk about something else? Like... who our other Support-type member would be?
Our other member?
Lucia looks confused. Elite squads usually consist of three members and a commandant. She has never heard of a four-member squad in the past.
Eh... You haven't heard, Lucia...?
The excited Xun looks slightly uncomfortable, his enthusiastic gesture stopping in its tracks.
It's no secret, honestly. Xun and I weren't the brightest students. We barely passed the training camp exams.
The commandant who took us in seemed to value the synergy between us more. With his connection to the higher-ups, he managed to request another member.
He smiles wryly as he says that.
I guess no one considers either of us losers to qualify as an elite squad member alone, hence the extra person. They probably had to draft a few duds to balance out someone powerful as you, Lucia... Haha.
I'm sure the commandant didn't feel that way...
Lucia is not someone who knows how to comfort others. She inadequately rebuts Murol's pessimistic remarks.
Is this the Gray Raven lounge? You're my teammates from now on, aren't you?
Hearing a composed voice coming from the door, they turn and find a Construct standing there. The melancholy in the room seems to have given him pause, and he has yet to step inside.
My name is Hiro. I'll be Gray Raven's Support-type Construct.
He finally walks in and introduces himself upon double-checking the sign on the door.
Oh? I wasn't expecting an old-timer.
Does age still mean anything to a Construct? There's probably a Construct out there who is older than all of us but looks like a toddler.
So, what happened? Why do you all look so miserable?
Well, long story short...
Xun quickly explains the situation to Hiro.
I see... You don't have to worry about that, actually.
It was Ravenge—the Gray Raven Commandant—who personally requested the two of you. It wasn't a numbers game.
How did you know?
We know each other privately. He found me the doctor who treated my daughter.
Speaking of which, do you want to look at her photo? She took it yesterday. It was adorable.
Hiro becomes very enthusiastic upon mentioning his daughter as if someone has flipped a switch. Even the cheerful Xun cannot compete.
With that, the gloominess in the room is instantly dispersed, and Lucia manages to relax a little bit.
She cannot help but wonder what kind of commandant would go against the tide the way Hiro described.
Before long, the four Gray Ravens are greeted by Ravenge.
I'm the commandant of this new elite squad.
My arm? It was due to a mistake I made on the battlefield, one that cost me my team.
An infected member took my arm, and I had to kill him myself.
I don't blame them. This robotic arm is here to remind me of the mistakes I've made so that I don't repeat them.
So allow me to make use of your strength. I will make sure your efforts turn into fruitful results.
Murol, Xun, I will make you two greater than the sum of your parts. No one will ever be able to call you losers again.
Hiro, I will make sure your daughter is taken care of. The doctor I know is much better than the ones in the Star of Life. You don't have to worry about the price. You deserve it as long as you serve Gray Raven.
Lucia, you are not lost. Gray Raven is where you belong. We're the only ones who'll never betray you, who'll never abandon you...
And I want you to be the captain of Gray Raven.
I'm sure you have questions, but I hope you'll listen to my explanations first.
I know Hiro privately. A personal relationship would affect our judgment during a mission, so he can't be the captain.
Xun and Murol both execute commands perfectly, but their capability is greatly discounted without one another. Therefore, as important as their opinions are, I can't rely on their judgment.
I've read your files, Lucia. Your improvisation and decision-making are superior to your peers. I need someone who can make choices on the fly.
I'm just flesh and blood. I can't always be on the battlefield with you all, but giving orders from a safe distance means there is an inevitable delay.
And the truth is that the Scout Team would have gotten you if I hadn't fought to have you on my team.
These are the reasons why you should be the captain. Does anyone have anything to say?
Apparently not. In that case, Gray Raven, let's start preparing for the mission in three days.
The serious and melancholic Murol. The cheerful but self-conscious Xun. The collected Hiro, who loses his composure upon mentioning his daughter. The devoted Ravenge. And Lucia, who has not felt belonged in a long time.
These were the five members of Gray Raven. What happened to them in the end?
Aaargh... Rawrgh!
I'm sorry, Lucia... I'm sorry, Xun, Murol...
Hiro... and Lucia, why won't you just die?!
The sound of the gunshot is immediately followed by the sensation of pain, and the rain is dyed red. The static from the electricity is almost audible in her foggy mind.
Humans betrayed you. They are not worth your trust or your help.
You gave them everything. What did you get in return?
Fortune? Fame? A content soul?
This isn't why I fight. I became a Construct because...
Because you don't want more people to get sacrificed?
Who ran away and left their kin on the surface as a lost cause? Humans did.
Who put you on an operating table and sent you to the battlefield? Humans did.
Aren't you the ones who were sacrificed from the very start?
...
Or did you do it for Luna?
Roland, Gabriel, leave us. I want a moment alone with my sister.
Understood, Miss Luna.
What a touching reunion. We background actors should probably exit the stage. Have a nice chat, you two.
The large mechanoid and the always-smiling Construct depart, leaving the empty field to the sisters, who are no longer what they once were.
Luna... You're...
That's right, Lucia. I've been infected by the Punishing Virus... No. That's not the right way to put it.
I've passed the filtering of the Ascension-Network. The Punishing Virus no longer controls me—I control it now.
A bolt of crimson lightning flashes over Luna's silver body. Lucia is familiar with it, having fought countless Corrupted in the past. It is the spark a highly-concentrated Punishing Virus creates on logic circuits.
But Lucia does not have the usual scorch that comes with it. She does not feel strange at all, as if the Punishing Virus before her is nothing but air.
Roland and Gabriel also passed the filtering and became Ascendants.
So did the Construct that human tried to connect. And now...
You too, Lucia.
...
Do you know that Ascendant?
I don't. Not all Ascendants who have passed the filtering belong to the same group.
We have different goals, and we passed our filtering in different ways. We don't normally interact with each other.
I think the encounter between that Ascendant and your squad was not an accident. Ascendants wouldn't be discovered this easily otherwise.
You know where the Ascendant was. Were you there?
I only saw what happened through the memory data of a Corrupted there afterward.
Reading the data of a Corrupted... Is that a power the Ascension-Network granted you?
What happened after you left with the people from Babylonia that day, Luna?
I will tell you everything, Lucia. I've been watching you from afar these past few years...
The warmth of their union quickly fades away. The years they spent apart have not been kind to them: one began her path of hate due to a betrayal, and the other ended her path in pain due to a lie.
I'm sorry, Lucia. I should have gone back for you sooner.
But it's okay now. We can stay together. I'll create a world where we can live together.
She was a victim like you.
You're her sister. Shouldn't you answer her wish now?
But the Punishing Virus was the reason for our misery... Mom... Dad... Luna, none of this would've happened if not for the Punishing Virus.
The Punishing Virus was the punishment for humanity's recklessness. Both of you were merely victims of their ill-advised decisions.
Why is a victim like you trying to fix the mistakes of those who wronged you?
What do you truly wish for?
I...
I can protect you now, Lucia...
What do you need to fulfill your wish?
The weak do not have a way to realize their wish, nor do they have the power to decide the future...
Accept me fully, and I will grant you the power to gain what you wish for. You are worthy...
Starting from today... you can be yourself...
The static slowly clears up and merges with Luna's voice. Lucia wakes up from her sleep again, but she still has not given the voice an answer.
Morning, Lucia. How are you feeling today?
Luna stays quietly next to Lucia. Despite how much older Luna looks in her silver frame, Lucia still recognizes something familiar in her smile.
Luna... How long did I sleep this time?
Just an hour. It was much shorter than before.
You just passed the filtering, Lucia. You're not used to the power granted by the Ascension-Network yet, so this is normal.
It'll be okay. I'll stay with you while you slowly familiarize yourself with this power until you can fully control it.
Luna's expression grows more gentle as she reminisces.
You used to be the one who taught me things, Lucia. I can finally help you now.
Is she just unfamiliar with this power? Lucia wonders.
She tries to control the Punishing Virus around her like Luna. A crimson bolt flashes...
(Ugh...)
Even though she is now an Ascendant, Lucia still rejects this power subconsciously. Likewise, this power rejects her.
...As if two sharpened blades have clashed, leaving behind a gaping wound.
Lucia silently endures the sting in her M.I.N.D. as she did before. The crimson bolt has left dark scorch marks on her fraying military uniform.
I heard the voice again... Do you hear it every day too, Luna?
I... only hear it occasionally. It'll go away soon if you ignore it.
Lucia opens her mouth, hoping to tell her sister what she was told, but her vocal module will not say the words in her mind.
Language tumbles in her head like sand in an hourglass, dripping away without form.
I see. It seems that you haven't made up your mind yet, Lucia. That's why you can't tell me what the voice said.
But it's okay. No one here will force you to do anything. You can take your time to make the choice you want.
I will always be waiting for you.
...To become the enemy of humans? To help those things that I once fought against?
Lucia does not voice her doubt.
Or, perhaps... we are humanity's enemies all along...
Lucia stands up. She has slept long enough. Now, the waking world haunts her.
Are you heading out today as well, Sis?
Yeah. I'll be fine on my own.
...
Okay. Please be careful. Babylonian forces are still around.
I'll be here waiting for you to come back.
