Story Reader / Main Story / 18 Her Last Bow / Story
Nanami has never seen a battlefield like this.
The ground is charred black under the moonlight. The smell of sulfur spreads in the air as fires slowly burn in the ruins.
Dead bodies of humans, Constructs, and mechanoids remain tangled in a fight. Broken mechanoids speak with their stammering voices, "Free will for machines."
But no one here is alive. There is no sign of life.
Where... is this...
This is obviously not one of the possible futures Nanami has imagined.
She walks speedily among the ruins, scanning every possibly useful data. Searching for a weak signal she detected, she begins to get the lay of the land.
All structures in this area look twisted. They are built with large, uniform pyramids, and they all look odd and cold without a hint of humanity.
As she analyzes, she finds the frontline on this battlefield retreating. Scales of engagements also seem to be reducing.
Message deciphered... Fort Niflheim?
Warning: unknown mechanoid detected. Attack!
As Nanami finishes deciphering the message and discovers information on humans, bullets that come out of nowhere hit her in the chest.
Nanami looks up to see fully armed Constructs lying on a roof high above. Hearing their shouts, Nanami does not have time to rejoice before she is shot down from Power.
Why...
Looking at the scratches on her chest, Nanami feels a twisted pain in her head. Humans' bullets have never caused her any real harm, but the realistic impacts and the dissonant scene are giving her a headache.
Any damage you receive in the future will also impact your program logic.
...
More bullets shower down. Nanami has to retreat from the assault, blocking the shots with her arm.
Why are you... doing this...
No one answers her. Her voice is drowned in the sound of gunfire.
Quickly! The hostile mechanoid has left her vehicle, showing no sign to attack. Concentrate fire and take her down!
Everyone is... avoiding... Nanami... Why...?
It hurts...
Argh—my head hurts...
Everyone is... leaving me...
Memories and reality interweave in her head, washing over her.
The ground below her begins to shake and crumple, revealing a pit designed to trap large mechanoids. Power accidentally takes a wrong step and tips, now stuck.
No... This time, Nanami will be different...
Clenching her teeth, Nanami walks forward on the collapsed ground, struggling to inform the other party she is a friend.
Watch out!
Unexpectedly, a hand drags her away.
That person seems to have descended from heaven, breezing through the difficult terrain and dodging the gunshots, bringing Nanami behind her slanted mech. A missile brushes past the mech's armor, exploding mid-air.
Speaking with a calm voice, that person opens his or her cloak to block the blinding searchlight from the fort, the person's face hidden in the hood.
...Who are you?
I'll explain later. In 10 seconds, the humans will empty their weapons and reload, which takes about 30 seconds. Please take this opportunity to escape.
The mechanoid repeats her suggestion, carrying Nanami to Power's cockpit before jumping down the trap and lifting Power's leg, letting it regain balance.
8 seconds. This mech should be fast enough. Please make use of it.
Huh...? H-hold on! Nanami is not leaving! Nanami is asking them why they're hurting Nanami! I won't be shot at for no reason! Maybe they thought Power was going to attack them...
5 seconds. They're not afraid because of the weapon you're piloting. They're afraid because we are machines.
The suppressive fire starts to diminish as Constructs in charge of close-range battles depart the fort, blades in hand. Facing an "enemy" unscathed by bullets, the soldiers are ardent to kill her in one last stand.
If you don't leave now, you will only cause more deaths.
3, 2...
Decisively, Nanami pilots Power and exits the pit.
Lead the way!
