Story Reader / Affection / Ayla: Kaleido / Story
...Commandant, behind you!
Urgh—!
Without missing a beat, you jump out of the way as you pull out your gun and fire a shot behind...
Raaargh—!
With the red gone from its eyes, the Corrupted falls to the ground.
Commandant, are you okay?
You look down at your wound and see that it's just a graze. Ayla quickly wraps up the battle as you patch yourself up.
We're safe for now, but they might show up again at any time.
We're seeing a high-density level of the Punishing Virus here...
Operating on its own, the unmanned workshop in the machine factory can squeeze out any number of machines for as long as there are materials.
Her pink hair covered in dirt, Ayla looks unkempt and weary.
I should have done my research on this factory before we left...
And it is, indeed, something that nobody saw coming.
A day ago.
You received a mission notice—one that requested your assistance in helping WGAA rescue an archaeological team trapped on Earth.
Specifically, the archaeological team was trapped inside a deserted conservation area by a group of Corrupted that had suddenly appeared. Given the simple nature of the mission, the military had assigned only one Construct to work with you.
When you arrived on time at the mission prep room, you were greeted by someone you'd seen only too many times...
Commandant!
Hey, I was the one who started this mission!
No way I'm gonna miss out when WGAA needs help! And I decided to involve you right away because a Construct needs a commandant when it goes out on a surface mission!
And I'm super excited, because we haven't been out alone on many surface missions together.
Ayla crosses her arms in excitement.
Yup, it's all right here!
Ayla shows you her terminal screen and begins reading out the information on it.
A squad from one of WGAA's archaeological teams sent out a distress call from the surface.
They were trapped by a group of Corrupted that suddenly appeared when they were in a deserted conservation area collecting cultural relics.
The distress call was received along with a request for support because the said squad doesn't have an Attacker Construct.
And this document comes with a list of members from the squad. Want to have a look?
Of course, and you know you can count on me.
There is a machine factory on the mission sight with a normal density of the Punishing Virus.
I looked into the landscape around the site, and I don't think we'll run into any of the Corrupted from the machine factory in the conservation area.
Let's get goin', Commandant. I'm so excited to jump into action with you.
You and Ayla now find yourselves in a temporary shelter, with Ayla looking at the crude patch of bandage over your hand.
With that question, you manage to distract Ayla. She starts scrolling through the terminal on her wrist.
CC got our distress call, and said they'd send a nearby Task Force team to the machine factory to take care of the situation.
Thank God you were there, Commandant. No way I'd have been able to protect the entire archaeological team on my own.
...
Saying nothing, Ayla returns her gaze to your wound, still looking upset.
Right then, another group of Corrupted barges into the shelter, their exposed mechanical parts zapping and spitting sparks of different colors.
Urgh—!
This is bad. Help is still on the way...
Your body still aching, you call up a topographic map on your terminal that shows the vicinity.
Ayla cannot protect the entire archaeological team on her own. There is an entrance in the back of this deserted conservation area, and the vehicle they used to get here is parked there.
There is a chance for the injured to survive if they can reach it. How to go about distracting these Corrupted, however, is the question...
With the order you give out, Ayla charges out against all odds, covered by some from the archaeological team who are still mobile, followed by the injured who start making their way toward the rear right.
From behind a pillbox with the map still in your hand, you calmly draw out your gun and point it straight at the Corrupted, determined to block out every possible incoming route.
Help is coming right up if you can survive this wave of attack.
In battle mode, Ayla works her Beam Gunlance with the same kind of ease she paints. As she turns and steers clear of a group of Corrupted that tries to corner her, she fires a backhand shot at one of them.
The gunshots, however, draw the other Corrupted this way from afar.
Taking advantage of the moment, Ayla raises her Gunlance, painting the place with the colorful strips of light that come flying out.
Your terminal beeps with a message sent from the injured that they have reached the side entrance.
Gunshots can be heard coming from outside the conservation area. According to the message, the squad of Task Force that arrived has besieged the factory.
Finishing off the last Corrupted, Ayla hops over an obstacle that stands in her way and dashes over to you.
Commandant? Are you okay?
Except blood is once again oozing out of your wound now from moving around.
Let me redo the dressing on your wound for you...
Of everything Ayla pulls out of her bag, she can't find a single medicinal item.
Upset and flustered, Ayla sits down on the ground.
Commandant, I...
Stopping cold and hugging her knees, Ayla falls quiet again.
With a burned twig that you pick up from the ground, you draw a crying cartoon Ayla on your slightly stained bandage.
C'mon, that's so ugly.
Ayla tries to wipe off the stains on her face but ends up smudging them with the dust and vital fluid on her hand.
With smears of stains now on its face, the cartoon Ayla now looks exactly like the actual Ayla.
...Pst!
Ayla breaks into a frown smile. She's yet to regain her usual energy, but at least she doesn't seem as upset as she did a moment ago.
What's happening now is but a cakewalk compared to what you've been through before.
I just wanted to say...
Still hugging her knees, Ayla looks away.
That I feel terrible, Commandant, for failing you keep you safe when I was the one that involved you in this mission.
I was so sure that, with me around, you'd be able to go back home without so much as a scratch...
But I failed.
I failed to look into the nitty-gritty about this place before we came, and I don't even have a first aid kit handy for you...
...That would correct, yes.
Ayla bites her lips, her eyes heavy with regret.
An archaeological team was put together to look for Selena after what happened at Hetero Space Station.
Everyone was very hyped up at the beginning and decided to name the mission "Project Finding Whale".
Except the mission is different from your regular archaeological missions. With a regular archaeological mission, you get to feel happy whenever you find artwork...
But with "Project Finding Whale", we were faced with endless disappointment.
No one complained, but it was obvious that a lot of us were upset because their efforts amounted to nothing.
So I asked for the project to be terminated and went on looking for her ballad.
Some people did offer to join me... but I turned them down.
And that's why I was all alone before Iris Warbler was put together.
You see... it's just different from other missions and battles...
Ayla says no more.
But you know exactly how it all went down after that.
Ayla began working on secret missions on her own in search of Selena.
She was alone the whole time she was trying to find the whale.
...
You see a cloud of confusion in her otherwise clear eyes.
...Can I really?
But... are you sure?
You're sure that Ayla would have had no trouble bringing the majority of the archaeological team to safety even on her own, but the relics they risked their lives bringing out most likely would have suffered.
Because that's just what happens when someone goes it alone.
Psst... that's a weird thought!
Says Ayla, looking visibly more cheerful by the second.
Well, but I still feel bad, Commandant...
Let me just see what I can do to make it up to you.
Uhm... Mind if I make you a sculpture?
Remember that picture I drew of you before? The one where I said you were 2.21 meters tall!
Let me turn that picture into a sculpture for you, then? Or do you prefer 3D projection? Or maybe...
You decide to stop Ayla before she spits out anything more shocking.
I beg your pardon?
Wait, how does that count as making up to you, though?
Oh... is that so?
But, you know what...
Be it an exhibit or whatnot...
So long as it's something that I've put my heart into making, I'd very much like you to be the first one to see it, Commandant!
Ayla's eyes light up, shining brightly with hope and excitement.
Alright, sounds like a plan!
I'll make sure to send you an invitation next time I come up with something new, then!
Ayla breaks into her usual confident smile again talking about art.
In the gloomy conservation area, Ayla talks a mile a minute about her new ideas.
Hey, how does "The Two Through Doom" sound for a title for the next series of works I'll be working on?
And... guess I'll make the first piece based on this deserted conservation area!
