Story Reader / Affection / No. 21: XXI Scene / Story
No. 21: XXI Scene I
>BOOM—
The aftermath of the explosion launches rubble into the air as the last remaining Corrupted signals flashing on the terminal are completely annihilated.
All Corrupted signals in Zone C are gone. Joint eradication mission complete.
Calculating casualties. ETE for the transport craft is twenty minutes. Remain in position and await extraction.
The transport craft has arrived. Commandant, how's your situation?
Understood. See you soon, Commandant.
After terminating the comm link, your nerves finally relax a bit. You lean against the wall and sigh gently. The fatigue accumulated from battle begins to surface.
Several other commandants participating in this mission also return to the temporary headquarters one after another to confirm the mission with their own team through their respective comm links.
Suddenly, everyone's terminal rings at the same time.
Emergency alert.
A commandant performing a mission in Zone C has issued an emergency support request. Construct, Model No. BPH-22, has reached critical M.I.N.D. deviation. She is in urgent need of a commandant connection.
Repeat. Model No. BPH-22...
A Construct has gone haywire?
How could this happen at a time like this...? What about the acting commandant?
That model number sounds familiar. Is it that white Construct from Cerberus...? What's she called...
Cerberus... Those "Rabid Dogs" are an experimental combat team. I heard their commandant is a fella who can't fight boots on the ground and relies solely on remote M.I.N.D. connections.
Remote links? But once a connection is severed, that'll overload the Construct and take forever to re-calibrate. No wonder they're asking for emergency ground support.
Once, I was on a recovery mission in the same area as Cerberus. Their way of fighting...
The commandant with short brown hair shakes his head and shrugs as if remembering something he didn't want to recall.
"The white Construct from Cerberus"...
...Seems like a nightmare to control. Connecting with a remote link runs a huge risk of overloading their M.I.N.D.
I still have some work to finish. I can't sever my link with my team members just yet.
The alert on your tactical terminal continues to ring. You suddenly recall your last link with No. 21.
Broken and wounded. Jaw trembling. Gray pupils, fierce and alert.
Without any hesitation, you send a signal to confirm support and immediately proceed to No. 21's position marked on the map.
Despite not bringing a remote connection device on the mission, you reach the distance required to establish a proximity connection as fast as your exoskeleton allows.
No. 21's is vibrantly displayed nearby on your terminal.
Amid the flurry of dust and smoke, you see a white figure with a murderous glare in her eyes.
As if throwing fatigue and emotions into the wind, the Construct commands her Co-Bot to relentless attack the already indistinguishable remains of Corrupted.
You can tell at a glance that the Construct is beyond reasoning with. If she doesn't calm down soon, she may overload her M.I.N.D. due to being unable to control her power.
You put the tranquilizer gun back into your tactical belt, raising your hands as you slowly approach No. 21.
Aware that someone is approaching, No. 21 tenses her frame like a wounded little beast and roars menacingly.
Mission... Destroy... Death...
Over...?
After quite some time, it seems that No. 21 regains some semblance of clarity amidst the chaos, then robotically halts her struggle.
She slowly looks at the scattered remains of the Corrupted, then looks back at you.
...[player name]?
...
She doesn't seem to be as confused, nor does she show a strong opposition to the proposal.
Link established.
M.I.N.D. stability for Construct BPH-22 has returned to normal.
While you send a report to Command, No. 21 stands there silently as if someone had pressed pause. The sharp and drastic contrast from her previous frenzy seems incomprehensible.
The wind and heartbeat in your ears begin to stabilize.
Threat removal confirmed by Command. ETE for the transport craft is twenty minutes. Remain in position and await extraction.
Hot wind carrying dust and smoke from the battle blows through No. 21's hair. While waiting for the transport craft, you both are surrounded by a peculiar silence.
When I got here, the ground was already covered with bodies.
I thought that the captain and Noctis might be among them...
And... that's when I saw them... The captain and Noctis... were there, too.
But now I know that it wasn't real. My vision module was confused.
I just wanted to finish the mission. But when I was fighting... I lost control.
Until you got here, [player name].
She answers quickly, and then, as if noticing something, she sniffs quietly and kneels down.
Following her gaze, you see a broken nameplate among the pile of Corrupted remains. You can barely recognize that it belongs to Babylonia's Task Force.
It doesn't belong to the captain or Noctis.
...Smells human.
No. 21 shakes her head.
It belongs to a Construct, but I don't smell any sign of life.
Even though you know that sacrifice is inevitable for soldiers, you are still overcome with grief.
No matter how many times you experience it, you still can't get used to such things, nor should you.
What are you doing?
Mourn...
But even if we do, they won't know.
Why would you do it?
...I have no "reason."
All I know is war.
Sad... Out of control...
I don't want to think about it.
I can't let that happen. So, I must fight.
A gust of wind lifts the dust off the ground. The roar of the approaching transport craft can be heard nearby in the sky.
No. 21 looks at a nameplate buried in vital fluid and dirt. She felt the impulse to do something though she couldn't tell where it came from.
Perhaps it was from the commandant's words and emotions, both of which were foreign to her, that had been shared over the link.
Perhaps it was human instinct that made it seem so important.
She picks up the broken nameplate, then boards the transport craft.
