CH. 08: 9S's Story/Pilgrimage
CH. 08: 9S’s Story/Pilgrimage
He saw a dream. A dream he didn’t want to see. Rather lucid and unpleasant…his memories of reality.
After 9S was forcefully removed from battle, the flight unit had landed in the city ruins. Because the black-box response had previously rid the area of infected YoRHa squadron troopers and Machines alike, it had the least amount of enemy signals and was probably deemed to be the safest.
“Search for 2B’s black-box signal!”
That was the first thing he had ordered after he landed. 2B’s plan had been to be a decoy and let 9S escape. But 2B should have attempted an escape once 9S’s flight unit had gone out of sight—if she hadn’t been shot down.
“Report: 2B’s black-box signal detected.”
“Where? Give me the location data!”
But Pod did not display the map data.
“Warning: Significant vibrations detected. Underground support seems unstable. Possibility of a large-scale earthquake.”
“So what?” replied an irritated 9S. “Where’s the location data?!”
“Recommendation: Immediate evacuation.”
“There’s no way I would evacuate!”
The location data appeared. The commercial ruins. Good. It was close. 9S ran. He crossed the shallows, dove through weeds, and stumbled across rubble. Just as Pod had forewarned, the ground was trembling. He couldn’t care less, and kept running.
He crossed a rope bridge draped across a deep canyon. 2B was right up ahead.
“There! 2B!”
It was her familiar ID signal and silhouette from the back. But she was not alone. She was with someone else.
“2B, are you…”
His feet froze. There was something protruding from 2B’s back. Something red and pointed…
“Ah,” 2B said as she looked back, impaled by a sword.
“No…2B…no…”
2B’s body collapsed to the side. A2 held a blood-soaked sword. 2B lay motionless on the ground. He couldn’t detect her signal.
“No!”
She had killed 2B. That old YoRHa model. A2.
His throat trembled uncontrollably. He was going to kill her. The rope bridge was swinging. He was going to kill her. He was going to kill her. He was going to kill—
The feeling of falling. He lost sight of A2. His body was slammed down. It became pitch-dark.
His dream abruptly ended, and the darkness cleared. Inside his bright field of vision was a red blob.
“Oh, it looks like he woke up, Devola.”
The red blob split in two. Two redheads. If he remembered correctly, there were some androids with red hair.
“Good morning. You slept well, 9S.”
“You know, sweetie, you’ve been out for two weeks.”
This voice. He remembered—Devola and Popola. The twin androids who did odd jobs at the resistance camp. They aren’t wearing casts today, 9S thought absentmindedly. These two were constantly wounded, and plastered themselves with casts and bandages all the time.
“Be grateful that I found you, okay?” teased Devola.
2B had told him earlier that Devola’s scanner had helped her enormously when searching for 9S when he had been abducted by Adam. 2B…
He almost relapsed into the nightmare. That was a dream. A bad dream. 9S stood up.
“Where’s 2B?”
Popola averted her gaze without a word. Devola’s jaunty expression disappeared, turning grim.
“You should know, shouldn’t you?”
This place was not a part of the dream. It was the resistance camp, in reality.
“Her black-box signal is…gone.”
“I see.”
It wasn’t a dream. A2 had killed 2B. Since the Bunker was gone, neither a spare chassis nor personal data backup was obtainable. A body to return to, and memories to return…were all gone.
Was this death? He couldn’t tell. He couldn’t think clearly. His mind lagged as the scene in front of him and his memories diverged. Words were the only thing that skimmed along his consciousness.
The truth was so surreal, it felt like he was seeing through someone else’s eyes. Pod popped into his field of vision.
“Devola and Popola-type androids are rare models specialized for treatment and maintenance. Prediction that with the absence of the Bunker, without their help 9S’s repair would have proved difficult.”
He couldn’t understand anything he was told.
“Recommendation: Gratitude.”
Ah, yes, that was true.
“Thanks.”
Really? Was he thanking them? He didn’t know. Nothing mattered, and he felt dejected.
“There were a lot of our type in the past,” Devola said, handing 9S his goggles.
Perhaps everything looked different because his goggles were off.
“Apparently, we were in charge of managing a large system.”
It was no use. Putting on the goggles made no difference. Even the familiar resistance camp looked washed-out.
“What do you mean by apparently?”
He held back his despair, and questioned in a mechanical tone.
“Our memories from that time were erased, so we don’t know what happened. Our model…went rampant and caused an accident in the past. Most of our peers were rescinded after that.”
He was hearing the words, and probably understanding them as well, but they did not settle within him. He was thankful that he didn’t have to talk.
“We weren’t rescinded because…”
This time Popola spoke.
“We’re being watched, so that we don’t lose control again.”
Accident. Rampage. Watch. Any other time he would have loved to investigate further.
“An overactive curiosity is a bad habit.”
He heard 2B’s words in his head. Clearly, and very realistically.
“But thanks to that, we’re able to save comrades like you. That’s our way of atoning for our sins.”
Devola’s voice was distant. Even though she was right in front of him. It was strange. Devola and Popola were standing next to him, yet their voices were not as clear as the absent 2B’s voice in his head.
Where was he? Was the ground he stood on real?
“Don’t push yourself too hard, 9S.”
Hearing Popola’s words from behind, 9S realized that he had stood up and started to walk away.
“What is…this?”
After leaving the resistance camp, 9S stared up at the object in awe. Normally, there was only sky where he looked because there were no buildings in the crater zone.
But there was a strangely shaped “thing” extending toward the sky, looking like a twisted white cylinder.
“A massive structure originating from the underground cave.”
Pod seemed to have interpreted his utterance as a question, and gave an answer.
“Speculated to be the doing of the Machines, but details are unavailable.”
“Ma…chines…”
They were the culprits behind infiltrating the server, infected YoRHa squadron troopers, and destroying the Bunker.
9S ran toward the crater zone. I’ll destroy them, he thought. A2 had destroyed 2B, but the Machines were responsible for making that a final death. If there had been a spare chassis and personal data backup, 2B could have returned to life…
“What happened during the two weeks I was asleep?”
9S asked Pod as he ran. Popola had said, “You know sweetie, you’ve been out for two weeks.” He could guess how severe the damage was. 9S only remembered up until he had screamed in fury.
“Report: An earthquake manifested along with the appearance of the massive structure. 9S was affected by the collapse of the ground, and plummeted into the resulting valley. Both chassis and system were damaged.”
“Valley? Devola came all the way there?”
“Hypothesis: She was there to acquire region-specific materials.”
He had heard that the odd jobs Devola and Popola took up were tasks that were dangerous, required distant expeditions, or were in general things nobody else wanted to do.
That’s our way of atoning for our sins.
They were most likely referring to the “accident” they had mentioned earlier. But to 9S they seemed too remorseful. Had their sins been that grave? Had it not been his imagination that the other androids treated the pair with a certain coolness?
Regardless, even if he knew the answer, he wouldn’t be able to help the twins. Perhaps their punishment was too severe for their sins, but if the twins desired that punishment, there was nothing he could do.
“And, where’s A2?”
The location of the enemy 9S wanted to punish the most. It was invaluable information.
“Current location, as well as operational status, is unconfirmed.”
“Roger that.”
On one hand 9S wanted her to be dead, and on the other he wanted her alive. He wanted to kill A2 with his own hands. The vague status of the report probably took his feelings into account.
His lips felt out of place. The corners of his mouth were pointing up. There was nothing funny, but he was smiling. But 9S earnestly thought that it was appropriate.
The massive structure that appeared in the crater zone was not the only one. There was one structure so high that it punctured the clouds, and three surrounding structures not as tall. The smaller structures were cone shaped, looking like horns growing out of the ground. Running down a debris-filled slope, 9S made his way toward the central structure. He ignored the cone-shaped counterparts. The differences in height surely signified differences in importance.
“Transport mechanism detected inside the protruding portion of the massive structure.”
“Transport? Is it an elevator?”
“Affirmative.”
If the Machines had taken the time to construct an elevator, that meant that the structure was meant to be climbed up and down. 9S briefly wondered what the purpose of the building was, but the thought disappeared right away. Either way, he was going to destroy it. What was the point of understanding its purpose?
But it didn’t go as smoothly as planned. Reasonably, but the structure was surrounded by a barrier. Since it wasn’t penetrable by force, 9S tried to hack the wall, but this again was thwarted easily. Then a high-pitched voice, almost as if it were mocking 9S, was broadcasted down on him.
“Hello! This is the Tower System Service”
The manner of speech reminded 9S of an impudent child. The voice was higher than that of an adult woman. Now that he thought about it, it sounded similar to the “little girl” and “boy (prepubescent)” voice samples that research and development had been working on.
“We apologize. To access the main unit of the Tower system, please unlock the subunits. We apologize for the trouble, thank you for your cooperation.”
It seemed like the massive structure in the middle was called the main unit, and the surrounding cone-shaped structures were called the subunits.
“Question: Why would the Machines make such an announcement?”
“There’s no logic behind what they do.”
It was stupid, but if he couldn’t force his way through, he had to follow their steps. 9S took out his sword and slashed the so-called subunit. Along with a strong electrical discharge, his sword bounced back.
“Hello! This is the Tower System Service. An access key is needed to access the subunits. Unfortunately, we are unable to give you access.”
The voice was amused. It reminded him of the Machine that had possessed 6O at the Bunker and repeated, “This is so fun. This is so fun…”
“As compensation, for our first-time users, we will provide a complimentary tour of the resource recovery unit.”
9S felt a noise. Neither a transmission nor display, it was an uncomfortable feeling, like his mind had been grazed with sandpaper.
“We look forward to your next visit, from the bottom of our hearts.”
“What was that…”
9S held his temples.
“A forced transmission from the enemy system. Transferred the location of the so-called resource recovery unit.”
Pod displayed the location data. The same thing was displayed on 9S’s goggles. So apparently he would have to get the access key from this place and access the three subunits before the main unit was unlocked.
“They’re playing with me…”
Even though he resented having to play along with the Machines, with no method of destroying the structures from the outside he had to infiltrate and destroy them from the inside. 9S sighed deeply.
“To the forest kingdom, for now.”
That was the location of the resource recovery unit. He wanted to get the steps over with to destroy the tower in the crater zone.
“Recommendation: Meet with the resistance troops and review available directives.”
“Directives? Who cares?”
He was going to exterminate the Machines, and kill A2. Nobody had directed him to do so, it was something he had decided for himself.
9S passed through the commercial ruins, and entered the forest kingdom. It hadn’t been long since he had been here with 2B. Since their pointless conversation.
“How about this. Once it’s peaceful, let’s go shopping together. I’ll even buy a T-shirt that looks good on you, 2B.”
“A T-shirt?”
“Oh, you don’t want it?”
“No… When that day comes, let’s go.”
“Really?! It’s a promise!”
“Yeah.”
He hadn’t been serious. And 2B probably hadn’t been either. It was just unimaginable for the fighting to end and for it to be peaceful. But he had looked forward, just a little bit, to the possibility of that happening. For humans to come back to Earth and reconstruct the commercial district. For humans and androids to coexist and walk through the city… Just thinking about it made him giddy.
Would 2B get mad if he chose a T-shirt with an awful design? Would she look embarrassed? Or would she…laugh? He wanted to make 2B laugh one day. He wanted to see 2B roll on the ground, laughing her heart out.
But humans would never come back to Earth. And 2B had died. The YoRHa squadron had fallen, and the fighting still continued. Nothing had changed—but then again, everything had changed.
9S shot down a Machine that jumped out to attack with Pod’s artillery. It was a survivor of the forest kingdom.
“Revenge f0r 0ur k1ng…”
Other Machines pounced at him from between the trees. It was A2, not 9S, that had killed their king, but it probably made no difference to them.
“1’ll k1ll y0u!”
He hacked the persistent Machines, and made them explode.
“ ‘I’ll kill you’? That’s my line.”
“Worthless Machines,” he mumbled. Machines taking revenge? It was so absurd it almost made him laugh…
Once he was on high ground, he saw a floating, building-like structure. It was deformed, covered in bulges, and of a gray, leaden color.
“Is that?”
“Affirmative: Believed to be the so-called resource-recovery unit. Unlike the massive structure in the crater zone, it seems to be distributing something.”
“What do you mean something?”
“Hypothesis: A type of resource, but details are unavailable.”
Since it was called the resource recovery unit, if it was collecting and distributing anything other than resources, it would be a misleading name indeed. It was however, possible that what the Machines considered “resources” could be, to androids, nothing but a pile of garbage.
“I wonder what they’re going to use the collected resources for?”
“Unknown.”
He wasn’t really curious, so he didn’t mind if it was unknown. He was going to destroy it anyway.
He remembered that he used to have a fascination with Machines, even though they ended up being just another thing he would destroy. Why had he been so eager to study them? He wasn’t sure, even though the question was about himself.
As he approached the resource recovery unit, an announcement came out of nowhere. It was the same voice he had heard in the crater zone. Indiscernible as a little girl’s or little boy’s voice, it was nevertheless a foolish-sounding voice.
“Hostile android approaching. Switching to self-defense mode.”
The resource recovery unit, which had been erratically moving through the air, suddenly stopped. The bulges on the wall began to loudly change shape. They kept changing shape without an endpoint, as if they were playing around.
On top of that, a part of the shifting wall expanded to reveal an opening that looked something like an entrance. As if it were taunting him to come inside. What self-defense mode? he thought bitterly.
“Are these…patterns? Characters?”
Right above the doorlike opening, there were some symbols inscribed into the wall. They were roughly the same size, distinctly shaped, and evenly spaced.
“Answer: They are characters of angelic script, an ancient alphabet.”
So he had been right when he thought they looked like characters.
“The characters in question spell out the words: ‘meat box.’ ”
“What does that mean?”
“Unknown.”
“I know. There’s no logic behind what they do.”
They fight, kill, and mimic—all irrationally. These words were probably meaninglessly inscribed as well.
When he went inside, his suspicions were further confirmed. There were enemies stationed in various places, but that was the same as the factory ruins and forest kingdom. Arbitrarily placed enemies were defeated to move forward. The androids were asked to repeat the same action every time.
But unlike the factory ruins and forest kingdom, the inside of the meat box was rather clamorous. The attacking Machines kept making hideous noises.
“Reven… Revengee!”
“0w0w0wOw0wOwOw”
“I… d0n’t wanna… d1e”
“1t hurts 1t hurts… hurts… hurt…”
9S kicked over their bodies that were filled with holes from Pod’s artillery.
“How could a Machine be hurting.”
The cylindrical remains rolled down the spiral staircase. That was irritating too.
“1 d0n’t want to d1e d0n’t want to d1e d0n’t want to d1e!”
Every last one of them, thought 9S. Couldn’t they attack more quietly? They weren’t even that strong.
“1’m scared scared scared scared scared”
Shut up. Shut up! Shut up!
9S started to shout, wanting to drown out the meaningless noises. He shouted while fighting, took turns shouting and fighting, and made his way up the floors.
This was what he’d been doing this whole time. Destroying Machines. That was all, but why did he feel so aggravated?
“Shut up! Be quiet! Die!”
Why did he feel so empty? The only difference was whether or not 2B was next to him.
Eventually, as all things come to an end, the fighting inside the structure also ceased. He had reached the roof.
It was painfully bright, perhaps because he had been fighting in dim light. As he squinted and looked around, he saw something being sucked out from the inside of the building and distributed toward the sky.
Countless metal parts spiraled around like a tornado, rising and disappearing into the sky. They were being distributed toward the crater zone.
“Hypothesis: Resources for the massive structure. Or perhaps resources to create a weapon.”
Collecting the remains of fallen comrades in battle and transporting them to the massive tower in the crater zone;—that was what this facility was used for, if Pod’s hypothesis was correct.
If so, what was the point of leaving the access key in a place like this? Leaving an object that would help destroy the massive structure in a facility made to gather materials to maintain the massive structure. It was contradictory, to say the least.
“Help. Please, help.”
It was the voice of a child. There was a glowing orb on the middle of the roof. The wavering voice was coming from it.
“What’s that?”
“Answer: Core. The entity that controls this facility. In other words, the brains of this facility.”
The voice repeated its pleas for help. The whole time, bits and pieces of Machines were still being dragged out and pulled across the sky.
“Help me… I’m scared… Help…”
They could say whatever they wanted. They were Machines. The words they said were predetermined. It wasn’t like this one was in fear and pleading for its life. It was just playing a prerecorded sound according to its program.
“Energy charged. Close firing mode, full power.”
Pod transformed. 9S pointed at the core. Pod started to say, “9S…” like it was trying to stop him, but 9S ignored it.
“Shoot.”
The white laser emitted by Pod burned through the core. The ground shook. Shock waves passed through the whole resource recovery unit. But the waves passed and it quickly quieted down.
“Report: Obtained the access key from the destroyed core.”
Leaving something necessary to destroy the system in a facility used to maintain the same system—the only reason he could think of for why this contradiction existed was to play with him.
“Worthless Machines,” spat out 9S. He turned around. There were still two remaining resource recovery units. He needed to get to them as soon as possible.
9S was torn between heading first to the flooded city or to the amusement park ruins. After some consideration, he chose the flooded city, while the transfer devices could still be used.
While the road to the amusement park ruins had been shattered, there were multiple routes, and it was close to the crater zone. On the other hand, there was only one route to the flooded city, which was through the underground waterway. There was a possibility that the dilapidated waterway could collapse. And now that the research and development team had dissolved, he wasn’t sure how much longer the transfer device would be serviceable.
That had been his reasoning, but perhaps it was just a hunch. There were some disintegrating remains of a flight unit in the shallows, stuck nose first into the sand. Something struck him the moment he saw the debris.
“Pod, is this…”
Various parts had been melted from high heat and bullets had disfigured the frame. But there was no mistaking this unit. Not this one.
“Affirmative: YoRHa squadron trooper 2B’s ID detected among this unit’s remains.”
2B had landed here. That meant that she had made her way through the underground waterway into the city ruins, followed the shrubbery along the flooded city, and crossed the bridge…to end up at the forest clearing.
If only he had gotten 2B’s location data earlier. He might have been able to catch 2B while she was still here. At least, before 2B had crossed the bridge…no, maybe even just before she had run into A2… He didn’t want to think about what had happened after that.
“Report: Unsent transmission detected from the flight unit’s memory storage.”
9S heard a familiar voice after he told Pod to play the transmission.
“…This is YoRHa squadron trooper…2B. If anyone is listening to this…I’d like you to pass…something on. If you…see YoRHa…squadron trooper 9S…I’d like to tell him…”
Whether because of damage to the memory storage device, or from poor conditions during the actual recording, the transmission suddenly cut off. Right as he thought the message was over, 2B’s voice became audible again over the static.
“…I apologize. The message for him is…9S, the days I spent with you…were like rays of sunshine…in…my…life. Th…ank…you…Ni…nez.”
9S was frozen in place.
“That is all,” Pod said.
Pod’s attempt at spurring 9S did not work. He was still unable to move.
“2B… She called me Nines…”
He wished he had heard her say it in person. How he wished he could hear a living 2B call him Nines in an animated voice, instead of over a static-filled transmission.
2B was no longer here. 2B was no longer anywhere in this world. He was struck by reality. By none other than 2B’s own voice.
His vision blurred. His vocal chords trembled. What a pointless thing to do, he thought. He told himself there were more important things to do. Destroy every last one of the Machines, and kill A2.
9S stood up, and headed toward the resource recovery unit. He ran. He sprinted. He didn’t want to waste a minute—no, not even a second—in destroying the Machines.
But inside of the building labeled “soul box” in angelic script, it was completely silent.
“There are…no enemies?”
The facility was constructed identically to the meat box, out of Machine parts. It also had an atrium, and an elevator used to travel up and down the building. Only the variously stationed Machines were missing.
“Is this elevator broken? Ah, they’re telling me to hack it.”
He was slowly starting to understand the enemy’s childlike tendencies. As expected, after he hacked and disarmed the system’s security, the elevator began to move.
Again, the next floor was devoid of enemies, and only accommodated a hacking point. It was intentionally made to look like a treasure chest and placed conspicuously in the center of the room. They were stubbornly foolish.
Furthermore, the treasure chest did not only serve as system security, but actually contained “treasure”—information—inside.
The first treasure chest contained blueprints for the tower in the crater zone. The tower was not simply a monument, nor solely a trap for androids. It had an exit portal, which also served as a launchpad.
At that size? And it was obviously not for intercontinental launches, but rather designed for ships capable of escaping Earth’s gravity well.
“Is it aimed at the moon? A massive cannon aimed at the human server?”
He looked at Pod. He wanted it to reject his hypothesis. Even if humans were extinct, their genetic profile data was stored on the moon. If that was destroyed then absolutely nothing would remain of humans.
“Due to lack of information, neither denial nor affirmation is possible.”
“Shit.”
If he explored the other floors, he might be able to find the rest of the information. 9S entered the elevator.
But the enemy was not so generous as to give him the information that he wanted. That was how enemies operated. The next treasure chest was a prime example.
As soon as he deactivated the security system, he was exposed to information he did not want to see—information related to YoRHa androids.
“A black box?”
The black box was a powerful energy source, and true to its name, not even the squadron troopers knew its origins. Not even Type S androids, who were directed to perform research. That was why 9S never even thought about what a black box was composed of.
“That can’t be…?!”
It might be misinformation. To unsettle him. That was the only explanation.
“The YoRHa squadron black boxes are made from Machine cores?”
That was impossible. It couldn’t be. To think he was made from his own enemies. 9S kicked the chest aside in fury. The enemy wanted to rattle him. Even now, there was probably one of those clowns watching him, snickering at his every move.
He moved on to the next floor, reminding himself not to be fooled so easily. Technically speaking, all the information was given to him by the enemy. He was at fault for believing them. The information regarding the launchpad was dubious as well.
He hacked the next chest, this time determined to stop being so gullible. The usual white expanse enveloped him. He disengaged the program’s attack mechanism, and waited for the security to deactivate.
“Huh? That’s weird.”
Did this treasure chest have better security than the others? 9S started to roam through the white virtual circuit dimension. At times a black wall would appear, but it was easy to destroy. The security didn’t seem like it was meant to keep him out.
“What is this…”
9S stared at his own hand. Something was off. While hacking in the circuit dimension, one’s physical body was never visible. Instead it was displayed as a shape or signal, while the enemy’s program was displayed as a black sphere or cylinder. This was done to optimize the hacking process, making program invasion and subroutine destruction of the program more efficient.
But right now 9S could see himself. He could see the arms and legs he was used to seeing. And if he had a mirror he would most likely see the face he was used to seeing in real life.
“What is this dimension?”
The white walls abruptly turned into screens, flooded with various images.
Memories of his first flight unit training, his first Earth descent mission, his first encounter with a Machine, his first time meeting with 2B…
“Why are my memories here? Why do they know all of this?”
He briskly walked through the white passageway. There was a white door. He reached for it. It was unlocked.
Through the door was a large room—so large that he was unable to tell how far it extended. He could see human silhouettes in the center of the room. Clothed in black, they were…women.
“2B?”
He rushed toward them to check. Of course, they were not 2B in the flesh. They were her data. In the blink of an eye, he was surrounded by 2Bs.
“You don’t have to use honorifics when you say my name.”
“It’s forbidden to have emotions.”
“I admire your passion for knowledge.”
“9S... Come on. Let’s go home.”
These were definitely 9S’s memories. He was being counterhacked. He had thought he was doing the hacking, but he’d allowed the enemy to invade his mind.
A black shadow materialized in the center of the room. It was the enemy that had counterhacked him. The shadow swallowed 2B’s data, one piece after another.
“Stop!”
The shadow persisted. It ate his memories of 2B: the look that she made when she was confused, the rare moments when she expressed anger, and the time she looked back at him.
“Stop it!”
He hurled himself onto the shadow.
“Don’t invade my memories!”
He held down the shadow and constricted him. He was beating down the enemy that had tried to take his precious treasures away.
“Don’t mess with my memories.”
In a flash, he found himself holding a sword. He stabbed the shadow over and over and over.
He straddled the shadow, and continued to stab it. He realized that the shadow had 2B’s face. Even then, he kept stabbing it. Red liquid sprayed out.
“This is…my memory!”
This is my memory. This 2B is mine and mine only. 2B is mine…
He kept stabbing until its chest was a mangled mess. When he looked down, his hands were covered—not in red liquid, but instead with a black and viscid substance. The enemy he had been stabbing was not 2B. It was the core of the soul box.
9S stood up. He heard the sword clatter to the floor.
What was I doing?
The back of his throat trembled. Laughter welled up.
I’ll kill anyone that hurts 2B. I’ll kill anyone that touches 2B. I’ll kill anyone that comes near 2B. I’ll kill anyone that looks at 2B. The only one allowed to look at 2B is me. The only one allowed to come near 2B is me. The only one allowed to touch 2B is me. The only one allowed to hurt 2B is me. The only…
His laughter didn’t stop. Standing there, bent over, 9S kept laughing.
After leaving the flooded city, 9S temporarily returned to the resistance camp. His close combat fighting management system had been severely damaged, and he was having trouble with sustained fighting. He couldn’t even draw his sword.
Devola and Popola took one glance at 9S, then screeched in horror. He was apparently in gruesome condition. Before Pod could give an explanation, Devola and Popola detected the damaged areas and dove into repairs—as expected for androids specialized in maintenance.
9S ignored Devola, who had told him to rest a little bit, and made to leave the resistance camp. At the gate, he heard Popola’s voice calling from behind him.
“Hey 9S. Don’t try to die on your own.”
“I know,” was all he answered. It’s not like I’m trying to die, he thought. At the very least he would stay alive until he destroyed the Machines and killed A2. If he died first, he wouldn’t be able to kill them.
He never thought he would have such a strong intent to kill and destroy. He had thought that since Type S androids were not suited for battle, they would have less of a thirst for blood. Maybe that’s what he wanted to think. Perhaps he had held himself back with the excuse that he lacked battle skills—the same way he had held back his feelings for 2B.
2B had died, and there was no longer a need for him to hold back. He didn’t have to hide his thoughts or his desires for 2B. 2B would never know about them.
The moment he realized this, he lost self-control. He was unable to control anything. He could feel everything bursting. Everything shameful and dirty that he had pent up flowed out of him, bit by bit.
Like I care, 9S thought as he walked. He emerged from the underground waterway, passed through the partly busted gates of the amusement park, and cut through the square where there were no longer any Machines.
“Hostile android approaching. Switching to self-defense mode.”
“Again?” spat 9S. He had heard the same phrase three times, and it was getting to him. Even if he knew this was the last time, it didn’t change the fact that it was irritating.
And again, the entrance had angelic script inscribed above. This uninspired process exasperated him.
“Pod, what about these words?”
“Answer: labeled as ‘god box.’ ”
“God? How dare the Machines use such a word.”
It was offensive for the plebeian Machines to mention God. God was an entity humans worshipped, a being of the highest order. It was unacceptable for scraps of metal to speak of God when even humans had occasionally hesitated to do so.
He would destroy every last remaining one of them. And in the most excruciating ways possible.
Once he infiltrated the facility, he was met with the same interior, with Machines that he was tired of seeing. This time, there was no treasure chest. As a result, he wasn’t distracted by any questionable information.
He hijacked the Machines by hacking, made them fight each other, and they exploded. 2B had been infected by a virus, showered by bullets from other YoRHa-type androids, and killed by A2. 9S wanted the enemy to experience something similar.
This was the only time he wished that Machines had emotions. He wanted them to feel the trauma of getting attacked by comrades and the anguish of being betrayed by their trusted allies.
He wanted to hear the Machines genuinely cower and wail in fear, instead of simply playing prerecorded audio…
“Report: Excessive fighting strains the chassis.”
Pod interrupted his flow, its warning irking 9S.
“Shut up!”
Strain on the chassis? Did he care? But Pod was being unusually stubborn.
“Negative: This support program functions as an assistant to 9S. It reserves the right to concern itself with its user’s well-being.”
Its nagging bothered him. It reminded him of someone.
“Do what you want!”
He yelled, and left the area. No matter how fast he walked, or how abruptly he started to sprint, Pod followed suit. Even if he knew that was the nature of Pods, he still hated it.
9S made it a point to stomp loudly as he stormed into the elevator. More than anything, he loathed the way he acted so childishly.
In front of the core installed on the roof was an enemy he did not expect. It was not a Machine. It was an android.
“Operator…”
It was Operator 21O, who had been assigned to aid 9S. Normally identical to the other YoRHa types, her eyes glowed red. But her appearance was different from how 9S remembered. She was in battle uniform.
“Why is there an operator model here?”
“Inspecting: Operator 21O. In the previous descent battle, by her own volition decided to convert to Type B. Newly appointed as 21B, she was stationed on the front lines, and four hours later reported missing.”
“No…”
Before the previous descent battle took place, 9S had been nullifying the enemy’s aerial defense system on Earth.
During battle, please stay as far away from the field as possible.
A scanner model like yourself is not suited for battle.
21O’s words flooded back to him. Right after their exchange, 21O became 21B, and descended to Earth.
Because he had replied with a mischievous answer like, “Aw, are you worried about me?” 21O had coolly said, “No, you would only be a burden on the battlefield.” But in reality 9S knew that she worried for him. She always did…
Simultaneously, he was filled with a feeling of rabid hate toward the Machines that purposefully made 21B guard the core of the “god box.”
The Machine that had invaded the Bunker had no doubt been eavesdropping on 21O and 9S. From that, they knew she was an individual that 9S trusted, and deliberately planted her as an enemy. They probably expected 9S to be conflicted, to fight under immense stress and confusion, and eventually succumb at her hands. They probably planned to watch him struggle, and laugh at him for doing so.
Like I’d let them, he thought. 9S attacked with no mercy.
“Pod! Support with maximum-power fire!”
It had not been long since 21B converted to Type B. She was most likely thrown on the front lines with little training, and was probably unfamiliar with the equipment and behavior of a Type B. If he could exploit that weakness, even as a Type S, he had a chance against her.
“Please…refrain from conversation irrelevant…t0 the m1ss1on.”
He almost stopped at the words that spilled out of 21B’s mouth.
“A single confirmation…is…en0ugh…”
She was only reciting phrases that lingered in her memory. Don’t falter, he told himself.
“Please…kill me…”
9S widened his eyes. 21B’s hand was shaking as it held her sword. It was unclear whether 21O’s consciousness was the cause, or if the enemy was intentionally dragging out 21O’s consciousness.
“Operator… It’s okay! It’ll be okay!”
He readied his sword and charged. His loathing of Machines galvanized him.
“I’ll kill you…now!”
He heard a scream. But 9S was unable to tell anymore if it was his or 21O’s.
Another Side “A2”
“Good morning, A2.”
The moment I opened my eyes, I was baffled by the greeting from the rectangular box. I thought I was still dreaming. But I’ve seen this talking box before. When I met No. 2 and No. 9 at the forest castle, this box was floating next to them. It had transmitted that revolting voice. That woman that said whatever she wanted, about how I was a traitor and that I was a dangerous android.
Just thinking about it made me annoyed, so I was planning on ignoring the box.
“I am support unit Pod 042. I will assist YoRHa android A2 with artillery support.”
“I didn’t ask for that.”
“Affirmative: I did not receive an order from A2. This action was directed by the previous user, 2B, as a final directive.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“YoRHa android A2 does not have the right to decline.”
Eventually I got tired of resisting and let the box do whatever it wanted. But it was really a useless box in terms of its so-called “support.” When I asked it about the identity of the strange fissure-inducing structure, the only thing it said was, “Unclear, but speculated to be the Machines’ doing.” Even when I asked it about the whereabouts of 2B’s corpse or 9S, it echoed “Unable to answer.”
If anything, its artillery function was useful. Since I didn’t have the means to perform long-range attacks, it conveniently diversified my attack maneuvers, though I was fed up with it trying to act like it was doing me a favor, saying things like, “Recommendation: Gratitude to this support unit for providing the user with long-range attack capabilities.”
e38391e382b9e382abe383abe381a8e381aee587bae4bc9ae38184
I was furious. I was perpetually enraged at the Machines that killed my comrades. So much so that I was unable to restrain myself from killing them. That’s why, when I met this one, I had planned on killing it immediately. I declared, “I’ll have you pay for the sin of killing my comrades.”
“Is that right? Then it cannot be helped, if doing so will appease you.”
Despite being a Machine, that’s how it answered, with surprisingly sophisticated diction. It was slightly bowing its head, waiting patiently for my sword to be swung down. A somewhat unsettled feeling overcame me.
“You are not going to kill me?” it asked in a bewildered voice.
“Shut up,” I told it, shooing it away. It informed me that its name was Pascal, and after saying, “Thank you very much,” it flew off.
Thank you? A Machine using words of gratitude? A lowly Machine?
It upset me even more…that I spared a Machine.
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“No. 2… You’re alive.”
Anemone’s reaction to our reunion was just how I imagined—that Anemone would make the same face I did when I first discovered Anemone was still alive.
I had been living with the guilt that I was the only one who survived out of my comrades. Anemone had most likely felt the same way.
Anemone and I had carried out a mission together. It was during the enemy server destruction plan, on Oahu, in the Pacific. It was a battle also known as the Pearl Harbor Descent Attack. There, both Anemone and I lost allies. We sent what seemed like an endless number of rescue requests to Command. But none were acknowledged, and our comrades fell one by one. Eventually I had lost all my comrades in the YoRHa squadron, and Anemone had lost all her comrades in the resistance. At that point Anemone and I had been operating separately, and we must have both assumed that we were the last one standing.
Then I uncovered the truth, and fled the battlefield.
Command had been planning on abandoning us from the start. We were an experimental fleet with the purpose of providing battle data until the last member died.
It seemed Anemone was not aware of this fact. That was better for her. If she found out, she would not be able to forgive. She would not be able to forgive Command, which ruthlessly abandoned its troops on the front lines.
“That’s right, No. 2. There’s a YoRHa that’s identical to you. Her name is 2B, and…”
“She died.”
“What?”
“I killed her. She was infected by a logic virus.”
“I see.”
Anemone fell silent. She was being considerate, and I was grateful. Anemone and I had both executed comrades that were infected by logic viruses. To minimize their misery and allow them to die while they were in control of their consciousness…that was why we killed them. There were no words that could console us.
Sensing that it was probably better to wrap up conversations about the past, I decided to cut straight to the point. I asked her if she could spare me a fuel filter. My filter was clogged from fighting in the desert.
Until now, I had been foraging parts off of the corpses of my pursuers when I needed repairs or replacements. The parts weren’t specific to my chassis, so I looked shoddy, but functionally there was no problem.
But now all the YoRHa androids were infected by the virus. If I used an infected part, I would be infected as well. That’s why I decided to ask my longtime acquaintance for a favor.
But the resistance camp was out of stock. If I wasn’t able to procure the part here, there was nowhere else I could go. As I debated on what to do, Anemone suggested something unbelievable.
“Pascal’s village makes fuel filters, so you should go get one from him.”
“Pascal…”
“Ah, you know him.”
“An enemy!”
“His village is an exception. They won’t harm us.”
“But…still…”
“We formed an alliance with them, and exchange resources when necessary. If you need something, you don’t have many options. And…”
“And?”
“We’re not so heartless as to kill enemies who meet us under white flags.”
Even if it was Anemone speaking, I didn’t feel like I could follow this particular piece of advice…but…
“Warning: A defective fuel filter can cause severe problems during fuel combustion. Recommendation: Immediate replacement.”
I knew that already. At this rate, I would be impaired in battle. I could already feel some impairments in normal activities as well.
My joints were stiff and difficult to move. As a result, I was drained from merely walking. My head hurt too. At first there was just a dull pain at my left temple, but that eventually spread to the back and top of my head. The pain grew to the point where it throbbed like there was a jagged piece of metal being twisted into my skull.
“Determined the coordinates of the colony led by the Machine Pascal. Location marked on the map.”
I felt invaded. I had been read like a book. I had been thinking of visiting the village, if there were any chance to avoid being useless in battle. Anemone had said this was an “exception,” so perhaps I could take exception as well…
e38391e382b9e382abe383abe69d91e69da5e8a8aa
It was a village full of Machines. It was eerie to see Machines that didn’t attack at first sight, and in turn I couldn’t get myself riled up to destroy them either. No, I was probably reluctant to draw my sword because I wasn’t feeling well. That had to be it.
“You are that person who… Thank you for sparing me back then.”
I rarely saw a Machine twice, because that meant I had failed to kill it. But I had never been thanked by one. Maybe that was why, but even when Pascal inquired with a puzzled, “Um…” I was still too astonished to talk. Then, all of a sudden, the box beside me started to blabber.
“Explanation: YoRHa android A2’s fuel filter is damaged. Action: Obtained information from the resistance camp leader, Anemone. Objective: Visit this region to acquire filter. Request: Fuel filter.”
“Ah, I see. So that was the case. The thing is, right now we are out of the rigid bark we use to create filters. Recently there have been violent Machines around the harvesting area.”
“Affirmative: Collection and delivery of rigid bark.”
The box had explained the situation and negotiated of its own accord. I was extremely upset, but my condition from the damaged filter was getting worse. I had no choice but to cooperate and retrieve the so-called rigid bark.
e682aae38184e6a99ffe6a2b0e38292e98080e6b2bb
“Report: Hostility toward peace-advocating Machine, Pascal, was determined to be ineffective from a cost-benefit standpoint. Recommendation: Immediate initiation of a friendly relationship.”
“Friendly? You have to be kidding me.”
Peace-advocating? What did a Machine know about peace? This was just an exception. This was an emergency due to an unforeseen accident. I had no intention of playing along and being “friends” with a Machine.
That was why I told Pascal, “I’ll help you if you need anything,” after I returned to normal condition. If I didn’t do anything in return, I would be in debt to a Machine.
“Actually, there is something you can help me with. Recently, a violent Machine has been kidnapping the children from their playground. I apologize for being so brash, but I would like you to do away with that Machine. You are the only one I can count on. Please.”
To think that a Machine would ask me to exterminate another Machine. At any rate, destroying the supposed “violent Machine” was hardly a challenge for me. It was convenient for me that I could pay off my debt so easily.
“Ah, thank you very much! You got rid of that robot for us! Please, accept this humble reward. Now, now, don’t be shy!”
I had destroyed the Machine to repay my debt, but this reward indebted me yet again. No matter how many times I tried to decline, or say that I wasn’t trying to be polite, Pascal kept stuffing potions and materials into my arms.
“We are peace advocates. We despise fighting, so we built this village. But ever since we discarded our weapons, we haven’t had the means to defend ourselves against powerful enemies.”
The Machine at the harvesting area for the rigid bark, and the “violent Machine” I had just destroyed, fell rather quickly to my sword. The Machines in this village were unable to defend themselves from enemies of such caliber. Machines, responsible for the death of my comrades, were being terrorized by the threat of other Machines. The sight of that was extremely strange, comical, and even sad in a way… Sad? Why would I think it was sad?
“Within the village, there are individuals that believe the best way to perpetuate peace is to destroy all our enemies…Ms. A2, what should we do?”
“I don’t know. Shouldn’t you, Pascal, be the one that decides that?”
I had no answer. That’s why I had hastily redirected the question back to him. Destroy enemies in the name of peace… It was hypocritical. I couldn’t come up with an answer. But. But I…
“Ms. A2. If it’s all right with you, you should stay and explore the village a little. I want you to know more about this village.”
I told Pascal that I would if I felt like it, and turned my back. I was already out of the village before I realized I had forgotten to return the reward.
e5ad90e4be9be98194e381abe68790e3818be3828ce59bb0e68391
“Hey hey! B1g s1s!”
“Let’s play! Play w1th us!”
“I don’t have time to play with Machines.”
“N00! Play! Play w1th us!”
As soon as I set foot in the village, I was swarmed by Machine brats. I came back because I felt guilty that I hadn’t returned the favor.
No matter how much I pushed them away and shunned them, the brats squealed in delight and followed me.
“I’m an android, your enemy. I’m going to destroy you if you don’t listen to what I say!”
“Ahhh! s0 fun!”
“Why does that make you happy…”
“B1g s1s, more!”
Big sis. Hearing that phrase suddenly brought back a memory.
A long time ago, the resistance I had fought beside called themselves a family. At the time I had no concept of family, and seeing the troops call each other sisters was bizarre and…
“Hey hey, b1g s1s, make us a t0y!”
“We need t0ys to play!”
“We need t0ys!”
“They sell s0me at the arm0ry 1n the village s0 buy s0me there!”
“Buy s0me there!”
After they started clinging to my arms and legs, I finally surrendered and agreed to go. They cheered, and I experienced a peculiar feeling. I envisioned, in my head, the smiling faces of the resistance. The faces of my comrades too.
Why now? Why were those memories coming back to me now?
“Welc0me. Oh? T0ys f0r the ch1ldren? Ah, we’re 0ut of st0ck. 1f 0nly 1 had the mater1als. The mater1als are wr1tten here. 1f 0nly y0u c0uld br1ng me these mater1als, the ch1ldren w0uld be happy…”
The craftsman spoke while waving a piece of paper around. It was a list of materials. Starting with the children back there, everyone in this village was pushy.
But the only reason I searched for the materials without complaint was so I could distract myself from thinking. Thinking about…my fallen comrades.
e381bee381bee38199e59bb0e68391
Pascal’s villagers were all pushy, but they properly offered rewards every single time they asked a favor. Even if I declined, they just kept pushing rewards in my face.
I had originally planned to help so I would not be indebted. But if they rewarded me every time, the cycle was never-ending.
“Ah, 1t’s b1g s1s!”
“Thanks f0r making us t0ys!”
“Th1s 1s 0ur way 0f say1ng thanks!”
They piled my hands with ores and seeds. The children had probably gathered them around the village.
“Thanks b1g s1s!”
With this, I felt indebted yet again…
e38391e382b9e382abe383abe69d91e381abe795b0e5a489
It happened when I was making my way from the resistance camp to the village. I had been asked by Anemone to deliver a few materials to Pascal.
“Can you hear me, Ms. A2?”
“Oh, good timing. Pascal, I’m on my way to deliver…”
“Ms. A2! The village…it’s horrible! The villagers are… Ahh!”
“Hey! Pascal? What happened?”
The transmission cut off as abruptly as it had started. Pascal’s voice sounded urgent. I had a bad feeling.
“Hypothesis: Pascal, a valuable source of information, is in trouble. Recommendation: Check on status of Pascal’s village.”
“I know,” I told Pod as I started to run. I didn’t have to go very far to see the gravity of the situation. There was smoke coming from the direction of the village.
“Pod! A transmission to Pascal!”
“Transmission unavailable.”
“Shit!”
When I finally arrived, there were fires burning in various places throughout the village. But the fire was not the only problem. Something unbelievable was happening in front of my eyes: Machines were eating Machines. The ones doing the eating, and getting eaten, were all villagers.
I headed further into the village, thrashing the ones that were eating. I heard a whimpering voice call, “Ms. A2!” How many villagers…how many Machines had I killed before I heard my name?
“Pascal! What happened?!”
“I don’t know. Some of the villagers suddenly went mad, and fell upon and began consuming others.”
“What about the children?”
“I evacuated them. But the other villagers are…”
“At this rate you’re going to be eaten too! I’ll take care of here so go on and escape!”
After I pretty much forced Pascal to escape, I destroyed the rampant Machines one by one. Villagers that had, until just a little while ago, been shopping, gossiping, and living a peaceful life.
Though berserk, these were the Machines that “lost the means to confront powerful enemies.” It didn’t take long for me to destroy all of them. But it was too late to save the villagers that had been preyed on. They were already nonfunctional.
e38391e382b9e382abe383abe381a8e381aee585b1e99798
Fortunately, the children were unharmed. Pascal had most likely prioritized their safety as soon as the cannibal riot began. The children were all huddled in the corner of the factory ruins. It was difficult to tell Pascal that I was unable to save the villagers because I knew how it felt to lose comrades too.
“Question: Cannot Machines be reconstructed as long as materials are on hand?”
“No. We have a unit called “the core” within us. It is the unit that contains our personal data. When that is destroyed, it becomes impossible to return to our previous state. This time, the victims, including their cores, were destroyed.”
“I see…”
Every time I had fought Machines in the past, regardless of how many I destroyed, new ones kept spawning out of nowhere. That’s why I had the misconception that they were immortal. But similarly to our comrades that had their black boxes destroyed without personal data backups, Pascal and the villagers had a concept of death as well…
“Report: Intelligence—there are multiple hostile Machines in this factory.”
“Intelligence?”
“Acquired from the regional Pod network.”
“You have comrades too?”
“Affirmative.”
At any rate, there was no time to mourn the dead. Leaving the children in their hiding spot, I confronted the oncoming Machines. The number of enemies was overwhelming, and it didn’t seem like Pod and I would suffice for the task.
That’s right. The Machines were never-ending. That’s the enemy we were dealing with. A familiar feeling of helplessness and despair washed over me…
“Ms. A2! I’ll handle these enemies!”
An unexpected savior appeared. It was Pascal riding a weapon of immense size. He had probably taken control of the abandoned apparatus.
Pascal’s weapon blasted away a horde of enemies. Enemy reinforcements arrived in waves, but Pascal kept fighting, showing no signs of backing down.
“I…have children that I need to protect!
His attacks were rather ferocious for a peace advocate. I heard Pascal scream, “I’ll kill you!” a countless number of times.
e38391e382b9e382abe381aee7b5b6e69c9b
After we eventually demolished the enemy army and its fighting vehicles, Pascal and I returned to the children’s hiding place. But waiting for us was an unimaginable sight.
What awaited us was the sight of the children on the floor, still as death. They had destroyed their own cores. In other words…mass suicide.
“How could this happen?”
“I gave these children an education, and taught them about human emotions and knowledge. I thought it would help them in the future.”
“But what does that have to do with suicide?”
“Fear. I taught these children about the emotion of fear. Without fear, they would have lost their lives by doing something reckless.”
It had taken Pascal a long time to return to the children. They probably heard the sounds of battle from outside. There were sounds of explosions and clashes, as well as furious quaking. They were unable to bear the terror. They chose death to escape that fear.
Pascal was slightly wrong. He shouldn’t have taught the children fear, but instead, should have taught them the fear of death.
Humans initially designed androids. Humans were well aware of the fear of death. That’s why our programs included an inherent fear of death. Without that awareness, as Pascal had said, we would be prone to dying recklessly by our own hands.
But Machines did not die to begin with. So Pascal didn’t understand the fear of death. It was tough to teach the kids an emotion that he himself had never experienced. To put it bluntly, it was death. The ignorance of death, and not teaching death, was the cause of this tragedy.
“Ms. A2, I beg you. I am unable to endure this pain. Would you be kind enough to erase my memories? Otherwise, please…kill me.”
I understood the pain of losing comrades. I knew better than anyone else the agony of living on with the memories of those that were dear. So I directed Pod to erase Pascal’s memories.
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After shutting down Pascal’s memory circuit, Pod set a reboot timer. This would allow us to leave while Pascal was still sleeping.
Pascal, with his memories erased, might be confused if he saw me, and I wouldn’t know what kind of face to make either. Pod was probably being considerate in that sense.
“Pod. Why did the Machines ambush Pascal, even though they’re part of the same village?”
“Unknown. But the possibility of a bug is undeniable.”
“Bug? From what?”
But my question was drowned out by an unfamiliar voice.
“Hello! This is the Tower System Service! I have some exciting news for everyone today”
It was a childish voice. It was enunciating poorly, but at the same time seemed to be poking fun at us.
“Activation of massive Machine unit detected to the east.”
“Massive unit? That must be the so-called tower. What in the world is happening?”
“Unknown. Recommendation: Gathering of additional information.”
It didn’t have to tell me. After making Pod determine the location, I decided to take a look at the aforementioned massive unit with my own eyes.
Villagers going on a rampage, and the appearance of the massive unit. The fact that they happened around the same time was probably not a coincidence. And Pod’s hypothesis of there being some kind of bug…
Originally, Machines were made by aliens as weapons of mass destruction. It was hypocritical for those weapons to dislike fighting, and love peace. In the world of Machines, Pascal and his village were the outliers.
The more they deviate from a Machine’s hardwired purpose, the farther they operate from their natural instincts. Could that gap have been the reason for the bug? And the appearance of the massive structure had been a catalyst?
In the end, this was supposition. It was just my hypothesis. That’s why I was going to confirm it.
efbc99efbcb3e381a8e5868de4bc9a
The massive unit was in the amusement park ruins. It was an ugly building, as if it was made from random parts of Machines patched together.
Once inside, the interior also looked like it was constructed from Machine parts. The building was definitely made by them.
However, there were Machine remains lying around. It seemed like a battle had taken place, and every floor reeked of a burning stench. The bodies were riddled with bullet holes as well. Touching the remains, I discovered they were still hot. They were recently destroyed.
Every Machine was damaged beyond recognition, nearly chewed to pieces. It was clear that attacks had continued long after the Machine had stopped functioning.
I ran toward the upper floor. It wasn’t too late. I could catch up.
“Please…k1ll me…”
“Operator… It’s okay… It’ll be okay!”
On the top floor, two YoRHa androids were still fighting. One that had been infected by a logic virus and…9S. It seemed like the battle had gone on for quite some time, as both 9S and the infected YoRHa were struggling to stand.
One blow from 9S sent the infected YoRHa to the ground. 9S probably thought that he had defeated her. But he was naive. Those kinds of moments gave way to opportunity. Raptors were most vulnerable when they were pouncing on the enemy.
Just as I expected, the infected YoRHa slashed at 9S. Bu, by the same martial axiom the infected YoRHa was vulnerable as it attacked. I didn’t miss the chance.
I stabbed her in the back with my military sword. I couldn’t let 9S be killed. 2B wouldn’t want that. Of the favors that 2B had passed on to me, 9S was mentioned in the majority of her requests.
Once the infected YoRHa fell to the floor again, I made sure it was inoperable by destroying its black box. 9S glared at me, his malice overflowing, as I speared the body over and over.