CH. 06: 2B's Story/Reunion
CH. 06: 2B’s Story/Reunion
After 9S received a chassis checkup at the Bunker and performed a data overhaul, it was decided that he would return to the field. Until then, 2B would be deployed on a solo research mission.
2B visited Pascal’s village by herself and collected information on Machines that appeared on Earth. Pascal was cooperative yet again, even offering information about Machines in other areas.
Of course, it was information that Pascal, who was disconnected from the Machine network, knew. It was nothing revolutionary, mostly information that would, at its best, serve as references.
However, there was some information that would have piqued 9S’s interest, like the fact that there were Machines that mimicked humans and established religions.
While carrying out the research, 2B started to have a small change of heart. She was no longer able to see Machines as “just clumps of metal.”
There were Adam and Eve, who mimicked the appearance of humans and spoke fluently. There were Pascal and his villagers, who looked like other Machines but desired to live peacefully. They were all clearly capable of thinking, of experiencing emotions, and of acting according to their own wills.
What was the difference between them and androids like herself?
There was footage and documentation regarding so-called “robots” in the human civilization database. It was said that ancient humans once manufactured robots, which were similar to Machines, and employed their services. Robots had existed before there was the technology to create androids.
“Can’t we say that Machines and androids are kindred?”
Adam’s words and laughter stuck in her head. She brushed them off and started walking.
She was going to return to the resistance camp, get replenished and have a checkup, and after that visit Pascal’s village once more…
As she was planning her course of action, a transmission interrupted her thoughts.
“This is…resist…cam…”
She could hear a patchy transmission amidst the horrible static. She wasn’t sure, but it sounded like Anemone’s voice.
“Report: Signal interference detected.”
2B stopped walking and directed her full attention to the transmission. The quality was so poor that this was necessary to pick out the words.
“…Machines…as you can see…reception…request. Please.”
The transmission abruptly died. Was it an EMP attack? Either way, the resistance camp was almost certainly in trouble.
“Let’s hurry,” said 2B.
Fortunately, the resistance camp was not far. But before long she was stalled. There was a massive outbreak of Machines at various places within the city ruins.
Besides the walking types that were a common occurrence in this vicinity, there were flying types of various sizes. There was also a steady stream of medium-sized Machines pouring in from the sky.
“Why are there so many?”
Pod replied that the cause was unknown. There was the transmission from the resistance camp as well—something was wrong.
“Pod, call the Bunker using laser transmission.”
“Roger that.”
Something was happening. Something unusual.
2B swallowed her desire to rush toward the resistance camp, and focused on destroying the Machines before her.
The number of Machines was truly extraordinary. It took a significant amount of time to exterminate all of them.
When the resistance camp finally came into sight, she could see flames rising out of it. The shrill clanging of Machines, screams, and black smoke were all emanating from the resistance camp. It was an ambush by the Machines.
“This is…?!”
2B came to a standstill at the entrance. At first glance, it looked like the androids were being pinned down by the Machines. But that was not all. The Machines were eating the androids. There were half-devoured android corpses lying around. Some did not even resemble their original forms.
Until now, they had been attacked but never eaten. The Machines didn’t eat. That’s what she had thought…
No, there was no time to be shocked. She kicked down the Machines that were eating and crushed them with her military sword. After she had reduced the few Machines in the square to metal scraps, she headed farther into the camp. There might be victims that hadn’t escaped yet.
“2B!”
There Anemone was. She was near the research material depository, in the process of helping her comrades escape.
“What is this?” asked 2B.
Before she acted, she wanted to hear about the situation. But Anemone shook her head and replied, “I don’t know.”
“They suddenly poured into the camp and…We tried to fight them, but our guns are ineffective.”
Right as 2B started to wonder why, Pod finished its analysis. It detected that the enemy was using energy shields. No wonder firearms were ineffective.
“Recommendation: Close-quarters combat.”
“Okay.”
She couldn’t use long-range attacks here anyway. While it might have been fine to fire the guns used by the resistance, Pod’s firing mode would be too powerful and even dangerous inside the camp.
“Anemone. Help the other androids escape.”
Close-quarters combat was the responsibility of a Type B. As 2B pulled out her sword, she heard Anemone say, “I’ll leave it to you,” behind her back.
She had cleaned up all the Machines in the camp, and was about to reunite with Anemone. She heard a roar. A fierce aftershock, enough to throw her in the air, followed. It was outside the camp, but nearby.
She immediately exited the camp. There was a new enemy. Having a spherical body with multiple legs, it was a large, multilegged spider-shaped Machine. It was a somewhat formidable enemy, but one that was relatively uncommon.
There was the enemy outbreak, Machines that were eating humans, and the enemy in front of her—all of them were out of the ordinary. What was happening? No, no matter how much she thought about it she wouldn’t be able to answer that question now. It was pointless to dwell on it.
She leapt high in the air and slashed at the giant spherical body. But she wasn’t able to inflict a significant amount of damage. Furthermore, the enemy’s movements were quick. Its multiple legs gave it extra agility during evasive maneuvers, negating the effectiveness of Pod’s long-range fire.
If only 9S were here. A weak thought crossed her mind. She was reminded of the times that 9S had fought alongside her: at the factory ruins, the amusement park, and the flooded city.
If 9S were here, she would have him hack the enemy’s vulnerability or take control, and in that instance…
“2B!”
She thought it was her imagination. Perhaps the images she had conjured in her head were so convincing that she had hallucinated a voice.
But it was a voice she knew too well. There was no mistaking it. 2B looked up in the direction of the voice. A flight unit was descending. 9S’s voice had come from there.
She saw 9S jump out of the flight unit. The pilotless flight unit approached the ground at full speed.
“9S!”
9S, who had jumped out of the flight unit, landed near 2B, but stumbled when he hit the ground.
“Are you okay?!”
2B rushed in his direction and helped him up. As soon as she did, she heard an explosion behind her. A hot wind followed shortly after. The flight unit had collided with the spider-shaped Machine. Even if it was able to evade long-distance artillery from the ground, it certainly had not accounted for objects falling from the sky. It had probably failed to evade in time.
“Whew, I’m glad it hit.”
Even while 9S puckered his face in pain, he managed to look smug. But suddenly his expression changed to that of astonishment.
9S’s gaze was directed behind 2B, toward the location where the spider-shaped Machine had exploded from the impact of the flight unit.
“Now what?” asked 2B.
Looking back, she saw the remains of the Machine. The shiny sphere had deformed into a strange shape from the impact and heat of the explosion. The remains shifted. Something came out.
“Android…”
It was a familiar face and voice. It was Eve, who had fused with the remains of the spider-shaped machine. He looked down on 2B with his eyes glowing red.
“Everything… I’ll destroy everything!”
As if his voice was a cue, walking types started to gather from what seemed like thin air. They gathered and latched on to Eve and the remains of the spider-shaped Machine. Some of them gorged on the remains, others seemingly dissolved and fused into the mass. Eventually the remains, Eve, and the Machines became one, fusing into an even larger sphere. Patchy and misshapen, it was certainly appropriate to call it a Frankensteinian monster.
The sphere started to spin. It gouged the ground, knocked trees over, and picked up speed. It was running wild. A flying type that had coincidentally been in the area was swallowed and crushed to pieces. The sphere had fearsome destructive power, but it seemed like it was impartial to friend or foe. Just as 2B was pondering how she was going to defeat the enemy...
“Ms. 2B! Can you hear me?!”
It was a transmission from Pascal. The strong static reminded her of the transmission with Anemone.
“My village is…ahhhhh!”
The way the transmission suddenly died was also the same as with Anemone…
“Pascal! Can you hear me?! Pascal!”
The transmission had already ended. Scenes of the resistance camp she had seen just moments before haunted her.
“Let’s go, 9S.”
She wasn’t going to leave them alone. Fortunately, the fused mass of Eve and the Machines had perhaps lost control, and did not follow them.
The shortcut between Pascal’s village and the city ruins had been blocked. A barricade had been built out of scrap wood. However, a few Machines were taking turns ramming their heads into the blockade. It was only scrap wood after all, and its integrity was questionable. It was a matter of time before the Machines got through. 2B slashed through the Machines trying to enter. Since walking types were poor at changing direction, there was no retaliation and 2B was able to destroy them without difficulty.
“Ms. 2B! Mr. 9S!”
Perhaps due to the closer vicinity to the village, the transmission started to go through again.
“Pascal! What happened?!”
“The Machines connected to the network suddenly started to rampage. We created a barricade and fought back, but with our weaponry…”
If the resistance didn’t stand a chance with their weapons, it was only natural that the peace advocate Pascal and his villagers could not put up a fight.
Machines, their behavior epitomizing the word rampage, approached her head-on. 2B slashed and kicked them down. Compared to the muster at the resistance camp, their numbers were small. 9S was here to support her as well. This time, it didn’t take long to alleviate the situation.
“Thank you. You were a great help.”
After things finally settled down, Pascal appeared from behind the barricade. The villagers were already starting to repair the damaged barricades.
“You said the Machines went on a rampage?”
“Yes. I can’t provide you with details, but I assume that the central unit responsible for controlling all the Machines went berserk. That spread to the other Machines…”
The central unit. She was surprised at the existence of such a figure. Well, it wouldn’t be outlandish. In fact, she even had a hypothesis.
9S said the exact same name that had been on 2B’s mind. Previously, small-type enemies had assembled out of nowhere. Eve had undoubtedly summoned them via the network. This was only possible because he was the central unit.
Originally, it was probably Adam, not Eve, who controlled the network. But he had willingly detached himself from the network during his fight with 2B. After that, Eve had inherited the responsibility. Since Eve had been created from Adam, it wouldn’t be strange for him to possess abilities on par with Adam’s.
“If we destroy the central unit, will they stop functioning as a group?”
Pascal nodded.
“Pod, can you determine Eve’s location?”
“Report: Location is already determined.”
Pod had apparently started to calculate the location right after hearing Pascal’s information. The map data that was displayed pointed towards the heart of the crater zone.
“We’ll defeat Eve. Pascal, you protect your village.”
“Understood. Ms. 2B and Mr. 9S, please be careful.”
Being sent off by a Machine, only to go destroy another Machine. How many times did this make? But 2B realized that her uneasiness with the situation had mostly faded.
The transmission came in right as they were heading toward the crater zone. They needed to defeat Eve as quickly as possible, but rampant small types blocked their path, and they were unable to make significant progress. Irritated, they fought. It was then that it happened.
“Br…ther…b1g br0ther…”
Without warning, the communication display opened and transmitted a voice mixed with static.
“Looks like he’s forcing transmissions,” said 9S, contorting his face into a scowl.
“Without regard for friend or foe, huh.”
She remembered the sphere that had gone on a rampage. Eve had even destroyed Machines that were his comrades. Those cries were leaking out of the network. What a bothersome way to vent his anger.
“Hey big brother. Can I kill these guys?”
“Eve, calm down. We haven’t finished talking.”
Adam and Eve’s conversation at the alien ship—now that she thought about it, that conversation had perfectly depicted the relationship between the two. Back at the white city, she hadn’t been wrong to find it strange that Eve hadn’t been with Adam.
A Machine was mourning the loss of its companion….
Suddenly, the attacks stopped. The surrounding Machines were standing still and making noises indistinguishable as more than screams or howls.
“Wha…what? What is this?” asked 2B.
Every Machine was quivering in place. It looked somewhat similar to the behavior before an EMP attack was released, but there were no signs of them trying to attack.
The screams stopped. The red lights disappeared from the Machines’ eyes. They froze, then collapsed like dominoes. The fallen bodies showed no signs of moving. They had been rendered completely nonfunctional.
She abruptly heard the chirp of a songbird. That chirp brought her attention to the stillness. She realized that the sounds of artillery and explosions that were coming from everywhere had ceased at once. A branch rustled as the songbird took off. She could hear the murmur of a river.
“Did Eve do this too? Halting the Machines?” muttered 9S.
If Eve was able to send all the Machines connected to the network on a rampage, he was surely able to halt all the Machines as well.
But what were those movements and screams that the Machines had displayed before? They’d been shaking in anguish and screaming as if they were in their death throes. “Halt” was too tame a word; “massacre” was more appropriate.
“Let’s go, 9S.”
They ran toward the crater zone in the almost uncomfortable silence. The Machines had stopped, but Eve was still alive. The map data had detected Eve’s unique signal.
They would understand what was happening when they arrived. They ran down the steep slope, jumped over the rubble, and headed toward the heart of the crater zone.
Eve was exactly where the location data had shown. He was sitting on a pile of concrete rubble, looking up at the sky. The rampant sphere was nowhere to be seen. Eve looked as if he was searching for something, but at the same time looked as if he was trying to hold back tears. No—there was no way Machines would cry. It must have been her imagination.
Eve slowly turned his head toward them.
“Ah, you’re here.”
It sounded like he was reading off a script. She had always thought his way of speaking lacked inflection, but it sounded even more monotone now. But ill-suited to his tone, his mouth was twisted into a smile. Noises slowly seeped into his breath as it built up into raucous laughter.
“Don’t you guys think so as well? That this world is pointless.”
Eve stood up. His upper body swayed. The smile plastered on his face disappeared in an instant.
“As far as I’m concerned, b1g br0ther...was everyth1ng..”
Tears streamed from Eve’s eyes. 2B couldn’t believe it. It was the first time she had seen a Machine cry.
But his somber face quickly morphed into a face full of rage. The black patterns that had materialized on the right side of his body changed shape. The patterns expanded, lost their outlines, and colored his body a solid black.
The surrounding pieces of rubble floated up. They latched on to Adam’s body, as if they were iron particles attracted to a magnet. There was the clamorous sound of metal striking metal.
“All of 1t…d1sappear and be g0ne!”
Eve howled within his armor of rubble. The air shook. 2B understood instinctively, not logically, that they needed to defeat him as soon as possible. Eve stopped the hardest swing 2B could muster with his bare hands. A YoRHa-type android weighed approximately 150 kilograms, and her strike had utilized the full momentum of that mass. Even if he was wearing an armor of rubble, it was impossible for him to be unscathed. Red liquid gushed out of where her sword had hit.
However, Eve seemed to not care, and kept throwing punches. Perhaps his pain receptors were offline, or he was tormented by something that eclipsed his pain…
“Why d1d you kill b1g br0ther!”
She was effortlessly able to dodge the big swings. There was not a shred of precision. It seemed like he had no intention to land a hit, but instead was just venting his anger.
But his fists hit the ground and rubble, crushing them to pieces and sending them in all directions. One of the fragments hit her arm, and induced a scowl from 2B. A small fragment like this had so much force. If those fists landed a direct hit, she would be in trouble.
“9S, stay back!”
A Type S’s fighting abilities would not stand a chance against the current Eve. It was dangerous for 9S to even attempt to evade, much less attack. After confirming that 9S had retreated out of the corner of her eye, 2B approached Eve as she ducked under his blows. She thrust her sword through a crevice between his jet-black body and the rubble attached to it.
She only heard the harsh sound of metal hitting metal. A few pieces of rubble peeled off. Still, she made a repeated effort. Slowly but surely, the pieces of metal enveloping his body began to buckle.
Finally she was able to expose some of his skin. She stabbed her sword at the vulnerable points. Red liquid burst out, but Eve’s counterattacks did not falter. No matter how many times she slashed him, and how many places blood gushed from, Eve kept swinging his fists.
It was only natural because his pain receptors, a very practical set of sensors, had been disabled. That’s what it meant to not feel pain. Unable to perceive the accumulation of damage, he would be unable to grasp the condition that his body was in until he was unable to move.
“Pod!”
Her intuition that an attack would be effective now was correct. Pod’s laser struck Eve and his movements finally floundered. His upper body wobbled with every move—just when she had thought that this battle was almost over.
“Warning: A colossal energy signal has been detected.”
“What do you mean?”
Was he going to create an explosion similar to the one that had created the crater zone? She immediately retreated and created distance. But she had been wrong.
A strange light enveloped Eve. The spray of red stopped. He was recovering.
“Hypothesis: An energy provision from multiple Machines.”
“Eve is using the network to absorb energy from nearby Machines?”
“Affirmative.”
She thought back to her fight with Adam. Until Adam removed himself from the network, any damage she inflicted had healed right away. It was the same as that time.
“There’s no end to this…”
All that effort had been expended in vain. She could not see herself inflicting damage at a faster rate than his recovery.
“Then,” she heard 9S say from behind her. “I’ll hack him, and remove him from the network.”
When she looked back, 9S was quietly staring down Eve.
“All right. I’m counting on you.”
She sheltered the vulnerable chassis of 9S. She deflected the oncoming pebbles with her sword, and fended off his blows with kicks and strikes of her own. She was unable to contain him, and was thrown to the ground.
“Warning: The network the enemy is connected to is massive.”
Pod’s voice was irritating.
“Prediction: The chance of success for 9S’s hacking is low.”
She had ignored it, but Pod kept talking.
“Recommendation: Abandonment of 9S.”
“Shut up! If 9S said he can do it, he can!”
Pod finally muted after 2B yelled at it. 9S’s hacking had saved her from countless desperate situations. Covering 9S while he did that was her responsibility.
At the same time, she felt a slight pain. Before she knew it, they were fighting together again. But to 9S she was…
No. This was not the time to think about that.
“Report: Enemy’s network detachment confirmed.”
She looked over her shoulder at 9S. The chassis that had been still suddenly moved with a jolt. She saw that, and resumed her attacks on Eve.
She sidestepped the kicks and dodged the blows, slashing at every opportunity. There was no indication that his wounds were healing. If it was like this, she thought, she could destroy him.
She was certain that she was inflicting damage. Just a little bit more. That thought created a lapse in her attention.
The impact came right as she recognized that she was in trouble. She had suffered a direct hit. She had tried to block the blow using her sword at the last second, but was unable to mitigate all of the impact. The sword broke into pieces with a high-pitched clang. It took all her effort to resist getting thrown off her feet.
The blows were coming again. She was staggering, unable to dodge.
Right at that instant, something jumped out from behind her. It was 9S, leaping. She could see that his arms were covered by rubble, similar to Eve. He had probably learned how to attract and use the surrounding metal fragments as a shield when he had hacked Eve. 9S was just mimicking him.
“Eve!” shouted 9S.
Eve’s reaction was marginally delayed because he had been so focused on finishing off 2B. The rubble-enveloped arm of 9S collided with the rubble-enveloped arm of Eve. She heard a thunderous roar. A shock wave followed.
“2B! Now!” screamed 9S after he was blown away.
Apparently Eve had been unable to soften the impact, and was lurching backward. 2B pulled out her large sword. Right now, even a weapon with a slower arc would accomplish the task.
She pounded the large sword into Eve, who was still struggling to straighten himself. Eve stopped the blade with his right hand. She put even more of her strength into it. She put her full weight into the strike.
With a dull sound Eve’s arm was severed and rolled onto the floor. Screams filled the air. She slashed once again.
Eve’s screams shifted. 2B’s great sword was blasted out of her hand. It was an EMP attack. She wasn’t able to hold her ground. Her knees gave way and she collapsed to the floor.
“Warning: NFCS destroyed. Impairments to close combat.”
Even so, she stood up and picked up the broken sword. She was so close. One more hit, and she could destroy Eve.
Perhaps he had exhausted all his energy on the EMP attack, as Eve was not moving. He was on his knees, with his head hanging forward.
“Big…brother…”
She approached him while he looked at the ground.
“1 d1dn’t need…anyth1ng else…”
Was that why he had halted the functions of all the other Machines? Was he scattering all this anger and hate, which should be directed solely at 2B, at anyone in sight because he wanted to get rid of a world without Adam?
What a selfish, Machine-like thing to do. Much more selfish than herself, a part of the YoRHa squadron, who was forbidden from experiencing emotion…
2B held up the broken sword. Sweeping away any hesitation, she swung the sword into the back of Eve’s neck. Eve collapsed. She confirmed that his unique signal had disappeared. He was completely nonfunctional.
“That’s…all…”
It was over. She exhaled and looked up at the sky. She heard her sword, the one she had been holding, clatter to the ground.
She had scratches and bruises everywhere, to a point that it was questionable if she could walk straight. 9S was probably the same. First they would go back to the resistance camp and get a checkup, then receive maintenance at the Bunker, and…
It was then, just as she was thinking ahead, that she thought she heard a groan behind her.
“9S?”
There was no reply. Quickly looking back, she saw 9S clawing at his neck.
“9S!”
She wanted to run to him, but her legs wouldn’t listen. She lumbered toward 9S, frustrated. His goggles had probably come off when he was blasted away. She could clearly see the color of 9S’s eyes.
“When I was detaching Eve from the network… It seems my logic board was corrupted.”
“No…”
9S looked like he was about to cry and laugh at the same time. His eyes were tainted red. It was a typical symptom of logic virus infection. At this stage, administering a vaccine would be useless.
“It’s okay. I can rewind using the data at the Bunker.”
“But… Then the current you will never come back…”
It was possible that he had backed up during the data overhaul the other day. But all the data from the overhaul up until now would be erased. The 9S who had jumped out from a flight unit, the 9S who had detached Eve from the network by hacking him, the 9S who had saved 2B moments before she was to be finished off, and the 9S who knew that they had defeated Eve together…would be gone.
“That’s true… But there’s no way I can upl0ad c0rrupted data t0 the Bunker…”
There were some unintelligible sounds mixed in with his words. The virus corruption was progressing in his personal data.
“Please…2B. I…”
9B’s face distorted from the pain. There was only a short amount of time left that 9S could remain conscious as 9S.
“By y0ur…hands…”
She knew what he was trying to say. Androids infected by a logic virus would lose control, and keep attacking their comrades until they died. The infected had to be executed before that happened.
She held 9S’s face in her hands, and said, “I got it.” Maybe it was her imagination, but she thought she saw a smile.
She slid her hands down toward 9S’s neck. It was more painless to use a bladed weapon and pierce the heart, but since her Near Field Combat System was destroyed that was out of the question.
She put all her weight into her hands, and throttled his neck. 9S’s limbs shook furiously, but became still right away.
“Why… It always…”
Why did it always end like this? No matter what she did, why was she unable to escape from her destiny to kill 9S?
How many times did this make? How many times had she killed 9S?
9S was an exceptional scanner, even among his peers. But that competence led to uncovering confidential information about Command. His competence at hacking led to unauthorized attempts at accessing the main server. Every time that happened, Command would issue an execution directive.
2E would change her name to 2B, approach 9S, and execute him. After the execution, his memory was compromised, and any confidential information erased. Of course, information regarding 2B’s actions and her real identity, 2E, were erased as well.
That’s why every time they would meet on a new mission, 9S would call her “Ms. 2B.” 2B was the only one who knew they had repeated the same conversations over and over.
“Nines…”
The current 9S didn’t even remember that 2B had used to call him by his nickname, Nines. He also wasn’t aware of the amount of time they had spent together—far longer than he could remember.
She knew that it was her duty to execute her comrades. She would execute comrades that had been immobilized in battle, and at times would execute deserters or traitors. That was her mission as a Type E: E for executioner.
But every time she executed 9S and erased his memory, she was overcome with pain to the point where she wanted to abandon her mission and get executed herself.
Even so, she reappeared as 2B every single time because of their promise. He had a wish that no matter how much of his memory was lost he still wanted to see her, and that she should kill him without hesitation. 2B always granted him his wish.
Her tears dampened the cold cheek of 9S. She didn’t want to have emotion, but she couldn’t avoid the grief. How many times would she have to feel this way again? How many times would she have to say, “Nice to meet you,” to 9S? How many times would she have to hide her true feelings?
She had tried to think of the first 9S she had killed as the real 9S, and every successive 9S as just a copy. She had tried to justify it by telling herself she was only killing a copy of him.
But she wasn’t able to fool herself. No matter how many times she told herself that he was a copy, the agony of killing him didn’t go away. The 9S in front of her was always the real 9S.
This time an execution directive hadn’t even been issued. She had thought that maybe 9S would finally be able to remain 9S. If only he hadn’t been infected by a logic virus.
So whether or not there was an execution directive, there was no escaping her destiny to kill 9S…
“I thought…maybe this time you would finally be able to remain as yourself…”
How much time passed as she cried? She felt a presence, and raised her head.
The head of a Machine lay on the ground nearby. Its eyes were glowing blue.
“They’re…still alive.”
Because of a Machine like this. The current 9S had died because of them. Roaring fury replaced anger. She picked up her broken sword, struggling to stay on her feet.
“A Machine like this!”
Right as she was about to crush the head, the surrounding Machine remains collectively started to emit a blue glow. The flickering light spread around the whole area.
“What is this? A transmission?”
What was it signaling? A Machine with blue eyes did not attack. Pascal and his villagers were a good example. What message were the Machines trying to convey by flickering their blue eyes, a sign of nonhostility?
Eventually, a nearby Machine stood up. Its eyes were blue, but it was a walking type far larger than 2B. 2B readied her sword. It had recovered, but she wondered if it was able to fight…
“W-wait! 2B!”
Fluent speech. It had called her 2B.
“You are…?”
2B widened her eyes. Impossible. How could such a thing happen? It had the same tone of voice as 9S.
“I guess I left my personal data behind on the Machine network. Before I knew it I was being reconstructed on the surrounding network. It’s a really rare experience to have multiple reconstructions of myself, so I want to record it, but I haven’t been able to access the save function, so I guess I’ll copy my memory over onto some enemies, and after I get back into my own body…”
“9S!” interrupted 2B. This rambling. 9S did this when he was intrigued by something. Even if the voice and appearance were different, 2B could tell that this was 9S.
“Thank goodness…”
“Yeah.”
The Machine stuck out its hand. After 2B climbed on, 9S gently lifted his arm, as if he wanted to get a better look of her face. 2B gazed endlessly into the glowing blue eyes.
May 2 of the year 11945. A super Goliath-class Machine appeared on the coast of the flooded city. It sank aircraft carrier Blue Ridge II, and attempted to come ashore. In an effort to prevent this catastrophe, all nearby YoRHa squadron troopers engaged in battle. Destruction of the aforementioned enemy was successful.
However, after inflicting a massive amount of damage to his allied troops via an EMP explosion, YoRHa squadron trooper 9S was struck down farther inland. 9S was abducted by enemy Machine Adam, and put in confinement for a prolonged period.
After 9S was rescued, a data overhaul was performed. A problem arose during its last sequence. While syncing data with the Bunker’s server, 9S detected a small noise and halted the operation. In order to investigate the origin of the noise, 9S accessed the main server.
During the investigation, 9S came across an abnormal firewall. 9S breached the firewall, and despite warnings from this program, acquired data. 9S eventually came across the index for the above top secret “Project YoRHa.”
It had been anticipated during the project’s planning stages that 9S’s excellence as a scanner would possibly prompt him to discover the classified project. As expected, 9S had discovered the files a number of times in the past with unauthorized access to the main server.
This program usually accompanies 9S as a support unit, but is instructed to immediately notify Command and Model E when it detects an unauthorized attempt to access the server.
This time it had again informed Command when the main server was breached. Under normal circumstances, immediately after receiving the report, Commander White would issue an execution directive to 2B, formally known as 2E. Then 2E would immediately reset 9S’s personal data and perform partial memory erasure.
However, this time the responses were remarkably different. The Commander did not issue an execution directive to 2E, and furthermore lent the chip with an overview of the human board and Project YoRHa to 9S. These actions were incomprehensible.
June 26 of the year 11945. The full-scale invasion plan of Earth commenced. Due to the loss of nucleus units Adam and Eve, there was disorder in Machine governance. 2B and 9S participated in battle as part of the commando unit.
It is predicted that the initiation of our publicly unannounced mission is in the near future.
Report: From Pod 153 to Pod 042. This will conclude documentation within the internal network.
Recommendation: Preparation of the final sequence.