Systems Online. Those were the first words I remember since the incident. I'm not really sure where to start my story…. I guess I'll just start with when I woke up and saw the words Systems Online.
I felt like I was floating in a dream. My mind was hazy and I couldn't even remember my own name for a moment. "Oh… right… It's… Milly… Milly Mercon…. Where am I?" The only light I saw came from the words Systems Online" in front of me. They were glowing green and illuminated an otherwise complete darkness. I reached out for it but something stopped me. When I looked to see what I saw chains in the green light. I tugged on it and while it remained firmly secure, it let me move a little bit but not much. I tested my other arm and found that it was chained as well, and my legs were chained as well when I tried to move them.
"Why am I chained? W-where am I?" A screen replaced the words and I saw the inside of a warehouse. There were two men in the distance and the video screen zooms in on them. One was in a business suit and the other was in some sort of grey jumpsuit. That's when I heard them talking.
"Are you sure they're ready?" asked the businessman.
The man in the jumpsuit shrugged. "Ready is a subjective term… but… I would say no."
The businessman looked agitated. "What do you mean they're not ready?! I was promised you'd have them done by now."
The jumpsuit man only shrugged again. "I'm sorry Mr. D, but while we have the mechanical side of things down, the computer systems are giving us trouble, especially that one." He pointed strait at the camera, causing me to flinch. "The H-Type Cores we've developed may be more advanced than the normal ones but they've also proven more difficult to control."
Mr. D looked at the camera again, and I just couldn't help but feel he was looking at me. "What do you mean?"
"Well, for one while they're able to handle more things at once the way they were created means that their more able to ignore what we tell them to do, and as you can see we've had to tie them down."
"Tie them down? Is he referring to my chains?" I thought to myself. I wanted to see more of the warehouse and as if it heard me the camera moved from side to side and I couldn't believe what I was seeing. To the camera's right there were Cannon Turtle zoid, all tied up with chains to keep it from moving. To the camera's left there were several Godos tied up in a similar manner and beyond them was a Command Wolf. My eyes widened with shock. I heard the two men talking again but this time there was surprise in their voices.
"Wait, what's the Shield Liger doing awake!?" yelled Mr. D. That one line seemed to cut through me like nothing else. If they were referring to the camera, then that meant I was controlling a Shield Liger. I began to tug on the chains more, trying to break free and I saw that from the motions of the camera and the reactions from the workers in the hanger the liger was doing something as well. I fought harder and alarms started to blare, so I fought harder.
As I did my world began to light up all around me. The video screen grew larger and began to get more detailed, showing heat signatures of nine people I couldn't see, the weapons equipped on the liger, power levels and I even saw radar mapping out the room as I struggled. A warning appeared on screen as soldiers began to line up in front of the liger armed with RPGs. They fired and I raised my arms defensively instinctively.
It was in that moment my chains broke free.
I waited for the screen to go black but it didn't. I felt like something was around me. Lowering my arms, I saw that the shield was up. Everyone was stunned, none more so than me. I looked around and the camera moved with my eyes. "Maybe…" I said to myself. I took a step forward and while the screen stayed the same distance from me, the liger took a step forward. The soldiers recoiled and someone was calling for them to resume firing. Some did but it was sporadic. Deciding that it was probably not a good idea to stick around I made a break for it, leaping over the soldiers and lowering the shield. A wall was coming up fast and I searched for a means to fire the shock cannons. I don't know how it happened, but the weapon did fire. Obliterating the wall and giving me a clear path to the outside.
The radar map updated as it gathered new information. I was on a mountain, in a walled complex with a few other buildings as large as the one I just broke out of but I didn't have much to time think as I raised the shields again to block the turret fire coming from a couple of watch towers. I ran towards the gates, my shield absorbing the assault from the towers. I only lowered them for a moment so I could fire the shock cannons again at the gatehouse, making a hole big enough for the liger to slip through. As I maneuvered it through the gap I felt a sharp pain in my leg, causing me to nearly collapse.
At the same time a damage readout appeared on the screen saying the liger was hit in the back left leg. I widened my eyes at the implications. Not only did that mean I felt whatever pain the liger did, but I also couldn't run as fast. I turned to see what hit me, and there was a Saber Tiger right there growling, it's back mounted beam cannons smoking and pointed right at me. I was considering my options when another window opened up, only this time it was a video call. It was a military looking man who was probably controlling the tiger.
"Well done getting this far, but you won't get any farther." He said. I didn't really read him for the sarcastic type, and I think he actually praised me.
I tried talking back. "Please… just tell me what happened to me, where am I? What is all this?"
The man looked surprised as he responded. "You… can talk?"
"Of course I can you idiot! I'm human!" I responded in an irritated tone. I winced as I said it because I probably didn't help my case. He just stood there staring at me for what seemed like eternity before speaking.
"I'm... afraid that isn't the case anymore ma'am. You have my condolences." He seemed saddened having to tell me this. It took me a moment to realize what he actually meant. I wasn't controlling the shield liger… I was the shield liger.
"No… no no no no no! This… this isn't right. I can't be!" I was freaking out and backing away. The man looked glumly at me as he piloted his tiger to pursue me. As I inched nearer to the cliff the more deliberate the tiger's movement's became. I noticed the everyone stopped firing but even so I kept the shield on just in case someone got trigger happy. "Get back! Please… I just… I just want to be left alone…"
"I'm sorry. I can't do that, come with me, we'll help you learn- "
"NO!" I yelled, cutting off the transmission. I was prepared to make a break for it but the rock beneath me broke and I began to fall down the mountain.
