Fractured
"Anemone said the suspicious activity was around here, right?" 9S asked from his position atop the run-down, rusted bus.
"Around this end of the mall, yes," 2B answered, taking her own stance at the edge of the overgrown road. "In addition to several of her people going missing around here, she also said there are been reports of an unknown entity skulking around, though all attempts to investigate it ended in nothing."
"Something tells me that those two are connected somehow."
"I agree, and with frequent the disappearances have become, Anemone is worried how much worse it could become."
The recent weeks have been busy, to say the least.
YorHa was gone. The Organization that had pledged itself to the Glory of Mankind no longer existed, and 2B was still found herself with a deep and heavy feeling in her gut at the prospect. They were gone and she was still here, even though she had no right to be, but 9S was alive as well. He was here, in front of her, and she knew that he was going to stay there, and never again would get that order.
Sometimes she wanted to cry, that the suffering she had caused had come to an end.
Sometime she wanted to cry because she was afraid that this would turn into a nightmare and the order would still come through.
In the time since they had woken up, 2B and 9S had worked more with the Resistance, who had since begun restoring a section of the city to become inhabitable for the remaining androids. The incidents of hostile machines had drastically dropped, and with the exception of a few stragglers, most of the machines who wandered the city aimlessly had join to either form communities of their own, or join one of the small remaining ones, with even a few joining the rebuilding efforts. The last time she had spoken to A2, she had mentioned that a few machines had taken to staying in Pascal's village.
Humanity was gone, as well as their alien invaders, only leaving androids and machines to pick up the pieces, and she didn't know where this road would lead them.
She was suddenly dragged out of her thoughts by the shattering of glass and metal crashing against the ground. Both she and 9S were quick to draw their weapons, 042 and 153 ready to fire at any possible threat, but what had caught their attention could not seem to be any less of a threat; a machine, a small stubby, had crashed through a glass door of the mall and from the look of it, it appeared as though it could not be a threat if it tried.
It was covered in large gashes, chunks of its armor crudely cut away, a piece of its head missing from the back, as well as missing an arm and a leg, and oil of pouring from its wounds in large rushes.
"H-Help-p," it croaked, feebly reaching for them, one of its eyes dead.
9S bolted for it, with 2B close behind, keeping an eye out for either a trap of some sort, set by either the machine before them or whoever it was that did this too it.
"What happened to you?" he asked, kneeling down next to it, placing a hand on its chassis.
"K-k-illed-d-d them aaaalllllllllllllll..." The gave a rattling noise as its remaining eye popped in a small shower of sparkles, before it dropped dead, the oil leaking dripping to an end.
"I think it's gone," he said, standing back up to face 2B. "And with how badly it's been damaged I don't think we could have done anything for it."
"Ah..." 2B said with a sigh. She turned, observing her environment, trying to spot something, anything that could have caused this, but her attention ended up being drawn back to the door the machine crashed through, and to the trail of oil that lead into the dark interior of the mall.
"You think this could be related to those disappearances Anemone wanted us to investigate?" 9S asked, having already caught onto her trail of though.
"Something tells me that this is too much a coincidence to be otherwise."
"Yeah, sent out to find out where androids have vanished off to, only to find a near-dead machine crying out that someone killed them all. It's worth a look."
He was the first one to step through the door, and only a second later did 2B follow him, and travel into the depths of the mall.
000
"So why isn't the mall used by the Resistance?" 2B asked as they walked through the dead mall, passing long empty stores, their pods providing light and allowing them to see. "There's a lot room in here, and it seems like it would better suit their operations better than the lot they use."
"I actually asked Anemone about that once," 9S explained. "She said they they actually once planned to have this place be their center of operations, but when they went deep enough in they found a colony of hostile machines, and they weren't able to get rid of them all, so they decided to move shop somewhere else. One of the alternatives was the sewers but-agh!" He tripped, stumbling briefly before he regained his foot.
"You should watch were you're going," was 2B's response, her path slightly diverging her path as to avoid whatever it was he had tripped over.
"Yeah yeah," he said as he turned around coming to a halt and looking back the way they had come, eyes turning to where he had tripped. "I hear y-oh..."
"Oh? Is something-oh." She gave a pause as she looked down at what was at his feet.
"Observation: It would appear to be a severed android hand."
"Thank you, 042," 2B replied. "That is... helpful."
The hand sat there, a pool of dried blood beneath it, staining a titles in a dark coat.
"That's another mood setter right there," 9S said dryly. "I don't see a body that it could have been attached anywhere, and it looks like it's been here for a while too. You think they might have escaped?"
"I wouldn't get those hopes up." Taking a looked down the darkened halls, 2B continued on her way. "Stay behind me, there's clearly something in here, so he have to be vigilant."
"Got it." He made to follow, and taking one last look at the hand before he walked as close to her as he could.
000
They continued on, and as they did more evidence of the perpetrator began to appear more; machine oil and android blood were more common place, sprayed on the walls and floors, splattered against signs and benches, and according to the Pods there was even animal blood mixed in there as well. More body parts began to strewn about as well, mostly severed limbs from androids, machines and even the aforementioned animals, but never was there an entire body, just small pieces.
Where were the bodies? They had wondered.
Eventually they received their answer.
They entered the heart of the mall, the massive room that acted as the hub, where the rest of what the mall had to offered could easily be accessed, and it was here they found the bodies. Androids, machines, animals, all sorts of bodies and blood littering the chamber, seemingly tossed around with no care of position, pools of blood puddling around. Machines hacked into bits, androids all covered in haphazard stab wounds, and varying animals, from birds to moose that looked like they had been torn apart. The stench of rotting flesh filled the air, the fetid smell invading their sense of small, and behind her she could hear 9S gag. She wanted to gag herself, but she kept that under control herself.
In the center of everything, amongst this massive field of corpses was a tree, ancient and massive, its long dead branches reached for the streams of sunlight pouring through the shattered skylight. More blood was coating the lower reaches of the trunk, as well as marked with long gashes that had been cut into it.
"Warning: Black Box signal detected," Pod 153 called out.
"What? Where?" 9S answered, quickly turning, trying to find out where the signal was coming. "Friend or foe you think?"
2B already had her sword in her grasp. "I don't know-wait? Up there!"
Her finger extended upwards, pointing to the large and twisted branches above them, and laying down on one of them, face up to the sky, and an arm limply dangling, appeared to be an android.
2B and 9S briefly exchanged glances before separating from one another, moving in opposite directions; 2B moving closer from the left while 9S distanced himself from the right. They didn't know who this was, or if they were a threat, but it was to approach this with caution.
Suddenly the android groaned, their body shifting on the branch, which forced 2B and 9S to halt in their advancements and observe the unknown android's actions.
"Who's there?" it asked. The voice was obviously female, but it was hoarse, with an audio distortion that put a slight layer of static on the words. She twisted her body and fell to the ground, landing on her feet,but not with a stumble that almost sent her crashing forward, but she was able to catch herself before she could fall flat on her face. With her on the ground floor, and stepping into the better a light, and to their horror they could see what they were dealing with.
In clothes were impossible to identify in any way other than the baggy way they hung off from her frame, and this was due to the fact that they appeared to be soaked in blood and oil, caking her in layers that had long since dried and fresh, and everything in between. This staining continued onto the sword she had gripped in her right hand, and with the way her first was shaking 9S wondered just how tightly it was clutched in her grip, or even if she had the ability to get it go; the sword itself was in terrible shape, it was badly chipped along the remaining half of he sword, spots of bloodied rust along its length.
Despite these observations, they were not the more unsettling however; the skin on her left hand, as well as the left side of her face, had been torn off, the layers removed as far down as the black under-plating. Unlike A2, who appeared to have had her skin cleanly removed enough that replacement patches could be easily applied, this android's skin looked like it had been torn away, leaving jagged tears along the synthetic flesh where it had been ripped from.
"W-Who are you?" she asked, her sights turning to 2B. "Do I know you?"
2B could now clearly see what remained of the android's face, with her missing skin, exposed jaw and missing left eye, while her remaining right eye had been dull and gray. Her hair was short, and either brown or a dark red, it was hard to tell through the blood.
"I think before I give you my name, you should tell me who you are," 2B answered, wondering if the android knew 9S was behind her, preparing to strike her at the first sign of trouble.
The android stared at her, the remaining eye glaring, before her head shook and said eye clutched tightly as her free hand suddenly rose up and struck her in the side of the head, a thick clank ringing through the room each time bare metal hit bare metal. "Six. Six. Six-teen. 16."
"16-what?" 2B asked firmly.
The android remained silent, her arm slowly lowering, eye staring intently at it.
"...e..." the whisper came out. "YoRHa No. 16 Type E. 16E."
Inside her chest, 2B's black box froze for a brief moment. "16E..."
Behind 16E, 9S raised his arm, palm outstretched and ready to hack into 16E, but 2B gestured with her own hand for him to stand down, and while he did seem to hesitate, he dropped his hand.
"16E, I want to ask you a question," 2B said, calm and steady. "The bodies around us, did you do this to them?"
"Y-yes, I did," 16E said, her head slowly nodding. "I had to."
"Why did you have to kill them?"
"Because I have to." 16E's voice was smaller, barely above a whisper. "I kill them all because that is what I am supposed to do." She suddenly cried out, stumbling backwards away from 2B and pointed her sword at her. "You're alive!" With a sudden burst of energy she spun around and aimed her weapon at 9S. "So are you!"
"Wait... Do you know u-?" The sentence couldn't even leave 9S's mouth before 16E screamed and launched herself at him, sword swinging down on him, but he was able to catch the sword on his own, locking the two blades with one another, resisting her as she tried to push him back.
2B was quick, instantly running to them just as 9S managed to throw 16E back, his own sword raised up to cut her down and-
2B kicked 16E in the gut, sending her flying into the air, raised her own sword to block 9S's strike.
"2B?" he cried out in confusion. "What are you-?"
"Do not kill her!" she ordered, her voice firm. "We use nonlethal force to subdue her, do you understand?"
"Y-Yes!" he stammered, caught off guard by 2B's actions. Behind her he could see 16E scramble up to her feet, growling like a feral animal, and for a moment he was worried that she was infected with a logic virus, but even in the dim light he could see that her eye was still blue.
16E let loose another loud scream and charged again, swinging wildly at 2B, who managed to successfully block or parry all her blows.
Executioners were unparalleled in single combat, able to easily overcome any android they were tasked with dealing with, but it was clear that 16E was in no condition to fight, her body too damaged and in dire disrepair, with a broken sword that looked like it wasn't far from breaking even further.
2B managed to hold her still, grabbing hold of her wrist and keeping her stationary just long enough for 9S to hack her and shut her down for the time being, but the moment he was able to hack into her he cried out and stumbled.
"Nines!" The moment of distraction was enough for 16E to pull herself free, and swing at 2B cutting into her arm once, but she managed to dodge away before another cut could be added. Missing her target, 16E roared and swung her sword at the ground.
"Are you okay?" 2B called out, reaching out to 9S as she was sprawled on the floor. "What happened in there?"
"That wasn't pleasant," 9S groaned, taking her hand and helping himself to her feet. "Her system is too scrambled, I can't get in there and disable her."
The two of them spun around as 16E let out a strangled cry, clawing at the ground as she scrambled to push herself to her feet, dirt and bits of discarded rubbish flying around her. Struggling to stand up, her legs looks as though they were ready to buckle underneath her, hardly able to support herself.
"16E!" 2B called out, a firm and demanding tone to her voice. "Stop this now! There is no reason to fight here. Just drop your sword and-"
"N-No, I have to kill you," 16E muttered allowed. "That's what I do, I k-kill. That's my designation. Machines, androids, friends enemies lovers. I kill them all. Type-E Executioner." She looked back at them, eye shifting between the two of them frantically before it settled on 2B. "You, you, I know-"
2B tensed as 16E's eye widened, stepping back in a panic and raising her sword in a shaking grip. From the corner of her vision she looked to 9S, and from the subtle movements on his face tightened as 16E concentrated on her, she knew he was already piecing things together.
"RUN!" 16E suddenly screamed, lunging herself at 2B, swinging her sword with a sudden strength she did not have previously, enough to almost cause 2B to be pushed to the ground had she not braced herself the moment before their swords connected. Trying to force her back, 16E moved herself, positioning herself between 2B and 9S, trying to keep 2B at bay. "I said run!" 16 cried out, looking over her shoulder and back to 9S.
9S's response was confusion. "What? You're the one who-"
"She'll kill you!"
For a moment, 2B's strength left her, the all too familiar heaviness coming back and growing inside her, deep in her chest.
"She's a Type-E!" 16E cried out, frantic. "She'll kill you! That's what she does!"
"16E," 2B tried to say, the name feeling like lead on her tongue. "Stop this, he-"
"Please stop please," cried 16E, a desperate and weak please. "Please don't kill him."
2B found herself defenseless as she was pushed back, losing her balance as she tripped over her own feet. If 16E had been a better state of body, the following slice from her sword would have been faster. have gone further, cutting deep into her chest instead of just lightly tearing at her dress, leaving a thin cut line across her abdomen.
She had enough time to roll out of the following stab, and jumped back up, landing on her feet afters quick and precise spin. Looking back at 16E, she could see a new found steadiness in her stance, in how she held her sword, and a determined clarity in her eye that had been absent up until this point. When she struck, it was faster, more precise, with more force behind each swing, but 2B it would not be enough to put her down, and even now it would be so easy for her to take the upper-hand, to overpower her...
Still, she finds herself holding back.
16E delivered a quick kick to 2B's stomach, knocking the air out of her as she was flew through the air, crashing against a crumbling pillar before crumbling to the ground as her opponent rushed at her. 9S jumped between them, blocking 16E with his own sword, the power behind her strike enough to send him to one knee, but he still held the sword back from cutting her down.
The damaged android suddenly scrambled back, tripping over her own feet and falling onto her back, pushing herself away from the two of them.
"I told you to run!" 16E cried out between labored breathes. "She's going to kill you! She-"
"I know about all of that!" 9S shouted, resulting in 16E flinching at the sound and volume of his voice. "I know everything about her, how she was supposed to kill me, how she has killed me, how her actual designation is really 2E."
Only a handful of times had 9S every said the name '2E', and every time he had, it left a the taste of bile in her mouth, a nasty reminder of everything she had taken from him, and her powerlessness to do anything to stop it. How she had failed him, time and time again without fail. She hated being 2E.
"But despite all that," 9S continued, his voice softening as he took a careful step toward her. "I still don't blame her for any of it, and even if I have no memory of the things she's done, I know I always forgave her."
She didn't deserve him in her life.
Across from them, 16E shook, her face marred with confusion, as though she had trouble understanding what it was 9S was trying to tell her.
"No..." she whimpered, her head shaking. "No. No, no, no... You don't-You can't-" A pained growled tore itself from her throat as she pulled herself up, her body trembling under the strain of her own weight. "You HATE her." Her free hand reached up, gripping at the damaged side of her face, and slowly her fingers began to claw into her skull. "She kills you, again and again, and again, and she keeps doing it. You're supposed to hate the people that kill you because they deserve it." Metal scrapped as her hand raked from her temple to her jaw, only for it to move back up and to keep doing it, scratching at what remained of her face. "She'll keep hurting you because that's what they want, because they won't let it end."
"16E." 2B jumped up to her feet, to stand beside 9S. "YoRHa is gone, Command is gone. There is no one left to issue those orders." Carefully, 2B continued forward, one foot in front of the other as she made her way to 16E, extending a hand out to her. "You don't... WE don't have to follow those order anymore. It's over now." Despite her best efforts to remain calm and collected, she could hear the hitch in her voice. "So please-"
"LIAR!" 16E screamed, managing to finally get up to her feet. "It can't be over! Not as long as we're here to kill them! Type-Es must be erased. All Executioners must be executed!"
"16E!"
"I'LL KILL YOU 2E!" She launched herself into an attack, swinging her blade in long and winding arcs, forcing 2B back, but even so, the strikes, swung with reckless abandon and aggression, were easy to dodge or block.
Suddenly, with one last block, 16E's sword broke in half, reducing to a measly six inches of chipped and rusted metal, and it was because of this that she lost her balance, giving 2B the perfect moment to make her move. She spun 16E around and wrapped one arm around her neck, holding her in a tight grip while her other hand gripped the wrist of her sword-wielding arm, extending it as far away as she could, holding it with enough force that it would be easy to snap it off.
But she didn't. She didn't want to hurt 16E more than she needed to.
"16E, stop this now! Calm down!"
16E's response was to scream and cry, clawing at 2B's arm while she struggled to free her sword, her legs kicking out wildly in the air.
"We're going to have to find a way to subdue her," 9S called out. "If we don't do something now she'll-2B! Watch out!"
The air around her began to crackle and fizzle as heat began to gather around her, and a deep red light coming from 16E's body, and in that moment she knew what was happening.
If it was intentional, a subconscious act of desperation, 2B did not know, but 16E had activated her self-destruct sequence.
With only a brief moment to act, 2B tried to throw her away, but she wasn't quick enough before the explosion happened, a minor EMP ripping through the air, knocking her and 9S to the ground while parts of 16E's body ruptured and came apart.
Dead and discolored pixels littered 2B's vision as she struggled to get up, but she fought through the pain and numbness in her body as she looked back to where she had tossed 16E, only to find her in a crumpled heap on the ground.
Self-destruct was a last resort option, only to be used when there seemed to be no other option in a battle scenario, something to destroy whatever enemies that were surrounding the android in question. It left them in a critical state, heavily damage, but not beyond repair, but 16E's body was already damaged before hand, and the resulting explosion was far more devastating than usual.
Her free hand was gone, blown away at the shoulder, one of her legs hung limply on her body, bending at an unnatural angle, and through the blood covering her face, 2B could see that her remaining eye was heavily damaged, and she was almost certain that she had no vision left.
She gasped and cried where she laid, her voice even further garbled, almost unrecognizable. "It has to end..." 16E croaked, using her remaining arm to slowly drag herself over to a bench, her body nearly unable to support itself as she managed to prop herself up against it. "We have to pay..." Her arm shook as she tried to push herself up further, but all that managed to accomplish was her leg collapsing underneath her, sending her back to the floor with a pained cry. "I just-I just..." The wretched sobs escaped her as her body jerked forward, trying desperately to cling to the bench. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!" she wailed, her breath choking out of her. "I didn't want too, but I had to! It was my orders, I had to follow my orders! I'm so sorry!"
"It's going to be okay, 16E," 2B said as she slowly made her way over to the fallen android. "I know what you went though, but we don't have to go through that again."
"It has to stop, I just want it to stop..." Raising the remains of her sword, 16E pointed it directly at at her, her arm wavering and barely able to keep it us. 2B found herself hesitating, but with how heavily 16E was bleeding, she knew she couldn't just-
16E then stabbed her sword through her chest.
"No!" 2B cried out, dashing to her, catching her body as she fell over.
"I'm sorry," 16E sobbed, her arm now free of her sword, gripping weakly to one one of 2B's shoulders,trying to hold onto her for dear life, burying herself in the other. "I'm so sorry, 10B. I'm sorry..."
She stopped, no more movement, no more sounds came from her. According to 042, her black box was dead.
000
2E pressed herself against the stone wall, looking over to the large and thick wooden door by her side, while on the other side 16E took her position, hand on her sword.
'The targets should be in here,' read the message on her HUD.
'This is the only entrance to the building,' said another message, this one from 7E, who was just behind her. 'Unless there are underground tunnels, there is only once chance.'
'They've likely set up a trap,' 2E sent with her own message.
'This is the only option we have,' sent 16E. '7E, on my mark, I want you to go first. Proceed with caution.'
Silently, 7E moved past 2E, placing her hand on the door and crouched down, sword gripped tightly while her fist weapons floated behind her.
'Now.'
With a heavy creak, 7E moved the door, shining light into large dark room before them, and carefully stepped inside, her steps echoing through the chamber. The seconds passed slowly, heavily on their shoulders as they awaited conformation, and with a careful wave of 7E's hand, 16E and 2E approached her and began to survey the room.
It was hard to see much, pillars toppled over, large chunks of debris laying around, and it seemed like the windows had long ago been sealed away with stone. 7E's earlier reconnaissance was right, there was only one way in and out of this place.
What was this building called again? A church? Was that what he called them? It didn't matter, not now at least.
'We don't know where they are,' 2E messaged. 'But in this chamber they could-'
"Look out!" 7E cried out, and 2E suddenly found the first weapons striking her in the stomach, sending her flying back in to the wall. Before impact, she saw 7E, arm outstretched as she commanded her weapon, and a spear fly out from the darkness and pierce her head, cleanly tearing through it, and judging from the angle it had been thrown at, its user was aiming for two.
She could already hear 7E's aggravated lamentation as she was once again killed at the start of a combat scenario.
A figure than appeared from above, a sword in their hand as they descended from above, aiming for 16E, but android jumped out of the way and swung her own weapon, catching it on the reacquired spear on their opponent.
8E had already made the first move, and had already terminated 7E, but if she was there where was-
2E rolled out of the way just as the greatsword came down on her, taking a large chunk of the wall she was against, and upon fully recovering, she found herself staring into the eyes of 5K. Not a single word was said between them as he launched another attack.
Approximately eighty-seven days ago, Units 8E and 5K had officially been registered as YoRHa deserters, and a squad forming of herself, 16E and 7E had been formed with the purpose of hunting them down and executing them. It was only five days ago had they managed to pick up the trail and followed it to this church on the northern coast of Ireland, where they had them cornered.
Typically, she's not assigned to missions that are expected to go on for this long, not anymore, but for whatever reason, Command decided to send her. Who was she to question her orders?
For the targets themselves, she knew nothing of 5K, and beyond what was necessary for the mission, she had no desire to learn anything about him. She couldn't say she knew much about 8E as well, only that she was an older android, who has been online than everyone on her squad put together, someone with experience, someone who could prove dangerous.
She also knew that 5K was her continued assignment, and because of that, she felt she knew everything she needed to know. It was also because of that fact that she had spent this whole mission thinking one thing: Why?
As a Type-E, and an older one at that, she would know better than anyone what desertion would mean for her and 5K when they were caught. Trying to run away would never result in anything good, there was only one possible way this could ever end.
The fight between her and 5K did not last long. Her sword cleanly stabbed into his chest, and with one quick pull it exited out through his side, tearing his black box into pieces, and with a pained gasp being the last things he spoke, he fell to the ground, his sword clattering beside him loudly. The sounds coming from the opposite end of the room, the sounds of metal clashing against metal, of battle, came to an abrupt stop. When she glances back to them, it was just in time to see the sword fall from 8E's hand, for her to fall to her knees as a pained wail tore itself from her.
"No..." she cried, falling further, onto her arms, head pressed against the floor. "Not again..."
Immediately, 2E turned her attention back to 16E, who stood behind 8E, sword in hand, completely ignored by their target.
It always ends this way.
'Why', she wants to ask. 'Why put yourselves through this?'
She doesn't ask however, there's no point.
Whatever the reason, it's clear that 8E is no longer a threat, she has no intention of fighting back.
16E stood behind her, sword raised and poised to cut her through the back and through her black box, but instead of the quick thrust 2E expects, there was hesitation. The second dragged on as 16E stands there, 8E quietly sobbing into her arms being the only sound in the room.
"2E," 16E finally said, after a solid ten seconds of no action. "Secure the door. Now."
Again, 2E wants to ask why, but 16E was the assigned commanding officer on this mission, and 2E is nothing if not a good little soldier who follows her orders to the word, and so she walks ed to the door, taking her post to observe the outside.
The moments passed, and 2E could hear them speaking inside, but she couldn't hear what it was they were saying exactly, but the words stopped for a short time, and instead were replaced with the sound of them walking across the room. More silence followed, only interrupted by a brief murmuring. A wet crunch, the sound of metal and synthetic flesh being pierced. More silence followed, until the slow pace of footsteps approached her from behind her.
16E stood beside her as she exited the building, leaning against the wall for support.
"Call it in to Command, tell them the mission was a success, the targets executed, and that they'll have to load up 7E's most recent back up," she said, her voice low and solemn, and before 2E could say anything back to her, she quickly moved away, starting back up the path they took to get here.
She watched 16E's retreating back before she looked back inside the church, and there inside she saw 8E draped over K5's body, her face buried into his shoulder, and a gaping wound on her back.
000
Minutes later, when the call was made, and 2E had returned to where they had landed their flight units, 16E was sitting at the edge of the cliff, looking over the vast sea before them.
"It's done," she said, walking up to her flight unit. "It's time we head back to the Bunker."
To this, 16E had not responded.
"I said we should head back to the Bunker."
Again, no response.
As she repressed a sigh, 2E stepped away from her flight unit and towards her squad mate. "16E, can you hear-"
"Please don't take my memories away," 16E said, her voice low and hoarse, giving 2E pause.
"What?"
"Her last request. She was okay with being killed, but she didn't want to lose her memories, not the memories of K5."
"...That's impossible, she would have known that. Even if they don't decommission her, they'll just factory reset the two of them, and they'll never be assigned to any missions where they are likely to run into one another."
"Maybe that's why she asked to die with him. One last moment together before she faced oblivion."
"She should have just accepted the reality she had been dealt. It... It would have been better in the end. For both of them."
"Emotions are prohibited, isn't that right, 2E?"
2E's mouth opened, just slightly for a response, but nothing came to her, she didn't know what to say.
16E however, didn't seem like she needed one. "Yeah, I guess that's what it is."
Nothing else was said as between them as 16E left the rock she sat upon and entered her flight unit, and in seconds she was already a streak in the sky.
For longer than she would have liked, 2E remained behind before she followed.
000
Not even two full days went by before 2E found herself with the need to seek out 16E to talk to her, to...
To what? She didn't know, but she needed to talk with her.
Though she had not seen her since they debriefed with the Commander upon arrival, she had been informed by 6O, who had gotten in contact with 16E's own operator, that she had not been dispatched from the Bunker yet, though she was scheduled to leave soon, very soon.
She was relieved when she found her, staring out through a window, and to the planet below.
"16B, do you mind if I speak with you for a moment?"
"Hm? Oh, hey 2B."
Their true designations were only to be referred to during appropriate missions, and in all other instants they were to only one another by their cover ups, as were the same with many Type-Es. As far as most other androids were concerned, they were 16B and 2B.
She much preferred to be called 2B.
"I know you have to leave soon, so I'll try and make this quick, but I want to talk to you about the mission we had the other day. Due to how classified it is, I think we should find somewhere private to-"
"I'm sorry, but I have to stop you right there," interrupted 16E. "But, what mission are you talking about?"
She was caught off guard by the statement.
"The mission. From the other day. In Ireland. 7E was with us."
With the blindfold over 16E's eyes, it was impossible to tell just what she was trying to convey, but her tilting her head and folded her arms did not bode well with her.
"2B, I haven't seen you in weeks, let alone be on a mission with you, and I've never worked with 7E on anything."
Running a number of responses through her mind, 2B found herself unable to find a suitable line. The mission clearly had some sort of effect on her, but now she stood before her, seeming to have no recollection of the last three months. Just what had happened to her in the short time since they had returned?
"Do you... really not remember it?"
"Yeah, sorry I don't remember anything, but if you're saying we were on a mission, I'll check in with maintenance to see if there are any problems with my memory banks. Let's just hope I didn't forget anything too important."
For some reason, that statement stung.
"But I'll have to do that later, I have to get going for a mission, like now. Apparently they're assigning me a long term partner, someone designated 10B. Anyway, see you later 2B."
2B was then left alone, 16E jogging down the hall and soon out of sight, leaving her alone in this dull and stark place.
There was nothing new about 16E's partnership with 10B. In fact, the two had been partnered together longer than...
"What happened to you?" she asked softly to herself, turning her attention to the Earth.
However she had no time to further ponder on this before a voice came from behind her.
"Excuse me, you're 2B, right?"
One second. One second was all 2B allowed herself to fully recompose herself before she turned around.
"Yes, yes I am."
"Ah, that's good. I'm 9S, I'm supposed to be partnered with you starting today."
000
042 gently floated above the stream, though she had no real expectation that anything would bite today, she had tried fishing here several times before, but she had never caught more than a couple of small fish. That wasn't the point however, right how she just needed an out of sorts. From her position on the hood of an old rusted car, she could scarcely make out 9S' voice behind her as he spoke with Anemone, reporting back what had happened exactly. She didn't pay attention to what exactly he was conveying to her however, and it didn't matter, she knew what happened, that's all that mattered.
"Hey," came 9S' voice after a short time, walking walking up to the car.
"...hey," was her response, small and dull.
"Mind if I have a seat?"
She pushed herself over, moving along to the side of the hood to allow him a space to sit. He took it, sitting next to her, but not too close, to giver her space, and a comfortable silence came to life, the only sounds being the stream as it flowed.
Unfortunately, it had to end.
"So, that android," 9S said, calm and gentle. "16E?"
"...yeah."
"She was a friend of yours."
"We should get going," 2B said, jumping from the car, 042 returning to her side and she made her way from 9S. "Anemone will expect us back soon, so there's no reason to waste any time here more than needed."
"2B!" 9S called with an exasperated sigh. "You can't just-"
"There's no point in being here anymore, we have to-"
2B jerked back as 9S grabbed at her arm, holding her back from trying to run away. It would be easy to tear her arm from his grip, to simply walk away and continue on her way, and for a brief moment she had considered it, but the look in his eyes, a silent plea to know, to learn about her, to just understand her, drained her of that fleeting desire.
"2B," he said, firmly, calmly. "Tell me what's wrong."
Biting the inside of her lip, 2B couldn't help but turn away. "I..."
Emotions were prohibited. That was a mantra that she had repeated so many times that she had never bothered to keep count, always said in the futile attempt to steel herself from inevitable heartache and pain. It was hilarious how much those words failed her, time and time again, only causing her more grief.
But it didn't have to be like that anymore, she could be open with 9S about what was on her mind and how she felt, she wanted to more than anything else, and there was nothing to hold her back anymore. She could build her relationship with 9S up from something more than her lies and his deaths, she had every opportunity to be free and truthful.
So why was it so hard?
"I... We..." The words were hard to say, as though she had to pull them out from deep inside of her, firmly rooted in places. "Executioners, like me, we're not known for having a longstanding mental stability."
The grip on her arm loosened as 9S let go of her, slowly moving away from her, his touch lingering for a brief moment before complete separation. 2B wasn't certain if she was grateful for this or not.
Nonetheless, she continued. "The purpose of Executioners is to dispose of fellow androids for a variety of reasons. In the field, we'll end lives if they captured by enemy forces, or if they are dying and cannot be restored to a fully functioning manner, or we are charged with chasing down deserters or traitors."
If the previous confession was hard to say, what she would say next would feel like she was hauling boulders up from the bottom of the sea, but she had to say it. Needed to say it.
"Then, there were ones like me, like 16E. The ones who went undercover, posing as different android types, for the purpose of eliminating units who were known to be risks to YoRHa."
She wants 9S to stop her, tell her that she doesn't have to draw out these old memories, but at the same time she's thankful that he doesn't say anything, letting her continue.
"I can kill a thousand machines and it would never bother me, but killing a fellow android? It's different, it does something to you that I can't possibly describe, and we all had our own ways of dealing with it. Some, they chose to distance themselves to the extreme; for all the remarks I received about how impersonal I could be at times, I knew a few who just seemed entirely divorced from reality, never even registering they were carrying out their orders. There were ones who took to enjoying what they did, who convinced themselves to have fun with what they did and looked forward to their orders. They were unpleasant, disturbing. Some even decided to take their own lives.
"Others chose to run away, to desert YoRHa, some even taking their assigned targets with them, hoping they could just avoid those problems and never have to deal with that again. It never worked out for them however, they were always found in the end."
"You ever think about that?" 9S asked, his tone slightly uncertain. "Running away, I mean?"
"Once," she replied as the ghost a smile threatened to appear, but she was quick to squash it. "I thought of telling you everything, and taking you somewhere far away, but..."
"They could have sent someone after us, wouldn't they?"
She didn't want to think about what might be going through his head, wondering if she had been part of of those execution squads, who killed the shared dream others might have had. He wouldn't be wrong.
"What about 16E?" he continued. "What was her deal?'
"Her assigned unit was 10B. I don't know much about her, only that from what I heard from 16E she was exceptional soldier, enough so that Command saw no problem in bringing her back despite their continued orders for her execution. Eventually, to cope with her grief, 16E started to erase her memories, of the things she did, the androids she killed, even of 10B, and she did it often, and every time she did it she lost pieces of herself. I won't claim to know how much she lost, or how it lined up with her back-up saves, but once she forgot I was a Type-E."
"That sounds bad."
"It was, and once I figured out what was happening to her, it frightened me, more than anything."
"How so?"
"Because every time I saw her, I couldn't help but wonder if that would happen to me one day, would I become so desperate that I would just throw away pieces of me like that. I have no right to say this to you, but my memories, my memories of you 9S, are the most important thing I have, and if I ever reached the point 16E did, I think it would have been too much for me. Losing you, losing the memories of you, I think I would have preferred nonexistence to that."
"Oh 2B..."
Before she can could say anything, 9S already was on her, his arms wrapped around her and embraced her, gently place himself into the crook of her neck. She didn't know how much she needed this, not until she began to return the affection, holding him tightly against her, resting her head on his shoulder, a small stream of tears tracing down her cheeks.
Time passed, she did know how much, and it was of no real concern how long exactly, but eventually it was her that broke their embrace, but not before drying her tears on his coat.
"You okay now?" he asked.
"It felt good to get that off my chest." It really did, the feeling of a heavy strain on her had been lifted off of her, leaving her to feel lighter, though she did not at first realize how exhausted it had left her. "Just... thanks."
"No problem, I just want you to know that if you ever need to talk about anything, I'm here for you."
"I know, and again, thank you, Nines."
"Do you want to stay here a bit more, maybe clear your head or-"
"No, I think we should get going back to camp. I just want to be anywhere else right now, if that's okay."
With a nod from him, the two of them began to make their way back to the Resistance camp, and though it was a trip they could easy make in minutes, neither one wanted to waste the moment. Nothing was wrong with traveling at a leisurely stroll through the city ruins.
"Can I ask one more question? About 16E?" 9S asked after a short time.
"It depends," she replied back.
"Even though it was dark in there, and she had sustained major damage to her face, I couldn't help but get the feeling she looked familiar. Tell me, was she the person we met in the city? The one with the red hood who didn't know she killed her own friend?"
"...Yes. That was her."
"Ah, I see, I guess some things make a bit more sense now. At first I thought you were a bit jealous, but you were trying to prevent me from learning about Type-Es, weren't you?"
"That's right, I was afraid that 16E would out me, and if she did..." She was silent then, the words hanging heavily in the air, no real reason to finish the sentence. They both knew what she had left unspoken. "But she didn't, she didn't recognize me at all."
"I'm sorry we couldn't do anything for her, 2B, I really am, but I don't think there was anything we could have done. She looked pretty far gone."
"I know," came her reply, her voice tried and raw. "And from what I saw, if Command wasn't already considering her termination, they were close to doing so."
Slowing in her walking, 2B looked back over to her shoulder, to glance back at the mall that now served as 16E's tomb, and pondered how things could have turned out had things been different. If the Bunker never fell, how many more times would she have killed 9S by now? How many times before she live with herself anymore and did something drastic? Any number of possible outcomes could have happened to her, none of them good, all of them tragic. Would she have joined 16E in her fate, or something more gruesome?
In the end however, she's alive, even if she has no right to be. She's alive. 9S is alive, 9S is alive and she can live knowing she never has to end his life again. With the decrease in machine hostility, she had been forced to kill only a few machines, a number she could count on one hand, and that honestly made her happy, the idea that could go the rest of her life without taking another life. A strange thought for a Executioner, one that she once thought impossible, but here she was.
Maybe she does not deserve it, but she lived in the end, she has a future, one she can be hopeful about, and now it's up to her to decide what she wants to make with it.
Despite how grim the day had been so far, she's delighted at the prospect.
000
Please be well,
Mrfipp