Silence lingered in the late night as Shirou kept staring at his side of the pillow. After everything was said and done he was simply unable to close his eyes and fall asleep.
How could he do that when 2B almost killed herself?
The boy was quite curious to how he was even able to stay put in the bed given how utterly stressed he was. If he were alone, he would most likely keep going back and forth in the room.
Yet here he was, trying his best to stay put and not bother the person resting beside him.
He turned around slowly and glanced at the other side of the bed, staring blankly at the mop of white hair resting on the pillow.
Things today just kept going beyond what he expected.
After he finally managed to knock some sense back into 2B they returned home in utter silence.
It was only when he escorted the white haired android back to her room and was about to leave that he felt something tug on his sleeve. When he turned and gazed at her, 2B was staring at him with her usual stoic expression, but the boy could see the traces of fear through the cracks of her well crafted mask.
2B was frightened, so much so that she did not believe she could make it through the night alone.
"Could you… could you stay with me tonight?"
In any other circumstances, Shirou would've been a stuttering mess that would have thought up excuses to retreat and explain why it wasn't appropriate for him to do that, or come up with reasons to leave.
Not tonight.
The boy had given her a tacit nod and sneaked himself next to her under the blanket. It was a bit cramped but that was expected, the bed was originally meant for one person after all.
Time ticked on excruciatingly slowly, the boy constantly staring at the ceiling.
In spite of not being the person currently going through an emotional crisis, his mind felt like it was spinning.
Trying to figure out a solution for 2B's problem was easier said than done and Shirou didn't even have the slightest idea where to begin, but he wasn't about to give up.
Shirou made a promise, one he had no intention of breaking.
Still… what was he even supposed to do?
If it were someone getting bullied or mugged, he'd step in and protect them.
If it were someone in a burning building, he'd rush in and rescue them.
If it were someone about to get hit by a car, he'd jump in and push them aside.
Those were scenarios where he knew what he had to do.
They were so much easier in comparison.
A frown formed on redhead's face, his eyes drifting to the sleeping android. With a sigh the boy slowly called out to her.
"2B?"
"Yes?" she responded shortly after.
"... Are you sleeping?" A rush of awkwardness took over Shirou, he honestly wasn't expecting her to respond.
The android did not move an inch from her spot. "Would I respond if I was 'sleeping' as you say? "
"Right… " the small chuckle the boy made was certainly strained, feeling a bit stupid for even asking it. "... Did you calm down at least?"
There was a brief pause, but the gynoid's features remained unchanged. "I believe so…"
However, Shirou did not think that was the case going by her tone. "You don't sound that convinced."
A small sigh escaped 2B's lips. "Perhaps it's because I'm not sure what to feel anymore."
That answer made Shirou frown. "..."
"... Though, I believe I should at the very least try to maintain my composure this time."
"I think that's a good start." Shriou admitted with a bitter chuckle. "Still, it may not be enough."
She was well aware of that, the boy had no reason to remind her, yet the gynoid could not find an answer. "Then what do you suggest I do Shirou?"
The young Emiya paused and his eyes faltered, feeling unable to look at her. "...I don't know."
"... It seems neither of us do."
The boy's teeth clicked in frustration, this was going nowhere, he had to talk with 2B and help her find some sort of direction for herself. With that in mind Shirou shifted himself and turned around, coming face to face with 2B, mere inches separating them.
When he saw her delicate features Shirou grew silent, earning the androids attention and confusion. "What is it?"
He kept staring, looking at every nook and cranny of her face, yet he could not see anything that stood out, only soft unblemished skin. "...Your wounds are gone."
Their encounter in the forest had left 2B sporting serious cuts and bruises on her face, revealing the mechanical parts beneath. Because of it Shirou had been extra careful on their way back, it may have been late in the night, but if someone were to see 2B it would've likely gathered unwanted attention.
Yet, as he currently stared at her, there was no trace of those wounds present.
"Regenerating synthetic skin is simple." 2B stated while appearing quite uninterested. Her nanomachines had more concerning issues to solve first, eyes drifting to her leg, the one that she ruined during her breakdown. "Repairing and reconnecting the artificial nerves will take longer."
Shirou instantly understood and felt bitter about it. "Sorry… I should've done something before things turned out like that, I-."
"Don't apologize." The former YoRHa agent cut him off, not enjoying hearing him talk like this. "It was my mistake."
"Still…"
She bit her lower lip. "Please, stop blaming yourself for my mistakes."
The boy stood silent but sighed in defeat. "Okay… what about Pod? Will he be alright?"
2B took a moment and looked at her partner, sitting motionless on the desk. Hiding her remorse for what she did under her stoic mask. "It's outer structure is undamaged, but several of his systems were affected and require extended maintenance."
"I see." was all that Shirou could say, not really having much knowledge about the programming aspect of machines.
Shirou sighed and stared at the ceiling once more, waiting for 2B to say something… anything…
Yet again the duo slipped into an uncomfortable silence.
This seemed to the boy a now common occurrence, where their talks more often than naught ended up and it made him feel anxious.
Up until now Shirou had kept to himself and not forced too much out of 2B, hoping that in time she would open up to him and perhaps tell him about what was plaguing her.
That was what he thought was the proper way to do it… and it failed.
2B had bottled up so much in her till the point where she couldn't take it anymore and sought to end it once and for all.
Shirou knew this, tonight he got unbelievably lucky in that he managed to stop her, but that was just it.
Tonight he was able to stop her.
Should she once more suffer an emotional breakdown like the one he witnessed, he may not be able to do the same next time.
… That thought alone utterly terrified him.
He had to find out the source of her despair, and try to help her overcome it.
For that, he needed a clear picture of the world she knew.
The boy lifted his upper half and gazed silently at the android, eliciting a curious stare from her.
''What exactly happened 2B?" His voice was tired and weak, trying to figure out the best way to understand her. "The things you said… what happened to this world?"
There was a stillness in the room at first.
From the first moment she could communicate with her host, she had been hesitant in revealing too much information.
There were many reasons behind it.
She was unaware if her divulging the information would affect 'the future' in any way. Because of that she took her time, trying to analyse all the factors and proceed to handle them in a way that did not get out of control.
While Shirou did not deliberately ask too much about the future, she purposely avoided giving more details than were necessary.
That was the logical way to handle this unpredictable situation.
Yet… maybe that wasn't all there was to it.
Perhaps she just was afraid… of what Shirou may think once he learned what she truly was.
2B was still afraid of what may happen once Shirou got himself a full image of what he had been repairing and taking care of the past months, but she could not avoid it anymore.
If she would have talked with Shirou earlier about this, perhaps she wouldn't have had an emotional breakdown tonight.
This could not go on.
With a churning sensation in her abdomen, 2B moved herself to Shirou's eye level, yet her eyes refused to meet his, in spite of still being hidden behind her visor.
That being said, she wasn't sure where to even begin. "...It simply went to ruin."
Shirou already figured that something bad had happened, it was easy to tell considering how 2B would seem so baffled by normal stuff. Perhaps he had to give her a helping hand with this. "How about I ask you some questions and if the subject I'm touching is bothering you I won't further press on it, is that okay?''
''That would be… acceptable.''
With a nod the boy began to ponder where to start. ''So... you said you're from the future, how far are we talking, a hundred years, a thousand?''
2B found the question rather curious, but also thought it was a proper one to start off this discussion. ''I was brought from the year 11,945.''
Shirou's jaw couldn't help but drop ever at the number revealed, gawking in shock. ''W-Wow… that's... really far from now.''
''Indeed."
Shirou exhaled slowly as he took the knowledge in, the boy knowing this was likely just the start of many heavy reveals, many which he should mentality prepare himself for. "Ok… but how did you travel all the way back to this year?"
"Do not be mistaken, it was by mere accident." She admitted in mild annoyance. "I was on a reconnaissance mission with my partner and stumbled upon a hidden lair, in it someone apparently researched the means to travel back in time."
Shirou could not see it, but beneath her visor, 2B's eyes were trembling, unable to endure the weight of those memories. "We were ambushed by enemy forces, and during our battle the facility seemed to have been activated. Before I could prevent it I was engulfed in a powerful light and awoke in this era."
The young Emiya didn't know how to feel about this, going to the past by accident, it sounded too ridiculous even by his standards, but after everything that happened, he wasn't in any position to complain.
He rubbed the back of his head as he tried to think of where to take this discussion next. "So, you said the world went to ruin… how did that happen in the first place?"
The android pondered on this for a bit, accessing her data base for any relevant information she possesses on the matter. "While I don't possess files on the exact nature of the events that lead to the downfall, I do possess the basic history behind it."
With a mental command the android remotely accessed the functions of Pod 042. A light engulfed them, making Shirou instinctually back away ever so slightly, still surprised by the gynoid's incredibly advanced technology.
When his eyes adjusted to the new light level, what he saw took his breath away.
It was a holographic representation of the Earth.
"If there was a starting point to everything, that would be the appearance of the phenomena known as the 'White chlorination syndrome' or the 'WCS' for short." As she explained many small white dots appeared on the Earth, quickly spreading all over it. "The WCS was the catalysis that led to the rapid dwindling of the human population."
Shirou nodded silently, yet many other questions came to mind. "What was this WCS, some kind of weapon or…?"
"I suppose you can classify it as a type of uncategorized disease." 2B mused, some did consider the WCS as a possible weapon, but that hardly mattered now. "It had a one hundred percent mortality rate, no cure was ever discovered."
The red haired boy couldn't help but grimace at this. "What exactly did it do?"
The image of the hologram had shifted, showing a featureless man, coming into contact with a white dot, its body shortly after breaking down into similar white dots.
"The bodies of those infected would mutate and break down at a particle level, turning into a substance akin to sodium chloride."
The boy blinked and as he mulled that over. "Sodium chloride… wait… they turned into salt?!"
Now that hologram all made sense to him, but the idea itself was still baffling to say the least. "How does that even work?"
A tired sigh escaped 2B's lips, the female humanoid already half expected such disbelief from the young human. "It may sound strange from both an anatomical and chemical level, but it's how the disease manifested."
"... So I guess it spread until it couldn't be contained?" Shirou mused quite dejectedly.
"That was not the case entirely." The hologram shifted once more, now displaying a city, which seemed strangely familiar to Shirou. "Patient zero and origin source of the WCS was in fact here in Japan, more specifically in the district of Shinjuku, Tokyo."
The area within the city that represented Shinjuku now pulsated in deep red, a yellow contour forming around the area. "The government was able to put the district under quarantine and prevent any of its citizens from entering or leaving, but the danger was always present."
White dots began springing within the quarantine area one after the other, before Shirou knew it, there were far too many to count.
"The rate of which the disease spread was unprecedented, should even one infected escape in a populated area it would have been a disaster." A section within the yellow contour broke into tiny bits, many white dots flowing through it. "The wall that was placed around Shinjuku was eventually breached and the risk of an uncontrolled outbreak was deemed unacceptable.
There was a pause and alert signs appeared all over the image.
"The source had to be eliminated."
A cold shiver ran down the boys back, he already knew what she would say, yet couldn't help but ask. "Eliminated… you don't mean…?"
Thousands of hazard signs began forming on the hologram within the infested regions. "The area was bombarded, all of the infected seemingly neutralized."
Shirou brought a hand to his face, rubbing his eyes as he came to grips with what he just heard.
They were killed, millions of people that were still there and could have been saved were disposed of, like they were nothing.
He could understand the risks of the disease spreading, the need to stop the pandemic, the extreme measures that came with it, but to resort to such an inhumane method.
It made his stomach churn.
Especially since among the many areas that were infected and had to be incinerated, Fuyuki was also accounted for.
Grim realization dawned on Shirou and his eyes dilated.
… Did that mean… that all of the people he knew…?
No!
He couldn't start panicking now, there was still so much more that he had to find out. He still had time, it hadn't happened yet! One problem at a time, one problem at a time, he internally repeated like a mantra until he calmed down.
"... Judging by your tone, that wasn't the end of it was it?"
"No…" the YoRHa android shook her head in disappointment. The display shifted and zoomed in on one of the white dots, showing that within them were very small reddish dots. "The source of the infestation with WCS was a foreign particle that was named 'maso'. The bombardment of Shinjuku did indeed kill the infected, but the maso particles that swarmed the area were unaffected."
The hologram shifted once more this time displaying Shinjuku as it was nuked, a giant mushroom like cloud forming, reaching all the way to the sky. "The force of the explosion not only had little to no effect on them, but in fact had caused the maso particles to rise high up in the atmosphere. From there on it was simply a matter of time before the wind quickly spread them."
Shirou grew pale as he watched quickly these so-called maso particles scattered on 2B's display. "Japan was first to fall, but the particles were soon carried to different corners of the world spreading the disease."
So this was it. The grim truth hit the young Emiya like a sledgehammer on how it all came to an end.
In their desperate and reckless attempt to secure the rest of humanity, they inadvertently only sped up the process.
What originally may have taken months or maybe even years to completely spread was reduced to mere days. They tried to stop the source, only to make everything worse.
His father had once told him that at times humans would make poor decisions that would lead to many peoples death, but this outcome was something else entirely.
As it stood Shirou was slowly losing hope in his own kind. "... How did humanity even stop this maso stuff if no cure was ever found."
The white haired android shook her head once more. "They never did. Humanity realized that by the rate the WCS was spreading, by the time they found a cure, it may already be too late."
The hologram changed and now displayed another featureless human.
"Time was of essence so they decided to take a different approach. A project was established in order to buy time, it was called 'Project Gestalt'."
Shirou didn't know what a gestalt was, but he had the feeling it wasn't something pretty. "What did it do?"
Next to the first hologram another one appeared, it was identical to the first, but this one appeared to have a more opaque body. A circle of light appeared with the body of the first, flying and entering the body of the second one. "In simple terms the human souls were separated from the body and preserved within special containers. By creating copies of the souls, and placing them in artificial bodies, the beings known as 'Replicants' were given birth. Their purpose was to act as vessels until enough time had passed and the maso concentration in the world lowered to a certain degree."
Shirou took a moment and digested all of this, blinking confusedly as the realization suddenly hit him. "Why would they go through all the trouble to create these Replicants in the first place, since they would have been basically so kind of copies or clones?"
"From my understanding, the gestalt process was meant for those who undergo it to have a body left to return to. A human life expectancy is very short, less than one hundred years in most cases, far too little, even if they would have been artificially put to hibernation, the body would still function, age and of that they required special bodies that could deteriorate at a much slower rate and easily live for hundreds of years.."
While Shirou did somehow get where she was coming from, it still didn't make it easier for him.
"I, it doesn't make sense, how did that help?" He mused tiredly. "Why didn't the WCS affect them in that state?"
"A fair point, my guess is that the nature of the maso particles affected individuals at a metaphysical level, not just a biological one. Perhaps the true trigger that caused the WCS was when the maso infected the 'soul' of an individual."
There was still so much data that 2B lacked regarding the events, all she could do was speculate herself as she tried to explain the best she could. Shirou pushed on with his questions while considering what 2B said.
"So, since the whole gestalt thing basically swapped the soul with an artificial copy, the WCS didn't work on them?"
"In a sense."
Shirou took a deep breath and tried to put everything together. While this did shed some light about the world going to ruin, and why 2B would react the way she did to the outside world when he would take her for walks. It still didn't explain how all of this was connected and affected 2B personally.
Not once did she point out how she played a part in all of this.
"Okay… but how are androids involved in all of this?"
"That's actually simple." 2B explained factually. "Humanity created a large number of AI based beings to monitor and watch over them while they undergo the gestalt process. They were tasked to protect and reawaken mankind when the time was right."
Shirou nodded his head in understanding, it did make sense now that he thought about it. If the rest of humanity was under this Project Gestalt, someone had to stay behind and manage things while they were waiting for the maso to clear out of the world. "So… did you get to do it, reawaken humanity I mean?"
2B shook her head. "It was the first generation of androids that held that task, my generation came much, much later." She paused before she continued. "To answer your question, while the information about the event was confidential and I lack all the details, humanity was indeed reawakened."
Shirou noticed the cold inference when 2B spoke about this, it didn't take much for him to figure out. "... That wasn't the end of it, was it?"
"No, at one point the world itself got invaded by extraterrestrial lifeforms, or aliens as humans called them."
"I see aliens... " He paused and blinked, repeatedly, before immediately double-taking at what was just said. "Wait… aliens?!"
The discussion was already crazy enough as it is: time travel, a disease that turns you into salt, copying human souls, and androids. But now there were aliens too?!
"T-Tell me that you're kidding."
2B just stared blankly at the boy. "Why would I joke about something like this?"
Shirou rubbed his eyes intensely at this information while doing his best to resist the onset of a massive headache. "It's... just... a lot to take in."
Looking at it logically, 2B could understand why Shirou was showing such confusion. The people of this era have yet to even discover how to properly create AI based beings, let alone everything else she presented.
With that in mind the former YoRHa agent decided to bring up facts to help Shirou come to terms with this new notion. "You are aware that the concept of the supernatural is real, yet the notion of there being life on other celestial bodies seems that impossible to you?"
When she put it like that...
"I guess…" an awkward chuckle followed as the young Emiya tried to clear his mind. "Anyway… these aliens… what did they want?"
Damn, he sure felt weird talking about this.
"It was never discovered what was the reason behind the invasion, all forms of contact and communication with them have been replied with violence." 2B made a mental command and the hologram changed to display the Earth, surrounded by many battleships. "In order to combat and prevent the subjugation of the planet combat androids began being mass produced all over the world. After a certain amount of time the aliens seemed to grow aware of our methods and tried to replicate them, creating machine lifeforms to fight in their place."
The hologram changed and displayed small cartoonish looking robots fighting against humanoid ones.
"What followed were a series of wars that would be later named 'The machine wars'. As these wars were waged and the flow of battle kept fluctuating, the remnants of humanity had left the Earth and established a base and colony on the moon. It was in the year 11932 that the YoRHa project was initialized. Eight years later the YoRHa military corps were established, the latest state of the art combat androids, the future front line against enemy forces."
"I was one of them." A full body hologram was now present in front of them, one that represented 2B, showcasing many of her features that Shirou was unable to describe. "YoRHa No.2 Type B(Battle)."
"... So that's why you're called 2B." Shirou mused to himself after reading the title a couple of times, he did often wonder where the whole 2B name even came from.
2B brought her knees to her chest, holding them tight. "Yes, it's more convenient… to call myself… 2B…"
2B…
2B…!
2B!
No more…
She couldn't do it…
She couldn't keep the lie anymore.
Shame overcame her and she hid her face in her knees. "... I-I'm sorry."
Shirou blinked as he was about to call out to her, but stopped when he heard the silent sobs.
"That's a lie…" she whispered brokenly. "It's always been a lie…"
As he saw 2B's fragile state a part of him wanted to reach out and embrace her, but he kept himself back. It wasn't the right time, recalling 2B's fear of physical contact. "What is it 2B?"
"I am not 2B…!" Her voice was strained and hoarse, as if just whispering like this was akin to screaming for her. "That name is nothing but a lie… My true designation is YoRHa No.2 Type E."
"Type E?"
"Executioner." Shame was the only emotion the mechanical beauty could perceive as she spoke about this. "My assembly line was one made in secret, our very existence was kept hidden from our troops, with the exception of our commander and leaders."
Hidden from all of her comrades.
2B would constantly lie to all of them.
Her very name, a reminder of her lies, and of her sins.
"We were created for one purpose, to execute other YoRHa models that learnt the truth."
Shirou's mouth went dry as he repeated. "... The truth?"
"9S... my partner was one of those…" 2B murmured, recalling the many times 9S found something he shouldn't have and what she had to do in response. "His assembly line was one that excelled in hacking-based features and information collection. This however made them far too prone to research files that they were not meant to be accessed. In order to preserve the critical information that could cause chaos and disarray within our ranks, they had to be silenced."
Teeth gritted as the memories replayed in her mind, an urge to scream consuming her from the inside.
"I killed him… over and over again." The android lifted her head, staring at her hands. For the briefest of moments, it looked as if they were covered in blood… his blood. "So many times that I even lost count…"
Shirou was completely flabbergasted by this revelation, yet his mind seemed to focus on the inconsistency in what she said. "H-How could you kill him more than once?"
People die when they are killed… right?
"Our bodies are meaningless, they are merely vessels." 2B didn't even bother to look at him as she continued with her explanation. "All of our memories are recorded and kept in storage in the servers of our base, should we get destroyed, those memories can simply be transferred to a brand new identical body."
It repeated so many times.
The never ending cycle.
"Each time I would kill him, his memories up until the point of him finding out the truth are erased. I would kill him, and the next time I would see him, he would behave like nothing ever happened. Every time unaware of what I have done to him."
That innocent smile he'd always show her whenever they would meet again.
It made her disgusted with herself.
"At first I saw it as nothing more than a necessity, I did not enjoy the act, but it was my assigned duty." She admitted tiredly. "Yet… in time, I would grow to care for 9S."
The times 9S would approach her with the intent to befriend her, whether it was on missions or in the bunker, no matter what she did, 9S would always look at her with a smile.
"My duty soon became my torture. I tried so hard to keep him at a distance, acting cold and harsh to him, hoping it would make it easier, but I was just lying to myself."
Countless times she felt like screaming in frustration at 9S. To ask him why he put up with her each time. However, 2B was unable to do even that.
"My very existence was to ensure the death of 9S. There was no true escape even if I would have self-destructed, a new body would have simply been activated and my memories placed in them. Death had no meaning, it did not end one's suffering, it only completed a cycle and everything was reset afterwards."
She hates the pain.
She hates this world.
She hates herself.
She hates her very existence.
All she wanted, long before meeting Shirou, was for the pain to end.
"... I thought that maybe now that I was in this era, where my kind had yet to come into existence, I could finally end it all." Her concealed eyes slowly shifted towards the youth, staring longingly at him. "As you witnessed yourself."
The young Emiya was simply overwhelmed by everything.
He thought that maybe once he learnt the truth he could figure out something to help her.
But right now as it stood, just figuring out how to even respond was a challenge.
"... I just…" talking never felt this hard for the boy. "Why 2B?"
No matter how much he tried, the middle-schooler just couldn't figure it out. At this point he wasn't sure anymore about what he was asking about. "What could have been so bad to discover that it required you silencing him each time?"
"The lie which brought the YoRHa into existence." Cold indifference was heard, laced with clear disdain for what she was about to reveal. "Humanity has long been dead Shirou."
The boy's eyes dilated as his hand instinctively reached to grasp his face and hair, bullets of cold sweat pouring down from his forehead.
His mouth was open but words refused to come out properly, haggard breaths were the only actions to come forth at first. Until finally he was able to form some words. "D-Dead, but you said-"
"That was the official truth androids were told." Disgust permeated in her words for the lies that she was made to enforce. "Everything we knew, everything we were told, were all lies."
The biggest irony of their existence.
Being told to fight in the name of mankind, their creators, for their so-called gods. To suffer and sacrifice themselves for their sake.
For those already gone so long ago.
The notion was so ridiculous it was almost laughable.
"By the time the alien invasion first began humanity had already been extinct. We had been fighting in the name of our long dead creators." Her head leaned back, staring at the ceiling. "What was the point to all of this you may wonder."
Shirou could only silently listen as 2B went on.
"To us androids, humans were our creators, our gods. They were the ones that were supposed to give us our purpose the moment we were activated."
2B's face grew cold and grim, struggling to hold back the venom in her words.
"Without them, we had nothing. That could not stand, in order to give ourselves some modicum of purpose, the lie that humanity was still alive was fabricated, to give us something to fight for."
She despised this, fighting and suffering for the sake of a lie. Yet, the logical part of her understood the necessity of it all.
She could not deny it, but she also couldn't help but hate it nonetheless.
"If not for it, perhaps the world would have fallen to enemy invaders a long time ago."
… Or perhaps it wouldn't have, for the entity known as Emil still fought to protect the world, but that was a story for another time.
"Wow… this is just... a lot to take in." Shirou groaned as he rubbed the bridge of his nose, he expected a lot of things, but this was way over his head. "I knew you carried a lot of weight on your shoulders, but this…"
"Do you see now?" 2B whispered while gazing at the young human. "On why I felt like everything was crumbling around me?"
She brought forward her bare arms and displayed them to Shirou.
"Androids, no matter how much we perfected ourselves to imitate humans. In body and mind, we are still fundamentally different." Her hands tightened in a pair of shaking fists. "To us our purpose is our very driving force, without a clear objective in mind we slowly lose sight of who we are… and little by little will lose control of ourselves."
She saw it happen so many times.
Others like her who had lost sight of themselves and ended up losing all traces of who they were.
It was the same with the machines, they too would lose themselves once they lost the 'thing' that was their driving force.
The most memorable case was the machine known as Eve. She witnessed herself what the loss of his 'brother' did to him, how losing the one thing that mattered to him broke him.
Eve was her enemy, yet 2B couldn't help but feel pity for him. The machine lifeform did not seem to possess any true ill intent towards her, but only did so because of his brother. Eve's actions mimicking what Adam did, perhaps it was just his messed up way of trying to spend time and bond with his brother.
There were many times 2B had wondered to herself that if perhaps his brother Adam had instead chosen a peaceful existence, perhaps Eve wouldn't have ended up the way he did.
Perhaps… in the end what really bothered 2B was the fact she felt like she understood Eve… a part of her realizing that she may very well end up the same way at some point.
It terrified 2B… the idea that she could become like that.
"... What am I supposed to do, Shirou?" she finally asked the human.
"The reason why I was created was to terminate 9S whenever it became necessary. Outside of that, my duty was to fight against the enemies of mankind." 2B was constantly baffled by the day to day life she was subjected to since she first came to this era. It was so foreign and strange, while she couldn't deny it did feel pleasant, it just didn't feel right with her. "Now that I am no longer bound by either of those duties… what is left?"
A machine is built with the idea of performing a key function.
A car to transport people from one location to another.
A washing machine to clean clothes.
A refrigerator to preserve food.
Once they can no longer do the task they were created for, what was left for them?
Androids were at their core similar, but unlike simple machines also possessed their own awareness. What awaited for them once they could no longer accomplish their purpose, was utter despair. For that reason, 2B hoped that Shirou would have an answer, something she could cling onto.
The human in question however, looked completely uncertain.
"I don't know…" the young Emiya finally admitted after much inner debatting. "What you're asking of me, I don't know what I should even say in this kind of situation."
A bitter smile made its way onto the mechanical beauty's lips.
She should have known this was a waste of time.
"Yet… while I can't say I know first hand what you are going through… I do understand to some extent of it. " Shirou slowly breathed in, and for the first time he was allowing himself to share his own burden, in spite of how wrong it felt. "I know how consuming it can be at times. That sensation akin to a hollow cavity in your chest, one that feels like it wants to grow the moment you ignore it."
2B was momentarily stunned, the way Shirou worded it, felt very much like what she experienced so many times. This couldn't have been the case… unless... "Shirou… did you go through something similar?"
The boy in question rubbed the back of his head, unsure of what to say. "I'm not sure if our situations are similar, but I do have some experience when it comes to losing sight of yourself."
"How so?"
For a moment he hesitated.
There was something that felt wrong about this discussion.
Like that he shouldn't talk about this with 2B, and he should carry this burden by himself.
He bit the inside of his lower lip and shook his head, even if he felt like he didn't have the right to talk about this, he had to do it in order to help the woman in front of him.
"Do you recall when I mentioned a great fire took place some years back?" The android nodded at this. "... I was caught in the middle of it all."
2B appeared calm and unaffected, but deep down she felt genuine pity for the boy.
"My memories of those events are… complicated." Shirou wasn't sure himself about that, so he didn't linger on it. "In order to survive, I lost many things."
Static sound echoed in the boy's mind.
"As I found myself in that hell ripped landscape, all I could think of was escaping it. So I walked."
Images flashed before his eyes, the hellish terrain that wanted to consume him the moment he stopped.
"I walked and walked, literally stepping over numerous corpses, ignoring the screams for help around me. No matter how much I wanted to stop and help someone, I never stopped once to help even one person, instead I continuously moved forward."
Sharp screeching screams were clawing in his ears.
"Eventually my body gave up on me, I crashed down on the sizzling road and resigned myself. I was too tired, every moment of struggling to survive was an eternity of pain."
The scent of smoke and charred flesh permeating at every corner.
"I simply accepted that this was it… and something died in me that day."
A pitch dark hole lingering in the sky, a feeling of terror consuming him whenever he stared at it.
"Perhaps it was a miracle, perhaps it was just luck, but someone managed to find and rescue me." A small smile appeared on Shirou's features as he recalled the single good thing within that nightmare. "That man's name was Emiya Kiritsugu."
The smile and tears of a man with such broken eyes.
"He rescued me and took me to safety. I would spend the next few days in the hospital along with many other people caught in the fire, just waiting to see what followed next."
The confusion he felt as realization dawned on him.
He was alone.
He was alive, but for what purpose?
He had nothing left.
Maybe it would have been better if he had just died that night.
"As I stood in that hospital bed, Kiritsugu came looking for me and he asked if I wanted to be adopted by him."
A man that looked equally as broken and confused as he was. Yet, his extended hand once more stretched out to him like a lifeline.
Maybe by saving him, he felt a sense of making amends.
"It may sound a bit crazy right now, but at the time, he was the person I needed the most in the world. I lost everything that night… as it stood without him, I would have probably been sent to an orphanage."
The smile he had when he said yes.
For the briefest of moments that broken look in his eyes seemed to vanish, but it would shortly return and never leave the man.
"Yet, even if that wasn't the case, I probably would have wanted to go with Kiritsugu when he made me that offer."
"Why so?"
"... I guess I simply looked up to Kiritsugu that much."
He knew nothing of him.
At times he would look shady, the kind of man a parent would tell their child to avoid.
He never learnt much about him, but he really didn't care.
A man that would go out of their way to save someone like him.
They could only be a good person.
"Looking back, I think I just went by day by day, feeling content with just being around kiritsugu, not really caring about much else. While it wasn't easy with it being just the two of us, I fondly look back on those days. If it wasn't for Kiritsugu, I don't know where I would be today given everything that happened."
Perhaps others wouldn't have called him a proper parent.
Lounging around all day.
Going on long trips and not returning home for weeks at a time.
Refusing to properly train him as a magus even when he begged him.
Yes...
There were times when Shirou wished Kiritsugu was there for him, but he never voiced those thoughts aloud. He owed him far too much as it was.
"I'm not sure if I really found an answer to everything that happened, but I guess in time I learnt to cope with what happened to some extent."
Shirou wasn't really sure, but he knew deep down there was something different about him. It felt so small and insignificant that he never really gave it much thought.
If he really was that different from others, people would have told him... right?
Static roared in the boys head and he buried those thoughts.
"If your situation is anything like mine, I guess the only advice I can give you is try and live. I doubt you will find an answer right away, but in time you may find something."
It was strange for 2B.
In spite of learning all of this about Shirou, there was a part of her that was glad about what she heard.
Not in the context that he suffered, that idea itself revolted her, but by the notion that the person before her may understand her.
It, however, did not remove her fears.
"I'm terrified Shirou." She admitted while hugging her knees. "There's a high probability that I will lose control of myself before the time I find an answer."
"You won't."
2B felt like she wanted to shout, but refrained. "How do you know that?"
He did not smile, but the resolute look in his eyes had an unusual effect on her. "Because I'll be there to stop you."
The gynoid was silent, trying to find some way to retort, yet refused to do so. Perhaps because a part of her wanted to put her trust in Shirou, in spite of the odds appearing against him.
With the corner of his eye Shirou noticed through the window that the night sky began to change. It was already close to morning.
As much as Shirou wanted to continue this discussion, there was only so much they could figure out in one sitting.
They needed time to make sense of things and move forward.
Shirou himself needed time to properly take in everything they discussed.
Time travel.
Salt pandemic.
Artificial souls.
Aliens.
Androids.
Yeah… he will need a lot more time to get his head around all of it.
"Well, it's really late, so let's call it a night." Shirou felt rather bad to end the discussion on this note, but he knew this was as far as they would go tonight, but he didn't turn in until he got his point across. "2B, I'm always here, so if you ever feel like things are getting rough, just call me, we can talk it over and figure something out together."
Like that, the boy flipped around and buried his face into his pillow.
Missing the bittersweet smile that 2B had. "... You fool."
The light of dawn crept through the window curtains and landed on 2B's face.
The sudden heat source made the android crack open her eyes beneath the visor. Slowly she turned around and stared absentmindedly in the room.
This was… new.
It hasn't been too long since she fell asleep, barely a few hours passed since her talk with Shirou.
Yet, she felt strangely 'fresh' so to say.
For the first time in a very long time she did not suffer from nightmares as she dreamt.
She wasn't quite sure what changed.
A shift of the blankets got her attention and made her realize what 'changed'.
Slowly she turned around and simply stared at the boy, his mouth open wide and snoring lightly.
2B took a moment and thought about what Shirou had told her, about the man known as Emiya Kiritsugu, and how he helped the boy.
Perhaps… perhaps her answer lies there.
This wasn't a solution.
Merely an epiphany of sorts, a possible lead towards an yet unestablished goal.
It did not miraculously solve her problems, for they were not so simple.
In time perhaps they may one day be solved, but this wasn't that day. It was just the beginning of a long term mission.
Shirou slowly shifted and his hand moved close to 2B's face, the android staring intensely at the open palm.
2B didn't know why, but a desire slowly built within her.
She didn't understand where it came from, yet she couldn't help but act on it.
Her hand slowly reached for that of her bedmate, the young redhead still sound asleep.
As her fingers were about to make contact she hesitated, recalling how she had hurt him before.
She bit her lips in frustration.
If Shirou was so willing to help her in spite of knowing the risks that came with it, the least she could do was also try to make it work.
Artificial skin met real, her fingers trailing on its surface.
His hand felt somewhat rough to the touch, calluses were present on it. A testament to the boys' hardworking nature.
She was about to retract her hand, but Shirou fingers twitched slightly, and their pinky fingers interlocked.
The fake digit tightened around the real one, the fear of hurting him lingering on inside her.
A realization rushed over 2B as she stared at the interlocked digits.
Shirou did not react in any way, her touch did not cause him harm.
She was able to touch him… without hurting him.
2B did not know how to handle these foreign emotions. She wasn't sure if there was a reason behind it or if it was a mere whim, but she took off her visor.
For the first time she looked directly at the boy without the piece of cloth. There wasn't much difference, yet the android felt like she finally saw him clearly for the first time.
Perhaps it wasn't the right answer, but for the time being, she can dedicate herself to the one human she grew close to.
She drew her face closer and brushed her cheek against the boy's fingertips. Brushing away the tears that she did not realize were pouring out.
"Thank you Shirou."
Omake: An android at Chaldea
Stare~
It's been a while since 2B had arrived at Chaldea, but she has yet to meet all of the staff members in addition to all the other contracted servants.
The place was very lively and everyone was doing their own things each day, it was rare for her to meet the same people twice the following day.
Stare~
However something had been bothering the YoRHa android, these past few days there was this unusual feeling. No matter where she went or whatever she did, it felt as if someone was keeping her under intense surveillance.
Stare~
When she was in the cafeteria.
Stare~
When she was in the command room.
Stare~
When she was in the training simulator.
Stare~
When she was longing in her room.
Stare~
When she was taking baths.
Stare~
It felt like no matter where she was, someone else was also nearby keeping a close eye on her.
Looking at it logically, if it were an enemy with hostile intentions, it would have taken action the moment she had let her guard down. There were far too many moments that could have taken advantage of to attack her yet no action was taken.
Perhaps it may have been a member of Chaldea keeping an eye on her given her position as a newly contracted servant. For all intents and purposes, 2B had yet to show her true allegiance towards Chaldea. So in the eyes of others, some may believe she has ulterior motives.
It was understandable if a few found the androids' place in Chaldea questionable.
Stare~
While that was true, 2B however had grown tired of this proverbial game of cat and mouse.
Words had to be exchanged.
With that in mind she instructed Pod 042 to set up a perimeter around her and keep its sensors on high alert. The moment this mysterious watcher was in close proximity to her, she will know.
Stare~
It wasn't long before it happened.
2B was walking within one of the many halls of Chaldea and according to Pod's sensors the stalker was right up ahead.
To any other person that would walk these halls, they would appear clearly empty, but the YoRHa android knew better.
Her highheels echoed as she reached the spot where the sensors informed her. Blindfolded eyes slowly drifted to her left, gazing intensively at the empty wall.
With inhuman speed she swung her arm forward.
The sound of ruffling cloth soon followed.
2B narrowed her gaze at the type of camouflage blanket now on the floor, and then at the person that was using said blanket to blend in with the surroundings to hide herself.
Katou Danzou stared back, appearing calm on the outside, but the servant in question was perceiving a rather unpleasant feeling now that she had been detected. As a shinobi of the Fuuma clan, the fact that she has been caught was not acceptable, but that was something she could worry about at a later time after she dealt with the current situation.
"You've been following me the past few days quite meticulously." 2B's voice appeared calm and cordial but there was a hidden sharpness in it. "May I know for what purpose?"
Danzou stared silently for a few moments before she finally spoke mechanically. "Reconnaissance."
2B felt the need to scoff but refrained, like she couldn't figure that out by herself. "Let me ask again then, for what purpose?"
"For confirmation."
"Of what?"
The japanese servant appeared to fidget for a moment before she answered. "Whether or not, the new servant contracted under master is truly mechanical in nature."
2B raised an eyebrow beneath her visor, growing rather intrigued by that remark. She gestured to her stalker to continue.
"This Danzou had overheard a conversation between Master and DaVinci-dono." Danzou explained flatly, in a machine-like fashion. "They said that you were a machine during your life, this got me… curious."
"... It is not a secret that I am an android, I'm fairly certain several of the servants and staff members I interacted with are well aware of that fact." the YoRHa android explained, pausing as she realized something was off. "Also, why bother with surveillance for so many days when you could have asked directly?"
The black haired shinobi was silent at first, her golden eyes drifting to the side, feeling unable to look 2B in the eyes.
"I was… experiencing strange sensations." Danzou admitted, though she was rather unsure how to properly describe these states. "When I heard that you are a mechanical being, I experienced this unusual sensation. I wanted to meet and talk with you, but whenever I was close to doing so, for some reason I would retreat. Because of that, I relied on surveillance until I could discover what procedure I should apply next."
There was a long moment of silence as 2B analysed this information, which she found rather familiar and strangely nostalgic. "... Were you perhaps excited to meet me?"
The mechanical kunoichi stood still and blinked a couple of times, nodding as realization dawned on her. "So that was what the strange emotion represented."
"... Why would you be so excited to meet me though?"
The shinobi did not respond immediately, feeling quite uncomfortable now that she was cornered like this.
She brought forth her arms and made sure 2B saw them clearly. "We... are similar."
The white haired android looked at the two appendages and grew quite intrigued, those were mechanical arms, and now that she looked carefully at the japanese servant, her joint areas were connected by mechanical parts as well. "What are you?"
2B had to confirm, given how many strange servants were currently in Chaldea, a cyborg servant did not seem that far fetched.
"A karakuri doll." She declared factually as she retracted her arms. "Within Chaldea there are a number of servants that could be classified as 'mechanical' or 'machine' like, but none of them are fully artificial like myself."
Her gaze shifted up and looked at 2B's face.
"When I discovered another one similar to me had joined our ranks, I felt… 'excited', as you said."
2B just stared at her, feeling a bit conflicted. "... You could have just walked and talked to me."
The karakuri doll unknowingly fidgeted as an uncharacteristic blush formed on her face. "... D-Danzou felt… nervous… she believes… ?"
It was strange.
When 2B looked at her, at the mechanical behavior, the awkwardness when reaching out to others… the feeling of loneliness.
It reminded her of those days when she was the same.
Such a strange feeling… yet, she did not dislike it.
The gynoid extended her arm towards her fellow mechanical servant.
"I am YoRHa No.2 Type B, but you can call me 2B." A small smile flashed for Danzou. "It's an honor to meet you."
Silence.
Danzou stared at the extended appendage. Slowly, little by little, she reached and grasped it.
"Likewise." For the first time since the two met, the black haired kunoichi smiled gently. "I am Katou Danzou, shinobi of the Fuuma clan."
Two machine-like beings that were separated by many eras have finally met.
"I must admit, it's quite refreshing to meet a fellow mechanical servant." 2B mused as she let go. "I suppose that makes you my senpai."
That remark made Danzou's face burst into a deep shade of red. "S-Senpai…?"
She had been called many things during her operation periods, but 'senpai' was not one of them. It was a new, yet strangely pleasant title.
2B tilted her head slightly. "It would make sense, karakuri dolls can be seen as a distant predecessor of the androids. So logically, that would make you my senpai."
The karakuri doll placed her hands over her chest and she took long deep breaths as she analysed these turn of events. "Senpai… strange… that word makes me experience an unusual 'doki-doki' sensation when I hear it."
A small impish smile formed on 2B's face. "It would seem you like it, don't you Danzou-senpai?"
Danzou once again felt that sensation in response to that title. A brand new sensation she did not have records of were taking place within her, specifically they seemed to manifest in her chest area.
"It appears so." It made her want to experience more. "D-Do you perhaps have time for social interaction?"
A small chuckle escaped 2B's lips. "Affirmative."
As the two servants made their way through the hall, they failed to notice that a second camouflage blanket fell down near where Danzou sat.
Fuuma Katora took a deep breath and was glad his present concealment skill was much higher than that of Danzou and he wasn't also detected.
As the red haired shinobi stood in the hall he sniffled and rubbed away a single tear from his eye. "I'm so happy mother is making friends."
Author notes:
Well this sucks... It's been a while since last update. Sorry about that but I reached a block with this chapter. I think I scrapped it a few times before I was finally satisfied.
I kept debating whenever or not I should start from where I left the last chapter or do a few day time skip. I eventually settled for the first.
As you can notice this chapter sheds some light on the events that led to Nier: Automata. I tried my best not to make this an info dump and give a certain amount of info but not over inflate it. Some of you may notice, others probably won't, but there is a lot of stuff that 2B missed to tell Shirou, but it was more that she lacked that information. Don't worry i know the real source of the maso and WCS and the events caused by Nier that led to automata timeline.
If some of the statements I made are wrong, I'm sorry, my nier lore isn't as deep as it should be given the story.
Well, with this out of the way, I guess I should begin kickstarting the plot… which will probably take a while. I have some plans for certain changes that will happen due to 2B being here, so i can't just time skip my way to the 5th war… unfortunately. I mean, i could technically do it, but that would be lazy writing on my end.
All in all, I hope next chapter won't take this long to bring out… hell, even half the time it took for the update is too much given that this story has smaller chapters.
Special thanks to my p(a)treons: CJ, EgomaniacalHero, Maxime Chouinard-Hould, Pietya, Derek, AndresGutierrez, Roflarius, , PostScriptum and
Lastmanstanding
Your support is greatly appreciated.
Anyhow, have a good day.
Ray out.
Don't forget to review... no seriously review; I could use some constructive criticism.