Hey guys! First of all before I say anything else I would like to apologize for lack of update, after my exams had finished I had to deal with a lot of administrative stuff that consumed my time and with my family it didn't help much, so I hope you'll forgive me but anyway aside from my sorry excuses here's chapter 9. I have plans on how I want this story to go, but I'm still unsure about certain things which is why I'll have to sit down and figure out how I want things to go. Some you are wondering when will they learn the truth about Erebus and to that I'll say that it will happen very soon, just not right because it wouldn't feel right, and it would mess up other plots so yeah. By the time this is published I will be starting to work on chapter 10. Anyway that's all for now and I'll see you guys soon.

Cya !


2B gritted her teeth as she blocked Erebus sword with from slicing her head, she hated herself for still being weak, this wasn't how it was supposed to be. Ever since their last encounter she hasn't gotten any stronger, in fact she still suffered from what this monster had done to her. At first 2B didn't want to admit it but the more they fought, the more she realised that it wasn't about her being weak but rather being scared of him. Her stance was filled with senseless fright, her hits were desperate, and most importantly she started to lose hope of ever making it out alive. Having enough of him 2B pushed him back with a kick to his stomach, Erebus instantly stumbled back before slowly laughing to himself.

''Finally learned how to fight woman?'' Erebus said while smirking towards 2B who was still catching her breath.

''Finally learned how to talk machine? I guess your kind is evolving faster than i expected.'' 2B counter back while slowly regaining her stance.

After hearing that Erebus didn't take lightly what she had just said and coldly glared at her for some moments before taking his greatsword in one hand and lifted it towards the sky. Confusion could be seen in 2B eyes as she saw him pointing his sword in the sky. She wondered what exactly did he hope to accomplish while doing that, 2B waited for him to move but to her confusion he slowly brought his sword down in front of his face. 2B eyes widened while looking back towards 4S who wasn't moving from his spot, a small smile crept to her face while being thankful that he had managed to hack him.

''Good job 4S, now we have to restrain him.'' 2B said while grateful for his help.

''...but I didn't do anything ma'am.'' 4S said while being confused to what was currently happening, after hearing this 2B eyes narrowed before snapping her head back towards Erebus who was deviously smirking towards them which made her quite uneasy. 2B frowned as she starting to walk towards him but what she saw made her stop in her tracks, something bright orange was slowly moving around Erebus blade which made her question what it was but the more she started at it, the more it made sense to her of what exactly it was.

It was Fire

Erebus saw the shocked expression on both of their faces and couldn't help but to smirk at them, he may not remember everything from his past but that didn't mean he had lost his touch with magic. Wasting no time Erebus jumped towards 2B and brought his sword down at her to which she immediately blocked it with her sword while using both hands, 2B grunted while trying to push him back but the heat coming from his sword was starting to become unbearable. Having enough of the heat 2B kicked him in the stomach which caused him to jump back, she quickly rushed towards him while going for a forward strike but to her dismay he dodged her blade with ease by moving aside and used his foot to make her trip however she was able to catch herself at the last moment before quickly delivering a spinning wheel kick to his face. Erebus frowned as he caught her foot with his hand and lifted her from the ground. This caused 2B to be hanging from her foot, she gritted her teeth while trying to break free from his hold. Erebus saw her struggling to break free while having her head upside down and laughed down at her face, he couldn't but to find her futile attempts to be pathetic. 2B saw him laughing and glared at him while before using her sword to try and cut his abdomen while still hanging from his hands, but she didn't have the time to protect herself when her body suddenly slammed the ground before being lifted by her foot once again.

Erebus smirked while seeing her coughing violently and decided to continue having fun with her, 2B couldn't bring her arms up in time to cover her face as Erebus repeatedly slammed her body to the ground. After having enough Erebus looked down to her bruised face and decided to let go of her, Everything time Erebus saw her in a defenseless state made him smile. 2B was having a hard time catching her breath while thinking about how she could have possibly ended in a position like that, she was absolutely sure of herself that this encounter would be different, that she would be the one winning and make him regret ever fighting her but to her shame it was the opposite.


4S was having a hard time believing what he was currently seeing, this machine was overpowering a battle model. One of the strongest models that Yorha had to offer and that machine made them look like a complete joke, the fact that she was barely landing hits on him made him slightly scared of what else the aliens were capable of creating. Never would he have thought in a thousand years to see Yorha soldiers lose the upper hand on machines, this made him question what would the humans think of them if they saw the current state of this war. Would they be ashamed? Angry? Or amused to see their creations getting annihilated by machines life form? Some many thought ran through his head as he tried to figure out the answer but was brought back to reality when he heard something loud hitting the ground repeatedly and was mortified to see this machine brutally slamming 2B on the ground by her foot. Having enough of observing 4S decided to take action and quickly initiated his hacking skills towards Erebus...but only to fail?

''What's happening?'' 4S muttered under his breath while trying again but to his frustration the results were the same, nothing would come up on his visor which made him question if he was hacking correctly, he mentally slapped himself for ever self doubting his hacking skills. Of course he knew how to hack but the problem wasn't him but rather that machine, had the machines evolved this far that now Yorha scanner's hacking skills were now outdated? His only option left was for his pod to hack instead of him, 4S quickly snapped his head towards his floating assistant and decided to ask him.

''Pod! I want you to hack into this machine for me because for whatever reasons i'm unable to do it.'' 4S ordered his pod who was facing the confrontation ahead of them.

''Understood, but why can't unit 4S simply hack this machine himself since this unit is a scanner model it shouldn't have any problem doing so?'' 4S's pod questioned his owner strange request.

''I don't know why it's not working! Just hurry up please, 2B is in danger'' 4S said with agitation in his voice while also being mix with worries, the floating pod kept silent for a second before looking towards its target.

''Understood, initiating hacking.'' The pod said while focusing his attention towards Erebus, 4S was relieved to hear that and waited for it to be completed. He just hoped that 2B would be able to handle herself until the pod hacking is done, however what he heard next would perturb him furthermore.

''Warning, hacking failed'' the pod firmly said without turning back to face its owner, any hope that 4S had just have been shattered into pieces upon hearing that. He sincerely hoped that he misheard that, there was no way that a pod couldn't possibly hack into a simple machine. Even if this is more complex, a machine stays to its core...right?

''What? What do you mean fai-'' 4S words were interrupted by his pod who suddenly said something weird.

''Warning, unknown life form detected'' the floating box said while been being focused on the fight ahead of him.

''What are you saying? Unknown life fo-'' 4S words were cut short by a agonising cried, he recognised the voice and quickly turned his head towards 2B and Erebus was petrified to see that he had stuck is blade covered in fire into 2B stomach, the scene ahead of him made him freeze. But before 4S could do anything else he saw Erebus lifting his sword from 2B stomach and brought it up and it didn't take him long to realise what he was about to do, on impulse his body moved on his own and he rushed at a inhumane speed towards 2B was still hadn't move from the ground.'i can't let him do that!' 4S thought while desperately trying to reach them in time.


Once again 2B found herself powerless against him, it was almost like she was destined to be his plaything. 2B slowly lifted her head but only to her pushed back to the ground by Erebus placing his foot on top of her head, she grunted while desperately trying to remove his foot from her head with her arms but saw Erebus lifting his sword who was still surrounded by flames and placed it above her stomach which caused her to hyperventilate. Erebus looked at her in the eye while smirking before bringing his sword.

''What are-AAAHH!!'' 2B screamed in agony as Erebus sword burned her stomach skin, the burned skin could be smelled from where he was standing. She kept screaming while violently shaking her whole body but as she tried to remove his foot from her face he kept pressing harder on her head until she couldn't move. 2B was breathing heavily while still trying to remove his foot but then Erebus suddenly twisted his sword into her wounds, her body tossed around beneath him as she cried in pain and that was enough to make him chuckle to himself.

After some moments Erebus decided to end things by lifting his sword from 2B stomach which made a repulsive sound, Erebus looked down at her and saw that she was barely moving but he noticed the small water drop coming from beneath her blindfold. He didn't feel guilty in the slightest, after all she brought this upon herself. Having wasted enough time Erebus looked at 2B for the last time before bringing his sword down to finish her off, however to Erebus surprise his sword was suddenly blocked by another sword, He looked behind him and saw 4S who was surprisingly prevented his sword to cut 2B while angrily glaring at him. Erebus had to resist the urge to roll his eyes at the attempt of the scanner model trying to scare him, did these people seriously believe that they were intimidated him in the slightest? On top of that Erebus was really starting to get tired of been interrupted whenever he was starting to have fun. Erebus scolded at the scanner model and put his hand on the hilt of his smaller sword while being ready to draw it out at any moments but paused when he saw something hovering behind the scanner model, however he quickly realised that it was the same floating object that always followed them.

''Pod, Fire now!'' 4S ordered to his pod which quickly obeyed him prepared to open fire on its target, Erebus eye widened before quickly realised what was about to happen and quickly put some distance between them by jumping back however it was too late as the last thing he saw were projectiles coming rapidly at him, the sudden impact caused an powerful explosion that could be heard across the street which 4S quickly got down of his knees to protect 2B from the explosion. After some moments of silence the duo began wondering if they had finally managed to take down this dammed machine, slowly 2B opened her eyes and was surprised to see someone above her.'He must have protected from the explosion.' She thought while remembering the times where 9S used to protect her but before she could get lost in her memories a voice called her out.

''Ma'am are you alright? Is your stomach still hurting you badly?'' 4S asked his superior with concern while inspecting the fresh burns on her stomach.

''The pain is b-bearable now, the nano robots are slowly starting to make effect.'' 2B weakly replied back, after hearing this 4S slowly pushed himself from her body and stood up. 2B slowly got to her knees but not without grunting, she was about to stand up but stopped midway when a hand reached out to her, slowly she lifted her head and saw 4S extending his hand down at her with a worried frown on his face. For a moment 2B could've sworn she saw 9S standing where 4S was but quickly disappeared, not wanting to cause unnecessary worries 2B accepted his hand and carefully lifted herself from the ground with his help.

''Thanks'' 2B firmly said while still being grateful for his help. However 4S kept looking at the ground before slowly lifting his head at her while still being unable to meet his superior eyes.

''I'm...sorry for not stepping when he was slowly...burning you, I was trying to hack into him but strangely I couldn't hack him. No rather I couldn't even hack him in the first place, my sensor showed nothing and when i asked my pod hack him it was the same results however my pod also mentioned something about a unknown life form.'' 4S explained to the white haired android who was unsure of what to make of it, that wasn't the first time she heard something like that. Back when first encounter Erebus in the forest her pod told her the same things. Had the machines evolve that rapidly that now they couldn't even hack into them? She felt like they was something strange about this, something told her that they was more to this but even she couldn't explain what exactly.

2B looked at the scanner model who kept was looking her with a guilty expression while awaiting for her answer. She could see it all over his face that was cursed himself for being unable to do anything, strangely his attitude reminded her of 9S in a way. Shaking her head she decided it it would preferable to confront him.

''Stop being so hard on yourself. We all make mistakes besides it was my fault to begin with i should've seen it coming...it's not like it was first time he did something similar to me.'' 2B stoically said while having flashbacks of her first encounter with Erebus that she wished to forget.

''But i-''

''4S listen, its okay to make mistakes. Sometimes things will not go the way you hope they would but that doesn't mean you should just berate yourself on things that already happened...trust me i know what I'm talking about, it's behind us now and furthermore I wouldn't exactly call this mission a failure since you managed to take down our main enemy which on the contrary makes this mission a success.'' 2B calmly said while eyeing the black haired scanner before her. This caused 4S face to lit up as he was being praised and conformed by his superior.

''Thanks ma'am...so...what now?'' 4S asked as he rubbed the back of his head while looking ahead of him. They had finally killed that machine which was slowly becoming a real threat to Yorha and also for the army of humanity but thanks to their victory this would allow Yorha to focus on their next step. 2B looked at the smoke left by the explosion before looking towards the skyscrapers ahead of them before voicing her opinion.

''We should contact command and let them know that we've dealt with that machine, after that we should go to the resistance camp to also inform them about the news and I'll take the chance to get myself healed up since there's someone who's in charge of the medical section over there.'' 2B said while turning towards 4S, she couldn't explain it but now they had dealt with that machine it felt like a heavy weight has been lifted from her shoulders but it didn't mean the war was over. The scares that this encounter had left her were still present, 2B looked down at her stomach and saw what that twisted machine had done to her once more but before she could think any further 4S voice quickly brought her back to reality.

''Seems like a good plan! Oh and we shouldn't forget about 11B, i will make sure to contact her while also informing her about the current situation-'' 4S cheerfully continued to ramble. However unknown to him 2B wasn't really paying attention to his rambling but rather to something from behind him, she slowly squinted her eyes towards the smoke left by the explosion and saw a faint red light coming from it.'Where is this red light coming from?...no that's impossible.' 2B thought before her eyes widened as the red light started to glow dangerously.

''And then that's how I was deployed on earth, uh ma'am were you listen-''

''4S get down now!'' Before 4S could comprehend what was happening 2B quickly threw herself at him making them both fall to the ground, thanks to 2B reflexes they narrowly missed powerful red blast that flew past them and headed towards a decayed building. The impact caused a deafening sound to be heard all across the city ruins while the windows of the decayed buildings shattered, this caused some pieces to violently fall down while some of them dug into 2B's back while protecting the black haired scanner beneath her.

After some moments 2B slowly lifted her head from the ground and looked down at 4S who still hadn't moved from the explosion, she slowly got up to her feet while grimacing before looking back down at 4S who suddenly started to inspect his body to see if he had suffered any possible injuries. After feeling that his body was intact 4S slowly got up but stopped when a hand appeared in front of him, looking up he was 2B nodded while offering her help to which he gladly accepted took her hand and pulled from the ground with her help however this small action caused the white haired android to hiss between her teeth. 2B couldn't believe that they that barely escaped death, if she hadn't reacted the moment she did then they would probably be nothing but ashes. 2B snapped her head towards the destroyed building and was petrified to see that the massive building completely destroyed, from the walls up to the windows. It looked like it could crumble at anytime.

''Ma'am your back is bleeding!'' 4S shouted while seeing big pieces of shards stuck into her naked back which caused fresh blood to drip from the wounds, at this this 2B raise a eyebrow before placing a hand on her back to which she instantly regretted it due to the pain she felt and retracted her hand but only to see blood covering her glove. As 2B was about to question herself further something inside her urged her to quickly turn around as she soon heard footsteps slowly coming towards them. Dread took all over the duo bodies as they slowly turned around and to their horror they saw what could only possibly be described as a nightmare.


Anemone was currently counting the supplies that had been send to the resistance camp recently, the machines have been very active lately which is why she needed all the materials they could get in order to keep up in this war. Everyone was doing their own thing around the camp as usual, some members talked between themselves in groups while being drained from this war and drinking while some were doings their work which Anemone was grateful towards them and there were a very few of them that did...nothing. They kept just staring into nothingness while showing no sign of emotion, these were the few that had lost people that they cared about in this war.

They had the lost the will to fight.

Anemones remembered the look upon their faces when she broke the news to them, usually their would cry for days however some of them would just go out one day and never come back and as much as she would try to prevent them from going out it didn't change the inevitable outcome. It pained her to see them in such state but what could she possibly do? She knew better than anyone the unbearable pain of losing someone you cared about and to never see them ever again, to find yourself completely alone and abandoned in this world but luckily for her she was able to survive the trauma and carry on even when she had no one left.

Slowly Anemone placed a hand over her chest while closing her green eyes and took a deep breath before opening them again, she resumed to doing her work when someone suddenly appeared beside her. This caused Anemone to jump a little bit before fully turned her attention towards whoever had sneaked up besides her and to her relief it dearest friend Jackass who smirking while leaning on a wall behind her.

''Don't scare me like that Jackass!'' Anemone said between a mix of anger and relief present in her voice.

''...Did ya just try to make a joke with my name.'' Jackass mockingly said while trying to hold her laughter which caused Anemone to frown while rolling her eyes.

''Yes, very funny. Anyways what brings you here?'' The resistance leader asked while resting a hand on her hips. Jackass slowly regained her composure before replying to her friend.

''Well...no reasons particularly, I just wanted to see how ya hanging in there. Everyone seems off today and i don't even know why, it's like they've been give the worst news of the year.'' Jackass said while turning her head to look at every members behind her, she knew things weren't easy for them these days. They all look tired and about to pass out and she knew mainly cause of their mood, but sometimes it get so unbearable that she would rather go out and spend days in the desert and blow machines up.

''They are tired of this war like me...and just like you.'' Anemone said while looking at her friend with concern, after hearing this Jackass turned her head back to her friend who was sitting down on a chair behind her while looking at her hands with a sad look on her face.

''Hey are ya...alright?'' Jackass questioned her friend while slowly walking towards her.

'' I should be the one asking you that...'' anemone quietly said while still kept looking at her hands.

''What are ya trying to say anem-''

''You don't have to lie to me! We're friends are we not? If so then why don't you want tell me what bothers you?!'' Anemone said while rapidly getting up from her chair, Jackass blinked a couple times while eyeing her friend before replying in a monotone voice.

''What is there to talk about? We both know that we're trapped in this war and on top of that we've been abandoned by our creators, it's just a matter of time before we all die.'' Jackass replied without any emotions present in her voice. Anemone was looking at her with disbelief all over her face while having a hard time believing what she just heard coming from her friend's mouth, that wasn't the Jackass she knew. Surely she must have misheard...right?

''What...did you just say?'' Anemone slowly asked while stepping closer to her friend.

''What? Ya going to tell me that I'm wrong? That everything is going to be alright? That we are gonna win this war? Face it the humans have abandoned us for years now! we're just disposable tools, can't you see that once we will die they'll just replace us with other new models?'' Jackass said while showing some sign of frustration.

''That's not tru-'' Anemone was interrupted by her friend raising her voice.

''Bullshit! I'm fucking sick and tired of everyone here pretending that it's going to be okay when it's not! Let me ask you a question, When was the last time you went out there on mission? Because I've been going out a lot lately and let me tell ya something, it's pure chaos out there! We as androids are supposed to be united to fight against these machines but guess what? we're more fucking divided then ever! Do you know the shit i've seen outside?! There are now androids killing other androids for no reasons, more than machines these days! Their own fucking kind! They would rather stab each other's in the back rather then face the real enemy. It's everyone for himself now, I mean look at you counting supplies that the resistance brought with currency. In this state of war that threatens every single life on this planet including us, currency shouldn't even be a thing anymore since there aren't many of us left alive! We should unite all together and kills the aliens along with their machines but what do we do? We make sure we stay isolated and pray that a miracle will happen while been unable to put our differences aside and help each other's and then we wonder why we're getting slaughtered everyday!'' Jackass shouted with anger and despair while gripping her hair with both hands before looking towards the ground.

Anemone was to shocked to speak after hearing her friend massive rant, it's not that she didn't want to say anything but rather what could she possibly say to that? Guilt slowly took over her at the realisation that she was partly responsible for her current state, wasting no time she closed the distance between them and hugger jackass like her life depended on it.

''Nobody gives a shit about us! Not even our own creator because we're a fucking lost cause in their eyes, I've lost people and friends that i cared about in this war and now...they're gone.'' Jackass vented her last frustration while resting her head on anemone shoulder.

''That's not true i care about you! Remember when we first met and we didn't get along? And look at us now, I will never abandon you okay? So whenever there's something troubling your mind you can can always come to be alright?'' Anemone softly said slowly backing off to meet brown haired women eyes who still was fixating on the ground. She often wondered why was life so cruel to them, It was a question she kept asking herself ever since she had lost her friends many years ago. Anemone was about to confront her further when a resistance member suddenly came running towards them with an agitated expression but as she was about to her the man was was went he spoke faster.

''Excuse me ma'am to interrupt you but it's important! There's a Yorha soldier standing in front of the camp saying that they need our help to deal with a machine named Erebus. She belongs to a Yorha squad and her captain ordered her to come here and ask for help, her comrades are currently fighting this machine, what do you think we should do ma'am?'' The man said in a worried tone. Upon hearing this machine name Anemone breath got in her throat.

''Did..you just say Erebus?'' Anemone asked with a worried tone which didn't go unnoticed by Jackass. However to her horror the man simply nodded his head.

This couldn't be happening right now, could this machine possibly be the same one that the commander warned everyone about? If so then what could they possibly do to even help them? They can't afford to lose any more members but at the same time if they didn't help these Yorha soldiers then they would surely die then, which means that this machine would eventually come here and kill everyone of them. So many thought run through her head however before she could enter a panic state someone tapped her shoulder from her left, she turned her head and saw Jackass looking with her with a worried expression before looking at the resistance members with a question glance.

''Yeah, i think i'm missing something here. Who is this Ere-'' Jackass words were interrupted by a loud explosion that caused trio in the to quickly look outside the tent before slowly looking at each other's with wide eyes. At that moment no words were exchanged because they understood their time was running out.