'Aoba!' I yelled, wondering if my mechanical voice would reach him. 'Aoba! Wake up!'
The only response was the sound of my own voice echoing across the hollow room, and hearing the desperation in my tone made me feel sick. I was helpless.
I tried again to dial an outside line, to call for help, but the signal was blocked. Platinum Jail had cut all connection to the outside world and I was left as stranded and trapped as Aoba was, locked away in a place time had forgotten.
'Aoba!' Again, I lick at his cheeks and nudge him again with my snout and watch as his head flops around as ifeless as a doll's. I can only imagine what is happening to him, though the pained expression upon his face pierces the appearance that he is sleeping, breaking the illusion of peaceful rest. He looks to be in agony and that only makes me more frantic as I try to rouse him from the nightmare that has befallen him. 'Aoba, listen to me! You need to wake up - now! That is not reality!'
A few minutes before Aoba was awake. He spoke of using his power, Scrap, to try and save his friend. I stood by, watching as their bodies collapsed to the ground together as though the strings holding them up were severed. Having only knowingly used his power once before – and failing – Aoba took a frightening gamble with his own life to save that of his companion's. But I saw the determination in his eyes and knew I could not stop him. His mind was made up, his heart followed. The best I could do now was guard over his physical form, to protect him from any outside interference. That is the only option left to me.
However, as the minutes pass by I am overcome with a disturbing sensation. My legs suddenly feel weak, my system sluggish, as if my operating system is slowing down.
'Come back, Aoba.' I plead, losing the strength in my voice. I cannot shake this feeling of dread off. It disturbs me. I am prickled by a bad premonition though it is too hazy for me to see properly. Just beyond the grasp of my consciousness I can almost see – though it is more akin to feeling it – something happening. I feel the distant shiver of an unknown torment, and know now that I am witnessing a fragment of Aoba's captivity. Our minds our linked from the online connectivity chip in my system, binding our fates together. His pain is my pain.
The longer Aoba is trapped inside the other's mind the stronger the sensation in me becomes. I feel my consciousness being lured from my body and I try in vain to hold onto it, to stay a little longer.
I begin to panic, frantically pulling on Aoba's clothes with my teeth. 'Aoba! Aoba please, wake up!' I tug at him with all my fading strength, pawing at his arm with the pads of my feet and pushing my snout against his face. His body gives no resistance, allowing me to interact with it as I please.
'...Aoba..!' My struggles have left me worn out and after a time, I give up.
My tiny paws clamber up onto his chest and I curl up there, folding my tired legs beneath me and tucking my head in. His chest rises and falls in shallow breaths and I can still feel the faint beating of his heart. His body is still warm and it radiates into me, and together the gentle rocking of his chest and the heat of his body lulls me to sleep like a lullaby.
I cannot resist the termination of my operating system any longer.
As my eyes close I know that Aoba has failed with Scrap. His mind, as well as his companion's, is broken. With my consciousness having nothing left connecting it to this world my own eradication is inevitable. My system is shutting down.
'I'm sorry... I could not... protect you.'