Chapter XIX:
Interlude 28
Dear Diary,
Forgive the short entry but I have been very busy as of late.
I am starting to get anxious. We sent Nines and Amos to fetch a few ingredients. The better half of a day has passed and we have yet to hear from them. A bit concerning but I'm certain they are fumbling about in the ruins chasing lizards.
I hope they aren't too bored out there.
On another note, Devola found something ominous on the roof. Shortly after Nines left, Devola went exploring. She was insistent on finding a few cherry stems. I think she intends to show him a few tricks once he returns.
She went up to the roof about an hour ago. I have no idea why she felt the need to go up there when she was hunting cherries of all things but I'm glad she did. She found a bunch of carvings in the concrete. She said that they were scratched out. As if someone had gone through the trouble to etch a complex symbol up there only to try and erase it. I have yet to see it for myself.
9S and Amos ventured up there shortly before we left to track down what remained of No.9's memories. This could be their doing but I…
Popola dropped her pen. The door to her room swung aside as Devola burst forth from the hall. Pod 153 lifted her spotlight from the desk and toward the curly-haired android.
"Sis," Devola exclaimed.
Popola leaned back in her seat and exhaled in relief. "You startled me."
Devola gave a toothy smile. "Sorry. Ya need to come see this! I fixed a section of the engravings."
"How," Popola inquired in shock. "You said it was practically erased."
"Whoever tried covering it up was in a rush. They didn't do a good job of scratching out much of it. I traced a few of the deeper lines. It looks like some kinda incantation circle. I found a couple of those old runes too!"
Popola cocked her head at her sister's discovery. "Runes? As in angelic runes? So, whoever did this had an understanding of magic?"
"Looks like it. Guess that means Nines didn't do it. He can't even wield that fancy sword of his properly."
"I wouldn't rule him out quite yet," Popola interjected grimly. "After all, you were the one who bandaged him up after he cut that bizarre symbol into his hand. Besides, I don't know why anyone else would bother doing something like that on the roof of some random building."
"Maybe someone lived here before we did," Devola suggested with a clueless shrug of her shoulders. "We ain't gonna learn anything if we sit here speculating all day. Come on! Help me redraw the rest of it!"
Popola could not argue that point.
Devola twirled around and darted out of the room. Popola was not so quick to leave. She scooted her chair back and turned to face the staff propped up on the wall behind her. She slowly reached for the weapon but hesitated mere inches away from it.
Her fingers fidgeted. She waited and listened. A pair of feminine whispers sent an unpleasant chill down her spine. Malevolent giggles produced by two distinct voices. The ghostly echoes festered around the staff as though it was the one laughing at her.
They repeated the same thing multiple times with increasing excitement.
"No one stops…"
"No one stops…"
"No one stops…"
That was one of the few phrases she heard repeated over and over again by her cursed staff. A presence lingered with it. One that was not exactly welcoming or friendly, but at the same time, all too familiar.
Popola gulped and took hold of the weapon. The instant her palm touched the ancient wood, those phantom remnants went quiet.
Popola ducked her head the moment she stepped outside. The usual downpour greeted her with predictable vigor. Dangerously fast winds were not far behind. She cast her gaze seaward. Lightning coils reflected off of a myriad of violent waves.
She shook her head. "It all will end."
She looked down at the numerous scars which blanketed the concrete. According to Devola, a massive circle was drawn across the roof. One large enough to envelop the whole area. This was no exaggeration. The entire roof was scarred from both the circle and the attempt to cover it up.
Deeper cuts in the concrete made up one narrow sliver of this twisted image. Devola's work to recover the image was immediately recognizable. A clean section of the circle was plainly visible. Devola carved through the erasure by widening the circular paths and runic shapes, helping them to stand out against a chaotic backdrop.
A twinkle caught Popola's eye. A small, jagged object laid in the middle of the circle. She approached and knelt before it. Pod 153's spotlight was her only means of identifying the lustrous item. A shard of warped metal. She picked it up, eying it carefully for any recognizable traits. She found nothing.
Popola tossed the useless scrap back onto the ground.
"Pod," Popola abruptly asked.
153 fidgeted in place. She could easily anticipate the inevitable question.
"Do you know anything about this? What were the guys doing up here?"
"Unknown. This support unit has not ventured this far up the building until now. To my knowledge, nobody else among our circle has spent any considerable time here."
"That's a lie," Devola flatly accused. Her eyes narrowed, causing the skittish pod to shrink in fear. "Those two spent a whole day up here. The same day I was attacked by that… thing. Ya helped them clear every floor."
Popola's lips parted in astonishment. A tidbit of Devola's accusation jogged her memory. This circle suddenly made a little more sense. A vague picture of events was forming in her mind. An admittedly far-fetched picture, but she was not so quick to dismiss it. Intuition guided her. All that remained was to confirm her newfound theory.
"153," she interjected. "Where did they take that thing's body?"
Pod 153 already knew what thing the android was referring to.
"Into the building north of our current position," she admitted.
Devola shuttered at the mere thought of the abomination in question. "What does that monster have to do with anything?"
Popola shifted closer to the circle. She studied one of the angelic runes for a quiet moment.
"We have a strange incantation circle. You encountered and killed a monster."
"Uhhhh…"
"Someone attempted to erase this circle. I don't know if you are aware, dear sister, but Nines never allowed me to see the corpse of that creature you killed."
Devola furrowed a brow. She never did find out what happened to the body of that infantile demon but she also never bothered to ask. The less she knew about that awful thing the better.
"But why? What happened to it?"
"I went to go find them after everything had settled down," Popola continued. "By the time I caught up to Nines, he and Amos already burned the body. It was unrecognizable."
Devola immediately turned to Pod 153. "They covered it up! Why!?"
"Please understand," 153 sheepishly pleaded, instantly confirming the twins' growing suspicions. "We were unaware of what the unidentified animal was capable of. Unit 9S feared that it would come back to life so he decided to burn it. A measure taken to ensure your safety."
"I don't buy that. And it wasn't a damn animal!"
Popola stepped in between them. "Enough. What's done is done. If anything, we should look at that horrible event as a good thing. He created a circle which brought that creature into the material world and you killed it."
"How is that a good thing!? Don't tell me you're possessed now too!"
The straight-haired twin giggled at Devola. "The monster you encountered. You said it was like a human baby, yes?"
With a mortified shutter, Devola nodded her head.
"And do you recall what 9S said shortly before he fainted some time ago? Cherub. He said cherub and then he suddenly and very conveniently fainted before he could explain further. Cherubs, as humans depicted, were angelic babies."
"Uh-huh…"
Popola then turned to 153. "I don't care what orders 9S gave you. He is not here now and I won't allow him to retaliate against you. So answer me honestly. Did he or did he not use this circle to summon it?"
The pod tapped her claws together anxiously. She rocked her rectangular body, nodding meekly at Popola. "Affirmative."
No further elaboration was needed. "Then if we can alter the circle in a certain way, we can use it on 9S and force whatever is harassing him out into the physical world."
Devola's jaw dropped. She considered the possibility of an auditory hallucination. Her ears must have been playing tricks on her. She could not wrap her head around this utterly insane idea.
"Why the hell would we wanna do that!?"
Popola eyed the circle with renewed intensity. The growing sense of demoralization gradually lifted off of her shoulders. Just when she was beginning to worry that there was no hope in saving 9S, this discovery was made. A much-needed morale boost.
"Because," Popola muttered darkly. Agitation highlighted her words. A vengeful glare overtook her normally reserved visage. "If we can bring that monster to our world then that means we can kill it."
She rested her staff on the ground. It was growing loud again. Speaking phrases that only she could hear.
"No one stops!"
"No one stops!"
The red-haired android refused to be phased by them.
She pointed at Devola then to Pod 153. "First thing's first. Help me redraw this circle to completion. We have to get it exactly right. Even the smallest mistake might ruin everything. And 153? While my sister and I work, I want you to tell me absolutely everything you know about this circle and what happened that day. No more hiding things."
As frightened as she was to go against 9S's orders, 153 reluctantly agreed.
"Affirmative!"
Five hours passed. The storm harassed them the entire time. The few inches of standing water on the roof did not help matters at all but it did not stop them from pressing on until the task was complete.
During the dark endeavor, 153 informed them of the female corpse that was used. An unsettling fact that caused Popola to change her course. The two sisters initially worked by starting on the center of the circle and carved their way to the outer edges.
After hearing 153's story, they inverted the task They had no proper understanding of how it worked. Standing in the middle of the completed circle even for a second could cause some unpleasant side effects. They immediately dropped what they were doing. The twins moved to the center and worked their way out, ensuring that they would be well outside of the circle upon completing its reconstruction.
The sisters casually chatted and giggled at each other's jokes while they worked. Any attempt to distract from the chilling atmosphere evoked by the arcane symbols was a welcome one.
Rune after rune, they recreated every inch of the illustration. Some areas were harder than others. After a long and painful process, they eventually finished. Popola was reasonably sure they had done a decent enough job.
She stood up and admired the fruits of their cooperation.
"Finally," Popola breathed. "Now, all that's left is to decipher the meaning of it all."
"Amos could probably help with that," said Devola.
Popola smiled at her sibling. "Let's hope so."
She turned to 153 and bowed her head. "And thanks for your help as well. You can go back inside if you wish. You've earned a break. My sister and I will join you shortly."
"Understood."
The pod floated back inside the complex and out of the rain.
Devola moved to the other side of the roof, careful not to step anywhere near that wretched circle. She leaned over the ledge, pressing her arms against the rusted railing that blocked her path to a long fall. Her lips parted. She spoke softly. An unusual tone of voice for Devola. Popola had a hard time hearing her over the rain.
"This is going to work, right? What happens if there is no cure? This circle could just bring more terror."
Popola could not formulate an immediate answer. She simply did not have one. About a minute passed and a sudden turn in Devola's tone proved that she may not have to find one. At least, for now.
"Better than doing nothing, I suppose," Devola concluded. "I'm going out."
"Fishing again?"
Devola shrugged her shoulders. "Not like there's much else to do 'round here. See ya later. And be careful around that thing!"
Popola stayed on the roof for well over an hour after the others left. She took the time to get some much-needed practice in with her staff. She had a sneaking suspicion that she would be using it soon. The android moved to another area of the roof, clearing a decent amount of distance between herself and that eerie circle.
She spent much of this training session flinging magic in every direction. Generating as much power as she possibly could in the process. She started out by casting basic orbs but eventually transitioned into sending waves of destructive magic toward other buildings. The luminous display was bright enough to outshine the lightning. She was honestly surprised Devola had not come back up to check on her. Surely her sister was seeing the blinding scarlet lights.
The girl panted heavily but she refused to slow down. With ever-increasing vigor, she continued to cast overwhelming attacks in whatever unfortunate direction her sharpened gaze fell upon.
Whatever was possessing 9S had to be a formidable opponent if not downright incomprehensible. Well beyond whatever horrid chimera Devola managed to eliminate. A cosmic entity with unknowable capabilities. Dragging it out into the open would be foolish if she was not prepared to dispatch it.
She braced her staff for another swing. Her fingers wrapped tightly around the crescent staff. Her palms were bleeding. A result of consonant and not so gentle handling of the weapon. With a glare of murderous intent, she prepared to send another magical flurry toward an old water tower on a nearby rooftop.
Throwing projectiles into the atmosphere at random was an enjoyable workout, but she suddenly found herself wanting to inflict some proper damage.
"No one stops," she hissed.
She took a step forward microseconds away from unleashing a torrent of crimson fire that was sure to obliterate her inanimate opponent. Her foot landed on something other than solid ground. It rolled back. Her eyes went wide. With a surprised gasp, she fell forward and collapsed to her knees.
Her more reserved demeanor returned. The fall yanked her back to reality. She blinked in confusion, checking her surroundings.
"Oh, dear," she sighed.
Popola stood up and searched for the cause of such a dramatic spill. A small chunk of rustic rebar rested on the concrete. Popola aimed her staff at the hunk of metal.
She focused her mind and silenced idle thoughts.
Abnormal darkness manifested in the air mere inches above the pipe. Slowly but surely the item was lifted from the ground seemingly on its own.
The darkness generated by her staff swirled and strengthened into an enigmatic sphere that absorbed what little light occupied the area. The pipe was abruptly swallowed by the resulting gravity well.
Popola cocked her head. After a moment, she relented and lowered her staff.
The miniature void evaporated into nothingness. The rebar was released from its dark prison. It fell to the concrete, producing a loud clang upon landing.
The metal was contorted beyond recognition. The once straight rebar was bent and coiled as though it had been crushed by an impossibly strong force. Some sections of metal almost appeared melted.
She braced to repeat the same trick. Devola's voice put an immediate stop to her streak of destruction.
"Sis!"
Popola jolted in place. She twirled around.
Devola leaned halfway out of the door. Her long white shirt was soaked in blood. Popola's stomach dropped into her bowels at the sight of it.
"Dev," she breathed. She rushed over to her sibling, already fearing the worst. "Are you… okay!?"
She could barely speak. She soon started hyperventilating. Blood loss of this magnitude was more than enough to kill just about anyone.
"It's not my blood," Devola exclaimed.
The statement allowed Popola to slightly relaxed.
"There's a guy outside. I think he's a YoRHa type. Come on! Help me!"
That was all the information she bothered to spare before bolting back down the stairs. Popola, still reeling from the sight of Devola's blood-soaked clothes, hurried after her twin.
The twins raced down the spiraling staircase and straight to the ground floor. Devola led the way to the entrance.
An expanding pool of blood mixed with standing water. Lying at the center of the gore was a male android. The boyish look, black uniform, and short stature were all akin to 9S. The distinctive features of a YoRHa scanner.
He laid motionless. Popola could not even see him breathing. This inactivity did not stop Devola from rushing over to him. She slid to her knees, straight into the blood-infested water.
"Tell her what you told me," she demanded. "About the zombie!"
Silence.
The lack of a response did not dissuade Devola from inspecting his body for the source of the grievous blood loss. Such a wound would need to be dressed quickly.
"Zombie," Popola hesitantly asked.
Devola soon ceased her panicked fumbling. The boy was not breathing. She placed a finger to his neck. No pulse.
"He's already dead," she murmured.
"What happened?"
"I was still fishing," Devola elaborated. "I was just about to pack up when this guy came staggerin' out of an alleyway. Bleeding real bad. He looked like he was in shock. Kept rambling about a zombie trying to eat his brains. That all his friends were dead."
Out of sheer paranoia, Popola lifted her gaze to the numerous openings in the surrounding walls. All potential points of entry. She scanned what little of the dark, outside world she could see.
"Was he alone?"
"Well, duh! And no, I didn't see any zombies."
Devola trailed off. She lifted his head out of the water and shined her flashlight on his face. A horrific gash ran along the side of his head. It was a deep cut that exposed bone and a small bit of gray matter.
"I don't get it. This ain't the sorta wound you get in a normal scrap. It's like someone held him down and did this."
As she moved her light around his body, her theory was soon given more credence. Bruising and hand-shaped marks were found on his wrists.
Popola bent down for a closer look. One glance at the oddly precise injury led her to a similar conclusion.
"Zombies are undead humans," she informed. "Risen from the grave with an insatiable hunger for the flesh of the living. At least, that's what the old stories used to describe. Creatures like that don't exist. He probably encountered an infected android."
"Doesn't explain the wound," retorted Devola. "It looks like someone really did try to eat his brains. Zombie or no zombie, some whacked-out android wouldn't bother taking the time to cut him in this way. Definitely not while he was still alive. Logic Viruses do scary things, but I've never seen anything like this."
"We cannot know that for sure. It could be anything. For the time being, just stay indoors with me. Don't go back outside."
Devola furrowed a brow at her sister. "Huh? What about the culprit? We need to investigate this."
"What? Why on earth do you feel the need to do that?"
"…Nines hasn't returned," Devola reminded. Her gaze lowered to the floor. Concern was written all over her face.
The implication brought forth a wave of dread in Popola. She gulped hard.
"I'm certain he will be back soon. Amos is with him."
"They left almost a day ago! It shouldn't take this long to grab whatever weird ingredients for that nasty drink of yours!"
Popola took another look at the dead scanner at her feet. Suddenly, that boy lying dead at her feet looked a tad familiar. Blood poured from his severed skull. She went pale.
A decision was promptly made.
"Which way did he come from," Popola inquired without further hesitation. "I assume he didn't tell you where all of this happened at."
Devola firmly shook her head but still pointed toward a narrow alleyway between a pair of crumbling complexes.
"Nah. He was too panicked. Rain's probably wiped out the blood trails by now but I'm pretty confident he came from that way. He said he was ambushed in a ruin."
"How specific," murmured Popola. "Lead the way. I'll follow your hunch."
28 minutes later and the twins came to a dead end. A half-fallen apartment complex blocked their path. The concrete behemoth had long since collapsed, falling on its side. Portions of the property gradually slipped into the ocean. Ahead of them was a gaping hole in the wall that led to the interior of the ruins.
Popola was the first to enter. It was not her smartest idea. Without a flashlight, she was virtually blind. After doing what little she could to check her dimly lit corners, she stepped aside, allowing Devola passage.
The flashlight was in her possession. Its illumination gave Popola a passable view of their claustrophobic surroundings. Beneath the shelter of ruined concrete, a series of bloody footprints led from a random corridor to the hole in the wall they just entered from.
"I can only assume this is the place," Popola whispered.
Devola remained silent. She followed the scarlet trail. Popola moved behind her, making certain to occasionally check corners and to ensure nothing was following them.
She clenched her staff. Her eyes darted to the empty rooms on either side. Further down the hall, the twins stumbled upon a corpse. A YoRHa android lying face down in a puddle of blood.
The top half of the android's skull was cleanly sliced off. Only trace remnants of a brain remained. Devola knelt before the body and inspected the surrounding area. A different trail of bloody footprints led deeper into the ruins. Their shape suggested that whoever last fled the scene was wearing sandals.
Not at all the standard boots or heels worn by the average YoRHa fighter.
Devola gestured for the new trail and waited for her sister to come up with a plan. She trusted Popola's opinion far more than her own.
The straight-haired twin moved on ahead, following the trail as quietly as possible. Devola moved behind her. They listened carefully to their dead surroundings. The distant rain crashing against the concrete shelter was all they could hear.
The trail led further into the more ruined sections of the building. They entered a sprawling room. One turned on its side and half-buried in the rubble. The chamber's original purpose was impossible to determine. A steady waterfall descended into the room and gradually flooded the left side of the area.
Five deceased androids lay scattered across the piles of debris. Each of them was killed in the exact same way. Their skulls were cut open like coconuts and their brains had been removed. All of them lay with their faces buried in the rubble.
"Guess we missed the party," muttered Devola.
The curly-haired android initially paid the other bodies no mind, but Popola decided to inspect one of them. She tapped her sister on the shoulder and pointed to a random body. Devola aimed her flashlight at it.
Cautiously, Popola examined the corpse. She was not quite sure what she was looking for. All of them were female. That much was easy to determine. She was overcome with relief to not find 9S's body among them. However, there were bound to be some clues to find.
The manner in which they were murdered was specific and inconvenient. The scene left Popola doubting her initial assumption. Devola's assertion started to make much more sense. An infected android was not out of the question, but the uniform nature of these murders made it seem less likely. She could not imagine a victim of the Logic Virus being cognizant enough to perform such a complex surgery.
Devola moved her flashlight to the surrounding walls to ensure no one else was in the room with them and that the neighboring corridors were empty. It vexed Popola, but Devola shifted her light back onto the cadaver just before her sister could muster a complaint.
"What do ya make of this, sis? Whoever did this was following a pattern."
"They're all…" Popola briefly trailed off. She pressed the back of her hand against her chin. Blood dripped from her fingertips.
"I-I don't understand why someone would do this," she whispered. "The brains are missing. Do you see them lying around anywhere? Any remnants of gray matter?"
"Nope. Maybe they really were eaten."
"Maybe…"
Popola reached down and gripped the corpse's shoulder. She turned the body over. The former observer reeled back in disgust. The android's face had been sliced off. Only a flayed, synthetic skull soaked in blood remained. The bulging eyeballs and exposed teeth were a mortifying sight. Those eyes stared at her, empty and glassy.
"What the hell," Devola stammered. She took a few steps backward. Compelled by fear, she scanned the desolate room once more. She had to be certain there was no one around.
Yet another disturbing discovery was made. Near the bodies was a cluster of books littered the floor. Both twins approached them. Along the way, Popola bent over and checked another corpse. It too was missing a face. She did not bother checking the others. She already knew what she would find and she had not the stomach for it.
One of the books was ripped to shreds. It had a black binding but the pages were all torn to the point of being illegible. Most of the other books were left untouched and cast aside. A few of the books, however, were had interesting features.
The books with white covers, of which there were several, drew the twins' attention. Each one was mostly intact save for the cover. The front of these pale books had holes cut into them. The shape of these carvings resembled that of a face. A stern, somewhat cranky frown with narrowed eyes.
"Why is it only the white books that have these cuts in them," asked Devola. "None of this makes any sense. What am I missing here?"
Popola slowly shook her head. The scene of this twisted crime was bemusing. She was left utterly perplexed. Whatever had transpired here, the person or monster responsible was nowhere to be seen.
There was no real reason to suspect 9S was a victim of this madness. Amos' company likely meant he was far safer than they were. She saw no further reason to stick around.
"I've seen enough. We need to leave."
"But…"
"This is just another example of the city's decay," Popola insisted sternly. "Yet another case of insanity. We need not involve ourselves in every weird occurrence. We should get out of here before whoever did this comes back."
"Sis, this is way too close to home. We need to secure the area at the very least. Make damn sure the maniac is gone."
Popola clenched her staff and gritted her teeth.
She wanted nothing more than to drag Devola out and back to the supposed safety of familiar territory. The determined look in her sister's eyes indicated that her mind was made up. Devola would not cooperate. Popola dropped her shoulders in defeat.
"Fine. We can check the rest of this place out. Secure the premises. We leave the minute we finish."
An offer Devola found agreeable.
High and low they searched. Room after empty room was scoured for a culprit or clue. The twins turned up nothing. No zombie. No more corpses or mutilated books. There was simply nothing left to find.
They rounded yet another corner. The further they drew from the scene, the less likely it seemed that they would turn up any notable leads.
The fear evoked from the grizzly murder scene was steadily turning to boredom. A larger room lay ahead. It was just within view but they had no reason to suspect it held anything of remote interest. Slowly, they moved forward regardless.
"Hey, sis," asked Devola.
It had been some time since either of them said much of anything to one another. The unexpected sound of her voice caused Popola to jolt to life. Her mind had previously wandered back to that circle and the angelic scripts wrapped around complex occult shapes. How she longed to get back to work on that dark project.
"What is it?"
"I saw a ghost recently."
At that, Popola stopped dead in her tracks. Ghosts were not exactly an uncommon sight these days. The city was infested with the echoes of the dead. She had become used to it. The statement still caught her attention.
"Go on…"
"It was you," Devola grimly muttered.
Popola's hands trembled. Her staff rattled in her chilled palms.
"But you looked different," continued Devola. "You were wearing a weird dress and you were crying. You… or she… didn't say anything. Just disappeared after a minute or so. The room got really cold after that."
"Ignore it," Popola softly demanded. "Ignore all of it. Just pretend like you don't see them or go to another room."
Strange advice but Devola did not bother to inquire further. She folded her arms and moved on ahead. "I get the feeling something terrible is gonna happen to us. To all of us. So, I hope your plan works out. At the very least, I want to live to see the end of this storm. I can hardly remember what a clear sky looks like. It feels like it's been so long since I last saw the sun."
Popola watched her sister venture deeper into the darkness. With accusing eyes, she glared at her staff. Its menacing aura crept up her arm and tickled her bones. She gritted her teeth in resentment.
"It will work."
She hurried her pace to catch up with Devola. Together they ventured into the next room. Popola was swiftly losing her tall stack of patience. Her lips parted, prepared to call off this pointless search. She was interrupted. A bizarre static filled the air. Obnoxious white noise blared from nearby. They both almost jumped out of their skin.
A voice followed the static. A masculine tone. Distant and coated in that loud white noise. The voice recited a series of numbers.
"33… 61… 66…"
They followed the voice to a small, wooden radio resting upon a slab of fallen concrete.
"I say again. 33… 61… 66…"
Devola sat upon the mound of rubble and inspected the curious device. Termites writhed about in the wood, chewing on the vintage radio as though it were a mere snack.
How could this old world equipment still be functioning in a building devoid of electricity? As the transmission went on, Popola searched the radio. There was something in desperate need of verification.
After spotting a black cable connected to the backside of the radio, she reached down and pulled the cord free from the concrete debris. She held up the plug, showing it to Devola. All the while, the radio repeatedly transmitted the same set of numbers.
"33… 61… 66…"
An idea came to Devola. She reached out and turned one of the knobs. The voice vanished behind a veil of empty static. She kept fiddling with the dial until something new happened. A fresh voice emerged from the emptiness of so many dead channels.
This one was feminine and sounded all too familiar.
"Hey, sis!"
The voice matched Devola's to a tee. The radio-dwelling phantom spoke with notable cheerfulness. The twins could detect a hint of laughter behind her words.
"I got busy at the tavern again today. I'll visit the library when I get a chance."
Popola dropped the cable and walked around to the front of the radio.
Devola rose to her feet.
Together they loomed over the haunted radio. With solemn frowns, they listened to the words of an apparition that sounded and behaved exactly like Devola. Words that evoked an unexplainable nostalgia.
"I know you're swamped too but you should stop by sometime! It'd be really fun! Just like the old days."
Nostalgia filled Popola's thoughts. The straight-haired twin glinted to her identical counterpart. What did they do before the onset of the Black Scrawl? Before their betrayal sealed humanity's fate. What were their lives truly like before their memories were wiped? Her diary could only shed so much light on the past. She kept a surprisingly poor record of personal events. In the end, Popola could only stand there at her sister's side and wonder.
The ghost took on a more reserved tone as the transmission progressed.
"Say… Maybe you can answer this question for me. Where do robots like us go when we die? Humans have their fancy souls and whatnot, but what about us?"
Popola glinted to her twin. Devola's features twisted. A sign of holding back a swelling sorrow. Fear mixed with utter despair.
"Popola... I think I'm already one of the dead."
A terrible warping overtook the audio. The ghost's voice faded into oblivion. The static died. The ethereal transmission reached an abrupt end. Everything fell quiet. All audible stimulation ended apart from the pouring of eternal rain.
Popola reached out and wove her fingers with Devola's, clenching her hand tightly. If for nothing else than her own comfort.
Note: I decided in the middle of working on part 2 of the last chapter that a break or interlude was in order. Most of the stuff featured here was going to happen in the very next chapter anyway and we haven't seen much of the twins since chapter 15.