"Come with us."
The voice of a male reached her ears.
No, it didn't sound like 9S.
Though his fading screams still haunted her, as her consciousness left her little by little.
She became weaker and weaker, her breath escaped her in smaller puffs until it did no more.
Until the sword lodged in her chest drained her life away, and she closed her eyes once and for all.
She had wanted this, hadn't she?
Yes, she did.
And all she could feel now was relief.
It was over…
Finally…
"Who are you?" she could barely whisper, too weak and too tired.
"My name is Adam, I'm a machine." oddly enough, she couldn't hear a trace of malice in his words though.
Just like Pascal.
"We're leaving for a new world."
A new world…
For some reason she felt that she should care about this machine's words…
"Come with us, your friends have been waiting."
Her friends?
But what friends?
Did she even have any of them anymore?
Were they waiting for her still?
Were they mad that she took such a long time?
Or would they not care?
Wherever they were…
So then…
"I'll come with you."
"This world doesn't need us anymore."
"This world never wanted us in the first place"
Her own voice spoke in time with another, and this time she knew this one.
She barely had the time to look around to this place, wherever and whatever it was, but since he was here, she doubted it had been a good decision to agree to this proposal.
"A2!"
9S' voice pierced the air, he got up from where he was lying, and rushed at her faster than lightning.
At this point she didn't even want to amuse him any longer.
She expected a hit or something, but that never came.
"Now, now, no need for hostility." a hand clad in black and red of a man that wore a white shirt, and held his hair as long as A2 used to have before she cut them stopped 9S from advancing.
It took her a moment to realize that it had been the same voice she heard as she was dying.
Was she dead even?
Where they?
"Am I right, 2B?" the man, Adam he said he was called, turned his head a little behind him, 2B was there too.
And with her another couple of women A2 had never seen before.
Even though one should have been vaguely familiar.
At the mention of the woman he so clearly loved, 9S' expression went from anger, to shock, to sadness and happiness in a matter of seconds.
"So this is where you were…"
He forgot A2 had been sitting there as if she'd been invisible, as he rushed over to 2B, laying his arms around her and sobbing into her shoulder.
And… so did she.
At least they got reunited…
One of the blond women, the one with shorter hair, was affectionately patting his head, and the other one looked like she was crying as much as the couple did, as they sobbed about how much they missed the other.
Without a doubt they had known each other before.
With a heavy sigh, A2 raised herself from where she was, turning the other way.
For as glad as she was that they could be happy, the affectionate display was making her chest ache too much.
She could have never had what they did…
But it wasn't their fault if it hurt so much, they didn't know.
"Please don't leave." the voice of Adam reached her. "Not yet."
"I have no reason to stay here."
Maybe might as well have a look around, find a corner to stay for the rest of eternity.
Alone.
Like she's been for all these years.
Well, there had been Anemone, but she was still alive.
So yes, she was alone, again.
"I have to ask you to be patient." again, this person's words didn't seem hostile. She wondered how he was when he was alive.
"You've waited this long, what are a few more minutes?"
He was cryptic though, that for sure.
"Why just keep her here?" 9S whined, since she was ruining his moment by being here.
"Because like you, she too has a heart that needs mending." it was 6O who replied, even though he would have liked 2B to do that.
But the girl was a romantic.
"There are people here that have been waiting for her for a long time." 21O told him, as 2B only held him closer.
"We weren't the only ones who were separated." 2B put her head on his. "You don't have to look, but, she… they too had suffered like us."
2B had met them when she first arrived, they had thought she was their friend.
She felt so damn bad when she had to tell them she wasn't the one they had been waiting for…
Just someone that looked like her.
Not that they wouldn't have noticed, eventually.
She'd been told that their friend was similar yet different from her, in the way she acted, and when they told her the person's name, she had no doubt as to who it was.
They told her their story, not like they had anything better to do.
But to hope.
They waited long for this.
Just as much as A2 did.
It was evident, just by the look she had on her face.
Sorrowful, and lonely…
Hopefully, soon enough, she wouldn't be any longer.
It was faint at first, then the voice got louder…
"Number 2!"
And louder…
"Number 2!"
And closer…
"Number 2!"
It wasn't one voice either…
"They're coming." 2B allowed herself a smile as she watched A2's reaction.
After all, she knew these voices way better than she ever would.
Eyes wide, her old predecessor looked around from where the voices were coming from.
It was one…
An albino woman with a long ponytail, and a bright smile showed up first, rushing over as fast as she could.
"Number 4…"
Another one, a raven with her hair pulled tightly in a bun was right behind her, she wasn't smiling as hard, actually it looked more like a grin.
"Number 16…"
A third one, a redhead who had a considerably slower pace, but even though she seemed colder she was still just as impatient from the spring in her step, her smile was warm and kind.
"Number 21…"
A2 swayed and staggered where she stood, her friends…
Her friends were here…
Eyes welling up with tears she stumbled towards them, still stunned, wondering if this was real still.
She fell right into Number 4's arms, who lifted her up and twirled her around so fast it made her feel dizzy, but neither had a care in the world.
Number 16 barged in on them too, almost knocking all three into the ground.
Number 21, though less expressive in her affection, still wrapped her arms around them too, one of her hands lightly stroking Number 2's hair with the affection of a mother.
"You weren't the only one whose loved ones broke your heart by dying." Adam turned towards 9S, those words were directed towards him, and 2B, who he lost, losing himself too in the process.
"A2 went through this way before you, as much as you hate her, you're more similar than you believe."
"I don't want to be like her…" he turned away with a growl, but somehow he couldn't tear his eyes off the scene entirely.
Before Adam could keep talking, the voice of a woman did that for him.
"Number 2 loved her companions dearly, more than she ever loved herself. After most of her squad died, the four of them were left stranded and abandoned by your Commander, all she did was to try and give them a chance to live, when they were never supposed to." a woman with a long cape on one shoulder approached.
"And for that reason, they gave their lives for her, because she gave them the hope they had lost."
Behind her, even more people followed.
When Number 2 heard her, she slowly turned towards the group, eyes widening.
"Rose…"
The former Resistance Captain gave her a sweet smile. "You kept us waiting, Number 2."
She opened her arms for her to come to her.
When she hesitated, her companions encouraged her, pushing her forward, all three of them at the same time.
Until she fell into her arms.
Lily, Daisy, Margaret and Gerbera joined in the hug, wanting her to feel all of its warmth.
Little it mattered if they were made of metal and cold.
It was warm to them.
Dahlia just laid a hand on her shoulder, squeezing lightly, but she still remained close.
"We missed you…" Lily nuzzled her against her back.
A2 missed them all too…
All this affection…
So they didn't hate her for surviving after all…
They stayed there for a while, until they released each other but still they sat down on the ground close to one another, with her still sitting in the middle of it, as she laid her head on Number 4's shoulder.
Even 2B, who dragged a reluctant, but not as much as he wanted to be, 9S with her, sat down nearby, followed by their Operators.
Neither android who had been antagonizing the other said a thing, until…
Until A2 extended a hand towards him.
The gesture recalled a lot of the kinder old Number 2.
"Truce?" she offered.
9S' eyes met 2B's ones who nodded, before he too took her hand.
"For what it's worth, I'm sorry for what I've done, as you see, I know that kind of pain too well…" she sighed. "I don't despise you for hating me."
After all, she lived with the same kind of hate towards machines that killed the people that were now around her again.
She could not hold it against him.
"I know…"
Should he say he was sorry now? Was he?
"Don't say you're sorry for having feelings, I never was."
Because feelings made them human.
Because feelings gave meaning to life.
Theirs, and the ones of those they loved both.
"This is perfect, but…" Rose was happy they settled things.
However.
"Something is still missing." she met the eyes of the red haired Scanner.
"Right, Number 21?"
Or rather…
Someone.
But they couldn't exactly tell her they were here.
Couldn't they?
Did she know that she was alone now?
That her only other companion that she met again after so many years, after believing there was no one left was now gone too?
Perhaps they should give up on the thought of seeing her again…
Being happy that at least she could still live…
Or…
It resonated loud and clear.
The sound of a gunshot.
Not too long after, a figure appeared strewn on the ground much like how A2 and 9S did before.
Anemone…
The first one to rush towards her, was someone they wouldn't have expected hadn't Rose said anything before.
But the way Number 21 crouched next to the woman and gently cradled her told everything.
There was no need for words.
When Anemone opened her eyes, the Scanner was the first thing she'd seen.
Lifting a hand, she tenderly left a caress on the redhead's cheek, wiping a stray tear fallen from her eye.
"I finally kept my promise…"
Even if it had been years.
It didn't matter anymore.
"Yes, you did."
They were finally all here.
Exactly where they were meant to be.