//Ahn: Broken Chains

The mindless eyes stared back at Ahn. They conveyed a feeling of madness similar to the effect that the androids that had killed 4-AE produced. It was an unnerving feeling. He looked back, fear filling his body. He couldn't move. It was as if something was chaining him to the floor, binding him in place, taunting him.

"You couldn't do anything back then, you won't be able to do anything now," they seemed to taunt him.

The automaton charged out at him, letting out another chill-inducing scream. He could only watch as it came closer. He was useless.

A black shadow flashed out in front of him, intercepting the automaton's imminent swing. It bellowed with rage, having been denied its kill.

Sae slid back from the impact of the attack. This thing was strong.

"Ahn!" she shouted. "I need some support!"

He was frozen. The fear's chains were too strong, unyielding.

The automaton raised its gun now, not giving Sae a chance to close in. It fired off a shot, which was easily dodged. A loud boom shook the room, dust flying everywhere. The shot had gone past Sae and hit the wall behind her, leaving a massive hole in it. Had she not evaded, even her high durability wouldn't have held up.

She shot a finger out as she rushed toward it, aiming for its faceless head. Its large arm moved at uncharacteristically high speed, snatching the blade before it could hit its mark, swinging it and sending Sae into the ground, leaving a web of cracks in the stone floor.

It followed up with a swing of its blade, barely giving Sae time to roll out of the way. The blade left a scorch mark in its wake. It was clearly far more dangerous than a standard heat blade.

Sae tried to make her way back toward the entrance of the room, ducking under another plasma shot, but was quickly repelled by a mad flurry of slashes from the automaton. To be able to wield two weapons of such size with that much mobility, its strength had to be incredible.

If Sae stayed far away, it would give the automaton the chance to fire continuous shots at her, and if she tried to get close, its blade sent her back away. Its combination of defense and offense was nearly impenetrable for a melee combatant.

Sae glanced back at Ahn, seeing that he was still unmoving, and rushed back towards her opponent. It fired a shot at the ground this time, the explosive force at Sae's feet sending her into the air. It took advantage of her lack of midair control to land its first successful hit with its sword.

Sae let out a yelp as she was sent again to the floor, steam rising from her charred torso. Another hit from that blade would penetrate her external layer, possibly even destroying the internals it was protecting.

Sae struggled to get back on her feet, but fell meekly to the ground again. The automaton let out a victorious screech as it raised its gun, ready for its long delayed kill.

Sae lay helplessly at its feet.

'It will be the same as last time,' the chains gripped at Ahn maliciously. 'You weren't even able to save the one thing you cared about. You'll lose her, too.'

'I don't want to be alone,' Ahn thought. 4-AE's face flashed through his mind. The smile she had given him.

'See? You can do it.' Her final words.

He didn't want to hear any more final words.

It was irrational, what he did. Completely unorthodox. There was no reason behind it, no real thought. He might have very well been killed right along with her.

His body, however, acted without waiting for his mind. This kind of thoughtless action was far out of character for him. But, he realized, he didn't want to stop, even as his thoughts caught up with his movement as he jumped in front of the barrel of the gun.

He could feel his [RIS] being shredded by the force of the shot, it was being burrowed through as if it were nothing more than a thin layer of dirt. The shot traveled on, straight into his shoulder.

Pain.

Why he was equipped with the ability to feel pain was beyond him. Perhaps it was motivation to return undamaged. If so, it was effective. He had never sustained this level of damage before.

He watched as his severed arm flew across the room with a shower of sparks. Sae's eyes met his as he fell next to her on the floor. Shock filled hers.

Ahn was frozen again, this time with pain. It was unbearable. He looked on as Sae's eyes returned to the enemy in front of her, now flashing red.

It swung its bladed arm at her, but she ducked under it with renewed speed, grabbing onto its large wrist. She tightened her grip, twisting as she did so. The wails emitting from the automaton almost synchronized with the sound of tearing metal as its arm was ripped off as if it were made of cardboard.

It recovered from the pain quickly, raising its gun hand to fire again. Sae slid under it, kicking a foot up, pointing the shot towards the ceiling in the process. Rubble fell from the hole the blast left in the ceiling, sending the automaton staggering back.

Sae leapt through the flying dust, embedding her bladed fingers deep into the abomination's face, shredding mercilessly through its metal parts until she reached the organs underneath, tearing through those, too. What was left behind was almost unidentifiable, a mixture of ripped entrails and sprays of blood adorning the mangled metal parts. The damaged automaton lay motionless on the floor.

Sae fell back, sucking in deep breaths. She turned to Ahn, casting him a glare.

"Idiot!" she yelled, her red eyes now focused on him.

She was right, Ahn thought. He deserved to be yelled at, and she deserved to be angry at him. He had just sat idly by, watching as she fought alone.

"How stupid can you be?!" she continued, but then fell silent. The burning red faded from her eyes, being replaced by a dark violet. She was...afraid?

"Why would you do something so reckless?" Sae's voice was barely audible. "It's not fair."

What was she talking about?

"I said that I wouldn't leave you alone," she said. "I can't do that if you go off and die without me." She stopped, her gaze falling to the floor.

She wasn't mad at him for freezing up during a fight, Ahn realized. She was mad about his reckless actions. She was afraid that he was going to get himself killed. This kind of thing was something Ahn had never seen her show. She never was afraid, never worried about anybody else. She was starting to slow her breathing, calming herself down. Was this the real Sae?

She met his eyes again. "Your arm," she said.

Ahn looked to where his arm lay on the floor halfway across the room, reminding him of the intense pain he should have been feeling. With this admonition, it returned. He winced.

Sae walked over and gently picked it up, returning to Ahn and setting it down next to him. She sat down in front of him, facing him directly, having to slightly incline her head to make up for the height difference.

"You really are stupid," she mumbled.

Ahn nodded.

"Don't do that again."

He stayed silent.

"You don't have to be afraid anymore," she said, a serious look in her still purple eyes. The irony of her statement was not lost on Ahn. "Remember? You aren't alone anymore," she added softly.

Ahn looked at the smaller android in front of him. She was staring intently at him, gauging his reactions, trying to figure out what to say next. This was unlike anything she had ever done before.

Ahn found himself acting without any thought behind it again. He reached his remaining arm out, putting it against Sae's back, pulling her into a lopsided embrace, her tense body pressing against his.

"What are you doing?" she hissed.

"I thought you were going to die, too," Ahn whispered, keeping his grip steady, ignoring the pain in his shoulder. "I thought I would have to go through it all again."

Sae's body relaxed. She hesitated, then rested her head on his shoulder. She was warm. He could feel her breath brush against his back. She was there.

"I couldn't watch it happen. Not again." His voice cracked.

Sae pulled her head back a bit, just enough to meet his eyes. Hers were white and blue now. It was as if she was sharing his sadness, empathizing with it. She was sitting against him, safe, able to do so. She was alive.

"I won't let it," she repeated, letting her head fall back to his shoulder. "Idiot."

They sat unmoving for a few minutes. Eventually, Sae pulled away, standing up and grabbing Ahn's missing arm.

"We have to get moving," she said. "We need to talk to Hephaestus about the...situation." She lightly shook Ahn's arm as she said this.

Ahn flinched. How could she so nonchalantly wave his severed arm around in front of him? He sighed. It was still Sae.

With this thought, a new one came. With the new thought came an unfamiliar spark inside of him.

It was a pleasant feeling. One that he had never experienced before. He didn't want it to go away, no matter how small it was. He wanted to hold desperately on to its memory, and if it did fade, he would chase it again.

This was a feeling that he never wanted to end.

As they walked outside, Ahn looked up at the ink black sky - the stars were no longer visible through the massive amount of pollution in the atmosphere. He took a breath of the icy air, contrasting the warmth he had felt moments before. It didn't bother him. There was warmth somewhere. He knew this now. He was going to find it.

He looked at Sae, who was scanning their surroundings cautiously, still holding tightly to his missing arm.

He let out a soft laugh. A genuine one.

EMOTION LOG:

SUBJECT: 4-HN

SEX: MALE

ANGEL CLASS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

PHYSICAL STATE: UNSTABLE. SEVERE DAMAGE TO LIMBS.

NEW EMOTIONS DETECTED.

NONE: 74 PERCENT.

SADNESS: 22 PERCENT.

HAPPINESS: 4 PERCENT.

LOG END.