Hope

....

Shifty: battle over. damage report?

Rapi: minimal damage. plentiful ammo remaining.

Anis: same here.

Marian: minimal damage as well.

Shifty: incredible maybe i should recalibrate the simulation.

Anis: Well, thanks to the commander leading most of the time, I still can't believe it's his first day.

Marian: we're almost there. Let's pick up the pace.

Varakiel: hang on marian let me check your damage real quick.

Marian:...okay commander.

Varakiel then gets close to marian.

Marian

Corruption: 71% 

Varakiel: (dammit the closer we get the faster it progresses, something is wrong here….lily, progress of inventory connection?)

Lily: ( 90% progress varakiel)

Varakiel:.....alright everything seems okay….but just to be sure.

varakiel puts a bandage on marian.

Marian: commander…

Varakiel: raptures don't understand the purpose of a bandage, but understand the damage on nikkes, as long they don't see any opening they will attack other part of your body.

Anis: that…doesn't make sense commander, that kind of thing is useless to a nikke.

Marian:..even so, thank commander, i think it works…i feel being healed…from the inside…

Corruption: 70%

Varakiel:....hehe

Anis:....

Rapi:....

...

Eventually they arrive at the objective zone.

Marian: we're here.

Anis: no sight of any vanguard.

Marian: they're here

Anis: what? there's nothing here.

Marian: Let's look around.

Varakiel notices a small red taint on Marian's eyes…

Varakiel: (lily?)

Lily: (99%)

Marian then starts walking alone.

Anis: hmm? What is she doing?

Shifty: …rapi. I've finished analyzing the black box from the transport ship. I'm sending you the report.

Rapi: got it.

Rapi's eyes flash for a moment.

Rapi:...

*click*

with a click, rapi points her gun at marian in the distance.

Varakiel:( dammit i knew it)

Rapi: marian, stop right there!

Marian: roger.

Rapi: you shot down the transport ship?

Anis:...what?

Marian: no.

Rapi: there were two explosions inside the transport ship. they were caused by the explosives meant for this operation, which would never go off without an external detonation signal. that detonation signal originated…from you, marian.

Marian: no.

Rapi: what are you trying to achieve?

Marian: we're here

Rapi: start talking, or else i'll put a bullet between your eyes.

Marian: we're here. we're here. we're here

marian eyes begin to glow in red.

Marian: over here. over here. over here. over here.

Shifty. she's been corrupted! when did this happen?

Rapi: tsk, just my luck!

Varakiel: (lily!) dammit!

Lily: (100%!)

Marian: over…heeerreeee

Shifty: she's sending out a distress signal! stop her!

Rapi: I've got her in my sights! please give the order! 

Varakiel: rapi sh–

Suddenly a great shock comes from the ground

Shifty: I'm detecting a high class energy in front of you! those vibrations…they're…a blacksmith!

Marian: over….heeerrreee..

Varakiel: dammit, rapi, anis prepare for combat! shifty what is a blacksmith!?

Shifty: codename blacksmith! It's a tyrant! They capture nikkes on the surface and use them for rapture parts!

Varakiel:....what….

Varakiel is shacking…from anger.

Marian: over…heeee…

suddenly marian is wrapped in tentacles

*SLASH*

but in less than a heartbeat the tentacles are cut down.

Varakiel:....

Varakiel then gently grabs marian and retreats back.

Shifty: What!? what just happened!?

Varakiel: rapi, anis give me support and take care of marian.

Anis: hey commander that's a tyrant what do you think yo-

Varakiel: THAT´S AN ORDER!!!

Rapi: commander…..i bet the same thing happened to those missing vanguard troops…we may be able to save them…

Anis:....ahhh, dammit fine! ill give you support dammit!

Varakiel: engage!!

Varakiel then charges to the massive monster up ahead.

Varakiel: Machine destroyer mode!

Varakiel equipment then changes to a set effective to deal with machines.

Varakiel: you damn scrap!!

Rapi: shifty, assist us.

Shifty: oh…okay. well, first off, the simulation results are…

Anis: we don't need those right now tell us what to do to stop marian corruption.

Shifty: ah, that…..i don't know!!

…..

Varakiel: HA!!!

Varakiel was charging ahead the horde of raptures and to the blacksmith.

Varakiel: 82!

Varakiel then reaches the blacksmith.

The blacksmith using it's tentacles attacks on varakiel.

*CLANG**CLANG**CLANG**CLANG**CLANG**CLANG**CLANG**CLANG*

the eight tentacles are blocked by his shield

Varakiel: argh! that was powerful ( even with these reduced stats this body holds well, just what kind of things did he eat when he was young haha!)

Varakiel then slash at the tentacles that kept trying to attack him.

*SLASH**SLASH*

with two clean cuts two of them fall down!

Varakiel: they are surprisingly weak.

Lily: (varakiel you must hurry the longer the fight takes the lesser the chances to rescue the nikkes and the stronger blacksmith gets, also we found out already what makes the protagonist special!)

Varakiel: (tell me!)

Varakiel then charges at blacksmith while talking in parallel to lily.

Lily:(this protagonist seems to hold an special blood that can destroy the nanomachines that controls nikkes, it also can stop the corruption of marian!)

Varakiel: (what do i need to do?)

Lily: (we need blood from your body and the core of a tyrant rapture!)

Varakiel: (you mean….very well ill finish this off now) earth become my strength!

Suddenly the ground surrounding varakiel begins to move and creates a hole where the blacksmith falls down!

Varakiel: HA!

Varakiel then pierced the blacksmith core in his attempt to stand up!

Blacksmith: SCREEEEECHHHH

but it was not enough!

Varakiel: tch!

Varakiel then jumps on top of the blacksmith as this jumps outside the hole!

Suddenly another set of tentacles come from it and several missiles are launched!

Varakiel: hehe! the oldest trick in the book!

Varakiel then quickly moves aside and the tentacles and missiles hit the blacksmith itself!

Blacksmith: SCREEEECHHHHH!!!!

Blacksmith, enraged begins to charge an attack on….rapi and anis direction!!

Varakiel: your opponent is here, you bunch of scrap!!

Varakiel then jumping high in the sky falls down like an asteroid with his shield up.

*BOOOM*

blacksmith is then pushed down!

the laser of blacksmith then hits the ground below!

Varakiel then jumps down and strikes the core again!

Varakiel: [ALFHEIM]

Varakiel then with his foot infused with the power of the earth kicks blacksmith and this reveals his core and then.

Varakiel: it's over!!!

Varakiel with his sword infused on fire pierces at blacksmith core!

*KABOOOOM*

the whole interior of blacksmith blows up!

Blacksmith: Screeeechhhhh!!

then blacksmith body falls and doesn't move anymore.

Varakiel: (lily not time to waste make that thing!)

Lily: (alrighty! then ill take the remains of the core!)

then the small bits of the core magically disappear.

Varakiel then rush back to rapi and anis than are still being attacked by raptures.

Varakiel: chivalry here!!

Anis: what!!!? you're done already!?

Rapi: incredible…

Shifty: w-w-w-what!!? t-that's impossible!

Varakiel: we can talk later, HA!

Varakiel then rushes to the raptures!

...

...

Varakiel: *pant* *pant* it's over.

Marian: over….here.

Anis: …..what about marian, what….are we going to do?

Rapi:ill check for survivors…..

Marian: here…

Varakiel then gets close to marian….

Marian

Corruption 98%

Varakiel: (dammit! dammit all! lily!?)

Lily: (we…we are almost done varakiel do everything you can!)

Marian: here….

marian right eye was red.

Anis: this is bad. her brain has already been corrupted.

Shifty: we all know the rules. any nikke who has sustained brain damage is to be disposed of. according to the law, the execution…must be carried out by the commander.

Rapi:...no survivors…all the parts have been scraped…

Rapi then walks to varakiel and hands him a pistol…

Rapi: this pistol is for when we must self-terminate, but humans can use it as well. just get in close.

Varakiel: (lily?is it done?)

Lily: (we…are…done!)

Varakiel then walks to marian that was being supported on a wall…

Varakiel: (good, change the bullet on this pistol with the cure)

Lily: (and…done~.)

Varakiel: (perfect….then after we leave and no one is on sight, take marian to promestein and tell her everything.)

Lily: (understood, don't worry, promy will fix her soon enough~!)

Varakiel: (i know, after all she is the smartest person i know~)

Varakiel that was standing still is approached by anis.

Anis: perhaps i should do it.

Rapi: no…we nikkes cannot execute our own kind.

Varakiel then walks again to marian.

Varakiel: hello marian…

Rapi: no time to hesitate, commander. if we don't get this done, she will probably become an irregular soon.

Marian hand then takes the pistol and aims it to her head

Marian: over….here….commander.

Rapi:....

Anis:....

Marian then puts her hand on varakiel hand and puts the pistol close on her head.

Varakiel: marian…thank you for saving my life….i promise we will meet again.

Marian: comman…der….thank you…for…your bandage…for giving me….ho…pe.

*Bang*

Rapi:...No signs of life.

Shifty: official confirmation of death. our investigation mission is complete. head back to the ark.

Varakiel: marian, see you later.

Varakiel then stands up and talks to rapi and anis.

Varakiel: let's go back, our mission is done.

Rapi: roger.

Rapi then walks away.

anis keeps looking at marian body.

Varakiel: let's go Anis.

Anis:....damn it. (maybe he's just like every other commander…no hesitation. *tch*)

Anis then walks away and so does varakiel…

*tap* *tap* *tap*

after they walked for a bit, anis…for some reason looked back to see marian but her body was….gone.

Anis: wha-

Varakiel: shh…it's a secret~.

Varakiel says to anis with a wink and his index finger on his mouth.

Varakiel then walks to rapi.

Anis: (or maybe he's not…commander what the hell are you?)

What is Hope?

A wonderful thing that can grow in any of us, despite the situation.

Hope: 0.01% → 0.02%

…..