CHAPTER 7: VAGUE HOPE

CHAPTER 7: VAGUE HOPE

A gentle breeze whispered through fallen trees and crumbled cliffs. A vast graveyard emerged in the crimson sunset—metal bodies strewn amid blood and flesh fused with the earth. Smoke rose from the ruins of the once-towering signal tower. Kira and Snow stood, surrounded by white sparks emanating from Kira’s chest. The Philosopher’s Stone had shielded them from the firestorm, restoring their lost limbs. “What…” Snow stammered, her missing hand reforming, the gash on her shoulder sealing shut. Kira watched in silence, equally astonished. They stood quietly until the sparks faded.

“Snow, answer my earlier question,” Kira said, her blood-matted black hair clinging to her face. “Kulshedra—was it you who destroyed it?”

“Yes.”

“Now I want to kill you. Will you still fight?”

“Yes.”

“Even knowing you can’t return, you’d fight?”

“Yes,” Snow replied, her ash-streaked white hair fluttering in the wind. “Only fighting can answer my questions, whatever the outcome!” Her fists clenched with determination.

Kira frowned, her fingertips crackling with faint sparks. Then her expression softened. “You’ve saved me twice. I can’t repay kindness with vengeance.”

“You saved me twice too. We’re even,” Snow muttered, her hands clasped together.

They surveyed the devastation around them. A faint sound came from beneath a thick layer of rubble. Snow rushed over—129, battered in the wreckage, her face completely ruined. “0… 2, I… Glory… Midgard…” Her words couldn’t form a full sentence, the light in her eyes fading. Snow touched 129’s pink hair, gazing at her for a long moment. Chaotic data surged again, but she no longer cared.

“What if we call a temporary truce and search for survivors?” Kira asked, her voice tinged with compassion. Snow said nothing, only nodding gently. They set off together toward the battlefield’s center. What greeted them was silence and desolation, painting a picture of despair. Corpses lay piled atop one another, steel mingling with blood and flesh. Kira moved quietly, examining each body, clinging to a vague hope that someone might still be alive. Snow checked her radar and scanned the area, but no signals responded. No one could say who won today—or if both sides had merely edged closer to annihilation.

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“This is… CMD-006… anyone still… respond…” A distorted voice crackled through the Android comms channel. Snow spun around and ran, Kira following close behind. Rubble littered the ground, torn up by Ifrit’s claws, Android bodies in the camp area crushed together from the vortex’s impact. Snow raced to what was once the Command post, where 006 sat slumped in a corner, limbs shattered, a gaping hole in her body.

“002…” the Android Commander rasped, her golden hair obscuring her face. “Anyone… still alive…” Snow bowed her head, silent. Understanding, 006 forced a weak smile. “You’ve… changed too… like me… limits… broken… this way… better… than decommissioning.” Snow embraced 006’s broken form, her arms trembling. 006’s eyes slowly dimmed, her smile lingering on her lips. Kira watched from behind, fists clenched, struggling to suppress the emotions welling up.

“Decommissioning—what does that mean?” Kira asked softly, breaking the stillness.

“For Androids deemed inefficient, their data and consciousness are erased from the Server, as if they never existed,” Snow replied, still holding 006 tightly. “She and I were the last second-generation Androids not yet decommissioned…” Her voice choked, her face hidden behind her platinum hair.

The sky darkened into night, the moon rising as if signaling the end of a day of slaughter. Kira sat in a corner outside, reflecting on the earlier scene. She thought of her siblings—Iris and Joshua—the moment she parted from them, and questioned what she was fighting for. Though her emotions had dulled after years of war, for the first time, Kira chose her own fate. She strode back inside, placing a hand on Snow’s shoulder as she still cradled 006’s body.

“Snow, there’s something I need to tell you…”

Snow could hardly believe her ears. She stood, facing Kira, confirming what she’d just heard:

“Let me confirm this. The Philosopher’s Stone—the thing the Kingdom wants—is inside you?”

“Exactly.”

“The Olympus Federation has no idea about this?”

“Correct.”

“You want to end this war, and you need my help?”

Kira nodded. Snow gritted her teeth, grabbing Kira’s collar, her lips trembling as if to speak, but no words came. She glanced at her fallen comrade’s remains, then slowly released her grip.

“Maybe I’m tired of fighting too.”

“An Android feeling tired? That’s a first for me,” Kira quipped.

They looked at each other, then burst into laughter. The sound of two artificial beings laughing seemed to awaken a corner of the death-strewn battlefield.