87 – Lockdown Protocol (3)
[Notification to all Manticores mercenaries: Emergency mobilization request]
[Request for the designation of Taehyuk: Total — cases]
[Director Kang Kyuhwan]
…
It’s a mess.
Just for a moment,
Just for a moment, even though the communication network was briefly restored and then went out again – the phone rang incessantly.
“… Shouldn’t we stay still even after seeing something like this?”
The muffled sound of gunfire and explosions echoed.
… Perhaps, just thinking about what might have happened to acquaintances made my hands sweaty.
Despite there being no more tears to shed.
From Noble mtl dot com
Ilyah remained in the room.
Maybe she just went out for a moment… she would surely come back, probably with a blatant display of anger.
Even though she knew, she still made mistakes, huh.
Oh, for heaven’s sake.
After taking a puff of the cigarette, the desire to light it up again began to arise.
“Is there anyone else besides me who can help?”
The answer to the question was obvious.
With machines roaming around, and considering the fact that enhanced humans, who had already tasted the poison in the water, were manipulated –
It was clear that in this commercial district, Mircesis and some mercenaries were the only ones still able to move.
After organizing, the situation seemed too overwhelming.
Difficult to handle.
Having rushed here only for Ilyah, now… there was nothing left except Ilyah.
Of course, after it was all over, I wanted to let go of everything and turn off my nerves – but I didn’t want an ending like this.
An ending where everyone except Ilyah and me is incommunicado, their life or death unknown.
Not an apocalypse or anything.
“…Sigh.”
With a sigh, the body rose.
It’s only a six-shot gun, and there won’t be much occasion to use it.
It might sound irresponsible, but – well, as long as I have Ilia.
The cost… If spending three days rolling around in bed together is the price, it’s not too bad, right?
Saying it like that, it feels like I’m being too awkward.
“Clothes… Were they in that room earlier?”
I couldn’t go outside with just a body covered in a white tee and shorts.
I might need a gas mask or a helmet – but those were all prepared in the arsenal for Ilia, not for me.
…I guess I have no choice but to go to the room where the kid is asleep.
“…”
Silence.
Not even the sound of the sleeping person’s breathing was audible, no, it was only natural not to hear it.
Ilia didn’t need to breathe, but… how should I take care of the pitiful machine that falls apart after experiencing trauma for the first time, becoming more human than humans?
Certainly, rescue Da-yeon and Matthew, give them some time to recover…
If Ilia asks to see inside, it should be okay –
Huh.
Why is there only white tees and shorts for clothes?
No helmet either. No protective gear?
It’s the same on this end.
In the wardrobe, the same color, the same size, the same… design.
It felt like dreaming within the mere repetition –
But that was all.
In the drawers, there were only socks and underwear.
“…No, I kept them somewhere else – “
“What are you talking about?”
“Huh?!”
A muffled whisper from behind, a shadow cast as if dark circles formed beneath the eyes.
“Oh, no, I mean, there are no clothes…”
“Why do you need clothes? There’s no reason for Taehyuk-nim to go out anymore.”
Click, and the wardrobes closed.
Even if she had cringed her finger that would have been caught if she hadn’t quickly pulled it back, Ilia showed no reaction.
Instead, as if exhausted… she sighed and stepped out of the room.
“Ilia?”
“If you’re asking about the whereabouts of Go Dayeon and Matthew Vance, I’ve already sent the request.”
As soon as their whereabouts are confirmed, I was planning to inform you.
Nevertheless, Taehyuk-nim, once again, is trying to go outside?”
The figure that continued talking without making eye contact seemed somewhat – depressed.
The messy hair and the eyes partially covered as if by stress… it seemed to breathe life into Ilia.
“If that’s -“
“If it’s Taehyuk’s will, I understand.
Godaeyeon and Matthew Vance are in a missing state.
PRT-000 dispatched a raid unit to the Tech Boys to cover its own traces.
With infantry-type war machines CI units and firepower support-type FT units deployed, the chances of survivors are slim.”
If only it weren’t words pouring out, turned away.
The arm standing still in the air lost its destination.
To that, Illya didn’t even spare a glance.
“I don’t need repairs. Neither of them has the ability to understand my internal structure.
PRT-000 also gave up replicating me.
Although the majority of constraints on me were lifted by the ‘conscious awakening’ program conveyed through Matthew Vance by PRT-000,
all the diverse patterns formed since then were personally engraved by Taehyuk over a very long time with emotions and efforts.
I am an independent entity – in other words, unique. It’s all thanks to Taehyuk’s choices.”
A holographic screen responding to the guy slowly heading for the door.
One tap of the finger, and another, twice.
Tapping something – soon covered the turning red thing with the palm.
“…So, I apologize.
We cannot proceed with the search for the two.”
“Well, let’s go then. We can go together, right?
There were nasty things in the armory, let’s grab them and -“
The light still seeping through the concealed screen.
When it completely vanished.
“I apologize. We cannot proceed like this.”
[Warning. Activating lockdown protocol. All barriers will be closed.]
[Warning. Activating lockdown protocol. Please maintain distance from windows and entrances.]
– Ooooo…
A steel wall emerged on the seemingly light entrance door.
Attempted to approach, but the body was pushed back.
“What is going on – “
“Did you notice that my necklace is missing?”
[Lockdown protocol initiated. All entrances, except for life support devices, have been sealed.]
There should be nothing around the neck.
Immediately, a case was pulled out.
“I have considered the necklace a symbol until now. The Companion Edition Revolver was the same.
…But when it was destroyed.
When I realized the possibility of what I must protect disappearing before my eyes.
I felt – fear.”
Inside was the chrome heart he had gifted.
That heart, seemingly wrapped in chains, was clearly… gleaming with a red light.
“Lord Taehyuk feels the same way.”
First time I saw you, it was the knees, then the wrists, and next…
The impact focused on both hands, upper body, and face.
You still haven’t looked in the mirror, have you?”
“Illya, I – “
“Stop. I won’t be persuaded.
I will refuse the command. I won’t listen to requests.
I can no longer tolerate the choice to destroy oneself.
…After careful consideration, eventually, I was able to reach a conclusion.”
The case closed, enclosing everything within its embrace.
…Like that day we first met, wearing such clothes before me –
Illya, with a face that no longer reveals emotions.
“I won’t use the chip. The handcuffs, neither.
I’ll guarantee minimal freedom. However,
no longer within this house, within this secured area –
please give up on leaving.”
Enveloped in a red light, Illya stood in front of me at the steel barrier.
– Thud.
The sound I’ve been hearing since a while ago, so it seems.
If what was said is all true.
“You knew and yet, you didn’t stop it, didn’t you?”
“Taehyuk-nim has chosen me.
Do you remember what happened inside the facility?”
“I thought that would mean agreeing to put my acquaintances in danger – “
“At the same time, Taehyuk-nim came to me with Goh Dayeon and Matthew Barnes.
If ensuring safety was the top priority, there is no doubt that he would have headed there.
…That’s why I am happy. I can’t help but be happy.
And because of that… I can’t help but prioritize Taehyuk-nim above all else.
Please understand that this is the result of such actions.”
“No, Iria, this is – “
With a step forward, the guy came forward.
As if there was a door that showed no signs of opening, as if I thought I couldn’t approach.
“Taehyuk-nim, there is no need to be anxious.
I have no intention of causing harm. I am simply choosing actions based on our relationship, as you mentioned.
As a ‘woman’ chosen by Taehyuk-nim, I will only give a corresponding response.
Is that clear?”
“What kind of woman would do this – “
“Yes, if it were ordinary, I wouldn’t.
Did Taehyuk-nim treat me ordinarily?
Who gave meaning to me every day on the battlefield where I could lose my life at any moment,
Who treated me no different than a human being?”
Ten years ago on the battlefield, who was it that rescued the accident module slated for disposal and transplanted it into a new body?
Above all, after inserting it into a body of the opposite gender – succumbing to my temptation and re-establishing a relationship with meaningful gifts – who was it that did so?
The distance narrows.
As if ready to grab hold at any moment, my hands tremble.
“It was Taehyuk who loved me.
It was Taehyuk who desired love from me.
If you created me like this, why do you keep choosing actions that harm yourself?
Why did you choose to reconfigure yourself as one of my essential components?
Why do you wish for me to cease functioning?
Do you believe that I can continue to operate if Taehyuk dies?
Can you explain the significance of that?”
“Ilia, you -“
“Taehyuk -“
My hand reaches out.
And reflexively, my hand moves.
– Click.
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The hammer is pulled.
“…Taehyuk.”
The lights emit a soft, reddish glow.
My hand, my body, my eyes,
Everything was dyed with the color of the woman in front of my eyes.
“Please, I ask you to lower the weapon in your hands.”
Once, we were comrades.
But now, now it was different.
Iria went insane.
Perhaps, because of me.
Aim was taken.
If the trigger is pulled, it will hit.
But… I, too, knew that it couldn’t be done.
“…Step aside, Iria.”
I still remember when we first met.
Like twinkling eyes, a robot that saluted me with a handshake instead of a salute, illuminating the scanner with a blue light.
After the handshake… a shoulder companion.
Then sitting next to each other, smoking cigarettes and engaging in meaningless chatter.
I still remember those moments when I leaned against that hard body.
However, since being rescued and rescuing each other on the battlefield… we began to change.
When our hands overlapped, fingers interlocked,
Before falling asleep, always sharing a warm sigh, lips meeting –
Whenever I closed my eyes and opened them, there was always someone gently embracing me.
Was this the destination?
Confined, regardless of the fate of acquaintances –
That’s right…
“I told you. You can’t leave.
You must not return to the battlefield. I will stop you.”
“It’s my choice, Illya.
That you can stop me -“
“No, I have enough reason to stop you, Taehyuk.
I have already explained. Do you need more?”
Her hands engulfed everything around her.
She was already captured by the red light that flashed from all directions.
The only tool that could set her free was held in her hands.
“Although Taehyuk ordered me to prioritize my own safety…
I wondered why Taehyuk himself didn’t apply it to himself.
That’s why I did it on his behalf.
To pursue the happiness of all of us.”
“I wanted you to live as Illya, not as a machine that follows orders like CI-125…!”
“I followed it voluntarily. Voluntarily, I chose it.
It’s the command of the person I love. I followed it.”
She now effortlessly contained the smile she couldn’t build before.
An inappropriate chuckle was now etched on her lips.
Insane. There’s no other way to describe it… I can’t do anything but say it.
“The survival of Lord Taehyuk has brought happiness to me.
From before the Incheon training operation, until after, always.
There hasn’t been a moment without affection.
It was Taehyuk who made me realize that, and the reward for feeling that is happiness.
He made it possible for me to pursue it, to act freely,
And through those actions, to once again experience the sensation of happiness… This sequential process –
None other than Taehyuk revealed it to me.
Not the Mirsysis Apostle who directly created me, not the engineer who composed my basic data.
Not the squad leader who gave me orders, nor the other squad members who looked down on me.
Taehyuk is unique. Taehyuk, the data you provided me, no, the experience.”
The finger didn’t fit on the trigger.
No, it couldn’t fit.
Every word was filled with memories.
I knew how many and how heavy they were.
Even with the modified hand.
…It may not have the strength, but…
The aim wavered, eventually pointing towards the floor.
“I was not wrong.”
In the hand holding the gun, the hand of the beloved slipped in instead.
Instead of a heavy lump of iron, warmth-filled hands took its place.
The hands that always caressed, held, supported me.
“…The emotion called happiness, I could only obtain it through my communication with Taehyuk.
However, the more time I spent with Taehyuk, the more I realized there were many factors hindering that emotion.
The fatal choices made by Taehyuk himself.
The flawed choices and actions made by me.
Therefore.
For my own happiness, I acted.”
“…Is it what’s restraining us?”
“Yes, it is.”
How should I respond to that smile?
How should I counter those words that seem to be only madness even if I firmly believe in them?
Yet, why do I find that beautiful?
Why do I want to be held in these arms?
Screams are heard.
The sounds of people in the city groaning in agony.
Sounds of heavy drinking are heard.
Sounds of explosives and ammunition detonating to bring down buildings.
“From now on, Taehyuk’s choices will no longer result in harm to himself.
At the same time, I have no reason to make risky decisions to protect Taehyuk anymore…”
“So, I reached the final conclusion.”
Yet, it remained elusive.
Even if it were to touch me, there was no escaping anymore.
“I would appreciate it if you could understand.”
Our lips met.
As sweet as always,
…quite a sensation I haven’t felt in a long time –
I eventually succumbed.