ch7

The surroundings are dark and, even more so, hopeless.

They say you grow taller when you dream of falling from a high place; at this rate, I might grow a finger’s length.

To dare to face a bottomless cliff. Like a beast that peered into the abyss and lost its footing, plummeting. In the darkness, limbs that seemed especially white flailed desperately, but there was nothing to grasp, and the feeling of floating didn’t disappear.

But… on the other hand, it’s incredibly cozy.

Eating, sleeping, even lust. They’re no longer necessary to maintain my existence. All five senses of an organic being have vanished, and there’s no room left for desires.

The absence of sight has pulled me out of the terrible reality. The lost hearing has been replaced by perfect silence. With the disappearance of touch, pain has also gone. Thanks to the blocked sense of smell, the nauseating stench of blood and gunpowder is gone too.

The extinction of taste… is a little regrettable. I never really got to enjoy delicious food while I was alive, and now I’m letting it go so easily.

…Ah!

There’s no need to regret it at all.

Surely, there was a can in my jacket pocket. And one of them was even a sweet jelly pie can, perfect for a last supper before leaving.

But… the bread can I quickly pulled out. It was a little different from what I remembered.

“…?”

I tilted my head and looked at the object in my hand.

Blue codes covered the surface and even invaded the contents. Korean… alphabet… numbers, special characters, symbols, Cyrillic… etc., swirling around dizzyingly. Who on earth gave me this strange can-shaped chunk of information? Oh, that nameless tin can robot gave it to you. Why? He said it was your birthday present.

Me…? Who am I…?

Who else…! Anastasia, you talented idiot! Move…!!

“Hngh?!”

The information and signals that had been flowing out merged together, completing the current me.

Shit!! There was no warning anywhere that I could lose my ego during the dive…!

Damn…!!

Forcibly lifting my body, which was panting while prone, I kicked off the black floor and went out. Except for the intermittent blue electrical signals that flashed by, this world, presumably the research institute’s system, was a kind of black tunnel.

Tap tap tap…!!

I sprint with all my might along the tunnel. I don’t get tired. Because it’s not my real body that’s moving, but Anastasia, an information lifeform, that’s blinking.

But….

“What…! Why is there nothing…!!”

I run and run. No matter how much I run, only the black tunnel continues. I don’t know how much precious time I’ve wasted. I thought that if I kept running along the only path, something like a terminal or panel that I could operate would appear. But only infinite darkness welcomes me.

“Shit…! Shit—!!”

Could it be… that the Abyss Dive failed? Or, in fact, am I already caught by the pursuer and back to being a doll in a test tube? And is the stupid AnDroid shattered and out of its mind?

If I had known this would happen, I would have just tried hacking, even if it was difficult. If only I could know the outside situation…!

“!!”

Squeak! I stopped abruptly.

The wall, which had been empty until just now, collapsed, and the camera control panel and monitor in the control room appeared.

Why…? Before I could even think, the monitor showed the surveillance footage of the front of the control room and the main gate.

“…….”

The barricade was almost completely crushed. Goliath’s arm was swinging. The pursuer was rolling sideways and shooting the Droid. All the information I wanted to know appeared, but everything in that scene was moving strangely slowly.

The shape of the pursuer’s fist stuck in the wall. The sound of rifle bullets vividly cutting through the air and passing by the tin can. Even the ground cracking every time Goliath took a step. Only then did I understand what kind of technology Abyss Dive was.

They say that even mountains flow when seen through the eyes of God.

Even materials and values that seem unchanging eventually crumble before the long passage of time, so conversely. Who is the absolute ruler of the cyber world, who can divide even a moment into countless scenes and manipulate the connected system as if it were a lucid dream?

I am Anastasia. The best Network Hacker and Cyber Architect in Neo Haven. And a rough gem with the qualifications to become an abyss diver.

Crrrrrrrrrr—!!

The black treadmill that had been endlessly circling the connector is dismantled. The small monitor becomes as big as Goliath, and a soft chair rises from the floor. Since it’s a world maintained by completely different rules and order, it only follows commands when the right orders are given.

Boom…!

In that completed space, which could be seen as a command center, I prepared a surprise attack.

“Tin can! Can you hear me?”

• ! Miss Anastasia! Are you safe? –

“I’m perfectly fine…! Can you stop breaking down?! You know I can’t carry you around, right?”

Drrrrrrrrr…!!

After confirming that the communication channel is clear, I gradually expand the net.

Like a snake that quietly hides and waits for its prey to sink its fangs, the signal reached the Hovercrafts that were parked idly.

Remote hacking that is primarily connected to the building network and then carried out through a simple communication channel. If just anyone could do that, corporations wouldn’t be dominating the world. So… regret turning an abyss diver into an enemy…!

Weeeeee…!!

The Hovercrafts start up and rise into the air.

The protects and firewalls that should have been in place opened the door wide, claiming to be signals from the same company without me having to do anything separately. It’s a stroke of luck that they don’t have any reserve forces to directly respond to the abnormal situation.

“Next time the pursuer attacks, crush him with Goliath so he can’t move even for a moment…!”

• Understood! –

Bang—!!

Dududududu—!!

Goliath’s huge mechanical arm slams into the ground and sweeps the floor. Even in the midst of that, the pursuer was skillfully resupplying bullets from the scattered corpses and returning fire.

[ Remaining power 6% ]

Anxiety crawls up my spine.

Is it because of the lack of power? 6% is enough.

Is it because the wall blocking the other pursuer is almost completely destroyed? No, there’s a countermeasure for that.

The safety device to guarantee the life of the AnDroid, who is bravely fighting at the forefront. The fact that there was really nothing was clouding my judgment.

“What is this shitty junk…?!”

• I am composed only of the latest parts from Paradise and ExaTech. That’s very rude. –

Crack!! Bang!

The fired bullet pierced the tin can’s shoulder, separating the arm from the body. As the arm disappeared, he also fell from Goliath, but as a price for his greed, Goliath’s kick once again slammed the pursuer into the research institute wall, so now is the chance.

Weeeeee—!!

As soon as Goliath’s huge body tilted towards the wall, two Hovercrafts launched like crazy. Brakes? That bastard’s body will soon become new brakes.

But at that moment, the pursuer bastard tore off the armor on Goliath’s side and stuck out his upper body.

Bang!!

“Kuaaaa—!! You can’t kill me with this kind of trick… can… you?!”

The guy who saw the Hovercraft flying towards him like a missile hurriedly cut off his words and got out of the scrap heap.

There’s still not enough time until impact. I have no choice but to use a little more power on the turret to buy time. …And, I wasn’t the only one who thought I needed to buy time.

• ……!! –

“What the fuck?!”

“?! Stop—!!”

The armless AnDroid jumped up and rammed the pursuer who was getting out with his body.

There was no time to think about the aftermath. I hurriedly divided the time and issued a stop order to the Hovercraft. But…. No matter how much I stretched the perceived time to infinity, what had already happened didn’t change. Rather, as a price for that, I had to watch clearly as the two mass missiles mercilessly cut off the tin can’s waist and exploded.

“……Who in the world just does whatever they want…!!”

Crash! Unable to contain my anger, my hand swung and knocked away the terminal and panels in front of me. As if sympathizing with me, who had lost my composure, the abyss swayed unstably. But fortunately, there was still a target to vent my anger on.

“You fucking bitch…!! You won’t die peacefully, you hear me!”

Bang! The wall collapsed, and the pursuer, who was very angry, entered the control room… and stopped when he saw my fallen body. The bastard’s Cyberware would have naturally analyzed the fallen girl and concluded that she had lost consciousness.

A careless enemy in a perfect position. This control room, which oversees the research institute’s system, still had the last defense system remaining.

[ Plasma barrier activation initiated. ]

[ Remaining power 5%… 4%… 3%…. ]

From the infinite abyss to reality in an instant. There was no need to worry about decompression sickness.

Unlike when I entered, my eyes suddenly opened fiercely. In front of me was the pursuer, caught in a suddenly created red furnace, unable to scream and melting away in his armor.

“If you bastards…! If you bastards had just died peacefully…”

Click!

Bang bang bang!! Bang! Bang bang—!!

I emptied the remaining magazine and reloaded. Until I used up all the ammunition I had, I fired the pistol wildly at the melting flesh.

[ 2%… 1%… Forced barrier shutdown. Entering power saving mode. ]

I stared at the pursuer, whose combat armor, flesh, and Implant had melted together into a gruesome meat broth. Since not even the brain remained, it would be difficult to revive him even with the excellent medical engineering of Enama Corporation.

Tick tick…! Tick… tick….

Even if I pulled the trigger, nothing more would come out. Naturally, I gathered my knees and sat down on the cold research institute floor. In one side of my head, the remaining reason rebuked my emotions, asking why I was wasting precious ammunition. That’s right. In fact, instead of feeling better, my self-loathing only deepened.

“……Idiot, moron, retard…!!”

I should have just barricaded myself in the basement.

I should have just used all the remaining electricity to explode the Hovercrafts, whether it worked out or not.

I should have, from the beginning…!

• ……Ma’am. Wasn’t my nickname. Tin can? –

“?!”

I jumped up.

“Tin can!! Are you alive—?!”

• Power source and. Separated so. Conversation. Won’t last long…. –

“?! You crazy bastard! Then shut up!!”

My annoyance doubled at his words, like an old man taking his last breath. What a hero…!!

I skipped over the puddle that smelled like something I never wanted to smell again and ran out into the hallway through the hole the pursuer had made.

Beep…!

“Open the door!!”

[ Control barrier retrieval initiated. Error, power shortage. ]

[ Remaining power 0.6% ]

“Damn it…! Then open them all just a little bit!”

If I had only had time to modify myself properly, I would have slid out coolly. I had no choice but to crawl awkwardly under the barricade that was only partially raised and go outside the research institute.

Words to say overflowed.

Why did you do that? I told you to block it with Goliath. Did you think my words were a joke? After preparing all sorts of complaints, I found the can, but when I actually saw the guy pathetically rolling around with only his head at the edge of the sea of fire. My mind went blank.

“……”

Thud, thud.

Carefully approaching, I picked up the Care Bot’s head, which was sparking, having lost all its scanners.

• Honored. To. Serve…. –

“…Shut up.”

I was a fool to think that I should connect it to even a working car battery since its power was cut off. There was no way the Care Bot caught in that massive explosion could be so intact.

Its voice module was also gone, so it could only speak in broken sentences through communication. This is what happens when robots keep ignoring human words. I wouldn’t even get 10 Credits for it at the junk shop…!

Drip… drip….

• Are. You. Perhaps. Crying…? –

“……Don’t you even know your coolant is leaking? How are you going to protect me like that?”

• I’m. Sorry. –

A million ideas and solutions flashed through my head. But in a situation with no suitable facilities, equipment, or technology, there seemed to be no possible way.

This is impossible. That’s too much. Impossible, impossible, impossible, impossible, impossible, impossible…… possible.

“Hey. Can I ask you just one thing…?”

• It’s. Okay. –

“…The core code that makes up your existence. It’s in the central processing unit, right…?”

• ……. Yes. –

As if realizing what terrible thing I was about to do, he answered with difficulty.

I am. I’m about to do something truly cruel. Selfish. Treacherous. An idea that only a self-centered human could come up with. Something Mega Corp would do.

I am. I will rob him of the right and opportunity to die as himself.

“…If you agree. Open your head.”

• ……. –

Hiss… The top of the Care Bot’s head opened. Sparks flew from the severed circuits, and a lot of shattered metal fragments popped out, but a few scratches on my hand were no problem at all.

“Your name. I’ll definitely hear it someday. So… just wait a little bit.”

I don’t even know when that will be. When he wakes up, the can might not even be a can. Just like I can’t be sure if I, who woke up in a test tube, am a continuous existence with my past self. He will become the same being.

Crack…!!

Afraid that my heart would weaken if I heard an answer, I didn’t hesitate and grabbed the AnDroid’s brain and pulled it out.

“……”

Under the moon of this world, where the traces of the explosions of the Great War were vivid. How long did I stare blankly at the spreading flames? As my dizzy head and heart cleared, my pitiful body sent a signal.

Grumble…….

“……Ah.”

I rummaged through my pockets and took out a Jelly Pie can.

Click, I opened it, and took a bite.

“…Sweet. Yeah.”

Carefully placing the central processing unit inside the empty can. I closed the lid.

I no longer remembered the bitter taste of the culture medium.