“Wow...” Kaname found herself breathing, even as she winced from the ringing in her ears. When she’d explained her plan to lure the robots out to the only wide-open part of the ship and finish them all at once, Sousuke and the others had said they would ‘use the AS loaded in the helicopter above.’ But even knowing that it was coming, she couldn’t help but be taken aback by the sight of the AS’s power in action.
After all the trouble the Alastors had given the flesh-and-blood humans, it had taken just a few rounds from the Arbalest’s head-mounted 12.7mm machine guns to polish them off—and those were its lower-powered integral weapons, barely useful in battle against other ASes. Imagining the destructive power of its more high-powered “optional” equipment—the 40mm rifle and 57mm shotcannon—was enough to make her dizzy. The maneuverability, the firepower... ASes were often called the ultimate land weapon, and it was clear that this was no exaggeration.
“Is it over?” she asked quietly.
“Yeah. Things are looking up,” Sousuke whispered back, hands on his hips as he stood up in the smoke. “Though I’d feel better if the view wasn’t the back of an awful AS.”
“Ah...” Kaname breathed vacantly, in a combination of relief and surprise.
The Arbalest responded over the radio. “Sergeant. Are you referring to me as ‘an awful AS’?”
“Guess,” Sousuke said shortly.
“Guessing complete. Do you wish to hear my conclusion?”
“No.”
“Roger. Please provide a rating of this machine’s autonomous battle function.”
“Well done. That is all.”
“Learning message: explain the meaning of ‘well done,’” the Arbalest requested.
“Figure it out,” Sousuke barked back. “And shut up until I give further orders.”
“Roger. Though I would prefer not to.”
“I told you to shut up.”
“Roger.” With that final rejoinder, the Arbalest’s AI fell silent.
Kaname, who was quietly listening to the exchange, found herself thinking what a strange operator—AS combination they were. It vaguely reminded her of the way conversations between her and Sousuke typically went. And with that realization, it all made sense.
The lambda driver-mounted AS was designed to shadow its operator as closely as possible. It could intuit the operator’s psychology and emotional state, and synchronize with them, not by copying, but by complementing. The further that process progressed, the more efficient the machine’s dynamic response rate with the omnisphere would become. This meant that while their enemies could only execute what was programmed into them from the start, the ARX-7’s potential was nearly limitless.
The one who made the machine—Tessa said his name was Bani—he must have been very talented, with a real romantic spirit... Kaname could tell that he’d loved Tessa, as well.
“Chidori?” Sousuke’s voice snapped her out of her reverie. The train of thought disappeared in a flash.
“Huh?” she said.
“How are you? Were you hurt?”
“Ah... no. I’m okay,” she told him. “But where’s everyone from school? And we need to get Tessa—” Suddenly, a new train of thought jolted through her, stopping her mid-speech.
Kaname-san. I’m sorry to interrupt again. I see it went well... I’m glad. But I’m afraid something awful has happened. Please send medics to Area H21 in the starboard corridor. There’s a man there, Sailor-san. He’s injured, and he will require a significant blood transfusion. He will die if nothing is done.
“Tessa...?” she asked uncertainly.
I’d ask you to send my men to the C16 observation deck, as well... but I know that it won’t be in time. Harris is finalizing his preparations to escape with me. This might be the last time we speak.
“Tessa?” Kaname tried again, through a rising sense of alarm.
I hate how powerless I am. If only I had your strength... Please, be of use to everyone. You’re the only one who can replace me. And regarding your relationship with Sagara-san... ah... it’s fading...
“Tessa?!” Kaname yelled, but that was the end of their resonance. A stinging in her right cheek, the pain of handcuffs on her wrists, and an afterimage of that captain’s sinister grin were all that remained with her.
5: Sleepless Christmas Eve24 December, 2335 Hours (Japan Standard Time)Shark-1, Near Izu Islands
Shark-1, having collected information about the enemy from the sonobuoys he’d dispersed in advance, observed the pathetic attempts at evasive maneuvers being taken by the Tuatha de Danaan. They’d probably be changing heading and speed frequently to try to scramble their target motion analysis.
Stupid, he scoffed to himself. Do they really think those textbook submarine tactics will work against Leviathans?
Shark-1 opened his encrypted channel for shallow depths and issued orders to his wingmen: “B240, D300, Code 13. Heading 240. Navigate to depth 300 and attack target from three directions. You have permission to use ultrafast torpedoes.” Ten seconds later, he received a signal of acknowledgment from both machines, and the ‘first officer’ sitting behind him activated their fire control system.
The Leviathan’s arsenal included Soviet-made ultrafast torpedoes known as Buryas. Their top speed was 120 knots, over twice the speed of the standard torpedoes used in the West. They were effectively missiles, and not even the Tuatha de Danaan could shake them off.
His AI revealed via on-screen display that the enemy had entered firing range. His two comrades were almost there, too. The de Danaan might be agile for a submarine, but it would still be helpless against attacks from multiple Buryas, coming from three directions at once.
Shark-1 removed the final safety and pulled the trigger. He felt a jolt as the ultrafast torpedo took off out of the firing tube in the Leviathan’s belly, on a collision course with the de Danaan. Easy. It’s too easy... he thought with a thin smile.
Next, he started preparing another weapon for the area the Pacific Chrysalis was in; a standard torpedo would be more than enough for that one. He had no idea who was on board that ship, and he didn’t especially care. He’d been ordered to destroy it, so he would.Tuatha de Danaan
The de Danaan’s officer of the deck, Captain Goddard, could feel his heart pounding in his chest,
