Shattered Facade
Splash... Splash....
"Ah, ahhh, ughhh? Ooooh?!"
A thick, slick tentacle pierced through the ECHO's lower abdomen. Fluids erupted from the Defender's gaping pussy like a fountain.
A sticky, viscous stench spread in an instant.
...Wow, fuck. Is this real?
I'd seen it in game CGs before, but those were censored with mosaics due to content restrictions.
But what was unfolding right in front of me was the raw, brutal, horrific reality— utterly uncensored.
"Ugh?! Ogohgo!"
The tentacle writhed through her innards, burrowing deep into the ECHO's womb. Each time its thrashing paused, love juices overflowed from the yawning gap of her pussy like a flood.
The thing before my eyes was no longer worthy of being called an 'ECHO'.
"This filthy virus..."
Was that ECHO, infected by the Z Virus?
As I swallowed hard at the savagery, the mischievous smile vanished from Pomen's face.
Replacing it was icy rage and thick killing intent directed at the monster defiling her former comrade.
"Commander, your orders."
"...Repel it."
Click—!
Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat—!!!
At my command, Pomen's massive Gatling gun roared to life.
Crimson flames tore through the darkness. Hundreds of bullet rounds shredded the tentacles ravaging the Defender.
"Ah, ahh... ugh. Ughhh—!"
Bursting chunks of flesh splattered the walls, forming grotesque patterns like nightmares painted in blood.
As Defender-7's corroded armor peeled away like tissue paper, something odd entered my sight.
"......?"
A red marker appeared in my vision.
Huh? Isn't this the weak point marker from the game— for named or boss monsters?
Another isekai perk, like the Money Compass?
My brain lagged, but my body reacted before it could catch up.
As familiar as if I'd done it thousands, tens of thousands of times – unlike my hazy military memories – I shouldered the K-28 ‘White Tiger’.
Holding my breath, I sighted the red marker.
Bang—!
One clean gunshot cut sharply through Pomen's barrage.
My bullet pierced the Defender's joint without the slightest deviation.
Thud—!
With her balance lost, the Defender collapsed in a heap.
More red markers bloomed across its body.
Bang—! Bang—!
With each gunshot, the bullets precisely pierced the control processor, power core, and drive shaft of the Defender’s frame one by one.
Then the Defender, crawling toward us, dropped dead still like a powered-down doll.
"...Wow."
In the sudden silence, Pomen's low whistle echoed.
She blew smoke from the glowing barrel, then swayed her hips seductively as she approached me.
"I thought you didn’t say you'd join the front lines on impulse. Sure enough, our Commander had an ace up his sleeve, huh?"
"Huh?"
"Your marksmanship. Absolutely killer. More precise than an ECHO, even."
"...I just shot a stationary target."
Honestly, I wasn't sure it was even me shooting.
I had fought only a little during my active duty and a bit more during the reserve time.
All accounted for, I don’t know if I even shot 100 bullets in my entire life.
Yet my body moved like a decades-long pro.
"Hmm..."
To my half-assed reply, Pomen leaned in, her hot breath tickling my ear as she whispered.
"That hot shooting skill... Are you that good at night too?"
"...What?"
"I mean, nailing it so precisely. Bet you're great at poking other stuff too..."
Her husky voice brimmed with teasing and something dangerously close to raw desire.
This vixen.
Her casual flirting drew an involuntary chuckle from me.
"Don’t make jokes on the battlefield, Pomen."
Was this the same ECHO who'd been so touched by my words just moments ago?
To her brazen seduction, I cleared my throat and turned away smoothly.
"That's why it's the battlefield. Death could come at any second."
Pomen narrowed her eyes like a cat and smiled, hooded.
"Plus, you’re a one-of-a-kind human, Commander."
"...How?"
"Totally different reaction from other humans. They'd have slapped me silly by now. Say “How dare a lowly ECHO harass me sexually?” or something similar"
"......"
"In that way too, our Commander... is very skilled at handling ECHOs, aren’t you?"
Pomen's gaze drifted to my waist, then trailed languidly back up.
She was an utterly incorrigible ECHO unit.
Part of me wanted to ravage her right there, but this wasn’t the right place for something like that.
"Sigh... Enough."
"As you command, Commander."
Her voice lingered heavily on the "command" word, tongue teasing it as she drew the word out.
I felt that she was making a sinful promise to do anything I wanted with that.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Bang—! Bang-Bang—!
Rat-tat-tat-tat—!
My synergy with Pomen was better than I'd expected.
Pomen blasts the armor apart; I finish the job.
According to the Central AI, C-3 sector held Defenders and zombies.
But sweeping the warehouse, every zombie we found was already dead.
Freshly dead, at that.
"Arva's handiwork."
"Assassin through and through."
"Well... an exploration model, technically."
"...Exploration? Our Arva?"
"Pre-cataclysm stuff, yeah. Now she acts as a ‘Ghost’ doing recon, sniping, and assassination missions."
"What'd she do before?"
I perked up at the unknown lore.
Lorewise, ECHOs were androids for education, guidance, construction, medical, security, and many more versatile tasks. Tools of the highest caliber.
Post-cataclysm, they'd been forced into combat roles.
Some had pre-cataclysm backstories in the game, but most did not.
Arclight Squad fell into the latter category. They were fairly new units unveiled at the 2.5th Anniversary event, so scant details were known about them.
The thought of uncovering ECHO lore that would be unknown to any player but me gave me an absurd spike of thrill and dopamine.
"Arva was... don't freak out, okay?"
"Yeah?"
"A zoo guide. Can you believe that stiff girl was a guide?"
"...Uh, no."
That was so wildly out of my expectations.
The silent slayer of humanity's threats was a guide before it all?
"And you?"
"Guess."
"......"
A few thoughts flashed to mind, but I bit them back.
They were too filthy to voice out.
"Cafe part-timer."
"You?"
"Why? Do you find it weird?"
"No, you must have been really popular. Drawn in loads of crowds."
A cafe with her as a part-timer? There would be whole blocks of lines in front of the cafe for her.
She murmured a soft "Who knows~" and leveled her gun at a wriggling shape ahead.
"Enemy."
"Suppress it immediately."
Rat-tat-tat-tat—!
I shouldered the White Tiger too.
Ready to drop it the second it showed.
Then, in my peripheral vision, I could see a faint twitch among the bloody hunks of zombie remains.
...A tentacle?
Thinking it might have been an illusion, I blinked and glanced toward Pomen. But she was just firing ahead, not even looking in that direction.
"Did Arva leave it as bait? The Commander doesn't need to bother."
"Really?"
"See? It’s already on its last legs."
"...Right."
If she missed it, probably my eyes were playing tricks.
Glancing back suspiciously—
"???"
I saw a tentacle fragment writhing, coiled tight to launch.
Then it rocketed upward using the recoil of its push— heading straight for Pomen's nape.
Fuck-?!
No time to yell "dodge" to Pomen.
Instinct took over as I wrapped my arm around her waist and shoved her out of the way.
"Kyaaak!"
My left arm whipped at the incoming tentacle the next second.
Crunch—!
Accompanied by the horrific sound of metal shattering, an excruciating pain – enough to burn my brain – pierced my entire body.
"Commander—!"
Pomen hit the deck, face ashen.
Seeing the Z Virus-infected tentacle latch on my arm, fury exploded from her in a roar.
"You fucking bitchhhh!!!"
Crunch—!
Her fist crushed the tentacle.
Metal and corrupted tissue crumpled, black ichor spraying everywhere.
"This filthy parasite dares—!"
She tore it free from my arm and slammed it into the floor with everything she had.
Boom—!
On the cracked tiles, it spasmed wildly.
Crunch—!
As Pomen stomped down at it with all her might, smoke trailed out of the corner of her boots.
Crimson glow raced along the tentacle, incinerating flesh and metal alike.
Moments later, a charred husk of the monstrosity was revealed. With that scene, her blazing eyes slowly refocused.
Her gaze fell to me, sprawled on the floor.
"Commander!!!"
Horror scenarios raced through Pomen's mind.
Shattered bones, shredded meat.
Human flesh couldn't withstand a scrap from the zombies.
Even worse was the possibility that he, the Ark’s sole hope, could be infected by the Z virus.
But reality was...
"Whew, that was close."
A wrecked black metal frame, completely shattered beyond recognition.
"Ah......?"
Pomen froze in place.
Not relief. A primal shock hammered her core.
"Why?"
Decades of data shrieked denial at the illogic.
Humans never shield ECHOs.
Humans use ECHOs as meat shields, as disposable trash.
No human sacrifices their own self for an ECHO. It was not improbable but impossible.
Yet...
As if mocking her data, the Commander eyed his mangled prosthetic arm and grimaced.
Prosthetic or not, the pain he felt should be absolutely real.
Yet he didn't blame her lapse.
"Pomen, you okay?"
"!!!"
Just those worried words.
And they were enough to utterly demolish her psyche.
The mask of sly grins, taunts, and chatter, all of it shattered completely.
Tears poured uncontrolled from her wide eyes.
"Why..."
Sobbing, she crawled to me.
Ignoring the cold deck grating her knees.
"Why...?! You're hurt! So why? Why ask if I'm okay? Why?!"
Her voice cracked, quivering without stopping.
"......"
"Why... to junk like us..."
"......"
"To mere tools – ECHOs – why treat us like humans?!"
I scratched my head at her pleas.
I wasn't a human of this world.
I did not know their scorn for the ECHOs.
But the sole truth was, I couldn’t survive by myself in this dystopia.
"Told you. This isn't a battlefield just for you. It's our reality— you and me both. And we need to survive it together.”
"......"
"You're not a tool. You're my comrade in arms."
Me, saying this cheesy line?
It was overwhelmingly awkward and cringe.
"Ah, aaah...!"
But it hit her right on the mark, at least.
Teary-eyed, she buried her face into my chest. Her full breasts squished brazenly through my suit.
This was bound to happen.
My cock twitched, prodding her.
"...Commander?"
Having stopped crying in my arms, she lifted her head slightly and looked up at me with tears still glistening on her face.
"Yeah?"
Her eyes flicked to the insistent shaft poking her.
A hint of embarrassment seemed to flit across her face, but… it soon gave way to that mischievous, intrigued smile unique to Pomen.
"You’re naughtier than I thought. Your body's too honest, isn’t it? Popping for even an ECHO?"
"...I'm a guy."
"ECHOs aren't girls."
"Looks like hot women to me."
"......Hmm."
She ground her hips closer. A soft hand toyed with my crotch.
"Does it feel good?"
"...You’re not going to hear me complain or anything."
"That’s lovely... your stick is so scalding. Aah, I want to feel it directly, not just through your clothes."
Tear-smeared face, but a voice filled with mischief.
"Ngh."
Judging by her grip, she was done messing around, wasn’t she?
Could it be that I’m about to do it with an ECHO right here?! This isn’t exactly the best place now, is it?
Right then.
"Commander."
A cold, metallic voice reverberated from behind.
Arva had returned.