091. Stranded (2)
091. Stranded (2)
[ Desert Island Drift Log: Day 1 ]
This is Alicia.
Unable to believe what has happened to me—and to preserve evidence in case I ever have reason to sue the Commander—I have decided to organize the events in writing.
First, I should establish exactly what situation we're in.
I am currently stranded on a deserted island.
......Well, though I say stranded, the situation is not terribly serious. This is thanks to being able to communicate with headquarters via my PDA.
According to the information relayed by headquarters, I appear to have drifted ashore on an uninhabited island named 'Red Island,' located approximately 19 kilometers west of Krädel.
The island is not even recorded on standard maps.
There is no detailed information on military maps, either.
It is only recorded that: 1. The resident population is zero,
2. Therefore, Legions that move solely to slaughter humans do not flow in here,
3. It is a small island with a diameter of just over 6.7km.
The mere fact that there are no Legions eased my mind somewhat.
The problem is how to return to Krädel from here.
According to Eve, who is temporarily performing the role of operator as my successor, Laika and Rinne apparently eliminated the Legions that flowed in due to the flood.
However, as a result of the flood, a large amount of debris was swept out to the adjacent coast, and all departures have been suspended for the time being.
Damage to the base facilities has also rendered the portal unusable.
Therefore, the message from Eve is that I will only be able to return in about five days, once rescue boats become operational again.
......Well, if they really pushed for it, they could probably deploy one anyway.
It must simply mean that, from headquarters' perspective, they don't much care what happens to Krädel. They'll rescue me once conditions are stable enough that they can no longer justify refusing to deploy, and until then I'm on my own.
Or perhaps they genuinely judged the situation to be safe.
I did not report to the higher-ups that my Phase power is currently blocked.
That's because arbitrarily blocking Phase power is a violation of regulations.
There must be a valid reason, and 'I wanted to settle a bet on whether marksmanship depends on physical ability or mentality' does not seem like an excuse that would ever be accepted.
So, from the higher-ups' perspective, they probably made a perfectly reasonable call: 'What's the problem? You've got an S-Rank-level biodroid with you. Just wait safely for five days!'
......Whatever the reason, this has become rather troublesome.
I'm stuck spending four nights and five days on this island with nothing on it.
On a deserted island.
With Commander.
That's right.
I forgot to explain it precisely because I didn't even want to think about it, but I am not stranded alone.
I am stranded with my Commander.
Barring any major incident, we will have to remain stranded together for five days.
I don't find it especially unpleasant.
No, it is unpleasant, but...... it's a kind of unpleasantness I've long since gotten used to.
After all, he and I are assigned to the same base and already live in the same building.
There's no reason to make a special fuss just because the setting has changed to an isolated deserted island.
What does irritate me is his attitude.
Right after he finished assessing the situation, his approach was basically, 'I'll keep you safe until the rescue ship comes, so don't worry!'
Oh, of course, he isn't making a fuss for no reason.
As I mentioned earlier, I am currently in a state where my Phase energy is blocked, weakening my various capabilities to the level of an ordinary human female.
Consequently, my marksmanship and even my physical stamina have deteriorated.
It seems Commander got the idea that he needs to protect me.
Though it's entirely unnecessary.
Who's helping whom here? He's the human, the weakest being in this world.
If we're going to split hairs, I think I should be the one helping Commander.
Because even though I've been weakened to a human level, I haven't actually become a human.
......So.
It's a technical area, so even I don't know the details.
But basically, a biodroid spans two phases.
One is the Alpha Phase, to which humans belong; the other is the Beta Phase, to which Legions belong.
A biodroid's brain and body fundamentally belong to the Alpha Phase, but when specific components, including the core, activate, they can temporarily connect to the Beta Phase as well.
Only by connecting to this Beta Phase can we engage Legions and use our unrealistic Phase power.
If I were to force an analogy, it's like activating a graphics card to run a high-spec game.
In that sense, my current state is one where the circuit (= Phase circuit) leading to the graphics card (= core) is partially blocked.
I also artificially lowered my artificial muscle output.
That is all; I am still a biodroid.
Therefore, in terms of material composition, I am far tougher than Commander.
Additionally, I still have no need to eat or drink water.
Above all, the very idea that I can't do something just because my strength or endurance has weakened is itself an illusion born of arrogance.
When it comes to shooting, I'm simply not fully adapted yet. I'm still excellent.
Especially in that last match, I believe I hit almost every shot.
In the end, the accident happened before I could fire the last shot, so I never got to see the result.
Anyway, I did well.
That was merely because I was caught off guard by an unfamiliar physical sensation.
Besides, Commander was swept away just the same, so this cannot be a reason to depend on Commander.
So.
I refused Commander's help.
More importantly, I decided to establish a completely separate camp.
I wanted to prove my point properly while I had the chance.
The fact that Commander's marksmanship is in that miserable state isn't because he's a weak human, but because he himself has no intention of trying properly.
......Having said that.
There was another, more fundamental reason as well.
It was a difference of opinion.
We argued over where to establish our base for the next four nights and five days.
I chose the coast.
I chose it because I judged that plenty of useful items were mixed in among the debris that had washed ashore with us.
On the other hand, Commander stubbornly insisted on going into the forest, claiming there was a risk of seawater surging in.
His evidence was a 'gut feeling.'
Ridiculous.
But Commander, true to his nature, was stubborn, and I, for my part (since I was making the correct argument), was stubborn too.
In the end, it came down to: 'Then let's each set up camp wherever we want!'
Of course, who won is clear as day.
Just as I'd predicted, I found excellent materials.
Namely, a tarp.
A tarp, which was probably used as a cargo cover, was mixed in among the piles of debris.
I laid this tarp over a seaside rock to make a kind of roof.
Thanks to that, I was able to create a very cozy base.
On the other hand, Commander seemed to be wrestling with vines and whatnot, trying to make a hammock.
Could he perhaps be an idiot?
[ Desert Island Drift Log: Day 2 ]
Last night, seawater surged over the entire coast.
As a result, the facilities I had painstakingly set up, including the tarp, were swept away.
Besides that, nearly all the items I had deemed useful were also lost.
I had no choice but to relocate my base to the forest.
When I moved there, Commander, absurdly enough, was using a tent.
When I asked what had happened, he said he'd found someone else's abandoned tent. His luck was unbelievable.
Whether he knew my circumstances or not, Commander offered that we could 'share the tent,' but I refused.
Because I am not a fool who made the wrong choice.
I made the right choice and merely suffered a freak accident.
Surely, the same misfortune wouldn't strike twice.
Well, even putting that issue aside, I couldn't use the tent.
I simply can't stomach that.
Just being on the same island is slightly unpleasant, but the idea of clinging to each other and sleeping inside a tent that might barely fit two people is absolutely unacceptable.
So I refused.
......Nevertheless, I decided to establish a loose cooperative system with Commander for now.
The main reason was that I had gotten hungry.
And thirsty.
If one were to say, "What nonsense are you spouting now, after stating in yesterday's record that you didn't need food!", I would have nothing to say.
In fact, I still don't actually need food or water. My core produces its own power.
The problem is my sensory system.
Sumire followed the Commander's request to 'adjust me to be as similar to an ordinary human as possible, provided the changes can be reversed' with unnecessary thoroughness. As a result, my sensory system seems to have fallen to an ordinary human level as well.
In short, I feel hunger and thirst just like an ordinary human.
Anyway, as a result of cooperating, we found a small stream in the middle of the forest.
Thanks to that, we quenched our thirst, and he caught fish for our meal.
......Though, Commander mostly caught the fish.
Without fishing rods, we had to make makeshift spears, but for some reason, whenever I tried, I couldn't hit a thing.
In the end, I received fish from Commander on the condition that I would start the fire.
Since I paid in labor, it was absolutely not a defeat.
......Starting the fire wasn't easy either, though. My strength had fallen too far.
But I did it.
So, as I said, willpower really is what matters.
Anyway.
In the evening, unable to let go of my lingering attachment to the coast, I went out there again.
To be honest, I wanted a tent of my own too.
In conclusion, there was no tent.
What I found instead was a gun.
That's right. A gun.
Coincidentally, the same gun we'd used for target practice had apparently washed ashore with the tide.
With the one round I hadn't fired still chambered.
......Could this be a sign from heaven to shoot Commander with this and claim the tent?
Who can say.
Anyway, I figured having a weapon couldn't hurt, so I took it with me.
[ Desert Island Drift Log: Day 3 ]
I fought with Commander again first thing in the morning.
The reason was preposterous.
Because Commander tried to take possession of the firearm I found yesterday.
Apparently he was worried I wouldn't be able to shoot properly in an emergency.
As though he's any better shot.
......Well, according to the records, he was a bit better than me last time.
Even then, we were both terrible, and I say again, I hadn't properly adapted at the time. Now it's only natural that I should be the one holding the gun.
And one more thing: once again, he started lecturing me about my base.
Saying it looks like it's going to rain, so I need to build a roof, or something.
Saying I should move my luggage into his tent beforehand to be safe, or something.
With the sun blazing so brightly, what rain is he talking about?
At this point, I'm almost starting to suspect he's trying to lure me into sleeping with him for indecent reasons.
He's already made moves on both Laika and Rinne, after all.
I won't be taken in by that innocent face pretending to know nothing.
So, I will absolutely never share the same tent.
[ Desert Island Drift Log: Day 3, "Additional Record" ]
Commander and I apologized to each other and reconciled.
We decided to share the same tent until the day we return.
It wasn't because Commander suggested it again.
Nor was it strictly because it rained a lot last night.
I simply began to feel that, with this man, it would be all right.
The detailed story will come a little later......
Once this mood has settled down enough, I will continue writing.