I Will See the Stars

Attention protocol. [I will assist with data processing, Rabe.]

"Linne."

I called out while dodging the enemy machine's fan-shaped laser barrage.

"You can handle signal conversion, right?"

"I'm counting on you."

I didn't think she couldn't do it. She just... acknowledged it. Whatever thoughts crossed her mind internally, I had no interest in prying into the reasons.

With that mindset, I dumped all the complex calculations and functions onto Linne, focusing solely on the engagement with the enemy machine.

From here on, my job was simple: endure as long as possible.

Linne began analyzing the incoming data streams. Even so, there was a hard limit to the total signal volume my nervous system—including her—could handle. My skull throbbed, squeezed like a vise.

"The hardest part hasn't even started yet."

The "engagement" with the enemy machine felt more like a game of tag. I hated this part. I'd rather just smash straight into it head-on.

Clang! I fired the shotgun's last shell into empty air, then discarded both weapons. Empty guns were useless dead weight.

With my primary armaments gone, my speed surged even higher. Now, all I carried was the frame and armor plating. Too focused to gauge it precisely, I glanced at the gauges: 600 km/h...

"Is that even possible on standard medium gravity?"

I had no idea. The boosters rattled violently. The generator's energy drained at twice the normal rate.

"Tricky bastard..."

Hermann was saying something, but it didn't come through clearly. With the neural port connected, sensory issues were unlikely—it had to be a sign of main system overload.

Ruuuumble—

The battlefield had drifted from the narrow canyon. My view opened up suddenly: low-hanging fog blanketing the horizon, skeletal trees lining the mountain ridge. Ashen clouds hugged the ground, chasing the Nexus.

"It's not like I can control that just by trying..."

Matching the enemy's pace had dragged me this far unavoidably. Hoping for a quick end, I danced to their rhythm.

Cough! Then I spat up a mouthful of blood.

Even as bodily sensations faded under the onslaught, I could tell my temperature was unnaturally high. Maybe the auxiliary devices wrapping my insides and outsides were overheating. At this point, I couldn't tell where my flesh ended and the machines began.

Of course, I didn't care.

My vision narrowed. Breath caught deep in my throat, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠lungs seizing. Is this what it feels like when overload hits at zero durability, stretched out slow?

Novel sensation. Ironically, as my head and body frayed, my focus sharpened solely on the enemy. No distractions—just pure pursuit.

Forget everything else. Only the foe ahead.

Choking, melting, chest hollowed out.

In a world muffled like underwater, Adam's voice cut through crystal clear, strangely enough.

My throat rattled painfully. The rasping gasp that finally emerged sounded beastly even to me.

"...Of... course..."

"That... shit... doesn't exist!"

It felt like someone had smashed a hammer into my skull.

"Guh, urk...!"

Even with Linne handling it, she was using my processing capacity. I felt neural bundles yanked and stretched, burning wildly—though that was just a metaphor.

In the millisecond-by-millisecond fight, Adam's voice remained unflinchingly steady.

As his voice echoed, Linne's chimed in too.

"I know."

I knew. This was the hardest part.

Whiiiine—

To activate the hacking module, I had to stay within range. Pull away, and it reset from scratch. No doubts about keeping up—I would.

As long as it was in sight, it was just another Nexus like mine.

Ruuuuumble—

"Linne, can you access the internal systems right now?"

"Release the generator output limiter."

Linne fell silent. So did I.

10 seconds... Short on paper, but an eternity in Nexus combat breaths—especially in this high-mobility frenzy.

I wrestled my barely obedient body into position.

And—click.

Something unlocked in my head.

"One minute starting now."

Go.

The Nexus became a streak of light, slamming toward the enemy.

Kukukuku... The world blurred into afterimages.

2 seconds in—my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠mobility spiked too hard, botching distance control. Reset.

Beep— Back in range. Head didn't register it consciously, but instinct kicked in. Like measuring a few meters with fingertips.

Neural link warped ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠my senses. I surrendered to instinct, tailing the enemy in this split-second world.

Tsssk—

Hacking interference glitched Adam's voice with noise.

I forced my throat open. No clue if words would come out right in this state. But they did.

"Interpret it... however you want...!"

Is fighting the only meaning? Nah, not really.

I've dreamed of something once. In a fading world. Amid surging overload, everything went dark for a moment. Processing capacity maxed out on ambient data.

System limits reached. Now, only the enemy and me visible. Boosters spewing... trajectories. Unknown sparkles. Particles. Data smashed into crude lumps in my mind.

Those lumps surfaced in the dark.

And...

"I..."

Yeah. Mastema said it once. Kids wished on stars, harbored dreams.

"...will see the stars."

The wish solidified in my head.

And then Linne's alarm blared internally.

Clang!

The world shattered. Immersive data fractured. All because of the enemy.

Our dance partner slowed drastically, disassembling. Time for destruction.

Thud, boom!

I slammed the Nexus down, rammed it home. That did it.

A speed I'd never catch normally—made possible now.

"Hah, hah..."

Beeeep—

Sensations returned amid exhaustion. The world regained color bit by bit.

Body still scorching like lava, head ready to burst. Sensations fuzzy, but...

"Hah..."

Through it all, I was alive. Mind intact.

Hermann's voice filtered in gradually.

Riiiing... Growing louder, like he'd been shouting all along, now registering.

I opened my mouth. A voice came out—hoarse, near-death rasp.

"...Yeah."

Hermann sounded frantic. Even after confirming the fight's end.

"...Hermann?"

From the sky? What?

Brain sluggish now. Adrenaline ebbing, body responding slow...

...?

Even as the thick cloud carpet overhead bulged and dipped, I didn't grasp the meaning.

Shrieeeek— Boom!!

The roar and shockwave hit late. Something—too fast to see—punched a massive hole through the clouds, cratering the ground.

I spotted the near-miss fallout in the crater: a chunk of jagged scrap metal.

...From the sky?