<i>In what seems to be an endless cycle of dark reincarnation,</i>
<i>Veronica's consciousness appears to be drawn into a shadowy void.</i>
<i>She feels as though she's walking through an endless dark corridor, where each door she pushes open,</i>
<i>only reveals another identical hallway stretching before her.</i>
<i>Darkness. Nothing but endless, infinite darkness.</i>
Veronica...
Wake up, Veronica...
A voice she recognizes calls out from beyond the door ahead.
Come here, Veronica...
She steps forward and pushes the door open.
Before her is nothing but harsh white light flooding a chaotic laboratory. It takes Veronica's visual modules several seconds to adjust to the intense brightness.
Once her visual modules normalize, she spots a shocking splash of crimson amid the stark whiteness.
Among the scattered glass shards and twisted metal lies Serra, her body completely drenched in blood. With what little strength she has left, Serra holds open the laboratory's security door.
The shattered access panel nearby is smeared with thick, viscous blood. No one could fathom what incredible willpower drove her to forcibly break through the sealed security system.
...
Warning. Abnormal status detected in sector. Test subject no longer under control.
Support units, advance to Sector D on the top floor and assemble.
The flat, emotionless electronic voice echoes throughout the entire laboratory complex.
In an instant, the cold white light turns to pulsing red alarms, bathing everything in a harsh crimson.
Countless automated support units instantly respond to the terminal system's command and quickly block the only escape route from the laboratory.
Eliminating breaching subject.
Executing suppressive fire.
With it, a storm of bullets and muzzle flashes instantly floods the confined space.
...Aargh!
Crimson blooms erupt across Serra's body as the pool of blood under her grows larger by the second.
Despite everything, she channels her remaining strength and every ounce of her being to maintain her position to keep the laboratory door access system open.
She turns to look at Veronica. Despite her grievous wounds, Serra shows no signs of pain as she forces a smile.
Blood stains her lips, yet her smile remains as pure and innocent as ever.
Once you're out... turn left... then... through the hallway in Sector F...
I've... already... taken care of... the security doors... there...
Don't... trust... that... D-Dolores...
Hey, Veronica... do I... look... ridiculous... like this...
...
...for me...
Bam!
Another round from the support units tears through Serra's chest.
The bullet pierces Serra's fragile body at top speed and lets out a shriek before it finally hits the wall with devastating force and comes to a stop.
Robbed of strength and will by the ammunition, Serra, having endured the assault for far too long, falls to the floor.
...
Before Serra's body hits the floor, however, her fall stops.
She feels weightless, like a fledgling bird spreading its wings for the first time as it soars into the boundless freedom of the sky.
The sky above feels vast and empty. As if being enveloped by gentle clouds, she feels every last bit of pain and fear leaving her body.
The only thing that's left is a bone-deep coldness when all her other sensations have faded away.
Why is this endless sky so utterly cold? Practically unable to process anything in her mind anymore, Serra is unable to answer this question.
It's... so cold...
Serra's lifeless body lies limply in Veronica's arms.
Her once vibrant emerald eyes, having lost their focus, stare not at Veronica, but into the empty nothingness.
Her voice fades to barely a whisper, her lips producing meaningless, fragmented words.
So... cold...
...!
Veronica leans down as she holds Serra tightly against her chest, as though trying to hold on to a life that's quickly slipping away.
For the first time, Veronica truly comprehends how fragile a human body is—like a piece of paper that could tear apart at any moment.
In her arms, Serra no longer feels as warm as Veronica remembers her from when she carried out maintenance on her.
For the first time, she feels the beating of the human heart. It beats at a rhythm entirely different from the energy core powering a mechanoid's shell.
But now, that heartbeat is gradually coming to a stop.
Hold me tight!
With her eyes closed peacefully, Serra gives no response, looking as though fatigue has gotten the better of her.
...
The mechanoid rises slowly to her feet, cradling her friend's body securely in one arm.
I'll take it from here.
I will... get you out of here!
Facing a barrage of ammunition from the support units, Veronica appears completely fearless.
She cradles Serra's body with one arm while aiming her lance forward with the other.
I'm going to crush every last one of you standing in my way!
The support units open fire with crushing intensity, attempting to halt Veronica's advanceDyet the storm of bullets doesn't seem to set her back even one single step.
Determined to fight her way through, she wields her lance, ignoring the mounting damage to her frame as she thrusts and cuts with relentless fury.
But the fiery downpour of countless bullets intensifies, threatening to blanket her field of vision.
I'm not going to let you people... Argh!
Excruciating pain surges through every corner of her consciousness module once more, as a curtain of cold darkness that she seems to recognize slowly draws across her vision.
