...
It's all right. She's... probably far from here by now.
With a rueful smile, she struggles to her feet.
Why would you do this...?
Why...?
I don't know.
Maybe it was to atone for Aisling's death. Or to feel a little more... "human." Or perhaps it was just a way to give a love that had nowhere else to go...
Why did I do it? I don't really know myself...
In the end... aren't they all just different forms of love?
...
Maybe this is a kind of release, too.
Her metal joints groan in protest. Just as Melinoe said herself, she wasn't built for combat. She can only fight using her own life.
Liv, you've gone further and seen more than I have. So, can you tell me...
Do mechanoids have souls?
Melinoe...?!
Before anyone can react, Melinoe presses the self-destruct button, a pained smile on her lips.
Goodbye... Aisling...
BOOM—!
A violent convulsion tears through the mine, the thunderous roar echoing for a long moment before crumbling into silence.
As the clouds of dust and smoke slowly part, Melinoe is nowhere to be seen.
...She's here.
From the collapsed rubble, Liv retrieves a data storage box and lets out a weary sigh.
That child used her.
By exploiting her love to fulfill its own desires.
It all began when that little, strange creature of unknown origin appeared by the grave of Melinoe's child.
Melinoe took it in and poured all her love into it.
And the creature... it wanted. It desired love, it needed to "be nurtured," it craved a safe home.
So, Melinoe provided. With everything she could possibly obtain.
She wove an enormous, intricate web to wrap the child inside it... and in doing so, became trapped herself.
After searching the area thoroughly, the two of you fail to find any trace of "Aisling".
Liv collects the last metallic fragments of Melinoe, cleansing them with tender care. In a final act of grace, she lays them to rest in the ground beside Aisling's gravestone, uniting a mother and child in death.
Perhaps now... Aisling can rest a little more peacefully.
In this dream, there will be no parents who adopt her just to exploit resources, only a mother who truly loves her.
With Melinoe's disappearance, the attacks on Liv's M.I.N.D. and your Mind Beacon cease.
You were right, Commandant. That child was the one behind it all.
The illusions Melinoe wove... they must have been created using the child's power.
...It might be related to something that child left behind.
At the other end of your Mind Beacon, Liv's M.I.N.D. gently rises and falls.
She was so desperate to have my M.I.N.D. that she risked infiltrating its outer layer.
But she couldn't take anything away. Instead... I made her leave something behind.
...Commandant, I'm really fine.
Seeing your concern, she breaks into a gentle smile.
See? I'm perfectly fine, aren't I?
Don't worry, Commandant.
She looks at you, an indescribable emotion lingering in her eyes.
I won't gamble with my life. Not even for hope.
But... I hope you can promise me the same. Please?
Alright, let's go check out that lab.
We didn't have the time for it earlier. There should still be some useful data in there.
She brushes the topic aside, a casual gesture that feels anything but.
But you remember the ghostly despair etched on Liv's face in that nightmare.
If you were to "die" somewhere, Liv... would probably be consumed by that same pain.
Yet...
Echoes from thirty years into the future reverberate in your mind.
If the only way to shatter the fated ending is through your own death...
...Commandant?
A few paces ahead, Liv stops and turns. Her gaze finds you, a silent question in her eyes, wondering what has anchored your feet to the ground.
Alright.
The two of you press onward in the dark mine.
