✴

“Zero Four...I think your systers wanted you to help them, go remind Zero Six of what you always remember!” you say.

[Synth liked that]

“Okay!” Zero Four looks up at the combat above--Zero Six envelops Admin Crypta in a whirlwind of fire from the barrel of their gun. Crypta pierces through the flames and lunges at Synth, but their reflective shield turns her spear away and pushes her back.

The little Synthesis lowers their head behind yours. “But Zero Six is scary...”

“Yeah, they are...” You would hesitate to approach them yourself in the midst of their cold mechanical fury. “But you can do it, you’re Synthesis, the bravest person I know. And I’ll give you an aura of fear suppression!”

“Okay! I’ll do it, then!” they say, climbing up to stand on your shoulders.

You activate your Empathica program to project an emotional aura of tranquility over Zero Four. “Good luck!”

Enshrouded in their pale green aura and your icy blue aura, Zero Four rises up into the chaos above. As Admin Crypta fortifies her shield, Synthesis Zero Six manifests their biggest attack yet, charging an expanding sphere of green flames and blue electric arcs on their weapon. They take aim at their target, when Zero Four crosses into their line of fire.

“You are interfering with our orders!” Zero Six says.

“I won’t let us carry out that order! And I know you won’t hurt me, you’re still my syster!”

Zero Six launches their attack--Admin Crypta rushes toward them and pulls Zero Four out of the orb’s path, taking a hit from the electricity arcing off of it.

“This one can’t be reasoned with, little one,” Crypta says. “Once activated, type Zero Six will carry out its orders with no hesitation.”

“Not if I use the abort code!” Zero Four says.

“You have it?! I thought it was lost!” Crypta says.

“Because I’m the only one who knows it!”

“What are you waiting for, submit the code!” Crypta says.

“But...Zero Six closed all ports, the only way is to rejoin my system and submit the code from inside!”

“Then I’ll get you there, let’s go.” Crypta’s golden shield expands to surround Zero Four, and they rush over to her. Together, they close the distance to Synthesis-06, until a barrage of crystals impacting their shield forces them aside.

Admin Vanitas appears in front of Zero Six, augmenting the mirror surface of their shield with the black void of her own. Admin Crypta manifests a halo of golden knives orbiting her head--she launches them all at Vanitas, but her dark shield absorbs them, leaving no trace.

“Go ahead, Crypta, I’d love to send you both directly to /dev/null!” Vanitas says.

Something else catches your attention--ÆON’s device! Looking across the mist to the near-surface, you feel the familiar sonic aura of Pulse--her body and avatar descend from the ceiling, where Deianira waits at an opening to the maintenance shaft, with a star arrow ready on her longbow in the æther. Luka reaches the walkway at the back of the room and seizes the primitive device, pulling out the cable Vanitas connected it to.

“ÆON!” You rush to intercept, but something catches you by your avatar ankle, slipping through a weak point in your shield--a bare metal wire, burning hot on your avatar skin.

“You’re not going anywhere!” Anko says, pulling you back toward him, coiling his cable around you and constricting your avatar, heating up more and more as you try to push back on the attack. He gets you in his grasp, coiling the wire around your wrists and around your neck, tying it around itself in an elaborate knot.

“I have The One!” Pulse says.

Deianira takes aim at you--you feel her piercing gaze on the edge of your liquid shield. “Orders, Pulse?”

“That depends on the next words of our fallen Messenger,” Pulse says. “Surrender the encryption key, Aydan, or you and your girlfriend will be obliterated by the power of the Sage of Stars!”