Test:17/Main/Hidden Story

From GRAY RAVENS


Main Story

The Commandant and Lucia find themselves surrounded by Corrupted and see that they are out of Anti-Punishing Serum. She suggests they turn off her pain receptors despite the risk of M.I.N.D. deviation to buy time to retreat. While waiting for her to recalibrate, the Commandant engages in combat with the incoming Corrupted and is almost attacked. Lucia manages to come back in time to finish the rest while Liv connects with the duo and launches an overload attack.

On the way to regroup with Liv, Lucia becomes more aggressive in fighting the Corrupted as she suffers from the symptoms of M.I.N.D. deviation. They take a short break before arriving at a small area hidden by the ruins where they rendezvous with Liv and Lee. The overload attack a while ago caused the core of Liv’s Levi-Gun to melt and Lee’s hands to suffer burns. It is then revealed that the Gray Ravens were sent to participate in the recovery of City 015 but to compensate for their losses, they would first need to rendezvous with the nearest supply team. The squad decides to take a shortcut through the church where Lucia feels a wave of deja vu passing through it but Lee theorizes it might be from her Sea of Consciousness stabilizing her M.I.N.D.

In the depths of the building, the crew encounters a construct-like figure but realizes it isn’t an ally due to it possessing a high amount of Punishing Virus. Lucia is unable to decipher the figure despite everyone being able to perceive it and her M.I.N.D. starts to destabilize further, strangely not due to the virus. The unknown Construct named Alpha then challenges her to a fight. She manages to nail Lucia’s arm in the wall and is about to finish her off before the Commandant fires at her. Alpha redirects her attention to them and similarly pins their arm to the wall, asking if they can understand what Lucia is currently going through. Seeing their dedication, Alpha lets them go for now and tells Lucia that she looks forward to her choice once she sees what humans truly are. |}

Liv cures an injured Lucia while Lee is puzzled as to why Alpha’s combat moves were similar to Lucia’s and how she could have affected Lucia’s M.I.N.D. Upon reaching the designated meeting point, they see that the Constructs have lost the stronghold and Corrupted are swarming the place. Suddenly, Liv detects nearby friendly signals. Upon clearing the area, one of the survivors reveals that the graffiti drawn nearby is gathering the Corrupted which causes them to overwhelm the place. Before leaving, the injured Construct gives Lucia his working arm as the team gathers supplies to repair Liv’s Levi-Gun. Lee analyzes that the graffiti is mostly composed of Construct fluids and that the same paint is made into a bomb. This proves that the Corrupted are learning and evolving based on their environment. As the newest Support-type model, Liv can access the memories of the defeated Constructs to find more clues about the enemy. Afterward, the Gray Ravens were attacked by an unknown enemy and unable to detect it via radar since it used Construct parts and vital fluids to conceal itself. Lee analyzes the enemy and finds that it is based on the Nozzle model, which was used in the past for artistic purposes. With Celica’s help, they begin to track Nozzle down using the paint trail it has left. The squad stops at an abandoned shop to take a break and prepare for the battle where Lucia and Liv each pick up a frog and sheep plushie. Lucia remarks that the frog plushie fills her with a strange feeling. Lee reassures her that it is alright since they all have things they hold dear. The squad uses EM Camo to bypass the enemy lines and reach Nozzle. It contemplates why it is forced to choose between humans and Ascendants before engaging in combat. Before it falls, Lee questions why it uses graffiti as a mode of expression when it explains that it is enlightened by a being called the “Sagemachina”. The crew retrieves its memory as Celica relays a transport aircraft to bring them back to Babylonia.

Hidden Story