The machine had fled into some ruins with many rectangular buildings standing side by side. “What’s that?” 2B asked, which was answered by Pod 042. “Answer: Ruins that were once a residential area for humans. They lived as a large group in high-rises built of metal and concrete, which were often referred to as ‘mammoth complexes.’ ”
Mammoth? It didn’t make any sense to 2B, but she kept her mouth shut. It was irrelevant for the current mission, and she didn’t possess as much curiosity as a Type S. Instead, 2B commented, “Why did they even bother living in such a big group…”
Sure enough, it was 9S who took interest in the information. “I wonder if it was dangerous around here in the past,” wondered 9S.
Pods typically converse with their support target. Unless absolutely necessary, 142 answered 2B’s questions and 153 answered 9S’s questions. Pod 153 answered this question.
“Negative: They lived in a group because of economic reasons arising from a lack of land.”
9S snorted and replied, “Humans were so odd, weren’t they?”
Not only were humans odd, they were probably incomprehensible to an android. It would be presumptuous to think that an android would be able to understand humans, their creators.
In any case, the human dwelling place once called the Mammoth Complex had since become a gathering place for Machines.
There were many Machines living underneath the shadows of the leaning building. Just like the Machines near the pipeline, these ones made word-like sounds and had a tendency toward hostility.
“Hell0”
“G00d weather”
“H0w d0 y0u d0”
As expected, they were probably stringing together random words. They said “hello” for attacks, and “how do you do” for counterattacks. They certainly would not be acting like this if they knew the meanings of those words.
The target, the enemy that had taken to its heels, wove through the oncoming Machines and into the ruins. Pod had marked its identification signal.
There was a significant number of enemy signals near what seemed to be its destination. Perhaps it was the source of the Machine outbreak near the Pipeline. If so, the androids’ task would not be complete until they cleansed this area. They moved on, destroying Machines that jumped out from the shadows. They inched closer to their target.
“Stubb0rn! Escape! I need to escape!”
9S murmured, fascinated with how the Machine chose its words. It was true, the target’s words were fitting for its current situation. It wasn’t meaningless drivel.
The Machines had a considerable amount of learning capability. It was even reported that there were cases of Machines almost “evolving.” But did they have the capability to select meaningful words, let alone express an idea or have a conversation?
The acquisition of a spoken language is closely linked to intelligence. Looking back at human civilization, intelligence was the key to shaping society. If that were possible for these “simple Machines”—
Suddenly, 2B’s body was thrown forward. Using her brain for unnecessary thinking had drawn her attention away from the obstacles near her feet, and she had tripped. The obstacle was eerily soft to the touch. Looking down in confusion, her gaze froze. “This is…” It was an android corpse. Before she was able to question of why it was there, 9S screamed. “2B! Look!” There were multiple corpses. Though the scene was dim from the leaning buildings and metal frames obstructing light, there were multiple corpses lying around. However, there was no trace of a battle. In other words, after dying, the androids had been moved from a different place.
“It’s as if they are being gathered here,” said 9S. Furthermore, beyond the corpses was a dark cave with an immense opening. As if taunting them, the only path was one that took them past the corpses.
“There it is!” yelled 9S. The target jumped into the cave and disappeared, proceeding along the path. “There are multiple enemy signals up ahead,” said 9S. “Let’s move with caution,” said 2B.
There were multiple corpses along the path. This time, determined to not trip, 2B advanced carefully. But this was not enough.
There was a jagged sound near their feet. The next moment, their bodies sank. 9S shrieked. The realization that they had fallen came after they had slammed onto the ground.
The first thing that 2B saw was the sky. This place was apparently the bottom of a giant hole. The walls of the hole had various windows, doors, and other remnants of a building twisted into them. Maybe the ground had been dug out to create a basement and its roof had collapsed, or perhaps the foundation had sunk and the structure on top of it had fallen and collapsed.
2B pulled herself up with a grimace. She had absorbed some damage, but not enough to impede her combat capabilities. While getting up, she quickly scanned the area, trying to observe the situation—and she couldn’t believe her eyes.
There were Machines. Many of them. “W-what is this…” she muttered. At first she thought they were dancing. Machines would never dance, of course, but what was taking place in front of her eyes was even more preposterous.
The Machines were grouped in pairs, and swinging their bodies. The cries of “child, child, child,” gave an indication of what they were doing. They were imitating the mating practices of humans.
A livid sense of disgust overwhelmed 2B. Calling this repulsive would be an understatement. “Let’s destroy them,” said 9S. 2B nodded at 9S’s suggestion. It was almost upsetting to see that the Machines hadn’t attacked yet. They were so immersed in their activities that they had not noticed the enemies that were right in front of them.
“Pod! Long-distance fire! At maximum power!” 2B demanded as she flung her large sword down. She took care of a pair in one fell swoop, and kicked them aside. Finally the Machines began to counterattack.
“L0ve l0ve l0ve”
“Let’s stay t0gether”
“I l0ve y0u I l0ve y0u”
The Machines charged while blurting out unbefitting phrases. Perhaps it was due to 2B’s strong feelings of disgust, but swinging the large sword without rest did not tire her. The urgency to eliminate the Machines as quickly as possible erased any feelings of fatigue. This might’ve been the first time she felt such purpose in destroying something.