Anais, despite her pain, felt a glimr of hope. This giant, whoever or whatever he was, was clearly not aligned with the Nexum soldiers. He was fighting against them, and for the first ti since the attack began, she felt that there might be a chance for survival. She tried to call out to him, but her voice was weak, barely a whisper over the din of battle.
The giant, however, seed to sense her presence. He turned his head, his glowing eyes locking onto hers for a brief mont. Anais felt a strange sensation, as if he was reading her, understanding her pain and her desperation.
Then, without a word, he turned back to the battlefield, continuing his relentless assault on the Nexum forces.
Anais knew she had to move. The ship was no longer safe, and the battle was too close. She gritted her teeth, ignoring the searing pain in her legs, and began to crawl toward the relative safety of a nearby pile of debris.
Every movent was agony, but she forced herself to keep going, driven by the instinct to survive.
As she reached the debris, she heard a loud explosion behind her. She turned her head just in ti to see the giant rip the turret off another tank and hurl it into a group of soldiers. The explosion that followed was deafening, and the shockwave knocked her back, sending a fresh wave of pain through her body.
But the giant was unhard. He stood amidst the flas and smoke, his golden light undiminished, a symbol of unstoppable power. Anais watched as he raised his hand once more, and a beam of light shot out, obliterating the remaining Nexum forces in an instant.
The battlefield fell silent, save for the crackling of flas and the distant sound of collapsing debris. The giant stood tall, his task complete. He turned once more to look at Anais.
The towering gray giant took a step forward, his colossal fra casting an imposing shadow over Anais. The ground trembled beneath his weight as he lood closer, his golden-lit sensors scanning her with chanical precision.
His voice, cold and devoid of emotion, echoed through the chaos like a thunderclap.
[Anatomical structure does not match Nexum soldiers. Insufficient data. Query: Are you a rcenary?]
Anais stared up at him, her breath catching in her throat. The sheer scale of his presence was overwhelming, his armor glead under the dim light, and his glowing sensors seed to pierce through her very soul. She swallowed hard, her voice trembling as she answered.
"N-no! I'm not with them!" she stamred, her words barely audible over the distant roar of battle. "I was just a maid… I worked in the mansion of the planetary lord! Please, you have to help my lady... she's still inside the wreckage, and she's badly hurt!"
Before the giant could respond, another voice erupted, sharp, urgent, and filled with raw emotion.
"What!?"
Anais flinched, her eyes darting toward the source of the outburst. It wasn't the cold, chanical tone of the giant. This voice was human, desperate… and achingly familiar.
"Let out, Argos! I have to find Sharon, now!"
[Negative. Warzone conditions remain active. Probability of ambush: 75%. Strategic risk is unacceptable. I cannot—]
"I don't care! Just let out while you stand guard!"
For a mont, there was silence. Then, with a reluctant hiss of hydraulics, the back of the armored titan split open. Carlos then jumped out. His boots hit the ground with a resounding thud, and without a second's hesitation, he sprinted toward the burning wreckage, his movents fueled by sheer determination.
"Wait! I'm coming too!" Anais called out while forcing herself to her feet despite the searing pain in her legs. But the mont she tried to move, her body betrayed her. Her legs gave out, and she lurched forward, about to collapse face-first into the dirt.
Before she could hit the ground, a massive tallic hand caught her mid-fall. The grip was firm yet gentle, holding her steady as she gasped for breath.
[You are in no condition to move. Your organic body has sustained heavy damage. Initiating ergency treatnt.]
Argos raised his other hand, and a precise laser flickered to life at his fingertip. With surgical accuracy, he sliced through the torn fabric of her pantyhose, exposing the wounded areas. Anais's face flushed with embarrassnt, and she instinctively tried to cover herself, but Argos's grip held her firmly in place.
[digel application complete. Be advised: this is a temporary solution. A licensed dical professional is required for full recovery.]
Anais exhaled shakily, the numbing sensation of the digel spreading through her wounds. "...Thank you," she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper. She glanced up at the battle machine, her curiosity montarily overriding her fear.
"Aren't you going to co out too?"
[Clarification: I am the Battle AI Argos. There is no operator beyond Carlos. I am not human.]
Anais blinked while her mind struggled to process the revelation. "So… you're a full AI?" Your next chapter awaits on My Virtual Library Empire
[Affirmative. I was created by the Kaelzars for warfare.]
"Kaelzars…?" she whispered, the na unfamiliar yet heavy with implication. Before she could ask more, a thunderous shout cut through the air.
"ARGOS! GET OVER HERE, NOW!"
Carlos's voice was a roar, filled with urgency and desperation. Anais turned to see him erging from the wreckage, his arms cradling Sharon's limp form. Blood soaked her dress, and the jagged tal bar that had impaled her was still lodged in her side. Carlos had cut it down to size, but removing it now would almost certainly kill her.
"We don't have ti!" Carlos shouted, his voice cracking under the strain. "Open the pilot cabin! We need the cryosleep chamber, NOW!"
[Acknowledged.]
Argos moved with startling speed for his size, lowering himself to the ground as his chest compartnt hissed open. Carlos climbed up, his movents careful yet frantic as he placed Sharon inside the chamber.
The doors sealed shut with a sharp hiss, and the cryosleep system activated instantly, freezing her in stasis.
Carlos leapt down, his chest heaving as he turned to survey the battlefield. The ground was littered with the bloodied bodies of fallen soldiers, the air thick with the acrid stench of smoke and death.
His expression darkened as he grabbed a rifle from one of the corpses, then another, slinging them over his back with grim determination.
Carlos's movents were sharp, deliberate, and filled with a quiet fury. His eyes scanned the battlefield, taking in the destruction, the burning wreckage, the bodies of the Nexum soldiers, and the smoldering remains of the tanks.
His jaw tightened as he clenched his fists, the weight of the situation pressing down on him.
Anais, still supported by Argos, watched Carlos with a mix of awe and fear. The man who had just monts ago been a desperate, frantic figure was now a hardened warrior, his deanor cold and calculating. He moved with purpose, his every action radiating intensity.
"Carlos…" Anais said, her voice weak but insistent. "What… what are you going to do now?"
Carlos didn't answer imdiately. He finished gathering weapons and ammunition from the fallen soldiers, then turned to face her. His eyes, sharp and piercing, t hers. "We're getting out of here. This place is a death trap, and if we stay, we're as good as dead."
"But… my lady…" Anais glanced toward Argos. "She's still in critical condition. We can't just leave her like this!"
"We're not leaving her," Carlos said with his voice cutting through the air like a blade. "Argos will keep her stable until we can get her to proper dical facilities."
"But right now, we need to move. The Nexum forces won't stay gone for long, and when they co back, they'll bring reinforcents. We're not sticking around to find out what that looks like."
Anais swallowed hard; she wanted to argue, to insist that they stay and fight, but she knew he was right. She was in no condition to fight, and Carlos, despite his determination, was only one man. Even with Argos, they couldn't hold off an entire army.
"Where… where will we go?" She asked, her voice trembling.
Carlos's expression softened slightly, though his tone remained firm. "There's an outpost not far from here. If we can reach it, we'll be safe for a while, at least. Argos can guide us there."
[Confird. The allied Kaelzar outpost is approximately 12 kiloters northeast of this location. Estimated travel ti: 2 hours on foot.]
Anais's heart sank. Twelve kiloters. With her injuries, it might as well have been a hundred. She looked down at her legs, still throbbing with pain despite the digel treatnt. "I… I don't know if I can make it that far."
Carlos stepped closer, his gaze unwavering. "You don't have a choice. If you stay here, you're dead. If you co with us, you might live. So you're coming."
Before Anais could respond, Carlos turned to Argos. "Can you carry her?"
[Affirmative. I can transport the injured feline without compromising mobility or combat readiness.]
"Good. Do it."
Without another word, Argos carefully lifted Anais into his massive arms, cradling her like a child. She gasped at the sudden movent, but Argos's grip was secure, and she felt surprisingly safe despite the circumstances.
Carlos slung the rifles over his shoulder and checked the ammunition on his belt. "Let's move. Stay close, and keep your eyes open. We're not out of danger yet."
The trio began their trek across the battlefield, stepping over debris and bodies as they made their way toward the tree line. The air was thick with the sll of smoke and burning tal, and the distant sound of engines hinted at the possibility of more Nexum forces on the horizon.
Anais clung to Argos while her mind raced with questions. Who was Carlos? Why was he here? And what was his connection to the Kaelzars? But now wasn't the ti for answers. Now was the ti to survive.
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