The piston rotates on the floor like a toy top.
Lucy: Hmm. I am not in a suitable form to receive a guest.
Lucy: Simone, can you put me back in my body?
Her assistant rushes over and puts her into a robot body.
Lucy: I feel much better. Thank you.
Lucy: Oh, you have even put on a face for me. How sweet of you.
Enigma: ...
Lucy: I have noticed your icy gaze, Researcher Adler. You are yearning to correct the logic of this place.
Lucy: Well, I only said that to Simone out of courtesy. In reality, whichever body I am put into makes no difference to me.
Her ill-timed explanation annoys him even more.
Enigma: The experiment, ma'am. Why hasn't it stopped?
Enigma: Are you going to pretend that nothing's happened? That no one died?
Enigma: Could it be that you and Ulrich, "the Awakened," being the tin cans you are, have no regard for actual lives?
Cryptography Lead: Adler Hofmann, I will not warn you again ...
Ulrich storms back into the room with two guards, ready to throw him out at any moment.
Lucy: Relax, Adler. You are led by a biased opinion because you lack critical information. A common defect in all cognitive processes.
Lucy: I believe you will shift to a more rational perspective once you receive sufficient information on the subject.
Enigma: "A more rational perspective"?!
The human, known for his logical thinking, responds with an overwhelming amount of feeling.
Enigma: We are humans, not machines! We are not expendable parts!
Enigma: I have plenty of reasons to question your decisions. Your excessive insistence on this experiment could be a sign of uncontrollable behavior, a trait commonly seen in arcanists.
Lucy: The experiment has been canceled everywhere.
Lucy: Except for this very room.
Enigma: What?
The robot flashes a smile, as if anticipating the man to be pleased with her response.
Lucy: As you and Researcher Medicine Pocket have said, the ritual is beyond the limits of almost everyone here. The side effects will kill them before the ritual can even take effect.
Lucy: The first wave was inevitable. Dora had pressed send before she disintegrated. We only managed to halt the subsequent transmissions, and evacuate the unaffiliated staff.
Lucy: We kept only a few arcanists on the team, and each has signed the consent form.
Mutual consent. That bloody form again.
Enigma: Forgive me, ma'am, but I have to use your argument against you.
Enigma: You, too, are guided by a biased opinion—an overly optimistic one—because you have failed to properly assess the risks involved. We have suffered enough misfortunes just by uttering a few syllables of the incantation!
Enigma: We've talked about the "limit" of things before. You should know better and ask the rest of the team to quit the experiment. Your insistence will only bring calamity upon calamity on our people, for nothing!
The researcher fights to stay calm, reiterating his views he had already shouted in the hallway.
Ulrich begins his retort, but the director simply nods in agreement.
Lucy: Hm. You might be right.
Lucy: But how is "being right" going to help us?
Enigma: Huh?
She grins, trying for a warm, gentle smile, but it comes across as anything but.
Enigma despised that face. Every time she tried to show a hint of humanity, it only served to highlight how different she was from everyone else.
Lucy: You spoke of the "limit."
Lucy: And I am surprised that it is you who brought it up.
Enigma pauses for a second, not sure if she's being sarcastic.
Lucy: The physical appearance of humans has remained relatively unchanged since the Neolithic era, but their thoughts and civilization continued to evolve and underwent significant transformations.
Lucy: The achievements that humanity enjoys today were not given to the species by any one person with godlike powers, but were the result of the collective efforts of all human beings.
Lucy: Limits and boundaries must be pushed, or there would never have been room for development. There is no reason to believe that the limit cannot be challenged, especially when we already have the tools to do so.
Lucy: We must make progress happen.
Enigma: Grandiose lies.
Lucy: Lies?
Oh, crap. He forgot about her excellent hearing.
Lucy: We have no choice but to go beyond that limit.
Lucy: If we do not break away from the "Storm," there is no future for us, let alone progress.
Lucy: We need to first determine all the side effects as a priority. This important step will help us compile data and eliminate the effects, so our colleagues can use the ritual safely.
Enigma: And who will try it this time, Madam Lucy? You're not going to test the side effects at the cost of lives, are you?
Lucy: No. Thanks to Ulrich, we stumbled upon a breakthrough.
Lucy: You are right. It is time to send the other arcanists home. Only the Awakened are needed here.
Enigma: The Awakened?
The tungsten wires glow faintly red in the dark, then the room is lit.
Assistant Simone: The power is back, ma'am. We are ready to resume.
Lucy: Hm. It will take time to properly explain.
Lucy: Please wait, Adler. We have yet to reach an agreement.
Enigma: What? Are you experimenting? Here?
Ignoring his surprise, Lucy sits down on the iron bench.
Wires of various sizes are attached to her body.
The instrument comes to life to the piston's rhythm, faithfully recording every change in the robot.
From her slightest movements to arcane fluctuations, nothing goes unnoticed.
Lucy: ...
Lucy: La unua ...
Enigma: Wait. She's reciting it?
Frozen in place by the scene, he looks around the room in disbelief.
Enigma: She's read the reports, right? She was there when Dora broke into pieces!
Lucy: ...
Rarely does her back curl up like this.
The usual cheerful expression on her face has changed to one of unease, suggesting that something is amiss.
A hunk of metal should not feel pain. They have no flesh, no nerves.
But if she is in agony, what could be the cause of such torment?
Lucy: ... Urrm ...
Will she break apart, too? Like those people?
The ominous "curse" has set its sights on its prey.
It watches, almost like Zeus on a mountaintop, ready to unleash lightning on the mortals who dare to steal fire.
Lucy: No, Simone ... I ...
Lucy: I cannot ... continue ...
Lucy: Urgh ... Urrh ...
The most primal, instinctual fear.
This is the first time he's ever heard her emotions pour out so raw.
Enigma: You fools, don't just stand there! Stop her! Now!
Panic and horror twist in his stomach. He has an irresistible urge to rip out the wires and put an end to her torture.
Enigma: Who's going to lead us if she also turns into a pile of scraps?!
Cryptography Lead: Stay where you are, Enigma!
Ulrich's voice, full of animosity, comes from behind.
Cryptography Lead: You insisted on being here. You demanded to see this.
Cryptography Lead: Don't bring your pathetic, narrow-minded humanitarian values in here and tell us what to do. What do you know about us?
Simone leans over to her. She speaks softly.
Assistant Simone: You can do it, madam. This is just part of the established procedures.
Assistant Simone: Just a few more syllables, madam, and it will be over.
Lucy: Established ... procedures ...
Fear ebbs away a little as she repeats those words.
Lucy: I like ... that ...
Her eyes close. She forces out the last word with great determination.
Lucy: Cir ... klo.
It is done.
A clear, accurate, impeccable read.
Right at that moment, the lights in the lab go out.
Lucy: sigh Was that all, Simone?
Assistant Simone: Yes.
No one can see her face in the darkness.
But Enigma believes it to be a smile.
Lucy: Good.
Enigma: ...!
A gust of sand rises in the room.
Without warning and out of nowhere, it screams through the enclosed darkness.
The raging storm engulfs the robot's cold metal body, carrying her away with great force.
When the sand subsides, all that remains is an old piston, clattering to the ground.
"Clang."