Sparks rained down like fireflies, dancing through the smoke-choked air.
CLANG!
Metal screamed as it clashed with metal.
S lunged.
His Neo-orange spear, sharp enough to slice through steel, whistled through the air—aimed straight for Rt1's head.
But Rt1 moved.
Not with aggression.
Not with rage.
Just… fast enough.
He caught S's wrist mid-strike.
"S, don't," he said, voice quiet but steady.
S growled, his red visor flickering violently.
"Get out of my way."
"I won't," Rt1 replied, trembling. "Not this time."
Colo stood frozen behind them.
Her electric rockstar guitar gripped tightly in her hands.
This feels like I'm in a love triangle… with two killer robots I don't even know, she thought, exasperated.
Every instinct screamed at her to run.
But something stronger kept her rooted in place.
He's protecting me… but why? He doesn't even know me.
She had never seen Eradicator Robots fight each other before.
But now?
They weren't fighting over orders.
They were fighting… over her.
S snarled and jerked his arm back, spinning the Neo-orange spear in a flash of blinding light.
The spear's tip began to glow—crackling, unstable energy building.
Then—
FWOOOSH!
He hurled it.
Straight at Colo.
Rt1's eyes went wide.
"Wait—NO!"
BOOM!
The corridor exploded.
Dust filled the air. Chunks of the wall caved in. Smoke billowed through the bunker.
When it cleared—
Rt1 lay on the ground, sparks spraying from a deep wound in his chest plate.
Colo's heart dropped.
"Rt1!" she cried, dashing forward without a second thought.
She dropped to her knees beside him.
His dim yellow eyes flickered. "Ow."
She looked more annoyed than anything.
"Great. I can't believe I just yelled the name of someone who's supposed to hunt my kind… but here I am."
He gave her a weak grin.
"Technically, I'm defective."
STOMP.
S stepped through the rubble, face twisted with fury.
"You had your chance," he spat. "Now I'll finish both of you."
Colo turned, standing in front of Rt1.
Her expression hardened.
Not again. I'm not losing this opportunity. Not this time.
She charged.
The guitar swung like a hammer of vengeance, aimed for S's head—
But he was faster.
SHINK!
A second Neo-orange spear appeared in his hand and drove straight into her chest.
The tip punched clean through, jutting out of her back.
Everything stopped.
The only sounds were the crackle of burning wires… and Colo's ragged breathing.
Then—
Silence.
"I'M! NOT! DONE! YET!!!"
Colo screamed, voice raw and wild.
She jerked her head back—then slammed it forward with everything she had.
CRACK!
Her head smashed into S's face, sending him flying backward, stunned.
Colo stumbled.
Oil gushed from the gaping wound in her chest.
She collapsed to the floor, her fingers slipping from her guitar.
Her vision blurred.
She laughed, bitter and broken.
"Great… guess I'm gonna die…"
She coughed, oil splattering the floor.
"…Fuck, this hurts like hell."
She stared up at the flickering lights above.
"Guess it's time… to find out what the afterlife feels like…"
Her eyes flickered.
Then—
Darkness.