The Fingers (before battle)
The elevator up ahead is operational.
I could see the light of the elevator beyond the lockdown door.
<…….>
<If power has returned to the elevators...>
It can only mean that Hohenheim has arrived at the Facility Management Room.
<Ah! Then - >
Once the elevator doors opened, LCA agents began pouring into the facility in perfect order.
They immediately began hacking and shooting down anything that got in their way. There wasn't the slightest hesitation in their movements, as though drilled into them over countless rehearsals.
From the way they never failed to deliver a killing blow to any target that so much as twitched, even when it was already mangled beyond recognition, I could tell they were seasoned veterans with years of combat experience.
I began to grow certain that these fighters could brush aside any obstacle we faced with ease.
LCA special operations unit, was it? They sure know how to clear a room.
Testing... come in.
Oi, gimme that. Oi! OI! YOU ALRIGHT, MATE?
Agh, the heck - No need to shout into the mic, Heathcliff. We can hear you just fine.
Ah, apologies. My assistant's temperament leans on the more impatient side.
Sinner Outis's conjecture was correct. After arriving at the Facility Management Room, we have been observing the hallways through the device here. The video feed's quality... well, it leaves much to be desired, but...
... the LCA has arrived at this sector.
Can confirm that on this end as well. We have visual on the LCA units past the lockdown shutters.
But... all I've managed so far is to remove one security wall in your path. It has nothing to do with restoring the internal elevators leading to other departments.
Whichever may be the case... does this mean that the wounded can now be transported to safety?
... Not quite. While they managed to send the LCA down here via unknown means, the entire facility has to be restored in order to return upstairs.
It is indeed a relief, however. It seems that the agents have been deployed to each sector... they should be able to secure the rest of the survivors.
Though I've never been one to be interested in the art of killing and battling, particularly those without even a tangential relation to research... I have heard that they are a rather formidable combat force even by the standards of the City as a whole.
…….
... Eyes forward.
The lights flickered, and...
... 3 LCA agents who were advancing while covering the front of their squad simultaneously fell to the floor without so much as a scream.
…!
Like a broken lamp, the light past the security wall continues to flicker.
Between each flicker of the malfunctioning light, the outline of the intruder's weapon seemed to shift into a different shape.
At first, the shadow stretched into the sharp tip of a pick...
... then after several more flickers, it took on the familiar outline of an axe, very much resembling Rodya's own.
Judging by their appearance and gear, it is likely that they are the LCA's reconnaissance-specialized unit.
Most likely in the same vein as the team that arrived at the Monolith retrieval mission.
Recon team or not, how did the intruder manage to wipe out such a well-trained team... all on his own...?
Hohenheim, do you hear us?
Mm, indeed. Has the LCA taken care of the situation already on your end?
... You mustn't step foot out into the hallway.
... Why might that be? Ah, I've just watched the LCA agents take down an Abnormality with quite impressive precision. To suppress such a tricky entity in mere minutes... fascinating. This calls for an additional comment on its observation log.
The LCA reinforcement sent to our sector... They're all dead.
... What?
Were this battle fought in an open field... even the LCA's reconnaissance team alone would have sufficed to avoid defeat.
However...
This is what happens to prey who forget that they've been snared in a spider's web.
... They'll never fight on even ground, always drawing their prey to locations where they have the absolute advantage. They wouldn't have lost in an open field, you say...?
... It's meaningless to speculate over what'll never happen.
Look. His prey ensured their demise by walking into his hunting ground.
…….
What Alyssa had described earlier was becoming more and more apparent to us.
<A relaxed but disciplined gait...>
The man, after having slaughtered dozens of LCA agents... slowly turned around to face us, his sharp dress shoes lazily clopping against the floor.
He seemed to have been aware of our presence from the get-go.
Light dances across the glossy surface of his white mask.
…….
He returns a smile in response to Ryōshū's furious wrath.
Then, his lips part, soundlessly mouthing a sentence, word by word.
"Hi. Sweetheart. How did. Your reviews. Go?"
Hey, sweetheart. How did your training go?
... Same old. Dull and boring.
Dad, that wound on your arm... Did you do that to yourself?
Ah, yes. I had to stab my opponent with a knife 38 times through my own arm.
The 20th stab was where it really began to hurt.
…….
They say that the pain of burning hurts at least 100 times worse than the pain of getting stabbed. Did you know that?
So, when you have to take care of someone, I hope you won't use fire...
... lest their death be slow, and their dying breath curses your name on their long descent into hell...
Don't they deserve to watch their lives flash before their eyes in relative peace?
... Okay.
Come closer. You've got a scratch on your cheek.
It happened during Valencina's class, didn't it? Her methods are simply too violent - she's the kind of teacher who uses the number of scars as a measure of training intensity and effectiveness.
Let's take good care of that wound so it doesn't scar, okay?
Whatever.
If what LCE has told us through the transmission is true, then the Executive Manager's in danger - !
I'm just as concerned as you are, Outis, but...
... we're not exactly out of the woods yet, either.
... The security camera feed's working again?
Yeah. Look, it's pointed right in front of our door. But...
Come see. If my memory fails me not, then this man's attire suggests he is...
The Middle...?
I guess we now know what happened to the LCA in the other sector. Yeesh, this guy's practically tearing people apart.
Is he shouting something...? I can't quite hear what he's saying through the feed...
Yoshihide.
He is shouting... "Yoshihide." Repeatedly so.
... As he fills the silence between them with... a boisterous guffaw.
Face split into a wide grin, body convulsing with laughter... What joy does this madman find in this carnage...?
Gah...! That's an insanely powerful kick! Flung that guy all the way to the other side of the hallway!
The footage is pretty blurry, but... do you think he's got a prosthetic leg?
Hm, maybe not... I guess a leg covered completely in augmentation tattoos could look something like that...
Ooh~ Are ya looking at papa's mighty bear paw?
…….
…?
W-who the heck are you?!
Who am I? Hi, I'm Kira!
A covert approach...? Men, battle positions!
Ohh~ You guys got it all wrong! You're watching my papa work, aren'tcha?
Don't mind me, 'kay? I'm not gonna pick a fight with you guys.
…?
I'll just hang around here while you guys get the important stuff done! Mmhm, carry on and watch him work!
Your papa...? That guy's your dad?
Uh-huh! Isn't he, like, super badass?
Yooo, did you guys see that? Gosh, that tech's straight-up fire! So dope.
Hah~ I've been tryna recreate that myself, but it's not the same, ya know?
How's he doing that? Totally folded that guy up and tossed him like a baseball all the way to the other end of the hallway!
... To treat a massacre as no different from a game or sport...
What a contemptible scoundrel you make.
…….
Oh~ So you're into that kinda character, huh? Sick!
I'm a huge fan of 'em, too. Didya read the latest issue of "The Cloudburst Blade?" There's this new character who talks just like ya do, like, lifting his bamboo hat, he goes -
…….
... Wait, you don't know "The Cloudburst Blade?"
Aw man... I've been tryna sell it to everyone I know, but no one's interested. One of 'em's obsessed with training all day, one of 'em talks with her sword all day, one of 'em just wanders all over the place all day, and the other one... y'know what she said? "I think the story indulges in far too many logical fallacies." What the heck kinda book review is that? Like, bro, who wastes time nitpicking about what makes sense and what doesn't when reading a comic book? Gosh, I don't think I'd ever vibe with that girl!
Anyhoo, has anyone here actually read "The Cloudburst Blade?" If ya did, well... if I may have but 3 - no, 4 hours of your time, good sir...
Enough.
If you thought you could distract us with your nonsensical prattling, think again.
Outis, I don't see the Middle Nursefather on the feed anymore. If she's his, uh... apprentice, then...
Hey, Kiddo! What are you doing all the way out here? Haven't I asked you not to wander too far?
... Drat.
... No more transmissions. They've all gone quiet.
Hark! Young Ishmael! Young Outis!!! Wherefore doth none respond...?
This is bad... We don't even have the manager with us. We're all in the dark...
We must make haste and restore the facility to its operational capacity. The sooner we obtain access to the security wall controls, the sooner we can coordinate with each other.
As luck would have it, we should be able to locate one of the lost pieces of circuitry in this room -
…….
These remains... The Ring has made its mark here.
Oi. Don't force yourself... to look so hard at them.
No, disgust as an emotion holds very little sway over me.
It's just that -
Boss.
Don't. Don't look at their faces and try to tell who's who.
... Right. I lost my focus for a moment there.
Let us carry on.
... What, is there anything you wish to say to me?
This is highly irregular, but it seems that Faust also expresses agreement with Hohenheim.
Agree with what?
... That we must restore the facility with as much haste as we can employ.