Odyssey || ArknightsXPunishing: Gray Raven (OLD BOOK)

Chapter 26: Shattered hope

Lee stared at the girl with a dumbfounded expression. His brows furrowed in disbelief.

Eh? Lover? What?

"Eh? What are you talking about?" He asked and set the device beside the computer. He glanced back at the doorway and saw a large mass of destroyed corrupted. Seems like these Sanktas are doing a good job at keeping the droids at bay.

"You're Lee aren't you? You're my lover, no question about that." The girl smiled sweetly. Her gaze indicated that she wasn't playing around.

'Lover?! I'm supposed to feel like a dad because I created her, what's with the question?!'  He yelled internally. Why would she say such things right after he created her?

He waved his hands in front of him in denial. "No no no no no, I'm not your lover. And...wait, you just got activated. How do you know my name?" For a newly activated AI, she shouldn't know him yet. He checks if he's wearing his old dogtag, but realized he lost it a long time ago. So it only means...

"Of course I know you, silly. I was built because of this 'guidebook'." Iris responded and showed him the said file by sending it to the computer. Just seeing the cover, he knows he fucked up. "I've read the contents, and I have to say, you're an amusing guy." She flashed him a flirtatious smile and giggled.

He face palms after realizing what happened, "...Why..?"

The 'guidebook' Iris is talking about contains his ideals, and everything he wants and likes, all the way to his rants and other... preferences. For some reasons he doesn't understand, Iya got modeled after his type of girl written in the book.

"Damn, I must've accidentally included that file when I created you..." He muttered and awkwardly scratched the back of his head. That's why he thought she looked familiar. The system that created her even copied the exact look he made. Not that he doesn't want it, it just feels...surreal.

Iris giggled after seeing his flustered expression. "To think that you have preferences like that..." She said and suddenly stared at him with a somewhat downcast look. She narrowed her eyes as if she was studying him. He felt a chill run down his spine.

"What's this reading I'm looking at? Your body seems... different. Are you alright?"

Lee knows what she's talking about. She must have seen the strong readings of Punishing Virus inside him. He feels a pang of pain in his core as he stared at her, not knowing what to respond.

"I'm alright." He turns his attention towards the console and began typing a series of commands. For some reasons, he feels bad for creating her just to be used to activate this portal. Even though she's an AI, she has her own consciousness. That's why, she needs a place to stay. Like Babylonia for example, or Rhodes Island.

"Are you sure? I'm sensing a disturbance coming from inside you. Are you perhaps not human?" Iris asked as she leaned on an invisible railing. For some reasons, an artificial wind blew unto her, making her dress flutter against it. He tried his best not to glance down.

"I uhh, yes, I'm not human anymore. Though it's not the right time to reminisce about my life right now. I need your help about something important." He said and points at the portal. It was still glowing ominously, like a stationary murky fog.

Around him, shouts and orders are being barked by soldiers as another wave of corrupted charged at them. The room was filled with an endless sounds of gunfire, as the Sanktas desperately mowed them down.

They came endlessly. If you kill one, five would take it's place. The first line of defense was slowly being pushed back, as the overwhelming numbers of corrupted wanted to get an autograph from Lee. The concrete barricades are being blown to pieces by enforcer droids, thanks to their ranged weapons.