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“Seyfried!”
Amidst the roaring flames, the porcelain princess calls out to the raging automaton.
As he turns to face her, he feels a sense of familiarity with this girl. No, that can’t be right. He’s never seen her before.
“Please, I never meant Armoroad any harm,” she cries. “Talk to me, Seyfried. Don’t ruin the town because of what I have become.”
Ah, so this is the Deep One , he thinks.
And yet, these words ring familiar to him. He has heard someone say it before, someone aside from himself.
The king feels a pull towards the small woman. Whether it be the call to eliminate, or a response to the girl’s plea, he doesn’t know.
The girl asks him many things. Why he would destroy the town of his beloved people, why he had left them without a leader. Why he left her alone to lead them .
If he so loved her, he wouldn’t have been gone so long without even visiting. Even a letter would do.
But no word ever came from the kingly machine. And this fills the princess’ heart with grief. All this time, she had held onto the hope that she would see his smile once more, but even that light appears to be fading from her grasp.
As her long-kept anguish begins to bubble, the king’s body slips its plates and cords into their familiar shape, one that looked more like how the king was in life.
He watches the weeping mass of white at his feet. He raises his hands (if one could call them that) and his mind races between two lines of thought.
Kill.
No, comfort.
Kill her.
Comfort her.
Kill. Comfort. Kill. Comfort. Kill. Comfort. Kill. Comfort. Kill. Comfort. Kill. Comfort. Kill. Comfort. Kill. Comfort. Kill. Comfort. Kill. Comfort. Kill. Comfort. Kill. Comfort.
In his hesitance, he feels a force push his back, bringing his face skyward.
It’s been so long since he has last seen the sky. Has it always been red? Wasn’t it supposed to be blue? He tried to remember what made the sky red at times, and yet he couldn’t. Was it something that he never got to upload? But, whatever wasn’t uploaded wouldn’t be important, right?
… Right?
If the feeling of pain was important, then surely, he would be feeling every inch of the blade running through his body.
If the town, or was it a city… If it was important, then surely there is familiarity to be had in its worn streets and placid waves.
If the girl in front of him was so important… Then he would have remembered her, right?
The sword is gone now. He realizes this as he feels his momentum slip from underneath him.
As he stumbles, he is met with a
System Error
System Error
System Error
SYSTEM ERROR
An error, after error, after error, after error.
He can no longer hear. Too many errors. He can no longer see. Too many errors.
His mind, wild with questions upon questions, begins to fray at the edges.
This body has too many errors.
When his legs finally give way, he feels the hard cobble of the main road. His crown rolls off his head, off towards the girl. A piece of metal removed from a body made of metal.
How he wished so badly for answers. There is still so much to be done.
The foreign god and the world tree.
The imprisoned eldest one.
His loyal servants, and the ever elusive, yet familiar Olympia.
And the toplanders that have agreed to help his cause.
Who was he forgetting? Damn all of these endless errors.
Amidst the cacophony of sparks inside of his head, Seyfried feels two hands envelope one of his. Despite the differences in shape and form, the warmth of these hands felt familiar.
“I forgive you.”
Wait.
As his systems begin to shut down one after the other, he realizes just how little time he has left.
What do you forgive me for?
Who are you?
Why do I feel like I know you?
So many questions, and yet there will never be enough time. As his mind races, all he could mutter was a small “why.”
“Because you’re my brother.”
“And I love you.”