Serah watched the cityscape fly past her as AA-XOTRY dashed through it, quickly fleeing from wherever she was previously. The girl's nerves were still on edge, but calmer compared to before. When she stopped for a short break near the edge of the colony, Serah had her framewerk turn to look back towards the battle. Right at that very moment, a bright flash of light enveloped her camera feed and even blinded the poor girl for a short while. When Serah's senses came back to her, Sigma shouted something over the communication channel about telling the fleet to attack south-east from a ... detonation? [color=00aeef]"H-Huh? Sigma, what are you-,"[/color] Serah wanted to question it, but soon found out what she meant. Magus' signal was lost. After seeing that, it took her only a split second to piece the puzzle together. [color=00aeef]"W-Wait... you're kidding, right?"[/color] The girl mumbled to herself in disbelief, starting to breathe a little more quickly again. [color=00aeef]"S-Sigma? It's... a joke, right? It's not... funny..."[/color] Serah opened up a private channel with the one who warned her about it, her voice audibly trembling.

Sigma gritted her teeth. The damn thing... it had begun to move. She had been banking on delaying the confrontation until a windfall happened to clue her in how to assail the undefeatable. But this wasn't a fairytale. Even if someone else had come to their aide, he wasn't a victorious champion. Magus knew. He knew that this fight demanded much more than what one could initially thought. Mind, flesh... and even one's soul.

She gripped her controls, trying to rein in the dread that was making her shake, but somewhere in her mind, in all that tempest of emotions, she wasn't letting herself fall victim to panic. She was just... slogging, keeping herself steady.

"No... it's not a joke." Sigma finally answered with aplomb. "This...this is real, Serah. As much as I wanted it not to be. Hahaha... I'm just barely better than you... my voice ... can crack at any time." Sigma twitched, letting a small nervous chuckle get past her.

"I'm so sorry. So... really sorry. I cannot avenge the ones who have fallen. Magus... Rostosov... Heck, that thing is making a cozy nest out of..." Sigma stopped, dead silent, as she poked the screen.

"..." She was silent. "Ah, who I am kidding. I don't think that vandalizing Harold's remain and exploding the live ammo will get us through." Sigma cackled again, this time in the verge of tears. "And that thing's moving."

Everything was messed up. Serah tightly clutched AA-XOTRY's controls whilst biting her lip, hard enough for a slight trickle of blood to run down her chin. It took everything of her just to keep her nerves in check. She knew she couldn't reasonably think straight anymore, so she looked for help in her friend on the battlefield. [color=00aeef]"S-So... then, what do we do?"[/color] Serah asked, getting a swift response.

"Well, since we're about to die regardless, how about a little fairytale?"

[color=00aeef]"F-Fairytale?"[/color] the girl asked, confused. 

"Yep." Sigma said, tired. "There was once a man in ancient history, who was tasked to defend a bridge from a horde of enemies. He was vastly outnumbered, with no hope to win. However, he stood there. Nobody could've blamed him turning tail rather than facing such enemy." Sigma rambled on. "...and do you know what he did?"

Serah choked on a laugh, though it wasn't a happy one. [color=00aeef]"Hah... I know this one. He fought anyway, right?"[/color] she asked, her hair falling down in front of her eyes. Those words were slightly comforting, but this wasn't a fairy tale. [color=00aeef]"Well... go on."[/color] Serah pushed Sigma.

"He did." Sigma continued. "But that's not all. Before he charged ... he did something else. He knew something. He was but a man, and only one. But he knew that where one man would do it, another could do it." Sigma cleared her throat.

"Then out spake brave Horatius,
The Captain of the Gate:
'To every man upon this earth
Death cometh soon or late.
And how can man die better
Than facing fearful odds,
For the ashes of his fathers,
And the temples of his Gods.' "

Sigma let out a tear. "I believe... that if we want others to live. That if we want everyone else, or even us to survive, we have to fight again." Sigma choked. "I won't hold it against you that you do not want to fight anymore, you've done so far already. But we really need a last push, Serah. Even if that means-"

[color=00aeef]"Shut up,"[/color] Serah softly choked out between her sobs, succeeding in cutting off the other girl. [color=00aeef]"I-I know... Even if I ran, I'd get charged with treason and executed anyway."[/color] Serah exhaled heavily, remembering the laws that firmly got implanted into every soldier's head. [color=00aeef]"A-And... even if I wouldn't, I still won't run."[/color] The girl slowly started to speak louder, her voice gradually being filled with more determinaton.

[color=00aeef]"'Cause... I'd just make everyone suffer if I turned my back... a-and I don't want that! To go through things so horrible...? Why would I want that for ANYONE?!"[/color] she suddenly screamed at Sigma, surprising herself. Serah was breaking character pretty badly here. [color=00aeef]"...There's something we can do, right?! Anything at all?!"[/color]

"Well... I was thinking of detonating Rostosov, but I don't think that much will be enough. My railgun power supply isn't enough to electrocute that thing even if I ran up and fired at its face, risking the brunt of that weapon..." Sigma answered, her eyes wide and expression completely offguard taken aback by Serah's outburst.

Serah bit her tongue. Sigma was right; Neither of those two would work. Sigma's weapon wasn't powerful enough for that. If the girl still had her plasma blade, the extreme heat could've-

Wait. The girl [i]did[/i] have some plasma left, but it wasn't on her blade. Cold shivers ran down Serah's spine when she realized exactly where it was located. If that plasma could connect with Rostosov, the explosion would be... huge, to say the least. But it'd completely... [color=00aeef]"No!"[/color] she yelled suddenly and without provocation, rejecting the very idea of harming her Atty. This framewerk was basically an extension of herself, so she couldn't sacrifice it, right?

Sigma blinked not once but twice. "Huh? What's that no for? Someone has to go there, and save the city!"

The older girl flinched when she heard Sigma's response, snapping her out of the slight panic she found herself in. A rumble on the earth also reminded her that they were still fighting, and [i]running out of time[/i]. Biting her lip again, Serah tried to think of an answer. [color=00aeef]"It's... uhrm..."[/color] The girl fumbled to find words but didn't manage to form anything coherent. Still, she lingered a bit on what Sigma said. [color=00aeef]"'Someone has to save the city,' huh?'[/color] Serah softly mumbled to herself, making up her mind.

[color=00aeef]"...Use my core."[/color] Serah relayed to Sigma, shaky but determined. 

"..." Sigma went all silent of a sudden. Her eyes narrowed. "Your... core..." Sigma repeated, as her mind was processing the idea. "Alright." She understood. Completely. After all, who better than a replaceable doll to understand the levity of sacrificing another doll?

"Serah. I'm sure that Atty would understand." Sigma said back, her trembling hands finally steeling herself with determination, as she ignited her thrusters and went into Serah's position. "In honor to her sacrifice... I shall win this, or die trying." She said in a soft rasp. "I am going to shoot that rotten orange."

Serah felt a bit of anger well up at Sigma trying to put words into Atty's mouth, because that girl didn't know the first thing about them. Still, they were both running out of time. Pushing on her controls, Serah made AA-XOTRY practically sprint to the other girl. When the two were in the same position, Serah drew heavy breaths. She quickly began typing things into her console as warning signs and red lights flared up all around, but she didn't care. [color=00aeef]"You'll have a few seconds to rip it out. I... can't give you more than that."[/color] The girl choked on her words. This wasn't right, this was messed up. She made up her mind, however, and couldn't chicken out. These two little girls were basically dead women walking anyway.

Sigma eyed the other girl's feed before, flicking a button. "Actually, I'd like to pick you up. You have to see this." She added.

Serah's cheeks flared up at 'picking her up', misreading both the situation and the mood for a split second. She got the intention, though. Plus, Sigma had a point. If Serah just remained here when the power goes out, she'd probably asphyxiate to death before long. [color=00aeef]"...Alright,"[/color] was all Serah replied, looking to her camera feed. The building on Atty's left should be cover enough to pull this off. Serah timed her core to open in exactly one minute and then typed in the command to open the cockpit, immediately regretting the decision when she saw the wasteland before her.

The girl wound up regretting it more when she felt the powerful, big and pretty hot hands of Eiswolf clamp around her and push out all the air in her lungs, even through the plug suit. The entire thing lasted only a few seconds before Serah got dropped down inside of Eiswolf, landing right on top Sigma rather... unceremoniously. [color=00aeef]"Ouchouchouch...!"[/color] Serah groaned, scrambling to her feet and bumping her head on the tech above her.

There the girl was, inside of a strange cockpit, with another slightly smaller girl. Her messy hair and loose ribbon didn't help the situation any, nor did the still dripping blood off her lip.

Sigma's determined expression broke into pieces when she saw the bigger girl landing on top of her, almost crushing her in a pile of plug-suited adorned flesh. All the wiggling didn't certainly help, and more than once her face ended up pressed against things she shouldn't. She let out a yelp  after Serah suddenly decided to drop down after bumping against the roof of her cockpit.

"...Welcome, sorry for being cramped." She let out, as she struggled for a little of air. "There's still... booze." Sigma said blandly, as she focused to minimize the synch impact of a foreign mind in her cockpit. 

[color=00aeef]"The core!"[/color] Serah suddenly yelled in realisation, pushing away from Sigma and huddling up in the corner of the small cage. [color=00aeef]"Quickly!"[/color]

"Yeah, yeah." Sigma frowned, as per usual and deftly yanked the core out of Atty, a sickening crunch being heard all the while the plasma's electric energy began to spray everywhere. With a soft thud, she attached it to the end of her rail weapon, and she readied herself to fire.

But she didn't. No, not yet. The target was resting on top of Rostosov.

"Serah, your hand. You'll pull the trigger." Sigma said, as she led the other girl to her trigger controls.

Serah was slightly taken aback by the sudden request, even blushing a little when she felt Sigma's small hands clamped around hers. He palm was now clasped around a joystick-shaped device, presumably to fire. [color=00aeef]"...Hey, fire with me would you?"[/color] Serah asked, which probably also was the last thing she'd get to ask.

"Sure, thing."Sigma's hand enveloped Serah's in the trigger. "I...like books." She added, as a random piece of information, trying to take the gravity off the situation to make the shot easier.

Serah laughed at the sudden comment. [color=00aeef]"Well... I like cards. I'll teach you when we get back, alright?"[/color] Serah offered with a soft voice, managing to crack a smile even with this tension.

"...Yeah." 

And then they pulled the trigger together.