Chapter 1 : Frame of War

Lying weak, slumped over, unable to move.

Everything was cold, unable to feel anything, only the blood flowing slowly from my body.It was dark, the ruins of the buildings, the cracked streets, the destruction I could see.

I don't really remember how I came to be here. Why does everything feel so heavy, all the pain I'm feeling right now.

I want to end it.

Running endlessly, from the pursuit of those we couldn't escape.

Hiding, running, dodging, the endless bullets fired. Those who had no sense of sympathy. Killing each one of us, me, us, unable to fight back. We were just helpless human beings in front of them.

Heartless machines, forged only to fight, not caring who died in their cold, dead hands. All my family, I can't remember them anymore, maybe they are already in the eternal realm.Leaving me alone.Something white was seen coming down the street, a small cold white object, touching my cheek. I forced myself to move my arms, from my prone position.

I couldn't move my legs at all, my body was crushed by the rubble. Even screaming for help, I would only invite the killing machines back.

The only thing I could think of was to end my life now.How heartbreaking, my fate. Waiting to die slowly in a place like this. In a world that has been destroyed with no future to look forward to. All because of those killing machines, they killed one by one the humans they encountered. Using their laser guns and machine guns, they blindly targeted the people in the shelter. Chasing after me, they fired rockets that hit the building, falling on me.

I couldn't fight back at all.My hands trembled at the sight of their figures, their bright red eyes, the LED lights shining on their bodies. Before firing their weapons at the people in front of me. I couldn't .... move my fingers at all. Seeing the people who were fighting back, being killed so easily.

All I could do.... was run. Please, anyone, end my life.

A red drop of blood was visible in my view of the street. Drops of blood were falling one by one.I looked up. These drops of blood... it's a sign of someone, the red-coloured blood came from a human!

Myself!.... myself can be saved!

However, it was not hope that I met....There stood a girl on the ruins of the street. She had long black hair, wearing a long white dress with blood stains on it. Her eyes looked up at me, eyes the colour of red. There was another spot of blood near her mouth. She stood looking at me in the snow that was falling heavily.

There was a wound on her hand, a lacerated hand that revealed the red colour of flesh with intricate shapes of black wires and metal.

She wasn't human, she was... one of them, a killing machine. Some of the enemies were just small drones, or boxy robots. But among them, there was a robot that resembled a girl. They were very smart and more dangerous than the other robots, because they were the ones leading the army.

And now... I met the Robot Girl... who was standing in front of me.

‘Do you... want to live?’ She asked me in her soft, childlike voice.

She... speaks in human language? A robot.... killer robot? Trying to talk to me?

‘Do you... want to... live?’ She asked me back.

No way, she's a killing machine. She just wanted to question me for his own pleasure. She will kill me, she will definitely kill me. If you want to do it, do it immediately! I won't answer your questions.

‘You must be in pain, right? '

Her words left me speechless.Killer robots don't have feelings. But why did it ask me if I was in pain? Does it understand the meaning of human pain? She continued to stare at me intently, looking at me who was being crushed by a large piece of metal.

‘If this continues, you will die, do you want to die?’

I was pensive again. I, myself, did want to die in a world like this. Living would only make me suffer more. Having no ability to fight against machines like her. But... do I really want to die?Do I really want to leave everything behind and go? Without even taking my revenge on the machines that killed my family?

‘I... I don't’

In my opinion, life is meaningless. War after war continues. It's been seven years since I've felt it. Since I was 10 years old. We fled to city after city to escape the conflict.

Until the war stopped, it was replaced by machines that hunted us. Living in fear and despair, with no direction to fight, all our hopes had been dashed, we could no longer hear news from the government. The city had been wiped out, our homes destroyed. The world has ended.What does it mean to live in a world that is ending?

Nothing... except one thing.... ....

‘.... I want to live.’

I decided to sacrifice the death I wanted, for revenge. I would take my revenge on those machines, by selling my soul to them, saving myself.

‘Alright, I'll grant it.’

I will continue to live in the ruined world, where your life will not last a few days, in pursuit of the robots chasing behind me. Even if only death awaits me, I will continue to live.

For the revenge that I will take later.

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"Do you... want to live?" I recalled the words of the Robot Girl I had encountered.

A girl with long black hair, wearing a white dress stained with blood. She had asked me whether I wanted to live. I told her that I did—only to seek vengeance.

CRASH

A bullet whizzed past me as I ran, punching a hole through the wall I used for cover.

The relentless barrage of gunfire echoed against the concrete wall I was leaning on. My legs throbbed from the weight of a fallen beam, and I was certain a few ribs in my back were fractured. But I didn’t have the luxury to wallow in pain.

She had pulled me out of the rubble, only to vanish afterward.

In the distance, I spotted the killing machines closing in on me. Five of them, armed with deadly weapons. One among them was a Battle-Frame—a combat robot designed to resemble a human girl, wielding a laser weapon.

WOOSH

The laser beam slashed through the protective wall, melting it like butter. Gritting my teeth, I forced my broken body to move, sprinting away from my relentless pursuers.

There was no destination in mind. I weaved through the ruins of collapsed buildings, dodging their gunfire, clinging to the faint hope that their batteries might die. But in this world, hopes like that were nothing more than illusions.

BAM!

I kicked down an iron door ahead of me and bolted it shut with all my strength. Bullets thudded against the metal behind me.

I scrambled for cover behind a steel desk. The room seemed like a remnant of an old office, with cabinets scattered about. My heart pounded like a war drum as the gunfire intensified, rattling the door. There was no escape. No other exits. I was trapped.

Their lasers burned through, tearing holes in tables and walls as they aimed to disable the lock.

Damn it. Damn it. I don’t know where to go. She saved my life. I told her I wanted to live. But why? Why does my life have to end here, in this filthy, forsaken place?

Prayers were pointless in a world like this.

Even if I prayed, I’d only wish for a swift and painless death.

I stood up, ready to face the machines that were moments away from breaching the door. Their gunfire roared behind me as I turned to the shattered window, gazing out into the icy expanse.

Beyond the snow-covered ground, something glinted—a flash of light reflecting off a buried object.

A rifle stood upright in a mound of snow, a single flower lying beneath it. A chain dangled from the rifle’s grip, the source of the glimmering light.

I had never fired a gun before. But it was the only chance I had. That rifle... it was my one hope.

I leapt through the broken window, running across the thick snow, the hail of bullets chasing me as they tore through the building behind.

Grasping the rifle, I cocked it and aimed its muzzle at the hovering box-shaped drones that scoured the office for me. Then, the Battle-Frame emerged, locking eyes on me as I stood outside with the rifle aimed squarely at her face.

I didn’t know if the rifle was loaded.

I didn’t know if it could harm her.

I didn’t even know if I could hit her.

But I knew I had to try. If I wanted to live—if I wanted to fight—I had no other choice.

This was the moment to prove that humans could stand against them. Using their own creation against them, I would fight. I would survive!

I pulled the trigger, and the explosion of gunpowder roared in my ears. The rifle’s recoil jarred me, sending a wave of pain through my wounded leg as I steadied myself in the snow.

CRASSSH!

The bullet struck the Battle-Frame’s head, sending her crashing into the iron door before collapsing, lifeless.

“Hah... hah... hah...” My breaths came out in ragged gasps as I fought to steady myself against the biting cold. My heart raced to the rhythm of my survival.

The hovering drones now turned their sights on me, their machine guns spinning into readiness. I adjusted my aim, gripping the rifle tightly.

I had killed one of them. I could do it again. I was alive.

I kept repeating it to myself—I could do this. I could fight them. I could win.

Before they could fire, I squeezed off another shot, taking down one drone as I darted to the right. Their bullets rained down where I had been, and I fired at another, hitting its rotor and sending it spiraling to the ground.

They began to reload, and I seized the moment. Emerging from my cover, I knelt and fired rapidly, taking out two more. My chest heaved as I realized I had neutralized them all—five in total.

But as I checked the rifle’s magazine and saw it was half full, my relief was short-lived.

Out of nowhere, a canine-shaped robot lunged at me. Its razor-sharp teeth snapped toward my throat, and I instinctively raised my left arm to block it. Pain seared through me as its jaws clamped down, but I swung the rifle with my right hand, shoving its barrel against the machine’s head.

BANG!

The robot collapsed, its head a mangled mess of metal. I used the rifle as a crutch to stand, limping out of the building after smashing another downed drone with it for good measure.

I noticed a dog tag hanging from the rifle. It read:

KARL MARTEEN, FIRST SGT, A POS, 27-FEB-2029

The rifle had likely been left as a grave marker for a fallen soldier. A man, just a year older than me, who had chosen to fight these machines. His sacrifice had given me a weapon, a chance to survive.

"Even though you're gone," I muttered, gripping the rifle tightly, "I'll use this to fight. I’ll keep fighting for as long as I breathe."

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May 13, 2050

Abandoned City

Wherever I go... all I see is ruin.

A dead city, long abandoned. The streets are barren, like skeletal remains, overgrown with moss and ferns. Buildings that once towered with pride are now stripped bare, reduced to hollow shells of concrete. No glass, no wood, nothing of value left to salvage. Now, they are homes to creeping creatures and wild plants.

Streetlights have been scavenged—emptied of their metal, cables, and electronics. Metal, lights, wiring, and circuitry have become precious commodities, prized for their use in crafting makeshift explosives.

How long have I been in this broken world? I can't remember. Two years? Maybe... longer.

I forced my feet forward, holding my breath as I stepped past the corpse of a woman with long brown hair, a bullet wound in her chest. She was dead... because I was too late to save her. Murdered by those red-eyed robots—those killing machines.

Though the place was silent and desolate, the autumn wind carried the stench of decaying bodies scattered everywhere. This city had become a graveyard for the unburied. The war still raged on beyond these ruins, I thought.

THUD!

I kicked aside a lifeless body—not human, but a humanoid robot sprawled in the street. It was one of the Battle-Frames. They were the ones I hunted. They had slaughtered countless people, including the woman I had just passed.

Thump... thump... thump...

Footsteps? Someone was here? That couldn’t be—this area was supposed to be deserted! I had checked it myself!

The street I was walking on was meant to be empty, but now the sound of footsteps and shifting pebbles echoed behind me. I removed the safety on my rifle, spun around, and aimed toward the source of the noise.

Behind me stood a middle-aged man in a white shirt, black tie, and dark suit. He wore matching black trousers and polished shoes. No weapon in sight, yet he walked toward me, unperturbed by the barrel of my gun pointed straight at him.

"Stop right there! Don’t move another step!" I shouted at him, my voice sharp.

He halted, as if heeding my warning. But then, from my right, I heard more footsteps. My rifle remained fixed on him as I glanced to the side. Another man, dressed identically, emerged. His black sunglasses hid his eyes, giving him an uncanny, inhuman air.

"Drop your weapon. We mean you no harm," the man to my right called out.

I couldn’t. I wouldn’t loosen my grip on the trigger. They... they unsettled me. Who were these people? Wherever I turned—left, right, front, and back—they had surrounded me. Escape was impossible.

"What do you want?!" I yelled, desperation tinging my voice.

A cold chill crept down my spine. What did they want? Who were they? How had they found me in this desolate place? These weren’t ordinary people or scavengers. They had an air of authority, of purpose. My blood ran cold, and sweat trickled down my face.

"We’ve come to help you," said the man standing in front of me.

"You desire power, don’t you?" said the man on my right.

"We’ll give you that power," added the one to my left.

"We need you."

THUD!

A searing pain exploded at the back of my neck.

My vision blurred, and my hands trembled uncontrollably. My rifle slipped from my grasp, clattering onto the ground. The world around me became a hazy swirl of shadows. My consciousness felt like it was being dragged through an endless void.

The strength drained from my body, leaving me weightless and helpless.

And then... darkness consumed everything.

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Blurred Visions...

For a moment, I couldn’t tell where I was.

As I opened my eyes, the world around me seemed alien, offering no clue as to where I lay. Before me stood a wooden table, worn and aged, but oddly familiar.

My clothes remained the same, but my rifle and pistol were gone. All I had left was myself, sitting silently, trying to piece together how I had ended up in this place. The surroundings looked like an abandoned facility, decayed and forgotten.

Cobwebs hung thick in corners, while rusted steel pillars supported the skeletal remains of the building. The metal tables were corroded, gas pipes beside them eaten away by time. Dust and debris covered the floor, making every step feel like a walk through the ashes of a forgotten era.

Through the darkness, a faint red light flickered in the dim moonlit room. Footsteps echoed, growing louder as they approached. The glint of weapons caught the moonlight, and instinctively, I crouched behind the wooden table for cover.

Peering cautiously, I spotted them: three humanoid robots with glowing red LEDs on their heads, flanked by two armed drones.

Damn it... damn it... damn it. How did I get here? How did I end up in their path?

My hands trembled, tears welled in my eyes as I frantically searched for something—anything—to use as a weapon. All I found was the bayonet knife strapped to my leg beneath my pants.

A knife? Against them? You’ve got to be kidding me.

CLANG!

My shaking foot accidentally kicked a metal rod on the floor, creating a loud clatter. I could hear the machines adjusting course, heading straight toward me.

My body burned with adrenaline as sweat poured down my face. Gripping the knife tightly, I tried to calm my fear, but my hands betrayed me, trembling with every passing second. My heartbeat quickened in time with the advancing footsteps.

Closing my eyes briefly, I forced myself to confront the fear consuming me.

I could feel it—fear was taking over my body. But I had to move. Even if it meant my death, I couldn’t stay here, paralyzed and helpless, waiting to be found and executed.

I couldn’t bear to feel powerless again.

It wasn’t bravery that drove me but the resolve to resist fear itself. I had to channel that fear into action. Facing it head-on, I decided to fight—to overcome the past and my terror.

And then... to kill them.

My heart pounded furiously, my mind racing with a single focus: survival. My body screamed for action, every muscle tensed, as my blood coursed like wildfire. It was a strange sensation—like a dance between life and death.

CRASH!

I drove my bayonet into the neck of the humanoid robot closest to me, using its body as a shield as the others opened fire. Seizing its weapon, I hurled the lifeless machine toward its comrades and fired at the hovering drones, darting to a metal table for cover.

The rush of adrenaline was overwhelming. My heart thudded against my chest, and a manic grin spread across my face despite the chaos. What was this feeling? Was this... adrenaline?

Taking a deep breath, I waited for the drones to reload. Seizing the opportunity, I darted to the right, shooting down a drone and two of the humanoid machines. Each shot, each movement, felt sharper than the last.

I closed the distance to the final robot, even as its gunfire grazed my skin. My rifle ran empty, but I pressed on, slamming the butt of the weapon against its head repeatedly until its LED eyes shattered, revealing the mechanical skull beneath.

BZZZZZZZZZTTT!

An alarm blared, loud and piercing. Bright lights flooded the room, blinding me momentarily. As my vision adjusted, I found myself in a vast, high-tech space. The decayed surroundings dissolved, replaced by smooth, gleaming walls.

A massive screen lit up ahead, silhouettes of figures visible behind the glass.

“Congratulations, recruit. You’ve passed the Fenris simulation test,” a voice announced.

A simulation? My mind reeled as I processed the words.

"Welcome to Fenris—the Human Resistance Organization."

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May 15, 2050 | Fenris Headquarters | 1405 Hrs

Three years of wandering alone in a shattered world, battling machines and killer robots. Three years of survival led me here, to an organization claiming to fight for humanity.

They called themselves Fenris.

The room they assigned me was stark—a boxy gray cell, simple and functional. A bed in the corner, a small wardrobe, a desk with a chair near the door, and stacks of cardboard boxes near the bed.

“It’s well-ventilated,” one of them assured me before leaving. “The air circulation adjusts to room conditions.”

I didn’t care much. I dropped my bag and collapsed onto the mattress.

A soft bed... after years of sleeping on rubble or running for my life, this felt like paradise.

But as I sank into its comfort, questions lingered in my mind. Who was Fenris? What were their true goals?

Before I could think further, a voice crackled through the room’s speaker system:

“Ruger Schmitt, report to the Tactical Control Room immediately.”

The voice jarred me awake. Annoyed by the intrusive speaker, I swung the door open, only to nearly collide with a black-haired woman in the hallway.

“Ah, sorry,” I muttered.

“I apologize too,” she replied curtly, her sharp red eyes scanning me.

“New recruit?” she asked.

“Yeah, just arrived today.”

She tapped her lips thoughtfully before offering a flat, “Welcome. See you around.”

Her words were brief and emotionless, yet something about her felt oddly familiar. Those crimson eyes... where had I seen them before?

No time to dwell on it. I had a call to answer.

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I arrived at the Tactical Control Room that was just mentioned. After I wandered back and forth asking everyone I met on the way where it was located.

"Good afternoon, Captain. It took you quite a while to find your way to this room."

A middle-aged woman with long blonde hair greeted me. She was wearing glasses and carrying a hologram tablet. Her face looked annoyed at me because I could see the wrinkles on her forehead.

"Sorry, this is my first time in Fenris. I don't know where the Tactical Control Room is."

What kind of organization doesn't explain to its newcomers the locations of every room?

"E-Eh?" I thought another member had already given you the map.

"Not at all."

She then sighed. The girl was wearing a blue military uniform with a combination of black and yellow on some sides of her shirt. She also wore a knee-length skirt and black stockings.

She invited me to enter the Tactical Control room. Inside, there was a large table in front of a holographic projector, which displayed an image of another girl.

Besides that, there is also a table near the entrance with its strange buttons and an AK-47 rifle placed there. There is also a cabinet filled with firearms lined up on the right side of the room, without any ammunition.

"This is your first time in the Tactical Control Room, isn't it?" What do you think?How do you think? "I looked around again.

I looked around again. Everything looks safe with door protectors using ID cards, and the walls are quite strong made of a metal alloy. A nice room, I think.

"Nice, I've never been to a place like this."

"Is that so, I am very grateful that you chose to join Fenris."

She then turned to me, who was staring at the wide holographic screen.

"First, let me introduce myself, Julia Wellington. Just call me Julia... and you...?""Previously, let me introduce myself, Julia Wellington. Just call me Julia... and you...?" "Ruger, Ruger Schmitt. You can call me Ruger or Schmitt, it's up to you."

"Ruger, Ruger Schmitt. You can call me Ruger or Schmitt, it's up to you."

"Ruger, alright. Ruger, starting today you will become the Captain in Fenris. As for me, I will become your supervisor, or Tactical Commander starting today."

Ha-Hah? What did he actually say? Captain? Tactical Commander? I don't understand what she said at all. I didn't hear anything about it when I joined.

"Captain?" Tactical Commander? What do you mean?What do you mean? " "... Hmm?

"... Hmm?" Don't tell me you weren't informed about that again. Also, I don't understand why you signed up for Fenris?"I don't understand at all."

"I don't understand at all."

Beep.... beep.... beep...

Suddenly, the sound of an alarm from the room appeared, followed by an announcement,

"To Ruger Schmitt and Julia Wellington. Please proceed immediately to the Director's Room." I repeat...."

Now... both of us have been called to the Director's office.

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We arrived together at the Director’s office. She sat behind a desk, holding a stack of reports in her hands. Behind him, a large screen displayed countless streams of data. Occasionally, a few people passed by to deliver documents to him.

Calmly, he smoked a thick, brown cigar and exhaled a plume of smoke.

I observed him closely. He looked old, his dark white hair complemented by a pair of sideburns extending along his jawline, along with a beard and mustache.

“Julia, didn’t I tell you to bring him to my office first before taking him to the Tactical Control Room?” he said, slamming a report onto the desk.

While Julia endured the scolding from the Director, my attention wandered to the large screen behind him. There, I saw numerous names and codes that left me utterly perplexed. They seemed like the names of weapons from the past: MP5, Famas, M4A1, L85A1, and AK-12.

What could all this mean? I still didn’t know.

“Ruger Schmitt, have you had your fill of staring at the big screen behind me?”

I hadn’t even realized that Julia had already left the room, leaving only me and the Director standing there.

“Allow me to welcome you to Fenris, Ruger Schmitt. You must have many questions, don’t you? Like my name? It’s Rudolf Arthur, if you’d like to know.”

This Director—he seemed much more relaxed than I had pictured in my mind. Or perhaps it was all just a façade. Despite his aged appearance, there was nothing feeble about him in my eyes.

“Who are you? And what kind of organization have I stumbled into?”

He took another puff of his cigar, exhaled, and then stubbed it out in the ashtray on his desk.

“Allies of Humanity. Or just ‘Humanity’s Allies,’ if you prefer it simpler. Our organization exists to ensure the survival of mankind.”

Rising from his chair, he moved to the side of his desk, approaching me where I stood.

“And you… are you even human?”

“Are you seriously asking that to someone who’s been smoking? Do you think A.I. or robots can smoke?”

I’d never seen one do so, but it seemed unlikely. For now, I’d take him at his word—this organization was for humanity.

“Then, who are those girls? The ones on the screen? Why do they have weapon names next to them?”

He reached into his pocket and pressed something, causing a large image to appear on the screen. It showed a girl with short blonde hair, wearing a green beret. The display read:

[Codename: Merka

Class: AssaulterImplemented Weapon: GALIL]

“They’re Battle-Frames.”

Battle-Frames? Did he just say that? This organization created combat robots and claims to save humanity?

“Battle-Frames, you say?! You’re using killer robots to save mankind?!”

The Director burst into laughter at my words, clutching his chest as though I had told the most ridiculous joke.

“Killer robots, you say? Well, you’re not entirely wrong... hahaha…”

He stepped closer to me.

“Have you ever heard the saying: ‘To defeat a monster, you must become one yourself’? We created the Battle-Frames for that very purpose—to take down the killer robots you speak of.”

I couldn’t bring myself to trust someone like him. He says he wants to save humanity... by making more robots. Pitting them against one another? What if one day they turned on us like the others?

“Why... should I trust a word you say? You don’t understand how dangerous they can be!”

He fell silent, his laughter fading. He pulled another cigar from his pocket, lit it with a lighter, and took a deep puff.

“Because there’s no one else left in this world you can trust. Not even God can save you when the end of the world is upon us.”

The Director locked eyes with me, his gaze sharp and piercing.

“You have no choice but to believe in us. We have the power to fight back. And you? What do you have?”

I was reminded of the three years I’d spent struggling on my own. Running and fighting, hiding, and surviving. That was all I could do to resist them. I had no real power to fight back, other than stealing enemy weapons and using them against their own kind.

“You want power, don’t you? That’s why we need you—to wield that power.”

I needed it. The power to fight back, to exact my revenge.

But that power...

It required me to fight Battle-Frames with other Battle-Frames. In some ways, the idea made sense—to use robots against killer robots. But they didn’t look like the terrifying Battle-Frames I’d fought before. They looked like ordinary girls.

“Join us. Let’s reclaim this world for humanity… for one more time.”