Lost Time

The old man looks at K4. "My wife got shot."

K4's expression sours into an expressionless mess: 'Is this what pandemonium means by that? I will find out, as it has done something to the wife.'

"How did she get shot? as much detail as possible if you could. There is something that I want to find out." The atmosphere changed into a serious tone; the old man complies with the order.

His voice falters a bit. "You shot her." The pained words coming from his wavering mouth left her with no doubt; pandemonium must be the cause.

'During the earthquake in my mind space, it seems she took control of my body and, using the newly attached railgun, must have shot at the wife while she was checking on me or whatever.'

Her deductions made sense; there was no other way for the wife to be harmed. She was in a protected base that shouldn't be able to be penetrated by any robotic monster, and the lack of humans left made it unviable for an attack to occur.

The old man continues to stare at K4 in anger, his emotions flashing back to that same moment that happened, the moment his wife got shot; he approaches K4 with a dead expression.

Winding up a punch, he releases his built-up anger with a smack across K4's face. Despite the metal being impacted, the fragility of a human didn't cause her any harm other than a sound echoing within the room.

Hino rushed to his side. instantly restrains the man, "Don't lash out before we know what happened." He sounded more mature, his voice deepened considerably.

His gaze turned to K4, who readjusted her head back at the pair of them. "It was the development, not me." She left no more to go off of, but Hino knew the truth behind that name, and so did the man after the brief from Hino.

"The development took control of you? That's not possible, right..." Hino was in disbelief; he never saw K4 get affected throughout the three months of their time together and even during the laboratory exploration. It was a new kind of fear to have.

K4 smiles weakly. "When did this happen?"

Hino remembers "around a month ago".

The old man starts to calm himself down, knowing it wasn't her fault and not her intention but the exact same thing they are tasked to hunt.

'So a month ago was basically a couple seconds for me. Did she somehow manage to manipulate the internal flow of my time too? or even affect my rewind mechanism to change time.' She starts turning her body off of the metal bed, taking in the metal flooring; it was cold and meek with machinery cables all around, still attached to her.

"Hey, can you both get these off of me?" She seemed a bit annoyed at the cables still poking her senses.

Hino, going to her back, starts to unwire the cables attached to her various body parts. "Hey, Ox, could you turn off the systems in the meantime?"

her mind jolts "ox... Didn't I forget to ask for your name? My apologies for all the help you did as well." She felt a slight guilt but nothing major since she knew about his name in other rewinds; it was almost like she didn't need to ask anymore knowing it so vividly.

Ox turns around to her after his rage finally fully settled. "It's no worries; we had better things to be doing after all." With him having turned off the systems and Hino having unplugged all the wires, they were finally allowed to close their construction of K4 for good.

"Also, please fill me in on anything you can that happened in the last three months, especially about settlements and the current status of humanity." Her voice was stern and prepared to begin the next step in her step; there wasn't time to waste due to the Shilo invasion in the next month.

Hino and Ox both start leaving the room together as they wave at K4 to follow them. The concrete pavements hit her legs after such an isolated time; it was a refreshing sight. The weather seemed warmer as well due to January having come around, their patterns mimicking the exact same path like the first, the living room

Entering the room, it was completely renovated; the white walls were now filled with personality, with a flower-like pattern formatted on top of the wall that gave the vibes of an old person's home for sure. The furniture was the same, but there were extra windows for additional sunlight implemented around the room, letting light seep in.

All three of them take a seat, with Ox talking: "During your absence many things changed; most settlements have been ravaged, with only Shilo and a couple of small communities being left."

K4 questions, "What about any form of government or rebellions?"

Hino answers instantly, "Nothing left; humanity has no resistance left. Shilo is on the defensive, and they can't expand past their confines. They're like sheep in a pen." He reeked of a condescending tone, as if almost insulting the cowardice of the Shilo people.

'His personality isn't what I expected; he seems a bit more assertive and a bit more aggressive. This shouldn't cause issues but definitely makes me feel like a guardian now.' She lets out a quiet sigh.

"If Shilo is standing, that's all that matters. Natalia gave us the clues in there." Her voice gave a sense of authority, knowing this was their next mission with no options to reject.

Hino leans to her side. "I have become a good hunter as well; Ox trained me for the last three months, so don't doubt me anymore!" There was a slightly excited tone in him; there was still a part of his inner child left after all.

K4 smiles. "That's good to hear! There is only one thing that I can update you all on: Pandoieum is the development; that's what it calls itself. Its form resembles that of a fire-haired child with white robes." She couldn't believe her own words at this point.

"A child is the cause of all of our issues?" Ox questions her facts.

K4 puts her head down, thinking about how to explain this. "It's exactly like that."

They all fall into silence; they weren't expecting this to be such an opponent. They try to think of ideas on how to find a way to locate Pandemonium.

Hino speaks up, "Is there any trace of her left?"

"No, there isn't. She vanished into the black mindspace, suggesting her reunion soon at Shilo.

As Hino shifts around the couch, he asks her, "Do we have a chance at beating it? Is there even a chance of saving the people of Shilo?" His words rang with concern, but it was clear he wasn't going to sacrifice the mission for a couple of strangers.

Ox speaks up, "Pandemonium is still just a robot child; a railgun like yours will dismantle her into nothing more than metal scrap." His laughter fills the room.

"She isn't the issue; Shilo is a city of massive scale. Their technology has become ancient, and they live off the merit of goodness without a major economic system; they still, however, are strong and united within the walls, the one thing Pandemonium can't stand."

In an instant she thinks about a deeper purpose: 'Why would she care about humans dying if they were destined to die either way? She knows about the rewinds, so why is she attacking them?' Her thoughts start chaining.

'Could it be that the secret to stop the extinction of humanity is within Shilo? I never went there after all due to the invasion of the robots before my arrival,' her streak flamed hot.

"The attack on Shilo is a way to make us avoid finding out what they need." Her voice filled the room.

Ox and Hino look at her bewildered, with Ox speaking up, "What do you mean?"

"The invasion is a way to prevent me from finding the secrets Natalia left behind; it's comedic how many times someone can fall for her schemes." The deceptive pandemonium was a forbiddable manipulator; despite the innocence it gives off, it's clear it's dangerous.

They both think about the thinking behind K4; their minds also think it's suspicious if they are all doomed to die either way in the end.

Ox speaks up. "I guess there is no avoiding it. I will prepare the train for the journey for Shilo."