//Sae: Walk

They weren't able to leave the execution until it was over; soldiers blocked the exits while it was ongoing. After all of the criminals had been crushed underneath the massive red cross, the Executioner turned and silently walked away from the pedestal in the same direction he had come from. Sae got a better look at his cloak when he turned away. A black and red snake insignia decorated the back, along with a few symbols she had never seen before. Some sort of ancient language, from the looks of it.

As they walked through the streets, having finally gotten away from the swarm of people in the plaza, questions flew one after another through Sae's mind. Who was that man? Why did everyone seem to follow him? What were all of the strange speeches about?

Radical religions were dangerous. Sae knew this from quick searches of wars throughout history. Simple disagreements in belief could lead to bloodshed, but never had she heard of something on this large of a scale. Every single person in the area had been cheering as they watched people who had committed relatively small crimes were being slaughtered. What did these people believe in so strongly that they could warrant things such as that?

She wanted to ask Nathan about it, but he didn't appear to be in the mood to talk. He had drawn his hood more tightly about his face, and hadn't spoken a word since they left the plaza.

Ahn walked next to Nathan, standing nearly a head taller than him. His cloak completely covered his body, concealing his missing arm. They all had to keep their heads down when soldiers approached, which was not an uncommon occurrence. Sae overheard a few of them talking about the wall collapsing, and how it had supposedly been done by only three people. Most of the soldiers, however, dismissed this as an exaggerated rumor. It was simply impossible for a mere group of three to do something on such a large scale.

Sae couldn't help but give Nathan some credit for his plan. If it wasn't for him, they likely wouldn't have made it through. She didn't particularly like him, but he knew what he was doing, at the very least.

The scenery had begun to change again. A few holographic billboards adorned the buildings, which were now beginning to vary in shape and size, though remaining the same dull gray for the most part. The billboards cycled through various different pictures and videos, most of which were some form of OEC propaganda.

'JOIN US IN THE FIGHT FOR TRUE LIBERATION. JUSTICE IS UPON US,' one of them read, displaying a picture of the armored man from earlier. He stood atop a brightly lit altar, with his hands clasped as if he were praying.

It was ironic, Sae thought, that they tried to paint a man who killed over a dozen unarmed people by beating them to death with a cross as the figure of 'justice'. Nathan would occasionally glance at these images, then quickly avert his eyes. Sae couldn't see his face through his mask and goggles, but it was obvious that he felt distaste towards the pictures.

A few hours in, Nathan finally spoke.

"Are you guys hungry?" he asked. "None of us have eaten since yesterday, at least."

He seemed to have calmed down now.

"Right," Sae said after a moment, remembering that Nathan didn't know they were androids. It would be best if it stayed that way. The last thing they needed was for Nathan to find out who they were and try to turn them in.

"Where do you suggest we get food?" Ahn asked. "I don't think trying to get into a public store will go over so well with these masks."

Nathan gave a dramatic sigh. "You underestimate me, my friend! Of course I know where to get food. Don't you worry!"

This concerned Sae far more than if he had had no idea where to go.

"Friend?" Sae asked, tilting her head slightly. "Is that what you consider us?"

The concept of friendship was simple enough. It was a relationship that was maintained for the purpose of mutual gain on both ends. How to tell if one reached that quota, however, was a different matter. If that was all it was, then the workers at EDGE and she would be considered, 'friends'. That didn't feel quite right. Through that logic, Dr. Samuel was her 'friend'. She flinched at the memory of his 'experiments', instinctively reaching down and rubbing the spot on her stomach that had received the most testing. Even EDGE hadn't been able to get rid of the external damage entirely. Supposedly, Dr. Samuel had been harshly reprimanded for that. Sae felt a bit of satisfaction at that thought.

"Well, if you insist on something beyond that, I may consider the possibility," Nathan said, looking directly at Sae.

She had to make a conscious effort to keep her swords sheathed.

"But if not friends, what are we? Did we not blow up a wall together? I thought that was quite the bonding experience," Nathan said, feigning a hurt expression.

Did blowing something up together qualify as a catalyst for friendship in his eyes? Sae was unsure of whether this man was intelligent or far from it. He seemed smart enough when it came to quick thinking, but his mind was entirely an enigma when it came to anything else.

"I suppose you're right," Ahn said with a forced laugh. He had practiced faking emotions well enough that anybody who heard him say this would think he was genuinely pleased, but Sae knew better. It only took one quick look at his face for her to recognize that he was feeling no joy in this conversation.

Nathan bought Ahn's act, continuing to talk as they walked through the city. Sae stopped paying attention. Most of what he was saying was meaningless.

They took a few sharp turns and ended up in front of a building that looked exactly like all of the others surrounding it.

Nathan spread his arms in a dramatic gesture. "Here we are!"