Chapter 45

"Restart Begins"

How much time had passed? Inside the unconsciousness of Rapi, the preparations for restarting were complete, and she eventually woke up, blinking her red eyes repeatedly.

The view had turned into a fierce blizzard at some point, completely white and indistinct.

It was a hassle to move her body, as if broken rib frames were piercing into her core.

Yet, her body was moving. More precisely, it was being dragged.

"What in the world—" She turned her shoulder, and first, she saw hard-knuckled gloves grabbing the back collar of her jacket.

Continuing to lift her gaze in the order of the hand wearing those gloves and the arm, she saw a familiar figure from behind.

"Commander!?"

It was Moore, dragging her. Despite losing his left arm, he was trying to move Rapi somewhere.

"Please stop! Let go, Commander!!... Commander...?"

Despite not being in perfect shape and knowing she should get immediate medical attention, Rapi shouted at him, trying to stop this dangerous act of not looking after himself.

However, Moore showed no reaction whatsoever. He just kept holding her and moving forward.

Something was strange, and Rapi tried to forcefully move her uncooperative body, ignoring the warnings inside her. She lifted both arms to grab his arm and tried to break free, but no matter how hard she tried, Moore's arm wouldn't budge.

They were dragged through the snow and eventually arrived at what seemed to be a fortified trench.

He pulled her into it, and finally, he stopped walking.

"Commander... Rapi...!"

Anis, who had literally crawled towards Rapi, looked up at Moore when he appeared.

Neon and Snow White were also inside, and as Rapi let out a sigh of relief, Anise informed her.

"Commander brought us here... but his consciousness...!"

"...Huh?"

Suddenly, his hand that had been gripping her back collar let go, and his tall body swayed. He collapsed onto the floor, and Rapi and the others rushed to him in a hurry, lifting his body. Moore's eyes were rolled back, even though he was unconscious.

...How did he manage to bring them here without consciousness?

Rapi sensed this and shook his body. He couldn't afford to keep losing consciousness like this; an unexplainable premonition ran through her mind.

"...He somehow managed to get here... dragging each of you one by one..."

Snow White, whose right leg was heavily damaged due to the impact of the black mist explosion and had its internal frame exposed, muttered, just as though he was on auto pilot.

As Rapi held up his upper body and shook it repeatedly, his eyes, which had been rolled back, certainly moved. His left and right eyeballs, one biological and one artificial, moved rapidly up and down, left and right, and eventually focused on her.

"...Ra...pi...?"

"...Have you awaken properly now?"

In this raging blizzard, he had been transported them back and forth multiple times. Red frostbite spots appeared all over his face, and blood seeped from his dry, cracked lips. His colorless expression was far from good, but he had indeed regained consciousness.

The fact that he had regained consciousness brought relief to Rapi and the others who had been peering at him, including Anis and Neon.

"...The situation... and... damage reports for everyone..."

Moore, who realized that he was being held, lifted his upper body while tensing his abdominal muscles. Unconsciously, he seemed to be trying to get up using both arms for support. Rapi hastily held him as his body threatened to fall again, losing balance.

"...Oh... I forgot..."

The pain had completely receded. It was not that his body had accepted the loss but that the intense pain had dulled his senses, Moore thought optimistically while being carried by Rapi. He glanced at the spot where his left arm had disappeared midway from his upper arm.

While sensing his gaze, Rapi assisted him in trying to sit up in a systematically. As Moore fell backward and leaned against a rusty container inside the fortified trench, Rapi began her report as the co-squad leader.

"We are likely in a fortified bunker not far from the site where we engaged with the Heretic. There have been casualties among the Counters and Pilgrim due to the explosion caused by the her."

"...Ah, I remember there was an explosion... wait a moment... Neon, sorry, but can you help me remove the body armor? My ribs might be... It's hard to breathe."

"Yes, of course!"

Neon, who was right by his side, was asked for help by Moore, and she crawled over to him. Just like his sensei, Neon supported Moore against the container and helped him remove his body armor.

It seemed that the ceramic plates packed into the body armor had exerted strong pressure on Moore's chest due to the impact of the explosion. As a result, several of his ribs were broken, and there were cracks.

Even though taking a deep breath was painful, Moore, after courteously thanking Neon for his help, took out cigarettes and an oil lighter from the pocket of his cold-weather combat suit. He lit it and began coughing violently.

"...Ah... damn..."

Despite wanting to smoke, he couldn't enjoy it properly. The purple smoke he inhaled seemed to be pushed back, as if his lungs were rejecting it.

It wasn't his hobby, but it seemed like he had no choice but to ingest nicotine and tar through the mucous membrane in his mouth, just like with cigars or chewing tobacco.

Rapi realized that Moore's condition was far from ideal. Confirming this once again, she continued with her report.

First, she checked the communication status when Moore was assisted by Neon in removing his body armor. It was still in a state of disconnection.

Considering the squad's situation, she reported two points to Moore: that waiting for rescue in this fortified trench was the best option and that the communication was still cut off.

She then scanned the conditions of Anis and Neon, lowering her crimson eyes for a moment.

Anis had a major fracture in her pelvic frame, making her unable to move.

Neon had damage in her spinal stabilizers, rendering her immobile.

"I... have a damaged rib frame, piercing into the core."

"Immobilized, I see... What about Snow White?"

"As you can see..."

Snow White, who was sitting away from them, showed her right leg. Moore confirmed the exposed bone frame hidden beneath the skin and artificial muscles, and he nodded.

The situation could be summed up in one word: The worst. Fortunately, they had managed to confirm that. It couldn't get any worse than this. At least, that thought brought some relief.

"...There's no prospect of rescue coming, huh?"

"Yes, unfortunately..."

Communication was cut off, and outside was a blizzard so intense that you couldn't even see a meter ahead.

Under these circumstances, even the pilots of transport aircraft would undoubtedly refuse to fly. The risk of causing secondary damage was extremely high.

"...Well... I guess we'll slowly die here."

"...That doesn't sound too bad. At least it won't be lonely. I'm kind of a lonely guy, you know."

Anise voiced a pessimistic prediction, but Moore responded with an optimistic quip mixed with a wry smile. He immediately started coughing, though, which ruined his suave demeanor.

"...I can still move. If we can make it to the research base for the time being..."

With the cigarette still in his mouth, Moore grabbed the container with his right hand and tried to stand with its support. Rapi reached out and pressed down on Moore's right shoulder, gripping the fabric of his combat suit tightly.

"It's impossible! If you go outside, you won't last 10 minutes... no, not even 5 minutes! Please consider your well-being, Commander!"

"...There's no other way. We have to bet on the possibility."

"It's not a good plan! I absolutely won't allow it!"

"You don't need to allow it! I am the commander!"

"I am the squad leader! I have a duty to voice my opinions!"

They refused to yield to each other. He even thought of using his authority – his command – to make her let go.

As he was about to make up his mind to say it, the sound of Rapi's clenched fist gripping his clothes was faintly heard.

"...I have put the Commander in danger multiple times. Yet, I absolutely cannot allow you to push him into such a life-and-death situation."

.

...So please, I beg you, listen to me.

.

Her crimson eyes conveyed her plea clearly to his deep brown eyes.

Their gazes met and a few seconds passed. He was the first to avert his eyes.

He lowered himself back onto the container, and as he took a small puff of the cigarette he held in his mouth, he didn't cough this time and could somewhat immerse himself in a familiar sense of intoxication.

"...I apologize for raising my voice... and thank you for your opinion."

After conveying his apology and gratitude to Raphe, she seemed relieved, and her hand released his shoulder.

However, the situation had not improved. Rather, it would likely deteriorate as time passed.

Moore absentmindedly placed the two fingers holding the cigarette on his right knee. Underneath his hand, he could feel the cold presence of metal.

External exoskeleton.

In the form of a new right leg that had been adapted from a body for Nikke, it served as a prosthetic leg for him. However, it was just a substitute for his original leg until the adjustments for the leg that was supposed to be there were completed. Originally designed for Nikke, this external exoskeleton was repurposed to reinforce the prosthetic leg.

Next, his gaze turned toward Snow White. Ironically, her injured area was also her right leg.

He adjusted the cigarette in his mouth and extended his right arm to press the release button on the exoskeleton covering the lower part of her right leg. Removing it, he rolled it toward Snow White's feet.

"Snow White, can I ask for your help?"

"....Do you trust me? I might abandon you all, you know."

"You don't seem like the type who'd do that."

"...Running away would be easier with no witnesses."

"People who do that don't usually mention it beforehand."

...

Could she simply say, "I trust you," more straightforwardly? Snow White wore a stern expression as she retorted to everything Moore said. But in her heart, she heard a voice pleading not to let this man die, not to allow him to die.

Did she grow attached to him in less than half a day? She pondered, but it was more likely that something deep within Snow White herself was refusing to let him die.

She reached out to the exoskeleton that had been rolled to her feet.

"Then, I'll gladly borrow the exoskeleton. I promise. I will definitely come back to rescue you."

Snow White, who had replaced her badly damaged right leg with the exoskeleton, raised her head. She nodded resolutely to the promise she had spoken and then turned to head into the continuing blizzard. Moore and the others watched her retreating figure.

----

About three hours passed, but rescue still hadn't arrived.

Anis had thought that the blizzard wouldn't get any worse, but nature always exceeded expectations.

"...This is bad. The snow is..."

In the direction Anis was looking, snow was starting to accumulate slowly inside the bunker.

Even up to where they were huddled together... no, they couldn't be sure anymore. They might be buried in snow even inside the bunker due to the snow carried in by the blizzard.

"...This time, Maybe Neon's right. We might turn into frozen statues." 

"Sensei... In this situation I can't even laugh anymore."

When they had reunited after being swept away by an avalanche near the bunker, Moore remembered the remark Neon had made. He offered a few words of criticism and then gave a faint and weak smile.

"...How long has it been since Pilgrim left?" Moore asked.

"...Three hours," Rapi replied.

"They're not coming, huh..."

For some reason, the conversation between Anis and Rapi, who had their faces down, became increasingly hard for Moore to hear. Perhaps his hearing had been affected by the battle.

In addition, fatigue was setting in. He was becoming incredibly sleepy.

"Sensei? Are you okay?" Neon asked with concern from the side, but Moore was finding it increasingly difficult to respond, even with words.

This was strange, and she activated the function to check her own internal body temperature and then confirmed Moore's body temperature too.

"...Your body temperature...! Rapi, Anis, at this rate...!"

His core body temperature had dropped below 30 degrees Celsius. Hypothermia had set in. Moore's pulse and breathing were slowing, and his blood pressure was dropping.

.

If things continued like this...

.

When Neon informed the others that he was in a critical condition, Rapi  nodded.

"Everyone, cover the Commander with your bodies. Convert all output to body temperature."

"In this situation, switching off the output will also..."

Anis began to protest against Rapi's orders, but her words faltered when she saw Moore, who was lying against the container, in a posture similar to sleeping during a mission, slumping weakly.

This person will die so easily. The vague feeling of the future closing in on them.

"No... we'll do it. There's no way Commander-sama will die before us!" 

The order of death would be them first. They couldn't allow themselves to be overtaken and have him die easily.

And above all, they didn't want to let him die.

Anis removed her jacket and laid it on the floor, while Rapi positioned Moore's body on his back. He was barely breathing, showing minimal signs of life.

As they hugged Moore, trying to raise his plummeting body temperature...

"Uh... this is a bit different than what I expected..."

"It's... embarrassing, isn't it..."

Hugging a man voluntarily, even if he was their commander, was a first for them. Even in this situation, there were things that were still embarrassing.

While Anis and Neon blushed uncontrollably, Rapi, hugging Moore from the left side where he had lost his left arm, felt relieved that this should hold for a while.

Just when she was feeling that relief, Moore's breathing stopped.

"Commander? Commander! Please, stay with us!"

"W-What's wrong!?"

She shook his body and checked for any response – none.

"Anis, Neon! Get ready for a shock!"

Thinking about the possibility of ventricular fibrillation in the heart, Raphe urged the two to prepare for defibrillation. She then whipped herself to stand up and opened Moore's jacket, followed by securing his airway.

It was fortunate that he had been wearing a jacket over his bare skin. Raphe confirmed that his thick chest wasn't moving at all and placed both of her hands on the center of his chest.

With a pressure that caused her hands to sink about 5 cm into his chest, she began chest compressions.

"Commander...! Please, no... You can't sleep...! Wake up...!"

After performing 30 times of chest compressions, Rapi bent over, supporting Moore's chin with one hand, and pinched his nose with her other hand.

She took a deep breath and then sealed their lips together, breathing into him once, and then again.

The slightly bitter taste she sensed was likely from the cigarettes he had been smoking over the past three hours, and the rust-like taste was probably from the dried blood on his chapped lips.

She parted their lips and returned to performing chest compressions.

Repeatedly, she pushed down on his chest, forcefully, rapidly, and continuously, attempting to revive him. Rapi took another deep breath.

The second round of artificial respiration began. To ensure no breath was wasted, she sealed their lips and breathed into him for one second per cycle.

"Rapi, move aside!!"

Anise, who had completed her preparations, called out. Just after Rapi released her lips from his, a defibrillator was applied, causing Moore's tall body to bounce on the floor with a thud.

His heart, which likely went into ventricular fibrillation after the recent shock, had stopped.

From this point on, Rapi returned to performing chest compressions and sealing her lips to breathe life back into Moore.

She wanted him to come back. While pushing down on his unresponsive chest, she couldn't help but have a sudden thought.

.

.

- Would it be better for him to pass away like this, for his sake?

.

.

He had endured unimaginable pain and suffering countless times while continuing to fight, all in his human form. If she revived him, wouldn't it just mean subjecting him to the same suffering again?

It was Moore. If he came back to life and returned to the Ark, he would undoubtedly start preparing to return to the battlefield, repeating the same cycle until the day when he might die easily.

Something inside Rapi whispered to her that it might be better to let him rest peacefully here, ending a life filled with nothing but pain and suffering.

However, she took a deep breath and pressed her own lips against his, blowing air into him with a bit more force.

"Commander... please come back... I beg you..."

- This isn't the place for you to die.

It's too early to sleep. You mustn't die yet.

"I don't want you to die...!"

- So please wake up...!

This time, Neon administered the shock.

Again, Moore's body bounced up.

Rapi began chest compressions once more. She continued compressing, praying for his heartbeat to return. When she reached the expected number of compressions and leaned in to breathe into Moore's lips...

"...! ...Cough...!"

- The moment their lips touched, he reacted. He coughed and started breathing spontaneously.

"Commander...!"

"Sensei... oh thank goodness...!"

Anise and Neon had almost no energy left to administer the shock. When they successfully revived him, their eyes welled up with relief.

"I really... thought you were gone...! Don't worry us like that...!"

Anis, in particular, seemed to be becoming emotionally unstable. She buried her face in Moore's chest as he continued to breathe, and her voice choked with tears.

"Well, well... what a heartwarming sight."

"Eep! It's embarrassing...!"

- Suddenly, a familiar voice echoed in the trench, and the two turned their faces toward it.

There stood Ludmila and Alice, whom they had said goodbye to just half a day ago.

Wolves followed their every move as they entered the trench. They rushed over to Moore, nuzzling his nose and gently shaking him.

"It must have been tough. But now that we're here, everything will be okay."

- It was the long-awaited moment of rescue.

----

Author Note: In the text, the term "shock" refers to defibrillation, which is used to restart the heart when it has stopped. Also, the artificial respiration mentioned here is not a kiss but a life-saving technique.