A2 never expected Dr. Stern to be so insidious—planting dozens of high-yield explosives beneath his own secret base.
The detonation came without warning, a silent flash that gave her no time to react. Even she couldn't retreat in time.
But A2's body was forged from nano-vibranium—a substance impervious to conventional explosives—and her molecular structure allowed her to reassemble herself at will. Though engulfed by the blast, she emerged completely unharmed.
Yet her fury burned white-hot. Stern's cowardly ambush had crossed a line. Today, he would die.
While A2 weathered the explosion with ease, Dr. Connors fared far worse.
Caught in the epicenter, the Lizard's tail was obliterated, his scaled hide shredded by shrapnel. The shockwave slammed him unconscious before a collapsing slab of concrete pinned him beneath the ruins, motionless and bleeding.
Inside a hidden escape tunnel, Dr. Stern heard the muffled roar of the blast behind him—and grinned.
"This is what happens when you oppose me," he muttered. "Rot in hell."
He pictured Connors crushed, A2 vaporized. The base was compromised, but he'd already won.
Reaching the tunnel's end, he shoved aside an iron plate, ready to vanish into the city.
Instead, he froze.
A dozen masked figures in black tactical gear stood waiting, rifles leveled. Before he could react, a blur shot from the wreckage—and landed before him in an instant.
It was A2.
"This… how?!" Stern stammered, eyes wide with disbelief. "I planted enough C-4 to level a city block! How are you unharmed?!"
A2's crimson eyes locked onto him, cold and empty. "You're still breathing," she said flatly. "How could I die before you?"
With a flick of her wrist, her signature Emil's Blade—gleaming and serrated—materialized in her grip. (Note: "Embroidered Spring Knife" is likely a mistranslation or confusion with another property; A2 canonically wields a katana-type blade, sometimes referred to as a "short sword" or "Emil's Blade" in NieR: Automata.)
Stern's bravado crumbled. He threw up his hands, voice slick with desperation.
"Beautiful lady, please—it was a misunderstanding! We have no real quarrel! Let's talk! Negotiate! You came all this way—you must want something, right? I can help!"
A2 didn't flinch. "We had no grudge… until you pressed that detonator. Now, we do."
She stepped forward. "My boss has a saying: 'Those who bite the hand that feeds them deserve to have their heads removed.'"
Before Stern could plead further, her blade flashed—a silver arc across his throat.
His head tumbled to the ground like a dropped stone.
The treacherous doctor was dead before his body hit the dirt.
A2 turned away, already issuing orders.
"Faceless Units—recover Dr. Connors from the rubble."
Moments later, her drones extracted the battered scientist. Though the Lizard form had saved his life, the trauma forced a reversion to his human state—middle-aged, broken, bleeding, but alive. His severed limbs would regenerate; the serum ensured that.
Weakly, Connors gasped, "The Empire State Building… Stern installed a venom disperser on the roof… set to activate in ten minutes!"
A2 checked her chronometer. "Less than two minutes remain. We're twenty kilometers out."
Connors's face paled. "If it detonates, all of New York becomes lizards!"
A2's expression didn't change. "Who said we can't make it?"
In a blur of motion, she vanished.
Thirty seconds later, she returned—tossing a compact, hissing canister at Connors's feet.
"The disperser," she said. "Deactivated."
Connors gaped. "But—how?!"
She gave no answer. (Though the truth was simple: at Mach 4, twenty kilometers was a twelve-second sprint. Round trip? Barely half a minute.)
"Come," she ordered. "The boss wants a debrief."
She carried him back to Morgan Manor without another word.
---
Meanwhile, in Morgan Manor…
A chime rang in Loren Morgan's mind:
[System Notification]
Congratulations, Host!
You successfully eliminated Dr. Stern and rescued Dr. Connors.
Rewards:
– Perfect Cross-Species Gene Fusion Technology
– +5 System Points
Host: Loren Morgan
Current Universe: Marvel
Fused Dimension: NieR: Automata
Available Tech: General-purpose combat androids, anti-gravity drones, nano-vibranium synthesis
System Points: 95
Loren's eyes lit up. Finally. With this gene-fusion tech—combined with symbiote-directed cultivation and nanotech—he could begin crafting new bodies for 2B and Tifa. And with over 200 kilograms of refined vibranium in storage, he had more than enough material to start building his next… c
ompanions.
The thought sent a thrill through him.
Yeah. This is gonna be fucking awesome.
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