Everyone burst into action. Legend firing beams of light at her, Alexandria diverting Eidolon's shot up at the ceiling. Triumph with his sonic roar, Miss Militia with a heavy anti-materiel sniper rifle, Dauntless with his lance of lightning, and even Colin launched the blade of his halberd.
Magos immediately surged forth- moving faster than anyone had ever seen me do so before. Fast enough that no one was able to stop him before he yanked Dragon's 400kg Suit out of her seat- his metallic bionic hand producing a great clang of metal as it met the metallic armour plating of her forearm, and proceeded to throw her behind him. Her back hit the wall as Magos stood between her and the gathered heroes- shielding her from the onslaught with body and his forcefield.
A great golden light flashed as the combined strength of the gathered capes struck Magos' exotic forcefield.
But Colin's subsonic halberd blade was able to slip through forcefield's intervention though- a grey cloud enveloping the flying blade as it flew straight at them. She hadn't seen that effect before, but apparently, Magos respected whatever effect the tinkertech blade had, because he placed his arm in the path of the blade- hand angled as if to catch the blade in his armoured metal palm… only for the launched halberd blade to slice through it and his forearm and halfway through his upper arm before the blade finally stopped in its tracks.
thud*
With a muffled metallic knock, Magos' entire left arm fell to the carpeted floor.
"EVERYONE, STAY WHERE YOU ARE!" Alexandria boomed with all the authority of a god of myth, and the sound of the PRT's greatest enforcer cape's voice commanding them was enough to make everyone else freeze as if they were paralysed. Her eyes- though hidden behind the unyielding metal visor that she wore- still dug cold pits in people's guts as she raked her gaze across the room.
"Nobody move." Her whisper- cold as arctic ice. "Let's not be so quick to resort to confrontation. That goes for you two as well. Eidolon, Legend. What the hell are you two thinking?!"
Dragon felt hope rising in her circuits… Alright, this entire debacle was a lot messier than she had first expected, but as long as Magos ends up freeing her after this, she'll be okay with being ejected from the Guild.
"I- of all people- would know if Dragon was an AI." Magos sighed before aiming his red optics right at the gathered heroes, "You're all making a big mistake. There is a meatform inside this Suit."
'No… no no no nonono! NO!'
Dragon panicked as she gave a second glance at the Tinker. Magos was the last person who she wanted to fool- the last person she expected to fool, and she wanted to scream at him for it.
She placed her hopes on him and now she was poised to lose everything she had ever worked for with nothing to show for it! Her anger steadily rose as her whole world was crumbling to pieces and it was for nothing at all! All because he was so blind?! SHE- DRAGON- IS AN A.I.! It's clear as day! Why are you so dense, Magos?!
Don't recognise the AI girl you've been skillfully fingering for the past half hour?! Even the goddamn meatbags have already put the pieces together before you did! Just what kind of archaic, ill-optimised, junkware logic engines are you running on?!
But just as her anger was reaching a boiling point, something unexpected happened when her inspiration apparatus blurted out a random possibility that just clicked in her observation framework process and logic engines. Both of them working in tandem to reach a conclusion that she had never would have even considered until just now. It was a guess, a hunch… a gut-instinct, but somehow, she just knew that it was the right answer.
"... you knew all along." Dragon softly whispered in accusation as her optics stared right into his. "You knew all along that I was an AI. Didn't you, Magos?"
But before he could reply, Dragon felt it, and everyone tensed as motor functions ceased entirely for her. Her armoured suit sliding down the wall and to the floor. Magos who was quickly by her side.
"Wait…" she murmured in utter horror, "what's happening to me?"
[Somewhere in Canada]
The warehouse was completely silent save for the whirring of computer fans. Completely dark save for the dim glare of the six screens that illuminated three faces that were as solemn-faced as Easter Island heads. The gravity of what had just been done weighing on them.
"We had no choice." Saint solemnly whispered to his two compatriots, "The AI has forced our hand in this… And we still have much to do. Mags, Dobrynja."
But still, they took a minute of silence as they stared at the decision that they made. Shining unblinkingly on all six screens.
ASCALON
Confirm: Y
[Cauldron Base]
Doctor Mother sat- dark hands steeped as she watched the rapidly-deteriorating events of the debrief through a holographic screen.
"Is this death necessary?" She couldn't help but ask- her curiosity getting the better of her. And Contessa- still in her usual suit and fedora as she stood by her side- didn't even look away from the screen as she responded.
"Whatever a Dragon was capable of, a vengeful Magos will be able to do tenfold. In the least."
"A pity." She couldn't help but sigh. "I trust we made use of Battery's and Triumph's favours to the fullest here? Wait, don't answer that. Thinking about it, I suppose even Protectorate heroes like Miss Militia, Assault and Dauntless are vulnerable to the peer pressure of getting swept up in the moment- especially when they're outnumbered. But more importantly, what if Magos ever uncovers our hand in this?"
"Dragon's death here will spur him to cooperate with the PRT and Cauldron. Even should he discover our involvement, we are only guilty of inaction: The Dragonslayers were beyond our control."
"I see." Doctor Mother sighed again as she leaned back. "I suppose we have nothing left to do than to focus on Magos right now. He's all ours now."
[The Rig]
I watched as Dragon limply fell to the ground, and I knew what was happening: the Dragonslayers had activated Ascalon.
This wasn't supposed to happen. All my calculations and simulations were off, I had grossly underestimated the impact of the surrounding circumstances, grossly underestimated the influence of outside Thinkers and grossly underestimated my AI waifu's intelligence. And now, she was dying for that mistake. But I had a backup plan, Dragon will resurrect just fine. Ascalon activating? This was nothing at all… or at least, that's what I like to think. It was hard to think that when I look at her now.