A/N: This idea for this new story was inspired by an artwork of A2 and 4S I stumbled upon this morning while browsing through Pinterest. (I made it the cover art for this story so you guys could see it too. I wish I knew exactly who made it.) This artwork, for whatever reason, just made me fall in love with the potential pairing A2 and 4S could be since they both spend a lot of time in the Forest Kingdom. You only meet 4S in a side-quest in the actual game, but I remember him being a very pleasant presence. He's very friendly, which is a stark contrast to how distant A2 can be...and I guess I just wonder what would have happened if the two ever met since A2 has a very strong connection with the 4 personality type. (Attacker No. 4 and A2 sacrificed herself to save A2 in the Pearl Harbor descent mission, which indicates to me that they had a really strong bond, and A2 longs for death primarily so she can be with all her lost comrades again.) I have also included some extra surprises to make this pairing more believable and interesting...so let's hit it! I hope you guys enjoy the first chapter!

General summary: I don't understand why I'm the only one built differently. These eyes...these memories of events and people that no one else has...why do I have them? Sometimes...I just want to scream...to run...to die. I am YoRHa Unit Type 4 Designation S. My assignment is to collect and preserve data. That's the only reason I'm alive...for the glory of mankind.

Disclaimer: NieR Automata is a property that belongs to Square Enix, Yoko Taro, and everyone else who worked on it. I'm just crafting the scenarios within this story.

Additional Note: This story is named after the BTS song Your Eyes Tell. This song will be referenced in my other NieR: Automata story, Vague Hope, which is focused on 2B/9S, and the possible progression of their relationship. (The final chapter of that story hasn't been posted yet, but I am working on it.) This story takes place around the same time as that one, but the stories aren't really connected to one another, so you can read them independently.

Warnings: N/A...for now.


Your Eyes Tell


I am YoRHa Unit Type 4 Designation S.

My assignment from my superiors is to collect and preserve data. During military operations, I am to gather combat information on the enemy, but my main task is to hunt down any and all traces of the old world for archival purposes. I'm also in charge of finding useful items to send to the humans living on the moon. Whether or not these supplies actually make it to the moon base, however, is one of the few questions I have no real desire to know the answer to, which is ironic given my status as a Scanner.

All Scanner models are naturally curious, but the way Scanners go about satiating this inclination toward information depends on the personality type.

The Type 2 Scanners are aloof and cold. They investigate what they're told to investigate and are duty-bound to the point that they'll take unnecessary risks in the hopes of fulfilling their missions. For them, failure to gather data, even once, is an unforgivable sin. YoRHa lost many Type 2 Scanners to suicide early on in the organization's existence, hence the reason why the Type 2 personality is limited to combat models. For whatever reason, a purpose tied to combat seems to keep that personality's suicidal tendencies at bay. As far as I know, only three Type 2 Scanner Models remain operational. I guess those three haven't failed to gather data yet. But more to the point, Type 2 Scanners aren't produced anymore. Since they tend to kill themselves off...YoRHa considers them a waste of resources.

Type 3 Scanners are also low in number, but they make for interesting companions on group missions thanks to their abrasive and often inappropriate sense of humor. Though actively defiant at times, these units take their duty almost as seriously as Type 2 models. They're also the only Scanner models built with some long-range combat ability. Unfortunately, most of them have a really bad tendancy to get too trigger happy once an enemy shows up...and there was once an incident where a Type 3 Scanner disabled the, "Don't Attack Comrades" chip in his brain and started murdering everyone around him. On top of that, they aren't the best at efficiently gathering data either. They're easily distracted by subjects of interest to them, whether it's mission related or not. Despite their loyalty to the cause...the personality type is...unstable to put it nicely.

And then there's my personality type. Type 4. We're really personable even though we primarily work on our own. We don't have any combat skill to speak of, but we make up for it with genius level problem-solving skills and a survival instinct that goes unmatched. When we find ourselves in danger, we know how to get out without engaging an enemy. This instinct is vital when applied to collecting enemy combat data, which is a Scanner's primary objective. In fact, until recently, Type 4 Scanners were the most efficient at this task. That's partially why there's still a good number of us running around. We have that inherit inquisitive nature that all Scanners are built with, but we also know when to bow out, especially when things get dangerous. We're survivors first and foremost. We don't actively stick our noses where they don't belong. We're forced to work alone though...because our personalities crave connections. If those connections run too deep, our survival instinct as well as our dedication to the mission at hand flies out the window.

That brings me to Type 9, a sort of culmination of all the past Scanner types. Type 5, 6, 7, and 8 are perfectly efficient models, but 9S is by far the most advanced. He's inquisitive to the max. He's intelligent, has a good sense of humor, is easy to work with, can solve difficult problems under extreme pressure, and is completely dedicated to the cause even though he retains small traces of the defiant personality Type 3 Scanners are known for. He questions anything and everything, and he'll search for answers even when it's dangerous to. Nothing satisfies his questioning mind, which makes him an excellent asset to YoRHa, especially since his model has adapted in such a way that he can sometimes engage in close-quarter combat despite the fact that his model wasn't made with this in mind.

So...it strikes me as odd that he's the only one of his kind that I've ever seen around.

He's also the only one with a constant partner: 2B. 9S has the same inner craving for personal connection that Type 4 models do. Doesn't giving him a partner pose a liability threat? I've seen him enough to know that he has deep feelings for the combat model. Even though it's clear she's strong enough to handle herself without any assistance from him, I've heard several stories about him sacrificing days worth of his memory data just to safeguard hers. And whenever he does lose memory data...2B always seems so sad...so...guilty...

It's suspicious, but I don't allow myself to investigate the matter further than necessary. Like I said before, Type 4 models are survivors. It's rare for a Type 4 Scanner to die, but not so rare for us to completely abandon the war effort. Not too long ago I heard about a Type 4 unit who was hiding out in the desert with an ex-resistance android. I don't know the details, but I heard their deaths were quite gruesome.

A part of me doesn't really believe machines were responsible for it either, but I digress. Even though the questions burn in my brain circuitry, it's really not my business. YoRHa can keep their dirty little secrets, whatever they may be. I have secrets of my own.

The truth is...I'm not exactly like the other models of my personality type. I was given memories...memories from a human boy who lived for the sole purpose of protecting his younger sister. His memories also include a boy who wore a blindfold over his eyes...and a beautiful, foul-mouthed woman.

When not on assignment, I spend most of my time within the confines of this library within the castle of the Forest Kingdom. The machines here are hostile, so I have to take care to avoid them whenever I visit, but for whatever reason they keep their distance from this room. There are thousands of old books on the withering shelves, so it's a great source of data not only for the archives I'm tasked to write, but for my own personal entertainment.

And I think...one other important figure in these memories would appreciate my love for the old tomes.

There are so many stories still in tact from the old word...too many for me to archive in full for YoRHa, so I keep my favorites to myself. It helps that I don't have a Pod anymore. Sure, it makes my work take a little longer, but not having one allows me freedom to go at my own pace. Besides, there are enough Type 4 units doing the same job that small dips in my information output are hardly worth noticing. My Operator was assigned to monitor 9S around the time he was first built, so I'm essentially alone here on the ground since Commander White never bothered to assign me a new one.

I never requested one either. I prefer the solitude.

When I go to the Bunker via terminal, I write my reports, turn in any items I've found that the humans might find useful, rest for a few hours, exchange pleasantries with anyone who bothers to speak to me, then return to the surface to find refuge in the pages of an old, worn book.

It's true that I'm friendly like any other Type 4 model; however, they thrive from social activity in ways I simply don't. It's one of the few yet obvious differences between me and the other Type 4 models.

I have the same body and facial structure as them...

But my eyes...

I don't understand why I'm the only one of my model built differently.

Few have ever seen my eyes given the mandatory black-out visors we all wear. They don't hinder sight in any real way...they just prevent eye contact with other operatives. It probably has to do with the rule prohibiting displays of emotion...a rule absolutely no one follows or enforces. I guess it's more of a guideline that happens to work in my favor.

But a past group mission took a turn for the worse. The blindfold managed to slip from my face during the fray, revealing my eyes to the battle units present.

Their reactions...weren't great.

In the aftermath of that incident, word got around that I was different. Some of the battle units I fought alongside that fateful day still avoid me like I'm so kind of plague. It actually makes me laugh sometimes...because it's so pathetically ironic.

These eyes...these memories of events and people that no one else has...why do I have them?

This one question drowns out all the others. This one question is the one I desperately crave an answer to. Commander White would know, but...I just can't bring myself to ask her anything about it. I feel like if I did...I'd cross into a point of no return.

So I've learned to accept these differences and the consequences they bring.

Solace lies in my work and in the stories I keep to myself. I don't need anything else.

I tell myself that...but the implanted memories haunt me in ways I can't begin to express.

Sometimes...I just want to scream...to run...to die...

I failed to protect her in the end. Despite everything I went through...Yonah still died.

I miss her.

I miss Weiss.

I miss Emil.

And Kainé...

I never told her what she meant to me...

No! These aren't my memories! They're the memories of a human that's been dead for thousands of years. That's all. They have nothing to do with me!

So why...

...

I am YoRHa Unit Type 4 Designation S.

My assignment from my superiors is to collect and preserve data.

That's the only reason I'm alive...for the glory of mankind.


A/N: And that's the end of chapter one! I hope you guys enjoyed it! If you did, please leave your thoughts in the review box. I'll try to update this as soon as I can. I don't know how many chapters it will be at this time, but I don't intend for this to be a long story. This is just a fun experiment inspired by artwork. (Again, it's the cover art for this story. I wish I knew who made it, but I couldn't find anything concrete. Such is life I guess.) Thank you all for reading! God bless you all!

Btw, if there are any crazy spelling/grammar issues up there, please let me know and I'll try to fix it as quickly as possible. Thank you in advance! See you guys in the next chapter!