The clock on Archer's HUD told him that a minute had elapsed from the time since Ava had collapsed.
"Give me the code, Ava!" He said to the semi-conscious navigator he was holding in his arms.
Mech suits like theirs came with a code that was necessary for access from the outside. Archer had assumed that the generic code set by the manufacturer hadn't been changed. He was wrong. Ji-ho had changed it to prevent her teammates from rescuing her. She was literally gambling her life away to try and save everyone else's.
"Please, Ava..." He begged her. "Let me help you."
"She can't hear you, sir. She's unconscious."
Archer knew she wasn't. He just knew from the tie that bound them. Ava was killing herself deliberately. It was the worst feeling in the world. Her life was slipping away like sand between his fingers and there was nothing he was able to do.