Neo-Fukuoka City, at the Aki Research Center.
Pitch-black darkness swallowed everything, so bleak and heavy that not a single shard of light could pierce through.
"In-nun~ do~~~ shin-se~~ ah~ ga~ ri~ meru~~"
An old woman's raspy, droning chant vibrated through the air. Clang! A bell chimed twice. The prayer resonated deeply through the dark chamber, transitioning into a long, drawn-out operatic melody accompanied by the frantic, rapid-fire rhythmic striking of wooden clappers. For several minutes, the chant shifted in perfect harmony with the wood blocks before falling completely silent. Soon after, the ringing of a handbell drowned out the quiet, and the gentle, delicate strumming of a koto string instrument began to weave a soft melody.
"Awake~~~~ Rose~~~~ Awake~~~ Forget all the horrors, please~~ Rise up~~" A roaring chorus of male and female voices harmonized in unison. "Yo~ non~~~ sa-me-ru~~~ shi-na-nai~~ ne-mu~~~ Oh-m-mi!~ Rose!!"
The operatic melody culminated in a sharp, heavy thud. Wooden clappers were struck in a steady rhythm, mimicking the beating of a human heart, before being abruptly overtaken by the high-tech whirring of heavy machinery. The mechanical hum droned on, replacing the heartbeat rhythm, as the overlapping voices of two men rose periodically above the noise.
"I don't mean to cause any trouble, but this model doesn't exactly look built for heavy-duty labor. I'm afraid some components are still incomplete," an elderly voice warned, laced with deep anxiety.
"Dr. Takiya, I respect your spirit, I really do. But right now, I need an android to secure our launch in the private market. You've always been a good friend, so tell you what—if you let me take this asset, I'll give you twenty percent more than our agreed rate. Just promise me you'll see its development through to the end. We can finally prove to the world that ARCI won't hold a monopoly on this market forever." The mysterious man's counter-proposal was the kind no one in their right mind could turn down.
"Understood, sir," the doctor replied firmly. "But regardless... this asset... I'm afraid it isn't a hundred percent android."
"Perfect! Something beyond a mere android is exactly what I'm looking for. I know you'll pull this off. You have my full backing."
"I'll do my absolute best... I'll contact you once everything is in order."
The voices faded. Time became a blur after that final conversation, until one day, the voices returned.
"March 5th, 2069. Project R-053. Test number 324. Initiating in three, two, one."
The moment the sentence ended, a surge of electrical currents coursed through the synthetic husk. Two eyes snapped open, awakening from their deep slumber. A soft, pale green glow emanated across the asset's face, lighting up beneath eyes as sharp and piercing as a wildcat's. The creature could not perceive color like a normal human; everything in its field of vision was rendered entirely in shades of green. Even the darkness could no longer remain dark.
Those eyes never blinked, no matter what happened. The first thing they registered was an elderly doctor walking toward the asset, holding a thin plastic laminate pane which he proceeded to secure over its face. The asset's green-tinted gaze swept across the massive room. The facility resembled a miniature power plant, with workstations and a chaotic web of cables and tethers directly wired into its anatomy.
"Hello," the doctor greeted, speaking first as he looked up at the slender, flat-chested female physique before him. The unit's long, flowing hair possessed a striking neon-green hue. Suspended above the floor, its body was anchored by an array of heavy power cables. The polished metallic joints traversing its rigid plastic frame gleamed, reflecting the harsh ceiling lights.
Suddenly, the unit's wrist twisted, gripping the flanking cables so tightly they snapped. Freed from its restraints, the body dropped heavily onto the floor.
"Beautiful," the doctor whispered, a proud, satisfied smile spreading across his face as he witnessed his triumph standing right before him. "Can you hear me?"
The unit tilted its head up and nodded. Pale green eyes flickered on the smooth, plastic face—a face entirely devoid of a nose or a mouth. It turned its head toward the high-tech supercomputer resting on a desk to its left. Instantly, millions of data strings began cascading behind the unit's eyes before its vocal processors let out a barrage of digital sound.
"A B C D... 1 2 3 4... @#@#%#%@%#%(#)#)(%U#)(()..." The digital noise rattled violently within its throat, as if it were struggling to communicate or furiously cataloging data inside its neural network. The display made the doctor gasp in utter disbelief.
"My God..."
The digital static finally ceased after five grueling minutes. When the unit spoke next, its voice was clear. "Good morning, Dr. Matsugawa Takiya."
"G-good morning. How are you feeling?"
"I am incapable of experiencing my own emotions. However, conversely, I can detect the fear within your psyche. Are you afraid of me, Doctor?"
As the machine spoke, the doctor lost no time in picking up a mirror, holding it up to reflect the unit's visage. The machine froze, falling utterly silent for a moment. Its green gaze locked onto its own reflection—a face completely blank where a mouth and nose should be, featuring nothing but lifeless eyes and strands of synthetic hair draping over the left side of its face.
"My face differs drastically from yours. What is the reason for this?" the robot asked.
"Because you—you are special, Rose."
"Rose," the unit repeated, testing its own name.
The doctor draped a blanket over Rose's shoulders. "Yes. A white rose symbolizes innocence and loyalty." Dr. Takiya then reached into his pocket and pulled out a small cubic object, handing it over. "This is a Rubik's cube."
"Rubik's cube," Rose echoed, taking the object.
Green eyes locked onto the puzzle for a fraction of a second. The colors across the six faces of the cube were completely scrambled. Yet, within a mere three seconds, Rose's fingers blurred, twisting the layers until each side was perfectly sorted into solid blocks of color.
"Like I said, you are special. And I will never change my mind about that, hmhmm," Takiya smiled, brimming with absolute joy.
"Doctor... are you my father?" Even though Rose was an emotionless machine, he possessed more than enough intellect to question human nature.
"Picture a newborn kitten without a mother, crawling around aimlessly before its eyes have even opened to the world. Now, imagine a good-natured dog happens to walk by, looks at that kitten, and decides to raise it as its own. By the time that kitten finally opens its eyes, even though they look entirely different on the outside, the bond forged between them is etched so deeply within that it can never be broken. The question is... who are you right now?" the doctor asked.
"I am... a cat," Rose murmured, slowly tilting his head to the left, mimicking a feline.
"And what am I?"
"You are the doctor," this time, he tilted his head to the right.
"Buzz~ Wrong! I am a dog! Get it? I'm that good-natured dog. Okay fine, I really am your father," Dr. Takiya concluded, a warm, happy smile beaming at Rose.
From that day forward, Dr. Takiya taught the machine about the world around him, guiding him through the nuances of a normal human life. Rose's mind was powered by an advanced AI core capable of near-instantaneous calculations; within a mere 0.0021 nanoseconds, he could formulate the entire structural blueprint for a steel castle. Yet, despite this intellectual brilliance, human emotions remained entirely beyond his grasp. Rose was a quiet entity, keeping his distance from everyone except Dr. Takiya. Even when they did converse, Rose would only respond in brief, clinical sentences. Recognizing the delicate nature of his creation, the doctor chose to keep Rose's existence a closely guarded secret from the outside world.
He raised the robot with utmost care inside the mini power plant facility, and every now and then, he would take Rose to his coastal vacation home by the sea. Beneath Rose's synthetic skin lay a strange-looking stone that circulated electrical currents throughout his entire system—a source of practically limitless, self-sustaining energy. As time wore on, Dr. Takiya truly began to view Rose as his own flesh and blood. Rose, however, remained trapped in his mechanical nature, entirely incapable of feeling that sacred bond.