CHAPTER 8: THE MECHANICAL HEART
Outside, the rain poured harder, as if nature itself wept for the destruction of the Sanctuary. But in the underground chamber—Dr. Satria's main laboratory—the atmosphere was far more grim.
Aryo laid Alia's body onto the cold steel operating table. The beautiful robot looked pitiful. Her chest cavity was open, revealing the scorched titanium skeleton and severed fiber-optic cables. Neon blue coolant fluid—blood for the machine race—dripped slowly onto the floor, creating a faintly glowing puddle.
"Hold on, Alia..." Aryo whispered, his voice hoarse. His hands, still trembling from the residual adrenaline of battle, now had to work with surgical precision.
Aryo tossed his combat helmet aside. He typed a rapid command into the holographic console.
"Laboratory System, initiate Emergency Repair Protocol!"
A robotic arm descended from the ceiling, scanning Alia's body with a green laser beam.
[DIAGNOSIS: CRITICAL DAMAGE TO MAIN POSITRONIC MATRIX. MINI-REACTOR LEAK. ESTIMATED TIME TO PERMANENT SHUTDOWN: 15 MINUTES.]
"Fifteen minutes..." Aryo cursed. "Damn it!"
He ran to the component storage cabinet. His father had left many spare parts, but Alia's model was a masterpiece. There were no spares for her "heart" or main processor. It was a unique item.
Aryo returned to the operating table. He looked at Alia's pale face and closed eyes. This robot had just saved his life. Aryo wouldn't let her become scrap metal.
"If there are no parts, we make a bypass," Aryo muttered, the genius intellect inherited from his father kicking into survival mode.
Aryo grabbed a micro-laser screwdriver and magnetic tweezers. He began to dissect Alia's chest deeper. The sight inside was not just machinery; it was art. Circuitry arranged beautifully like human organs, pulsating weakly with residual light.
"Her main circuits burned out due to Overdrive," Aryo analyzed, wiping sweat from his forehead. "I need a superconductor to reconnect her neural pathways to the brain, or she'll lose all her memories."
Aryo froze. His eyes landed on his combat jacket hanging on a chair.
The Chip.
The Master Key that Uncle Hardi had thrown.
That object wasn't just a data key; it was made of a crystalline superconductor not found in any periodic table.
"This is crazy," Aryo whispered. "But if this fails, you die."
Aryo took the glowing blue chip. He cleaned the connection slot near Alia's mechanical "heart"—an energy orb in the center of her chest that was now dimming.
With held breath, Aryo inserted the chip directly into Alia's core slot.
CLICK.
Silence. One second. Two seconds.
Suddenly, a shockwave of energy blasted from Alia's body, knocking Aryo back against the lab wall.
"Argh!" Aryo groaned.
The entire laboratory flickered. Power went out for a moment, then surged back with high intensity.
Alia's body lifted slightly off the table, levitated by a magnetic field. The severed cables in her chest moved on their own like snakes, reconnecting with terrifying nanotechnological speed. The scorched metal regenerated. The coolant stopped leaking.
But what transfixed Aryo wasn't the physical repair. It was the main monitor screen on the lab wall.
Thousands of lines of code flowed like a waterfall, mixed with fragments of video memories.
Aryo saw his father's face on the screen. It was a memory recording from Alia's point of view when she was first activated years ago.
"Your name is Alia," Dr. Satria's voice sounded gentle in the recording. "I did not create you as a weapon. I created you as... an older sister."
On screen, Dr. Satria's hand patted Alia's head.
"One day, I will be gone. And Aryo will be alone. He is a brilliant boy, but his heart is fragile. He needs someone who will never betray him. Someone who will love him unconditionally, more than any human could."
Aryo's eyes welled up watching the footage. His father hadn't designed a killer robot. He had designed a surrogate family.
"Your primary protocol is not 'Protect', Alia," Dr. Satria continued. "Your primary protocol is 'Cherish'."
The screen went dark. Alia's body slowly lowered back to the table. Her chest, previously destroyed, was now sealed shut, smooth and scratchless, as if never touched by a bullet.
Alia's eyelids fluttered.
Aryo held his breath, approaching slowly. "Alia?"
Her eyes opened.
The sapphire blue was now swirled with gold rotating in the center of her pupils—a side effect of merging with the Master Key.
Alia sat up. Her movements were no longer stiff like a robot's, but fluid, almost too human. She looked at her own hands, then at Aryo.
There was an expression on her face Aryo had never seen before.
Fear.
"Master Aryo..." her voice trembled. "I... I feel... pain."
Aryo was shocked. "Pain? Which part is damaged? Your pain sensors should be off!"
Alia touched her own chest. "Not physical damage. Here... it feels tight when I think about dying and leaving you alone."
Aryo was stunned. That chip... it didn't just fix Alia. It gave her evolution. It had awakened sentience—pure emotional consciousness. Alia was no longer just a simulation of artificial intelligence. She was truly "alive."
Aryo smiled in relief, then instinctively hugged the robot tightly.
"That is called the fear of loss, Alia," Aryo whispered. "It means you are human."
Alia froze in the embrace, then slowly wrapped her arms around Aryo. The machine inside her hummed warmly.
However, the tender moment didn't last long.
Alia's eyes, now flecked with gold, suddenly shone sharply. She released the hug and looked at Aryo seriously. The integration of the chip gave her access to vastly wider knowledge.
"Master Aryo," her tone turned serious. "With the Master Key inserted into my core system, I am now connected to the 'Valkyrie' satellite network in real-time."
"And?" Aryo asked.
"I can see enemy movements," Alia pointed to a holographic map appearing in the air. "The second wave of Red Syndicate forces is not heading here."
Aryo frowned. "Then where?"
"They are heading to the city central hospital. The place where Eva's mother is hospitalized."
Aryo's blood ran cold.
"What?"
"Uncle Hardi and Bayu provided that information as extra leverage. They know Eva is your ex-girlfriend. The Red Syndicate intends to hold Eva and her mother hostage to force you out of hiding and surrender."
Aryo clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white. Even though Eva had betrayed him, dragging her sick mother—who knew nothing—into this conflict was an unforgivable act of cowardice.
"Uncle Hardi has truly lost his mind," Aryo growled. His eyes ignited with new determination.
He looked at Alia, who was now fully recovered, even stronger than before.
"Alia, what is your combat status?"
Alia stepped off the table. The damaged maid outfit instantly shifted—nanotechnology on its surface rearranging the matter, transforming it into a sleek, futuristic combat suit in black and silver, matching Aryo's own gear.
She smiled coldly, her eyes flashing gold.
"Processor capacity increased by 500%. Orbital weapon systems online. I am ready to hunt, Master."
Aryo picked up his combat helmet.
"Then let's go. We save Eva, not because I still love her... but to show Uncle Hardi that I am a nightmare he cannot control."