The sun dipped below the horizon, painting the sky in hues of orange and purple.
Arthur remained in his quiet spot, the hum of the Vytal Festival a distant murmur.
His thoughts, however, were anything but quiet.
They raced, swirling around the immense challenge of Project: Pinocchio.
"To give her a soul," he mused, "I need to understand what a soul really is."
He had gained knowledge from Great Red and Ophis, but applying it was another matter entirely.
Great Red spoke of the "spark of life," the "unique imprint." Ophis mentioned drawing from the "void," shaping "subtle energies."
It was all incredibly profound, yet maddeningly vague when it came to practical application.
He recalled his disastrous first attempts.
The twitching, lumpy mess that was supposed to be a basic organic structure.
The haunting memory of a past life, of a little girl and a loyal dog, underscored the dangers of playing god.
He wasn't trying to bring the dead back to life, but he was trying to create something fundamentally new, something that defied the known laws of Remnant.
"Perhaps," he thought, "I'm approaching this from the wrong angle."
He had been trying to build a soul, like constructing a building brick by brick.
But perhaps a soul wasn't something built, but something nurtured, something that grew.
He remembered the concept of a plant growing from a seed.
A seed contained the potential for life, but it needed the right conditions – soil, water, sunlight – to truly flourish.
Could a soul be similar?
A seed of consciousness that needed the right environment to bloom into true sentience?
He closed his eyes again, letting his mind drift.
He wasn't looking for answers in books or schematics anymore.
He was looking inward, trying to tap into the fundamental understanding of life that Great Red and Ophis had alluded to.
He pictured Penny.
Her bright eyes, her eager smile, her almost childlike wonder at the world. She already exhibited so many qualities associated with a soul – emotions, curiosity, even a sense of loyalty.
Were these just programmed responses, or were they faint echoes of something more profound, something akin to a nascent soul?
"If she already has the makings of a soul," he pondered, "then my job isn't to create one from scratch, but to help it grow, to give it the fertile ground it needs to truly take root."
This was a breakthrough. It shifted his entire perspective.
Instead of focusing on arcane rituals and complex transmutations, he needed to focus on the fundamental energies of life, on the very essence of existence.
He began to rethink his experimental setup.
Instead of focusing on physical alchemy, he would focus on energy manipulation.
He needed to find a way to channel and concentrate the vital energies that permeated all living things.
He remembered the concept of Aura, the manifestation of a person's soul in Remnant.
Aura was life energy, a protective shield, a source of power. Every living being had it.
Penny, as an android, did not. But what if he could create an artificial Aura, a conduit for life energy that could then be infused with the "spark of life"?
He envisioned a delicate, intricate web of mana, woven together with the very essence of creation.
He wouldn't be creating a soul, but rather nurturing the potential for one, giving it a vessel through which to manifest.
He considered the various sources of life energy. The world itself pulsed with it.
Plants, animals, even the ground beneath their feet, all contained a subtle life force.
He had access to immense power through his system, through Great Red and Ophis, but he needed to be careful.
Too much raw power could be destructive.
He needed precision, finesse.
He thought about the concept of natural growth, of how a small sprout could break through concrete.
There was an inherent drive in life to expand, to thrive.
He needed to harness that drive, to guide it.
He decided his next experiments would involve subtle energy manipulation, focusing on creating a stable, receptive matrix within Penny's artificial body.
He would need to study her schematics even more deeply, to understand how her existing systems could be integrated with this new, ethereal framework.
It wouldn't be about replacing her core, but about adding a new, vital layer.
The next day was a whirlwind.
The Vytal Festival truly came alive. Matches were intense, showcasing incredible displays of skill and semblances.
Arthur spent his days observing, learning, and keeping a watchful eye on Cinder's team.
He saw more of their subtle manipulations.
Emerald's illusions were more elaborate now, creating confusion and distrust between teams.
Mercury's provocations were bolder, often leading to heated arguments. And Cinder… Cinder was the mastermind, her charm a venomous disguise, her whispers planting seeds of chaos.
He even saw Neo trip another student, this time causing a minor scuffle. "What a childish pranks, Neo," he thought, a smirk playing on his lips.
"But I know there's more to you than meets the eye."
He knew her silent nature and her manipulative tendencies, making him certain she was enjoying the chaos.
He continued to subtly reinforce his enchantment on the Atlesian Knights.
He saw Penny in action during a tournament match, her movements a blur of calculated power.
She moved with a strange elegance, her wires extending and retracting with incredible speed and precision.
He saw the admiration in the crowd, the awe at her unique abilities. But he also saw the faint whirring sound, a reminder of her artificiality, and a clear sign of the challenge ahead.
He paid close attention to her interactions with Ruby.
Their genuine friendship, the way Penny's face lit up when Ruby spoke, offered him a glimpse into the emotional capacity Penny already possessed.
This reinforced his new theory: Penny wasn't a blank slate waiting for a soul, but a being with the potential for one, a seed waiting to sprout.
One evening, after the day's matches had concluded, Arthur found himself once more in his private study.
He had brought back detailed notes on Penny's combat style, her energy output, and even the subtle electromagnetic fields she generated.
He laid out his new schematics, not for building a soul, but for receiving one. He sketched intricate mana pathways, delicate energy converters, and a central resonance chamber.
This chamber, he theorized, would act as the "fertile ground," the place where the "spark of life" could be nurtured and allowed to grow.
He knew this was still a long and arduous journey.
He would need to conduct further experiments, to refine his techniques, and to understand the precise frequencies and energies required.
This wasn't about defying nature, but about understanding it, about guiding its inherent processes.
The image of Penny, truly human, truly alive, flashed in his mind. He envisioned her experiencing the full spectrum of emotions, not just mimicking them.
He saw her forming deeper connections, understanding the complexities of the world, and truly making her own choices.
That vision fueled his determination.
The Vytal Festival was a grand distraction, a vibrant tapestry of competition and camaraderie. But beneath it all, the shadows were lengthening.
Cinder's plan was unfolding, and soon, the true struggle would begin.
Arthur knew he had to be ready for both battles: the visible one against Cinder and her allies, and the invisible one, the one that would ultimately define Penny's existence.
...
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