WebNovels

Chapter 5 - Ch 5: A New Friend

The girl floating in the vat shocked Sora, as he wasn't a human to be here. She wore a suit that had different places where the wires and tubes would automatically detach and reattach itself elsewhere. Her hair was long, all the way down to her feet. She also had a star symbol on her forehead. But she was also terribly thin. It was amazing that she was even alive considering her state. One the sides were machines that were monitoring something that looked like vitals to Sora. On one of the screen, the scientist face showed up. 

"This is my daughter. Or what is left of her body. You may judge me at your leisure, but I ask you not to disregard my final request. When she succumbed to the illness our people suffered, I could not let her go. She was my greatest regret. She dreamt of the stars, the world, the universe and all its mysteries and glory. It ate at my conscience. So during her final days, I gave her a choice. A possibility to one day in the future get that chance. Perhaps it was she saw my desire, perhaps she too had the desire. But in the end, she chose to take that chance. And I tried to give it to her. I created a vessel for her mind, her entire conscience containing her memories and emotions, her will and thoughts. And sent her on a lonesome journey to find our gene seed." The old man said as his face turned melancholic. As if viewing the distant future of what his daughter would look like. The last part made Sora turn back into the direction of where Maro was. 

"You most likely guessed it by now. But the AI Unit that brought you to this very place, is my very own daughter. However, something wrong occurred with the transfer and she became an emotionless AI. With no memory of who she previously was. But, there are glimpses of her in there. I see. And I'm sure you have seen some of it as well. Moments where she would display human behavior. Which is why I sent her. Hoping that one day she would be able to return to herself once more." The old mans eyes then turned serious and resolute. 

"I kept her body to preserve her so that you could revive her using your own dna. With your awakened genes, you should be able to give life to her body once more. Her body has deteriorated so I had to recreate parts of her body to be able to withstand time. Once she has an ample sample of your DNA, she can be reborn and reassimulated with her conscious. I ask you when it's done to take her with you. To travel the stars and live out her dreams to the fullest. Please take care of my daughter, Ilyara." The scientist closed his eyes and his image disappeared. A short moment later Maro floated by his shoulder. 

Thinking back about what the scientist said, he did notice over the time they spent together that Maro had acted human at times. It… or rather she. Had been happy whenever Sora completed or praised Maro. Sometimes she would get angry or jealous at Chef when Sora was over complimenting it. There were even moments where it felt like she was acting based on curiosity. But even though it's been millions of years since she's turned into an AI, her speech and tone were still dull. 

"This is some heavy task. Asking someone to take care of your daughter…" He said looking at the girl in front of him. He felt sorry and pity for her. She never got to enjoy life, while he was about to enjoy it to the fullest. 

"Alright Maro, oh wait. Ilyara was it? What do I need to do to get started?" Sora said.

"To begin, we simply need an ample genetic sample from you. Then we can synthesize a serum which can rejuvenate the cells within the body. Also… I believe the name Maro is already suitable." 

"Alright then, Maro. I guess blood is the easiest right? Hook me up." He said as he brought forth his arm already ready to let Maro draw blood. 

Maro moved towards the console of the vat where the her body was and tube ejected out and floated toward Sora. The end of the tub had a needle on the end, but when it pierced his skin he felt nothing. A dark red line steadily grew and passed through the tube and into the machine. Sounds and movement can be heard from inside, and after a moment the tube detached and went back in its slot. Maybe it was because he was standing up, but after giving up blood he started to get light headed. A little table popped out from the wall and Maro floated next to it. 

"Please have a seat. The amount of blood taken is enough to cause light headed and weakness. I will have nourishment provided, do you have a preference?" She said as he sat down and leaned back. 

"Some juice. You know what? Gimme a sandwich too please." One of the useful abilities that Maro has was that she could communicate and give out orders to almost everything on the ship and in the Sanctum. Many types of droids were used around the place and had various jobs. One droid that he saw often moving around was a droid larger than a person's head in the shape of a cylinder. It had two arms and would often carry things to and from places inside the Sanctum. Acting almost like a server for him, it would bring drinks or food like the one coming towards Sora. It had a glass of orange juice and a ham sandwich on a tray.

"Ahh. I needed that. Losing some blood makes you weirdly tired." Sora said after taking a sip of orange juice. 

"It has been a long journey and you have provided blood. Your body will be experiencing exhaustion in several ways. I suggest returning to your room to rest." Maro said.

"Yeah, I am pretty tired and beat." Taking his sandwich with him, he stood up and walked out the room. But before he did, he turned and took a look at the girl. It was the feeling you get from seeing any sick or dead person. Their pale skin, thin and wrinkled skin. The lifelessness in their body with the slightest hint of life. Told that all that was needed was a bit of blood, and that would make things better. But he didn't feel like he did anything. Only to wait and see until then. 

Sora walked back to the residential area which was upstairs of the building feeling a bit down. It is difficult to feel happy when you've something unfortunate, especially when it's someone you've gotten to know. He took a shower quietly and changed into some fresh clothes that some of the droids brought up for him from the ship. The room he was in was very large and had a wide window. Outside he could see the moons in the night sky. This planet had no cities or other people living on it, so the sky and stars were able to shine and glisten. Maybe because it was a different part of the universe in general, but the night looked more beautiful on this planet. Sora stretched, laid down and closed his eyes. Maro landed by a pillow near Sora and went quiet as well. The night went silent after the only person went quiet. 

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The process to restore Maro's body was going to take some time. In the meanwhile, the two of them continued their training so that when they left to join other space faring civilizations, Sora would be able to handle himself. Now that the ship was also free and finished with its maintenance, Maro encouraged him to have flight training. He was excited to fly the ship, after all it was his inner child's dream to fly in space. 

The ship was currently stored in the hangar that was located below the sanctum and landing pad. This was where all the work on the ship was done. It not only acted as a place to keep the ship, but also acted as a shipyard. Of course to make a ship the one they were currently using was would be almost impossible according to Maro. Their main ship was made of materials that they didn't have enough of. Plus the machinery and programming inside were all unique and needed to be made one by one. Which would take hundreds of years to complete with what they had available. Luckily the hangar had other uses available like making more droids or anything else custom.

The two got on the ship and flew out above the planet. Following them were makeshift dummies or targets for Sora to train with. These were made from the Sanctums hanger which were made of more abundant metals. Making it more readily available and quick to build. These were meant to be destroyed eventually so it didn't matter the quality of the droids so long as they performed well. As such, these made good practice dummies for Sora to use without worry of waste. 

For the first part of getting up into space Maro did all the piloting and handling. But now she gave main control to Sora while she managed all the sub-systems. The ship droids were made to do basic maneuvers and attacks so that he could get a feel of everything and get use to it. As his first attempt, it was incredibly mediocre. In this attempt alone he had almost crashed into one droid, 'shot' down several times and spent most of the time trying to escape and dodge, which he became quite good at. 

"Well that… was an experience. Guess it was too much to expect me to be good straight off the bat." He said while slumped in his seat slightly disheartened. That feeling went away of course after the second and third attempt and so forth. While he wasn't an amazing pilot it was still fun and a bit exhilarating to pilot the ship. Maro tried to stimulate danger with each attempt by having the droids be able to shoot projectiles at him. Adjusting the ships settings let Sora experience shakes that came from the force of the hits. Even letting the g-force come through a bit and letting him feel the force of his turns. 

The ship was quick in general since it uses dark matter and energy, and was designed to be an attack/exploration ship. State of the art tech and design and all that. The galaxy they planned to explore is assumed to be relatively inferior to the technology and power that Sora's ship was capable of. Since Maro hadn't been to that part of the universe in a very long time, technological advancement and development of certain factions and civilizations would have changed drastically. There is no guarantee that what she knows now is current. 

He did this for weeks until he was able to fight the droids without getting shot at. While he wasn't a pro, it was more than enough to keep himself alive and at least be able to run away. Besides pilot training he still did the occasional combat training as well in between. Other than that, his down time was spent exploring the surroundings. The animals and plants on this planet were similar to the ones on Earth. But there were unique plants that were completely bizarre, such as a plant made of metal, or a plant that shot water at anything alive. Some of the animals and bugs were also strange and bizarre, with a couple looking quite terrifying. He even started a little garden of fruits and some vegetables from Earth, using some seeds he got from the food he brought with him. 

A balance of consistent training and leisure times, over a month had passed since Maro's body was being repaired. He once dropped by the room where it was before but the room was locked as things were currently being done on the body. Good chance that he wouldn't be able to handle the sight of a body being surgically and genetically repaired, he left and went on with doing his daily tasks. 

Since it was also a plan to integrate Maro ball with her real body, she left and went to start the process. While she was not able to stay by Sora and actively help him, the facility and back systems all had their own minor Ai's. So he was able to still live without needing Maro too much. 

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Eventually another month would pass by, and since then Sora's piloting skills had become much more polished. He could handle fights with the droids more easily now, to the point of fighting several of them by himself. Currently, he was practicing more advanced and difficult maneuvers. This was a habit he got from working at this soulless job, learning things beyond what he was supposed to. In case he had to do things for his worthless boss. But now that habit was to better himself and also increase survival. 

Since Maro was gone, she had several footage of combat from when she had to travel alone, uploaded on a tablet-like device for Sora. This was so he could watch how real individuals pilot their ships and the various tactics. While she mainly used them as reference, what made Sora worried was the scene of the people dead in space. The sound of people gasping for air, trying to find something to cling on for dear life. 

Maro didn't have any intentions of scaring Sora. It was just that she did not fully understand the emotional mentality of a human. Such scenes could cause other people to go crazy or cold from fear. Sora wasn't so easily spooked or one that gives up easily. But even those scenes took him a moment to get used to. The gravity of being able to protect yourself was heavier now for him. Which turned into a resolve while training, resulting in him being quite a decent pilot and fighter. 

Just as he was letting loose and doing loops in space, Maro told him that it was time. After more than 2 months, everything was finished and she was ready. He immediately turned the ship around and headed towards home. As he landed and made his way toward the Nexus, he couldn't help but feel anxious. Was it because he was meeting an 'alien' for the first time? Or was it because the wait made him anticipate something? Whatever it was, it made him fiddle with his jacket often. 

As the elevator moved down he wondered what she would be like now that she had her body again. Will it be the same sounding Maro, or will it be the girl who was once the Scientists daughter. Is she going to be nice? Or will she think he's some kind of bad joke come to life? 

The door then opened while he was in his thoughts, so he didn't realize that there was a person in the middle of the room before the table. By the time he did he was already part way to her and looked. The girl had black hair that was long and smooth, going down to her waist. She wore a gown that was no different from a hospital gown. She walked up towards, stopping about a few feet away. With her being close, he was able to make out her features more. 

She was no different from a beautiful Japanese woman. Small face with symmetrical features, with beautiful eyes, that had a hint of a shade of purple. Maybe it was because they used his genes, making her look like someone from Earth and a Japanese person. But for a second he thought he was on the set of a movie. 

"Thank you so much Sora-sama." She said as she bowed toward him. 

"Huh?" He responded, still taken aback by her. 

"You not only left your home to carry this burden on your shoulders, you also gave me a new chance at life. On behalf of my father, my people, and I as well. Thank you." She said. When she raised her head and looked him straight in the eye, she smiled. For the first time in over 3 months, Sora was able to meet another smiling person. He didn't feel like he did much of anything for her. Yet this person showed him gratitude and that made him feel relieved. 

"I should be thanking you. You're the one that found me and turned my life into a dream come true." He said, returning the smile. 

"Are you feeling okay? Anything feel off?" He asked. 

"Not at all. My body has made a full recovery, but also has evolved in a sense. I am much healthier than what the body previously was." She responded. 

"What about up here? Do you feel anything?" He asked curiously, while pointing to his head.

"Yes. While there is a bit of unclear memories, my mental capabilities are still functioning at its full potential. The only issue is here." She said while placing her hand on her chest. 

"I feel a slight sensation within me. I have never felt this before. A feeling that makes me unable to be still. Even my hands have the feeling, telling me to grasp something, but I don't know what." She said. When she said that Sora knew what feeling. Because it was a feeling most people on Earth felt. The exciting feeling that you feel when you're about to do something you want. Maybe it was because Maro had old emotions and memories embedded in her body, but she was already showing signs of being human again. 

"Thats what we call excitement. The anticipation of what's about to happen makes you happy." He said. 

 Then he had a thought, and his face suddenly lit. 

"That's right! You can enjoy food! Now that you've got all your senses, we're gonna have a party!" He exclaimed. 

"You know back home, something like this deserves a celebration! Good thing Chef is able to make cake, otherwise it wouldn't be right. Come on. Ive been waiting for a friend!" Sora waved to Maro. Another feeling crept from inside her, a feeling that just made Sora look bright. And like any person who was happy to go along, her feet moved and she followed behind him. Her first real step as a human. 

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