[System Activated]
[Good Morning Type 000,Aria]
[7.00 a.m. Time to work]
In a huge laboratory,a female-teen Mecha slowly opens her eyes as she's just wake up from a long night sleep.There's a long wire attached on her iron brown skin arm,functioning as a charger to increase her energy.
She removes the wire and stretching her arms and legs,pressing all systems in her body to function smoothly as she does all days.
[All systems on]
[Status-Good]
[Energy-98%]
The lab is a mess.Most of test tubes lying separately on the white floor.Same goes as beaker and pipettes shattered on the lab research table and some liquid spilled on the floor,left a green colored.
Aria was not surprised.She just shook her head,seeing the lab state as a small matter.She has memories last night,her creator, Professor Henley was working on his new project, 'Project X' in order to strengthen the Defensive Forces of Swanlight City.Its been months since the project started.
Even Aria,the first and strongest Mecha made by Professor Henley never know what was project X about.That scientist has been working in his secret lab for a long time and barely clean up the lab.
As a famous scientist,Professor Henley is no doubt a busy man working on countless researches and projects, especially when there's a report telling people saw a demon lurking near the border last month.
In this world,demon is a well-known powerful dangerous creature that every race bothered by.In the beginning of time,all five races,human,demon,angel,wizard and vampire live together,minding their own business in earth peacefully.
There were no words like fight,war and kill until the demons,cut off the peace connection as they're arrogant and evil,thinking there's no place for weak creatures.
They start invade and attack other races especially humans since they're the weakest among the five.Since then,war and misunderstanding keep occuring between races and countless bloodshed happened in the entire continent.
A selfish race like wizards isolate themselves as they place no value on other races while vampires hunt humans for their bloods.As for angels,they couldn't take necessary actions on the demons without God's permission so they remained silence.Only for humans, it's just a complete nightmare to live on earth.
Thus,Swanlight City exists,the only place safe from the demon's invasion.Although this city is meant for humans, there's a small number of wizards and vampires who prefer peace live here.
Swanlight City remained safe for years until someone saw demons lurking near the city.After 100 years,this is the first time people saw demons again.
Before the worst comes by,Defensive Forces takes necessary actions to tighten the security defense and increase the number of armies in case the war between demons occur again.
As for Professor Henley,he's responsible to make Aria impeccable and summon her if the forces are in pinch.
Means,Aria is Swanlight's last hope when all defensive strategies failed.
[Searching for humans nearby...]
[....]
[Searching completed]
[No humans nearby]
"Strange.The facility always filled by scientists from all over continent."
Aria wonders why is no one around since now is a work time.Her curiousity doubles when she heard no human voices and footsteps.Perhaps,today is holiday,she thought.But her system displays today's day and date so it's impossible.
She wakes up from a large capsule,her 'bed' and sounds of iron legs heard when she walks in the lab.Even she's full of curiousity, her face shows nothing but emotionless human face.
Professor Henley designed Aria based on human appearance and life-like with no emotion and random combat abilities.Thus,Aria still not stable and she's not recommended to fight at the moment.
One of the lab reports says,project Aria was not perfect or more accurately unfinished by Professor Henley.Whether the scientist did that on purpose or not,no one knows.Now he's busy with another project for the forces so he doesn't has time to finish Aria.
At last,he just keeps Aria in his secret lab so no one could find out about the Mecha.He's only and likely to reveal Aria when the situation is dire.
"Master is not around.Let's clean up while waiting for his return."
She's looking for Henley but the man is not around at the moment.Like usual,she woke up to clean up the mess made by her creator.
[Purification Mode Activated]
The system voice heard in her mind as her body started adjusting herself for easier clean.A small booster appears at the back of her heels for faster move and floating ability so Aria can reach for the higher spot.
A wind pressure comes from her left palm like a vacuum cleaner and her eyes colour changed from blue to white to detect a dirty spot easily.
Just in seconds,her body's fully prepared for cleaning purpose and just in the blink of eyes,the lab is completely clean and neat.All lab tools and ingredients placed on it's right spot as it's programmed on Aria's memories.
Not a single dust would be missed by Aria's Mecha eyes.She could scan the entire lab if it's condition is perfect/good/decent/bad.
"Done clean.Now I shall wait for master's return."
As usual,after done with her daily job,she'll return to her capsule to 'sleep' as she's programmed to do so.Henley's like treating her as a cleaning machine even she was supposed to be a destructive combat machine.
When she's about to enter the capsule,suddenly a breaking system voice appears in her mind.
[Warning!Warning!An abnormal being spotted]
[Warning!Warning!An abnormal being spotted]
[Warning!Warning!An abnormal being spotted]
"Abnormal being?"
Aria turns her eyes to the lab door as the voice is still ringing in her mind.Her face's still straight.She believes the door was locked strictly by Henley to avoid someone from entering his precious lab.
Aria has never leave the lab since she was created 10 years ago.All she did in the lab was cleaning,cleaning and CLEANING nothing else.Thus,she doubts herself if she can leave without Henley's permission.
[Warning!Warning!An abnormal being spotted]
The voice still not stop.It's like forcing her to look for that so-called abnormal being outside.Aria got no other choice.She walks slowly towards the door.She touches it whether it has a key hole but instead,she found a certain numbers tab, believing a password needed.
What's Henley's favourite number?Aria thoughts for a moment.She doesn't know why but her memories feel empty now.
[System Analyzing...]
[Analysis completed]
[Data Unknown]
"It's futile to even rely on system huh?"
Looks like Henley doesn't want anyone to know the password.Even his creation,he places no trust on Aria.Henley must be hiding something very valuable in his lab so he activated a tight security.One couldn't even hack through the iron door.
"Should I destroy this door?"
With her strength,it should be a piece of cake to pierce the iron door as she's a battle Mecha.Even so, she's hesitating if the action will make her betray her master.But with her current unstable system,she can't make a proper and right decision so she just go through and punch the door.
With a single punch,the iron door turns into a broken small pieces and shatters like a dust on the hallway.
Silence.Even with that crazy loud sound came from the lab,no one alerted to check the place.People would just be panic when heard a sound like something exploded.Perhaps no one allowed to pass this area?
Aria protrudes her head to check on the situation outside.Everything seems normal like a normal facility hallway with rooms straight up.There're unique landscape paintings patched along the hallway towards the main hall.
"Where's everyone?"
Aria wonders as she keep walking,hoping to meet someone she knows.Even she's never met people of the facility,Henley downloaded people's common information and pictures in her mind so she can recognise the people by a glance.
After several steps,she saw someone's shadow on the corner.She couldn't notice the person as a big vase hinders her sight,so she moves closer towards the person to see the face.
"Excuse me,sir.I want to ask if you have seen my master"
When she approaches the person,a man with a white coat,was actually has his body lying on the floor without any sign of breathing.
"Sir?"
Aria doesn't get the situation.His face looks pale and the arms cold.She checks the body and found a big wound at the back.She wonders if the man was just sleeping.But he has this bad wound,he couldn't be possibly sleeping right?Aria thought.
The system is really slow on analyzing new situation.
[No living being detected]
"So...he's dead?"
Aria concludes the situation very calm.At this point,people would freak out and big surprise if they found a corpse at their workplace.But for Aria, she's a Mecha so she doesn't has any emotion to express.She couldn't smile,angry,sad and such.
Done analyzing,Aria stood up to think what should she do next.Should she inform the other?Or find her master?But based on the circumstance now, there's no sign of human nearby.It's like she's alone in the facility.
"This is Professor Wilson.System said he's been murdered."
She summaries the result.This is completely a bad news,right? She thought.Her disabilities to make a proper judgement on the right time turned her to be a bad battle Mecha.So,she's labelled as 'unfinished' project.
At the moment,she glances at her left where another hallway at and what she saw was very unexpected.Another corpse.Not one but two,three,no, LOTS of corpses.All of them were scientists of the facility.Aria didn't notice at first since the hallway's kind of hidden at the back.It's a shortcut to go to dorms though.
Aria analyzing the corpses again.The result still the same.All of them have been murdered by something.This makes she thinks of Professor Henley.Where'd that man go at this early morning when his colleagues died.
"No survivor"
She found a blood trail along the hallway as she follows the trail and reach a half collapsed security room.All cameras and security system must be broken so the SOS signal couldn't be blown outside.
"This is a serious damage.The only thing could has done this is..."
Aria hears heavy footsteps from the opposite direction which leads to more debris darker area.Something is moving towards her with a killing intend.Aria knows it.A thing before her eyes now is responsible for all this mess.
"A Mecha type 025.Confirm.Condition not stable and dangerous at the moment"
A large half broken Mecha moves towards her.It's size is 5 times larger than Aria and the systems inside it's body are clearly about to explode anytime.Unlike Aria,type 025 is a support battle Mecha and the creator designed it not like human body.It's more like a tank.
The skin covered with blood,was broken and lost parts.Even the movement telling Aria the Mecha is a threat as it killed the scientists.This is one of the projects Henley was working on.If the result is this bad,means the project was a big fail and loss.
As Aria spacing out,type 025 suddenly acts furious and punch her onto the thick wall.
The wall broke apart when Aria's iron body stumbles upon it.She doesn't feel any pain,instead feels curious why is this bot acting fierce like a demon.
Also, it's impossible for this bot alone to upper hand all geniuses from all continents.The geniuses must know how to handle things if they gone wrong.At last,they were all defeated by this thing.This could lead onto two possibilities,either this bot was actually not alone or just this bot alone was very strong that people couldn't stop it with advanced weapons.
Aria stood up after her body fall from the wall.She left a big crack as soon she landed on the floor.She has to do it.She needs to remove the threat before the number of victims increase.
[Combat Mode Activated]
As soon the system heard in her mind,her body quickly adjusts herself into combat adjustment,with a faster and agile legs,stronger arms and immune defense body.Her eyes changes from blue to red bloods colour signing she is done with adjustment.
[Scanning for weak spot]
She scans the Mecha.Even though type 025 manage to murder the geniuses that proving it's really strong,but still...
[Scan Completed]
[Three vital points detected]
Aria is much stronger.
With just in the blink of eyes,Aria dashed from her spot,aims for legs,eyes and a socket behind its back.One,two,three.She stabbed all the spots with her sharp fingers and teleported behind the Mecha.
In instant,type 025 stopped moving as the head was already separated from the body and left the body alone lying on the floor.
"Zzzrtt....zzzrt...th-thanks.....A-Aria...."
A robotic voice came out from the dying system in type 025.It said like they're a close friend.It seems like it couldn't control itself from murdering the scientists and found itself in the world of guilts.Thus, it glads that Aria stopped the body.
Aria glances at the dying Mecha.With a straight emotionless face,she said "Welcome,my friend"
******
Aria continues her journey in the labyrinth facility.As expected,the fierce Mecha was not alone.There're lots of same Mechas that become unstable and killing everyone on their sight.She found them not just in one place.They are completely separated and dominate the whole facility that no one could escape.
Again,Aria continues her job to exterminate all the fierce mechas one by one.Even still unfinished,she could easily overpowered them as the first and strongest Mecha that ever created.
Professor Henley is a very talented man.All his creations could come in handy for humanity to fight demons.He first created Aria about 10 years ago but never shown into public.Only people of facility know about Aria as they copied the blueprint to make the rest of mechas.
After 30 minutes clean,the mechas finally calm.Aria doesn't detect any more fierce Mecha around the facility.Then,she startled a little.
[A living being detected]
A human nearby.There's a survivor?She looks around as she heard a loud strike from her right side.Something's hitting the wall roughly like it's forcing itself to go inside.
"What's that?There's no way a human could release this much force"
She said as the place around her start shaking and the ceiling start crumbling as it's about to collapse.
"Grrrr!!!"
A monstrous voice from outside coming inside her ears.She could hear the fierce voice loud and clear.What could be attacking from outside?Demon?
Due to her slow response,a debris fall onto her head that makes her feels a little dizzy.
[Warning!Type 000 starts taking a damage.Need to be fixed later]
She rubs the scratch on her forehead.Then,footsteps coming from her back.
"That's....Aria??!Aria!!What're you doing there!Come here!The demons are forcing themselves inside!!"
A young man with a black coat and a spectacle comes and yells at her.Aria knows the man.He is Dean, Professor Henley's assistant.But what happened to that man as she notices his right arm bleeds.
"Good morning,master Dean"
She bows and casually greets the man like nothing is happening while Dean is panicking in injured.
"Good morning my ass!! Let's get out of here now!"
He grabs Aria's arm and start running to opposite direction.They're supposed to run for the emergency door but instead,Dean was aiming for another way.
"Master Dean.Your arm.May I look for it?"She asks with worried sound.She could see his arm is still bleeding.
"It's nothing bad.We have no time for this anyway.We must reach that 'room' before the demons broke the barrier"
The facility provided with a high quality barrier for safety purpose but the demons are really powerful that they could shatter the defense.It's only a matter of time until the barrier is completely broken.
"I was activating the barrier in the private room until the unstable Mechas start rampaging.Took me time to escape them.Thanks to them,my right arm broke now."
Dean said as he's dragging Aria to different shortcuts.
"Master Dean.What happened to the mechas?Why they acted like that?"
The young man silence a second.His face shows a disappointment and frustration when Aria ask about that.
"The project is a fail huh?How funny..."He muttered.
Aria still has a lot of questions in her mind but she stays silence when Dean frowns the moment they reached a big iron door.She doesn't know that room existed in the first place.What is this room?The room placed at the end of the back hallway.
Dean places his left palm on a scanning tab sticked onto the door.Error.The tab couldn't recognise the palm since he set with right hand.But his right hand is broken now so he couldn't lift his right for a single inch.
Without his or Henley's right hand gesture,no one could open the door.What now?
"Shit.Things are worse than I've imagine"
"Shall I destroy this door,Master Dean?"
Aria offers her aid when she notices Dean's struggling.However,Dean shook his head.
"No.Your arm will break if you do that"
Aria fall silence.This room is that important as it was well made stronger than Aria's strength?What could it be inside? There's another way to unlock the door,by password.
"Look at the number tab.Type the password"
Dean has no strength to lift even his left arm so he asked Aria to but she has no idea about the password.She stares at the tab with an empty mind.
"Your birthday,duh..."
Dean sighs after Aria fall long silence.
He tired dealing with the straight Mecha.That was why he always push Henley to finish Aria but the man keep giving the same excuse.Always busy.He knows Henley well,a busy man with various researches and projects but he shouldn't abandoned Aria like that.In deep down of Dean's heart,he's really annoyed with Henley.
"My birthday..."
Aria remembers the date when she was first created by Henley.The password of the laboratory must be her birthday too.This convinced Aria , Henley still cares about her.
DIP!
Correct.The door slowly opens.After those two stepped inside, the door shuts by it's own instantly.Leaving them in the dark with a little lamp sticked onto the wall.
"(Heavy breathing)
...There.This should be our safe spot.At least for now..."
Dean takes a deep breath as he leans on the wall.He tears his favourite coat and wrap his broken arm with it.In instant,the black coat changed colour to dark red.
From the look of his face,he is really tired now.It must be a pain to survive this far.He could take a rest here but he doesn't want to waste any more time.
At their front, there's a path leading towards to another door.The door is much bigger than the first one and must be harder and sturdier.
"What's waiting us at the front, master Dean?"
Dean expected Aria would ask the question.He smirks and answer,
"Project X"