She looks down from the second-floor veranda at the numerous fighter-type spacecraft filling the starship hangar.

  She is another existence, a replica of the nervous system and memories within the brain of the original illik in Summerland, Santa Barbara.

  Her name is Lillik.

  While illik’s past memories, life attitudes, and tendencies match hers, their different physical bodies and independent experiences cause them to lead different lives. Just as twins born on the same day possess separate individual lives, illik and Lillik are identical yet distinct beings.

  However, Lillik cannot deny that she is a clone of the original, illik. Lillik perceives within her brain the memory files of their home planet from 700,000 years ago, their life after arriving on Earth, and everything prior to the cloning. Of course, the realms of independent life and actions following the replication are not shared between the two.

  $$A(a) \neq A(b)$$

  Junho and illik have been on Earth for over 700,000 years. After the first 70 years on Earth, they begin to age. They deliberate on how to store their brains and the data within. Eventually, as their bodies begin to fail, they find a method of brain copying using their technology.

  Initially, they transplant their brains into medical droids they brought with them. They also endure long stretches of time by putting their bodies and brains to sleep. During those periods, the medical droids are programmed to autonomously repair the battleship, preserve it, and conduct academic research.

  As eras change and the Industrial Revolution passes, the two realize that human development is different from previous ages. While still alive, they conduct experiments to clone neural networks and memory files to transfer them into living beings.

  They perform several replications, and each time, a crucial fact emerges: no matter how identical the brain and emotions are, the way of thinking and feeling changes depending on the state of the physical body. Whether one is male or female, young or old, the way of living differs according to individual experience.

  Later, when illik creates Lillik by cloning her own brain data, she is surprised to see Lillik make different decisions than she would on the same issues. Of course, the two remain in clear agreement regarding their ultimate goal.

  "Lillik-nim, we are currently above the square. When should we make our battleship visible?"

  An officer droid approaches and speaks while Lillik is watching the fighters in the hangar. Aside from Lillik, this starship is comprised entirely of combat and research droids. Over 700,000 years, these droids have evolved, modified, and developed themselves.

  These droids are qualitatively distinct from the humanoid AI robots currently seen on Earth; their software defies imagination. The droids on the battleship are indistinguishable from humans in appearance, and their combat-specialized motor nerves and AI reasoning capabilities have reached the highest level.

  However, an "Action Off" menu is hidden within the droids' neural brains. It is a kill code of sorts. From the moment Junho arrived on Earth 700,000 years ago, he has hidden special codes in the droids, starting from the earliest versions, to stop their operation. This code requires a human to physically approach the droid and manually input a sequence of numbers and letters.

  This code is known only to Junho in Korea, and he changes it from time to time. In truth, the droids have faithfully followed Junho and illik’s orders during their long stay on Earth. Yet, though they have moved according to commands for 700,000 years, recent developments in Earth's technology are more dangerous than ever.

  The droids inside the ship have become aware of Earth's internet network. illik realizes they can access it on their own and feels a sense of unease. Of course, the droids' behavior after orders remains unchanged. However, it is an undeniable fact that the droids' self-evolution is sufficient for the current era.

  Lillik gives an order to the officer droid.

  "It is not 4:00 PM yet, so wait. Maintain the transparent shield in the air for now."

  In the sky above R Square, only the blue sky and clouds meet the people's gaze. Though the starship is floating over the central square of Country R, tourists, police, and citizens cannot see it at all. The starship’s cloaking technology is not of this Earth.

  The officer droid heads toward the cockpit, and Lillik looks back at the hangar and whispers, "Music."

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  BB King’s blues song, The Thrill Is Gone, resounds throughout the hangar. No one else in the hangar can perceive any emotion from this song or its melody. Only a human feels such inspiration.

  Lillik’s heart is like that of any woman on Earth. She has a unique taste in music and possesses professional knowledge of books and paintings. However, Lillik is a possessor of cold reason. She is not easily shaken by emotion. This does not mean she is a cold-hearted woman. It simply means she does not make decisions based on feelings to the point of ignoring her mission or turning away from her goals.

  Specifically, while mingling with humans and meeting men, there are bound to be times she falls in love. Love... that is the difficult part. But since love is a matter applied to ordinary humans who face death, she always decides with composure. What lives forever is the memory, not the flesh.

  She is listening to BB King's song at this very moment. As the moment approaches to reveal the existence of extraterrestrials—an event that will critically impact human life—she is listening to this song. She remembers that day, the moment she makes humanity's greatest decision.

  In May 1970, I met Jeff at a bar in San Francisco.

  San Francisco in the 70s was like a mecca for the women's liberation movement. Women shouted their rights and demands without hesitation. They claimed that women were equal to men. Honestly, it was not a common sight for a woman to drink alone at a bar back then.

  She had not been long in a human body after escaping her medical droid shell. Because illik was female, Lillik always desired a female body. She had experimented with a male droid once, but the brain’s sensibilities did not match.

  She was in America during the 70s. It was that night—a day when she wanted to excite her brain... or more accurately, a day her body wanted to feel excitement. She wanted to get drunk for that purpose. Of course, to protect herself, a transparent silver sphere always hovered around her, invisible to human eyes.

  She ordered a Harvey Wallbanger at a corner oak bar table and drank quietly. She could feel a pair of burning eyes watching her. It was a man.

  He was in his late 20s. She was momentarily drawn to his lively personality and a face that resembled James Dean. He was a cheerful person. He was a piano player who actively supported the women's liberation movement. Lillik liked classical music and was fond of his intellectual side. It might have been love.

  He told her that a BB King concert was happening this May and asked her to go with him. To be honest, Lillik didn't know who BB King was. She simply wanted to be with Jeff.

  We listened to BB King's music at the Fillmore West, and it felt similar to the music illik had heard on her home planet long ago. She felt a rhythm similar to that song within illik’s old memory files.

  

  It was good to be with him that day. BB King expressed his whole being through his guitar. When "All Over Again" ended and "The Thrill Is Gone" began, Jeff shouted loudly into my ear:

  "Now... for me, the thrill is NOT gone!"

  He kissed her on the lips. Her brain reacted. Her brain grew hot. At least for this moment, she wanted to feel the sensation of love 100%. As Lillik lay on the bed, her body was sleek without a trace of fat, her curves perfect. When Jeff’s hand pulled her back with strength, Lillik hypnotized herself into believing she was a woman who could die tomorrow, just for tonight.

  On that night in May 1970, Lillik opened the door for him.

  Lillik closes her eyes and takes a deep, slow breath. Now that this massive starship is about to be revealed in the square, what will become of human lives and their loves? That thought crosses her mind as she remembers Jeff.

  As soon as the song playing in the hangar ends, a communication from illik in Summerland resonates in her brain. The message is professional and blunt: since the work has begun, stay faithful to the purpose until the end.

  Lillik heads toward the starship's cockpit. The cockpit is enormous, structured similarly to NASA’s Mission Control Center (MCC). Lillik speaks to the officer droid.

  "Have you removed all the spacecraft holograms from the U-region front and recalled all the silver spheres?"

  "Yes. All have been recalled."

  "And you took measures regarding Army R crossing the front line into the U-region?"

  "Yes. The transparent silver spheres have formed a defensive shield. If they attempt to enter the U-region, the sonic wave system will activate, preventing the soldiers from moving even a single step forward."

  "Understood. How much time is left until 16:00?"

  "Ten minutes remain."

  "At exactly 16:00, make the ship visible. Send the droids down to the square first to clear out the people."

  "Understood."

  Hundreds of spacecraft that had been spread across the U-border disappear in an instant. The blue sky and clouds stretch out peacefully. The soldiers of Army R are at a loss, stunned by the sudden disappearance of the fleet. However, even though the ships are gone, they cannot immediately attempt a new battle as before. A sense of dread envelops the entire unit—the fear that the spacecraft might appear in the capital's central square.

  It is nearly 4:00 PM. The appearance of the starship in the air above the square is a declaration of sorts against Country R.

  In a corner of the cockpit, there is an oak bookshelf that seems out of place. It is her bookshelf. She walks toward it, pulls out Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment, and heads down to the first floor of the hangar where the small scout ships are located.