Volume 03: Projekt RP, Ashes of the Blue Angels.

  2051

  Metro Robotics HQ. Metromania. 10:00 PM.It was a futuristic boratory. White walls. Matte white ceiling. Giant windows stretching from floor to ceiling. The low hum of machines filled the space, paired with an unsettling silence. It was a cold day. January always loved low temperatures.

  The st scientist had left the room ten minutes ago, a soldier walking beside him.He was sitting there, inactive. On his HUD, a single pinned message remained at the top of his vision.

  Run. Find me. Trust the angel. N.R.

  It was a message from his primary creator, sent before he vanished from every camera in this dystopian city. Since the military took control of the country in 2027, quality of life had steadily declined. Military meant control. Cameras were everywhere. Drones monitored every soul, but only when the system cared. Poor and popur streets were still left under minimal surveilnce.

  He scanned the room again and again, confirming the absence of human life. No one stood beside him. But he knew exactly how fast a military complex could react.

  Hissss.

  He disconnected from the ptform holding him in pce at shoulder level. Even if he shared the same creator as the legendary blue-haired girls, his design was different. Too futuristic. Too slick. Sharp edges everywhere. His body was a collection of aggressive shapes, green lines forming his eyes.

  Bck ptes covered him entirely, polished enough to reflect every light source in the b. A humanoid frame, standing 1.95 meters tall. No face. Only glowing lines for eyes. His neck was complex, wrapped in expandable synthetic leather designed for extreme flexibility.

  Another marvel of technology, born into a gloomy world.

  He took his first steps without human supervision. Slow footsteps echoed through the halls. There was no way to hide the sound. Two hundred and fifty kilograms of reinforced material loved to announce its presence.

  The room around him was made entirely of gss. No concrete walls. Anyone outside could see everything inside.

  As soon as he took his eighth step, a soldier appeared in the hallway beyond the gss. Surveilnce around the five-hundred-million-dolr prototype was tight. He was built to be a war machine.

  The soldier froze. Seeing the robot standing alone triggered immediate panic. He had no chance in a one-on-one encounter. He smmed his hand on the arm panel.

  The soldier screamed into comms, “The prototype is standing alone in the b! He freed himself somehow, no supervision! Code red! I repeat, code red!”

  ‘Seriously?’ the robot thought.

  Then he ran.The room was spacious, but there was nowhere to go. Except…

  CRASH!

  He jumped straight through the building’s window, gss exploding behind him. The city glowed beautifully from above. He was on the highest level, free-falling toward the streets below.

  ‘My first baby steps,’ he cpped mid-air. ‘Usually parents take photos of their children.’

  Gravity did its job, pulling him down. But gravity was his specialty.He clicked his legs together.

  Suddenly, gravity shifted. Not toward Earth, but toward the gss facing his feet. His descent slowed instantly, his trajectory bending sideways. Shards of broken gss followed him.

  CRASH!

  He smashed back into the building, nding on his feet, and immediately dashed through rooms and hallways. The interior was a corporate maze. Navigating it was a nightmare.

  From time to time, soldiers crossed his path. He changed direction repeatedly, zigzagging through corridors until he faced another window.

  CRASH!

  ‘Is this what I was born for? I already crashed three windows.’His thoughts remained calm, despite the situation.

  This time, he exited onto a much lower floor. He nded on a nearby rooftop and began jumping from building to building. Drones followed relentlessly.‘I see. Since they are not attacking, they are just exposing my—’

  Veom!The drones opened fire. Devastating ser shots illuminated the night.

  ‘Never mind. How are these weak bugs firing something that powerful? And aren’t we in a residential area? In this city, ‘civilian’ was just a bel on a screen, I guess.'

  He reached the end of the buildings, now facing the highway. The height was too great for a normal jump.He clicked his legs again and leaped toward the side of the building.Now he was wall-running downward.

  Cng!He nded hard on the asphalt. The drones were faster.

  ‘Time to test this out.’

  He clicked his legs once more. This time, he hovered two centimeters above the road. A calm blue glow formed beneath his feet. He accelerated instantly, each step pushing him forward with increasing force.

  ‘Great. Now I’m a modified supercar.’

  He turned his upper body toward the drones without slowing down. Palms extended forward.Gravity bent.

  ‘Worked!’He seized the first drone wirelessly and hurled it into the second. He grabbed the third and smmed it into the road until nothing remained.

  ‘Wait…’He reversed the gravity of the st drone. It shot upward and vanished into the dark sky.

  ‘That was awesome!’He turned forward again.‘Now I just need to—’

  CRASH!Ten police cars burst onto the highway from the exit ramp, smashing through the barrier as they began pursuit.

  ‘Never mind.’

  He accelerated, but the police cars kept pace easily. They were flying vehicles too. No friction. No fatigue.

  ‘They copied my homework.’

  One car pulled alongside him. The window lowered. A police officer spoke through the external speaker.“This is the MPD. Slow down and return to the b. Stop putting everyone’s safety in danger. This is your first and st warning.”

  He replied calmly, “The road is empty. Who is this ‘everyone’ you are referring to?”

  “Doesn’t matter! Stop now!”

  “Try me!”

  He accelerated further. As the police followed, he attempted the drone trick again.It failed.The vehicles were too heavy.

  ‘What if…’

  He aimed his gravity control directly at one of the officers.The man exploded from the inside. Blood sprayed across the cabin. The driver lost control and smmed into a light pole.

  ‘Oh… note to self. Never aim at these creatures. Too fragile.’

  He turned forward again. A massive road sign loomed ahead. Road under repair.Reaper leapt over it, barely clearing the structure. The police cars stopped abruptly as he vanished behind the sign.

  “HAHA, IDIOTS!”

  He reached a bridge suspended above the sea. It was unusually high, and under construction. The middle section was incomplete, leaving both sides disconnected.

  ‘I see. I just need to stop—’

  Veom!A ser shot passed inches from his head. Behind him, a swarm of drones reappeared.

  ‘Never mind.’

  He pushed harder, leaving the drones behind. He reached the end of the bridge and unched himself forward. His momentum carried him in a curved fall beneath the second section.

  He clicked his legs again and reversed gravity.Now he was running upside down beneath the bridge.

  ‘First day alive, and I’m already risking everything. Great. Thanks, creator.’

  He ran until reaching the far end of the structure. The bridge hung over a cliff.He jumped again, running upward along the cliff face until he reached the top.

  Silence.

  The highway stretched forward beyond the city. Green fields under a star-filled sky. A view that made anyone stop.In the middle of the field stood a single tree.

  He left the road and ran toward it.He rested beneath its branches, staring at the dark sky. His internal fans refused to slow down.

  “Finally. I escaped that hell.”A long sigh escaped him.

  Then his sensors reacted.Movement in the field.There was nowhere to hide.

  He raised his head, scanning left and right.Nothing.Then he looked up.

  A blue and white android descended gracefully before him. A humanoid face. A humanoid body. Blue glowing hair and eyes. Bck hoodie with 101 written on the chest.He stared.

  “Am I dead?” he asked.

  “No. But you will be if you disobey me.”

  “Who are you?”

  “I am Omega. One of the shells that represent her, I carry Omega’s will. I am Dr. Nick’s first invention. He sent me to guide you to the hope bubble.” Her voice carried a ritual tone.

  “I need confirmation that you are truly his,” he said carefully.

  “Very well.”Her eyes dimmed. Her body lifted from the ground.

  “Okay, that doesn’t—”

  A massive surge of energy erupted from her. A hurricane of blue force formed, burning grass into the air. He struggled to stay grounded. Behind him, the tree was torn apart, particle by particle.

  She stood as a bck silhouette within the storm.His HUD glitched violently.

  “OKAY, STOP!” he shouted.

  The storm vanished instantly. She nded gently.“I hope that was sufficient proof of my loyalty to our father.” Her movements are too calm for a body that just erased a tree.

  “Father? That’s what you call him? Is that his kink now?”

  She chuckled softly. “I have heard that before.”

  He crossed his arms. “Then tell me. What’s my name?”

  “You still do not know?” She stepped closer. “You are the Reaper. My brother. The test invention of our father.”

  “I see,” he said. “Then I’ll call you Shelly.”

  “What.”Her majestic tone disappeared.