The ride aboard the Beast was quiet for Michael, the android was focused on the mission. Though he did make some small talk with Dr. Newton, who he was paired up with for the expedition. He believed that she was the only one amongst the assembled crewmen that knew of his true origin. Michael was the pinnacle of calmness on the adventure to the site, his suit filtering in air that he didn't need to survive though he breathed it in through his systems. His mind was calm as well, that was until his eyes wandered and he spotted the buildings ahead of them through a viewport on the vehicle.
Artificial structures, built on this world before the
Vitae had arrived to it. A smile came onto his face, a genuine emotional reaction to such a thought. Wonder sparkled inside of his mind. What humans had called dreams would be the closest thing Michael had to what he wanted, to encounter a living sentient extraterrestrial lifeform. He doubted that would occur on this world, the sky reaching buildings appeared abandoned. Michael wanted to spend time on this world, see if they could find any hints of the past occupants. He wished to learn more. A thought of the Devastators crept into his mechanical mind, perhaps the beings that built these structures were like those monstrosities or they were more akin to Michael himself. Peaceful, serene and curious.
He glanced at Dr. Newton as the Beast halted, then once the door began to come open he rose from his feet and walked towards the opening. Michael stared upwards at the orbs, strange creations that made him wonder their purpose. Internally he dug through his data files for anything similar. Perhaps they were long dimmed energy sources, abandoned by their creators along with the rest of the world. As he took more steps towards them he felt his internal systems shutter, the same sensation from earlier returned to him. Only slightly more intense. Perhaps a human wouldn't have felt the increased sensation, but his machine sensors immediately alerted him to it.
Two security officers approached Dr. Newton and Michael, each of them clad in similar suits but clenching weapons. The android understood the reasoning for having armed crewmen on the expedition, he just hoped that caution would be exercised. Both men glanced at the two scientists as they drew nearer, introducing themselves as Agents Edwards and Gurrera. Michael smiled at both of them, returning introductions. Then they started to walk away from the Beast, exploring like the others were. Michael and Mackenzie leading as they walked at a brisk pace. The synthetic man's eyes locked on a pathway a short distance away, it seemed to loop upwards and directly towards what appeared to be a fully intact orb. Before he could say a word, he started up the path, the others following behind him.
"We should be careful, make sure not to get too far from the Beast." Edwards stated as he looked around, Michael sensing a bit of caution in the man's words.
"Of course, safety should be a priority, though exploration is one as well. Who knows what we may find here? It's fascinating." Michael replied with a smirk as they continued to walk upwards, the path metallic in its appearance as it looped around a pillar.
As they moved towards the top, Gurrera looked over the edge. They were moving quite high up. The orb was getting larger in size, closer to the whole group. As they reached the top, the path ceased and a long bridge was in front of them. Michael paused at the start of it, looking over the entire structure. It was sturdy and safe.
"Dr. Newton and I wish to inspect the orb closer, is that alright?" Michael asked both of the security officers in his most polite tone. They didn't have a reason to deny the request that the android could think of. He stared at both men as they thought for a few moments, then Edwards spoke.
"Alright, just be careful. It's quite the drop from all the way up here. Gurrera and I will stay back." The man stated before Michael walked away from them, taking his first cautious footsteps across the bridge.
His boots were the only noise made as he walked, metal against an alien metal. The sensations in his inner working intensified a bit more as he drew nearer to the orb. By his estimates, it was large enough for several people to fit inside. Though he did no intend to do that, nor understood how to enter it.
"I wonder what the purpose of this orb is?" Michael asked Mackenzie as he stood within arms reach of the artificial construct.
Then his arm shot upwards, as he placed his right hand upon it. He felt his systems shimmer, then watched as a light blue flash pulsated over the orb, disappearing within a second. Then the side which the android had touched slowly came open like a mechanical door. As it opened the entire way his eyes shifted towards a stand in the direct center, a small orb, similar in the design to the larger one. It was the size of a baseball, sitting there, almost as if it had been meticulously placed by someone, or something. There was nothing else inside the orb as Michael's sensors cautioned against what as he was about to do. But something strange called out to him and made him step inside of it.
As soon as Michael was the entire way inside the large orb, the door immediately shut behind him, locking out Mackenzie, Gurrera, Edwards and everyone else. He blinked, wondering if something fatal was going to happen to him. If he had just stepped into a trap and doomed all the crewmen. That was far too dramatic a thought, especially for a machine of cold logic like himself. He was in almost total darkness now, the only light the miniature orb. As he slowly walked towards the orb he began to hear something inside of his mind, some language he could not understand despite being a being with total access to all known human languages. It was utterly alien, and fascinating. The extraterrestrial words only grew louder as the android moved closer to the center, his hand hovered above the orb.
The light from the orb was now so bright that it illuminated through his artificial skin and displayed the inner workings of his limb. He stared at this for the briefest of moments, his skeleton, the fiber like wires which encircled that, millions of pieces of complex machinery that made up him. His entire frame was like this, enlightened, it was a bizarre moment which confused Michael.
Then the android grabbed the orb, and unceremoniously yanked it upwards. His entire body shook for a moment as the voices stopped. His breathing had picked up, a natural reaction from an unnatural creation. His eyes were wide open as he looked deeply at the miniature orb. His fingers held it tightly, the light which had illuminated the interior of the greater orb and Michael's inner workings went away. As soon as he had pulled the orb from its pedestal the entire outer orb began to collapse upon itself. Its walls sliding onto the floor which was the only part left as Michael returned to the outside world.
Outwardly he was the same, the only difference being that he now clenched the orb. The android held it out from himself, almost like how Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, had been portrayed as holding the skull of poor Yorick before he went into his monologue in Shakespeare's
Hamlet. Then he turned his gaze towards Mackenzie, the two security agents walking towards them both, moving with pace. Michael still felt the sensations within his inner workings, a curious smile on his face.
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