ZZZ: Dawn of The Black Sun

A vast courtyard stretched out before them. A carpet of soft green grass, rippling below a bright blue sky. Pink petals fell from the Sakura tree above them, bathing the world in its pastel beauty. A patch of land stretched near the tree, each one has an item lying on it.

A battery, a plug, a firecracker, a budding plant, an ether crystal...

"This is..." Koleda stepped closer to the array of item. She leaned down to touch the battery and it sunk into the ground. From the ground however, a round shape began to form. Lifeless display gazing off into nothing, hollow shell carelessly pried open, and a hole where ears and appendage should be.

"A Graveyard," Qingyi spoke. "This is where all the previous victims were laid to rest,"

Koleda took a step back, eyes closed, fist clenched in anger. "Damn it..." she whispered. "Damn it all you monsters..." she took a deep breath. "Haaa... I..." she gazed at the graveyard once more. "Can you... find Teddy?"

"No," Qingyi replied. "All the Bangboos here have died more than 2 months ago," she looked around. "But this just means that we are close to their base of operation, stay alert,"

The three of them marched off through the graveyard to what seems to be a shed in a distance. The shed becomes bigger and bigger as they get closer, until it's so big it practically blot out the sky. The entrance loomed before them, taller than a five story building.

"This is as far as I can go," Belle said. "I detected three people in there, so uhh... Go ahead and deal with them," she took out her phone. "Give me a holler if you need help. If I don't hear from you in 2 hours, I'll bring in backup,"

"Got it, stay safe big sis," Koleda said. "Come on Officer, let's have a chat with these... Boonapper Gang..."

The two pushed the double door open, revealing a vast gymnasium. At the center of the room is a strange device, built inside a gigantic crater in the ground. Two masked men look up from the machine, watching the newcomer step in.

"What in the..." the machine fell silent and the men walked up towards them. "You lost kid?"

Koleda glared at them, but said nothing, she simply turned to Qingyi.

The officer nodded and took out her badge. "Officer Qingyi of the Special Crime Investigation Unit," she took out her staff, electricity crackling around her. "You are under arrest for the theft of hundreds of Bangboo, please do not resist,"

The masked men took a step back. "Whoa, hey, come on officer, it's just a Bangboo,"

Koleda gripped her hammer tightly.

"Regardless, theft is a theft and..."

"Theft?" a voice called out from the other side of the room. A woman stepped in, garbed in an expensive suit, long blonde hair glistening with white pale dust. "What manner of slander are you children spouting? What evidence do you have for such claim?"

Qingyi narrowed her eyes. "There are a dozen Bangboo shell with evidence that it has been harvested for parts,"

"A Bangboo without an owner is no one's property," the woman replied calmly. "All those Bangboo wandered into this hollow and we simply make good use of it," she walked closer to the two, eyes narrowing. "Just like some little children wandering off to places they're not supposed to go to,"

Koleda glared at her. "Make good use of it?" she gritted her teeth. "These Bangboos are lost and scared, and you decided to make good use of them!?" she ignored the warning look Qingyi gave her. "And you still call yourself human!?"

Cocolia tilted her head. "Yes, I am, a human, just like you and unlike your friend here," she turned to Qingyi. "A simple robot, a malfunctioning one at that," she folded her arms. "Tell me officer, do you have a search warrant or a permission to enter the Hollow?"

Qingyi looked down. "I'm afraid not, but regardless..." she narrowed her eyes. "There is also the matter of illegal Ether Mining Activity that you are conducting,"

"Illegal?" Cocolia folded her arms. "And if I were to give you the official document, all the necessary paperwork, will you kindly leave me alone?"

"Yes,"

There was a flutter of white as Cocolia tossed her pieces of paper. It floats around in the air and Qingyi caught them all. Her eyes widened ever so slightly, systems scanning and matching the document with her database. All Green.

"Then?"

Qingyi closed her eyes. "You have legal permission to conduct research and mine etheric material in this companion Hollow," she said with finality.

"Then you are relieved of your duty," Cocolia turned around. "I have no time to indulge in your fantasies, go home,"

"HEY!" Koleda shouted. "I'm not done with you yet!!!" she raised her hammer. "Where's Teddy!?"

There was a pause as Cocolia turned around, she walked towards Koleda, stopping right in front of her. "That Bangboo is mine, it has always been mine, I simply lend it to my daughter for her to play with. It's within my right as her legal guardian and the owner to take it away from her," she turned to Qingyi. "Isn't that right, officer?"

Qingyi clenched his fist and looked down. "Yes, it's within your rights, my apologies for the interruptions, have a good day ma'am," she turned around, trying desperately to ignore the betrayed look on Koleda's face. "Koleda, we have to leave..."

"Qingyi you can't be serious!" Koleda grabbed her hand. "A Bangboo is not a toy you can just... throw away like that, Teddy is a person, just like you!"

"I am..." Qingyi closed her eyes, she can feel herself warring against the very thing within her. She can feel her very programming as a Forensic Unit screaming at her to leave. To forget about this little trip and get right back to work. To stop pretending to be a human and report back.

"Not a person..." the automaton sighed in defeat. "I understand that you wish to see us more than just tools, I can respect your preferences," she turned around. "But I am not a person... Please cease the Criminal Activity, this unit will have to report to the nearest station,"

Every step she took felt like a forced memory wipe on her mind. The songs the Bangboo plays, Koleda's warm embrace, she can feel it fading away as she stepped out of the room. It was as if, she's no longer herself, that the Qingyi who walked into the Hollow with Koleda, died in the Hollow.

"Miss Belle, please step aside, this unit can find its way back out of the Hollow,"

"I didn't know robots can cry..."

Those very words made Qingyi froze, eyes focusing at the girl standing before her. Her hand reached out to touch her own face, feeling something wet trickling down her eyes. "I... this is..." she blinked, the liquid was slightly thicker than water, it was... strange.

The girl before her smiled gently. "Qingyi, can you explain, what function that tears could serve? For a forensic investigation unit like you?"

Qingyi looked down, the tears dripped down softly on the soil below her. "I... I don't know..." she whispered. "A forensic investigation unit does not require the ability to cry,"

"Alright then, can you explain, what function that tears could serve? For a person?"

"It's..." Qingyi closed her eyes and lowered her head, her artificial body tensing. "A person cry as a sign for help, they do it because they need assistance, they need help, they..." she took a deep shuddering breath. "It's... where the word cry for help comes from..."

The girl crouched down to her level and a pair of dark blue eyes gazing at her. "Well then Qingyi... based on this evidence provided..." the girl smiled gently at her. "Were you made simply to be a Forensic Investigation Unit or a Person just like us?"

"Based on the evidence provided..." Qingyi sobbed quietly. "I am a person, just like you..."

"That's great, now," a hand gently caressed her head. "Tell me... based on the evidence and conclusion aforementioned above..." a soft breath caressed her ear as Belle gently whisper to her. "Why are you crying?"

...

"I'm crying because I need help," the automaton wiped tears off her face. "This doesn't feel right, I want to rescue these Bangboo, but the law..."

"There's no crime if there's no report..." a mischievous smile quirked on Belle's face. "This can be our little secret, okay?" she gestured to her right. "I found where Cocolia hid those Bangboo, come on, help me rescue them. I told Koleda to distract Cocolia and the Hollow Raiders,"

Qingyi nodded and let the manager took her hand. "Understood..."

It was strange, no longer is she fighting against her programming. Instead, it felt like her mind has been split in two. There's no crime if there's no report, that's the answer to all the voices screaming at her. If no one reported for being too human, if no one reported her for being disobedient, then there's no reason to hold back right?

It's okay... to be a person...

Around her friends...