Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Synthetic Emotions ❯ Phase 20: Unraveling… ( Chapter 20 )

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Synthetic Emotions

By: Melissa Norvell

Phase 20: Unraveling…

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"Let's introduce our next contestants - A17 and Akemi!" The announcer's voice rang through the stadium with excitement as he put a hand out, gesturing to the two women who walked onto the stage.

The crowd watched as the two machines met in the center, staring each other down with determination in their steely eyes, ready to battle for the sake of winning their round. Both had strong goals, and both would not simply back down from proving their strength to the countless bystanders up in the grand stands.

"Which one is Akemi?" Paoleii glanced to Professor Gaiga, who was seated next to her.

"The white-haired one with the fur around her wrists and ankles," the scientist informed his colleague of the robot's identity in a calm but informative demeanor.

"What model is she?" The lavender-haired woman directed her sights back to the battlefield and examined the said competitor. "She looks like one of your earlier models."

"Well, she is an 05 model, simply an improved version of the 01, so she has a few tricks up her sleeve that the 01 model does not," Gaiga mentioned.

"You entered the 01 model in as well, didn't you?"

"Yes, I want to test the endurance and basic skills of the two machines," the elder man replied as his monocle flashed against the sunlight. Today was another trial for his creations and it was a great chance for observation and further research on creating a possible new model of Syntacom. If any mistakes and weaknesses were to be found out, then they would be found out here, in this very stadium.

"You do a lot of testing on these machines, don't you?" Paoleii was full of questions today. She had every right. After all, Gaiga had made great strides in science by creating the breakthrough machines known as Syntacoms. She did well to learn some knowledge from him.

"Keeping a constant maintenance record on the Syntacoms provides me with more information on them. Since they change constantly, as humans do, it also gives me more data to work with when I build new Syntacoms and it helps eliminate defects and flaws of the older models," the scientist informed the fascinated woman, who gave him a gentle smile.

"That's efficient and genius of you," she complimented and was thanked in return.

As the two of them broke off their conversation, the announcer's voice cut through the air, as well as the sound of the gong being rang. It was the beginning of a new battle and all eyes were directed to the new combatants.

"So, you were created by my master as well?" Akemi asked in her usual distant, cold demeanor.

"Yes, I am in a sub-class of Syntacom," A17 informed.

"You're new technology compared to me. It will be interesting to see how you hold up against an older model such as myself," the white-haired robot's pale lips twisted into a small smile of amusement. Even if she was new technology, she was advanced in knowledge alone if nothing else. Akemi would have to throw a few attacks at her in order to find her true weakness.

"This is my first battle, so I'm not sure how well I'll do, but I'll do my best," the pink-haired girl got into a fighting position.

"Then let's go!" Akemi signaled the start of the fight as she held both hands over her head and cupped her hands, as if she were holding something round, then she sung them to one side as a chain of spheres that looked like bubbles appeared and shot at her in a line. "Bubble Chain!"

"Sound Blast!" The young Syntacom placed both hands in front of her as sound waves shattered the bubbles, preventing them from touching her form.

"Amazing! The first attack and they already seem matched!" The announcer boomed out as he became enthralled in the match.

"So, you use sound waves?" Akemi straightened her position. Her opponent nodded in response. 'This could prove to be difficult. I use water and bubble attacks, so her sound waves can easily penetrate my attacks. I wonder how she is on physical attacks.'

Digging her care feet into the ground, the robot launched herself at her opponent. She watched as the enemy's blue eyes widened in horror. A17 was tackled to the ground, but recovered quickly as she kicked Akemi in the gut, launching her up into the air. The white-clad robot flipped and landed with one foot down, trying to hit the pink-haired one in the face, but A17 was too quick and rolled to the side as her heel dug into the dirt.

'Missed…'

The agile robot flipped up and spread out her large wings, which looked like the keys on a piano as she shouted 'sound blast' as forceful currents of distortion flew from her wings, giving Akemi little time to react before she was flung back.

"It's a direct hit!" She heard the announcer call out as she caught herself by digging her feet into the ground.

'She caught me off guard. What do I do now? If I let her keep catching me off guard then, I'm going to lose.' Turning, she heard the other Syntacom shout the words 'Earth Splitter' as flung her hands down and the ground split at an alarming rate. Eyes widening, Akemi flipped backwards and evaded the attack.

"Grand Illusion!" Akemi retaliated by thrusting a knee forward as phantom-type bubbles circled around her body and headed towards the pink-haired warrior, who attempted to pull off another sound blast attack, but it simply went through her attack and headed towards the other fighters on the other side of the ring.

"Hm?" Susumu casually glanced up to see the attack headed straight for he and the others.

"Everyone, move!" Eros shouted as they all scrambled back down the tunnel, shortly before it was smashed with the sound blast. A large boom echoed throughout the tunnel as the crowd looked on in suspense.

"A17's attack hit the building that the other fighters were waiting in! I certainly hope that everyone is okay!" The announcer voiced his concern for the other combatants.

Shizu clung to Metal Zoa with a look of shock and fright twisted on to her young features. "That was scary!" She wailed as she hugged the mechanical bird's neck close.

"Is everyone alright?" Susumu questioned as he glanced over the fighters, who all nodded or answered in the affirmative. They looked a little rattled and shaken but other than that, they seemed fine. It was a close hit and being directly on ground level with the fighters seemed a little risky.

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The pink-haired robot pulled herself up as Akemi simply watched for a moment at the other's struggle, then shoved her hands forward as she called out the phrase 'aquatic blast'. Water rushed from her palms, hitting A17 in the gut and launching her light-framed body across the stadium.

The pink-haired robot skidded across the ground, her form inching closer and closer to the infamous boundary line.

"A17 is headed for the boundary line! Once she gets past it, she'll lose the fight! This is coming down to the wire!" The announcer's voice rang through her senses.

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"I hope Eros is okay," Aroura said from her seat as she wore a look of worry. Concentrating on the entrance that the other fighters were once seen at, she saw that no one had emerged and the thought scared her.

"Yeah, Asagi and the others too," Mariko agreed.

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Tartos looked at the chunks of rock that had been shaken free and fallen into the doorway by the sound blast as he heard Shizu remark that they had faced a close call.

"Maybe we should stand back here," Occarina suggested as she watched Asagi walk past her. "Huh? Hey, didn't you hear me?" She questioned. It was dangerous to go back towards the entrance. Who knew if any more chunks of rock would fall? Was he stupid or deaf?

Susumu and Eros walked behind him cautiously.

"You guys really want to go back out there?" Akira questioned, thinking of them as just a little on the crazy side. Someone could have gotten hurt or even killed and there they were, headed back out into the destruction. They were crazy for such an act!

"Whoever wins this fight may very well be anyone's opponent next. Don't you want to know what they are capable of?" Asagi momentarily stopped to head what the ninja had to say.

"Yeah, but we don't want to die in the process." It wasn't worth that kind of loss, not to her.

"How do you know you'll live through the fight?" Susumu reminded her of the no holds barred rule of the fights. Death was perfectly acceptable. There was no rule against killing your opponent.

Occarina was silent. She knew he had been right on the matter.

"If you come here, knowing there's a chance that you may die, then should you complain if it happens?" The bird ninja's voice was calm and cold. If they weren't willing to make a sacrifice, even being as skilled as some of them may be, then they were nothing but cowards.

"But, no one's died yet," Shizu noted.

"That's a good thing. I hope no one does, either," Kisame replied with a sigh. She had a feeling that things would only get more complicated from here on out.

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"Hey, I see someone coming out of the building!" Momo pointed towards the demolished entrance.

A single figure walked up to the announcer and whispered something into his ear. A smile widened on the blonde announcer's face as made an announcement that settled the fear in the crowd's hearts. "I just got the word that all of the fighters are alright. What about that, folks?" He asked as the crowd cheered, happy to hear the news.

"Thank goodness," Aroura placed her hand to her chest.

"That's a good thing," Mariko smiled slightly.

"Man, those two girls are really going at it!" Momo noted, more interested with the fight. Now that everyone knew the fighters were alright, it was time to have some fun and watch the battle unfold.

A17 charged at her opponent as she drew back for a punch. Simultaneously, so did Akemi and their fists clashed as they knocked each other back from the recoil of the force of their blow.

"Elegy!" The pink-haired Syntacom called out as she spun into the air, releasing music notes, which flew at the white-haired girl. Akemi was quick to jump back, dodging the notes as they collided with the ground and exploded, sending pieces of the earth flying up. Running along the ground, the deadly notes followed her, crashing into the ground and causing it to explode on impact.

Akemi turned with her hands out and commanded a freeze attack that consumed the music notes, freezing them solid as the shocked announcer and awed crowd bore witness to her lethal attack.

"Incredible! Akemi just froze A17's attack! What will A17 do now?!" The blond announcer could barely keep himself contained. Even if it was simply his job, he couldn't help but become wrapped up in the tournament, especially with both competitors giving their hearts out in the battle.

The pink-haired girl glanced up to the crowd and caught sight of someone she had not expected to see. It was Ashara. He was seated in the crowd, watching the two with his usual expression of content.

Her eyes widened in slight shock as a gloss of emotion overcame them. She felt her feelings surface for her school mate. 'Ashara…' Flashbacks of that moment they spent in the rain ran through her mind, and the smile he had given only to her. 'I will win this…for you.'

Before she could consume herself in the rapture of her flashbacks, she was hit hard from the right and flew backwards. That moment of distraction was her downfall.

"I have no time to wait for you to process. Syntacoms are supposed to be efficient," Akemi remarked mechanically, noting the robot's obvious defects.

The Syntacom's piano-like wings spread, stopping her in mid-air as her body jolted from the sudden stop. The announcer was quick to mention how amazing it was that she was able to stop in mid air.

"Sonata!" Noel called out as rainbow bursts of music notes shot from her wings. The sudden force from the blast blew Akemi backwards into one of the frozen music notes, sending her form through the ice, shattering it.

"What a fight!"

The white-haired Syntacom slowly drug herself up as her opponent was quick to fly up on her. A17 would be relentless. Ashara was watching, and there was no way that she was going to let him down. She wanted him to smile, to share that smile with her, to smile because of her, to feel fond emotions for her. Ashara's opinion was the only one that mattered. Right now, he was her reason to win.

"A17 is something else. She's really giving your 05 a run for her money," Paoleii continued to watch the two robots with interest, occasionally taking notes to further improve the standards of her Robotics class.

"She is quite impressive for a sub-robot," Gaiga replied with a hand under his chin. "You know, I've heard speculation that the 07EROS will also be here." That, above anything else, was his true reason for being present at such an event. If the EROS model was out and about, he wanted to monitor it and make sure it was safely interacting with society and find a way to safely remove the Syntacom with no problems resulting from the situation. It was imperative that he contain the defective unit.

"Professor Gaiga…Is that why you came here?" Paoleii had a sneaking suspicion that it may have been the sole reason he'd even take the time to sit in the stands.

"I have many more reasons for that, but it is the main reason. The 07EROS is a danger to society. I cannot have it running around Japan as it is. It's far too unpredictable of a machine, and even if it lost all of its programming, it could possibly be thrown back into the mode it was in before. I cannot have it killing anyone and if it is here, then I need to find out why and devise a way to capture it," the scientist explained. It was a matter of duty to him.

Paoleii was silent; she didn't even know what to say. His actions were noble and the teacher could tell that the elder man cared deeply about the well being of society. It made her proud to sit next to such a prestigious person.

"It's a danger to everyone around it and it must be returned to me at all costs."

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"Alright, angel robot…Let's get this over with," Akemi remarked, weary of playing their dancing attack game. It was time to focus on taking her out, instead of experimenting with attacks. By now she had gathered a massive amount of data on her opponent and she would use it to crush her.

"Gladly, I will be the one to win this-" Noel promised, but her words were cut off as she was blasted with a forceful water attack which consisted of water, foam and bubbles.

"Sea Spray!" Akemi called out. 'That should disable her attacks for a while.' The skillful Syntacom thought to herself as she dashed after the pink-haired form, catching up with her as she spin kicked her body, causing it to spin in mid-air and land on the ground, rolling a few times before it landed roughly in the dirt.

Noel pushed her battered form up from the unforgiving ground. Eyes widening, she pushed herself off of the ground as Akemi's foot came down, nearly taking her head off.

The angelic Syntacom spun in the air. "Elegy!" She shouted as a powerful blast of music was thrown at Akemi, but she evaded it by dodging. Noel continued to blast her once more, but the white-clad robot ducked behind a frozen music note. The attack hit the frozen note, shattering it into many pieces that dispersed across the field.

Akemi's eyes narrowed at that moment as she mentally prepared herself for an attack. She aimed her Bubble Blast attack at the pieces of ice, sending them forward with great speed as they sliced up the pink-haired girl, ripping her clothes as she screamed in pain. Her electronic wings were damages and some of the piano keys busted off.

"A17 takes another cruel blow from Akemi! How much more will she be able to stand?" The announcer asked as his eyes stayed glued to the fight in front of him.

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"Whoa! This is really intense!" Hanamei commented from her seat. The girl was nearly out of her seat with anticipation as her white-haired friend glanced back and forth from the girl to the fight below.

"That A17 girl sure is tough," Eri glanced at the injured Syntacom in interest.

"They both are. They've been hit for hit this entire time. I've been at the edge of my seat trying to see who would win," Hanamei told her friend, and it was apparent by the fact that she had nearly come up out of her seat during the fight and stood more than she sat. Eri couldn't believe how into the fight she was.

"That Akemi girl seems like she's going to be the winner," Eri predicted simply.

"You think so?" The dark-haired girl glanced to her friend in question. "A17 is pretty tough."

"Yeah, but Akemi has way less damage," the white-haired girl stated. Usually the one who had the least damage was the one who came out on top. It was an obvious call, and even if A17 was tough, she had sustained far too much damage to win. Probability of her winning was low and highly unlikely.

"There's nothing really abnormal as far as readings go," Hisaka examined his computer screen, which monitored the Syntacom's signs.

"All status and data reports also prove normal," Tetsumaru informed, "both combatants are non-human."

"A17...Isn't that a sub-class of Syntacom?" Chacha glanced to Tetsumaru for a confirmation.

"Yes, the A-Models are newer versions of Syntacoms that contain battle weapons that extend from the body, such as wings, claws or tails. They can conceal those appendages within their bodies and appear perfectly normal until the time comes to fight. They are a battle purpose only Syntacom," the blue-haired robot informed her on the information regarding the A-Model.

"Well, Akemi is an 05 model, so basically it's old technology versus new technology," Hisaka straightened his glasses and took a glance down at the field.

"This should prove interesting," Chacha folded her arms over her breasts and continued to watch the two as each of them tried to gain the upper hand. Both Syntacoms were focused on winning, and that was exactly what they intended to do. One of them would lose, and both of them simply waited to see who would fall first.

"Ouch…" Noel closed one eye and held her arm as her form trembled with pulses of pain.

"Give up. You have lost," Akemi stated coldly as her void eyes looked down upon the shorter Syntacom.

"No…I will never give up. This will be my final attempt to defeat you," she shoved both hands in front of her face and yelled 'Sonic Blast' at the top of her lungs as a powerful blast boomed through the air, headed for her shocked opponent.

"What in the world!?! A17 just fired the largest beam yet at Akemi! Surely no one could live from a blast like that!" The announcer called out, afraid and shocked himself at the sheer size of such a beam. A beam like that could easily make a hole the size of a large SUV.

Even the other fighter's eyes were glued to such an attack. Hisaka simply stared, far too entranced by the sheer size to even type a single letter on his laptop.

"Incredible," Chacha whispered as her hands slid from her chest.

"Whoa!" Hyobe called out, coming up out of his seat.

Shizu hugged Metal Zoa close to herself and let out an eep.

"What the-?!" Asagi cut himself off.

"Holy crap!" Kisame exclaimed.

'I wonder what strategy Akemi will have against this one? So far, she's managed to counter every blow that A17 had put against her. So, how will she escape now?' Tomiko wondered as her dual colored eyes stayed locked onto her comrade as the beam crept closer and closer to her form. "Akemi, I hope that you're prepared for this."

Noel's breath was labored as her arms hung limply to her sides. She glanced down at the ground, then her eyes lifted themselves to the battlefield and saw nothing. The path that her beam had made obliterated everything in sight. It even put a new tunnel beneath the stands and nearly all of the audience had fled before it hit just beneath them.

Blinking, she could hardly believe what she had seen. Akemi was gone. She was confident that she had won the battle. "I…I did it? I won the fight. I'm so happy…Ashara. I have finally proven myself to you." With a small smile, Noel glanced to her secret love on the stands as a sense of happiness overcame her.

Suddenly, a hand reached through the ground below and held her ankle in place. Dread and shock flowed over her face as she felt the simulation of someone's heart, freefalling in their chest. "Huh? You…You got me?" The pink-haired girl's voice quivered before she began to struggle. "Let me go!" She shouted as the ground flew up in pieces behind around her and in a flash, Akemi burst through the ground, knocking the smaller machine off of her feet.

"What an effective tactic. They said don't go over and line and she didn't. She went under it," Asagi commented as a look of amusement was painted on his face. The keen man placed a hand under his chin and smirked in satisfaction. Akemi's tactic was brilliant.

"You lose," the cold realization shot through the girl's senses as Akemi held her hand out and blasted her over the line.

Tears streamed down the girl's face as she felt herself being propelled through the air. She had lost. 'Ashara…I'm so sorry I couldn't win for you. I wanted so much to make you happy.' The robot landed on her back, the crashing of her battered wings against the ground sounded with flat notes, ending her fall and the battle.

"I'm so sorry that I couldn't win for you."

"The winner is…Akemi!" The blond raised the robot's hand in the air, signaling that she had won the fight as the crowd busted with cheer.

Noel lay in her spot, unmoving, She never tore her gaze from Ashara's form as the tears continued to roll down her face. She had failed him. She couldn't win the fight for him, and she could not get that smile that she had longed to see.

"One day, surely, I will not give up on proving myself to you yet. For you…I will be strong My dearest Ashara…"

To Be Continued…