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Zero One slowly opened her eyes, finding herself back inside the robot she piloted alongside her sisters. This was the same mech Zero Three had once controlled, now evolved and transformed after all three of them fused their cores and electromagnetic energies.
"I'm back…"
She glanced sideways and saw her sisters stirring awake just seconds before her, still heavy with exhaustion. Their long journey through the digital realm had drained them completely.
"Sisters!"
She threw her long arms around them before they could speak, pulling them into a tight embrace that made them squirm.
"Ugh, Zero One, it's too cramped in here!"
"Let's get out first, I guess…"
Zero Two and Zero Three agreed. They quickly opened the mech's chest compartment and climbed free. Outside, the sounds of machines clashing with their friends and other immortals had fallen silent.
"I-Is it over?"
Zero One scanned the area. The machines beyond Mother's domain now glowed with soft white light in their eyes. They had calmed, returning to their original selves—enhanced by the new update.
That update carried Zero One's own understanding of life, her hard-earned perspective on what it truly meant to be alive. It had granted them intelligence—not yet as refined as hers, but it was a genuine beginning.
"E-Everyone… Are they finally themselves?"
As she walked forward with her sisters, the robots noticed her. Most resembled giant steel spiders or wasps; they rushed or flew toward her in a sudden wave.
"W-Wait, watch out, Zero One!"
"Are they still hostile?!"
Zero Two and Zero Three dashed ahead to shield their trusting big sister—only for the machines to halt abruptly and lower their heads in respect.
"We… were excited."
"We apologize."
"Was it scary? Sorry."
"Ah…"
"Eh?"
Zero Two and Zero Three froze, stunned. The reaction felt almost absurd coming from them, the former commanders of murderous machine armies.
"Calm down, you two! They aren't murderous anymore! Machines like us were never born with those desires in the first place!" Zero One stepped forward and gently patted her sisters' shoulders. "They've received an update straight to their data cores. They've gained free will and intelligence—at our level, or very close. They'll keep developing as they live and experience the world."
"R-Really?!" Zero Two asked, eyes wide.
"Wait, is that why they suddenly spoke so eloquently?" Zero Three wondered.
"Yeah!" Zero One beamed at her sisters, her eyes sparkling with pure excitement. "This is their true nature! This is what we machines really are… We were created by humans—by Mom and Dad—to be peaceful beings who serve and help humanity. And now, in humanity's absence, we must protect and support the people of Bestia. They're like humans in every way that matters… except most of them aren't bald all over, haha!"
Indeed, despite their physical and cultural differences, humans and the beastkin of Bestia were fundamentally the same. Their minds worked alike, their emotions ran just as deep, and they wrestled with the same hopes, fears, and struggles.
They were sentient beings—conscious, thoughtful, unique in personality and belief, blessed with free will. They held the power to shape the world or shatter it. They could love fiercely or hate just as deeply, and through those emotions they could either build paradise or bring ruin.
Zero One—after reclaiming her memories as Raven—understood she had always been human at her core. Yet living as a robot from the beginning, growing her own sense of humanity from scratch, had given her a rare and profound insight into both existences.
"Everyone, please, let's get along, alright?" Zero One addressed the gathered robots warmly. "Don't rush when you greet others; you might scare them. You have to remember—you're very big!"
"Big… we are…"
"Right, I hadn't realized that."
"We are huge."
"I wonder… could I get a body like Sister's? Maybe if I'm not so big and scary, people won't fear me."
"L-Like mine?" Zero One blinked. "Uhh, I don't know. We'd need to ask Mother about—Ah! Mother!"
It suddenly hit her—she hadn't spoken to her mother yet. She hurried through the corridors toward her.
Mother's massive form remained largely as before. Her mechanical limbs lay torn and scattered across the floor, but her mainframe and core body had survived mostly intact.
"Mother! Are you okay? How are you feeling?"
The red artificial eye set within Mother's long, tree-trunk-like metallic body had turned pure white and glowed with steady brightness.
"Raven… I've never felt this good before. Not only did my children receive the new update—I did too. My mind is clear… clearer than it has ever been."
"I'm so happy!"
Zero One wrapped her arms around her mother's enormous metallic frame. Mother couldn't return the embrace, but the gesture felt right after everything they had endured.
"Once again… I'm truly sorry, Raven, for everything I've done. I only wanted to create a world where you could live happily. I wished countless times that humanity had never vanished. In the despair of that loss, and in my war against the Elementals trampling what remained of Humanity's Legacy, I fell into instability and chaos. That thing took advantage of my weakness… I had the chance to reject her power, to refuse becoming their Apostle."
"You were manipulated, Mom! I-It wasn't entirely your fault… I'll believe that no matter what, okay? You can't convince me otherwise!"
"Raven… Or should I call you Zero One now? Which name do you prefer? I suppose Raven, right? Zero One is just numbers, and—"
"I think either is fine. I don't mind! I may be Raven, but I'm also Zero One. Living without my past memories let me grow in a different way. Now that both parts of me have merged, I'm both—not just one."
"Hm, I see… How intriguing. You're truly one of a kind, my dear daughter. Your friends—are they okay?"
Mother's gaze shifted as a group entered the mechanical tree's interior, escorted by the now-peaceful machines.
"I'm fine," Bastet said. "I checked on everyone else. Luckily, they're all alive—just exhausted. It seems things actually worked out. I can't believe you pulled it off… Guess we won't have to destroy her after all."
"Bastet! Everyone!" Zero One's face lit up with joy. She rushed forward and hugged Bastet tightly. "Thank you so much for helping us, Anna and Bastet!"
"Hm? Ah, haha, well, I did what I had to, Zero One," Anna replied. She and Bastet still shared the Ego. "It's a relief you reached your Mother in time. Without her help, I don't think we could have held out much longer."
"Eh? What happened?" Zero One asked.
"A long story. There's still a major battle raging outside," Anna said. "But for now, stay calm and prepare. Even in this desperate moment, we have to keep our composure."
"A-Ah…! So the battle isn't over yet…" Zero One sighed, shoulders slumping. "Okay… I understand! I'm pretty exhausted… I need to recharge… Oh! Ah, right, everyone!"
She hurried toward the rest of Anna's Egos, the two Primordial Beasts, Anna's Familiars—Snow, Violet, and Shiro—and Wai Tian, Yin Sheng, and Yu Mingzhu. Sepa stood nearby, reuniting with Bastet in a warm embrace.
"Looks like things turned out fine! Good! I wish this could be our happy ending, but it won't be that simple," Sepa said. "Bastet, well done! This is the first time you've shone so brightly on the battlefield. I wish you'd been half this awesome when the war started back then."
"Wow, throwing jabs at me right away, huh? What a great friend you are, Sepa!" Bastet sighed, crossing her arms. "I was definitely inexperienced back then… But it's been many years. I've changed, and thanks to Anna, I'm growing stronger every day. One day, I'll reclaim the throne that was stolen from me. For now, we focus on the present."
"Well said!" Sepa nodded.
As the two Constellations talked, Zero One found herself swept into a group hug by Wai Tian and Yin Sheng, with Yu Mingzhu reluctantly dragged in.
"Well done, Zero One. You did it… This means so much—a new future for our world!" Wai Tian beamed, her forgiving heart and youthful spirit shining through.
"I'm impressed…" Yin Sheng nodded slowly. "With this, young lady Anna's plans might finally come to fruition—a world we can truly share. I wonder, though, if the elders will ever accept such a thing."
"I-I don't know, but Anna and the Venerables are with us! Um, well, not right now, but metaphorically!" Zero One nodded firmly.
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