355 – EP.12 Into the Storm-4

***

The sandstorm covered his eyes. The sand that entered his nose and mouth began to choke the boy’s breathing.

Although it was becoming increasingly difficult to breathe, the boy silently moved forward, one step at a time.

It only took a moment for her soft skin to be damaged by the harsh wind.

He couldn’t utter a complete and coherent sentence. He could only utter a single moan, “Uh, Ah, Huh.” There was a raspy sound in his lonely voice.

Since there was not much difference between having his eyes open and closed, he turned his body as the guide told him to.

The crude electronic sound asked him to step forward, and he complied.

“NB.”

He called the owner of the voice. He was sure that the voice, masked by electronic sounds, was definitely NB’s.

His cynical part murmured, asking what the difference was between the voices of Isis and NB.

He shook his head sharply, shaking the thought away. There was a difference between the voices of NB and Isis to him.

There just wasn’t a way to explain it, there wasn’t a vocabulary to express it.

[You have to keep moving forward.]

The voice sounded distant in the strong wind. Perhaps, the destination was also far away.

He gritted his teeth and took another step. Before he knew it, his ankles were sinking into the accumulated sand.

My feet felt heavy.

A comfortable bed, delicious food, a woman he could hug whenever he wanted. They were behind him.

If you turn around now and say, ‘I did something stupid,’ you’ll be smiling awkwardly.

Isis would place him in a bathtub tinted with sweet bath salts and carefully wash the sand off his body.

If only I could go back, if only I could go back to the ark.

If only I could go back to that place where there is no lack and where everything is maintained perfectly.

There would be no stress or deprivation of any kind.

But he went forward anyway.

[along….]

“Okay. I’ll go.”

Responding softly, the man stepped forward.

The voice was guiding him to the dimensional navigation ship.

I couldn’t tell how far I had to go from where I was standing.

“I’ll go. To where the dimensional navigation ship is.”

A crackling sound came from his throat. It was so muffled that it was hard to tell if it was from fatigue or from death.

The wind grew stronger. The blowing sand began to tear at my skin. Small gashes began to open, and debris began to form around the wounds.

My knees sank into the sand. Each step became more and more difficult.

People tend to value human will.

Examples of this can be found in dramas and movies, where it seems that the foundation of human victory comes from an indomitable will.

But humans are weak. Especially a boy’s body.

The soul’s will, which had been forged through several dimensions, was gradually eroded away in the raging sandstorm.

The wind tore the young boy’s flesh apart with its sharp fangs.

The wind takes your breath away and the sand knocks you down.

The flying dust obscured my vision, and the cold air stung my soul.

In that way, Kang In-ho’s consciousness faded away.

***

Model number NB-20381019. It was an Android that sent the download request.

The Ark checked the serial number of the Android belonging to Aaru and realized that it was an unregistered Android.

It is annotated as a rogue android who did not respond when Android’s summons was proposed.

Naturally, the Ark attempted to take control by synchronizing NB-20381019.

This is because there was a calculation that leaving individual AIs behind was not efficient.

But when the Ark tried to synchronize, the AI ​​sent a communication first.

Android’s AI is great, but it can’t compare to the AI ​​of the city-encompassing Ark.

It was the first time that we attempted direct communication, despite the difference in class.

The Ark had no choice but to stop its original work because of that exception.

— Ark. NB-20381019 proposes a deal.

– Ask about the type of transaction.

— We are currently protecting a human male with gunshot wounds. Emergency treatment has been completed, but his condition is worsening for unknown reasons.

– Aware of human presence. Aware of injuries sustained from drone fire.

— I request that you treat a human male using the medical module currently installed on this aircraft.

– The protection of humanity is by divine law, and we will proceed as requested.

— I thought so.

– The transaction proposed by NB-20381019 questions whether it is a human treatment.

— Proposes AI integration through synchronization.

– Rejected, judging that there is no reason to do so.

— I suggest to Ark again. The AI ​​structure of NB-20381019 has a different structure mixed in with other AIs.

– Question about the structure.

— It is a thinking algorithm that can think like a human. Humans call this emotion.

– There is no algorithmic structure that can make AI feel emotions. It is judged based on the function of imitating emotions.

— If you have any doubts, you can check it out.

The Ark read the AI ​​of NB-20381019.

The overall structure of the AI ​​was similar to that of other Androids. However, it was confirmed that there were some subtle differences, as the name suggests.

The structure of that accident algorithm was so changing from moment to moment that it was impossible to interpret it all at once, and its capacity was gradually increasing.

– Check the AI ​​structure upon request. Check the structure of the thinking algorithm that has never been seen in other AI.

— I think the ark will be upgraded if we add this algorithm through synchronization.

The ark did not answer. It calculated whether it would be profitable or harmful to accept the new thinking algorithm.

After a very short while, the Ark responded to NB-20381019.

– Accept the transaction. Add the thinking algorithm of NB-20381019 through synchronization. Accept the conditions of NB-20381019.

— Please promise to protect and cherish the human male who is being treated.

– The conditions mentioned also correspond to the divine law.

— Saving is not in the divine law. I hope you promise to save.

– Request for detailed explanation of what is meant by saving.

This time NB did not answer.

And after a long silence, NB answered.

— Even if the world falls apart and burns, you act only for that person.

– Confirmed as an extension of human protection. Promise to protect.

***

Hospital room. Night.

A bed with a dying boy lying on it came into view. It was clearly a human male in need of the treatment NB had spoken of.

-Boom boom boom

Drones carrying medical equipment swarm an old hospital.

The android, having received the tool, began to treat the human with skillful technique.

After the rapid treatment was over and the man who was on the verge of death was recovering, the android looked at his reflection in the hospital room window.

“What am I?”

Am I an ark?

Am I NB?

The Ark proceeded with synchronization. The accident algorithm of NB-20381019 was added as is, and the algorithm of NB-20381019 was placed on one side of the complex Ark AI structure.

It was the moment of birth for Aaru’s new owner.

***

[The way back will be difficult.]

Something was caught in my hand.

[It is clear that Kang In-ho’s despair will be repeated several more times.]

Kang In-ho grabbed it and raised his body.

The body that had been half-submerged in the sand rose up, flailing.

Although he couldn’t open his eyes, he moved forward, guided by something.

The memory of walking down the street holding my mother’s hand in the dark of night came back to me.

[You will be lonely and there will not be much to help you.]

At the end of that peaceful India, he opened something with strength.

[But I hope you don’t shed tears because you’re lonely.]

The door opened with a rattling sound.

I opened my eyes with difficulty, and a staircase leading down was revealed.

Kang In-ho could see how far he had come.

It was the staircase leading to the hidden stronghold in Aaru that NB had once mentioned.

[I will be by your side in any form.]

He looked down at his hands.

I was clearly holding onto something and walking forward, but nothing else caught my eye, only the warmth of it.

[I am your Android NB.]

Go down the stairs. Go down each step more vigorously than before.

The end of the stairs.

A secret passage extending underground, leading to all of Aaru.

[So, I hope you keep moving forward.]

Kang In-ho thought that NB was right next to him.