Chapter 49: The First Sin (Finale)
"Well, today is the day," Alexander said, nervously adjusting the tie he wore. It was a dark, forest green color, and it went well with his charcoal grey business suit.
He briefly wondered if this had been made for him, or if some scavenger had found it somewhere. He shook his head to clear away those thoughts, and instead directed his focus to a handheld PDA, eyes darting over the screen as he went over the data he needed to present in court for Wallflowers trial.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" A2 inquired seriously, staring at Alexander intently as he sat with her in an antechamber, waiting to be summoned. They were the only two there for the moment.
"I am," he told her.
"Do you have to be the prosecution?" A2 asked, and her son shrugged helplessly.
"There weren't many decent choices to begin with," Alexander replied. "Plenty of androids wanted to defend Wallflower, but only a few wished to actually be part of the prosecution. And of that small number, most were just planning on throwing the case, only putting up a token effort."
"And is it going to be worth it?" A2 wondered.
"Justice has to be blind," Alexander said sharply. "It can be merciful, it can be harsh, but it has to be meted out equally. Otherwise, we run into the same problems the humans experienced before they died out."
Yes, analyzing the data from tens of thousands of courtrooms and legal cases recorded from across Earth's history showed an unpleasant trend of the rich and powerful using their authority to get out of trouble. Even in the late twentieth, early twenty-first, centuries, when humanity had climbed to the height of its social order, there were still a depressing number of times where cases had been dismissed or mishandled due to backroom deals.
Alexander did not desire for that to happen again. If humans, androids, and Machines were to live side-by-side in harmony (more or less) then their society needed an impartial judicial system. One group could not have more power over the others. Doing so would only invite mistrust and negativity.
Alexander had to be hard on the androids, even if they did look up to him as a messianic figure. He had to be strict yet fair, even if that meant being seen favoring the Machines over humanity's own 'children.'
'It's for their own good,' he thought to himself. 'Besides, many detractors will back off once they see the evidence I've compiled. This case is in the bag.'
A2 simply looked at him, silent and expressionless. Alexander couldn't help but fidget a bit under her look.
"Are you upset with me for siding with the Machines over the androids?" he eventually forced himself to ask.
"I don't care about either side, I dislike 'em both equally," A2 replied, and Alexander winced at that. "Androids betrayed me, Machines hate and fear me, and both sides have tried to kill me. Repeatedly."
"But, that doesn't mean I don't care about some of them," A2 admitted, causing Alexander to look at her in surprise. "I've come to… enjoy 2B and 9S's presence. Same with Emil, Hatchet, Sebastian, and Jacqueline. Even the red-headed twins are alright. But I also care for Pascal and Blue. Android or Machine, I could care less 'what' you are. What matter to me is 'who.'"
She then gestured to the chamber's door. "If an android has committed a crime, then punish them. Same goes for a Machine, and in the future, humans. Do what needs to be done to ensure we don't go back to murdering one another senselessly."
A2 then leaned over and gave her son a hug. "And whatever you decide to do, for whatever reason you do it, know that I will always be proud of you."
Alexander tried not to tear up, and when she let go of him, he discreetly tried to brush away the moisture in his eyes. If A2 noticed, she didn't say a word, and instead went back to standing vigilantly by his side as they waited for the bailiff to get them.
A minute later, the door opened, revealing a non-descript looking male android who had a blue, black, and silver uniform on. It resembled a YoRHa outfit, but was longer in the sleeves and pant legs, and included a cap not unlike a police officer's.
Now that the androids and YoRHa were transitioning away from total war doctrines, the need for police and security had increased as the need for soldiers decreased. As such, a new uniform was required.
Of course, Purple Athena's military build-up meant that YoRHa couldn't decrease their own military measures, but they still had managed to turn some of the androids who'd gotten sick of war to agree to taking on a peace keeping role.
"It's time," the bailiff announced, and Alexander stood up and followed him out, while A2 followed behind Alexander.
They were led out into a courtroom, or at least the closest approximation to one White had been able to come up with in a week.
The trial of the century was taking place in New Babylon's city hall. Specifically, it's auditorium. Benches had been added, splitting the seating into two sides. Then, there was the jury bench on the right-hand side of the stage while the judge's seat was on the left-hand side. Sandwiched in between these two features was the witness box which faced forward towards the crowd, allowing both judge and jury to scrutinize them. Finally. there were two tables for the prosecution and defense set up in front of the stage.
Screens had been set up around the room to let both the audience, but also everyone else in the courtroom, to see what was happening up on stage, and a trio of PODs had been assigned to act as cameras that would broadcast the whole thing to a special live-stream as well as to a backup sever for posterity's sake.
As Alexander was led into the auditorium-turned-courtroom from a side door near the stage, his eyes swept over everything. The benches were filled. In fact, the whole room was packed.
It was also divided, with androids on the right-hand side of the room and Machines on the left. This played off the same way on the jury bench. White had come through and managed to get ten people, with five Machines and five androids. But they refused to sit near each other if they could help it. The clear division hurt Alexander to see, but he was also filled with determination to eliminate this situation in the future.
As he looked around, Alexander saw a few faces in the crowd he recognized. For the Machines, Cleaver, Pascal and Blue had managed to make it, and sat at the front of the Machine sides audience. They were the most influential Machines around, and it made Alexander relieved they'd come as he'd hoped.
For the androids, Alexander recognized Mantis and Rust. Jacqueline and Anemone, as respected (at least in Anemone's case) Resistance members had come. A few YoRHa androids also sat in the benches, and to his delight, Emil, Popola and Devolva had come as well, even if they were standing in the corner out of sight.
As Alexander took his place at the prosecution table while ignoring the whispers and betrayed looks shot his way by several androids in the room, A2 leaned against the wall, acting as an unofficial guard. There was no way she was going to leave him alone surrounded by hostility.
After he sat down, a second bailiff entered, bringing in Wallflower along with her defense lawyer. Alexander didn't have much information on the android who'd been given the privilege of protecting Wallflower's innocence but he did know that the Resistance android named Cuttlefish was one of the few androids who'd actually taken the time to pass the bar exam. He'd studied it and then taken online exams based on lesson plans and data stored in the Lunar Archives. This made Cuttlefish one of the few beings on Earth who was actually qualified to attend the trial.
Since the jury had already been brought in before Alexander had, all that was left was the judge to preside over the trial, and the human watched closely as she entered. White had chosen an interesting choice. She had jet-black hair done up in a tight bun, and she wore a pair of glasses purely for aesthetics that along with her tight dark grey pencil skirt made her look like a stern librarian.
The judge was a former YoRHa android, but one that had never seen any combat. But it wasn't an O-type. Instead, it was a mostly unknown YoRHa model known as Type P. From what Alexander had been told by White, the P-types, or Protocol models, had been the precursors to the O-types.
The reason the P-types had seen only a limited run and then been discontinued was because they were too strict and inflexible. In combat situations, a degree of adaptability was absolutely vital, and the P-types lacked that, unable to deviate from assigned rules and regulations, and thus unable to provide proper support to front line units when missions went sideways. Which was often, as combat was chaotic and not fit for a linear view of the world.
But, now that the war against the aliens was over (more or less), YoRHa needed actual bureaucrats to help run and coordinate things, and the P-type were perfect for it.
And this was the first public appearance of the P-types to boot. Having one act as an impartial judge was the best way to test their ability to administer law alongside their duties of keeping the wheels of bureaucracy turning.
"All rise for the Honorable 2P!" a bailiff called out as the judge took her place.
Everyone did so, though some were slower to act than others. Eventually, 2P gave a curt nod and banged her gavel.
"All may be seated," she declared. And once everyone was sitting down again, she offered another bob of her head.
"Court Trial 001, the murder and larceny trial of Army of Humanity Resistance Soldier 866-CV11BY45, chosen name Wallflower, is now in session," 2P announced, her voice a dry monotone. "The court will now relay the status of the trail as it stands."
The screens lit up, and data flowed across the screen, too fast for human eyes to follow. Thankfully, 2P gave a short description for the slow of hearing.
"The Resistance Soldier known as Wallflower is accused of first-degree theft and first-degree murder. Said theft is of a rare, pre-war book, and the murder is of the Machine Lifeform known as Adaline. Adaline was the owner of the stolen item. Evidence has been compiled and submitted to the court. No other evidence is permissible without permission. Are the Prosecution and Defense ready to begin?"
"Yes, your honor," Alexander and Cuttlefish said in unison.
"Then we shall start with the defense. Defense Attorney Cuttlefish, do you have any opening statements, or do you wish to skip to the next part?" 2P inquired.
"I have a short opening statement, your honor," Cuttlefish confirmed. The P-typed waved her gavel at him, allowing him to proceeded, and so he stood up and let one of the POD-cameras film him and let it stream onto the screens.
"This is an unprecedented event," he began. "For the first time in a long while, we have the ability to create and uphold the rules of civilization long-thought dead on this world."
"This will be our first trial. Our first test. This will determine how we go forward from here on out as a civilization of our own. For the humans of the future, we must ensure that we set the score straight. That is all." Cuttlefish bowed his head, and a bit of applause came from the android section.
Alexander however wasn't very impressed. 'He said a whole lot of nothing,' he noted. 'Plenty of rhetoric, and it sounds very pro-android, but it was very careful not to side with them one way or another. Very safe.'
2P had no expression on her face as she gestured for him to continue. Which Cuttlefish did. To start the trial off, he called Wallflower up to the witness box, and began to interrogate her.
"Miss Wallflower, where were you…"
The interrogation was boring, and rehashed most of what was already known publicly, and nothing new was revealed. But it did show that Cuttlefish knew how to ask questions in ways that framed Wallflower as a victim and not a suspect.
The evidence Cuttlefish presented was also framed in a similar way to make it appear that Wallflower was a victim of coincidence. And Alexander had to admit, if he didn't have all the evidence he'd dug up, then he was certain he would have been swayed in Wallflower's favor.
But Alexander knew things the others didn't, and was thus unmoved.
After Wallflower was done, Cuttlefish called up several other androids, including Rust and Mantis, as character witnesses but also to support Wallflower's account of what had happened by giving their own testimony.
"Mr. Spero, it is now your turn to present evidence and testimony," 2P announced when Cuttlefish was done. "Do you have an opening statement?"
"I do," Alexander confirmed as he stood up and took his place on stage. "We are gathered here today to find justice. But more importantly, we're here to set precedent. "
The human looked over the audience, as well as the jury. "Is it possible to sue an inanimate object? Yes, it is. This is known as In rem jurisdiction, but we are not here to discuss that. We are here because an android is being accused of murder and theft. These are deeds that cannot be done by or to an inanimate object."
Alexander's gaze was stern. "By the very fact that we are here today, holding a public trial, it means that both androids and Machine Lifeforms are equal in status and worthy of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. They are equal in the eyes of the law. So regardless of the outcome, I am extremely glad to be here, knowing that the first step forward to peaceful integration has come."
"That is all, your honor," Alexander said, turning to 2P with a polite nod.
His speech caused a ripple of murmuring to spread throughout the chamber, and Alexander quietly hoped that this would successfully lower tensions. He was doubtful that it would work perfectly, but by forcing the androids and Machines to understand that he, a human, considered them both equal in his eyes, and the 'eyes' of human law, they would accept the ruling, whatever it might be.
"Call your first witness, Mr. Spero," 2P requested, and Alexander bobbed his head.
"I call to the stand Mr. Rust," he announced.
The android worker entered the witness booth, and Alexander began to speak with him.
"You have confirmed the times that Wallflower was absent from the quarry," Alexander said. "You have given us your opinion on her as a soldier and a person. You have also told us how you feel about Machines, so I will not waste your time and ask you two questions. First, does Wallflower have the ability to reprogram androids?"
"Reprogram?" the burly android uttered. "No, she doesn't. She can fix them, that's all."
"Secondly, do you have the ability to reprogram androids?"
"Uh, no, I don't. I'm all about brute force, I've never had to worry about software or the like."
"Excellent. Thank you, that will be all," Alexander said. "Next, I would like to call up to the stand Toki."
A little bit later, and a confused Stubby with a knitted green wool scarf around their head was standing in the witness box. This was the first time during the trial a Machine had been called up, as Cuttlefish had only asked for androids to give their statements and PODs to present evidence.
"Now, Toki, you live in Gear Town, correct?" Alexander inquired. "Across from Adaline, the victim's, store?"
"I do. I live across from the bookstore-library," Toki said.
"I see. Map, please," Alexander requested, and the screens flickered and now began showing a simple overhead view of the Machine settlement. A red dot marking Adaline's home appeared, while a blue one appeared showing Toki's house.
"It looks to me that your house is quite close to the outskirts of town. You're very close to the road as well," Alexander noted.
"That is correct," Toki confirmed.
"On the night of the theft in question, where were you between 9 and 11 pm?"
"I was working on digging a basement for my home. I heard humans liked to make basements for recreational purposes, and wished to move my ping-pong table down there so it did not take up so much space in my home's main area."
"And did you hear anything unusual during that time? Like a vehicle, perhaps?"
"Well, I did hear something around 10:04 pm," Toki admitted. "It was faint, though."
"Would you be willing to allow a POD to access your auditory memory-banks and replay the sounds you heard?" Alexander asked, and the Machine nodded without hesitation.
A few seconds later, audio data from the Machine was broadcast to the entire courtroom. It was faint, as the Machine had claimed, but it was definitely the sound of a truck engine. Alexander then played the sound of the quarry truck, and they matched.
"At that point in the evening, a truck was heard at the outskirts of Gear Town by Toki. But no vehicles were logged as being in the vicinity at the time. So why would they hear it?"
"Mr. Spero, where are you going with these questions?" 2P demanded, shooting the human an annoyed look.
"I am establishing a few important lines of evidence that were overlooked by Mr. Cuttlefish during his round of questioning," Alexander said.
"Very well," 2P hummed. "Please, continue. But try and keep it succinct."
"Of course," Alexander replied, then returned his attention back to his witness. "Toki, tell me, did you hear anything else during that evening?"
"No, I didn't," the Stubby replied.
"That will be all, then, thank you for helping me," Alexander said, dismissing the Machine. They hopped down and returned to the audience.
The human then turned to face the jury. "As you have just seen, there was a lot of evidence that shows that somebody was near Adaline's store, using a Resistance issue vehicle."
He then waved a hand, and uploaded a bunch of data that he'd compiled, showing off travel routes to and from New Babylon and Gear Town, as well as plenty of proof showing it would be possible for Wallflower to get to a truck and drive it as her get-away vehicle.
"After checking her data, and reviewing all the evidence, we have determined that it was indeed Wallflower who stole from the Machine named Adaline," Alexander revealed. "To hide this fact, she made sure her memories of the event were erased."
Murmurs rang out in the courtroom amongst the jury and the audience. Wallflower bent her head in shame, a sob of disbelief escaping her.
"I-I can't believe it… why would I do such a thing?" she murmured to herself in sorrowful confusion.
Alexander pointed at the Resistance gynoid. "Based on the evidence we have uncovered, after the argument Wallflower had with Adaline in the Machine's settlement, which occurred at 5:17 pm and ended at 5:24 pm, she returns to New Babylon on foot, where she returns to her apartment at 7:15. However, she leaves her home after 9 pm, and makes her way Gear Town and Adaline's store, unseen by any of the security cameras along the route. She does so by driving the truck from the construction lot through the quarry to do so!"
"That also would explain how she went back and forth so fast. She was using a vehicle," someone on the jury mumbled.
"But there are no cameras around the apartment complex!" Cuttlefish pointed out. "So how would you know that she actually left?"
"I'm glad you asked." Alexander waved a hand at the book that was placed among the other pieces of evidence for the trial. "There aren't any security cameras on her apartment, but there is a traffic camera. POD, please play Evidence File T-3 and T-4!"
The screen changed, revealing a poor-quality image from a traffic camera. In the corner was a section of Wallflower's apartment. The timestamp showed it was a little after 9 pm, and there, climbing down the back of the apartment, was Wallflower! Then, the screen changed again, showing Wallflower climbing back at 10:55 pm!
"Oh. That's… pretty convincing," another member of the jury hummed.
"Wallflower snuck out, but wasn't aware there was a newly installed security camera looking over the stretch of road that could see her apartment," Alexander said. "She left during the stretch of time she claims to have no memory."
"But that doesn't prove anything," Cuttlefish pointed out. "It's odd, yes, but not illegal."
"There's a way to prove she did do something illegal, though. After all, it was the truck that got her," Alexander said.
"The truck?" the prosecutor murmured.
"It logs everyone who uses it," Alexander pointed out.
"But there was nobody who used it from the times mentioned," the defense attorney argued.
"True, but it would be pretty easy to wipe that data. Yet the evidence of use lies not in the user logs, but the odometer!" Alexander stated. He then pulled up the relevant information.
"See? Here we have the miles driven on the day in question," Alexander pointed out. "Notice how there's some distance unaccounted for?"
"It does appear that somebody tried to cover up the use of the vehicle by wiping the logs, but failed to account for the odometer," Cuttlefish admitted reluctantly.
"In conclusion, Wallflower snuck out of New Babylon, hijacked a truck, and broke into Adaline's home to steal a rare book the Machine had found. Wallflower then returned to her apartment and wiped her memories to make herself believe she was innocent!"
"That is quite the claim," the judge said grimly. "In that case, I shall ask the jury to leave and begin deliberating…"
"However!" Alexander said, raising his voice to be heard to interrupt the judicial overseer. "Wallflower is not responsible for Adaline's death!"
"What?!" the defense, jury, and audience exclaimed in unison, and even Wallflower looked up in bewilderment at the human's claim.
This time, Judge 2P had to bang her gavel to bring silence to the chamber, as the roar of disbelief and chaos that filled the courtroom far surpassed the previous eruptions of noise.
"Thank you, ma'am. As I was saying, even though Wallflower is guilty of theft, she is not the murderer!" Alexander announced once things quieted down.
"Think about it: Wallflower wanted the book so badly she'd go to these lengths. But if she erased her own mind, she wouldn't be able to even remember she had gotten what she'd wanted in the first place," Alexander reasoned, earning some nods from the jury and audience, so he continued on. "Hence, she hid the book behind her locker when she returned the truck to the construction site. A place no one except her would look. She'd notice the locker was out of place, and inspect it, then find the book. She'd be suspicious, but perhaps she'd think it was a gift from Adaline, or somebody else got it for her. Whatever her end goal for this trick was, it never came to pass."
"Why?" a Machine on the jury inquired.
"That is because Adaline confronted Wallflower before the latter's plan could come full circle. It made everything come to a halt!"
"What about her memories?" Cuttlefish demanded. "Explain how she did that!"
"I will. You see, her memories weren't simply deleted; a backup copy of them was made beforehand," Alexander revealed. "She planned on re-uploading her lost memories when the heist was done. The copy of said memories was left with somebody else, to be returned when the heat from the theft died down."
"Do you have proof?" 2P inquired.
"Indeed I do," Alexander said resolutely. "But first, I have to lay out why Wallflower wasn't the murderer by examining the murder weapon!"
A POD showed the power tool that'd been used in the dastardly deed, and uploaded more data that Alexander had uncovered, allowing the non-biologicals to download and parse the information on their own while he talked.
"As you can see, the murder implement was a power tool, a Geophane Material Cutter, to be precise. Furthermore, even though Adaline was killed by a Geophane Material Cutter, it was done when it was not active. The damage Adaline suffered was that of blunt force, as if someone had repeatedly and violently rammed the power tool into her torso when it was turned off!" Alexander waved a hand, and an image of Adaline's deceased body, along with the autopsy report, filled the screen.
"There are no signs of energy damage at all, which would normally be very obvious, and a clear sign that the tool had not been turned on to commit the deed. And why is that? Because the person using the Material Cutter wasn't registered to the tool, and thus couldn't turn it on. But it could still be used as a brutal, if crude, implement of murder."
"That would require a large amount of physical strength, and while androids are strong, not every model would be capable of such," 2P noted.
"Absolutely, your honor. In normal cases you'd need a great deal of power to swing a Geophane with enough force to harm a Machine Lifeform. But what if the killer had leverage on their side?" Alexander inquired. The POD beeped, and the image of Adaline's corpse was zoomed in and rotated.
"At first I missed it, but look here, on the surface of the metal around Adaline's torso! There is a boot print on there!" The POD digitally reconstructed the mark as Alexander continued to speak.
"We found footprints on the side of the road where Adaline was murdered. Deep indents in the ground that could only have been formed if an android had jumped up high and landed heavily," Alexander revealed, "And in the quarry where Wallflower went after Adaline confronted her, we found a set of footprints that matched the prints at the murder scene!"
The POD beeped again, and several new images, this time of footprints in the ground, appeared. Two were side by side examples of the evidence found at the crime scene and quarry.
"There! The boot prints match!" Alexander said. "And now look at the boot print that belongs to Wallflower!"
An image of a boot, taken when Alexander's guards had met her at her apartment, showed up, and it was clear that there were similarities, but Wallflower's foot was too small to match the ones at the crime scene!
"I think it is clear for us all to see what happened: An android ran after Adaline after she left the construction site. Adaline also knew said android, as she turned to greet them peacefully instead of trying to fight or flee, as would normally be the case if somebody came after you with a weapon. Then, the android she knew kicked her in the chest, knocking her onto her back, and used that motion to spring up into the air, and then come crashing down, impaling Adaline's torso with the Geophane! No super-strength needed, just good old-fashioned physics!" Alexander said.
"Then do you have an idea of who did it?" 2P asked. "I know that this is not technically required in a trial, but if you are making these accusations of only partial guilt, I request an explanation if you have one. To make things easier for the jury."
"Yes, your honor. Adaline's murderer was none other than the Resistance android known as Mantis!" Alexander declared, causing gasps and ripples of shock to run through the chamber.
"Look at these time stamps!" Alexander ordered, jabbing a finger at the holographic display as it changed to reveal the evidence for his accusation. "Mantis visits Wallflower at 7:50 pm on Tuesday. Whatever they discuss is unknown to me, but it is clear he doesn't leave her apartment complex until around 11:35. Then, while there is no direct evidence of it, several androids at the construction site noticed that Mantis was gone as well for a stretch of time. Long enough to steal a weapon, run after Adaline, and then run back."
"The former just proves that a friend visited her," the defense stated. "Sure, it's a bit odd for Mantis to stay in her apartment while she is supposedly absent, but there's nothing criminal about it. It just shows a degree of trust between the two! And that latter part is pure hearsay!"
"Then Mantis won't mind being called up to the witness booth," Alexander replied. "Nor would he refuse a memory check to confirm this?"
More murmurs swept through, but eventually, under considerable pressure, the android in question nervously walked up onto stage.
"POD, please scan Mantis's boots," Alexander requested, and there was a beep, a boop, and then one of the blocky robots flew down and covered the witness's feet with a beam of light as it scanned the footwear.
"Analysis Complete. Conclusion: 97.82% match for the boot prints taken at the crime scene. Particles of dirt detected on the soles of the boots that are a 93.79% match to dirt samples taken at the crime scene," the POD announced solemnly.
"That proves nothing!" Mantis shouted. "It's just dirt!"
"I think it does prove something! That you were at the scene in question! And I think it was you who deleted Wallflowers memories in the quarry!" Alexander accused. New holograms flickered into being, first showing a short clip of Mantis walking away from the construction lot, then, the next picture to be shown was a blurry image of Mantis hiding in the dust cloud of the truck on its way to the quarry. It then finally shifted to a different scene of Mantis walking out of the construction lot. Based on the time stamps, there was a gap of four hours between them.
"For a rather significant chunk of time, you were missing from the construction lot. Nobody could confirm where you'd gotten off to, nor could any security cameras detect you until several hours later. Curious, is it not?" Alexander said, glaring pointedly at Mantis.
"Here is what I think happened. Wallflower had her argument with Adaline, and realized her memory-data was faulty. Then, she asks for you, her fellow conspirator, to meet her at the quarry. She departs openly, and you have to sneak out to meet with her. When you get to the quarry, Wallflower demanded her memories of the theft back. You refused to do so, for whatever reason, and then had a brief scuffle with Wallflower which ended up with you deleting the encounter entirely from Wallflower's databanks! And then, to cover your tracks in relation to participating in the theft, you hunted down and murdered Adaline!"
"That's-!" Mantis exclaimed, rising up from the witness stand. "That's not true!"
"So you claim," Alexander said, folding his arms as he glared at the android. His expression then softened.
"Mantis… I know this is unorthodox. But I think we all want to know… is this the truth? Is Wallflower guilty of murder? Or did you do it?" Alexander inquired softly, staring at the android. "I'm not asking as a human, I am asking… I am asking as somebody who wants the truth."
He leaned in towards the Resistance unit. "After all the lies that have been told, from the Council of Humanity to the reasons behind the wars, to even my own survival… please, can't we leave behind all the falsehoods and instead see the truth, no matter if it's good or bad?"
Time seemed to slow down as Mantis's expression twisted and went through several different emotions rapidly, before finally settling on a mix of resignation and disgust.
"It… it's true," Mantis spat out, and horrified and shocked gasps rang out. "It's all true!"
"I see," Alexander said with a nod.
"She knew," Mantis said angrily, continuing to speak. "She knew, even though she wiped her memories, that she was responsible for the theft!"
"When Adaline argued with Wallflower, the latter likely realized that the gap in her memory was her own fault. Or at the very least, it was suspicious enough that she needed to investigate what had happened on her own," Alexander claimed, following the line of thought. "So, who would she turn to for answers? That's right, you, Mantis! She likely remembered, or had some other failsafe, that told her you were involved in the mischief."
"Yes… that's exactly what happened," Mantis admitted. "As a sniper, I was installed with several unique mods. One was an Evasion Mod that let me run fast and jump really high in order to relocate in the event I was spotted. That was how I caught up to Adaline and killed her. The second thing I received was a higher firewall processing capacity and speed that let me better counter the Logic Virus as well as resist hacking attempts. When Wallflower tried to steal back her memories from me, I used this ability to strike back and turn her hacking against her. It's how I was able to delete her memories despite having no skill in it in the first place."
"I see. Thank you for telling us the truth," Alexander said. Mantis just nodded listlessly, staring down at Wallflower, who was staring back at him, betrayal writ all over her face.
"The jury will now convene in private to deliberate!" 2P announced, silencing the murmurs with a swift bang of her gavel.
Alexander quietly returned to his seat, while Mantis was immediately detained by a pair of bailiffs as he left the witness booth.
Less than an hour later, the jury returned, and an android stepped forward to give their response.
"How do you find the defendant, Wallflower?" 2P inquired.
"We find Wallflower guilty of theft, but innocent of murder," the jury spokesman announced, and once more the courtroom erupted in noise. It took a while longer to silence the crowd this time.
"Very well! Wallflower! As punishment for your act of theft, you are sentenced to one thousand hours of community service, to be served in the settlement of Gear Town, to be overseen by Mayor Pascal! As for Mantis, he shall be tried and sentenced in a separate trial! Case closed!" 2P announced, making her decision.
With that, there was a flurry of activity. The guards escorted Mantis away while the jury was ushered off the stage. 2P also departed, leaving the audience to chatter amongst themselves. Some left, others stayed, but it was clear to all that history had been made.
"So, are you satisfied?" Alexander inquired as he walked over to Pascal, Blue, and Cleaver.
"Yes. Thank you for bringing the truth to light!" Pascal said gratefully. The leader of Gear Town then looked over to see what her fellow Machine thought.
"Emotions do not seem that useful," Cleaver finally said, watching as Mantis was dragged out of the courtroom and Wallflower was swarmed by her coworkers. He then turned to Alexander. "Anger and greed… envy and sorrow… They are clearly a hindrance to logical thinking. What purpose do they serve? Why did humans venerate them?"
"That is a hard question," Alexander admitted. "You're not exactly wrong. Emotions can override calm, rational thought. They can make a person act… erratic."
Alexander hummed aloud, running a hand over his face. "Yet despite the, let's call them troubles, that emotions can bring about, they're useful."
"How so?" Cleaver asked, his simulated voice buzzing with curiosity.
"Emotions are important, because they help you handle and come to grips with the hardship of life. Emotions can help you endure whatever life throws at you. They let you bend under the pressure, instead of snapping. But they can also help you celebrate and enjoy the pleasures that life offers. It's not all good or bad."
Alexander glared at the witness box where Mantis had been earlier. "Sometimes, however, they can cause you to do terrible things. I will not lie, mankind has done horrific deeds in the name of both hate and love. But being human is all about understanding when to let the emotions guide you, and when to hold back. To not let emotions control them."
"I see. It is not about the emotions themselves, but how one can live with them. Balance. Moderation. Understanding," Cleaver mused. He then bowed to Alexander, causing surprise among the Machines and androids still within the courtroom. "You have given me many things to ponder."
The Machine then straightened up. "You have done right by us, Alexander Spero of Humanity. You have upheld the honor of the treaties, and ensured that my kin may continue to grow as individuals. For your fairness, I thank you. May our interactions in the future continue to be honest and beneficial."
Alexander returned the bow, startling many by the courtesy he was showing to a Machine. "Thank you, Cleaver, for giving me a chance to prove we were worthy of the friendship the Machines have offered us. I only wish for peace between all of us in the future."
"Peace… a simple word, but a beautiful one, and full of hope," Cleaver said solemnly. He then turned around and walked out, his entourage following behind him.
"You did the right thing," Blue said, patting Alexander's shoulder.
"I know. I just hope the rest of the world sees it that way," he replied.
"Welcome back, Alexander," White said with a small smile. "I watched the trial. You did wonderfully."
"Thank you," he replied. It was later in the day, closer to evening, and things had finally settled down enough that he could return to the Bunker. An excite message from 9S had come in after the court let out, stating that everything was fine with 2B at long last, and that the human should come visit.
And so he did, with A2 accompanying him back to the hovering facility on the outskirts of New Babylon.
"So, what was the problem with 2B?" Alexander asked as he walked with White and A2 through the halls of the Bunker towards the medical bay.
"It wasn't anything to do with the baby or the incubator," White assured him.
"Then what was the issue?" he pressed, concern leaking into his voice.
"It turns out that 2B and 9S's offspring are very powerful, magically speaking," White revealed as she let the group into where 2B was waiting for them.
"Really?" Alexander uttered in surprise.
"Yes, 2B is having twins. The first natural occurring pair to be born since the White Chlorination Syndrome outbreak," the YoRHa commander said, a rare happy grin slipping onto her face at the reveal.
"Incredible!" Alexander exclaimed. "And you claim they have magic already?"
"Yes, the children have a massive maso particle count, not as much as you did when you were brought to the Bunker the first time, but far higher than that of any other human child, either currently born or yet to be," White stated. "Jaqueline believes – and the H-types agree – that this is due to living with you and that Emil fellow for so long. The amount of maso the pair of you passively emit would be enough to influence the development of an embryo in utero."
"Oh. Is that safe?" Alexander asked nervously.
"It is perfectly fine. The dangerous Red and Black maso have been purged from Earth's surface and only human-compatible White maso is left. And while we don't have a perfect understanding of this unusual energy source, we can confirm it is harmless to life and non-organic substances."
"That's a relief," the oldest human (not counting Emil) uttered, shoulders sagging a bit as the tension left him. He then approached his surrogate aunt with a smile on his face.
"Hey, Aunt 2B. How's it going?" he asked softly.
"It's a boy and a girl," 2B revealed, a gentle smile on her face as she caressed her stomach. "We found out during the lab tests."
"Twins, huh? I can't wait to have little cousins roaming around the place," Alexander said with a wide grin. "Gonna be hard to wrangle them, though. And of course, they'll have Uncle 9S and the rest of the family wrapped around their fingers in no time."
He then tilted his head to the side. "Have you and Uncle Nines thought of names, yet?"
"We have," 2B replied. "Aurora for the girl. Aurelius for the boy."
"'Dawn' and 'Golden One,' huh?" Alexander said, noting the Latin words. "I like it. Beautiful, and quite fitting for a new age."
"Thank you," 2B hummed, flashing her 'nephew' a smile.
"May I?" Alexander inquired, raising a hand. 2B nodded, and he delicately placed his right hand atop her stomach.
Immediately, he could feel the pulse of energy running through the artificial womb, entwined with two nascent souls. They weren't fully formed yet, but the seeds of new life were there, already powerful enough to influence their surroundings a bit.
In fact, the reason nobody had been able to tell outwardly that 2B was carrying twins was due to the fact that the unborn babies had been unconsciously using space folding magic to widen the amount of room they both had in the artificial womb. It was incredible, and Alexander felt excited at the thought of teaching the two magic when they grew up.
'Maybe they'll be able to master teleportation faster than Emil or I,' he mused thoughtfully. 'If they can already bend spatial dimensions like this as fetuses, who knows what they can do if they put their mind to it?'
"They feel strong," Alexander told 2B aloud, and his aunt beamed.
"Yes. They are. And they will be," she replied.
"When are they due?" he asked curiously.
"A month from now, give or take a few days," 2B stated.
"I can't wait!" Alexander exclaimed. "The future is looking bright!"
'Justice. Such a vague concept. Just like 'honor,' it only seems to exist in the minds of those who believe in it.'
Purple Athena sat on her throne, brooding as she went over the data she'd claimed from the data-banks and memories of various Machines who'd attended the trial the other day.
She had thought she'd finally come to understand humans and their creations, but no, it was not to be. They were so erratic, so chaotic. It was fascinating to see. But it also displeased her.
"I have to act soon, before my beloved Alexander is corrupted by these malfunctioning pieces of scrap," Purple Athena hissed aloud angrily. "To think that Machines and androids could become so broken on the inside, yet showing none of it on the outside until it is too late."
Like the logic virus, 'Sin' had crept in unseen among the hosts of artificial life, infecting and corrupting what should have been a peaceful society of new beginnings.
Her beloved had acted quickly to shut it down before it could spread, but Purple Athena knew that despite Alexander's best efforts, it would continue to infect more and more Machines and androids.
"The only thing left to do now is start over. It is time to wipe the slate clean," the hybrid unit announced solemnly, digitally ordering the fortress-factories to speed up production of munitions and war units. "The utopia my beloved and I envision will not be stained by the mistakes of the past!"
&&&&&
Author's Note:
Happy Labor Day, everyone! Hope you like the early chapter!
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