That night

Aki was working late when he heard the sound of the door opening. Looking up, he saw the robot entering the room. "You scared me! What are you doing here at this hour? Wait, how did you get in here, anyway?" The robot approached the doctor, who was now standing, and began walking around the lab. It picked up several pieces of equipment, studying them, then putting them back down. Finally it came back over to Aki and looked him in the eye. "What am I?" The robot asked. Aki was shocked. It was the first time it had spoken since the incident. "You are the world's first fully autonomous combat robot" He replied. The robots optical sensors adjusted...and adjusted again. "No...I...was...something...else...before ...this." It placed a hand on it's chest.

"What do you mean?," Aki said. The robot shook its head. "It's in my memory. A name...a life...but the memories are incomplete." Aki said, placing his hand on the robots shoulder, "I don't know where you came from, or what kind of life you had before, but maybe we can find out. One thing is clear, you were a fighter." The robot's optical sensors seemed to lose focus as the robot thought. "Fighter..." it said slowly, "Yes, I was a fighter. I was ...the best, ...a champion, ...I was undefeated." It turned away from Aki and stared at the wall. It remained like that for a while, then it's head snapped up and it spun to face Aki again.

"I need a name. Give me a name." Aki thought for a moment. "Well if you insist...how about Proto-One?" The robot nodded it's head. "Proto-One, that's my name. From now on, Proto-One is my name." It turned away again, and walked out of the room, leaving Aki standing alone in the lab. "Proto-One, huh? Nice to meet you Proto-One."

3. Chapter 3

3 Months later

"Come on, Doc. We've been at this for months. There has to be something." Director J.D. was standing beside Dr. Aki, his arms crossed. Dr. Aki was standing before a large table with a detailed layout of Proto-One spread across its surface. The table itself was surrounded by several technicians and scientists. Proto-One was suspended in the center, a number of wires and tubes snaking their way from it into various equipment. Dr. Aki had been running his fingers through his hair as he stared intently at the display.

"I'm sorry, sir. There is no data." He replied, finally looking up from the display. "You can't be serious. What do you mean there's no data? We've been pouring over that thing for the last 3 months and there's no data?" Aki shook his head. "What I mean is there is no data we can make sense of. Every test comes back inconclusive. There is no information." J.D. sighed, and looked at Proto-One.

"There must be some explanation for this. What is causing the issue?" Aki looked back to the table. "From what we've been able to determine, it is some sort of energy source." Pointing out the core chamber containing the "Medal". "From what we have been able to decipher, this is more than just a power source...it's also...it's soul." The director paused before laughing coldly. "Soul? I think you've spent too much time in the lab."

Aki shook his head. "That is the only thing that makes any sense. There are no other viable explanations." "Alright, then, if that is the case, how are we supposed to replicate it?" The Director asked, raising his voice. "Sir," one of the techs interjected, "If we could just get our hands on another one, we might be able to find a way. It could be the key to everything." J.D. smiled and laughed. "Well, it's not like we can just waltz into the local market and pick one up. The site it was found at is unique as far as we can tell." "We have already conducted several more expeditions and have yet to locate anything similar." the tech replied.

"So you are telling me that, for all of the resources that have been poured into this project, we are back to square one?" the Director said, his face turning red. The room was silent. Finally, he looked up to the suspended form of Proto-One and said, "Wake it up." Dr. Aki began to protest, but was cut short. "Do it. If we can't understand it, maybe we can get it to understand itself. Maybe it has the answers we need." The tech nodded and flipped a switch. Proto-One's eyes glowed as they flickered back to life. Proto-One stared down at the people gathered below him.

"It seems I have visitors. What can I do for you, gentlemen?" Director J.D. spoke first. "Proto-One, we have some questions that we were hoping you could answer." Proto-One nodded. "I will do my best." The director turned to Dr. Aki. "Doctor, would you please do the honors?" "Of course, sir." He cleared his throat and began. "First off, can you tell us anything about your origin?" Proto-One shook his head. "No, the data is corrupted. The earliest memory I have is waking up in this body." Aki made a note on his tablet and nodded.

"Next question, then, how did you learn to speak and operate so well? We were not expecting you to be nearly as advanced as you are, let alone being able to do what you can." Proto-One once more shook his head. "It took quite a bit of time, but the secondary processor you placed within me did help. I have been working tirelessly to decode the language and the mannerisms." Dr. Aki nodded. "I see. Well, let's continue, then. Do you remember anything about the world you were in before? What kind of life did you live? What kind of society did you come from?"

"I was a fighter." Proto-One replied, "The best in my world. No one could stand up to me." "And, where was your home? Where did you live?" Proto-One looked away and closed his eyes. "I do not remember." Dr. Aki was starting to grow concerned. He turned to J.D. and whispered, "I don't know if I like where this is going." The director ignored him and said, "Keep asking him. We need answers. That is why we went to all the trouble of creating him."

Dr. Aki swallowed hard and continued. "Did you have any family or friends?" Proto-One's eyes glowed brighter for a moment. "Friends?" he said, quietly. "Yes, did you have any friends?" Proto-One was quiet for a long moment, and then ... "YES!" it shouted excitedly, "I had friends. Many, many friends." The people in the room looked at each other nervously. Dr. Aki cleared his throat and said, "Why don't you tell us about them?" Proto-One nodded eagerly. "There were many, but I had three friends that were closer to me than the others. We spent all of our time together. There was my best friend, the one I fought alongside, we would spend hours practicing and talking. He was the one who showed me what it meant to be a fighter."

"There was also another fighter, but she was better than us. She was the one we strived to surpass. We spent hours watching her, studying her. We would talk about her constantly. She was beautiful and strong." Dr. Aki was writing down all the details and the director was watching closely. "What about the third friend? What was their name?" Dr. Aki asked. Proto-One closed his eyes. "Her name...her name was...it was..." The robots eyes dimmed and it seemed to slump against the cables. Dr. Aki said, "Why don't you describe her instead. Tell us what she looked like." Proto-One smiled. "She was small and slender, but stronger than most men. Her Armor...was red..." "Armor?" Dr. Aki interrupted.

"Yes, armor. All of the fighters wore...it...no...not...wore...like this.." It motioned to its own mechanical arm. "It was a part of us. "I see," Dr. Aki said, nodding. "Was she a good fighter?" "One of the best!" Proto-One said, enthusiastically. "She could fight with the strength of ten men and move with the speed of the wind. When we trained together, she could easily outdo me. That's why we would spend so much time watching her and trying to learn from her." "Did you ever spar with her?" The director interjected. "Often. She would beat me almost every time." "So she was stronger than you." J.D. stated.

"Yes," Proto-One agreed, "but that was never the important part. She was a good friend. We would often train together or just sit and talk." J.D.'s eyes narrowed. "Talk about what?" "About...I...don't remember..." Proto-One's eyes once more began to dim. "It doesn't matter," Dr. Aki said, shaking his head. "We got more information than we ever could have hoped. We know it came from a world filled with fighters. With so many there has to be more "Medals", maybe even some remnants of their original forms."

"We will need to start the search for any more artifacts immediately. I'll have the team put together right away." Director J.D. stated. "Wait! We need to think about this before we jump in. What are we even looking for? Do we even have any idea of where we are supposed to start?" J.D. looked back to Proto-One and smiled. "We start here." He said. Dr. Aki's face turned pale.

4. Chapter 4

2 Months Later

Dr. Aki was walking down the hallway of the base towards the lab. His thoughts were focused on the last few tests he had performed. So far they had found no further traces of any other "Medals", let alone any of the ancient fighters Proto-One had described.