Chapter 92: Ignition

Chapter 92: Ignition

September 6th, 2089

I am standing alone in the empty expanse of a wide, rolling prairie. The sky above me is a cloudy grey, and theres a bit of a nip in the air that indicates autumns approach. The reason why I am in a desolate stretch of Wyoming on my first weekend break from school is because it is finally time to power up the automaton. I wisely foresaw that doing an extremely volatile activation ritual in a small bedroom apartment would be risky, hence my current location. Theres nothing to destroy and no one around to see anything.

Hikari is spending time with her parents, and Kira and Veronica are working on their first homework assignments so none of them could come. Its for the best, since I dont know what safety precautions I should take. Artificer Steales journal lists the proposed plan for the ritual, but it was only about 90% complete. He died before he could finish hammering out the details, so Ive been forced to fill in the remaining blanks myself.

The body of the automaton is lying in the center of a large, intricate magic circle I made based on the rough sketches in Artificer Steales journal. I added my own touches, which resulted in the circle looking like it was cut from a circuit board with occult undertones. This magic circle has several important functions. Firstly, it will program the initial desired personality, values, and knowledge, allowing the automaton to have a sense of self and the mindset of an adult. Secondly, it will mold the artificial build of the body into something much more lifelike. Lastly, it will jumpstart the mana pump heart, allowing the automaton to activate. If everything goes right, the automaton should be almost exactly like a human.

Originally, I was building this automaton to see if I could and to have another person I could assign to guard those who are precious to me. With the involvement of Dante and Pandemonium, my priorities changed. I wont be able to hunt him down and go to school at the same time. So, I plan for this automaton to do it instead. Ill give it a teleportation marker, and when it finds Dante Ill teleport to it along with Rin. The automaton and Rin can then take care of the lackeys while I engage Dante.This chapter is updated by nov(e)(l)biin.com

I finished the last of my preparations and decided to start. I walked over to the automaton, stopping in the middle of a small, jagged circle that would be my position for the duration of the ritual. I looked at the body of the automaton one last time to ensure everything was ready. The focus of several months of effort for me and a lifetimes work from Artificer Steale lied on the prairie grass unmoving. To say it looked like a large doll would not do it justice. A more apt description would be that it was like a sculpture of metal. I decided to honor Artificer Steales efforts by keeping the appearance and the personality that he had desired for it to have.

The hair, which was made from fine strands of a corroded red hearts iron and white gold alloy, was a light maroon color and was cut in a wavy asymmetrical bob style with the right side nearly reaching her chin while the other was kept short. The face was angular and had prominent cheekbones that went well with the delicate nose and full, red cupids bow lips. The skin was a pale white tinged with pink, made from an 80:20 ratio white orichalcium to blood ore alloy. The body was an even 5 foot 10 inches tall with a willowy figure and a respectably sized bosom.

I didnt notice anything wrong, so I took a knife and cut my wrist to release a spray of blood that manifested itself into a miniaturized version of the magic circle directly above the heart of the automaton. The miraculous spark known as life cannot be created by mere magic (that I know of), but the spark can be shared. Thats what my blood was for, to give the automaton the spark of life that will grow into a full flame by naturally drawing in a soul from the cycle of reincarnation. This step in the ritual will alter the automaton in ways that vary depending on the one whose blood was given.

I stood unmoving, curious as to what exactly she did to the rock. Automaton use mana to power themselves, but they are not inherently able to use magic. Artificer Steale did note that depending on the potency of the blood used to activate them, the automaton may gain an additional functional capability. My blood is certainly potent, so lets see what this is. The rock collided with my forehead with a weight and velocity that should not have been possible with just Irenes normal specifications. Automaton can develop and improve just like living beings, but right now shes still at the initial specifications I had made. Nevertheless, I neither flinched nor faltered at the impact. I was not holding back against this girl who so accurately pushed my buttons.

Irene, who had dodged my attack after launching her own, lunged towards me to engage in close combat. She had that feral grin on again and a manic gleam in her eye that Ive seen before on various battle junkies Ive fought. Nope, not gonna draw this fight out. I intercepted Irene mid-step with a punch to the gut, causing her body to curve like the letter C as she was sent flying across the prairie.

Her flight was cut short however, when I moved ahead of her path and clotheslined her into the ground. Irene landed unconscious flat on her back, showcasing some major dents and a couple of rents in her skin. I could see her clockwork musculature ticking away, and wisps of steam could be seen leaking out. A jigsaw pattern of lights, indicating the magic circuits, appeared across her body and slowly mended her injuries.

With her reboot complete, Irene opened her eyes to my cold visage as I stood over her. Contrary to my expectations of her being mad or defiant, a huge smile crossed her face. She jumped up spryly and then tackle hugged me. I was knocked over by the display of affection since she was far heavier than she looked. That was fucking amazing! Oh, its such a relief to know my boss isnt a wimp! she gushed.

Huh? What happened to the jerk that picked a fight with me? So, you were being confrontational to test me? I asked. The dumb fuck finally puts it together. Yes, I evaluated you to see what needed to be optimized. My boss wont be second best to anyone! she exclaimed. Optimized? I questioned. She nodded Yep. According to the self-diagnostic test that I ran, your blood and all these top tier materials you used resulted in my magic circuits humming with more mana than I need to maintain peak performance. I cant use magic, but I can use the excess mana and my processing capabilities to improve the function of anything I touch. I call it optimization, and its fuckin incredible! Irene gave a smirk as she continued while flicking her pinkie suggestively So, if you ever have performance issues, I can optimize that too.

I sighed at her actions, but decided to ask one last question. What would you have done had I just been a weak loser? I need to know the extent of her loyalty. I can make do if shes only following me because of my strength, but Id rather have someone I can eventually trust. Id have beaten your punk-ass into shape. Irene turned her head away as she muttered one last line softly Youre my creator after all. Id never abandon you.

Is that a hint of red on her cheeks? I foolishly decided to try and tease her about it Aww, so you can be cute after all. WHAM! A fist met my face and buried me into the dirt. YOU MAY BE THE BOSS, BUT ILL STILL BEAT YOUR ASS IF YOU GET TOO CHEEKY WITH ME! IM SEXY AND COOL, NOT CUTE DAMNIT!!!

Artificer Steale, Im not sure about your preferences if this was the programmed personality you came up with.