May The Saviours Return

Mai tried to catch her breath as she wiggled in and squirmed against the congratulations of her workmates. It wasn't that impressive, really. It was something she probably could've done on her own if she upgraded her battery to the new model. She wasn't quite ready for the extra bulk. She didn't want to look fat. Not that there was a problem with looking fat, of course. It's just she was really early into her life cycle, and she didn't want Issac or Kazumi to laugh at her and…

Either way. As she gazed upon her, sorry, their perfect glass recreation of the Milky Way system, she was just happy she had made the Utrecht Dome a little brighter. Her torch finger hurt, but she didn’t care. She was sure she had done it. She was certainly convinced that the majesty of her craft had brought the Saviours return closer.

She had just wriggled out when she was yanked off to the side by a pair of powerful arms. Recovering from a brief spell of dizziness, she could see the pink, pigtailed hair and gap-toothed grin of her friend.

“Well, you were holdin’ on me, weren’t ya?” Kazumi said, playfully ruffling her hair. “Little old Mai actually pulling off something like that? The guys in Pottery said you would lose power before you started on Earth. Heck, the cocky bastards in Poetry said you wouldn’t make it to Neptune! They don't know shit. I knew you could do it!” Kazumi resumed playing with Mai’s hair.

“Stop! I told you before, I don't do it for any kind of recognition. I do it for the well-being of the Dome. I just want to make everyone happy.”

“Well, of course everyone wants that Mai. You can be honest with me, though. I bet it felt great to create something so awe inspiring. If the Elders place that on the roof, they're definitely going to come back.”

“Oh, my stars no! I hope they don't put it in the Observatory! Everyone will see it!”

“Isn't that literally the point?” Mai blushed. Kazumi knew exactly how to push her buttons.

“Shut up! You know what I mean!”

“It really is too easy. Come on. You've worked very hard to create something so beautiful. Isn't your rest period overdue?”

“Yeah.”

“How long?”

“About three weeks.”

“What!?” Kazumi shoved Mai down the hall. Thankfully, all the Domes inhabitants had collision detection built in to avoid serious injury. The two girls sprinted past many colourful rooms. Inside of each, creations were brought into the world. They sprinted past the Glass Blowing rooms, flew past the Painting Pavilion. Mai felt the fresh air hit her face with such force that her eyes and her mouth flapped when they arrived at the Poetry Porch.

One poet complained that their beret had been lost to the wind, but their protest was greeted with nothing but a middle finger from Kazumi.

“That was rude!”

Kazumi shrugged. “What are they gonna do about it? Write a limerick about me? Oh honey, I'd love to be in the situations those lazy losers put me in. Five star potter in the streets, robotic freak in the sheets!”

“Sometimes I don't even know why we're friends.”

“Because you love me.” They came to a stop at a large building. Its hard, bullet shaped exterior balanced against the glowing multicoloured lights that ran up and down the front. Kazumi dragged Mai inside and pulled her up to the receptionist. “This is Mai Kanno, and she has just completed the latest observatory window! Hold your applause, hold your applause. In recognition of this brilliant endeavour, I demand that we have a private charging booth! Please?”

“Kaz, please!” Mai pleaded. It was already too late. Mai could see the stars forming in the eyes of the receptionist. She tried to step away, but Kazumi pulled her back.

“Don’t be so silly Mai! Why, someone as beautiful and talented as you should get all the treatment! Not to mention kind, and wise, and friendly.”

“Yes! Of course! What an honour it is to have the Mai Kanno 2.56 in my charging salon! Oh, I'm all a flutter! Just wait until I tell the kids!”

“Just Mai is fine, please. I will pay. Please, for the love of the Elders, let me pay.”

“No, I insist Miss Kanno! It's on the house, really!”

“You see,” Kazumi said with a wink. She insists.”

***

Mai felt the relaxing sensation of electrical currents flowing through her body. Her muscles relaxed, and she finally felt like she could let go.

The piece wasn't really as taxing as people were giving her credit for. She was a dedicated glassblower. Something like this should come easy to someone who isn't a jack of all trades. Now that her mind was taken off the task, her thoughts were brought back to what Kazumi had said.

‘Definitely going to come back?’ Lots of people believed it, that one day their creators, the Saviours who left them so abruptly, will one day return and take them to a paradise in the stars. That’s why we make art, so we are told. It was the original purpose of the Utrecht Dome. It's what our masters made us for. Therefore, according to the Elders, if we could make art so sublime that it reconfirmed our worth, then they would come and take us home.

It's very difficult to do when you don't know the end goal, though.

“Do you really think they will return?” Mai asked

“Who, the Saviours? Hell if I know. All I know is I'm good at making pottery, so I make pottery. It's as simple as that for me. I'm not like your brother.”

“Issac? Come on Kaz, he's young. He just hasn't found his craft yet. He will. One day, he's just a little restless, that’s all.”

“Restless? He's been caught outside the Dome three times this month. Now I enjoy bending the rules as much as the next girl, but what if he gets spotted or killed?”

“We don't even know if anything is out there. We know for sure that the Saviours are gone. We watched them go, remember?”

“Yeah but…” Mai’s thoughts were interrupted by a loud knock on her pod. Confused, she discontinued her charging program. She was nearly finished anyway, and opened the containment door.”

Looking down at her were the piercing blue eyes of her brother Isaac. He was a lot shorter than Mai on account of his activation after the Saviours had gone. His dyed black hair ran down his face.

“Isaac? What is it?” Mai asked.

Issac flicked his hair back. “Dunno. Elders wanna see you. Probably about me, or your stupid window.”

“What did you do now?”

“Sunbathed on the Observatory roof.”

“Issac!”

“Stop blaming me for everything! It's not my fault I'm bored!”

“Actually, it is. I just don't know why you can't settle down. It makes life difficult for me.”

“I was doing really well in poetry! But they kicked me out of that.”

“Isaac, we are writing poetry that is meant to encourage the return of the Saviours. I don't think writing about how your ‘soul is as black as the deep dark sea’ helps with that, do you?”

“You just don't understand art.” Issac huffed.

“Clearly. Now let's hurry up and visit the Elders before they change their mind about my commission.”

“Whatever.”

***

“We struggle to understand the logic behind Isaac's actions.” Elder Unit One droned. “Does he not understand that the safety of the project is paramount?”

“He does, Lord One. He's just having a hard time adjusting.”

“No other unit is experiencing this malfunction.”

“That's because I am an individual!" Isaac shouted from behind his sister. Kazumi, standing beside him, covered his mouth.

“It puts us in a very difficult position. If the mission is to be completed, we desire harmony.”

“I understand that, Lord Two. As I said, I'm sure with time he will calm down. He is young and having difficulty with his emotions. I am sure the project is as important to him as it is to the rest of us. May the Saviours return.”

“May the Saviours return,” the robots repeated.

“This is stupid!” Isaac stormed his way to the front to stand next to his sister. “They're not coming back. No one is coming to save us. We're wasting all of this time drawing pretty pictures and proving ourselves to people that don't care about us at all. If the planet is empty, we should explore it and make it ours.”

“Colonisation is not harmonious. Therefore, it would be advantageous for us to -”

“Why are we even listening to them? They are old Droids! Metal frames! We are taking orders from machines that might as well be cardboard boxes! We are better, we are younger, we know more. And yet we still have to think about the project? It's a glorified arts and crafts festival, and you're stupid if you think otherwise.”

“Such talk, if not halted, will result in severe punishment.”

“Whatever.”

As disappointed in her brother as Mai was, his point wasn't that difficult to understand. The Elders were working based on programming that was far too old to keep up with the project. They were created back when humans were in charge. Yes, they had a wealth of knowledge that newer models didn't. Yet, to deny conscious beings freedom of action didn't seem efficient at all.

She couldn't exactly go against them, though Isaac was different, that much was certain, but she enjoyed the harmony that the Dome presented. She needed to balance her love of her brother with her own individual freedom. She didn’t want to listen to old model Droids, but she wanted the life she had built for herself.

“Please Elders. Can there not be a more amicable solution?”

“We were designated custodians of this Dome. Even if we desired to do so, we are bound by our instructions. We sympathise with Isaac and we see the merits of his arguments. However, we cannot deviate from the instructions given to us by those who came and went.”

“And what do the instructions say?”

“Exile.”

A few more Droids entered the room, quickly marching up to Isaac and grabbing him by the arms. Mai tried to stop them, but was quickly overpowered by their numeric advantage. Even with Kazumi there, it was a lost cause.

“You know this is wrong! You admitted it to us. I understand that you can't go against your programming, but you must be able to use that programming to find a solution!”

“We are sorry, but the only solution is to have the program overridden by one of the Saviours.”

Mai watched helplessly as her brother was dragged to the door. What was the point of it? It wasn't as if she had believed in the project necessarily, but she took pride in her own skill. She did it because she enjoyed it, because it made people happy. If this was the true method of people’s happiness, she didn't want it. Seeing no other option, she offered a silent prayer to the People of the Stars.

“I don't know if I believe in any plans or projects or destiny. I've seen firsthand how things like that can go badly if used incorrectly. I've seen that today. I don't know if it's because of something I have done, or something we have done, but I see no reason for my brother to be sacrificed in the name of harmony. Please, save him.”

As soon as her plea had been completed, and before anybody could do anything else, a bright blue flash filled the room. Mai watched as two figures materialised before her eyes. When it had finished, she saw two boys. One blonde and in flamboyant clothing, and the other with a big mop of purple hair. Her scans didn't pick them up as robotic. No, there was something different, something she had never seen before, but she knew.

They were organic.

Saviours.

Her joy was short lived, however, when she saw one boy holding a decapitated robot head in his arms.

The room went silent.