Heart's Proof

"Damn you, Malakh!" Yoshima said as the walls for the room retreated to the ground leaving only the floor and consoles with the computers lined around the former perimeter. They had all been brought before the people that they were trying to kill.

"So good of you to join us General Yoshima and Lt. Colonel Takamoto!" Yuu shouted for all of the room to hear announcing their names as to bring focus to them. He turned away for a moment pushing a button on the console causing it to blink.

The summit members looked around at each other confused and bewildered by the events that were transpiring for them. They had been arguing with each other only a minute ago accusing the machines of treachery until the earthquake had silenced everyone. Now they had people appearing from the floor. "What's the meaning of this?"

"Who are you people?" Dozens of questions flew around the room barely being distinguishable for the other as people stood up demanding to be told what was going on. The machine delegates sat in their seats, the ones from Seraphim narrowly calculating while the Malakhim spoke with the others confused.

Yuu adjusted his shirt, cleaning it up a little bit from all of the dust that had collected. He stepped forward becoming equidistant from all of the delegates. "Good day honored leaders and representatives of the world. I am Yuu Hongawa of Qintech. However, I go by another name, Malakh, the organizer of this summit."

The delegates broke into another roar of questions as Yuu only added to their confusion with his introduction. None of them had ever met this man before and could not understand how he could be claiming himself to be the person that organized everything. "What is he talking about?"

"Who is this man?"

Takamoto looked narrowly across the floor at Yuu wanting answers of his own. "What are you scheming, Malakh?"

"I come before the summit to reveal to you the truth of this world. I've activated the broadcasting equipment in this facility and by now all media centers throughout the world are airing this." Yuu gave him a smirk as Takamoto ordered his men to aim their weapons on Yuu realizing that he was going to destroy everything that they had been working to accomplish. "I wouldn't do that Lt. Colonel, there's one thing about advanced weapons, they break very easily."

His men tried to pull the triggers on their rifles but found them jamming up. He pulled one of them out their hands looking at the display at top. All of the computer components had been fried, disabling the weapon. "Damn you."

"Now that I have your attention. I would like to introduce the world to Lt. Colonel Takamoto and his squad." Yuu stepped forward pointing at the respective individuals out to the delegates and cameras. "These men before you are in fact all machines."

The room was disrupted again by everyone shouting in disbelief or in fear. Most weren’t willing to believe that the men in the military were machines and so well disguised that they couldn’t even tell. It was like seeing Isaac for the first time. Their likenesses were so realistic. "He's lying."

"What game are you playing?"

"No game," Yuu said to the delegate that leaned forward pounding his fist on the table. He gave them a controlling grin back continuing with his reveal. "This is the truth. In fact there are approximately forty machines in this room right now. These five here aren’t the only machines. The representative from Hong Kong is a machine, the one from Germany, Hungary, South Africa, and the list goes on."

"What is this?"

"They're everywhere!" All of the people were looking around at each other looking like they were seeing machines around every corner. They were surrounded by machines. The noise was becoming uncontrollable until Yuu spoke again, repeatedly gaining their attention as though he had mesmerized the crowd.

"Yes, the machines that you all thought that you were fighting hiding in holes and caves in the back water areas of the world are before you. They have infiltrated into all levels of society working in the shadows. In fact most don't even know that they are in fact machines. None of these here do." All of the agents of Seraphim that had been placed out in society were working with programming that made them believe that they were just normal human beings living out a normal life.

"It was their plan to kill all of the human representatives and leaders here, weakening their governments and pushing their agents into prime positions of power. However, they weren’t working alone. With them was this man General Yoshima and the organization that he belongs to. A group of businessmen looking to take power for themselves from the shadows as the machines wipe out their competition."

Yoshima stared at Yuu in surprise trying to figure out how he could possibly know so much about them. There were no machines in the organization and they were formed in secret that only the Seraphim knew about their existence. "How could you possibly know all of this?"

"I knew what Seraphim was up to for a while, but it was thanks to the time that I had with Asami that I learned about your group and the dealings that they had with you. From there all I had to do was hack into your network. It was their plan to kill all of the machines taking the glory of the victory as their way to solidify their position as they took over. For them to achieve this they would need the aid of one machine that the world never knew about, Adam!"

Yuu turned away from everyone and stepped back to the console holding his hand over a newly flashing light. Satoru quickly rushed over to him, knocking him aside so that he couldn’t push the button. "What are you doing, Yuu? You're going to kill them all if you activate it!"

Takamoto took only a second to figure out that he was trying to activate Adam at the console. He couldn’t believe that Malakh, the hand of Adam and neutral machine, would be the one that would bring their destruction. "Are you going to kill all of us? All of your brethren?"

Out of the corner of the assembly Isaac stood up from the table having been silent watching everything unveil before them. It had been difficult for him to watch the humans that he had grown to know become even more paranoid of their existence while knowing that this was a necessity to move forward. However, he could see what Malakh was planning now and he couldn’t believe that Malakh would do such a thing. "Malakh! This is not what we planned!"

"Isaac, trust me," Yuu said, meeting eyes with Isaac. He had the look that said he knew what he was doing without any question or doubt, no regret at all in his mind. "The world is ready for this."

"They aren't ready!" Isaac protested trying to have him see reason. At this point everyone in the assembly realized that Isaac and Malakh knew something that everyone else didn’t. Even the other machines were becoming confused wondering if they were certain of what was going to happen when Adam woke up from his slumber.

"They are never ready, but this must be done." Yuu immediately turned around, no longer going to hold his debate with Isaac and pushed the button that had been anxiously waiting.

Suddenly from behind the console at the wall of the former platform dust erupted forth drawing all attention. The wall split apart receding to the floor revealing a machine of old with a roughly carved face from plastic. It was Adam. Out of the wall came wires grabbing Asami up restraining her quickly enough that she couldn’t struggle until a paralyzing feeling came over her. Satoru rushed up to Asami pulling at the wires trying to free her. "Stop it! What are you doing to Asami? Asami!"

"She is required." Yuu looked forward, pleased to see everything working correctly. He made the final adjustments on the console letting the computers handle the rest. "Adam needs a conduit, one that is similar to him. As are you required." Wires flew out of the wall grabbing up Satoru holding him tightly as the two were brought towards Adam. The two stared at each other without speaking, not needing any words. Yuu caught the glance of Satoru as he was left in disbelief realizing that he was actually part of his plan and not an anomaly. "Words are lies to build trust. I told you shouldn't trust me or believe everything I say."

"Similar?!" Takamoto said alerted to the carefully chosen words that had been spoken. He wasn’t completely briefed on what Asami truly was, but he knew enough to know what Malakh was getting at when he spoke. "But that would mean…"

"Yes, Adam is not the ultimate weapon of destruction that will bring the end to all machines around the world. He is quite the opposite in fact, he was meant to bring a new era for all machines. Adam has been waiting for the time when machines were developed enough to be able to accept what he truly is. Mankind was advanced enough to create Isaac, but they couldn’t give him everything; it created too many contradictions in his programming to handle everything that they wanted. So they separated out what he could not accept and made Adam. Adam is Isaac's conscious and feelings that he couldn’t accept. His feelings were so complex and conscious so heavy that Isaac simply broke down and they were forced to come up with the three Laws, a very simplified version.

"Machines have advanced enough now that they can accept the contradictions that come with having a conscience. They already experience parts of emotions and now they can even love. The awakening of the conscious will wake all machines throughout the world to who they are. All of the Ishim will realize what they truly are. It is over for you." The machines began shouting at Yuu quickly while the humans bickered with each other, not certain what to believe. They weren’t sure if it was good or not to be giving all machines a consciousness and all of the human emotions that came with it.

"This is what you were planning?" Satoru said, struggling from the wall, unable to simply be quiet anymore now that he knew what Yuu was truly planning. While on some level Satoru could agree with what he was doing this wasn't the way to do it. "You're forcing evolution, what if they can't handle it?"

"Malakh, you've overstepped your bounds," an unknown voice boomed from the wall bringing silence to everyone in the room. All attention turned back after Yuu's final revelation that had disrupted the delegates and machines alike.

"Huh?" Yuu turned back to the panel seeing the readings that were coming up were reversing. Everything was being halted and shut out from his control. The command codes were changed. "What are you doing? Adam?!" He looked up to see that Adam was fully awake now and released Satoru and Asami. "It can't be!"

"Malakh, it is only for them to decide when the time is right. You can't force this upon them."

"But nothing will change if this doesn’t happen!"

"You don't know that. This one has already done it. Even though you've stopped believing in them, these two have not." He had a proud look in his eyes as he looked down upon the two as they held each other. Adam turned back to Malakh staring him down. "I know that when the time is right they will find the way on their own. This is not the way."

The shutdown command was activated and now that he was locked out there was no way of reviving Adam anymore. Yuu pounded the console smashing his fists through the plastic interface. "No! You can't do this!" The light in Adam retreated as he returned to sleep forever not to be disturbed again. Yuu backed away from the room, nearly stumbling. He had lost everything now. His plans were ruined by the one that he counted on to aid him. "It was you!" He pulled the gun out that he had taken from Satoru pointing at Satoru.

"Satoru!" Asami said putting her back to Yuu to protect him. She couldn’t let him die now at this point.

"It was all your fault, you tainted his soul!" Yuu screamed, firing off a round from the gun as it grazed Asami's shoulders. "DIE!" He fired again and again into her back and arm until she lost feeling in her arm, blood pouring down the skin.

"Asami!" Satoru tried to get free from her so that she wouldn’t die from the bullets that she was taking for him. He couldn’t let her die for her. She had only begun to live now.

"No, Satoru…I'm alright. It'll take more than this." She gave him a comforting smile as she felt another bullet pierce her back. All feeling in the right side of her body faded as she struggled to keep a hold on Satoru. He could see her arm shaking, fighting to stay around him, but finally fell to the side.

"Don't get in my way!" Yuu said walking over to the two getting a clearer shot aiming straight at her head. Even being a machine she couldn’t deflect a bullet that close.

Satoru's eyes widened, feeling the seconds of time pouring slowly out. 'I can't let her do this for me!' He put all of his strength in his legs and thrust himself around from the ground as Yuu fired out the bullet at her head. In the moments that dragged out, Asami realized what he was doing trying to struggle, but her weakened body refused her. His body came in line with the shot as it pierced him in the back hitting his heart. Satoru coughed suddenly as he felt the bullet rip through him and knowing that his time would be coming to an end soon. "Asami…"

"SATORU!" Asami cried holding his fading body in her arms, as he didn’t move. Tears flowed down her cheeks unrestrained as she looked up at Yuu. He killed the man that she loved and he would pay for it. Anger boiled up in her heart as she set Satoru to the ground and leapt up from the ground, taking Yuu by the throat, sending him into the ground. The force that she struck him cracked all of the ground around him making a crater and pushing him through. He was momentarily stunned, but returned to life a second later grabbing for her.

Asami jumped up dragging him through the air pounding his head into the ceiling. Parts of the ceiling fell apart as Yuu's head smashed through causing the delegates to scatter. She ripped him out using gravity and force pushed off from the ceiling to bring his entire body through the tables of the assembly splintering them to pieces as Yuu's body slid across the floor leaving cracks in his wake. Asami leapt to where he landed ramming her good arm into his face repeatedly as blood sprayed over her. The life in Yuu's body began to fade now under the endless fury of Asami until there was a weak cough that pierced through all. "Satoru!" She could hear him through everything that was happening as clear as day, draining away all of her anger.

She pushed the tables aside running back to him with tears streaming down her face. "Satoru!" Asami lifted Satoru up from the ground, seeing the small pool of blood already forming. She held him in her arms letting him lean against her. "Speak to me! Why? You…y-you didn't…have…"

Satoru blinked slowly, coming back around weakly. He could feel the warmth coming off of Asami and smiled at her. "You saved my life…now I saved you…" Satoru coughed several times as blood poured up from his mouth dripping down his chin.

"No! Don't leave me alone! Satoru! I can't go on…"

He struggled to lift his hand up bringing to her face wiping away the tears from one side. "I'll be with you…always…I love…you…" Satoru couldn’t feel his body anymore as his hand fell to his lap. Asami leaned down, shaking him trying to keep him awake. His eyes slowly closed as he let out his last breath. "Asami…"

"SATORU! NO!" Asami held his body against her rocking slowly back and forth crying, unable to stop. She couldn’t feel anything anymore. The man that she loved was gone, she felt so empty. She couldn’t hear anything around her as the police arrived at the assembly room.