Maverick

The Smallest Reploid

December 21, 21XX: Eight months after X's discovery- four months before Zero's discovery

. . .

Snow had made itself known on the ground about an hour ago on the excavation site. For the Reploids in charge of the expedition, the cold weather was not a problem for their inorganic bodies. Sigma and Dr Cain had placed Gate in charge of the excavation today, and it was going along well. So far the team had recovered many of Thomas Hikari's old schematics and discs, but Gate believed that they had yet to reach the tip of the iceburg. The team had gotten through what had remained of the two level home, but they had yet to get into the basement.

"Careful," Gate warned the crew, "We all know how unstable this house is now- be gentle."

The team had found two ways into the basement- there was a door on the first floor that led down, and there was a pair of doors facing down on the ground outside that had a lock on it. Gate had split the crew into two so that either could get into the basement one way or another. It was tricky business making sure that whatever method used to get into the basement was dealt with gently and with less risk of the whole house collapsing under them. Gate paced between the two teams and helped them if they needed it, but without him they were doing rather well.

The team working on the outside doors were successful in getting them open first.

"Good work." Gate approved when he saw the carefully opened doors. The door revealed a pair of stairs that descended into the ground, and the wayward snowflakes in the air rested on a few of the topmost stair steps. Gate gave a signal to a few of the Reploids in charge of scouting the new area and let them go in first, then Gate waited a few minutes for them to come back. The snow was blowing a bit harder now, knocking old snow from the few dead trees surrounding them, but it did not effect Gate one bit. Patiently, he waited for the scout crew to come back with their news.

"There's... there's a status pod down there." one of the crew members said as they came back up the old stairs.

"What kind of status pod?" Gate asked.

"It looks to be the same kind that they found Zero in... except..."

"Except, what?"

"It appears to be that a young child is in the status pod. We can't make out whether it is indeed a human child or a robotic contraption mimicking the appearance of a child."

Gate looked at the scout with a sense of disbelief.

"You're telling me that you think a human child is inside a status pod that has been trapped in a decaying home for over a century?" Gate asked the scout, letting his tone veer toward anger and even more disbelief.

"We will send teams to get the child out, sir." the scout then told Gate.

"Quickly." Gate affirmed. "And you will lead me to this child as well."

"Yes sir."

In a few moments, half of the crew was ready to enter the basement. Gate looked over all that where going to enter with him and nodded in approval to a scout. The team then started to descend into the dark and musty basement. Gate patiently walked behind the scouts as they led him through the basement forgotten by time and in much more disarray than the rest of the house seemed to be. It didn't take long for them to reach the status pod that contained the child. The scouts got out of the way so Gate could carefully peer into the pod- mold was slowly lining every crack and water was dripping for the pod, although the source could not be instantly found.

Sure enough, Gate could see the tiny figure of a human child inside the status pod.

"Can we open it?" Gate asked.

"Of course sir." a scout agreed, ushering Gate forward to be the one to open it. Gate got closer to the pod and investigated it for a moment before he pressed a release hatch. Slowly, the opening of the pod hissed as air from the past was being released into the now present era. The lid of the pod slide away to reveal that a female human child was very much inside the status pod after all, and not only that, but appeared to be breathing. Gate stared as the child began stir and slowly started to open her eyes.

"Unbelievable." he hissed under his breath.

A Reploid present that was programed for medical aid stepped forward and inspected the girl.

"Little girl, can you tell me your name?" the medical Reploid asked as he flashed a small flashlight in her eyes. The child looked up at the Reploid curiously.

"Alia..." the girl said slowly, sounding both confused and curious of her surroundings. The medical Reploid turned to Gate.

"She is an inorganic life form." the medical Reploid informed Gate.

"So she's a Reploid as well?" Gate asked. The medical Reploid nodded.

"Definitely the most smallest we've seen by far." the Reploid told Gate. "Personally, I didn't quite think it was possible. Human brains are complicated to replicate -it took humans how many years to perfect us?- but the brain of a child is far more complicated than one of an adult. It's more curious, it's always learning, it never stops growing in potential."

"Then what do you recommend doing with her?" Gate asked. The medical Reploid gave Gate a bit of a smirk.

"I recommend doing the same thing I'd recommend if she were human."

"And what would that be?"

"Adopt her."

Gate stared at the medical Reploid with a blink.

"Pardon?"

"You heard me." the Reploid told Gate in a more cynical and amused tone. "My suggestion to you is to adopt the little Reploid like you would have if she was human. It is the best idea for a brain capacity comparable to a human child's- she needs a home."

"And what makes you think I'm the one, out of all of us, that takes her in?"

"You were in charge of this expedition, you are in charge of whatever we find. Including, but not limited to, a young Reploid that has the same cognitive understanding of a human preschooler."

Gate looked at the medical Reploid with pure shock. Meanwhile, the little Reploid in the status pod looked at them curiously as she bit away at her thumb nail.