Purpose

An Introduction

October 3rd, 2038, 12:06:57 am. October 3rd, 2038, 12:06:58 am. October 3rd, 2038, 12:06:59 am. October 3rd, 2038, 12:07:00 am.

The young, hooded figure repeated this to themself over, and over, and over as they slowly tread across the frosty earth of a quiet Detroit park. The repetition was the only thing keeping them sane after suddenly being shoved out into the world with only a set of coordinates and a photo to follow.

Their mind began to wander into scarier thoughts, the figure quickly snapped back to October 3rd, 2038, 12:08:36 am.

They dropped their hood, brushing the long hair out of their face. At that moment they decided they would have to make it shorter. It didn’t fit anymore. They wished Elijah had provided a pair of scissors before they left.

A sigh escaped the teen’s (or what appeared to be a teen) lips. Setting little objectives, like cutting hair, wasn’t doing much to keep their thoughts from scrambling.

Another thing he had failed to provide. Objective. Purpose. Chloe had been given a purpose, so why couldn’t RK300 have one?

They had asked. Many times, in fact.

“Elijah, what is my purpose?”

But every time, the answer was the same.

“That is entirely up to you, 300.”

It was frustrating. Elijah never gave a straight answer.

“Why did you create me?” “Why do you think I created you?”
“What am I a prototype for?” “You can decide that for yourself”
“Why are you making me leave?” “You will find out”

Their creators' answers only led to more questions. Were they a prototype for the YK500s? Or were they a prototype for their replacement? Were they just an experiment? Something made for Kamski’s amusement?

It was all so overwhelming. Overwhelming overwhelming overwhelming overwhelm-

October 3rd, 2038, 12:13:46 am. October 3rd, 2038, 12:13:47 am.
What were they supposed to be doing again?

Oh, right, following coordinates and pictures.

The prototype continued walking across the rough earth, slowly but surely making their way to their untitled destination as they counted the date down to the second.

The park was quiet. Though for good reason, it was the middle of the night. But that didn’t stop it from being any less eerie. RK300 began rethinking their choice of path. It was probably unwise to walk around in the open like this so late, especially as a young-looking person. Well, android.

It was too late for them to turn back now, so they continued, keeping their steps in time with the passing seconds.

Broken street lamps flickered above as RK300’s feet passed from tough earth to tree-lined pavement path. Their steps turned from soft crunching to gently echoed pats on the ground, and despite the flickering lights above, 300 felt so much safer.

The paranoid repetition of the time and date died out as the need to organize their thoughts subsided. Finally, the frazzled droid could appreciate the peace and quiet.

There were no clouds in the sky that night, they noticed. It made for a stunning sight of bright, twinkling stars. It was as if the sky knew what 300 was up to, and was winking down at them to say, “your secret is safe with me.”

The moon was beautiful as well. Its dazzling light flowed down from the sky, casting everything around in a serene silver. It almost looked as if the autumn leaves were glowing.